Sigismund Augustus Bridge

Last updated
Sigismund Augustus Bridge

Most Zygmunta Augusta
Sigismundus Augustus Bridge in Warsaw.jpg
Coordinates 52°15′11″N21°0′58″E / 52.25306°N 21.01611°E / 52.25306; 21.01611 Coordinates: 52°15′11″N21°0′58″E / 52.25306°N 21.01611°E / 52.25306; 21.01611
Carries Road transport
Crosses Vistula River
Locale Warsaw
Characteristics
Total length500 m
Width6 m
History
ArchitectErazm Giotto
Construction start1568
Construction end1573
Collapsed1603
Location
Sigismund Augustus Bridge

The Sigismund Augustus Bridge (Polish : most Zygmunta Augusta) was a timber bridge over the Vistula River in Warsaw which came into operation in 1573 and lasted for 30 years. It was the first permanent crossing over the Vistula River in Warsaw and the longest wooden crossing in Europe at the time at 500 meters in length. The bridge was one of the greatest engineering works of the Renaissance in Poland and one of the largest in Europe.

Contents

History

The oldest view of Warsaw from approximately 1573 with a view of the bridge on the right Warsaw after 1573.jpg
The oldest view of Warsaw from approximately 1573 with a view of the bridge on the right

"Sigismund Augustus built a wooden bridge over the Vistula River, 1150 feet long, that as the length and magnificence of the view in the whole of Europe had almost unparalleled, and elicited universal admiration ..." Georg Braun (1530-1584) German traveler

Before a permanent bridge was built over the Vistula, crossing were made by ferries and boats. During elections, temporary bridges were also constructed.

Construction began in 1568 under King Sigismund II Augustus in connection with the development of Warsaw, as the king frequently stayed there leading an active policy in the north-eastern part of the Republic. Warsaw was important because of regular parliamentary conventions of the Crown of the Kingdom of Poland and the Grand Duchy of Lithuania for the expected union.

Construction was led by the Italian Erazm Giotto of Zakroczym, with supervision from the Czersk Castellan and the Mayor of Warsaw, Zygmunt Wolski. Father Kasper Sadłocha, the Canon of Warsaw and royal secretary, was responsible for financial matters. Construction cost 100,000 florins. The first pile was dug on 25 June 1568, and during the construction these oak piles were hammered into the bottom of the river using iron pile drivers installed on floating river rafts. Before his death in 1572, King Sigismund Augustus crossed the unfinished bridge. After his death, the construction was taken up by his sister Queen Anna Jagiellon, largely at her own expense which led to the completion of the bridge in 1573.

The bridge was guarded by a specially appointed militia. Initially, the passage was free, but later fees were collected to cross it. On the Praga side of the bridge, from 1569 to 1572, a wooden mansion was built for King Sigismund Augustus. It was erected on a stone foundation and had 3 main rooms: a large heated dining hall, a chamber with a cocklestove, and a bedroom with an entrance to the basement. It was surrounded by a garden and a palisade and was used by the king to rest.

In 1582 the Bridge Gate was added, separating the bridge from the wooden buildings of the city (mainly for fire protection). On the Praga side of the river there were similar gates near to today's Ratuszowa Street.

In 1595, the bridge was mentioned by visiting Cardinal Gaetano 's secretary Paulo Mucante. He recorded this in Latin:

""Ne pontem sublicium superbo sumptu, atqe arte admirabili, a Sigmundo Augusto Rege fratre inchoatum, et a se post ejus mortem, consimili opere perfectum, repens vicina Suburbanorum male cantorum tectorum flamma, nec opina temore unquam corriperet correptumque in favillam redigeret. Anna Jagellona Poloniae Regum, conjux, Soror, Filia, hoc Caterilli propugnaculi Sepimento lutissimo a fundamentis excitato muniendum curavit." Paul Mucante 1595

Where he mentions that the bridge was started by the King and finished by his sister but is running a risk of fire by being made of wood.

The bridge served residents of Warsaw and visitors to it for 30 years. During its operation, the biggest threat to it was the winter and the thaws. The bridge was partially damaged several times by the pressure of ice on the Vistula River. It was repaired several times during the reign of King Stephen Báthory but eventually collapsed under the onslaught of a spring ice floe in 1603.

Mostowa Street (Bridge Street), which led to it, still remains in Warsaw today. It wasn't until 1864 when another permanent bridge was built over the Vistula in Warsaw.

Design and construction of the bridge

The bridge uses a truss bearing system, which accounted for its technical novelty. It was made of oak wood and iron. It consisted of 22 spans with spans from 22 to 24 m long. It had 18 major fixed spans erected on piles and it was 500 m long and 6 m wide. For its construction 735 chariots of Hungarian iron rails were used. The middle part was able to be opened to allow ships on the Vistula to pass.

