Buza Péter: Bridges of the Danube - Our Budapest (Budapest, 1999)

The first “permanent” pontoon bridge was bcjilt by the Tgrks

Later the preferred location was shifted further north, reflecting the interaction between crossing points and urban development. The growth in transit traffic justified the building of the roads leading to the bridge around the border of the city.

The old inner cities of Turkish times were connected by a structure representing the technology of the period at its most advanced. The first version deemed worthy of being recorded was built to orders by Mustafa Sokoll in such a way that the structure rested on 70 “drum” boats swaying on the water. In 1578 it was torn apart and almost completely destroyed by a terrible earthquake. As it would happen after similar disasters, the contraption was soon rebuilt. Appreciative reports by chance visitors from Europe venturing this far in this Balkans borderland tell us that this pontoon bridge remained in place until 1686, the year the Christian army besieged and retook Buda.

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