London Bridge was destroyed by fire, in 1136. in 1176. The new stone bridge took 33 years to complete the Medieval bridge was completed in 1209 during the reign of King John.
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It's thought that at least 3,000 people died. As if that wasn't enough, parts of the bridge collapsed on several occasions, including 1281, 1309, 1425 and 1437. The 1281 collapse happened when expanding ice from the frozen Thames literally crushed five of the arches.
According to the City of London, the first bridge across the Thames was built between 1176 and 1209. It was replaced in the early 19th century and a third time when the existing bridge was built.
Once this was completed, the old bridge was quickly dismantled and lost into the annals of history. There are, in fact, a few lasting remnants of the old London Bridge, and one of which is built into the tower of St Magnus the Marytr's Church on Lower Thames Street. The pedestrian entrance today.
In 1968, an American tycoon bought London Bridge—all 10,000 tons of it—and moved it brick-by-brick to the desert town of Lake Havasu City, Arizona. In the early 1960s, officials in England made a troubling discovery: London Bridge was falling down.
Houses and shopsAt the peak of the bridge's prosperity in the 14th century, the bridge wardens received rents from around 140 properties. By the time de Jongh made this painting in 1630, many of the houses had merged and there were only 91 separate dwellings.
By 1962, it was not sturdy enough to carry the increased load of traffic; the bridge was sold by the City of London in April 1968 to make way for its replacement. The purchaser, Robert P. McCulloch, was an entrepreneur and real estate developer who founded Lake Havasu City.
It crumbled in 1281 (due to ice damage), 1309, 1425 and 1437, and then there was a devastating fire in the seventeenth century. But despite its Jenga-like tendencies, the medieval London Bridge (including houses and shops) did last for 600 years, until it was demolished in 1831.
How many bridges are there in London? There are 35 bridges which cross over the river in London, so wherever you find yourself along the Thames you're guaranteed to be close to at least one of these famous bridges!
Sale to Robert McCullochOn 18 April 1968, Rennie's bridge was purchased by the Missourian entrepreneur Robert P. McCulloch of McCulloch Oil for US$2,460,000. The claim that McCulloch believed mistakenly that he was buying the more impressive Tower Bridge was denied by Luckin in a newspaper interview.
The eighth Thames bridge to be built in what is now Greater London, Richmond Bridge is currently the oldest surviving bridge over the Thames in Greater London, and the oldest Thames bridge between the sea and Abingdon Bridge in Oxfordshire.