| City of Nottingham | |
|---|---|
| |
| Geography | |
| Status: | Unitary, City (1897) |
| Region: | East Midlands |
| Ceremonial County: | Nottinghamshire |
| Historic county: | Nottinghamshire |
| Area: - Total |
Ranked 274th 74.61 km² |
| Admin. HQ: | Nottingham |
| Grid ref.: | Template:Mmukpc prim |
| ONS code: | 00FY |
| Demographics | |
| Population: - Total (2022) - Density |
Ranked / km² |
| Ethnicity: | 84.9% White 6.5% S. Asian 4.3% Afro-Caribbean |
| Politics | |
| Arms of Nottingham City Council Nottingham City Council nottinghamcity.gov.uk | |
| Leadership: | Leader & Cabinet |
| Executive: | |
| MPs: | Graham Allen, John Heppell, Alan Simpson |
Nottingham is a city (and county town of Nottinghamshire) in the East Midlands of England. The centre of Nottingham lies on the River Leen and its southern boundary follows the course of the River Trent, which flows from Stoke to the Humber. Nottingham has an estimated city population of 275,100 with more than 700,000 in the surrounding conurbation (Greater Nottingham) according to the 2001 census. Nottingham is also one of the English regions eight core cities.
The heart of the city is the Old Market Square, which underwent a major redevelopment in 2006. Most of the main shopping streets are around the square. The Council House, whose disproportionately tall dome can be seen for miles around, is at the top of the square. The inside of the Council House is the Exchange Arcade, a Shopping Mall. A bohemian quarter of the city known as Hockley has arisen in recent years, situated close to the Lace Market area.
History
The first evidence of settlement dates from pre-Roman times, and it is clear that the Romans also lived in the area.
An early name for Nottingham was "Tigguo Cobauc" which means "a place of cavy dwellings." Founded by Anglo-Saxon invaders after 600 AD, parts of the settlement have included man-made caves, dug into soft sandstone. The Saxons were led by a chieftain named Snot. Snot brought together his people in an area where the historic Lace Market in the City can now be found. The place was called "Snotingaham" —literally, "the home of Snot's people" (Inga = the people of; Ham = home). As with many place names throughout England, the word has since been modified to "Nottingham".
Nottingham was later captured by the Danes (Vikings) and in the 9th century became one of the five boroughs (fortified towns) of the Danelaw.
In the 11th century a castle was constructed on a sandstone outcrop by the River Trent. The Anglo-Saxon settlement on the hill now occupied by the Lace Market around St. Mary's Church developed into the English Borough of Nottingham and housed its Town Hall and Courts. A settlement also developed around the castle on the hill opposite and was the French borough supporting the Normans in the Castle. Eventually, the space between was built on as the town grew and the Market Square became the focus of Nottingham several centuries later.
The town became a county corporate in 1449, giving it effective self-government, in the words of the charter, "for eternity".
The legend of Robin Hood first arose in the Middle Ages. Robin Hood is said to have lived in Sherwood Forest, to the north of the town, with the Sheriff of Nottingham as his greatest enemy. While the legends are almost certainly untrue, particularly in their details, they have had a major impact on Nottingham, with Robin Hood imagery a popular choice for local businesses and many modern tourist attractions exploiting the legend. The Robin Hood Statue in Nottingham is within walking distance from the Old Market Square.
No fewer than three pubs in Nottingham claim the title of England's Oldest Pub. The contenders for the crown are Ye Olde Trip To Jerusalem near the castle, The Bell on the Old Market Square, and The Salutation on Maid Marian Way. A recent television documentary tested the claimants and found that, while each has its own evidence, none can claim exclusivity. The Trip, while the oldest building and oldest location, was for most of its early life a brewery and not a public house. The Salutation sits on the oldest recognised public house site, but the current building is comparatively recent. The Bell, although not in such an antiquated location, does boast the oldest public house building.
Caves of Nottingham
The cave network was substantially expanded and became home to a large proportion of the poorer populace, particularly those involved in the tanning industry. The caves were gradually abandoned in the 18th and 19th centuries, but came into use again as air raid shelters during World War II. A section of the cave network under the Broadmarsh shopping centre is now open as a tourist attraction, and some parts are still used as pub cellars.
