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Duke of Aquitaine

The Duke of Aquitaine (Duc d'Aquitània, Duc d'Aquitaine, ) was the ruler of the medieval region of Aquitaine (not to be confused with modern-day Aquitaine) under the supremacy of Frankish, English, and later French kings.

As successor states of the Visigothic Kingdom (418–721), Aquitania (Aquitaine) and Languedoc (Toulouse) inherited both Visigothic law and Roman Law, which together allowed women more rights than their contemporaries would enjoy until the 20th century. Particularly under the Liber Judiciorum as codified in 642/643 and expanded by the Code of Recceswinth in 653, women could inherit land and titles and manage their holdings independently from their husbands or male relations, dispose of their property in legal wills if they had no heirs, represent themselves and bear witness in court from the age of 14, and arrange for their own marriages after the age of 20. As a consequence, male-preference primogeniture was the practiced succession law for the nobility.

Coronation
The Merovingian kings and dukes of Aquitaine used Toulouse as their capital. The Carolingian kings used different capitals situated farther north. In 765, Pepin the Short bestowed the captured golden banner of the Aquitainian duke, Waiffre, on the Abbey of Saint Martial in Limoges. Pepin I of Aquitaine was buried in Poitiers. Charles the Child was crowned at Limoges and buried at Bourges. When Aquitaine briefly asserted its independence after the death of Charles the Fat, it was Ranulf II of Poitou who took the royal title. In the late tenth century, Louis the Indolent was crowned at Brioude.

The Aquitainian ducal coronation procedure is preserved in a late twelfth-century ordo (formula) from Saint-Étienne in Limoges, based on an earlier Romano-German ordo. In the early thirteenth century a commentary was added to this ordo, which emphasised Limoges as the capital of Aquitaine. The ordo indicated that the duke received a silk mantle, coronet, banner, sword, spurs, and the ring of Saint Valerie.

Visigothic dukes

 * Suatrius (flor. 493), captured by Clovis I during the First Franco-Visigothic War

Dukes of Aquitaine under Frankish kings
Merovingian kings are in boldface.

 * Chram (555–560)
 * Desiderius (583–587, jointly with Bladast)
 * Bladast (583–587, jointly with Desiderius)
 * Gundoald (584/585)
 * Austrovald (587–589)
 * Sereus (589–592)
 * Chlothar II (592–629)
 * Charibert II (629–632)
 * Chilperic (632)
 * Boggis (632–660)
 * Felix (660–670)
 * Lupus I (670–676)
 * Odo the Great (688–735), his reign commenced perhaps as late as 692, 700, or 715, unclear parentage
 * Hunald I (735–745), son of Odo the Great, abdicated to a monastery
 * Waifer (745–768), son of Hunald I
 * Hunald II (768–769), probably son of Waifer
 * Lupo II (768–781), Duke of Gascony, opposed Charlemagne's rule and Hunald's relatives.

Restored dukes of Aquitaine under Frankish kings
The Carolingian kings again appointed Dukes of Aquitaine, first in 852, and again since 866. Later, this duchy was also called Guyenne.

House of Poitiers (Ramnulfids)

 * Ranulph I (852–866), Count of Poitiers from 835, Duke of Aquitaine from 852.
 * Ranulph II (887–890), son of Ranulf I, also Count of Poitiers, called himself King of Aquitaine from 888 until his death.

House of Auvergne

 * William I the Pious (893–918), also Count of Auvergne
 * William II the Younger (918–926), nephew of William I, also Count of Auvergne.
 * Acfred (926–927), brother of William II, also Count of Auvergne.

House of Poitiers (Ramnulfids) restored (927–932)

 * Ebalus the Bastard (also called Manzer) (927–932)), illegitimate son of Ranulph II and distant cousin of Acfred, also Count of Poitiers and Auvergne.

House of Rouergue

 * Raymond I Pons (932–936)
 * Raymond II (936–955)

House of Capet

 * Hugh the Great (955–962)

House of Poitiers (Ramnulfids) restored (962–1152)

 * William III Towhead (962–963), son of Ebalus, also Count of Poitiers and Auvergne.
 * William IV Iron Arm (963–995), son of William III, also Count of Poitiers.
 * William V the Great (995–1030), son of William IV, also Count of Poitiers.
 * William VI the Fat (1030–1038), first son of William V, also Count of Poitiers.
 * Odo (1038–1039), second son of William V, also Count of Poitiers and Duke of Gascony.
 * William VII the Eagle (1039–1058), third son of William V, also Count of Poitiers.
 * William VIII (1058–1086), fourth son of William V, also Count of Poitiers and Duke of Gascony.
 * William IX the Troubadour (or the Younger) (1086–1127), son of William VIII, also Count of Poitiers and Duke of Gascony.
 * William X the Saint (1127–1137), son of William IX, also Count of Poitiers and Duke of Gascony.
 * Eleanor of Aquitaine (1137–1204), daughter of William X, also Countess of Poitiers and Duchess of Gascony, married the kings of France and England in succession.
 * Louis the Younger (1137–1152), also King of France, duke in right of his wife.

From 1152, the Duchy of Aquitaine was held by the Plantagenets, who also ruled England as independent monarchs and held other territories in France by separate inheritance (see Plantagenet Empire). The Plantagenets were often more powerful than the kings of France, and their reluctance to do homage to the kings of France for their lands in France was one of the major sources of conflict in medieval Western Europe.

House of Plantagenet

 * Henry I (Henry II of England) (1152–1189), also King of England, duke in right of his wife Eleanor.
 * Richard I Lionheart (1189–1199), also King of England, duke in right of his mother.
 * John I (1199–1216), also King of England, duke in right of his mother until her death in 1204.
 * Henry II (Henry III of England) (1216–1272), also King of England.
 * Edward I Longshanks (1272–1307), also King of England.
 * Edward II (1307–1325), also King of England.
 * Edward III (1325–1362), also King of England

Richard the Lionheart was outlived by his mother Eleanor of Aquitaine. In 1189, she acted as regent for the Duchy while he was on crusade — a position he resumed on his return to Europe.

Plantagenet rulers of Aquitaine
In 1337, King Philip VI of France reclaimed the fief of Aquitaine from Edward III, King of England. Edward in turn claimed the title of King of France, by right of his descent from his maternal grandfather King Philip IV of France. This triggered the Hundred Years' War, in which both the Plantagenets and the House of Valois claimed supremacy over Aquitaine.

In 1360, both sides signed the Treaty of Brétigny, in which Edward renounced the French crown but remained sovereign Lord of Aquitaine (rather than merely duke). However, when the treaty was broken in 1369, both these English claims and the war resumed.

In 1362, King Edward III, as Lord of Aquitaine, made his eldest son Edward, Prince of Wales, Prince of Aquitaine.

 * Edward the Black Prince (1362–1372), first son of Edward III and Queen Philippa, also Prince of Wales.

