Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
Sightseeing
Tower Bridge Must See
The London Tower Bridge is just next to the Tower of London, so best is to combine a visit
to both of those places!
This is maybe the most filmed and photographed spot in whole London, and if you remem-
ber also the motive I used as a cover for this guidebook.
The Tower Bridge is an archetypal icon of London It is especially beautiful when it is illu-
minated at nighttime. Construction took more than 8 years and it was finally opened in 1894
by the then Prince of Wales, following a massive industrialization of East London.
Horace Jones, the designer of the Bridge did win a public competition to solve the problem
of crossing the Thames in 1876. There was the need for a river crossing but large ships
would still need to pass to the docks beyond. As a solution, he designed the bridge to be
raised, incorporating two counterweighted bascules powered by huge steam engines.
The bridge stands 800 feet high with a span of 200 feet and can be raised in less than a
minute despite the combined weight of over 2000 tons!
Nowadays the bridge is operated electrically, although the original steam generators have
been retained as a tourist exhibit. Tower Bridge is still raised as many as five hundred times
in a year and if you're lucky you might be witnessing this event.
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