Queen Victoria Bridge

King Alfonso XIII and Queen Victoria Eugenia presided over the inauguration of the Queen Victoria Bridge on June 13, 1909. The bridge was named in honor of the king’s wife. It connects Bombilla Park, the two hermitages of San Antonio de la Florida, with the Colonia de San Antonio de La Florida and the Colonia del Manzanares.

Based on a design by architect Julio Martnez-Zapata Rodriguez, it was built by engineer José Eugenio Ribera Dutaste. The bridge includes two, parallel elliptical reinforced concrete arches that are decorated in modernist style. It also has two lanes for cars. Additionally, Queen Victoria Bridge is one of Spain’s earliest concrete bridges. Four vases and eight cast-iron lampposts decorated by Francisco Iglesias with bears serve as its adornment.

During the Second Spanish Republic, the bridge changed its name to Puente de Galicia. After the Spanish Civil War, it recovered its original name. On one of its sides, visitors can see a commemorative plaque placed on June 13, 1999, to celebrate its 19th anniversary.

Its ornamental components, which are mostly concentrated on the board, reflect the modernist trends of the day. Four vases and eight iron lampposts (two and four at each end) are placed on it, at the base of which different rampant bears appear, in a clear reference to the heraldic shield of Madrid.