Pont de Sully

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The northern part of the Pont de Sully, from the west

The Pont de Sully (or Pont Sully) is a bridge across the River Seine in Paris.

In reality two separate bridges meeting on the eastern tip of the Île Saint-Louis, it links the 4th and 5th arrondissements of the capital along the line of the Boulevard Henri IV, and connects to the eastern end of the Boulevard Saint-Germain. Sully - Morland is the nearest Metro station.

[edit] History

In the 19th century, the two parts of the bridge were known as the Passerelle Damiette (on the right-bank side) and the Passerelle de Constantine on the left-bank side. They were a pair pedestrian suspension bridges, constructed by Surville. The Passerelle Damiette was destroyed in the 1848 Revolution, while the Passerelle de Constantine, built between 1636 and 1638, collapsed in 1872 owing to corrosion in its cables.

The current bridge was constructed in 1876, as part of Haussmann's renovation of Paris, and opened on 25 August 1877. It is named in honour of Maximilien de Béthune, duke of Sully (1560-1641) and minister to Henri IV. It was designed by the engineers Paul Vaudrey and Gustave Brosselin. They set it at an angle of about 45 degrees to the river banks, which means that it gives a splendid view over the quais of the Île Saint-Louis and Notre Dame. The southern part consists of three cast iron arches, while the northern part, over the narrower arm of the river, consists of a central 42m arch in cast iron and two 15m arches in masonry.