Royal Saxon State Railways
Encyclopedia
Kingdom of Saxony
The Kingdom of Saxony , lasting between 1806 and 1918, was an independent member of a number of historical confederacies in Napoleonic through post-Napoleonic Germany. From 1871 it was part of the German Empire. It became a Free state in the era of Weimar Republic in 1918 after the end of World War...
from 1869 to 1918. From 1918 until their merger into 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...
the title 'Royal' was dropped and they were just called the Saxon State Railways (Sächsische Staatseisenbahnen).
History
En route to a state railway
After the completion of the privately-financed Leipzig-Dresden railway in 1839, the Saxon parliament also began to get involved in railway construction. Early on it was recognised that railway lines to BavariaKingdom of Bavaria
The Kingdom of Bavaria was a German state that existed from 1806 to 1918. The Bavarian Elector Maximilian IV Joseph of the House of Wittelsbach became the first King of Bavaria in 1806 as Maximilian I Joseph. The monarchy would remain held by the Wittelsbachs until the kingdom's dissolution in 1918...
, Bohemia
Bohemia
Bohemia is a historical region in central Europe, occupying the western two-thirds of the traditional Czech Lands. It is located in the contemporary Czech Republic with its capital in Prague...
and Silesia
Silesia
Silesia is a historical region of Central Europe located mostly in Poland, with smaller parts also in the Czech Republic, and Germany.Silesia is rich in mineral and natural resources, and includes several important industrial areas. Silesia's largest city and historical capital is Wrocław...
were needed and that there ought to be a route running north-to-south through the kingdom. The funding of this plan lay in the hands of privately financed railway committees. The state, however, saw itself arranging for the corresponding political and legal hurdles to be cleared. On 14 January 1841 a treaty was agreed with the Kingdom of Bavaria and the Duchy of Saxony-Altenburg for the construction of a railway route between Leipzig and Hof
Hof, Germany
Hof is a city located on the banks of the Saale in the northeastern corner of the German state of Bavaria, in the Franconia region, at the Czech border and the forested Fichtelgebirge and Frankenwald upland regions....
. On 22 June 1841, the Saxon-Bavarian Railway Company was founded and on 19 September 1842 railway services between Leipzig and Altenburg station were opened. Because the construction costs exceeded the planned limits, the state had to jump in and honour its previously made promise to complete the construction at the national expense. On 1 Apr 1847 the railway line, which was finished as far as Reichenbach im Vogtland was transferred to state ownership.
At the same time the Royal Saxon-Bavarian State Railway Division (Königlichen Direction der Sächsisch-Bayerischen Staatseisenbahn) in Leipzig began work. Specific regulations were laid down by the state parliament. The board of directors was accordingly given the appropriate powers and was assigned directly to a state ministry. The payroll of the officials was to be approved by the state parliament and railway fares by the provincial legislature. In addition to funding for the construction of the line, in particular the Göltzsch Viaduct
Göltzsch Viaduct
The Göltzsch Viaduct is a railway bridge in Germany. It is the largest brick-built bridge in the world, and for a time it was the tallest railway bridge in the world. It spans the valley of the Göltzsch River between Mylau and Netzschkau, around east of Reichenbach im Vogtland in the German Free...
and Elster Viaduct
Elster Viaduct
The Elster Viaduct is a railway bridge in the German state of Saxony. It carries the Leipzig–Hof line near Jocketa over the valley of the Weiße Elster. After the Göltzsch Viaduct it is the second largest brick bridge in the world...
, agreements had to be reached with Saxony-Altenburg and Bavaria over owning and operating relationships. On 15 July 1851, the line to Hof (Saale) was completed.
Because no suitable private company had been found to build the Saxony-Bohemian Railway from Dresden to Bodenbach, the state took over this task itself. On the opening of the section from Dresden to Pirna
Pirna
Pirna is a town in the Free State of Saxony, Germany, capital of the administrative district Sächsische Schweiz-Osterzgebirge. The town's population is over 40,000. Pirna is located near Dresden and is an important district town as well as a Große Kreisstadt...
on 1 August 1848, Saxony had its second state railway line, for which the 'Royal Division for the Construction and Operation of the Saxony-Bohemia Railway' (Königliche Direction für Bau und Betrieb der Sächsisch-Böhmischen Staatseisenbahn) was established, with a head office in Dresden.
