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Bow Bridge was a stone bridge built over the
River Lea The River Lea ( ) is in South East England. It originates in Bedfordshire, in the Chiltern Hills, and flows southeast through Hertfordshire, along the Essex border and into Greater London, to meet the River Thames at Bow Creek. It is one of t ...
, in what is now London, in the twelfth century. It took its name from the distinctively bow-shaped (curved)
arch An arch is a vertical curved structure that spans an elevated space and may or may not support the weight above it, or in case of a horizontal arch like an arch dam, the hydrostatic pressure against it. Arches may be synonymous with vault ...
es. It linked Bow in
Middlesex Middlesex (; abbreviation: Middx) is a historic county in southeast England. Its area is almost entirely within the wider urbanised area of London and mostly within the ceremonial county of Greater London, with small sections in neighbouri ...
with Stratford in
Essex Essex () is a county in the East of England. One of the home counties, it borders Suffolk and Cambridgeshire to the north, the North Sea to the east, Hertfordshire to the west, Kent across the estuary of the River Thames to the south, and Gr ...
. The name has also been applied to replacement structures, with the current structure also, and more commonly, known as ''Bow Flyover''. The Roman Road from
Aldgate Aldgate () was a gate in the former defensive wall around the City of London. It gives its name to Aldgate High Street, the first stretch of the A11 road, which included the site of the former gate. The area of Aldgate, the most common use of ...
to
Essex Essex () is a county in the East of England. One of the home counties, it borders Suffolk and Cambridgeshire to the north, the North Sea to the east, Hertfordshire to the west, Kent across the estuary of the River Thames to the south, and Gr ...
and
East Anglia East Anglia is an area in the East of England, often defined as including the counties of Norfolk, Suffolk and Cambridgeshire. The name derives from the Anglo-Saxon kingdom of the East Angles, a people whose name originated in Anglia, in w ...
had previously forded the Lea further north, half a mile upstream, at
Old Ford Old Ford is an area in the London Borough of Tower Hamlets that is named after the natural ford which provided a crossing of the River Lea. History Administration and boundaries Historically, Old Ford was a cluster of houses and a mill, around ...
; the new crossing led the highway to take a more southerly route. The road is known by various names throughout its length, for instance ''Bow Road'' (in Bow) and ''High Street'' and ''Romford Road'' in Stratford, while the whole road was long known as the ''Great Essex Road''. Prior to the construction of the first bridge, settlements on both sides of the river were known as ''Stratford''. Afterwards, the western Stratford settlement become suffixed by “-atte-Bow” (at the Bow), eventually becoming known simply as Bow. The eastern Stratford became suffixed by "Langthorne" after a large and notable tree, but lost that suffix over time and is now know simply as Stratford.


Origin

In 1110 Matilda, wife of Henry I, attempted to cross the Lea to get to
Barking Abbey Barking Abbey is a former royal monastery located in Barking, in the London Borough of Barking and Dagenham. It has been described as having been "one of the most important nunneries in the country". Originally established in the 7th century, f ...
. The Queen (or some of her retinue) fell into the water while fording the Lea, a dangerous situation, especially with the heavy clothes worn by many women of the era.


Building

As a result of the incident, Matilda ordered a distinctively bow-shaped (
arch An arch is a vertical curved structure that spans an elevated space and may or may not support the weight above it, or in case of a horizontal arch like an arch dam, the hydrostatic pressure against it. Arches may be synonymous with vault ...
ed) bridge to be built over the River Lea, on which stood a chapel dedicated to St Katherine. The bridge was built in what was then an agricultural area, three miles east of the Aldgate on London's city wall. The bridge was accompanied by four smaller bridges over the associated Bow Back Rivers. These were to be linked by a new stretch of road on a raised causeway along the line now occupied by Stratford High Street. The five bridges, from west to east, were: * ''Bow Bridge'', the largest, crossing the main channel of the Lea. * ''St Michael's Bridge'' (also known as ''Harrow Bridge''), over the western branch of the Waterworks River. * ''Pegshole Bridge'', over the eastern branch of the waterworks River. * ''St Thomas of Acre's Bridge'' (often abbreviated to ''St Thomas's Bridge''), over the Three Mills Back River. * ''Channelsea Bridge'', the second largest, crossing the Channelsea River. During the 19th century, confusion over the ownership of Pegshole and St Thomas Bridge led to the name of the two to be transposed


