Period model figures - French Army

No model scene is complete without the human figure.

The driver of this Baldwin Gas Mechanical adds much to the sylvan scene. A fine16mm model was made from a Wrightscale  kit by Jeremy Ledger. The period represented is post 1918, on a rural branchline which has bought war-surplus locomotives. Courtesy Jeremy Ledger

 The figurines can be as life-like as possible or sharp caricatures, or something in between, depending on what sort of artist you are; make no mistake, this is an artistic process.

Inspection failed! Another style of figure stands beside an unpainted Wrightscale  Baldwin Gas Mechanical 'kit-bashed' to represent the well-loved Moelwyn. The period is post 1918. Copyright MD Wright

What you will need is imagination - some ideas about what your figures are doing, whether contemplating mechanical breakdown, escaping the eye of the sergeant major or having a rest.

Soldier circa 1814 Copyright MD Wright

We hope that these pictures, showing who wore what, and when, help.
The print above, taken from a water-colour by Raffet, shows a soldier (fantassin) of the Napoleonic period in active service uniform. (You should see the parade ground version!) His coat is blue with red wristbands, his trousers white. His hat is a black leather 'shako'. In certain ways, this is still the uniform of the 18th century when the soldier of the line wore a blue coat with red wristbands, tight white trousers and white leather gaiters, but the felt two-cornered hat has been replaced by the leather shako, and the trousers are longer and looser.

 

Infantryman of 1840. Print from late 19th century photo of model in the French Army Museum. Copyright MD Wright

This print shows a member of the infantry as seen in Algeria in the1840s. General Bugead, who was in command, realised that the uniform had to be modernised, especially the shako.. The locals found the foreigners almost comical - they called them 'chaps who went around with sheaves of corn on their heads' Shakoes were replaced by képis in blue fabric, with red band and a black leather visor. The massive straps crossed over the chest have been replaced by belt and shoulder straps. The blue coat remains, trimmed with red epaulettes. White trousers were impossible to wash so they have been replaced by red ones. The képi, blue great-coat and red trousers were adopted by the rest of the army.

Infantryman of the Line 1870, taken from a photograph in the French Army Museum. Copyrght MD Wright

This was the infantry uniform at the time of the Franco-Prussian War. The great-coat is blue with red collar and epaulettes, trousers red, inserted into white canvas gaiters. The képi, much reduced in height, is now red with a blue band. The Chassepot/gun, shown here with bayonette mounted, was the very latest in rifles. It had a range of 1.2 km and could fire 6-7 rounds per minute. The French were counting on the chassepot, as well as cran et élan (spirit and sheer guts), to win the 1870-1 war but fate decreed otherwise.

The period is early 1915 and this watercolour by Maurice Orange shows the French how they would like their soldiers to appear; supervising German prisoners of war. Copyright MD Wright

When they went into the First World War, French uniform had changed little since 1870. The képi was still red/blue and the blue great-coat and red trousers would have been recognisable. The French had learned one thing from the victorious Prussians; they issued the 'poilus' with boots.

The Germans felt about the Sénégalair tirailleurs (infantry) much what they felt about the the Scots - a hearty if not complimentary respect! This tirailleur has been wounded in action. Copyright MD Wright

The French could call upon colonial troops during the First World War. Photographs show them being welcomed by an enthusiastic 'metropolitan' population. In their honour, the children's breakfast food Banania was created, complete with caricature African on the box. This all seems politically incorrect in the 21st century, but the French (and the British) were learning just what powerful allies they had in the people of Africa. From sub-Saharan Africa came the tirailleurs, as shown above. Like the poilu he wears a blue great-coat, but blue trousers and blue puttees. He had his own design of hat.

Spahi Copyright MD Wright

The spahi - soldier from North Africa - has his own characteristic uniform and red fez. He is not wearing his great-coat because it would get in the way of his crutches - he sustained a leg wound in the War.

