Stone Bridge (Weilburg)
| Weilburg stone bridge | |
|---|---|
|
|
| Technical specifications | |
| length | 83 m |
| Max. Span | 15.70 m |
| Superstructure width | today 9.45 m |
| Construction height | |
| Max. Height above valley | 7.95 m |
| system | Arch bridge |
The Stone Bridge is a bridge built in 1769 over the Lahn in Weilburg in the Hessian district of Limburg-Weilburg .
In their place there were several precursor bridges, which for centuries were the only bridges for vehicles between Wetzlar and Limburg . The bridge connected the residential city of Weilburg with the administrative center of Merenberg . For many years the federal highway 49 and later the federal highway 456 crossed the Lahn here. After the construction of the new Oberlahn Bridge as part of the Weilburg suburb in 2004, the Stone Bridge lost its importance for long-distance traffic.
Appearance
It is a stone arch bridge with five basket arches. The total length of the bridge is 83 meters. The bridge is clad with Lahn marble .
The clear width of the five bridge arches from the upper stream to the right is 12.50 meters, 14.10 meters, 15.70 meters, 14.10 meters and 12.50 meters. The fifth bridge arch spans the Mühlgraben. The five piers have front heads on the upstream and downstream sides , each about 3.30 meters long. The pillar width varies between 3.40 meters and 3.75 meters. The fourth pillar is on an island.
In the middle of the bridge, on the Oberstrom side, a memorial was erected in 1923 in honor of those who fell in the First World War . It showed a woman with two young children. This memorial was destroyed when the bridge was blown towards the end of World War II in March 1945. A new memorial based on the historical model was erected at the same location in 2006.
On the Westerwald side, on the right as seen from the Oberstrom, the two baroque bridge houses with their mansard hipped roofs still stand by the bridge . Together with the Weilburg post office, they shape the baroque Postplatz.
history
As early as the 14th century, there was a wooden bridge on the site of today's stone bridge. In 1359, Count Johann I von Nassau-Weilburg had this wooden bridge replaced by a stone bridge. Already in 1408 a flood with ice drift destroyed the bridge. It was rebuilt, but destroyed again by a flood in 1555.
Under Count Philip III. from Nassau-Weilburg , the third stone bridge was built at this point from 1555. An engraving by Matthäus Merian depicts the curved bridge with six arches. An inner and an outer bridge tower can be seen. In front of the outer bridge tower was a flood ditch with a drawbridge. With this branch the Lahn flows in the wrong direction; other details may also have to be questioned.
During a flood in the winter of 1698/99, a bridge arch collapsed. The bridge was temporarily repaired. After Limburger Strasse and Frankfurter Strasse were expanded into avenues in 1714, the outer bridge tower was demolished in 1717 and replaced by two bridge houses.
The temporary bridge lasted until 1763/64. Then it was so destroyed by a flood with ice drift on New Year's Eve that a new building was inevitable. Prince Karl Christian von Nassau-Weilburg commissioned his building inspector Johann Friedrich Sckell to build the fourth stone arch bridge. This was opened to traffic in 1765. Pile gratings from 600 beech and oak logs were made for the foundations of the bridge. However, work on the bridge was not yet complete. In 1770 the bridge was paved and in 1774 the side breast walls were built. Numerous Catholic workers from the Westerwald were involved in building the bridge. At her request, Catholic services were held again in Weilburg for the first time in around 200 years and continued even after the construction work had ended.
In 1787, building inspector Johann Ludwig Leidner had the flood ditch widened to 11 meters. A wooden construction enables the transition. A year earlier, the two bridge houses and the post office were built according to Leidner's plans. The flood ditch was filled in in 1872.
Two arches of the bridge were blown up by German troops on March 27, 1945, but the bridge could be repaired by November 12, 1946. In 1947 the bridge was extensively renovated. Another renovation took place in 1988.
With the construction of the Oberlahnbrücke in 2004, the stone bridge was largely relieved of traffic.
See also
literature
- Mathias Döring u. a .: Weilburg and his water, Siegburg and Weilburg , Deutsche Wasserhistorische Gesellschaft eV and City of Weilburg, 2005, p. 41
- Christian Spielmann : History of the city and rule Weilburg ; City of Weilburg, 1896 (new edition 2005)
Web links
Coordinates: 50 ° 29 ′ 14 ″ N , 8 ° 15 ′ 45 ″ E