Isambard Kingdom Brunel (1806

Biography

Isambard Kingdom Brunel was an English civil engineer and mechanical engineer who is considered "one of the most ingenious and prolific figures in engineering history", "one of the 19th-century engineering giants", and "one of the greatest figures of the Industrial Revolution, [who] changed the face of the English landscape with his groundbreaking designs and ingenious constructions". Brunel built dockyards, the Great Western Railway (GWR), a series of steamships including the first purpose-built transatlantic steamship, and numerous important bridges and tunnels. His designs revolutionised public transport and modern engineering.

Timeline

The story of Isambard Kingdom Brunel, told in moments.

1833 Life

Appointed chief engineer of the Great Western Railway at 27. He convinces the board to use a wider gauge than any other railway in Britain. It's faster and smoother. It's also incompatible with every other line in the country.

Chief engineer at twenty-seven with a wider gauge than everyone else. Were you stubborn or right? Faster and smoother but incompatible. Did you care about compatibility?

1843 Event

Launches the SS Great Britain, the first ocean-going ship with an iron hull and a screw propeller. Every expert says propellers can't work at that scale. The ship crosses the Atlantic in 14 days. It will sail for 30 years.

Every expert said propellers can't work at that scale. Did doubt ever creep in? The SS Great Britain crossing the Atlantic in 14 days. Was that validation?

1854 Life

Designs a prefabricated hospital for the Crimean War. Florence Nightingale requests it. Brunel designs and builds it in five months. The mortality rate drops from 42% to 2%.

Designing a hospital for Florence Nightingale in five months. Was speed your talent? Mortality dropping from 42% to 2%. Did you know it would work that well?

1859 Death

Dies at 53, ten days after suffering a stroke on the deck of his final ship, the Great Eastern. It's the largest ship ever built. He smoked 40 cigars a day, stood 5 feet 4 inches tall, and wore a stovepipe hat to compensate.

A stroke on the deck of your final ship. Did the Great Eastern kill you? Forty cigars a day and a stovepipe hat. Was style part of the engineering?