Isaakievsky pontoon bridge (Saint Isaac's Bridge) was the first bridge across Neva river in St.Petersburg, by then the capital of

Russian Empire The Russian Empire was an empire and the final period of the Russian monarchy from 1721 to 1917, ruling across large parts of Eurasia. It succeeded the Tsardom of Russia following the Treaty of Nystad, which ended the Great Northern War. ...

. It was first constructed in 1727. Starting from 1732 it was rebuilt each summer for a period 184 years. The bridge was named after the nearby

Saint Isaac's Cathedral Saint Isaac's Cathedral or Isaakievskiy Sobor (russian: Исаа́киевский Собо́р) is a large architectural landmark cathedral that currently functions as a museum with occasional church services in Saint Petersburg, Russia. It is ...

. Between 1856 and 1912 construction was shifted to the spot of today's

Palace Bridge Palace Bridge (, ''Dvortsoviy Most''), a road- and foot-traffic bascule bridge, spans the Neva River in Saint Petersburg between Palace Square and Vasilievsky Island. Like every other Neva bridge (except for Big Obukhovsky Bridge), it is drawn ...

. The gale of 1733 shattered the bridge, sinking the barques supporting it. After this the bridge was supported by special-design heavy-duty pontoons. In 1916 a passing tugboat sent a spark that caused a fire on the wooden structures and the bridge perished in flames. The former construction spot of the bridge is distinguished today by bank abutments fettled with granite steps leading down to the water.

External links

Saint Isaac's Bridge
at Structures Database Bridges in Saint Petersburg Cultural heritage monuments of federal significance in Saint Petersburg {{Russia-bridge-struct-stub