15. City Consorts Visit to the Brunel Museum, Rotherhithe, 25 July 2023

Eileen Bigg, Master’s Consort and 28 other City Consorts met at the Brunel Museum in Rotherhithe for a fascinating talk on the construction of the first ever tunnel under water. 

Sir Marc Brunel, a highly regarded French engineer, began his ground-breaking tunnel across the Thames in 1826.  Dubbed the “Eighth Wonder of the World”, it pioneered not only the first self-sinking caisson but also a tunnelling shield which protected the diggers.  This idea came to Brunel as he observed the “shipworm” munching its way through ship’s timbers and excreting excavated wood behind to reinforce its passage.

Marc Brunel and his son Isambard Kingdom Brunel and their workers persevered through dangers such as flood, disease, firedamp, explosions and terrible working conditions.  Indeed, Brunel the younger nearly drowned during a particularly vigorous flood.

As with many major engineering projects, construction over ran and ran out of money, and was scaled down.  Eventually two passenger tunnels were opened in 1843 and people flocked in their thousands to walk under the Thames. Visitors included Jules Verne and Queen Victoria.

We were able to descend into the Stygian gloom of the original access to cross under the Thames but alas could no longer see the twin arches of the tunnels.

In 1869 the tunnels were used by the new underground steam trains, and are still in use today.  Those of us who travelled by Overground between Wapping and Rotherhithe will have been through those original tunnels.

 We adjourned to the nearby Mayflower pub, originally called the Spread Eagle, but renamed in honour of the Mayflower which set sail from Rotherhithe.  The ship’s captain, Christopher Jones, is buried in the nearby churchyard.  We had a most enjoyable lunch in this quirky pub.

Thanks go to the Museum and our hostess Yvonne, Consort to the Engineers.