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Blood, Iron, and Gold: How the Railways Transformed the World, by Christian Wolmar
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The opening of the Liverpool and Manchester Railway in 1830 marked the beginning of a transport revolution that would forever transform the way we live. Blood, Iron, and Gold takes us on a journey encompassing jungle, mountain, and desert, revealing the huge impact of the railroads as they spread rapidly across entire countries, and linked cities that hitherto had little reach beyond their immediate environs. The rise of the train triggered daring engineering feats, great architectural innovation, and the rapid movement of people and goods across the globe. Cultures were both enriched and destroyed by the unrelenting construction of the railroads, and the new technology quickly took on a vital role in civil conflicts and two world wars.
In this beautifully illustrated book, renowned transportation journalist Christian Wolmar celebrates the vision and determination of the ambitious pioneers who developed the railways that would dominate the globe.
- Sales Rank: #1853117 in Books
- Published on: 2010-03-02
- Original language: English
- Number of items: 1
- Dimensions: 1.44" h x 6.50" w x 9.32" l, 1.48 pounds
- Binding: Hardcover
- 432 pages
From Publishers Weekly
This spirited, dramatic history of the most important invention of the second millennium celebrates railroads as the central innovation of the industrial revolution, releasing economic and social energies on a stupendous scale. Historian Wolmar (The Great Railway Disaster) chronicles the heroic age of railroad construction in the 19th century, with its mix of epic engineering and horrible exploitation. (The death toll on the trans-Panamanian railroad project included a mass suicide by Chinese workers.) Riding the early railroads, he notes, was almost as harrowing as building them, as passengers braved engine cinders that set their clothes on fire—and sometimes had to get out and push underpowered locomotives up steep grades. The railroads' social impact was equally breathtaking, in Wolmar's telling: it brought city folk fresh milk, out-of-season produce, and commutes to the suburbs; spawned monopolies and spectacular corruption scandals; and played a crucial role in enabling the world wars and the Holocaust. Wolmar explores this fertile subject with a blend of lucid exposition and engaging historical narrative. The result is a fascinating study not just of a transportation system, but of the Promethean spirit of the modern age. 16 pages of color illus.; maps. (Mar. 2)
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.
Review
Richard F. Harnish, Executive Director, Midwest High Speed Rail Association
“Blood, Iron, and Gold reminds us that the railroads did more than just speed up travel or build up national economies. They literally changed the way human beings experienced, thought about and lived their lives. Christian Wolmar’s book should put all high-speed-rail advocates on notice. Trains can return to the American landscape, traveling twice as fast, reprising the social revolution they set off almost two centuries ago."
Library Journal STARRED Review
“[Wolmar’s] work is both a serious history and an adventure story. Highly recommended for anyone interested in the growth and global historical impact of railroads.”
Publishers Weekly
“Wolmar explores this fertile subject with a blend of lucid exposition and engaging historical narrative. The result is a fascinating study not just of a transportation system, but of the Promethean spirit of the modern age.”
Wall Street Journal
“[Wolmar] covers a great deal of territory in "Blood, Iron and Gold," but he keeps the reader engaged by highlighting extraordinary projects like the building of the Trans-Siberian Railway from 1891 to 1904. It connected St. Petersburg to Vladivostok, a distance of almost 6,200 miles. Equally stirring is the saga of Cecil Rhodes and his never-completed Cape-to-Cairo line; and that of Peru's vertiginous Central Railway, which ascends the Andes and passes through the Galera Tunnel, 15,694 feet above sea level. The book also features cameo appearances by such colorful figures as Benito Mussolini, who may or may not have made Italy's trains run on time but who definitely made them run faster and more frequently. Nor does Mr. Wolmar neglect the pop-culture angle: Agatha Christie fans will be sorry to learn that history records no instance of a real-life murder on the Orient Express.”
Dallas Morning News“It's not clear who first thought of putting carts and carriages on flanged wheels and hauling them over iron rails behind steam engines. But the railroad, writes transportation historian Christian Wolmar, changed everything. And he means everything….It's a vast geopolitical story, but Wolmar manages to tell it without losing sight of the romance and adventure, the triumphs and frequent tragedies that accompanied the advancing rails.”
Trains Magazine“Most attempts at a generalist approach toward railroad history err on the side of history and slight the rail side. (Blood, Iron, and Gold) keeps the two elements in graceful balance. And, thanks to Wolmar’s crisp style, it’s a pleasure to read.”
About the Author
Christian Wolmar is a writer and broadcaster specializing in the social history of railways and transport. He has written for major British newspapers for many years and has contributed to many other publications, including the New York Times and Newsday. He frequently appears on TV and radio as an expert commentator. His most recent books are The Subterranean Railway, a history of the London Underground, the world's oldest system, and Fire & Steam, the story of Britain's railways.
