Bell Weir Lock is a

lock Lock(s) may refer to: Common meanings *Lock and key, a mechanical device used to secure items of importance *Lock (water navigation), a device for boats to transit between different levels of water, as in a canal Arts and entertainment * ''Lock ...

on the

River Thames The River Thames ( ), known alternatively in parts as the River Isis, is a river that flows through southern England including London. At , it is the longest river entirely in England and the second-longest in the United Kingdom, after the ...

England England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe ...

by the

right bank In geography, a bank is the land alongside a body of water. Different structures are referred to as ''banks'' in different fields of geography, as follows. In limnology (the study of inland waters), a stream bank or river bank is the terrai ...

Runnymede Runnymede is a water-meadow alongside the River Thames in the English county of Surrey, and just over west of central London. It is notable for its association with the sealing of Magna Carta, and as a consequence is, with its adjoining h ...

which is a

water meadow A water-meadow (also water meadow or watermeadow) is an area of grassland subject to controlled irrigation to increase agricultural productivity. Water-meadows were mainly used in Europe from the 16th to the early 20th centuries. Working water-m ...

associated with

Egham Egham ( ) is a university town in the Borough of Runnymede in Surrey, England, approximately west of central London. First settled in the Bronze Age, the town was under the control of Chertsey Abbey for much of the Middle Ages. In 1215, Magn ...

of importance for the constitutional

Magna Carta (Medieval Latin for "Great Charter of Freedoms"), commonly called (also ''Magna Charta''; "Great Charter"), is a royal charter of rights agreed to by King John of England at Runnymede, near Windsor, Berkshire, Windsor, on 15 June 1215. ...

. It is upstream of the terrace of a hotel and the a bridge designed by Edwin Lutyens who designed an ornamental park gate house along the reach. The bridge has been widened and carries the M25 and

A30 road The A30 is a major road in England, running WSW from London to Land's End. The road has been a principal axis in Britain from the 17th century to early 19th century, as a major coaching route. It used to provide the fastest route from Londo ...

across the river in a single

span Span may refer to: Science, technology and engineering * Span (unit), the width of a human hand * Span (engineering), a section between two intermediate supports * Wingspan, the distance between the wingtips of a bird or aircraft * Sorbitan es ...

. The lock was first built by the

Thames Navigation Commission The Thames Navigation Commission managed the River Thames in southern England from 1751 to 1866. In particular, they were responsible for installing or renovating many of the locks on the river in the 18th and early 19th centuries History The ...

in 1817; it has one weir which is upstream. The lock is the eighth lowest of forty-five on the river and is named after the founder of the forerunner of the adjoining hotel who took charge of the lock and weir on its construction.

History

A proposed location for a pound lock (impounded water as opposed to a

flash lock A flash lock is a type of lock for river or canal transport. Early locks were designed with a single gate, known as a flash lock or staunch lock. The earliest European references to what were clearly flash locks were in Roman times. Develop ...

) in 1811 was across the next bend upstream. The lock and embankments were built at its present site in the winter of 1817–1818. It was known as Egham Lock, but took its name from Charles "Charlie" Bell who founded in the 18th century an inn by the site, The Anglers Retreat, which he continued to operate when entrusted with keeping the lock and weir. The weir collapsed under weight of ice in 1827, so too the lock in 1866. Lock and weir were rebuilt in 1867. The lock had to be rebuilt in stone in 1877. A new weir was completed in 1904.

Access to the lock

The lock can be reached on foot from the

A308 road The A308 is a road in England in two parts. The first part runs from Central London to Putney Bridge. The second part runs from just beyond Putney Heath to Bisham, Berkshire. It traces four, roughly straight lines, to stay no more than fr ...

and is behind the Runnymede Hotel.

Reach above the lock

The reach runs through

Old Windsor Old Windsor is a large village and civil parish, in the Royal Borough of Windsor and Maidenhead, in Berkshire, England. It is bounded by the River Thames to the east and the Windsor Great Park to the west. Etymology The name originates from ...

