Adler (locomotive)
Encyclopedia
The Adler was the first locomotive
which was successfully commercially
used for rail transport
of passengers
and goods in Germany
. The rail vehicle
was constructed and built in 1835 from the british
railway pioneers George
and Robert Stephenson
in the english
town Newcastle
. It was delivered to the Bavarian Ludwig Railway (Bayerische Ludwigsbahn) for the service between Nuremberg
and Fürth
. It ran officially for the first time there on 7 December 1835. The Adler was a steam locomotive
from the Patentee type
with the wheel arrangement 2-2-2
(Whyte notation
) or 1A1 (UIC classification
). The Adler was furnished with a tender of the type 2 T 2.
on German soil. However already 1816 a serviceable steam locomotive was constructed by the Royal Prussian Steelworks (Königlich Preußische Eisengießerei) in Berlin
. The so-called Krigar-locomotive pulled during a test run one railroad car
which was loaded with a payload of 8,000 German pounds (about 4.48 tonnes (4.4 LT). But this vehicle
was never used commercially. Nevertheless the Adler was undoubtedly the first successfully operated locomotive in Germany which was regularly in use.
The first letter of enquiry was sent via the London
company Suse und Libeth to Robert Stephenson & Co. and Braithwaite & Ericsson
. The locomotive should be able to pull a weight
of ten metric tons
and to cover the distance between Nuremberg and Fürth in between eight to ten minutes. Moreover it should be heated with charcoal
. Stephenson answered a locomotive of the same building class like these of the Liverpool and Manchester Railway
with four wheel
s and a weight of between 7.5 and 8 metrical tons could be delivered. An lighter engine wouldn't have the needed power of adhesion
and would be more expensive than a heavier engine. Johannes Scharrer anyway asked at June 16th, 1833 for a calculation for two locomotives with a weight of 6.5 metrical tons and a needed accessories kit. Stephenson's calculation had an amount of about 1,800 Pound sterling
. The German company Holmes and Rolandson from Unterkochen near Aalen
made an offering for a steam locomotive with a power of between two to six hp
at a price of 4,500 Gulden
. But the proceedings with Holmes and Rolandson slowed and had no feasible result. Because of these reasons this contact was canceled. A further offering came from Josef Reaullaux located in Eschweiler
near Aachen
. At the end of April Platner and Mainberger from Nuremberg were in Neuwied
near Cologne
. There they wanted to award a contract concerning the rail profile
s. At April 28th they travelled to Cologne because they wanted to meet with a friend of Platner called Consul Bartls. Bartls advised them the belgian
machine factory Cockerill
in Liège
. Platner and Mainberger travelled because of this to Liège. There they found out that Cockerill hasn't built a locomotive until that point of time. They however found out that Stephenson was in Brussels
that time. They reached Brussels at Mai 1st and accommodated themselves in the guesthouse of Flanders
. Stephenson and several of his engineers were already there. Stephenson wanted to be present at the opening of the railway line from Brussels to Antwerp which was scheduled for May 5th. At May 3rd both parties signed a letter of intent
. Stephenson wanted to deliver a locomotive of the Patentee type
with six wheels and a weight of about six metrical tons at a price of between 750 and 800 pound sterling. At May 15th, 1835 the new locomotive was ordered at Stephenson's locomotive factory in Newcastle at these conditions. Futhermore a tender a bogie
for a passenger car and one for a goods wagon
were ordered. Later it turned out that the locomotive would cost about 900 Pounds Sterling instead of the sum appointed in Brussels. Stephenson promised origuinally in Brussels a delivery of the locomotive until end of July to Rotterdam
Different units of measurement
were used in Nuremberg and England. The english foot and the bavarian foot were different. The track gauge was predifined to the same as of the Stockton and Darlington Railway
which was 4 english feet and 8,5 inch
es (1435 mm). Stephenson persisted on this gauge which caused a rebuilding of the already built track because the existing track gauge was too narrow at 5/8 inches. The delivery of the locomotive to Nuremberg with all spare parts consisted of over 100 individual components in 19 boxes of a total weight of 177 hundredweight
s at a cost of 1140 pounds sterling, 19 shilling
s und 3 pennies
. The boxes were shipped delayed at September 3rd, 1835 on the ship Zoar from London
to Rotterdam. The freight rate from Rotterdam to Cologne was 700 Francs, from Cologne to Offenbach am Main 507 south German Gulden and 9 Kreuzer
and from Offenbach to Nuremberg 653 Gulden and 11 Kreuzer
. The board of directors of the Bavarial Ludwig Railway wanted to reach an excemption from import duties. The locomotive was declared as an example for a formerly unknown product which should be used by fabrics in the Bavarian inland. After several difficulties the ministry of finance improved the toll-free import with Johann Wilhelm Spaeth as receiver of the delivery.
With the barge
van Hees which was owned by its captain
van Hees and pulled upriver by the steamboat
Hercules on the Rhine the transport boxes were shipped until Cologne Because there was less water in the Rhine Captain van Hees had to use horses to pull the barge instead of the steamboat. At October 7th the train of barges reached Cologne. The remained distance to Nuremberg had to covered with wagon
s because the Main had also less water and wasn't navigable. The transport on land was disrumted by a strike
of the freight forwarder
s in Offenbach am Main. Thus a different freight forwarder had to be ordered. At October 26th, 1835 the tranpost reached Nuremberg. The steam engine was assembled in the workshops of the Johann Wilhelm Spaeth engineering works. The assembly was observed by Stephenson's engineer William Wilson who was travelled with the locomotive to Nuremberg. They used the help of the technical teacher Bauer and local carpenters
.
At November 10th, 1835 the board of directors of the Bavarian Ludwig Railway expressed their hope that the locomotive would be serviceable soon. The locomotive was a symbol for power, daringness and rapidity.
Both bogies which were delivered by Robert Stephenson & Co. turned out as too heavy for the circumstances existed in Nuremberg. The German constructor Denis
had planned that the railway wagons should be pulled either from the steam locomotive or from horses. Because of this reason he considered a lighter construction as necessary. Several companies built the wagons. The bogies were produced by Späth, Gemeiner und Manhard. The wooden coachwork were delivered by the wheelwright
Stahl from Nuremberg. Because these companies were used to capacity with fifferent orders three bogies and 16 wheels were produced by the company Stein in Lohr
near Aschaffenburg
. Denis threatened these companies to place future orders in England if they would not work faster. At the end of August 1835 the first wagon was completed. In the second half of October the completion of the further wagons was foreseeable. Until the opening of the Bavarian Ludwig Railway nine wagons were produced. It were two wagons of the third class, four of the second class and three of the first class. At October 21st, 1835 the first test run with one horse-pulled wagon took place. Denis had constructed a brake
for the wagons which was tested at this opportunity. The wagon could be stopped in each situation without any effort by the horse.
At November 16th the first test run of the steam locomotive from Nuremberg to Fürth and back again was accomplished. Because of the cold weather at that day the speed was slowed down. Three days later five fully occupied wagons were transported on the track in between 12 and 13 minutes. On the way back the brakes and also boarding and deboarding of the passengers were tested. During the following tests it was discovered if wood was burned in the locomotive the sparks which came out of the chimney of the locomotice seared the clothing of the passengers. The participation at the test run costed 36 Kreuzer
s, the revenues were donated to the public welfare for poor
people.
en framework which was covered with sheet metal
. The both wet steam driven cylinders
which were placed horizontally inside the frame drove the driving wheelset which was placed in the middle of the three axis. The driving wheels had no wheel flange
so the locomotive could be operated on narrow curve radiuses. The forged spoke
s were rivetted with the rim
. The original wheels consisted of cast iron
and were encircled with a forged wheel tyre
made of puddle iron
. The original wheels made of brittle cast iron were replaced later through wheels made of puddle iron which were stronger. The hollow spokes had a core made of wood to made them more flexible to cushion unevenness of the track. All wheels of the locomotive were unbraked. A mechanical railway brake braked the both wheels of the tender on the right side where the fireman was located. There was a fixed connection between the locomotive and the tender. The buffers
were made of wood. The horseshoe-shaped water box was around the coal stored in the tender. First coke
was burned in the firebox, later bituminous coal
was used.
s. They were mounted on a bogie
made of iron
. The shape of coupé
-carriages with two axis and three separated compartments in line was the archetype for the first German railway railroad car
s. Specific bogies for passenger cars were first developed in 1842 by the Great Western Railway
. All wagons were painted in yellow which was the colour of the stagecoach
es of this time. The third class wagons originally had no roof, three compartments with eight to ten seats and the entrances had no doors. The second class wagons had originally a roof made of canvas
, had doors, unglazed windows and curtains originally made of silk
later made of leather
. All wagons were of the same width but from the cheapest to the most expensive class the number of seats in one line were reduced by one. The first class wagons were lined with a precious blue foulard
, had windows made of glass
, the door handles gilded
and all metal fittings were made of brass
. The second class wagon No 8 which still exists was rebuilt between 1838 and 1846, it has a length of 5,740 mm, a weight of about 5 t and has 24 seats.
and the 26 years old Scot
William Wilson was on the cab
. In time intervals of two hours two more test runs were made.
