La Défense

La Défense is named after the iconic statue La Défense de Paris, which was erected in 1883 to commemorate the soldiers who had defended Paris during the Franco-Prussian War. In September 1958, The Public Establishment for Installation of La Défense (EPAD) buildings (of which the Esso Tower was the very first) were built and began to slowly replace the city's factories, shanties, and even a few farms. The Center of New Industries and Technologies (CNIT) was built and first used in 1958. These "first generation" skyscrapers were all very similar in appearance, limited to a height of 100 metres (330 ft). In 1966, the Nobel Tower was the first office building built in the area. In 1970 the RER line A railway was opened from La Défense to Étoile. The Tour Défense is the largest monument in La Défense. In previous years visitors could take a glass elevator to the top for breath taking views of the city, Paris, and the ability to see the Tour Eiffel and the Arc de Triomphe along with the Louvre in the distance. It has recently been closed forever to visitors. The only view you can have of the snow white cubed tower is from the base of the monument looking up to see the modern cloud-like sculpture that hangs from the building along with multiple contemporary street light sculptures in the distance. Visit this district and you will feel like you were beamed 100 years into the future. These buildings are anything but ordinary. They were built with much thought creating angles and shapes that make you think twice about their stability.