Thread by @Culture_Crit

Inhabited bridges were marvels of the medieval age.

By far the longest was London's, considered a wonder of the world.

A brief thread on living bridges... 🧵

Old London Bridge was among Europe's most significant sites: a place of both royal pageantry and religious pilgrimage.

Built in just 30 years, it was an undertaking on par with Europe's greatest castles and cathedrals. It was completed in 1209 and stood for over 600 years, for centuries as London's only river crossing.

It was crucial to the life of the city and held great spiritual significance. Londoners bequeathed money and land for its upkeep - "to God and the Bridge" - and donations were encouraged by the Church.

Bridge building was then considered an act of piety. Bridges were symbols of union; between physical realms and between Man and God.

This has been enshrined in language for millennia: the Latin term for Pope is pontifex, meaning "bridge-builder".

A chapel dedicated to St Thomas Becket stood at the center of London Bridge. It was the official starting point of a popular pilgrimage to his shrine in Canterbury.

It was also a "living bridge", with thriving residential communities and commercial zones: homes, shops and pubs.

It peaked at around 140 separate residences and some 150 shops, within structures of as many as 6 stories.

It was a major engineering feat: 900 feet long, with 19 massive arches that slowed the river so much that it was prone to freezing over in winter.

Great "frost fairs" took place on the ice when that happened (see the bridge visible in the background).

The finest painting of the bridge we have is by Claude de Jongh in the 17th century (the first reply in this thread). Canaletto also drew it, before the removal of its houses in 1758:

Paris also had living bridges. They were a popular solution for limited accommodation, especially within the confines of walled medieval cities.

Over the centuries, they proved either too dangerous or too unsanitary to keep. And when medieval walls were rendered ineffective by gunpowder, city expansion had less reason not to take place beyond the walls.

Many still survive across Europe. A slightly less grand but still standing example exists in Florence - the Ponte Vecchio:

Some still stand in England, too. Lincoln and Bath are the most notable:

In China, Chengdu's Anshun bridge has been reconstructed many times over the centuries, but still exists in a similar form to the 13th century original - a bridge that Marco Polo wrote about.

Living bridges were often so densely packed and congested that crossing them took forever. Old London Bridge could take an hour to cross on foot.

In the end, it was decided that London needed a new bridge with a wider crossing.

So, a new bridge was put up in 1831, nearly twice as wide as the original. The medieval bridge had fallen into disrepair at this point, and was demolished shortly after.

Had the original survived, London Bridge would undoubtedly be one of Europe's greatest sights today.

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