In the French trenches December 1915. Water colour F. Flameng. Copyright MD Wright

 By 1915, the French authorities had redesigned their uniform to fit with the sombre realities of war. In action, the képi was replaced by the helmet, and the trench-cape was adopted. The red trousers, a gift to enemy snipers, were replaced by blue-grey ones and the great-coat was no longer adorned with flashes of red. The blue in the uniform was replaced by the greyish French Horizon Blue. This watercolour by François Flameng shows a trench at Souchez in December 1915.
French horizon blue was also used for the livery of their Narrow gauge rolling stock.
For further ideas, take a look at mikesmarvellousmodels.blospot.co.uk 

Colonel Péchot and Australia

French military railways and Australia met at two crucial times.
From 1876, the Decauville Company became famous world-wide for the manufacture of cheap, reliable portable railways for agricultural and industrial use. Their early systems were 40 or 50cm gauge, sold to farming and industrial companies in France and some of Europe. A 50 cm gauge railway used by the public for the 1878 Universal Exhibition of Paris helped to put Decauville's name out to the wider French public. Then he became known in the English-speaking world.  On December 15th 1883, management and staff of the whole factory enjoyed a large sit-down celebratory dinner. The Boss's younger brother, Émile Decauville, had just come back from Australia where he had supervised the building of a 52km  network of 60cm railway for the Homebush plantation. near Mackay, Queensland.

This was significant for the company. Of the first twenty five locomotives the Company ever sold, five went to Australia. These were 6 tonne 0-4-0T manufactured by Couillet. 450 wagons were also purchased. A long association with Van de Welde, as agents in Australia, had begun. The locomotive preserved at Gembrook is very similar to these first Couillets.

 http://members.ozemail.com.au/~telica/Images/0197-Carbon_three_quarter_front_at_Gembroo_2006.jpg


The order to Australia came at a significant period for both Paul Decauville and Prosper Péchot, then a captain in the French Artillery. Péchot had seen potential in the Decauville system; if 60 cm portable track were improved, he reasoned, it could be rapidly laid and, using locomotives rather than horses, carry the sort of traffic required by a modern army. From 1880 onwards, he worked on a design. Decauville must have been impressed by 60cm and locomotive haulage because from 1880, he promoted it more and more. In late 1882, Péchot submitted his designs for a military system based on 60cm portable railways to the French Minister of Defence (in French, Ministry of War). In his covering letter, and in the Memorandum itself, he emphasised the practical trials performed at the Decauville works.

One of the drawings illustrating Péchot's 1882 memorandum to the Minister of Defence. This was revolutionary in a number of ways. A locomotive is seen on portable track, hauling itself up a gradient (cable at front). The train consists of  a substantial gun supported by no less than four six-wheeled bogies. The effect was to spread the load over twelve axles. Drawing courtesy of Raymond PECHOT

His superiors simply filed it and this could have been the end of the story, were it not for the determination of Prosper Péchot and Paul Decauville. With Decauville's support, practical and financial, Péchot fought to have his system adopted. If Decauville hadn't scored some successes with 60cm, he would have been in no position to do so. After a struggle, in 1888, the Péchot system was officially adopted by the Army and named 'artillerie 88'
In 1889, the Great Paris Exhibition - which took place under the newly-built Eiffel Tower - was served by another Decauville narrow gauge network. This was 60cm gauge, worked by locomotives. It truly wowed the public who bought 6.3 million train tickets. The majority of locomotives heading these trains were 0-2-0-0-2-0T Mallets. Each carried the name of some commercial success for Decauville. On 15th June 1889, Decauville No 74, 'Australia' was the fifth Mallet to join the engine shed.
As they went around the Exhibition, trains passed the largest and finest of the transporters designed for the Péchot system - a 48 tonne gun carried on a system of 16 bogies, parked under the Eiffel Tower. We hope that the two gentlemen enjoyed that time. Had they known it, these were almost the happiest times for both.
The years after marked more personal and professional disappointments for Péchot and near bankruptcy for Decauville. After he was 'constructively dismissed' there was some new interest from Australia but 2'6" and 3'6" were the preferred gauges for official ng railways. The name of Péchot was not widely known. This changed during the First World War.
Australia and New Zealand both raised armies to help the 'mother country'. These were originally destined for the Western Front but, as we know, they were diverted to the Gallipoli campaign where they acquitted themselves very well. These ANZACs were landed at a cove on the western side of the Gallipoli peninsula midway between Cape Helles and Suvla Bay. (Even in 1920, it was still known as Anzac cove.)
The plan was for the Allied troops to cross the peninsula, cutting off the Turkish troops at the southern end. 2'6" field railways were to be provided by the British to supply the advance. Things did not go according to the Allied plan. By May, they were trying to slog their way up the peninsula. Many ANZAC troops were moved south to the Helles area to act as strategic reserve for the second battle of Krithia 5th May 1915. Here they acquitted themselves well, inflicting heavy casualties. Here also they encountered 60 cm railways, possibly not for the first time.
The Allied forces had never moved far from their beach heads, and so the 2'6" stayed packed up and was later pressed into use to defend the area around the Suez Canal. (If Turkey was the 'sick man of Europe' he was proving to be less unhealthy than expected.) The Allies did, however, lay hands on 60cm gauge material. 
The British had systems at Suvla Bay and Cape Helles. Worked by horses, material could best be described as 'an assortment of wagons'. It is interesting that the fore-ruinners of the WD A-class ie simple wooden-bodied four-wheel wagons were recorded in use. The wheelbase of this A-class wagon was 3'; later versions also did duty as bogies for bogie wagons.