On 24 July 1843 a treaty was concluded with the Kingdom of Prussia
Kingdom of Prussia
The Kingdom of Prussia was a German kingdom from 1701 to 1918. Until the defeat of Germany in World War I, it comprised almost two-thirds of the area of the German Empire...
for the construction of a railway route from Dresden via Bautzen to the Prussia towns of Görlitz
Görlitz
Görlitz is a town in Germany. It is the easternmost town in the country, located on the Lusatian Neisse River in the Bundesland of Saxony. It is opposite the Polish town of Zgorzelec, which was a part of Görlitz until 1945. Historically, Görlitz was in the region of Upper Lusatia...
and Bunzlau. That made it possible to put in the important link to Breslau.
On 1 September 1847, the 102 km long route from Dresden to Görlitz was opened by the Saxon-Silesian Railway (Sächsisch-Schlesische Eisenbahn), a private company that had formed with state support. On 31 January 1851 this company was transferred to state ownership. At the same time the running powers of the private Löbau-Zittau Railway Company (Löbau-Zittauer Eisenbahn-Gesellschaft) were taken over. By combining the management of the two lines radiating from Dresden savings were supposed to be made. Thus, the 'Royal Division of Saxon-Bohemian and Saxon-Silesian State Railways in Dresden (Königliche Direction der Sächsisch-Böhmischen und Sächsisch-Schlesischen Staatseisenbahnen in Dresden) was formed, which on 14 December 1852 was thankfully renamed to the rather more succinct 'Royal Dresden State Railway Division' (Königliche Staatseisenbahn-Direction zu Dresden).
On 1 October 1853 the 'Royal Chemnitz-Riesa State Railway Division' (Königliche Direktion der Chemnitzer-Riesaer Staatseisenbahn) was established. It had the task of completing the construction of the Riesa–Chemnitz railway and running the line subsequently. This had been necessary, after the private firm, the Chemnitz-Riesa Railway Company, had gone bankrupt due to the cost of structures needed between Waldheim
Waldheim
- Places :* Waldheim, Saskatchewan, a town in Saskatchewan, Canada* Waldheim, Saxony, a town in Saxony, Germany* Waldheim , a suburban district of Hanover, Germany...
und Döbeln
Döbeln
Döbeln is a town in the Free State of Saxony, Germany, part of the Mittelsachsen district, located at both banks of the river Freiberger Mulde.-History:It was founded in the 10th century, the first written proof of its existence dates back to the year 981....
.
Unlike Prussia, Saxony never issued a railway law. This meant that every railway proposal had to be agreed in the state parliament. In spite of the negative experiences of the past, the next ten years saw an increase in the construction of state railways. The work was not without problems, due to geographical difficulties. The extension of the route between Chemnitz and Riesa as well as the line from Freiberg to Tharandt were technically challenging and correspondingly expensive.
On 15 November 1858 the line from Chemnitz to Zwickau was completed. That meant there was now a link from Riesa to the Saxon-Bavarian Railway over the line from Zwickau that had been built in 1845. As a result, the Chemnitz Division was disbanded and the management of its routes transferred to the Leipzig Division, which was given the title of "Royal Division of the State's Western Railways" (Königliche Direktion der westlichen Staatseisenbahn). At the same time the Dresden Division was renamed the "Royal Division of the State's Eastern Railways" (Königliche Direktion der östlichen Staatseisenbahnen).
In 1862 the state railways had an overall length of 525 km. In addition to the Leipzig-Dresden Railway, there were now private coal railways in the Saxon coal regions of Zwickau
Zwickau
Zwickau in Germany, former seat of the government of the south-western region of the Free State of Saxony, belongs to an industrial and economical core region. Nowadays it is the capital city of the district of Zwickau...
and Döhlen
Freital
Freital is the biggest town in the Sächsische Schweiz-Osterzgebirge district, in the Free State of Saxony, Germany. It is situated on the small river Weißeritz, 8 km southwest of Dresden.- Geography :...
