St Ives Bridge is a 15th-century bridge crossing the River Great Ouse in St Ives, Cambridgeshire, England. It is noted for being one of only four bridges in England to incorporate a chapel (the others being at Rotherham, Wakefield, and Bradford-on-Avon). [1] [2]
Prior to the first bridge here there was a ford across the Ouse, probably dating back several thousand years. The river was at that time wider and shallower until locks were added to make it navigable. [3]
The St Ives settlement was developed by the monks of Ramsey Abbey who built the town's first bridge, a wooden structure, in 1107. In 1414 it was decided to replace this bridge with a stone arch bridge, which was completed in 1425, adding the bridge chapel dedicated to St Leger [4] in 1426. [4]
Such chapels were relatively common in medieval times and served as toll-houses,[ citation needed ] as well as to allow travellers to pray or to give thanks for a safe journey. They also hosted church services.
During the English Civil War the bridge was partially blown up by the troops of Oliver Cromwell to prevent King Charles I's troops approaching London from the Royalist base in Lincolnshire. The two arches on the southern side were demolished and a drawbridge installed in 1645 as a defensive measure by Cromwell's forces, who held the town. [4] The drawbridge remained in use until 1716. [4] When the bridge was partially rebuilt that year, the shape of the new arches was different from the surviving ones, leaving the bridge with two rounded arches on its South side and two Gothic arches on the North. [3]
At some point, the bridge chapel fell into disuse and was for a time used as a bawdy house during the eighteenth century. St Ives was an official last stop of all the many drovers with their livestock, who descended upon St Ives for accommodation, refreshments and other relief, during what was a tiring journey to Smithfield market within London. At one time there were dozens of doss houses, inns and other bawdy houses, in and around St Ives town centre.
The chapel was restored in 1930, having previously served as a toll house, inn and as a private residence. It had been designed as a chapel, though, and dedicated by the monks to Saint Leger. By 1736 it was being used as accommodation, and in that year two extra floors were added. [4] During the 1850s and 1860s it was turned into a notorious public house named "Little Hell", then a doctor's surgery. [4] By 1930 the structure was found to be weakened so the extra stories were removed and the chapel restored. [4] As a result, the roof is modern. An unusual feature is the crypt, about two metres above the river's water level. The bridge and the chapel are now Grade I listed and a Scheduled Ancient Monument. [5] The chapel is still used for public worship on an occasional basis. [6]
The bridge served as the primary southern entrance to the town and the only road bridge across the river until Harrison Way by-pass was added down-river to the east in 1980. [3] [4]
The bridge is one of nine Scheduled Ancient Monument Grade 1 in Cambridgeshire. All maintenance must be carried out in a sympathetic manner to preserve its aesthetic and functional aspects. [7] Since 1980 the foundations have been strengthened and the structure reinforced. [4] In 1998 the bridge was resurfaced, special precautions being taken to prevent water ingress into the structure. In 2002, external lighting of the arches and chapel was fitted, along with internal lighting of the chapel and lights fitted into the pedestrian refuges at each pier. English Heritage control all work on the bridge, although it is not one of the properties in Cambridgeshire that they own. [8]
A gravel lorry breached the parapet. [4] St Ives sub-aqua club recovered the stones from the river-bed. George Hunter from Huntington was one of the local tradesman assigned to restore the chapel after this event. All tradesmen who worked on the project have details engraved on the stones that rebuilt the bridge chapel.
During the big flood this year an amphibious tank breached the parapet. [4]
A Home Guard Bren gun carrier breached the parapet. [4]
St Ives is a medieval market town and civil parish in the Huntingdonshire district in Cambridgeshire, England, 5 miles (8 km) east of Huntingdon and 12 miles (19 km) north-west of Cambridge. St Ives is historically in the county of Huntingdonshire.
The River Great Ouse is a river in England, the longest of several British rivers called "Ouse". From Syresham in Northamptonshire, the Great Ouse flows through Buckinghamshire, Bedfordshire, Cambridgeshire and Norfolk to drain into the Wash and the North Sea near Kings Lynn. Authorities disagree both on the river's source and its length, with one quoting 160 mi (260 km) and another 143 mi (230 km). Mostly flowing north and east, it is the fifth longest river in the United Kingdom. The Great Ouse has been historically important for commercial navigation, and for draining the low-lying region through which it flows; its best-known tributary is the Cam, which runs through Cambridge. Its lower course passes through drained wetlands and fens and has been extensively modified, or channelised, to relieve flooding and provide a better route for barge traffic. The unmodified river would have changed course regularly after floods.
Huntingdon is a market town in the Huntingdonshire district of Cambridgeshire, England. The town was given its town charter by King John in 1205. It was the county town of the historic county of Huntingdonshire. Oliver Cromwell was born there in 1599 and became one of its Members of Parliament (MP) in 1628. The former Conservative Prime Minister (1990–1997) John Major served as its MP from 1979 until his retirement in 2001.
