Leaning towers are captivating, and one in particular has become one of the most famous
towers in the world. But there are many even more impressive leaning structures, some planned,
and some unplanned. This list will start at the most famous leaning tower, and build up
to the most leaning, leaning building. Grab a hard hat, and let’s get going.
To start off the list we go to Pisa, Italy. This most-famous Romanesque leaning tower
is made of marble and stone, and stands at about 55m tall. For reference, the Statue
of Liberty is about 93m tall. The belltower of Pisa leans at an angle of just under 4
degrees, making it the least-leaning tower on this list, so let’s move on quickly.
The tower that unintentionally leans the most is not the most famous in the world. Germany
is full of leaning towers, and the belltower of Suurhusen Church tops them all. This 25.7m-high
little brick tower was built in 1450, and today is leaning at about 5.19º. The bell
tower and attached church are still functional, but I’m not sure I would enter this teetering
tower of bricks without some safety gear.
While the towers of Pisa and Suurhusen are impressive – towers built intentionally
to lean achieve an even greater degree of difficulty.
From Europe we head to Montreal, Canada for the first intentionally leaning tower on this
list. The Montreal tower was planned for the 1976
Olympics, but wasn’t finished till about 10 years later. Despite its rocky start to
life, at 165m, or about 1.8 statues of liberty, the tower holds the honour of being the world’s
tallest inclined tower. The tower leans at jaw-dropping 45º, which is allowed for by
the wide triangular skirt of the tower’s base.
Even more impressive than a leaning tower though – is a leaning building. But what’s
the difference? A building is intended to be mostly habitable, while a tower serves
other functions such as aiding visibility or communication. For a structure to be eligible
as a building for a Guinness book of world records award it has to be at least 50% usable
floor space otherwise it qualifies as a tower. Before we get to the most-leaning building
in the world, a couple of honourable mentions.
In Melbourne, Australia the Marina Tower is two-pronged residential building with a lean
of 5º - slightly less than Germany’s old church. The towers are conjoined until level
21 and then split off, leaning in opposing directions, to soar up to a height of 135m
– or about 1.45 statues of liberty.
Madrid, Spain hosts twin buildings with 3-times more lean, though. The Gate of Europe is twin
office buildings, with a height of 114m. These buildings each have a monumental lean of 15º.
The tips of the buildings reach out a whopping 30m from their base.
However, all of the buildings so far on the list are outstripped by our final bendy building.
In Abu Dhabi, UAE, wiggling out of the skyline is the farthest leaning building in the world.
The Capital Gate Tower is a 160m tall skyscraper, and leans an enormous 18 degrees. This translates
to a huge 33m overhang from the tip of the tower to the base. Standing at the base of
this building and looking up truly is a dizzying experience.
A marvel of engineering, Capital Gate has 3 main features of its construction that allow
for its noodle-like appearance. First, the foundations of the building are
490 piles driven into the ground and varying depths. On the leaning side, these piles absorb
the downwards pressure created by the overhang. On the other side, the piles are deeper to
resist the force of the tower being pulled out of the ground.
Second, the tower is built around a core which is off-centred at the top and bottom. The
core was intentionally built to have a lean opposite to that of the building, which became
straightened as the structure was completed. This design adds tension between the core
and the outer structure, which oppose each other by pulling in opposite directions to
create a stable lean. And third, a steel diagrid allows the building
to resist bending and twisting, and helps to uniformly distribute pressure.
Leaning buildings from history tell us a lot about the level of construction and engineering
at the time they were built. Whether that be slightly dodgy, because the tower started
leaning, or commendable that a leaning tower can still stand. Leaning structures built
today showcase the cutting edge of what is possible in the design and execution of skyscraper
construction. And as materials and new construction techniques continue to develop – the leaning
buildings of the future will continue to blow our minds.
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