Built between 1177 and 1185, the Saint-Bénézet bridge of Avignon was then the only bridge crossing the Rhône between Lyon and the sea with its 3.018 ft (920 m) and 22 arches. It allowed the economic development of the city of Avignon where travelers, merchants, and industrialists flocked, and contributed to the decision of the popes to settle there in the 14th century. Almost entirely destroyed in 1226 after a siege by Louis VIII, the bridge was rebuilt on a raised deck that explains the presence of the double chapel of Saint-Bénézet (below at the level of the initial deck) and Saint-Nicolas (above on the new deck). From the 17th century, Avignon could no longer bear the burden of the maintenance and repair work on the bridge, the arches of which were frequently destroyed by the floods of the Rhône.