It is named after Saint Servatius, the first bishop of Maastricht, and (despite being largely rebuilt after World War II) it has been called the oldest bridge in the Netherlands.

[5] However, the Roman bridge collapsed in the year 1275 from the weight of a large procession, killing 400 people.

[8][9] Its replacement, the present bridge, was built somewhat to the north of the older crossing between 1280 and 1298;[1][3][10] The Roman Catholic Church encouraged its construction by providing indulgences to people who helped build it.

[3] In 1850, as part of the construction of the Maastricht-Liège Canal, a channel was cut on the west side of the bridge.

[citation needed] During World War II the bridge was severely damaged by the German army as they retreated from the city in 1944, and it was rebuilt in 1948.