Old London Bridge: The Story of the Longest Inhabited Bridge in Europe

This is a very engagingly written history of Old London Bridge, the Medieval bridge over the Thames constructed in stone in the late twelfth and early thirteenth centuries, and which lasted through numerous political, economic, architectural and meteorological upheavals for over six centuries until 1831. It was replaced by a much wider and spaciously-arched bridge alongside, which had been constructed over the previous seven years. This lasted until the late 1960s, when it in turn was replaced by the current incarnation, and sold off in pieces and (in)famously re-erected in the American desert.

The history of a bridge over the Thames is very much the history of London itself in smaller scale, and there were numerous wooden bridges in show more approximately the same location before the twelfth century, dating back to the Roman period and possibly even earlier, when there was of course no London at all. The Medieval bridge evolved hugely during its 600 plus years of life, and houses, shops, gatehouses, chapels (St Thomas a Becket's) and mansions (Nonesuch House) were all repaired and replaced numerous times. For much of the early period we don't know what the Bridge looked like, and have to conjecture from what building details are known; only in the sixteenth century does it really emerge into the light of drawings and maps. But the whole period is marked by numerous colourful incidents and personalities that make this a pleasure to read. The ending is a bit sad in that the whole superstructure of buildings was removed in the late 18th century, so that Old London Bridge was, like it successors, "naked" for the last 70 years of its life; but this was inevitable for a variety of reasons including competition from the other bridges starting to be built from this time and its structural weaknesses from decades and centuries of being battered by the tides. But the bridge retains its place as one of the key landmarks of the capital city, known and celebrated throughout the world. show less

Excellent book, very readable and interesting. Since the book was published in Britain the reader is somewhat expected to be up on their English history, although not so much as to be a burden. A reasonable knowledge of London is also an asset.