101-650: Westminster Bridge is a road-and-foot-traffic bridge over the River Thames in London , linking Westminster on the west side and Lambeth on the east side. The bridge is painted predominantly green, the same colour as the leather seats in the House of Commons which is on the side of the Palace of Westminster nearest to the bridge, but a natural shade similar to verdigris . This is in contrast to Lambeth Bridge , which
202-595: A terrorist attack took place outside the Palace of Westminster in London, seat of the British Parliament . Khalid Masood, a 52-year-old Briton , drove a car into pedestrians on the pavement along the south side of Westminster Bridge and Bridge Street, injuring more than 50 people, four of them fatally. He then crashed the car into the perimeter fence of the palace grounds and ran into New Palace Yard , where he fatally stabbed an unarmed police officer . He
303-530: A tram line for much of the first half of the twentieth century, from 1906 until 1952. On 5 July that year the last tram made a ceremonial journey across the bridge. Since the removal of Rennie's New London Bridge in 1967 it is the oldest road structure which crosses the Thames in central London. On 22 March 2017, a terrorist attack started on the bridge and continued into Bridge Street and Old Palace Yard . Five people – three pedestrians, one police officer, and
404-684: A 52-year-old Black Briton . He was born Adrian Russell Elms to a single mother but used his stepfather's surname, Ajao, interchangeably with Elms from the age of two. He changed his name to Khalid Masood after converting to Islam . Police said he also used several other aliases, including Khalid Choudry. Masood was born in Kent , and brought up in Rye , East Sussex, and later attended secondary school in Tunbridge Wells in Kent. Latterly, he lived in
505-547: A college teaching English as a foreign language in Luton , England. In early March 2015, he made a brief trip to Saudi Arabia on an Umrah visa, normally issued to those making a pilgrimage to Mecca . In 2010, Masood was described as a "peripheral figure" in a MI5 investigation of a group of Islamists later convicted of plotting to bomb a Territorial Army base in Luton. Following a risk assessment, MI5 decided he did not pose
606-492: A few minutes before the attack. Some early reports gave descriptions of two supposed attackers, one described as a "bald white man" and another as a "black man with goatee beard". On the morning after the attack, Mark Rowley , the Metropolitan Police's Assistant Commissioner for Specialist Operations , stated that the police believed the attacker acted alone. Abu Izzadeen was also erroneously identified as
707-512: A knife. Reactions to the attack expressed shock and outrage, and characterised it as an attack against liberty, freedom of speech, and democracy. Both the House of Commons and the House of Lords resumed their normal functions on 23 March, the day after the attack. A one-minute silence in honour of the dead was observed in Parliament, and by London's emergency services, at 09:33. The time
808-541: A large part of south-eastern and a small part of western England; the river is fed by at least 50 named tributaries . The river contains over 80 islands . With its waters varying from freshwater to almost seawater, the Thames supports a variety of wildlife and has a number of adjoining Sites of Special Scientific Interest , with the largest being in the North Kent Marshes and covering 20.4 sq mi (5,289 ha). According to Mallory and Adams,
909-477: A message shortly before the attack. She announced a meeting with similar technology industry leaders for 30 March, where she would persuade them to voluntarily co-operate with the government. She refused to rule out passing new legislation to this end if the companies do not comply. Prince William laid a wreath at the Arboretum in honour of PC Palmer on 29 March. In the 2017 Queen's Birthday Honours , Palmer
1010-508: A network of creeks. Lying below sea level, it is prone to flooding at exceptional tides, but has nevertheless been inhabited since Roman times. The usually quoted source of the Thames is at Thames Head (at grid reference ST980994 ). This is about 1.5 mi (2.4 km) north of the village of Kemble in southern Gloucestershire , near the town of Cirencester , in the Cotswolds . However, Seven Springs near Cheltenham , where
1111-586: A summer venue for organised swimming, which is prohibited on safety grounds in a stretch centred on Central London . After the river took its present-day course, many of the banks of the Thames Estuary and the Thames Valley in London were partly covered in marshland , as was the adjoining Lower Lea Valley . Streams and rivers like the River Lea , Tyburn Brook and Bollo Brook drained into
SECTION 10
#17327801652361212-424: A threat. The Metropolitan Police said he was not the subject of any current investigations and there was no prior intelligence about his intent to mount a terrorist attack. He had not been convicted of any terrorism offences. Farasat Latif, director of the language school in Luton where Masood taught between 2010 and 2012, told The Guardian that when Masood lived in Luton he was apolitical and not aligned with
1313-471: Is a landmark on the Boat Race course, while Glover's Island forms the centre of a view from Richmond Hill . Islands of historical interest include Magna Carta Island at Runnymede , Fry's Island at Reading, and Pharaoh's Island near Shepperton. In more recent times Platts Eyot at Hampton was the place where Motor Torpedo Boats (MTB)s were built, Tagg's Island near Molesey was associated with
