Citizendia

For the railway in India, see South Eastern Railway (India)
The South Eastern Railway's crest
The South Eastern Railway's crest
The South Eastern Railway's former headquarters in Tooley Street, London, near London Bridge station.
The South Eastern Railway's former headquarters in Tooley Street, London, near London Bridge station. The South Eastern Railway is one of the sixteen railway zones in India. Tooley Street is a road in South London connecting London Bridge to St Saviour's Dock; it runs past Tower Bridge on the Southwark London ( ˈlʌndən is the capital and largest urban area in the United Kingdom. London Bridge station is a National Rail and London Underground station in the London Borough of Southwark, which occupies a large area on two levels immediately
Railways in the South East of England in 1840
Railways in the South East of England in 1840
Railway lines in Kent, SER lines can be seen alongside LCDR, LBSCR, etc lines
Railway lines in Kent, SER lines can be seen alongside LCDR, LBSCR, etc lines

South Eastern Railway (SER) was a railway company in the United Kingdom, which linked London with Kent. The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom, the UK or Britain,is a Sovereign state located London ( ˈlʌndən is the capital and largest urban area in the United Kingdom. KENT (1400 AM) is a Radio station broadcasting a Adult Standards/MOR format

The company was formed from the London and Greenwich Railway (LGR) and the Canterbury and Whitstable Railway (CWR). At Bermondsey there was a junction for the London & Croydon Railway, opened in 1839. The London and Croydon Railway was opened in 1839 between London and Croydon in England.

Contents

London & Greenwich Railway

The LGR opened its first section, between Spa Road (Bermondsey) and Deptford, on 8 February 1836, the line being extended westwards to London Bridge on 14 December 1836, and eastwards to a temporary station at Greenwich on 14 December 1838. Spa Road station was the original terminus of London's first railway the London and Greenwich Railway. Deptford is an area on the south bank of the River Thames in south-east London. Events 421 - Constantius III becomes co- Emperor of the Western Roman Empire. Year 1836 ( MDCCCXXXVI) was a Leap year starting on Friday (link will display the full calendar of the Gregorian Calendar (or a Leap London Bridge station is a National Rail and London Underground station in the London Borough of Southwark, which occupies a large area on two levels immediately Events 1287 - St Lucia's flood: The Zuider Zee sea wall in the Netherlands collapses killing over 50000 people Year 1836 ( MDCCCXXXVI) was a Leap year starting on Friday (link will display the full calendar of the Gregorian Calendar (or a Leap Greenwich railway station is about 400 m southwest of the town centre of Greenwich, London, England. Events 1287 - St Lucia's flood: The Zuider Zee sea wall in the Netherlands collapses killing over 50000 people Year 1838 ( MDCCCXXXVIII) was a Common year starting on Monday (link will display the full calendar of the Gregorian Calendar (or a Common The present Greenwich station opened in 1840. This was the terminus until 1878, when the final cut-and-cover tunnel section between Greenwich and Maze Hill (beneath the grounds of the Queen's House and Greenwich Hospital - where the graveyard was excavated, remains being reinterred in East Greenwich Pleasaunce approximately one mile to the east) was opened, linking it to the North Kent Line just west of Charlton. Year 1878 ( MDCCCLXXVIII) was a Common year starting on Tuesday (link will display the full calendar of the Gregorian calendar (or a Common A tunnel is an underground passageway The definition of what constitutes a tunnel is not universally agreed upon A tunnel is an underground passageway The definition of what constitutes a tunnel is not universally agreed upon Maze Hill railway station, in the Maze Hill area of Greenwich London, is the closest railway station to Greenwich Park, being about two minutes walk The Queen's House Greenwich, built 1614-1617 was designed by Architect Inigo Jones, early in his architectural career for Anne of Denmark, the queen History of the Buildings Greenwich Hospital was built on the site of the Palace of Placentia, more commonly known as Greenwich Palace which had fallen into disrepair East Greenwich Pleasaunce is a public park in East Greenwich, in south-east London. The North Kent Line is a railway line which connects central and south east London with Dartford and Medway. Charlton railway station is in Charlton (at the bottom of Charlton Church Lane in the London Borough of Greenwich. The section between Charlton and Maze Hill opened in 1873, with Maze Hill functioning as a terminus until 1878. Westcombe Park railway station opened in 1879. Westcombe Park station is in Greenwich London, and is situated on the North Kent line connecting suburbs (eg Deptford, Greenwich Charlton, [1]

