SO8844 : The Chinese Bridge and Croome Court
taken 5 years ago, near to High Green, Worcestershire, England
The replica Chinese Bridge was constructed in 2015 very near the site of the original bridge which had rotted away. The roots of the London plane tree meant it was not possible to position it in exactly the same spot. Archaeology students from the University of Worcester uncovered the remains of the stone foundations of the bridge in summer 2009. The original bridge was constructed in 1747-8 to a design by William Halfpenny. This was for Lord Deerhurst before he inherited the title 6th Earl of Coventry in 1751. This pre-dated the landscape work of 'Capability' Brown which created the serpentine shaped lake know as Croome River. At time of the construction of the Chinese Bridge it crossed a much smaller lake or canal. The original bridge can be seen in the painting of Croome by artist Richard Wilson.