A lot
of ancient bridges across Europe are referred to as the Devil’s Bridge. These
bridges were built under such challenging conditions that successful completion
of the bridge required a heroic effort on the part of the builders and the
community, ensuring its legendary status. This particular devil’s bridge or
Teufelsbrücke is located across the Schöllenen Gorge in the scenic Reuss valley
in the canton of Uri, in Switzerland. According to the legend, it was so hard
to build a bridge here that a desperate Swiss herdsman wished the devil would
make a bridge. The devil appeared and offered to build the bridge on the
condition that the soul of the first to cross would be given to him. After the
bridge was built, the villagers outsmarted the devil by sending a goat across
the bridge. Angered by the trick, the devil picked up a large stone in order to
smash the bridge to pieces. On his way to the bridge the devil met an old woman
wearing a cross, which scared the devil causing him to drop the stone and flee.
The
old Devil’s bridge (below) and the new Devil’s Bridge (above) and the
Matterhorn-Gotthard Railway.
The
Schöllenen Gorge is an important access route and the shortest transit to the
St. Gotthard Pass, but it was generally not used until the early 13th century
because it involved crossing the turbulent Reuss river, swollen with snowmelt
during the early summer. The first bridge across the river was built in 1230.
It was a wooden bridge and needed frequent maintenance.
In the
16th century, the wooden bridge was replaced by a stone arch bridge. The road
was essentially a mule track that only allowed for the transportation of goods
by mule, up to the beginning of the 19th century. In 1799, this bridge
witnessed one of the most dramatic battles of Suvorov's Italian and Swiss
expedition which took place during the Napoleonic Wars. During this battle the
bridge was heavily damaged by the retreating French army. The bridge gave away
in a storm in 1888.
A new
bridge was built in 1820 and it took 10 years to complete, demonstrating the
difficulty of the task. By the middle of the 20th century, the second bridge
was no longer able to handle the volume of traffic it received, and a concrete
bridge, featuring two lanes was built in 1958 to accommodate heavier flow. The
second devil's bridge still exists today but is not used.
In
1994, the Swiss government issued a commemorative coin for the Teufelsbrücke.
The obverse features a stylized scene of the devil holding the devil’s stone –
the Teufelsstein - approaching the bridge to smash it. The 220 ton rock,
allegedly picked up by the devil, is still there, though it had to be moved by
127 meters in order to make room for the new Gotthard road tunnel.
The
Devil's Bridge in the Schöllenen Gorge on the Way across the St. Gotthard Pass
with a Mule Train, before 1805. A painting by Swiss painter Peter Birmann (1758
- 1844).
The
old devil’s bridge in a 1934 picture of the Schöllenen Gorge.
Leaning
bridge of the Schöllenen railway near the devil's bridge.
The
old devil’s bridge.
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