Wittelsbacher Bridge

Wittelsbacherbrücke from the south, seen from the west bank

Wittelsbacher Bridge from the south / east bank, renaturation work June 2008

Equestrian statue of Otto I , 1905 by Georg Wrba

The Wittelsbacherbrücke , named after the Bavarian royal house of the Wittelsbachers , is an arched bridge over the Isar in Munich . The Wittelsbacherbrücke connects the Isarvorstadt on the left of the Isar with the Au and Untergiesing on the right of the Isar.

history

The wooden works walkway used in the construction of the Braunau railway bridge was rebuilt at this location after completion in 1871 as a provisional Isar crossing. From 1875 there was an iron framework construction between two bridge portals, built by August von Voit . As part of the company Sager & Woerner offered bridge construction program in 1904, the concrete bridge was built. Theodor Fischer was responsible for the external design of the bridge, and Sager & Woerner was responsible for the design and construction. Technically, the Wittelsbach Bridge is a copy of the Reichenbach Bridge . It was considered to move the previous iron truss bridge to Thalkirchen . This plan was abandoned when a flat wooden bridge was planned there. The iron truss bridge was instead rebuilt near the Brudermühle in Sendling : it was the first Brudermühlbrücke .

Technical specifications

Four flat three-hinged arches made of stamped concrete with a length of 44 m, 28 m, 27 m and 26 m span the river. The longest arch spanned the normal river bed , the other three spanned the flood bed before the renaturation measures. The span and the shape of the arches were determined by the falsework that was already in use for the Reichenbach Bridge (exactly the same span); this was the only way that Sager & Woerner was able to offer massive bridges so cheaply. All four arches were clad with shell limestone.

freeze frame

The equestrian statue shows Otto von Wittelsbach and comes from Georg Wrba . The platform on which the statue stands is part of the bridge pillar. A symmetrical staircase leads down to a viewing platform and to a room below the roadway.

Kiosk on Schyrenplatz

Kiosk for filming the crime scene 2016

"Isarwahn" kiosk at Wittelsbacher Brücke

Others

On the right bank, on Schyrenplatz , there is - according to the inscription - probably the oldest kiosk in Munich. Another kiosk "Isarwahn" is directly opposite on the other side of the street.

In the summer of 2016, a kiosk was set up on the left bank to the north for a few weeks to film a “crime scene” in Munich.

For a long time, homeless people lived under the bridge and had made it “comfortable” there. In Munich, the bridge was synonymous with the home of the homeless. After the homeless camps had burned several times, they were finally evacuated permanently at the end of 2018.

The 2004 feature film Die Wittelsbacher was shot at this location. It is about the homeless living under this bridge and has a documentary character.

The Wittelsbach Bridge and equestrian statue are shown on the logo of the Munich venue for the 2021 European Football Championship . The motif is intended to symbolize building bridges across Europe.

literature

Christine Rädlinger : History of the Munich bridges . Ed .: Construction Department of the City of Munich. Franz Schiermeier Verlag, Munich 2008, ISBN 978-3-9811425-2-5 (building bridges from the foundation of the city to today).
Christoph Hackelsberger: Munich and its Isar bridges . Heinrich Hugendubel, Munich 1985, ISBN 978-3-88034-107-4 .