Another section of the caves, under the castle, is still in regular use as the indoor rifle range of Nottingham Rifle Club. Ye Olde Trip to Jerusalem Inn, partly built into the cave system below the castle and named for its role as a major meeting point for those going on the Crusades in the Middle Ages, lays claim to being the oldest pub in Britain. However, this is due mainly to the spurious date of 1189 painted on the side of the Inn, and the building itself only dates from the 16th or 17th century; the caves themselves may date to the 11th century and could have been the site of the brewhouse for the castle. Two other Nottingham pubs—Ye Olde Salutation Inn and the Bell Inn—both lay claim to being the oldest in Nottingham. Dendrochronology dating evidence from roof timbers in the Salutation give a date for the building of c.1420 with similar dates for the Bell. The roots of the multiple claims can be traced to various subtleties of definition in terms such as "public house" and "inn".
Famous People from Nottingham
Famous people born in or near Nottingham include William Booth, founder of The Salvation Army, William Lee inventor of the stocking frame, Jesse Boot founder of Boots the Chemists, mathematician George Green (of Green's Mill), authors Alan Sillitoe and D.H. Lawrence, the fashion designer Paul Smith, musicians the Stereo MCs, Ten Years After guitarist Alvin Lee, Deep Purple drummer Ian Paice and record producer Sandy Burnett, and the actors Richard Beckinsale, Samantha Morton, Su Pollard, Donald Pleasence, Olympic ice skating gold medalists Jayne Torvill and Christopher Dean. and Tommy Saxondale, the legendary pest controller. Stella Rimington, was educated at Nottingham High School became the first female head of MI5. The poet Lord Byron resided at Newstead Abbey and is buried at nearby Hucknall along with his mathematical daughter Ada Lovelace. The serial killer, Harold Shipman, was born and grew up in Nottingham. Finally, there are also the likes of Tottenham Hotspur midfielder Jermaine Jenas, Jermaine Pennant, a former Notts County player and now a Birmingham City first team player and Andy Cole. British musician and founder of Earache Records Digby "Dig" Pearson was born and raised in nottingham which is still the base of operations for the label in the UK.
Geography
Nottingham is located at 52°58′00″N 01°10′00″W / 52.96667°N 1.16667°W (52.9667,-1.1667)1.
The City of Nottingham boundaries are tightly drawn and exclude several suburbs and towns that are usually considered part of Greater Nottingham, including Arnold, Carlton, West Bridgford, Beeston and Stapleford. Outlying towns and villages include Hucknall, Eastwood, Tollerton, Ruddington, Ilkeston and Long Eaton of which the last two are in Derbyshire. The geographical area of Greater Nottingham includes several local authorities: Gedling, Broxtowe, Rushcliffe, Ashfield, Erewash and Amber Valley.
Education
Nottingham is home to two universities: the University of Nottingham and Nottingham Trent University as well as over 40,000 full-time students. The University of Nottingham's teaching hospital, Queen's Medical Centre, is the largest hospital in the UK. Nottingham Trent University is one of the country's new generation of trade schools.
Other notable educational institutions include the further education college New College Nottingham, Confetti Institute of Creative Technologies, Nottingham High School, Bilborough College, Nottingham High School for Girls,The Nottingham Bluecoat School and Technology College and Djanogly City Academy and Greenwood Dale Technology College.
The Nottingham School of Fashion is a fashion school respected around the country and produced the designer Paul Smith.
Industry
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Nottingham is home to the headquarters of many well known companies. One of the best known is Boots the Chemists, founded in the city by John Boot in 1849 and substantially expanded by his son Jesse Boot (Lord Trent).
Other large current employers include the credit reference agency Experian, the energy company Powergen, the tobacco company John Player & Sons betting company Gala Group, Siemens, high street opticians Vision Express, games and publishing company Games Workshop and the American Credit card company Capital One, whose European offices are situated by the side of Nottingham station. Nottingham is also the home of the Inland Revenue.
Until recently bicycle manufacturing was a major industry, the city being the birthplace of Raleigh Cycles in 1886 and later joined by Sturmey-Archer, the creator of 3-speed hub gears. However, Raleigh's factory on Triumph Road, famous as the location for the filming of Saturday Night and Sunday Morning, was demolished in Summer 2003 to make way for the University of Nottingham's expansion of Jubilee Campus.
Nottingham is also joint headquarters of Paul Smith, the high fashion house.