, as well as the Zittau-Reichenberg Railway. The state however had a 11/12 stake in the latter.
By 1865 links from Leipzig to Corbetha
Großkorbetha
Großkorbetha is a village and a former municipality in the Burgenlandkreis district, in Saxony-Anhalt, Germany. Since 1 September 2010, it is part of the town Weißenfels....
and Bitterfeld
Bitterfeld
Bitterfeld is a town in the district Anhalt-Bitterfeld, Saxony-Anhalt, Germany. Since 1 July 2007 it has been part of the town Bitterfeld-Wolfen. It is situated approx. 25 km south of Dessau, and 30 km northeast of Halle...
, and hence connexions to Magdeburg
Magdeburg
Magdeburg , is the largest city and the capital city of the Bundesland of Saxony-Anhalt, Germany. Magdeburg is situated on the Elbe River and was one of the most important medieval cities of Europe....
and 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...
, were established as well as the Voigtländ State Railway
Voigtland State Railway
The Voigtland State Railway was originally one of the lines of the Royal Saxon State Railways that was built in Vogtland, now in the German state of Saxony and the Czech Republic...
(Herlasgrün–Eger
Cheb
Cheb is a city in the Karlovy Vary Region of the Czech Republic, with about 33,000 inhabitants. It is situated on the river Ohře , at the foot of one of the spurs of the Smrčiny and near the border with Germany...
) .
Austro-Prussian War
The Austro-Prussian War was a war fought in 1866 between the German Confederation under the leadership of the Austrian Empire and its German allies on one side and the Kingdom of Prussia with its German allies and Italy on the...
of 1866 between Prussia
Kingdom of Prussia
The Kingdom of Prussia was a German kingdom from 1701 to 1918. Until the defeat of Germany in World War I, it comprised almost two-thirds of the area of the German Empire...
and Austria
Austrian Empire
The Austrian Empire was a modern era successor empire, which was centered on what is today's Austria and which officially lasted from 1804 to 1867. It was followed by the Empire of Austria-Hungary, whose proclamation was a diplomatic move that elevated Hungary's status within the Austrian Empire...
. Because Saxony was on the Austrian side, it evacuated all the locomotives to Hof, Eger and Budapest when Prussian troops invaded. During the course of the war the Ostrau Viaduct and the bridge over the Elbe at Riesa
Riesa
Riesa is a town in the district of Meißen in the Free State of Saxony, Germany. It is located at the river Elbe, approx. 40 km northwest of Dresden.The world's first 110 kV power line was inaugurated between Riesa and Lauchhammer in 1912....
were destroyed. In the subsequent peace treaty, Prussia was given ownership of those sections of the Silesian Railway that ran through its territory as well as Görlitz station. A Prussian route from Leipzig to Zeitz
Zeitz
Zeitz is a town in the Burgenlandkreis district, in Saxony-Anhalt, Germany. It is situated on the river Weiße Elster, in the middle of the triangle of the federal states Saxony-Anhalt, Thuringia and Saxony.-History:...
also had to be permitted.
In the following years the railway network was further expanded. Lines in the upper Ore Mountains appeared after Schwarzenberg/Erzgeb. was given a railway connexion in 1858. In 1866 Annaberg-Buchholz
Annaberg-Buchholz
Annaberg-Buchholz is a town in the Free State of Saxony, Germany, in the Erzgebirge, capital of the district Erzgebirgskreis.The town is located in the Ore Mountains, at the side of the Pöhlberg . It has three Protestant churches, among them that of St...
joined the network and Weipert followed in 1872. The most important reason was the transportation of brown coal from the north Bohemian basin. In 1869 the gap between Flöha
Flöha
Flöha is a town in the district of Mittelsachsen, in the Free State of Saxony, Germany. Flöha is situated on the confluence of the rivers Zschopau and Flöha, east of Chemnitz.-History:...
and Freiberg was finally closed and the two networks joined together.
