GWR 7800 Class

The Great Western Railway (GWR) 7800 Class or Manor Class is a class of 4-6-0 steam locomotive. They were designed as a lighter version of the Grange Class, giving them a wider Route Availability. Like the 'Granges', the 'Manors' used parts from the GWR 4300 Class Moguls but just on the first batch of twenty. Twenty were built between 1938 and 1939, with British Railways adding a further 10 in 1950. They were named after Manors in the area covered by the Great Western Railway. Nine are preserved.
== Background==
Although successful mixed-traffic designs, neither the Hall nor the Grange 4-6-0 classes were able to cover the full range of duties previously undertaken by the 4300 Class 2-6-0 locomotives due to their ‘red’ weight classification. By the late 1930s a lighter version of the Grange class was urgently required for those cross-country and branch line duties forbidden to heavier locomotives. A new lighter (Swindon No.14) boiler was therefore designed, and as with the Grange Class, the driving wheels and motion components were recovered from withdrawn members of the 4300 Class. The Manor class, with an axle loading of just over 17 tons, could be utilised on many lines from which the heavier Granges were barred.
==Building==
The first of the Manors No.7800 Torquay Manor was built at Swindon Works and entered traffic in January 1938. By February 1939 twenty were in service but the outbreak of World War II forced the cancellation of construction of a further batch of twenty locomotives. However, after nationalization, the newly created Western Region of British Railways was authorized to build ten more of the class. Nos. 7820–29 at Swindon in November and December 1950. A batch of ten other locomotives was planned to be released, but the batch was cancelled due to unknown reasons. The cancelled list of Manor locomotives includes the following: 7830 Norton Manor, 7831 Ogwell Manor, 7832 Pimley Manor, 7833 Ramsbury Manor, 7834 Rodley Manor, 7835 Standen Manor, 7836 Sutton Manor, 7837 Thorton Manor, 7838 Widford Manor, and 7839 Wilcote Manor.
==Performance==
Unlike the Granges of 1936 where the use of a standard design and the re-use of existing components had produced a masterpiece, the initial performance of the Manors was comparatively mediocre. ‘Were it not for the constraints of war there is every reason to expect that Swindon would have recalled the engines for modifications’ There was no attempt to improve the steaming; a British Railway edict permitted construction only of existing pre-nationalisation designs. Subsequent trials showed the engines did not require too much work to correct their faults. Internal alterations to the blastpipe and an increase in air space in the firegrate added to the new type of narrow chimney noticeably improved the draughting. After trials on ten of the class, the improvements became standard after July 1954.
==Operations==
The first examples were despatched to depots at Wolverhampton, Bristol, Gloucester, Shrewsbury, Westbury in Wiltshire and Neyland in South Wales. In October 1938 No. 7805 Broome Manor underwent clearance tests between Ruabon and Barmouth. Subsequently, the class were used over the main lines of the erstwhile Cambrian Railways, with its headquarters and works in Oswestry. The Manors were also successfully employed in the West Country where they were used for banking and piloting trains over the Devon banks between Newton Abbot and Plymouth. Their light axleloading also allowed them across the Tamar Bridge and on to the branch lines of Cornwall.
By 1959 twenty-one Manors were congregated in Mid- and South Wales. Their most prestigious working was the Cambrian Coast Express, where a Manor took over from a King or Castle at Shrewsbury and worked through to Aberystwyth. Others of the class operated in the Birmingham, Gloucester and Hereford areas while the handful stationed at Reading frequently ventured on to the Southern Region line to Guildford and Redhill.
==Withdrawal==
The first Manor to be withdrawn was No. 7809 Childrey Manor, of Shrewsbury depot in April 1963 and which was cut up at Swindon. By May 1965 the numbers had been halved and the final two in service, No. 7808 Cookham Manor of Gloucester, and No. 7829 Ramsbury Manor of Didcot, were condemned in December 1965. Remarkably, for a relatively small class where thirty engines were built, nine examples have been preserved. All of which were withdrawn from British Railways service in 1965.
Table of withdrawals
Year	Quantity inservice atstart of year	Number withdrawn	Quantitywithdrawn	Locomotive numbers
1963	30 	1 	1 	7809.
1964	29 	12 	13 	7800/05–07/10/15–17/23–25.
1965	17 	17 	30 	7801–04/08/11–14/18–22/26–29.
==Preservation==
===Operation in preservation===
Nine members of the Manor class have survived into preservation with four being GWR built engines and five being BR built examples. One member of the class 7808 Cookham Manor was purchased directly from BR service for preservation by the Great Western Society. The remaining eight engines were all rescued from Barry Scrapyard with the first member of the class 7827 Lydham Manor being rescued in Jun 1970 and left as the 5th departure from Barry Scrapyard. The last member of the class to be rescued from Barry Scrapyard being 7828 Odney Manor being rescued in Jun 1981 leaving as the 133rd departure.
All nine members of the Manor class have operated at some point in their preserved career and of the nine Manors to survive in preservation, all four of the GWR built Manors have seen main line operation: Nos. 7802 Bradley Manor, 7808 Cookham Manor, 7812 Erlestoke Manor and 7819 Hinton Manor.
In the 1970s, no. 7808 Cookham Manor was used by the Great Western Society (GWS) to haul nine vintage ex-GWR carriages on an annual outing on the main line from Didcot to Birmingham. Today 7808 is on static display inside the GWS shed at Didcot awaiting an overhaul.
