Destroyed Collection (#59)

The Temple Rebuilt
The Jews rebuild the Temple of Jerusalem which had been destroyed by Nebuchadnezzar II, king of Babylon

Monitor Merrimac Parsons
The Battle of Hampton Roads. The Confederates armoured frigate Merrimac destroyed many Federal vessels, but retreated following action with Monitor, a turret ship

Monitor & Merrimac / Elson
The Battle of Hampton Roads. The Confederates armoured frigate Merrimac destroyed many Federal vessels, but retreated following action with Monitor, a turret ship

Russia / 990 / Vladimir / Kiev
Vladimir of Novgorod, dissatisfied with pagan beliefs, adopts Orthodox Christianity in 988. Pagan icons are destroyed and people christened by force

Sinclair at Romsdal
Scottish mercenaries under Colonel Siclair, hired by the King of Sweden to attack Norway land at Romsdalen. They are in the end destroyed by the local peasants

Taeping / Junks Destroyed
The blowing up of the Chinese Commodores junk, and burning of others, at Toon-Chung

Reichstag Fire
The Reichstag destroyed by fire

1914 / German Convoy Burnt
The remains of a German convoy, destroyed while travelling through the Villiers Cotteret forest, in France

Napoleon Iii / Moloch 82
NAPOLEON III with Sedan - the battle which finally destroyed him - written on his brow, and a dagger in his back

Fire at the Tower 1841
Two views of the great fire which destroyed much of the Armoury - as seen from within the Tower precinct, and a more distant view from Tower Hill

Statue of Zeus, Olympia
The giant statue was carved by the Greek sculptor Phidias around 435 BC from ivory. It was slowly destroyed by fire, floods, earthquakes and landslides

Buildings / 7 Wonders
Built by the Greeks, almost entirely from marble, in Ephesus, now part of Turkey. Destroyed by Herostratus in 356 BC in an attempt to immortalise his name

Britannia Music Hall
Famous music hall in Hoxton, London. Opened in 1858, built on the site of the Britannia Saloon, opened 1841. Converted to a cinema in 1923 and destroyed by bombing in 1940

SEA-DEVILS
OUT OF THE DEEP come marine monsters, with evil intent, but the sea-devils are destroyed... Trafalgar Square, London, is strewn with their corpses

L77 Zeppelin Destroyed
French soldiers inspect the wreckage of Zeppelin L77, shot down with an incendiary shell near Brabant-le-Roi

Wrotham Park
The South West front of Wrotham Park, Barnet (the seat of the Earl of Stratford) shortly before it was destroyed by fire in 1883

2nd Eddystone Lighthouse
The second (wooden) Eddystone lighthouse, near Plymouth, Devon, is built by Rudyerd : it is nearly 30 metres high but will be destroyed by fire in 1755

British War Bonds Poster
British war loan poster with an illustration of an destroyed Belgian village and the slogan Buy National War Bonds and protect YOUR HOME

Crystal Palace Burns
The Crystal Palace at Sydenham is destroyed by fire

Fleeing Earthquake 1750
LONDON EARTHQUAKE SCARE Following an earlier quake, many Londoners believe the city will be destroyed on 4 April 1750, and flee to Windsor and such places

Hotel De LA Ville
The burning of the Hotel de la Ville, Paris, destroyed by the Communards as they are forced to abandon their designated headquarters in the face of advancing government troops

Atlantis Destroyed
The island is destroyed by a tidal wave

Fishing Fleet in Storm
When a fishing fleet is caught in a severe storm, the vessels that survive pick up the crews of those which are destroyed

Cock Tavern, Fleet St
The dining room of the Cock Tavern on Fleet St. Like other pubs in the area, the Cock was frequented by luminaries like Pepys, Johnson and Tennyson. It was destroyed in 1886

Tay Bridge Photo 4
The destroyed central section of the Tay railway bridge from which a passenger train crashed into the river at night drowning between 75 and 90 passengers

Royal Exchange C17
The courtyard of Thomas Greshams Royal Exchange, modelled on the bourse at Antwerp : sadly, it will be destroyed in the Great Fire of 1666

Rene De Laudonniere
RENE de GOULAINE de LAUDONNIERE French seaman, founded a protestant colony in Florida but it was destroyed by the Spanish, he barely escaped

Saint Petronius
SAINT PETRONIUS Son of a Roman prefect in Gaul, he became bishop of Bologna and rebuilt churches destroyed by the Goths - thats why hes holding one

Custom House in C16
The old Custom House on the banks of the Thames, at the time of Queen Elizabeth : it will be destroyed during the Great Fire of 1666

Chemical War in London
Chemical warfare will be the determining factor in the next war : London will be destroyed by chemical attacks on its inhabitants, leading to fires and other destruction

San Francisco Fire
Immediately after the quake : fires have started, and on the same day this photo was taken, all the buildings shown will have been destroyed !

