City Bridge Foundation is the oldest charity in London still operating under its original purpose. Established over 700 years ago to maintain London Bridge, it now cares for five of the Thames’s great crossings while distributing surplus income to charities across the capital. Worth £1.5 billion, it remains managed by the City of London Corporation. This lively and original book traces the development of the Foundation from its religious origins as the ‘Bridge House,’ through political intrigue, civic evolution and remarkable acts of giving. Written by legal historian Ian Doolittle, it introduces a little-known but extraordinary organisation whose assets were built from the donations of ordinary Londoners. The Foundation’s story spans medieval craftsmanship, royal interference, and the complexities of modern governance, all while helping shape the physical and civic landscape of London. It is a story of bridges, certainly, but also of money, power, and purpose.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
An engaging and accessible history of City Bridge Foundation, the extraordinary charity behind London’s bridges and one of the capital’s oldest civic institutions.
The Bridge House – a prologue
\n‘God and the Bridge’ – how it started
\nKings (and some Queens) – support, interference, and then disengagement
\nThe trust that wasn’t – at least not for a few centuriesThe City Corporation – the corporate trustee with a difference
\nLondon Bridge from Southwark to Arizona – the disappearing icon
\nMore bridges – why, where and what?
\nFunding – property, tolls and credit
\nSouthwark – an intriguing relationship
\nParliament and politicians – coping with controversy
\nTower Bridge – the new City Bridge icon
\nThe City’s river and its bridges – a complicated relationship
\n‘St. Paul’s Bridge’ – the bridge that never was
\nThe new St. Paul’s Bridge – for the millennium
\n‘Ancillary purposes’ – City Bridge Trust\/Foundation
\nDiscovering more – a remarkable archive
\nA current reading list
\nAcknowledgements
\nIllustrations<\/p>\n","protected":false},"featured_media":69555,"template":"","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"_relevanssi_hide_post":"","_relevanssi_hide_content":"","_relevanssi_pin_for_all":"","_relevanssi_pin_keywords":"","_relevanssi_unpin_keywords":"","_relevanssi_related_keywords":"","_relevanssi_related_include_ids":"","_relevanssi_related_exclude_ids":"","_relevanssi_related_no_append":"","_relevanssi_related_not_related":"","_relevanssi_related_posts":"","_relevanssi_noindex_reason":""},"product_brand":[],"product_cat":[5559],"product_tag":[],"class_list":{"0":"post-69220","1":"product","2":"type-product","3":"status-publish","4":"has-post-thumbnail","6":"product_cat-architecture-landscape-design","7":"author-by-author-ian-doolittle","8":"publisher-kulturalis","10":"first","11":"instock","12":"shipping-taxable","13":"purchasable","14":"product-type-simple"},"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\n