Alfred de Glehn
Encyclopedia
Alfred George de Glehn was a notable English-born French designer of steam locomotives, and an engineer at the Société Alsacienne de Constructions Mécaniques
(SACM). His steam engines of the 1890s combined elegance, high speed and efficiency. De Glehn express locomotives were first used on the Nord Railway, and on the boat trains from Calais to Paris where they impressed passengers with their speed.
He invented the de Glehn system of compounding, and de Glehn types were built in large numbers in France, and some were also built in Belgium, Germany and New Zealand, see Compound locomotive. Compounding lost favour from the 1900s, being replaced by superheating. However André Chapelon
rebuilt many of the French de Glehn compounds from 1929 onwards.
in Alsace at the age of 88. The house had been commandeered as the German district headquarters in World War I. He had changed his surname from von Glehn when he settled in France.
He was one of 12 children of Robert von Glehn from the Baltic provinces with estates near Tallinn
in Estonia, who had settled in England and married a Scotswoman. Their home in Sydenham
, London was the rendezvous of artistic, literary and musical people: George Grove
, Arthur Sullivan
, Jenny Lind
and J. R. Green
.
Louise Creighton
a British author and activist was his sister. A brother Alexander von Glehn was a coffee-merchant and built narrow-gauge railways in France. Alexander was treasurer of the Protestant Evangelical Society of Relief in Paris which provided help to victims of the Franco-Prussian War. Alexander’s son Wilfrid de Glehn
was a British painter. The family in England changed their surname from von Glehn to de Glehn in 1917.
Société Alsacienne de Constructions Mécaniques
The Société Alsacienne de Constructions Mécaniques [Society of Alsatian mechanical engineering] was an engineering company with its headquarters in Mulhouse, Alsace which produced railway locomotives, textile and printing machinery, diesel engines, boilers, lifting equipment, firearms and mining...
(SACM). His steam engines of the 1890s combined elegance, high speed and efficiency. De Glehn express locomotives were first used on the Nord Railway, and on the boat trains from Calais to Paris where they impressed passengers with their speed.
He invented the de Glehn system of compounding, and de Glehn types were built in large numbers in France, and some were also built in Belgium, Germany and New Zealand, see Compound locomotive. Compounding lost favour from the 1900s, being replaced by superheating. However André Chapelon
André Chapelon
André Chapelon was a noted French mechanical engineer and designer of advanced steam locomotives. Engineer of Ecole Centrale Paris, he was one of very few locomotive designers who brought a rigorous scientific method to their design, and he sought to apply up-to-date knowledge and theories in...
rebuilt many of the French de Glehn compounds from 1929 onwards.
Personal life
He died at his home at MülhouseMulhouse
Mulhouse |mill]] hamlet) is a city and commune in eastern France, close to the Swiss and German borders. With a population of 110,514 and 278,206 inhabitants in the metropolitan area in 2006, it is the largest city in the Haut-Rhin département, and the second largest in the Alsace region after...
in Alsace at the age of 88. The house had been commandeered as the German district headquarters in World War I. He had changed his surname from von Glehn when he settled in France.
He was one of 12 children of Robert von Glehn from the Baltic provinces with estates near Tallinn
Tallinn
Tallinn is the capital and largest city of Estonia. It occupies an area of with a population of 414,940. It is situated on the northern coast of the country, on the banks of the Gulf of Finland, south of Helsinki, east of Stockholm and west of Saint Petersburg. Tallinn's Old Town is in the list...
in Estonia, who had settled in England and married a Scotswoman. Their home in Sydenham
Sydenham
Sydenham is an area and electoral ward in the London Borough of Lewisham; although some streets towards Crystal Palace Park, Forest Hill and Penge are outside the ward and in the London Borough of Bromley, and some streets off Sydenham Hill are in the London Borough of Southwark. Sydenham was in...
, London was the rendezvous of artistic, literary and musical people: George Grove
George Grove
Sir George Grove, CB was an English writer on music, known as the founding editor of Grove's Dictionary of Music and Musicians....
, Arthur Sullivan
Arthur Sullivan
Sir Arthur Seymour Sullivan MVO was an English composer of Irish and Italian ancestry. He is best known for his series of 14 operatic collaborations with the dramatist W. S. Gilbert, including such enduring works as H.M.S. Pinafore, The Pirates of Penzance and The Mikado...
, Jenny Lind
Jenny Lind
Johanna Maria Lind , better known as Jenny Lind, was a Swedish opera singer, often known as the "Swedish Nightingale". One of the most highly regarded singers of the 19th century, she is known for her performances in soprano roles in opera in Sweden and across Europe, and for an extraordinarily...
and J. R. Green
John Richard Green
John Richard Green was an English historian.-Early life:Born the son of a tradesman in Oxford, where he was educated, first at Magdalen College School, and then at Jesus College where he is commemorated by the J. R...
.
Louise Creighton
Louise Creighton
Louise Hume Creighton, née von Glehn was a British author of books on historical and socio-political topics and an activist for greater role of women both within society and within the Church of England. In 1872, she married Mandell Creighton, later a historian and bishop in the Church of...
a British author and activist was his sister. A brother Alexander von Glehn was a coffee-merchant and built narrow-gauge railways in France. Alexander was treasurer of the Protestant Evangelical Society of Relief in Paris which provided help to victims of the Franco-Prussian War. Alexander’s son Wilfrid de Glehn
Wilfrid de Glehn
Wilfrid Gabriel de Glehn , RA was an Impressionist British painter, elected to the Royal Academy in 1932.Wilfried Von Glehn was born in Sydenham in south-east London...
was a British painter. The family in England changed their surname from von Glehn to de Glehn in 1917.