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On the morning of 22 May 1915, close to Carlisle at Quintinshill Junction, five trains were involved in what is thought to be the worst accident in British railway history.

A total of 230 were killed and 246 injured with the death toll made far worse by the terrible fire that engulfed the wreckage after the collision.

The railways were working at full capacity because of the war effort, and coupled with a late running express train the scene at Quintinshill was set for the disaster.

Due to the negligence of the signalmen, James Tinsley and George Meakin, first one train crashed into a stationary train and then a second train crashed into the derailed coaches of the first accident.

This was because they had shunted a local passenger train onto the other mainline to allow the late express through but had forgotten to stop the troop train that was heading for the local train on the same track.

It was the soldiers of the Royal Scots who paid for the signalman's oversight with their lives – 215 men died and over 191 were seriously injured. The horrendous burns were caused by obsolete wooden coaches lit by gas canisters catching fire and these had been pressed into service to transport them to Liverpool to embark for Gallipoli.

At the subsequent trial Tinsley and Meakin were found guilty of causing the accident and received jail sentences for manslaughter. The carnage would have been far worse if it hadn't been for the valiant effort of the emergency services in Carlisle who played a central role in the rescue.

Questions have been raised recently about the culpability of Tinsley and Meakin. A recent book by Adrian Searle and Jack Richards has presented evidence that a wider cover-up involving the railway companies and government buried the truth of the accident.

Location: Quintinshill, Dumfries DG16 5EA
Image: Onlookers see the remains of the train crash, courtesy of Ashley Kendal

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