1414-402: Is an important water source, especially in the drier months, so maintaining its quality and quantity is extremely important. Groundwater is vulnerable to surface pollution, especially in highly urbanised areas. Brooks, canals and rivers, within an area of 3,842 sq mi (9,951 km ), combine to form 38 main tributaries feeding the Thames between its source and Teddington Lock . This
1515-649: Is believed that Tamesubugus' name was derived from that of the river. Tamese was referred to as a place, not a river in the Ravenna Cosmography ( c. AD 700 ). The river's name has always been pronounced with a simple t /t/ ; the Middle English spelling was typically Temese and the Brittonic form Tamesis . A similar spelling from 1210, "Tamisiam" (the accusative case of "Tamisia"; see Kingston upon Thames § Early history ),
1616-604: Is formed for much of its length for shipping and supplies: through the Port of London for international trade, internally along its length and by its connection to the British canal system. The river's position has put it at the centre of many events in British history, leading to it being described by John Burns as "liquid history". Two broad canals link the river to other rivers: the Kennet and Avon Canal ( Reading to Bath ) and
1717-697: Is found in Magna Carta . The Thames through Oxford is sometimes called the Isis . Historically, and especially in Victorian times, gazetteers and cartographers insisted that the entire river was correctly named the Isis from its source down to Dorchester on Thames and that only from this point, where the river meets the Thame and becomes the "Thame-isis" (supposedly subsequently abbreviated to Thames) should it be so called. Ordnance Survey maps still label
1818-578: Is red, the same colour as the seats in the House of Lords and is on the opposite side of the Houses of Parliament . In 2005–2007, it underwent a complete refurbishment, including replacing the iron fascias and repainting the whole bridge. It links the Palace of Westminster on the west side of the river with County Hall and the London Eye on the east and was the finishing point during the early years of
1919-452: Is responsible for managing the flow of water to help prevent and mitigate flooding, and providing for navigation: the volume and speed of water downstream is managed by adjusting the sluices at each of the weirs and, at peak high water, levels are generally dissipated over preferred flood plains adjacent to the river. Occasionally, flooding of inhabited areas is unavoidable and the agency issues flood warnings. Due to stiff penalties applicable on
2020-948: Is shared by many other river names in Britain, such as the River Tamar at the border of Devon and Cornwall , several rivers named Tame in the Midlands and North Yorkshire , the Tavy on Dartmoor , the Team of the North East, the Teifi and Teme of Wales , the Teviot in the Scottish Borders and a Thames tributary, the Thame . Kenneth H. Jackson proposed that the name of
2121-558: Is sometimes called the Isis), Reading , Henley-on-Thames and Windsor . The Thames also drains the whole of Greater London . The lower reaches of the river are called the Tideway , derived from its long tidal reach up to Teddington Lock . Its tidal section includes most of its London stretch and has a rise and fall of 23 ft (7 m). From Oxford to the estuary, the Thames drops by 55 metres (180 ft). Running through some of
SECTION 20
#17327801652362222-404: Is the usual tidal limit ; however, high spring tides can raise the head water level in the reach above Teddington and can occasionally reverse the river flow for a short time. In these circumstances, tidal effects can be observed upstream to the next lock beside Molesey weir , which is visible from the towpath and bridge beside Hampton Court Palace . Before Teddington Lock was built in 1810–12,
2323-799: The River Isis , is a river that flows through southern England including London . At 215 miles (346 km), it is the longest river entirely in England and the second-longest in the United Kingdom , after the River Severn . The river rises at Thames Head in Gloucestershire and flows into the North Sea near Tilbury , Essex and Gravesend , Kent, via the Thames Estuary . From the west, it flows through Oxford (where it
2424-536: The 2017 London Bridge attack , May stated that all three recent attacks were "bound together by the single evil ideology of Islamic extremism". The Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn , the Leader of the Opposition , described the attack as "an appalling atrocity". The speakers of both Houses of Parliament jointly offered sympathy to those affected, and thanked the emergency services. The Scottish Parliament suspended
2525-811: The Berwyn Mountains in North Wales . About 450,000 years ago, in the most extreme Ice Age of the Pleistocene , the Anglian , the furthest southern extent of the ice sheet reached Hornchurch in east London, the Vale of St Albans, and the Finchley Gap . It dammed the river in Hertfordshire , resulting in the formation of large ice lakes, which eventually burst their banks and caused
2626-541: The British Geological Survey from the banks of the tidal River Thames contain geochemical information and fossils which provide a 10,000-year record of sea-level change. Combined, this and other studies suggest that the Thames sea-level has risen more than 30 m during the Holocene at a rate of around 5–6 mm per year from 10,000 to 6,000 years ago. The rise of sea level dramatically reduced when
