The Musayyib Bridge is one of the most famous bridges in Iraq. It was built of wood in two stages during the Ottoman era in 1768, in a military manner, for fear of a revolution in the Middle Euphrates region and an attack on the camp in which the Ottoman forces are located.

This bridge was reconstructed and converted into an iron bridge at the time of the British occupation in 1937, and it is still intact in the middle of the city of Musayyib, north of Babil Governorate, 60 km south of the capital, Baghdad.

His fame came from the famous song that the Arabs sing, and it was sung by Iraq's first singer, Nazim Al-Ghazali, "On the Musayyib Sibouni Bridge", as well as the Iraqi Maqam singer Youssef Omar, as well as the artist Kazem Al-Saher.

The bridge, which was built at two bends on the Euphrates River, forms a sharp angle, with which it is impossible to see its course as far as the eye can see, which made it witness a variety of events.

Al-Musayyib Bridge was built at two bends on the Euphrates River to form an acute angle with which it is not possible to see its course (Al-Jazeera) as far as the eye can see.

The place and the reasons

The city of Al-Musayyib, which is one of the largest cities in the province of Babylon, south of the capital, Baghdad, is famous for its bridge, which is located on the Euphrates River, which was not just a bridge, but rather a collection of tales extending between 3 and 4 centuries, as it was created in many ways, albeit mainly for the benefit people, but it also had a political reality.

This is confirmed by researcher Abbas al-Jubouri, who is interested in the history and heritage of the city of Musayyib, saying that this bridge went through 3 stages, the first when it was built in 1768 by the Ottomans, and it was a group of boats strung with ropes and wooden planks were placed over it, to be able to carry people and cross them.

He added that the location of the bridge raises questions, as it was built after a sharp bend in which the river's waters have strong waves, on the day the Euphrates was wide, even if there was a rebellion or rebellion, the ropes would be cut.

Al-Jubouri states that the tied boats were subjected to a wave of water called "Khanyab", which led to the cutting of the ropes and the drowning of some of the passers-by.

Regarding the other stations and events of the bridge, it is mentioned that the traveler Carsten Niebuhr crossed the bridge in 1768, and he mentioned it in his journey. Al-Jubouri also mentioned another incident, which is that in 1817 one of the tribes rebelled against the Ottoman governor, who prepared a force led by the treasurer Agha, and the clash with that tribe took place. In the Jurf al-Sakhar area, which is located north of the city of al-Musayyab, the bridge was cut so that supplies would not reach the village.

The bridge did not remain in the form of tethered boats, when the second stage of the bridge transformation took place. Al-Jubouri says that during the rule of Iraq by the Mamluk governor Daoud Pasha in 1831, this governor appointed Ahmed Agha as the ruler of the city, and this governor built a wooden bridge, but he did not change its place And he made it the place of the bridge of the boats, and there were other passages left, as the bridge is located at the bend of the river, whose flow is stronger and faster.

The researcher al-Jubouri goes on to mention the most important events, and says that in the days of the well-known revolution of the twentieth, the commander of the British forces in Iraq, General “Holden”, said a famous sentence: “The seizure of Musayyab enables us to impose water control, and we will cross the Euphrates River with ease,” where the British occupation armies headed To the city of Musayyib from its eastern side of the road linking Baghdad and the city of Hilla, the center of the present-day Babil Governorate.

When these forces advanced, they were confronted by the Musayyib revolutionaries from their clans, taking advantage of the agricultural orchards. They stopped the advance of the army, and had they not run out of ammunition, they would not have had to withdraw and burn the bridge after crossing the river to the West Bank, so skirmishes between the revolutionaries and the occupation forces continued across the river, which led to the suspension of supplies between Musayyib and Karbala. .

Abbas Al-Jubouri: The bridge went through 3 stages through centuries and witnessed many stories (Al-Jazeera)

iron bridge construction

The third phase of the bridge begins during the reign of King Ghazi, when the English company "Bertishwit Ltd." built the bridge in 1937. Al-Jubouri indicates that the idea of ​​General Holden may have been present when the bridge was implemented and what happened in the twentieth revolution, where the company made the bridge itself on both banks of the river Two dangerous turns on both sides, and did not make it straight despite the presence of large areas in the area.

Al-Jubouri mentions that the reason for the two detours is in order to make the road difficult for those who want to cross at the time, but the military thought was tyrannical, considering the control over Al-Musayyab is control over the middle Euphrates.

Regarding the iron bridge, Al-Jubouri shows that it was the first of its kind that has not been the same for 84 years. Nothing has changed from it except the gate that was placed in the middle of the bridge for the crossing of high ships to transport goods, as there was a special department for this gate that bore the name The Department of Daring” to monitor the passage of ships, warning that the gate is no longer working “due to the impact of a cargo ship on the bridge in 1954 due to the speed and strength of the current, and as a result, part of the gate was disrupted.”

Ghayeb Al-Masoudi says that the bridge has several stories that have turned into songs (Al-Jazeera)

Songs and stories

The Musayyib bridge was not only important in the political reality, but it was the center of songs that were chanted by the throats of well-known Iraqi singers, says the researcher in the historical affairs of the city, Ghayeb Al-Masoudi. And being one of the first bridges in Iraq, made it an object of interest to people.

He adds that the most famous Iraqi song, not only in Iraq but in the Arab world, is the song "Mayhana Mihana" sung by the great singer Nazem Al-Ghazali, in which he mentions the Musayyab bridge when he says "On the Musayyab bridge Sibouni", meaning they left me, and that this song has many stories. Similar to the bridge tales, where 3 stories or novels are mentioned.

He points out that the first story says that before 1920, when the bridge was wooden, there was a wedding party and the bride crossed, but the bridge moved and it sank, so the groom said these words "on the Musayyib Siboni bridge", to develop afterwards within folklore.

And he talks about the second story, and he says that there was a young man from the people of Baghdad who was suffering from depression because of his love for a girl whose family did not accept her to marry her. For a long time, some asked him about the reasons for this standing, and he said these words “on the Musayyib Sibouni Bridge.”

And about the third story, he said that it is the closest to reality and ratification because it includes all the lyrics of the song, and he narrates the story by saying that there are two friends, one of whom is Mihana and the other a star, who wash pots daily on the river as was the case at that time, and indicates that there is a fisherman named Abdullah Every day he says poetry and sings and gives the two girls thickness, and a relationship occurred between him and a star, but Abdullah missed one day, so she asked her owner, Mihana, a sentence that turned into a famous song: “Mayhana, our sweet sun has disappeared, we did not come.” That is, he did not come, and when I asked about him, they told her that he He died in an accident, and is believed to have drowned.

This song was also sung by the famous Iraqi maqam singer Youssef Omar, and it was sung by the Iraqi singer Kazem El Saher, just as the Arab singer Yusra Mahnoush also sang it.