French troops at Seddul Bahr had two pet vultures. Behind them is Péchot track. Photo copyright M.D. Wright

Photos show light railways in use around the French sector eg Sedd-el-Bahr. We can be confident that ANZAC troops saw 60cm gauge in action before they even reached Europe.    

First batch of Hunslets finished at last!

At long last, seven months after starting, we have finished the first production batch of ten Quarry Hunslets.

The ten locomotives on parade. More Alice class locos than any one slate quarry ever owned

The batch has turned out well. I built eleven but one had a fault that did not show up until the final steam test.  It was painted,  looked lovely and ran quite well, but not quite well enough.  I have worked out what was wrong but wishing to be finished I will sort it out when the workshop has been cleaned and made tidy for the next batch. During the construction several minor points were found where the etch design will be amended.  These were silly mistakes such as forgetting holes for the rivets that retain the side bunkers to the tanks, but it is these errors that slow down the construction of a batch.

Here are a couple of pictures that show what I think is a pretty nice model.  They are to scale with no dimensions changed to make life easier.  The mechanism is slip eccentric, as the exhaust is throttled, their top speed on a rolling road is slow.  When warm they all self start. For testing I filled the boilers with boiling water and they all gave about 15 minutes of running.  If the gas tanks are filled to the brim duration will be about 25 minutes.  The boilers were tested to 180psi and the safety valves set to 65psi.  The engines run steadily and powerfully from about 25psi. In use the gas can probably be set very low which will further increase duration.

A couple of locos showing the two offered colours, the works plates still to be fitted

A bit closer to show the detail on the model.  The smokebox door opens.That make burner lighting easy.

A rear view to show the opening coal doors, not just a nice touch, but it makes cleaning the gas jet easier if needed.

So what next? I think a break from the workshop then start a second batch of Quarry Hunslets and a small batch of Wrens.  I do need to crack on.  The interest list for the Hunslets is another 50+ and we have interest lists for other locos in our range in excess of another 50. Should keep me out of trouble until I drop!

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Colonel Péchot and the animals of war

We know that Prosper Péchot was fond of horses. In his officer training, many hours were devoted to equestrianism; it is not just a romantic supposition, but he rode in the woods above Fontainebleau every day while he was at the school for artillery officers. Photos taken during his career show him habitually on a horse - it gave him gravitas.

He came out of retirement to serve his county during the First World War and saw many animals pressed into service, much to his regret. His Système Péchot was devised to save horses from being used for army transport - a locomotive hauled train of 4 bogie wagons could carry as much as 60 to 80 horse-drawn carts, keeping double that number of horses out of the battle-field. Unfortunately, his superiors didn't absorb the message until the War had started and then had hastily to commisson material, following this up with the field trials they ought to have performed years before.

