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Riverside London: Walk This Way
Riverside London: Walk This Way
Riverside
London
Tate Britain to the
Design Museum
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Blackfriars
es
Yor
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Waterloo
Station
Ap p
Tower Br
Rail Br
London B
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P O O L
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London
Bridge
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Southwark
L O N D O N
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Union St
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Cut
Towe
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Belve
loo
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Victoria Emba
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Richmond
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Toole
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East S
mithfield
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Waterloo
East
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White
S O U T H B A N K
B A N K S I D E
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Low
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Blackfriars Rd
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Thames St
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Canno
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Charing
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So u t h
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Lower
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Tower
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Millennium
Foot Br
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R IVE R T H A
Blackfriars
Rail Br
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kment
Blackfriars Br
Emban
Victoria
Cannon
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Upper Tha
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Temple
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Westminster
Westminster Br
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ankme
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Transport
Albert Emb
RIVE
R THA
MES
M i l l ba n k
Lambeth Br
Rd
Lamb
eth
Pal
ac
Vauxhall Bridge
Tate Britain
Lambeth Bridge
St. Thomas Hospital &
Florence Nightingale Museum
Houses of Parliament
Westminster Bridge
County Hall
London Eye
Golden Jubilee Bridges
Royal Festival Hall
Somerset House
Waterloo Bridge
Royal National Theatre
Oxo Tower Wharf
Blackfriars Bridge
Blackfriars Rail Bridges
Tate Modern
Millennium Bridge
ge
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Vauxhall
Jam
Map reproduced from Ordnance Survey Landplan 1:5000 mapping with permission of the
Controller of Her Majestys Stationery Office Crown copyright; Licence Number 398179
aic
aR
oad
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Alexander Binnie
18951906
Sidney Smith
1897
Vauxhall Bridge
The original crossing, Regent Bridge,
was designed in stone by John Rennie
(engineer of the Waterloo, Southwark
and London bridges). In 1813, however,
the proprietors switched to a cheaper
iron design by James Walker, completed
by 1816 and replaced ninety years later
with a five-arch steel construction. On
the piers of this new bridge are bronze
statues to represent the Arts and Sciences
(the female statue Architecture holds a
model of St Pauls Cathedral).
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George Humphreys
19291932
Tate Britain
Millbank
Built on the site of the massive Millbank
Prison, the National Gallery of British Art
was created to house the nineteenth
century collection of Sir Henry Tate.
Bequeathed a number of modern
paintings in 1917, the Tate was also
constituted as the National Gallery of
Modern Foreign Art. In 2000, this modern
art collection was moved to Tate Modern
in Bankside, while the existing gallery, now
Tate Britain, retained its collection of work
by British artists. Constantly extended and
expanded throughout the twentieth
century (it has recently been upgraded for
its Centenary Development), the overall
appearance of the gallery is a surprisingly
unified one.
Henry Currey
1871
Lambeth Bridge
Approached from the north by Horseferry
Road, this point in the river was once
serviced by Londons ferrymen before the
construction of Lambeth Bridge. A
suspension bridge of three massive iron
arches, by 1929 it was rusted beyond
repair and a new five-span bridge of steel
and reinforced concrete was completed in
1932. At either end were placed giant
obelisks, topped by pineapples (introduced
to Britain by the Tradescant gardeners,
buried at the neighbouring St. Marys
Church). Adjoining Parliament, Lambeth
Bridge is painted red, the colour of the
Lords benches, while Westminster Bridge
is green the colour of the Commons
benches for the same reason.
Charles Barry,
A W N Pugin
183560
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Thomas Page
18531862
Houses of Parliament
Palace of Westminster
The heart of English government, William
the Conquerors oak-roofed Westminster
Hall of 1078 still stands to this day. The
royal palace became a parliament in 1512
and was all-but destroyed by fire in 1834.
