Britain’s largest steam locomotive has been travelling through Cornwall over the past few days. The 6201 Princess Elizabeth crossed the Royal Albert Bridge into Cornwall on Saturday.
It is the biggest operational steam locomotive in Britain and holds the world record for travelling at more than 70mph for a distance of 400 miles non-stop. The train came through Saltash before moving into Cornwall to St Austell and finally making it’s was to Penzance.
The Princess Elizabeth then hauled the luxury Cathedrals Express back to London Victoria station on the 21st September. The giant 160-ton train is substantially more powerful than its rival, The Flying Scotsman.
It was designed at Derby’s locomotive works in 1933 and built at Crewe, where it was named after the queen, who was then Princess Elizabeth of York. In its working life with British Railways, Princess Elizabeth powered expresses from Euston to the north, often consisting of up to 18 or 20 coaches, weighing well over 500 tons.