In 1390, King Richard II, son of Edward the Black Prince, appointed his uncle John of Gaunt Duke of Aquitaine. This grant expired upon the Duke's death, and the dukedom reverted to the Crown. Regardless, due to Henry IV's seizure of the crown, he still came into possession of the dukedom.

 * John of Gaunt (1390–1399), fourth son of Edward III and Queen Philippa, also Duke of Lancaster.
 * Henry IV of England (1399–1400), seized the throne of England, to whose demesne the duchy had reverted upon the death of his father John of Gaunt, but ceded it to his son upon becoming King of England.
 * Henry V of England (1400–1422), son of Henry IV, also King of England 1413–1422.

Henry V continued to rule over Aquitaine as King of England and Lord of Aquitaine. He invaded France and emerged victorious at the siege of Harfleur and the Battle of Agincourt in 1415. He succeeded in obtaining the French crown for his family by the Treaty of Troyes in 1420. Henry V died in 1422, when his son Henry VI inherited the French throne at the age of less than a year; his reign saw the gradual loss of English control of France.

Valois and Bourbon dukes of Aquitaine
The Valois kings of France, claiming supremacy over Aquitaine, granted the title of duke to their heirs, the Dauphins.

 * John II (1345–1350), son of Philip VI of France, acceded in 1350 as King of France.
 * Charles, Dauphin of France, Duke of Guyenne (1392?–1401), son of Charles VI of France, Dauphin.
 * Louis (1401–1415), son of Charles VI of France, Dauphin.

With the end of the Hundred Years' War, Aquitaine returned under direct rule of the king of France and remained in the possession of the king. Only occasionally was the duchy or the title of duke granted to another member of the dynasty.

 * Charles, Duc de Berry (1469–1472), son of Charles VII of France.
 * Xavier (1753–1754), second son of Louis, Dauphin of France.

The Infante Jaime, Duke of Segovia, son of Alfonso XIII of Spain, was one of the Legitimist pretenders to the French throne; as such he named his son, Gonzalo, Duke of Aquitaine (1972–2000); Gonzalo had no legitimate children.

title: Duke of Aquitaine


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Overhead line

An overhead line or overhead wire is an electrical cable that is used to transmit electrical energy to electric locomotives, electric multiple units, trolleybuses or trams. The generic term used by the International Union of Railways for the technology is overhead line. It is known variously as overhead catenary, overhead contact line (OCL), overhead contact system (OCS), overhead equipment (OHE), overhead line equipment (OLE or OHLE), overhead lines (OHL), overhead wiring (OHW), traction wire, and trolley wire.

An overhead line consists of one or more wires (or rails, particularly in tunnels) situated over rail tracks, raised to a high electrical potential by connection to feeder stations at regular intervals. The feeder stations are usually fed from a high-voltage electrical grid.

Overview
Electric trains that collect their current from overhead lines use a device such as a pantograph, bow collector or trolley pole. It presses against the underside of the lowest overhead wire, the contact wire. Current collectors are electrically conductive and allow current to flow through to the train or tram and back to the feeder station through the steel wheels on one or both running rails. Non-electric locomotives (such as diesels) may pass along these tracks without affecting the overhead line, although there may be difficulties with overhead clearance. Alternative electrical power transmission schemes for trains include third rail, ground-level power supply, batteries and electromagnetic induction.

Vehicles like buses that have rubber tyres cannot provide a return path for the current through their wheels, and must instead use a pair of overhead wires to provide both the current and its return path.

Construction

To achieve good high-speed current collection, it is necessary to keep the contact wire geometry within defined limits. This is usually achieved by supporting the contact wire from a second wire known as the  or catenary. This wire approximates the natural path of a wire strung between two points, a catenary curve, thus the use of "catenary" to describe this wire or sometimes the whole system. This wire is attached to the contact wire at regular intervals by vertical wires known as "droppers" or "drop wires". It is supported regularly at structures, by a pulley, link or clamp. The whole system is then subjected to mechanical tension.

As the pantograph moves along under the contact wire, the carbon insert on top of the pantograph becomes worn with time. On straight track, the contact wire is zigzagged slightly to the left and right of the centre from each support to the next so that the insert wears evenly, thus preventing any notches. On curves, the "straight" wire between the supports causes the contact point to cross over the surface of the pantograph as the train travels around the curve. The movement of the contact wire across the head of the pantograph is called the "sweep".

The zigzagging of the overhead line is not required for trolley poles. For tramways, a contact wire without a messenger wire is used.

Depot areas tend to have only a single wire and are known as "simple equipment" or "trolley wire". When overhead line systems were first conceived, good current collection was possible only at low speeds, using a single wire. To enable higher speeds, two additional types of equipment were developed:

 * Stitched equipment uses an additional wire at each support structure, terminated on either side of the messenger/catenary wire.
 * Compound equipment uses a second support wire, known as the "auxiliary", between the messenger/catenary wire and the contact wire. Droppers support the auxiliary from the messenger wire, while additional droppers support the contact wire from the auxiliary. The auxiliary wire can be of a more conductive but less wear-resistant metal, increasing transmission efficiency.

Earlier dropper wires provided physical support of the contact wire without joining the catenary and contact wires electrically. Modern systems use current-carrying droppers, eliminating the need for separate wires.

The present transmission system originated about 100 years ago. A simpler system was proposed in the 1970s by the Pirelli Construction Company, consisting of a single wire embedded at each support for 2.5 m of its length in a clipped, extruded aluminum beam with the wire contact face exposed. A somewhat higher tension than used before clipping the beam yielded a deflected profile for the wire that could be easily handled at 400 km/h by a pneumatic servo pantograph with only 3 g acceleration.

Parallel overhead lines

An electrical circuit requires at least two conductors. Trams and railways use the overhead line as one side of the circuit and the steel rails as the other side of the circuit. For a trolleybus or a trolleytruck, no rails are available for the return current, as the vehicles use rubber tyres on the road surface. Trolleybuses use a second parallel overhead line for the return, and two trolley poles, one contacting each overhead wire. (Pantographs are generally incompatible with parallel overhead lines.) The circuit is completed by using both wires. Parallel overhead wires are also used on the rare railways with three-phase AC railway electrification.

Types of wires
In the Soviet Union the following types of wires/cables were used. For the contact wire, cold drawn solid copper was used to ensure good conductivity. The wire is not round but has grooves at the sides to allow the hangers to attach to it. Sizes were (in cross-sectional area) 85, 100, or 150 mm2. To make the wire stronger, 0.04% tin might be added. The wire must resist the heat generated by arcing and thus such wires should never be spliced by thermal means.

The messenger (or catenary) wire needs to be both strong and have good conductivity. They used multi-strand wires (or cables) with 19 strands in each cable (or wire). Copper, aluminum, and/or steel were used for the strands. All the 19 strands could be of the same metal or some strands could be of steel for strength with the remaining strands of aluminum or copper for conductivity. Another type looked like it had all copper wires but inside each wire was a steel core for strength. The steel strands were galvanized but for better corrosion protection they could be coated with an anti-corrosion substance.

