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Coventry is a city and metropolitan borough in the county of West Midlands in England. With a population of 303,475 at the 2001 Census (306,000 est. 2007), Coventry is the 9th largest city in England and the 11th largest in the United Kingdom. It is also the second largest city after Birmingham in the English Midlands by population.
Coventry is situated 95 miles (153 km) northwest of London and 19 miles (30 km) east of Birmingham, and is notable for being further inland from the coast than any other city in Britain.
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Encyclopedia
Coventry is a city and metropolitan borough in the county of West Midlands in England. With a population of 303,475 at the 2001 Census (306,000 est. 2007), Coventry is the 9th largest city in England and the 11th largest in the United Kingdom. It is also the second largest city after Birmingham in the English Midlands by population.
Coventry is situated 95 miles (153 km) northwest of London and 19 miles (30 km) east of Birmingham, and is notable for being further inland from the coast than any other city in Britain. Although harbouring a population of almost a third of a million inhabitants, Coventry is not amongst the English Core Cities Group due to its proximity to Birmingham.
Coventry was also the world's first 'twin' city when it formed a twinning relationship with the Russian city of Stalingrad (now Volgograd) during World War II. The relationship developed through ordinary people in Coventry who wanted to show their support for the people of Stalingrad during the Battle of Stalingrad. The city was also subsequently twinned with Dresden, as a gesture of peace and reconciliation following World War II. Coventry is now twinned with 27 other cities around the world.
Coventry Cathedral is notable for being one of the newest cathedrals in the world, having been built following the World War II bombing of the ancient cathedral by the Luftwaffe. Coventry has since developed an international reputation as one of Europe's major cities of peace and reconciliation, centred around its Cathedral, and holds an annual Peace Month. Coventry is also notable because Coventry motor companies have contributed significantly to the British motor industry, and also because it has two universities, the city centre-based Coventry University and the University of Warwick on the southern outskirts. Coventry is also famous for the legendary 11th century exploits of Lady Godiva. Their football team is Coventry City F.C. who are in the Coca-Cola Championship and were founded in 1883.
History
Coventry is an ancient city, which predates a lot of the large cities around it including Birmingham and Leicester.
It is likely that Coventry grew from a settlement around the bronze period, settling near the town centre where Coventry's bowl shape and, at that time large flowing river and lakes, created the ideal settlement area, mild weather and heavily forested It would have provided food, water and shelter.
The Romans settling in Baginton founded another settlement and a further formed around a Saxon nunnery founded c. AD 700 by St. Osburga, that was later left in ruins by King Canute's invading Danish army in 1016. Leofric, Earl of Mercia and his wife Lady Godiva rebuilt on the remains of the nunnery to found a Benedictine monastery in 1043 dedicated to St. Mary. In time, a market was established at the abbey gates and the settlement expanded.
By the 14th century, Coventry had become an important centre of the cloth trade, and throughout the Middle Ages was one of the largest and most important cities in England. Coventry claimed the status of a city by ancient prescriptive usage, was granted a charter of incorporation in 1345, and in 1451 became a county in its own right.
Hostile attitudes of the cityfolk towards Royalist prisoners held in Coventry during the English Civil War are believed to have originated the phrase "sent to Coventry", which in Britain means "to be ostracised"; although their physical needs were catered for, the Royalist prisoners were literally never spoken to by anybody.
In the 18th and 19th centuries, Coventry became one of the three main UK centres of watch and clock manufacture and ranked alongside Prescot, near Liverpool and Clerkenwell in London. As the industry declined, due mainly to competition from Swiss made clock and watch manufacturers, the skilled pool of workers proved crucial to the setting up of bicycle manufacture and eventually the motorcycle, automobile, machine tool and aircraft industries.
In the late 19th century, Coventry became a major centre of bicycle manufacture, with the industry being pioneered by Rover. By the early 20th century, bicycle manufacture had evolved into motor manufacture, and Coventry became a major centre of the British motor industry. While over 100 different companies have produced motor vehicles in Coventry, car production came to an end in 2006 as the last car rolled off the lines at Peugeot's Ryton plant. Production was transferred to a new plant near Trnava, Slovakia, with the help of EU grant aid to Peugeot. This made Peugeot deeply unpopular in the city. The design headquarters of Jaguar cars is still in the city at Whitley, although their last plant at Browns Lane closed in 2004.
