Prussian G 12

Prussian G 12
Company type	Locomotive
Industry	Railway locomotives
Founded	1917
Headquarters	Germany
Products	Goods locomotive

Adapted from the English Wikipedia article Prussian G 12, available under CC BY-SA 4.0Updated 29 November 2025

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The Prussian G 12 is a goods locomotive with a 1'E 2-10-0 wheel arrangement, originally constructed for the Prussian state railways (Preußische Staatseisenbahnen).

During the First World War, it became evident that having unique locomotive classes for each state railway, without any standardization, posed significant challenges in terms of maintenance and servicing. Often, even spare parts intended for locomotives of the same class were incompatible with their counterparts. Additionally, military rail operations required a fast and robust freight locomotive that maintained a relatively low axle load.

Einheitslokomotive G 12

Locomotive manufacturers advertised the G 12 as an Einheitslokomotive or standard locomotive, which led to considerable misunderstanding since the term had become closely associated with the Einheitslokomotive 1925, designed by DRG engineer Richard Paul Wagner, known as „Kunibald“ Wagner. The Deutsche Bundesbahn (DB) also applied the designation Einheitslokomotive 1950 to its steam engines based on DV 939a standards from 1953 covering "steam locomotives and tenders (standard gauge)." Furthermore, DB's alternating current electric locomotives such as E10, E40, E41, and E50 were classified as Einheits(elektro)lokomotiven.

The concept of locomotive standardization originated in Prussia during the nineteenth century through established 'norms' (Normalien). Designs by Robert Garbe incorporated numerous interchangeable components; examples include the P8 and G10 sharing a common boiler design and the T18 utilizing a similar boiler except for the Smokebox. The Prussian G 8.3 represented a shortened variant of the G 12, while the Prussian G 8.2 omitted the inner cylinder.

The G 12 holds distinction as the first locomotive model widely adopted across several German state railways and thus legitimately bears the title Einheitslokomotive. This tradition was sustained by Wagner following Garbe’s legacy and subsequently passed on to Friedrich Witte of the DB and Max Baumberg of the Deutsche Reichsbahn (DR). Nevertheless, it remains a separate design from the DRG's Einheitslokomotive 1925.

In the decade of the 1920s, well-established locomotive types like the Bavarian S 3/6, Saxon XX HV, Prussian P 8, along with models such as G8² and G12 continued to be seriously evaluated. Wagner ultimately insisted that none of these existing designs provided the essential standardization of components required for cost-effective operations. Notably, neither the G12 nor G8² served as prototypes or initial models for the Einheitslokomotive 1925. Instead, that class represented a comprehensive redesign—a development exhaustively chronicled by Alfred Gottwaldt in his work on German standard locomotives.

Design

The G 12 locomotive drew its design inspiration from the Prussian G 12.1 and a 2-10-0 engine constructed by Henschel for the Chemins de fer Ottomans d'Anatolie (CFOA) of the Ottoman Empire (refer to Prussian G 12 (CFOA type) for details).

Following the retirement of Robert Garbe, these locomotives diverged from earlier Prussian design traditions in several respects. Notably, they featured a continuous bar frame and a broad, external Belpaire firebox, positioned above the frame with an expansive grate area. These design concepts were subsequently incorporated into later models such as the Prussian T 20 and Prussian P 10.

Construction

From August 1917 until 1921, Prussia acquired a total of 1,168 G 12 locomotives. Additional orders included 118 units by the Imperial Railways in Alsace-Lorraine, 88 by the Grand Duchy of Baden State Railway, and 42 each by the Royal Saxon State Railways and the Royal Württemberg State Railways. Furthermore, Baden purchased 10 locomotives originally from the Prussian state railways. The Deutsche Reichsbahn also received a batch of 20 locomotives in 1924, which followed the Saxon XIII H series and were numbered 58 443–462.

The Saxon fleet retained the Class XIII H designation consistent with their predecessors, while Baden and Württemberg adopted the Prussian G 12 classification. The only exceptions to purchasing G 12s were the Bavarian State Railways, along with the railways of Mecklenburg and Oldenburg. Consequently, the G 12 is regarded as a forerunner to Germany’s standardized Einheitslok locomotives.

Deutsche Reichsbahn

Most units of this locomotive class were incorporated into the fleet of the Deutsche Reichsbahn, where they were assigned these operating number ranges:

Baden G 12: 58 201–225, 231–272, 281–303, 311–318
Saxon XIII H: 58 401–462
Württemberg G 12: 58 501–543
Prussian G 12: 58 1002–2148

It should be noted that number 58 1001 was not a G 12 but rather a CFOA engine that remained within Germany.

Coal dust firing

Around the year 1930, six locomotives underwent conversion to utilize coal dust firing. Following World War II, additional engines received similar modifications, with a total of 43 remaining operational well into the late 1960s (until approximately 1968).

World War II and beyond

During World War II, locomotives numbered 58 2144 from Poland and numbers 58 2145 through 2148 from Luxembourg were absorbed into service.

The Deutsche Bundesbahn phased out their remaining units by 1953. Meanwhile, the East German Deutsche Reichsbahn still operated around 300 machines as late as 1968. With the introduction of computerized numbering systems (EDP numbers) in 1970, most three-digit running numbers received a prefixed '1'. The final retirements occurred by 1976. Between 1958 and 1962, the East German Deutsche Reichsbahn rebuilt fifty-six locomotives into Rekolok variants classified as Class 58.30.

Postwar Austria retained several engines—numbers 58 1669, 1746, 1767, 1904, 1917, 2122, and 2132—within its borders. Of these, number 58 1669 was returned to the DB in 1949; number 58 1904 was withdrawn in 1951; and number 58 1917 was transferred to the Soviet Union in that same year. The remaining four locomotives formed part of Austria’s ÖBB Class 658 roster. All had been retired by around 1966; however, at least two units (658.1746 and 658.2122) continued serving as stationary heating engines at Linz depot. Unit number 658.1746 was observed discarded under number 01033 in August 1972 alongside unit 658.2122 labeled as 01042, which remained extant until at least February 1976.

Locomotives left in Poland after the war were designated as class Ty1 by the Polish State Railways. Those transferred to Yugoslavia were classified under class 36.

Tenders

The G 12 locomotives were predominantly paired with Prussian class 3 T 20 or 2'2' T 31.5 tender types. Conversely, the Saxon XIII H typically operated alongside the slightly larger Saxon class 3 T 21 tenders, which increased the total length of the train. Following the conversion to coal dust firing, which reduced water tank capacity, postwar usage was limited to either the sizable Prussian 2'2' T 31.5 tenders or standard tender models.

Preservation

As of July 2016, several historic locomotives remain preserved: two older Baden models, numbers 58 261 (housed at Bw Chemnitz-Hilbersdorf) and 58 311 (located in Ettlingen); a Prussian original, number 58 1616, formerly utilized as a steam generator (Dampfspender) at Bw Hermeskeil; and a unit acquired by Yugoslavia after World War II, numbered 36-013 and distinguished by the removal of its rear steam dome (exhibited at Železniški Muzej Ljubljana).Template:Fix/category^{[citation needed]}

References

Frister, Thomas; Wenzel, Hansjürgen (2010). Lokporträt Preußische G 12, Die Baureihen 58.2-3, 58.4, 58.5 und 58.10-21 (Eisenbahn-Bildarchiv Nr. 44) (in German). Freiburg: EK-Verlag. ISBN 978-3-88255-384-0.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: unrecognized language (link)
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