Release year: 2008
Pages: 384
Publisher: Atlantic Books
ISBN: 1843546302
Softback | Hardback | Online
What people are saying..
The railways and proper sewers were the two great creations of the Victorians which changed the face of Britain. Christian Wolmar brings the era of railway mania alive: both the imagination and the daring that made it possible.’
- David Dimbleby
‘A magnificent sweep through the whole human history of railways.’
- Hunter Davies
‘A wonderful account of how our railways came to be and the extraordinary revelation that since the very beginning, whenever a train has met a politician coming down the track there has almost always been the most appalling pile-up.’
- Jon Snow, Channel 4 News Presenter
This is the first comprehensive general history of Britain’s railways for over 30 years. Fire and Steam sets out the story of the people and events that shaped the world’s first railway network: one of the most impressive engineering achievements in history.
The book covers the whole history of the railways from the difficult birth of the pioneering Liverpool & Manchester Railway and of the railway mania which later ensued through to the chequered history of British Rail and the subsequent controversial privatisation. It shows how the railways changed Britain and stimulated the development of many facets of modern life from fish & chips to seaside holidays.
It is a wide-ranging history that celebrates the vision and determination of the Victorian pioneers who developed this revolutionary transport system and the men who cut through the land to enable a country-wide network to emerge. From the early days of steam to electrification, via the railway’s contribution to twentieth-century industrial design and the precarious future of the train, Fire and Steam explores the cultural, social and economical importance of this brilliant invention and reveals how the railway helped to form the Britain of today.
What people are saying..
The railways and proper sewers were the two great creations of the Victorians which changed the face of Britain. Christian Wolmar brings the era of railway mania alive: both the imagination and the daring that made it possible.’
- David Dimbleby
‘A magnificent sweep through the whole human history of railways.’
- Hunter Davies
‘A wonderful account of how our railways came to be and the extraordinary revelation that since the very beginning, whenever a train has met a politician coming down the track there has almost always been the most appalling pile-up.’
- Jon Snow, Channel 4 News Presenter