ABSTRACT
In the past, Königsberg was known as 'the Venice of the North' because of its many bridges across the river Pregel. Immanuel Kant highlighted the importance of this river. The Pregel, which is fed by tributaries, used to ferry traders and their goods from many towns, cities and villages situated both within and outside Prussian territorial boundaries. He wrote a postscript lending his support to the Prussian Christian Gottlieb Mielcke's promotion of Lithuanian culture in the guise of a Lithuanian–German dictionary. Kant makes claims for the comparable benefits of armchair tourism by means of travel literature. Despite the bad odds, Kant's recent biographer, Manfred Kühn, reckons that, despite his having spent all of his time on this planet in Königsberg, Kant did nevertheless 'have a life', indeed quite a sociable one at that. Königsberg's history tells much about the varied lives cities and their inhabitants can have.