In Slovenia, where 3 kV system is in use, standard sizes for contact wire are 100 and 150 mm2. The catenary wire is made of copper or copper alloys of 70, 120 or 150 mm2. The smaller cross sections are made of 19 strands, whereas the bigger has 37 strands. Two standard configurations for main lines consist of two contact wires of 100 mm2 and one or two catenary wires of 120 mm2, totaling 320 or 440 mm2. Only one contact wire is often used for side tracks.

Tensioning

Catenary wires are kept in mechanical tension because the pantograph causes mechanical oscillations in the wire. The waves must travel faster than the train to avoid producing standing waves, which could break the wire. Tensioning the line makes waves travel faster, and also reduces sag from gravity.

For medium and high speeds, the wires are generally tensioned by weights or occasionally by hydraulic tensioners. Either method is known as "auto-tensioning" (AT) or "constant tension" and ensures that the tension is virtually independent of temperature. Tensions are typically between 9 and 20 kN per wire. Where weights are used, they slide up and down on a rod or tube attached to the mast, to prevent them from swaying.

For low speeds and in tunnels where temperatures are constant, fixed termination (FT) equipment may be used, with the wires terminated directly on structures at each end of the overhead line. The tension is generally about 10 kN. This type of equipment sags in hot conditions and is taut in cold conditions.

With AT, the continuous length of the overhead line is limited due to the change in the height of the weights as the overhead line expands and contracts with temperature changes. This movement is proportional to the distance between anchors. Tension length has a maximum. For most 25 kV OHL equipment in the UK, the maximum tension length is 1970 m.

An additional issue with AT equipment is that, if balance weights are attached to both ends, the whole tension length is free to move along the track. To avoid this a midpoint anchor (MPA), close to the centre of the tension length, restricts movement of the messenger/catenary wire by anchoring it; the contact wire and its suspension hangers can move only within the constraints of the MPA. MPAs are sometimes fixed to low bridges, or otherwise anchored to vertical catenary poles or portal catenary supports. A tension length can be seen as a fixed centre point, with the two half-tension lengths expanding and contracting with temperature.

Most systems include a brake to stop the wires from unravelling completely if a wire breaks or tension is lost. German systems usually use a single large tensioning pulley (basically a ratchet mechanism) with a toothed rim, mounted on an arm hinged to the mast. Normally the downward pull of the weights and the reactive upward pull of the tensioned wires lift the pulley so its teeth are well clear of a stop on the mast. The pulley can turn freely while the weights move up or down as the wires contract or expand. If tension is lost the pulley falls back toward the mast, and one of its teeth jams against the stop. This stops further rotation, limits the damage, and keeps the undamaged part of the wire intact until it can be repaired. Other systems use various braking mechanisms, usually with multiple smaller pulleys in a block and tackle arrangement.

Breaks
Lines are divided into sections to limit the scope of an outage and to allow maintenance.

Section break

To allow maintenance to the overhead line without having to turn off the entire system, the line is broken into electrically separated portions known as "sections". Sections often correspond with tension lengths. The transition from section to section is known as a "section break" and is set up so that the vehicle's pantograph is in continuous contact with one wire or the other.

For bow collectors and pantographs, this is done by having two contact wires run side by side over the length between 2 or 4 wire supports. A new one drops down and the old one rises up, allowing the pantograph to smoothly transfer from one to the other. The two wires do not touch (although the bow collector or pantograph is briefly in contact with both wires). In normal service, the two sections are electrically connected; depending on the system this might be an isolator, fixed contact or a Booster Transformer. The isolator allows the current to the section to be interrupted for maintenance.

On overhead wires designed for trolley poles, this is done by having a neutral section between the wires, requiring an insulator. The driver of the tram or trolleybus must temporarily reduce the power draw before the trolley pole passes through, to prevent arc damage to the insulator.

Pantograph-equipped locomotives must not run through a section break when one side is de-energized. The locomotive would become trapped, but as it passes the section break the pantograph briefly shorts the two catenary lines. If the opposite line is de-energized, this voltage transient may trip supply breakers. If the line is under maintenance, an injury may occur as the catenary is suddenly energized. Even if the catenary is properly grounded to protect the personnel, the arc generated across the pantograph can damage the pantograph, the catenary insulator or both.

Neutral section (phase break)

Sometimes on a larger electrified railway, tramway or trolleybus system, it is necessary to power different areas of track from different power grids, without guaranteeing synchronisation of the phases. Long lines may be connected to the country's national grid at various points and different phases. (Sometimes the sections are powered with different voltages or frequencies.) The grids may be synchronised on a normal basis, but events may interrupt synchronisation. This is not a problem for DC systems. AC systems have a particular safety implication in that the railway electrification system would act as a "Backdoor" connection between different parts, resulting in, amongst other things, a section of the grid de-energised for maintenance being re-energised from the railway substation creating danger.

For these reasons, Neutral sections are placed in the electrification between the sections fed from different points in a national grid, or different phases, or grids that are not synchronized. It is highly undesirable to connect unsynchronized grids. A simple section break is insufficient to guard against this as the pantograph briefly connects both sections.

In countries such as France, South Africa, Australia and the United Kingdom, a pair of permanent magnets beside the rails at either side of the neutral section operate a bogie-mounted transducer on the train which causes a large electrical circuit-breaker to open and close when the locomotive or the pantograph vehicle of a multiple unit passes over them. In the United Kingdom equipment similar to Automatic Warning System (AWS) is used, but with pairs of magnets placed the running rails (as opposed to the AWS magnets placed midway between the rails). Lineside signs on the approach to the neutral section warn the driver to shut off traction power and coast through the dead section.

A neutral section or phase break consists of two insulated breaks back-to-back with a short section of line that belongs to neither grid. Some systems increase the level of safety by the midpoint of the neutral section being earthed. The presence of the earthed section in the middle is to ensure that should the transducer controlled apparatus fail, and the driver also fail to shut off power, the energy in the arc struck by the pantograph as it passes to the neutral section is conducted to earth, operating substation circuit breakers, rather than the arc either bridging the insulators into a section made dead for maintenance, a section fed from a different phase, or setting up a Backdoor connection between different parts of the country's national grid.

On the Pennsylvania Railroad, phase breaks were indicated by a position light signal face with all eight radial positions with lenses and no center light. When the phase break was active (the catenary sections out of phase), all lights were lit. The position light signal aspect was originally devised by the Pennsylvania Railroad and was continued by Amtrak and adopted by Metro North. Metal signs were hung from the catenary supports with the letters "PB" created by a pattern of drilled holes.

Dead section
A special category of phase break was developed in America, primarily by the Pennsylvania Railroad. Since its traction power network was centrally supplied and only segmented by abnormal conditions, normal phase breaks were generally not active. Phase breaks that were always activated were known as "Dead Sections": they were often used to separate power systems (for example, the Hell's Gate Bridge boundary between Amtrak and Metro North's electrifications) that would never be in-phase. Since a dead section is always dead, no special signal aspect was developed to warn drivers of its presence, and a metal sign with "DS" in drilled-hole letters was hung from the catenary supports.

