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30-518: The Sanday Light Railway was a privately owned ridable miniature railway situated in Braeswick , on the island of Sanday , Orkney , Scotland . The railway was of 7 + 1 ⁄ 4  in ( 184 mm ) gauge . The first rails were laid down in 1999, and the line closed at the end of 2006. It was the most northerly passenger carrying railway in the British Isles , and although it

60-539: A carriageway are the criteria used by the Office of Rail and Road (ORR), at which a railway is no longer classed as miniature and is therefore subject to formal regulation: they may be minor railways and/or heritage railways; the concept of minimum gauge is not recognised for the purposes of regulation. There are over 1,000 miniature railways open to the public around the world, not counting private railways, with 7 + 1 ⁄ 4  in ( 184 mm ) gauge being by far

90-576: A number of organisations over perceived discrimination and misconduct by those organisations in relation to the railway, its associated tea-rooms and the abortive civil partnership ceremony. 59°13′10″N 2°41′37″W  /  59.21957°N 2.69367°W  / 59.21957; -2.69367 Ridable miniature railway Typically miniature railways have a rail track gauge between 5 in ( 127 mm ) and under 15 in ( 381 mm ), though both larger and smaller gauges are used. At gauges of 5 in ( 127 mm ) and less,

120-561: A platform for military systems, like very large railroad guns and armoured trains , in their own right. Railways have been employed for military purposes in wartime since the Revolutions of 1848 . Improvements in other forms of transport have rendered railways less important to the military since the end of World War II and the Cold War , although they are still employed for the transport of armoured vehicles to and from exercises or

150-478: A pre-existing civilian railway network rather than a military-owned one. However, specialized military types of rolling stock have frequently been used. Military railway is usually built and operated by railway troops . Sometimes so called strategic railways are built where civilian considerations would not justify a line or not one built to those standards. The Kingdom of Prussia 's VI Corps, some 12,000 men and their guns, horses, ammunition and other material,

180-638: A smaller model gauge, although this is rare. 'Miniature railways' are railways that can be ridden by people and are used for pleasure/as a pastime for their constructors and passengers. In the US, miniature railways are also known as 'riding railroads' or 'grand scale railroads'. The track gauges recognised as being miniature railways vary by country, but in the UK the maximum gauge is 350 mm ( 13 + 25 ⁄ 32  in ). A ' minimum-gauge railway ', which generally starts at 15 in ( 381 mm ) gauge,

210-638: Is generally 3 + 1 ⁄ 2  in ( 89 mm )/ 5 in ( 127 mm ) gauge on raised track or as 7 + 1 ⁄ 4  in ( 184 mm )/ 10 + 1 ⁄ 4  in ( 260 mm ) on ground level. Typically portable track is used to carry passengers at temporary events such as fêtes and summer fairs. Typically miniature lines are operated by not for profit organisations - often model engineering societies - though some are entirely in private grounds and others operate commercially. There are many national organisations representing and providing guidance on miniature railway operations including

240-516: Is one that was originally conceived as a commercial railway with small gauge track, with a working function as an estate railway, an industrial railway, or a provider of public transport links, such as the Romney, Hythe and Dymchurch Railway , Fairbourne Railway or the Ravenglass and Eskdale Railway . In the UK, a gauge of 350 mm ( 13 + 25 ⁄ 32  in ) [or above] or crossing

270-477: Is the world's oldest private miniature railway , with a track gauge of 9 + 1 ⁄ 2  in ( 241 mm ). The railway was built and opened in 1925 under the guidance of Geoffrey Hoyland (Headmaster) as a 7 + 1 ⁄ 4  in ( 184 mm ) gauge railway, for the principal purpose of education. The railway is located within the grounds of The Downs Malvern , a private school in Colwall , near

300-591: The Alps and boarded trains to Turin . To improve Piedmont's railway system, the French Navy shipped locomotives to Genoa. A French siege train was shipped from Marseille and Toulon to Genoa, from where it was moved by rail to Lombardy for use against Mantua in late June. The American Civil War in 1861–1865 was the first large war in which railroads were both a major tool and a major target of military action. A few railroads were custom built: In 1867 during

330-674: The Ordnance Survey map circa 1880 does not show the railway itself, it does show two tunnels and two signal posts. However, the online map archive of the National Library of Scotland includes a map of 1914 from the 25 inches to the foot series (Derbyshire XLV.9) that shows the full extent of the railway. Sir Arthur wished to explore the possibilities of minimum gauge railways for mining, quarrying, agriculture etc. He believed that they would be relatively easy to build, and to move. He saw possibilities for military railways behind

