Starý most ( en, Old Bridge) is a bridge over the river

Danube The Danube ( ; ) is a river that was once a long-standing frontier of the Roman Empire and today connects 10 European countries, running through their territories or being a border. Originating in Germany, the Danube flows southeast for , p ...

in Bratislava,

Slovakia Slovakia (; sk, Slovensko ), officially the Slovak Republic ( sk, Slovenská republika, links=no ), is a landlocked country in Central Europe. It is bordered by Poland to the north, Ukraine to the east, Hungary to the south, Austria to the s ...

. Before its reconstruction, the bridge included a wooden pathway for pedestrians, a two-lane road, and a railway track, connecting the historic old city of Bratislava with the newer region

Petržalka Petržalka (; german: Engerau / Audorf; hu, Pozsonyligetfalu) is the largest borough of Bratislava, the capital of Slovakia. Situated on the right bank of the river Danube, the area shares a land border with Austria, and is home to around 100,000 ...

. The bridge was closed for cars in 2009 and for buses on 14 May 2010. On 2 December 2013 it was also closed for pedestrian and bicycle traffic as deconstruction of the old bridge began. At the time of its closure it was the oldest standing bridge in Bratislava. , the bridge was replaced by a new one for pedestrians, cyclists and trams, as part of new tram track to Petržalka. At various times in the past, the bridge was called ''Most Červenej armády'' (i.e. ''Red Army Bridge''), ''Štefánikov most'', ''Ferenc József híd'' and ''Franz Josef Brücke''.

History

Aside from short-lived wooden bridges before the 19th century, which were often damaged or destroyed by floods and frost, the first bridge in Bratislava was a pontoon bridge, which was built in 1825, standing somewhere around Koronázási domb tér or Krönungshügel platz ''(today's Ľudovít Štúr square)''. It lasted until 1891, when a new steel bridge called ''Franz Josephs Brücke'' (

Franz Joseph Franz Joseph I or Francis Joseph I (german: Franz Joseph Karl, hu, Ferenc József Károly, 18 August 1830 – 21 November 1916) was Emperor of Austria, King of Hungary, and the other states of the Habsburg monarchy from 2 December 1848 until his ...

Bridge), was opened, which was part of the railroad track Bratislava-

Szombathely Szombathely (; german: Steinamanger, ; see also other alternative names) is the 10th largest city in Hungary. It is the administrative centre of Vas county in the west of the country, located near the border with Austria. Szombathely lies by t ...

. It was built by

Gábor Baross Noble Gábor Baross de Bellus (6 July 1848 – 8 May 1892) was a Hungarian statesman in Hungarian parliament, was born at Barossháza now Pružina near Trencsén (now Trenčín, Slovakia). He was for a time one of the professors there under C ...

' order. During the

First Czechoslovak Republic The First Czechoslovak Republic ( cs, První československá republika, sk, Prvá česko-slovenská republika), often colloquially referred to as the First Republic ( cs, První republika, Slovak: ''Prvá republika''), was the first Czechoslo ...

(1918 - 1938) it was called ''Štefánikov most'' ( Štefánik Bridge). During

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposing ...

the steel part of the bridge was destroyed, but the stone pillars survived. After the liberation of Bratislava from the collaborationist Slovak Republic by

Soviet The Soviet Union,. officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR),. was a transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 to 1991. A flagship communist state, it was nominally a federal union of fifteen nation ...

troops in 1945, the

Red Army The Workers' and Peasants' Red Army ( Russian: Рабо́че-крестья́нская Кра́сная армия),) often shortened to the Red Army, was the army and air force of the Russian Soviet Federative Socialist Republic and, afte ...

and

German German(s) may refer to: * Germany (of or related to) ** Germania (historical use) * Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language ** For citizens of Germany, see also German nationality law **Ge ...

prisoners-of-war A prisoner of war (POW) is a person who is held captive by a belligerent power during or immediately after an armed conflict. The earliest recorded usage of the phrase "prisoner of war" dates back to 1610. Belligerents hold prisoners of wa ...

rebuilt the bridge. It was later used by the

Soviet Army uk, Радянська армія , image = File:Communist star with golden border and red rims.svg , alt = , caption = Emblem of the Soviet Army , start_date ...

and the Hungarian People’s Army to invade Czechoslovakia during the Prague Spring of 1968. Soviet soldiers killed five

Comenius University Comenius University in Bratislava ( sk, Univerzita Komenského v Bratislave) is the largest university in Slovakia, with most of its faculties located in Bratislava. It was founded in 1919, shortly after the creation of Czechoslovakia. It is name ...

students attempting to resist the invasion.

Car-free future

On January 1, 2009 the city of Bratislava closed the bridge to motor vehicles except buses because of problems with statics and on May 15, 2010 also for buses, pedestrians and cyclists. The bridge was reopened to cyclists and pedestrians a few months later after the road for cars was removed and remained open until 8:00 AM on 2 December 2013 when it was closed for all traffic again due to its deconstruction which started in late November 2013. , the bridge was replaced by a new one for pedestrians, cyclists and trams, as part of new tram track to Petržalka.

Gallery

File:Nový Starý most 01.jpg File:Nový Starý most 02.jpg

References

http://www.mostynaslovensku.sk/en

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Stary most (Bratislava) Railway bridges in Slovakia Bridges over the Danube Bridges completed in 1945 Former toll bridges Transport in Bratislava Bridges in Bratislava 20th-century architecture in Slovakia