London Bridge

Map

See a map showing all places in this category

Open this map at Google Maps

Wikipedia

Coordinates: 51°30′29″N 0°05′16″W / 51.50806°N 0.08778°W / 51.50806; -0.08778

London Bridge
The current London Bridge at dusk
Carries	5 lanes of A3
Crosses	River Thames
Locale	Inner London
Maintained by	Bridge House Estates, City of London Corporation
Design	prestressed concrete box girder bridge
Total length	262 m (860 ft)
Width	32 m (107 ft)
Longest span	104 m (340 ft)
Clearance below	8.9 m (29 ft)
Opened	17 March 1973
Coordinates	51°30′29″N 0°05′16″W / 51.50806°N 0.08778°W / 51.50806; -0.08778

London Bridge is a bridge between the City of London and Southwark in London, U.K., over the River Thames. Situated between Cannon Street Railway Bridge and Tower Bridge, it forms the western end of the Pool of London. On the south side of the bridge are Southwark Cathedral and London Bridge station; on the north side are the Monument to the Great Fire of London and Monument tube station.

It was the only bridge over the Thames downstream from Kingston until Putney Bridge opened in 1729. The current bridge opened on 17 March 1973 and is the latest in a succession of bridges to occupy the spot and claim the name.[1]

The bridge carries part of the A3 road, which is maintained by the Greater London Authority;[2] the bridge itself is owned and maintained by the Bridge House Estates (see City Bridge Trust), an independent charity overseen by the City of London Corporation. The area between London Bridge and Tower Bridge on the south side of the Thames is a business improvement district (BID) and is managed by Team London Bridge.[3]

Tower Bridge is often mistakenly referred to as "London Bridge".[4]

The practice was finally stopped in 1660, following the Restoration of King Charles II.[citation needed]

The buildings on London Bridge created a major fire hazard and served to increase the load on its arches, both of which may have contributed to the several disasters on the bridge. In 1212, perhaps the greatest of the early fires of London broke out on both ends of the bridge simultaneously, trapping many in the middle and reportedly resulting in the death of 3,000 people. Another major fire broke out in 1633, destroying the northern third of the bridge, although this prevented the bridge from being damaged by the Great Fire of London in 1666. By 1722, congestion was becoming so serious that the Lord Mayor decreed that "all carts, coaches and other carriages coming out of Southwark into this City do keep all along the west side of the said bridge: and all carts and coaches going out of the City do keep along the east side of the said bridge". This has been suggested as one possible origin for the practice of traffic in Britain driving on the left[10].

Finally, under an Act of Parliament dated June 1756, permission was obtained to demolish all the shops and houses on London Bridge. In 1758–62, the houses were removed along with the two centre arches, replaced with a single wider span to improve navigation on the river.

Drawing of London Bridge from a 1682 map.

[edit] "New" (19th-century) London Bridge

New London Bridge in the early 1890s

By the end of the 18th century, it was apparent that the old London Bridge— by then over 600 years old— needed to be replaced. It was narrow and decrepit, and blocked river traffic. In 1799, a competition for designs to replace the old bridge was held, prompting the engineer Thomas Telford to propose a bridge with a single iron arch spanning 600 feet (180 m). However, this design was never used, because of uncertainty about its feasibility and the amount of land needed for its construction. The bridge was eventually replaced by a structure of five stone arches, designed by engineer John Rennie. The new bridge was built 100 feet (30 m) west (upstream) of the original site by Rennie's son (of the same name). Work began in 1824 and the foundation stone was laid, in the southern cofferdam, on 15 June 1825. The old bridge continued in use as the new bridge was being built, and was demolished after the latter opened in 1831. The scheme necessitated the building of major new approach roads, which cost three times that of the bridge itself. The total construction cost of around £2.5 million (£180 million as of 2010),[11] was met by the Corporation of London and government. The contractors were Jolliffe and Banks of Merstham, Surrey. A fragment from the old bridge is set into the tower arch inside St Katharine's Church, Merstham.

