The Elster Viaduct () is a railway bridge in the

German state The Federal Republic of Germany is a federation and consists of sixteen partly sovereign ''states''. Of the sixteen states, thirteen are so-called area-states ('Flächenländer'); in these, below the level of the state government, there is a ...

Saxony Saxony, officially the Free State of Saxony, is a landlocked state of Germany, bordering the states of Brandenburg, Saxony-Anhalt, Thuringia, and Bavaria, as well as the countries of Poland and the Czech Republic. Its capital is Dresden, and ...

. It carries the Leipzig–Hof line near Jocketa over the valley of the

White Elster The White Elster (, ) is a river in central Europe. It is a right tributary of the Saale. The source of the White Elster is in the westernmost part of the Czech Republic, in the territory of Hazlov. After a few kilometres, it flows into easte ...

. After the

Göltzsch Viaduct The Göltzsch Viaduct (German: ''Göltzschtalbrücke'', ) is a railway bridge in Germany. It is the largest brick-built bridge in the world, and for a time it was the tallest railway bridge in the world. It spans the valley of the Göltzsch Rive ...

(''Göltzschtalbrücke'') it is the second largest brick bridge in the world. The

Elster Valley Railway Elster may refer to: Places * Black Elster (''Schwarze Elster''), a river in Germany * White Elster (''Weiße Elster''), a river in Germany and the Czech Republic ** Elster Viaduct, a railway bridge over the White Elster ** Elster Viaduct (Pirk) ...

passes under the 68 metre-high bridge.

History

The viaduct was built in the course of the construction of the Leipzig–Hof line of the ''Saxon-Bavarian State Railway'' (''Sächsisch-Bayerische Staatseisenbahn''). The foundation stone was laid on 7 November 1846. Up to 800 workers worked on the bridge from 1846 to 1851, laying 12 million bricks. In contrast to the Göltzsch Viaduct, which is only nine metres higher, it was built with normally shaped arches on only two levels. The lower level has five piers, four of which are built as double piers. The foundations of the piers and the deck were built out of slabs of granite. In the last days of the

Second World War World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

on 16 April 1945 the German

Wehrmacht The ''Wehrmacht'' (, ) were the unified armed forces of Nazi Germany from 1935 to 1945. It consisted of the German Army (1935–1945), ''Heer'' (army), the ''Kriegsmarine'' (navy) and the ''Luftwaffe'' (air force). The designation "''Wehrmac ...

partially demolished the bridge. This meant that trains from the southwest could only run as far as Röttis and from the northeast only as far as Jocketa. A temporary bridge was erected by attaching a steel truss to the remains of the demolished central supporting pier, which supported the girders of a timber bridge. This important bridge was reopened to traffic in February 1946. The final reconstruction of the two collapsed masonry brick arches was completed in October 1950. The top of the lower arches carries a hiking trail. There are plaques on this level showing the reconstruction after the Second World War.

Specifications

References

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External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Elster Viaduct Bridges completed in 1851 Railway bridges in Germany Arch bridges in Germany Stone bridges in Germany Bridges in Saxony Vogtland Viaducts in Germany 1851 establishments in the German Confederation White Elster Brick bridges

History

Specifications

References

See also

External links