sections:
The railways were the invention that changed history. They had a greater impact than any other previous invention and they shaped history for a century and although the motor car took over, they retain a vital role nearly two centuries after the first engine was put on a track.
The railways made hitherto difficult journeys into routine trips and connected up Britain. They knitted Britain together, allowing both passengers and goods to be transported across the country cheaply and quickly. Until their arrival, journey times between major towns in the UK had barely changed since the Romans had built their roads.
That story is fairly familiar. But the railways did so much more than that. The railways were by far the biggest building project in history, dwarfing even the road building of the Romans. They employed thousands of people during their construction and smaller, but still considerable, numbers for their operations. The engineering feats of the railway developers were unprecedented and set a very high standard of safety, despite the odd mishap like the collapse of the Tay Bridge.
The book will trace the history of the development of the railways from the perspective of the people whose lives they changed. The effect of the railways on every community they served was enormous. They allowed many new businesses to flourish, while destroying others. Agricultural produce found new markets far afield, while inefficient local suppliers could be wiped out by a better product made in the neighbouring town. There were other unintended side effects. For example, the railway was the biggest ratepayer in every parish where there was a station.
This book will tell the story of the development of the railways with an emphasis on how they changed the world. It will be a social and economic history, putting the railways in the context of the times in which they were created and will take us up to the present day.
book reviews
- Times
“...an engaging history of the marvel that was British railways.” - Andrew Adonis, Prospect
“This magnificent book tells the tale of the railways from George Stephenson to privatization in 300 pages.” - New Statesman
“Fire and Steam takes its place as the definitive railway history and deserves a place on the shelves not just of train buffs, but of anyone interested in the development of British society.” - Good Book Guide
“…an intriguing study of a force that revolutionized Britain.” - Tribune
“He tells a rattling good yarn and even explains the technical bits in a non-technical way: but most of all he gets across the big picture. ..highly readable and richly illustrated history. Highly recommended.” - The Herald
“...Britain’s foremost writer on transport turns his attention to a period that changed the country immeasurably...” - Focus
“The book provides a powerful case study in history, engineering, marketing and politics not just for London Underground but also of London itself.” - Sunday Times Books of the Year
“...a marvellous account of the part played by the railways in Britain’s recent history.” - Daily Telegraph Books of the Year
“… a polemical history of the railways that transformed London, knitted the nation together and gave the world the British Rail sandwich, will have even the most jaded commuter leafing through the Hornby catalogue, such is Wolmar's enthusiasm for his subject.” - Scotsman
“The story of how railways created modern society is told with verve.” - Eastern Daily Press
“...a comprehensive survey of the way the iron rail really did open up the world...fascinating..” - Times Literary Supplement
“...a fine overview of the significance of railways that would interest even the most dedicated of motorists.” - Evening Standard
“The story of how the railways created modern society is told here with verve and vividness.” - Literary Review
“...a new history combining fresh insights with an enjoyable read.” - Rod Liddle, Sunday Times
“...marvellously informative, entertaining and rightly partisan book...a book that has given me more pleasure than any I can remember in quite a while.” - The Independent
“Christian Wolmar is a sure-footed guide to the oft-told tale of British railway history. The author has an unerring eye for relevant detail. His scholarship is everywhere evident and he gives us full measure on the three great accidents in rail history: at Quintinhill, Scotland in 1915; Harrow and Wealdstone (1952) and Lewisham (1957). There are innumerable anecdotes and lashings of informative asides. The real interest of this volume, however, is the way it moves from a breezy, populist style when dealing with the 19th century to something like Swift's savage indignation in the 20th… His outstanding analytical coda should be required reading for every MP. This is an excellent book which, like all the best stories, begins with something like comedy and ends with the blackest tragedy. “ - Guardian
“Our leading writer and commentator on the railways is Christian Wolmar… Fire and Steam is so efficiently organised that you can imagine Wolmar calmly superintending some vast marshalling yard. It is written in a brisk, down-to-earth style (a favourite adjective is "daft"), and is enjoyably replete with bizarre details.” - Times
“...a lovely new history of the world’s oldest railway system...a rollicking tale with all the facts that Mr Gradgrind might want.” - Daily Telegraph
“Wolmar is excellent on the technical and also social hurdles to be overcome in the development of the railway… While all these grand themes are expertly explored and explicated, Wolmar never forgets the human dimension, and he is excellent on the various personalities who created and ran the railways… a beautifully written, detailed (but never anorak-y) history of two centuries of life on the iron road.” - BBC History Magazine
“...a popular history, in the best sense of that term, rich in anecdotes without being anecdotal, firmly rooted and referenced in a broad knowledge of our railways....even the most knowledgeable railway aficionado is bound to find something here which is new...” - Hunter Davies
"A magnificent sweep through the whole human history of railways." - David Dimbleby
"The railways and proper sewers were the two great creations of the Victorians which changed the face of Britain. Christian Wolmar brings the era of railway mania alive: both the imagination and the daring that made it possible." - Simon Bradley
"A fresh account of how our railways were made, that is by turns inspiring, fascinating and – when privatisation comes around – truly devastating. A book for the enthusiast, the commuter, and for anyone who wants to know more about the story of transport in Britain."
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