The Alexandre III Bridge is widely regarded as the most graceful and elegant bridge in Paris. It was built in honour of the Franco-Russian alliance and bears the name of the Russian Czar, who initiated the alliance. The foundation stone of the structure was laid by Nicholas II, son of Alexander III, and the bridge was opened in the presence of Russian ambassador Lev Urusov.
Constructed a new crossing for the 1900 World's Fair as part of a large-scale redevelopment of the western part of Paris. The result was the Grand Palais and Petit Palais, and between them, the Alexandre III Bridge, connecting the Esplanade des Invalides and the Champs-Élysées neighbourhood. the Champs-Elysees. The bridge is no more than 6 metres high so as not to obscure the majestic panorama of the Champs-Elysees. the majestic panoramas on both sides of the Seine.
Like the palaces, the bridge is built in the boz-ar style, which means it is richly and lavishly decorated: sculptures of pegasi, cherubs, water spirits, nymphs of the Seine and Neva, golden emblems of France and Russia, lanterns. All the decorations are made by different artists. At the entrances to the bridge there are four seventeen-metre high pillars with shining gilded sculptures. shining gilded sculptures, symbolising certain periods of the of French history. These pillars are an example of a clever combination of beauty and utility: they are actually counterweights. they are actually counterweights, balancing the massive arch.
Thus, the opulent decoration of the bridge is combined with the latest for the time engineering solutions. The steel single-arch bridge was one of the world's first prefabricated structures - its elements were manufactured in the Le Creusot factories and then transported by barge to Paris. and then transported by barge to Paris, where a huge, full-width crane had already been prepared, crane.
The Alexander III Bridge has a "brother" in St. Petersburg - the Troitsky Bridge over the Neva with a very similar decoration. Neva River with a very similar decoration. It was designed by Eiffel's firm and built by the firm of Batignolles, and its foundation stone was laid by the then French French president at the time, Felix Faure.
