Historical and Commemorative
Medals
Collection of Benjamin Weiss
OPENING OF THE NEW LONDON BRIDGE WYON, Benjamin: England, 1831, Bronze, 27mm
Two other timber bridges followed, one being swept away entirely in a storm in 1091. A third was built in 1163. The man who built it, a priest named Peter de Colechurch, vowed that his next bridge would be of stone. This was to become the old London Bridge, and until the 18th century, it was the only bridge across the river. It was a masonry structure of 19 arches. Weighted down by shops and dwellings, this historic structure was the center of London life for 600 years until the new London bridge replaced it in 1831. The competition for the design of the new structure was
won by John Rennie. The bridge was built 100 feet west of the old Bridge
and for a time Londoners could see both the old bridge and the new one
side-by-side. This London Bridge was built out of granite. It was a
structure of 5 arches, 928 feet long and 49 feet wide. When the new bridge
was finished and opened by King William and Queen Adelaide in 1831,
traffic switched to the huge new structure and the demolition commenced on
the old bridge. John Rennie was then knighted for his work. The old Chapel
remains were dismantled as well, and Peter de Colechurch's bones were
found, but these were thrown in the river, an unceremonious end to the
man who had built the bridge which had served London for six hundred
years. The new bridge was to become one of London's most familiar
scenes. (Taken from
London Bridge Museum).
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