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Thursday 10 July 2014

Walking in the footsteps of John Nash ... Part II

This is the second part of the 7 mile walk around London that showcases the results of a unique collaboration between the Prince Regent, later King George IV, and his favourite architect, John Nash. You can read about the first 3 miles of the walk around Regent's Park here: Walking in the footsteps of John Nash ... Part I.

This is the map of the next section of the walk:



Nash's brief for this second instalment had been to create a grand royal route that would lead from Regent's Park, with its unique terraces of beautifully pristine villas to the Prince Regent's home, Carlton House, which backed onto St. James's. It was a difficult job insofar as the Prince Regent had a mad enthusiasm for building stuff, which he didn't always have the means to pay for, causing him to amend his plans, change the brief and leave his hapless architect to explain to his ministers why everything was running wildly over budget.

In any event we pick up the trail in Park Square East, from where we cross the Marylebone Road into Park Crescent, which funnelled the royal route into the wide expanse of Portland Place from which it would proceed into Regent Street travelling through Oxford Circus and Piccadilly Circus to arrive at Carlton House.


Work started on the buildings here in 1806, but, after the builder went bankrupt, they didn't get things finished until 1821.

Park Crescent, London
Park Crescent, London


On the garden side of the Crescent, just opposite to the entry into Portland Place you will find a rather splendid water trough that was installed by the Metropolitan Water Fountain and Cattle Trough Association, who were responsible for installing many such amenities throughout the city. The Association grew in tandem with the Temperance Movement and had a penchant for placing their water fountains directly outside public houses to discourage people from entering the publican's premises for a drink or to water their animals.

Park Crescent, London
This one tickled my funny bone with its injunction not to use the water for anything other than drinking purposes ... for man and beast and the threat that any other illicit use of the water, which remained the property of the Association, would be prosecuted. What had the good folk of the area been getting up to?

Anyway drag yourself past the (now empty) water trough and hang a left into Portland Place.

Portland Place, London


Portland Place had been laid out originally at the end of the eighteenth century by Robert and John Adams for the Duke of Portland. It is one of the widest streets in central London (33 metres/ 110 feet) because of a requirement laid down by Lord Foley, one of the Duke's pre-existing tenants, who had demanded that the new street plan should not interfere with his views.



As you walk down Portland Place you will pass the Chinese Embassy, and then the Polish Embassy on your right on either side of the Weymouth Street junction. There's always a silent protest by Falun Gong in front of the Chinese Embassy, but on the opposite side of Portland Place. Outside the Polish Embassy is a statue of General Sikorski, the wartime leader of the free Polish forces. 

General Sikorski, Portland Place, London


Straight ahead you'll see the imposing bulk of the Langham Hotel, built in the 1860s. In its day it was the largest hotel in town boasting no less than 100 water closets, 36 bathrooms and the first set of hydraulic lifts in England. It's been favoured by the great and the good ever since, and still maintains a five star rating.

The Langham Hotel, Portland Place, London

Keep on going and Portland Place will take a turn to the left and lead into Langham Place, where, opposite the side elevation of the Langham Hotel, you'll find the very elegant All Souls Church, designed by Nash and completed in December 1823. It was strategically placed here to catch the eye and distract attention from the bend in the road. Unlike most of Nash's work in London the church is made from Bath stone. It is the last surviving church that he designed.

All Souls Church, Langham Place, London

You can find a bust of Nash in the roofed portico, which some people think resembles a space rocket poised for take-off. I'm not sure what Nash had on his mind when he designed it, but I'd be surprised if space travel featured large in his thoughts.

All Souls Church, Langham Place, London
Keep on going and Langham Place will lead into Regent Street.

Regent Street, London

Regent Street, taking its name from the Prince Regent, was intended to provide commercial space for shops and offices. Hence it did not have any terraces or gardens and was more functional in its design. Much of the street was rebuilt in the period 1895 to 1927 when the original 99 year leases came to an end to accommodate the new trend for department stores. On the section to the south of Oxford Circus, none of Nash's original buildings survive.

Regent Street, London

Carry on trooping down to Oxford Circus.

Oxford Circus, London

You can do a spot of window-shopping as you go.

Regent Street, London

Carry on through Piccadilly Circus, past Eros, and into the lower part of Regent Steet.

Piccadilly Circus, London

We've now chuffed off the lower part of our last map, so here's another one to show the next leg of the walk.

