The freezing of the Danube over the winter months was a critical influence in the provision and method of construction of what is now the Széchenyi Chain Bridge in Budapest, Hungary, between 1839 and 1849. The bridge of boats connection between the former towns of Buda and Pesth could not operate in the winter months and it was imperative that a permanent structure be built. The major considerations in building the bridge related to the dangers posed by the river freezing over: in particular, choosing a chain bridge with the least number of piers and locating it to take account of the dangers of inundation from river ice. In describing the challenges faced and overcome, the paper makes use of a wealth of material from archives in both Budapest and London. These include the original contract for building the cofferdams, the drawings referred to in the contract, British engineer, William Tierney Clark's own comments and correspondence (particularly with his superintendent engineer Adam Clark) and vivid contemporary accounts of the freezing Danube. It is therefore an amalgam of contract history, civil engineering and cultural history.
The Chain Bridge over the Danube at Budapest, Hungary Sandor P. Vaci MA (Michigan), Dipl Arch (Hons), RIBA Principal, Vaci Partnership, London, UKThe Chain Bridge over the Danube at Budapest is one of the most significant bridges built during the first half of the nineteenth century, both in terms of its design and the history of Hungary. It was realised between 1839 and 1849 to the designs of William Tierney Clark, who produced the drawings and directed the building from Hammersmith in England. As this paper describes, the critical components of the suspension system were manufactured in England and transported to the Danube using water and road transport. When completed the Chain Bridge had the longest central span of its type. It was a strategic military target in the final phases of its construction and also in the Second WorldWar. It has been rebuilt twice, and its enduring quality and symbolism mark it out as a landmark bridge.Proceedings of the Institution of Civil Engineers Bridge Engineering 168 June 2015 Issue BE2 Pages 98-111 http://dx.
scite is a Brooklyn-based organization that helps researchers better discover and understand research articles through Smart Citations–citations that display the context of the citation and describe whether the article provides supporting or contrasting evidence. scite is used by students and researchers from around the world and is funded in part by the National Science Foundation and the National Institute on Drug Abuse of the National Institutes of Health.