For the new Parliament, two architects
were commissioned: Barry for the general
arrangements, and Pugin for the Gothic
detailing (including an encircling Latin
inscription of the Lords Prayer to keep out
evil). By 1860, Parliament (complete with
its clock tower containing the Big Ben
bell) was finished, fourteen years over
schedule, 700% over budget and minus
two architects (Pugin died from nervous
exhaustion in 1852 and Barry succumbed
to the strain in 1860). The lavish interior
of the Commons was destroyed by
bombing in 1941, but the Lords was
spared and Parliament was rebuilt.
Westminster Bridge
Battling against the powerful established
interests of the London ferrymen,
campaigners for a new bridge were finally
permitted a public lottery to raise funds
for their Bridge of Fools. The bridge
foundations were laid in 1739,
commencing an eleven-year project beset
by European warfare, ferrymen sabotage,
the death of the bridges sponsor, a small
earthquake and the Thames freezing over.
Even when the bridge finally opened, it
tended to sway on its foundations and
was never fully trusted. Work began on a
replacement in 1853: a seven-arch
wrought-iron bridge, with Gothic detailing
by Charles Barry, architect of Parliament.
Ralph Knott
19111933
Marks Barfield
2000
County Hall
Belvedere Road
Home for the London County Council, the
Main Building is a six-storey, symmetrical
construction, faced with Portland Stone, in
the Edwardian baroque style. It took
twenty-five years to complete (outlasting
its architect, who died in 1929), with
North, South and Island Blocks added
thereafter (the last in 1974). The capitals
government, known as the Greater London
Council from 1965, was abolished in
1986. County Hall now houses Dali
Universe, the London Aquarium and two
hotels.
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Robert Matthew,
Leslie Martin
194851
Hungerford Bridge
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Isambard Kingdom
Brunel
1845
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William Chambers
177686
Somerset House
Victoria Embankment
Once the site of the Earl of Somersets
Renaissance palace, Somerset House was
Londons first purpose-built government
office block, despite its grand and
Classical style. Before the embankment
was reclaimed from the Thames, the 800ft
riverside frontage was accessible by boat,
the great river arches still present at
ground level. Until 1973, the building was
responsible for recording every birth,
marriage and death (the hatch em,
match em and dispatch em department)
and is still partially filled with state
bureaucracy, while the remainder now
houses heritage treasures and fine art: the
Courtauld Institute, the Hermitage Rooms
and the Gilbert Collection.
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Giles Gilbert Scott
193745
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Denys Lasdun
19691976
Stanton Williams
19972000
Waterloo Bridge
Intended as the Strand Bridge, this granite
construction was bought by the
government, re-named Waterloo Bridge
(after Wellingtons recent victory) and
opened in 1817. Falling into neglect, by
1923 the bridge was deemed beyond
repair and closed permanently. Work for a
replacement was delayed almost
immediately the outbreak of World War II,
though work still continued, labour
shortage and V2 rockets notwithstanding.
With few men available for construction
work, most of the work was done with
female labour and The Ladies Bridge was
complete by 1945.
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A W Moore
1928
Lifschutz Davidson
1995
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J. Cubitt
186069
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Western Bridge:
Joseph Cubitt &
F T Turner
18621864
Eastern Bridge:
John Wolfe Barry &
H M Brunel
18841886
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Christopher Wren
16751711
Millennium Bridge
Bankside
The first completely new pedestrian bridge
to be built over the Thames for a hundred
years, the Millennium Bridge is a
combination of art, design and
technology. The three main contributors:
engineer, architect and sculptor, designed
the bridge to be streamlined, using an
innovative and complex structure to
achieve a simple form: a shallow
suspension bridge that spans the river as
an elegant blade. As the bridge opened,
an unexpected wobble was discovered in
the structure and the bridge was closed to
install a passive dampening solution.
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Jon Greenfield
1997
Southwark Underpass:
Artist: Richard Kindersley
Delivered by Groundwork
for CRP
Shakespeares Globe
Bankside
The original Tudor playhouse was financed
by a consortium that included William
Shakespeare and was the venue of many
of his theatrical works. Burnt down in
1613, the replacement was demolished by
the Puritans in 1642 and the site
remained empty for the next three
centuries. American director Sam
Wanamaker began the project to create an
accurate, functioning reconstruction of the
Globe, built as close as possible to the
original site and using contemporary
craftsmens techniques (including the first
thatched roof London has seen since the
Great Fire, albeit with a sprinkler system).
