Elizabeth Bridge ("Erzsébet híd") - Budapest, Hungary

Location:

GPS coordinates: Latitude 47°29'27", Longitude 19°2'56" (N47 29.45 - E19 2.93) Map

The Elisabeth Bridge (or Elizabeth Bridge) and the spring flooding of Danube River, viewed from the Gellért Hill

The name of the bridge is a tribute to the Bavarian-born empress Elisabeth of Austria (1837-1898) queen of Hungary and nicknamed Sisi, who was assassinated in Geneva, Switzerland. It was in important restriction in the design contest of the Elisabeth Bridge, that it should be constructed of domestic materials and by using domestic manpower. This is why the chain suspension bridge structure was chosen instead of the cable suspension bridge. Finally the bridge was built up by the plans of albert Czekelius and Antal Kherndl, it was inaugurated in 1903. At that time it was a unique, unrivalled technical wonder, until 1926 it had the longest (290-meter) span among the suspension bridges without river piers in the whole world. On both sides of the bridge there were tram tracks beside the pavements.

Car traffic on the Elisabeth Bridge

At the end of the World War II this bridge couldn't escape its fate, during their retreat the German army blew it up. The damages were completely irreparable. The Pest-side pylon was remained standing, this was the memento of the war destruction until 1960, when the new bridge was started to built. Further curiosity related to this is that although the northern suspension chain was damaged after the explosion, it was not torn.

Among the Danube bridges of Budapest the Elisabeth Bridge was the latest restored. The modern, contemporary look new cable suspension bridge was designed by architect Pál Sávoly, this new structure reused the piers of the original bridge. The rebuilding was started in 1961 and the new Elisabeth Bridge was opened for service in November 1964. In 1972 when the metro line 2 was completed the tram traffic on the bridge was terminated.

A large sycamore tree (or plane tree) at the Buda-side head of the Elisabeth Bridge

The thick-trunked plane tree at the Buda-side abutment of the Elisabeth Bridge was already stood there during the construction of the first Elisabeth Bridge, between 1898 and 1903, however just as a young tree or sapling. Then it was survived almost everything, the explosion of the old bridge (1945), then the demolution / disassembly, and the building of the new bridge as well (1961-1964). Nobody knows what accidents were needed to escape, but fortunately we can still watch and admire this tree today, at the foot of the Elisabeth Bridge on the Buda-side riverbank in a park.