The Architecture Of British Bridges

During the Industrial Revolution, Britain was at the forefront of bridge innovation. Pioneering designers such as George and Robert Stephenson, Thomas Telford and Isambard Kingdom Brunel created Britain's rich bridge heritage that features many world firsts and we can learn much from their ground-breaking designs. Written by an experienced bridge architect, this book includes an introduction to bridge aesthetics; it gives an outline of British bridge development and advice on parapet treatment and bridge lighting. This book offers a comprehensive overview of how the best of British bridges marry aesthetic considerations with engineering ingenuity.

From the monumental splendour of Tower Bridge and the august span at Westminster to the engineering masterpieces at Ironbridge and the Forth, bridges comprise some of the most recognisable landmarks in Britain. Whether the smallest arch or the largest overpass, each has a rich architectural, economic, social and sometimes even religious history. This beautifully illustrated introduction by Richard Hayman explains how piety built and maintained bridges in the Middle Ages; how economic forces inspired a new generation of road bridges in the eighteenth century, such as the Menai Bridge in North Wales, and how technological prowess gave us soaring Victorian railway viaducts and the concrete road bridges of the twentieth century.

Everyone uses bridges in their day to day lives. In fact, England could not have developed as it has without them. As well as their environmental value, their aesthetic curves and graceful arches are an attractive feature of the landscape. From the beautiful simplicity of an ancient clapper bridge to the elegant, sweeping lines of a modern suspensi

“An already impressive reference work has been made significantly more valuable . . . a well-illustrated alphabetized compendium of notable bridges.” —The Happy Pontist Bridges have a universal appeal as examples of man’s mastery of nature, from picturesque packhorse bridges to great spans stretching across broad estuaries, and the development of the technology that allows ever more audacious constructions is never-ending. Of the million or more bridges throughout Great Britain, David McFetrich has selected those that are significant in terms of their design, construction or location, or of their connections with people or events of history. His definitive book contains 1,600 separate entries for individual bridge sites or related groups of bridges covering more than 2,000 different structures, 165 general entries about different types of bridge and such topics as collapses and failures, and a summary of about 200 record-holding bridges in 50 different categories. The concise text is supported by more than 900 illustrations and diagrams. The result is a fascinating and readily accessible compendium. The Institute of Civil Engineers (ICA) is also on board. “A valuable resource to use . . . if you plan to visit some of these structures while on holiday or are merely planning a day out.” —East Yorkshire Family History Society “Well-written and researched and eminently readable . . . Because of the ubiquity of bridges throughout Great Britain, this volume should have wide appeal.” —NZ Crown Mines “Full of details covering the many bridges around the UK . . . I found it fascinating to see the variety of bridges around Britain, even the ones not railway related.” —Rail Advent

The surprising ways nature has influenced architecture. It may come as a surprise to learn that architects have found solutions to all kinds of design challenges in nature! Some have looked to nature to solve a structural problem, like creating an earthquake-proof bridge by mimicking the extremely long roots of a special type of grass. Others have turned to nature for artistic inspiration, designing buildings and bridges that evoke the movement of swimming fish or a bird in flight. When it comes to style and structure, nature and architecture make perfect partners! From cactuses to birdsê wings, termite towers to honeycombs, inspiration for ingenious design is everywhere around us!

The construction of bridges in Britain and Ireland during the period of 1735-1835 was marked by important technical developments and the introduction of new materials. This book is a comprehensive history of bridge building during the century, treating the administration and financing of projects as well as the designs and methods of construction. All the bridges described are of interest as engineering works; as architecture some are unimportant but many achieved real grandeur and beauty. The book is based on exhaustive study of primary sources which are fully documented, but it is a highly readable account. More than half of it consists of narratives of individual bridge projects, in which all the men involved, from noblemen and generals to country masons and carpenters, come alive for the reader. Much of the detail of these stories has never been published before. Among the topics which can be traced through the narratives are the growth in spans and changes in the proportions of bridges, the borrowing and modification of Continental styles, a halting progress towards the use of scientific theory in bridge design, the introduction of iron arches and the important role played by 'amateurs', including Tom Paine and Samuel Johnson. Over 200 illustrations accompany the text.

Since the first moment that humans looked across to the other side of a stretch of water, we have been fascinated with bridges and their power to bring people together. Bridges have a special significance both for architects and the general public: they can evoke exhilaration, triumph, and fear. In over 200 colour pages, this new book attempts to find out why. 'Bridge', edited by the documentary film-maker Lucy Blakstad, is published to accompany a major BBC TV series, and also coincides with the re-opening of the Millennium Bridge in London. This structure, designed by Norman Foster and closed within days of first being opened in 2000 due to its high levels of movement, is one of the key case studies in the book. Also featured in depth are the Brooklyn Bridge, New York, which has carried millions of people over the water to Manhattan during its 120 year life; and the Mostar bridge in Bosnia, a victim of the war in 1993, and tragically bombed out of existence. 'Bridge' also includes studies of some of