Key: 1: Theatre Royal Haymarket, 2: Suffolk Place, 3: Clarence House

When you get to the lower part of Regent Street watch out for the ghost sign of the old Blue Star Line. This was a shipping company (not to be confused with the White Star Line, owners of the Titanic) that operated a fleet of ships for transporting chilled meat. The company, which was first registered in July 1911, was eventually taken over by P&O Nedlloyd in 1998.

Regent Street, London
Now let's take a little detour to see some more Nash stuff on the Haymarket: hang a left into Charles II Street and walk along to the Theatre Royal Haymarket.

Theatre Royal Haymarket, London

The Theatre Royal Haymarket was redesigned by Nash in 1821. There had been a theatre, a little to the north of here since 1720, but it was moved to this precise spot at Nash's insistence. He thought that  it would align better with the surrounding street plan if it were located here.

Theatre Royal Haymarket, London

Turn right into the Haymarket and walk down a little further to admire Suffolk Place, which was designed by Nash and built in 1820.

Suffolk Place, London

Carry on to the end of the Haymarket and turn right into Pall Mall, which will lead you back to Waterloo Place.

Here you will find a slightly grim looking monument to the Crimea, which was put up in the 1850s.
Waterloo Place, London

Waterloo Place was originally designed by Nash, but, as with the rest of Regent Street, there's not a lot of his work on view any more. He designed the building at 116 Pall Mall (now the Institute of Directors), which sits on the corner of Waterloo Place and was built in 1825 to 1826. It's the one on the left below. Back in Nash's day it was the headquarters of the United Service Club, a London gentlemen's club for senior officers (those with ranks above that of major or commander) in the army and the navy, hence the military frieze around the top. It came to be known colloquially as the Senior, as in the senior officers' club, and was the most prestigious of all the London services' clubs.

Waterloo Place, London

The Club's premises were later extended between 1858 and 1859 by Decimus Burton, the architect with whom Nash had collaborated when working on Cornwall Terrace, back in Regent's Park. Burton also designed the Athenaeum Club (the building in the photo on the right above) on the opposite side of Waterloo Place in a style similar to that of Nash's United Service Club across the way. The frieze around the top of it is a copy of the Elgin Marbles.

Waterloo Place was built on the site of the Prince Regent's palatial London home, Carlton House, which had originally been the intended destination of this grand royal route. Prince George, as he then was, had been granted Carlton House in 1783 along with the very tidy sum of £60,000 to refurbish it. He retained Henry Holland as his architect and the whole thing ran way over budget (a recurring theme with the Prince's building projects). The prince was forced to go, cap in hand, to his father for more money to finish what he'd started. After some extended grovelling and much agony further funds were granted and he was able to finish the project ending up with a very opulent dwelling that ought, on any proper reckoning, to have been considered a palace.

However, on becoming King in 1820, George decided that Carlton House did not meet his regal requirements. Neither did his official residence at St. James's Palace nor his father's residence, the old Buckingham House.  Having abandoned the idea of a grand new palace in Regent's Park he finally decided that, rather than renovate Carlton House, he'd engage Nash to develop Buckingham House into his dream palace. This grand plan was clearly going to be expensive even by George's standards, and there was only so much money that the Prince could extort from his ministers so he hit upon the plan of demolishing Carlton House, re-using some of the materials in the Buckingham House project and re-developing the plot on which it had once stood for a profit.

Carlton House
In 1824 Carlton House was duly demolished and two grand white stuccoed terraces of expensive houses were built in its place and leased for eye-watering rents. The proceeds of this development were fed into his great project at Buckingham House. Today these houses form Carlton House Terrace.

Now carry on down the Duke of York steps, which divide the two sides of Carlton House Terrace towards St. James's and the Mall.

You will see a statute atop a very tall column. Way up there with the pigeons is Frederick, the Duke of York, who was George III's second son. At a very tender age Frederick was sent off to be a soldier and later, at the age of 32, he was made Commander in Chief of the British Army. A number of military set-backs ensued. People wondered whether they had arisen because of his lack of moral maturity. Whatever the way of it they were the inspiration for the satirical rhyme about The Grand Old Duke of York, who marched his soldiers aimlessly up and down the hill. The statue was built to celebrate the Duke's life and achievements after he died in 1827. The army top brass decided that everyone in the ranks would forego a day's pay, which would be applied to the construction costs of the monument. Needless to say this was not a universally popular plan.

