The name Grenelle Bridge comes from the name of the Grenelle plain that was accessible through this bridge. Grenelle was a town in the Seine department in 1830, before it became a part of Paris's 15th arrondissement in 1860.
On 18 June 2016, the bridge was renamed the "Pont de Grenelle-Cadets-de-Saumur" to honor the students of the Cavalry School who defended the Loire region in the Battle of Saumur that took place in June 1940.[1]
References
^"Paris : désormais, appelez-le pont de Grenelle-Cadets-de-Saumur" [Paris: Call It Now "Pont de Grenelle-Cadets-de-Saumur"]. leparisien.fr (in French). 2016-06-19. Retrieved 2020-12-25. On May 18, 1940 and the days following General de Gaulle's call to resistance, 790 students from the Cavalry School fought next to the French Army against the German forces south of the Loire. The Grenelle Bridge was renamed pont de Grenelle-Cadets-de-Saumur to honor these heroes, following the will of mayor of the 15th arrondissement Philippe Goujon for the Cavalry School. (personal translation)