The Qasr El Nil Bridge (originally named ''Khedive Ismail Bridge''), also commonly spelled Kasr El Nil Bridge, is a historic structure dating from 1931 which replaced the first bridge to span the

Nile River The Nile, , Bohairic , lg, Kiira , Nobiin: Áman Dawū is a major north-flowing river in northeastern Africa. It flows into the Mediterranean Sea. The Nile is the longest river in Africa and has historically been considered the longest rive ...

in central Cairo, Egypt. It connects

Tahrir Square Tahrir Square ( ar, ميدان التحرير ', , English language, English: Liberation Square), also known as "Martyr Square", is a major public town square in downtown Cairo, Egypt. The square has been the location and focus for political dem ...

downtown Cairo Downtown Cairo ( arz, وسط البلد '' "middle of town")'', has been the urban center of Cairo, Egypt, since the late 19th century, when the district was designed and built. History Downtown Cairo was designed by prestigious French archit ...

to the modern Cairo Opera complex toward the southern end of

Gezira Island Gezira is an island in the Nile, in central Cairo, Egypt. The southern portion of the island contains the Gezira district, and the northern third contains the Zamalek district. Gezira is west of downtown Cairo and Tahrir Square, connected acr ...

. At the bridge's east and west approaches are four large bronze lion statues; they are late 19th-century works by

Henri Alfred Jacquemart Henri Alfred Marie Jacquemart () (24 February 1824, in Paris – 4 January 1896, in Paris), often known as Alfred Jacquemart, was a noted French sculptor and animalier. He usually signed his works: ''A. Jacquemart''. Jacquemart studied under pai ...

, French

sculptor Sculpture is the branch of the visual arts that operates in three dimensions. Sculpture is the three-dimensional art work which is physically presented in the dimensions of height, width and depth. It is one of the plastic arts. Durable sc ...

and

animalier An animalier (, ) is an artist, mainly from the 19th century, who specializes in, or is known for, skill in the realistic portrayal of animals. "Animal painter" is the more general term for earlier artists. Although the work may be in any genre ...

. The newer and wider

6th October Bridge The 6th October Bridge ( ar, كوبري 6 أكتوبر, ) is an elevated highway in central Cairo, Egypt. The bridge and causeway crosses the Nile twice from the west bank suburbs, east through Gezira Island to Downtown Cairo, and on to connect ...

parallels its route just to the north.

Route

Qasr El Nil Street crosses over the Nile on the bridge, from the east bank area Tahrir Square—Liberation Square in

, past the huge

Mogamma The Mogamma (Arabic: مجمع التحرير, also spelled ''Mugamma'', roughly translated as 'the complex') is a government building in Cairo, Egypt. The Mogamma was the result of a series of master plans for the Qasr el Nil area (now Tahrir Squ ...

government building and the

headquarters of the Arab League The Headquarters of the Arab League is located in Tahrir Square and near the downtown business district of Cairo, Egypt. The headquarters building has views of the Nile River and Qasr al-Nil Bridge just to the west. Arab League The headqua ...

, then onto the Qasr El Nil Bridge over the river to Gezira Island. There it meets Opera Square and the

Cairo Opera House The Cairo Opera House ( ar, دار الأوبرا المصرية, ''Dār el-Opera el-Masreyya''; literally "Egyptian Opera House"), part of Cairo's National Cultural Centre, is the main performing arts venue in the Egyptian capital. Home to mos ...

, with connections north to the

Cairo Tower ''Borg El-Qahira'' , native_name_lang = , image = Cairotower.jpg , image_alt = , map_alt = , map_caption = , caption = Cairo tower in 2008 , status = Complete , building_type = Communications, observation, restaurants, visitor attracti ...

and the

Zamalek Zamalek ( ar, الزمالك , ''al zamalek'') is an affluent district of western Cairo encompassing the northern portion of Gezira Island in the Nile River. The island is connected with the river banks through three bridges each on the east an ...

district, and south across the island to the

Tahrir Bridge , ar, تحرير is a word of Arabic origin, meaning ''liberation''. Uses of Tahrir include: *'' Al Tahrir'' - an Egyptian daily *''Tahrir al-Wasilah'' - a book authored by Ayatollah Khomeini *Tahrir Square - major public square in Cairo (also i ...

across a smaller branch of the Nile to Tahrir Street in the

Agouza Agouza ( ar, العجوزة, al-ʿajuza) is a small suburb of Giza district, in Giza Governorate, on the western bank of the Nile river. It is situated between 6th October Bridge and 15th May Bridge and is north of Dokki and south of Mohandesin s ...

district on the west bank.

Construction and name

The previous bridge on the site, El Gezira Bridge, was built between 1869 and 1871 by Linant de Bellefonds with the participation of France's Five-Lilles Company.A bridge misunderstood
/ref> The foundation stone for the present Qasr El Nil Bridge was laid by King

Fuad I Fuad I ( ar, فؤاد الأول ''Fu’ād al-Awwal''; tr, I. Fuad or ; 26 March 1868 – 28 April 1936) was the Sultan and later King of Egypt and the Sudan. The ninth ruler of Egypt and Sudan from the Muhammad Ali dynasty, he became Sulta ...

on February 4, 1931. After over two years of construction, undertaken by Dorman Long & Co. Ltd, King Fuad inaugurated the bridge's opening on June 6, 1933. The bridge was originally named Khedive Ismail Bridge after King Fuad's father,

Khedive Khedive (, ota, خدیو, hıdiv; ar, خديوي, khudaywī) was an honorific title of Persian origin used for the sultans and grand viziers of the Ottoman Empire, but most famously for the viceroy of Egypt from 1805 to 1914.Adam Mestyan"Kh ...

Isma'il Pasha Isma'il Pasha ( ar, إسماعيل باشا ; 12 January 1830 – 2 March 1895), was the Khedive of Egypt and conqueror of Sudan from 1863 to 1879, when he was removed at the behest of Great Britain. Sharing the ambitious outlook of his gran ...

. After the Egyptian Revolution of 1952, the bridge was renamed, along with other Egyptian buildings and bridges. This bridge was renamed ''Qasr El Nil'' in

Arabic Arabic (, ' ; , ' or ) is a Semitic languages, Semitic language spoken primarily across the Arab world.Semitic languages: an international handbook / edited by Stefan Weninger; in collaboration with Geoffrey Khan, Michael P. Streck, Janet C ...

, which translates to Palace of the Nile.

Public use and demonstrations

The Qasr El Nil Bridge is popular for strolling in the evenings.

2011 Egyptian Revolution

The bridge, along with the nearby

, was a regular site in the

2011 Egyptian revolution The 2011 Egyptian revolution, also known as the 25 January revolution ( ar, ثورة ٢٥ يناير; ), began on 25 January 2011 and spread across Egypt. The date was set by various youth groups to coincide with the annual Egyptian "Police ho ...

for public demonstrations and as a major route east to protest gatherings in

.BBC News
"Egypt protests: curfew defied in Cairo and other cities"
29 January 2011. accessed 2011.01.29.

Gallery

References

External links

{{Authority control Bridges in Cairo Bridges over the Nile Bridges completed in 1933 Downtown Cairo Gezira Island Tourist attractions in Cairo