Railways - Belgium: Books - History and Rolling Stock

Belgium's Unique Railway History

It is a little known facet of railway history that Belgium produced a number of world firsts, records and innovative railway engineers and entrepreneurs that is quite disproportionate to its size.
This book seeks to set the record straight, and give Belgium the place in railway history that its achievements deserve.

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A Belgian Passage to China (1870-1920)

From 1870 to 1914, Belgium - one of the major financial and industrial powers at the time - financed, built and operated hundreds of kilometers of trains and tram lines across the five continents.
The Western sense of supremacy and King Leopold II's urge to colonize were the driving force behind the companies in this country. In China, this adventure resulted in the construction of the railway between Beijing and Hankou and a tram network in Tianjin.

"A Belgian passage to China (1870-1930)" highlights two projects. François Nuyens left Ghent for Tianjin in 1905, where he built a power station and a tram network. In a well-documented diary, Nuyens records his impressions of his stay in China between 1905 and 1908.

The brothers Philippe and Adolphe Spruyt, both doctors, traveled to China to provide medical service at the yards of the Beijing-Hankou railway line. They returned with suitcases full of Chinese antiques. Their interesting correspondence and more than 1,200 photographic glass plates offer a unique insight into the daily life of China in the early twentieth century.

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Benelux Rail 1970-1980

This tenth volume reaches back into days long gone.

Packed with pictures of forgotten liveries, station buildings, semaphores, lay-outs and rolling stock. Significant technical, economical and socials aspects are described.
A publication addressing developments long before privatization began. The latest edition on this long running series may therefor inspire historians, travelling photographers, geographers and railway modelers alike.

English and Dutch text.

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Les chemins de fer belges - Hier, aujourd'hui, demain

A journey through the history and current events of Belgian railways, from 1835 to the present day, with a look to the future. The author describes the historical evolution of railways as a pillar of our mobility. He is also interested in their contributions to our economy and their interactions with our industries.
He highlights the significant transformations of our railways over the decades: the end of steam, the arrival of high speed and their all-round modernization in order to best fulfill the major role they will play in the sustainable mobility of tomorrow.
An encyclopedic and evolving panorama of Belgian railways. An essential reference book.

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Chemins de fer, chemins croisés - Victor Horta / Henry Van de Velde

In the first half of the 20th century, Victor Horta and Henry Van de Velde were Belgium's leading Art Nouveau architects. Both also worked for the Belgian railways. Horta spent over 30 years designing Brussels Central Station, though he did not live to see its completion. Using unique archival documents, this book traces the development and complex history of the project, which went through three different designs.
In the 1930s, the NMBS faced modernization. Henry Van de Velde was tasked with designing new passenger carriages and introducing innovations that improved travel comfort. He also contributed to the planning and construction of several stations in a distinctly modernist style.
This book was created under the auspices of Train World and accompanies the exhibition Dessine-moi un train. It was written by Art Nouveau specialists Françoise Aubry and Anne Van Loo.

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