The famous Tower Bridge in London

Tower Bridge is a bridge, whose bascules flapp up to let boats pass. Tower Bridge is one of the most known bridges of England. It is located in London:
Tower Bridge Road, London SE1 2UP, England.

The English first started building Tower Bridge on the 22nd April 1886 and it was opened on the 30th June 1894. It was built over the River Thames. 432 construction workers helped build the bridge. More that 7000 tons of concrete were used and sunk into the River Thames to support this extroadinary bridge. More that 11,000 tons of steel was used for the framework for the towers and walkways. 

Tower Bridge has two towers, each of which are 65 metres high. The length of Tower Bridge is 244 metres long in total. Although now admired and loved, this fancy design was not appreciated when it was first built. It was rather critisized by the citizens alike. It was designed by the City Architect, Sir Horace Jones, who was most known for this piece of 'art'. One of the reasons this design was chosen, was that it would not disrupt the circulation of boats. It was only in 1876, that Sir Horace Jones, along with John Wolfe Barry, gave in this design as a solution for the problem.

Once built, Tower Bridge was the biggest and most complex bascule bridge ever made. Did you know that the word bascule came from the french word meaning 'see-saw'?

Fun Facts

• Every day, over 4000 people use Tower Bridge.
• The walkways for pedestrians are always at least 40 metres above the river's surface, even at high tide.
• The bridges flaps open over 1000 times per year.
• Many people mistake London Bridge and Tower Bridge.