Coventry suffered severe bomb damage during World War II, most notoriously from a massive Nazi German Luftwaffe air raid (the "Coventry Blitz") on 14 November, 1940. This led to severe damage to large areas of the city centre and Coventry's historic cathedral was ravaged by firebombs leaving only a shell and the spire. Aside from London, Hull and Plymouth, Coventry suffered more damage than any other British city during the Luftwaffe attacks, with huge fires devastating most of the city centre. The city was targeted due to its high concentration of armaments, munitions, aircraft and aero-engine plants which contributed greatly to the British war effort. Following the raids, the majority of Coventry's historic buildings could not be saved as they were in ruinous states or were deemed unsafe for any future use, although several were later demolished simply to make way for modern developments.
In the postwar years Coventry was largely rebuilt under the general direction of the Gibson Plan, gaining a new pedestrianised shopping precinct (the first of its kind in Europe on such a scale) and in 1962 Sir Basil Spence's much-celebrated new St Michael's Cathedral (incorporating the world's largest tapestry) was consecrated. Its pre-fabricated steel spire was lowered into place by helicopter. In 1967, the Eagle Street Mosque opened as Coventry's first mosque.
Coventry's motor industry boomed during the 1950s and 1960s and Coventry enjoyed a 'golden age'. During this period the disposable income of Coventrians was one of the highest in the country and both the sports and the arts benefited. A new sports centre, with one of the few Olympic standard swimming pools in the UK, was constructed and Coventry City football club reached the First Division of English Football. The Belgrade Theatre was also constructed along with the Herbert Art Gallery. The 1970s, however, saw a decline in the British motor industry and Coventry suffered badly. By the early 1980s, Coventry had one of the highest unemployment rates in the country. In recent years, the city has recovered with newer industries locating there, although the motor industry continues to decline. As of 2008, only one motor manufacturing plant remained operational, that of LTI Ltd, producing the popular TX4 taxi cabs.
City boundaries
Unlike other major UK cities, Coventry does not have an extensive 'greater' urban area. This is partly because the city boundaries were drawn so as to include practically all of its suburbs, and partly because Coventry has comparatively little in the way of contiguous satellite towns and dormitory settlements.
The M6 motorway directly to the north of Coventry acts as an artificial boundary which precludes expansion into the Bedworth-Nuneaton urban area, as does the protected West Midlands Green Belt which surrounds the city on all sides. This has circumvented the expansion of the city into both the administrative county of Warwickshire and the metropolitan borough of Solihull, and has helped to prevent the coalescence of the city with surrounding settlements such as Kenilworth, Leamington Spa, Warwick, Rugby, Meriden and Balsall Common.
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Places of interest
St. Michael's Cathedral is Coventry's best-known landmark and visitor attraction. The original 14th century cathedral was largely destroyed by German bombing during World War II, leaving only the outer walls and spire. At the time of the bombing, the Spire of St. Michael's was the third tallest in Britain, Ely and Salford cathedrals being taller. Due to the architectural design (it was the tallest standing spire and not constructed as part of the roof, as is the case with the neighbouring Holy Trinity Church), it survived the destruction of the main Cathedral. The new Coventry Cathedral was opened in 1962 next to the ruins of the old. It was designed by Sir Basil Spence. The cathedral contains the tapestry Christ in Glory by Graham Sutherland. The bronze statue St Michael's Victory over the Devil by Jacob Epstein is mounted on the exterior of the new cathedral near the entrance. Benjamin Britten's War Requiem, regarded by some as his masterpiece, was written for the opening of the new Cathedral.
The spire of the ruined cathedral forms one of the Three Spires which have dominated the city skyline since the 14th century, the others being those of Christ Church (of which only the spire survives) and Holy Trinity Church (which is still in use).
Another major visitor attraction in Coventry city centre is the free-to-enter Coventry Transport Museum, which has the largest collection of British-made road vehicles in the world. The most notable exhibits are the world speed record-breaking cars, Thrust2 and ThrustSSC. The museum received a major refurbishment in 2004 which included the creation of a striking new entrance as part of the city's Phoenix Initiative project. The revamp saw the museum exceed its projected five-year visitor numbers within the first year alone, and it was a finalist for the 2005 Gulbenkian Prize.
The Herbert Art Gallery and Museum is a major art gallery in the city centre. About four miles from the city centre and just outside Coventry in Baginton is the Lunt Fort, a reconstructed Roman fort. The Midland Air Museum is situated just within the perimeter of Coventry on land adjacent to Coventry Airport and near Baginton.
