# British military narrow-gauge railways

These are narrow-gauge railways at military establishments and former UK Government-owned explosives sites. These locations were often subject to the Official Secrets Act and other government restrictions, so many of them are less well documented.
The industrial use of narrow-gauge railways was quite extensive amongst the various military and civilian explosive factories, for example ICI Nobel's works at Ardeer and the Agency Explosive Factories run by ICI Nobel in the Second World War. In another example, the Ministry of Supply (MOS) Factory Dalbeattie used 2 ft 6 in (762 mm) gauge with a variety of bogie trucks mostly pushed by teams of three to six women. Stores, explosives, chemicals, rubbish and sewage, were all transported on this narrow-gauge system, which used at least 8 miles (13 km) of track.

## Weapons range railways

* Lydd ranges
* Redesdale ranges
* Bisley Tramway bridge
* Rowtor Target Railway
| Name | Opened | Closed | Gauge | Location | Notes |
| DOE Okehampton Gun Ranges | ? | after 1979 | 2 ft 6 in (762 mm) | Okehampton, England | Target railway |
| DOE Redesdale Ranges target railway | ? | ? | 2 ft 6 in (762 mm) | Redesdale, England | Target railway |
| Fort George Range | ? | ? | 2 ft (610 mm) | Inverness, Scotland | Target railway |
| Lydd Ranges | 1936 | Present | 2 ft (610 mm) | Lydd, England | Principally a target railway, though also carries personnel and equipment around the ranges. At least 39 locomotives and powered trollies have worked here. |
| National Rifle Association Bisley Tramways | 1898 | after 1971 | 2 ft (610 mm) | Bisley, England | The NRA originally had a temporary shooting range and railway on Wimbledon Common but in 1888 moved to Bisley. Initially using a Merryweather steam tram locomotive, later using diesel locomotives. |
| RAF Hell's Mouth target railway | late 1930s | 1945 | ? | Abersoch, Wales | A target range railway operated by hand or rope-hauled in the dunes southeast of the airfield. |
| Romney Marsh weapons range railway | before 1975 | present ? | 2 ft (610 mm) | New Romney, England | Locomotive-worked network of lines across Romney Marsh |
| Rowtor Target Railway | 1958 | ? | 2 ft (610 mm) | Okehampton, England | Disused target railway with an unmanned Wickham trolley |

## Armaments depots and ordnance factories

* Chilmark depot railway
* RAF Fauld
* Royal Arsenal Railway
* RNAD Broughton Moor
* ROF Bishopton
* Trecwn Railway
* RNAD Dean Hill
* Imphal Barracks in York
| Name | Opened | Closed | Gauge | Location | Notes |
| CAD Eastriggs Depot railway | ? | closed 2012 | 2 ft (610 mm) | Eastriggs, Scotland | Extensive WW II armaments depot line using parts of the site of the former HM Factory, Gretna. A sub-depot of CAD Longtown. |
| Priddy's Hard | about 1850 | about 1960 | 18 in (457 mm) and also later 2 ft 6 in (762 mm) | Gosport, England | Ammunition transport railway, within the Royal Naval Armaments Depot, between store houses and piers. Eight battery-electric locomotives were used after 1929. |
| Chatham Dockyard | 1860s | 1930s | 18 in (457 mm) | Chatham, England | Internal rail system serving the dockyard. |
| Chattenden and Upnor Railway | 1885 | 1961 | 2 ft 6 in (762 mm) | Chattenden, England | Light railway serving Chattenden barracks and armament stores |
| Davington Light Railway | 1916 | 1918 | 1,000 mm (3 ft 3+3⁄8 in) | Faversham, England | Short-lived metre-gauge line serving an Admiralty munitions factory. The three locomotives were sold to Brazil where at least one survived until 1988. |
| HM Factory, Gretna | 1916 | 1919 | 2 ft (610 mm) | Gretna, Scotland | Extensive WW I Cordite factory line |
| Lodge Hill and Upnor Railway | 1873 | 1885 | 18 in (457 mm) | Chattenden, England | Served the construction of the Chattenden and Upnor Railway. |
| Royal Air Force Chilmark Depot railway | late 1930s | 1995 | 2 ft (610 mm) | Chilmark, Wiltshire, England | Extensive WW II armaments depot lines using underground Chilmark Quarries and above-ground storage at satellite site at Dinton, Wiltshire. |
| RAF Fauld Depot railway | | by 1979 | 2 ft (610 mm) | Fauld, England | Underground ammunition store during WWII with supply railway. |
| Royal Arsenal Railway | 1873 | 1966 | 18 in (457 mm) and 1 ft 11+1⁄2 in (597 mm) | Woolwich, England | Extensive internal rail system serving the Royal Arsenal. |
| RCAF Seaford Head target railway | after 1939 | by 1945 | 2 ft (610 mm) | Seaford Head, Wales | Horse drawn target range railway about 1 mile long. |
| RNAD Broughton Moor railway | before 1943 | 1992 | 2 ft 6 in (762 mm) | Broughton Moor, England | Locomotive-worked line hauling ammunition around the depot. |
| RNAD Dean Hill Depot railway | before 1942 | 2003 | 2 ft 6 in (762 mm) | West Dean, England | Locomotive-worked line hauling ammunition around the depot. |
| RNAD Trecwn | 1938 | 1990 | 2 ft 6 in (762 mm) | Near Fishguard, West Wales | Locomotive-worked line hauling ammunition around the depot. Infrastructure built of copper to reduce sparks |
| ROF Bishopton | 1940 | 1950s - 2000 | 2 ft 6 in (762 mm) | Bishopton, Scotland | Approx 80 miles of internal rail system serving the World War II Cordite factories. |
| Royal Navy Holton Heath Cordite Factory | 1914 | 1946 | 2 ft 6 in (762 mm) | Holton Heath, England | Extensive explosives factory complex using battery electric and fireless steam locomotives |
| Royal Navy Stokes Bay railway | 1880s | 1919 | | Stokes Bay, England | Steam locomotive worked line. |
| Royal Navy Underwater Weapons Establishment | | after 1979 | 2 ft (610 mm) | Weymouth, England | Battery-electric locomotive worked line. |
| Vickers Engineering Wyke Regis Pier railway | before 1921 | 1968 | 2 ft (610 mm) | Wyke Regis, England | Pier railway used to transport torpedoes from the factory to ships. |