Duke of York Steps, London

Anyway, I'm digressing; go down the steps, past Frederick, Duke of York, and into the Mall.  As you cross the Mall you will see Buckingham Palace to your right and Admiralty Arch to your left.

The Mall, London

Enter St. James's Park and walk along in the general direction of Buckingham Palace. 

St. James's Park, London
Exit the park at the Marlborough Road lights, and cross the Mall. Walk along the Mall to Buckingham Palace. Unfortunately we can't see much of Nash's work from the outside. In Nash's day the palace was in the form of a U shape, but the present front facade, or East Wing, was built across the open mouth of the U to close the inner courtyard and has obscured Nash's handiwork from public view. Now if only Her Majesty were to invite us in for tea or to one of her very splendid garden parties then we'd be able to see the great man's design in what is now the inner courtyard and the western facade of the building. 


Poor old Nash got into no end of bother over his involvement in the Buckingham House project.  He strove to achieve the French neoclassical look that George was so keen on, but by 1829 they were so far over budget that he got fired. An original estimate of £252,690 (about £33 million in today's money) had grown to a revised estimate of £469,169 by 1829, whereas a reckoning of what it had actually cost up to that point came out at a cool £613,269 (£80 million odd in today's money) ... and the building was still not finished. George died the following year, and his brother (William IV) hired Edward Blore to finish the job. Nash was dragged in front of a special inquiry that was set up to find out where all the money had gone. George had been clear that he wanted Nash to be given a knighthood, but the new regime was having none of that and he was destined to remain plain old Mr Nash for the rest of his days. 

Buckingham Palace, London

Whilst we're in this neck of the woods you might like to take a detour to see Clarence House, designed by Nash for the Duke of Clarence (later William IV) and built 1825 to 1827. It is now the official London residence of the Prince of Wales and the Duchess of Cornwall. It's just up Stable Row, but access is tricky unless you've got a ticket to do the tour of the house during the month of August when it opens to the public.


As it wasn't August and as HRH hadn't sent me a personal invitation I was hard-pushed to get a photo of the place. A very nice policeman pointed me in the direction of another, very different building and didn't mind at all if I wanted to take a photograph or two. I'm guessing he was having some fun at my expense ... either that or he really ought not to have been entrusted with the task of guarding HRH and the Duchess.

Clarence House, London


Anyway here's another map to help you on your way. 



Now push on past the very magnificent Canada Gate, up Constitution Hill to Duke of Wellington Place. 

Canada Gate, London

You can even take a little frolic into Green Park if you like. 
Green Park, London
Cross Duke of Wellington Place, and admire the Wellington Arch, built to commemorate Britain's victory in the Napoleonic Wars and Apsley House, the London residence of the Iron Duke, the Duke of Wellington, victor of Waterloo. In the old days it had the best address in town: Number One, London, anyone?
Duke of Wellington Place, London
Head off down Park Lane. We're entering the final furlong now; not much further to go!  You've got Hyde Park on your left and the busy West End traffic belching out fumes on your right ... lovely. 

Half way along on your right you'll see the memorial to the animals who've died in war. Being a bit of a softy when it comes to our furry friends, I'm always moved by thoughts of the heroic army dogs and horses who've been enlisted over the years. 

Animals in War Memorial, Park Lane, London


A little further along you'll also pass Speaker's Corner, where all sorts of opinionated types hang out on Sunday mornings to shoot the breeze.

Speakers' Corner, Hyde Park, London

And there, at the end of the road is Marble Arch, designed by Nash as a grand triumphal arch after the fashion of the Arch of Constantine in Rome. They even dug the carrara marble from which it was made out of the same quarry that Michelangelo's David came from.

Marble Arch, London

It was originally positioned as a gateway into Buckingham Palace. If you scroll back up to the old image of how Nash designed the Palace you'll see it to the left hand side of the front facade. Queen Victoria apparently didn't like it and asked if they could kindly take it away and put it somewhere else please. And, what with her being Queen and Empress and everything, that's exactly what they did. It was dismantled and moved lock, stock and barrel to where it sits today. 

And that is the end of our walk. Having covered the whole route on a wonderfully sunny day my trusty hound and I were on our knees by this point, panting for some liquid refreshment and ready for a very large, rather late and thoroughly well-deserved lunch. 