Coventry was one of the main centres of watchmaking during the 18th and 19th centuries and as the industry declined the skilled workers were key to setting up the cycle trade. A group of local enthusiasts are in the process of setting up a museum in Spon Street.
The city's main police station in Little Park Street also hosts a museum of Coventry's Police Force. The museum, based underground, is split into two sections - one representing the history of the city's police force, and the other compiling some of the more unusual, interesting and grisly cases from the force's history. The museum is funded from charity donations - viewings can be made by appointment.
Major improvements continue to regenerate the city centre. The Phoenix Initiative reached the final shortlist for the 2004 RIBA Stirling Prize and has now won a total of 16 separate awards. Further major developments are potentially afoot, particularly the Swanswell Project, which is intended to deepen Swanswell Pool and link it to Coventry Canal Basin, coupled with the creation of an urban marina and a wide Parisian-style boulevard. A possible second phase of the Phoenix Initiative is also in the offing, although both of these plans are still on the drawing-board. The redevelopment of the Belgrade Theatre is currently in progress, and the building of IKEA's first city centre multi-storey store has recently been completed and was opened to the public on 16 December 2007.
Coventry City Football Club have recently started playing at their new home, the Ricoh Arena, a 32,500 capacity stadium in Foleshill in north Coventry, and their football academy is now based at The Alan Higgs Centre, a leisure centre in south-east Coventry opened in 2004. The Highfield Road stadium has been demolished making way for new housing and a small green.
Coventry City Farm was a small farm in an urban setting. It is mainly to educate city children who might not get out to the countryside very often. The farm closed in 2008 due to funding problems.
The River Sherbourne runs under Coventry's city centre; the river was paved over during the rebuilding after World War II and is not commonly known. When the new rebuild of Coventry city centre takes place 2009 onwards, it is planned that river will be re-opened, and a river walk way will be placed along side it in parts of the city centre.
Education
Coventry has two universities; Coventry University is situated on a modern city centre campus and the University of Warwick, which lies 5.5 km (3.5 miles) to the south of the city centre within Coventry near the border with Warwickshire. The University of Warwick is one of only five universities never to have been rated outside the top ten in terms of teaching excellence and research and is a member of the prestigious Russell Group. It won the BBC TV University Challenge trophy in April 2007. Coventry University is one of only a handful of universities to run a vehicle design degree course that is second only to the Royal College of Art course in prestige.
Coventry also has three further education colleges within city boundaries, City College, Henley College and Hereward College.
Many of the secondary schools in and around Coventry are specialist colleges, such as Finham Park School, which is a Mathematics and IT college, a teacher training school and the only school in Coventry to offer studying the International Baccalaureate, and Coventry Blue Coat Church of England School which has recently become a specialist college of Music, one of only a few in the country. Bishop Ullathorne RC School became a specialist college in Humanities in 2006. Woodlands School in Coventry is now also a sports college, which has a newly built sport centre. Ernesford Grange School, in the South East, is a specialist science college. Coundon Court School is a Technology college. Pattison College, a private school opened in 1949, specialises in the performing arts. There is also Caludon Castle School, a business and enterprise school, which has been rebuilt over 2005-2007. Exhall Grange School and Science College is in the North of the City, although, its catchment area is north Warwickshire. There is also Cardinal Newman Catholic School and specialist arts college.
The Coventry School Foundation comprises the independent schools King Henry VIII School and Bablake School together with Coventry Preparatory School.
The Woodlands School, which is an all-boys' school, and Tile Hill Wood School are the only single-sex schools left in Coventry. However, their sixth forms have merged to form the "West Coventry 6th Form", whose lessons take place in mixed classes on both sites.
Arts and culture
- During the early 19th century, Coventry was well-known due to author George Eliot who was born near Nuneaton. The city was the model for her famous novel Middlemarch (1871).
- The Coventry Carol is named after the city of Coventry. It was a carol performed in the play The Pageant of The Shearman and Tailors, written in the 15th century as one of the Coventry Cycle Mystery Plays. These plays depicted the nativity story, the lyrics of the Coventry Carol referring to the Annunciation to the Massacre of the Innocents, which was the basis of the Pageant of the Shearmen and Tailors. These plays were traditionally performed on the steps of the (old) Cathedral, and the plays are believed to have been performed for both Richard III in 1484 and Henry VII in 1584.
