The Leaning Tower of Pisa
| The Leaning Tower of Pisa is the famous bell tower, in Italy, that began to lean in the year 1173. It was built to display the wealth of the people of Pisa. The people of Pisa were sailors who had conquered lands such as Jerusalem, Carthago, Ibiza, Mallorca, Africa, Belgium, Britannia, Norway, Spain, and Morocco. Their only real enemies were from the city of Florence. They needed the tower to show the people of Florence how well they were doing. Architects realized that the tower was leaning when they had finished building one and one half meters of the third floor. The damage was irreversible so they halted construction until 1272 because war broke out against Florence. All of the money was spent on warfare and there was not much left for the tower. The lean was caused by the sandy and marshy soil that the tower was built on. During construction from 1272 till 1275, the tower continued to lean. In 1275 war with Florence broke out again. After this they began to construct the belfry, credit for which is often given to Tommaso, son of Andrea Pisano. The construction was believed to have been completed in 1350. In 1392, causing great humiliation, Pisa was sold to Florence and the residents were forced into slavery. They never managed to gain back the wealth that they had in the early years. |
Leaning Tower Fact Sheet
| Official Italian Name | Torre Pendente Di Pisa |
| Function | Bell Tower |
| Original Architect | Bonanno Pisano |
| Years of Construction | 1173 - 1350 |
| First Bells Added | 1198 |
| Height | 55.863 meters, 185 feet, 8 stories |
| Direction of Lean | 1173-1250: North and 1273-1999: South |
| Largest Bell | 3.5 tons |
| Oldest Bell's Name | Pasquarreccia |
| Address of Tower | Campo Dei Miracoli (The Field of Miracles) in Pisa, Italy |
| weight | 14700 metric tons |
| Thickness of Walls at Base | 8 feet |
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