Many of the UKs railway ticket machines and platform departure boards run software written by Atos Origin in their offices in Nottingham. Other major industries in the city include engineering, textiles, knitwear and electronics.
Nottingham is progressively changing from an industrial city to one based largely in the service sector. Tourism—particularly from the United States and the Far East—is becoming an increasingly significant part of the local economy.
Economy
This is a chart of trend of regional gross value added of Nottingham at current basic prices published (pp.240-253) by Office for National Statistics with figures in millions of British Pounds Sterling.
| Year | Regional Gross Value AddedTemplate:Fn | AgricultureTemplate:Fn | IndustryTemplate:Fn | ServicesTemplate:Fn |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1995 | 4,149 | 2 | 1,292 | 2,855 |
| 2000 | 5,048 | 1 | 912 | 4,135 |
| 2003 | 5,796 | - | 967 | 4,828 |
Template:Fnb includes hunting and forestry
Template:Fnb includes energy and construction
Template:Fnb includes financial intermediation services indirectly measured
Template:Fnb Components may not sum to totals due to rounding
Transport
Nottingham is close to the M1 motorway and is also well-served by train services operated by Midland Mainline from Nottingham station to London. Other train operators also operate routes linking Nottingham around the country.
The nearby Nottingham East Midlands Airport, served by low-cost international airlines, makes the city easily accessible from other parts of the world providing daily services to many principal European destinations such as Paris, Frankfurt, Berlin, and Amsterdam, internal flights to Edinburgh and Belfast and limited services to trans-continental destinations such as Barbados, Mexico, Sanford and Florida. Nearby Robin Hood Airport Doncaster Sheffield also provides domestic European and Trans-Atlantic services. Birmingham International airport is about one hour's drive away, providing flights to most principal European cities, New York, Boston Toronto, Dubai and the Indian Sub-Continent.
Internally, the city has an extensive bus network. Nottingham City Transport (NCT) run frequent services every few minutes within all parts of the city area, and, along with trent barton, run services out of the city to the surrounding countryside and towns such as Mansfield, Southwell, Loughborough and Long Eaton.
Nottingham is bucking the national trend, as in the city bus use is growing while employment rates are rising [1]. This is a result of the city council, as well as the two principal operators, NCT and trent barton, making multi-million-pound investments in some of the newest fleets in the country. NCT was also the first transport operator in the UK to use RFID technology for its EasyRider bus passes, introduced in 2000. The two operators are also frequent winners of the National Bus Operator of the Year award.
The re-opening of the Robin Hood line in the early 1990s has linked Nottingham with its close neighbours of Kirkby-in-Ashfield, Sutton-in-Ashfield and Mansfield. Older lines still connect the city to Beeston, Burton Joyce, Netherfield and Carlton.
Nottingham also has a tram system known as Nottingham Express Transit opened in 2004, running from Hucknall in the north to the city's railway station. An additional spur to/from Phoenix Park serves as a Park and Ride Station close to the M1 motorway (Junction 26). Planned future lines will create a substantial tram network across the city and its western suburbs.
Culture
Nottingham has two main theatres, the Nottingham Playhouse and the Theatre Royal (which also houses the Royal Concert Hall). There are also several art galleries which often receive national attention, particularly the Nottingham Castle Museum and the Angel Row gallery (attached to the main library). Both of the city's universities also put on a wide range of plays, concerts, and other events throughout term time.
There is a growing classical music scene with long established groups such as the city's Symphony Orchestra, Philharmonic Orchestra, Harmonic Society, Bach Choir, Early Music Group Musica Donum Dei and the Symphonic Wind Orchestra giving regular performances in the city.
The annual Goose Fair is always popular, although in recent years this ancient festival has been marred by incidences of violent crime and other public order problems. More generally the city is regarded as having a diverse nightlife with many clubs and bars in the centre of town that are popular amongst both the local and student communities.
Nottingham won the Britain in Bloom competition, in the Large City category, in 1997, 2001 and 2003. It also won the Entente Florale Gold Award in 1998.
Nottingham is known for its large teenage alternative scene (Emo, Punk, Goth etc.), the heartland of which is Old Market Square which is currently being redeveloped, to their dismay. Another major hotspot is Rock City.