The locomotive was in use with up to nine wagons with 192 passengers as a maximum. In normal use it drove at a maximum speed of 28 kph
because the locomotive should be preserved. The normal run time was about 14 minutes. Demonstration trial could be done at a maximum speed oh 65 kph. In most cases horse
s were used as working animal
s instead of the steam locomotive. Because the coal was first very expensive most services were done as a horsecar
. Goods were transported additionally to the passengers beginning from the year 1839. One of the first goods which were transported were beer barrels
and cattle
. In 1845 there was a considerably transport of goods. After running successfully for twenty-two years the Adler was now the weakest locomotive on the Europe
an continent
. Moreover the consumption of coal of newer steam engines was much more efficient until then. The locomotive was used in Nuremberg as a stationary steam engine
. 1858 the railway company sold the locomotive with the tender but minus its wheels and further accessories to the iron dealer Mr. Director Riedinger located in Augsburg
. A probably unique photograph of the Adler taken around 1851, and probably the only one in existence, is in the Nuremberg city archives (Stadtarchiv Nürnberg). However neither the age of the photograph is documented definitely nor is known if the picture shows the original locomotive or only a model
. The 1835 built and between 1838 and 1846 rebuilt second class passenger wagon No 8 remained in original because Ludwig I of Bavaria
should have travelled with it.
In 1925 the establishment of the Nuremberg Transport Museum
was planned. The Adler which was scrapped in the past should be reconstructed. The exact plans of that year were lost until now. Only one engraving
on the time of the historical Adler provided information. 1929 these plans were stopped by the Great Depression
.
To celebrate the centenary of the railways in Germany in 1935 a replica of the Adler was built beginning from 1933 by the Deutsche Reichsbahn
in the Kaiserslautern
repair shop (Ausbesserungswerk
), which was largely true to the original. The original idea of the President of the Reichsbahn Julius Dorpmüller
and the members of his staff was to use the Adler-replica as an instrument of propaganda
for the "new era
" in the city of the Reichsparteitag
Nuremberg. They planned to contrast the Adler with modern gigantic steam locomotives like the high-speed DRG Class 05
. For the realisation of the replica they used the results of the planning in 1925. Besides of different technical data the replica differed from the original with thicker boiler casing and additional cross bracings and spokes wheels made of steel.
The replica attained an average speed of 33.7 kph in tests on an 81 kilometre stretch of line. The route had gradients of between 1:110 and 1:140. From July 14th until October 13th, 1935 visitors could travel with the reconstructed Adler-train on a track length of two kilometres on the area of the centenary exhibition in Nuremberg. On the driving cab were also the President of the Deutsche Reichsbahn Julius Dorpmüller and the Gauleiter of Franconia
Julius Streicher
. The Adler-replica was in use after that in 1936 at the Cannstatter Wasen
in Stuttgart
and during the 1936 Summer Olympics
in Berlin
. During the 100-years-jubilee of the first prussian
railway in 1938 the Adler-train was in service between Berlin and Potsdam
. After this event the Adler-train was sent to the Nuremberg Transport Museum.
In 1950 the Adler-train was displayed by the Deutsche Bundesbahn
on a street transport vehicle for rolling stock during a parade
of the 900-years-jubilee of Nuremberg.
For the 125th anniversary of the railway in Germany the Adler-train was in service on the track of the tram
between Nuremberg (Plärrer place) and Fürth Hauptbahnhof
. The inner sides of the wheels were needed to turned of for operating on the tram track.
In 1984 it was rebuilt for the 150th anniversary by the Deutsche Bundesbahn
in the Offenburg
repair shop. The inner sides of the wheels which were turned of in 1960 for driving on a tram track had to welded again. The steam boiler was checked under notice of current safety regulations. The Adler was displayed on the great jubilee exhibition in Nuremberg and took part of numerous events in west germany like for example in Hamburg
, Konstanz
and Munich
. At May 22nd, 1984 it was used for public tours between Nuremberg Central Station and Nuremberg East.
The locomotive wasn't in service from 1985 until 1999. For the planned services in 1999 it had to be refurbished during several months. At September 16th, 1999 the Federal Railway Authority gave the approval of operation. For the 100th anniversary of the Bavarian Railway Museum
and the successor Nuremberg Transport Museum in 1999 the Adler-train was in service at three sundays in October and took part in the great parade of rolling stock at the Nuremberg classification yard
. In the following years the Adler-train was used for several classcal railway tours in Germany.It stood in the Nuremberg Transport Museum
until 2005 when it was damaged by fire.
At a fire in the museum's roundhouse
at the Nuremberg West locomotive depot on October 17th, 2005, which at that time contained 24 locomotives, the still-working Adler replica was one of many engines that were badly damaged. Nevertheless the management of the Deutsche Bahn decided to restore it. The wreck was lifted from the ruins of the roundhouse on 7 November by a mobile crane in a four-hour operation by a recovery gang from the Preßnitz Valley Railway and taken by special low-loader to the Meiningen Steam Locomotive Works
. It was discovered that the boiler
at least, thanks to its being full of water, was relatively undamaged, although its entire wooden cladding had been burnt and many plates had melted, and it could therefore be used for the reconstruction in 2007.
carpenter
's shop. The cost ran to about a million euros, of which 200,000 euros was donated by the public. The director of the DB Museum Nuremberg assuaged fears before the reconstruction began that the rebuilding work would not be able to replicate the details of the locomotive damaged by the fire and explained: "No compromises will be made!" It was even more accurately built by using historical drawings, so for example the reconstruction of the chimney damaged in the fire was not based on the 1935 replica, but on the original design. The biggest problem was the one-piece driving axle. This could not be made in the Meiningen works, so at short notice the company Grödlitzer Kurbelwelle Wildau GmbH was found which could carry out the work. For the frame of the locomotive between eight and twelve years seasoned wood from fraxinus-trees was used. This was elastical enough for vibrations by the power transmission during a run. The base frame of the tender was built from hard wood taken fromm oak
-trees.
At November 23rd, 2007 the restored Adler returned to display at the museum together with an old third class wagon from 1935 and two new ones from 2007 in a locomotive shed
near the Nuremberg Transport Museum. In the museum the non-serviceable replica from 1950 is displayed and also the original second class 1835 built and 1838 and 1846 rebuilt passenger wagon No 8 of the Bavarian Ludwig Railway which is not be put on track again because of conservation reasons. At April 26th, 2008 the replica was in use between Nuremberg and Fürth accompanied by German members of parliament of various parties, a member of the DB management board and the Bavarian minister-president, Beckstein. In May special runs in Nuremberg, Koblenz and Halle (Saale)
were following during the summer. In April 2010 during the 175th anniversary of the railway in Germany the Adler was in use of the area of the DB Museum in Koblenz-Lützel. In May and June runs with visitors between Nuremberg Central Station and Fürth Hauptbahnhof
were made.
in Munich-Freimann. This replica was used for public relations
purpose on exhibitions and fairs. It is to be found as a display model in the Nuremberg Transport Museum.
lagoon project this line had to be closed, but an extension or move of the route is planned.
The Görlitzer Oldtimer Parkeisenbahn uses a replica on a narrow gauge railway with a track gauge of 600 mm. This replica is in fact a diesel locomotive
.
As part of the town's millennium celebrations "1000 years in Fürth" a bus
was decorated with the Adler, and advertised an exhibition, at which donations for the reconstruction were collected.
In the stamp
-volumes of the Reichspost
from 1935, the Deutsche Bundespost
from 1960, the Deutsche Post
of the GDR from 1960 and the Deutsche Bundespost from 1985 the Adler was appreciated to the jubilees of "100", "125", and "150" years of German railways. At the 175th anniversary in 2010 a 55 eurocent
commemorative stamp
with a picture of the Adler was issued by the Deutsche Post AG
. Also a 10 Euro
commemorative coin of the mint
in Munich (D) with the following inscription on the edge Auf Vereinten Gleisen 1835 - 2010 (= On united tracks 1835 - 2010).
