Nijmegen railway bridge: Difference between revisions

Nijmegen Railway Bridge
Nijmegen Railway Bridge
	The railway bridge and attached 'Snelbinder' cycle bridge.
Coordinates	51°51′07″N 5°51′24″E / 51.8519°N 5.8566°E
Carries	2 railway lines and bicycles
Crosses	Waal river
Locale	Nijmegen, Netherlands
Official name	Nijmegen Bridge
Characteristics
Design	Truss bridge
Total length	675 metres (2,215 ft)
Longest span	225 metres (738 ft)
Clearance above	23.1 metres (75 ft 9 in)
History
Opened	1879; 1983
Closed	Destroyed twice during World War II. Was rigged to blow by the Germans, but American Allies defused the charges.
Location

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The Nijmegen railway bridge (Dutch: Spoorbrug Nijmegen) is a truss bridge spanning the River Waal in the Netherlands, connecting the city of Nijmegen to the town of Lent.

Construction

Construction started in 1875, on the site of an ancient Roman bridge, and was completed 4 years later in 1879. It originally consisted of three truss arches. The southern land abutment, styled as a medieval city gate, was designed by Dutch architect P.J.H Cuypers. These twin tower structures, one each side of the track, were to protect the entrance to the city of Nijmegen and delay any enemy advance to give time to demolish the bridge.^[2]

The railway bridge's construction enabled train connections to Arnhem, thus Nijmegen was the last major city in the Netherlands to be connected to the national rail network.

Second World War

The middle arch of the bridge was destroyed twice during the Second World War, but despite this it survived the conflict. The first demolition was initiated on 10 May 1940 by the Dutch themselves when the Wehrmacht approached. The Germans repaired the bridge, and it was back in service by 17 November 1940.

The Germans modified the abutments by removing the top floor of each tower, strengthening the flat roofs and mounting anti-aircraft guns.^[2] The bridge was involved in Operation Market Garden, and was a key Allied objective. The 82nd Airborne Division's assault on the bridge in September 1944 received the nickname "Little Omaha" due to the heavy casualties, and became a significant turning point in the battle.^[3]

Despite the efforts of the Americans, frogmen from the German Marine Einsatzkommando were able to demolish the bridge again on 28 September 1944.^[4]

Reconstruction

To facilitate passage by larger ships, the bridge was reconstructed in 1983, still in the truss style but with only one wider arch. The bridge was also raised by one metre.^[2] Only the brick abutment remains from the original structure. This abutment was to be demolished during the reconstruction, but protests from Nijmegen residents prevented this and it was declared a national monument, and in 2008 the third level was rebuilt from the original plans.^[2]

In 2004, a bicycle bridge known as the Snelbinder was added to the eastern side of the bridge.^[5]

The Waalbrug, The Snelbinder and the Nijmegen railway bridge

Literature evocation

In the short story of J.H.F. Grönloh (Nescio) "De uitvreter", the main character commits suicide by stepping from the bridge.

References

^ "Spoorbrug Nijmegen". Retrieved 17 March 2013.
^ ^a ^b ^c ^d Daanen, Peter (2011). Het Landhooft. The rampart at the Nijmegen railway bridge. Uitgeverij de Verteller, Nijmegen.
^ Bowman, Martin (2013). Shrinking Perimeter. Pen & Sword. ISBN 978-1473826809.
^ "Hitlers Meereskämpfer: Kampfschwimmer und Torpedomänner im Zweiten Weltkrieg (Documentary, starting min 38)". YouTube (in German). Retrieved 3 April 2024.
^ Roodenburg, Hylke & others (2011). Over de Waal (in Dutch). Uitgeverij Vantilt, Nijmegen. p. 224. ISBN 978-90-814500-27.

[1] "Spoorbrug Nijmegen". Retrieved 17 March 2013.

[Daanen-2] Daanen, Peter (2011). Het Landhooft. The rampart at the Nijmegen railway bridge. Uitgeverij de Verteller, Nijmegen.

