Connecting the right bank to the \u00cele de la Cit\u00e9, the Pont d\u2019Arcole<\/strong> isn\u2019t the most famous bridge in Paris. Yet, it was the first iron bridge in the city<\/strong>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Before it, in 1827, a simple 3.5-meter pedestrian walkway linked the H\u00f4tel de Ville to the H\u00f4tel-Dieu. Too fragile and too narrow, it was destroyed in 1854. The Pont d\u2019Arcole was then built, completed in 1856: a metal structure with stone abutments and a wooden deck. It even withstood a shell during World War I.<\/p>\n\n\n\n But what truly intrigues is its name<\/strong>. Nobody knows its real origin.<\/p>\n\n\n\n One theory suggests that \u201cArcole\u201d was an apprentice locksmith<\/strong>, killed during the July Revolution of 1830. He allegedly waved a flag, led the insurgents to the H\u00f4tel de Ville, and before dying shouted: Problem: there\u2019s no record of him in the archives\u2026 A forgotten hero? Pure invention? Perhaps a nod to the Battle of Arcole led by Bonaparte.<\/p>\n\n\n\n A total mystery.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" A mystery surrounds the name of this 19th-century Parisian bridge. Connecting the right bank to the \u00cele de la Cit\u00e9, the Pont d\u2019Arcole isn\u2019t the most famous bridge in Paris. Yet, it was the first iron bridge in the city. Before it, in 1827, a simple 3.5-meter pedestrian walkway linked the H\u00f4tel de Ville to […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":4741,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[15],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-4743","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-non-classe-en"],"yoast_head":"\n
\u201cMy friends, remember that my name is Arcole!\u201d<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n