Elisabeth Bridge (Budapest)

Elisabeth Bridge Erzsébet híd
Elisabeth Bridge and the Danube
Coordinates	47°29′27″N19°02′57″E
Carries	Six-laneroad bridge
Crosses	Danube
Locale	Budapest,Hungary
Preceded by	Elisabeth Bridge (1903)
Characteristics
Design	Suspension bridge,portal frame,gravity-anchored
Total length	378.6 m
Width	27.1 m
Longest span	290.0 m
History
Designer	Pál Sávoly
Construction start	1961
Construction end	1964
Inaugurated	21 November 1964
Location

Film footage about the original bridge in 1906

The original eclectic flamboyant style bridge

The bridge in 2017

The bridge from above

The bridge from the Pest side by the March 15 Square

Elisabeth Bridge(Hungarian:Erzsébet híd,Hungarian pronunciation:[ˈɛrʒeːbɛtˈhiːd]) is the third newest bridge ofBudapest,Hungary,connectingBudaandPestacross theRiver Danube.The bridge is situated at the narrowest part of the Danube in the Budapest area, spanning only 290 m. It is named afterElisabeth of Bavaria,a popular queen and empress ofAustria-Hungary,who was assassinated in 1898. Today, her largebronze statuesits by the bridge's Buda side connection in the middle of a small garden.

The original eclectic flamboyant style bridge was built between 1897 and 1903. It was destroyed during World War II, and a significantly simplifiedbrutalistversion was built without any ornamentation between 1961 and 1964.

Its two ends are:

• March 15Square (with the oldest church in Pest, Inner City Parish Church, built in the 13th century) and the famous Mátyás Pince restaurant.
• Döbrentei Square in Buda with the monument ofSaint Gellérton theGellért Hill,a sculpture of Queen Elisabeth, and theRácz BathsandRudas Bathsnearby. A luxuryspahotel is currently being built in the area.

History

The original permanent crossing, a decorativesuspension bridgeof chains, was built between 1897 and 1903,amid a corruption scandal. The Buda end of Erzsébet bridge runs directly into the massive foot of Gellért Hill, necessitating a complicated arrangement of roads to connect to the bridge. The bridge was designed in such a way because a wealthy nobleman, a member of the city council, owned the particular area of the riverbank. He wanted to make a fortune by selling the piece of land for bridge construction purposes, bribing the other councilmen and engineers for that purpose. He managed to sell the land at greatly inflated prices.In the era of horse-drawn carriages the geometry issue was not considered significant and the resulting cost overruns were covered up, therefore no prosecution took place. In recent decades, many motorists have been permanently injured or killed in the sharp turn that immediately follows the bridgehead. After an accident in 2004, which killed a family, aspeed limitof 40 km/h was posted for the west-bound lanes.

The original Erzsébet Bridge, along with many other bridges all over the country, was blown up at the end ofWorld War IIby retreatingWehrmachtsappers. This is the only bridge in Budapest which could not be rebuilt in its original form. Pictures and some salvaged elements from the old bridge can be seen on the grass in front of theMuseum of TransportinCity Park.

The currently standing slender whitecable bridgewas built on the very same locationbetween 1961 and 1964, because the government could not afford to construct entirely new foundations for the bridge. The main spar cables of the bridge arehexagonalin cross section, composed of thousands of elementary steel wires of seven different diameters, partly because early computers were unable to provide a solution for a circular cross section main cable batch.

The design, byPál Sávolyand based on that ofMülheim Bridge, Cologne,was a first in Central Europe and not without weaknesses.BKVtram traffic and its heavy tracks had to be removed from the bridge in 1973 after signs of cracks appeared in the structure.

The special lighting for Elisabeth Bridge has been created by renowned Japanese lighting designerMotoko IshiiandJapancontributed 120 million forints (EUR 450,000) to the costs. The Budapest City Council has paid 150 million forints for the project. 2009 marks the 140th anniversary of establishing diplomatic links between theAustro-Hungarian Monarchyand Japan, and the 50th anniversary of re-establishing diplomatic links between Japan and Hungary.

Budapest, Hungary Elisabeth Bridge Medallion 1974 in commemoration of the 10th Anniversary ofIntermetall

Statue of Elisabeth of Bavaria

Following her assassination in 1898 there was such an outpouring of grief that when an appeal was made in 1900 to erect a memorial to Elisabeth of Bavaria in Budapest, it was over subscribed. Successive committees organized to a number of competitions to select a suitable design, but it wasn't until 1919 and the fifth attempt that a design by the sculptor György Zala was selected. It then took another 13 years for the memorial to be completed and installed on the Pest side of the bridge. It was damaged by the German army when they blew up the bridge in 1945. It was quickly repaired, but then more damage was found which required its removal in 1953. It wasn't until 1957 that a full restoration was completed and it was installed in its present location on the Buda side of the bridge.

See also

• Bridges of Budapest
• List of crossings of the Danube River
• Dock 11 Budapest River CruiseMeeting Point close to the Elizabeth bridge

External links

• Elisabeth BridgeatStructurae
• DBridges - Erzsébet híd(in Hungarian)
• Photos of Budapest bridges
• Picture
• Article about the Lighting
• Photo: Queen Elizabeth and reverend GellértArchived2013-02-20 at theWayback Machine
• Bridges of Budapest - Elizabeth Bridge