## National Filling Factories (WW1)

These factories were created during WW1 to unite the explosives, detonator, etc and the shell casings to make live munitions. This activity had the highest explosion risk, so precautions were very strict. They all followed a similar pattern in having standard gauge rail sidings separate from the filling area. These were used for delivery of the raw materials and for shipping out the products. The interior 'clean area' for filling comprised many small lightweight huts over a large area linked by raised walkways upon which lightweight 2 ft (610 mm) gauge rail was laid. Trolleys with bronze wheels were normally moved by hand between these buildings, though ponies or horses were sometimes used.
Production ceased at the factories at the end of the war, though some of them were used for dismantling ammunition into the early 1920s. Some clues as to the railways on these sites come from the auctions as the sites were cleared, examples are :
   * No 7 National Filling Factory in Hayes, Middlesex auction included 5,000 yards (4,600 m) of light Decauville track.
   * No 10 National Filling Factory in Foleshill, Coventry auction listed 20 long tons (22.4 short tons; 20.3 t) Decauville track (16lbs), 50 light and heavy turntables on ball and roller bearings.
Explosives stores (magazines) were in some cases remote from the clean area, and towards the end of the war there were a few orders for internal combustion locos to move materials. No 7 Filling Factory at Hayes had an entirely separate explosives magazine at Northolt, where a main line siding was linked to the 20 separate storage bunkers by light rail. 100 tons of explosives were moved each day by rail to the Hayes plant for processing. Records exist of two Baguley 2 foot gauge internal combustion locos ordered in 1917 by No 7 National Filling Factory for Northolt. Seven similar locos were ordered in 1917 for No 2 National Filling Factory at Aintree, so this must also have had light rail outside the main assembly area, such as for storage of shell cases (as this factory was designed to handle ship loads of munitions components received from overseas at Liverpool Docks).

## Supply depots

| Name | Opened | Closed | Gauge | Location | Notes |
| Deptford Special Reserve Depot | 1916 | 1919 | 18 in (457 mm) | Deptford, England | Extensive WW I food supply depot line. At least four steam locomotives worked here, two or three of which went to the Sand Hutton Light Railway after the war. |

## Fortifications

| Name | Opened | Closed | Gauge | Location | Notes |
| Braefoot Bay | | | 10 in (254 mm) ? | Aberdour, Scotland | Fortification supply railway |
| Flat Holm Battery | | | 2 ft (610 mm) | Bristol Channel, Wales | Fortification supply railway |
| Hoo Ness Tramway | before 1914 | after 1979 | 2 ft (610 mm) | Hoo Ness, England | Locomotive-worked tramway. May have been 2 ft 6 in (762 mm) gauge previously |
| Hurst Castle | 1895 | 1956 | 18 in (457 mm) | Hurst Castle, England | Line for moving ammunition and supplies around the castle. Used hand and donkey hauled wagons. Much track still in situ. |
| South Heighton railway | 1941 | 1941 | 2 ft 6 in (762 mm) | Newhaven, England | Hand-worked line to aid construction of HMS Forward underground command centre. |
| Steep Holm railway | 1880s | 1946 | 2 ft (610 mm)? | Steep Holm, North Somerset, England | Fortification supply railway. Palmerston forts, shown on 1886 Ordnance Survey maps. Relaid in World War II. Finally Demolished 1946. |

## Training camps

| Name | Opened | Closed | Gauge | Location | Notes |
| Aldershot Narrow Gauge Suspension Railway | 1872 | Unknown | 18 in (457 mm) | Aldershot Garrison | Experimental monorail |
| Kinmel Camp Railway | 1914 | 1917 | 2 ft (610 mm) | St. Asaph, Wales | Locomotive-worked construction railway for the Kinmel Camp |
| Longmoor Military Railway | 1903 | 1907 | 18 in (457 mm); 2 ft 6 in (762 mm) | Weaversdown, England | Early 18 in (457 mm) gauge construction line used to assist in the demolition of army huts. Relaid as standard gauge starting in 1905-1907. 2 ft 6 in (762 mm) gauge line at the extensive railway training centre at Longmoor. |
| Strensall Ranges, HQ Strensall Training Centre, | 1870 | Present | 3 ft 3 1/2” | Strensall, York, England | Specifically built to carry targetry to the ranges, originally 6 in number, F Range was converted to a SARTS Range and the rails were removed. Still continues to be used for its original purpose, Range trolleys are named after characters from “Thomas the Tank engine”. The system has a “siding” behind each front mantlet allowing trolleys to clear the main line. 1,165 yds long. |
| RAF Calshot Camp railway | 1919 | 1946 | 2 ft (610 mm) | Calshot, England | Short line serving Calshot camp and pier. Steam locomotives were used, one of which is preserved on the Talyllyn Railway as Douglas. |

## Others

| Name | Opened | Closed | Gauge | Location | Notes |
| Royal Navy Haslar Hospital | by 1910 | 1918 | 18 in (457 mm) | Haslar, England | Hand worked line to move ammunitions and stores around the hospital site. |