- The Belgrade Theatre was Britain's first purpose-built civic theatre, opened in 1958. In 1965 the world's first Theatre-in-Education (TiE) company was formed to develop theatre as a way of inspiring learning in schools. The TiE movement spread worldwide, but many UK companies were closed in the 1980s and 1990s, including the Belgrade TiE company which was closed by the theatre's management and the city council in 1996.
- During the late-1970s and early-1980s, Coventry was the centre of the Two Tone musical phenomenon, with bands such as The Specials and The Selecter coming from the city, spawning several major hit singles and albums. The Specials achieved two UK #1 hit singles between 19791981, namely "Too Much Too Young" and "Ghost Town". Notable singles by The Selecter included "On My Radio" and "Three Minute Hero".
- Today Coventry is recognised for its range of music events including one of the UK's foremost international jazz programmes, The Coventry Jazz Festival, and the award-winning Godiva Festival. On the Saturday of the Godiva Festival, a carnival parade also starts in the city centre and makes its way to the War Memorial Park where the festival is held.
- In the film The Italian Job, the famous scene of Mini Coopers being driven at speed through Turin's sewers was actually filmed in Coventry, using what were then the country's biggest sewer pipes, that were accessible because they were being installed. More recently various locations in Coventry have been used in the BAFTA nominated film "Bouncer" starring Ray Winstone, All in the Game, also starring Ray Winstone (Ricoh Arena), the medical TV series Angels (Walsgrave Hospital), the BBC sitcom Keeping Up Appearances (Stoke Aldermoor and Binley Woods districts) and in August 2006 scenes from "The Shakespeare Code", an episode of the third series of Doctor Who, were filmed in the grounds of Ford's Hospital.
Venues
Theatre, art and music venues in Coventry include:
- The Warwick Arts Centre: situated at the University of Warwick, Warwick Arts Centre includes an art gallery, a theatre, a concert hall and a cinema. It is the second largest arts centre in the UK, after London's Barbican.
- The College Theatre: the city's main community theatre, housed at the Butts Centre of City College Coventry. It's a fully functioning theatre with flying scenery, full sound and lighting boxes.
- The Belgrade Theatre: one of the largest producing theatres in Britain, the 866 seat Belgrade was the first civic theatre to be opened in the UK following World War II.
- Also currently being built is the Belgrade Plaza.
- The Ricoh Arena: located 5.5 km (3.5 miles) north of the city centre, the 32,000 capacity Coventry City FC stadium is also used to hold major rock concerts for some of the world's biggest acts, including the Red Hot Chili Peppers and Bon Jovi. The adjacent Ricoh Exhibition Hall is a 6,000-seater events venue for hosting a multitude of other acts.
- The SkyDome Arena, which is a 3000 capacity sports auditorium, and has played host to artists such as Girls Aloud, Paul Oakenfold, Judge Jules and Paul Morrell. It is the home ground for Coventry Blaze ice hockey club, and has also hosted professional wrestling events such as International Showdown.
- The War Memorial Park, which holds various festivals including the Godiva Festival, every year.
- The Butts Park Arena, home of Coventry Rugby Football Club, holds music concerts occasionally.
- The Kasbah Nightclub, Hillfields. It was renamed after refurbishment in 2007, but is still often referred to by its old name, 'Colosseum'.
- The Criterion Theatre, a small theatre, in Earlsdon.
Sport
Sporting teams include :
Coventry City (football) ; Coventry Bees (speedway) ; Coventry Rugby Club (Rugby Union) ; Coventry Bears (rugby league) ; Coventry Godiva Harriers (athletics) ; Coventry Crusaders (basketball) ; Coventry Cassidy Jets (American football) ; Coventry Sphinx (football) ; Coventry Copsewood (football) ; City of Coventry Swimming Club (swimming) ; Coventry Blaze (ice hockey) ; Four Masters GAA Club (Gaelic football)
In football, Coventry City have been in existence since the late 19th century, but did not reach the top flight of the Football League until 1967, when they were promoted as Second Division champions. Their highest league position so far is sixth place in the First Division in 1970, and their only major trophy to date is the FA Cup which was won in 1987 with a 3-2 win over Tottenham Hotspur at Wembley. Coventry were founder members of the Premier League in 1992, but currently play in the Football League Championship (formerly Division One) where they have been since 2001, following relegation after 34 successive seasons of top division football. Their current stadium is the Ricoh Arena, which opened at Foleshill in the north of the city in 2005, replacing 106-year-old Highfield Road to the east of the city centre. Notable former players include Willie Carr, Dion Dublin, Gerry Francis, Kevin Gallacher, Terry Gibson, Mark Hateley, Tommy Hutchison, Robbie Keane, Reg Matthews, Steve Ogrizovic, Colin Stein and Terry Yorath.. Notable former managers include Jimmy Hill, Noel Cantwell, Dave Sexton, John Sillett, Bobby Gould, Phil Neal, Ron Atkinson, Gordon Strachan, Peter Reid, Gary McAllister and Micky Adams.
