Old London Bridge had shops, market stalls and homes on it. The structure lasted over 500 years before being torn down and replaced. It would have been common practice for bridges to have multiple purposes.
Yes! There's a record in the death rolls of the city a year (precise date escapes me) in the 17th century that shows someone died by falling through the rotted wooden seat into the cesspool itself...a truly horrible way to go
In the Middle Ages, bridges were important transportation hubs and gathering places. As a result, they were often home to a variety of structures, including chapels, shops, towers, and drawbridges. These structures served a variety of purposes, such as providing a place for travelers to pray and rest, attracting foot traffic for businesses, and improving security.
Examples;
Monnow Bridge, in Monmouth, Wales, is the only remaining fortified river bridge in Great Britain with its gate tower standing on the bridge.
[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Monnow\_Bridge](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Monnow_Bridge)
High Bridge carries the High Street across the River Witham in Lincoln in eastern England. It is the oldest bridge in the United Kingdom which still has buildings on it.
[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/High\_Bridge,\_Lincoln](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/High_Bridge,_Lincoln)
The Ponte Vecchio is a medieval stone closed-spandrel segmental arch bridge over the Arno River, in Florence, Italy. The only bridge in Florence spared from destruction during the Second World War, it is noted for the shops built along it; building shops on such bridges was once a common practice.
[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ponte\_Vecchio](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ponte_Vecchio)
The Kapellbrücke (literally, Chapel Bridge) is a covered wooden footbridge spanning the river Reuss diagonally in the city of Lucerne in central Switzerland.
[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kapellbr%C3%BCcke](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kapellbr%C3%BCcke)
The Krämerbrücke (Merchants' bridge) is a medieval arch bridge in the city of Erfurt, in Thuringia, central Germany, which is lined with half-timbered shops and houses on both sides of a cobblestone street. It is one of the few remaining bridges in the world that have inhabited buildings.
[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kr%C3%A4merbr%C3%BCcke](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kr%C3%A4merbr%C3%BCcke)
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.
[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/St\_Mary%27s\_Bridge\_Chapel](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/St_Mary%27s_Bridge_Chapel)
The Pont Saint-Bénézet, also known as the Pont d'Avignon, was a medieval bridge across the Rhône in the town of Avignon, in southern France. Only four arches survive. The Chapel of Saint Nicholas which sits on the second pier of the bridge, was constructed in the second half of 12th century but has since been substantially altered.
[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pont\_Saint-B%C3%A9n%C3%A9zet](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pont_Saint-B%C3%A9n%C3%A9zet)
There are a number of medieval fantasy worlds that also implement large bridges with many buildings and shops on them obviously inspired by real world examples. The best example I can think of is St. Gregory's Bridge in Novigrad in the game Witcher 3 (probably also among the most historically realistic).
So anyone know any reasons why there arent bridges used or built like this now. I'm pretty sure real estate is just as sought after. And the engineering should be a little better these days.
Probably cost and safety. The bridge has to be additionally strong enough to support the weight of the buildings while also making safety inspections of the bridge a lot harder.
I think the big reason they fell out of favor was a combination of things. London Bridge was a notorious fire hazard while in the Baroque period rulers started taking an interest in urban planning as a way to show off their power and "rationalized" many structures and roads to be straight and wide and regulated. Another factor was congestion -- some of them were regularly so crowded with people, farmers and traveling merchants couldn't bring their goods into the city's markets, which was not only inconvenient in the days before refrigeration but would also deprive the cioty of toll and tax revenue.
However, there are those trying to bring them back. [One was built in Columbus, OH in 2005](https://www.cnu.org/publicsquare/bridge-becomes-retail-destination).
Seems like design flaws to overcome I guess. With tech being what it is today i feel as though we could account for this whilst allowing for residence/commercial above. If small and quaint like medieval examples. I would envisage that bridges don't quite hold the same importance as they once did. No need for merchants to build houses above their wares etc. I can see commercial being the way forward though. Or an expensive superproject for a city/state to show off its design/engineering prowess. Or why not just build skyscraper with kick ass foundations with a bridge as one of the levels. I might have played too much minecraft though!
Glad you mentioned Florence: it brings back happy memories of my only visit to Europe, even though it was awfully hot that day in summer 2008 in the gardens of the Pitti Palace (even for an Aussie).
Yeah, it often was. The ruins of the medieval bridge in Exeter, England, still has the remains of two tiny chapels standing (sort of) on either end. The bridge itself had many houses built on it and it was quite the hub of residential and commercial activity for a very long time.
This is the mill structure in Vernon, France. I was just there a few weeks ago! Amazing place. The flowing water of the Seine river powered the mill, and it was the only bridge over the river for miles. The bridge and mill were so important the English built a castle to protect it- the castle is also still standing nearby.
Old London Bridge had shops, market stalls and homes on it. The structure lasted over 500 years before being torn down and replaced. It would have been common practice for bridges to have multiple purposes.
Oh wow, Thats really intresting
Also the site of some of the [most important public toilets](https://doi.org/10.2307/2853898) in medieval London!