Gallant horses pull a machine-gun under fire. But are they galloping forward or retreating? This painting by Georges Scott appeared in Illustration magazine on October 31st 1914. Shortly afterwards, it appeared in the German press, with the caption 'Headlong retreat!' Georges Scott/Illustration/Courtesy Malcolm Wright

During the Champagne offensive (summer-autumn 1915) the French Army was still poorly prepared in matters of transport. Colonel Plassiard, chief transport officer for the Champagne network, recalled some of the problems. Temporary track had been laid on chalk subsoil. After months of war and coming into a wet autumn, it needed reballasting; they had left matters until locomotives could no longer use the track.

'We started using horses again, which led to poor operations. There were discrepancies in working new lines, lack of maintenance and repairs, worse still, lines which had been demanded urgently were not being worked at all. Finally the Army put locomotives back to work, but by now, the track was so churned up by the passage of horses' hooves that they had to be completely relaid.
Horses had given us many problems. We needed no less than three billeting officers (maréchaux des logis) to find them quarters. Food supplies, veterinary care and black-smiths to keep them shod were supposed to be the responsibility of their own units but gradually. more and more man power was sucked in. In fact, the way things were going, all available transport would be devoted to fetching fodder from greater and greater distances.
Worst of all the replacement of tired horses (for that read horses at the end of their tether) was not happening... To add to everything, winter had come on quickly and horses had to work in deep mud; it is not surprising that they suffered terribly'

All in all, it is surprising how the myth of the gallant mule, no doubt with brandy cask at his throat, supplying the whole Front has persisted. There was a happy end for the remaining horses on this particular Front. As Colonel Plassiard said, 'By January 1916, the situation had improved' There was proper housing for them  and locomotives back on the job.

The Rumanian retreat. Oxen pull a French 120L gun through a village in the Transylvanian Alps. Picture from Illustration/Courtesy Malcolm Wright

Away from the Western Front, oxen were usual. In the Balkans, they hauled Serbian refugees during the horrific retreat from the invasion. The human and animal army suffered much. In Rumania, which entered the War against the Central Powers on  27th August 1916. A French military mission under General Bethelot helped to arm them. Von Mackensen, with Turkish and Bulgarian troops, successfully attacked Transylvania from the southern border with Bulgaria. As can be seen from the photograph, oxen were common draught animals.

Worst of all was to see soldiers being used as draught animals as on the Italian Front. L'Illustration recorded 600 soldiers hauling a 149 gun at 2000 metres above sea-level, to arm a battery above Rovertero, June 1915.

Yum yum! Percy the pigeon would have made a tasty treat! Picture Illustration/ Courtesy Malcolm Wright

And finally let's not forget the carrier pigeons! Theirs was a dangerous job. As well as dodging stray bullets and shrapnel in the battlefield, the enemy would be happy to 'down' a messenger and thereby disrupt allied communications. There was also the risk of 'friendly fire'.

Gallipoli and Colonel Péchot

No one has ever doubted that the Gallipoli campaign was a defeat for the Allies, though a moral victory for the ANZACs (Australian and New Zealand Armed Corps). The idea was simple enough; land on the north-west 'corner' of the vast rectangle that is Turkey, and go the relatively short distance to the then capital, Constantinople/Istanbul. Whether it was sensible to give the Turkish Army so much advance warning, or to land on the tip of a peninsula which could readily be cut off is moot. Experience since has suggested that a sea-borne invasion needs to be 10:1 in favour of the invaders. Experience then showed that the Turkish Army was hardy and resourceful - no pushover.

Map of the Gallipoli peninsula, dated 1920. To the west is the Aegean Sea, to the north  the Dardanelles open up into the Sea of Marmara and then north again to Constantinople/Istanbul. The ANZACs are commemorated in Anzac Cove. Courtesy Times Illustrations

 On October 29th 1914, Turkey effectively declared itself for the Central Powers and on November 3rd, the Allies formally declared war. From that point, the Allied fleets blocaded the Mediterranean end of the Black Sea by patrolling off the Dardanelle straits. It was  hard to hide all the preparations which were going on in the Allied-held Mediterranean and so when they finally made land on April 25th 1915, the opposition was well prepared.

