Gustave Eiffel

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Gustave Eiffel

French engineer

Also known as: Alexandre-Gustave Eiffel

Written and fact-checked by The Editors of Encyclopaedia Britannica

Last Updated: Feb 29, 2024 • Article History

Gustave Eiffel

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Category: Science & Tech

In full:: Alexandre-Gustave Eiffel

Born:: Dec. 15, 1832, Dijon, France

Died:: Dec. 28, 1923, Paris (aged 91)

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Gustave Eiffel (born Dec. 15, 1832, Dijon, France—died Dec. 28, 1923, Paris) was a French civil engineer renowned for the tower in Paris that bears his name. After graduation from the College of Art and Manufacturing in 1855, Eiffel began to specialize in metal construction, especially bridges. He directed the erection of an iron bridge at Bordeaux in 1858, followed by several others, and designed the lofty, arched Gallery of Machines for the Paris Exhibition of 1867. In 1877 he bridged the Douro River at Oporto, Port., with a 525-foot (160-metre) steel arch, which he followed with an even greater ...(100 of 227 words)

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