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Railways at War by John Westwood Hard Cover 1980-81 INDEXED 224 pages
Railways at War by John Westwood Hard Cover 1980-81 INDEXED 224 pages
Well done steam! Smoke, thou art wonderful, and a reformer !' General Sir Charles Napier exulted in his diary of 1839. Summoned from his northern headquarters to discuss how to quell a threatened rebellion, he had presented himself to Lord John Russell in London within twenty-four hours of receiving the message, thanks to the newly opened Grand Junction and London & Birmingham railways. A few weeks later, as he brought in troops to suppress a rising feared in Manchester, he had further occasion to bless the railways, this time the Liverpool & Manchester line. The loth Regiment of Foot, sent from Ireland, was in Manchester only a few hours after disembarking at Liverpool. Not only were the reinforcements fresh but the Railway had produced an unexpected bonus for the hard-pressed Sir Charles : `One wing of the loth came by morning train yesterday : the other by an evening train, which made everybody suppose two regiments had arrived.
Soon after its opening in 183o, the Liverpool & Manchester Railway had been the first to carry troops on active service, when urgent reinforcements were sent to Ireland from Manchester ; the rail journey to Liverpool was said to have saved two days' marching. This Railway was also the first to have an agreement with the government on special cheap fares for troops ; in the early 184os a new but similar agreement was made between the government and all other British railways, the fare being 2 pence per mile. Such fares were lower than standard rates and, moreover, the War Office saved the extra expense incurred by a soldier on the march, reckoned at about one shilling per day (most of which found its way into roadside inns).
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