Enjoy!

Bonny x

As shared on SYC Thursday

Monday 7 July 2014

Walking in the footsteps of John Nash ... Part I

Once upon a time there was a great plan to remodel London after the fashion of the Eternal City. It all started a couple of hundred years ago when two blokes got together with a view to re-making the capital as a great imperial city that would rival the majesty and splendour of ancient Rome at her zenith.

John Nash's London

The first bloke was none other than perennial bad boy, Prince George, the Prince Regent who later became King George IV. Now as it happens Prince George was a young man in a hurry to make his mark. For much of his life he'd had a rubbish relationship with his father, George III, and had chaffed under the heavy burden of (usually disappointed) parental expectation that fell upon him as heir to the throne. Perhaps, as a result of all this negative feedback, he developed into a regular hedonist who was hell-bent on pleasing his senses (and yes, that would be all five of them) no matter what. One great upside of all this self-indulgence, however, was his patronage of the arts. George not only loved art, he was a real connoisseur: he recognised the good stuff as soon as he set eyes on it. And nowhere was his impeccable taste more evident than in the architecture that he sponsored.

Which neatly leads me on to the second bloke: his partner in this great caper, John Nash, who was in my opinion the greatest architect of the age. Just think about the Royal Pavilion in Brighton or his wonderful terraces in Bath for a moment and I think you'll agree that he was a bit of a dude when it came to designing top notch buildings.

Together these two blokes came up with a truly stonking vision of how London should look, and it's a real tragedy that George died before they'd got the job done. When George's younger brother, the tight-wad, William IV, succeeded him to the throne the wind blew in a very different direction and all major public works were either cancelled or progressed with a meanness of spirit and economy that blighted the great vision. Poor old Nash fell from favour, did very little new work for the rest of his life and then died in debt.

Anyway, back to the architecture: this is a walk that showcases some of what Nash and the Prince Regent/ King George IV achieved, and will hopefully leave an impression of how grand the city would have been if they'd gone the distance. Here's an outline of where to go, starting from Regent's Park underground station.

Walking in the footsteps of John Nash
Outline of the walk
The whole walk is just under 7 miles long. In this post I'm going to deal with the first half, which goes around Regent's Park starting from Park Square West, and ending in Park Square East. This stage is about 3 miles in total.

First cross the (very busy) Marylebone Road at the traffic lights and go straight into Park Square West.

Park Square West, London

Maybe this would be a good place to insert one of my maps to show this part of the route in some greater detail.


Park Square (built in 1823/ 1824) was designed by Nash as a sort of vestibule, a grand entrance that led from Portland Place into Regent's Park, punctuating the transition from a relatively built up area into the open greenery of the park. As with all of his terraces, each individual house is a component part in his grand overall design for the street. The result is a totally harmonic whole. Well, OK, totally harmonic minus the jarring note of the tarpaulin-covered scaffolding in the middle.

Park Square West, London


Take the first left into Ulster Terrace.

Ulster Terrace, London

Ulster Terrace was also built in 1824 as part of the Park Square development.

Ulster Terrace, London

Turn right at the end of Ulster Terrace into Brunswick Place and walk along to the end of the street and turn left into York Terrace East.

York Terrace East, London

York Terrace East, London

Walk along to the end of the street and turn right when you reach York Gate. Walk to the end of the street and turn left into the Outer Ring. Keep on walking, and soon you will pass by the very lovely Cornwall Terrace, which overlooks Regent's Park.

Cornwall Terrace, London

It looks amazing, shining in the sunlight from the distance, and, as you get closer, it just gets better and better. This was the first of the terraces to be completed. Construction took place from 1821 to 1823. Nash collaborated with another architect, Decimus Burton, on the design. Burton's father, James Burton, built the terrace under Nash's supervision. This partnering with other architects was typical of how Nash operated. He was involved in such a staggering amount of work that he had little option other than to delegate chunks of the workload just to get it all done.

Cornwall Terrace, London

Keep on going around the Outer Ring Road until you reach Clarence Terrace. It forms a little loop that reconnects again at the end with the Outer Road, and has the most glorious lawned garden in front.

Clarence Terrace, London

The scale of this terrace makes it all but impossible to get a shot of the whole facade. Perhaps if I'd had the foresight to come in my chopper ... .