If the operation had gone to plan, the Allies would have used 2'6" portable railways to supply the advance. The British had such material; indeed, if it had not been for a combination of Kitchener's dislike - he actually said 'that is not our way of working' - and the successful French 60cm railways first designed by Prosper Péchot,  they would have used 2'6" gauge for 'siege' ie trench warfare on the Western Front. They opted to use 60cm gauge there and elsewhere. Redundant 2'6" gauge material was therefore plentiful and had been stockpiled in readiness.

In the event, Allied plans unravelled. The British were mainly on the western shores of the peninsula. They disembarked at Cape Helles, to the south of the peninsula, and Suvla Bay at the north, the ANZACs being allotted Gaba Tepé in between. They had to do some rock-climbing just to get off the beach but distinguished themselves throughout the campaign. The French and Senegalese tirailleurs took up position on each side of the straits, at Koum Kaleh and Seddul Bahr (Sedd-el Bahr). The Dublin regiment also saw action at Seddul-Bahr. The 'Leith' half-Battalion of the Royal Scots Regiment were supposed to join the Allies, but they did not arrive. At 6.49 on the morning of May 22nd 1915 at Quintinshill just north of Gretna, their troop train collided with a local passenger train which had been 'parked' on their line. Only 62 survived unscathed.  It was a foretaste of the toll that the campaign would exact.

Two vultures captured by French marines at Seddul-Bahr. With French humour, they were named Franz Joseph and Wilhelm, in honour of the Austrian and Prussian Emperors. The joke is made even more interesting because the vultures are hopping over a length of Péchot track. From 'Illustration'

Pinned down at their beach-heads, none of the Allies were able to move far inland. By May 6th, the British alone had lost 13,000 (not counting the 216 at Quintinshill). Over the months, plan after plan unravelled. One of these involved the 2'6" railway material waiting at Alexandria on the far side of the Mediterranean. So far from being threatened by Gallipoli, the Turkish Empire was threatening Egypt, certainly the Suez Canal. Defences had to be built, and 2'6" lines were laid  in the Port Said area (autumn 1915- spring 1916). Thirty Manning Wardle 160-80 hp locotractors and 350 standard Royal Engineer wagons used a 12 mile (20 km) line.

Back at Gallipoli, some 60cm gauge railways served the various beach-heads. The British had two. At Suvla Bay in the north, there was a surprisingly extensive network transporting supplies from the shore. As well as A-class four-wheel wagons, also tippers, it used bogie wagons. As far as we know, this was horse-worked. Further south at Cape Helles, there was a smaller system whisking stores from the piers to a camp sheltered directly below the cliffs. This too was horse-worked and used four-wheel wagons.

Which one is the Surrender Monkey? Lord Kitchener (front left) and General Brulard (centre) discuss the campaign amid ruins at Seddul-Bahr. Below the feet of the dignitaries runs a well-used narrow gauge railway. 'Illustration'

The French also had 60cm track as photographs taken at Seddul Bahr attest. Some was Péchot portable track but by December, the track was taking on a permanent appearance. We suppose that this railway too was horse-drawn. Colonel Péchot, the originator of military 60cm gauge, did not visit the Dardanelles. He was in Europe supervising the manufacture of the vast quantities of 60cm railways required. Late in 1914, he was in Britain, inspecting track ordered for the French Army. In 1915, he was training recruits to run railways at hastily developed schools in northern France.

On December 20th 1915, the Allies decided to withdraw. The French were careful to attribute this decision to Kitchener. General Brulard, on behalf of the French, reminded him of the losses that had been inflicted on the Turkish Army and that the British would suffer a great loss of prestige. Kitchener, however, decided that further effort would be fruitless. The evacuation began and on 8th January 1916, the last ship, the Cornwallis, left Suvla Bay. 22,000 Allied troops had died, many more suffered wounds and disease.

