Grand Crimean Central Railway
Encyclopedia
Crimean War
The Crimean War was a conflict fought between the Russian Empire and an alliance of the French Empire, the British Empire, the Ottoman Empire, and the Kingdom of Sardinia. The war was part of a long-running contest between the major European powers for influence over territories of the declining...
. Its purpose was to supply ammunition and provisions to Allied soldiers engaged in the siege of Sevastopol who were stationed on a plateau between Balaclava
Balaklava
Balaklava is a former city on the Crimean peninsula and part of the city of Sevastopol which carries a special administrative status in Ukraine. It was a city in its own right until 1957 when it was formally incorporated into the municipal borders of Sevastopol by the Soviet government...
and Sevastopol
Sevastopol
Sevastopol is a city on rights of administrative division of Ukraine, located on the Black Sea coast of the Crimea peninsula. It has a population of 342,451 . Sevastopol is the second largest port in Ukraine, after the Port of Odessa....
(Ukraine
Ukraine
Ukraine is a country in Eastern Europe. It has an area of 603,628 km², making it the second largest contiguous country on the European continent, after Russia...
). It also carried the world's first hospital train.
The railway was built at cost and without any contract by a partnership of English railway contractors led by Samuel Morton Peto
Samuel Morton Peto
Sir Samuel Morton Peto, 1st Baronet was an English entrepreneur and civil engineer in the 19th century. A partner in Grissell and Peto, he managed construction firms that built many major buildings and monuments in London...
. Within three weeks of the arrival of the fleet carrying materials and men the railway had started to run and in seven weeks 7 miles (11 km) of track had been completed. The railway was a major factor leading to the success of the siege. After the end of the war the track was sold and removed.
The start of the siege
Ottoman Empire
The Ottoman EmpireIt was usually referred to as the "Ottoman Empire", the "Turkish Empire", the "Ottoman Caliphate" or more commonly "Turkey" by its contemporaries...
. By the late summer of 1854 the British, led by Lord Raglan, with their French and Turkish
Ottoman Empire
The Ottoman EmpireIt was usually referred to as the "Ottoman Empire", the "Turkish Empire", the "Ottoman Caliphate" or more commonly "Turkey" by its contemporaries...
allies decided that a siege
Siege
A siege is a military blockade of a city or fortress with the intent of conquering by attrition or assault. The term derives from sedere, Latin for "to sit". Generally speaking, siege warfare is a form of constant, low intensity conflict characterized by one party holding a strong, static...
of the Black Sea
Black Sea
The Black Sea is bounded by Europe, Anatolia and the Caucasus and is ultimately connected to the Atlantic Ocean via the Mediterranean and the Aegean seas and various straits. The Bosphorus strait connects it to the Sea of Marmara, and the strait of the Dardanelles connects that sea to the Aegean...
port of Sevastopol
Sevastopol
Sevastopol is a city on rights of administrative division of Ukraine, located on the Black Sea coast of the Crimea peninsula. It has a population of 342,451 . Sevastopol is the second largest port in Ukraine, after the Port of Odessa....
, held by the Russians
Russians
The Russian people are an East Slavic ethnic group native to Russia, speaking the Russian language and primarily living in Russia and neighboring countries....
, would be the best method of forcing an end to the war.
After landing their forces to the north of Sevastopol, the British set up a base in the narrow harbour of Balaclava
Balaklava
Balaklava is a former city on the Crimean peninsula and part of the city of Sevastopol which carries a special administrative status in Ukraine. It was a city in its own right until 1957 when it was formally incorporated into the municipal borders of Sevastopol by the Soviet government...
, about 8 miles (13 km) south of Sevastopol, in September 1854. Most of the land between Balaclava and Sevastopol was a plateau
Plateau
In geology and earth science, a plateau , also called a high plain or tableland, is an area of highland, usually consisting of relatively flat terrain. A highly eroded plateau is called a dissected plateau...
about 600 feet (183 m) above sea level. The towns were connected by a road which was little more than a track. This travelled northwards, rising slightly to the village of Kadikoi
Kadikoi
Kadikoi in the 19th century was a village on the Crimean peninsula, in Ukraine, about 1 mile north of Balaklava. The Battle of Balaclava was fought on the hills and valleys to the north of Kadikoi in 1854. The village was later known as Kadykovka , and Pryhorodne...
about 1 miles (2 km) from Balaclava. It then turned west, climbing steeply to the plateau via the Col
Mountain pass
A mountain pass is a route through a mountain range or over a ridge. If following the lowest possible route, a pass is locally the highest point on that route...
of Balaclava. The French were supplied from the harbour at Kamiesch.
