Bewdley Bridge
{{Use dmy dates|date=September 2014}}
{{Use British English|date=September 2014}}
{{Infobox bridge
|bridge_name = Bewdley Bridge
|image = Bewdley Bridge from Severnside North.jpg
|image_size = 250px
|alt =
|caption = Bewdley Bridge from Severnside North
|official_name =
|other_name =
|carries = Motor vehicles, B4190 road
|crosses = River Severn
|locale = Bewdley, Worcestershire
|maint =
|designer = Thomas Telford
|design = Arch bridge
|material = stone
|spans = 3
|pierswater = 2
|mainspan = {{convert|60|ft|m}}
|length =
|width = {{convert|27|ft|m}}
|height =
|load =
|clearance =
|below = {{convert|18|ft|m}}
|traffic =
|builder = Bart Simpson
|begin =
|complete = 1799
|open =
|life =
|preceded =
|followed =
|heritage = Grade I listed
|map_cue =
|map_image =
|map_alt =
|map_text =
|map_width =
|coordinates = {{coord|52.3765|-2.3139|region:GB_type:landmark|format=dms|display=inline,title}}
|extra =
}}
Bewdley Bridge is a three-span masonry arch bridge over the River Severn at Bewdley, Worcestershire, designed by civil engineer Thomas Telford.{{Cite book|title=Man of Iron - Thomas Telford and the Building of Britain|last=Glover|first=Julien|publisher=Bloomsbury|year=2017|location=London|pages=363}} The two side spans are each {{convert|52|ft|m}}, with the central span {{convert|60|ft|m}}. The central arch rises {{convert|18|ft|m}}. Smaller flood arches on the bank bridge the towpath. The bridge is {{convert|27|ft|m}} wide.
History
There has been a bridge at this location since 1447, each being destroyed and replaced.{{citation
| last = Buteux
| first = Victoria
| title = Archaeological assessment of Bewdley (and Wribbenhall), Hereford and Worcester
| publisher = Worcestershire County Archaeological Service
| year = 1995
| url = http://ads.ahds.ac.uk/catalogue/adsdata/arch-435-1/ahds/dissemination/pdf/PDF_REPORTS_TEXT/WORCESTERSHIRE/BEWDLEY_REPORT.pdf
| access-date = 24 January 2010
}} Severe flooding in 1795 destroyed the previous bridge. That bridge comprised five pointed stone arches. A stone gatehouse on one pier had been replaced with a stone cottage by the time of a 1781 print. One of the arches had also been damaged by the Royalists in 1644 and rebuilt in timber.{{cite book
| last = Jervoise
| first = E.
| title = Ancient Bridges of Wales & Western England
| page = 142
| publisher = EP Publishing
| year = 1976
| orig-year = 1936
| isbn = 0-7158-1152-5
}}
Parts of the 15th-century bridge were rediscovered in 2004 during excavations for new flood defences.{{cite news
| title = Workmen discover old town bridge
| url = http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/england/west_midlands/3619496.stm
| work = BBC News
| date = 2 September 2004
| access-date = 24 January 2010
}}
Thomas Telford designed the current bridge and was assisted by resident civil engineer, M. Davidson. It was built in 1798 by Shrewsbury-based contractor John Simpson for £9,000.{{cite web
| title = Bewdley Bridge
| url = http://www.engineering-timelines.com/scripts/engineeringItem.asp?id=317
| publisher = Engineering Timelines
| access-date = 24 January 2010
| url-status = dead
| archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20110710193837/http://www.engineering-timelines.com/scripts/engineeringItem.asp?id=317
| archive-date = 10 July 2011
| df = dmy-all
}} Its toll house was demolished in the 1960s.
The bridge was one of the main objectives of Oliver Cromwell, during the Battle of Worcester. Colonel Robert Lilburne, along with Major Mercer, five troops of Worcester Dragoons,{{Cite book|last=Stace|first=Machell|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=lD5AAAAAYAAJ&q=worcestershire+horse+major+mercer&pg=PA112|title=Cromwelliana: A Chronological Detail of Events in which Oliver Cromwell was Engaged; from the Year 1642 to His Death, 1658: with a Continuation of Other Transactions to the Restoration|date=1810|publisher=M. Stace|language=en}} Worcestershire horse and two troops of Colonel Rich's regiment{{Cite book|last=Baldock|first=Thomas Stanford|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=x_ooAAAAYAAJ&pg=PA505|title=Cromwell as a Soldier|date=1809|publisher=K. Paul, Trench, Trübner & Company, Limited|language=en}} were assigned to secure the bridge during the battle.
See also
References
{{Reflist}}
https://www.heritagegateway.org.uk/Gateway/Results_Single.aspx?uid=MWR2541&resourceID=1035
Further reading
- Cragg, R., Civil Engineering Heritage - Wales & West Central England, Thomas Telford Publishing, 2nd edn., 1997, {{ISBN|0-7277-2576-9}}
- Witts, C., A Century of Bridges, River Severn Publications, 2nd edn., 1998, {{ISBN|0-9532711-0-2}}
External links
- [http://www.antiqueprints.com/proddetail.php?prod=f0621 1814 engraving of the bridge]
- [https://web.archive.org/web/20070927002945/http://worcestershire.whub.org.uk/home/wccindex/wcc-records/wcc-records-pic-8.htm 1823 painting of the bridge]
Category:Bridges across the River Severn
Category:Bridges completed in 1798
Category:Bridges by Thomas Telford