The Old Tyne Bridge: The Medieval stone crossing which stood for 500 years

Football rivalry aside, The Tyne Bridge is an icon of modern engineering in the North East, which similar to its older cousin, the Wearmouth Bridge, was designed to be at a height so that shipping could pass underneath it. However, the crossing of the River Tyne at Newcastle has remained a strategically pivotal location for thousands of years as it occupies the first (or last) critical point between Scotland and London, which for most of this period was the “first line of defense” in facing attacks from the north. To the west, are the Pennines, but to the east the river is wide and cannot be crossed. The settlement of Newcastle was placed deliberately in the central passage for this purpose.

Because of this, the modern Tyne Bridge was not the first Tyne Bridge. Rather, there have been many. The first bridge crossing the Tyne, located where the swing bridge is now, was part of the Roman settlement Pons Aelius, a defensive stronghold built into Hadrian’s wall. It is unknown when this bridge disappeared although it purportedly lasted until the Anglo Saxon era, but it would be during the Norman era where the settlement of Newcastle truly began to consolidate and gained its name with the castle and walled city being built.

It would be 200 years or so after the Norman conquest, however, that the Medieval era Tyne Bridge would be built in 1250, which would be constructed entirely out of stone. As the featured image shows, which is a reconstructed model, the old Tyne Bridge was a medieval arched bridge structure. Similar to the old London Bridge, it had homes and shops built into it a classic medieval style, which were usually leased to craftsman who were able to benefit from the passing traffic a “ye olde service station” if you will.

What happened to the old Tyne Bridge?

The Old Tyne Bridge marked the passage point for the old Great North Road, a medieval route which spanned from London to Scotland and passed through the commercial area of the town known as the Bigg Market. Throughout the years, the bridge would be damaged by various fires and floods, leading parts of it to be rebuilt. However, in the year 1771 a gigantic flood struck and destroyed half of the old medieval bridge, leading the town to have to rebuild it entirely. This marked the end of a 500 year era for the original Tyne Bridge.

The 18th century built Tyne Bridge

However, the 18th century stone Tyne Bridge which replaced it also found itself redundant as the rise of industrialisation and shipbuilding on the River Tyne meant that a low lying arched stone bridge was now an obstacle. In Sunderland, a landmark structure had been built in 1796 known as Wearmouth Bridge, which was made of iron and was the largest in the world of its kind. The Bridge was also designed to hang over the river to allow shipping to pass under it.

In 1847, the High Level Tyne Bridge was created for railway traffic. However, it would not be until the 1920s until Newcastle finally recognised the need to replace the main Tyne Bridge route altogether, with the construction on the modern Tyne Bridge we know today commencing in 1925.