2727-651: The Chief Coroner of England and Wales , Mark Lucraft , found that Masood had been lawfully killed by a minister's close protection officer identified only as SA74. Two plain-clothed armed officers from the Royalty and Specialist Protection branch of the Metropolitan Police became aware of the ongoing attack; SA74 recounted to the court how Masood had ignored shouted warnings and how he had opened fire in response to Masood running towards him brandishing
2828-570: The Churn (which feeds into the Thames near Cricklade ) rises, is also sometimes quoted as the Thames' source, as this location is farthest from the mouth and adds some 14 mi (23 km) to the river's length. At Seven Springs above the source is a stone with the Latin hexameter inscription "Hic tuus o Tamesine pater septemgeminus fons", which means "Here, O Father Thames, [is] your sevenfold source". The springs at Seven Springs flow throughout
2929-536: The Elephant & Castle in Southwark . By the mid-19th century the bridge was subsiding badly and expensive to maintain. The current bridge was designed by Thomas Page and opened on 24 May 1862. With a length of 820 feet (250 m) and a width of 85 feet (26 m), it is a seven-arch, cast-iron bridge with Gothic detailing by Charles Barry (the architect of the Palace of Westminster ). The bridge carried
3030-684: The Grand Union Canal (London to the Midlands). The Grand Union effectively bypassed the earlier, narrow and winding Oxford Canal which remains open as a popular scenic recreational route. Three further cross-basin canals are disused but are in various stages of reconstruction: the Thames and Severn Canal (via Stroud ), which operated until 1927 (to the west coast of England), the Wey and Arun Canal to Littlehampton , which operated until 1871 (to
3131-675: The London Marathon . The next bridge downstream is the Hungerford Bridge & Golden Jubilee Bridges and upstream is Lambeth Bridge . Westminster Bridge was designated a Grade II* listed structure in 1981. For over 600 years (at least 1129–1729), the nearest Thames bridge to London Bridge was at Kingston . From late Tudor times congestion in trading hours at London Bridge (for road goods and carriages from Kent , Essex , much of Surrey , Middlesex and beyond) often amounted to more than an hour. A bridge at Westminster
Westminster Bridge - Misplaced Pages Continue
3232-579: The Metropolitan Police Service . A dozen people received serious injuries, some described as "catastrophic", and eight others were treated for less serious injuries at the scene. Injured members of the public were taken to St Thomas' Hospital , which is located immediately across Westminster Bridge in Lambeth , and to King's College Hospital (which declared a 'major incident' in its designated trauma centre), St Mary's Hospital ,
3333-555: The Northern Ireland conflict . The previous terrorist attack to have caused multiple casualties on the British mainland had been the 7 July 2005 London bombings . Shortly before the attack, a division had been called in the House of Commons . At 14:40 local time on 22 March 2017, a grey Hyundai Tucson , hired in Birmingham , was driven at up to 76 miles per hour (122 km/h) into pedestrians along
3434-489: The River Lea can be considered another boundary. Most of the local riverside was also marshland. The land was drained and became farmland; it was built on after the Industrial Revolution . Canvey Island in southern Essex (area 18.45 km , 7.12 sq mi; population 40,000 ) was once marshy, but is now a fully reclaimed island in the Thames estuary, separated from the mainland of south Essex by
3535-662: The Royal Academy , London , in 1785. They are now on show at the River and Rowing Museum in Henley). Richard Coates suggests that while the river was as a whole called the Thames, part of it, where it was too wide to ford, was called * (p)lowonida . This gave the name to a settlement on its banks, which became known as Londinium , from the Indo-European roots * pleu- "flow" and * -nedi "river" meaning something like
3636-719: The Royal London Hospital and the Chelsea and Westminster Hospital . Three French students, from Concarneau in Brittany, were among those injured; others included three police officers who were returning from a commendation ceremony, four students from Edge Hill University in Lancashire, and the wife of the American who was killed. The attacker was identified by the Metropolitan Police as Khalid Masood,
3737-516: The Thames during the attack; she died in hospital as a result of her injuries on 6 April after her life support was withdrawn. Her Romanian boyfriend, who had planned to propose marriage during their trip to London, was also injured during the attack. The police officer killed was PC Keith Palmer , 48, an unarmed police officer who was on duty with the Parliamentary and Diplomatic Protection command. Palmer had 15 years of experience in
3838-504: The Thames Barrier , which protects central London from flooding by storm surges . Below the barrier, the river passes Woolwich , Thamesmead , Dagenham , Erith , Purfleet , Dartford , West Thurrock , Northfleet , Tilbury and Gravesend before entering the Thames Estuary near Southend-on-Sea . The sea level in the Thames estuary is rising and the rate of rise is increasing. Sediment cores up to 10 m deep collected by
3939-549: The Thanetian stage of the late Palaeocene epoch. Until around 500,000 years ago, the Thames flowed on its existing course through what is now Oxfordshire , before turning to the north-east through Hertfordshire and East Anglia and reaching the North Sea near present-day Ipswich . At this time the river-system headwaters lay in the English West Midlands and may, at times, have received drainage from