Gaps

Occasionally gaps may be present in the overhead lines, when switching from one voltage to another or to provide clearance for ships at moveable bridges, as a cheaper alternative for moveable overhead power rails. Electric trains coast across the gaps. To prevent arcing, power must be switched off before reaching the gap and usually the pantograph would be lowered.

Overhead conductor rails

Given limited clearance such as in tunnels, the overhead wire may be replaced by a rigid overhead rail. An early example was in the tunnels of the Baltimore Belt Line, where a Π section bar (fabricated from three strips of iron and mounted on wood) was used, with the brass contact running inside the groove. When the overhead line was raised in the Simplon Tunnel to accommodate taller rolling stock, a rail was used. A rigid overhead rail may also be used in places where tensioning the wires is impractical, for example on moveable bridges. In modern uses, it is very common for underground sections of trams, metros, and mainline railways to use a rigid overhead wire in their tunnels, while using normal overhead wires in their above ground sections.

In a movable bridge that uses a rigid overhead rail, there is a need to transition from the catenary wire system into an overhead conductor rail at the bridge portal (the last traction current pylon before the movable bridge). For example, the power supply can be done through a catenary wire system near a swing bridge. The catenary wire typically comprises messenger wire (also called catenary wire) and a contact wire where it meets the pantograph. The messenger wire is terminated at the portal, while the contact wire runs into the overhead conductor rail profile at the transition end section before it is terminated at the portal. There is a gap between the overhead conductor rail at the transition end section and the overhead conductor rail that runs across the entire span of the swing bridge. The gap is required for the swing bridge to be opened and closed. To connect the conductor rails together when the bridge is closed, there is another conductor rail section called "rotary overlap" that is equipped with a motor. When the bridge is fully closed, the motor of the rotary overlap is operated to turn it from a tilted position into the horizontal position, connecting the conductor rails at the transition end section and the bridge together to supply power.

Short overhead conductor rails are installed at tram stops as for the Combino Supra.

Crossings

Trams draw their power from a single overhead wire at about 500 to 750 V DC. Trolleybuses draw from two overhead wires at a similar voltage, and at least one of the trolleybus wires must be insulated from tram wires. This is usually done by the trolleybus wires running continuously through the crossing, with the tram conductors a few centimetres lower. Close to the junction on each side, the tram wire turns into a solid bar running parallel to the trolleybus wires for about half a metre. Another bar similarly angled at its ends is hung between the trolleybus wires, electrically connected above to the tram wire. The tram's pantograph bridges the gap between the different conductors, providing it with a continuous pickup.

Where the tram wire crosses, the trolleybus wires are protected by an inverted trough of insulating material extending 20 or below.

Until 1946, a level crossing in Stockholm, Sweden connected the railway south of Stockholm Central Station and a tramway. The tramway operated on 600–700 V DC and the railway on 15 kV AC. In the Swiss village of Oberentfelden, the Menziken–Aarau–Schöftland line operating at 750 V DC crosses the SBB line at 15 kV AC; there used to be a similar crossing between the two lines at Suhr but this was replaced by an underpass in 2010. Some crossings between tramway/light rail and railways are extant in Germany. In Zürich, Switzerland, VBZ trolleybus line 32 has a level crossing with the 1,200 V DC Uetliberg railway line; at many places, trolleybus lines cross the tramway. In some cities, trolleybuses and trams shared a positive (feed) wire. In such cases, a normal trolleybus frog can be used.

Alternatively, section breaks can be sited at the crossing point, so that the crossing is electrically dead.

Australia
Many cities had trams and trolleybuses using trolley poles. They used insulated crossovers, which required tram drivers to put the controller into neutral and coast through. Trolleybus drivers had to either lift off the accelerator or switch to auxiliary power.

In Melbourne, Victoria, tram drivers put the controller into neutral and coast through section insulators, indicated by insulator markings between the rails.

Melbourne has level crossings between electrified suburban railways and tram lines. They have mechanical switching arrangements (changeover switch) to switch the 1500 V DC overhead of the railway and the 650 V DC of the trams, called a Tram Square. Proposals have been advanced to grade separate these crossings or divert the tram routes.

Greece
Athens has two crossings of tram and trolleybus wires, at Vas. Amalias Avenue and Vas. Olgas Avenue, and at Ardittou Street and Athanasiou Diakou Street. They use the above-mentioned solution.

Italy
In Rome, at the crossing between Viale Regina Margherita and Via Nomentana, tram and trolleybus lines cross: tram on Viale Regina Margherita and trolleybus on Via Nomentana. The crossing is orthogonal, therefore the typical arrangement was not available.

In Milan, most tram lines cross its circular trolleybus line once or twice. Trolleybus and tram wires run parallel in streets such as viale Stelvio, viale Umbria and viale Tibaldi.

Multiple overhead lines

Some railways used two or three overhead lines, usually to carry three-phase current. This is used only on the Gornergrat Railway and Jungfrau Railway in Switzerland, the Petit train de la Rhune in France, and the Corcovado Rack Railway in Brazil. Until 1976, it was widely used in Italy. On these railways, the two conductors are used for two different phases of the three-phase AC, while the rail was used for the third phase. The neutral was not used.

Some three-phase AC railways used three overhead wires. These were an experimental railway line of Siemens in Berlin-Lichtenberg in 1898 (length 1.8 km), the military railway between Marienfelde and Zossen between 1901 and 1904 (length 23.4 km) and an 800 m-long section of a coal railway near Cologne between 1940 and 1949.

On DC systems, bipolar overhead lines were sometimes used to avoid galvanic corrosion of metallic parts near the railway, such as on the Chemin de fer de la Mure.

All systems with multiple overhead lines have a high risk of short circuits at switches and therefore tend to be impractical in use, especially when high voltages are used or when trains run through the points at high speed.

The Sihltal Zürich Uetliberg Bahn had two lines with different electrification. To be able to use different electric systems on shared tracks, the Sihltal line had its overhead wire right above the train, whilst the Uetliberg line had its overhead wire off to one side. This configuration was used up until summer 2022, since then the Uetliberg line has been switched to the standard 15kV 16.7 Hz configuration.

Overhead catenary

A catenary is a system of overhead wires used to supply electricity to a locomotive, tram (streetcar), or light rail vehicle that is equipped with a pantograph.

Unlike simple overhead wires, in which the uninsulated wire is attached by clamps to closely spaced crosswires supported by poles, catenary systems use at least two wires. The catenary or messenger wire is hung at a specific tension between line structures, and a second wire is held in tension by the messenger wire, attached to it at frequent intervals by clamps and connecting wires known as droppers. The second wire is straight and level, parallel to the rail track, suspended over it as the roadway of a suspension bridge is over water.