The layout of Greenwich station still partly betrays that fact. The line from London, built on a continuous viaduct, is perfectly straight, but after Greenwich it makes a sharp turn and dips into a tunnel. There also used to be a space between the two tracks for the locomotive 'escape route' to reverse the trains, but this disappeared when the station was reorganised to accommodate the Docklands Light Railway. The Docklands Light Railway (DLR is a Light rail system serving the redeveloped Docklands area of East London England.

Canterbury & Whitstable Railway

Main article: Canterbury and Whitstable Railway

The CWR (known locally as the Crab and Winkle Line, from its initials and fact that Whitstable was a fishing port) opened on 3 May 1830 between Canterbury and Whitstable Harbour, a distance of six miles. Early history There are a number of claimants to the title "first railway in Britain" including the Middleton Railway, the Swansea and Mumbles Events 1491 - Kongo monarch Nkuwu Nzinga is baptised by Portuguese missionaries adopting the baptismal name of João For the game see 1830 (board game. Year 1830 ( MDCCCXXX) was a Common year starting on Friday (link will display Canterbury ( ˈkæntəbɹ̩i is a City in eastern Kent in the South East region of England. Whitstable ( is a seaside town in northeast Kent, southeast England It was the first regular passenger steam railway in the world. It was built as part of a plan to improve the access of the city of Canterbury to the sea,and involved much work improving Whitstable harbour, engineered by Thomas Telford, which opened in 1832 and is still essentially intact. Thomas Telford (9 August 1757 - 2 September 1834 was born in Westerkirk, Scotland. In its early days it employed a variety of means of traction: on the inclines at Tyler Hill and Clowes Wood winding engines were used, with horses on the section in between; and the locomotive Invicta - built by Robert Stephenson, unsuccessful and disused by 1839 - being employed at the Whitstable end. Robert Stephenson FRS (16 October 1803 &ndash 12 October 1859 was an English Civil engineer. In spite of its short life, Invicta has been preserved.

The line included the world's first passenger train tunnel, the 800-yard Tyler Hill Tunnel, and both its portals are still visible. One entrance is behind the University of Kent, and the other in the grounds of the Archbishop's School. The University of Kent is a plate glass campus University in Kent, England. Until the 1970s it was possible to walk through it, but it became unsafe and collapsed shortly after, causing structural damage to the university buildings above.

Normal steam engines were introduced on this line in 1846 halving the journey time to 20 minutes. The engines had to be specially cut down in size in order to get through the tunnel, and the carriages were lower than normal.

The line closed to passenger traffic on 1 January 1931, and entirely in 1953. New Year See also New Year The Ancient Romans began their consular year on January 1st since 153 BC Year 1931 ( MCMXXXI) was a Common year starting on Thursday (link will display full 1931 calendar of the Gregorian calendar. The site of the first Canterbury station was immediately to the east of Canterbury West station and for many years was used as a coal yard and goods station. Trains ran into a bay platform at the West station when that opened in 1846.