During the early part of October, the British troops with their supplies and artillery made their way with difficulty up the road to prepare for the siege. When they were all in place the First Bombardment took place, starting on October 17th. It had been expected that the bombardment would be effective and that the siege would be short-lived; certainly over before the winter. However, the Russians blew up one of the French magazine
Magazine (artillery)
Magazine is the name for an item or place within which ammunition is stored. It is taken from the Arabic word "makahazin" meaning "warehouse".-Ammunition storage areas:...
s and the damage done by British gunfire was soon repaired. The British were running out of ammunition and supplies, winter was approaching and with the onset of bad weather the road became virtually impassable. Supplies were arriving at the crowded port of Balaclava but it was impossible to convey them to the besieging troops who were increasingly suffering from disease, frostbite
Frostbite
Frostbite is the medical condition where localized damage is caused to skin and other tissues due to extreme cold. Frostbite is most likely to happen in body parts farthest from the heart and those with large exposed areas...
and malnutrition
Malnutrition
Malnutrition is the condition that results from taking an unbalanced diet in which certain nutrients are lacking, in excess , or in the wrong proportions....
. Conditions in Balaclava itself were also deteriorating.
Towards a railway
William Howard Russell
William Howard Russell was an Irish reporter with The Times, and is considered to have been one of the first modern war correspondents, after he spent 22 months covering the Crimean War including the Charge of the Light Brigade.-Career:As a young reporter, Russell reported on a brief military...
, special correspondent of The Times
The Times
The Times is a British daily national newspaper, first published in London in 1785 under the title The Daily Universal Register . The Times and its sister paper The Sunday Times are published by Times Newspapers Limited, a subsidiary since 1981 of News International...
. Hearing the news, Samuel Morton Peto
Samuel Morton Peto
Sir Samuel Morton Peto, 1st Baronet was an English entrepreneur and civil engineer in the 19th century. A partner in Grissell and Peto, he managed construction firms that built many major buildings and monuments in London...
, one of the leading railway contractors of the day, offered with his partners Edward Betts
Edward Betts
Edward Ladd Betts was an English civil engineering contractor who was mainly involved in the building of railways.-Early life:...
and Thomas Brassey
Thomas Brassey
Thomas Brassey was an English civil engineering contractor and manufacturer of building materials who was responsible for building much of the world's railways in the 19th century. By 1847, he had built about one-third of the railways in Britain, and by time of his death in 1870 he had built one...
, to build at cost, without any contract or personal advantage, a railway to transport supplies from the port of Balaclava to the troops outside Sevastopol. They promised to have a railroad at work in three weeks after landing at Balaclava. The offer was accepted and the contractors began to obtain supplies, to purchase or hire ships, and to recruit the men, who included specialists and navvies
Navvy
Navvy is a shorter form of navigator or navigational engineer and is particularly applied to describe the manual labourers working on major civil engineering projects...
. The fleet set sail on December 21st and arrived at the beginning of February.
Meanwhile James Beatty
James Beatty (engineer)
James Beatty was an Irish railway engineer.The son of a doctor from Enniskillen, Beatty was first employed in 1842 at the age of 22 by Peto and Betts on building the Norwich and Lowestoft line. In 1853 he was in Nova Scotia surveying the European and North American Railway and despite adverse...
, who had played an important part in working with Peto's partnership to build the European and North American Railway
European and North American Railway
The European and North American Railway is the name for three historic Canadian and American railways which were built in New Brunswick and Maine....
, was recruited as chief engineer. The line was surveyed by Donald Campbell
Donald Campbell (engineer)
Donald Campbell was a railway engineer in the 19th century.Campbell worked on the survey of the New Brunswick section of the European and North American Railway with James Beatty...
, who had also worked on the European and North American Railway. Campbell's first task was to create a wharf
Wharf
A wharf or quay is a structure on the shore of a harbor where ships may dock to load and unload cargo or passengers.Such a structure includes one or more berths , and may also include piers, warehouses, or other facilities necessary for handling the ships.A wharf commonly comprises a fixed...
at Balaclava where the railway materials could be unloaded, with a yard adjacent. He planned for the track to pass along the middle of the main street of the town. It then went through a gorge
Canyon
A canyon or gorge is a deep ravine between cliffs often carved from the landscape by a river. Rivers have a natural tendency to reach a baseline elevation, which is the same elevation as the body of water it will eventually drain into. This forms a canyon. Most canyons were formed by a process of...
at the north of the town close to the water's edge and over swamp
Swamp
A swamp is a wetland with some flooding of large areas of land by shallow bodies of water. A swamp generally has a large number of hammocks, or dry-land protrusions, covered by aquatic vegetation, or vegetation that tolerates periodical inundation. The two main types of swamp are "true" or swamp...
