Margaret Bridge

47°30′53″N 19°02′37″E / 47.5147°N 19.0436°E / 47.5147; 19.0436Carriestwo road lanesCrossesDanube RiverLocaleBudapestOfficial nameMargit hídCharacteristicsTotal length607.6 metres (1,993 ft)Width25 metres (82 ft)HistoryDesignerErnest GoüinConstruction start1872Construction end1876Inaugurated30 April 1876Location

Margaret Bridge (sometimes Margit Bridge) or Margit híd (Hungarian pronunciation: [ˈmɒrgit ˈhiːd]) is a three-way bridge in Budapest, Hungary, connecting Buda and Pest across the Danube and linking Margaret Island to the banks. It is the second-northernmost and second-oldest public bridge in Budapest.

It was designed by French engineer Ernest Goüin and built by the construction company Maison Ernest Goüin et Cie. between 1872 and 1876, the engineer in charge being Émile Nouguier. Margaret Bridge was the second permanent bridge in Budapest after Széchenyi Chain Bridge. This bridge leads up to Margaret Island, its two parts enclosing 165 degrees with each other at the embranchment towards the island. The reason for this unusual geometry is that the small extension to connect to Margaret Island was hastily inserted into the original design but not built until two decades later due to lack of funds.

The bridge's two ends are

• Jászai Mari tér (northern end of Grand Boulevard) and
• Germanus Gyula park (stop of Szentendre HÉV; the Lukács and Király Baths are nearby).

It is 607.5 metres (1,993 ft) in length and 25 metres (82 ft) in width.

Reconstruction

World War II

After invading Soviet armies approached Budapest towards the end of World War II Wehrmacht sappers made plans to blow up all of the bridges in Budapest. However at approximately 2 pm on 4 November 1944 a spark from a passing tram prematurely ignited the fuse of the explosives while they were being primed.^[1] The resulting explosion destroyed the eastern span of the bridge. Estimates of the number of victims range from 100 to 600: Among them were innocent civilians, about 40 German soldiers, passengers in a tram that overturned and plunged into the river, and Jewish forced laborers (including Olympic champion fencer Endre Kabos), who were on the bridge in a truck.^[2]

“When we arrived in front of the Comedy Theatre we were shaken by a tremendous explosion. I ran back to the Danube embankment (around 250 metres away) where a huge crowd of people had gathered. On the Pest side two arches of the bridge had collapsed. Trams, cars and hundreds of people had fallen into the river. Two shattered carriages of the Number 6 tram jutted out of the water and the moans of the injured could be heard. Bodies were hanging from the railings and in the swirling waters there were dead and wounded. Ships, boats and police craft were trying to save whoever they could.” Miklós Kovalovszky ^[1]

All of the remaining bridges of Budapest were blown up by the Wehrmacht in January 1945 during their retreat to the Buda side of the surrounded capital.

During reconstruction of the Margaret Bridge, much of the original steel material was lifted from the river and incorporated into the rebuilt structure.

2009–2011

By the beginning of the 2000s, the bridge was in very bad shape. It became life-threatening, therefore its reconstruction became very important. The recondition (after the Megyeri Bridge and Szabadság Bridge completion) began on 21 August 2009. It was closed to road traffic for at least a year, but trams maintained a partial service over the bridge using temporary track. The whole project took more than 20 billion forints and half of the costs were financed from EU funds. The restoration was completed in 2011. They tried to restore the original appearance of the bridge. Instead of reinforced concrete, durable steel was used and new barriers and floodlights were installed. The middle lanes were widened, the sidewalk expanded by approx. 2 meters and the bike path completed.^[3]

During the 2011 renovation, human remains were discovered. The mostly Jewish remains were victims of the far-right Arrow Cross Party, who briefly governed Hungary from 1944.^[4]

Cultural references

Soon after the bridge was inaugurated, it became a preferred spot for people seeking to take their own lives over personal or financial troubles. The wave of suicides inspired János Arany,^[5] a renowned Hungarian poet to compose a ballad, "Híd-avatás" ("Bridge Inauguration"), about the jumpers. It was widely distributed in leaflet format, illustrated with Mihály Zichy's romantic styled intricate pencil drawings.

