Island Bridge (), formerly Sarah or Sarah's Bridge, is a road bridge spanning the
River Liffey
The River Liffey (Irish language, Irish: ''An Life'', historically ''An Ruirthe(a)ch'') is a river in eastern Ireland that ultimately flows through the centre of Dublin to its mouth within Dublin Bay. Its major Tributary, tributaries include t ...
, in
Dublin
Dublin is the capital and largest city of Republic of Ireland, Ireland. Situated on Dublin Bay at the mouth of the River Liffey, it is in the Provinces of Ireland, province of Leinster, and is bordered on the south by the Dublin Mountains, pa ...
, Ireland which joins the
South Circular Road to Conyngham Road at the
Phoenix Park
The Phoenix Park () is a large urban park in Dublin, Ireland, lying west of the city centre, north of the River Liffey. Its perimeter wall encloses of recreational space. It includes large areas of grassland and tree-lined avenues, and since ...
.
Island Bridge and the surrounding area (often known as Islandbridge)
are so named because of the island formed here by the creation of a
mill race
A mill race, millrace or millrun, mill lade (Scotland) or mill leat (Southwest England) is the current of water that turns a water wheel, or the channel ( sluice) conducting water to or from a water wheel. Compared with the broad waters of a m ...
towards the right bank while the main current flows to the left. The
River Camac
The River Camac (sometimes spelled ''Cammock'', or, historically, ''Cammoge'' or ''Cammoke''; Irish: or ) is one of the larger rivers in Dublin and was one of four tributaries of the Liffey critical to the early development of the city.
Cou ...
emerges from a tunnel further downstream towards
Dublin Heuston railway station
Heuston Station, ( ; ; formerly Kingsbridge Station) also known as Dublin Heuston, is one of Dublin's largest train station, railway stations and links the capital with the south, southwest and west of Ireland. It is operated by Iarnród à ...
.
History
The area around Islandbridge contains a number of notable Viking burial sites from the 9th and 10th centuries which indicate the area as being one of the earliest recorded contacts between the Vikings and Ireland. It was also a
fording point, on the River Liffey, since at least the early medieval period.
In 1577, during the reign of
Queen Elizabeth Queen Elizabeth, Queen Elisabeth or Elizabeth the Queen may refer to:
Queens regnant
* Elizabeth I (1533–1603; ), Queen of England and Ireland
* Elizabeth II (1926–2022; ), Queen of the United Kingdom and other Commonwealth realms
* Queen B ...
, while Sir
Henry Sidney
Sir Henry Sidney (20 July 1529 – 5 May 1586) was an English soldier, politician and Lord Deputy of Ireland.
Background
He was the eldest son of Sir William Sidney of Penshurst (1482 – 11 February 1553) and Anne Pakenham (1511 – 22 Oc ...
was
Lord Deputy of Ireland
The Lord Deputy was the representative of the monarch and head of the Irish executive (government), executive under English rule, during the Lordship of Ireland and then the Kingdom of Ireland. He deputised prior to 1523 for the Viceroy of Ireland ...
, an arched stone bridge was built here to replace an earlier structure nearby at
Kilmainham
Kilmainham (, meaning " St Maighneann's church") is a south inner suburb of Dublin, Ireland, south of the River Liffey and west of the city centre. It is in the city's Dublin 8 postal district.
History
Origins
Kilmainham's foundation dates ...
.
This bridge was swept away by a flood in 1787,
and between 1791 and 1793 the replacement bridge, that is standing today, was constructed. The structure is a single 32-metre span
ashlar
Ashlar () is a cut and dressed rock (geology), stone, worked using a chisel to achieve a specific form, typically rectangular in shape. The term can also refer to a structure built from such stones.
Ashlar is the finest stone masonry unit, a ...
masonry
elliptical arch bridge
An arch bridge is a bridge with abutments at each end shaped as a curved arch. Arch bridges work by transferring the weight of the bridge and its structural load, loads partially into a horizontal thrust restrained by the abutments at either si ...
and was originally named ''Sarah's Bridge'' after
Sarah Fane, Countess of Westmorland
Sarah Anne Fane, Countess of Westmorland ( Child; 28 August 1764 – 9 November 1793) was an English noblewoman.
She was the only child of Robert Child, the owner of Osterley Park and principal shareholder in the banking firm Child & Co, ...
, wife of the then
Lord Lieutenant of Ireland
Lord Lieutenant of Ireland (), or more formally Lieutenant General and General Governor of Ireland, was the title of the chief governor of Ireland from the Williamite Wars of 1690 until the Partition of Ireland in 1922. This spanned the K ...
, who laid the first stone on 22 June 1791.
The bridge was renamed ''Island Bridge'' in 1922 following independence from Britain of the
Free State, similarly to many other Dublin bridges originally named for British peers.
The bridge has become synonymous with the area, and the residential area around the bridge is now commonly known as "Islandbridge".
See also
*
Clancy Quay, formerly the site of Islandbridge Barracks
Gallery
File:Islandbridge.jpg, Islandbridge taken from Clancy Quay, in 2020.
File:IslandBridge-top.JPG, Road view of the bridge
File:IslandBridge-full.JPG, Islandbridge in 2012
File:Memorial Rose-Garden 001.JPG, Irish National War Memorial Gardens
References
{{Dublin Liffey Bridges
Bridges in Dublin (city)
Bridges completed in 1793
1793 establishments in Ireland
Uppercross