What next? This London Bridge was built out of granite which was quarried on Dartmoor. Traitors and outlaws’ heads would be put on pikes at either end. Albert Bridge. In its now more than 125 years, Tower Bridge has been the location of a number of feats, from a bus jumping its bascules in 1952 to Frank Miller flying a plane through it an year earlier, in 1951. Several parts of the bridge collapsed over the years, leading to the famous nursery rhyme, “London Bridge is Falling Down”. Like the Millennium Bridge, it too had structural problems when it was first built in 1873 and had to undergo a great deal of renovation work. The accumulators fed the driving engines, which drove the bascules up and down. The bridge was sold to an American in 1968 for $2,460,000 who moved it piece by piece to Arizona and had it rebuilt. Tower Bridge, one of the London’s most famous landmarks, is a bascule and suspension bridge on River Thames.It has two towers, in Victorian Gothic style, that are connected with two walkways that are constructed so they can resist horizontal forces from suspended parts of the bridge. Its twin towers rise 61 metres (200 feet) above the Thames. The original pumping engines, accumulators and boilers are now on display within Tower Bridge’s Engine Rooms. The Great Fire of London was different. Facts about London Bridge 2: the stone arched bridge. London Bridge is not just a bridge, he announced in a press confere… To generate ideas, the Special Bridge or Subway Committee was formed in 1876, and a public competition was launched to find a design for the new crossing. Londoners considered the existing bridge dull by comparison, but after arriving in America, Luckin promoted it as a timeless landmark. Within the span of just 33 years, London Bridge suffered from a pair of fires. 1910 - The high-level Walkways, which were designed so that the public could still cross the Bridge when it was raised, were closed due to lack of use. London Bridge is not the one you’re probably thinking of, that’s, © S M / Flickr © Dun.can / Flickr © Michael Jefferies / Flickr, © S M / Flickr | Dun.can / Flickr | Michael Jefferies / Flickr. A huge challenge faced the City of London Corporation - how to build a bridge downstream from London Bridge without disrupting river traffic activities. The new bridge, wide and spacious was busy at once and even more so when the railways came to London, and London Bridge Station opened just south of London Bridge. It was from here that pilgrims would set off for Canterbury cathedral. 2. 1886 - The construction of Tower Bridge began on 22 April. A close up of the Southwark end of Old London Bridge showing a building called ‘Bridge House’ and the newly styled, ‘Traitor’s Gate’ H owever, during the Elizabethan period, Drawbridge Gate was dismantled and replaced by a spectacular prefabricated building shipped to England from Holland – Nonsuch House, which was built in 1577. Throughout its history, London bridge has been a busy thoroughfare, and was once lined with shops. We clear the mix up between Tower Bridge and London Bridge, and share facts you probably did not know about the former. The British government decided to put the bridge up for sale, and Robert McCulloch, Founder of Lake Havasu City, Arizona, and Chairman of McCulloch Oil Corporation, submitted the winning bid of $2,460,000. In an effort to reclaim the English… London Bridge first was only constructed from concrete and steel when it was opened in 1973 for traffic. Despite the complexity of the system, the bascules only took about a minute to raise to their maximum angle of 86 degrees. The more spectacular Tower Bridge, completed in 1894, is often mistakenly called London Bridge; its iconic shape has come to symbolize London to many visitors. The bridge was reconstructed at Lake Havasu City, Arizona. The bridge was only a box girder. 1952 - The number 78 London bus driven by Albert Gunter on its way across the Bridge, had to leap from one bascule to the other when the Bridge began to rise. Millions of Londoners cross these bridges every week. The "Old" London Bridge of nursery rhyme fame was a stone bridge built by Peter of Colechurch, an architect and priest, between 1176 and 1209. The history of the London Bridge structure in place today began in 1967 and was opened by Queen Elizabeth II on March 17, 1973. Tower Bridge is a combined bascule and suspension bridge in London, built between 1886 and 1894. Over 50 designs were submitted to the Committee for consideration, some of which are on display at Tower Bridge. 3. Today’s London Bridge, constructed between 1968 and 1972, is a two-pier cantilever structure of pressed concrete. We know that William the Conqueror's son, William Rufus (1087-1100) had to rebuild the bridge. This framework was clad in Cornish Granite and Portland Stone to protect the underlying steelwork and to give the Bridge a more pleasing appearance. London Bridge is a bridge in Lake Havasu City, Arizona. A stone bridge was erected in the 12th century – it took 33 years to build and had a chapel dedicated to Thomas Beckett, the Archbishop of Canterbury, placed in the centre. Dan Cruickshank explores the mysteries and secrets of the bridges that have made London what it is. 1912 - During a stunt, Frank McClean flew between the bascules and the high-level Walkways in his Short seaplane. The London Bridge, to be exact, the name London Bridge, is one of the oldest in London. The bridge was completed in 1894. Today, the bascules are still operated by hydraulic power, but since 1976 they have been driven by oil and electricity rather than steam. Built by John Rennie the new bridge was opened in 1831 by King William IV but by 1896 it was back to being the most congested place in London, with over 8,000 pedestrians using it per hour. Discover the historical events that led to the Bridge's construction, how Tower Bridge was built, and how it lifts the road for river traffic as well as some of the key and quirky events from the Bridge's history. By the 16th century, structures shot up from the bridge seven stories high and crossing it in peak periods could take an hour. It was crowded, dangerous and smelly. London Bridge station was opened on 14 December 1836, making it the oldest London railway terminus that is still running. Discover more of Tower Bridge's history when you see inside Tower Bridge. In the year 1209, the London Bridge was demolished and rebuilt by a stone bridge lined with houses and shops next to its side. Looking to find out more about the Bridge? Sir John Rennie’s London Bridge John Rennie designed the new bridge, but died before it was built, so it was left to his sons, Sir John and George, to carry out his plans. It was a stone arched bridge in 19th century, which replaced the timber bridge. 