Honey Bridge in Kaliningrad History.

Honey Bridge in Kaliningrad is one of the oldest bridges in the city. It is also only one of only three bridges that survived during World War II. It was constructed in 1542, after the Reformation but in 1882 the bridge was rebuilt. The wheels of its lifting mechanism are easily seen from one side.

Honey Bridge, Kaliningrad, Konigsberg, Tourist attractions Kaliningrad; — The Honey Bridge in Kaliningrad

Interesting facts about the Honey Bridge.

There are a couple of things about this bridge that are very interesting. First, I found the name interesting. Why would they call it “Honey Bridge” ? Andrey was not sure why the bridge was given this name, so I tried to find the answer on the Internet. What would we do without the Internet?

I have mentioned before in my previous posts that Kaliningrad was previously known as Königsberg. Königsberg was the easternmost city in Germany and became part of Russia after World War II. In my personal opinion it is one of the best business negotiations that Stalin did. Not that he did a lot of good things, but this was one of them. To get back to my story. The citizens of Altstadt called it the Honey Bridge because Oberburggraf Bezenrade, had bribed corrupted councils with a few pots of honey, in order to carry out his shady dealings. That’s why the people who lived in Kneiphof were contemptuously called “honey-eaters” in the other cities of Königsberg. I am not sure how much of the story is true but it sounds authentic.

The other thing I couldn’t help to notice were the engraved locks on the metal railings. There are thousands of locks and they come in all shapes and sizes.

A sweet tradition.

I have learnt that it is customary for newly-weds to engrave their names on a lock and lock it to the railings on their wedding day. The key is thrown into the river. That is so sweet! I wonder what they do if the couple gets divorced? Do they fish the key out from the river and remove their lock?