Cernavoda Bridge

Initially named King Carol I and later Anghel Saligny, after his „father”, the Cernavoda Bridge was built in five years, between 1890 and 1895. It is inscribed in the List of Historical Monuments under the name of Carol I Bridge with the „Dorobanti” statue. With LMI Code: CT-II-m-A-A-02872, according to Wikipedia. http://ro.wikipedia.org/wiki/Podul_Regele_Carol_I

The purpose of this construction was to make the railroad connection between Bucharest and Constanta. However, two problems have emerged, irrespective of the date of the vote on the bridge construction law. It is about the construction of a special train station in Bucharest to serve the railroad up to Fetesti, Obor Station. But also the repurchase of the Cernavoda-Constanta railroad, because it belonged to an English company.

The first section of the railroad that was to take travelers to the Black Sea coast was the one linking Constanta to Cernavoda. It was built in 1860, before Dobrogea was ceded to Romania (it had belonged to Bulgaria under the laws and treaties of the time – n.n.). After the War of Independence in 1977 and the return of Dobrogea to the Romanian state, in 1879 the construction of the Bucharest-Ciulnita-Fetesti railway line was started. The connection of the two sections required the construction of a bridge over the Danube and over the Borcea Arm.

The process by which the Cernavoda – Constanta railway came into the possession of our government on December 10, 1882 was a difficult one. It paid as much as the foreign company demanded. 16.5 million lei. Paying for the railroad, rolling stock, land and warehouses.

CERNAVODA BRIDGE TAKES SHAPE ON PAPER

On August 3, 1882, the first international competition for the construction of bridges and railways across the Borcea and the Danube was published. Eight proposals were submitted by construction firms from Paris, Vienna, Frankfurt, Bern and Belgium. The result was that the projects presented by the foreign companies entered in the competition were judged unsatisfactory. A new set of conditions was set for a new competition. In 1885 a new competition was organized to build the Cernavoda bridge. It was declared of public utility and the estimated cost was 35 million gold lei. The commission – which is exclusively Romanian – is still refusing the bids received from foreign firms registered in the competition. At the time, some members of the commission suggested that Anghel Saligny present a project himself.

As no firm was awarded the project by tender, in September 1887, the Ministry of Public Works set up a special service for the Fetesti – Cernavoda railway. Its task was to study and draw up the final plans. Only Romanian engineers were in the service, and Anghel Saligny was in charge.

LAYING RAILWAY ROUTE

Engineers Iorceanu and D. Frunza study and establish the route of the railroad and the construction site of the bridge. For the hydrographic studies in the Cernavoda area, the services of Sir Charles Hartley, chief engineer at the European Commission of the Danube, are called upon.

On the basis of this data, the Ministry of Public Works was to entrust Anghel Saligny with the elaboration of the project for the Fetesti Constanta railway line and the bridge over the Danube, as well as all the works necessary for their construction, according to the work „Road between the waters”, author Octavia Cretu, p. 62.

In 1888 Anghel Saligny published in the form of a brochure „Memoriul asupra proiectului pontului peste Dunare la Cernavoda” („Memorium on the project of the bridge over the Danube at Cernavoda”) which had been presented to the General Directorate of the Romanian Railroads. On March 16 of the same year, Mihail Kogalniceanu appealed to the government and requested that the Fetesti-Cernavoda bridge be built by Anghel Saligny.

On January 3, 1890 a tender was held to determine the companies that would build the decks, under the control of Romanian engineers. „After the completion of the bridge projects, an auction was held for the commissioning of the works. The auction was held on January 3, 1890. Out of 9 houses that had been invited to bid, only 7 presented themselves. The lowest cost was offered by the Fves-Lille company, which was entrusted with the work. Later the auction was held for the Borcea bridge, which was awarded to the Schneider et Co. factory from France, and the viaducts to the Cocherill company from Belgium”, („Istoriculul orasului Cernavoda”, author Ioan I. Mussat, page 85).

Foundation stone of the Danube Bridge

On October 9, 1890, King Carol I lays the foundation stone of the Danube Bridge, burying a document bearing the state seal in the masonry that forms the first footing on the left bank of the Danube, along with several coins in circulation at the time. A copy of this document is kept at the State Archives.

Anghel Saligny, world-renowned innovations

The construction of this bridge introduces two major innovations which subsequently became world-renowned:

The cantilever truss system is advantageous for the large spans of this bridge
Steel was used for the superstructure in preference to powdered iron. Reinforced concrete was used for the foundations. The Cernavoda Bridge Complex, work started in the fall of 1890, includes the bridge over the Borcea Arm, the flood bridge in the pool and near the Danube, the bridge over the Danube, in total 4087.95 m, the simple railway Fetesti-Cernavoda 27.3 km, the embankments, the transects, the railway stations, the art works. The superstructure of the bridge is 30 meters above high waters, and the foundations at a depth of 28.5 meters. The width between beams varies between 6.5 and 9 meters.

Execution of the work and its weight

The works were carried out by the Directorate General of Railways. This steel colossus, whose superstructure weighs 5,216 tons, with a total length of 1622 meters, of which 750 m cross the riverbed, supported on 6 piers, has in its infrastructure 15,374 m3 of concrete and 32,066 m3 of rough stone masonry. The minimum radius is 40 meters and the maximum ramp is 10%. The superstructure, divided into nine parts, was assembled with the help of steel girder trusses.

It was raised 1.2 meters above the water by pontoons. The beams were lifted to the height foreseen in the project by hydraulic cranes.

The viaduct ramp was dictated by the need to meet the requirements of the European powers. The bridge itself was to be built at a height of 30 m above the Danube. To allow the passage of tall ships.

The central and secondary openings of the bridge

The central span of the Danube Bridge is 190 meters and includes 4 smaller spans of 140 meters, as well as a viaduct with 15 spans of 60 meters. The bridge is situated 30 meters above the high water level of the river to allow the passage of ships with larger masts.

Over the Borcea Bratul, the bridge has three spans of 140 meters each. And a viaduct with 11 spans of 50 meters. In the 19th century, Borcea Island was more of a puddle, which was crossed by a 14-kilometer stretch of railway. A viaduct of 34 spans of 42 meters each was built there.

More than a century ago, this bridge, together with the access ramps, formed the longest bridge complex built in Romania. The third largest in the world and the first in Europe.

As a tribute to the heroes who fell in the fierce battles of the War of Independence, a bronze monument representing two dorobanti was erected at the ends of the Cernavoda bridge.

The inauguration of the bridge and its existence

The bridge was inaugurated on September 26, 1895, in the presence of King Carol I, on the occasion of which were organized extensive festivities. A first trial convoy of 15 heavy locomotives crossed the bridge. Their speed was 60 km/h. They were followed by a train, reserved for guests, which crossed the bridge at 80km/h.

Although many doubted the strength of the bridge, Anghel Saligny was convinced of the safety of his project. All this time, he stayed under the bridge in a dinghy with his family.

In the years that followed, the bridge had a turbulent existence. During the First World War, in 1917, the section over the Borcea Arm was mined by retreating Romanian troops. The aim was to prevent the German-Bulgarian troops from advancing into Muntenia.

The bridge was rebuilt four years later, in 1921. It was in use until 1987, when a new railroad bridge was built next to the old one, which was dismantled. In parallel with the railroad bridge, a road bridge was built for the A2 highway. The importance of the monument will remain unchanged among the world’s major metal constructions.