The Pont du Gard, part of the famous Roman aqueduct remains, was built under the emperor Claude, around 50 AD.

At this time, Nîmes (or Nemausus, its roman name) was an important provincial town and had been so for nearly a century. First, Caesar, then Augustus contributed to Nîmes development by endowing it with various city walls and monuments.
However the fountain, which had certainly contributed to settlements from the sixth century B.C onwards, was no longer adequate for the town’s expansion and its water needs.

So the Nîmes authorities decided to create a water conveyance but they had to find a sufficiently plentiful source of water that would have both a regular flow and good quality water. The streams, rivers and waterways, including the river Gardon, were ruled out due to the irregularity of their flows. The source in Eure fulfilled the conditions. Therefore the Romans built the aqueduct from Uzès to Nîmes.
The first leaks appeared as soon as water ran through the aqueduct and reducing the slope between Vers-Pont-du-Gard and Remoulins caused the reservoir to overflow. The height of the canal was raised for almost six kilometres and the bridge structures in this area were reinforced, except for the Pont du Gard’s. It seems that drinkable water was transported through the aqueduct until the first half of the third century A.D ensuing a period of illegal extractions for countryside irrigation.

Therefore the aqueduct would have been carrying water only fit for agricultural or industrial use. As soon as it’s initial purpose had been abandoned (between the fifth and seventh century), the aqueduct fell victim to unrestrained pillaging as it represented an important source of building material. The sections that were spared correspond to the areas that were difficult for the pillagers to access. Nor was the bridge itself treated sparingly- its original twelve arches and the canal wall, which came before it, have all disappeared.

During the Middle Ages, a new function was given to the structure a roadway, which was furthermore subjected to a toll, as witnessed by the transfer of this duty by Philippe le Bel, the Lord of Uzès.

It was at the beginning of the eighteenth century (1699-1704) when the first genuine restoration project was undertaken, financed by the Languedoc states, aimed at repairing the arches on the second level by removing the dangerous stones. A little while later, (1743-1747), the engineer Pitot was responsible for building a road-bridge next to the downstream side of the office. This crossing the river Gardon was preserved without endangering the historical site.

In the nineteenth century numerous architects applied themselves to restoring the Pont du Gard; among them were Questel- to whom we owe the stairway on the right bank and Jean-Claude Laisné who led a huge construction project requiring 2500 cubic meters of stone.
The Pont du Gard was finally returning to its original appearance and beauty. Among the unbelievable an ambitious projects aiming to restore the aqueduct, some even saw the beginnings of fulfilment. This is how the tunnel, which opens up on the right bank of the Pont du Gard, was dug in 1863.

In 1914 the historical buildings and monuments legislation was set up and naturally included the Pont du Gard, and in 1986 the UNESCO classified it as world heritage.

How long did it take to build the aqueduct and how long was it used for?
It took around 10 to 15 years to construct the aqueduct including five years in which the bridge was built. The aqueduct transported water from Uzès to Nîmes for nearly five centuries, from 50 A.D to the beginning of the sixth century.

How long is the aqueduct ?
Although some 20 kilometres separate the aqueduct’s starting point and finishing point, there are nearly 50 kilometres of winding course presenting diverse obstacles (such as valleys, ditches and mountains) which were, one by one, filled or dug out. Nothing could stop the Romans’ genius, not even the deep Gardon valley which was crossed thanks to the aqueduct’s masterpiece, the Pont du Gard.

Where does the aqueduct start and end ?
Water used to leave the Eure source in Uzès, at 71.25 m altitude, flowing into the Castellum Divisarium (water tower), rue de la Lampèze at 59.95 m altitude, equivalent to a general lowering of 12.29 m and an average slope of 24.8 cm per kilometre.

How fast did water flow through the aqueduct ?
In the first years of running, water flowed through the aqueduct at a rate of 400 litres / second; and at the end the flow was only 100 litres / second. Between Uzès and Nîmes the average transit time at full running period was 24 to 30 hours.

…And the canal ?
Water ran along the canal at the final stage of the aqueduct measuring 1.2 m wide and 1.8 m high.

What is the aqueduct made of ?
The material used for building the Pont du Gard came from two quarries found on the left bank of the Pont du Gard. The rock is a fairly supple chalk, easy to work, not easily damaged by frost and which hardens over time. The fine dust created during laying would mix with the water which was run through the surfaces and bound the stones one on top of the other. The total mass of the Pont du Gard is about 50400 tonnes!

The Pont du Gard by numbers

Total height :
48.77 m above the Gardon’s water base.

Lower level : 6 arches
-142 m long
-6 m wide
-22 m high.

Middle level : 11 arches
-242 m long
-4 m wide
-20 m high

Higher level : 35 arches
-272 m long
-3 m wide
-7 m high.

And in dates:

– 1st century : Construction of the Pont du Gard.
– 1295 : Introduction of the toll bridge.
– 1448 : Earthquake in the Nîmes area.
– 1629 (16 June) : Richelieu stays at St. Privat castle and concludes the Alais (Alès after 1926)peace Agreement with the protestants.
– 1699-1704 : The first bridge restoration by the Languedoc states.
– 1743-1749 : Construction of the road-bridge by the engineer Pitot.
– 1832 : building of the Remoulins suspension bridge by the engineer Seguin. (the arch support, two columns and two edifices remain)
– 1843-1845 : first genuine restoration by Prosper Mérimée.
– 1855-1858 : Second part and completion of restoration project.