Locomotive
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...
which was successfully commercially
Commerce
While business refers to the value-creating activities of an organization for profit, commerce means the whole system of an economy that constitutes an environment for business. The system includes legal, economic, political, social, cultural, and technological systems that are in operation in any...
used for rail transport
Rail transport
Rail transport is a means of conveyance of passengers and goods by way of wheeled vehicles running on rail tracks. In contrast to road transport, where vehicles merely run on a prepared surface, rail vehicles are also directionally guided by the tracks they run on...
of passengers
Passenger
A passenger is a term broadly used to describe any person who travels in a vehicle, but bears little or no responsibility for the tasks required for that vehicle to arrive at its destination....
and goods in Germany
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
. The rail vehicle
Rolling stock
Rolling stock comprises all the vehicles that move on a railway. It usually includes both powered and unpowered vehicles, for example locomotives, railroad cars, coaches and wagons...
was constructed and built in 1835 from the british
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
railway pioneers George
George Stephenson
George Stephenson was an English civil engineer and mechanical engineer who built the first public railway line in the world to use steam locomotives...
and Robert Stephenson
Robert Stephenson
Robert Stephenson FRS was an English civil engineer. He was the only son of George Stephenson, the famed locomotive builder and railway engineer; many of the achievements popularly credited to his father were actually the joint efforts of father and son.-Early life :He was born on the 16th of...
in the english
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
town Newcastle
Newcastle upon Tyne
Newcastle upon Tyne is a city and metropolitan borough of Tyne and Wear, in North East England. Historically a part of Northumberland, it is situated on the north bank of the River Tyne...
. It was delivered to the Bavarian Ludwig Railway (Bayerische Ludwigsbahn) for the service between Nuremberg
Nuremberg
Nuremberg[p] is a city in the German state of Bavaria, in the administrative region of Middle Franconia. Situated on the Pegnitz river and the Rhine–Main–Danube Canal, it is located about north of Munich and is Franconia's largest city. The population is 505,664...
and Fürth
Fürth
The city of Fürth is located in northern Bavaria, Germany in the administrative region of Middle Franconia. It is now contiguous with the larger city of Nuremberg, the centres of the two cities being only 7 km apart....
. It ran officially for the first time there on 7 December 1835. The Adler was a steam locomotive
Steam locomotive
A steam locomotive is a railway locomotive that produces its power through a steam engine. These locomotives are fueled by burning some combustible material, usually coal, wood or oil, to produce steam in a boiler, which drives the steam engine...
from the Patentee type
Patentee locomotive
This was a revolutionary 2-2-2 steam locomotive type introduced by Robert Stephenson and Company in 1833, as an enlargement of their 2-2-0 Planet type...
with the wheel arrangement 2-2-2
2-2-2
Under the Whyte notation for the classification of steam locomotives, 2-2-2 represents the wheel arrangement of two leading wheels on one axle two powered driving wheels on one axle, and two trailing wheels on one axle. The wheel arrangement both provided more stability and enabled a larger firebox...
(Whyte notation
Whyte notation
The Whyte notation for classifying steam locomotives by wheel arrangement was devised by Frederick Methvan Whyte and came into use in the early twentieth century encouraged by an editorial in American Engineer and Railroad Journal...
) or 1A1 (UIC classification
UIC classification
The UIC classification of locomotive axle arrangements describes the wheel arrangement of locomotives, multiple units and trams. It is set out in the International Union of Railways "Leaflet 650 - Standard designation of axle arrangement on locomotives and multiple-unit sets". It is used in much...
). The Adler was furnished with a tender of the type 2 T 2.
Earlier locomotives in Germany
The Adler often is named as the absolutely first locomotive of a railway companyRailway company
A railway company or railroad company is an entity that operates a railroad track and/or trains. Such a company can either be private or public...
on German soil. However already 1816 a serviceable steam locomotive was constructed by the Royal Prussian Steelworks (Königlich Preußische Eisengießerei) in Berlin
Berlin
Berlin is the capital city of Germany and is one of the 16 states of Germany. With a population of 3.45 million people, Berlin is Germany's largest city. It is the second most populous city proper and the seventh most populous urban area in the European Union...
. The so-called Krigar-locomotive pulled during a test run one railroad car
Railroad car
A railroad car or railway vehicle , also known as a bogie in Indian English, is a vehicle on a rail transport system that is used for the carrying of cargo or passengers. Cars can be coupled together into a train and hauled by one or more locomotives...
which was loaded with a payload of 8,000 German pounds (about 4.48 tonnes (4.4 LT). But this vehicle
Vehicle
A vehicle is a device that is designed or used to transport people or cargo. Most often vehicles are manufactured, such as bicycles, cars, motorcycles, trains, ships, boats, and aircraft....
was never used commercially. Nevertheless the Adler was undoubtedly the first successfully operated locomotive in Germany which was regularly in use.
Origin
During the construction period of the Bavarian Ludwig Railway which was founded by Georg Zacharias Platner the search for a suitable locomotive started in England.The first letter of enquiry was sent via the London
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
company Suse und Libeth to Robert Stephenson & Co. and Braithwaite & Ericsson
John Ericsson
John Ericsson was a Swedish-American inventor and mechanical engineer, as was his brother Nils Ericson. He was born at Långbanshyttan in Värmland, Sweden, but primarily came to be active in England and the United States...
. The locomotive should be able to pull a weight
Weight
In science and engineering, the weight of an object is the force on the object due to gravity. Its magnitude , often denoted by an italic letter W, is the product of the mass m of the object and the magnitude of the local gravitational acceleration g; thus:...
of ten metric tons
Tonne
The tonne, known as the metric ton in the US , often put pleonastically as "metric tonne" to avoid confusion with ton, is a metric system unit of mass equal to 1000 kilograms. The tonne is not an International System of Units unit, but is accepted for use with the SI...
and to cover the distance between Nuremberg and Fürth in between eight to ten minutes. Moreover it should be heated with charcoal
Charcoal
Charcoal is the dark grey residue consisting of carbon, and any remaining ash, obtained by removing water and other volatile constituents from animal and vegetation substances. Charcoal is usually produced by slow pyrolysis, the heating of wood or other substances in the absence of oxygen...
. Stephenson answered a locomotive of the same building class like these of the Liverpool and Manchester Railway
Liverpool and Manchester Railway
The Liverpool and Manchester Railway was the world's first inter-city passenger railway in which all the trains were timetabled and were hauled for most of the distance solely by steam locomotives. The line opened on 15 September 1830 and ran between the cities of Liverpool and Manchester in North...
with four wheel
Wheel
A wheel is a device that allows heavy objects to be moved easily through rotating on an axle through its center, facilitating movement or transportation while supporting a load, or performing labor in machines. Common examples found in transport applications. A wheel, together with an axle,...
s and a weight of between 7.5 and 8 metrical tons could be delivered. An lighter engine wouldn't have the needed power of adhesion
Adhesion
Adhesion is any attraction process between dissimilar molecular species that can potentially bring them in close contact. By contrast, cohesion takes place between similar molecules....
and would be more expensive than a heavier engine. Johannes Scharrer anyway asked at June 16th, 1833 for a calculation for two locomotives with a weight of 6.5 metrical tons and a needed accessories kit. Stephenson's calculation had an amount of about 1,800 Pound sterling
Pound sterling
The pound sterling , commonly called the pound, is the official currency of the United Kingdom, its Crown Dependencies and the British Overseas Territories of South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands, British Antarctic Territory and Tristan da Cunha. It is subdivided into 100 pence...
. The German company Holmes and Rolandson from Unterkochen near Aalen
Aalen
Aalen is a city in the German state of Baden-Württemberg, about east of Stuttgart and north of Ulm. It is the seat of the Ostalbkreis district, and its largest city, as well as the largest city within the Ostwürttemberg region. In spatial planning, Aalen is designated a Mittelzentrum...
made an offering for a steam locomotive with a power of between two to six hp
Horsepower
Horsepower is the name of several units of measurement of power. The most common definitions equal between 735.5 and 750 watts.Horsepower was originally defined to compare the output of steam engines with the power of draft horses in continuous operation. The unit was widely adopted to measure the...
at a price of 4,500 Gulden
South German gulden
The Gulden was the currency of the states of southern Germany between 1754 and 1873. These states included Bavaria, Baden, Württemberg, Frankfurt and Hohenzollern....
. But the proceedings with Holmes and Rolandson slowed and had no feasible result. Because of these reasons this contact was canceled. A further offering came from Josef Reaullaux located in Eschweiler
Eschweiler
Eschweiler is a municipality in the district of Aachen in North Rhine-Westphalia in Germany on the river Inde, near the German-Belgian-Dutch frontier, and about 15 km east of Aachen and 50 km west of Cologne.- History :...
near Aachen
Aachen
Aachen has historically been a spa town in North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. Aachen was a favoured residence of Charlemagne, and the place of coronation of the Kings of Germany. Geographically, Aachen is the westernmost town of Germany, located along its borders with Belgium and the Netherlands, ...
. At the end of April Platner and Mainberger from Nuremberg were in Neuwied
Neuwied
Neuwied is a town in the north of the German state of Rhineland-Palatinate, capital of the District of Neuwied. Neuwied lies on the right bank of the Rhine, 12 km northwest of Koblenz, on the railway from Frankfurt am Main to Cologne...
near Cologne
Cologne
Cologne is Germany's fourth-largest city , and is the largest city both in the Germany Federal State of North Rhine-Westphalia and within the Rhine-Ruhr Metropolitan Area, one of the major European metropolitan areas with more than ten million inhabitants.Cologne is located on both sides of the...
