5/5 Lekso K. 6 years ago on Google ⢠1009 reviews
Lilienthal
was
born
in
the
town
of
Anklam,
in
the
Prussian
province
of
Pomerania
in
1848.
He
was
fascinated
by
the
flight
of
birds,
to
the
point
of
building
sets
of
artificial
wings
with
the
help
of
his
brother,
Gustav.
There
is
no
evidence
of
these
early
flying
machines
working,
but
they
set
Otto
on
a
path
that
would
eventually
put
flight
in
human
hands.
He
began
working
as
an
engineer,
and
would
later
go
on
to
found
his
own
machine
company,
producing
steam
engines.
However,
he
never
stopped
doing
research
into
the
flight
of
birds
â
storks
in
particular
â
and
continued
to
test
gliders
of
his
own
design.
His
first
public
test
was
in
1891,
at
the
WindmĂźhlenberg
(âWindmill
Mountainâ)
near
Potsdam.
Over
the
course
of
the
next
several
years,
he
conducted
tests
at
several
locations,
until,
in
1894,
he
built
the
Fliegeberg
near
his
home
in
Lichterfelde,
now
a
part
of
Berlin.
His
tests
here
would
often
draw
crowds,
and
the
flat
land
surrounding
the
hill
allowed
the
tests
to
be
photographed.
As
word
of
his
flights
spread
across
the
world,
he
became
known
as
the
âGlider
King.â
Otto
Lilienthalâs
last
flight
occurred
on
August
9,
1896.
He
was
testing
a
new
glider
design
in
the
hills
near
the
town
of
Rhinow,
a
place
where
he
had
conducted
tests
previously.
During
the
flight,
Lilienthal
tried
to
lower
the
glider,
but
pitched
too
far
forward,
and
found
himself
pointing
directly
downwards.
Despite
his
best
efforts,
Lilienthal
could
not
regain
control;
both
he
and
the
glider
fell
headlong
to
the
earth
from
a
height
of
15
meters,
breaking
Lilienthalâs
neck.
He
died
the
next
day.
At
the
time
of
Lilienthalâs
death,
he
had
patented
25
glider
designs,
which
would
go
on
to
inspire
other
early
flyers,
including
the
Wright
Brothers.
His
testing
ground
became
Lilienthalpark
in
1900,
and
in
1932,
a
monument
to
Lilienthalâs
memory
was
built
at
the
Fliegebergâs
peak.
The
unveiling
ceremony
was
attended
by
Gustav
Lilienthal
and
Paul
Beylich,
who
was
one
of
Ottoâs
main
assistants
(both
are
honored
with
small
concrete
plaques
at
the
base
of
the
hill).
The
monument
was
designed
by
the
architect
Fritz
FreymĂźller,
and
takes
the
form
of
a
bronze
globe
surrounded
by
a
circular
pavilion
that
is
open
in
the
middle,
leaving
the
globe
exposed
to
the
sky.
3 people found this review helpful đ