Bridge of Kisses is one of the most romantic places in St. Petersburg, here often the dates are appointed and a beautiful view of St. Isaac's Cathedral attracts artists. Bridge of Kisses is hung with locks, which couples leave; due to their huge number even a special construction was installed.

For none of the St. Petersburg bridges urban folklore has paid as much attention as for Bridge of Kisses and how many songs and poems are composed about this popular place!

In unchanged spring,

And I was falling in love with Lena,

And our route was touchingly simple:

Having bought a bouquet of snowdrops,

Lovers and gentle,

We always went to the Bridge of Kisses!

We are grow old inevitably,

But with Lena we are still

Each other in love!And what's the secret?

And in fact it is necessary to admit,

That all bridges are rising,

But the Bridge of Kisses, excuse me, no!

The song that was beloved in the 1950s of XX century in the execution of Leonid Utesov, has become popular again among the youth in the performance of the band Chizh and Co.

For reference: the song "Leningrad Bridges" is written on words of Viktor Dragunsky and Lyudmila Davidovich, the music of Modest Tabachnikov.At the same time, it should be noted that not all St. Petersburg bridges are rising, as it is sung in this song.

How to get there

Bridge of Kisses is thrown across the river Moika and is a continuation of the Glinka street, the nearest metro station is Sadovaya, from which it is about 1.3 km.

Versions of the origin of the name Bridge of Kisses

The name of the crossing - Bridge of Kisses was used since 1788 (by the name of a merchant who owned a drinking foundation called "Kiss").But such prosaic explanation did not satisfy Petersburgers and during two centuries they have been trying to interpret it in their own way:

At the beginning of the XVIII century the border of St. Petersburg passed along the Moika River and therefore the bridge was a place of farewells, at which people kissed at the break-up.

According to another version, often on the ferry the dates had been assigned by couples.

According to the third legend, it was a couple earlier - to kiss all passing and passing through the bridge people, regardless of the degree of acquaintance and kinship.

According to the fourth version, in order not to break up when crossing the ferriage it was necessary to kiss for couples.

A prison was not far from this place and the fifth legend claims that on the bridge the arrested people broke up with their relatives and friends.

Besides, from the bridge there is a road to the gates of the Naval crew and detachments of recruits, formed in his barracks, going to the place of permanent service, walk along this legendary bridge through the close escort of mourners.

There is a tradition according to which the newlyweds drive into the Bridge of Kisses by car decorated with flowers and start kissing.The longer a kiss, the stronger and longer will be the union of lovers.

From the history

The first crossing here appeared in the beginning of the XVIII century and was made by the citizens themselves from improvised means.In 1738, when the banks of the Moika were dressed in granite, a wooden raising bridge for pedestrians was built, the boards of which were painted in different colors, which is why it was called Multicolored.

Thirty years later, in 1768, the ferriage was rebuilt; the erected single-span bridge on stone supports was appointed for passage of cartage transport.

In 1788, the ferriage received a modern name in honor of merchant Nicephorus Potseluev, who owned a pub called "Kiss" on the left bank of the Moika.

Over time, the ferriage became dilapidated and in 1816 it was rebuilt according to the project of Vasiliy Ivanovich Geste.Under the guidance of this architect, such bridges as Alexandrovsky (through the Vvedensky Canal), the Red and Green (through the Moika) were also built.

Bridge of Kisses was cast-iron, one-span, non-raising, with supports made of rubble stone with granite facing.Its arched dome consisted of separate sections - cast-iron boxes, made at Perm factories.As decorations at the entrance of the Bridge of Kisses, four granite obelisks with lanterns and cast-iron gratings, preserved to present days, were installed.

The ferriage was different from all built ferriages before and the newspaper "The northern bee" wrote about this: "It surpasses other bridges that have been built up before in size, furnish and beauty as well as in the speed of the process of building. There are no such bridges in any European capital, which are similar in such a number".

During the severe flood of 1824, the ferriage was moved by the natural phenomenon, was deeply damaged and reconstruction was carried out in order to restore it.

In 1907-1908, a restructuring was carried out in accordance with the project of the engineer Andrey Pshenitsky, during which the cast-iron spans were interchanged with iron structures in the form of a double-hinged arch from cast iron, the roadway was expanded and tramway rails were laid.The length of the ferry was 41.5 meters, width - 23.5 meters.Granite obelisks were interchanged with cast-iron lanterns.

Almost 100 years, from 1909 to 2006, trams run along the bridge.

During the Soviet era, granite obelisks were reinstalled; decorative elements and gilding on lanterns were restored.The structure was returned to its historical appearance.

Bridge of Kisses is a monument of the beginning of cast-iron bridge construction, which has retained its appearance from the beginning of the XIX century.Nearby are New Holland, the Maritime Museum and the Mariinsky Theater, so the sightseeing of these attractions can be combined.