. There they wanted to award a contract concerning the rail profile
Rail profile
The rail profile is the cross sectional shape of a railway rail, perpendicular to the length of the rail.In all but very early cast iron rails, a rail is hot rolled steel of a specific cross sectional profile designed for use as the fundamental component of railway track.Unlike some other uses of...
s. At April 28th they travelled to Cologne because they wanted to meet with a friend of Platner called Consul Bartls. Bartls advised them the belgian
Belgium
Belgium , officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a federal state in Western Europe. It is a founding member of the European Union and hosts the EU's headquarters, and those of several other major international organisations such as NATO.Belgium is also a member of, or affiliated to, many...
machine factory Cockerill
Cockerill-Sambre
Cockerill-Sambre was a group of Belgian steel manufacturers headquartered in Seraing , on the Meuse River, and in Charleroi, on the shore of the Sambre River....
in Liège
Liège
Liège is a major city and municipality of Belgium located in the province of Liège, of which it is the economic capital, in Wallonia, the French-speaking region of Belgium....
. Platner and Mainberger travelled because of this to Liège. There they found out that Cockerill hasn't built a locomotive until that point of time. They however found out that Stephenson was in Brussels
Brussels
Brussels , officially the Brussels Region or Brussels-Capital Region , is the capital of Belgium and the de facto capital of the European Union...
that time. They reached Brussels at Mai 1st and accommodated themselves in the guesthouse of Flanders
Flanders
Flanders is the community of the Flemings but also one of the institutions in Belgium, and a geographical region located in parts of present-day Belgium, France and the Netherlands. "Flanders" can also refer to the northern part of Belgium that contains Brussels, Bruges, Ghent and Antwerp...
. Stephenson and several of his engineers were already there. Stephenson wanted to be present at the opening of the railway line from Brussels to Antwerp which was scheduled for May 5th. At May 3rd both parties signed a letter of intent
Letter of intent
A letter of intent is a document outlining an agreement between two or more parties before the agreement is finalized. The concept is similar to a heads of agreement...
. Stephenson wanted to deliver a locomotive of the Patentee type
Patentee locomotive
This was a revolutionary 2-2-2 steam locomotive type introduced by Robert Stephenson and Company in 1833, as an enlargement of their 2-2-0 Planet type...
with six wheels and a weight of about six metrical tons at a price of between 750 and 800 pound sterling. At May 15th, 1835 the new locomotive was ordered at Stephenson's locomotive factory in Newcastle at these conditions. Futhermore a tender a bogie
Bogie
A bogie is a wheeled wagon or trolley. In mechanics terms, a bogie is a chassis or framework carrying wheels, attached to a vehicle. It can be fixed in place, as on a cargo truck, mounted on a swivel, as on a railway carriage/car or locomotive, or sprung as in the suspension of a caterpillar...
for a passenger car and one for a goods wagon
Goods wagon
Goods wagons are railway wagons that are used for the transportation of goods .- Development :At the beginning of the railway era, the vast majority of goods wagons were four-wheeled vehicles of simple construction. These were almost exclusively small covered wagons, open wagons with side-boards,...
were ordered. Later it turned out that the locomotive would cost about 900 Pounds Sterling instead of the sum appointed in Brussels. Stephenson promised origuinally in Brussels a delivery of the locomotive until end of July to Rotterdam
Rotterdam
Rotterdam is the second-largest city in the Netherlands and one of the largest ports in the world. Starting as a dam on the Rotte river, Rotterdam has grown into a major international commercial centre...
Different units of measurement
Units of measurement
A unit of measurement is a definite magnitude of a physical quantity, defined and adopted by convention and/or by law, that is used as a standard for measurement of the same physical quantity. Any other value of the physical quantity can be expressed as a simple multiple of the unit of...
were used in Nuremberg and England. The english foot and the bavarian foot were different. The track gauge was predifined to the same as of the Stockton and Darlington Railway
Stockton and Darlington Railway
The Stockton and Darlington Railway , which opened in 1825, was the world's first publicly subscribed passenger railway. It was 26 miles long, and was built in north-eastern England between Witton Park and Stockton-on-Tees via Darlington, and connected to several collieries near Shildon...
which was 4 english feet and 8,5 inch
Inch
An inch is the name of a unit of length in a number of different systems, including Imperial units, and United States customary units. There are 36 inches in a yard and 12 inches in a foot...
es (1435 mm). Stephenson persisted on this gauge which caused a rebuilding of the already built track because the existing track gauge was too narrow at 5/8 inches. The delivery of the locomotive to Nuremberg with all spare parts consisted of over 100 individual components in 19 boxes of a total weight of 177 hundredweight
Hundredweight
The hundredweight or centum weight is a unit of mass defined in terms of the pound . The definition used in Britain differs from that used in North America. The two are distinguished by the terms long hundredweight and short hundredweight:* The long hundredweight is defined as 112 lb, which...
s at a cost of 1140 pounds sterling, 19 shilling
Shilling
The shilling is a unit of currency used in some current and former British Commonwealth countries. The word shilling comes from scilling, an accounting term that dates back to Anglo-Saxon times where it was deemed to be the value of a cow in Kent or a sheep elsewhere. The word is thought to derive...
s und 3 pennies
Penny
A penny is a coin or a type of currency used in several English-speaking countries. It is often the smallest denomination within a currency system.-Etymology:...
. The boxes were shipped delayed at September 3rd, 1835 on the ship Zoar from London
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
to Rotterdam. The freight rate from Rotterdam to Cologne was 700 Francs, from Cologne to Offenbach am Main 507 south German Gulden and 9 Kreuzer
Kreuzer
The Kreuzer, in English usually kreutzer, was a silver coin and unit of currency existing in the southern German states prior to the unification of Germany, and in Austria.-Early history:...
and from Offenbach to Nuremberg 653 Gulden and 11 Kreuzer
Kreuzer
The Kreuzer, in English usually kreutzer, was a silver coin and unit of currency existing in the southern German states prior to the unification of Germany, and in Austria.-Early history:...
. The board of directors of the Bavarial Ludwig Railway wanted to reach an excemption from import duties. The locomotive was declared as an example for a formerly unknown product which should be used by fabrics in the Bavarian inland. After several difficulties the ministry of finance improved the toll-free import with Johann Wilhelm Spaeth as receiver of the delivery.
With the barge
Barge
A barge is a flat-bottomed boat, built mainly for river and canal transport of heavy goods. Some barges are not self-propelled and need to be towed by tugboats or pushed by towboats...
van Hees which was owned by its captain
Captain (nautical)
A sea captain is a licensed mariner in ultimate command of the vessel. The captain is responsible for its safe and efficient operation, including cargo operations, navigation, crew management and ensuring that the vessel complies with local and international laws, as well as company and flag...
van Hees and pulled upriver by the steamboat
Steamboat
A steamboat or steamship, sometimes called a steamer, is a ship in which the primary method of propulsion is steam power, typically driving propellers or paddlewheels...
Hercules on the Rhine the transport boxes were shipped until Cologne Because there was less water in the Rhine Captain van Hees had to use horses to pull the barge instead of the steamboat. At October 7th the train of barges reached Cologne. The remained distance to Nuremberg had to covered with wagon
Wagon
A wagon is a heavy four-wheeled vehicle pulled by draught animals; it was formerly often called a wain, and if low and sideless may be called a dray, trolley or float....
s because the Main had also less water and wasn't navigable. The transport on land was disrumted by a strike
Strike
Strike may refer to:-Refusal to work or perform:* Strike action, also known as a walkout, a work stoppage caused by the mass refusal of employees to perform work...
of the freight forwarder
Freight forwarder
A freight forwarder, forwarder, or forwarding agent is a person or company that organizes shipments for individuals or other companies and may also act as a carrier...
s in Offenbach am Main. Thus a different freight forwarder had to be ordered. At October 26th, 1835 the tranpost reached Nuremberg. The steam engine was assembled in the workshops of the Johann Wilhelm Spaeth engineering works. The assembly was observed by Stephenson's engineer William Wilson who was travelled with the locomotive to Nuremberg. They used the help of the technical teacher Bauer and local carpenters
Carpentry
A carpenter is a skilled craftsperson who works with timber to construct, install and maintain buildings, furniture, and other objects. The work, known as carpentry, may involve manual labor and work outdoors....
.
At November 10th, 1835 the board of directors of the Bavarian Ludwig Railway expressed their hope that the locomotive would be serviceable soon. The locomotive was a symbol for power, daringness and rapidity.
Both bogies which were delivered by Robert Stephenson & Co. turned out as too heavy for the circumstances existed in Nuremberg. The German constructor Denis
Paul Camille von Denis
Paul Camille Denis, later von Denis, was an engineer, railway pioneer and participant in the Hambach Festival, the German political protest of 1832....
had planned that the railway wagons should be pulled either from the steam locomotive or from horses. Because of this reason he considered a lighter construction as necessary. Several companies built the wagons. The bogies were produced by Späth, Gemeiner und Manhard. The wooden coachwork were delivered by the wheelwright
Wheelwright
A wheelwright is a person who builds or repairs wheels. The word is the combination of "wheel" and the archaic word "wright", which comes from the Old English word "wryhta", meaning a worker or maker...
