Bridge across the Fowey river at Lanhydrock - geograph

Respryn Bridge is a 15th-century

granite Granite () is a coarse-grained ( phaneritic) intrusive igneous rock composed mostly of quartz, alkali feldspar, and plagioclase. It forms from magma with a high content of silica and alkali metal oxides that slowly cools and solidifies und ...

and stone bridge over the

River Fowey The River Fowey ( ; kw, Fowi) is a river in Cornwall, England, United Kingdom. It rises at Fowey Well (originally kw, Fenten Fowi, meaning ''spring of the river Fowey'') about north-west of Brown Willy on Bodmin Moor, not far from one of ...

in the parish of

Lanhydrock Lanhydrock ( kw, Lannhedrek, meaning "church enclosure of St Hydrock") is a civil parish centred on a country estate and mansion in Cornwall, United Kingdom. The parish lies south of the town of Bodmin and is bounded to the north by Bodmin par ...

in Cornwall, England. The bridge is a Grade II*

listed building In the United Kingdom, a listed building or listed structure is one that has been placed on one of the four statutory lists maintained by Historic England in England, Historic Environment Scotland in Scotland, in Wales, and the Northern I ...

History

The current Respryn Bridge was built in the 15th century, replacing an earlier bridge over the

built around 1300. The bridge was on the old road from

Bodmin Bodmin () is a town and civil parish in Cornwall, England, United Kingdom. It is situated south-west of Bodmin Moor. The extent of the civil parish corresponds fairly closely to that of the town so is mostly urban in character. It is bordere ...

Looe Looe (; kw, Logh, ) is a coastal town and civil parish in south-east Cornwall, England, with a population of 5,280 at the 2011 census. Looe is west of Plymouth and south of Liskeard, divided in two by the River Looe, East Looe ( kw, links= ...

. During the

English Civil War The English Civil War (1642–1651) was a series of civil wars and political machinations between Parliamentarians ("Roundheads") and Royalists led by Charles I ("Cavaliers"), mainly over the manner of Kingdom of England, England's governanc ...

, the bridge was used a strategic crossing point between

and

Boconnoc Boconnoc ( kw, Boskennek) is a civil parish in Cornwall, England, United Kingdom, approximately four miles east of the town of Lostwithiel. According to the 2011 census the parish had a population of 96. The parish is rural in character and i ...

, who were on opposing sides in the conflict. The bridge was initially held by

Roundhead Roundheads were the supporters of the Parliament of England during the English Civil War (1642–1651). Also known as Parliamentarians, they fought against King Charles I of England and his supporters, known as the Cavaliers or Royalists, who ...

s led by

Robert Devereux, 3rd Earl of Essex Robert Devereux, 3rd Earl of Essex, KB, PC (; 11 January 1591 – 14 September 1646) was an English Parliamentarian and soldier during the first half of the 17th century. With the start of the Civil War in 1642, he became the first Captain ...

, but was captured by

Cavalier The term Cavalier () was first used by Roundheads as a term of abuse for the wealthier royalist supporters of King Charles I and his son Charles II of England during the English Civil War, the Interregnum, and the Restoration (1642 – ). It ...

s led by

Sir Richard Grenville, 1st Baronet Sir Richard Grenville (26 June 1600 – 21 October 1659) was a professional soldier from Cornwall, who served in the Thirty Years War, and 1638 to 1651 Wars of the Three Kingdoms. He was the younger brother of Sir Bevil Grenville, who died a ...

in 1644. That same year, King

Charles I Charles I may refer to: Kings and emperors * Charlemagne (742–814), numbered Charles I in the lists of Holy Roman Emperors and French kings * Charles I of Anjou (1226–1285), also king of Albania, Jerusalem, Naples and Sicily * Charles I of ...

crossed over the bridge. The bridge carries a through road, with the entrance of Lanhydrock House a short distance away. In 1969, Respryn Bridge became a Grade II*

. In 2006, the bridge was closed for a month after being struck by a lorry, causing thousands of pounds' worth of damage. In 2019, stone

bollard A bollard is a sturdy, short, vertical post. The term originally referred to a post on a ship or quay used principally for mooring boats. It now also refers to posts installed to control road traffic and posts designed to prevent automotive ...

s were added to the entrance of the bridge, to prevent large vehicles from crossing the bridge.

Architecture

The current Respryn Bridge is constructed from

and stone, and has five arches. Only the central arch is original to the bridge; the other four were added later, and the two arches on the western side are the newest. The bridge is long, and has a width of . The central arch has a span of .

References

{{coord, 50.4404, -4.6780, type:landmark_region:GB, display=title Grade II* listed buildings in Cornwall Grade II* listed bridges in England Bridges completed in the 15th century Bridges in Cornwall