The Main Line

Main article: South Eastern Main Line

The SER original main line was given sanction by Act of Parliament in 1836, running from London Bridge via Redhill, Tonbridge, Maidstone and Ashford to Folkestone and Dover. The South Eastern Main Line is one of two long-distance routes crossing the county of Kent, England, UK to reach to Kent Coast An Act of Parliament is a Law enacted as Primary legislation by a national or sub-national Parliament. Redhill is a town in the borough of Reigate and Banstead, Surrey, England and is part of the London commuter belt. Tonbridge (historic spelling Tunbridge) is a Market town in the English county of Kent, with a population of 30340 in 2007 Maidstone is the County town of Kent, England, south-east of London. The town of Ashford lies on the River Great Stour, M20 motorway, South Eastern Main Line and High Speed 1 railways in the borough of Ashford Folkestone (ˈfoʊkstən is a resort town on the south coast of Kent, England, traditionally known as "The Garden Coast" Dover is a town and major ferry port in the county of Kent, England. This circuitous route was the result of insistence on the part of Parliament that only one southerly route out of the capital was necessary; since the London, Brighton and South Coast Railway already had a line through Redhill, the SER perforce had to follow it. The Parliament of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland is the supreme legislative body in the United Kingdom and British overseas territories The London Brighton and South Coast Railway (LB&SCR (commonly known as "the Brighton line" was a Railway company in the United Kingdom from 1846 to 1923 Redhill is a town in the borough of Reigate and Banstead, Surrey, England and is part of the London commuter belt. This ignored the fact that the main London - Dover road had, since ancient times, followed a much more direct route, and the fact that the other great railway building projects took direct routes whenever feasible. A train passenger to Dover had a journey 20 miles longer than by stagecoach. For other meanings see Stagecoach (disambiguation. A stagecoach (also called diligence) is a type of four-wheeled enclosed

The main line reached Ashford on 1 December 1842; the outskirts of Folkestone by 28 June 1843; and Dover by 7 February 1844. The town of Ashford lies on the River Great Stour, M20 motorway, South Eastern Main Line and High Speed 1 railways in the borough of Ashford Events 800 - Charlemagne judges the accusations against Pope Leo III in the Vatican Year 1842 ( MDCCCXLII) was a Common year starting on Tuesday (link will display the full calendar of the Gregorian Calendar (or a Common Folkestone (ˈfoʊkstən is a resort town on the south coast of Kent, England, traditionally known as "The Garden Coast" Events 1098 - Fighters of the First Crusade defeat Kerbogha of Mosul. Year 1843 ( MDCCCXLIII) was a Common year starting on Sunday (link will display the full calendar of the Gregorian Calendar (or a Common Dover is a town and major ferry port in the county of Kent, England. Events 457 - Leo I becomes emperor of the Byzantine Empire. 1074 - Battle of Montesarchio in which the Prince Year 1844 ( MDCCCXLIV) was a Leap year starting on Monday (link will display the full calendar of the Gregorian Calendar (or a Leap year Their locomotive works was built in 1845, moving from New Cross in London. Ashford railway works was in the town of Ashford in the county of Kent in England. Year 1845 ( MDCCCXLV) was a Common year starting on Wednesday (link will display the full calendar of the Gregorian calendar (or a Common London ( ˈlʌndən is the capital and largest urban area in the United Kingdom.

As a result of competition with the LCDR (who had constructed the more direct Chatham Main Line and Maidstone East Line (to Sevenoaks, Canterbury, Dover, Ramsgate, Ashford and Maidstone), the SER built a very expensive cut-off line through the North Downs via Sevenoaks and Orpington (see below). The Chatham Main Line is the British railway line that runs from London Victoria to Dover Priory or Ramsgate via the Medway Towns Services Services on the Line are run by Southeastern.Services run to primarily London Victoria, with some peak services to London Blackfriars The North Downs are a ridge of Chalk hills in south east England that stretch for 120 miles (190 km from Farnham in Surrey to the White Sevenoaks railway station serves the town of Sevenoaks in Kent. Orpington railway station serves the town of Orpington in the London Borough of Bromley, and is in Travelcard Zone 6. Some services continued to use the Redhill to Tonbridge Line to access the Brighton Main Line. The Brighton Main Line is a major British railway line running from London Victoria and London Bridge to Brighton.