Stahl from Nuremberg. Because these companies were used to capacity with fifferent orders three bogies and 16 wheels were produced by the company Stein in Lohr
Lohr
Lohr am Main is a town in the Main-Spessart district in the Regierungsbezirk of Lower Franconia in Bavaria, Germany and the seat of the Verwaltungsgemeinschaft of Lohr am Main.- Location :The town lies on the Main in the Spessart about halfway between Würzburg and...
near Aschaffenburg
Aschaffenburg
Aschaffenburg is a city in northwest Bavaria, Germany. The town of Aschaffenburg is not considered part of the district of Aschaffenburg, but is the administrative seat.Aschaffenburg is known as the Tor zum Spessart or "gate to the Spessart"...
. Denis threatened these companies to place future orders in England if they would not work faster. At the end of August 1835 the first wagon was completed. In the second half of October the completion of the further wagons was foreseeable. Until the opening of the Bavarian Ludwig Railway nine wagons were produced. It were two wagons of the third class, four of the second class and three of the first class. At October 21st, 1835 the first test run with one horse-pulled wagon took place. Denis had constructed a brake
Brake
A brake is a mechanical device which inhibits motion. Its opposite component is a clutch. The rest of this article is dedicated to various types of vehicular brakes....
for the wagons which was tested at this opportunity. The wagon could be stopped in each situation without any effort by the horse.
At November 16th the first test run of the steam locomotive from Nuremberg to Fürth and back again was accomplished. Because of the cold weather at that day the speed was slowed down. Three days later five fully occupied wagons were transported on the track in between 12 and 13 minutes. On the way back the brakes and also boarding and deboarding of the passengers were tested. During the following tests it was discovered if wood was burned in the locomotive the sparks which came out of the chimney of the locomotice seared the clothing of the passengers. The participation at the test run costed 36 Kreuzer
Kreuzer
The Kreuzer, in English usually kreutzer, was a silver coin and unit of currency existing in the southern German states prior to the unification of Germany, and in Austria.-Early history:...
s, the revenues were donated to the public welfare for poor
Poverty
Poverty is the lack of a certain amount of material possessions or money. Absolute poverty or destitution is inability to afford basic human needs, which commonly includes clean and fresh water, nutrition, health care, education, clothing and shelter. About 1.7 billion people are estimated to live...
people.
Locomotive
The Adler was built on a woodWood
Wood is a hard, fibrous tissue found in many trees. It has been used for hundreds of thousands of years for both fuel and as a construction material. It is an organic material, a natural composite of cellulose fibers embedded in a matrix of lignin which resists compression...
en framework which was covered with sheet metal
Sheet metal
Sheet metal is simply metal formed into thin and flat pieces. It is one of the fundamental forms used in metalworking, and can be cut and bent into a variety of different shapes. Countless everyday objects are constructed of the material...
. The both wet steam driven cylinders
Cylinder (engine)
A cylinder is the central working part of a reciprocating engine or pump, the space in which a piston travels. Multiple cylinders are commonly arranged side by side in a bank, or engine block, which is typically cast from aluminum or cast iron before receiving precision machine work...
which were placed horizontally inside the frame drove the driving wheelset which was placed in the middle of the three axis. The driving wheels had no wheel flange
Flange
A flange is an external or internal ridge, or rim , for strength, as the flange of an iron beam such as an I-beam or a T-beam; or for attachment to another object, as the flange on the end of a pipe, steam cylinder, etc., or on the lens mount of a camera; or for a flange of a rail car or tram wheel...
so the locomotive could be operated on narrow curve radiuses. The forged spoke
Spoke
A spoke is one of some number of rods radiating from the center of a wheel , connecting the hub with the round traction surface....
s were rivetted with the rim
Rim (wheel)
The rim of a wheel is the outer circular design of the metal on which the inside edge of the tire is mounted on vehicles such as automobiles. For example, on a bicycle wheel the rim is a large hoop attached to the outer ends of the spokes of the wheel that holds the tire and tube.In the 1st...
. The original wheels consisted of cast iron
Cast iron
Cast iron is derived from pig iron, and while it usually refers to gray iron, it also identifies a large group of ferrous alloys which solidify with a eutectic. The color of a fractured surface can be used to identify an alloy. White cast iron is named after its white surface when fractured, due...
and were encircled with a forged wheel tyre
Tyre
Tyre is a city in the South Governorate of Lebanon. There were approximately 117,000 inhabitants in 2003, however, the government of Lebanon has released only rough estimates of population numbers since 1932, so an accurate statistical accounting is not possible...
made of puddle iron
Puddling (metallurgy)
Puddling was an Industrial Revolution means of making iron and steel. In the original puddling technique, molten iron in a reverberatory furnace was stirred with rods, which were consumed in the process...
. The original wheels made of brittle cast iron were replaced later through wheels made of puddle iron which were stronger. The hollow spokes had a core made of wood to made them more flexible to cushion unevenness of the track. All wheels of the locomotive were unbraked. A mechanical railway brake braked the both wheels of the tender on the right side where the fireman was located. There was a fixed connection between the locomotive and the tender. The buffers
Buffer (rail transport)
A buffer is a part of the buffers-and-chain coupling system used on the railway systems of many countries, among them most of those in Europe, for attaching railway vehicles to one another....
were made of wood. The horseshoe-shaped water box was around the coal stored in the tender. First coke
Coke (fuel)
Coke is the solid carbonaceous material derived from destructive distillation of low-ash, low-sulfur bituminous coal. Cokes from coal are grey, hard, and porous. While coke can be formed naturally, the commonly used form is man-made.- History :...
was burned in the firebox, later bituminous coal
Bituminous coal
Bituminous coal or black coal is a relatively soft coal containing a tarlike substance called bitumen. It is of higher quality than lignite coal but of poorer quality than Anthracite...
was used.
Railway cars
The passenger wagons had a coachwork like it was used for carriageCarriage
A carriage is a wheeled vehicle for people, usually horse-drawn; litters and sedan chairs are excluded, since they are wheelless vehicles. The carriage is especially designed for private passenger use and for comfort or elegance, though some are also used to transport goods. It may be light,...
s. They were mounted on a bogie
Bogie
A bogie is a wheeled wagon or trolley. In mechanics terms, a bogie is a chassis or framework carrying wheels, attached to a vehicle. It can be fixed in place, as on a cargo truck, mounted on a swivel, as on a railway carriage/car or locomotive, or sprung as in the suspension of a caterpillar...
made of iron
Iron
Iron is a chemical element with the symbol Fe and atomic number 26. It is a metal in the first transition series. It is the most common element forming the planet Earth as a whole, forming much of Earth's outer and inner core. It is the fourth most common element in the Earth's crust...
. The shape of coupé
Coupé
A coupé or coupe is a closed car body style , the precise definition of which varies from manufacturer to manufacturer, and over time...
-carriages with two axis and three separated compartments in line was the archetype for the first German railway railroad car
Railroad car
A railroad car or railway vehicle , also known as a bogie in Indian English, is a vehicle on a rail transport system that is used for the carrying of cargo or passengers. Cars can be coupled together into a train and hauled by one or more locomotives...
s. Specific bogies for passenger cars were first developed in 1842 by the Great Western Railway
Great Western Railway
The Great Western Railway was a British railway company that linked London with the south-west and west of England and most of Wales. It was founded in 1833, received its enabling Act of Parliament in 1835 and ran its first trains in 1838...
. All wagons were painted in yellow which was the colour of the stagecoach
Stagecoach
A stagecoach is a type of covered wagon for passengers and goods, strongly sprung and drawn by four horses, usually four-in-hand. Widely used before the introduction of railway transport, it made regular trips between stages or stations, which were places of rest provided for stagecoach travelers...
es of this time. The third class wagons originally had no roof, three compartments with eight to ten seats and the entrances had no doors. The second class wagons had originally a roof made of canvas
Canvas
Canvas is an extremely heavy-duty plain-woven fabric used for making sails, tents, marquees, backpacks, and other items for which sturdiness is required. It is also popularly used by artists as a painting surface, typically stretched across a wooden frame...
, had doors, unglazed windows and curtains originally made of silk
Silk
Silk is a natural protein fiber, some forms of which can be woven into textiles. The best-known type of silk is obtained from the cocoons of the larvae of the mulberry silkworm Bombyx mori reared in captivity...
later made of leather
Leather
Leather is a durable and flexible material created via the tanning of putrescible animal rawhide and skin, primarily cattlehide. It can be produced through different manufacturing processes, ranging from cottage industry to heavy industry.-Forms:...