As a result, on 1 July 1869, the Leipzig and Dresden divisions were merged into the new "Royal General Division of the Saxon State Railways" (Königlichen Generaldirection der sächsischen Staatseisenbahnen), abbreviated to K. Sächs. Sts. E. B. “, in Dresden.
One of the managing directors of the Saxon state railways was the privy councillor, Otto von Tschirschky and Bögendorff, the father-in-law of the later General Paul von der Planitz.
Further expansion
The years after the foundation of the Reich in 1871 were also marked, in Saxony, by a large number of private railway construction projects. However in most cases the state had to come to their aid in order to complete the planned routes and to continue to run them. In addition, further building work was carried out in order to expand the network. The construction of railways made it possible to site industry even in the villages of the Ore Mountains and the Lausitz and to foster under-developed regions. On 1 July 1876 the state took over the Leipzig-Dresden railway and thereby increased the network length by 337.5 km. Subsequently, almost all remaining private railway companies in Saxony were taken over in order to be ready for a planned Reich railway project under Prussian leadership.
Union of German Railway Administrations
The Union of German Railway Administrations or VDEV emerged in 1847 from the Association of Prussian Railways , which had been founded on 10 November 1846 by the ten Prussian railway administrations in order to simplify the standardisation of resources, equipment and regulations between the...
(Verein Deutscher Eisenbahnverwaltungen) set out principles for secondary lines. These were legally implemented in 1878 as part of the 'Railway Regulations for German Railways of Lower Importance' (Bahnordnung für deutsche Eisenbahnen untergeordneter Bedeutung). The routes built to these simpler regulations were known in Saxony as 'secondary lines' or Sekundärbahnen (Singular: Sekundärbahn). Twenty six routes totalling 453 km were immediately run as Sekundärbahnen and in 1879 the first newly-built Sekundärbahn, the suburban route from Leipzig to Gaschwitz via Plagwitz.
Because even Sekundärbahnen did not produce the desired savings in every case, in 1881 the construction of the first narrow gauge railways began. On 17 October 1881 the section of line between Wilkau and Kirchberg (Sachsen) was opened. By 1920 Saxon narrow gauge railways had a total length of 519.88 km.
The most important railway structures were the Dresden Hauptbahnhof
Dresden Hauptbahnhof
is one of two main inter-city transit hubs in the German city of Dresden. Designed by Ernst Giese and Paul Weidner, it was built between 1892 and 1897 at the southern border of the inner city and was important in the growth and development of the city....
built from 1891 to 1901 and the Leipzig Hauptbahnhof
Leipzig Hauptbahnhof
is, at 83,460 m², Europe's largest railway station when measured by floor area. It has 24 platforms housed in six iron trainsheds; a multi-level concourse with towering stone arches; and a 293 metre-long facade...
which was finished in 1915. Both were linked to the cities with extensive modifications to the railway yards
Rail yard
A rail yard, or railroad yard, is a complex series of railroad tracks for storing, sorting, or loading/unloading, railroad cars and/or locomotives. Railroad yards have many tracks in parallel for keeping rolling stock stored off the mainline, so that they do not obstruct the flow of traffic....
.
On the abdication of King Friedrich August III in 1918 and the transformation of the kingdom to a free state, the appellation 'Royal' ((Königlich) was dropped and the railway administration in Saxony called itself the 'Saxon State Railways' (Sächsische Staatseisenbahnen or Sächs. Sts. E.B.). The Saxon State Railways brought 3370 km of track into 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...
network in 1920.
Railway network
The railway network included, for one, the north-south links from Leipzig via Plauen to Hof, from Riesa to Chemnitz and from Elsterwerda to Dresden and Schöna as well as the east-west links from Plauen via Chemnitz to Dresden, from Leipzig to Dresden and from Dresden to Görlitz. The industrialised Ore Mountains were especially well-linked by several stub lines along the river valleys. In places these routes crossed the watershed of the Ore Mountains and joined up with the Bohemian railway network.An overview of the individual routes may be found in the German List of railway lines in Saxony.