. Immediately on the

left bank In geography, a bank is the land alongside a body of water. Different structures are referred to as ''banks'' in different fields of geography, as follows. In limnology (the study of inland waters), a stream bank or river bank is the terrai ...

(right heading upstream) is a water input and management facility at the Hythe End part of

Wraysbury Wraysbury is a village and civil parish in the Royal Borough of Windsor and Maidenhead in England. It is under the western approach path of London Heathrow airport. It is located on the east bank of the River Thames, roughly midway between Win ...

that supplies the

Staines Reservoirs The Staines Reservoirs are two large pumped storage reservoirs sitting to the east of the King George VI Reservoir near Heathrow airport in Surrey within the Colne Valley regional park. The village of Stanwell is mainly to the north east, an ...

followed by low-rise housing with gardens as on "

The Island The Island(s) may refer to: Places * Any of various islands around the world, see the list of islands * The Island (Cache County, Utah), an island on the Bear River, Utah * The Island, Chennai, a river island in India * The Island, Chicago, a n ...

"; woods facing

Magna Carta Island Magna Carta Island is an ait in the River Thames in England, on the reach above Bell Weir Lock. It is in Berkshire facing water-meadows forming Runnymede. Its civil and ecclesiastical parish is Wraysbury so it was transferred from Buckingha ...

tucked close followed by Pats Croft Eyot; and more riverside dwellings at

and on Friary Island. The right bank has riverside houses and a greater recreation area then the Runnymead meadows and Arts and Crafts architecture ( Edwin Lutyens) gate houses. The Bells of Ouseley public house commemorates bells of

Osney Abbey Osney Abbey or Oseney Abbey, later Osney Cathedral, was a house of Augustinian canons at Osney in Oxfordshire. The site is south of the modern Botley Road, down Mill Street by Osney Cemetery, next to the railway line just south of Oxford ...

, Oxford which at the abbey's dissolution disappeared into the mud in official records. A longer built-up stretch follows at

. There are no bridges or ferries. The reach is home to

Wraysbury Skiff and Punting Club Wraysbury Skiff and Punting Club (WSPC) is an English skiff and punting club founded in 1931 based on the River Thames at the start of the Surrey section of the right bank – between the rest of Runnymede (the meadow in the borough of the ...

Egham Regatta Egham Regatta is a rowing regatta on the River Thames in England which takes place at the end of June on the reach above Bell Weir Lock near Egham, Surrey. The regatta is run from Wraysbury Skiff and Punting Club and the Runnymede Pleasure G ...

is held near Hythe End in June; Wraysbury and Old Windsor Regatta is held in August. Pleasure boats from the recreation ground can be launched upstream. The refreshment terraces of a hotel and spa adjoin the lock; hot-tub tugs and others with awnings operate. Its restaurants are The Lock and the Left Bank.Runnymede Hotel
beside Bell Weir Lock

Thames Path

The

Thames Path The Thames Path is a National Trail following the River Thames from its source near Kemble in Gloucestershire to the Woolwich foot tunnel, south east London. It is about long. A path was first proposed in 1948 but it only opened in 1996. The ...

, having changed sides at Staines Bridge runs along the right bank to Old Windsor Lock.

Literature and the media

Three Men in a Boat ''Three Men in a Boat (To Say Nothing of the Dog)'',The Penguin edition punctuates the title differently: ''Three Men in a Boat: To Say Nothing of the Dog!'' published in 1889, is a humorous account by English writer Jerome K. Jerome of a tw ...

Jerome K Jerome Jerome Klapka Jerome (2 May 1859 – 14 June 1927) was an English writer and humourist, best known for the comic travelogue ''Three Men in a Boat'' (1889). Other works include the essay collections '' Idle Thoughts of an Idle Fellow'' (1886) an ...

records

External links

Bell Weir Lock
at visitthames.co.uk

References

{{coord, 51, 26, 18, N, 0, 32, 16, W, type:landmark_region:GB, display=title Locks on the River Thames