Текст 3. Isambard Brunel – British Engineering Genius

Isambard Brunel – British Engineering Genius

The greatest British engineer Marc Brunel had married Sophia Kingdom, and their only son was a chip of the old block. He was deeply involved with his father's engineering projects while still in his teens; he went on to achieve ever more ambitious engineering projects.

He was born in that great centre of naval engineering: Portsmouth, England, in 1806. At the age of 14 he was sent away to France to complete his education, and by the age of 20 he took the place of the resident engineer (by then in failing health) on his father's Thames Tunnel project.

While recuperating from the serious injuries he sustained on that project, Isambard started working on designs for a great suspension bridge over the Avon Gorge. One of his designs was eventually accepted, and the Clifton Suspension Bridge was built, though owing to financial constraints it was not completed until after his death.

Meanwhile he was working as a dock engineer, and designed a number of important docks, including those at Plymouth and Milford Haven.

The railways were coming! There were already a number of designs for static engines and locomotive engines, and in the famous Rainhill trials of 1829 the “Rocket” locomotive, designed by George Stephenson, triumphed. Young Isambard became fascinated by the possibilities of this new technology, and started producing various designs for locomotives - not very successfully, it must be said - and railway tracks.

Then in 1833 he became chief engineer to the Great Western Railway. In this capacity, he oversaw the laying of more than 1000 miles (1600km) of railway track in various parts of England, Wales and Ireland. He was also involved in the construction of railway lines in Italy, and had an advisory role in the construction of lines in Australia, and the Eastern Bengal Railway in India.

One of his innovations in the construction of railway bridges was his use of compressed-air techniques, particularly in underwater and underground projects.

Of all the bridges Isambard designed and built, his greatest achievement is considered to be the Tamar bridge, a railway bridge across the River Tamar near Plymouth, England. The Tamar bridge features a central pier built on a rock, some 80 feet (24m) above the high-water mark. The bridge opened in 1859, the year of his death.

Not content with transporting people and goods by railway from London to Bristol, he started designing vessels to take them from England to America. The three ships which he built (the “Great Western” in 1837, the “Great Britain” in 1843, and the “Great Eastern” in 1858) were each the largest in the world at the date of launching.

The “Great Western” was a paddle vessel built of wood, and was the first transatlantic steamship in regular service. She crossed from Bristol to New York in 15 days, and remained in service for 30 years, making 30 crossings in the first eight years alone.

The “Great Britain” was built of iron. She was the first large vessel to be driven by a screw propeller, and the first such vessel to cross the Atlantic. Designed to carry 250 passengers, 130 crew, and 1, 200 tonnes of cargo, she made her maiden voyage from Liverpool to New York in 1845.

Like the “Great Western”, she remained in service for 30 years, voyaging as far afield as San Francisco, California, and making regular voyages to Australia.

In 1866, badly damaged off Cape Horn, the “Great Britain” managed to limp across to the Falkland Islands. There she lay for almost 100 years, refusing to rot, until salvaged by a group of enthusiasts who towed the ship to Montevideo, Uruguay.

From there she was towed all the way back to the Bristol dock where she had been made 127 years earlier. The “Great Britain” remains there to this day as a tourist attraction and a registered museum.

The “Great Eastern” was an enormous ship with both paddles and screw, and was the first ship with a double iron hull. She was built on the Thames, and was designed to carry 4000 passengers. But she had many problems, and on the 15 September, 1859, she was damaged by an explosion on board. Isambard Brunel, worn out and in failing health after years of worry and work, was told of the explosion. He died later the same day. The “Great Eastern” was, however, repaired, and went on to achieve fame as the ship which laid the first successful transatlantic cable.

Other projects Brunel worked on included improved designs for large guns, as well as a floating armoured barge used in 1854 during the Crimean War. He also designed a complete prefabricated hospital building that was shipped to the Crimea in sections, in 1855, and reassembled there for use by the celebrated nursing pioneer Florence Nightingale.

The late 18th Century and the 19th Century saw an era that bred many great innovative engineers. Isambard Kingdom Brunel was the last of that particular breed, and probably the greatest.

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1. What was Isambard Brunel’s father?

2. When was Brunel sent away to France to complete his education?

3. When did he become chief engineer to the Great Western Railway?

4. What techniques did Brunel use in the construction of railway bridge?

5. What railway bridge was Brunel’s great achievement?

6. What do you know about a large vessel “Great Britain”?

7. What do you know about an enormous ship “Great Eastern”?

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