Customer Reviews

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

5 star:		(3)
4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

This is a little gem of a book, concerning the history of Old London Bridge- the stone structure which spanned the Thames, and which operated from 1209 until it was replaced by Rennie's new bridge in August 1831. Actually, as the author Patricia Pierce points out, archaeological evidence was "unearthed" which showed that a wooden bridge had been on the same spot prior to the erection of Old London Bridge. (The wooden bridge dated back to Roman times.) Old London Bridge was functional for over 600 years. Rennie's new bridge was not so fortunate, becoming obsolete in 140 years- and is now serving as a tourist attraction in Arizona. The current London Bridge opened for business in 1973. Ms. Pierce has managed to make her book interesting by not limiting herself to the bridge, strictly speaking. After all, reading about the shops and houses that were on the bridge, the hazards of traveling over the bridge (due to congestion) and under it (the changeable currents), and all the repairs that were needed over the years- well, that could become tedious after awhile. (There is still enough of that material present for me to give the book 4 stars rather than 5.) So, the author uses the bridge as a focal point and enriches the story by telling us about people who crossed the bridge, who didn't like to cross the bridge, and who crossed under the bridge. The first category included the French king, John II, who was "paraded" over the bridge after being captured in 1357 at the Battle of Poitiers. Those being chivalrous times, John was well-treated. He was given comfortable accomodations at the Savoy Palace beside the Thames, and was allowed to visit the City of London. When he couldn't come up with the money necessary to ransom himself he was allowed to go back to France to try a little harder and his son, the Duke of Anjou, took his place as a hostage. Anjou showed considerable initiative by escaping and getting back to France. His father, however, thought that wasn't very sporting and voluntarily came back to London and once again was held for ransom. The English showed their appreciation by treating John even better the second time around and Sir Henry Picard, a former Mayor of London, had John as a guest at a dinner where five kings were present. In the second category (those who didn't like to travel over the bridge), Queen Elizabeth I is mentioned. It is unclear exactly why Elizabeth didn't like to do so...it could have been a fear of heights or concern for her personal safety (the bridge was extremely crowded with pedestrians, carts and animals and people were sometimes knocked into the Thames and drowned). In any event, it is believed that during her long reign Elizabeth only made the trip one time. In the final category (those going under the bridge) Samuel Pepys is mentioned, which offers Ms. Pierce the wonderful opportunity to talk about Pepys's career with the Naval Board, his famous diary, and his fondness for the ladies. Ms. Pierce even branches out a bit and covers things that may not have been on the bridge, but were at least nearby. This way we hear about the Globe theater, which got "its name from its sign and the flag which flew to announce that a play was in progress...It showed Hercules with the world on his shoulders...". Ms. Pierce even tells us that the rule of the road regarding "keep to the left" originated with a 1722 decision of the Common Council, which was made to control the traffic on London Bridge. One last thing I should mention, regarding the title of this review: For hundreds of years after the bridge opened, traitors' heads were set upon a gateway at the Southwark end of the bridge. Someone had to have the job of placing each new arrival "among the rotting heads, quarters and skulls already there...and (to toss) superfluous heads into the river below". Hence, the position description: Keeper Of The Heads!

The old London Bridge serves as a focal point for twenty generations of London history: bawds and fishmongers as well as prelates and kings. The Thames itself stars as a vicious, unpredictable bully, killing rash boatmen who tried to 'shoot' between the bridge's piers. "Many people refused point blank to go 'through the Bridge', such was the frequent loss of life..."

As the bridge was built, the river was seriously and increasingly restricted. Many lives were lost (the author estimates about 200 during the thirty-three years of construction in the twelfth century) as the bridge's nineteen arches were built under and over the wide, swiftly flowing, tidal river.

One of the most interesting sections of "Old London Bridge" involves speculation on exactly how the bridge was built. The Thames was neither dammed nor diverted, so how were the bridge's foundations sunk and strengthened? "Interestingly, Sir Christopher Wren later considered the question, and concluded that....'every Pier was set upon Piles of Wood, which were drove as far as might be under low Watermark, on which were laid planks of Timber, and upon them the Foundation of the Stone Piers.'"

