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More than 5000 entries on the history, culture and life of Britain (published in 1993 by Macmillan, now out of print)
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standard gauge
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(4ft 8.5in, now standardized as 1.432m)
The width between the lines in more than half the *railways of the world. It was the gauge which happened to be in use for the early horse-drawn railways of northeast England. Adopted by George *Stephenson for his first steam locomotives, it later spread abroad with the export of British engines. The famous exception in the early days was *Brunel's Great Western railway, which opened in 1841 with a gauge of 7ft/2.134m. This was more expensive in construction but allowed greater stability and higher speeds. The company eventually lost what became known as the 'battle of the gauges'; its lines were converted to standard gauge in 1892.
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