Maintenance

Initially, local land and Abbey Mill were given to
Barking Abbey Barking Abbey is a former royal monastery located in Barking, in the London Borough of Barking and Dagenham. It has been described as having been "one of the most important nunneries in the country". Originally established in the 7th century, f ...
for the maintenance of the bridge, but these properties and the responsibility eventually passed to
Stratford Langthorne Abbey Stratford Langthorne Abbey, or the Abbey of St Mary's, Stratford Langthorne was a Cistercian monastery founded in 1135 at Stratford Langthorne — then Essex but now Stratford in the London Borough of Newham. The Abbey, also known as West Ha ...
. The Abbess of Barking and Abbot of West Ham (i.e. Stratford Langthorne Abbey) argued about the obligation, a dispute that was settled in 1315. West Ham was to maintain the bridge and highway, but the Abbess would pay £200 annually in recompense. The Abbey's subsequent dissolution caused further lengthy litigation over maintenance of the bridge at Bow – with the successor landowners found responsible in 1691.''Houses of Cistercian monks: Abbey of Stratford Langthorne'', A History of the County of Essex: Volume 2 (1907), pp. 129-133
accessed: 30 April 2008.
The matter was not finally resolved until 1834, with the formation of a Turnpike Trust.


In Song

Various versions of the nursery rhyme
London Bridge Is Falling Down "London Bridge Is Falling Down" (also known as "My Fair Lady" or "London Bridge") is a traditional English nursery rhyme and singing game, which is found in different versions all over the world. It deals with the dilapidation of London Bridge ...
make reference to Bow Bridge. The oldest known version could be that recalled by a correspondent to the ''
Gentleman's Magazine ''The Gentleman's Magazine'' was a monthly magazine founded in London, England, by Edward Cave in January 1731. It ran uninterrupted for almost 200 years, until 1922. It was the first to use the term ''magazine'' (from the French ''magazine' ...
'' in 1823, which he claimed to have heard from a woman who was a child in the reign of Charles II (r. 1660–1685) and had the lyrics: There are a number of theories about the identity of the ''Fair Lady'', including the idea that it may refer to Matilda, the builder of Bow Bridge and its neighbours, or that it may apply to the River Lea itself.


In Literature

In 1724,
Daniel Defoe Daniel Defoe (; born Daniel Foe; – 24 April 1731) was an English writer, trader, journalist, pamphleteer and spy. He is most famous for his novel '' Robinson Crusoe'', published in 1719, which is claimed to be second only to the Bible in it ...
began publication of his account, A Tour thro' the Whole Island of Great Britain, of his travels around Britain. He begins his tour in Essex, starting with the crossing of the Lea at Bow Bridge:


Battle of Bow Bridge


Background

The
Battle of Naseby The Battle of Naseby took place on 14 June 1645 during the First English Civil War, near the village of Naseby in Northamptonshire. The Parliamentarian New Model Army, commanded by Sir Thomas Fairfax and Oliver Cromwell, destroyed the mai ...
in June 1645 effectively ended Royalist hopes of victory in the
First English Civil War The First English Civil War took place in England and Wales from 1642 to 1646, and forms part of the 1639 to 1653 Wars of the Three Kingdoms. They include the Bishops' Wars, the Irish Confederate Wars, the Second English Civil War, the Angl ...
, but the war continued with further Parliamentary success leading King Charles I to surrender to the Scots army besieging Newark in May 1646. He surrendered to the his Scots enemies, rather than his English enemies in the hope of dividing his opponents. Essex, London and the eastern counties backed Parliament in the
First English Civil War The First English Civil War took place in England and Wales from 1642 to 1646, and forms part of the 1639 to 1653 Wars of the Three Kingdoms. They include the Bishops' Wars, the Irish Confederate Wars, the Second English Civil War, the Angl ...
, but by 1648, this loyalty was stretched. Anticipating an invasion by a Scots army from the north, in support of the King, there were a series of largely unco-ordinated Royalist risings in parts of the Royal Navy, South Wales,
Lancashire Lancashire ( , ; abbreviated Lancs) is the name of a historic county, ceremonial county, and non-metropolitan county in North West England. The boundaries of these three areas differ significantly. The non-metropolitan county of Lancashi ...
, Essex and perhaps most seriously in Kent.