The Coventry Bees are based at Coventry Stadium (formerly Brandon Stadium) to the east of the city. The stadium has operated both sides of World War II. The Bees started in 1948 and have operated continuously ever since. They started out in the National League Division three before moving up to the Second Division and, later to the top flight. They have operated at this level ever since. Amongst the top speedway riders who have represented Coventry teams are Tom Farndon, Jack Parker, Nigel Boocock, Kelvin Tatum, Chris Harris and three World Champions, Ole Olsen, Hans Nielsen and Jack Young. Between 1998 and 2000, Coventry hosted the Speedway Grand Prix of Great Britain at Brandon Stadium.
Before World War II speedway operated at Foleshill Stadium, off Lythalls Lane in the City and was the base for the pre-war Coventry teams.
In 2003, Coventry Blaze won the British National League and Playoffs.
Coventry Bears are the major rugby league team in the city now playing in the Rugby League Conference. In 2002 they won the Rugby League Conference, and took the step up to the national leagues, in 2004 they won the National Division 3 title and have appeared in the Challenge Cup.
2005 was a good year for sport in Coventry. Not only did it become the first city in the UK to host the International Children's Games, but three of the city sports team won significant honours. The Blaze won the treble consisting of Elite League, playoff and Challenge Cup, the Jets won the BAFL Division 2 championship and were undefeated all season, while the Bees won the Elite League playoffs.
In 2007, the Bees won the domestic speedway treble of Elite League, Knock-out Cup and Craven Shield, whilst Chris Harris won both the Speedway Grand Prix of Great Britain and the British Championship. Coventry Blaze won the Elite League and the British Challenge cup and narrowly missed out on the treble by losing in the semi-finals of the playoffs.
The Bees retained the Craven Shield in 2008.
Famous Coventrians
Arguably Coventry's most famous resident was Lady Godiva who, according to legend, rode through the city naked on horseback in protest at high taxes being waged on the cityfolk by her husband Leofric, Earl of Mercia. According to the legend the residents of the city were commanded to look away as she rode, but one man didn't and was allegedly struck blind. He became known as Peeping Tom thus originating a new idiom, or metonym, in English. There is a statue of her in the city centre, which for 18 years had been underneath a much-maligned Cathedral Lanes shopping centre canopy (see right). There is also a bust of Peeping Tom looking out from a bridge that crosses one branch of the shopping precinct.
Other famous people from Coventry include speedway star Tom Farndon, swimmer Graham Sykes, who won gold at the 1962 Commonwealth Games, Sir Frank Whittle, the inventor of the jet engine, the poet and novelist Philip Larkin C.H., C.B.E.,, the noted trade union organiser Tom Mann, the actors Sir Nigel Hawthorne and Clive Owen, the pioneering electronic composer Delia Derbyshire, the broadcaster Brian Matthew, the record producer Pete Waterman O.B.E., the athlete and former 5,000m world-record holder David Moorcroft O.B.E., Finlay prize winner Anna Aiken, (1993), England International goalkeeper Reg Matthews, Ian Bell M.B.E., the Ashes winning cricketer and the 2003 Rugby Union World Cup winners Neil Back and Danny Grewcock, England Rugby Union internationals David Duckham M.B.E. and Geoff Evans, former England boxing captain and European champion Errol Christie, author Lee Child, the Cyborg Scientist Kevin Warwick, Jerry Dammers, writer of the song "Free Nelson Mandela" and the driving-force behind The Specials, Terry Hall, lead singer with The Specials, Fun Boy Three and The Colourfield (and a celebrated solo artist in his own right), Clive Scott and Barrie Bernard who were members of the band Jigsaw, Hazel O'Connor, a rock singer of the 1980s-1990s, Paul King (lead singer of the mid-80s band King), Clint Mansell (lead singer of the 1990s indie band Pop Will Eat Itself), Julianne Regan (lead singer of the 80s-90s band All About Eve), Jason John (aka Jason Herbert) of the 1990s boy band Big Fun, Julian Little, Radio Presenter & D J/Producer (Portamento/RAW) was born in Coventry, Lee Dorrian, (a former member of Napalm Death and later Cathedral - both well-known bands in the grindcore / death metal and doom metal scenes respectively), and Bolt Thrower, (another band well-known in the death metal scene). Roy Allbrighton, the lead guitarist and vocalist from Prog Rock group Nektar, who have been recording and touring since the early 1970s and are still popular in the US and Europe, is from Coventry.
