Tower Bridge, London

Tower Bridge is the celebrated Thames crossing before you, built with stout masonry towers and a roadway that can open for ships. Horace Jones designed the bridge, whose Gothic Revival character gives its structure a castle-like presence. Two bridge towers rise above the river, linked by high walkways, while a pair of bascules lifts to clear the passage below.

Construction began in 1886, and the completed bridge opened in 1894. Its unusual arrangement answered a practical problem: a fixed crossing here would have blocked sailing vessels reaching the Pool of London. The lifting machinery began as hydraulic equipment and changed to an electro-hydraulic system in 1972.

The roadway remains open to vehicles and pedestrians, while the towers, elevated walkways, and Victorian engine rooms form the Tower Bridge Exhibition. The bridge is named for the nearby Tower of London, and its Grade I listing recognises its importance. The heavy stonework frames the moving span: this is not merely decoration, but a working river crossing whose engineering still shapes the view.