Godmanchester is a town and civil parish in the Huntingdonshire district of Cambridgeshire, England. It is separated from Huntingdon, 1 mile (1.6 km) to the north, by the valley of the River Great Ouse. Being on the Roman road network, the town has a long history. It has a waterside location, surrounded by open countryside of high value for its biodiversity but it remains highly accessible, with a railway line to London, the A1 road and M11/A14 which run nearby.
Eaton Ford is an area in the civil parish of St Neots, Cambridgeshire, England. It is a mainly residential area also containing Riverside Park, a large area of riverside parkland. Much of the housing stock dates from the period of London overspill during the 1960s and subsequently. The former village green is still in place.
The Old Bridge between Huntingdon and Godmanchester is a well-preserved medieval stone bridge over the River Great Ouse.
Bury is a village and civil parish in Cambridgeshire, England. Bury lies approximately 7 miles (11 km) north/north east of Huntingdon and is near to Ramsey and St Ives. Bury is situated within Huntingdonshire which is a non-metropolitan district of Cambridgeshire as well as being a historic county of England.
Blunham is a village and civil parish in the Central Bedfordshire district of Bedfordshire, England, about 6 miles (10 km) east of Bedford town centre. At the 2011 census date its population was 946. The River Ivel forms the parish's eastern boundary in places and the River Great Ouse its western and northern boundaries. The village is just over 0.6 miles (1 km) to the west of the A1 road, and Route 51 of the National Cycle Network passes to the south.
Stretham is a village and civil parish 4 miles (6 km) south-south-west of Ely in Cambridgeshire, England, about 74 miles (119 km) by road from London. Its main attraction is Stretham Old Engine, a steam-powered pump used to drain the fens. The pump is still in use today although converted to electric power. It has open days throughout the year.
Earith is a village and civil parish in Cambridgeshire, England. Lying approximately 10 miles (16 km) east of Huntingdon, Earith is situated within Huntingdonshire which is a non-metropolitan district of Cambridgeshire as well as being a historic county of England. At Earith, two artificial diversion channels of the River Great Ouse, the Old Bedford River and the New Bedford River, leave the river on a course to Denver Sluice near Downham Market, where they rejoin the Great Ouse in its tidal part. At the 2001 census, the parish had a population of 1,677, reducing to 1,606 at the 2011 Census.
Rotherham Bridge crosses the River Don in central Rotherham, South Yorkshire. It is known for its bridge chapel, considered the best preserved in England.
Roxton is a small village and civil parish in the Borough of Bedford, Bedfordshire, England about 7 miles (11 km) north-east of the county town of Bedford.
The Chantry Chapel of St Mary the Virgin is a chantry chapel in Wakefield, West Yorkshire, England, and is designated a Grade I Listed building by English Heritage. It is located south of the city centre on the medieval Chantry Bridge over the River Calder. It is the only survivor of four chantries in Wakefield and the oldest and most ornate of the surviving bridge chapels in England. Others are at St Ives (Cambridgeshire), Rotherham, Derby and Bradford-on-Avon. The chapel has had three west fronts, the original medieval façade having been removed to Kettlethorpe Hall in 1832. The medieval bridge is a scheduled ancient monument.
All Saints is a parish church in Ulcombe, Kent. It was begun in the 12th century and is a Grade I listed building.
A bridge chapel is a small place of Christian worship, built either on, or immediately adjacent to, a road bridge; they were commonly established during pre-Reformation medieval era in Europe.
A statue of Oliver Cromwell stands on Market Hill in St Ives, Cambridgeshire, England. It is a sculpture of Oliver Cromwell, Lord Protector of the Commonwealth of England, Scotland and Ireland. The statue was designed by F. W. Pomeroy and erected in 1901. The statue is one of five public statues of Cromwell in the United Kingdom and is Grade II listed for its architectural merit.
Edward Browning was an English architect working in Stamford.
The Old Exe Bridge is a ruined medieval arch bridge in Exeter in south-western England. Construction of the bridge began in 1190, and was completed by 1214. The bridge is the oldest surviving bridge of its size in England and the oldest bridge in Britain with a chapel still on it. It replaced several rudimentary crossings which had been in use sporadically since Roman times. The project was the idea of Nicholas and Walter Gervase, father and son and influential local merchants, who travelled the country to raise funds. No known records survive of the bridge's builders. The result was a bridge at least 590 feet long, which probably had 17 or 18 arches, carrying the road diagonally from the west gate of the city wall across the River Exe and its wide, marshy flood plain.
St Mary's Bridge Chapel is a Church of England chapel in Derby, England. It is a bridge chapel, one of only a small number of medieval age that survive in England. It is a Grade I listed building.
Chantry Bridge, sometimes known as Wakefield Bridge, is a mediaeval bridge in the city of Wakefield, in West Yorkshire, in England.