London Bridges

London, Southwark & Blackfriars Bridges
by W.H.Barlett & E.I.Roberts
From a steel engraving

This image is taken from a steel engraving of 1842.   London is shown in its Victorian glory where the only interruption to the skyline are churches and their steeples.  St. Paul's stands majestically above the whole city, and to the far right stands the monument to the Great Fire of London, both of which once offered visitors unbroken views across the city.  The nearest bridge is  London Bridge, followed by Southwark Bridge and Blackfriars Bridge in the distance.

All three of these bridges have now been replaced.

London Bridge is 'the' bridge of London.  There has been a crossing here since the Romans built a wooden structure to cross the river around AD 50.  The bridge depicted was opened in 1831, but due to subsidence had to be replaced in 1973.  The bridge illustrated in this engraving was purchased by Robert P. McCulloch who transported it to Arizona, USA for a new lease of life as the centre piece of a housing project and Tudor styled shopping mall.

The Southwark Bridge shown was built in 1819.  Its cast iron structure earned it the nickname of the 'Iron Bridge' and boasted the largest cast iron span in existense.   It was replaced by the current Southwark Bridge in 1913.

The nine arches of Blackfriars Bridge were built in 1769 out of Portland Stone.  It was originally named the William Pitt Bridge, but became commonly known after the Blackfriars area it connected to on the London side of the river.  A century later (1869) the current bridge replaced the one shown in this image.

The original image is labelled: "London, Southwark & Blackfriars Bridges From the Surrey Side of the River."
By W. H. Barlett & E.I.Roberts

These bridges and the southbank area are covered in greater detail in our tour of the Southbank on www.obelisktours.com  

Southbank Tour:  "This Thames Path River Walk follows the South Bank of the River from Westminster Bridge to London Bridge with great views of Parliament, the City, St Paul’s, and the Globe.  We explore some lesser known sites such as Jubilee Gardens, the Clink, and the blackness of ‘Ladies’ Bridge.    We look out to the River to learn how Londoners reacted to a frozen Thames, and learn of the Golden Hinde, Winchester Geese and Oxo. "