Sapperton Canal Tunnel
Dec2004.jpg)
The Sapperton Canal Tunnel is a tunnel structure on the Thames-Severn Canal , which crosses the Cotswold Hills. It is located near Tarlton and Cirencester in Gloucestershire , and was when it opened in 1789, not only the longest tunnel of a Narrowboat - channel , but the longest tunnel in England at all.
history
The construction of the 3490 meter long canal tunnel took five years. The tunnel leads partly through solid limestone rock and in large areas through loamy material, which made it necessary to build a wall. The tunnel portals are made of masonry and have elaborate architectural forms. There was no towpath in the tunnel. In the novel " Hornblower Becomes Commander" by CS Forester , a trip on a grained mailboat across the canal towards the Thames and through the tunnel is vividly described. It also describes how to move the boat through the unpathless canal. This technique is called legging . Two people lie on a crossbeam at the front of the ship and drive the ship through the tunnel by "running" on the tunnel wall.
It was not until 1811 that the Sappertontunnel was replaced as the longest canal tunnel in England by the Standedge Canal Tunnel , the key point of the Huddersfield Narrow Canal .
Since the abandonment of the Thames-Severn Canal, which had always suffered from difficult water conditions, especially from severe water loss, the building fell into disrepair around 1927. After initial repair work around 1960, boat trips for tourists were also offered through the Sappertontunnel, up to this in the area where it leads through layers of clay, finally partially collapsing.
location
| Location: |
Tarlton , Gloucestershire, South West England, England, UK
Cirencester , Gloucestershire, South West England, England, UK |
|---|---|
| Coordinates: | 51 ° 42 '14.02 "N 2 ° 3' 0.54" W. |
Individual evidence
- ^ Sapperton Canal Tunnel; History; The tunnel in fiction; Coordinates. (No longer available online.) In: Leistungsentag.com. Archived from the original on November 4, 2016 ; Retrieved November 3, 2016 . Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice.
- ^ Sapperton Canal Tunnel (Tarlton / Cirencester, 1789) | Structurae. In: Structurae. Retrieved November 3, 2016 .
