Regent Bridge
Encyclopedia
Regent Bridge is a road bridge in Edinburgh
where the A1 road enters the New Town
from the east and passes over a hollow near Calton Hill
. The bridge was built in the 19th century, in the neoclassical
style as the medieval city
was modernised and expanded to the north and east.
a deep ravine
called Low Calton intervened, formerly occupied by old and ill-built streets. In order to connect the hill with Princes Street, all these were swept away, and an elegant arch, called Regent Bridge, was thrown over the hollow, making the descent from the hill into this street easy and agreeable.
Sir John Marjoribanks
, the then Lord Provost
of Edinburgh, presented the plan to build Regent Bridge to the City magistrates on 1st March 1814 with a projected cost of about £20,000 and backed up by a feasibility study by the engineer Robert Stevenson
. This project was accepted and the bridge was designed by Archibald Elliot
. Construction under the direction of Robert Stevenson began in 1816 and the bridge was finished in 1819. It is a major example of Greek Revival architectural work of the time. The arch is semicircular, and fifty feet wide. At the north front it is forty-five feet in height, and at the south front sixty-four feet two inches, the difference being occasioned by the ground declining to the south. The roadway is formed by a number of reverse arches on each side. The great arch is ornamented on the south and north by two open arches, supported by elegant columns of the Corinthian order
. The whole property purchased to open the communication to the city by this bridge cost £52,000, and the building areas sold for the then immense sum of £35,000. The street along the bridge was called Waterloo Place, as it was laid in the year on which that memorable battle
was fought. Regent Bridge was officially opened on the August 18, 1819 during the visit of Prince Leopold of Saxe Coburg
to Edinburgh.
Edinburgh
Edinburgh is the capital city of Scotland, the second largest city in Scotland, and the eighth most populous in the United Kingdom. The City of Edinburgh Council governs one of Scotland's 32 local government council areas. The council area includes urban Edinburgh and a rural area...
where the A1 road enters the New Town
New Town, Edinburgh
The New Town is a central area of Edinburgh, the capital of Scotland. It is often considered to be a masterpiece of city planning, and is a UNESCO World Heritage Site...
from the east and passes over a hollow near Calton Hill
Calton Hill, Edinburgh
Calton Hill is a hill in central Edinburgh, Scotland, just to the east of the New Town. Views of, and from, the hill are often used in photographs and paintings of the city....
. The bridge was built in the 19th century, in the neoclassical
Neoclassical architecture
Neoclassical architecture was an architectural style produced by the neoclassical movement that began in the mid-18th century, manifested both in its details as a reaction against the Rococo style of naturalistic ornament, and in its architectural formulas as an outgrowth of some classicizing...
style as the medieval city
Old Town, Edinburgh
The Old Town of Edinburgh, the capital of Scotland, is the medieval part of the city. Together with the 18th-century New Town, it is a UNESCO World Heritage Site. It has preserved its medieval plan and many Reformation-era buildings....
was modernised and expanded to the north and east.
History
The inconvenience of access to Edinburgh by the great London road was, by the early nineteenth century, long a subject of general regret. In entering the city from this direction, the route ran through narrow and inconvenient streets, forming an approach considered unsuited to the general elegance of the place. In 1814, however, a magnificent entrance was commenced across the Calton Hill, between which and Princes StreetPrinces Street
Princes Street is one of the major thoroughfares in central Edinburgh, Scotland, UK, and its main shopping street. It is the southernmost street of Edinburgh's New Town, stretching around 1 mile from Lothian Road in the west to Leith Street in the east. The street is mostly closed to private...
a deep ravine
Ravine
A ravine is a landform narrower than a canyon and is often the product of streamcutting erosion. Ravines are typically classified as larger in scale than gullies, although smaller than valleys. A ravine is generally a fluvial slope landform of relatively steep sides, on the order of twenty to...
called Low Calton intervened, formerly occupied by old and ill-built streets. In order to connect the hill with Princes Street, all these were swept away, and an elegant arch, called Regent Bridge, was thrown over the hollow, making the descent from the hill into this street easy and agreeable.
Sir John Marjoribanks
Clan Marjoribanks
-Origins:The story often told of the origins of the surname Marjoribanks, and even supported by respectable authorities, is that Marjorie, daughter of King Robert the Bruce, brought into her marriage with Walter Stewart in 1315 lands in Dumfriesshire which became known as "Marjorie's Banks";...
, the then Lord Provost
Lord Provost
A Lord Provost is the figurative and ceremonial head of one of the principal cities of Scotland. Four cities, Aberdeen, Dundee, Edinburgh and Glasgow, have the right to appoint a Lord Provost instead of a provost...
of Edinburgh, presented the plan to build Regent Bridge to the City magistrates on 1st March 1814 with a projected cost of about £20,000 and backed up by a feasibility study by the engineer Robert Stevenson
Robert Stevenson (civil engineer)
Robert Stevenson FRSE MInstCE FSAS MWS FGS FRAS FSA was a Scottish civil engineer and famed designer and builder of lighthouses.One of his finest achievements was the construction of the Bell Rock Lighthouse.-Early life:...
. This project was accepted and the bridge was designed by Archibald Elliot
Archibald Elliot
Archibald Elliot was a Scottish architect.Archibald Elliot ran an architecture practice in London and Edinburgh with his brother James Elliot. Following James' death in 1810, Archibald ran the company on his own...
. Construction under the direction of Robert Stevenson began in 1816 and the bridge was finished in 1819. It is a major example of Greek Revival architectural work of the time. The arch is semicircular, and fifty feet wide. At the north front it is forty-five feet in height, and at the south front sixty-four feet two inches, the difference being occasioned by the ground declining to the south. The roadway is formed by a number of reverse arches on each side. The great arch is ornamented on the south and north by two open arches, supported by elegant columns of the Corinthian order
Corinthian order
The Corinthian order is one of the three principal classical orders of ancient Greek and Roman architecture. The other two are the Doric and Ionic. When classical architecture was revived during the Renaissance, two more orders were added to the canon, the Tuscan order and the Composite order...
. The whole property purchased to open the communication to the city by this bridge cost £52,000, and the building areas sold for the then immense sum of £35,000. The street along the bridge was called Waterloo Place, as it was laid in the year on which that memorable battle
Battle of Waterloo
The Battle of Waterloo was fought on Sunday 18 June 1815 near Waterloo in present-day Belgium, then part of the United Kingdom of the Netherlands...
was fought. Regent Bridge was officially opened on the August 18, 1819 during the visit of Prince Leopold of Saxe Coburg
Leopold I of Belgium
Leopold I was from 21 July 1831 the first King of the Belgians, following Belgium's independence from the Netherlands. He was the founder of the Belgian line of the House of Saxe-Coburg-Gotha...
to Edinburgh.