History
For over 600 years, the nearest bridge to London Bridge was at Kingston. A bridge at Westminster was proposed in 1664, but opposed by the Corporation of London and the watermen. Despite further opposition in 1722 and after a new timber bridge was built at Putney in 1729, the scheme received parliamentary approval in 1736. Financed by private capital, lotteries and grants, Westminster Bridge, designed by the Swiss architect Charles Labelye, was built between 1739-1750.
The City of London responded to Westminster Bridge by removing the buildings on London Bridge and widening it in 1760-63. The City also commenced work on the Blackfriars Bridge, which opened in 1769. Other bridges from that time include Kew Bridge (1759), Battersea Bridge (1773), and Richmond Bridge (1777).
The bridge was required for traffic from the expanding West End to the developing South London as well as to south coast ports. Without the bridge, traffic from the West End would have to negotiate the congested routes to London Bridge such as the Strand and New Oxford Street. Roads south of the river were also improved, including the junction at the Elephant & Castle in Southwark.
By the mid 19th century the bridge was subsiding badly and expensive to maintain. The current bridge was designed by Thomas Page and opened on May 24, 1862. With an overall length of 252 metres (826.8 ft) and a width of 26 metres (88 ft), it is a seven-arch wrought iron bridge with Gothic detailing by Charles Barry (the architect of the Palace of Westminster). It is the second oldest bridge in central London, after London Bridge.
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The first Westminster Bridge as painted by Canaletto, 1746
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Westminster Bridge, around 1750. The proprietors of the bridge had to pay compensation to the operators of the earlier 'Horseferry', and to local watermen
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Map of 1897, showing Lambeth Palace, Lambeth Bridge, the Houses of Parliament and Westminster Bridge
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Westminster & Lambeth, 1746. Westminster Bridge, opened in 1740, connects Westminster to Lambeth; Huntley Ferry crosses the river on the site of the future Vauxhall Bridge
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The Burning of the Houses of Lords and Commons by J. M. W. Turner, 1835, with Westminster Bridge on the right
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Street lamps on the bridge
Read more about this topic: Westminster Bridge
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