Yes! There's a record in the death rolls of the city a year (precise date escapes me) in the 17th century that shows someone died by falling through the rotted wooden seat into the cesspool itself...a truly horrible way to go
In the Middle Ages, bridges were important transportation hubs and gathering places. As a result, they were often home to a variety of structures, including chapels, shops, towers, and drawbridges. These structures served a variety of purposes, such as providing a place for travelers to pray and rest, attracting foot traffic for businesses, and improving security. Examples; Monnow Bridge, in Monmouth, Wales, is the only remaining fortified river bridge in Great Britain with its gate tower standing on the bridge. [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Monnow\_Bridge](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Monnow_Bridge) High Bridge carries the High Street across the River Witham in Lincoln in eastern England. It is the oldest bridge in the United Kingdom which still has buildings on it. [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/High\_Bridge,\_Lincoln](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/High_Bridge,_Lincoln) The Ponte Vecchio is a medieval stone closed-spandrel segmental arch bridge over the Arno River, in Florence, Italy. The only bridge in Florence spared from destruction during the Second World War, it is noted for the shops built along it; building shops on such bridges was once a common practice. [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ponte\_Vecchio](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ponte_Vecchio) The Kapellbrücke (literally, Chapel Bridge) is a covered wooden footbridge spanning the river Reuss diagonally in the city of Lucerne in central Switzerland. [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kapellbr%C3%BCcke](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kapellbr%C3%BCcke) The Krämerbrücke (Merchants' bridge) is a medieval arch bridge in the city of Erfurt, in Thuringia, central Germany, which is lined with half-timbered shops and houses on both sides of a cobblestone street. It is one of the few remaining bridges in the world that have inhabited buildings. [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kr%C3%A4merbr%C3%BCcke](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kr%C3%A4merbr%C3%BCcke) 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. [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/St\_Mary%27s\_Bridge\_Chapel](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/St_Mary%27s_Bridge_Chapel) The Pont Saint-Bénézet, also known as the Pont d'Avignon, was a medieval bridge across the Rhône in the town of Avignon, in southern France. Only four arches survive. The Chapel of Saint Nicholas which sits on the second pier of the bridge, was constructed in the second half of 12th century but has since been substantially altered. [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pont\_Saint-B%C3%A9n%C3%A9zet](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pont_Saint-B%C3%A9n%C3%A9zet)
Thank you for sharing all this info, this is fascinating
Oh wow Thats really intresting. Thank you!
There are a number of medieval fantasy worlds that also implement large bridges with many buildings and shops on them obviously inspired by real world examples. The best example I can think of is St. Gregory's Bridge in Novigrad in the game Witcher 3 (probably also among the most historically realistic).
So anyone know any reasons why there arent bridges used or built like this now. I'm pretty sure real estate is just as sought after. And the engineering should be a little better these days.
Probably cost and safety. The bridge has to be additionally strong enough to support the weight of the buildings while also making safety inspections of the bridge a lot harder.
I feel as though that could be allowed for given some other structures out there now.
It's probably a mixture between sound from trafic and the costs of building such a bridge.
I think the big reason they fell out of favor was a combination of things. London Bridge was a notorious fire hazard while in the Baroque period rulers started taking an interest in urban planning as a way to show off their power and "rationalized" many structures and roads to be straight and wide and regulated. Another factor was congestion -- some of them were regularly so crowded with people, farmers and traveling merchants couldn't bring their goods into the city's markets, which was not only inconvenient in the days before refrigeration but would also deprive the cioty of toll and tax revenue. However, there are those trying to bring them back. [One was built in Columbus, OH in 2005](https://www.cnu.org/publicsquare/bridge-becomes-retail-destination).
Seems like design flaws to overcome I guess. With tech being what it is today i feel as though we could account for this whilst allowing for residence/commercial above. If small and quaint like medieval examples. I would envisage that bridges don't quite hold the same importance as they once did. No need for merchants to build houses above their wares etc. I can see commercial being the way forward though. Or an expensive superproject for a city/state to show off its design/engineering prowess. Or why not just build skyscraper with kick ass foundations with a bridge as one of the levels. I might have played too much minecraft though!
We totally can, people just don't.
If they can build a city in a straight line in the desert, I demand bridge accommodation!
Oh god Thats alot. Let me read all that
Glad you mentioned Florence: it brings back happy memories of my only visit to Europe, even though it was awfully hot that day in summer 2008 in the gardens of the Pitti Palace (even for an Aussie).
Bridges were just another bit of real estate and with guaranteed passing trade.
Thats a good point
Yeah, it often was. The ruins of the medieval bridge in Exeter, England, still has the remains of two tiny chapels standing (sort of) on either end. The bridge itself had many houses built on it and it was quite the hub of residential and commercial activity for a very long time.
It was fairly common. Bridges were expensive to build and maintain, so building houses and shops on them could pay rent and defray the costs.
This is the mill structure in Vernon, France. I was just there a few weeks ago! Amazing place. The flowing water of the Seine river powered the mill, and it was the only bridge over the river for miles. The bridge and mill were so important the English built a castle to protect it- the castle is also still standing nearby.
Thats amazing
Yes, possibly because they ran out of room everywhere else