page_title: Wallingford, Oxfordshire
section_title: Wallingford Bridge
hierarchical_section_title: Wallingford, Oxfordshire / Landmarks and structures / Wallingford Bridge
caption_attribution_description: English: Wallingford Bridge North. Taken from the NE bank of the Thames. The church on the far side is hidden by the trees.
context_page_description: Wallingford is a historic market town and civil parish located to the south of Oxford on the River Thames in England.
  Historically located in the county of Berkshire, it moved to Oxfordshire in 1974 as a result of the 1972 Local Government Act. Wallingford is 12 miles north of Reading, 13 miles south of Oxford and 11 miles north west of Henley-on-Thames. The town's population was 11,600 in the 2011 census.
  The town has played an important role in English history starting with the surrender of Stigand to William the Conqueror in 1066, which led to his taking the throne and the creation of Wallingford Castle. The castle and the town enjoyed royal status and flourished for much of the Middle Ages. The Treaty of Wallingford, which ended a civil war known as The Anarchy between King Stephen and Empress Matilda, was signed there.
  The town then entered a period of decline after the arrival of the Black Death and falling out of favour with the Tudor monarchs before being called on once again during the English Civil War. Wallingford held out as the last remaining Royalist stronghold in Berkshire before surrendering after a 16-week siege.
context_section_description: The Wallingford Bridge is a medieval road bridge over the River Thames connecting Wallingford to Crowmarsh Gifford. Wallingford has historically been an important crossing point of the Thames owing to the presence of a ford which was used before the construction of a bridge. This ford was used by William the Conqueror and his armies on his journey to London after his victory at Hastings in 1066. The first reference to a bridge is from 1141 when King Stephen besieged Wallingford Castle. The first stone bridge is credited to Richard, 1st Earl of Cornwall, and four remaining arches are believed to contain 13th-century elements. Major repairs used stone from the dissolved Holy Trinity Priory in 1530. Four arches were removed so that a drawbridge could be inserted during the siege of the castle in the Civil War of 1646, and these were replaced with timber structures until repair in 1751. Following a flood, three arches were rebuilt by Richard Clarke from 1810–1812 to a design by John Treacher (1760–1836) developed in 1809, and a parapet and balustrade added. The street lights on the bridge were made in the town and feature the Wilder mark on the base.
caption: Wallingford Bridge
exif: {}