. All wagons were of the same width but from the cheapest to the most expensive class the number of seats in one line were reduced by one. The first class wagons were lined with a precious blue foulard
Foulard
A foulard is a lightweight fabric, either twill or plain-woven, made of silk or a mix of silk and cotton. Foulards usually have a small printed design of various colors. Foulard can also refer by metonymy to articles of clothing, such as scarves and neckties, made from this fabric.Foulard is...
, had windows made of glass
Glass
Glass is an amorphous solid material. Glasses are typically brittle and optically transparent.The most familiar type of glass, used for centuries in windows and drinking vessels, is soda-lime glass, composed of about 75% silica plus Na2O, CaO, and several minor additives...
, the door handles gilded
Gilding
The term gilding covers a number of decorative techniques for applying fine gold leaf or powder to solid surfaces such as wood, stone, or metal to give a thin coating of gold. A gilded object is described as "gilt"...
and all metal fittings were made of brass
Brass
Brass is an alloy of copper and zinc; the proportions of zinc and copper can be varied to create a range of brasses with varying properties.In comparison, bronze is principally an alloy of copper and tin...
. The second class wagon No 8 which still exists was rebuilt between 1838 and 1846, it has a length of 5,740 mm, a weight of about 5 t and has 24 seats.
Operation and retirement
On December 7th, 1835 the Adler, driven by William Wilson, ran for the first time on the 6.05 kilometres long track of the Ludwigsbahn in nine minutes. 200 guest of honour on the trainTrain
A train is a connected series of vehicles for rail transport that move along a track to transport cargo or passengers from one place to another place. The track usually consists of two rails, but might also be a monorail or maglev guideway.Propulsion for the train is provided by a separate...
and the 26 years old Scot
Scotland
Scotland is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Occupying the northern third of the island of Great Britain, it shares a border with England to the south and is bounded by the North Sea to the east, the Atlantic Ocean to the north and west, and the North Channel and Irish Sea to the...
William Wilson was on the cab
Cab (locomotive)
The cab, crew compartment or driver's compartment of a locomotive is the part of the locomotive housing the train driver or engineer, the fireman or driver's assistant , and the controls necessary for the locomotive's operation....
. In time intervals of two hours two more test runs were made.
The locomotive was in use with up to nine wagons with 192 passengers as a maximum. In normal use it drove at a maximum speed of 28 kph
Kilometres per hour
The kilometre per hour is a unit of speed, expressing the number of kilometres traveled in one hour. The unit symbol is km/h or km·h−1....
because the locomotive should be preserved. The normal run time was about 14 minutes. Demonstration trial could be done at a maximum speed oh 65 kph. In most cases horse
Horse
The horse is one of two extant subspecies of Equus ferus, or the wild horse. It is a single-hooved mammal belonging to the taxonomic family Equidae. The horse has evolved over the past 45 to 55 million years from a small multi-toed creature into the large, single-toed animal of today...
s were used as working animal
Working animal
A working animal is an animal, usually domesticated, that is kept by humans and trained to perform tasks. They may be close members of the family, such as guide or service dogs, or they may be animals trained strictly to perform a job, such as logging elephants. They may also be used for milk, a...
s instead of the steam locomotive. Because the coal was first very expensive most services were done as a horsecar
Horsecar
A horsecar or horse-drawn tram is an animal-powered streetcar or tram.These early forms of public transport developed out of industrial haulage routes that had long been in existence, and from the omnibus routes that first ran on public streets in the 1820s, using the newly improved iron or steel...
. Goods were transported additionally to the passengers beginning from the year 1839. One of the first goods which were transported were beer barrels
Barrel
A barrel or cask is a hollow cylindrical container, traditionally made of vertical wooden staves and bound by wooden or metal hoops. Traditionally, the barrel was a standard size of measure referring to a set capacity or weight of a given commodity. A small barrel is called a keg.For example, a...
and cattle
Cattle
Cattle are the most common type of large domesticated ungulates. They are a prominent modern member of the subfamily Bovinae, are the most widespread species of the genus Bos, and are most commonly classified collectively as Bos primigenius...
. In 1845 there was a considerably transport of goods. After running successfully for twenty-two years the Adler was now the weakest locomotive on the Europe
Europe
Europe is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally 'divided' from Asia to its east by the watershed divides of the Ural and Caucasus Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian and Black Seas, and the waterways connecting...
an continent
Continental Europe
Continental Europe, also referred to as mainland Europe or simply the Continent, is the continent of Europe, explicitly excluding European islands....
. Moreover the consumption of coal of newer steam engines was much more efficient until then. The locomotive was used in Nuremberg as a stationary steam engine
Steam engine
A steam engine is a heat engine that performs mechanical work using steam as its working fluid.Steam engines are external combustion engines, where the working fluid is separate from the combustion products. Non-combustion heat sources such as solar power, nuclear power or geothermal energy may be...
. 1858 the railway company sold the locomotive with the tender but minus its wheels and further accessories to the iron dealer Mr. Director Riedinger located in Augsburg
Augsburg
Augsburg is a city in the south-west of Bavaria, Germany. It is a university town and home of the Regierungsbezirk Schwaben and the Bezirk Schwaben. Augsburg is an urban district and home to the institutions of the Landkreis Augsburg. It is, as of 2008, the third-largest city in Bavaria with a...
. A probably unique photograph of the Adler taken around 1851, and probably the only one in existence, is in the Nuremberg city archives (Stadtarchiv Nürnberg). However neither the age of the photograph is documented definitely nor is known if the picture shows the original locomotive or only a model
Scientific modelling
Scientific modelling is the process of generating abstract, conceptual, graphical and/or mathematical models. Science offers a growing collection of methods, techniques and theory about all kinds of specialized scientific modelling...
. The 1835 built and between 1838 and 1846 rebuilt second class passenger wagon No 8 remained in original because Ludwig I of Bavaria
Ludwig I of Bavaria
Ludwig I was a German king of Bavaria from 1825 until the 1848 revolutions in the German states.-Crown prince:...
should have travelled with it.
Serviceable replica of 1935
Nuremberg Transport Museum
The Nuremberg Transport Museum is based in Nuremberg, Germany, and consists of the Deutsche Bahn's own DB Museum and the Museum of Communications . It also has two satellite museums at Koblenz-Lützel and Halle...
was planned. The Adler which was scrapped in the past should be reconstructed. The exact plans of that year were lost until now. Only one engraving
Engraving
Engraving is the practice of incising a design on to a hard, usually flat surface, by cutting grooves into it. The result may be a decorated object in itself, as when silver, gold, steel, or glass are engraved, or may provide an intaglio printing plate, of copper or another metal, for printing...
on the time of the historical Adler provided information. 1929 these plans were stopped by the Great Depression
Great Depression
The Great Depression was a severe worldwide economic depression in the decade preceding World War II. The timing of the Great Depression varied across nations, but in most countries it started in about 1929 and lasted until the late 1930s or early 1940s...
.
To celebrate the centenary of the railways in Germany in 1935 a replica of the Adler was built beginning from 1933 by the Deutsche Reichsbahn
Deutsche Reichsbahn
Deutsche Reichsbahn was the name of the following two companies:* Deutsche Reichsbahn, the German Imperial Railways during the Weimar Republic, the Third Reich and the immediate aftermath...
in the Kaiserslautern
Kaiserslautern
Kaiserslautern is a city in southwest Germany, located in the Bundesland of Rhineland-Palatinate at the edge of the Palatinate forest . The historic centre dates to the 9th century. It is from Paris, from Frankfurt am Main, and from Luxembourg.Kaiserslautern is home to 99,469 people...
repair shop (Ausbesserungswerk
Ausbesserungswerk
An Ausbesserungswerk is a railway facility in German-speaking countries, the primary function of which is the repair of railway vehicles or their components. It is thus equivalent to a 'repair shop' or 'works'...
), which was largely true to the original. The original idea of the President of the Reichsbahn Julius Dorpmüller
Julius Dorpmüller
Julius Heinrich Dorpmueller was general manager of Deutsche Reichsbahn-Gesellschaft from 1926-45 and the German Reich Transport Minister from 1937-45.- Life :...
and the members of his staff was to use the Adler-replica as an instrument of propaganda
Propaganda
Propaganda is a form of communication that is aimed at influencing the attitude of a community toward some cause or position so as to benefit oneself or one's group....
for the "new era
Nazism
Nazism, the common short form name of National Socialism was the ideology and practice of the Nazi Party and of Nazi Germany...
" in the city of the Reichsparteitag
Nuremberg Rally
The Nuremberg Rally was the annual rally of the NSDAP in Germany, held from 1923 to 1938. Especially after Hitler's rise to power in 1933, they were large Nazi propaganda events...
Nuremberg. They planned to contrast the Adler with modern gigantic steam locomotives like the high-speed DRG Class 05
DRG Class 05
The Deutsche Reichsbahn's Class 05 was a German class of three express passenger steam locomotives of 4-6-4 wheel arrangement in the Whyte notation, or 2'C2' in the UIC notation used in continental Europe...
