ROGER FENTON (1819-69)
Railway sheds and workshops at Balaklava
15 Mar 1855RCIN 2500463
This photograph clearly shows the scale of activity in Balaklava. There are ships in the harbour, and supplies (probably flour bags) are piled high on the water’s edge. In the foreground in ‘Railway Yard’ the new military railway is being constructed. It was paid for by Samuel Morton Peto (1809–89) who had also provided Fenton’s passage to the Crimea. Construction of the railway began in February 1855 and part of the line was in use within weeks, probably around the same time that Fenton arrived at Balaklava. The railway was dismantled in 1856 after the end of the war.
From the collection of the Prince of Wales, later King Edward VII
From the collection of the Prince of Wales, later King Edward VII