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360-652: The Paraguayan War some ironclad vessels of the Brazilian navy became trapped on the River Paraguay between the enemy Paraguayan forts of Curupaty and Humaitá . To keep them supplied with fuel, ammunition and provisions the Brazilian ministry of marine ordered an emergency military railway to be built through the almost impenetrable coastal region of the Chaco . The sleepers of this line almost floated over

390-596: The Australian Association of Live Steamers and Southern Federation of Model Engineering Societies. The first miniature railroads were built in the United Kingdom , as actual methods of transportation, such as the Jaywick railroad. The Duffield Bank Railway was built by Sir Arthur Percival Heywood in the grounds of his house on a hillside overlooking Duffield, Derbyshire in 1874. Although

420-577: The Western front ground down to stalemate and trench warfare . The resulting unprecedented heavy use of artillery required transport on an unprecedented scale, and narrow gauge military trench railways were quickly built to service the Western Front for both sides. German military transport was mostly dependent on trains and horses in World War II . Railway sabotage during World War II

450-713: The boggy ground. This supply line was known as the Affonso Celso , and sustained the ironclads in their precarious position for six months, until they were able to dash past the Fortress of Humaitá in an incident known as the Passage of Humaitá . The Trans-Siberian Railway (Транссибирская железнодорожная магистраль - Транссиб), before 1917 was called the Great Siberian Route (Великий Сибирский Путь). First construction begun on 19 May (31 May) 1891. It

480-423: The finest examples of its type, the railway is now private but still attracts thousands of visitors from the UK and abroad during its two public charity events each year. A ' model railway ' is one where the gauge is too small for people to ride on the trains. Due to the use of mixed gauge tracks, passengers may ride on a miniature railway which shares the same gauge as, and is pulled by, a large model locomotive on

510-470: The line, with financial backing by Sir Wavell Wakefield , Member of Parliament (MP) for Marylebone and owner of the Ullswater Steamers . In September 1960, the society made the winning bid and saved the railway from closure. Control of the railway passed to a new private company, with the backing of the preservation society, an arrangement that is still in place. The Downs Light Railway

540-557: The lines carrying ammunition and supplies. The original Ravenglass and Eskdale Railway was a 3 ft ( 914 mm ) line opened on 24 May 1875 to transport hematite iron ore from three mines near and around the village of Boot to the Furness Railway standard gauge line at Ravenglass. In the early 1880s, a tramway was built between Beckfoot and another mine at Gill Force. Locals and railway enthusiasts formed Ravenglass and Eskdale Railway Preservation Society to save

570-495: The mass transport of vehicles to a theatre of operations. The US Air Force developed the Peacekeeper Rail Garrison mobile ICBM in the 1980s, but it never reached operational status. Railways have played an important role in the logistics of the 2022 Russian invasion of Ukraine . Due to the expense and time required to build specifically military railway networks, military use of railways is usually based on

600-2382: The most numerous. Many layouts have dual-gauge track combing two, three or even more different gauges. 3 + 1 ⁄ 2  in ( 89 mm ) 5 in ( 127 mm ) 7 + 1 ⁄ 4  in ( 184 mm ) 3 + 1 ⁄ 2  in ( 89 mm ) 5 in ( 127 mm ) 2 + 1 ⁄ 2  in ( 64 mm ) 3 + 1 ⁄ 2  in ( 89 mm ) 5 in ( 127 mm ) 7 + 1 ⁄ 4  in ( 184 mm ) 2 + 1 ⁄ 2  in ( 64 mm ) 3 + 1 ⁄ 2  in ( 89 mm ) 5 in ( 127 mm ) 2 + 1 ⁄ 2  in ( 64 mm ) 3 + 1 ⁄ 2  in ( 89 mm ) 5 in ( 127 mm ) 2 + 1 ⁄ 2  in ( 64 mm ) 3 + 1 ⁄ 2  in ( 89 mm ) 5 in ( 127 mm ) 2 + 1 ⁄ 2  in ( 64 mm ) 3 + 1 ⁄ 2  in ( 89 mm ) 5 in ( 127 mm ) 3 + 1 ⁄ 2  in ( 89 mm ) 5 in ( 127 mm ) 5 in ( 127 mm ) 7 + 1 ⁄ 4  in ( 184 mm ) 5 in ( 127 mm ) 7 + 1 ⁄ 4  in ( 184 mm ) 3 + 1 ⁄ 2  in ( 89 mm ) 5 in ( 127 mm ) 7 + 1 ⁄ 4  in ( 184 mm ) 5 in ( 127 mm ) 7 + 1 ⁄ 4  in ( 184 mm ) 5 in ( 127 mm ) 5 in ( 127 mm ) 7 + 1 ⁄ 4  in ( 184 mm ) 5 in ( 127 mm ) 7 + 1 ⁄ 4  in ( 184 mm ) 5 in ( 127 mm ) 7 + 1 ⁄ 4  in ( 184 mm ) 7 + 1 ⁄ 4  in ( 184 mm ) Mixed raised gauges: 3 + 1 ⁄ 2  in ( 89 mm ) 5 in ( 127 mm ) Torrance , California 2 ⁄ 2 in (64 mm) 3 ⁄ 2 in (89 mm) 5 in ( 127 mm ) 7 + 1 ⁄ 4  in ( 184 mm ) 5 in ( 127 mm ) 5 ⁄ 32 (145 mm) 7 + 1 ⁄ 4  in ( 184 mm ) 2 ⁄ 2 in (64 mm) 3 ⁄ 2 in (89 mm) 5 in ( 127 mm ) 7 + 1 ⁄ 4  in ( 184 mm ) Military railways The military use of railways derives from their ability to move troops or materiel rapidly and, less usually, on their use as

