The Nine-arched Bridge ( Hungarian: Kilenclyukú híd, literally "nine-holed bridge") is the most identifiable symbol of the

Hortobágy National Park Hortobágy () is an 800 km2 national park in eastern Hungary, rich with folklore and cultural history. The park, a part of the Alföld (Great Plain), was designated as a national park in 1973 (the first in Hungary), and elected among the Wor ...

, Hungary's great plain. This

arch bridge An arch bridge is a bridge with abutments at each end shaped as a curved arch. Arch bridges work by transferring the weight of the bridge and its loads partially into a horizontal thrust restrained by the abutments at either side. A viaduct ...

was the longest road stone bridge in historic Hungary prior to 1921 when

Hungary Hungary ( hu, Magyarország ) is a landlocked country in Central Europe. Spanning of the Carpathian Basin, it is bordered by Slovakia to the north, Ukraine to the northeast, Romania to the east and southeast, Serbia to the south, Croatia a ...

was reduced to one-third of its former territory. The bridge was built between 1827 and 1833 in a Classical style. The distance between the two abutments standing on either side of the river is 92.13 metres while the entire length of the stone bridge measures 167.3 metres. The entrance to the bridge on each side is broader, thus making the life of the herdsman easier as approaching animals being herded onto the bridge entered the funnel shaped opening of the bridge. The predecessor of the Nine-arched Bridge was a wooden structure built in 1697 which deteriorated over time due to heavy traffic. In 1825, after years of costly maintenance of the wooden bridge, the nearby city of

Debrecen Debrecen ( , is Hungary's second-largest city, after Budapest, the regional centre of the Northern Great Plain region and the seat of Hajdú-Bihar County. A city with county rights, it was the largest Hungarian city in the 18th century and i ...

decided to dismantle it and build a new stone bridge in its place. After a review of several designs, the plan of

Ferenc Povolny Ferenc () is a given name of Hungarian origin. It is a cognate of Francis, Francisco, Francesco, François, Frank and Franz. People with the name include: * Ferenc Batthyány, Hungarian magnate and general * Ferenc Berényi, Hungarian artist * ...

was accepted. Construction of the new bridge began in 1827 and after its completion in 1833 the wooden bridge was dismantled.

Sources

* Bridges completed in 1833 Bridges in Hungary Stone arch bridges {{Hungary-bridge-struct-stub