Steam locomotives
The first locomotives that were procured were from proven classes built in England. These were four-coupled 0-4-00-4-0
Under the Whyte notation for the classification of steam locomotives, 0-4-0 represents one of the simplest possible types, that with two axles and four coupled wheels, all of which are driven...
steam locomotives and, later, 2-4-0
2-4-0
Under the Whyte notation for the classification of steam locomotives, 2-4-0 represents the wheel arrangement of two leading wheels on one axle, four powered and coupled driving wheels on two axles, and no trailing wheels....
machines. To begin with even locomotives with a 2-2-2 wheel arrangement
Wheel arrangement
In rail transport, a wheel arrangement is a system of classifying the way in which wheels are distributed beneath a locomotive.. Several notations exist to describe the wheel assemblies of a locomotive by type, position, and connections, with the adopted notations varying by country...
were procured.
These classes were deployed on the main lines for a relatively long time; it was not until 1870 that 4-4-0 locomotives (Saxon K II, later K VIII
Saxon VIII 1
The Saxon Class VIII 1 were early German 4-4-0 steam locomotives built for the Royal Saxon State Railways for express train services. The engines were deployed on the railway route between Dresden and Chemnitz....
) entered service. On branch lines and in shunting services the four-couplers were the main form of motive power for even longer. From the early 1890s locomotives with six coupled wheels were acquired.
From that time, locomotives began to be matched more closely to their various tasks (goods, passenger and express train duties). Even the different route profiles (flat in the north and northeast, hilly in the south and southwest) led to increasingly different designs. From the turn of the century faster and faster classes were introduced. After the 4-6-0
4-6-0
Under the Whyte notation for the classification of steam locomotives, 4-6-0 represents the wheel arrangement of four leading wheels on two axles in a leading truck, six powered and coupled driving wheels on three axles, and no trailing wheels. This wheel arrangement became the second-most popular...
locomotives followed classes with 4-6-2
4-6-2
4-6-2, in the Whyte notation for the classification of steam locomotives, represents the wheel arrangement of four leading wheels on two axles , six powered and coupled driving wheels on three axles, and two trailing wheels on one axle .These locomotives are also known as Pacifics...
(XVIII H) and 2-8-2
2-8-2
Under the Whyte notation for the classification of steam locomotives, 2-8-2 represents the wheel arrangement of two leading wheels on one axle , eight powered and coupled driving wheels on four axles, and two trailing wheels on one axle...
(XX HV) arrangements for express train services; 2-6-2
2-6-2
Under the Whyte notation for the classification of steam locomotives, 2-6-2 represents the wheel arrangement of two leading wheels, six coupled driving wheels and two trailing wheels.Other equivalent classifications are:...
(XIV HT) for local traffic and 2-8-0
2-8-0
Under the Whyte notation for the classification of steam locomotives, 2-8-0 represents the wheel arrangement of two leading wheels on one axle , eight powered and coupled driving wheels on four axles, and no trailing wheels...
(IX H) and E (IX V
Saxon IX V
The Saxon Class IX Vs were German, eight-coupled, tender locomotives built for the Royal Saxon State Railways for goods train duties.- History :...
and XI HT) for goods train duties.
The development of narrow gauge
Narrow gauge
A narrow gauge railway is a railway that has a track gauge narrower than the of standard gauge railways. Most existing narrow gauge railways have gauges of between and .- Overview :...
locomotives was not so focussed. After the six-coupler Saxon I K, followed two designs that were unconvincing. Not until 1892 with the introduction of the 0-4-4-0 Meyer locomotive, the Saxon IV K
Saxon IV K
The Saxon IV K were eight-wheeled, narrow gauge, Günther-Meyer type steam engines built for the Royal Saxon State Railways with a rail gauge of 750 mm. A total of 96 were built between 1892 and 1921, making the Saxon IV K the most numerous narrow gauge locomotive in Germany...
was a design produced that was to form the backbone of the Saxon narrow gauge fleet for decades. With the appearance of the Saxon VI K in 1918 the final successful design was submitted.
