The first cast-iron bridge is a world historical heritage. Bistro "Iron bridge Bar iron bridge on Pyatnitskaya

Photo from the 1880s View of the Cast Iron Bridge and Balchug.
The first bridge across the Vodootvodny Canal, or Kanavu as it was called earlier, appeared here in 1785. The bridge was wooden, but with iron railings. From these railings he got his name. Half a century later, in 1835, in its place was built by engineer P.Ya. de Witte is a single-span bridge with a ride from below. The carriageway was suspended on three cast-iron arches, richly decorated with gilded ornaments.

Photo con. 1860 - 1870s View towards the Kremlin from the bell tower of the Church of the Beheading of John the Baptist near Bor.
The cast iron bridge is visible on the right.

Long ago, beyond the Moscow River,
On Pyatnitskaya, near the canal,
Overgrown with bad grass...
M. Yu. Lermontov

And half a century later, in 1889, the old Cast Iron Bridge was replaced by a three-span iron girder bridge. It served longer than its predecessors and was reconstructed only in 1966.

Photo from the 1900s View of the Cast Iron Bridge and Pyatnitskaya Street.

Photo of the beginning 1930s from the CIGI archive. View of the Cast Iron Bridge and Balchug

Photo 1964-1965 View of the Chugunny bridge and Pyatnitskaya street

Photo 1965 G. A. Tikhomirova

Basic moments

Ironbridge is 60 m long and 13.7 m high. The central span stretches 30.5 m. The structure consists of 800 parts, for the manufacture of which 379 tons of cast iron were used. The cast iron bridge was the first of its kind, so it was assembled using traditional carpentry techniques. For individual parts of the frame, dovetail or tongue and groove joints were used, and the halves of the ribs and the top of the arched span were bolted together.

Ironbridge became a model for new bridge structures in England. Using the accumulated experience, at the end of the 18th - beginning of the 19th centuries, several more bridges were built in the country, and their construction required less cast iron. In 1934, it was decided to keep the bridge for history. Traffic on it was stopped, and the place was declared a monument to the industrialization of the country. Today, not far from the Cast Iron Bridge, on the right bank of the river, the Iron Bridge Tollhouse Museum is open, which tells about the history of the industrial development of the Severn Valley in the 17th-19th centuries.

The history of the construction of the Cast Iron Bridge

In the region of the Cast Iron Bridge, the banks of the Severn have a characteristic reddish hue. The reason for this is the rich reserves of hematite or red iron ore, from which cast iron is smelted. Due to the abundance of minerals, starting from the 17th century, the landscape in the gorge began to change, becoming more and more industrial. In 1709, in the village of Colbrookdale, Abraham Darby I invented the technology for the industrial use of coke. Several factories were opened here, and the population of the area grew rapidly.

At the beginning of the 18th century, only ferry crossings existed across the River Severn. They were not enough for the transportation of industrial goods, because of which the question arose of building a new bridge, and one that would not interfere with navigation on the river. Construction Initiative arch bridge came from the English architect Thomas Pritchard. Since 1755, the blast furnaces of the inventor and steelmaker John Wilkinson had been located in Shropshire, so the architect came up with a proposal to cast parts from expensive cast iron.

The main building project was completed in 1775, but two years later, when the construction of Ironbridge had just begun, Pritchard died. The owner of the iron foundry, Abraham Darby III, undertook to manage all the work. The case was completely unfamiliar, and in order to manufacture large parts of the bridge structure, fundamentally new engineering solutions had to be developed. Funding for the construction was secured by issuing shares, and Darby himself added the missing £3,200. Nevertheless, the final cost of the project turned out to be much higher than the estimated one, the owner of the plant had big losses and paid off debts for many years.

The cast-iron bridge was assembled in the summer of 1779 and began to operate by the beginning of 1781. At the beginning of the 19th century, it was noticed that Ironbridge was covered with cracks, the causes of which were the stress of the metal caused by the movement of the soil and stone supports. The bridge began to be repaired, and in 1821 the support on the south side was replaced with a lighter one made of cast iron.

How to get there

The cast-iron bridge is located 50 km northwest of Birmingham, and the city of Telford, which is 242 km away from the capital of England. There are direct trains from London twice a day. In addition, Telford can be reached by train, with a change in Wolverhampton.

The construction of the cast-iron bridge marked the beginning of a new era in bridge building, when metal completely replaced stone and wood in construction.

The use of stone and wood in the construction of bridges did not allow for high spans under which ships could sail. The construction of a bridge across the river meant the cessation of navigation on it.

The situation changed radically when they began to use metal in the construction of bridges, which made it possible to make the span height suitable for navigation.

The first cast-iron bridge was built in England, near the city of Colbrooksdale and crossed the River Severn.

How was the first iron bridge built?