1894 - Tower Bridge was opened by the Prince and Princess of Wales with great celebrations, on 30 June. Today’s low key London Bridge was opened by Queen Elizabeth II in 1983 and uses pre-stressed concrete girders. Built between 1886 and 1894, the Bridge has spent more than a century as London's defining landmark, an icon of London and the United Kingdom. Built between 1176 and 1209, it was the first to be built in stone and masterminded by Peter of Colechurch. When it was built, Tower Bridge was the largest and most sophisticated bascule bridge ever completed ('bascule' comes from the French word for 'seesaw'). It was built in the 1830s and formerly spanned the River Thames in London, England. In 1799 the King decided to replace the ancient bridge and hosted a competition for new designs. History Roman bridge. It wasn't until October 1884 however, that Sir Horace Jones, the City Architect, in collaboration with John Wolfe Barry, offered the chosen design for Tower Bridge as a solution. Work began on the bridge in 1824, and the first stone was laid on 15 June 1825. There has been a bridge on this site for almost as long as there has been a city of London. The Current London Bridge is widest of all its iterations. London Bridge was sold to Robert P McCulloch, a businessman from Missouri (United States). In 1831, the stone bridge was in turn replaced by a granite bridge, and the granite replaced by the present solid bridge. A bridge has existed at or near the present site over the period from the Roman occupation of the area, nearly 2,000 years ago. There were at least eight great fires in London between 1018 and 1133, and it seems likely that the bridge was affected by some of these. The modern bridge has sleek lines and is adorned with red lights. London Bridge Facts. The three major iterations of London Bridge … Built by John Rennie the new bridge was opened in 1831 by King William IV but by 1896 it was back to being the most congested place in London, with over 8,000 pedestrians using it per hour. Thirty years later it started to sink. It replaced a 19th-century stone-arched bridge, which in turn superseded a 600-year-old stone-built medieval structure. Luckin knew that London Bridge might be a tough sell. He then proceeded to followed by fly under at least three other bridges on his way to Westminster. A bridge has existed at or near the present site over the period from the Roman occupation of the area, nearly 2,000 years ago. In 1014 the Danes had seized London. Several bridges named London Bridge have spanned the River Thames between the City of London and Southwark, in central London. It was constructed by contractors John Mowlem and Co from 1967 to 1972, and opened by Queen Elizabeth II on 17 March 1973. The current London Bridge, built between 1968 and 1972, replaced Rennie’s stone arches with beams of prestressed concrete reaching 340 feet (104 metres) in the central span. 2012 - Playing a focal point in the London Olympics, this year saw the Olympic rings suspended from the Walkways and James Bond and ‘the Queen’ fly through in a helicopter during the Opening Ceremony. Tower Bridge is owned, funded and managed by the City of London. Between the towers stretch a pair of glass-covered walkways that are popular among tourists. The Great Fires of London. When London declined after the Romans left, the river went back to being a natural border between the Anglo Saxon regions of Mercia and Wessex. It replaced various wooden bridges built by the Roman … Connecting Chelsea and Battersea, Albert Bridge – named after Prince Albert (husband of Queen Victoria) – is one of the most famous landmarks in West London. The most famous and longstanding of these was the “Old” Medieval bridge, finished in 1209 during the reign of King John. The first few London Bridges were wooden bridges, these were eventualy replaced with a stone bridge, the first one being started in 1176. It was a structure of 5 arches, and its overall dimensions were 928 feet long and 49 feet wide. It is about 240 metres (800 feet) in length and provides an opening 76 metres (250 feet) wide. The five-span reinforced concrete bridge was built entirely on … The bridge crosses the River Thames close to the Tower of London and has become a world-famous symbol of London. The energy created was stored in six massive accumulators, meaning that as soon as power was required to lift the Bridge, it was always readily available. The current crossing, which opened to traffic in 1973, is a box girder bridge built from concrete and steel. The first, in 1633, severely damaged the structure and weakened it to some degree. The London Bridge was first built from wood. From its construction as a bascule bridge to how its engines are powered, pre and post 1976. https://www.towerbridge.org.uk/discover/history, The day a bus jumped Tower Bridge and more historical feats, Tower Bridge and London Bridge: clearing the mix up. Illumination is by LEDs and replaces former less efficient forms of lighting in … Tower Bridge is one of five London bridges owned and maintained by the Bridge House Estates, a charitable … The bridge is featured in the traditional nursery rhyme London Bridge is Falling Down. This was preceded by a succession of timber bridges, the first of which was built by the Roman founders of London. The Arizona bridge is a reinforced concrete structure clad in the original masonry of the 1830s bridge, which was purchased by Robert P. McCulloch from the City of London. Built between 1774 and 1777 as a replacement for a ferry crossing, it is now the oldest surviving Thames bridge in London. The first phase - Southwark Bridge, Millennium Bridge, London Bridge and Cannon Street Bridge - was switched on on 17 July 2019. Kingston Bridge It’s a short walk from the Kingston side of Kingston Bridge to the huge park at Hampton Wick. Discover how Tower Bridge works and how it is powered. London Bridge acted more like a fire break and stopped the fire from rampaging into the south of London. Sketch by Claes Von Visscher of London Bridge c.1616 To say it must’ve been astonishing to London onlookers is something of an understatement. 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