Old Town Bridge (Norwegian: Gamle Bybro or Bybroa) is located in

Trondheim Trondheim ( , , ; sma, Tråante), historically Kaupangen, Nidaros and Trondhjem (), is a city and municipality in Trøndelag county, Norway. As of 2020, it had a population of 205,332, was the third most populous municipality in Norway, and ...

Trøndelag Trøndelag (; sma, Trööndelage) is a county in the central part of Norway. It was created in 1687, then named Trondhjem County ( no, Trondhjems Amt); in 1804 the county was split into Nord-Trøndelag and Sør-Trøndelag by the King of Denma ...

County,

Norway Norway, officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a Nordic country in Northern Europe, the mainland territory of which comprises the western and northernmost portion of the Scandinavian Peninsula. The remote Arctic island of Jan Mayen and the ...

History

Gamle Bybro crosses the

Nidelva Nidelva is a river in Trondheim Municipality in Trøndelag county, Norway. The name of the long river translates to "the River Nid" since the suffix ''elva'' or ''elven'' is the Norwegian word for "the river". Location The Nidelva starts at th ...

River from the south end of the main street Kjøpmannsgata connecting to the Trondheim neighborhood of Bakklandet. Gamle Bybro was constructed by

Johan Caspar von Cicignon Johan Caspar von Cicignon (c. 1625 - 12 December 1696) was a Luxembourg-born soldier and military engineer who spent most of his career in the service of Denmark–Norway. He is most associated with the reconstruction of Trondheim, Norway after th ...

in 1681 in conjunction with the reconstruction of Trondheim after the great fire of 1681. Johan Caspar von Cicignon laid out plans for the reconstruction of Trondheim as well as its fortification. Kristiansten Fortress was built at this time after his plans. The bridge location was of military-strategic significance. King

Christian V of Denmark Christian V (15 April 1646 25 August 1699) was king of Denmark and Norway from 1670 until his death in 1699. Well-regarded by the common people, he was the first king anointed at Frederiksborg Castle chapel as absolute monarch since the decr ...

assumed the cost of construction. It was completed in 1685. The bridge was built in the vicinity of the original

Elgeseter Bridge Elgeseter Bridge ( no, Elgeseter bru) is a bridge in the city and municipality of Trondheim in Trøndelag county, Norway. It is part of the European route E6 highway which passes over the ''Nidelva'' river and connects Prinsens street in the M ...

. When it was opened the older bridge was allowed to decay and collapse. Since then Gamle Bybro has undergone many changes. Originally Gamle Bybro was constructed of wood, but the wood was supported on three stone piers. In the middle of the bridge, an iron gate was placed. This remained a guarded city gate until 1816. At each end of the bridge there was a toll and

guardhouse A guardhouse (also known as a watch house, guard building, guard booth, guard shack, security booth, security building, or sentry building) is a building used to house personnel and security equipment. Guardhouses have historically been dormit ...

. The access house on the west end still stands, but that on the east side was taken down in 1824. Gamle Bybro was reconstructed in 1861 by the engineer Carl Adolf Dahl (1828-1907). Today ''Gamle Bybro'' is one of Trondheim's characteristic landmarks. Gamle Bybro is also known as ''Lykkens portal'' (Gate of Happiness), after the lyrics of the popular waltz ''Nidelven stille og vakker du er'' ( "Nidelven quiet and beautiful you are") by Norwegian singer and composer Kristian Oskar Hoddø (1916-1943). According to tradition, Hoddø wrote the waltz about the Nidelva River one night in late April 1940 while he was standing at Gamle Bybro. Oskar Hoddø was a member of the resistance movement against the

Occupation of Norway by Nazi Germany The occupation of Norway by Nazi Germany during the Second World War began on 9 April 1940 after Operation Weserübung. Conventional armed resistance to the German invasion ended on 10 June 1940, and Nazi Germany controlled Norway until th ...

. He was executed in Trondheim on 17 November 1943 along with eight other Norwegian resistance fighters.

References

Other sources

* Øksendal, Asbjørn (1969) ''Lurøy-affæren - Operasjon Oleander : Gestapo i Trondheim og Leksvik-affæren 1942-44''

External links

''Nidelven stille og vakker du er'' by Oskar Hoddø
Buildings and structures in Trondheim Bridges in Trøndelag Bridges completed in 1685 Bridges completed in 1861 1685 establishments in Norway Tourist attractions in Trondheim Former toll bridges in Norway {{Norway-bridge-stub