y ground to the village of Kadikoi. From here, the railway had to rise some 500 feet (152 m) to the top of the plateau. Of the routes available, Campbell chose to follow the existing road. Although at parts its gradient
Gradient
In vector calculus, the gradient of a scalar field is a vector field that points in the direction of the greatest rate of increase of the scalar field, and whose magnitude is the greatest rate of change....
was as steep as 1 in 7, Campbell managed find a route with a maximum gradient of 1 in 14. A stationary engine
Stationary engine
A stationary engine is an engine whose framework does not move. It is normally used not to propel a vehicle but to drive a piece of immobile equipment such as a pump or power tool. They may be powered by steam; or oil-burning or internal combustion engines....
would be required at the top of this stretch to pull the railway carriages up the incline. Once on the plateau, the ground was rough but fairly level and here it presented fewer problems. Lord Raglan's headquarters were at the top of the col, and it was decided that a depot should be constructed here.
Construction
Double track
A double track railway usually involves running one track in each direction, compared to a single track railway where trains in both directions share the same track.- Overview :...
ed from Balaclava to Kadikol and various sidings
Rail siding
A siding, in rail terminology, is a low-speed track section distinct from a running line or through route such as a main line or branch line or spur. It may connect to through track or to other sidings at either end...
had been constructed near the wharf. In less than seven weeks 7 miles (11 km) of track had been laid.
During this time the pioneer photographer Roger Fenton
Roger Fenton
Roger Fenton was a pioneering British photographer, one of the first war photographers.-Early life:Roger Fenton was born in Crimble Hall, Heap, Bury, Lancashire, 28 March 1819. His grandfather was a wealthy cotton manufacturer and banker, his father a banker and Member of Parliament...
had arrived and he recorded the railway and its progress. On April 2nd, the railway was used to carry the sick and injured from the plateau down to Balaclava. It has been argued that this was the first hospital train ever to run. Also during this time, Colonel William McMurdo
William McMurdo
Sir William Montagu Scott McMurdo KCB was a British army officer who rose to the rank of general. He saw active service in India, helped to run a military railway in the Crimean War and then managed various groups of volunteers working with the army...
had been appointed to be in charge of a new department of the army, the Land Transport Corps. He arrived in the Crimea in early March, and one of his duties was to take over the operation of the railway from the contractors. It was finally handed over by Peto, Brassey and Betts in early July.
The war continues
The existence of the railway meant that sufficient supplies and armaments had been transported to the plateau for the allies to resume their attack. The Second Bombardment started on April 9th and continued for ten days. Initially, little progress seemed to have been made because again the Russians were able to repair the damage caused, and the Russians continued to deliver supplies to Sevastopol from the north. However, they had sustained heavy casualties. Following a period of stalemate, Allied forces cut off one of the main Russian supply lines at KerchKerch
Kerch is a city on the Kerch Peninsula of eastern Crimea, an important industrial, transport and tourist centre of Ukraine. Kerch, founded 2600 years ago, is considered as one of the most ancient cities in Ukraine.-Ancient times:...
on May 24th.
The increased supply of ammunition meant that the Allies were able to mount the Third Bombardment on June 6th. This was much more intensive than the previous ones. It was followed by an assault on the 7th and 8th, which met with a limited degree of success. More supplies were brought by the railway and the Fourth Bombardment took place on June 17th. The subsequent attack was mismanaged and was a failure.
The end of the siege
The Russians suffered a significant defeat at the Battle of the TchernayaBattle of Chernaya River
The Battle of the Chernaya was a battle by the Chernaya River fought during the Crimean War on August 16, 1855. The battle was fought between Russian troops and a coalition of French, Sardinian and Ottoman troops. The Chernaya River is on the outskirts of Sevastopol...
on August 16th. The Fifth Bombardment took place for five days from the 17th with the intention of destroying as many Russian defence works as possible. The Sixth Bombardment was followed by a successful Allied attack on September 8th, bringing the siege to an end two days later.
During the summer, further surveys had been carried out with the intention of supplying not just the British forces, but also their French and Sardinia
Sardinia
Sardinia is the second-largest island in the Mediterranean Sea . It is an autonomous region of Italy, and the nearest land masses are the French island of Corsica, the Italian Peninsula, Sicily, Tunisia and the Spanish Balearic Islands.The name Sardinia is from the pre-Roman noun *sard[],...
n allies (Sardinia had joined the war towards the end of 1854) by rail from Balaclava. At this time electric telegraphy by underwater cable
Cable
A cable is two or more wires running side by side and bonded, twisted or braided together to form a single assembly. In mechanics cables, otherwise known as wire ropes, are used for lifting, hauling and towing or conveying force through tension. In electrical engineering cables are used to carry...
was first used in warfare, connecting the Crimea to the Allies' base at Varna
Varna
Varna is the largest city and seaside resort on the Bulgarian Black Sea Coast and third-largest in Bulgaria after Sofia and Plovdiv, with a population of 334,870 inhabitants according to Census 2011...
in Bulgaria
Bulgaria
Bulgaria , officially the Republic of Bulgaria , is a parliamentary democracy within a unitary constitutional republic in Southeast Europe. The country borders Romania to the north, Serbia and Macedonia to the west, Greece and Turkey to the south, as well as the Black Sea to the east...