Most helpful customer reviews
54 of 63 people found the following review helpful.
Wonderful History of the Place of Railroads in History
By James R. Holland
Like most people, I had no idea how important railroads were to the history of the world. This over-all story of the contributions made by the Iron Horse to civilization and the industrial revolution is fascinating even to somebody like myself who really doesn't know much about trains, but who has always loved traveling on them. I prefer them to travel by automobile or airliners. From this book, it appears that I'm not alone in that love of train travel and it's wonderful to know that railroads are making a big comeback all over the planet. Railroads are still the least expensive way to move freight and raw materials and it appears that they in the process of greatly expanding their role in the economy. This is a very good read and not just for train enthusiasts. The text is accompanied by lots of helpful maps and 16 pages of really interesting photographs both in color and black and white.
11 of 11 people found the following review helpful.
An Incredible, Fascinating History of the Creation and Impact of Railroads around the World
By J. Avellanet
For my 100th review, I chose Wolmar's Blood, Iron and Gold. If you are looking for a good, non-fiction, history book that will engage you and give you all sorts of fascinating, interesting insights, Blood, Iron and Gold is just the ticket. I am not a railroad aficianado, yet I found this book hard to put down. It's extremely well written, an easy read, and thoroughly researched. The maps and the two sets of illustrations and photographs convey all the right visuals one needs.
The first part of the book (chapters 1-4) discuss the first railroads (with rails made of wood!), the first steam engines, and their impacts on society, culture, and the political landscape. The way in which railroads have been instrumental in unifying diverse regions is fascinating. I finally understood why we, in the US, have gone from thinking of the various united states as a group of independent, allied political entities to an entire single nation (e.g., it used to be when one said "the Unites States," one used a plural verb as in "the United States are going to..."). Likewise, the same holds true for the very disjointed region - with lots of principalities and countries - that is Germany today. Wolmar very clearly explains how each of these disparate political units had to work closely together to see an ROI on railroad investment.
Part two of the book (chapters 5-10) begins with a continent by continent review of how railways penetrated various nations and the problems involved, from "simple" cross-border coordination activities to massive topographical challenges (the Andes) that even today are staggering in their complexities and tragedies. The section on the attempt to drive a railway through the Amazon is particularly poignant. The last few chapters in part two highlight the many innovations - not only in trains and technology, but also architecture - that railroads led to.
The last third of the book (chapters 11-13) might seem to be a bit of a downer as they discuss the eclipsing of the railroad by planes and automobiles, but luckily, Wolmar ends with an intriguing set of trends pointing toward an already occurring resurgence in railroad travel and use. Certainly, since 9/11 in the US and the rise in gas prices, train travel has become far easier, cheaper, and more enjoyable than the whole airport to airport experience.
Wolmar's book also makes a very subtle, very strong case for the need for high speed trains in the US and Britain. Frankly, it was shameful reading about the progress made by Japan, Italy, Germany, France, and China. As perfect as high speed trains might be for up and down the US coasts, the current Acela is the bottom of the barrel compared to what other nations have been able to achieve even in the last ten years. The fact that I've never seen the Acela less than packed should be a clarion call for politicians and planners in the US.
All of this - and far, far more - Wolmar makes clear in his book. Blood, Iron and Gold is at the top of my non-fiction book list for 2010. It should be on yours as well.
0 of 0 people found the following review helpful.
Very highly recommended! Read it!
By Fredrick Upchurch
Nearly everyone today realizes the central importance of the Internet, and how it transformed every aspect of life. I was 34 before the Internet started growing into the ubiquitous central backbone of commerce, finance, business, and social life and I totally embraced it. I was there when it all started in '95, crude as it was.
That gave me an insight in reading this book and how railways literally changed the world back then, long after the Industrial Revolution but before electricity was finally developed. Railroads affected everything then somewhat in the way the Internet does now. The coming of the railroads was, I think, the greatest achievement of the Industrial Revolution, which led to electricity,
Railroad cities across America and the world grew up overnight. Distant markets opened up, Diets changed due to improved transport of foodstuffs. Communications between people and markets were transformed. Commerce grew exponentially; wheat grains and coal and then oil became essential parts of the national commerce.
And not just here in America, but elsewhere. But America's railroad experience was vastly different from the rest of the world's. Here, the railroads were built, financed, and controlled by private business. Elsewhere, Europe especially, governments controlled the railways.
This book is a fair and straightforward account, and has no axe to grind or philosophy to advance. In that, this book stands up without prejudice and tells a very interesting story that most of don't know. Myself included, until now.
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