In the 19th century, the inventor James Starley and his nephew J.K. Starley lived in the city, and were both instrumental in the development of the bicycle, and for starting the British bicycle industry. J.K. Starley was also responsible for founding Rover. A statue near Warwick Row commemorates James Starley.
The politician Mo Mowlam who was Secretary of State for Northern Ireland spent part of her youth in Coventry. Joseph Paxton, the architect of the Crystal Palace, was a Member of Parliament for the city from 1854 to 1865.
Two Tone ska bands The Specials and The Selecter are both from Coventry one of The Specials' best known hits, Ghost Town is often thought to be written about the city. Other bands from the city which found success include The Primitives, Fun Boy Three, The Colourfield, King, Jigsaw, The Sorrows and The Flys. More recently, indie-band The Enemy, hailing from the suburb of Holbrooks, succeeded in reaching No.1 in the UK album charts with their debut We'll Live & Die In These Towns in July 2007.
2004 Olympics 4x100m relay gold medallist Marlon Devonish is also from Coventry, and in November of the same year he was awarded with an MBE. He also appeared at the opening ceremony of the International Children's Games held in 2005.
Nick Skelton is a Show Jumping World Cup champion who has jumped for the Great Britain team on 152 occasions.
Sky Sports presenter Richard Keys has presented more than 1,000 football matches making him British television's most presented anchorman.
West End theatre producer and entertainment entrepreneur Dominic Madden was responsible for the re-development of the Elephant and Castle theatre into The Coronet music venue.
Jen Ledger drummer with Christian band Skillet was born in Coventry.
Coventry is also home to Rajinder Rai more commonly known as Panjabi MC who came to become famous with his smash hit single Mundian To Bach Ke or in English, Beware of the Boys (Knight Rider remix) and also with the German underground dance floor filler Jogi. Other notable Bhangra stars that reside in Coventry are The Specialist known for his ground breaking album Word is Born and Repazent as a collaboration with Tru Skool. Another known Bhangra artist amongst the British Asian community is Silinder Pardesi.
The city's list of more infamous individuals includes:
- Porn star Debee Ashby, who achieved notoriety during 1983 when she appeared nude with her mother in an adult magazine.
- Nazi Colin Jordan who led the National Socialist Movement during the 1960s.
- Zain Ali who assisted Nazi Colin Jordan in the SS Movement of the 1960s.
Economy
This is a chart of trend of regional gross value added of Coventry at current basic prices by Office for National Statistics with figures in millions of British Pounds Sterling:
| Year | Regional Gross Value Added 1 | Agriculture 2 | Industry 3 | Services 4 |
|---|
| 1995 | 3,407 | 3 | 1,530 | 1,874 | | 2000 | 4,590 | 3 | 1,873 | 2,714 | | 2003 | 5,103 | 2 | 1,529 | 3,572 |
Notes:
- Components may not sum to totals due to rounding
- Includes hunting and forestry
- Includes energy and construction
- Includes financial intermediation services indirectly measured
Coventry has long been a centre of motor and cycle manufacturing, dating from 1896. Starting out with some less familiar names such as Coventry Motette, Great Horseless Carriage Co, Swift Motor Company and more familiar names like Humber, Riley, Francis-Barnett and Daimler and the Triumph motorcycle having its origins in 1902 in a Coventry factory. The Massey-Ferguson tractor factory was situated on Banner Lane, Tile Hill, until it closed in the late 1990s. Although the motor industry has declined almost to the point of extinction, the Jaguar
company has retained its corporate and research headquarters in the city (at Allesley and Whitley), and Peugeot still have a large parts centre in Humber Road. The famous London black cab taxis are produced in Coventry by LTI and these are now the only vehicles still wholly built in Coventry.
The manufacture of machine tools was once a major industry in Coventry. The Alfred Herbert company became one of the largest machine tool companies in the world. Unfortunately in later years the company faced tough competition from foreign machine tool builders and ceased trading in 1983. Another famous Coventry machine tool manufacturer was the A.C.Wickman company. The last Coventry machine tool manufacturer was Matrix Churchill which was forced to close in the wake of the Iraqi Supergun scandal. It had been owned by the Saddam Hussein government, via front companies, and closed amidst much controversy and bad feeling.
