04/04/2023 | Partner: Regione Valle d'Aosta
HAUTE-SAVOIE BRIDGES
The bridges of Haute-Savoie are ancient evidence of man’s routes. In order to protect such an important architectural heritage of the Franco-Italian Alps, the bridges of Haute-Savoie are at the center of a process of safeguarding and enhancing, within the Alcotra project.
There are many factors that contribute to their deterioration, due to climatic conditions such as frost, floods or excessive temperatures, to seismic events, or to historical ones such as wars, fires, pandemics, and also to the intensive flows of crossing by man with heavy means of circulation that subject the structure to stresses that it is unable to withstand.
The Haute-Savoie Department is responsible for the maintenance of 1,460 bridges, some of which are works of art that deserve to be known.
To discover them we head to the Old Bridge in Cluses – le Pont Vieux. Before the great fire of 1845, much of the town of Cluses had developed around this structure dating back to 1674 and designed by François Cuenot, the most renowned public works engineer in Savoy at the time. Today it is an important part of the life of Cluses inhabitants and for all hikers, sportsmen and cyclists.
The Saint-Martin de Sallanches bridge overlooks Mont Blanc and appears as a symbol of this area portrayed by painters such as Maximilien de Meuron and travelers inspired by its location, a necessary step while traveling to Chamonix or Val d’Arly.
According to historians, its first construction dates back to the Middle Ages but the current appearance dates back to 1783. During 2021, restoration work began to allow full accessibility to this magnificent stone bridge.
At the confluence of the Giffre and Arve streams, the Romans had already built a wooden passage of which today, of course, there is no trace. Over time this structures have changed and what we see today is the stone bridge called “Napoleon’s”. Due to its strategic position, it was the protagonist of battles that took place in Faucigny during the French Revolution between the Sardinian troops and the republican armies. And with regard to its name, we can mention an anecdote that places it once again at the center of history: to celebrate the re-annexation of Savoy to France in Chamonix, Napoleon III and his entourage passed on this structure in September 1860.
Among the “unusual” bridges of this area you can not miss a visit to the Pile pont Expo in Saint-Gervais-les-Bains. A bridge that is also a hall dedicated to contemporary art. It is a unique structure of its kind, a sort of “concrete cathedral” that houses art installations.
Partner: Regione Valle d'Aosta
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