Sankt Eriksbron (

English English usually refers to: * English language * English people English may also refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * ''English'', an adjective for something of, from, or related to England ** English national ide ...

: "The St Eric Bridge") is a

bridge A bridge is a structure built to span a physical obstacle (such as a body of water, valley, road, or rail) without blocking the way underneath. It is constructed for the purpose of providing passage over the obstacle, which is usually somethi ...

in central

Stockholm Stockholm () is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in Sweden by population, largest city of Sweden as well as the List of urban areas in the Nordic countries, largest urban area in Scandinavia. Approximately 980,000 people liv ...

Sweden Sweden, formally the Kingdom of Sweden,The United Nations Group of Experts on Geographical Names states that the country's formal name is the Kingdom of SwedenUNGEGN World Geographical Names, Sweden./ref> is a Nordic country located on ...

. Passing over

Barnhusviken Barnhusviken (Swedish for "the Orphanage Bay") is a body of water in central Stockholm, Sweden. Separating the island Kungsholmen from the mainland district Norrmalm north of it, it connects Karlbergssjön to Klara Sjö. Together with Karlbergsk ...

it connects

Kungsholmen Kungsholmen is an island in Lake Mälaren in Sweden, part of central Stockholm, Sweden. It is situated north of Riddarfjärden and considered part of the historical province Uppland. Its area is with a perimeter of . The highest point is at S ...

to Norrmalm. The present construction was inaugurated in 1937. Neighbouring bridges are:

Kungsbron Kungsbron (Swedish: "King's Bridge") is a double bridge in central Stockholm, Sweden. Stretching over Klara Sjö, it connects Norrmalm to Kungsholmen. History In 1881, an old wooden bridge spanning Klara sjö ("Lake Klara") was replaced by a ...

Barnhusbron Barnhusbron (Swedish: "The Orphanage Bridge") is a bridge in central Stockholm, Sweden. Passing over Barnhusviken, it connects Kungsholmen to Norrmalm. It is 23 metres wide and 290 metres long with a maximum span of 64.5 metres. The roadway ...

Stadshusbron Stadshusbron (Swedish: "The City Hall Bridge"), formerly known as Nya Kungsholmsbron ("The New Kungsholm Bridge") is a bridge in central Stockholm, Sweden located just north of the Stockholm City Hall. Stretching over Klara sjö ("Lake Klara"), i ...

Klarabergsviadukten Klarabergsviadukten (Swedish: "The Viaduct of Hill of St Clare" ) is a reinforced concrete bridge and an overpass in central Stockholm, Sweden. Stretching over Klara Sjö, it connects Norrmalm to Kungsholmen. Where in English viaduct A via ...

, and

Ekelundsbron Ekelundsbron (Swedish: "The Ekelund Bridge") is a bridge in Stockholm, Sweden. Passing over the canal Karlbergskanalen, it connects the city district Stadshagen on Kungsholmen to the northern suburb Solna. The bridge is named after the crofter's ...

About the name

The name refers to the

patron saint A patron saint, patroness saint, patron hallow or heavenly protector is a saint who in Catholicism, Anglicanism, or Eastern Orthodoxy is regarded as the heavenly advocate of a nation, place, craft, activity, class, clan, family, or perso ...

of Stockholm,

Eric IX of Sweden Eric IX, (Swedish language, Swedish: ''Erik Jedvardsson; Erik den helige; Sankt Erik''; d. 18 May 1160) also called Eric the Holy, Saint Eric, and Eric the Lawgiver, was a Swedish king in the 12th century, 1156–1160. The ''Roman Martyrology'' ...

(1120–1160), often called "St Eric". It was given to the street passing over the bridge, Sankt Eriksgatan, in 1885 when patriotic and historical names were regarded as appropriate for most structures.

History

In the 1880s Stockholm was expanding rapidly and the two small bridges connecting Kungsholmen and Norrmalm, 2.5 km apart, were considered insufficient. The influential city planner

Albert Lindhagen Klas Albert Lindhagen (July 25, 1823 – October 21, 1887) was a Swedish city planner, lawyer, and politician.''Nordisk familjebok'' He is mostly remembered for his city plans for Stockholm produced in the late 19th century. Biography Lindha ...

(1823–1887) did propose a bridge south of the present one in 1866, but its current location was established in a city plan approved in 1880. Different solutions were considered before 1900, including a 15-m wide steel bridge, considered too expensive; a 12-m wide wooden bridge; and a ferry combined with a

pontoon bridge A pontoon bridge (or ponton bridge), also known as a floating bridge, uses float (nautical), floats or shallow-draft (hull), draft boats to support a continuous deck for pedestrian and vehicle travel. The buoyancy of the supports limits the maxi ...

during winters. The capsizing of a rowing boat in the waters at the site of the present bridge in 1898, killing 5 of the 22 aboard, intensified efforts to have the bridge project completed. In 1900, the City Council decided upon an 18-m wide and 227-m long steel bridge with a navigable clearance of 15.2 m, and the foundation work was started in 1903. When finished in 1906, the bridge had three central spans with 40-m long arched main

girder A girder () is a support beam used in construction. It is the main horizontal support of a structure which supports smaller beams. Girders often have an I-beam cross section composed of two load-bearing ''flanges'' separated by a stabilizing ' ...

s, a roadway made of blocks of wood paving, and two footways made of

mastic asphalt Asphalt concrete (commonly called asphalt, blacktop, or pavement in North America, and tarmac, bitumen macadam, or rolled asphalt in the United Kingdom and the Republic of Ireland) is a composite material commonly used to surface roads, parkin ...

. As the area on both side of the bridge underwent a rapid development paired by the simultaneous exploitation of the western suburbs, the importance of the bridge grew, and by the mid-1930s the traffic load motivated a reconstruction and widening of the bridge. The old foundations were reinforced while the old steel construction was replaced by plate girders carrying a 24-m wide concrete floor. Under the roadway space was reserved for a future metro, later installed after

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

About the name

History

References

See also