Greystone Bridge is a four-arch

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 ...

bridge over the

River Tamar The Tamar (; ) is a river in south west England that forms most of the border between Devon (to the east) and Cornwall (to the west). A large part of the valley of the Tamar is protected as the Tamar Valley National Landscape (an Area of Outsta ...

south-east of

Launceston, Cornwall Launceston ( , ; rarely spelled Lanson as a local abbreviation; ) is a town, ancient borough, and civil parish in Cornwall, England, United Kingdom. It is west of the middle stage of the River Tamar, which constitutes almost the entire borde ...

. It was built in 1439 and repaired in November 2007.

Description

Greystone Bridge is south-east of

and carries the B3362 over the

. It is faced in stone with a dressing of freestone. The road is wide and the bridge's cutwaters extend up to up from the river's bed; there is a footpath for use by pedestrians. The bridge has four segmental arches and two floodwater arches measured at on each bank.

History

Greystone Bridge was built under an

indulgence In the teaching of the Catholic Church, an indulgence (, from , 'permit') is "a way to reduce the amount of punishment one has to undergo for (forgiven) sins". The ''Catechism of the Catholic Church'' describes an indulgence as "a remission bef ...

of 40 days granted to all penitents by Bishop Lacy of

Exeter Exeter ( ) is a City status in the United Kingdom, cathedral city and the county town of Devon in South West England. It is situated on the River Exe, approximately northeast of Plymouth and southwest of Bristol. In Roman Britain, Exeter w ...

on 27 December 1439. Greystone Bridge and the Horsebridge, also over the Tamar, are thought to have been built by the same person. The patron of the bridge is thought to have been an

Abbot of Tavistock Abbot of Tavistock was the title of the abbot of Tavistock Abbey in Devon Devon ( ; historically also known as Devonshire , ) is a ceremonial county in South West England. It is bordered by the Bristol Channel to the north, Somerset and Dors ...

. Long vehicles often damaged its parapet and repair work was carried out in November 2007, which also widened its entry approach on the Cornwall end, and traffic signals were replaced. Greystone Bridge is currently protected as a Grade I listed structure and 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 ...

References

{{authority control Scheduled monuments in Cornwall Bridges completed in the 15th century Bridges in Cornwall Bridges in Devon Grade I listed bridges Grade I listed buildings in Cornwall Industrial archaeological sites in Cornwall River Tamar