. For the realisation of the replica they used the results of the planning in 1925. Besides of different technical data the replica differed from the original with thicker boiler casing and additional cross bracings and spokes wheels made of steel.
The replica attained an average speed of 33.7 kph in tests on an 81 kilometre stretch of line. The route had gradients of between 1:110 and 1:140. From July 14th until October 13th, 1935 visitors could travel with the reconstructed Adler-train on a track length of two kilometres on the area of the centenary exhibition in Nuremberg. On the driving cab were also the President of the Deutsche Reichsbahn Julius Dorpmüller and the Gauleiter of Franconia
Franconia
Franconia is a region of Germany comprising the northern parts of the modern state of Bavaria, a small part of southern Thuringia, and a region in northeastern Baden-Württemberg called Tauberfranken...
Julius Streicher
Julius Streicher
Julius Streicher was a prominent Nazi prior to World War II. He was the founder and publisher of Der Stürmer newspaper, which became a central element of the Nazi propaganda machine...
. The Adler-replica was in use after that in 1936 at the Cannstatter Wasen
Cannstatter Wasen
The Cannstatter Wasen is a 35 hectare festival area on the banks of the Neckar river in the part of Stuttgart known as Bad Cannstatt.The Cannstatter Wasen form part of the Neckar Park Fairground....
in Stuttgart
Stuttgart
Stuttgart is the capital of the state of Baden-Württemberg in southern Germany. The sixth-largest city in Germany, Stuttgart has a population of 600,038 while the metropolitan area has a population of 5.3 million ....
and during the 1936 Summer Olympics
1936 Summer Olympics
The 1936 Summer Olympics, officially known as the Games of the XI Olympiad, was an international multi-sport event which was held in 1936 in Berlin, Germany. Berlin won the bid to host the Games over Barcelona, Spain on April 26, 1931, at the 29th IOC Session in Barcelona...
in Berlin
Berlin
Berlin is the capital city of Germany and is one of the 16 states of Germany. With a population of 3.45 million people, Berlin is Germany's largest city. It is the second most populous city proper and the seventh most populous urban area in the European Union...
. During the 100-years-jubilee of the first prussian
Prussia
Prussia was a German kingdom and historic state originating out of the Duchy of Prussia and the Margraviate of Brandenburg. For centuries, the House of Hohenzollern ruled Prussia, successfully expanding its size by way of an unusually well-organized and effective army. Prussia shaped the history...
railway in 1938 the Adler-train was in service between Berlin and Potsdam
Potsdam
Potsdam is the capital city of the German federal state of Brandenburg and part of the Berlin/Brandenburg Metropolitan Region. It is situated on the River Havel, southwest of Berlin city centre....
. After this event the Adler-train was sent to the Nuremberg Transport Museum.
In 1950 the Adler-train was displayed by the Deutsche Bundesbahn
Deutsche Bundesbahn
The Deutsche Bundesbahn or DB was formed as the state railway of the newly established Federal Republic of Germany on September 7, 1949 as a successor of the Deutsche Reichsbahn-Gesellschaft '...
on a street transport vehicle for rolling stock during a parade
Parade
A parade is a procession of people, usually organized along a street, often in costume, and often accompanied by marching bands, floats or sometimes large balloons. Parades are held for a wide range of reasons, but are usually celebrations of some kind...
of the 900-years-jubilee of Nuremberg.
For the 125th anniversary of the railway in Germany the Adler-train was in service on the track of the tram
Tram
A tram is a passenger rail vehicle which runs on tracks along public urban streets and also sometimes on separate rights of way. It may also run between cities and/or towns , and/or partially grade separated even in the cities...
between Nuremberg (Plärrer place) and Fürth Hauptbahnhof
Fürth Hauptbahnhof
Fürth Hauptbahnhof is the central railway hub for the city of Fürth in Bavaria, Germany. The station is mainly frequented by regional services...
. The inner sides of the wheels were needed to turned of for operating on the tram track.
In 1984 it was rebuilt for the 150th anniversary by the Deutsche Bundesbahn
Deutsche Bundesbahn
The Deutsche Bundesbahn or DB was formed as the state railway of the newly established Federal Republic of Germany on September 7, 1949 as a successor of the Deutsche Reichsbahn-Gesellschaft '...
in the Offenburg
Offenburg
Offenburg is a city located in the state of Baden-Württemberg, Germany. With about 60,000 inhabitants, it is the largest city and the capital of the Ortenaukreis.Offenburg also houses University of Applied Sciences Offenburg...
repair shop. The inner sides of the wheels which were turned of in 1960 for driving on a tram track had to welded again. The steam boiler was checked under notice of current safety regulations. The Adler was displayed on the great jubilee exhibition in Nuremberg and took part of numerous events in west germany like for example in Hamburg
Hamburg
-History:The first historic name for the city was, according to Claudius Ptolemy's reports, Treva.But the city takes its modern name, Hamburg, from the first permanent building on the site, a castle whose construction was ordered by the Emperor Charlemagne in AD 808...
, Konstanz
Konstanz
Konstanz is a university city with approximately 80,000 inhabitants located at the western end of Lake Constance in the south-west corner of Germany, bordering Switzerland. The city houses the University of Konstanz.-Location:...
and Munich
Munich
Munich The city's motto is "" . Before 2006, it was "Weltstadt mit Herz" . Its native name, , is derived from the Old High German Munichen, meaning "by the monks' place". The city's name derives from the monks of the Benedictine order who founded the city; hence the monk depicted on the city's coat...
. At May 22nd, 1984 it was used for public tours between Nuremberg Central Station and Nuremberg East.
The locomotive wasn't in service from 1985 until 1999. For the planned services in 1999 it had to be refurbished during several months. At September 16th, 1999 the Federal Railway Authority gave the approval of operation. For the 100th anniversary of the Bavarian Railway Museum
Nuremberg Transport Museum
The Nuremberg Transport Museum is based in Nuremberg, Germany, and consists of the Deutsche Bahn's own DB Museum and the Museum of Communications . It also has two satellite museums at Koblenz-Lützel and Halle...
and the successor Nuremberg Transport Museum in 1999 the Adler-train was in service at three sundays in October and took part in the great parade of rolling stock at the Nuremberg classification yard
Classification yard
A classification yard or marshalling yard is a railroad yard found at some freight train stations, used to separate railroad cars on to one of several tracks. First the cars are taken to a track, sometimes called a lead or a drill...
. In the following years the Adler-train was used for several classcal railway tours in Germany.It stood in the Nuremberg Transport Museum
Nuremberg Transport Museum
The Nuremberg Transport Museum is based in Nuremberg, Germany, and consists of the Deutsche Bahn's own DB Museum and the Museum of Communications . It also has two satellite museums at Koblenz-Lützel and Halle...
until 2005 when it was damaged by fire.
At a fire in the museum's roundhouse
Roundhouse
A roundhouse is a building used by railroads for servicing locomotives. Roundhouses are large, circular or semicircular structures that were traditionally located surrounding or adjacent to turntables...
at the Nuremberg West locomotive depot on October 17th, 2005, which at that time contained 24 locomotives, the still-working Adler replica was one of many engines that were badly damaged. Nevertheless the management of the Deutsche Bahn decided to restore it. The wreck was lifted from the ruins of the roundhouse on 7 November by a mobile crane in a four-hour operation by a recovery gang from the Preßnitz Valley Railway and taken by special low-loader to the Meiningen Steam Locomotive Works
Meiningen Steam Locomotive Works
The Meiningen Steam Locomotive Works is a railway repair shop in Meiningen, Germany. It is owned by Deutsche Bahn and has specialised in the maintenance of museum steam locomotives since 1990, having extensive experience in maintaining steam engines. Today, customers of the factory include...
. It was discovered that the boiler
Boiler
A boiler is a closed vessel in which water or other fluid is heated. The heated or vaporized fluid exits the boiler for use in various processes or heating applications.-Materials:...
at least, thanks to its being full of water, was relatively undamaged, although its entire wooden cladding had been burnt and many plates had melted, and it could therefore be used for the reconstruction in 2007.
Reconstruction in a serviceable state in 2007
The reconstruction started in mid-April 2007 and was finished by the October. The metal-sheathed wooden frame was however so badly damaged, that it had to be completely built from scratch. A third-class wagon that had been stored at a different location and so had survived the fire, served as a template for the new coach-like wagons that were built by a MeiningenMeiningen
Meiningen is a town in Germany - located in the southern part of the state of Thuringia and is the district seat of Schmalkalden-Meiningen. It is situated on the river Werra....
carpenter
Carpenter
A carpenter is a skilled craftsperson who works with timber to construct, install and maintain buildings, furniture, and other objects. The work, known as carpentry, may involve manual labor and work outdoors....