.
Locomotives and more lines
LocomotiveLocomotive
A locomotive is a railway vehicle that provides the motive power for a train. The word originates from the Latin loco – "from a place", ablative of locus, "place" + Medieval Latin motivus, "causing motion", and is a shortened form of the term locomotive engine, first used in the early 19th...
s were used, the first one running by November 8th, but this was too late to affect the outcome of the siege. The locomotives were not effective because they could not manage even the easy gradient from Balaclava to Kadikoi with more than a light load. Five second-hand locomotives, purchased by the contractors from collieries and railway companies in England, are known to have arrived. Alliance and Victory were two small 0-6-0 saddle tanks built by E. B. Wilson & Co of Leeds in 1854/5; two from the London & North Western Railway, Nos 13 and 50, were 2-2-0 Bury-type passenger engines built by Benjamin Hick & Son of Bolton in 1838 and 1840; the fifth locomotive was Swan from the St Helens Canal & Railway Co, but its details remain obscure.
James Beatty left the Crimea in November to return to England, a sick man, and Donald Campbell took over. Earlier in September Her Majesty's Floating Factory Chasseur arrived at Balaclava to provide an engineering service under the direction of Robert Frazer. A third stationary engine also arrived. Due to the haste in which the railway had been constructed, it was in danger of being severely damaged by the weather of the coming winter. William Doyne organised the building of new lines of a superior quality, again in a short time. By November 10th, 6.5 miles (10 km) of track had been laid between Balaclava and the British headquarters. The lines towards the Sardinian and French headquarters were also advancing.
Towards the end of the war
Towards and during the second winter, the supplies carried by the railway were different. The siege had ended, carriage of ammunition was less important, and the supplies related more to the accommodation and comfort of the troops. These included huts to replace tents, clothing, food, books and medical supplies. Colonel McMurdo also left the Crimea as a sick man on December 1st, passing the control of the railway to Colonel Edward Wetherall. Following the completion of the Sardinian branch, the railway had reached its limit. In all, it measured about 14 miles (23 km) plus a few miles of sidings and loops.Sevastopol lay in ruins after the end of the siege. Tsar
Tsar
Tsar is a title used to designate certain European Slavic monarchs or supreme rulers. As a system of government in the Tsardom of Russia and Russian Empire, it is known as Tsarist autocracy, or Tsarism...
Nicholas I
Nicholas I of Russia
Nicholas I , was the Emperor of Russia from 1825 until 1855, known as one of the most reactionary of the Russian monarchs. On the eve of his death, the Russian Empire reached its historical zenith spanning over 20 million square kilometers...
died on 2 March 1855, and peace negotiations were opened by the new Tsar
Tsar
Tsar is a title used to designate certain European Slavic monarchs or supreme rulers. As a system of government in the Tsardom of Russia and Russian Empire, it is known as Tsarist autocracy, or Tsarism...
, Alexander II
Alexander II of Russia
Alexander II , also known as Alexander the Liberator was the Emperor of the Russian Empire from 3 March 1855 until his assassination in 1881...
. Hostilities ended between the Allies and the Russians on 29 February 1856 and the Treaty of Paris
Treaty of Paris (1856)
The Treaty of Paris of 1856 settled the Crimean War between Russia and an alliance of the Ottoman Empire, the British Empire, Second French Empire, and the Kingdom of Sardinia. The treaty, signed on March 30, 1856 at the Congress of Paris, made the Black Sea neutral territory, closing it to all...
was signed on 30 March 1856. The Russians sold the track to the Turks soon after the war ended. The rails had already been uprooted and taken away, and the railway ceased to exist although five coaches, some goods waggons and at least two steam engines went on to a new life on the newly-started Buenos Ayres Western Railway in the Argentine; this was the first of many South American railways built to the "Indian Gauge" of 5'6", which the builders of the Grand Crimean Central Railway had chosen as it enabled them to use in Crimea available engines and rolling stock which had already been built for lines in India, instead of waiting for new plant to be built.
External links
- http://www.victorianweb.org/history/crimea/genorder.htmlGeneral Order after the Fall of Sebastapol (article in The New York TimesThe New York TimesThe New York Times is an American daily newspaper founded and continuously published in New York City since 1851. The New York Times has won 106 Pulitzer Prizes, the most of any news organization...
1855)]