East End of London clearance. Industries associated with the sea developed throughout the East End, including rope making and shipbuilding. The former location of roperies can still be identified from their long straight, narrow profile in the modern streets, for instance Ropery Street near Mile End. Shipbuilding was important from the time when Henry VIII caused ships to be built at Rotherhithe as a part of his expansion of the Royal Navy. On 31 January 1858, the largest ship of that time, the SS Great Eastern, designed by Isambard Kingdom Brunel, was launched from the yard of Messrs Scott Russell & Co, of Millwall.
Isambard Kingdom Brunel father's middle name, which was also his father's preferred given name. "Isambard" is a Norman name of Germanic origin, meaning either "iron-bright" or "iron-axe". The first element comes from "isarn" meaning iron (or steel). The second element comes from either "biart-r" (bright, glorious) or from "barđa" (a broad axe). His middle name "Kingdom" was his mother's maiden name. The son of French civil engineer Sir Marc Isambard Brunel and an English mother Sophia Kingdom, Isambard Kingdom Brunel was born on 9 April 1806 in Britain Street, Portsea, Portsmouth, Hampshire, where his father was working on block-making machinery. He had two