The Krämerbrücke

The Krämerbrücke crosses the Gera in Erfurt

Image: Hamsterkiste

You could do this:

Read the text. Choose which sections you want to read today and which tomorrow. Are there any words you don’t understand yet? Ask your teacher.
Write down 3 to 5 questions that can be answered using the text. Ask another child to answer your questions, then answer theirs.
Write down 5 to 10 cities along the Via Regia whose names you already knew.
Once you have worked through all the chapters, discuss your questions and answers in class.
To finish, read the text aloud with a reading partner. Take turns reading.
Draw a picture of the Krämerbrücke.

1 - The Gera River flows through the city of Erfurt. It is 85 kilometers long. It begins in the Thuringian Forest as the Wilde Gera and the Zahme Gera. It flows through the towns of Plaue, Arnstadt, Erfurt and Gebesee. Just beyond Gebesee, it flows into the Unstrut, a tributary of the Saale. 2 - The Via Regia, a very old trade and military route, once passed through Erfurt. It began in Moscow and Kyiv in the east and ran through Wroclaw (formerly Breslau), Görlitz, Leipzig, Erfurt and Fulda to Frankfurt and Cologne, then on to Bruges, Antwerp, Paris and Bordeaux, all the way to Santiago de Compostela in western Spain. The name means “King’s Road.”

3 - This road had to cross numerous rivers, including the Gera at Erfurt. At first, the necessary bridges here were built of wood. In 1325, a stone bridge was built for the first time. It consisted of several semicircular arches. These were much more durable and could bear greater loads than the old wooden bridge. 4 - Over time, small stalls appeared on the bridge, where merchants sold their goods to travelers. Small traders used to be called “Krämer” because they sold all sorts of odds and ends, and so the bridge came to be known as the “Krämerbrücke” (“Merchants’ Bridge”). 5 - A major fire in 1472 completely destroyed these stalls. Afterwards, the bridge was widened to 26 meters, and two rows of houses were built with a street running between them. This street connects Benediktplatz with Wenigemarkt. 6 - The city of Erfurt built a total of 62 houses for merchants on the bridge, which could also be used as homes. At both ends of the rows of houses, existing churches were incorporated into the complex. Today, only St. Aegidien’s Church at the eastern end of the street remains. 7 - The bridge and its houses were altered repeatedly, and repairs were often needed. Over time, this also led to the creation of cellars—some inside the bridge piers, others in so-called hanging floors built beneath the houses, close above the waters of the Gera. 8 - That is how the Krämerbrücke has survived through the centuries. Today, it is one of Erfurt’s attractions. The homes are much sought after, and small shops still line both sides of the old Via Regia.