The Wye Bridge in

Monmouth Monmouth ( or ; ) is a market town and community (Wales), community in Monmouthshire, Wales, situated on where the River Monnow joins the River Wye, from the Wales–England border. The population in the 2011 census was 10,508, rising from 8 ...

is a bridge across the

River Wye The River Wye (; ) is the Longest rivers of the United Kingdom, fourth-longest river in the UK, stretching some from its source on Plynlimon in mid Wales to the Severn Estuary. The lower reaches of the river forms part of Wales-England bor ...

. The A466 passes over it and immediately meets the A40 at its western end. The bridge is a grade II

listed building In the United Kingdom, a listed building is a structure of particular architectural or historic interest deserving of special protection. Such buildings are placed on one of the four statutory lists maintained by Historic England in England, Hi ...

. The total span of the bridge is .

History

The original wooden bridge was built in the Middle Ages; there is a clear reference to it in the fourteenth century. Earlier references to a bridge at Monmouth may refer either to a bridge over the Wye or to the fortified bridge over the Monnow, although local historian

Keith Kissack Keith Edward Kissack MBE (18 November 1913 – 31 March 2010) was a British schoolteacher and historian. He is notable for his many publications on the history of Monmouth and Monmouthshire. Life Kissack was born in Clun, Shropshire, to Rev. B ...

wrote that the bridge was known to exist in 1282 when it formed a boundary with the

Forest of Dean The Forest of Dean is a geographical, historical and cultural region in the western part of the Counties of England, county of Gloucestershire, England. It forms a roughly triangle, triangular plateau bounded by the River Wye to the west and no ...

. It was completely rebuilt in stone in the early seventeenth century (1615–17). At that time, tolls were collected from all those crossing the bridge. A plaque on the parapet records the widening of the bridge on both sides in 1878–80 under the architect Edwin Seward of

Cardiff Cardiff (; ) is the capital city, capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of Wales. Cardiff had a population of in and forms a Principal areas of Wales, principal area officially known as the City and County of Ca ...

, stating, ''This bridge was widened 1879 from designs by the County Surveyor, David Roberts Contractor''. The bridge is built of red and buff

sandstone Sandstone is a Clastic rock#Sedimentary clastic rocks, clastic sedimentary rock composed mainly of grain size, sand-sized (0.0625 to 2 mm) silicate mineral, silicate grains, Cementation (geology), cemented together by another mineral. Sand ...

ashlar Ashlar () is a cut and dressed rock (geology), stone, worked using a chisel to achieve a specific form, typically rectangular in shape. The term can also refer to a structure built from such stones. Ashlar is the finest stone masonry unit, a ...

. It has five arched spans with the original pointed arches visible beneath, but with both faces covered by segmental arches carried on the sharply pointed

cutwater A cutwater is the forward part of the prow or stem of a watercraft around the waterline The waterline is the line where the hull of a ship meets the surface of the water. A waterline can also refer to any line on a ship's hull that is paralle ...

s. The total span is . The bridge is a Grade II listed structure. At the southern, Wyesham, end of the bridge, and now largely concealed by road-widening, are two pillboxes dating from

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

. Such pillboxes formed part of the British hardened field defences which were constructed in the early part of the war in anticipation of a German invasion. The Wye Bridge pillboxes formed part of Western Command Stop Line No. 27 which followed the course of the

. The pillboxes are

scheduled monuments In the United Kingdom, a scheduled monument is a nationally important archaeological site or historic building, given protection against unauthorised change. The various pieces of legislation that legally protect heritage assets from damage, visu ...

Routes

The bridge is a crossing for the Wye but it is also the start of the Wysis Way, a long footpath that connects Monmouth to Kemble in Gloucestershire and to other national footpaths.

Gallery

Image:A466 crosses the Wye - geograph.org.uk - 618248.jpg, A466 crosses the Wye Bridge, view towards

Monmouth School Monmouth School was a Public school (United Kingdom), public school (Independent school (United Kingdom), independent boarding school, boarding and day school, day school) for boys in Monmouth, Wales. The school was founded in 1614 with a beques ...

Image:The Wye Bridge, Monmouth - geograph.org.uk - 604148.jpg, Close up of an arch of the Wye bridge Image:Monmouth Wye Bridge - geograph.org.uk - 288968.jpg, Plaque on the bridge: This bridge was widened in A.D 1879 File:Monmouth - Wye Bridge & Wye Bridge Street.jpg File:Monmouth_raft_race.jpg, a view of Monmouth raft race from the bridge, 1960s

References

Sources

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External links