But its primary motive was to strengthen the empires control over the most distant provinces of the empire.
When the Arabs, led by the strategic British officer T.E.
For centuries, the old Arab tribes had guided and guarded the pilgrims across the harsh desert.
This gave the Arabs an opportunity to turn their vengeance on the railway.
Lawrence joined in on the attack and destroyed countless bridges.
After the First World War, the railway was abandoned although several attempts were made to revive.
Another set of tracks operate from phosphate mines near Ma’an to the Gulf of Aqaba.
Fascinatingly, the railway uses many of the original carriages and locomotives running on steam and coal.
The oldest locomotive still in service was built in Germany in 1898!
Photo credit:Richard Desomme/Panoramio
Photo credit:Thomas Ritter/Panoramio
Photo credit:project.scta.gov.sa/Panoramio
Abandoned railway station.
Ballasting the Rail Tracks.
Photo credit:Library of Congress
Ottoman military conscripts building the roof of Muazzam station, taken in 1908.
Photo credit:The British Museum
Sources:Wikipedia/The British Museum/nabataea.net/Britannica