Prelude

A Parliamentary force quickly moved on Maidstone and captured it after bitter street fighting on 1 June. Despite this, a large Kentish Royalist force under the
Earl of Norwich Earl of Norwich was a title that was created four times in British history, three times in the Peerage of England and once in the Peerage of Great Britain. The first creation came in the Peerage of England in 1626 in favour of the courtier and ...
were able to make for London in the hope the city would rise up in their favour, indeed some Londoners had rioted in the King's favour a month prior. Disheartened by the loss of Maidstone there were many desertions and the force was reduced to around 3,000 men by the time it reached
Greenwich Greenwich ( , ,) is a town in south-east London, England, within the ceremonial county of Greater London. It is situated east-southeast of Charing Cross. Greenwich is notable for its maritime history and for giving its name to the Greenwi ...
at noon on 3 June 1648, after an all-night march. There were few parliamentarian forces left in London, but under the energetic leadership of Philip Skippon, they closed the City gates and the also the fortified London Bridge. Most of the Royalists gave up at this point and core of around 500 infantry and a few horsemen remained. The Earl of Norwich received word that around 2,000 Royalists had assembled at Bow Bridge with more at Chelmsford, so he crossed the river, with just his horse, in order to investigate the veracity of the information in order that the army could cross the Thames to rendez-vous with the other Royalists if the information was correct Sir William Compton was left in charge of the force at Greenwich. Norwich found no force at Bow Bridge so moved onto Chelmsford to seek a friendly army there. When Norwich didn't return immediately from Bow Bridge, the Kentish force decided to cross the river, and landed on the east side of the
Isle of Dogs The Isle of Dogs is a large peninsula bounded on three sides by a large meander in the River Thames in East London, England, which includes the Cubitt Town, Millwall and Canary Wharf districts. The area was historically part of the Manor, ...
peninsula, many at Blackwall.


Engagements

The Royalists had mistakenly believed they were in
Essex Essex () is a county in the East of England. One of the home counties, it borders Suffolk and Cambridgeshire to the north, the North Sea to the east, Hertfordshire to the west, Kent across the estuary of the River Thames to the south, and Gr ...
- an area they believed lightly defended or perhaps friendly - rather than the Tower Hamlets of Middlesex, until a regiment of the much respected Tower Hamlets Militia arrived to confronted the Royalists. The Royalists, who had landed in disorder were in no position to resist. The leader of the Militia decided to avoid bloodshed and told the Royalists that they would be escorted to Bow Bridge, on the border of the Tower Hamlets district, disarmed and sent on their way. Before reaching the bridge, the Royalists had formed into much better order and were able to intimidate the handful of Hamleteer musketeers on the bridge into letting them pass without giving up their arms. Shortly after crossing they met the Earl of Norwich and a force of Royalist cavalry, while a force of Parliamentarian horseman arrived on the scene. The Kentish Royalists turned on the Tower Hamlets Militia who retreated on Bow Church close by the bridge. Further clashes followed before the combined Royalist force crossed the River Lea into Essex. Although the Royalist march on London was a failure, the ability of the remnant of that force to link up with Essex Royalists, and proceed to Colchester makes the fight at Bow Bridge a
tactical victory In military tactics, a tactical victory may refer to a victory that results in the completion of a tactical objective as part of an operation or a result in which the losses of the "defeated" outweigh those of the "victor" although the victorio ...
for the Royalists.


Aftermath

The combined force, bolstered by extra forces, marched towards Royalist held
Colchester Colchester ( ) is a city in Essex, in the East of England. It had a population of 122,000 in 2011. The demonym is Colcestrian. Colchester occupies the site of Camulodunum, the first major city in Roman Britain and its first capital. Colches ...
, but a Parliamentarian force caught up with them just as they were about to enter the city's medieval walls, a bitter battle was fought but the Royalists were able to retire to the security of the city walls. The
Siege of Colchester The siege of Colchester occurred in the summer of 1648 when the English Civil War reignited in several areas of Britain. Colchester found itself in the thick of the unrest when a Royalist army on its way through East Anglia to raise suppor ...
followed, but after ten weeks starvation and news of Royalist defeats elsewhere led the Royalists to surrender.The campaign covered briefly in The English Civil War, A peoples History. Diane Purkiss. p534-6


Demolition

The Bridge was repaired and upgraded many times over the centuries until eventually demolished and replaced in 1838–39.


References

{{Coord, 51, 31, 46.96, N, 0, 0, 49.05, W, scale:6250_region:GB, display=title River Lea Bridges in London Demolished bridges in England Wars of the Three Kingdoms