From Festiniog to Péchot Bourdon to Brigadelok

Prosper Péchot (1849-1928) was moved to discuss the the increasing sophistication of German military 60cm 'field' railways, developed after he had designed a system for the French. His discussion is quite interesting because, apart from technical manuals, he didn't write very much. His memorial has been his works rather than his words. This makes a series of lectures - which resulted in a book - particularly revealing. They were recorded almost verbatim as he spoke, but I have somewhat abbreviated and simplified the convoluted 19th century diction. I'd like to persuade you that, as well as his views on military narrow gauge, they help tell us about his character, so well hidden under the uniform of an officer in the French Artillery.

This photo of Colonel Péchot was taken in 1907, on his retirement. Although he was awarded the Legion of Honour and was known to the top politicians of France, he was caring and modest. Courtesy Raymond PECHOT

The text is taken from a short course delivered in 1903 (25th to 27th April) to students at the school of ponts et chaussées et des mines - the central State University for civil engineers. Péchot was there to discuss the subject of derailment, an ever-present danger for trains of all gauges. He was there as an expert, celebrated for introducing 60cm as an official railway gauge, both for military use around places fortes/frontier defenses and for civilian railways.

'Gentlemen' he began, 'I was invited here by the Minister of Works himself, the aim being to help you understand railways - with a focus on how design can help to avoid derailments. My examples are taken from the work I was encouraged to do in organising 60 cm gauge for military purposes'

The word 'I' appears three times in the original French paragraph. They are less a statement of 'ego' and more a description of self as part of a group.  'I' and 'was invited' are separated by several lines in the original text and 'invited' in the French suggests 'we are invited' - Invités is the plural form. Was he suggesting that he was there as part of a team, or that the 'we' included the students, or was this suggesting both? Another  'I' is even more interesting - the original French goes 'Je suis amené/I was led' (which has been translated 'I was encouraged'). Who led Prosper Péchot? The Army was somewhat discouraging. They tried to bury his original proposals. When Decauville appeared, ready to lend them the bogies and prefabricated track for trials. they tried to remove Péchot from the trials as fast as possible. He was too 'partisan'. Even when the Minister for Defence took an interest in the Péchot project, his superiors made sure that he was never posted anywhere near Toul. At the time of the talks, Péchot was serving in remore Castres, over 600 kilometres from Paris, even more from Toul. Yet he always considered himself part of a team.

He goes on. 'This is the problem I had to resolve when, in 1882, I had to design a 60cm system: how to transport the food, ammunition and all other necessities for an army to work efficiently, on time and to the right place in the field, regardless of the distance from the nearest railway'

The reason why 'he had to' was because of his Staff College thesis. This was a standard theoretical essay, set to all students - retake Metz in the Provinces lost to Germany. The city was surrounded by well-armed forts and the nearest railways that any invaders had a hope of capturing were about 15 kilometres away, a long march, even without artillery. One assumes that most of the officers at Staff College put their stress on 'cran et élan' - courage and sheer guts. Péchot put his faith in big guns, and lots of ammunition.

'Transport must be improved' he explained. 'The history of any siege shows that the lack of efficient transport (he uses the word puissant/powerful several times) has caused failure or near-failure. The defenders have been able to call on more and better arms than their attackers. The siege of Paris (war of 1870-1) provides a good lesson . The Prussian army took 104 days to bring up enough ammunition to begin a bombardment. Between 23st December 1870 and 28th January 1871, the guns were active on 20 days and Paris actually capitulated because of hunger, not shelling. 300 tonnes of ammunition were expended. It had taken the Prussians a lot of effort to transport this comparatively meagre amount from their railhead at Nanteuil (eastern Paris) to Villacoublay in the west where the best vantage point for gunnery was situated. They had no less than 1000 commandeered horse wagons; the work was made easier when they re-opened the railway tunnel past Nanteuil and reduced each journey from 70 to 48 kilometres. To add insult to injury, when the victors withdrew, they left the roads around Paris in a ruinous state.

It is clear that a new form of transport was needed' It was clear to Péchot but, not it appears, to the rest of the Army.

