HeritageGateway - Home
Site Map
Text size: A A A
You are here: Home > > > > Cornwall & Scilly HER Result
Cornwall & Scilly HERPrintable version | About Cornwall & Scilly HER | Visit Cornwall & Scilly HER online...

For important guidance on the use of this record, please click here.

If you have any comments or new information about this record, please email us.


HER Number:6296
Name:ROYAL ALBERT BRIDGE - Post Medieval railway bridge

Summary

The Royal Albert Bridge was built by Brunel between 1853 and 1859 across the River Tamar to carry the Cornwall Railway.

Grid Reference:SX 4347 5871
Parish:Saltash, Caradon, Cornwall
Map:Show location on Streetmap

Protected Status

  • Listed Building (I) 60461: ROYAL ALBERT BRIDGE AND SEVENTEEN APPROACH SPANS

Other References/Statuses

  • Cornwall HER Listing No.: 6/25
  • Primary Record No. (1985-2009): 6296
  • SMR No. (OS Quarter-sheet and SMR No.): SX45NW 55

Monument Type(s):

Full description

The Royal Albert Bridge was built between 1853 and 1859, across the River Tamar. It is one of Isambard Kingdom Brunel's most famous engineering works. This combined suspension and arched bridge carried the Cornwall Railway (later the Great Western Railway) from Plymouth to Cornwall. The bridge has granite piers and tubular iron arches. The oval section of the arches increases their stiffness and gives enough width for the railway bed between vertical wrought-iron chains hanging from the arches. This extraordinary structure is the iconic link between the Great Western Railway broad gauge system in England and the Cornwall Railway (b1). The bridge was included as a Listed Building, Grade I on 17/1/1952.


NMR, 23/1/03, NMR 21937 (Aerial Photograph). SCO23530.

NMR, 23/1/03, NMR 21937 (Aerial Photograph). SCO23531.

NMR, 23/1/03, NMR 21937 (Aerial Photograph). SCO23532.

<1> Henderson, C & Coates, H, 1928, Old Cornish Bridges and Streams, 54 (Bibliographic reference). SCO3515.

<2> Pevsner, N, 1951, The Buildings of England: Cornwall, 205 (Bibliographic reference). SCO4126.

Sources / Further Reading

---SCO23530 - Aerial Photograph: NMR. 23/1/03. NMR 21937. SX 4310 5850.
---SCO23531 - Aerial Photograph: NMR. 23/1/03. NMR 21937. SX 4310 5850.
---SCO23532 - Aerial Photograph: NMR. 23/1/03. NMR 21937. SX 4310 5850.
[1]SCO3515 - Bibliographic reference: Henderson, C & Coates, H. 1928. Old Cornish Bridges and Streams. 54.
[2]SCO4126 - Bibliographic reference: Pevsner, N. 1951. The Buildings of England: Cornwall. 205.

Associated Finds: none recorded

Associated Events: none recorded

Related records

165670Part of: CORNWALL RAILWAY - Post Medieval railway (Monument)

Search results generated by the HBSMR Gateway from exeGesIS SDM Ltd.