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[[Image:Thames_Oxford.jpg|right|thumb|250px|The ''Thames'' in Oxfordshire]]

[[Image:Thames_Oxford.jpg|right|thumb|250px|The ''Thames'' in Oxfordshire]]

[[Image:Thames_London.jpg|right|thumb|250px|The ''Thames'' in central London]]

[[Image:Thames_London.jpg|right|thumb|250px|The ''Thames'' in central London]]

The [[River Thames]] is, at 215 miles (346 km) from source to sea, the longest river that runs wholly in [[England]] (the [[Severn]], which rises in [[Wales]], is longer)<ref>''Whittaker's Almanack 2001'' p108</ref>. It rises near Cricklade in [[Gloucestershire]] and runs through [[Oxford]], [[Reading]], [[Windsor]] and [[London]] before entering the [[North Sea]]. The river is tidal as far as Teddington Lock, in west [[London]]. A number of [[canals]] were built in the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries connecting the Thames to the inland waterways system; most notable are the Kennett & Avon Canal, connecting the Thames to Bristol and the west coast, and the Grand Junction Canal (since 1929 the [[Grand Union Canal]]) which runs from London to [[Northamptonshire]] and links London to the canal system of the Midlands and northern England.

The [[River Thames]] is, at 215 miles (346 km) from source to sea, the longest river that runs wholly in [[England]] (the [[River Severn|Severn]], which rises in [[Wales]], is longer)<ref>''Whittaker's Almanack 2001'' p108</ref>. It rises near Cricklade in [[Gloucestershire]] and runs through [[Oxford]], [[Reading]], [[Windsor]] and [[London]] before entering the [[North Sea]]. The river is tidal as far as Teddington Lock, in west [[London]]. A number of [[Canal|canals]] were built in the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries connecting the Thames to the inland waterways system; most notable are the Kennett & Avon Canal, connecting the Thames to Bristol and the west coast, and the Grand Junction Canal (since 1929 the [[Grand Union Canal]]) which runs from London to [[Northamptonshire]] and links London to the canal system of the Midlands and northern England.

[[London]]'s location was determined by the presence of a safe crossing-point of the river, and the role of the Thames as a gateway for trade enabled the capital to grow and to become Britain's largest port. Extensive docks were excavated along the Thames to the east of London in the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries. The river also served as a highway for trade until the development of railways in the nineteenth century.

[[London]]'s location was determined by the presence of a safe crossing-point of the river, and the role of the Thames as a gateway for trade enabled the capital to grow and to become Britain's largest port. Extensive docks were excavated along the Thames to the east of London in the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries. The river also served as a highway for trade until the development of railways in the nineteenth century.