Branch lines

The SER system spread out, opening branch lines to connect with major towns along its route.

Dates of opening

Locomotive Superintendents/Chief Mechanical Engineers

The SER and other railways

The SER and the LCDR

By 1853 the SER had almost completed a network of lines encompassing mid-Kent, though much of the North Kent coast was still not served by rail. Year 1878 ( MDCCCLXXVIII) was a Common year starting on Tuesday (link will display the full calendar of the Gregorian calendar (or a Common Robert Mansell was the Superintendent between the years of 1876 and 1878 of the South Eastern Railway in the United Kingdom. Year 1898 ( MDCCCXCVIII) was a Common year starting on Saturday (link will display the full calendar of the Gregorian calendar (or a Common In 1853 the East Kent Railway was incorporated; by various amalgamations and using running powers it gained access to the new Victoria station. The London Chatham and Dover Railway (LCDR was a railway company in south-eastern England from 1859 until the 1923 grouping which united it with other companies London Victoria is a major London Underground, National Rail and Coach station in the City of Westminster. Other extensions brought the railway to Dover and Ramsgate and it changed its name to the London, Chatham and Dover Railway (LCDR) in 1859. Ramsgate is a seaside town on the Isle of Thanet in east Kent, England. The London Chatham and Dover Railway (LCDR was a railway company in south-eastern England from 1859 until the 1923 grouping which united it with other companies

The LCDR had a much more direct access to London than the SER, and it was imperative to the SER that this situation was improved. The direct line via Sevenoaks to Tonbridge was therefore constructed by the SER. Sevenoaks is a Commuter town in the Sevenoaks district of Kent in South East England and forms part of the London commuter belt. Tonbridge (historic spelling Tunbridge) is a Market town in the English county of Kent, with a population of 30340 in 2007 It involved huge earthworks, crossing the North Downs by means of summits and long tunnels at both Knockholt and Sevenoaks. The North Downs are a ridge of Chalk hills in south east England that stretch for 120 miles (190 km from Farnham in Surrey to the White Knockholt is a village and Civil parish in Kent, England lying approximately 5 miles south of Orpington and 3 miles northwest of The latter was the longest tunnel in southern England at one mile, 1691 yards. This cut-off line, 24 miles long, reached Chislehurst on 1 July 1865, and took three more years to reach Orpington and Sevenoaks (2 March 1868) and Tonbridge (1 May 1868). Chislehurst is a suburban settlement in south east London, England and part of the London Borough of Bromley. "July 1st" redirects here For the Ayumi Hamasaki song see H (song. Year 1865 ( MDCCCLXV) was a Common year starting on Sunday (link will display the full calendar of the Gregorian calendar (or a Common year Orpington is a suburban town and electoral ward in the London Borough of Bromley. Events 986 - Louis V becomes King of the Franks. 1127 - Assassination of Charles the Good Year 1868 ( MDCCCLXVIII) was a Leap year starting on Wednesday (link will display the full calendar of the Gregorian Calendar (or a Leap Events 305 - Diocletian and Maximian retire from the office of Roman Emperor. Year 1868 ( MDCCCLXVIII) was a Leap year starting on Wednesday (link will display the full calendar of the Gregorian Calendar (or a Leap

Many of the LCDR's lines served towns already served by the SER. Ashford, Chatham, Dover, Gravesend, Margate, Ramsgate, Rochester, Sevenoaks and Whitstable's second stations have subsequently been eliminated but Bromley, Canterbury and Maidstone still have more than one station. The town of Ashford lies on the River Great Stour, M20 motorway, South Eastern Main Line and High Speed 1 railways in the borough of Ashford Dover is a town and major ferry port in the county of Kent, England. Gravesend is a town in northwest Kent, England, on the south bank of the Thames, opposite Tilbury in Essex. Margate is a Seaside resort town within the Thanet district of East Kent, England. Ramsgate is a seaside town on the Isle of Thanet in east Kent, England. Rochester is a town in Kent, England. It is located within the Unitary authority area of Medway and is at the lowest bridging point of the Sevenoaks is a Commuter town in the Sevenoaks district of Kent in South East England and forms part of the London commuter belt. Whitstable ( is a seaside town in northeast Kent, southeast England About the town The town has a large shopping and retail area including a pedestrianised High Street and The Glades shopping centre Canterbury ( ˈkæntəbɹ̩i is a City in eastern Kent in the South East region of England. Maidstone is the County town of Kent, England, south-east of London.