7812 Erlestoke Manor only worked a small number of railtours between April and June 1982. Also certified for main line operation in the 1980s was fellow SVR based engine 7819 Hinton Manor. It worked a number of railtours along former Great Western routes including the Cambrian Coast Line & played a big part in 1985 during the 150th anniversary of the Great Western Railway. 7812 was until New Year's Eve 2017 operational on the SVR but wasn't main line certified and 7819 was until Aug 2018 on static display in Swindon, the engine is now on static display inside The Engine House awaiting an overhaul.
7802 Bradley Manor was the last and most recent member of the class to have operated on the national network, being withdrawn from the mainline in 2007 following the requirement that mainline certified steam engines had to have OTMR fitted by the end of the year. Its last overhaul was completed in November 2015, however it was not certified to operate on the main line.
None of the BR built Manors have operated on the main line in preservation.
===Locomotives===
See: List of GWR 7800 Class locomotives for all Manor locomotives built. Nine locomotives have been preserved:
Number	Name 	Built 	Withdrawn 	Base 	Current Location 	Owner 	Status 	Livery 	Photo 	Notes
7802 	Bradley Manor 	January 1938 	November 1965	Severn Valley Railway 	Tyseley Locomotive Works 	Erlestoke Manor Fund 	Not operational with damaged cylinder, boiler ticket expires: 2025	BR Lined Green, Late Crest 	 	Currently paired with 7812's tender. Moved to Tyseley in July 2019 following broken piston rod suffered while on loan to the WSR
7808 	Cookham Manor 	March 1938 	December 1965	Didcot Railway Centre 	Didcot Railway Centre 	Great Western Society 	Static Display 	GWR Unlined Green, Shirtbutton Logo	Frameless	Final member of class to be withdrawn from service by BR
7812 	Erlestoke Manor	January 1939 	November 1965	Severn Valley Railway 	Severn Valley Railway 	Erlestoke Manor Fund 	Operational, boiler ticket expires: 2032 	BR Lined Green, Late Crest 	 	Operational
7819 	Hinton Manor 	February 1939	November 1965	Severn Valley Railway 	Severn Valley Railway 	Severn Valley Railway Charitable Trust	Static Display 	GWR Unlined Green, Shirtbutton Logo	 	On display in The Engine House awaiting its turn for overhaul
7820 	Dinmore Manor 	November 1950	November 1965	Gloucestershire Warwickshire Railway	Gloucestershire Warwickshire Railway	Dinmore Manor Locomotive Ltd. 	Operational, boiler ticket expires: 2023 	BR Lined Black, Early Emblem 
(Red Nameplates)	 	Ran in unlined black from return to service until 2018 when livery was lined out during winter maintenance
7821 	Ditcheat Manor 	November 1950	November 1965	West Somerset Railway 	Swindon Designer Outlet 	West Somerset Railway Association 	Static Display 	BR Lined Black, Early Emblem 
(Red Nameplates)	Frameless	
7822 	Foxcote Manor 	December 1950	November 1965	Llangollen Railway 	West Somerset Railway 	Foxcote Manor Society 	Operational, boiler ticket expires: 2026 	BR Unlined Black, Early Emblem 
(Red Nameplates)	 	
7827 	Lydham Manor 	December 1950	October 1965 	Dartmouth Steam Railway 	Dartmouth Steam Railway 	Dart Valley Railway plc 	Undergoing Overhaul 	BR Lined Black, Early Emblem 
(Red Nameplates)	Frameless	Boiler ticket expired in 2021 and is currently undergoing overhaul.
7828 	Odney Manor 	December 1950	October 1965 	West Somerset Railway 	West Somerset Railway 	West Somerset Railway 	Operational, boiler ticket expires: 2028 	BR Lined Green, Late Emblem 	 	Returned to service in December 2018 following repairs
==Model railways ==
Mainline Railways had OO gauge Manor Class models in their catalogue in 1983, with a model of Cookham Manor in GWR green and a retooled model of Lydham Manor in BR lined green. Mainline's tooling was later used by Bachmann Branchline, but is not currently in production. Dapol have announced a 78xx for OO gauge, due in 2021. Accurascale later announced their own rendition of the 78xx, in competition with Dapol.
Prior to 2011, Ixion Models created a model of the 78xx in N scale. Dapol purchased the rights to produce the Ixion 78xx in 2011.
==In Films==
* 7802 "Bradley Manor" was used in the 2005 Film "The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe"
== Gallery==
* Gallery
==Videos==
File:The Best of No. 7820 "Dinmore Manor"
==See also==
*List of GWR standard classes with two outside cylinders
== External links==
*GreatWestern.org page
*Dinmore Manor website
*Erlestoke Manor Fund website
Category:GWR 7800 "Manor" Class
Category:Locomotives
Category:Tender locomotives
Category:Steam locomotives
Category:Swindon Works locomotives
Category:Standard gauge locomotives
Category:Standard gauge steam locomotives of Great Britain
Category:Severn Valley Railway
Category:Six-coupled locomotives
Category:United Kingdom
Category:Great Western Railway locomotives
Category:Built in 1938
Category:Built in 1939
Category:British Rail locomotives
Category:Built in 1950
Category:Mixed-traffic locomotives
Category:GWR Standard Class Locomotives