The South Eastern Railway (SER) was a railway company in south-eastern England from 1836 until 1922. The company was formed to construct a route from London to Dover. Branch lines were later opened to Tunbridge Wells, Hastings, Canterbury and other places in Kent. The absorbed or leased other railways, some older than itself, including the London and Greenwich Railway and the Canterbury and Whitstable Railway. Most of the company's routes were in Kent, eastern Sussex and the London suburbs, with a long cross-country route from in Surrey to Reading, Berkshire.

Much of the company's early history saw attempts at expansion and feuding with its neighbours; the London Brighton and South Coast Railway (LBSCR) in the west and the London, Chatham and Dover Railway (LCDR) to the north-east. However, in 1899 the agreed with the to share operation of the two railways, work them as a single system (marketed as the South Eastern and Chatham Railway) and pool receipts: but it was not a full amalgamation. The and remained separate companies until becoming constituents of the Southern Railway on 1 January 1923.

Origins of the company

There had been proposals for a railway between London and Dover in 1825, 1832 and 1835, but they came to nothing due to opposition from landowners or the difficulties of bridging the River Medway near its mouth.Sekon (1895), pp.2–3. On 21 June 1836, the Parliament of the United Kingdom passed a local act the (6 & 7 Will. 4. c. lxxv) incorporating the South Eastern and Dover Railway, which shortly afterwards changed to the South Eastern Railway.Bradshaw (1867), p. 305.

Choice of route from London to Dover

At the time of inauguration there were two potential rail pathways south from London, and the Speaker of the House of Commons had said no further pathways would be permitted.Sekon (1895), p. 3. The therefore considered routes to Dover from the proposed London and Southampton Railway line at Wimbledon, or from the existing London and Greenwich Railway (L&GR) at Greenwich. The former left London in the wrong direction and then on a roundabout route. The latter provided a useful way for a northern route via Gravesend, Rochester, and Canterbury, except that lengthening the line beyond Greenwich was blocked by opposition from the Admiralty, and this route would involve tunnelling through the North Downs.

The engineer of the new line, William Cubitt, was also engineer of the London and Croydon Railway (L&CR), which planned to use lines as far as Corbett's Lane in Bermondsey before turning south towards Croydon. A new connection on this line near to Norwood could provide access to a southerly route to Dover via Tonbridge, Ashford and Folkestone. This was less direct than the northerly route but passed through easier country. It involved one significant tunnel through the Shakespeare Cliff near Dover. This was the route first chosen by the at its inauguration.

During parliamentary discussions on the proposed route of the London and Brighton Railway (L&BR) during 1837, pressure was put on the to divert its proposed route so it could also share the mainline between Jolly Sailor (Norwood) and Earlswood Common, and then travel eastwards to Tonbridge. Under the scheme proposed by Parliament, the railway from Croydon to Redhill would be built by the but the would have the right to refund half the construction costs and own that part of the line between Merstham and Redhill. The gave way to this proposal as it reduced the construction costs, although it resulted in a route longer than by road, running south for and then turning east. It also meant that its trains from London Bridge passed over the lines of three other companies: the to Corbett's Lane Junction, the as far as 'Jolly Sailor', and the to Merstham.White (1961), pp.26–7.

Construction of the main line

Construction began in 1838 at several places simultaneously, and the Shakespeare Tunnel was complete by May 1841. The line to Redhill opened on 12 July 1841 and the line from Redhill to Tonbridge on 26 May 1842,Bradley (1963), p. 2. when train services began.White (1961), pp.28. The main line reached Ashford on 1 December 1842; the outskirts of Folkestone by 28 June 1843; and Dover by 7 February 1844.White (1961), p. 30. On the same day the SER offered to lease the for 21 years at £100,000 per year, but the offer was turned down.Turner (1977), p. 185. Later that year, the refunded to the £430,000 and took ownership of the southern half of the Croydon-Redhill line.Turner (1977), p. 171. Trains ran toll-free to both companies on this stretch but still had pay on the from Norwood Junction railway station to Corbett's Lane Junction, and the into London Bridge.

Folkestone and Dover harbours

In 1843, when the railway reached the edge of Folkestone, the company bought the silted and nearly derelict harbour, built by Thomas Telford in 1809, for £18,000.White (1961), p. 55 The dredged the harbour and, after a trial with the paddle steamer Water Witch, which also demonstrated that a day excursion from London to Boulogne was feasible, arranged for a packet company to provide a ferry to Boulogne. The following year it established the independent South Eastern and Continental Steam Packet Company, which it absorbed by the (16 & 17 Vict. c. clvi). James Broadbridge Monger was the master of the Water Witch from 1839 to 1844. From 1844 on, he was master of three vessels which steamed from Dover and Folkestone to Boulogne, Calais and Ostend with passengers and cargo: Lord Warden, Princess Helena and Princess Maude. In December 1848 it opened a steeply graded branch from the Folkestone station to the harbour.Bradley, (1963), p. 2

The opened Dover (later Dover Town) station on 7 February 1844. This was originally a terminus, but in 1860 the line was continued to Admiralty Pier. Thereafter the concentrated most of its resources into developing Folkestone Harbour, which became its principal base for cross-channel ferries.Body (1989), pp.96–7 The company had complete control of Folkestone whereas at Dover it had to negotiate with both the Admiralty and the local town council, and the rail route from Boulogne to Paris was better developed than that from Calais.