The LCDR was always in financial difficulties, and for years the amalgamation of the two Kent routes was mooted. On 1 January 1899 this was achieved when the two companies joined for working under a Management Committee. New Year See also New Year The Ancient Romans began their consular year on January 1st since 153 BC Year 1899 ( MDCCCXCIX) was a Common year starting on Sunday (link will display the full calendar of the Gregorian calendar (or a Common On 5 August 1899 the South Eastern and London, Chatham and Dover Railway Companies Act was passed, which resulted in the formation of the South Eastern and Chatham Railway. Events 642 - Battle of Maserfield - Penda of Mercia defeats and kills Oswald of Bernicia. Year 1899 ( MDCCCXCIX) was a Common year starting on Sunday (link will display the full calendar of the Gregorian calendar (or a Common The South Eastern and Chatham Railway (SE&CR was a working amalgamation of two neighbouring rival railways the South Eastern Railway (SER and London Chatham

The SER and the LBSCR

The relationship with the London, Brighton and South Coast Railway (LBSCR) was often bitter - sometimes almost all-out war. The London Brighton and South Coast Railway (LB&SCR (commonly known as "the Brighton line" was a Railway company in the United Kingdom from 1846 to 1923 The main sites of that war were in London, Redhill and Hastings, the three locations where the two railway companies met.

In London, at both London Bridge and Victoria the rivalry between the two companies came to such a head that both stations even today show the existence of two separate stations at each location, with a wall between them. At Redhill the two companies' stations were placed at an inconvenient distance for passenger exchange; when a new station was built, the SER gave preference to its own trains through the station. This led the LBSCR to build the Quarry Line, avoiding Redhill altogether. At Hastings, where they joined for the final section through the town, the troubles were even more direct. In their desire to secure the business, the SER was determined to keep the LBSCR out. The latter had opened its line from Brighton on 13 February 1851, connecting with the SER at Bo-peep Junction. Brighton ( is a town on the south coast of England and with its neighbour Hove, forms the city of Brighton and Hove. Events 1258 - Baghdad falls to the Mongols, and the Abbasid Caliphate is destroyed 1851 ( MDCCCLI) was a Common year starting on Wednesday (link will display the full calendar of the Gregorian Calendar (or a Common year After preventing some Brighton trains from passing the junction, the SER blocked in at Hastings those that had and removed track at the junction, putting up barriers to stop the LBSCR coach link from operating. An LBSCR injunction eventually put matters to rights, but until the 1923 amalgamation relations were still bitter.

References

  1. ^ http://rail.felgall.com/ser.htm SER Lines and Stations

Publications

See also

External links


The "Big Four" pre-nationalisation British railway companies
v • d • e

█ Great Western • █ London Midland & Scottish • █ London & North Eastern • █ Southern

GWR constituents: Great Western Railway • Cambrian Railways • Taff Vale Railway
Barry Railway • Rhymney Railway • (Full list)
LNER constituents: Great Central • Great Eastern • Great Northern • Great North of Scotland
Hull & Barnsley • North British • North Eastern • (Full list)
LMS constituents: Caledonian • Furness • Glasgow & South Western • Highland
Lancashire & Yorkshire • London and North Western • Midland • North Staffordshire • (Full list)
SR constituents: London and South Western Railway • London, Brighton and South Coast Railway
South Eastern Railway • London, Chatham and Dover Railway • (Full list)