Catenary systems are suited to high-speed operations whereas simple wire systems, which are less expensive to build and maintain, are common on light rail or tram (streetcar) lines, especially on city streets. Such vehicles can be fitted with either a pantograph or trolley pole.

Overhead catenary systems in the United States
The Northeast Corridor in the United States has catenary over the 600 mi between Boston, Massachusetts and Washington, D.C., for Amtrak's inter-city trains. Commuter rail agencies including MARC, SEPTA, NJ Transit, and Metro-North Railroad utilize the catenary to provide local service.

In Cleveland, Ohio, the interurban/light rail lines and the heavy rail line use the same overhead wires, due to a city ordinance intended to limit air pollution from the large number of steam trains that passed through Cleveland between the east coast and Chicago. Trains switched from steam to electric locomotives at the Collinwood railyards about 10 mi east of Downtown and at Linndale on the west side. When Cleveland constructed its rapid transit (heavy rail) line between the airport, downtown, and beyond, it employed a similar catenary, using electrification equipment left over after railroads switched from steam to diesel. Light and heavy rail share trackage for about 3 mi along the Cleveland Hopkins International Airport Red (heavy rail) line, Blue and Green interurban/light rail lines between Cleveland Union Terminal and just past East 55th Street station, where the lines separate.

Part of Boston's Blue Line through the northeast suburbs uses overhead lines, as does the Green Line.

The Yellow Line on the Chicago "L" used an overhead catenary system for the west half of the route, transitioning to third rail for the east half. This was discontinued in 2004 when the entire route was converted to third rail.

On the San Francisco peninsula in California, the Caltrain commuter rail system completed the installation of an overhead contact system (OCS) in 2023, to prepare for the conversion of its 160-year old San Francisco to San José Peninsula Corridor to fully-electrified revenue service in September 2024.

Height
The height of the overhead line can create hazards at level crossings, where it may be struck by road vehicles. Warning signs are placed on the approaches, advising drivers of the maximum safe height.

The wiring in most countries is too low to allow double stack container trains. The Channel Tunnel has an extended height overhead line to accommodate double-height car and truck transporters. China and India operate lines electrified with extra height wiring and pantographs to allow for double stack container trains.

Problems with overhead equipment
Overhead lines may be adversely affected by strong winds causing wires to swing. Power storms can knock the power out with lightning strikes on systems with overhead wires, stopping trains following a power surge.

During cold or frosty weather, ice may coat overhead lines. This can result in poor electrical contact between the collector and the overhead line, resulting in electrical arcing and power surges.

Lines may sag during hot weather and if a pantograph gets entangled, this can result in a dewirement. Similarly, in very cold weather they may contract and snap.

The installation of overhead lines may require reconstruction of bridges to provide safe electrical clearance.

Overhead lines, like most electrified systems, require a greater capital expenditure when building the system than an equivalent non-electric system. While a unelectrified railway line requires only the grade, ballast, ties and rails, an overhead system also requires a complex system of support structures, lines, insulators, power-control systems and power lines, all of which require maintenance. This makes non-electrical systems more attractive in the short term, although electrical systems can pay for themselves eventually. Also, the added construction and maintenance cost-per-mile makes overhead systems less attractive on already existing long-distance railways, such as those found in North America, where the distances between cities are typically far greater than in Europe. Such long lines require enormous investment in overhead line equipment, which private rail companies are unlikely to be interested in, and major difficulties confront energizing long portions of overhead wire on a permanent basis, especially in areas where energy demand already outstrips supply.

Many people consider overhead lines to be "visual pollution", due to the many support structures and complicated system of wires and cables that fill the air. Such considerations have driven the move towards replacing overhead power and communications lines with buried cables where possible. The issue came to a head in the UK with the Great Western Main Line electrification scheme, especially through the Goring Gap. A protest group with their own website has been formed.

The valuable copper conductor can also be subject to theft, as for example the Lahore-Khanewal line in Pakistan and the Gweru-Harare section of line in Zimbabwe.

History
The first tram with overhead lines was presented by Werner von Siemens at the 1881 International Exposition of Electricity in Paris: the installation was removed after that event. In October 1883, the first permanent tram service with overhead lines was on the Mödling and Hinterbrühl Tram in Austria. The trams had bipolar overhead lines, consisting of two U-pipes, in which the pantographs hung and ran like shuttles. From April to June 1882, Siemens had tested a similar system on his Electromote, an early precursor of the trolleybus.

Much simpler and more functional was an overhead wire in combination with a pantograph borne by the vehicle and pressed at the line from below. This system, for rail traffic with a unipolar line, was invented by Frank J. Sprague in 1888. From 1889 it was used at the Richmond Union Passenger Railway in Richmond, Virginia, pioneering electric traction.

license: Creative Commons - Attribution Share-Alike - https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/

title: Overhead line


text:
Talk:Overhead line

Name
Where should this be moved to? overhead line? overhead lines? overhead power transmission? --Robert Merkel

Comparison with streetcar/tram style lines could be interesting
I'm curious about what differences there might have been with old equipment used for streetcars. A lot of those vehicles had straight collection arms (instead of pantographs) with pulley-style wheels on the ends. Managing a transition between breaks would seem to be more difficult, and speed would seem to be an issue (although I know such systems ran at up to 100 km/h in the early 20th century in my region of the U.S.—possibly not over breaks, but certainly in between them). —User:Mulad (talk) 14:06, Sep 29, 2004 (UTC)

History
I removed this:

 * The use of overhead cables conducting electricity, invented by Granville T. Woods in 1888, amongst several other improvements by Woods, led to the development of electrified railways, the first of which was operated at Coney Island from 1892.

What? By 1888 Sprague's Richmond installation was already running. An amateur named John C. Henry used overhead copper cable to power his experimental car in 1884. And overhead wire was neither the first development, nor the critical one, in developing electric railways.

Woods' invention
For those curious, Woods' invention was not of the use of overhead wire for powering electric railways, but of an improved wire carriage (or "troller" or "traveller" designed to ride on top of a wire. These had previously been in use by other inventors, but Woods' invention was of an improved type with three wheels on a single wire and flanges, all apparently to address the problem that trollers had in falling off the wire. He did not submit a model, so I don't know that his design was ever tested.

The upshot is, that once sprung trolley poles were successfully deployed, all trollers became obsolete. -- Cecropia | explains it all ® 18:07, 25 Feb 2005 (UTC)

I am still new in this electrical knowledge, but somehow can someone tell me the differences between LRT and trams?

LRT and Trams.
I am still new in this electrical knowledge. But can someone tell me the differences between LRT and Trams?

Power Grids
please somebody help me out ....regarding what is proper functioning of power grids in india/US?