His theory was confirmed when the Old London Bridge was deconstructed in the nineteenth century.

Once the bridge was built, it had to be constantly repaired. The Bridge Masters or Bridge Wardens were in daily charge of not only maintaining the bridge, but also for using its lands and rents to pay for the repairs.

This book is full of the noise and ingenuity of the bridge-dwellers and everyone who crossed through their stony territory. The author frames some of the greatest spectacles seen during Old London Bridge's 600-year existence, including a joust, royal processions, and Midsummer's Eve celebrations. It seemed a shame to many that the houses and gateways on the bridge were finally removed in the eighteenth century. An anonymous poet wrote: "The Bravest sight that I e'er ken/ Was London Bridge with its gay shopmen:/ Where all might find what they did lack,/ From an ABC to a pin's pack;/ But now the shops are clear'd away,/ Heigh-ho! Alas! and a well-a-day!"

We can only read and speculate on what Old London Bridge was like in its noisy, mercantile prime. This author does a fine job of reproducing the heroism, squabbling, smells, and the constant procession of humanity that crossed the nineteen crowded arches above the swift currents of Father Thames.

Author Patricia Pierce has certainly done an excellent job in collating a vast amount of information on Old London Bridge throughout its multiple (at least 7) major stages of development. I thoroughly enjoyed reading this book and would recommend it to anyone interested in the history of London in general, and the bridge in particular. The only quibble is with the presentation. At times, it seems Pierce has tried to include literally every nugget of information she has ever collected. Some anecdotes only run to a sentence or two. Some stories start off well then peter out with no payoff for the reader. Some reminiscences are just simply dull. Readers may wish to keep a London guidebook handy (or at least keep Google maps running and to hand) when reading about the lanes, streets and suburbs of London that are often referred to. The book also does not do justice to the magnificent line drawings of the 7 stages of the bridge by Gordon Home which deserve to be presented in much larger scale - although this is hardly the fault of the author. My personal favourites are the 1390 joust on the old bridge between the Scottish and English champions - in which the Scots won; how could I have lived in Scotland for 11 years and never heard about that?! And the fact that the English appetite for public execution was so high that one London street near the bridge had a gallows at each end to satisfy the demand. The indelible memory of traitors' gate on the bridge with its display of severed heads and quarters - the sight and the smell must have been incredible - will remain with readers for a long time. Overall very good, but ...

This is a great book, and I really enjoyed reading it. It's a complete history of the bridges at the site of Old London Bridge, from the prehistoric remnants of a wooden bridge there, to the stone bridge that lasted for centuries, and ends with the two most recent bridges. The research in this book would make a very interesting television documentary. There are many black and white pictures and three color paintings (on the covers) to help you visualize the bridge at different points of its life. Now I'd like to read about other bridges and large engineering projects such as this -- it makes you curious about other things like aqueducts and canals. I'll read other books by this author in the future.

The author, Patricia Pierce, tells her bridge story marvelously. ("Remnants of a massive [Celtic] oak bridge" over the Thames River,"built 3,500 years ago", were discovered in 1998. Her narrative takes us thru scenes with the people on the Bridge from the commmon folk to the history-makers. "The Keeper of the Heads, who was kept busy adding and replacing traitors' heads on the Drawbridge Gate (c.1350s)" and the "many thousands of people who drowned at the Bridge", or the shopkeepers who lived above their wooden shops right on the bridge. Everyone endured the dangers of fires and the strong currents of the river. Above the noise of the water traffic was the din on the bridge: loud hammering in workshops, hawkers shouting their wares, a toy seller blowing his trumpet, gangs of fighting schoolboys, screaming seagulls, and the rattle of cart wheels over the bridge - an early-morning din til nightfall. So the author takes us thru the centuries, but in a concise 295 pages of text, plus a chronology and further readings. I'm 2/3 along in the story, but enjoy looking back on her fine writing (with never a needless word anywhere on her pages).