British Railways
standard class 7The BR Standard Class 7, otherwise known as the Britannia Class, is a class of 4-6-2 Pacific steam locomotive designed by Robert Riddles for use by British Railways for mixed traffic duties. Fifty-five were constructed between 1951 and 1954. The design was a result of the 1948 locomotive exchanges...
(also known as Britannia class), number 70000 Britannia is a preserved
steam locomotiveA steam locomotive is a railway locomotive that produces its power through a steam engine. These locomotives are fueled by burning some combustible material, usually coal, wood or oil, to produce steam in a boiler, which drives the steam engine...
.
British Railways
Britannia was built at
CreweCrewe is a railway town within the unitary authority area of Cheshire East and the ceremonial county of Cheshire, England. According to the 2001 census the urban area had a population of 67,683...
, completed on January 2, 1951. She was the first British Railways standard locomotive to be built and the first of 55 locomotives of the Britannia class. The locomotive was named at a ceremony at
Marylebone StationMarylebone station , also known as London Marylebone, is a central London railway terminus and London Underground complex. It stands midway between the mainline stations at Euston and Paddington, about 1 mile from each...
by the then Minister for Transport Alfred Barnes on 30 January 1951.
The BR Locomotive Naming Committee were determined not to use names already in use on other locomotives. They tried to observe this by not selecting the name Britannia for use on 70000 because it was already in use on one of the ex-
LMS Jubilee ClassThe London Midland and Scottish Railway Jubilee Class is a class of steam locomotive designed for mainline passenger work. 191 locomotives were built between 1934 and 1936...
locomotives, but
Robert RiddlesRobert Arthur "Robin" Riddles, CBE, MIMechE, MinstLE was a British locomotive engineer.-LNWR and LMS:Riddles was born in 1892 and entered the Crewe Works of the London and North Western Railway as a premium apprentice in 1909, completing his apprenticeship in 1913...
overruled them and the Jubilee had to be renamed.
Britannia was initially based at
StratfordStratford is a place name found in many English-speaking countries. It derives from the Old English words stræt and ford...
(30A) in order to work East Anglian expresses to
NorwichNorwich is a city in England. It is the regional administrative centre and county town of Norfolk. During the 11th century, Norwich was the largest city in England after London, and one of the most important places in the kingdom...
and
Great YarmouthGreat Yarmouth, often known to locals as Yarmouth, is a coastal town in Norfolk, England. It is at the mouth of the River Yare, east of Norwich.It has been a seaside resort since 1760, and is the gateway from the Norfolk Broads to the sea...
. Subsequently, the loco was based at Norwich Thorpe (w/e 31/01/1959) and
MarchMarch is in present time held to be the third month of the year in both the Julian and Gregorian calendars. It is one of the seven months which are 31 days long....
(6/1961) before spending the remainder of her career on the London Midland Region:
WillesdenWillesden is an area in North West London which forms part of the London Borough of Brent. It is situated 5 miles north west of Charing Cross...
(1A) (w/e 30/03/1963), Crewe North (5A) (w/e 25/05/1963), Crewe South (5B) (w/e 19/05/1965) and finally
Newton HeathNewton Heath is an urban area of the city of Manchester, in Greater Manchester, England. It is east north east of Manchester city centre and has a population of 9,883....
(9D) (w/e 05/03/1966) from where she was withdrawn w/e 28 May 1966,
For many years, Britannia had her cab roof painted white. This was to commemorate her pulling the funeral train of
King George VIGeorge VI was King of the United Kingdom and the Dominions of the British Commonwealth from 11 December 1936 until his death...
from
NorfolkNorfolk is a low-lying county in the East of England. It has borders with Lincolnshire to the west, Cambridgeshire to the west and southwest and Suffolk to the south. Its northern and eastern boundaries are the North Sea coast and to the north-west the county is bordered by The Wash. The county...
to
LondonLondon is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
following his death in February 1952 at
Sandringham HouseSandringham House is a country house on of land near the village of Sandringham in Norfolk, England. The house is privately owned by the British Royal Family and is located on the royal Sandringham Estate, which lies within the Norfolk Coast Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty.-History and current...
, Norfolk.
Britannia was withdrawn in May 1966, after 15 years of service.
Preservation
Initially destined for the
National Railway MuseumThe National Railway Museum is a museum in York forming part of the British National Museum of Science and Industry and telling the story of rail transport in Britain and its impact on society. It has won many awards, including the European Museum of the Year Award in 2001...
because of her cultural significance, she was stored. However, due to her prototype design and construction differences, the NRM chose standard sister
70013 Oliver Cromwell70013 Oliver Cromwell is a British Railways standard class 7 preserved steam locomotive. The locomotive is notable as one of the four steam locomotives which worked the last steam railtour on British Railways in 1968 before the introduction of a steam ban.-Career:One of 55 of the "Britannia"...
instead. Britannia was eventually bought by the Britannia Locomotive Company Limited.
After a series of moves, she was eventually returned to steam on the
Severn Valley RailwayThe Severn Valley Railway is a heritage railway in Shropshire and Worcestershire, England. The line runs along the Severn Valley from Bridgnorth to Kidderminster, following the course of the River Severn for much of its route...
, where she remained for a number of years in operational but non-mainline condition. With the society wishing to make more use of the locomotive, she was moved to the European gauge
Nene Valley RailwayThe Nene Valley Railway is a preserved railway in Cambridgeshire, England, running between Peterborough Nene Valley and Yarwell Junction. The line is currently seven and a half miles in length...
in
PeterboroughPeterborough is a cathedral city and unitary authority area in the East of England, with an estimated population of in June 2007. For ceremonial purposes it is in the county of Cambridgeshire. Situated north of London, the city stands on the River Nene which flows into the North Sea...
, where she was also fitted with an air-brake compressor. Britannia made her return to the main line on 27 July 1991, successfully working enthusiast trips until 1997, and was featured in an episode of
London's BurningLondon's Burning was a British television drama programme produced by London Weekend Television for the ITV network that focused on the lives of members of the London Fire Brigade, principally those of the Blue Watch at a fictional fire station called Blackwall.It was broadcast between 1986 and...
.
With an expired mainline boiler certificate, due to the high cost of refurbishment, the locomotive was sold to
Pete WatermanPeter Alan Waterman OBE is an English record producer, occasional songwriter, radio and club DJ, television presenter, president of Coventry Bears rugby league club and a keen railway enthusiast. As a member of the Stock Aitken Waterman songwriting team he wrote and produced many hit singles...
in 2000. Stored at Waterman's workshops at the Crewe Heritage Centre, after initial assessment the amount of work resulted in Waterman selling her to
Jeremy HoskingJeremy J. Hosking is a British businessman, a co-founder and investment portfolio manager for private investment fund Marathon. Hosking is also well known for his extensive collection of steam locomotives, and 25% share holding in Crystal Palace F.C....
. Presently undergoing restoration at Crewe, the newly refurbished cab has been test fitted, the new smoke box almost ready for fitting and the boiler is the subject of major work, currently having replacement steel sides, new crown stays, new front section barrel section, new steel and copper tubeplate, repairs and patches to door plate and major work to copper firebox.
Returned to main line operational condition in 2011, it can be seen hauling special and excursion trains.