4040-496: The Valley would not be occupied at the club's next home game, but would instead have a club scarf placed over it as a mark of respect. A JustGiving fund was set up, with the target of raising £100,000 for his family, a goal attained in less than 24 hours. A group called "Muslims United for London" also raised over £29,000 to support victims and victims' families, releasing a statement saying, "The British Muslim community stands with
4141-526: The pavement on the south side of Westminster Bridge and Bridge Street, causing multiple casualties. One of the victims, a Romanian tourist, was thrown by the car's impact over the parapet of the bridge into the River Thames below. Having been knocked unconscious and sustained severe injuries from the fall, she was rescued by the crew of a river cruise and brought aboard a London Fire Brigade boat. She later died in hospital from her injuries. The car continued, and crashed into railings on Bridge Street at
Westminster Bridge - Misplaced Pages Continue
4242-412: The Metropolitan Police and Senior National Coordinator for UK Counter-Terrorism Policing, announced that investigators believed Masood acted alone. On 27 March, Basu announced that Masood clearly had an interest in jihad , that his methods echoed the rhetoric of Islamic State leaders and that investigators have found no evidence he was linked with it or al-Qaeda . The security services later recovered
4343-841: The Middle East and Africa ) and paramedics, attempted to revive PC Palmer, also without success. Police later confirmed that PC Palmer had been wearing a protective vest, which did not appear to have been punctured in the attack. Theresa May , the Prime Minister, who was in the Commons for a vote, was evacuated by her security team in the Prime Ministerial car , and taken to 10 Downing Street . Additional armed police officers arrived, including Counter Terrorist Specialist Firearms Officers who were on scene within 6 minutes. An air ambulance from London HEMS attended
4444-411: The North Sea, and the Thames Barrier was built in the 1980s to protect London from this risk. The Nore is the sandbank that marks the mouth of the Thames Estuary , where the outflow from the Thames meets the North Sea . It is roughly halfway between Havengore Creek in Essex and Warden Point on the Isle of Sheppey in Kent. Until 1964 it marked the seaward limit of the Port of London Authority. As
4545-419: The Prime Minister, met in response to the attack. It was decided there was no need for the threat level to be raised as a result of the attack. Six people, including the attacker, died as a result of the incident, and around 50 others were injured, some of them severely. Of the five people killed by the attacker, three were British nationals . One of the dead was a teacher believed to have been walking along
4646-489: The River Thames on the Tideway include the rivers Crane , Brent , Wandle , Ravensbourne (the final part of which is called Deptford Creek ), Lea (the final part of which is called Bow Creek ), Roding (Barking Creek), Darent and Ingrebourne . In London, the water is slightly brackish with sea salt, being a mix of sea and fresh water. This part of the river is managed by the Port of London Authority . The flood threat here comes from high tides and strong winds from
4747-416: The Thames Estuary), the river is subject to tidal activity from the North Sea . Before the lock was installed, the river was tidal as far as Staines, about 16 mi (26 km) upstream. London, capital of Roman Britain , was established on two hills, now known as Cornhill and Ludgate Hill . These provided a firm base for a trading centre at the lowest possible point on the Thames. A river crossing
4848-470: The Thames as "River Thames or Isis" down to Dorchester. Since the early 20th century this distinction has been lost in common usage outside of Oxford, and some historians suggest the name Isis is nothing more than a truncation of Tamesis , the Latin name for the Thames. Sculptures titled Tamesis and Isis by Anne Seymour Damer are located on the bridge at Henley-on-Thames , Oxfordshire (the original terracotta and plaster models were exhibited at
4949-439: The Thames is not Indo-European (and of unknown meaning), while Peter Kitson suggested that it is Indo-European but originated before the Britons and has a name indicating "muddiness" from a root *tā- , 'melt'. Early variants of the name include: Indirect evidence for the antiquity of the name "Thames" is provided by a Roman potsherd found at Oxford, bearing the inscription Tamesubugus fecit (Tamesubugus made [this]). It
5050-511: The Thames, from Middle English Temese , is derived from the Brittonic name for the river, Tamesas (from * tamēssa ), recorded in Latin as Tamesis and yielding modern Welsh Tafwys "Thames". The name element Tam may have meant "dark" and can be compared to other cognates such as Russian темно ( Proto-Slavic * tĭmĭnŭ ), Lithuanian tamsi "dark", Latvian tumsa "darkness", Sanskrit tamas and Welsh tywyll "darkness" and Middle Irish teimen "dark grey". The origin
5151-776: The West Midlands. He dropped out of school at 16 and by 18 was described as a heavy cocaine user. He was sentenced to two years in prison in 2000 for grievous bodily harm during a knife attack in a public house in Northiam in Sussex. In 2003, he was sentenced to six months in prison for possession of an offensive weapon following another knife attack in Eastbourne in Sussex. He also had convictions for public order offences going back to 1983. He converted to Islam while in prison although police found no evidence to suggest he became radicalised there. He changed his name to Khalid Masood in 2005. Masood taught English in Saudi Arabia from November 2005 to November 2006, and again from April 2008 to April 2009, after which he worked at
