Southwark Bridge ( ) is an

arch bridge An arch bridge is a bridge with abutments at each end shaped as a curved arch. Arch bridges work by transferring the weight of the bridge and its loads partially into a horizontal thrust restrained by the abutments at either side. A viaduct ...

London London is the capital and largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary down to the North Sea, and has been a majo ...

, for traffic linking the district of

Southwark Southwark ( ) is a district of Central London situated on the south bank of the River Thames, forming the north-western part of the wider modern London Borough of Southwark. The district, which is the oldest part of South London, developed ...

and the

City A city is a human settlement of notable size.Goodall, B. (1987) ''The Penguin Dictionary of Human Geography''. London: Penguin.Kuper, A. and Kuper, J., eds (1996) ''The Social Science Encyclopedia''. 2nd edition. London: Routledge. It can be def ...

across the

River Thames The River Thames ( ), known alternatively in parts as the The Isis, River Isis, is a river that flows through southern England including London. At , it is the longest river entirely in England and the Longest rivers of the United Kingdom, se ...

. Besides when others are closed for temporary repairs, it has the least traffic of the Thames bridges in London.

History

A previous bridge, designed by

John Rennie the Elder John Rennie FRSE FRS (7 June 1761 – 4 October 1821) was a Scottish civil engineer who designed many bridges, canals, docks and warehouses, and a pioneer in the use of structural cast-iron. Early years He was born the younger son of James ...

, opened on the site in 1819. On the 1818 Cary map of London, it was labelled as Queen Street Bridge. All subsequent maps label it as Southwark Bridge. The bridge consisted of three large cast-iron spans supported by granite piers. The bridge was notable for having the longest cast iron span, , ever made. Unsurprisingly, it became known colloquially as "The Iron Bridge" as mentioned inter alia in Charles Dickens' "Little Dorrit". The iron spans were cast in

Masborough Masbrough is a suburb of Rotherham, South Yorkshire, England. It was named as the west of Rotherham by the middle of the Industrial Revolution, namely that part on the left bank of River Don, South Yorkshire, Don. Historic counties of England, ...

Rotherham Rotherham () is a large minster and market town in South Yorkshire, England. The town takes its name from the River Rother which then merges with the River Don. The River Don then flows through the town centre. It is the main settlement of ...

. It was a commercial tolled operation which was trying to compete with the toll free

Blackfriars Blackfriars, derived from Black Friars, a common name for the Dominican Order of friars, may refer to: England * Blackfriars, Bristol, a former priory in Bristol * Blackfriars, Canterbury, a former monastery in Kent * Blackfriars, Gloucester, a f ...

and

bridges nearby, but the company became bankrupt and its interests were acquired by the

Bridge House Estates The Bridge House Estates is a charitable trust, originating in the late eleventh century and formally established by royal charter in 1282 by the City of London Corporation in London, England. It was originally established to maintain London Brid ...

which then made it toll free in 1864. A new bridge on the site was designed by

Ernest George Sir Ernest George (13 June 1839 – 8 December 1922) was a British architect, landscape and architectural watercolourist, and etcher. Life and work Born in London, Ernest George began his architectural training in 1856, under Samuel Hewitt, ...

and Basil Mott. It was built by Sir William Arrol & Co. and opened on 6 June 1921. ImgSouthwarkBridgePlaque

Halfway along the bridge on the Western side is a plaque which is inscribed:

''Re-built by the
Bridge House Estates The Bridge House Estates is a charitable trust, originating in the late eleventh century and formally established by royal charter in 1282 by the City of London Corporation in London, England. It was originally established to maintain London Brid ...
Committee''
''of the
Corporation of London The City of London Corporation, officially and legally the Mayor and Commonalty and Citizens of the City of London, is the municipal governing body of the City of London, the historic centre of London and the location of much of the United King ...
''
''1913-1921''
''Opened for traffic by their Majesties''
''
King George V George V (George Frederick Ernest Albert; 3 June 1865 – 20 January 1936) was King of the United Kingdom and the British Dominions, and Emperor of India, from 6 May 1910 until his death in 1936. Born during the reign of his grandmother Que ...
and Queen Mary''
''6th June 1921''
''Sir Ernest Lamb CMG, JP Chairman''
'' Basil Mott, CB Engineer''
''Sir
Ernest George Sir Ernest George (13 June 1839 – 8 December 1922) was a British architect, landscape and architectural watercolourist, and etcher. Life and work Born in London, Ernest George began his architectural training in 1856, under Samuel Hewitt, ...
RA Architect''

The bridge provides access to Upper Thames Street on the north bank and, due to the ring of steel, there is no further road access to the City and the north. The bridge is owned and maintained by

, a charitable trust overseen by the

City of London Corporation The City of London Corporation, officially and legally the Mayor and Commonalty and Citizens of the City of London, is the municipal governing body of the City of London, the historic centre of London and the location of much of the United King ...

. The current bridge was given

Grade II listed structure 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 ...

status in 1995.