In 1848 the served two steam ships a day between Folkestone and Boulogne, one a day between Dover and Calais, and one between Dover and Ostend.Topham's railway time-table and guide (1848), p. 7.

Bricklayers Arms terminus

During 1843, before the main line was complete, the and the became anxious about the charges imposed by the for the use of the terminus at London Bridge and its approaches. Parliament had relaxed restrictions on new railways into London and so sought authority to construct a branch from Corbett's Lane to a new temporary passenger terminus and goods station at Bricklayers Arms railway station, for use by both railways, removing the need to use the Greenwich Railway.Turner (1977) pp. 192–204. This opened 1 May 1844. According to Charles Vignoles, 'the making of Bricklayers Arms station was a matter of compulsion in driving the Greenwich people to reasonable terms'.Dendy Marshall (1963) p. 32. Plans to extend from Bricklayers Arms to a new terminus at Hungerford Bridge, nearer the centre of London, were rejected by Parliament.Board of Trade (1845). Similarly, a revised proposal to extend the line to Waterloo Road in 1846 was rejected by a committee of Parliament.South Eastern Railway (1847).

The was nearly bankrupt in 1844 and the leased its line from 1 January 1845. It became the Greenwich branch of that railway.Turner (1977), pp.201–3 Thereafter further developments were at London Bridge, and following a shunting accident during August 1850 which caused the collapse of a large part of the station roof,Bell's Life in London and Sporting Chronicle (25 August 1850) the closed Bricklayers Arms terminus to passenger traffic in 1852 converting it into a goods facility.

Secondary main lines and branch lines Over the next two decades the system spread throughout Kent and Surrey, building lines to connect towns to its main line or acquiring those already in existence.

Canterbury and Whitstable Railway

In 1844 the took over the bankrupt Canterbury and Whitstable Railway, which had opened in 1830. This continued to be worked as an isolated line until the reached Canterbury from Ashford in 1846, with its line to Ramsgate.White (1961), pp.16–8.

Medway Valley Line

The first branch built by the was the Medway Valley Line on 24 September 1844, from Paddock Wood to Maidstone. This was continued to Strood railway station on 18 June 1856.Bradley (1963) p.2.

Greenwich Line

Leasing the London and Greenwich Railway from 1 January 1845 gave the company control of its main line into London and provided a branch line to Greenwich. Further eastward extension was initially not possible due to opposition from the Greenwich Hospital, but it was eventually opened in 1878 when the line joined the North Kent Line at Charlton.

Tunbridge Wells and Hastings Line

A secondary main line from Tonbridge to the outskirts of Tunbridge Wells opened 20 September 1845. It was extended to Tunbridge Wells Central on 25 November 1846.Bradley (1963) p.2 By 1 September 1851 the line had reached Robertsbridge and was extended to Battle, Bopeep Junction and on 1 February 1852. By this time Hastings had already been reached by the in a roundabout route from Ashford, which opened 13 February 1851.Bradley (1963) pp.2–3. From this line was a short branch to Rye Harbour.

Ramsgate, Margate and Deal Lines

During 1846 the opened another secondary main line from Ashford to Ramsgate with a branch from there to Margate on 1 December 1846. A further branch from this line from Minster to Deal was opened 7 July 1847.

Gravesend and Strood Lines (North Kent)

As the was prevented from extending its Greenwich line, it opened a secondary main line from Lewisham to Gravesend and then to Strood on the banks of the Medway on 30 July 1849. The second half between Gravesend and Strood had been built as the Gravesend and Rochester Canal and a single track railway had been added to form the Gravesend and Rochester Railway. The offered to buy the canal and railway in 1845, filled in the canal through the Higham to Strood tunnel and doubled the track.Bradley (1963), p. 37. The first section (built by the ) connected Woolwich and Dartford to the railway network.

In 1852 a freight branch was constructed from this line at Charlton to the Thames at Angerstein's Wharf, used for landing coal.Bradshaw (1867), p. 306. A line opened on 18 June 1856 up the Medway valley to Maidstone West.

Early management of the company 1843–1855 In September 1845 the appointed James Macgregor (sometimes spelled McGregor or M'Gregor) to a new post combining the roles of Chairman and Managing Director. He exercised absolute power over the company for the next nine years, until he was ultimately forced to resign in 1854 and leave the Board in 1855.Gray (1990), p. 21. Macgregor's lack of accountability, his opaque and at times dubious working methods led to a number of strategic errors in the building of new lines and in the company's relations with its neighbours, which would have an adverse impact on the company for decades to come.Greaves (2008), pp.103–4.

Reading, Guildford and Reigate Railway