Pontoon bridge unprecedented 730-meter, fortified pontoon bridge across the Scheldt river at the Siege of Antwerp in 1584 to close off water access to the city. In the battle of Saraighat in 1671, the Ahoms spanned the river Brahmaputra at Saraighat over an improviso bridge of boats. In the 1670s, the French devised the copper pontoon; after this point, rivers and canals ceased to present significant obstacles. The early modern period in pontoon use was dominated by the wars of the 18th and 19th centuries during which the art and science of pontoon bridging barely changed. This however did not stop all
Cable layer The first transatlantic telegraph cable was laid by cable layers from 1857–58. It briefly enabled telecommunication between Europe and North America before misuse resulted in failure of the line. In 1866 the successfully laid two transatlantic cables, securing future communication between the continents. Modern cable ships differ greatly from their predecessors. There are two main types of cable ships: cable repair ships and cable-laying ships. Cable repair ships, like the Japanese "Tsugaru Maru", tend to be smaller and more maneuverable; they are capable of laying cable, but their primary job is fixing or repairing broken sections of cable. A cable-laying