Commemoration

The bridge was commemorated by poet Jan Kochanowski, who wrote about it in a few epigrams. In one of them bearing the title On a bridge in Warsaw the author would like to thank the king for the construction of this bridge because he did not have to pay for ferry crossings across the Vistula:

Bógżeć zapłać, o królu, żeś ten most zbudował.
Pierwej zawżdy szeląg nad potrzebę chował,
A dziś i tenem przepił, bo, idąc do domu
Najpóźniej, od przewozu nie płacę nikomu
- Jan Kochanowski (1530-1584)

Bibliography

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Sigismund II Augustus</span> First ruler of the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth (1569-72)

Sigismund II Augustus was King of Poland and Grand Duke of Lithuania, the son of Sigismund I the Old, whom Sigismund II succeeded in 1548. He was the first ruler of the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth and the last male monarch from the Jagiellonian dynasty.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Roman bridge</span> Bridges built by ancient Romans

The ancient Romans were the first civilization to build large, permanent bridges. Early Roman bridges used techniques introduced by Etruscan immigrants, but the Romans improved those skills, developing and enhancing methods such as arches and keystones. There were three major types of Roman bridge: wooden, pontoon, and stone. Early Roman bridges were wooden, but by the 2nd century stone was being used. Stone bridges used the arch as their basic structure, and most used concrete, the first use of this material in bridge-building.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Praga</span>

Praga is a district of Warsaw, Poland. It is on the east bank of the river Vistula. First mentioned in 1432, until 1791 it formed a separate town with its own city charter.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Polish Golden Age</span> Period of Polish history

The Polish Golden Age was the Renaissance period in Poland and the Grand Duchy of Lithuania, roughly corresponding to the period of rule of the King Sigismund I the Old and his son, Sigismund II Augustus, the last of the Jagiellonian Dynasty monarchs, until his death in 1572. Some historians reckon the Polish Golden Age to have continued to the mid-17th century, when the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth was ravaged by the Khmelnytsky Uprising (1648–57) and by the Swedish and Russian invasion. During its Golden Age, the Commonwealth became one of the largest kingdoms of Europe, stretching from modern Estonia in the north to Moldavia in the east and Bohemia in the west.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Jan Kochanowski</span> Polish poet

Jan Kochanowski was a Polish Renaissance poet who established poetic patterns that would become integral to the Polish literary language. He is commonly regarded as the greatest Polish poet before Adam Mickiewicz.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Wyszogród</span> Place in Masovian Voivodeship, Poland

Wyszogród is a town in central Poland, in Masovian Voivodeship, in Płock County, by the Vistula River. The population of Wyszogród was 2,793 in 2004.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Anna Jagiellon</span> Queen of Poland, Grand Duchess of Lithuania, and Princess Consort of Transylvania

Anna Jagiellon was Queen of Poland and Grand Duchess of Lithuania from 1575 to 1587.

Santi Gucci was an Italian architect and sculptor.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Giovanni Battista Trevano</span>

Giovanni Battista Trevano was an Italian-speaking architect who worked in Poland as royal architect for King Sigismund III Vasa, of the Vasa dynasty, which ruled Poland at the time.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Windsor Railway Bridge</span> Bridge in Windsor

Windsor Railway Bridge is a wrought iron 'bow and string' bridge in Windsor, Berkshire, crossing the River Thames on the reach between Romney Lock and Boveney Lock. It carries the branch line between Slough and Windsor.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Union Pacific Missouri River Bridge</span> Bridge in and Omaha, Nebraska

The Union Pacific Missouri River Bridge is a rail truss bridge across the Missouri River between Council Bluffs, Iowa, and Omaha, Nebraska.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Poniatowski Bridge</span> Bridge in Poland, Poland

The Poniatowski Bridge is a bridge in Warsaw, Poland. Originally built between 1904 and 1914, it was damaged in each World War and rebuilt after each. It spans the Vistula River, connecting Warsaw's Powiśle and Praga districts. Its viaduct is an extension of Jerusalem Avenue, a principal Warsaw thoroughfare.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Robert Cooke (officer of arms)</span>

Robert Cooke was an English Officer of Arms during the reign of Elizabeth I, who rose swiftly through the ranks of the College of Arms to Clarenceux King of Arms, serving in that office from 1567 until his death in 1592–3.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">History of Poland during the Jagiellonian dynasty</span> Period of Polish history from 1386 to 1572

The rule of the Jagiellonian dynasty in Poland between 1386 and 1572 spans the Late Middle Ages and the Early Modern Period in European history. The Lithuanian Grand Duke Jogaila founded the dynasty; his marriage to Queen Jadwiga of Poland in 1386 strengthened an ongoing Polish–Lithuanian union. The partnership brought vast territories controlled by the Grand Duchy of Lithuania into Poland's sphere of influence and proved beneficial for both the Polish and Lithuanian people, who coexisted and cooperated in one of the largest political entities in Europe for the next four centuries.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Kierbedź Bridge</span> Bridge in Warsaw

The Kierbedź Bridge was the first steel bridge over the Vistula River in Warsaw. It was designed by Stanisław Kierbedź and built between 1859 and 1864. The bridge had six spans and was 474 m long.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Pancer Viaduct</span> Bridge

The Pancer Viaduct was a viaduct in Warsaw joining Castle Square to the Kierbedzia Bridge. It was built in 1846, and demolished in 1944 and was replaced by the Warsaw W-Z Route thoroughfare.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ujazdów, Warsaw</span> Neighbourhood in Warsaw, Poland

Ujazdów is a prominent neighbourhood situated in central Warsaw, the capital of Poland. It is the southernmost part of the Downtown (Śródmieście) district, next to Solec and historical Frascati. The main thoroughfare passing through the neighbourhood is Ujazdów Avenue; the Chancellery of the Prime Minister of Poland, the Foreign Ministry and the Belweder Palace are located on or in the vicinity of the street. Ujazdów is an affluent neighbourhood, with villas, palaces and parks comprising most of its area. The most notable landmarks are the Łazienki Park and Palace on the Isle, the 18th century summer residence of Poland's last monarch Stanisław II Augustus.