The Royal Victoria Dock is the largest of three

dock The word dock () in American English refers to one or a group of human-made structures that are involved in the handling of boats or ships (usually on or near a shore). In British English, the term is not used the same way as in American Engl ...

s in the

Royal Docks Royal Docks is an area in the London Borough of Newham in the London Docklands in East London, England. The area is named after three docks – the Royal Albert Dock, the Royal Victoria Dock and the King George V Dock. They are more corre ...

of east London, now part of the redeveloped Docklands.

History

Although, the structure was in place in the year 1850, it was opened in 1855, on a previously uninhabited area of the Plaistow Marshes. It was the first of the Royal Docks and the first London dock to be designed specifically to accommodate large steam ships. It was also the first to use hydraulic power to operate its machinery and the first to be connected to the national railway network, via the Eastern Counties and Thames Junction Railway section of what is now the North London line. It was initially known as "Victoria Dock"; the prefix "Royal" was granted in 1880. The dock was connected to the national rail network via a line which ran between

Canning Town Canning Town is a town in the London Borough of Newham, East London, England, north of the Royal Victoria Dock. Its urbanisation was largely due to the creation of the dock. The area was part of the ancient parish and County Borough of West Ham, ...

and

North Woolwich North Woolwich is an area in the London Borough of Newham in East London, England, on the northern bank of the River Thames, across the river from Woolwich. It is connected to Woolwich by the Woolwich Ferry and Woolwich foot tunnel. Despite ...

. When the Royal Dock was first built, the railway cut along the docks; to correct this, a swing bridge over the entrance to the dock was built. This however, slowed journey time, and so a new line was built in 1855, to take the route around the north side of the dock to Silvertown, and a station at Custom House opened where it re-connected with the original line. The older southern line was kept to serve local factories, where it was known as the Silvertown Tramway. The Royal Victoria Dock consisted of a main dock and a basin to the west, providing an entrance to the Thames on the western side of the complex. The dock was deeply indented with four solid piers, each 152 m long by 43 m wide, on which were constructed two-storey warehouses. Other warehouses, granaries, shed and storage buildings surrounded the dock, which had a total of 3.6 km of quays. The dock was an immediate commercial success, as it could easily accommodate all but the very largest steamships. By 1860, it was already taking over 850,000 tons of shipping a year – double that of the

London Docks The London Docks were one of several sets of docks in the historic Port of London. They were constructed in Wapping, downstream from the City of London between 1799 and 1815, at a cost exceeding £5½ million. Traditionally ships had d ...

, four times that of

St Katharine Docks St Katharine Docks is a former dock in the St Katherine and Wapping ward of the London Borough of Tower Hamlets. It lies in the East End of London, East End on the north bank of the River Thames, immediately downstream of the Tower of London an ...

and 70% more than the

West India Docks The West India Docks are a series of three docks, quaysides, and warehouses built to import goods from, and export goods and occasionally passengers to, the British West Indies. Located on the Isle of Dogs in London, the first dock opened in 18 ...

and

East India Docks The East India Docks were a group of docks in Blackwall in east London, north-east of the Isle of Dogs. Today only the entrance basin and listed perimeter wall remain visible. History Early history Following the successful creation of the ...

combined. It was badly damaged by German bombing in the

Second World War World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

, but experienced a resurgence in trade following the war. From the 1960s onwards, the Royal Victoria experienced a steady decline – as did all of London's other docks – as the shipping industry adopted

containerisation Containerization is a system of intermodal freight transport using intermodal containers (also called shipping containers, or ISO containers). Containerization, also referred as container stuffing or container loading, is the process of uni ...

, which effectively moved traffic downstream to

Tilbury Tilbury is a port town in the borough of Thurrock, Essex, England. The present town was established as separate settlement in the late 19th century, on land that was mainly part of Chadwell St Mary. It contains a Tilbury Fort, 16th century fort ...

. It finally closed to commercial traffic along with the other Royal Docks in 1981. In 1988, the then-dilapidated site was chosen by French electronic musician

Jean-Michel Jarre Jean-Michel André Jarre (; born 24 August 1948) is a French composer, performer and record producer. He is a pioneer in the Electronic music, electronic, Ambient music, ambient and New-age music, new-age genres, and is known for organising out ...

as the site for one of his signature large-scale concerts, eventually titled Destination Docklands. The area also inspired him to write the album '' Revolutions'' specifically for the event. The Royal Victoria Dock experienced major redevelopment initiated by the London Docklands Development Corporation in the 1990s. Developments included Britannia Village, which was carried out by Wimpey Homes, the

Peabody Trust The Peabody Trust was founded in 1862 as the Peabody Donation Fund and now brands itself simply as Peabody.

and the East Thames Housing Group in the mid-1990s. Most of the original buildings were demolished but a few historic warehouses survived. More recent development has included the Royal Victoria Dock Bridge completed in 1998, and the ExCeL Exhibition Centre, constructed on the north quayside, which opened in November 2000.

Events

On 15 August 2009, the dock hosted the inaugural Great London Swim, a mass participation open water swim over a one-mile distance. The event has been held annually since then but on the first weekend in July. On 16 to 17 June 2018, the dock hosted the F1H2O Grand Prix of London won by Erik Stark. Britannia Village has its own Community Foundation. Royal Victoria Dock is the starting location for the annual Docklands Head, a rowing head race hosted by Poplar Blackwall and District Rowing Club. The race starts under the Royal Victoria Dock Bridge and proceeds eastwards underneath Connaught Footbridge and Connaught Road Bridge, finishing at the eastern end of the Royal Albert Dock.

Gallery

Image:Royal Victoria Dock 1973.jpg, Looking west from Connaught Road swing bridge in 1973 Image:Royal Albert dock looking west to CW.jpg, Looking west towards

Canary Wharf Canary Wharf is a financial area of London, England, located in the Isle of Dogs in the London Borough of Tower Hamlets. The Greater London Authority defines it as part of London's central business district, alongside Central London. Alongside ...

Image:Royal Albert dock looking east towards city airport.jpg, Looking east to

London City Airport London City Airport is an international airport in London, England. It is located in the Royal Docks in the London Borough of Newham, Borough of Newham, about east of the City of London and east of Canary Wharf. These are the two centres ...

Image:Im1934BCI-Spil24.jpg, Spiller's Millennium Mills in 1934. Behind is the Graving Dock Image:Royal Albert dock looking south at Spillers Mills & new dev.jpg, Looking south: some new development but Spillers Mills in need of renovation Image:Royal Victoria Dock looking south at cranes.jpg, Looking south: some new development and cranes as memory of the past Image:Tatefromspillers.jpeg, Looking east-south-east from the top of Spillers Millennium Mills Image:Royal Victoria Dock London.jpg, Looking east towards the ExCeL Exhibition Centre Image:08-14-05 Royal Victoria Dock.jpg,

The O2 The O2 (formerly known as the Millennium Dome) is a large entertainment district on the Greenwich peninsula in South East London, England, including an indoor arena, a music club, a Cineworld cinema, an exhibition space, Town square, piazzas, ...

and

from the Royal Victoria Dock

References

External links

Royal Docks Forum

Britannia Village Residents Forum

London Landscape TV episode (6 mins) about Royal Victoria Dock

Royal Docks Information
{{Commons category, Royal Victoria Dock Buildings and structures in the London Borough of Newham Geography of the London Borough of Newham London docks Port of London

History

Events

Gallery

See also

References

External links