Towers of the Historic Hochfeld Railway Bridge

Following a royal Prussian concession, the first bridge was planned and built in 1871. The historic bridge piers can still be admired today. Here is the history of the Hochfelder Rhine bridges: rottenplaces.de/main/hochfelder-eisenbahnbruecke-duisburg-29831

The pier dates back to the first Hochfeld railway bridge, opened in 1873. The tower-like superstructure with loopholes was a defensive structure designed to defend against a feared French attack from the west. The actual bridge was made of steel. From 1910 onwards, increasingly heavy trains caused increasing damage. A new bridge was planned a few metres downstream, but this was hampered by the First World War. The second bridge was not completed until 1925, after the war was lost in 1918. This time, the victorious powers banned defensive structures. The German military subtly circumvented the ban by demolishing the dilapidated old bridge, leaving the defensive pier with loopholes standing. But in the next war in 1945, even the pier was of no use – the Nazis blew up the bridge itself. After the war, it was rebuilt and still stands. Now the useless, historically beautiful pier is privately owned, along with a noisy luxury apartment. Let us enjoy the peace.

Today with flag salute to the transatlantic relationship