''Le Belge'' was a
2-2-2
Under the Whyte notation for the classification of steam locomotives, 2-2-2 represents the wheel arrangement of two leading wheels on one axle, two powered driving wheels on one axle, and two trailing wheels on one axle. The wheel arrangement both ...
''Patentee'' type
steam locomotive
A steam locomotive is a locomotive that provides the force to move itself and other vehicles by means of the expansion of steam. It is fuelled by burning combustible material (usually coal, oil or, rarely, wood) to heat water in the locomot ...
with
tender, built in 1835 by the company founded by
John Cockerill in
Seraing
Seraing (; wa, Serè) is a city and municipality of Wallonia located in the province of Liège, Belgium.
The municipality consists of the following districts: Boncelles, Jemeppe-sur-Meuse, Ougrée, and Seraing. With Liège, Herstal, Saint ...
,
Belgium
Belgium, ; french: Belgique ; german: Belgien officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a country in Northwestern Europe. The country is bordered by the Netherlands to the north, Germany to the east, Luxembourg to the southeast, France to th ...
. It was the first steam railway locomotive built in Belgium, and was built under license to a design by
Robert Stephenson & Co.
Design and operation
The locomotive was built for the first main line on the European mainland, the Brussels-Mechelen line.
Replicas
A replica locomotive was built at the workshops of Boissellerie Cognaut for the 150th anniversary in 1980 of the formation of
Belgium
Belgium, ; french: Belgique ; german: Belgien officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a country in Northwestern Europe. The country is bordered by the Netherlands to the north, Germany to the east, Luxembourg to the southeast, France to th ...
. Another replica was built in 1885 and is now displayed at
Train World
Train World is a railway museum in Brussels, Belgium, and the official museum of the National Railway Company of Belgium. It is situated in the preserved buildings of Schaarbeek railway station and in a new shed built to its north. Although sched ...
, the museum of the
National Railways of Belgium, in
Schaerbeek
(French language, French and History of Dutch orthography, archaic Dutch, ) or (contemporary Dutch language, Dutch, ) is one of the List of municipalities of the Brussels-Capital Region, 19 municipalities of the Brussels, Brussels-Capital Re ...
,
Brussels
Brussels (french: Bruxelles or ; nl, Brussel ), officially the Brussels-Capital Region (All text and all but one graphic show the English name as Brussels-Capital Region.) (french: link=no, Région de Bruxelles-Capitale; nl, link=no, Bruss ...
.
See also
*
Adler (locomotive)
The ''Adler'' (German for "Eagle") was the first locomotive that was successfully used commercially for the rail transport of passengers and goods in Germany. The railway vehicle was designed and built in 1835 by the British railway pioneers Geor ...
References
Further information
*
External links
*
Early steam locomotives
Steam locomotives of Belgium
Cockerill locomotives
Standard gauge locomotives of Belgium
2-2-2 locomotives
{{Belgium-transport-stub