'This new transport' he continued, 'must be able to carry heavy guns. It must not expose our boys to the dangers of trans-shipping from one gauge to another within range of enemy guns. (Many strategists of the time believed that for a significant operation, a standard gauge railway should be built to as near the war zone as possible.) It must therefore be able to carry items quite a distance. The wagons should be designed to make unloading as simple as possible. It should be quick and simple to be put into operation. It should be able to carry significant tonnages - ammunition as well as 'one-offs' like guns. It should be adaptible enough to be used in our own forts as well as for attack.

'The best system uses locomotive-hauled trains on railways.' Péchot explained. To carry the guns and amunition for a respectable siege park would require either 160 train journeys, or 210,000 horse journeys (assuming that the cart of the period could carry 4 tonnes). 'I have been looking at the problem since 1878. The automobiles (cars and trucks) of the time can carry between one and three tonnes of freight, and so they are not an answer either.

The Péchot Bourdon locomotive was a development of the Welsh Fairlie, but is far more than just a compact version. It featured seven important improvements. Photo courtesy of Raymond Duton.

 Such a railway system must be able to carry up to 48 tonnes. (Péchot put a lot of energy into devising a series of bogies which could carry a 48 tonne gun. His imitators found other ways round that particular problem). The system must be based on a gauge that is smaller than standard or metre gauge, both of which need considerable civil engineering, for building the railways and the unloading points. Standard and metre gauge would be unsuitable for use within our own places fortes. (This was an important point. The Sappers wanted to use metre gauge for strategic transport in the open air and 40cm inside their forts - with a nasty dangerous trans-shipment point at every gateway!) At the same time, 50cm gauge or anything less is also impractical because studies have shown that it could not carry the tonnage required. This only leaves 60cm gauge. Here we have an encouraging example - the Festiniog Railway of Wales. By 1882, the Fairlies of the Festiniog were carrying significant loads at speeds of up to 64 km/h (40mph). It must be rail, the gauge must be 60cm and the locomotives used could be an adapted version of the Fairlie'

With help from Decauville (not his superiors!) Péchot had done a lot of work on the 60cm track required. Once again, he just said 'Nous fümes conduit à reconaître/We are led to the conclusion' before explaining the unique qualities of Péchot track. These words demonstrate his tact and modesty.

'Portable track had to be in prefabricated lengths and made entirely of steel. They had to respect the official maximum that a man could carry - 50 kg. A 5m length, to be carried by four men, must weigh no more than 170 kg. The track had to be simple to lay, therefore prefabricated. On the other hand, it had to support an axle-loading of 3.5 tonnes, the minimum necessary for the trains and their locomotives. The system could be used in the field to supply an attacking army but is equally useful for the defence. In the field' he went on, 'regular trains would supply food and ammunition as went all transporting the big guns. A distance of up to 10 km from the nearest standard gauge railhead could efficiently supply two to three thousand tonnes of supplies daily.'

Péchot then reminded his listeners that at many points during their campaign of 1870-1, the Prussians had been a day or so from meltdown. Thus, they were watching our trials of 1888. By 1891, they were trialling a version of 60cm 'analogous to ours/ analogue au nôtre qu'ils voyaient fonctionner depuis 1888'. 'In 1893, they put designs into production;  by now (1903) they have at least 1000 km of track alone, plus wagons and locomotives. Exercises undertaken by the German Army show that 10 kilometres of 60 cm track can be laid every day'

This restored example of a German Brigadelok (0-8-0T) was photographed at Apedale in 1914.  Between 1904 and 1918, approximately 2000 were built - German authorities tend to qualify their numbers with etwas/thereabouts. No doubt at the end of the war, they deliberately kept numbers vague - the more the victorious French knew that they had, the more that they would demand in reparations! Until 1904, German field railways kept axle-loading below 3-5 tonnes, just like the French, but with this new design, they began to use conventionally laid track. Photo by Malcolm Wright

Péchot assured his listeners that German material was inferior to the French. By 1903, this was a matter of opinion. By 1914, it was no longer true.