Behold the liquid Thames now frozen o'er
Behold the liquid Thames now frozen o’er
That lately Ships of mighty Burthen bore
The Watermen for want of Rowing Boats
Make use of Booths to get their Pence & Groat
Here you may see Beef Roasted on the Spit
And for your Money you may taste a bit
There you may print your Name, tho’ cannot write,
Cause num’d with Cold: ‘Tis done with great Delight
And lay it by, that Ages yet to come
May see what Things upon the Ice were done
These lines were written in the early 19th Century by a Southwark sculptor called Richard Kindersley. From the late Middle Ages until this time, the Thames regularly froze over during the winter. There are two reasons for this, one climactic and one topographical. The 14th to 18th Centuries are known as the Little Ice Age, when winters tended to be much more severe than subsequently. Most of the London Thames was unembanked, hence the river was both shallower and slower. Exacerbating this, Old London Bridge had very narrow arches, creating a dam effect: once the first chunks of ice floating downriver wedged themselves between the bridge’s piers, the river soon froze solid. However, we know that the Thames must sometimes have frozen downstream of the bridge too, because it is recorded that Henry VIII travelled to Greenwich over the ice.
Old London Bridge was pulled down in 1831 and replaced by a structure with fewer and much wider spans; by the 1860s, the London Thames was fully embanked.
Frost Fairs.
From the early 17th to the early 19th Century, frost fairs were held on the frozen Thames. These were festivals which involved winter games, markets, dancing and revelling. The first “official” frost fair took place in 1608 and these continued until 1814, the last time the London Thames froze over. However it is known that Elizabeth I enjoyed attending games and revels on the frozen river, so the tradition pre-dates 1608 by some time.
Severe Winters.
There have been many. Some are noted below, but for a good comprehensive list, you’ll find an excellent reference here.
1708-09
The Great Frost of 1709 was believed to be the coldest winter for 500 years with temperatures measured at -10 Centigrade in Upminster. Widespread death of people, livestock, flora and fauna resulted.
1860-61
Coldest winter for 50 years. On 29 December, the ironclad HMS Warrior – under construction – froze to her slipway on the Thames and had to be released by tugs.
1946-47
Two cold snaps occurred in December and January, but the major freeze kicked in on 21 January, threatening power and supplies in an already-stretched austerity environment. The government applied severe rationing of goods and services, public morale plummetted. Conditions did not ease until mid-March, when the thaw causes severe flood damage throughout the country.
1962-63
The Big Freeze started on 22 December 1962 and lasted until 5 March 1963. Snow remained on the ground in most areas for a full two months.
Thank you for writing this! I’m glad my nudge stimulated you.
Readers may care to know that the poem you quote is inscribed, with illustrations, at some point (I forget where) along the extended South Bank. It’s under one of the bridges, and thus on the Thames Path. There are sometimes buskers there, and generally a jovial atmosphere of entertainment.
No, I have to thank you. I didn’t think it was a particularly well done post. Really. Yet it over doubled in traffic over my previous most-read post. Can’t explain that, but delighted. You must have an eye for a good story.
The inscription of the poem is beneath the Southwark bridge!
1860-61 may have been the coldest winter for 50 years but, in researching the life of Sir John Lubbock (1834-1913), I went through the diaries of his teenage years: throughout the late 40’s and early 50’s he skated regularly on the ponds between Sevenoaks and Orpington, not just on the odd day, but throughout January and February.
Thanks for that. I note that Lubbock was responsible for the Bank Holidays Act 1871 which gave us Boxing Day as a holiday, as mentioned in my recent post Christmas History Trivia.
I have read of this, but this with the peom is very good.
Our local river, the Tone, froze over yesterday which was big news round these parts! Not sure I would be prepared to skate on it but reading this post does remind one that actually as a ‘big freeze’ this year has barely started yet.
Interesting stuff, especially as I stare out over a ten inch blanket of snow.
Thanks, keatsbabe. Is that named after prime minister Blair? 😉 Keep warm.
Interesting about the lowest temperatures – I live just outside London and it was -13 here yesterday.
Grace x
There’s a good chance of records broken this winter, I reckon, Grace. Should liven up the global warming debate too. (“it’s not climate, it’s weather”!)