Lambeth Bridge
Westminster and Lambeth, London SW1 and SE1

Lambeth Bridge stands on the site on an ancient landing stage that was in use as far back as the 13th century.  This landing stage was used to receive the monarch on state occasions and was also the meeting place of Henry VIII and Cranmer and Elizabeth I and Archbishop Parker.

Today Lambeth Bridge is approached from the north by Horseferry Road, a reminder that this was a river crossing before the construction of Lambeth Bridge.  The dangerous horse-ferry, which operated between Lambeth and Millbank, was under the control of the Archbishop of Canterbury, whose London residence is at Lambeth Palace.  After Westminster Bridge was completed in 1750 the Archbishop surrendered his lease but received compensation for loss of revenue.

As the population of Lambeth grew, there was a need for a new bridge to serve the locality.  Although an Act was passed in 1809 authorising a bridge at Lambeth, insufficient funds to build the structure meant that the bill eventually lapsed.  

In 1860 the Lambeth Bridge company finally succeeding in obtaining another Act and sufficient funds to build a bridge.  Designed by P.W. Barlow and opened in 1862, the new suspension bridge from Church Street, Lambeth, to Market Street, later renamed Horseferry Road in Westminster, had three massive iron arches. 

The bridge originally charged a toll but in 1879 these were abolished.  By this time the bridge had rusted and had become unsafe and in 1887 major repairs had to be carried out.  The decision to rebuild the bridge was taken five years later but nothing was done and in 1905 a weight restriction was imposed on vehicles , while gates were erected at either end to regulate the number of pedestrians.  A few years later the bridge was forbidden to vehicles altogether. 

After a temporary footbridge was put across the river, work finally started on the new bridge in 1929.  The new five-span bridge, designed by George Humphreys, was made of steel and reinforced concrete, with polished granite facings.

Lambeth Bridge is 60 ft wide and 776 ft long, with a central span of 165 ft.

Originally, decoration was confined to the parapets and lamp standards, but to mark the opening of the bridge by King George V and Queen Mary in 1932, lattice-work pylons were added at either end.  These obelisks are topped with pineapples, symbols of friendship and hospitality.

To celebrate its proximity to the Houses of Parliament, Lambeth Bridge is painted predominately red for the Lord's benches, Westminster Bridge is painted green for the Common's benches.