The Petřín Lookout Tower has been offering unique views of Prague for 130 years

Publisher
ČTK
19.08.2021 09:45
Czech Republic

Prague

Prague – The fascination with the Parisian Eiffel Tower was the impetus for the idea to build a similar observation tower in Prague. The idea was brought forth by members of the Czech Tourist Club, who traveled to the World Exposition in Paris in 1889. Since the idea quickly led to realization, the first visitors could already enjoy the view of Prague from the new Petřín Lookout Tower two years later, on August 20, 1891.


Compared to its prototype, the Parisian Eiffel Tower, the Petřín Lookout Tower is five times shorter. However, this is enough for it to offer one of the most beautiful views of Prague from its balcony at a height of 51 meters above the ground.

The Czech Tourist Club decided to enrich Prague with a lookout tower on the occasion of the Jubilee Provincial Exhibition. It established the Petřín Lookout Tower Cooperative, which began to gather the necessary capital. The club members also convinced the city hall to provide land for the observation tower and to support the related cable car project.

According to the original plans, the tower was to be built at the upper edge of the Petřín slope in the axis of the chain bridge over the Vltava River (the predecessor of the current Legion Bridge). However, in this area, a narrow ridge emerges from Petřín, which was unsuitable for construction. Therefore, a less spectacular but more practically located plot near St. Lawrence Church was chosen instead.

The project was entrusted to engineers František Prášil and Julius Souček. Under their guidance, a plan for a 60-meter-tall steel tower with an octagonal floor plan was created. The upper balcony was expected to provide views not only of the adjacent Lesser Town, Prague Castle, Strahov, and New Town but also of the distant mountains of Kleť, Milešovka, and Sněžka.

Groundwork at the future site of the lookout tower began in mid-March 1891. The construction of underground technical facilities and a pavilion with a restaurant proved to be the most time-consuming. Only after their rough completion was it possible to begin assembling the tower itself, which was supplied by the Prague Bridge Company. The truss structure made of Kladno steel rose quickly, so it was approved for use by the end of July.

The charming panoramic view of Prague and its surroundings attracted several hundred curious visitors even before the official opening of the tower on August 20, 1891. A newly built cable car from Újezd, which was put into operation a month before the tower, made the journey to the still unfinished observation tower easier for them.

The Petřín Lookout Tower quickly became a popular tourist magnet, a status it holds to this day. However, its fate almost sealed at the end of the 1930s. When Nazi leader Adolf Hitler visited occupied Prague in March 1939, he reportedly expressed a desire for the tower to disappear because it allegedly spoils the view from Prague Castle.

The dictator fell, but the tower remained. Even so, it did not completely escape trouble. In the early 1950s, it caught the attention of technicians preparing for the launch of television broadcasting in the metropolis. Due to the installation of broadcasting equipment, it was necessary to remove the elevator and close the lower of the two viewing cabins. The most visible change was the removal of the royal crown with the flagpole, which was replaced with an extension with antennas at the top of the structure.

The installation of the transmitter marked the decline of the Petřín Lookout Tower. The ravages of time, inexorably gnawing at the iron structure and both spiral staircases, caused the building to be closed at the end of the 1970s. The dire situation lasted until 1991 when the "Prague Eiffel Tower" was reopened for the General Czechoslovak Exhibition after necessary repairs. Eight years later, the Petřín Lookout Tower underwent a major reconstruction, allowing it to shine in its full glory once again.
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