Lisbon Quake / Ruins
Part of the ruined city after the earthquake, which destroyed immense numbers of buildings besides causing the deaths of some 60, 000 people

Afghanistan / Bamian
Two colossal Buddhist sculptures cut from the hillside. Known to have been there in 630, they were destroyed by order of the Taliban rulers in 2001

Looters Destroyed
When Herods guards attempt to ransack the tomb of King David, flames burst out of his coffin and destroy two of them

Tsushima (Schon - 4
BATTLE OF TSUSHIMA STRAIT The sinking of the Russian battleship Navarin - almost the entire Russian fleet was destroyed or captured by the Japanese in the 2-day battle

Churches / Doncaster / 1852
St. Georges Church, Doncaster, before it was destroyed by fire in 1853

John Bright as Quaker
JOHN BRIGHT, statesman, depicted as a Quaker, opposing the territorial party (the landowners) and declaring that the Constitution may have to be reformulated or destroyed

No Mans Land 1st Ww
Under great difficulties, British troops carry supplies over destroyed bridges on the Yeer Canal

Wrecked Howitzer in Wwi
A Sikh soldier in the British army guards the remains of a howitzer which was blown up by a direct hit from German artillery

Mcclellan Retreats
Union troops under McClellan are forced to retreat from the Chickahominy, Virginia : as he pulls out from his hq at Dr Trents Farm, stores and forage are destroyed by burning

Ww1 Shell Damage, France
A French cure tells British infantrymen how his church was destroyed by German shelling

Dublin Rebellion 1916
Guarding the remains of the Ulster and Leinster Bank in Dublin, destroyed by rebels in the Easter Rising

Bomb Damage in London
Rubble from destroyed buildings in the area of St Pauls Cathedral, London

KINGs THEATRE / 1819
Kings Theatre, Haymarket - the front elevation by John Nash, re-built after the original was destroyed by a fire in 1789

7 Wonders / Diana / Sargent
Built by the Greeks, almost entirely from marble, in Ephesus, now part of Turkey. Destroyed by Herostratus in 356 BC in an attempt to immortalise his name

7 Wonders / Diana / Won. Mus
Built by the Greeks, almost entirely from marble, in Ephesus, now part of Turkey. Destroyed by Herostratus in 356 BC in an attempt to immortalise his name

7 Wonders / Zeus / Parr
The statue was carved by the Greek sculptor, Phidias, around 435 BC from ivory. It was slowly destroyed by fire, floods, earthquakes and landslides

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From Hogarth's Gin Lane to the demolished Tinsley cooling towers, destruction has left its mark throughout history. The haunting image of Newcastle Bridge in ruins takes us back to a time long gone, while The Redoutable at Trafalgar reminds us of the fierce battles fought on treacherous seas. As we gaze upon The Sinking of the Bismarck, we witness the power and devastation that war brings. But not all destruction is intentional; sometimes it is necessary for progress. The demolition of the iconic Tinsley cooling towers in Sheffield symbolizes a changing landscape and evolving times. Similarly, when flames engulfed Alexandria Library, centuries worth of knowledge turned into ashes. In contrast, destruction can also be an act of conquest or revenge. The King of Ashantis Palace at Kumasi met its demise in 1874 as colonial powers sought dominance over African territories. Likewise, Canterbury Cathedral Library suffered damage during WW2's Baedeker Blitz—a tragic loss for literature enthusiasts. Yet amidst chaos and ruin, resilience emerges. Just like the rebuilt Eddystone Lighthouse after its collapse in 1698 stood tall once again, humanity finds ways to rise from ashes and rebuild what was lost. And finally, there are those who bear witness to fictional destruction—The War of the Worlds transports us into a world where alien invasion threatens our very existence. Meanwhile, aboard Cutty Sark Clipper shipwrecked dreams lie shattered but serve as a reminder that even broken pieces hold stories within them. Whether caused by nature or human hands, destroyed landmarks carry tales untold—reminders that nothing lasts forever.