The Frost Fairs
Underneath the southern end of
Southwark Bridge are slate etchings of the
famous Frost Fairs: winter events actually
held on the iced-over Thames. This was
possible as the numerous arches of the
original stone London Bridge slowed the
river enough to allow it to freeze over.
Beginning in 1564, these festivals of food,
drink and revelry continued during the
coldest winters until the new London
Bridge (with its larger spans) was
constructed in 1814.
Behold the Liquid Thames frozen ore,
That lately Ships of mighty Burthen bore
The Watermen for want of Rowing Boats
Make use of Booths to get their Pence
and Groats
ANON
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Basil Mott,
Ernest George
19121922
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John Hankshaw
186366
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Southwark Bridge
Crossing a very narrow point on the
Thames, there were fears that the arches
of Southwark Bridge would impede river
traffic. To reduce obstruction, the solution
was an impressive feat of engineering: an
iron bridge of only three spans, two of
210ft and a massive central span of 240ft,
the largest ever achieved in cast-iron. In
disrepair by the twentieth century, the
Great War delayed work on the five-span
replacement for a decade.
Cannon Street Railway Bridge
Built as Alexandra Bridge, this rail crossing
was named after Alexandra of Denmark,
wife of the future Edward VII. Re-named
after its north bank railway station,
Cannon Street Bridge was a five-span
construction of shallow plate girders on
Greek-style fluted cast-iron piers. It was
widened in 1886-93, and strengthened in
1981, when much of its decoration was
removed.
Southwark Cathedral
Borough High Street
Already the site of a Roman Villa, pagan
shrine and Saxon monastarium, the first
church to be built was St. Mary Overie
(meaning over the river) in 1106. Firedamaged in 1212, and again in 1390s,
the church was extensively repaired before
being confiscated by Henry VIII. Used as a
heresy court for Mary I and a swineyard in
Elizabeth Is reign, in 1614 the
parishioners pooled their resources and
bought the church (now called St.
Saviours) from James I. The new
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Henry Roberts
183134
London Bridge
The first recorded Thames crossing was
built by Romans in the first century AD,
several hundred yards east of the present
London Bridge. For the next thousand
years the wooden bridges were
occasionally brought down by marauding
armies (such as Queen Boudicia and King
Canute), inspiring the famous nursery
rhyme. The Norman Conquest prompted a
massive stone bridge to be constructed:
nineteen arches, a drawbridge, a chapel,
housing rows and the occasional severed
head. It was this London Bridge that
lasted over six centuries, until it was
rebuilt in 1823-31, a graceful five-arched
design from John Rennie (who died in
1921). Too narrow for modern traffic the
bridge was replaced in 1967-72, while the
old bridge was sold to an American
developer and transported, stone by stone,
to Arizona.
Fishmongers Hall
London Bridge Approach
The Fishmongers Company, est. 1272, is
one of Londons oldest livery companies
and still functions today, inspecting every
fish sold in London. Their sixteenth
century livery hall was lost to the Great
Fire, and the replacement lasted until the
1820s, when the site was required for the
new London Bridge approach road.
Rebuilt entirely from 1832-35 as an
impressive Greek Revival building, the
river face is a two storey Portland Stone
frontage of seven bays and six giant
columns, placed beneath a central
pediment. Below, once at river level, are
five arches of a granite plinth that led
from the wharf to the basement
warehouses. The building was partially
converted into offices and residential
accommodation from 1961 to 1981.
Note: To reach the river from London Bridge, take the
steps leading down labelled Thames Path West this
will in fact enable you to head east along the riverside.
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John Burnet,
Tait & Partners
192125
Adelaide House
London Bridge Approach
One of the first commercial buildings in
London to break away from Classical
design (despite the black marble columns
at the entrance), Adelaide House
incorporates a Chicago style with Egyptian
finishes in an office block that was, at 148
feet, the tallest in London. As well as
innovative architecture, it also contained
other features never before seen by 1920s
London: central ventilation, an internal
mail system, and a rooftop golf course.