It is also the product of another Burton/ Nash design collaboration, and was named after William, the then Duke of Clarence, George III's third son, who later became William IV. He succeeded his brother George IV when he died without any legitimate issue. Frederick, the Duke of York (of The Grand Old Duke of York fame) George III's second son, who was the heir presumptive at the time of his death, had died without issue before George IV, leaving the way clear for the Duke of Clarence to succeed to their father's throne.

Clarence Terrace, London
And one of the very many lovely things about this terrace is that it still has its original iron railings. They're a bit skew-whiff in sections, but they are rather wonderful nonetheless. So many of our London railings were carted away and melted down to make armaments during WWII only to be replaced with some very inferior looking hardware after the war had ended.  I was delighted (yes, I am that sad) to find the maker's stamp: Messrs. May & Morritt, who appear to have operated from premises at 36 Oxford Street.

Clarence Terrace, London
Anyway, drag yourself on past the fabulous railings if you can and keep on trooping up the Outer Ring until you come to the glory that is Hanover Terrace.

Hanover Terrace, London

Now this one is a real beauty and a slew of famous folk have lived here over the years.

H.G. Wells lived and died at number 13.

Hanover Terrace, London

The composer Vaughan Williams hung out at number 10, and next door's number 11 used to be the home of Anthony Salvin, another well-known architect in the nineteenth century who specialised in the repair and restoration of medieval buildings. He did a bit of fixing and renovating at the Tower of London in his time.

Hanover Terrace, London
As with the other terraces the scale of this one makes it all but impossible to take a photo of the whole arrangement.

Hanover Terrace, London
On exiting Hanover Terrace, cross the Outer Ring and enter Regent's Park via the Hanover Gate. Nash also had a part in designing the layout of the Park. He was the architect who delivered the Regent's Canal, which feeds the boating lake, and was also used to bring provisions from the Thames to cater for the exclusive community who hung out in the fabulous villas around the Park.

Regent's Park, London

Now the idea is to walk across Regent's Park to the Gloucester Gate on the other side. It's largely up to you how you do it. When I'm there I like to take a detour up around the top of the park to look in on the camels in the zoo. Here's a map of how we did it. As you can see it's not exactly a direct route!


If you follow my route you'll catch a glimpse of the Mosque at the Islamic Cultural Centre, which sits on the Outer Ring and, to my way of thinking, blends in rather pleasingly with the Nash terraces.


You'll have the option of stopping off for a spin in one of the paddle boats.

Regent's Park, London

Watch out for the funky sculptures along the way ...

Regent's Park, London

... and the Telecom Tower, which looks like it's caught a bit of a tipsy lean. Must be something to do with my camera angle, although the ground looks straight enough ... .

Regent's Park, London

One of the joys of Regent's Park in summertime is the traditional hay-meadow flowers. They're growing beautifully at the moment. There are wonderful formal gardens as well, but I'm a big fan of the wild flowers.

Regent's Park, London

Also look out for this striking water fountain as you get towards the Gloucester Gate.

Regent's Park, London

It's got a sweet history. It was donated to the people of England by Sir Cowasjee Jehangir, a wealthy Parsee gentleman of Bombay, as a token of his gratitude for the protection enjoyed by him and his community under British Rule in India. As it happens we were very grateful for a cold drink on a hot day when we passed by. There's also a couple of low-level basins on one side for dogs, which is a nice touch. Here's the dedication plate:


Now, having wet your whistle, keep on going in the direction of the Gloucester Gate, and as you approach you'll see the very elegant terrace of the same name.

Gloucester Gate, London

When you reach the gate, turn right into the Outer Ring, and keep on going past the Gloucester Gate terrace.

Gloucester Gate, London

I think I can feel another map coming on ... . This is the route that we'll follow on the eastern side of the park.

