River Thames 43AD Timeline Cards The Romans settle.
They find the first suitable place that the River Thames can be crossed and call it Londinium.
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50AD 1014
The first crossing King Ethelred invades. is built.
The first ‘London Bridge’ He sailed up the Thames is built. A simple crossing tearing part of the over the river. bridge down.
twinkl.com twinkl.com Photos courtesy of Matt Brown, MCAD Library and cigcardpix (via Flickr.com) - granted under creative commons licence - attribution 1078 1176
The Tower of London The first London Bridge is built. is commissioned.
King Henry II The Tower is built to commissions the first watch over enemy London Bridge that also approaches to London had many building and by river or road. houses built on it!
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1300s 1510
The Woolwich Ferry Licences for passenger begins to cross the river. transport are granted.
The Woolwich Ferry is They were granted by the still in operation today! King, Henry VIII.
twinkl.com twinkl.com Photos courtesy of Peter (via Flickr.com) - granted under creative commons licence - attribution 1633 1666
The old London Bridge The Great Fire of London catches fire. takes place.
The Thames provides Fire destroys most of the water for firefighting and buildings at the city end a means of escape as of the bridge. people fled to the river to try to escape by boat.
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1700s 1758
Frost Fairs start to Old London Bridge be held. buildings are demolished.
An act of parliament led These were fairs held to the demolishing of all on the river when the the buildings on Thames froze over. the bridge.
twinkl.com twinkl.com Photos courtesy of Elliott Brown, the lost gallery, Ben Sutherland and Diane Griffiths (via Flickr.com) - granted under creative commons licence - attribution 1815 1830
Passenger steamboats The new London Bridge are introduced. is built.
These were the main form Eventually, a new bridge of transport for needed to be built and passengers until the this was done alongside emergence of railways. the old bridge.
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1853-1854 1858
Cholera outbreak. The Great Stink!
The smell from the sewerage in the Thames This was stopped by John gets so bad that Snow’s work on the Broad parliament pass an act Street Water Pump. to create an underground sewerage system.
twinkl.com twinkl.com Photos courtesy of Leonard Bently, Ben Sutherland and Betsy Weber (via Flickr.com) - granted under creative commons licence - attribution 1868/9 1878
The Princess Alice paddle Abbey Mills is opened. steamer disaster takes place.
The new pumping station Near to Beckton sewage opens to allow sewage to treatment works, 600 be put into the Thames people are thought to further away from the have died by drowning centre of London. or poisoning.
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1894 1908
The Tower Bridge The Port of London Act is is opened. brought in. The largest bascule bridge in the world in its time is The Port of London opened. The bascules are Authority created the act the two central lower parts that lift up for tall boats to look after the river and and ships to pass under lower pollution. the bridge.
twinkl.com twinkl.com Photos courtesy of Gordon Joly, Paul Wilkinson and Morgaine (via Flickr.com) - granted under creative commons licence - attribution 1914-18 1939-45
First World War Second World War takes place. takes place. German U-Boats are The Thames and its docks captured in the Thames suffered a lot under heavy in 1918. After the war, the bombing raids. Nearly 900 missiles, as well as Thames War Memorial thousands of incendiary bombs, commemorating the First hit the docks. Maunsell Forts World War is were built in the Thames Estary. situated in
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1950s 1960s
Rebuilding work begins. A decline in the docks.
After the Second World War, The docks were in decline many buildings and due to the introduction of embankment areas needed containers being able to to be rebuilt because of carry a huge amount of bombing damage. cargo in one go.
twinkl.com twinkl.com Photos courtesy of Hugh Llewelyn, Steve Cadman and Leonard Bently (via Flickr.com) - granted under creative commons licence - attribution 1967 1974
The current London A stone is placed at Bridge is built. Thames Head.
The previous bridge was sent brick by brick to The stone reads: ‘The conservation of the River Thames America where it 1857-1974. was reconstructed.
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1977 1983
Queen Elizabeth II’s The Thames Barrier Silver Jubilee. is completed.
The barrier is in Tower Bridge was painted Woolwich and is made up red, white and blue to mark the occasion. of ten gates to stop potential flooding.
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The tradition of New Year The Marchioness disaster. fireworks begins.
Since 2000, the embankment of The Marchioness was a the Thames has been host to the pleasure boat hired for a grand new year firework party that collided with a display including fireworks set dredger and sank. 51 off from on the water in boats. It people drowned. is watched by millions of people all over the world.
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2000 2002
Millennium Bridge opens Millennium Bridge and closes. reopens.
A footbridge over the river from Queenhithe to The bridge reopens Bankside is opened but after two years of work closed on the opening day to make it more stable. as it was too wobbly!
twinkl.com twinkl.com Photos courtesy ofTom Page, (via Flickr.com) - granted under creative commons licence - attribution 2012 2016
Queen Elizabeth II’s Queen Elizabeth II’s Diamond Jubilee. 90th Birthday.
The Thames was used as a key part in the celebrations A flotilla of ships led by Gloriana sails down the Thames including a stage for a in celebration. flotilla of 1000 boats.
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