Mat Bridge (or Zogu Bridge) is a bridge across the

Mat river The Mat ( sq-definite, Mati) is a river in north-central Albania. Its overall length is , while its catchment surface is . Its average discharge is . The main tributary is the Fan, flowing from the northeast, while the Mat flows from the southw ...

near the town of Milot in the northwestern part of

Albania Albania ( ; or ), officially the Republic of Albania (), is a country in Southeast Europe. It is located in the Balkans, on the Adriatic Sea, Adriatic and Ionian Seas within the Mediterranean Sea, and shares land borders with Montenegro to ...

. It served to improve communications between south-central Albania and the northern part of the country, particularly to the northern town of

Shkodër Shkodër ( , ; sq-definite, Shkodra; historically known as Scodra or Scutari) is the List of cities and towns in Albania, fifth-most-populous city of Albania and the seat of Shkodër County and Shkodër Municipality. Shkodër has been List of o ...

. Designed by

Swiss Swiss most commonly refers to: * the adjectival form of Switzerland * Swiss people Swiss may also refer to: Places * Swiss, Missouri * Swiss, North Carolina * Swiss, West Virginia * Swiss, Wisconsin Other uses * Swiss Café, an old café located ...

and

German German(s) may refer to: * Germany, the country of the Germans and German things **Germania (Roman era) * Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language ** For citizenship in Germany, see also Ge ...

engineers, it is in length and constructed in five steel arches carried across the river on concrete piers. It was named after the first

King of Albania The King of Albania ( Albanian: ''Mbreti i Shqipërisë'') was a title styled by the official ruler of Albania. While the medieval Angevin Kingdom of Albania was a monarchy, it did not encompass the entirety of modern Albania. Although disconten ...

King Zog King is a royal title given to a male monarch. A king is an absolute monarch if he holds unrestricted governmental power or exercises full sovereignty over a nation. Conversely, he is a constitutional monarch if his power is restrained by fi ...

, who ruled from 1928 until the country was invaded by

Benito Mussolini Benito Amilcare Andrea Mussolini (29 July 188328 April 1945) was an Italian politician and journalist who, upon assuming office as Prime Minister of Italy, Prime Minister, became the dictator of Fascist Italy from the March on Rome in 1922 un ...

in 1939. It remained the first and only permanent bridge over the Mat for 50 years, when a second bridge was built. A third was built 25 years after that.

References

{{reflist Bridges in Albania Buildings and structures in Kurbin

See also

References