Railway Giants: The Englishman Whose Success Made Enemies

George England was a brilliant businessman who rose from the bottom. His story includes not only genius inventions but also shocking court cases, humiliation, and unexpected alliances.

It’s the year 1811, and we are in the northeast of England, in the city of Newcastle, one of the largest industrial centers in England. Here, in the family of blacksmith George England, a boy is born who will be named after his father, George. England is part of Great Britain at this time, which, during the Industrial Revolution, is one of the world's leading powers.

The British Empire is heading inexorably towards its golden age, at the peak of which it will control a quarter of the world’s landmass with more than a quarter of the world’s population. It will thus form an empire on which the sun never sets. Britain will be the most advanced country in the world at this time. It is hardly surprising that the revolution, which in modern human history will be unparalleled and will be known as the Industrial Revolution due to its nature, began on its territory. It is not surprising that our story will also unfold amidst the smoke of industry.

Now let’s return to George, who at the age of 14, after finishing his compulsory education, moves from Newcastle to London to apprentice at the prestigious firm John Penn Boiler Works and Shipyards in Deptford. This firm will be known at the time for manufacturing marine steam engines. George will spend the next seven years at the shipyards. Two years after finishing his studies, George gets married. He marries a certain Jane Dafter from Wiltshire. However, their married life will not go well, and they will separate. With his new partner, Sarah, George will have three children in total: daughters Mary and Eliza Anne, and son George. However, George will only marry Sarah after the death of his former wife, meaning the children will be born out of wedlock.

George will prove to be an extremely inventive young man. He will rent an empty factory building in what is now the London district of New Cross. Here, he will bring several inventions to life, including a screw jack and a wool weaving machine, which he will patent. These inventions will bring George unexpectedly high revenues, enabling him to afford to buy a factory, which he names The Hatcham Iron Works. Additionally, he will move his family to a house that will be part of the factory premises. With the purchase of the new premises, George will be able to fully dedicate himself to something new: the railway.

He will found the company England, George & Co. Engineers and Patent screw jack manufacturers, Hatcham Iron Works, Old Kent Road, which will focus primarily on the production of railway locomotives and carriages. The first locomotive produced in Hatcham will be a 2-2-2 locomotive, completed in December 1848, with which he will participate in an exhibition in 1851. The result? A gold medal. Thanks to this, George will gain numerous customers, including the Somerset and Dorset Railway, the Great Western Railway, and the London and North Western Railway.

From 1857, George will be one of the 10 directors of the Crystal Palace Company. However, he will face certain allegations of corruption. Therefore, the other nine directors will ask him to resign, which George initially refuses. One of the contemporary commentators will describe the case as follows: “He claims, and I dare say rightly, that his sincere desire to remove incompetent officials and place the palace on an economic and profitable footing made him many enemies who used his family affairs as an excuse to remove him.” In the end, George will succumb to the pressure and resign.

In 1860, George will employ a certain Robert Francis Fairlie as his advisor, who recently returned from India. During his service, Robert will become close to George’s daughter Eliza Anne. However, George will have different plans for his daughter, and he will forbid them from seeing each other. The young couple will flee to Spain, but they will soon have to return. George will file a lawsuit against Robert for making a false affidavit stating that George had consented to the marriage. During the hearings, it will come to light that Eliza Anne was born to him and his partner Sarah while George was still married to his first wife, Jane Dafter. Therefore, Eliza Anne is considered an illegitimate child, and according to the law of the time, the father has no right to decide for her. Robert Fairlie will be acquitted, which will significantly damage George’s reputation. He will never recover from this blow of fate.

In 1865, George’s company will become one of many victims of strikes against the unbearable working conditions of the employees. The main issue will be resistance to the arbitrary dismissal of employees without any severance pay. Although George will manage to convince the workers to abandon the strike, his company will still lose several significant contracts.

George will eventually manage to save the company, securing the much-needed contracts, and in an unexpected move, he will ally with his son-in-law, Robert Fairlie. In 1868, he will successfully approach the Welsh Ffestiniog Railway with an offer to build the Double Fairlie locomotive. This will be his final achievement. In 1869, he will leave his company, logically passing it on to Robert Fairlie, who will rename it the Fairlie Steam Engine and Carriage Company. George will enjoy his well-deserved retirement for less than ten years until his death in 1878.

Source: MPC, Festipedia