SECTION 50
#17327801652365252-407: The arrests of eight people on suspicion of preparing terrorist acts. Officials also carried out searches in London, Brighton and Carmarthenshire . The investigation was named Operation Classific. By 24 March, three further arrests had taken place, two men overnight in the West Midlands and North West England and a woman during the day in Manchester . A woman, arrested earlier in East London,
5353-404: The attack, He spent the night before the attack at the Preston Park Hotel in Brighton , Sussex and was described as "laughing and joking" by the manager there. He had taken anabolic steroids in the days and hours before the attack. Masood, at 52, was atypical in that most jihadi terrorists are under 35. On 22 March, the day of the attack, the Metropolitan Police said it believed the attack
5454-442: The attacker on social media, Channel 4 News and The Independent shortly after the attack, although Izzadeen was actually in prison at the time. In April 2017, OFCOM announced an investigation into the Channel 4 News naming of Izzadeen. At 23:00 on 22 March, West Midlands Police raided a flat in Hagley Road , Birmingham. By the morning of 23 March, six locations in East London and Birmingham had been raided resulting in
5555-482: The attacker – died as a result of the incident. A colleague of the officer (who was stationed nearby) was armed and shot the attacker. More than 50 people were injured. An investigation into the attack was conducted by the Metropolitan Police. 51°30′03″N 0°07′19″W / 51.50083°N 0.12194°W / 51.50083; -0.12194 River Thames The River Thames ( / t ɛ m z / TEMZ ), known alternatively in parts as
5656-455: The attacks and assisting the victims and their families. On 22 March 2022, the five year anniversary of the attack, a memorial service was held, and a memorial plaque installed on Westminster Bridge. In addition to the expressions of shock, support, solidarity and sympathy offered by many national governments and heads of state, the United Nations Security Council observed a minute of silence at its morning meeting on 23 March. The attack
5757-440: The bridge to pick up her children from school. A tourist from the United States also died; he was visiting London from Utah to celebrate his 25th anniversary with his wife, who was among the injured. The fourth victim was a 75-year-old man from Clapham in south-west London, who was hit by the car and later died in hospital after his life support was switched off. A fifth victim, a 31-year-old tourist from Romania, fell into
5858-423: The case of the Colne ), and man-made distributaries such as the Longford River . Three canals intersect this stretch: the Oxford Canal , Kennet and Avon Canal and Wey Navigation . Its longest artificial secondary channel (cut), the Jubilee River , was built between Maidenhead and Windsor for flood relief and completed in 2002. The non-tidal section of the river is managed by the Environment Agency , which
5959-462: The claim appeared to be an effort to mask its losses in Iraq and Syria, adding that the lack of biographical information on the attacker and lack of specifics about the attack suggested it was not directly involved. Describing Masood as a "terrorist", the Metropolitan Police said it was investigating whether he was a lone actor inspired by terrorist propaganda or was being directed by others. On 25 March, Neil Basu , Deputy Assistant Commissioner of
6060-487: The claim was questioned by the UK police and government. Police have found no link with a terrorist organisation and believe Masood acted alone. Prior to the attack, the UK Threat Level for terrorism in the country was listed at "severe", meaning an attack was "highly likely". There had not been a killing at the Palace of Westminster since the assassination of Airey Neave by the Irish National Liberation Army in 1979, which took place close to New Palace Yard , during
6161-454: The community during these difficult times". Home Secretary Amber Rudd announced that PC Palmer would be remembered at the National Memorial Arboretum 's UK Police Memorial in Staffordshire . On 24 March, Prince Charles visited victims of the attack at King's College Hospital ; Tobias Ellwood was appointed to the Privy Council for his role in rendering aid to PC Palmer, as was security minister Ben Wallace MP, who helped co-ordinate
SECTION 60
#17327801652366262-423: The confluence, the overall length of the Thames measured from Seven Springs, at 229 mi (369 km), is greater than the Severn's length of 220 mi (350 km). Thus, the "Churn/Thames" river may be regarded as the longest natural river in the United Kingdom. The stream from Seven Springs is joined at Coberley by a longer tributary which could further increase the length of the Thames, with its source in
6363-473: The country condemned the attack. That evening, there was a public candlelit vigil in Trafalgar Square to honour victims of the attack. It was led by the Mayor of London Sadiq Khan , the Home Secretary Amber Rudd and the Acting Metropolitan Commissioner Craig Mackey and attended by leaders of different faiths. The Metropolitan Police honoured PC Palmer by retiring his shoulder number 4157U; Charlton Athletic F.C. announced that his season ticket seat at
6464-437: The day's proceedings, including a debate on a second independence referendum . Some MSPs who opposed the decision to suspend parliament said that doing so was "giving in to terrorism". On 23 March, Christian, Hindu, Jewish, Muslim and Sikh faith leaders met officers at Scotland Yard to discuss responses to the attack. Muslim groups, including the Muslim Council of Britain , Ahmadi Muslims UK , and individual mosques across