Ring Main Units Working
could somebody explain me about the ring main units working and about the construction of Ring main units... Ajay Bhargove, NDPL

Merged

 * Overhead line, Overhead catenary, and Overhead cable are very similar (but not the same). These three articles should be reshuffled/reorganized/merged ito some sensible configuration. --Smack (talk) 17:29, 27 August 2005 (UTC)

Agreed
Its a little confusing to have three seperate articles about similar subjects. Why not have one article with three seperate sections? Piercetp 06:45, 25 May 2006 (UTC)

Merged
Merged as requested. SilkTork 22:09, 29 May 2006 (UTC)

Both Diagrams?
Do we really need both of these diagrams? They seem both the same to me. I am removing the first one, if you disagree, please revert without warning on my talk. I won't dispute this.martianlostinspace 14:06, 21 December 2006 (UTC)

Germany
It seems there are mixed up together "supply-lines" and the otherwise built "traction current lines". There are for example no "four lines on the lowest crossbar" of a "traction current line". The supply current lines have 110 kV power, the traction current lines is transformed down to 15 kV power. I live in Germany and I have never seen "eight conductor cables" on "traction supply lines". Regular are two lines for 110 kV supply and one line for direct supply of the traction line. The other bzw. feedback-"wire" then is the earth. Better kill the whole section "Germany"- it`s  mostly wrong! 62.109.75.136 08:28, 1 February 2007 (UTC)

Why is 16.7 Hz used in Germany?LorenzoB 18:37, 7 April 2007 (UTC)

 * The reason for the frequency is apparently a Legacy from before the days of Power Electronics. One can allegedly practically operate a DC motor directly from this frequency but not 50 Hz.

 * 86.18.84.41 20:48, 10 April 2007 (UTC)

 * Exactly correct. In the US, we got by with 25 Hz for the same reason. The basic problem is the inductive reactance of the traction motors.

 * Atlant 22:31, 10 April 2007 (UTC)

Im not sure if this is the correct place, but...
How come that when i cross a railway line, by means of a level crossing/one of those little paths that you use to cross the line with the STOP LOOK LISTEN sign in the UK, i dont get electrocuted?  AC Best  My Contributions  Autograph Book  15:50, 21 June 2007 (UTC)

 * Back home, in Kent, the third rail has a dead section through the the level crossing (being foot path of cars, etc). This creates a gap, but normally Train are either a) long enough (think of a set of EMUs) to have more than one pick up show to collect the juice, and/or b) the train is going quick enough to cope with the loss of power (think of loco hauled trains). On OLE there is no gap, but a height limit to stop the high vehicles from electrocuting themselves. Hope that helps. Pickle 16:12, 28 June 2007 (UTC)

 * The conductor rails stop either side of the crossing, but are connected by cables to provide continuity for the electric current. Normally, there would also be "cow-boards" either side of the crossing to prevent people from trespassing. Canterberry 18:37, 28 June 2007 (UTC)

 * In the case of lines fed by an overhead wire (For example, throughout most of East Anglia), the overhead wire is the equivalent of the "Live" wire in a standard three pin plug, with the rails providing the "Neutral" connection. In the UK, the neutral connection is tied to earth (so the voltage between the ground and the rails is zero, and you don't get electrocuted). It's a different story if you were to look at the voltage across the overhead wire and the rails/ground, however... -- Ratarsed 13:05, 2 July 2007 (UTC)

Cost and Benefits
For heavy rail systems currently using diesels, I'm curious what the costs and benefits are of switching to overhead lines, both on tracks that don't yet have the overhead lines (is there some benefit to the proposed MBTA Indigo Line's use of DMUs, rather than putting in overhead lines and using EMUs?), and on tracks that have overhead lines but use diesels anyway (such as the MBTA train to Providence, which normally operates along the same track where Amtrak trains use the overhead lines). JNW2 14:54, 5 September 2007 (UTC)

 * It gets very complicated and contentious. Some people point to how is the user charged for the electricity they use. There are a lot of capital costs in building electrification (be it OLE or third rail) that put people off, especially for new lines. Also diesels (locos and especially DMUs) have made a lot of technical advances that make them more attractive. There are then system wide issues, so some operators may not like having to support tow types of fleets when they perceive fleet wide standardisation as preferable. Hope that gives you some pointers. Pickle 19:06, 5 September 2007 (UTC)

Height and other mechanical standards
It would be interesting to know the distance between the wire and the ground, and if there are different standards (including trams). Dvortex 14:55, 14 September 2007 (UTC)

 * I *think* they are built to the height gauge of the rail network concerned, and then the gap for the pantograph. I know the Channel Tunnel has higher wires than normal lines and the CTRL as the shuttle stock is higher (to take ro-ro trucks) - thus eurostars's pantograph has to go higher. Pickle 15:42, 14 September 2007 (UTC)

 * In the UK, on heavy rail (gauge just under 4 m) the height can vary between 4.14 m and 5.94 m, with a nominal height between 4.7 m and 4.9 m. CTRL uses a 'European' gauge so the minimum height is more like 5 m.Azmo247 22:04, 13 November 2007 (UTC)

Section Added
I added the section: Technical Advances Lowers Running Costs Waterspaces (talk) 13:25, 3 April 2009 (UTC)

Overhead lines compared to power transmission lines
Just wondered if anybody had any input on this

Reference_desk/Science

Any help would be appreciated. Thanks GregB1968 (talk) 17:00, 2 April 2010 (UTC)

"Westinghouse catenary" or "Caténaire inclinée"
Strolling around the wikipedia articles about trains I found the remarkable "Westinghouse" or "inclinée" style overhead wiring. It is falling out of use by now because it is quite hard to construct and the tensioning cannot easily be changed after the wires are being constructed. It is not mentioned in the English article, but it is referred to in the French one. I found an image (on the right) showing that it is still in use in the US too.

It might be mentioned, I do however have little information about it. I do know it does not need weights to keep the line under tension and might be interesting for historic reasons. In France this system is only maintained when of historic of cultural relevance, other lines are being rebuilt to the standard French overhead support system. Does anyone know what the American policy towards the Westinghouse catenary is?

This is the text the French wikipedia has on it:
 * "La caténaire inclinée est un cas à part. Les bras de rappel n’existent pas : seuls la tension du fil de contact ainsi qu’un positionnement judicieux des points de fixation du fil porteur permettent au fil de contact de suivre l’axe de la voie. C’est dans les courbes que cette caténaire prend son aspect le plus insolite, car son axe est alors proche de l'horizontale, tandis que les autres caténaires restent verticales.

 * Elle est aussi connue sous le nom de caténaire Westinghouse, du nom de la firme qui a développé la technique aux États-Unis. En France elle est le plus souvent appelée caténaire « midi » car elle a été utilisé sur le réseau de la compagnie des Chemins de fer du Midi pour l'alimentation en 1 500 V continu."

My French is quite poor, but it roughly says:
 * "The inclined overhead system is a seperate case. There are no tensioning arms, only the tensioning of the contact wire and a careful placement of the fixation points to the carrier wire allow the wire to follow the axis of the track. It's in the curves this catenary shows its unusual aspect, because there the axis of the wires is near horizontal, while other systems remain vertical.

