19th-century London a network of smaller tunnels away from the River Thames and out of Central London, towards the Northern Outfall Sewer at Beckton in East London. The Victoria Embankment also allowed an extension of the Metropolitan District Line underground to be built, from Westminster east to Blackfriars. In total, the Victoria Embankment reclaimed over 37 acres of land from the Thames, allowing a broad east-west boulevard to be built and a series of public gardens. All three sections of the Thames Embankment are faced in grey granite, mounted with handsome cast iron lamps, and lined with London plane trees. In 1878,
Port of London centuries it was the busiest port in the world, with wharves extending continuously along the Thames for , and over 1,500 cranes handling 60,000 ships per year. In World War II it was a prime target for the Luftwaffe during The Blitz. The first evidence of a reasonable sized trading in London can be seen during Roman control of Britain, at which time the Romans built the original harbour. The construction involved expanding the waterfront using wooden frames filled with dirt. Once these were in place the wharf was built in four stages moving downstream from the London Bridge (Brigham).