See also: History of rail transport in Great Britain 1923 - 1947 • List of companies involved in the grouping


The Railway system in Great Britain is the oldest in the world See also Rail transport in Great Britain, National Rail, Network Rail This article is about the defunct entity "British Railways" The Great Western Railway ( GWR) was a British railway company and a notable example of Civil engineering, linking London with the West London Midland for the new (2007 railway company The London Midland and Scottish Railway ( LMS) was a British Railway company The The Southern Railway (SR was a British railway company established in the 1923 Grouping. The Great Western Railway ( GWR) was a British railway company and a notable example of Civil engineering, linking London with the West Cambrian Railways owned 230 miles of track over a large area of mid- Wales. History On February 10 1804 a young engineer Richard Trevithick, drove the world's first ever steam locomotive along a track at the Penydarren ironworks near The Barry Railway Company was promoted by interests in coal mining and steel in the South Wales valleys as an alternative to the existing rail service to Cardiff docks in The Rhymney Railway was virtually a single stretch of main line some fifty miles in length by which the Rhymney Valley was connected to the docks at Cardiff in the The Great Western Railway (GWR was incorporated by Act of Parliament in 1835 and Nationalised on 1 January 1948. The Great Central Railway ( GCR) was a railway company in England which came into being when the Manchester Sheffield and Lincolnshire Railway changed The Great Eastern Railway (GER was a pre-grouping British railway company whose main line linked London Liverpool The Great Northern Railway (GNR was a British railway company established by the London & York Railway Act of 1846 The Great North of Scotland Railway (GNSR/GNoSR was one of the smaller British railways before the grouping, operating in the far north-east of Scotland History The Hull and Barnsley Railway (H&BR was opened on 20 July 1885. The North British Railway was a Scottish railway company that was absorbed into the London and North Eastern Railway at the Grouping in 1923 The North Eastern Railway (NER unlike many other of the pre-Grouping companies had a relatively compact territory having the district it covered to itself The London and North Eastern Railway (LNER was formed out of a number of constituent railway companies at the grouping in 1923 The Caledonian Railway was a major Scottish Railway company operating in Scotland The Furness Railway (Furness was a railway company operating in the Furness area of north-west England. The Glasgow and South Western Railway (G&SWR one of the pre- grouping railway companies, served a triangular area of south-west Scotland, between Glasgow The Highland Railway (HR was one of the smaller British railways before the Railways Act 1921; it operated north of Perth railway station in The Lancashire and Yorkshire Railway (L&YR was a major British railway company before the 1923 Grouping. The London and North Western Railway (LNWR L&NWR was a Railway company of the United Kingdom which existed between 1846 and 1922 The Midland Railway (MR was a Railway company in the United Kingdom, which existed from 1844 to 1922 when it became part of the London Midland and Scottish The North Staffordshire Railway was a British Railway company formed in 1845 to promote a number of lines in the Staffordshire Potteries Constituent companies The following made up the London Midland and Scottish Railway as a result of the Railways Act 1921: Caledonian Railway The London and South Western Railway (L&SWR was a Railway company in England from 1838 to 1922 The London Brighton and South Coast Railway (LB&SCR (commonly known as "the Brighton line" was a Railway company in the United Kingdom from 1846 to 1923 The London Chatham and Dover Railway (LCDR was a railway company in south-eastern England from 1859 until the 1923 grouping which united it with other companies The Southern Railway in the United Kingdom was one of the "Big Four" railway companies set up after the 1923 Grouping. This article is part of a series on the History of rail transport in Great Britain The history of rail transport in Great Britain 1923 - 1947 covers the period Under the Railways Act 1921 the majority of the railway companies in Great Britain (and few in Northern Ireland were grouped into four main companies often termed the Big Four
© 2009 citizendia.org; parts available under the terms of GNU Free Documentation License, from http://en.wikipedia.org
 Dapyx Software network: MP3 Explorer | Ebook Manager | Zenithic