Arnold Hornby - HN2185 - Locomotive, Steam, 2-10-2 DRG Class 95 - Deutsche Reichsbahn

Specific Item Information: Features: Accepts Digital decoder plug - NEM 651. Directional lighting

Prototype History: The German DRG Class 95 was a ten-coupled tank locomotive with a 2-10-2 wheel arrangement, which was procured by the Deutsche Reichsbahn (also referred to later as the Deutsche Reichsbahn-Gesellschaft or DRG) in 1922 for hauling heavy goods trains on steep main lines. Because the development of this class was begun by the Prussian state railways, it was designated as the Prussian Class T 20.

Road Name History: The Deutsche Reichsbahn, also known as the German Reich Railway or the German Imperial Railway, was the name of the German national railway created from the railways of the individual states of the German Empire following the end of World War I.

The company was founded in 1920 as the Deutsche Reichseisenbahnen when the Weimar Republic, formally known as Deutsches Reich (German Reich, hence the usage of the Reich in the name of the railway), took national control of the German railways, which had previously been run by the German states. In 1924 it was reorganised under the aegis of the Deutsche Reichsbahn-Gesellschaft (DRG), a nominally private railway company, which was 100% owned by the German state. In 1937 the railway was reorganised again as a state authority and given the name Deutsche Reichsbahn (DRB). After the Anschluss in 1938 the DR also took over the Bundesbahn Osterreich (BBO, Federal Railway of Austria).

The East and West German states were founded in 1949. East Germany took over the control of the DR on its territory and continued to use the traditional name Deutsche Reichsbahn, while the railway in West Germany became the Deutsche Bundesbahn (DB, German Federal Railway). The Austrian Osterreichische Bundesbahnen (OBB, Austrian Federal Railways) was founded in 1945, and was given its present name in 1947.

In January 1994, following the German union, the East German Deutsche Reichsbahn merged with the West German Deutsche Bundesbahn to form Germany's new national carrier, Deutsche Bahn AG, technically no longer a government agency but still a 100% state-owned joint stock company.

Brand/Importer Information: Founded in 1906 by Karl Arnold in Nürnberg, K. Arnold & Co. began its life producing tin toys and related items. They produced an extensive line of model ships, doll house items and other toys. In 1935, K. Arnold & Co. hired Max Ernst as their managing director. Ernst, not to be confused with the German realist artist of the same name, was a significant factor in the future of Arnold.

On Max Ernst's 1976 retirement, Arnold employed perhaps 200 to 250 people, using three facilities in the Nuernberg area. The Company continued under family control until 1995, when Arnold went into bankruptcy and was sold to Rivarossi of Italy. Rivarossi, in turn, also went bankrupt, leading to the sale of all assets to Hornby of the United Kingdom. Production is carried out in China.

From Wikipedia