Key: 1: Chester Terrace, 2: Cambridge Terrace

Soon you'll see the Danish Church of St. Katharine's on your left. Today this is a Lutheran Church serving the Danish community in London. However it was originally constructed to house the Royal Foundation of Saint Katharine's, an ancient religious house created and endowed by Queen Matilda in 1147. For 700 years the foundation, known widely as St. Katharine's-by-the-Tower, had worked in the East End to relieve the terrible poverty of the area, but in 1825, when they developed St. Katharine's Dock for commercial shipping, the old collegiate church and hospital of St. Katharine's were knocked down as part of the improvement. The richly endowed foundation was relocated to Regent's Park where they opened an almshouse that was largely populated by distressed gentlefolk of narrow means. St. Katharine's-by-the-Tower had been much loved by the folk of the East End. They had come out in numbers to defend it during the Gordon Riots, for example. And there was outrage that instead of ministering to the destitute poor of its old locale it was now tending to a group of people whose needs did not seem nearly so acute

Danish Church, Regent's Park, London

After the Second World War it was decided that the foundation should return to its roots in the East End, and new premises were developed on the site of St. James Ratcliff's church, which had been bombed in the Blitz. This left the Regent's Park buildings empty so in 1952 the Danish Church moved in.

Danish Church, Regent's Park, London

Anyway I'm digressing as none of this has anything to do with our friend Nash. Keep on going along the Outer Ring, past the Danish Church until you see Cumberland Terrace on your left. Now this one is definitely worth taking a detour to have a look at.

Cumberland Terrace, London

It's so huge that once again I was struggling to photograph it. 

Cumberland Terrace, London


In the initial scheme for the park, the Prince Regent had intended to build a grand palace for himself, surrounded by the villas on these wonderful terraces, which would have been populated by his friends. Cumberland Terrace was of special importance in the overall scheme as the Prince Regent's palace was to have been built facing it. As a result Nash made it even grander than the other very splendid terraces. 

Cumberland Terrace, London

As things turned out the Prince Regent, by then King George IV, changed his mind about having a palace here, and instead had his chum Nash redevelop the old Buckingham House into Buckingham Palace, which we will come to in due course. 

Now carry on round the Outer Ring to marvel at the wonder that is Chester Terrace. It's a close run thing: I'm not sure whether I prefer Cumberland or Chester. But one of the two of them is ... probably ... my favourite Regent's Park terrace.

One of the things I love about Chester Terrace is its entrance and exit arches. They are awesome, shouting out its name to all the world.

Chester Terrace, London
Chester Terrace was built in 1825, and holds the record for having the longest, unbroken facade of any of the terraces around Regent's Park (length about 280 metres). It was named after one of the titles (Earl of Chester) held by the then Duke of Clarence, George's younger brother, who later succeeded him as William IV in 1830.
Chester Terrace, London


If you'd like to return to the Outer Ring you can skip next door to Cambridge Terrace, which is the next one on your left. It's not quite so grand, but by now we're getting a bit blasé after all the other magnificent stuff we've already seen. It's still rather elegant in its own right.


Cambridge Terrace, London


Cambridge Terrace, London

Now keep on going on the Outer Ring until you enter Park Square East.


Park Square East, London

In the centre are Park Square Gardens, one of the largest private gardens in London. The plane trees were planted there back in 1817 to celebrate the victory at the Battle of Waterloo in 1815. The nursemaid's tunnel, an early underpass, links the gardens with Park Crescent. It was designed so that the folk who enjoyed access to the square might carry on their promenade in Park Crescent on the south side of the Marylebone Road without having to brave the terrible traffic passing overhead. If you plan your visit on Open Gardens Day you may be able to see it, but otherwise it's not available for use by the public.

Watch out for the offices of the Prince's Trust on the left hand side of the square.

Park Square East, London

And keep on going until you reach the Marylebone Road.

Park Square East, London

The second part of this walk picks up from this point, crosses the Marylebone Road and carries on via Portland Place and Regent Street to Buckingham Palace and Marble Arch. It's quite a long walk, so if you wanted to do it in two parts this would be a good place to break off, and restart from.

You can read about the second part of the walk here: Walking in the footsteps of John Nash ... Part II.

All the best for now,


Bonny x

As shared on the Alphabet Project and Friday Finds

Wednesday 2 July 2014

H is for Hammersmith Bridge ...



There are a lot of bridges over the Thames these days, but it wasn't always like that. Way back when the Romans rocked into town we didn't have a single bridge to boast about. Nada, zilch we scored a big fat zero in the how-many-bridges-do-you-have stakes. And the crafty old Romans with their love for bridges (viaducts, aqueducts, every-other-sort-of-ducts) weren't having any of this marching round the country to get to the other side nonsense. So they set about building our very first bridge, which was the earliest precursor to Old London Bridge.

