The Bridge Gate is one of the best preserved monuments of fortifications in Aachen. This gate is preserved from the outer fortress wall that surrounded the town from the 14th century.
By order of Emperor Frederick I Barbarossa in 1166, Aachen was granted the status of a town. After that, the inhabitants of Aachen had to build the fortress walls in 4 years. The first ring was quite small – only 2.5 kilometers. These walls had a height of up to 4.5 meters, and a width of up to 2.5 meters. On the site of the first ring of fortress walls, the Graben-Strassen Boulevard now runs. In some places, the ruins of the walls of Frederick I Barbarossa have been preserved.
Only a century later, it became necessary to build a wider ring of Aachen`s fortress walls. Construction of the new walls began in 1257 and was completed in 1357. The length of these walls was already 5.5 kilometers. The walls were protected by 22 towers. In 11 towers there were town gates. In the 19th century, this wall was also demolished, and the Ring of Alleys (Allenring) road was laid in its place.
The Bridge Gate is located in the north-west of Aachen. They were the main gate on the road from Aachen to the Netherlands and Belgium. They were the largest in the town. The Bridge Gate not only served as a gate, but also served as a toll collection point. They were even a prison for a while. The height of the Bridge Gate reaches 18 meters. In the 19th century, there was a decision to demolish the Bridge Gate as other towers, but it was not made for some reason. In 1910, the gate was restored. It became the historical monument.