 * This type of wiring is also called Westinghouse overhead, named after the firm that developed the technique in the United States. In France it is usually called "caténaire Midi" because it was used in the network of the Compagnie du Midi for the electrification with 1500 V DC"

Can anyone (preferably a Francophone) check my translation, for it is of doubtful quality? Does anybody know a suitable source of information on this type op equipment, the French article doesn't cite any references.

NB: I found another picture showing the way it looks on straight tracks: Skewed overhead lines over straight tracks

82.139.114.136 (talk) 13:48, 1 August 2012 (UTC)

Problems with overhead equipment
'Overhead line equipment can be adversely affected by strong winds' [citation needed]:

I don't know if this article with an embedded video explaining and demonstrating the effect during stormy weather on the danish Great Belt Bridge is a citation in that sense?:

http://ing.dk/artikel/kamerasystem-skal-advare-lokofoerere-mod-svingende-koereledninger-paa-storebaelt-163994 — Preceding unsigned comment added by 200.63.47.32 (talk) 08:34, 17 January 2016 (UTC)

 * That would do as a source. I'll add it.
 * I'd like to note though that this is highly dependent on the type of overhead system. The only time I heard that my train slowed down because of swinging overhead wires was years ago, on the train from Harwich to London (UK) in 18 m/s wind. 10 hours before I was still in the Netherlands, in the train to Hook of Holland in ca. 23 m/s wind, and the trains were unaffected. The difference is that Dutch overhead wires are much heavier than British ones, because the Dutch ones have to handle more current due to a lower voltage. PiusImpavidus (talk) 14:41, 25 June 2016 (UTC)

What are they made of?
Steel? Copper? Aluminium? Titanium? Some alloy?

 * Usually copper, or some alloy with copper as main ingredient. PiusImpavidus (talk) 14:01, 25 June 2016 (UTC)
 * I added some info from the USSR in this under "types of wires".

How much energy are the overhead wires capable of transmitting, typically?
This detail is not included in the article, but it would be valuable to know the capacity of typical overhead conductors and the contacts used by trains. — Preceding unsigned comment added by 76.126.241.23 (talk) 05:02, 12 April 2017 (UTC)

How can a tram route cross a trolley bus route without short circuits listed at Redirects for discussion
An editor has asked for a discussion to address the redirect How can a tram route cross a trolley bus route without short circuits. Please participate in the redirect discussion if you wish to do so. Steel1943 (talk) 21:20, 10 July 2019 (UTC)

 * Surely it's answered in the "Contacts" section? SCHolar44 (talk) 23:14, 10 July 2019 (UTC)

 * That should have been "Crossings" section -- sorry! SCHolar44 (talk) 22:21, 11 July 2019 (UTC)

OLE Gantries
There is Headspan and Portal type of OLE, so should they be included? I Like The british Rail Class 483 (talk) 17:56, 25 March 2023 (UTC)

Ridged OLE
What should we refer it on this page? Since it gets referred to by different names in different sections, I suggest we agree on a name for all of them. I believe 'rigid OLE' or some version of it makes the most sense because it describes that it can not move in use and also is above the train. But third rail seems a bit off since it is not a third rail. I Like The british Rail Class 483 (talk) 16:29, 11 July 2023 (UTC)

Catenary wire in other countries
Hello, I noticed in the wikipedia article that there is very limited information on the type of wires and setups in use by any other country. Right now this article only contains information on Russia and Slovakia's overhead wires. I personally would and will update it with more information but I would encourage others to search out more information for this topic. Funforme3 (talk) 19:44, 12 June 2024 (UTC)

title: Talk:Overhead line


text:
Pala, Kerala

Pala (പാലാ; ) is a municipality in the Kottayam district of Kerala, India. It is located 21 km north of the district headquarters in Kottayam and about 138 km north of the state capital Thiruvananthapuram. As per the 2011 Indian census, Pala has a population of 22,056 people, and a population density of 1373 /sqkm.

Pala is situated on the banks of the Meenachil river, and is a major hub of Syrian Christian culture in Kerala.

Demographics
Indian census, Pala had a population of 22,640. Males constitute 49% of the population and females 51%. Pala has an average literacy rate of 98%, higher than the national average of 73%: male literacy is 98.5%, and female literacy is 97.8%, still much higher than the state average. 10% of the population is under 6 years of age. Christians make up 65.09% of the population, Hindus 34.19%, Muslims 0.1%, Jain 0.00%, other religions 0.05% and 0.15% not stated.

Cuisine of Pala
Appams, kallappams, or vellayappams are rice flour pancakes that have soft, thick white spongy centres and crisp, lace-like edges.

Beef ularthiyathu is a beef dish cooked with a variety of Indian spices. Other dishes include Peralan (chicken stir-fries), Meat Thoran (dry curry with shredded coconut), sardine and duck curries, and meen molee (spicy stewed fish).

Sports
The Municipal Stadium is the centre of sports in Pala. The multipurpose stadium can be used for conducting athletic events and football. The stadium also has a synthetic track and a football turf. There is also an indoor swimming pool in the sports complex. The Palan citizen named jerrin joshy is often credited with creation of Pala's hunting society. He is also the creator of the regulation of hunting for sport The 61st Kerala State Schools Athletics Championships was held at the stadium in 2017. At least 2500 students from 100 schools attended the sports meet. The 63rd Kerala State Athletics Championship was also held at the stadium in the month of October, 2019.

title: Pala, Kerala


text:
Talk:Method of least squares

This article contains actually a short description of linear regression, a subject described more extensively in linear regression.

I would make this a more general introduction to general least squares adjustment.

The article titled "least squares" now has links to linear regression and Gauss-Markov theorem, both of which are fairly good. Note that the linear regression article states that the model
 * $$Y_i=\alpha_0+\alpha_1x_i+\alpha_2x_i^2+\varepsilon_i$$

where the last term is the only one to the right of "=" that is random, and those are i.i.d. normally distributed with expectation 0, does not cease to be linear because of the presence of the quadratic term, precisely because the vector least-squares estimates of the three coefficients is linear in the vector of Y-values. I mention this because the language that was here before I redirected this article makes me wonder if that was appreciated. Michael Hardy 17:32 Mar 3, 2003 (UTC)

title: Talk:Method of least squares


text:
Moseley

Moseley ( ) is a suburb of south Birmingham, England, 3 mi south of the city centre.

It is located within the Moseley ward of the city, in the constituency of Hall Green and Moseley. Historically it lay within Worcestershire.

History
Moseley was listed in the Domesday Book of 1086 as Museleie.

St. Mary's Church, Moseley was licensed by the Bishop of Worcester (authorised by Pope Innocent VII) in February 1405, and the 600th anniversary was celebrated in 2005 with a series of special events. In 2012 the church bells which had been named as the worst sounding in the country were replaced. Moseley itself developed around a Victorian shopping area known as Moseley Village.

