Georges Nagelmackers

Scion of a prominent Liège banking family, Nagelmackers traveled to the United States in 1867, observing George Pullman's early railway sleeping cars. Recognizing that Europe lacked cross-border sleeper connections across fragmented national railway systems, he secured royal patronage from King Leopold II.

In 1876, he founded the Wagons-Lits company. In October 1883, his flagship luxury train, the Orient Express, departed Paris for Constantinople (Istanbul) equipped with mahogany paneling, stained glass, crystal, and Michelin-star dining cars, becoming the enduring symbol of Belle Époque glamour and international diplomacy.