In 1773, the architect Thomas Pritchard presented the idea of building a bridge made entirely of cast iron to steelmaker John Wilkson.

John was a man literally in love with metal, so much so that he had the nickname Iron Mad (crazy on iron). Not surprisingly, the idea of building a cast-iron bridge enthralled Wilkenson.

The steelmaker brought his iron casting partner John Derby into the project. This is how the construction of the first iron bridge in the history of the world began.

The partners were so enthusiastic about the idea that even the death of the architect Pritchard did not stop construction. Historical archives testify that only appearance bridge, but the design features were developed by Mr. Derby's engineers.

In 1777, the first cast-iron parts, ceilings and central arches were cast. Each piece was cast separately and assembled on site. In the construction of the bridge, 12 types of parts were used, the number of which was 800 pieces.

For fastening, the old carpentry method was used - “on rivets”. And only the arches at the upper points were connected with bolts. The weight of the bridge is 384 tons, the span is 34 meters.

The bridge was completed in 1779, and in 1881, after the installation of access roads, it was opened for public use.

With regards to financing construction, there are two opinions. One testifies that Derbe was forced into huge debts to complete the bridge, which he never paid off. According to another opinion, he really was forced to take out a loan, but the completion of the project contributed to the conclusion of many new contracts for the construction of cast-iron bridges throughout England, which more than covered the debt.

Why was cast iron not used in the construction of bridges until 1779?

The use of metal in construction was too expensive and did not justify the expense. The situation changed radically with the advent of blast furnaces, which made it possible to cast iron relatively quickly and in large quantities.

Near the construction site of the first cast-iron bridge were the blast furnaces of one of the project leaders, John Wilkson.

The first cast iron bridge today

Today, the first cast-iron bridge is a historical object classified as a UNESCO World Heritage Site. The traffic on the bridge is prohibited, it is intended only for pedestrians.

A town appeared near the bridge, the name of which literally translates as "Iron Bridge"

With the advent of the first cast-iron bridge in England, cast-iron structures began to be built around the world, including in Russia. (You can read about the first cast-iron bridges in Russia in the material

), this is the second independent, without the presence of the "Restaurant Syndicate", the work of Zotov. In "Chugunniy Most" he also acts as both a brand chef and a co-owner.

The chef of the Cast-iron Bridge is Ivan Matylev, formerly Zotov's sous-chef from the Entrecote restaurant. The rest of the team are new chefs. Dmitry himself visits the bistro almost every day. There are not many seats, but there are different spaces: two halls inside (30 seats upstairs, where the bar is, and 40 downstairs) and on the street (eight at the entrance, on Pyatnitskaya, and 25 in the courtyard).

The food that Dmitry Zotov came up with for the "Iron Bridge", as in the case of the recently opened cafe, can be called smart everyday. There is also no specific geographical reference in the menu, but the author's handwriting is clearly visible. At the same time, no white tablecloths, simple food for every day, besides, inexpensive food by Moscow standards.

Bistro "Iron Bridge"

The second independent, without the presence of the "Restaurant Syndicate", the project of chef Dmitry Zotov. Clever, but simple food for every day, the menu does not have a certain geographical reference, but the author's handwriting is clearly visible.

7 495 959 44 18

Working hours: 12:00–00:00

The menu is divided into two parts (with titles written in English for some reason): "Bar" and "Bistro". The bar is a tapas format, something that is convenient to eat with your hands and in company: microbruschetta (especially good with porcini mushrooms with homemade cheese and truffle), baked olives with peanuts and rosemary, Zotova’s signature corn-breaded fries and tender and sweet popcorn from shrimp with wasabi mayonnaise.

In the “Bistro” section, there is already something that is definitely more convenient to eat with a knife, fork and spoon: borscht with duck, pasta with meatballs, fried scallop with foie gras, miso and cauliflower cream, veal tongue in pepper sauce and onion pie with cheeks. I wanted to try the cheeks very much, but it was not possible. “The pie is on the lunch menu, and they just order a lot of it, it’s over,” the waiter explained his absence. The menu is short, just one page. They promise that breakfasts will appear on the menu soon, they will be prepared from nine in the morning.

The wine list, which has been operating in the bistro since the opening, was compiled by a manager from a wine company, but now sommelier Sergey Krylov, Zotov's partner in other projects and chef sommelier of the Restaurant Syndicate, has taken it up. They promise to improve the map and even make it perfect. By the way, it is with Krylov that Zotov opens his next projects: Haggis at the place "22.13" on Petrovka and the pizzeria Zotman Pizza Pie at the Nikitsky Gate. The menu also has a very small but sensible selection of beer (as we know, since the opening of Zotov's Wing or Legs, the chef has been paying special attention to beer): Barbar ale, rare in Moscow, Schofferhofer and Belhaven stouts, and Khamovniki. The ubiquitous Magners is also there.