Moseley Hall was rebuilt in parkland in the late 1700s and rebuilt by 1795 after being set on fire during rioting in 1791. It was donated in 1891 to the City of Birmingham by Richard Cadbury and now forms part of Moseley Hall Hospital.

Spring Hill College (Moseley School), a Gothic revival construction built in 1857, is located in the south of the district. Former pupils include comedian Jasper Carrott and musician Bev Bevan of the Electric Light Orchestra.

St Anne's Church, Moseley was opened in 1874.

Moseley was served by Moseley railway station from 1867 to 1941. It was opened by the Midland Railway on the Camp Hill line. A previously named Moseley Station on the same line changed its name to Kings Heath Station upon the opening of the station.

Moseley and the surrounding areas were much developed after 1910, being built upon the once extensive farm land that was predominant in this area. The new properties being mostly of large houses, designed to cater for the Edwardian middle-class families that settled in the suburbs surrounding Birmingham's industrial centre. These large houses relied upon at least one servant or "tweeny" as they were often termed, to help the lady of the house run the household. With the advent of the First World War, staff were hard to find to maintain houses of this size. The heating bills and high maintenance made them unpopular after the war and many were split into flats to cater for the requirements of the expanding working population who moved from the city centre as extensive redevelopment took place in the 1960s.

In some respects Moseley and the surrounding area suffered a serious decline in the last part of the 20th century. Much property fell into neglect, and problems with crime, drugs and prostitution became commonplace in the areas bordering Balsall Heath. During this same period, however, with a great deal of cheap accommodation on offer, it is arguable that Moseley also enjoyed its most creative and cosmopolitan phase as the focus of artistic and student communities. In 1970s, the small triangular shaped green in the heart of Moseley village, which was then home to the underground public toilets, was a convenient meeting place for local youth, and was known as "Bog Island".

Local band Ocean Colour Scene were active in the mid-1990s British Britpop–indie scene with songs such as "The Riverboat Song", inspired by locations within the suburb of Moseley. Their most successful album (in terms of weeks on chart) was Moseley Shoals. Moseley is also the birthplace of Nick Rhodes of Duran Duran.

The politician Joseph Chamberlain had his Birmingham residence at Highbury, on the edge of Moseley. The property was entrusted to the city after Chamberlain's death and is currently used as a conference venue and location for civil ceremonies.

Literature
J. R. R. Tolkien spent his early years in Moseley, living close to Sarehole Mill in Hall Green before moving to the site now occupied by Shades Music off the Alcester Road. Sarehole Mill is believed to have been his inspiration for the tranquil Shire in The Lord of the Rings. He also drew inspiration from Moseley Bog for the landscape of Middle-earth.

Sport
Moseley has a rich history of success in Rugby Union. Its most famous team is Moseley Rugby Football Club, who were one of Europe's best teams in the late 1960s to the 1980s. Notable players include Sam Doble, J. F. Byrne, Peter Cranmer, Alain Rolland, Mike Teague and Victor Ubogu.

The Moseley Wanderers team of 1900 won the Silver Medal in the Rugby Union competition at the 1900 Olympics.

Present
Today, a monthly Farmers' Market in Moseley - set up by the Moseley Neighbourhood Forum- has won various awards including best FARMA Certified Urban Farmers' Market 2009 and in 2009 local farmer Dominic Butler won the Most Unique Produce award with his micro blue beetroots. Similarly, Moseley has a well defined and established community spirit and ethos, exemplified by Moseley Neighbourhood Forum - a neighbourhood forum - that works to develop the area for the betterment of everyone. The Moseley Society exists to protect the heritage of the area; meetings of the Society discuss and debate a wide range of local issues and the interests of its residents.

The Moseley Community Development Trust (CDT) invests in the social and physical capital of the area. Established with funding from charitable trust funds and with the support of the Moseley and Kings Heath Ward Committee, the CDT is now managing a series of initiatives to improve the environment of Moseley.

It has its own monthly magazine, Moseley B13 (formerly Birmingham 13), reporting on local events and personalities. It has been printing.

A group of volunteers have formed Moseley in Bloom (MiB). Much like the Moseley Community Development Trust, the group undertake many projects which look at the greener issues around Moseley. Many projects take place throughout the year to enhance the landscape of Moseley as well as renovate dilapidated areas.

Every summer Moseley hosts Moseley Festival, a festival of arts and culture that sees people in the community come together and hold a series of music, art, food, cultural and sporting events.

Moseley Folk Festival happens later in the year, and attracts big names from the world of folk. Moseley Jazz, Funk & Soul Festival takes place in Moseley Park during the summer as well. Moseley also has its own literary festival, Pow-Wow LitFest, which has taken place annually at the Prince of Wales pub.

Moseley is also home to many pubs, restaurants and cafés.

In 2015 Moseley was named as the "best urban place to live" by The Sunday Times, with the newspaper citing its 'Arts and Crafts', 'Bohemian culture' and 'Victorian Architecture' as reasons to live in the suburb. This award followed its being highlighted by The Guardian in 2013 as a place to move, with similar reasons being cited.

Education
Moseley has two secondary schools, Moseley School, a language college and Queensbridge School, an Arts College. It also has several Primary schools such as Moseley C of E Primary School a one form entry school that has connections with St. Mary's Church and Park Hill Primary School on Alcester Road and St Martin de Porres Catholic Primary School.

Moseley is also home to Uffculme School, an all age special school for children on the autism spectrum. Along with James Brindley Academy's Willows center which provides education to inpatients at Parkview Clinic.

Moseley also has Fox Hollies School.

Notable residents
Many people who have been born, lived or worked in Moseley have made important contributions, a few of the more high-profile ones are:
 * Kabir Ali, Worcestershire & England cricketer
 * Edward Bach, doctor, best known for developing a range of remedies called the Bach flower remedies
 * Dan Bull, rapper and songwriter
 * Ali Campbell, singer in UB40
 * Austen Chamberlain MP, statesman, Lord Mayor of Birmingham, philanthropist and Nobel Peace Prize winner
 * Neville Chamberlain, Prime Minister, MP and Lord Mayor of Birmingham (declared World War II)
 * Carl Chinn, historian, radio presenter, newspaper columnist, and media personality
 * Alan Cottrell, metallurgist and physicist
 * Fyfe Dangerfield, musician, solo artist and lead singer of the Guillemots
 * Roger Jon Ellory, author
 * Simon Fowler, musician and lead singer of Ocean Colour Scene
 * Claudia Jessie, actress
 * Trish Keenan, songwriter, musician and lead singer of Broadcast
 * Frederick W. Lanchester, pioneer of the motor car
 * Joanne Malin, TV presenter, co-presenter of Central Tonight
 * Herbert Mason MC, film director, producer, actor, stage manager, choreographer, production manager and army officer in World War I
 * Nick Rhodes, keyboardist in Duran Duran
 * Brian Travers, saxophonist in UB40
 * J. R. R. Tolkien, author of The Hobbit and The Lord of the Rings

title: Moseley