6565-468: The drier parts of mainland Britain and heavily abstracted for drinking water, the Thames' discharge is low considering its length and breadth: the Severn has a discharge almost twice as large on average despite having a smaller drainage basin . In Scotland , the Tay achieves more than double the Thames' average discharge from a drainage basin that is 60% smaller. Along its course are 45 navigation locks with accompanying weirs . Its catchment area covers
6666-464: The expanding West End to the developing South London as well as goods and carriages from the more estuarine counties and the East Sussex and Kentish ports. Without the bridge, traffic to and from the greater West End would have to negotiate streets often as congested as London Bridge , principally the Strand/Fleet Street and New Oxford Street/Holborn. Roads on both sides of the river were also built and improved, including Charing Cross Road and around
6767-412: The flowing river or the wide flowing unfordable river. The river gives its name to three informal areas: the Thames Valley , a region of England around the river between Oxford and West London; the Thames Gateway ; and the greatly overlapping Thames Estuary around the tidal Thames to the east of London and including the waterway itself. Thames Valley Police is a formal body that takes its name from
6868-445: The government response. On 26 March, in an event organised by Women's March on London, roughly 100 women, including many Muslims, joined hands to form a chain along Westminster Bridge and stood in silence for five minutes to pay tribute to the victims of the attack. Amber Rudd appeared on BBC's The Andrew Marr Show to call for government backdoor access to encrypted messaging services like WhatsApp , which Masood used to send
6969-533: The grounds of the National Star College at Ullenwood . The Thames flows through or alongside Ashton Keynes , Cricklade , Lechlade , Oxford , Abingdon-on-Thames , Wallingford , Goring-on-Thames and Streatley (at the Goring Gap ), Pangbourne and Whitchurch-on-Thames , Reading , Wargrave , Henley-on-Thames , Marlow , Maidenhead , Windsor and Eton , Staines-upon-Thames and Egham , Chertsey , Shepperton , Weybridge , Sunbury-on-Thames , Walton-on-Thames , Molesey and Thames Ditton . The river
7070-417: The hospital where three French high school students injured in the attack were being treated and later attended the morning session in the House of Commons. The BBC TV documentary series Hospital was filming a routine meeting at St Mary's when the attack occurred; within minutes St Mary's declared a "major incident", one of several central London hospitals to do so. The cameras recorded the involvement of
7171-404: The ice melt nearly concluded over the past 4,000 years. Since the beginning of the 20th century, rates of sea level rise range from 1.22 mm per year to 2.14 mm per year. The Thames River Basin District, including the Medway catchment, covers an area of 6,229 sq mi (16,130 km ). The entire river basin is a mixture of urban and rural, with rural landscape predominating in
7272-536: The impresario Fred Karno and Eel Pie Island at Twickenham was the birthplace of the South East's R&B music scene. Westminster Abbey and the Palace of Westminster (commonly known today as the Houses of Parliament ) were built on Thorney Island , which used to be an eyot . Researchers have identified the River Thames as a discrete drainage line flowing as early as 58 million years ago, in
7373-599: The last WhatsApp message sent by Masood shortly before his attack. In it, Masood reportedly said he was waging jihad in revenge for Western military action in Muslim countries of the Middle East. He had written a document named "Jihad in the Quran and Sunnah ", with his photograph on the front page and multiple extracts from the Quran that could be seen as supportive of jihad and martyrdom. He sent this document to numerous contacts
7474-426: The non-tidal river, which is a drinking water source before treatment, sanitary sewer overflow from the many sewage treatment plants covering the upper Thames basin should be rare in the non-tidal Thames. However, storm sewage overflows are still common in almost all the main tributaries of the Thames despite claims by Thames Water to the contrary. Below Teddington Lock (about 55 mi or 89 km upstream of
7575-431: The north perimeter of the Palace of Westminster. Masood, wearing black clothes, got out of the car and ran around the corner into Parliament Square and through the open Carriage Gates where he fatally stabbed an unarmed police officer, PC Keith Palmer . An armed police officer (believed to have been the Metropolitan Police close protection officer for the then Secretary of State for Defence Michael Fallon ) witnessed
7676-466: The population growth by removing the buildings on London Bridge and widening it in 1760–63. With Putney Bridge, the bridge paved the way for four others within three decades: Blackfriars Bridge (1769, built by the City), Kew Bridge (1759), Battersea Bridge (1773), and Richmond Bridge (1777) by which date roads and vehicles were improved and fewer regular goods transported by water. The bridge assisted
7777-585: The river passes Pimlico and Vauxhall , and then forms one of the principal axes of the city, from the Palace of Westminster to the Tower of London . At this point, it historically formed the southern boundary of the medieval city, with Southwark , on the opposite bank, then being part of Surrey . Beyond central London, the river passes Bermondsey , Wapping , Shadwell , Limehouse , Rotherhithe , Millwall , Deptford , Greenwich , Cubitt Town , Blackwall , New Charlton and Silvertown , before flowing through