[3] Bowman, Martin (2013). Shrinking Perimeter. Pen & Sword. ISBN 978-1473826809.

[4] "Hitlers Meereskämpfer: Kampfschwimmer und Torpedomänner im Zweiten Weltkrieg (Documentary, starting min 38)". YouTube (in German). Retrieved 3 April 2024.

[5] Roodenburg, Hylke & others (2011). Over de Waal (in Dutch). Uitgeverij Vantilt, Nijmegen. p. 224. ISBN 978-90-814500-27.

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[2]

[3]

[4]

[5]

@@ Line 1: / Line 1: @@
 {{Infobox bridge
-|bridge_name= Nijmegen Railway Bridge
+|name= Nijmegen Railway Bridge
+|image= Nijmegen railway bridge. River Waal. in the back the Oversteek bridge Seen from the Stevenskerk.jpg
-|image= Railway bridge nijmegen.JPG
 |caption= The railway bridge and attached 'Snelbinder' cycle bridge.
 |official_name= Nijmegen Bridge
@@ Line 7: / Line 7: @@
 |crosses= [[Waal (river)|Waal river]]
 |locale= [[Nijmegen]], [[Netherlands]]
 |maint=
 |design= [[Truss bridge]]
 |mainspan= {{convert|225|m|ft|0}}<ref>{{cite web
 | url        = http://en.structurae.de/structures/data/index.cfm?ID=s0011413
 | title      = Spoorbrug Nijmegen
-| accessdate = {{date|17 mar 2013}}
+| accessdate = 17 March 2013
 }}</ref>
 |length= {{convert|675|m|ft|0}}
 |height=
 |clearance= {{convert|23.1|m|ftin|0}}
 |below=
 |traffic=
 |open= 1879; 1983
 |closed= Destroyed twice during [[World War II|World War&nbsp;II]]. Was rigged to blow by the Germans, but American Allies defused the charges.
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 }}
-The '''Nijmegen railway bridge''' is a [[truss bridge]] spanning the [[Waal (river)|River Waal]], connecting the city of [[Nijmegen]] to the town of [[Lent, Netherlands|Lent]] in the [[Netherlands]].
+The '''Nijmegen railway bridge''' ({{langx|nl|Spoorbrug Nijmegen}}) is a [[truss bridge]] spanning the [[Waal (river)|River Waal]] in the [[Netherlands]], connecting the city of [[Nijmegen]] to the town of [[Lent, Netherlands|Lent]].
 ==Construction==
 [[File:Nijmegen rail bridge 1879.jpg|thumb|left|200px|The original Nijmegen railway bridge in 1879.]]
 [[File:Spoorbrug Nijmegen 001.jpg|thumb|left|200px|The medieval style abutment towers.]]
-Construction started in 1875, on the site of an ancient Roman bridge, and was completed 4&nbsp;years later in 1879. It originally consisted of 3 truss arches. The southern land [[abutment]], styled as a medieval city gate, was designed by Dutch architect [[Pierre Cuypers|P.J.H Cuypers]]. These tower structures served the purposes of protecting the entrance to the city of Nijmegen. The railway bridge's construction meant that train connections to [[Arnhem]] were possible, thus Nijmegen was the last major city in the [[Netherlands]] to be connected to the national rail network.
+Construction started in 1875, on the site of an ancient Roman bridge, and was completed 4&nbsp;years later in 1879. It originally consisted of three truss arches. The southern land [[abutment]], styled as a medieval city gate, was designed by Dutch architect [[Pierre Cuypers|P.J.H Cuypers]]. These twin tower structures, one each side of the track, were to protect the entrance to the city of Nijmegen and delay any enemy advance to give time to demolish the bridge.<ref name=Daanen>{{cite book |first=Peter |last=Daanen| title=Het Landhooft. The rampart at the Nijmegen railway bridge |date=2011 |publisher=Uitgeverij de Verteller, Nijmegen}}</ref>
+The railway bridge's construction enabled train connections to [[Arnhem]], thus Nijmegen was the last major city in the [[Netherlands]] to be connected to the national rail network.
 ==Second World War==
+The middle arch of the bridge was destroyed twice during the Second World War, but despite this it survived the conflict. The first demolition was initiated on 10 May 1940 by the Dutch themselves when the Wehrmacht approached. The Germans repaired the bridge, and it was back in service by 17 November 1940.
