Timeline

Heritage classified

Key figures

Origin and history

The Saint-Hilaire Bridge is a medieval roadwork located in Chartres, spanning the main arm of the Eure. Built in the 12th century, it connects the Saint-Pierre church and the eponymous square to the Morard gate via the rue du Pont-Saint-Hilaire. This bridge on the back of a donkey, composed of three arches in segment of a circle, is the only Chartres inscribed in historical monuments (Order of 1925). Its batteries, reinforced by triangular foothills on the upstream side and rectangular on the downstream side, illustrate construction techniques adapted to hydraulic stresses.

Restored in 1735, the bridge retained its primitive physiognomy despite a modern bellow parapet. Its dimensions (18.20 m long, 5.70 m wide) and its layout between the bridges Saint-Père (upstream) and Taillard (downstream) make it a rare testimony of the civil architecture of the Middle Ages. He owes his name to Saint Hilaire, bishop of Poitiers venerated in the diocese of Chartres.

Owned by the commune, the Saint-Hilaire Bridge is still in service, although its parapet and some elements (such as the backseats of the foothills is) betray later adaptations. His inscription as a historical monument in 1925 underscores his heritage value, linked both to his seniority and his role in the medieval network of Chartres. The sources (Wikipedia, Monumentum) confirm its remarkable state of conservation for a 12th century work.

External links