7878-475: The river to divert onto its present course through the area of present-day London. The ice lobe which stopped at present-day Finchley deposited about 14 metres of boulder clay there. Its torrent of meltwater gushed through the Finchley Gap and south towards the new course of the Thames, and proceeded to carve out the Brent Valley in the process. 2017 Westminster attack On 22 March 2017,
7979-439: The river was tidal at peak spring tides as far as Staines upon Thames . In descending order, non-related tributaries of the non-tidal Thames, with river status, are the Churn , Leach , Cole , Ray , Coln , Windrush , Evenlode , Cherwell , Ock , Thame , Pang , Kennet , Loddon , Colne , Wey and Mole . In addition, there are occasional backwaters and artificial cuts that form islands, distributaries (most numerous in
8080-596: The river, covering three counties . In non-administrative use, the river's name is used in those of Thames Valley University , Thames Water , Thames Television , publishing company Thames & Hudson , Thameslink (north–south rail service passing through central London ) and South Thames College . An example of its use in the names of historic entities is the Thames Ironworks and Shipbuilding Company . Marks of human activity, in some cases dating back to Pre-Roman Britain , are visible at various points along
8181-456: The river, while some islands, e.g. Thorney Island , formed over the ages. The northern tip of the ancient parish of Lambeth , for example, was marshland known as Lambeth Marshe , but it was drained in the 18th century; the street names Lower Marsh and Upper Marsh preserve a memory. Until the middle of the Victorian era, malaria was commonplace beside the River Thames, even in London, and
8282-519: The river. These include a variety of structures connected with use of the river, such as navigations, bridges and watermills , as well as prehistoric burial mounds . The lower Thames in the Roman era was a shallow waterway winding through marshes. But centuries of human intervention have transformed it into a deep tidal canal flowing between 200 miles of solid walls; these defend a floodplain where 1.5 million people work and live. A major maritime route
8383-661: The sandbank was a major hazard for shipping coming in and out of London, in 1732 it received the world's first lightship . This became a major landmark, and was used as an assembly point for shipping. Today it is marked by Sea Reach No. 1 Buoy. The River Thames contains over 80 islands ranging from the large estuarial marshlands of the Isle of Sheppey and Canvey Island to small tree-covered islets like Rose Isle in Oxfordshire and Headpile Eyot in Berkshire. They are found all
8484-663: The scene, landing in Parliament Square . Parliament was suspended and MPs remained in the Commons debating chamber as a precaution. Parliamentary staff were confined to their offices; journalists and visitors to Parliament were not permitted to leave the building. Some were later evacuated to Westminster Abbey . The Scottish Parliament and the National Assembly for Wales also suspended their proceedings that afternoon. The UK government's emergency Cabinet Office Briefing Room (COBRA) committee, chaired by
8585-541: The south coast), and the Wilts & Berks Canal . Rowing and sailing clubs are common along the Thames, which is navigable to such vessels. Kayaking and canoeing also take place. Major annual events include the Henley Royal Regatta and the Boat Race , while the Thames has been used during two Summer Olympic Games : 1908 ( rowing ) and 1948 ( rowing and canoeing ). Safe headwaters and reaches are
8686-486: The stabbing, ran towards the scene and shot Masood dead. The entire attack lasted 82 seconds. Despite attempts to resuscitate him, Masood died at the scene having been hit by all three shots fired by police. The first bullet, which struck his upper torso, was believed to be the cause of death; he was pronounced dead at 15:35 at hospital. Passers-by, including MP Tobias Ellwood (the Foreign Minister for
8787-705: The way from Fiddler's Island in Oxfordshire to the Isle of Sheppey in Kent. Some of the largest inland islands, for example Formosa Island near Cookham and Andersey Island at Abingdon, were created naturally when the course of the river divided into separate streams. In the Oxford area the river splits into several streams across the floodplain ( Seacourt Stream , Castle Mill Stream , Bulstake Stream and others), creating several islands ( Fiddler's Island , Osney and others). Desborough Island , Ham Island at Old Windsor and Penton Hook Island were artificially created by lock cuts and navigation channels. Chiswick Eyot
8888-412: The western part. The area is among the driest in the United Kingdom. Water resources consist of groundwater from aquifers and water taken from the Thames and its tributaries, much of it stored in large bank-side reservoirs . The Thames itself provides two-thirds of London's drinking water, while groundwater supplies about 40 per cent of public water supplies in the overall catchment area. Groundwater
8989-580: The year, while those at Thames Head are seasonal (a winterbourne ). With a length of 215 mi (346 km), the Thames is the longest river entirely in England. (The longest river in the United Kingdom, the Severn , flows partly in Wales .) However, as the River Churn, sourced at Seven Springs, is 14 mi (23 km) longer than the section of the Thames from its traditional source at Thames Head to
