Henley Bridge is a road bridge built in 1786 at Henley-on-Thames over the

River Thames The River Thames ( ), known alternatively in parts as the River Isis, is a river that flows through southern England including London. At , it is the longest river entirely in England and the second-longest in the United Kingdom, after the R ...

, between Oxfordshire and Berkshire. The bridge has five elliptical stone arches, and links Hart Street in Henley with White Hill (designated the A4130) leading up a steep hill to Remenham Hill. It crosses the Thames on the reach between

Hambleden Lock Hambleden Lock is a lock with a long weir situated on the River Thames in England, about 2 miles downstream of Henley Bridge. The lock is on the Berkshire bank between Aston and Remenham. Built by the Thames Navigation Commission in 1773, ...

and Marsh Lock, carrying the

Thames Path The Thames Path is a National Trail following the River Thames from its source near Kemble in Gloucestershire to the Woolwich foot tunnel, south east London. It is about long. A path was first proposed in 1948 but it only opened in 1996. The ...

across the river. It is a

Grade I listed building In the United Kingdom, a listed building or listed structure is one that has been placed on one of the four statutory lists maintained by Historic England in England, Historic Environment Scotland in Scotland, in Wales, and the Northern Irel ...

History

This point of the Thames has been used for crossing since ancient times. The current bridge replaced an earlier wooden structure, the foundations of which can be seen in the basement of the Henley Royal Regatta headquarters nearby on the Berkshire side. However, the remains of two stone arches on both sides of the river indicate the existence of an even more ancient stone bridge prior to the timber structure. This bridge has been identified by some authors as the bridge which the Romans crossed pursuing the Britons in 43AD, as described by Dion Cassius. This hypothesis is refuted by many other authors.Cooke, p.45 The earliest recording of a bridge is in the

Patent Rolls The patent rolls (Latin: ''Rotuli litterarum patentium'') are a series of administrative records compiled in the English, British and United Kingdom Chancery, running from 1201 to the present day. Description The patent rolls comprise a register ...

of 1232. In 1354, two granaries were leased on the bridge, which was timber on stone piers and several chapels are recorded. It was carried away in the great flood of 1774, but part of the eastern abutment is built on the intact easternmost span of the original 12th-century bridge.

Present bridge

It was originally designed in 1781 by William Hayward of Shrewsbury, who died in 1782 before the construction of the bridge had begun.Ruddock, p.114A choice of walks from Henley along the River Thames into the Chiltern Hills.
Thames & Chilterns Walk. Chilterns Country, p.2. Chilterns Conservation Board. September, 2008Henley Guide, p.8 The bridge was built by the Oxford mason John Townesend. Sculptures of

Isis Isis (; ''Ēse''; ; Meroitic: ''Wos'' 'a''or ''Wusa''; Phoenician: 𐤀𐤎, romanized: ʾs) was a major goddess in ancient Egyptian religion whose worship spread throughout the Greco-Roman world. Isis was first mentioned in the Old Kin ...

and Tamesis by

Anne Seymour Damer Anne Seymour Damer, ''née'' Conway, (26 October 1748 – 28 May 1828) was an English sculptor. Once described as a 'female genius' by Horace Walpole, she was trained in sculpture by Giuseppe Ceracchi and John Bacon. Influenced by the Enlighten ...

are at the keystone of the central arch on each side of the bridge. Tamesis faces the north (downstream section of the bridge) and Isis the south (upstream section). The original models for these can be seen in the Henley Gallery at the nearby

River and Rowing Museum The River & Rowing Museum in Henley-on-Thames, Oxfordshire, England, is located on a site at Mill Meadows by the River Thames. It has three main themes represented by major permanent galleries, the non-tidal River Thames, the international ...

. The cost of building the bridge was approximately £10,000.

Damage and repair in 2010 and 2011

In August 2010 the bridge was damaged by a boat named ''Crazy Love''. A £200,000 repair programme commenced the following year

Battle of the bridge lights

Strings of white LED bulbs were attached to the Grade I listed crossing in March 2018 by artist Clive Hemsley. This was done without permission from the district and county councils and the artist was instructed to remove the lights. He claimed to have received scores of messages of support from people wanting the lights to remain permanently, including one from the Mayor of Henley. The artist subsequently applied for planning permission, which was refused. The District Council conservation team stated: "As previously advised, the conservation team maintain concerns that this proposal is not appropriate to the special historic and architectural interest of the listed building and fails to recognise the reasons for its listing at such a high grade. It would similarly pose an alteration to its setting which would not serve to enhance its interest or that of its setting, the Henley Conservation Area. The scheme remains insufficiently justified and is unlikely to be able to be able to demonstrate a sufficient level of public benefits to overcome harm to such a significant building."

Adjacent features

Leander Club Leander Club, founded in 1818, is one of the oldest rowing clubs in the world, and the oldest non-academic club. It is based in Remenham in Berkshire, England and adjoins Henley-on-Thames. Only three other surviving clubs were founded prior t ...

, one of the oldest

rowing Rowing is the act of propelling a human-powered watercraft using the sweeping motions of oars to displace water and generate reactional propulsion. Rowing is functionally similar to paddling, but rowing requires oars to be mechanically ...

clubs in the world,Leander Club: Home Page
is also close to the bridge on the Berkshire side. On the Oxfordshire (Henley) side are the Angel on the Bridge riverside public house and the Red Lion Hotel, an old coaching inn. St Mary the Virgin, the main civic church in Henley with its tower dominating the view, is also close by.

References

Bibliography

* * * * Henley bridge 1811

]

]

External links

Keystones
— photographs from the

Courtauld Institute of Art The Courtauld Institute of Art (), commonly referred to as The Courtauld, is a self-governing college of the University of London specialising in the study of the history of art and conservation. It is among the most prestigious specialist coll ...

Where Thames smooth waters glide.
{{River item box, table=end , River=

, upstream = northern bank

Sonning Bridge Sonning Bridge is a road bridge across the River Thames at Sonning, Berkshire. It links Sonning with Sonning Eye (Oxfordshire) and crosses the Thames on the reach above Shiplake Lock, just short of Sonning Lock. It is a brick arch bridge complet ...

&
Sonning Backwater Bridges , downstream = southern bank

Temple Footbridge Temple Footbridge is a pedestrian only bridge near Hurley, Berkshire across the River Thames in England. It connects the Buckinghamshire and Berkshire banks. It crosses the Thames just above Temple Lock. The bridge was built in 1989 specific ...

Bridges in Oxfordshire Bridges across the River Thames Grade I listed bridges Grade I listed buildings in Oxfordshire

Bridge A bridge is a structure built to span a physical obstacle (such as a body of water, valley, road, or rail) without blocking the way underneath. It is constructed for the purpose of providing passage over the obstacle, which is usually somethi ...

Grade I listed buildings in Berkshire Road bridges in England Bridges completed in 1786 Remenham