The town of Blois has always been an important North/South crossing point. The first wooden bridges were built to facilitate maneuvering, as boats were no longer sufficient. The foundations are often visible in summer, when the Loire is at its lowest, near the stone bridge downstream.
But the vagaries of the weather often get the better of the wooden structures, which are now used to house more and more buildings (see drawing). The passage of boats is also often an accomplice to violent shocks, already caused by ice breakup at the end of winter.
As the bridge was being washed away in 1715, the fledgling Ponts et Chaussées department was asked to design a stone bridge. Jacques Gabriel from Blois, the department’s first engineer, set to work. The 283-metre structure became the benchmark for other towns, with its sloping profile, arches and 14-metre pyramid (also known as an obelisk) in the middle of the Loire. The sculptures, visible only by boat, represent the Atlantic on one side and the source of the Massif Central on the other.
The bridge’s design was followed by the development of the busy ports and quays.
The bridge withstood many an invader. It paid the heaviest price during the Second World War, losing several of its arches. Today, it is said to be the strongest bridge among its more modern counterparts!

