Old Bridge 3.93

The Karl Theodor Bridge, commonly known as the Old Bridge, is a stone bridge in Heidelberg, crossing the Neckar River. It connects the Old City with the eastern part of the Neuenheim district of the city on the opposite bank. The current bridge, made of Neckar Valley Sandstone and the ninth built on the site, was constructed in 1788 by Elector Charles Theodore, and is one of the best-known and amazing landmarks and tourist destinations in the history of Heidelberg.HistoryAlthough the Karl Theodor Bridge was completed nearly 250 years ago, compared to the city of Heidelberg it is comparatively young. The nickname "Old Bridge" dates from the construction of the Theodor Heuss Bridge in 1877 (then known as the Friedrichs Bridge). Since the thirteenth century there have been eight bridges on the site; the current bridge is built on their foundations. The bridge gate (German: Brückentor) at the south end of the bridge also dates from the Middle Ages.PrecursorsThe Romans built the first bridge in the region of what is now Heidelberg in the first century CE. This wooden pile bridge, located between what are now the districts of Neuenheim and Bergheim, was rebuilt in stone around the year 200. After the Roman bridge collapsed Heidelberg was without a bridge for nearly a thousand years.The next mention of a bridge over the Neckar is in 1284. Although the exact date of construction is unknown, it is believed to have been built shortly after the foundation of the city of Heidelberg in the late twelfth or early thirteenth century. The bridge was positioned on the site of the current one, directly aligned with the marketplace. As well as connecting the town with Schönau Abbey, the bridge may have encouraged north-south traffic to pass through Heidelberg, rather than around it. The bridge marked the border of the County Palatinate of the Rhine, as the northern bank of the Neckar belonged to the Electorate of Mainz until 1460. The bridge therefore formed part of Heidelberg's defences, secured by the gate on its southern end.