Benjamin Piercy (16 March 1827 – 24 March 1888) was a civil engineer. He developed railway lines in
Wales
Wales ( cy, Cymru ) is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is bordered by England to the Wales–England border, east, the Irish Sea to the north and west, the Celtic Sea to the south west and the ...
,
Sardinia
Sardinia ( ; it, Sardegna, label=Italian, Corsican and Tabarchino ; sc, Sardigna , sdc, Sardhigna; french: Sardaigne; sdn, Saldigna; ca, Sardenya, label=Algherese and Catalan) is the second-largest island in the Mediterranean Sea, after ...
(
Italy
Italy ( it, Italia ), officially the Italian Republic, ) or the Republic of Italy, is a country in Southern Europe. It is located in the middle of the Mediterranean Sea, and its territory largely coincides with the homonymous geographical re ...
),
France
France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of Overseas France, overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic, Pacific Ocean, Pac ...
and
India
India, officially the Republic of India (Hindi: ), is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by area, the second-most populous country, and the most populous democracy in the world. Bounded by the Indian Ocean on the so ...
and is also well known as an agrarian businessman and entrepreneur.
[ liceo brotzu]
Early life
Benjamin was initially trained in his father's office. His father Robert Benjamin, was a land surveyor operating in the Counties of
Montgomery,
Denbigh
Denbigh (; cy, Dinbych; ) is a market town and a community in Denbighshire, Wales. Formerly, the county town, the Welsh name translates to "Little Fortress"; a reference to its historic castle. Denbigh lies near the Clwydian Hills.
History
...
and
Flint
Flint, occasionally flintstone, is a sedimentary cryptocrystalline form of the mineral quartz, categorized as the variety of chert that occurs in chalk or marly limestone. Flint was widely used historically to make stone tools and start fir ...
and a business partner of
Brunel. After achieving his degree in Civil Engineering in 1847, Benjamin became Chief Assistant to Charles Mickleburgh, surveyor and land-agent in
Montgomeryshire
Montgomeryshire, also known as ''Maldwyn'' ( cy, Sir Drefaldwyn meaning "the Shire of Baldwin's town"), is one of thirteen historic counties of Wales, historic counties and a former administrative county of Wales. It is named after its county tow ...
. In this position, he found himself involved with the Welsh railways.
[Marghine e turismo culturale: le opportunità dell'area di Badde Salighes di Antonella Corda]
/ref>
In 1851, Henry Robertson
Henry Robertson (11 June 1816 – 22 March 1888) was a Scottish mining engineer and prolific railway builder, industrialist and Liberal Party politician. He was head of Brymbo Steelworks, Wrexham. He was co-founder of Beyer-Peacock, with Charl ...
, sought his assistance to prepare plans for the Shrewsbury and Chester Railway line, and later for a railway from Oswestry to Newtown. His success in getting parliamentary approval for the latter line despite a strong opposition from rival entrepreneurs boosted his reputation as a technical expert in railways and since then he became involved in almost every running rail project in Wales.
Some notable pieces of engineering he delivered during this period are the Talerddig trench, the bridges over the Severn estuary, the Mawddach and the Traeth Bychan rivers and the fine stations at Oswestry and Welshpool.
In 1855 he married Sarah Davies and moved to Wrexham
Wrexham ( ; cy, Wrecsam; ) is a city and the administrative centre of Wrexham County Borough in Wales. It is located between the Welsh mountains and the lower Dee Valley, near the border with Cheshire in England. Historically in the count ...
in North Wales. Sarah gave him three sons and six daughters. On 8 January 1861 he was elected Chairman of the Institution of Civil Engineers
The Institution of Civil Engineers (ICE) is an independent professional association for civil engineers and a charitable body in the United Kingdom. Based in London, ICE has over 92,000 members, of whom three-quarters are located in the UK, whi ...
.
Activity in foreign countries
France
In 1863, with Savin and the Count of Monthiers, he won the approval for the construction of the Vendée
Vendée (; br, Vande) is a department in the Pays de la Loire region in Western France, on the Atlantic coast. In 2019, it had a population of 685,442. railways from Tours
Tours ( , ) is one of the largest cities in the region of Centre-Val de Loire, France. It is the Prefectures in France, prefecture of the Departments of France, department of Indre-et-Loire. The Communes of France, commune of Tours had 136,463 ...
to Sables d'Olonne.
