25 de Abril Bridge (“Ponte 25 de Abril”) is one of the symbols of Lisbon. From the many hills of the Portuguese capital you can admire the sixth-long suspension bridge in Europe. For us living in the Belém district, it is an usual but never boring sight.
The history of the “25 de Abril Bridge”
The idea of creating a bridge to connect Lisbon with the Amadora city on the opposite side of the Tagus River was born in 1876. However, due to the outbreak of World War II, the project was not resumed until 1958, when the Portuguese government approved the construction plan. The architectural competition was won by the American Bridge Company, which used steel imported from the United States to build this hanging bridge.
25 de Abril Bridge was opened only in 1966. Its first name was “Salazar Bridge”. (“Ponte Salazar”) – in honor of the Prime Minister and dictator of Portugal. On April 25, 1974, a revolution occurred in Portugal. It was later called the “Carnation Revolution” – the inhabitants of Lisbon were decorating with white and red carnations (and stacking them in the barrels of rifles) the soldiers who took part in the coup. To commemorate this event the bridge was renamed “Bridge of 25th April” – “Ponte 25 de Abril”.
