An industrial revolution
Both ancient and medieval cranes were
almost exclusively used for vertical lifting,
and not for any sort of horizontal move-
ment of loads. With the onset of the
Industrial Revolution, the way that cranes
were conceived of, constructed, and
used changed, becoming more similar to
today’s modern cranes.
The introduction of the steam engine
increased the load that cranes were
capable of lifting, with the most famous
example of a steam crane likely being
the Fairbairn steam crane. The only
surviving example of the Fairbairn steam
crane is located in Bristol at the quayside
dismantled and reassembled higher
up during the construction process.
Harbour cranes typically comprised
a pivoting structure with double
treadwheels and were used to load and
unload cargo.
Cranes
at Princes Wharf, and was built in 1878
by Stothert & Pitt based on a design by
William Fairbairn. The crane, built from
riveted wrought-iron plates, was used to
lift heavy loads of up to 35t.
In the mid-19th century, British
industrialist and engineer William
Armstrong designed the first hydraulic
crane, used to load coal onto barges at
the Quayside in Newcastle. Following
the success of this crane, Armstrong
established the Elswick works at
Newcastle in 1847. In 1850, Armstrong
invented a hydraulic accumulator —
raised water towers that allowed water
pressure to be raised to a constant 42 bar
— increasing the crane’s load capacity
and allowing machinery such as hoists,
capstans, turntables, and dock gates to be
used almost anywhere.
In a little over a decade, the company
had grown significantly, with annual
production increasing from 45 cranes
Period technologies were used to make a replica of a medieval
crane at Prague Castle, based on illustrations from the Wenceslas IV
Bible dating from 1390 to 1400.