Rennie's bridge had a length of 928 feet (283 m) and a width of 49 feet (15 m). Haytor granite was used in the construction, transported via the unique Haytor Granite Tramway. The official opening took place on 1 August 1831; King William IV and Queen Adelaide attended a banquet in a pavilion erected on the bridge. The recently constructed HMS Beagle was the first ship to pass under it.

Corbels for London bridge at Swelltor quarry

In 1896, it was estimated that the bridge was the busiest point in London, with 8,000 people crossing the bridge by foot and 900 crossing in vehicles every hour.[1] London Bridge was widened in 1902–04 from 52 to 65 feet (16 to 20 m), in an attempt to combat London's chronic traffic congestion. A dozen of the granite "pillars" quarried and dressed for this widening, but unused, still lie near Swelltor Quarry on the disused railway track a couple of miles south of Princetown on Dartmoor. In the end, the widening work proved too much for the bridge's foundations; it was subsequently discovered that the bridge was sinking an inch (3 cm) every eight years. By 1924, the east side of the bridge was some three to four inches (102 mm) lower than the west side; it soon became apparent that this bridge would have to be removed and replaced with a more modern one.

[edit] Sale of Rennie's bridge to Robert McCulloch

Rennie's Old London Bridge during reconstruction at Lake Havasu in March 1971

In 1967, the Common Council of the City of London placed the bridge on the market and began to look for potential buyers. Council member Ivan Luckin had put forward the idea of selling the bridge, and recalled: "They all thought I was completely crazy when I suggested we should sell London Bridge when it needed replacing." On 18 April 1968, Rennie's bridge was sold to the Missourian entrepreneur Robert P. McCulloch of McCulloch Oil for US$2,460,000. The claim that McCulloch believed mistakenly that he was buying the more impressive Tower Bridge was denied by Luckin in a newspaper interview.[12] As the bridge was taken apart, each piece was numbered to aid re-assembly. The bridge was reconstructed at Lake Havasu City, Arizona, and re-dedicated on 10 October 1971. The reconstruction of Rennie's London Bridge spans the Bridgewater Channel canal that leads from Lake Havasu to Thomson Bay, and forms the centrepiece of a theme park in English style, complete with a Tudor period shopping mall. Rennie's London Bridge has become Arizona's second-biggest tourist attraction, after the Grand Canyon.[13]

The rebuilt London Bridge in Lake Havasu City, Arizona

The version of London Bridge that was rebuilt at Lake Havasu consists of a concrete frame with stones from the Old London Bridge used as cladding. The cladding stones used are 150 to 200 millimetres (6 to 8 inches) thick. The remaining stone was left at Merrivale Quarry at Princetown in Devon.[14] When Merrivale Quarry was abandoned and flooded in 2003, some of the remaining stone was sold in an online auction.[15]

[edit] Modern London Bridge

The current London Bridge was designed by Mott, Hay and Anderson. The senior engineer was Alan Simpson, the superstructure was designed by a team led by Michael Leeming, and foundations by a team led by Keith Ponting.[citation needed] The bridge was constructed by contractors John Mowlem and Co[16] from 1967 to 1972, and opened by Queen Elizabeth II on 17 March 1973.[17] It comprises three spans of prestressed-concrete box girders, a total of 928 feet (283 m) long. The bridge's lights were made from Napoleon's cannons. The bridge was built to be functional and long-lived, and, as such, it is noticeably less decorated than other Thames bridges. The cost of £4 million (£40.7 million as of 2010),[11] was met entirely by the City Bridge Trust charity. The current bridge was built in the same location as Rennie's bridge, with the previous bridge remaining in use while the first two girders were constructed upstream and downstream. Traffic was then transferred onto the two new girders, and the previous bridge demolished to allow the final two central girders to be added.[18]

London Bridge with the Gherkin in the background

In 1984, the British warship HMS Jupiter collided with London Bridge, causing significant damage to both ship and bridge. On Remembrance Day 2004, various London bridges were furnished with red lighting as part of a night-time flight along the river by wartime aircraft. London Bridge was the one bridge not subsequently stripped of the illuminations, which are switched on at night.

