This was the second bridge crossing the Arno River, the first mention dates from 1218. It was destroyed seven times: in 1274 due to a flood; in 1304 cause the weight of the crowd who had met to watch a spectacle; in 1333 because a terrible flood, but it was also the first bridge in the city to be rebuilt, perhaps under design of Giotto. Again damaged in 1557, it was remade by will of Grand Duke Cosimo I de' Medici, who assigned the project to Bartolomeo Ammannati. Enlarged during the 19th century, the bridge was blown up by the retreating German Army during World War II. The current structure is a design by Ettore Fagiuoli, completed in 1948.