's shop. The cost ran to about a million euros, of which 200,000 euros was donated by the public. The director of the DB Museum Nuremberg assuaged fears before the reconstruction began that the rebuilding work would not be able to replicate the details of the locomotive damaged by the fire and explained: "No compromises will be made!" It was even more accurately built by using historical drawings, so for example the reconstruction of the chimney damaged in the fire was not based on the 1935 replica, but on the original design. The biggest problem was the one-piece driving axle. This could not be made in the Meiningen works, so at short notice the company Grödlitzer Kurbelwelle Wildau GmbH was found which could carry out the work. For the frame of the locomotive between eight and twelve years seasoned wood from fraxinus-trees was used. This was elastical enough for vibrations by the power transmission during a run. The base frame of the tender was built from hard wood taken fromm oak
Oak
An oak is a tree or shrub in the genus Quercus , of which about 600 species exist. "Oak" may also appear in the names of species in related genera, notably Lithocarpus...
-trees.
At November 23rd, 2007 the restored Adler returned to display at the museum together with an old third class wagon from 1935 and two new ones from 2007 in a locomotive shed
Roundhouse
A roundhouse is a building used by railroads for servicing locomotives. Roundhouses are large, circular or semicircular structures that were traditionally located surrounding or adjacent to turntables...
near the Nuremberg Transport Museum. In the museum the non-serviceable replica from 1950 is displayed and also the original second class 1835 built and 1838 and 1846 rebuilt passenger wagon No 8 of the Bavarian Ludwig Railway which is not be put on track again because of conservation reasons. At April 26th, 2008 the replica was in use between Nuremberg and Fürth accompanied by German members of parliament of various parties, a member of the DB management board and the Bavarian minister-president, Beckstein. In May special runs in Nuremberg, Koblenz and Halle (Saale)
Halle, Saxony-Anhalt
Halle is the largest city in the German state of Saxony-Anhalt. It is also called Halle an der Saale in order to distinguish it from the town of Halle in North Rhine-Westphalia...
were following during the summer. In April 2010 during the 175th anniversary of the railway in Germany the Adler was in use of the area of the DB Museum in Koblenz-Lützel. In May and June runs with visitors between Nuremberg Central Station and Fürth Hauptbahnhof
Fürth Hauptbahnhof
Fürth Hauptbahnhof is the central railway hub for the city of Fürth in Bavaria, Germany. The station is mainly frequented by regional services...
were made.
Non-serviceable replica of the 1950s
Another replica that, unlike the 1935 version, is not operational, was appointed by the advertising office of the Deutsche Bundesbahn and built during the 1950s at the AusbesserungswerkAusbesserungswerk
An Ausbesserungswerk is a railway facility in German-speaking countries, the primary function of which is the repair of railway vehicles or their components. It is thus equivalent to a 'repair shop' or 'works'...
in Munich-Freimann. This replica was used for public relations
Public relations
Public relations is the actions of a corporation, store, government, individual, etc., in promoting goodwill between itself and the public, the community, employees, customers, etc....
purpose on exhibitions and fairs. It is to be found as a display model in the Nuremberg Transport Museum.
Further replicas and pictures
Since 1964 a 1:2 scale, motorised replica, the "Mini-Adler", had run at Nuremberg Zoo. It started in the vicinity of the entrance and shuttled to the children's zoo. In the course of the dolphinDolphin
Dolphins are marine mammals that are closely related to whales and porpoises. There are almost forty species of dolphin in 17 genera. They vary in size from and , up to and . They are found worldwide, mostly in the shallower seas of the continental shelves, and are carnivores, mostly eating...
lagoon project this line had to be closed, but an extension or move of the route is planned.
The Görlitzer Oldtimer Parkeisenbahn uses a replica on a narrow gauge railway with a track gauge of 600 mm. This replica is in fact a diesel locomotive
Diesel locomotive
A diesel locomotive is a type of railroad locomotive in which the prime mover is a diesel engine, a reciprocating engine operating on the Diesel cycle as invented by Dr. Rudolf Diesel...
.
As part of the town's millennium celebrations "1000 years in Fürth" a bus
Bus
A bus is a road vehicle designed to carry passengers. Buses can have a capacity as high as 300 passengers. The most common type of bus is the single-decker bus, with larger loads carried by double-decker buses and articulated buses, and smaller loads carried by midibuses and minibuses; coaches are...
was decorated with the Adler, and advertised an exhibition, at which donations for the reconstruction were collected.
In the stamp
Postage stamp
A postage stamp is a small piece of paper that is purchased and displayed on an item of mail as evidence of payment of postage. Typically, stamps are made from special paper, with a national designation and denomination on the face, and a gum adhesive on the reverse side...
-volumes of the Reichspost
Reichspost
- Imperial Reichspost :* The Imperial Reichspost was the name of the postal service of the Holy Roman Empire, founded by Franz von Taxis in 1495...
from 1935, the Deutsche Bundespost
Deutsche Bundespost
The Deutsche Bundespost was created in 1947 as a successor to the Reichspost . Between 1947 and 1950 the enterprise was called Deutsche Post...
from 1960, the Deutsche Post
Deutsche Post of the GDR
The Deutsche Post , also Deutsche Post of the GDR was the state-owned postal and telecommunications monopoly of the German Democratic Republic...
of the GDR from 1960 and the Deutsche Bundespost from 1985 the Adler was appreciated to the jubilees of "100", "125", and "150" years of German railways. At the 175th anniversary in 2010 a 55 eurocent
Cent (currency)
In many national currencies, the cent is a monetary unit that equals 1⁄100 of the basic monetary unit. Etymologically, the word cent derives from the Latin word "centum" meaning hundred. Cent also refers to a coin which is worth one cent....
commemorative stamp
Commemorative stamp
A commemorative stamp is a postage stamp, often issued on a significant date such as an anniversary, to honor or commemorate a place, event or person. The subject of the commemorative stamp is usually spelled out in print, unlike definitive stamps which normally depict the subject along with the...
with a picture of the Adler was issued by the Deutsche Post AG
Deutsche Post
Deutsche Post AG, operating under the trade name Deutsche Post DHL, is the world's largest logistics group. With its headquarters in Bonn, the corporation has 467,088 employees in more than 220 countries and territories worldwide and generated revenue of € 51.48 billion in 2010...
. Also a 10 Euro
Euro
The euro is the official currency of the eurozone: 17 of the 27 member states of the European Union. It is also the currency used by the Institutions of the European Union. The eurozone consists of Austria, Belgium, Cyprus, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Ireland, Italy, Luxembourg,...
commemorative coin of the mint
Mint (coin)
A mint is an industrial facility which manufactures coins for currency.The history of mints correlates closely with the history of coins. One difference is that the history of the mint is usually closely tied to the political situation of an era...
in Munich (D) with the following inscription on the edge Auf Vereinten Gleisen 1835 - 2010 (= On united tracks 1835 - 2010).
Literature
- DB Museum Nürnberg, Jürgen Franzke (Hrsg.): Der Adler - Deutschlands berühmteste Lokomotive (Objektgeschichten aus dem DB Museum, Band 2). Tümmel Verlag, Nürnberg 2011, ISBN 978-3-940594-23-5.
- Garratt, Colin und Max Wade-Matthews: Dampf. Eurobooks Cyprus Limited, Limassol 2000. ISBN 3-89815-076-3.
- Hehl, Markus: Der "Adler" - Deutschlands erste Dampflokomotive. Verlagsgruppe Weltbild, Augsburg 2008.
- Heigl, Peter: Adler - Stationen einer Lokomotive im Laufe dreier Jahrhunderte Buch & Kunstverlag Oberpfalz, Amberg Juni 2009, ISBN: ISBN 978-3-935719-55-1.
- Herring, Peter: Die Geschichte der Eisenbahn. Coventgarden bei Doring KindersleyDorling KindersleyDorling Kindersley is an international publishing company specializing in illustrated reference books for adults and children in 51 languages. It is currently part of the Penguin Group....
, München 2001, ISBN 3-8310-9001-7. - Hollingsworth, Brian und Arthur Cook: Das Handbuch der Lokomotiven. Bechtermünz/Weltbild, Augsburg 1996. ISBN 3-86047-138-4.
- Mück, Wolfgang: Deutschlands erste Eisenbahn mit Dampfkraft. Die kgl. priv. Ludwigseisenbahn zwischen Nürnberg und Fürth. 2. neubearb. Auflage. Fürth 1985, S. 115-126. (ThesisThesisA dissertation or thesis is a document submitted in support of candidature for an academic degree or professional qualification presenting the author's research and findings...
at the Julius-Maximilians-Universität WürzburgUniversity of WürzburgThe University of Würzburg is a university in Würzburg, Germany, founded in 1402. The university is a member of the distinguished Coimbra Group.-Name:...
1968) - Rebenstein, Georg: Stephenson's Locomotive auf der Ludwigs-Eisenbahn von Nuernberg nach Fuerth. Nürnberg 1836.
External links
- There is an English-language discussion forum at Railways of Germany