The current London Bridge is often shown in films, news and documentaries showing the throng of commuters journeying to work into The City from London Bridge Station (south to north). A recent example of this is actor Hugh Grant crossing the bridge north to south during the morning rush hour, in the 2002 film About a Boy.

On Saturday 11 July 2009 an 'Anniversary Fayre' of activities involving the Livery Companies and the Guildable Manor and also hosting a 'sheep drive', took place to commemorate the 800th Anniversary of the Colechurch Bridge's completion.[19]

In vaults below the southern abutment of the bridge is 'The London Bridge Experience'.

[edit] Transport

The nearest London Underground stations are Monument and London Bridge. They are respectively at the northern and southern ends of the bridge. The London Bridge National Rail station is also nearby.

[edit] Gallery

One of the arches of London Bridge	Arches of London Bridge	London Bridge panorama photograph	London Bridge from South Bank
London Bridge southern end	London Bridge and surrounding London	Rush hour on London Bridge

[edit] See also

• List of Roman bridges
• London Bridge Is Falling Down
• Roman bridge
• The London Bridge Experience
• Kidsongs

[edit] Further reading

• Jackson, Peter, "London Bridge - A Visual History", Historical Publications, revised edition, 2002, ISBN 0-948667-82-6
• Murray, Peter & Stevens, Mary Anne, "Living Bridges - The inhabited bridge, past, present and future", Royal Academy of Arts, London, 1996, ISBN 3-7913-1734-2
• Pierce, Patricia, "Old London Bridge - The Story of the Longest Inhabited Bridge in Europe", Headline Books, 2001, ISBN 0-7472-3493-0
• Yee, Albert, "London Bridge - Progress Drawings", no publisher, 1974, no ISBN

[edit] References

[edit] External links

• The London Bridge Museum and Educational Trust
• Views of Old London Bridge ca. 1440, BBC London
• Southwark Council page with more info about the bridge
• Lyrics to the song "London Bridge is falling down"
• Virtual reality tour of Old London Bridge
• Futurist project of an inhabited London Bridge
• Origin of the nursery rhyme London Bridge is Falling Down
• London Bridge ca. 1647, 1749, 1831
• London Bridge at Structurae
• Team London Bridge

This text was last fetched from this Wikipedia page (where you can edit it) on
8 Feb 2010, 9:02pm under the terms of the GFDL.

Annotations

• N Phil on Sat 1 Feb 2003, 04:42pm. Flag this

  In Pepys’ day this was the only bridge across the Thames below Kingston, some miles to the west. The structure then consisted of “19 arches and a wooden drawbridge built 1176-1209 in place of an earlier wooden bridge … The road across it carried a line of houses on each side with shops at the road level.” (Latham and Matthews, Companion).

  In 1831 it was replaced with a new bridge 180 feet upstream, and this was later replaced in 1973.

• N Susanna on Sat 1 Feb 2003, 09:26pm. Flag this

  Here’s a nice article

  (with an illustration of c. 1600) on the old London Bridge, from, oddly enough, a medieval tent fanatic:

  http://midtown.net/dragonwing/col9802.htm

  And here it is, with the roofs of its houses, on the 1746 map of London:

  http://www.motco.com/Map/81002/SeriesSearchPlatesFulla.asp?mode=query&artist=384&other=344&x=11&y=11

• N Roger Miller on Sun 2 Feb 2003, 01:04pm. Flag this

  I was interested to see the refererence to souvenirs made from the pilings of the original London Bridge in the article linked to above by Susanna.

  We have in our family two wooden egg cups, one of which has a label on the bottom with the following hand written inscription: “This cup is formed out of a portion of the oak Piles on which the orginal London Bridge was built in the year 1016 making at this time (1850) 834 years since the Piles were placed”.

  I have always been rather sceptical of the authenticity of these egg cups but I suppose it is possible that they really were made from the remains of the bridge.

  The cups were inherited from my great uncle Jack (Charles John Munk) who was killed on the Somme in 1916 aged 22. They were almost his only possessions and are mentioned in the letter that he wrote to be given to his parents in the event of his death.

