Chapel Bridge, Europe's Oldest Covered Wooden Bridge

Kapellbrücke, Neustadt, Lucerne, Luzern, 6000, Switzerland

A particularly ancient and beautiful wooden bridge

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Introduction

The Kapellbrücke is a 204-meter (670-foot) wooden covered bridge that spans the Reuss River at the outlet of Lake Lucerne in Switzerland. It is a famous tourist attraction and landmark of Lucerne. The bridge was built in 1333 for defense purposes and is brown in color with a red roof. It houses approximately 120 paintings from the 17th century depicting the history of Lucerne. However, most of the bridge was destroyed in a ship collision in 1993, but was quickly rebuilt to its original form. The current bridge is a reconstruction built after 1993. In the middle of the bridge is an octagonal water tower that is 140 feet tall and was historically used as a prison, torture chamber, lookout and treasury. On the north bank of the Kapellbrücke is the St. Peter's Church, which is why it is commonly called the "Church Bridge".