9090-645: The younger and predominantly Asian local radical Islamist group Al-Muhajiroun . Although aware of violence in Masood's past, Latif had only seen him become angry once, when Masood learnt of plans for a march by the English Defence League through Luton. Between 2012 and 2016, Masood appeared in MI5 investigations as a contact of individuals linked to Al-Muhajiroun. Masood carried out reconnaissance of Westminster Bridge in person and online three days before
9191-479: Was built at the site of London Bridge . London Bridge is now used as the basis for published tide tables giving the times of high tide . High tide reaches Putney about 30 minutes later than London Bridge, and Teddington about an hour later. The tidal stretch of the river is known as "the Tideway ". Tide tables are published by the Port of London Authority and are available online. Times of high and low tides are also posted on Twitter. The principal tributaries of
9292-958: Was denounced by the European Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker and the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation . On the evening of the attack, the Brandenburg Gate in Germany and Tel Aviv City Hall in Israel were illuminated with the Union Jack . At midnight that evening, the Eiffel Tower 's lights were switched off to honour those killed in the London attack. On 23 March, Jean-Marc Ayrault , France's Minister of Foreign Affairs , came to London, where he first visited
9393-463: Was frequently lethal. Some cases continued to occur into the early 20th century. Draining of the marshes helped with its eradication, but the causes are complex and unclear. The East End of London , also known simply as the East End , was the area of London east of the medieval walled City of London and north of the River Thames, although it is not defined by universally accepted formal boundaries;
9494-587: Was inspired by "international terrorism" and that they were working under the assumption that it was "Islamist-related terrorism". On 23 March, the Islamic State -associated Amaq News Agency announced that the attacker was "a soldier of the Islamic State, executing the operation in response to calls to target citizens of coalition nations". The Home Secretary , Amber Rudd , cast doubts on this claim. Analysts monitoring Islamic State online said
9595-532: Was made in Birmingham on 26 March. By 1 April, all twelve suspects arrested after the attack had been released without charge. Inquests for the dead victims were opened and adjourned on 29 March 2017, and into Masood's death the following day, both under the Senior Coroner for Westminster, Fiona Wilcox. On 12 October 2018, the jury at the inquest into Masood's death, held under the direction of
9696-684: Was posthumously awarded the George Medal . As part of the 2019 New Year Honours , six other constables, Andy Dunmore, John Kenealy, Stephen Marsh, Mary Mayes, Richard Moore, and Jerry Pearce, received the British Empire Medal following the attack, and PC Nick Carlisle was awarded the Queen's Police Medal for Distinguished Service . Acting Detective Sergeant Zac Idun, nurse Joy Ongcachuy, Peter Boorman of NHS England , and Claire Summers were all made OBEs for services in investigating
9797-628: Was proposed in 1664, but opposed by the Corporation of London and the watermen . Further opposition held sway in 1722. However an intervening bridge (albeit in timber) was built at Putney in 1729 and the scheme received parliamentary approval in 1736. Financed by private capital, lotteries and grants, Westminster Bridge was built between 1739–1750, under the supervision of the Swiss engineer Charles Labelye . The bridge opened on 18 November 1750. The City of London responded to Westminster Bridge and
9898-501: Was released on bail. Later on 24 March, seven of those initially arrested were released without further action and the woman arrested in Manchester was released on bail. By 25 March, only one man from Birmingham remained in custody and the woman on bail from East London had been removed from police enquiries. Up to that point in the investigation, 2,700 items had been seized and 3,500 witnesses had been contacted. A further arrest
9999-403: Was selected to coincide with the start of the day's official parliamentary business. In the morning session of parliament, Prime Minister Theresa May said that, "Yesterday an act of terrorism tried to silence our democracy, but today we meet as normal ... to deliver a simple message: We are not afraid and our resolve will never waver in the face of terrorism." In a later statement following
10100-617: Was subject to minor redefining and widening of the main channel around Oxford, Abingdon and Marlow before 1850, when further cuts to ease navigation reduced distances further. Molesey faces Hampton , and in Greater London the Thames passes Hampton Court Palace , Surbiton , Kingston upon Thames , Teddington , Twickenham , Richmond (with a famous view of the Thames from Richmond Hill), Syon House , Kew , Brentford , Chiswick , Barnes , Hammersmith , Fulham , Putney , Wandsworth , Battersea and Chelsea . In central London ,
10201-441: Was then shot by an armed police officer , and died at the scene. Police treated the attack as " Islamist-related terrorism ". Masood said in a final text message that he was waging jihad in revenge for Western military action in Muslim countries in the Middle East. Amaq News Agency , which is linked to Islamic State , said the attacker answered the group's calls to target citizens of states that were fighting against it , though
#235764