Vanished Madrid: the old Segovia Viaduct.Built in 1874, the first Segovia Viaduct (named after the S

Vanished Madrid: the old Segovia Viaduct.Built in 1874, the first Segovia Viaduct (named after the Segovia street, 25 metres below the bridge) made real an old aspiration: the connection between the Royal Palace and the Royal Basilica of St. Francis and their surrounding neighbourhoods, prolongating the Bailén street (which, until then, ended abruptly at the edge of a ravine). The works had not finished enough when the Viaduct was used forf the first time… for a grim purpose: the translation of Calderón de la Barca’s remains to the Royal Basilica. Speaking of grim purposes, the place was chosen often by people to commit suicide. And the first one happened only a week after the inauguration. Not everyone succeeded: according to local legend, there was a young lady who miraculously saved her life after attempting suicide. She was in love with a man of modest origins and of course her parents were totally opposed to their marriage. So the desperate woman jumped from the Segovia Viaduct, only breaking her ankle. Apparently her heavy clothes saved her. Her parents then allowed her to marry the man she wanted. But most people who jumped from this or the second (the third Viaduct is mainly the second one heavily refurbished) weren’t so fortunate. An unknown individual used to paint black crosses in the bridge’s pillars every time someone jumped to their death. Almost from the beginning, the traffic was too intense for the Viaduct, which nevertheless became one of the city’s landmarks. It wasn’t exactly pretty to look at, but it was useful. The old Segovia Viaduct was used until 1932. It had been decades since the traffic became too intense for its structure. The bridge was closed to traffic and dismantled.  A new viaduct was planned, designed by the architect Francisco Javier Ferrero. The works started in 1934, stopping during the Civil War which obviously (with the city under siege) also damaged the structure. Restored and reopened in 1942, this second viaduct almost suffered the same fate than the first one: in 1976, there were plans for its demolition, but finally it was refurbished and preserved. Image sources: Wikimedia commons, Memoria de Madrid. -- source link

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