• N Sam Sampson on Sat 2 Aug 2003, 04:10pm. Flag this

  The London Bridge Museum & Educational Trust
  Are planning a Museum in the southern abutment space of Sir John Rennie’s London Bridge. Their website has an excellent history of the bridge, and the museum proposal looks fascinating.
  http://www.oldlondonbridge.com/index.shtml
  There’s a view of London Bridge circa 1600 on the ‘Shakespeare Sonnets’ site. “From a photo-chromolithograph made for the New Shakspere Society, from a drawing in Pepys’ Collection at Magdalene College, Cambridge. This is reputed to be the earliest genuine view of London Bridge.”
  http://www.shakespeares-sonnets.com/london.htm

• N Peter Roberts on Wed 26 Nov 2003, 03:09am. Flag this

  There is an informative, illustrated page about the Inhabited Bridge, that links & complements Sam`s ref. above. Its by The Old London Bridge Society that I founded! We`ve more news when our own web site is up and running. For now, I`m a grateful `Guest contributor` at the address below, please check it out:
  http://arthurlloyd.co.uk/LondonBridge.htm
  

• N Glyn on Thu 15 Jul 2004, 07:19pm. Flag this

  This picture depicts the Frost Fair of 1683.

  http://www.library.otago.ac.nz/exhibitions/london/images/iced_thames.jpg

  On the left bank you can see St Mary-le-bow church with its dragon weathervane, the Monument and the Tower of London just beyond London Bridge. Southwark Cathedral is on the right bank. Apparently the Temple gardenwall is on the left which means that (a) there is a lot of foreshortening in the perspective, and (b) the ice extended a long way. If Pepys (then aged 49 or 50) is anywhere in this drawing, I suspect him to be the man on the lower left walking with the lady.

• N Sjoerd on Mon 19 Jul 2004, 04:18pm. Flag this

  Interesting to read the explanation of the “booths” on the ice;for instance there is a “Duke of York Coffee House” and a “Tory Booth”. Interesting when you read about the politics of the time, see http://www.wordiq.com/definition/Abhorrers

  Thanks Glyn
  

• N Glyn on Wed 20 Apr 2005, 07:22pm. Flag this

  For the record, there are at least three models of old London Bridge on display in London.

  Absolutely the best one is in the entrance to the Church of St Magnus the Martyr (can anyone take a photo of this one?). To find the church, stand at the Monument and look downhill to the river and it is the church that’s directly across the road. If it is closed, you can still see fragments of the later London Bridge in the churchyard, and a wooden Roman harbour post from 2000 years ago.

  The biggest model is in the Docklands Museum.

  The third is badly lit and displayed, and nothing special, but is the most accessible because it is in the Museum of London.

• N dirk on Wed 20 Apr 2005, 11:57pm. Flag this

  Virtual reality tour

  London Bridge around 1500

  http://www.bbc.co.uk/history/society_culture/architecture/launch_vr_london_bridge.shtml
  

• N CGS on Sun 13 Apr 2008, 05:54pm. Flag this

  another view : Hollar: http://www.british-history.ac.uk/image.aspx?compid=45070&filename=fig2.gif&pubid=340

  interesting site for perusing London of Peeps.

• N dirk on Sun 13 Apr 2008, 07:12pm. Flag this

  London Bridge virtual reality tour

  The old link is not functioning any more - use this one:

  http://www.bbc.co.uk/history/british/tudors/launch_vt_londonbridge.shtml

References in the diary

1660

Feb: 2
Jul: 4
Aug: 5
Sep: 10, 20
Dec: 6, 26

1661

Jan: 10
Feb: 3
Mar: 22, 25
May: 18
Jun: 4, 12
Jul: 27
Sep: 2, 12
Dec: 3

1662

Mar: 24
Jun: 25, 30
Aug: 8

1663

May: 27
Jul: 27
Aug: 11

1664

Jun: 15, 24
Jul: 6, 21
Oct: 26

1665

Jan: 27
Jun: 25, 30
Jul: 17, 23
Aug: 5
Sep: 14
Nov: 22, 28
Dec: 12

1666

Jan: 24
Jun: 10, 30
Jul: 8
Sep: 2
Oct: 22

1667

Jan: 6