The Old Bridge between Huntingdon and Godmanchester (now part of

Cambridgeshire Cambridgeshire (abbreviated Cambs.) is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in the East of England and East Anglia. It is bordered by Lincolnshire to the north, Norfolk to the north-east, Suffolk to the east, Essex and Hertfor ...

England England is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is located on the island of Great Britain, of which it covers about 62%, and List of islands of England, more than 100 smaller adjacent islands. It ...

) is a well-preserved

medieval In the history of Europe, the Middle Ages or medieval period lasted approximately from the 5th to the late 15th centuries, similarly to the post-classical period of World history (field), global history. It began with the fall of the West ...

stone In geology, rock (or stone) is any naturally occurring solid mass or aggregate of minerals or mineraloid matter. It is categorized by the minerals included, its Chemical compound, chemical composition, and the way in which it is formed. Rocks ...

bridge A bridge is a structure built to Span (engineering), span a physical obstacle (such as a body of water, valley, road, or railway) without blocking the path underneath. It is constructed for the purpose of providing passage over the obstacle, whi ...

over the

River Great Ouse The River Great Ouse ( ) is a river in England, the longest of several British rivers called "Ouse". From Syresham in Northamptonshire, the Great Ouse flows through Buckinghamshire, Bedfordshire, Cambridgeshire and Norfolk to drain into the ...

History

The town has long been an important bridgehead, with

Ermine Street Ermine Street is a major Roman road in England that ran from London (''Londinium'') to Lincoln ('' Lindum Colonia'') and York ('' Eboracum''). The Old English name was ''Earninga Strǣt'' (1012), named after a tribe called the ''Earninga ...

(connecting

London London is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of both England and the United Kingdom, with a population of in . London metropolitan area, Its wider metropolitan area is the largest in Wester ...

Lincoln Lincoln most commonly refers to: * Abraham Lincoln (1809–1865), the 16th president of the United States * Lincoln, England, cathedral city and county town of Lincolnshire, England * Lincoln, Nebraska, the capital of Nebraska, U.S. * Lincoln (na ...

and

York York is a cathedral city in North Yorkshire, England, with Roman Britain, Roman origins, sited at the confluence of the rivers River Ouse, Yorkshire, Ouse and River Foss, Foss. It has many historic buildings and other structures, such as a Yor ...

), as well as various east–west trade routes, crossing the Great Ouse here. Ermine Street would have first crossed the river here via a ford, believed to be some way to the west of the present bridge.

Edward the Elder Edward the Elder (870s?17 July 924) was King of the Anglo-Saxons from 899 until his death in 924. He was the elder son of Alfred the Great and his wife Ealhswith. When Edward succeeded to the throne, he had to defeat a challenge from his cousi ...

built a

wood Wood is a structural tissue/material found as xylem in the stems and roots of trees and other woody plants. It is an organic materiala natural composite of cellulosic fibers that are strong in tension and embedded in a matrix of lignin t ...

en bridge in the early 10th century a few yards to the west of the current bridge, and also ordered the nearby

Huntingdon Castle Huntingdon Castle was situated in the town of Huntingdon in Cambridgeshire (). History In 1068 a Norman motte and bailey castle was built for William the Conqueror. During the Anarchy the castle was held by David, King of Scotland through hi ...

to be rebuilt. Until the 1107 construction of the first bridge in St Ives, it is believed that there was no bridge further downstream, and foreign trade would navigate the river as far upstream as Huntingdon. Responsibility for the bridge's repair was for centuries a matter of dispute. In 1259 a court ruling finally ordered that the county should pay to keep it repaired in return for rendering the bridge toll-free. Nonetheless, the bridge remained poorly maintained, and by 1329 was declared to be in severe danger of collapse. The current bridge was constructed around 1332, with work starting on both banks of the river. The slight kink near the central pier was a result of the lack of alignment of the two halves. Consisting of six arches and faced with ashlar, the parapets which form recesses for pedestrians, are triangular on the north side, and semi-hexagonal on the south. It was intended for both

pedestrian A pedestrian is a person traveling on foot, by wheelchair or with other mobility aids. Streets and roads often have a designated footpath for pedestrian traffic, called the '' sidewalk'' in North American English, the ''pavement'' in British En ...

and

horse The horse (''Equus ferus caballus'') is a domesticated, one-toed, hoofed mammal. It belongs to the taxonomic family Equidae and is one of two extant subspecies of ''Equus ferus''. The horse has evolved over the past 45 to 55 mi ...

-drawn transport (the bridge has recesses for people to stand to let the heavier traffic pass), but now serves exclusively for light vehicular traffic. Pedestrians use a parallel

footbridge A footbridge (also a pedestrian bridge, pedestrian overpass, or pedestrian overcrossing) is a bridge designed solely for pedestrians.''Oxford English Dictionary'' While the primary meaning for a bridge is a structure which links "two points at a ...

just metres upstream. Local heavy vehicles must use the A1307 with other traffic using the A14 viaduct via Brampton Hut interchange, or the A141. The bridge was

Grade I listed In the United Kingdom, a listed building is a structure of particular architectural or historic interest deserving of special protection. Such buildings are placed on one of the four statutory lists maintained by Historic England in England, Hi ...

as Huntingdon Bridge by Historic England Ref 1128636 in 1950 and is a

Scheduled Ancient Monument In the United Kingdom, a scheduled monument is a nationally important archaeological site or historic building, given protection against unauthorised change. The various pieces of legislation that legally protect heritage assets from damage, visu ...

The Nuns Bridge is a different Grade II Listed, originally a late medieval bridge 1.3km West.

References

External links

Town conservation, including a brief history
{{coord, 52.3274, N, 0.1777, W, source:wikidata, display=title Bridges across the River Great Ouse Bridges in Cambridgeshire Deck arch bridges Bridges completed in the 10th century Buildings and structures completed in 1332 Grade I listed bridges Huntingdon Bridge Scheduled monuments in Cambridgeshire Stone bridges in the United Kingdom Huntingdon Buildings and structures in Huntingdonshire Bridges completed in the 14th century Former toll bridges in England