The stone bridge at Eltham Palace, near Greenwich, is London’s oldest surviving intact bridge. Originally built of wood, it was replaced with a stone structure around 1390 during the reign of King Richard II. Geoffrey Chaucer, who was Clerk of the Works then, oversaw its construction. The bridge is a rare surviving example of medieval infrastructure in London.
Eltham Palace was a royal residence from the 14th to the 16th century. It was gifted to Edward II in 1305 by Anthony Bek, the Bishop of Durham, and served as a favoured retreat for several monarchs. Edward III is thought to have founded the Order of the Garter here. Manuel II Palaiologos, the Byzantine emperor, stayed at Eltham in 1400-1401 while Henry IV entertained him with a joust. Edward IV rebuilt large parts of the palace, including the Great Hall, between 1475 and 1483. Henry VIII, who spent part of his childhood at Eltham, met the scholar Erasmus here.
After the construction of Greenwich Palace, which was easier to access by river, the royal family less frequently used Eltham. In the 1630s, Antoon van Dyck was granted use of part of the palace as a country retreat. By this time, the palace had fallen into disrepair, and after the Civil War, it was further neglected.
In the 1930s, Sir Stephen and Lady Courtauld restored Eltham Palace, incorporating the remaining medieval structures, including the Great Hall, into an Art Deco residence.