Italy
In 1863 he began a long term project, in cooperation with the Royal Sardinian Railway Company, involving the planning and renovation of the standard and narrow gauge lines on the island of Sardinia
Sardinia ( ; it, Sardegna, label=Italian, Corsican and Tabarchino ; sc, Sardigna , sdc, Sardhigna; french: Sardaigne; sdn, Saldigna; ca, Sardenya, label=Algherese and Catalan) is the second-largest island in the Mediterranean Sea, after ...
, and the construction of a harbour in Golfo Aranci
Golfo Aranci (Gallurese: ''Figari'', sc, Figari) is a ''comune'' (municipality) in the Province of Sassari in the Italian region Sardinia, located about north of Cagliari and about northeast of Olbia.
History
The town's name ("Gulf of the Ora ...
.[Paolo Fadda, Alla ricerca di capitali coraggiosi, Sanderson Craig, 1990] He acquired large estates in Sardinia, where his descendants still live today, and highly contributed to improving the agricultural techniques on the island as well as the breeding techniques of cattle, horses, and sheep.
After the approval, in 1865, of the Law on ''ademprivi'', Piercy received as a reward for his various activities in Sardinia a farmland in Macomer
Macomer ( sc, Macumère) is a town and ''comune'' of Sardinia (Italy) in the province of Nuoro. It is situated on the southern ascent to the central plateau (the Campeda) of this part of Sardinia, at the junction of narrow-gauge lines branching fro ...
, where he began the construction of one of the most modern farms at the time with the introduction of efficient livestock management, including breeds of horses and cows hitherto unknown to the island. He settled in an area called Badde Salighes ("willows valley" in Sardinian language
Sardinian or Sard ( , or ) is a Romance languages, Romance language spoken by the Sardinians on the Western Mediterranean island of Sardinia.
Many Romance linguists consider it the language that is closest to Latin among all its genealogica ...
) where he built Villa Piercy, a building shaped like a four-sided castle, together with a village of forty houses, which accommodated 97 settlers and 210 inhabitants.
He became an intimate friend of Garibaldi
Giuseppe Maria Garibaldi ( , ;In his native Ligurian language, he is known as ''Gioxeppe Gaibado''. In his particular Niçard dialect of Ligurian, he was known as ''Jousé'' or ''Josep''. 4 July 1807 – 2 June 1882) was an Italian general, patr ...
, whose son, Ricciotti Ricciotti is both an Italian surname and a masculine Italian given name. Notable people with the name include:
* Abbot Giuseppe Ricciotti, C.R.L., (1890–1964), Italian canon regular, Biblical scholar and archeologist
* Ricciotti Garibaldi (1847†...
, became his pupil. His services to Sardinia were recognized by his appointment as a Commendatore of the Crown of Italy in 1882. Ricciotti also was his assistant in the development of some Indian railway lines.
India
Piercy was the Head Engineer in the development of the Assam Railway in India, and projected its extension into Burma. In 1884, during the construction works in Assam
Assam (; ) is a state in northeastern India, south of the eastern Himalayas along the Brahmaputra and Barak River valleys. Assam covers an area of . The state is bordered by Bhutan and Arunachal Pradesh to the north; Nagaland and Manipur ...
, he named a village ''Margherita'' in reference to the Italian Queen Margherita
Margherita of Savoy (''Margherita Maria Teresa Giovanna''; 20 November 1851 – 4 January 1926) was Queen of Italy by marriage to Umberto I.
Life
Early life
Margherita was born to Prince Ferdinand of Savoy, Duke of Genoa and Princess Elisabeth ...
.[Sanjib Baruah, India Against Itself: Assam and the Politics of Nationality, University of Pennsylvania Press, 1999 - ]
Late projects and private life
In 1881 he purchased the Marchwiel Hall
Marchwiel Hall is a Grade II listed building in the village of Marchwiel, Wrexham County Borough in North Wales.
History
Marchwiel Hall was a seat of the Broughton family and by 1837 was occupied by Townshend Mainwaring, who then moved to Galltf ...
estate, and for the last remaining years of his life he devoted much of his attention to the revitalisation of the railways in North Wales
, area_land_km2 = 6,172
, postal_code_type = Postcode
, postal_code = LL, CH, SY
, image_map1 = Wales North Wales locator map.svg
, map_caption1 = Six principal areas of Wales common ...
, consolidating their finances, and planning extensions for exploiting the local mineral resources.
He died in London on 24 March 1888, and was buried in Kensal Green Cemetery
Kensal Green Cemetery is a cemetery in the Kensal Green area of Queens Park in the Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea in London, England. Inspired by Père Lachaise Cemetery in Paris, it was founded by the barrister George Frederic ...
next to his wife Sarah Davies.
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Piercy, Benjamin
Welsh civil engineers
1827 births
1888 deaths