Pero's Bridge () is a pedestrian

bascule bridge A bascule bridge (also referred to as a drawbridge or a lifting bridge) is a moveable bridge with a counterweight that continuously balances a span, or leaf, throughout its upward swing to provide clearance for boat traffic. It may be single- o ...

that spans St Augustine's Reach in

Bristol Harbour Bristol Harbour is the harbour in the city of Bristol, England. The harbour covers an area of . It is the former natural tidal river Avon through the city but was made into its current form in 1809 when the tide was prevented from going out per ...

Bristol Bristol () is a City status in the United Kingdom, city, Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county and unitary authority in England. Situated on the River Avon, Bristol, River Avon, it is bordered by the ceremonial counties of Glouces ...

, England. It links Queen Square and

Millennium Square Millennium Square may refer to: * Millennium Square, Bristol *Millennium Square, Leeds *Millennium Square, Sheffield Millennium Square is a modern city square in Sheffield, England. It was created as part of the Heart of the City project that b ...

Structure

The bridge is composed of three spans; the two outer ones are fixed and the central section can be raised to provide a navigation channel in the harbour. The most distinctive features of the bridge are the pair of horn-shaped sculptures which act as

counterweight A counterweight is a weight that, by applying an opposite force, provides balance and stability of a mechanical system. The purpose of a counterweight is to make lifting the load faster and more efficient, which saves energy and causes less we ...

s for the lifting section, leading it to be commonly known as the Horned Bridge or

Shrek ''Shrek'' is a 2001 American computer-animated comedy film loosely based on the 1990 book of the same name by William Steig. It is the first installment in the ''Shrek'' franchise. The film was directed by Andrew Adamson and Vicky Jen ...

's Bridge as the counterweights resemble the ears of the animated star of the eponymous film.

Pero

The bridge is named after Pero, also known as Pero Jones, who lived from around 1753 to 1798, arriving in Bristol from the

Caribbean The Caribbean (, ) ( es, El Caribe; french: la Caraïbe; ht, Karayib; nl, De Caraïben) is a region of the Americas that consists of the Caribbean Sea, its islands (some surrounded by the Caribbean Sea and some bordering both the Caribbean ...

Island of

Nevis Nevis is a small island in the Caribbean Sea that forms part of the inner arc of the Leeward Islands chain of the West Indies. Nevis and the neighbouring island of Saint Kitts constitute one country: the Federation of Saint Kitts and ...

in 1783, as the slave of the merchant

John Pinney John Pretor Pinney (1740 – 23 January 1818) was a plantation owner on the island of Nevis in the West Indies and was a sugar merchant in Bristol. He made his fortune from England’s demand for sugar. His Bristol residence is now the city' ...

(1740–1818) at 7 Great George Street. Pinney also brought his wife's maid with him, Frances Coker, had also been born a slave, but Pinney had freed her some years before.

History

The bridge was designed by the Irish artist

Eilis O'Connell Eilis O'Connell (born 1953, Derry, Northern Ireland) is an abstract sculptor. She is known for her free-standing works and wall pieces. Early life and education O'Connell was born in Derry and educated at the Crawford School of Art, Cork, Ire ...

, in conjunction with

Ove Arup & Partners Arup (officially Arup Group Limited) is a British multinational professional services firm headquartered in London which provides design, engineering, architecture, planning, and advisory services across every aspect of the built environment ...

engineers. It was formally opened in 1999 by

Paul Boateng Paul Yaw Boateng, Baron Boateng (born 14 June 1951) is a British Labour Party politician, who was the Member of Parliament (MP) for Brent South from 1987 to 2005, becoming the UK's first Black Cabinet Minister in May 2002, when he was appoi ...

MP, then a Home Office minister. The name of the bridge was attacked by then

Liberal Democrat Several political parties from around the world have been called the Liberal Democratic Party or Liberal Democrats. These parties usually follow a liberal democratic ideology. Active parties Former parties See also *Liberal democracy *Lib ...

councillor Stephen Williams. He condemned the decision as "gesture politics", instead wanting a statue or permanent memorial to remember Bristol's role in the slave trade. Eilis O'Connell commented "The council can call it what they want, but Pero's Bridge sounds a bit political." Hundreds of people now attach padlocks to the bridge as a sign of affection to each other. For four days in June 2020, the Statue of Edward Colston, a Bristolian slave trader, lay at the bottom of the harbour directly south of the bridge after being toppled from its

plinth A pedestal (from French ''piédestal'', Italian ''piedistallo'' 'foot of a stall') or plinth is a support at the bottom of a statue, vase, column, or certain altars. Smaller pedestals, especially if round in shape, may be called socles. In ...

by protestors during the

George Floyd protests The George Floyd protests were a series of protests and civil unrest against police brutality and racism that began in Minneapolis on May 26, 2020, and largely took place during 2020. The civil unrest and protests began as part of internat ...

. It was then retrieved by the council and put in storage. It now resides as a permanent feature in Bristol's M-Shed museum shown now lying instead of standing, with all original protest graffiti maintained.

Dimensions

The length of the lifting span is and a navigation channel is provided.

References

Bibliography

External links

360 degree panorama of the bridge from BBC

* {{Transport in Bristol Bascule bridges Bridges in Bristol Bristol Harbourside History of Bristol Tourist attractions in Bristol Bridges completed in 1999 Pedestrian bridges in England Pero 1999 establishments in England