630-455: The railway was officially opened to the public in August 2006 by Sir Peter Maxwell Davies just a few months before its closure, which was variously attributed to the owner being unable to keep his promise to hold Sir Peter's civil partnership ceremony there or unreasonable demands placed upon the railway's operators by local council officials. In 2008, the owner was taking legal action against

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660-696: The town of Malvern, Worcestershire in the English Midlands. It is owned by the 'Downs Light Railway Trust. It is maintained and operated principally by the school children, aged between 7 and 13 years. It is part of the Heritage Railway Association membership. The Jaywick Miniature Railway was built by FC Stedman, who owned the Jaywick Sands Estate on the Essex coast just south of Clacton-on-Sea. This railroad

690-416: The track is commonly raised above ground level. Flat cars are arranged with foot boards so that driver and passengers sit astride the track. The track is often multi-gauged, to accommodate 5 in ( 127 mm ), 3 + 1 ⁄ 2  in ( 89 mm ), and sometimes 2 + 1 ⁄ 2  in ( 64 mm ) gauge locomotives. The smaller gauges of miniature railway track can also be portable and

720-498: Was among the difficulties. Leaders also used military trains, for example Adolf Hitler 's Amerika and Hermann Goering 's Asien . Trains were protected by railcars armed with anti aircraft guns or flak waggon . German bombing of Polish railways contributed greatly to the swift success of the 1939 invasion of Poland . In turn, losses due to air attacks on Deutsche Reichsbahn in 1944 severely handicapped German logistics. Japan built several railways for military purposes, notably

750-502: Was built in order to transpoirt indiviudal potential buyers to view the homes for sale. It was built in 1935, by Miniature Railway & Specialists Engineering, of Terminus Road, Eastbourne. Stapleford Miniature Railway is an historic steam locomotive -hauled 10 + 1 ⁄ 4  in ( 260 mm ) gauge railway at Stapleford Park , Stapleford near Melton Mowbray in Leicestershire , England. Considered one of

780-640: Was moved by rail from Poland to Göding in Moravia to link up with the Austrian army during the Hungarian Revolution of 1848 . Military railways were used to establish a reliable supply to British Army troops besieging the city of Sevastopol from Balaklava during the severe winter of 1855 in the Crimean War . The Grand Crimean Central Railway was just 7 miles (11 km) long, and

810-434: Was primarily the owner's hobby it did achieve the status of a tourist attraction and local curiosity. The railway sometimes ran one of its two steam locomotives , a 2-4-2 and a 2-4-0 , but more often one of three petrol locomotives. The railway also owned a number of items of rolling stock, including a very rare Cromar White first-class carriage. Although trains had been operating occasionally in some form beforehand,

840-574: Was purpose built. During the Second Italian War of Independence in 1859, the French Army moved 130,000 soldiers to northern Italy by rail. The Imperial Guard Corps from Paris and two corps from Lyon were sent to Toulon via rail, from where a total of 70,000 men were shipped to Genoa . The French I Corps was then ferried from Genoa to Novi by rail. Another two French corps were transported by rail to Savoy , where they crossed

870-533: Was transported on two railway lines to Kraków in 1846. The Prussian Army used railways to move its forces during the First Schleswig War in 1849–1851. Three Prussian battalions were deployed by rail to crush the 1849 May Uprising in Dresden . The first Prussian regulations for transport of troops on state railways were issued in 1856. In 1849, an Imperial Russian corps with all of its equipment,

900-889: Was used in the Russo-Japanese War and Russian Civil War . In 1896-98 during the Mahdist War , Kitchener built the Sudan Military Railroad extending the Egyptian railways into the Sudan . The early phase of World War I was influenced to a large degree by the speed of military mobilization via railways. The German Schlieffen Plan relied on an extensive network of strategic railways to allow crushing France before Russia could mobilize. However, ultimately this failed as Russia mobilized more quickly than Germany had anticipated, and Germany's offensive on

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