What are the bridges on all the £1 coins and why bridges?

Answer 1

To answer your question the bridges are as follows:
The Millenium Bridge in Gateshead representing England.
MacNeills Egyptian Arch representing Northern Ireland.
Forth Bridge representing Scotland.
Menai Straits Bridge in Anglesey representing Wales.

Floral designs were used during 1984-1987,and 1989-1992 .
Heraldry designs were used in 1994-1997 and 1999-2002.

The Scottish coins are dated 2004.
The Welsh coins are dated 2005.
The Northern Ireland coins are dated 2006.
The England coins are dated 2007.
This follows the four year cycle which is adopted by the Royal Mint.
During the intervening years and in 2003,designs representing the whole of the United Kingdom were employed.
Incidentally the designer of the Bridges is engraver Edwina Ellis,who won a limited competition judged by the Royal Mint Advisory Committee.

Answer 2

The reverse of the £1 coin has changed every year since they were introduced back in 1983. The first one had the Royal Coat of Arms then each country of the United Kindgom, starting with scotland was represented over a 4 year cycle. This has continued ever since. The most recent cycle of designs, are famous bridges in each of the constituent countries of the UK not just the Forth Bridge as mentioned above. Interestingly, the legend around the coin, always in latin, usually on the English Welsh and Northern Irish coins, DECUS ET TUTAMEN (an ornament and a safeguard) and on the scottish coins, the order of the thistle, No one provokes me without inpunity, are missing from this set.

Answer 3

I think they're the Forth Bridge. The MInt seems to vary the designs of £1 coins annually - presumably it helps stop forgers. They tend to choose designs identifyable to one of the four countries of the UK. The Forth Bridge is of course a Scottish landmark, in fact its near Gordon Brown's Dunfermline constituency. Brown as Chancellor of the Exchequer also holds the post of Master of the Mint.

P.S. Re the next answer. I hadn't noticed there were bridges from the other countries too. But can I correct the statement that the mottos in the past have always been Latin. The Welsh designs had a Welsh motto.