Coventry's main industries include: cars, electronic equipment, machine tools, agricultural machinery, man-made fibres, aerospace components and telecommunications equipment. In recent years, the city has moved away from manufacturing industries towards business services, finance, research, design and development, creative industries as well as logistics and leisure.
Transport
Coventry is near the M6, M69, M45 and M40 motorways. It is also served by the A45 and A46 dual carriageways. Coventry has a much used inner ring road opened in the 1960s (approx.). Phoenix Way, a dual carriageway running north south opened 1998 (approx.), has improved traffic flows through the city.
For rail, Coventry railway station is served by the West Coast Main Line, and has regular rail services between London and Birmingham (and stations beyond). It is also served by railway lines to Nuneaton via Bedworth. There is a line linking it to Leamington Spa and onwards to the south coast. Coventry also has two Suburban Rail stations in Canley and in Tile Hill.
Bus service operators in Coventry include National Express Coventry, Travel De Courcey and Stagecoach in Warwickshire. Pool Meadow Bus Station is the main bus and coach interchange in the city centre.
The nearest major airports are Birmingham International Airport, some 17 km (11 miles) to the west of the city and Coventry Airport in Baginton, located 8 km (5 miles) south of the city centre.
The Coventry Canal terminates near the city centre at Coventry Canal Basin and is navigable for 61 km (38 miles) to Fradley Junction in Staffordshire.
Waste management
Coventry has a large incineration plant which burns rubbish from both Coventry and Solihull and in the process produces electricity for the National Grid and some hot water that is used locally. In addition, some rubbish is still put into landfill.
Coventry City Council is assisting recycling as part of their waste management strategy in line with national trends:
- many areas of Coventry have kerb-side paper recycling and garden-green rubbish collection.
- a wide range of waste materials can be taken by car to the recycling depot, which is adjacent to the incineration unit.
- there are many recycling points throughout the City for paper, glass recycling and metal / tin can recycling.
In October 2006, Coventry City Council signed the Nottingham Declaration, joining 130 other UK councils in committing to reduce the greenhouse gas emissions of the council and to help the local community do the same.
Politics
Traditionally a part of Warwickshire (although it was a county in its own right for 400 years), Coventry became an independent county borough in 1889. It later became a metropolitan district of the West Midlands county under the Local Government Act (1974), even though it was entirely separate to the Birmingham conurbation area (this is why Coventry appears to unnaturally "jut out" into Warwickshire on political maps of the UK). In 1986, the West Midlands County Council was abolished and Coventry became administered as an effective unitary authority in its own right.
Coventry is still strongly associated with its traditional county, Warwickshire. This may be because of its geographical location, forming a large protrusion into the county.
Coventry is administered by Coventry City Council. The city is divided up into 18 Wards each with three councillors. Coventry had long been considered a stronghold or source of safe seats for the Labour Party. The city council was for years described as a "one party state", but has been Conservative-controlled since the local elections on May 4, 2006 (although the Conservative group held the administration on the casting vote of the Lord Mayor since June 2004). A notable politician serving with Coventry City Council is former Militant Tendency Labour MP Dave Nellist who now represents the Socialist Party (England and Wales).
The leader of the controlling Conservative group is Ken Taylor, who has held the post of Leader of the Council since 2004. The leader of the opposition Labour group is John Mutton.
Certain local services are provided by West Midlands wide agencies including the West Midlands Police, the West Midlands Fire Service and the West Midlands Passenger Transport Executive (Centro) which is responsible for public transport.
In 2006, Coventry and Warwickshire Ambulance Service was merged with the West Midlands Ambulance Service. The Warwickshire and Northamptonshire Air Ambulance service is based at Coventry Airport in Baginton.
Coventry is represented in Parliament by three MPs all of whom are Labour. These are:
At the Annual Meeting of the City Council on May 17, 2007, Councillor Dave Batten was elected as the new Lord Mayor of Coventry. Councillor Batten has been a Labour councillor for 16 years representing the Westwood Ward. Councillor Batten's wife, Lyn, is Lady Mayoress. The Deputy Lord Mayor is Councillor Andy Matchet. He has been a Conservative councillor in Earlsdon since 1999.
The Bishop of Coventry since April 1998 has been the Rt Revd. Colin Bennetts, who retired from the post on December 1, 2007. The Reverend Canon Dr Christopher Cocksworth was nominated Bishop of Coventry on March 3, 2008.