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H S Goodhart-Rendel
193132
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Horace Jones
187478
(former)
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David Laing
181317
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Royal Navy
1938
Custom House
Lower Thames Street
A consistent feature of Britains maritime
economy, the present Custom House is
the fifth incarnation of a building which
has stood in the vicinity for over seven
hundred years. This particular Custom
House, built just before its predecessor
burnt down, may have been rushed to
completion since, in 1825, the riverside
faade collapsed due to inadequate
foundations. The architect Laing
was professionally ruined, and the
reconstruction work was undertaken by
Sir Robert Smirke: the Portland Stone
faade of a six-columned Classical portico
(porch), found on the wings of the
riverside face, was repeated in the centre,
projecting forward to the Thames. During
World War II, the East Wing was heavily
damaged by bombing, and was rebuilt in
replica in 1962-66.
H.M.S. Belfast
Morgans Lane
This 11,500-ton battle cruiser was
completed in time for the Second World
War when, in 1943, it participated in the
destruction of the battleship Scharnhorst.
Retired after service in the Korean War,
the Belfast moved to the Thames in 1971,
becoming a tourist attraction and floating
naval museum.
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Tower of London
Tower Hill
A living record of the past thousand years,
a museum and monument to the Crown
and the most important piece of military
architecture in England. The long history
of the Tower of London includes its use as:
an arsenal against foreign enemies; a
fortress against domestic ones; a palace
for medieval royalty; an execution site for
traitors, martyrs and monarchs; and a high
security prison with a guest list ranging
from Anne Boleyn to Rudolph Hess. It has
also been a treasury, record office,
armoury, observatory, royal mint,
repository of the crown jewels and zoo
(animals presented to the monarchs were
kept here until 1834). It was William the
Conquerer who began the construction,
building the White Tower in 1097 to
secure his hold on the land of the Saxons.
Around this central citadel, Williams
successors added stone walls, an
encircling moat and no fewer than twentytwo towers. The Tower was virtually
complete by the fourteenth century,
although additional construction (like the
Waterloo Barracks) would occur well into
the nineteenth century. Since Edward IV,
security has traditionally rested with forty
Yeoman Warders (Beefeaters) and eight
flightless ravens, whose departure will
spell the downfall of England.
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Thomas Telford
182728
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John Wolfe-Barry,
Horace Jones
18811894
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Shad Thames
Butlers Wharf
A corruption of St. John at Thames (the
Templar Knights who once controlled
the area), Shad Thames was the main
thoroughfare to the largest warehouse
complex on the river. From their
completion in 1873, these Victorian
warehouses unloaded and stored vast
quantities of goods from around the world:
tea, coffee, fruit, wines and spices
(indicated by names such as Spice Quay,
Cardamom Building and Cinnamon
Wharf). Closed in 1972, the derelict
warehouses were subsequently
transformed to incorporate restaurants,
museums and residential apartments. The
distinctive iron walkways used to move
goods between the river and warehouses
were retained and are still visible today.
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Conran Roche
1989
Design Museum
Butlers Wharf
The first museum in the world to be
devoted to the design of everyday, massproduced, consumer goods. The building is
itself a clever achievement in design: an
extensive restoration of a 1950s red-brick
warehouse that appears to be a stuccoed
1930s building. The white painted walls
are prominent among the other former
warehouses of Butlers Wharf, while the
layered frontage and glazed screens are
utilised by the first floor Blueprint Caf
which incorporates extensive riverside
balconies.
Acknowledgements
The Walk This Way series has been researched and published by
South Bank Employers Group, a partnership of the major
organisations in South Bank, Waterloo and Blackfriars with a
commitment to improving the experience of the area for visitors,
employees and residents.
This guide has been made possible thanks to funding from the
Cross River Partnership, which is supported by the London
Development Agency, South Bank Employers Group, Tate Modern,
Tate Britain, Shakespeares Globe and Pool of London Partnership.
For further information about Walk This Way or the South Bank,
please see www.southbanklondon.com
South Bank Employers Group
103 Waterloo Road
SE1 8UL
T: 020 7202 6900
E: mail@southbanklondon.com
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