Krämerbrücke

Geschichte

The Krämerbrücke is a medieval bridge in the city of Erfurt, in Thuringia in central Germany, which is lined with inhabited, half timbered buildings on both sides. It is unique in Europe. The footbridge spans the Breitstrom, a branch of Gera River, connecting Benediktsplatz and Wenigemarkt.History and constructionThe bridge was built next to a ford and was part of the Via Regia, a medieval trade and pilgrims' road network, which linked Rome with the Baltic Sea, and Moscow with Santiago de Compostela in northern Spain. The Krämerbrücke is on the route from the river Rhine to Silesia, which was awarded the title of a European Cultural Route by the Council of Europe in 2005. This is also one of the main routes of the Camino de Santiago, the Way of St. James pilgrimage.Originally constructed from wood, the bridge was first mentioned in 1117 after its destruction by one of many fires. The first documentary evidence as “pons rerum venalium”, i.e. "the market bridge", dates back to 1156. Merchants and trades people had already set up market stalls on both sides of the bridge by this date.Because of repeated fires in 1175, 1178, 1213, 1222, 1245, 1265, and 1293, the municipal administration acquired all bridge rights from the monasteries in 1293 in order to build a stone bridge. This was completed in 1325, with uninhabited, half-timbered trading stalls on top of it. At both bridgeheads stone churches with gated entrance-ways were erected; at the western end St. Benedicti and at the eastern end St. Aegidien. St Aegidien was previously a bridge chapel (first mentioned in 1110).