The Liberty Bridge or Freedom Bridge ( ) in

Budapest Budapest is the Capital city, capital and List of cities and towns of Hungary, most populous city of Hungary. It is the List of cities in the European Union by population within city limits, tenth-largest city in the European Union by popul ...

Hungary Hungary is a landlocked country in Central Europe. Spanning much of the Pannonian Basin, Carpathian Basin, it is bordered by Slovakia to the north, Ukraine to the northeast, Romania to the east and southeast, Serbia to the south, Croatia and ...

, connects

Buda Buda (, ) is the part of Budapest, the capital city of Hungary, that lies on the western bank of the Danube. Historically, “Buda” referred only to the royal walled city on Castle Hill (), which was constructed by Béla IV between 1247 and ...

and Pest across the

Danube river The Danube ( ; see also other names) is the second-longest river in Europe, after the Volga in Russia. It flows through Central and Southeastern Europe, from the Black Forest south into the Black Sea. A large and historically important riv ...

. It is the third southernmost public road bridge in Budapest, located at the southern end of the

City Centre A city centre, also known as an urban core, is the Commerce, commercial, Culture, cultural and often the historical, Politics, political, and geographic heart of a city. The term "city centre" is primarily used in British English, and closely e ...

. It was originally named Ferenc József híd (Franz Joseph Bridge). At its two ends are two public squares, Gellért tér (at the foot of

Gellért Hill Gellért Hill (; ; ) is a high hill overlooking the Danube in Budapest, Hungary. It is located in the 1st and the 11th districts. The hill was named after Saint Gerard who was thrown to death from the hill. The famous Hotel Gellért and th ...

, with the Gellért Spa and Hotel Gellért) and Fővám tér (with the Great Market Hall). The Liberty Bridge is the shortest bridge in Budapest's center. Initially built as part of the Millennium World Exhibition at the end of the 19th century, the bridge features

art nouveau Art Nouveau ( ; ; ), Jugendstil and Sezessionstil in German, is an international style of art, architecture, and applied art, especially the decorative arts. It was often inspired by natural forms such as the sinuous curves of plants and ...

design, mythological sculptures and the country's coat of arms adorned on its side. The northeastern house contains a museum on the bridges of Budapest. The bridge was the first in the city to be rebuilt after suffering heavy damage during

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

Construction

The bridge was built between 1894 and 1896 to the plans of

János Feketeházy János is a masculine Hungarian given name. It originates from the Hebrew name Johanan and is thus a variant of the English name John. People Notable people with the name include: * János Aczél (mathematician) (1924–2020), Hungarian- ...

. Although radically different in structure (it is a cantilever truss bridge with a suspended middle span), the bridge imitates the general outline of a chain-type bridge, which was considered an aesthetically preferable form at the time of construction. The bridge was opened in the presence of

Emperor Franz Joseph Franz Joseph I or Francis Joseph I ( ; ; 18 August 1830 – 21 November 1916) was Emperor of Austria, King of Hungary, and the ruler of the other states of the Habsburg monarchy from 1848 until his death in 1916. In the early part of his reig ...

; the last silver

rivet A rivet is a permanent mechanical fastener. Before being installed, a rivet consists of a smooth cylinder (geometry), cylindrical shaft with a head on one end. The end opposite the head is called the ''tail''. On installation, the deformed e ...

on the Pest

abutment An abutment is the substructure at the ends of a bridge span or dam supporting its superstructure. Single-span bridges have abutments at each end that provide vertical and lateral support for the span, as well as acting as retaining walls ...

was inserted into the iron structure by the Emperor himself, and the bridge was originally named after him.

Dimensions and decorations

The bridge is 333.6 m in length and 20.1 m in width. The top of the four masts are decorated with large bronze statues of the

Turul The Turul is a mythological bird of prey, mostly depicted as a falcon, in Hungarian tradition and Turkic tradition, and a national symbol of Hungarians. Origin The Turul is probably based on a large falcon. The Hungarian word ''turul'' meant ...

, a falcon-like bird, prominent in ancient

Hungarian mythology Hungarian mythology includes the myths, legends, folk tales, fairy tales and gods of the Hungarians. Sources of knowledge Much of Magyar mythology is believed to be lost. However, in the last hundred years scholars of the history of Hungarian ...

Traffic

A number of trams cross the bridge as well as other road vehicles, but there is an initiative to convert it to a pedestrian-only crossing now that the fourth underground metro line is completed.

References

External links

DBridges - Szabadsg hd

Photos of Budapest bridges

*

*Four more photos

* * Bridges in Budapest Bridges completed in 1896 Bridges over the Danube Cantilever bridges Industrial archaeological sites in Hungary {{Hungary-bridge-struct-stub

Construction

Dimensions and decorations

Traffic

See also

References

External links