That first bridge went through many incarnations. It was probably destroyed by a very angry Boudicca when she went on the warpath with the rotten Romans, but then it was later rebuilt by them. It fell into disuse after the Romans blew town as the Saxons wanted a nice clear river boundary between the kingdoms of Mercia and Wessex, and they were keen not to suffer any midnight incursions across some pesky bridge. Finally a very penitent Henry II realised how handy it would be to be able to just nip across to the south bank without having to swim or sail or risk life and limb on the existing rickety old wooden bridge. He was feeling very hangdog about his part in the sad demise of Thomas Becket and so in 1176 he set about building a nice strong stone bridge across the river to make amends. He even put a rather splendid chapel in the middle dedicated to Becket as a holy martyr.  It was a bit of a titanic struggle what with the tides and everything, but they succeeded in building 19 irregular stone pillars across the river, spanned by a sturdy bridge which had a draw bridge section to allow tall ships to go through.


Old London Bridge was always busy, and before long people cottoned on to the fact that there was the potential for some prime retail space along its deck: just think of the footfall passing by outside. So by the fourteenth century they'd built 100 shops across the bridge and even added a multiple seated public loo. The Tudors carried on building so that, by the time of Elizabeth I, there were hundreds of buildings across the bridge, some of which were 6 or 7 stories high and overhung the central carriageway along which the traffic passed. This long dark tunnel of a carriageway was only four metres wide, and had to carry traffic in both directions. The result was a great big Tudor bottleneck. It could easily take an hour to get across. And if you'd decided to avoid the queues and take a boat you'd have been bonkers. The 19 pillars obstructed the tidal flow of the water, with the result that there was a difference of about 5 feet in the water levels on either side of the bridge, creating rapids. Shooting these rapids was a death-defying thrill for the watermen that claimed multiple lives every year.


By 1800 there were three bridges: London Bridge, Westminster and Blackfriars. There were eighteenth century wooden bridges at Putney and Battersea, but those areas had not yet been absorbed by the metropolis, and were not included in the tally of London's bridges. Traffic volumes were very high. On one day in July 1811 a staggering 90,000 pedestrians, 5,500 vehicles and 764 horse-riders crossed London Bridge alone. As people had to pay tolls everyone saw the lucrative money-making potential in bridge-building. Added to which in the nineteenth century London grew like Topsy in all directions. In 1800 London's population was probably just a smidgen larger than that of Paris, but by 1900 it was two and a half times greater. London had become the largest city that the world had ever seen. And this was the stimulus for more bridge-building.

The original bridge at Hammersmith,  built in the 1820s as the city expanded in all directions, was the first suspension bridge to have been built in London.  Sadly it was unable to cope with the juggernaut of London's growing traffic and had to be replaced. Each year it was a cause for special concern as it filled with spectators during the Oxford v Cambridge Boat Race.


On 6th April, 1870 between 11,000 and 12,000 spectators filled the bridge to watch the 27th Boat Race, causing the bridge's owners to have heart palpitations; there were grave concerns that it would not be able to carry that weight of human traffic. Happily the Light Blues triumphed that year and the bridge did not collapse.

A temporary bridge was opened in 1884 and they set to work building the present bridge on the same foundations as the original. It was opened by the Prince of Wales on 11th June, 1887.



This new Hammersmith Bridge was designed by Sir Joseph Bazalgette, who also designed London's sewerage system, one of the greatest infrastructure innovations of the age, which helped save the Thames from chronic pollution and, in the process, defeated the scourge of cholera.

The IRA have tried to blow up the bridge on three separate occasions. Their first attempt was on Wednesday 29th March, 1939. Maurice Childs, a lady's hairdresser from Chiswick, was walking home across the bridge in the early hours of the morning when he came upon an abandoned suitcase from which he saw sparks and smoke escaping. On closer examination, Childs realised that it was a bomb, picked it up and hurled it into the water. It exploded as it hit the Thames sending a 60 foot tsunami to deluge the river banks. A second explosion detonated moments later causing some relatively minor structural damage to the Western span of the bridge, which the authorities were able to repair.


Today the bridge enjoys grade II Listed Buildings protected status.

If you'd like to go on a walk and enjoy the bridge I've written about the Boat Race Walk, which takes you along the Thames Tow Path on the Surrey and Middlesex shores between Hammersmith Bridge and Barnes Bridge. Watch out for the super pubs along the way.

All the best for now,

Bonny x

As shared on the Alphabet Project