The “Beuth” was the first locomotive that was developed and built by Borsig completely without foreign prototypes and is therefore considered the first completely German locomotive. It was manufactured as a one-off for the Berlin-Anhalt Railway. However, it formed the basic variant for 70 other, almost identical locomotives and was therefore also the first series-built locomotive. It also had some design features that differed from the Stephenson models and were later found on other locomotives.

In contrast to the outside frame and inside cylinders, the “Beuth” had a frame that was inside the wheels and outside cylinders. This design made larger cylinders possible, which in turn made it possible to build more powerful locomotives. The firebox was located below a steam dome, which was also used to extract live steam. Later locomotives got a separate steam dome. 

After the locomotive was presented at the Berlin trade exhibition the year it was completed, it was used on the Anhalter Bahn from Berlin to Köthen. Its service life lasted until 1864, after which it was scrapped. Therefore, a replica was built in 1912, which is now on display in the German Museum of Technology in Berlin.

The subsequent models from Borsig were primarily used in northern Germany, as there were strong competitors further south. However, they also took the “Beuth” as an example and also used some of their technical innovations in their own designs.

The name of the locomotive is an allusion to Christian Peter Wilhelm Beuth, who was once the head of the Prussian trade academy. He had doubted that August Borsig would ever have a successful career. Borsig tried to get back at him by naming this important and pioneering locomotive after him.

The engines later designated as class G 1 were light tender locomotives for freight service. They were ordered by the Prussian Ostbahn, as they had extensive branch lines on which the range of tank locomotives would not have been sufficient. These were locomotives with two coupled axles and no carrying axles, which were powered by a two-cylinder saturated engine.

The first production lot consisted of 44 examples and was delivered between 1878 and 1879. Later, under the administration of the state railways, a further need for these locomotives was identified. Therefore, a second series of 49 engines was purchased, which lasted from 1887 to 1898. The newer locos were a little lighter than the original ones, but could still produce the same power. This was achieved by increasing the boiler pressure from 10 to 12 bars and installing cylinders with a smaller diameter but slightly longer piston stroke.

From 1905 the locomotives were given the designation G 1 in order to be able to classify them into a specific type according to their purpose. Until then, the locomotives of the Ostbahn were only provided with numbers, the range of which gave little information about the type. The decommissioning then finally took place at the beginning of the twenties.

The G 10 was a class of freight tender locomotives that, with five coupled axles, was supposed to develop high tractive effort, but could still be used flexibly due to a low axle load. The successful design not only secured its a long production time, but also orders from other railways at home and abroad.

The design was based on assemblies from other locomotives that had proven themselves and thus saved development costs. The running gear was basically the same as that of the tank locomotive T 16, but the first and last axle were flexibly mounted for better running through curves. This in turn benefited the T 16, which was designated as the T 16¹ with the modified chassis. The boiler was taken from the P 8, it was known for its good evaporation performance.

The procurement extended from 1910 to 1925, so the last machines were put into service directly by the Reichsbahn. A total of 2,615 units were built for the Prussian State Railways and their successors. Other customers with smaller quantities were the Reichseisenbahnen Alsace-Lorraine and the Saarbahnen in the German-speaking area, as well as Turkey, Romania, Poland and Lithuania abroad. More locomotives were built in Romania until 1944 and some of the Turkish engines were built in Sweden at NoHAB.

The number of G 10s given away as reparations after the First World War, with 222 units, was relatively small compared to other locomotives, and this meant that in the years that followed they could also be distributed throughout the country outside of Prussian territory. They were classified as class 57^10-35. Despite their relatively low speed of 60 km/h, they were also used in front of passenger trains on secondary lines with fewer curves. Some were given Bavarian type 3 T 20.2 tenders, like those used on the G 4/5 H. Due to their distribution over a large area, 112 of the locomotives remaining in Germany came to the Reichsbahn in the GDR, 649 to the Bundesbahn and 81 to the railways of the Saarland, which initially did not belong to Germany. The decommissioning took place at the Federal Railways until 1970 and at the Reichsbahn until 1972.

During the First World War, it was quickly noticed through the interaction of the railway administrations with their different locomotives that this diversity represented a very big obstacle in maintenance and operation. Thus, a new locomotive was developed, which was to be procured as a heavy freight locomotive by almost all German railway administrations. Since Prussia had by far the largest vehicle fleet in Germany and the G12¹ was already a very modern and powerful freight locomotive, it was further developed. Their weight and thus also the axle load were reduced somewhat in order to be able to use them on a larger part of the route network.

During development, the weaknesses of the G 12¹ were also taken into account, the most serious of which was the excessively long firebox. A Belpaire firebox with a wider grate that was easier to load was now used. In addition, all three cylinders were allowed to act on the third coupled axle, which could probably have had reasons in production and in the realization of the mass balance.