-The middle arch of the bridge was destroyed twice during the Second World War but despite this it survived the conflict. The abutment was also damaged by the Germans who mounted [[Anti-aircraft warfare|anti-aircraft guns]] on each of the towers. The bridge was involved in [[Operation Market Garden]] and was intended to be a key objective for the Allies to hold.
+The Germans modified the abutments by removing the top floor of each tower, strengthening the flat roofs and mounting [[Anti-aircraft warfare|anti-aircraft guns]].<ref name=Daanen/> The bridge was involved in [[Operation Market Garden]], and was a key Allied objective. The [[82nd Airborne Division]]'s assault on the bridge in September 1944 received the nickname "Little Omaha" due to the heavy casualties, and became a significant turning point in the battle.<ref>{{cite book|last1=Bowman|first1=Martin|title=Shrinking Perimeter|date=2013|publisher=Pen & Sword|isbn=978-1473826809}}</ref>
+Despite the efforts of the Americans, frogmen from the [[Kommando Spezialkräfte Marine#1944|German Marine Einsatzkommando]] were able to demolish the bridge again on 28 September 1944.<ref>{{Cite web|title= Hitlers Meereskämpfer: Kampfschwimmer und Torpedomänner im Zweiten Weltkrieg (Documentary, starting min 38)|work= [[YouTube]]|access-date=3 April 2024|url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=W3CRZeZycKU |language=de}}</ref>
 ==Reconstruction==
-The bridge was reconstructed in 1984, still in the truss style but only one arch was kept in the design. Only the brick abutment remains from the original structure. This land abutment was to be demolished during the reconstruction but protests from the local Nijmegen residents prevented this and it was instead declared a national monument. In 2004, a [[Cycling in the Netherlands|bicycle bridge]] known as the ''Snelbinder'' was added to the eastern side of the bridge. The third level of the bridge was reconstructed in 2008, precisely from the original building plans.
+To facilitate passage by larger ships, the bridge was reconstructed in 1983, still in the truss style but with only one wider arch. The bridge was also raised by one metre.<ref name=Daanen/> Only the brick abutment remains from the original structure. This abutment was to be demolished during the reconstruction, but protests from Nijmegen residents prevented this and it was declared a national monument, and in 2008 the third level was rebuilt from the original plans.<ref name=Daanen/>
+In 2004, a [[Cycling in the Netherlands|bicycle bridge]] known as the ''Snelbinder'' was added to the eastern side of the bridge.<ref>{{cite book |first=Hylke & others|last=Roodenburg |title=Over de Waal|date=2011 |page=224 |publisher=Uitgeverij Vantilt, Nijmegen |language=nl |isbn=978-90-814500-27}}</ref>
 [[Image:Nijmegenskyline.jpg|thumb|center|810px|The [[Waalbrug]], The Snelbinder and the Nijmegen railway bridge]]
 ==Literature evocation==
-In the short story of  J.H.F. Grönloh ([[nescio]]) "De uitvreter", the main character stepped out in the river from that bridge.
+In the short story of J.H.F. Grönloh ([[Nescio]]) "De uitvreter", the main character commits suicide by stepping from the bridge.
 ==References==
+{{Commons category|Spoorbrug Nijmegen}}
 {{Reflist}}
+{{Authority control}}
+[[Category:Truss bridges]]
 [[Category:Bridges completed in 1879]]
 [[Category:Bridges completed in 1984]]
+[[Category:Bridges over the Rhine]]
+[[Category:Railway bridges in the Netherlands]]
+[[Category:Steel bridges in the Netherlands]]
+[[Category:Bridges in Nijmegen]]
 [[Category:Rijksmonuments in Nijmegen]]