Gallery

• 
  1888 – before the Bridge was connected to Margaret Island; future Újlipótváros streets are shown
• 
  The dropped bridge, 4 November 1944
• 
  2009 – western section, southern side of Margaret Bridge
• 
  2012 - after renovation
• 
  2009 – structure of the connecting section to Margaret Island
• 
  2010 - renovation effort
• 
  2012 - after renovation
• 
  Lantern
• 
  Plaque commemorating the construction and reconstructions of the bridge

See also

• Bridges of Budapest
• List of crossings of the Danube River

Landmarks

Bridges	Árpád Bridge Elisabeth Bridge Liberty Bridge Margaret Bridge Megyeri Bridge Petőfi Bridge Rákóczi Bridge Széchenyi Chain Bridge
Castles and palaces	Buda Castle Danube Palace Fisherman's Bastion Gresham Palace Hotel Astoria Hotel Gellért Labyrinth of Buda Castle Nagytétény Castle New York Palace Vajdahunyad Castle
Government	Carmelite Monastery of Buda Sándor Palace Hungarian Parliament Building House of Magnates Hungarian National Bank Budapest City Hall
Memorials	Holocaust Memorial Center Kossuth Memorial Liberty Statue Little Princess statue Matthias Fountain Shoes on Danube Bank
Museums and galleries	Aquincum Museum Museum of Ethnography Geological Museum Kunsthalle Hospital in the Rock House of Terror National Gallery National Museum Natural History Museum Semmelweis Museum of Medical History Railway History Park Koller Gallery Memento Park Metropolitan Ervin Szabó Library Müpa Budapest Museum of Applied Arts Museum of Fine Arts National Széchényi Library Transportation Museum Southeast Asian Gold Museum
Parks and gardens	Budapest Zoo and Botanical Garden City Park City Park Ice Rink Gellért Hill Haller Park Fiume Road National Graveyard Margaret Island Népliget Normafa Óbuda Island
Religious buildings	Dohány Street Synagogue Gellért Hill Cave Inner City Parish Church in Pest Lutheran Church of Budavár Mary Magdalene Church Matthias Church Our Lady of the Snows Parish Church Palace Chapel Rumbach Street Synagogue Saint Anne Parish St. Catherine of Alexandria Church Stigmatisation of Saint Francis Church Szilágyi Dezső Square Reformed Church St. Stephen's Basilica Tomb of Gül Baba University Church Church of St. George
Sports venues	Alfréd Hajós National Swimming Stadium Bozsik Stadion Budai II. László Stadion City Park Ice Rink Danube Arena Szusza Ferenc Stadion Ferencváros Stadion Hidegkuti Nándor Stadion Hungaroring-Formula One Illovszky Rudolf Stadion Kincsem Park Kisstadion MVM Dome National Athletics Centre Puskás Aréna Szőnyi úti Stadion László Papp Budapest Sports Arena
Squares and streets	Andrássy Avenue Citadella Danube Promenade Deák Ferenc Square Ferenciek Square Grand Boulevard Heroes' Square Hungary Boulevard Kossuth Square Liberty Square Oktogon Small Boulevard Széll Kálmán Square Váci Street Vörösmarty Square Móricz Zsigmond Square
Theaters and opera	Comedy Theatre Court Theatre of Buda Erkel Theatre Erzsébetliget Theatre Hungarian State Opera House Magyar Theatre National Theatre Vigadó of Pest
Thermal spas	Gellért Baths Király Baths Lukács Baths Rudas Baths Rácz Thermal Bath Széchenyi Medicinal Bath
Other	Anker Palace Café Gerbeaud Elizabeth Lookout Great Market Hall Gundel Restaurant Hungarian Academy of Sciences Millennium Underground Railway F-4 Object

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