Eiffel Tower Timeline

For the 1900 Exposition Universelle, the lifts in the east and west legs were replaced by lifts running as far as the second level constructed by the French firm Fives-Lille.

On 19 October 1901, Alberto Santos-Dumont, flying his No.6 airship, won a 100,000-franc prize offered by Henri Deutsch de la Meurthe for the first person to make a flight from Saint-Cloud around the Eiffel Tower and back.

Image source: Alberto Santos-Dumont

In 1909, a permanent underground radio centre was built near the south pillar, which still exists today. The tower has been used for making radio transmissions since the beginning of the 20th century.

Following the expiration of the original concession, the tower was permitted to remain, becoming an integral part of the International Time Service in 1910. From 1910, astronomical clocks of the Paris Observatory sent time signals daily through the tower within a radius of 5,000 km.

Image source: International Bureau of Weights and Measures

In 1910, Father Theodor Wulf measured radiant energy at the top and bottom of the tower, contributing to early research into cosmic rays.

Image source: Theodor Wulf

On 4 February 1912, Austrian tailor Franz Reichelt died after jumping from the first level of the tower (a height of 57 m) to demonstrate his parachute design.

Image source: Franz Reichelt

On 20 November 1913, the Paris Observatory, using the Eiffel Tower as an aerial, exchanged wireless signals with the United States Naval Observatory, which used an aerial in Arlington County, Virginia.

Image source: Paris Observatory

On two separate but related occasions in 1925, the con artist Victor Lustig 'sold' the tower for scrap metal in one of history's most famous confidence tricks.

Image source: Victor Lustig

From 1925 to 1934, illuminated signs for Citroën adorned three of the tower's sides, making it the tallest advertising space in the world at the time.

Image source: Citroën

A year after Lustig's scams, in February 1926, pilot Leon Collet was killed trying to fly under the tower.

A bust of Gustave Eiffel by Antoine Bourdelle was unveiled at the base of the north leg on 2 May 1929.

Image source: Antoine Bourdelle

In April 1935, the tower was used to make experimental low-resolution television transmissions, using a shortwave transmitter of 200 watts power.

In 1938, the decorative arcade around the first level was removed.

At the outbreak of World War I in 1914, a radio transmitter located in the tower jammed German radio communications, seriously hindering their advance on Paris and contributing to the Allied victory at the First Battle of the Marne.

Image source: First Battle of the Marne

In 1917, the station intercepted a coded message between Germany and Spain that referenced 'Operative H-21.' This information contributed to the arrest, conviction, and execution of Mata Hari, the famous dancer accused of spying for Germany.

Image source: Mata Hari

By 1918, the tower had become a symbol of Paris and of France after Guillaume Apollinaire wrote a nationalist poem in the shape of the tower (a calligram) to express his feelings about the war against Germany.

Image source: Guillaume Apollinaire

Upon the German occupation of Paris in 1940, the lift cables were cut by the French. The tower was restricted to German visitors during the occupation and the lifts were not repaired until 1946.

In 1940, German soldiers had to climb the tower to hoist a swastika-centred Reichskriegsflagge, but the flag was so large it blew away just a few hours later, and was replaced by a smaller one.

When the Allies neared Paris in August 1944, Hitler ordered General Dietrich von Choltitz to demolish the tower along with the rest of the city. On 25 August, before the Germans had been driven out, the German flag was replaced with a Tricolour by two men from the French Naval Museum, beating three men led by Lucien Sarniguet, who had lowered the Tricolour on 13 June 1940.

Image source: Liberation of Paris

A fire started in the television transmitter on 3 January 1956, damaging the top of the tower. Repairs took a year, and in 1957, the present radio aerial was added to the top.

A television antenna was first installed on the tower in 1957, increasing its height by 18.7 m (61 ft). Work carried out in 2000 added a further 5.3 m (17 ft), giving a total height of 324 m (1,063 ft).

In 1964, the Eiffel Tower was officially declared to be a historical monument by the Minister of Cultural Affairs, André Malraux.

Image source: Monument historique

According to interviews, in 1967, Montreal Mayor Jean Drapeau negotiated a secret agreement with Charles de Gaulle for the tower to be dismantled and temporarily relocated to Montreal to serve as a landmark and tourist attraction during Expo 67.

Image source: Expo 67

The tower was originally reddish brown; this changed in 1968 to a bronze colour known as 'Eiffel Tower Brown'. It has been completely repainted at least 19 times since it was built, most recently in 2010 when it was re-painted yellow-brown. Lead paint was used until 2001, when the practice was stopped out of environmental concern.

In 1982, the original lifts between the second and third levels were replaced after 97 years in service. In 1983, the south pillar was fitted with an electrically driven Otis lift to serve the Jules Verne restaurant.

Robert Moriarty flew a Beechcraft Bonanza under the tower on 31 March 1984.

The engravings, painted over at the beginning of the 20th century, were restored in 1986–87 by the Société Nouvelle d'exploitation de la Tour Eiffel. The Fives-Lille lifts in the east and west legs, fitted in 1899, were extensively refurbished in 1986.

On 27 October 1991, Thierry Devaux, along with mountain guide Hervé Calvayrac, performed a series of acrobatic figures while bungee jumping from the second floor of the tower.

Image source: Bungee jumping

For its 'Countdown to the Year 2000' celebration on 31 December 1999, flashing lights and high-powered searchlights were installed on the tower. During the last three minutes of the year, the lights were turned on starting from the base and continuing to the top to welcome 2000 with a huge fireworks show. The lights sparkled blue for several nights to herald the new millennium.

The sparkling lights were turned on again on 21 June 2003, and the display was planned to last for 10 years before they needed replacing. An earlier sparkling display had continued for 18 months until July 2001.

In 2004, the Eiffel Tower began hosting a seasonal ice rink on the first level. The tower has operated at its maximum capacity of about 7 million visitors per year since 2003.

Since 31 March 2005, digital terrestrial television (DTT) has been broadcast from the Eiffel Tower. Analogue television signals from the tower ceased on 8 March 2011.

The Jules Verne restaurant near the top of the tower was run by multi-Michelin star chef Alain Ducasse from 2007 to 2017. As of May 2019, it is managed by three-star chef Frédéric Anton. From 1937 until 1981, there had been a restaurant near the top of the tower.

Image source: Le Jules Verne

A glass floor was installed on the first level during the 2014 refurbishment, offering visitors dramatic views down through the tower's iron lattice structure.