Nearby

At the north-west side is Vintners’ Court, a 1990s office block which has a classical façade of columns and pediment; this was developed on the site owned by the

Worshipful Company of Vintners The Worshipful Company of Vintners is one of the oldest Livery Companies of the City of London, England, thought to date back to the 12th century. It is one of the "Great Twelve" livery companies of London, and its motto is ''Vinum Exhilarat A ...

whose hall is behind it on Upper Thames Street. The south end is near the

Tate Modern Tate Modern is an art gallery located in London. It houses the United Kingdom's national collection of international modern and contemporary art, and forms part of the Tate group together with Tate Britain, Tate Liverpool and Tate St Ives. It is ...

, the

Clink Prison Museum The Clink was a prison in Southwark, England, which operated from the 12th century until 1780. The prison served the Liberty of the Clink, a local manor area owned by the Bishop of Winchester rather than by the reigning monarch. As the Lib ...

, the

Globe Theatre The Globe Theatre was a theatre in London associated with William Shakespeare. It was built in 1599 by Shakespeare's playing company, the Lord Chamberlain's Men, on land owned by Thomas Brend and inherited by his son, Nicholas Brend, and gra ...

, and the ''

Financial Times The ''Financial Times'' (''FT'') is a British daily newspaper printed in broadsheet and published digitally that focuses on business and economic current affairs. Based in London, England, the paper is owned by a Japanese holding company, Nik ...

'' and

Ofcom The Office of Communications, commonly known as Ofcom, is the government-approved regulatory and competition authority for the broadcasting, telecommunications and postal industries of the United Kingdom. Ofcom has wide-ranging powers acros ...

buildings. Below the bridge on the south side are some old steps, which were once used by Thames watermen as a place to moor their boats and wait for customers. Below the bridge on the south side is a pedestrian tunnel, part of the Queen's Walk Embankment, containing a

frieze In architecture, the frieze is the wide central section part of an entablature and may be plain in the Ionic or Doric order, or decorated with bas-reliefs. Paterae are also usually used to decorate friezes. Even when neither columns nor ...

depicting the

Thames frost fairs The River Thames frost fairshttps://www.britishmuseum.org/research/collection_online/collection_object_details/collection_image_gallery.aspx?assetId=599805001&objectId=3199037&partId=1 Erra Paters Prophesy or Frost Faire 1684/3 were held on th ...

. Cycle Superhighway 7 runs along the bridge.

Popular culture

*Southwark Bridge appears in many films, including ''

Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix ''Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix'' is a fantasy novel written by British author J. K. Rowling and the fifth novel in the ''Harry Potter'' series. It follows Harry Potter's struggles through his fifth year at Hogwarts School of Witc ...

'' (2007). *The cream painted houses on the south side of the bridge, Anchor Terrace, just after the FT building, were used for the exterior shots of the shared house in ''

This Life This may refer to: * ''This'', the singular proximal demonstrative pronoun Places * This, or ''Thinis'', an ancient city in Upper Egypt * This, Ardennes, a commune in France People with the surname * Hervé This, French culinary chemist Arts, e ...

''. *The 1819-1920 "Iron Bridge" is mentioned in the first sentence of "

Our Mutual Friend ''Our Mutual Friend'', written in 1864–1865, is the last novel completed by Charles Dickens and is one of his most sophisticated works, combining savage satire with social analysis. It centres on, in the words of critic J. Hillis Miller, quo ...

" by Charles Dickens, and several times in his "

Little Dorrit ''Little Dorrit'' is a novel by Charles Dickens, originally published in serial form between 1855 and 1857. The story features Amy Dorrit, youngest child of her family, born and raised in the Marshalsea prison for debtors in London. Arthur Cl ...

", where in Chapter 24 he identifies the toll as being one penny. *In the 1964 Disney film ''

Mary Poppins It may refer to: * ''Mary Poppins'' (book series), the original 1934–1988 children's fantasy novels that introduced the character. * Mary Poppins (character), the nanny with magical powers. * ''Mary Poppins'' (film), a 1964 Disney film sta ...

'', the Banks family mistakenly think that George W. Banks has committed suicide by jumping off the bridge after he is fired from his job at the bank. *DCI Luther and Alice Morgan meet at Southwark Bridge in the season 3 finale of the BBC crime drama ''

Luther Luther may refer to: People * Martin Luther (1483–1546), German monk credited with initiating the Protestant Reformation * Martin Luther King Jr. (1929-1968), American minister and leader in the American civil rights movement * Luther (give ...

''. *The bridge appears in the final scene of ''

Lock, Stock and Two Smoking Barrels ''Lock, Stock and Two Smoking Barrels'' is a 1998 British black comedy crime film written and directed by Guy Ritchie, produced by Matthew Vaughn and starring an ensemble cast featuring Jason Flemyng, Dexter Fletcher, Nick Moran, Steven Mackinto ...

'' with Tom leaning over the bridge with his cell phone in his mouth set to drop antique guns in the Thames River.

References

External links

* * {{London Borough of Southwark Bridges completed in 1819 Rebuilt buildings and structures in the United Kingdom Bridges completed in 1921 Bridges across the River Thames Grade II listed bridges in London Transport in the London Borough of Southwark Bridges in the City of London Former toll bridges in England Grade II listed buildings in the City of London Grade II listed buildings in the London Borough of Southwark Bridges in London Bridge light displays

History

Nearby

Popular culture

See also

References

External links