Bosphorus Bridge

The Bosphorus Bridge, known officially as the 15 July Martyrs Bridge and unofficially as the First Bridge, is one of the three suspension bridges spanning the Bosphorus strait in Istanbul, Turkey, thus connecting Europe and Asia. The idea of a bridge crossing the Bosphorus dates back to antiquity. For Emperor Darius the Great of the Achaemenid Empire (522 BC–485 BC), as recorded by the Greek writer Herodotus in his Histories, Mandrocles of Samos once engineered a pontoon bridge across the Bosphorus, linking Asia to Europe, enabling Darius to pursue the fleeing Scythians as well as position his army in the Balkans to overwhelm Macedon. Construction started in February 1970 and ceremonies were attended by President Cevdet Sunay and Prime Minister Süleyman Demirel.