Krämerbrücke (Merchants’ Bridge)

Next to the cathedral complex, this very special bridge may well be regarded as Erfurt’s most outstanding sight. Replacing a wooden structure, this stone bridge was built across a fairly wide stretch of the River Gera in 1325. After the great fire in 1472, the city built 62 houses with shops and living quarters for the merchants who had been plying their trades at the bridge. The floor space of the bridge was increased by the additional masonry placed in front of the bridge walls and by wooden strut bracing. Originally, there were two churches at each end of the bridge. The first documented reference to Ägidienkirche (Church of Saint Aegidius) at Wenigemarkt (Little Market) dates from 1110. Together with the medieval Benediktikirche (Church of Saint Benedict) - located at the opposite end, i.e., at the western entrance to Merchants’ Bridge - the Church of Saint Aegidius served as a way chapel. Destroyed by fire in 1293, the church structure was rebuilt in 1324. In the late 15th century, the choir bay was added when changes to the entire bridge had become necessary following the fire of 1472. The year 1582 saw the collapse of parts of the church, which was subsequently rebuilt. The structure became private property in 1827 and has been used as a Methodist parish church since 1960. After passing into private hands in 1807, the Church of Saint Benedict which once stood at the western entrance to Merchants’ Bridge, was demolished in 1810. The tower, which had been without a crown since 1736, was eventually pulled down in 1896.