On Oct 18, 2:46 pm, "Obadiah Jones"
wrote:

Or perhaps I should say 'what was the motivation for building it'?


Methinks the other answers so far have missed a key point.

There used to be two 19th century rival companies at loggerheads with
other - the LCDR and the SER. Both these companies desired each their
own City terminus and own West End terminus. Thus - as far as they
could do it - the LCDR built Victoria (West End) and Holborn Viaduct
(City) and the SER built Charing Cross (West End) and Cannon Street
(City).

Even though those two concerns nominally merged into SECR they were
all but two seperate railways - and even through SR SE, BR SR SED,
Connex SE and SET/IKF those 19th competitors formed the key roots of
todays services - although SR electrifiying Holborn Viaduct altered
patterns serving that location, and it closed 1990s being served by
Blackfriars and City Thameslink insteads.

London Bridge is almost a red herring - it happens to be a large
station on the way, thats all.

--
Nick