The Albert Embankment is a stretch of the river bank on the south side of the River Thames

River Thames

The River Thames flows through southern England. It is the longest river entirely in England and the second longest in the United Kingdom. While it is best known because its lower reaches flow through central London, the river flows alongside several other towns and cities, including Oxford,...

 in Central London

Central London

Central London is the innermost part of London, England. There is no official or commonly accepted definition of its area, but its characteristics are understood to include a high density built environment, high land values, an elevated daytime population and a concentration of regionally,...

. It stretches approximately one mile (1.6 km) northward from Vauxhall Bridge

Vauxhall Bridge

Vauxhall Bridge is a Grade II* listed steel and granite deck arch bridge in central London. It crosses the River Thames in a south–east north–west direction between Vauxhall on the south bank and Pimlico on the north bank...

 to Westminster Bridge

Westminster Bridge

Westminster Bridge is a road and foot traffic bridge over the River Thames between Westminster on the north side and Lambeth on the south side, in London, England....

, and is located in the London Borough of Lambeth

London Borough of Lambeth

The London Borough of Lambeth is a London borough in south London, England and forms part of Inner London. The local authority is Lambeth London Borough Council.-Origins:...

.

Albert Embankment is also the name given to the part of the A3036 road between Vauxhall Bridge and Lambeth Bridge

Lambeth Bridge

Lambeth Bridge is a road traffic and footbridge crossing the River Thames in an east-west direction in central London, England; the river flows north at the crossing point...

, where it adjoins Lambeth Palace Road

Lambeth Palace Road

Lambeth Palace Road runs between Westminster Bridge and Lambeth Bridge, in Lambeth, London, on the south bank of the River Thames. St Thomas' Hospital lies between it and the river. At the southern end is Lambeth Palace, the London base of the Archbishop of Canterbury.The road forms part of the A3036...

 and Lambeth Road

Lambeth Road

Lambeth Road is a road in Lambeth and Southwark , London running between Lambeth Bridge over the River Thames at the western end and St George's Circus at the eastern end. The road is designated the A3203....

. On the East side of this road adjacent to Vauxhall Bridge is the Secret Intelligence Service

Secret Intelligence Service

The Secret Intelligence Service is responsible for supplying the British Government with foreign intelligence. Alongside the internal Security Service , the Government Communications Headquarters and the Defence Intelligence , it operates under the formal direction of the Joint Intelligence...

 (SIS) building, while on the West side nearer to Lambeth Bridge are the International Maritime Organisation (IMO) building and the old head-quarters of the London Fire Brigade

London Fire Brigade

The London Fire Brigade is the statutory fire and rescue service for London.Founded in 1865, it is the largest of the fire services in the United Kingdom and the fourth-largest in the world with nearly 7,000 staff, including 5,800 operational firefighters based in 112 fire...

. In the river opposite, there is a River Fire Station

Created by the engineer Sir Joseph Bazalgette

Joseph Bazalgette

Sir Joseph William Bazalgette, CB was an English civil engineer of the 19th century. As chief engineer of London's Metropolitan Board of Works his major achievement was the creation of a sewer network for central London which was instrumental in relieving the city from cholera epidemics, while...

 for the Metropolitan Board of Works

Metropolitan Board of Works

The Metropolitan Board of Works was the principal instrument of London-wide government from 1855 until the establishment of the London County Council in 1889. Its principal responsibility was to provide infrastructure to cope with London's rapid growth, which it successfully accomplished. The MBW...

 between July 1866 and November 1869, it included land reclaimed from the river and various small timber and boat-building yards, and was intended to protect low-lying areas of Lambeth

Lambeth

Lambeth is a district of south London, England, and part of the London Borough of Lambeth. It is situated southeast of Charing Cross.-Toponymy:...

 from flooding while also providing a new highway to bypass local congested streets.

Unlike Bazalgette's Thames Embankment

Thames Embankment

The Thames Embankment is a major feat of 19th century civil engineering designed to reclaim marshy land next to the River Thames in central London. It consists of the Victoria and Chelsea Embankment....

 (including Chelsea Embankment

Chelsea Embankment

Chelsea Embankment is part of the Thames Embankment, a road and walkway along the north bank of the River Thames in central London, England.The western end of Chelsea Embankment, including a stretch of Cheyne Walk, is in the Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea; the eastern end, including...

 and Victoria Embankment

Victoria Embankment

The Victoria Embankment is part of the Thames Embankment, a road and river walk along the north bank of the River Thames in London. Victoria Embankment extends from the City of Westminster into the City of London.-Construction:...

), the Albert Embankment does not incorporate major interceptor sewers. This allowed the southern section of the embankment (upstream from Lambeth Bridge) to include a pair of tunnels onto a small slipway, named White Hart Draw Dock, whose origins can be traced back to the 15th century. This is contrary to the popular myth that the dock was built and used by the nearby Royal Doulton's pottery works to transport clay and finished goods to and from the Port of London. The refurbishment of White Hart Dock is currently underway (spring 2009) and forms part of an ongoing public art project being delivered by Lambeth Council.

Some of the reclaimed land was sold to the trustees of St Thomas' Hospital

St Thomas' Hospital

St Thomas' Hospital is a large NHS hospital in London, England. It is administratively a part of Guy's & St Thomas' NHS Foundation Trust. It has provided health care freely or under charitable auspices since the 12th century and was originally located in Southwark.St Thomas' Hospital is accessible...

. To the north of Lambeth Bridge, the embankment is a narrower pedestrian promenade in front of the hospital, with motor traffic carried behind the hospital on Lambeth Palace Road.

In common with other Bazalgatte works, the original embankment is adorned with Sturgeon

Sturgeon

Sturgeon is the common name used for some 26 species of fish in the family Acipenseridae, including the genera Acipenser, Huso, Scaphirhynchus and Pseudoscaphirhynchus. The term includes over 20 species commonly referred to as sturgeon and several closely related species that have distinct common...

 Lamp Standards to the designs of George Vulliamy. The southern limit of Bazalgatte's embankment was opposite Tinworth Street, where the road moves away from the riverside.

The stretch south of Tinworth Street was occupied by industrial and wharf premises until World War II

World War II

World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...

. These areas have subsequently been redeveloped as offices, with extensions to the embankment being constructed to a more utilitarian design than the Bazalgatte/Vulliamy stretch. Public pedestrian access to this newer embankment between Lambeth Bridge and the main road stretch of Albert Embankment was only secured in the 1990s. Parts of this section of the embankment have a provisional appearance, as the landowners still have hopes for future redevelopment that could move the embankment line further into the river. However, encroachment of the tidal river bed habitat is contrary to the current planning policies of Lambeth.

External links

• White Hart Dock Public Art & Community Engagement Project.
• Survey of London entry (1951)