Prussia again ordered the largest part with 1,168 units, but orders for a total of 311 engines also came from almost all other major German railways. The first units only came to Bavaria after the founding of the Reichsbahn and only Oldenburg and Mecklenburg didn't use G 12s, since lighter locomotives were sufficient there due to the simpler topographical conditions. As a rule, the non-Prussian railway administrations also used the designation G 12, only in Saxony they were also called XIII H in the tradition of their own variant of the G 12¹.

These engines, which came from many different manufacturers, occupied the number ranges of class 58^2-5 and 58^10-21 at the Reichsbahn, where the most recently completed engines already ex works were marked with these numbers. To save fuel costs, six locomotives were converted to pulverized coal firing as early as 1930, but larger numbers only followed after the end of the Second World War.

In addition to some locomotives which remained abroad after the war, both newly founded German railway administrations together received over 1,000 units, which were indispensable in the GDR in particular. While the last ones were phased out by the Bundesbahn in 1953, the Reichsbahn still had over 300 units in 1968 and only put the last ones out of service in 1976. Of particular note are the Rekoloks of the 58³⁰ series, which will be presented in a separate article. Although there was only a very moderate increase in power, the reconstructed engines had a large number of modern features and looked very similar to the standard locomotives.

The G 12¹ was created as a freight locomotive due to the fact that the weight of the trains had increased significantly in the years before the First World War and increased even more after the outbreak of the war. Contrary to what its name suggests, it formed the basis for the somewhat lighter G 12, which was subsequently built more than 1,000 times for many different railway administrations in Germany. After the G 11 built in Alsace-Lorraine, they were the second class in Germany with the wheel arrangement 2-10-0.

To increase power, they received an engine with three cylinders, which also had a beneficial effect on running characteristics. Due to the five coupled axles, a narrow firebox had to be used, which could be installed between the frames in order to be able to arrange the boiler in the usual low position. As a result, the grate was more than three meters long, which made feeding the coal evenly a big challenge for the fireman.

In addition to the 21 units for Prussia and 12 units for Alsace-Lorraine, Hartmann in Chemnitz also manufactured the XIII H for the Saxon State Railways, which were almost identical to the G 12¹. The difference was the greater weight, which at 101.1 tonnes exceeded the 100-tonne mark for the first time in a freight locomotive in Germany.

Despite its high power, production was discontinued in 1917 in favor of the G 12, which, with a slightly lower weight, was better suited for branch lines. Due to the delivery of some G 12¹ as reparations, the Reichsbahn only took over 15 units and gave them the numbers 58 001 to 58 015. 14 of the Saxon units could be taken over and were given the numbers 58 101 to 58 114. All the locomotives taken over were replaced by standard locomotives by the mid-1930s, but others came back from France during the Second World War. After the end of the war, these all ended up in the GDR and were decommissioned there by 1957 at the latest.

The Prussian State Railways designated various freight locomotives with 0-4-2 wheel arrangement as G 2, which had been procured by their predecessor railways. Some of them, also designated as G 2, were actually assigned to the G 3 and had the wheel arrangement 0-6-0, but the assignment of the generic designations was partly in the hands of the regional administrations. The first locomotives of this type were procured from 1888 by the Schleswig-Holstein Marsh Railway and were based on an older type from 1866. Due to the arrangement of the chassis, the middle axle was driven and the front axle was coupled, which due to the constellation of the driving and coupling rods earned them the designation “scissor locomotive”.

With a wheel diameter of more than 1,500 mm, the engines were faster than conventional freight locomotives, which is why they were sometimes used in front of passenger trains. The smaller wheels of the trailing axle resulted in the advantage that the firebox had enough space and the driver's cab could be made more spacious. In addition, the staff was able to enjoy smoother running because they were a little away from the driving axles. 

After the Marsh Railway was taken over by the state railways, the plans for a standard design were drawn up from these locomotives, which was subsequently ordered by various directorates in Prussia. A disadvantage of the trailing axle, which was moved far to the rear, was that it now carried a weight of 15 tonnes, while the coupled axles together only carried 22 tonnes.

Production was discontinued after a total of 45 engines, as these were soon no longer sufficient for freight trains. Since the locomotives, as already mentioned, were also used to pull passenger trains, some of them became P 2 or P 3 when the designations were standardized in 1905. Other locomotives were designated G 2, which actually would have been G 3s. At the Reichsbahn, the engines were no longer given new numbers, since all of them had already been retired by 1923.

The six-coupled G 3 was the standard freight locomotive of the Prussian State Railways for a long time, which resulted in a long building time and high quantities. They were preceded by a total of 285 engines of similar design of the predecessors of the state railway, which were later also designated as G 3. The state railway finally procured 2,068 locomotives of a standard type. The locomotives were designed to be relatively simple for versatility and easy maintenance. Although they were built according to the Prussian standard designs, they showed some differences depending on the year of construction and area of application.

Most machines had inside valve gear, but some were built with outside valve gear. The arrangement of the machinery on top of the boiler also changed over time. Some engines received a feedwater heater in the tender, but this did not catch on. To increase power, some locomotives were built with a boiler designed for a pressure of 12 bar. Eventually these were designated G 4¹ and built as a separate class. In 1886 the construction of the G 3 was stopped in Prussia in favor of this design.

