Hängebrücke über die Argen, Steel suspension footbridge in Langenargen, Germany

The Hängebrücke über die Argen is a true suspension bridge with no piers in the river; its main cables run over two concrete pylons and are anchored in the ground. The steel superstructure was built by Maschinenfabrik Esslingen, with cables from Felten & Guilleaume. The bridge connects Kressbronn and Langenargen and is now used only by pedestrians and cyclists.

Built between 1896 and 1897 under King Wilhelm II of Württemberg, the bridge replaced a wooden structure from 1839. It was designed by Karl von Leibbrand and built by the Maschinenfabrik Esslingen, with cables from Felten & Guilleaume. It is Germany's fourth-oldest suspension bridge, after Nuremberg's Kettensteg, Weimar's suspension bridge and Berlin's Tiergartenbrücke.

A model of this engineering achievement was displayed at the 1900 Paris World Exhibition to demonstrate German progress in bridge construction technology.

Since 1977, motor traffic has used a separate road bridge (L 334) built 25 metres south of the suspension bridge. The historic bridge is now reserved for pedestrians and cyclists. From Kressbronn station, the tourist information office offers regular horse-drawn carriage rides to the bridge during the summer months.

On Christmas Eve 1944, 110 bombs hit the suspension bridge and the neighbouring railway bridge; splinters only lightly damaged the cables, and the torn spots were repaired with the metal sleeves still visible today. In April 1945, three Wehrmacht soldiers were to blow up the bridge; the nearby resident Albrecht Auer talked the demolition squad into a short delay and, with cunning and the help of friends, saved the bridge.