 Work on the navigation began in 1719, although local opposition the following year threatened works—Mayor of Reading Robert Blake led a 300-strong mob along with the town's recorder to Burghfield where the construction was damaged; Blake owned a wharf near the junction of the Kennet and River Thames, and feared that his trade would be adversely affected by a new waterway.Further setbacks came the following winter, when extraordinary floods damaged the works.In March 1721, an extension to the original timescale was granted.