History of the old lighthouse
The old lighthouse near Promenade beach is a nineteenth Century lighthouse in Pondicherry being a vital landmark that was constructed by French rulers in 1835 that was inadequate and its distinctive design of a spherical tower created it as a modern lighthouse at the time it was thoroughly designed. The hardly light-weight that was there was the fire on the top of the Red Hills. Therefore, all the leading merchants and captains of the ships set a committee and asked the government to make a lighthouse. Louis Guerre was approached as the engineer for this lighthouse project and finally inaugurated in February 1836. It was exactly used on July 1836.
The significance of the old lighthouse in early period
The old lighthouse is a nineteenth Century lighthouse in Pondicherry being a vital landmark that was constructed by French rulers in 1835 that was inadequate and its distinctive design of a spherical tower created it as a modern lighthouse at the time it was thoroughly designed. The hardly light-weight that was there was the fire on the top of the Red Hills. Therefore, all the leading merchants and captains of the ships set a committee and asked the government to make a lighthouse. Louis Guerre was approached as the engineer for this lighthouse project and finally inaugurated in February 1836. It was exactly used on July 1836.
Features of the lighthouse
The height of this old lighthouse was built to 29 meters. It has a round tower and a square base. The cost of construction was subjected to 10,000 francs. The foundation has a depth of nine meters. Its light beam was able to be seen from a distance of 15 miles. The light source consisted of six oil lamps and two reflectors. The light source was converted to electric lamps in 1913 when science started developing. The power of the lamp was increased in 1931. The new lamp had a range of 26 nautical miles. It took 36 seconds for one full rotation of the beam that spreads over the sea to light the ships and boats to reach the shore.
This is one of the famous Pondicherry landmarks. This old lighthouse is located in goubert street, Pondicherry and is one of the sightseeing places. The citizens of Pondicherry are allowed to view from the top of the lighthouse. A major change was made in the lighthouse in its base. First floor of the lighthouse was newly constructed during the 20th century. But this 19th century lighthouse is not used nowadays as a new modernised lighthouse is built. The old lighthouse is considered as a milestone in French technical achievements in Asia.