Whislst the private Leipzig-Dresden Railway bought its engines from several German locomotive manufacturers, the state locomotives were almost exclusively developed and supplied by the Chemnitz
Chemnitz
Chemnitz is the third-largest city of the Free State of Saxony, Germany. Chemnitz is an independent city which is not part of any county and seat of the government region Direktionsbezirk Chemnitz. Located in the northern foothills of the Ore Mountains, it is a part of the Saxon triangle...
-based Sächsischen Maschinenfabrik
Sächsische Maschinenfabrik
The Sächsische Maschinenfabrik in Chemnitz was one of the most important engineering companies in Saxony in the second half of the 19th century and the first two decades of the 20th century. Including its various predecessor businesses, the firm existed from 1837 until its liquidation in 1930, and...
locomotive factory.
Railcars
Railcars were only used in limited numbers on Saxon railways. The only regular and long-lasting use of railcars were the electric units on the KlingenthalKlingenthal
Klingenthal is a town in the Vogtlandkreis district, in the Free State of Saxony, south-eastern Germany. It is situated directly on the border with the Czech Republic opposite the Czech town of Kraslice, 29 km southeast of Plauen, and 33 km northwest of Karlovy Vary.The Aschberg towers above the...
–Sachsenberg-Georgenthal
Georgenthal
Georgenthal is a municipality in the district of Gotha, in Thuringia, Germany....
narrow gauge line. There were trials with steam railcars, accumulator cars and combustion-engined railbuses. Employed for a long time from 1883 were three Thomas steam railbuses. Two diesel-electric
Diesel-electric
Diesel-electric transmission or diesel-electric powertrain is used by a number of vehicle and ship types for providing locomotion.A diesel-electric transmission system includes a diesel engine connected to an electrical generator, creating electricity that powers electric traction motors...
s purchased in 1915 proved themselves well in practice, but were sold to Switzerland
Switzerland
Switzerland name of one of the Swiss cantons. ; ; ; or ), in its full name the Swiss Confederation , is a federal republic consisting of 26 cantons, with Bern as the seat of the federal authorities. The country is situated in Western Europe,Or Central Europe depending on the definition....
after the First World War.
An overview of the individual locomotive classes is given in the List of Saxon locomotives and railbuses.
Goods wagons
In addition to their own designs, Saxony also used only slightly-modified Prussian goods wagonGoods 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,...
designs. After the foundation of the German State Railway Wagon Association
German State Railway Wagon Association
The German State Railway Wagon Association was an association of the German state railways Länderbahnen founded in 1909. The purpose of the association was to guarantee the unrestricted exchange of goods wagons between the member railway administrations...
in 1909 the standardised goods wagons
Verbandsbauart
The German term Verbandsbauart describes both a type of goods wagon as well as a type of tram.In order to standardise the goods wagons classes of the various German state railways , the German State Railway Wagon Association issued regulations...
were procured, that were defined in 11 goods wagon templates
German state railway norms
In German railway engineering, norms are standards for the design and production of railway vehicles.In the 1880s and 1890s, Prussian norms were developed for the locomotives, tenders and wagons of the Prussian state railways under the direction of the railway director responsible for railway...
.
Literature
- Arthur von Mayer: Geschichte und Geographie der Deutschen Eisenbahnen., Berlin 1894 (Nachdruck Moers 1984)
- Fritz Näbrich, Günter Meyer, Reiner Preuß: Lokomotiv-Archiv Sachsen, transpress, Berlin 1984
- Erich und Reiner Preuß: Sächsische Staatseisenbahnen., transpress, Berlin 1991, ISBN 3-344-70700-0
- Johann Ferdinand Ulbricht: Geschichte der Königlich Sächsischen Staatseisenbahnen., Leipzig 1889, Reprint Leipzig 1989, ISBN 3-7463-0171-8 (Digitalisat der Ausgabe 1889)
- Manfred Weisbrod: Sachsen-Report Bd. 1 + 2 Sächsische Eisenbahngeschichte., Hermann Merker Verlag, Fürstenfeldbruck 1993+1995, ISBN 3-922404-12-X und ISBN 3-922404-71-5
External links
- www.sachsenschiene.de ('Saxon rail' website - German)
- There is an English-language discussion forum at Railways of Germany