Demographics
Similar to most major British cities, Coventry has a fairly large ethnic minority population, non-indigenous making up 25.2% of the population as of 2006 estimates. The breakdown of the ethnic minority population is not typical, the Sikhs are the largest non-Christian religion, there are significant numbers of other South Asians but the black population is just above average at 3.1%. The ethnic minority population is mainly concentrated in the Foleshill ward and the St. Michael's ward. The indigenous population makes up 74.8% of the population, White Irish people make up 2.8%, and Other White people make up 2.9%. 8.2% of the city's population is Indian, 2.2% Pakistani, 0.8% Other South Asian, 0.7% Bangladeshi. 1.7% of people are Black African, 1.2% Black Caribbean, 0.2% Other Black. People belonging to two or more races make up 2.1% of the population, the Chinese make up 1.5% and Others (mainly Orientals) make up the remaining 0.9%.
Year and Current Total Population
- 1801 - 21,853
- 1851 - 48,120
- 1901 - 88,107
- 1911 - 117,958
- 1921 - 144,197
- 1931 - 176,303
- 1941 - 214,380
- 1951 - 260,685
- 1961 - 296,016
- 1971 - 336,136
- 1981 - 310,223
- 1991 - 305,342
- 2001 - 300,844
- 2007 - 306,700
Closest cities, towns and villages
Cities (within 80 km/50 miles)
Towns (within 32 km/20 miles)
Villages
- Baginton, about 4 miles south
- Neal's Green/Ash Green - about 4 miles north
- Burton Green, about 4 miles west
- Binley Woods, about 5 miles southeast
- Stoneleigh, 5 miles south
- Ryton-on-Dunsmore, about 5.5 miles southeast
- Hawkesbury, about 5.5 miles north
- Ansty, about 6 miles north east
- Corley, about 6 miles northwest
- Bulkington, about 6 miles northeast
- Brandon, about 6 miles southeast
- Shilton, about 7 miles northheast
- Berkswell, about 7 miles west
- Balsall Common, about 7 miles west
- Fillongley, about 7 miles north
- Wolston, about 7 miles southeast
- Brinklow, about 7 miles east
- Bubbenhall, about 7 miles southeast
- Meriden, about 8 miles west
- Bramcote, about 8 miles northeast
- Princethorpe, about 10 miles southeast
- Stretton-on-Dunsmore, about 10 miles southeast
- Wolvey, about 10 miles northeast
Coventry is approximately latitudinal with the towns of Aberystwyth (West Wales), Kettering (Northamptonshire), Diss (Norfolk) and Ely (Cambridgeshire).
Postcodes
Postal districts CV1 to CV6 inclusive cover the city of Coventry and its immediate suburbs. Postal districts CV7 to CV47 cover almost all of the surrounding administrative county of Warwickshire, with the exception of those areas around Coleshill, Polesworth, Alcester and Studley in western Warwickshire, which have Birmingham (B) postcodes instead.
Twin cities
Coventry was the first city to "twin" with another city (Volgograd, Russia) and hence began the now common worldwide practice of twinning. It continued after World War II when Coventry twinned with Dresden as an act of peace and reconciliation, both cities having been very heavily bombed during the war. Each twin city country is represented in a specific ward of the city and in each ward has a peace garden dedicated to that twin city.
Coventry is now twinned with 26 places across the world:
Honours
A minor planet 3009 Coventry discovered by Soviet astronomer Nikolai Stepanovich Chernykh in 1973 is named after the city.
2008 bomb scare
On 12 March 2008 an unexploded World War II Luftwaffe bomb was discovered at 12 noon on a building site in Coventry's city centre, a British Army bomb disposal unit was called in and subsequently called in experts from Cambridge. A controlled explosion was conducted at approximately 02:40 GMT on the morning of March 13.
At first areas in close range of the bomb were evacuated (including a school and a hospital), however, as the day progressed larger parts of the city were closed off. Later, a cordon of 500 metres was enforced. The event attracted mass media coverage throughout the West Midlands region.
See also
Further reading
- Albert Smith and David Fry: (1991). The Coventry We Have Lost. Vol 1. Simanda Press, Berkswell. ISBN 0-9513867-1-9
- Albert Smith and David Fry: (1993). The Coventry We Have Lost. Vol 2. Simanda Press, Berkswell. ISBN 0-9513867-2-7
External links
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