In addition to the state railways, other machines also went to various railways in Prussia. From 1892, the Mecklenburg Friedrich-Franz-Eisenbahn also procured freight locomotives based on the plans of the G 3. They first referred to them as class IX, but from 1910 they also became the G 3.

The 1923 Reichsbahn renumbering plan contained 523 Prussian G 3, primarily from the later batches, which were to be given the numbers 53 7001 to 53 7522. Most of them were subsequently sorted out, so that finally 158 units actually made it to the Reichsbahn. Since the locomotives no longer met the increased requirements in line service and more suitable locomotives were available for shunting, the remaining machines were also retired by 1930.

Today there is only one machine left, which was first numbered “Cöln 1100” and later “Saarbrücken 3143”. It was preserved in the DB Museum in Nuremberg and today has the original livery.

From 1905, the class G 4¹ grouped together various freight locomotives with a 0-6-0 wheel arrangement, which had a boiler pressure of twelve bars and a simple two-cylinder engine. These were older machines of different types and manufacturers, some of which were a development of the locomotives now known as G 3.

A large part of the locomotives of this type were new constructions, which had been built between 1884 and 1901 according to Prussian standards. A total of 16 pieces came from the Hessian Ludwig Railway and had been built between 1872 and 1896. Another part was created by conversions in which a G 3 was converted to twelve bars boiler pressure. The latter received the designation G 4¹, but in terms of power they were on a par with the G 4 and could be interchanged with one another.

By raising the boiler pressure, a not inconsiderable increase in power was available without enlarging the cylinders, which led to a significantly higher tractive effort at the same speed. In addition, the weight was increased compared to their predecessors, but in most other respects they were very similar.

A total of 165 vehicles of the actual type G 4¹ were made. After the First World War, only four of them had to be handed over to Italy, so that 92 could be included in the Reichsbahn's 1923 renumbering plan. These should get the numbers 53 7601 to 53 7692, but two years later only 17 engines were remaining. These were also retired by 1930.

After gaining experiences with double steam expansion in Prussia with the two omnibus locomotives from 1880 onwards, the G 4¹ was developed into the first series-produced engine with a compound engine. The resulting G 4² was a complete success and not only achieved much higher sales figures than its predecessor, but could also be sold to other railways.

A typical problem for compound steam locomotives was the starting behavior, because the high and low pressure cylinders could only be flown through in one order with normal piping. Under these circumstances, a special starting device had to be developed with which the locomotives could start moving even if the wheels were in an unfavorable position. After solving this problem, the G 4² proved to be very economical, making it particularly suitable for longer runs with heavier freight trains and was mass-produced in large numbers. Since conventional simple locomotives were better able to hold their own on lines with multiple stops, the G 4¹ continued to be produced in smaller numbers.

780 examples were completed for the Prussian State Railways, which were later supplemented by more after acquisitions of private railways. These included the East Prussian Southern Railway, the Werra Railway and the Royal Prussian Military Railway. Larger numbers were also built for the Grand Duchy of Oldenburg State Railways and the Imperial Railways in Alsace-Lorraine, with numbers of 27 and 57 respectively. Other customers with smaller numbers were the Lübeck-Büchener Eisenbahn and the Mecklenburg Friedrich-Franz-Eisenbahn.

As with its sister model, an extraordinarily small number of only six had to be handed in as reparations after the World War, but their number was reduced very quickly in the following years. 295 were to be taken over by the Reichsbahn as numbers 53 001 to 53 295, but in 1925 only 24 were left. The last ones were decommissioned in 1930, if one disregards a few incorporations of railways that were taken over later.

The last link in the series of G 3 and G 4 six-coupleds without carrying axles was the G 4³, which had been developed with the aim of achieving a higher top speed. Like the G 5², it had a two-cylinder compound engine with similar cylinder dimensions. Although the diameter of the wheels was only increased by ten millimeters, the running characteristics were improved by changes to the chassis and power plant. A total of 63 units were completed by 1907, which was significantly fewer than the G 4².

Even at the time of their production, the locomotives were no longer able to cope with the loads of current freight trains in the more densely populated regions of Prussia. With a speed of now 60 km/h, however, they offered themselves for mixed service in the eastern parts of the country, where there were not such heavy loads to be moved and the speed was sufficient for passenger trains. The 3 T 10.5 and 3 T 12 tenders were also adequately dimensioned for this.

Nevertheless, the number of these locomotives that were not widely used fell quickly. Although only ten units had to be handed over to Poland after the First World War, the renumbering plan included only 39 units of the locomotives now known as the class 53³. 14 of these had already disappeared by the time they were actually renumbered in 1925. During the Second World War, three of the engines listed as Th4 in Poland came back to the Reichsbahn. Since the other G 5⁴s had already been decommissioned by the Reichsbahn at the end of the 1920s, these three were used for a short time with the different numbering from 53 7751 to 7753.