Tourism
Popular tourist attractions in Nottingham include Nottingham Castle, Caves of Nottingham, the Galleries of Justice, and the Tales of Robin Hood on Maid Marian Way, as well as the City's ancient pubs. There are a number of parks and gardens around Nottingham that are popular among tourists and residents. These include Wollaton Park (over 500 acres) near to the University Highland Park on the Nottingham University campus, Colwick Park, which includes the racecourse, and the Arboretum, Forest Recreation Ground and Victoria Park which are both in or close to the city centre. Sherwood Forest, Rufford Country Park, Creswell Crags and Clumber Park are further away from the city itself. A new park is being developed in the city at the Eastside development.
Entertainment
The National Ice Centre doubles as Nottingham Arena. Mainstream and popular bands play in the arena on tour. For less mainstream bands, and a generally more intimate atmosphere, there is an award-winning rock music venue called Rock City. Many other smaller venues dot the city, one being The Rescue Rooms, where even less mainstream bands often perform.
Nottingham has a great reputation for a lively pub and club scene.
In the 1980s, Nottingham was barely mentioned in the Good Food Guide; but now there are several restaurant entries and a range of cuisine reflecting the ethnic diversity of the city. The Nottingham Restaurant Awards play a leading role in promoting the industry.
The large number of students in the city bolsters the nighttime entertainment scene. There are several well established areas of the city centre for entertainment such as Lace Market, Hockley, The Waterfront and The Corner House.
Shopping
Nottingham is positioned 3rd in the shopping league in England, behind Birmingham and London but ahead of Manchester and Leeds. The approved £400 million Broadmarsh Shopping Centre redevelopment could change this all, moving Nottingham back to its 2nd spot in the retail area.
There are two main shopping centres in Nottingham: Victoria Centre and Broadmarsh with smaller centres being the The Exchange Arcade and the Flying Horse Walk (the latter once a famous hotel). The Bridlesmith Gate area has extensive designer shops, and is also the home of the original Paul Smith boutique. There are also various side streets and alleys that hide some interesting and often overlooked buildings and shops; Such as poultry walk, West end Arcade, hurts yard, exchange walk and numerous others, they have hairdressers, specialist music shops, art studios and spray paint shops, retro and second hand shops.
Many department stores also operate in Nottingham. It includes names such as House of Fraser, John Lewis, Debenhams, and Marks & Spencer. John Lewis was until recently called Jessops, even though owned by John Lewis since 1933. It changed its name in 2002 after a refurbishment. Hockley Village caters to alternative tastes with shops like Ice Nine and Void, famous across the city. The Broadmarsh Shopping Centre is set to be redeveloped to a greater standard in the near future.
Sport
Nottingham is home to two football teams: Nottingham Forest (currently in the Football League One) who under their most famous manager, the late Brian Clough, won the European Cup twice in succession; and Notts County (who play in the Football League Two) and who are the oldest Football League team in the UK, and indeed the world having been founded in 1862 (a year before the establishment of the Football Association). The Trent Bridge cricket ground, home of Nottinghamshire County Cricket Club, winners of the 2005 County Championship, is frequently a venue for international Test matches.
All three famous sports venues are within sight of each other even though the River Trent separates Trent Bridge and Forest's stadium (known as the City Ground and next to the cricket ground) from Notts County's pitch. As a curiousity the County Ground is actually in the City of Nottingham and the City Ground is in the County of Nottinghamshire the river forming the boundary. Further more, Forest should not be confused with The Forest which is an (open) green space where Goose Fair (see above) is held.
The National Ice Centre, a large ice skating rink; the city's links to ice skating can be traced back to arguably its most famous children of recent times, Olympic ice dancing champions Jayne Torvill and Christopher Dean who collected a unamious 6.0 score. The NIC is used as a training and competiton venue for Speed skating, sledge hockey and figure skating and receives an annual grant from bodies such as Sport England to maintain and fund these sports.
The NIC is the home of the Nottingham Panthers ice hockey club, founded in 1946 and currently one of the biggest and best supported clubs in the United Kingdom. There is a thriving junior ice hockey programme which is also based at the centre. Since 2001, Nottingham has been the host city of the annual ice hockey Play-Off Championship Finals weekend, which attracts fans from many different parts of the country.
The city's rugby union side, Nottingham R.F.C. are currently based in Beeston but are currently preparing a new venue in West Bridgford.
There is a large tennis centre, where the annual Samsung Open is held in the weeks immediately prior to Wimbledon and has been used as warm-up practice by Greg Rusedski.
The National Water Sports Centre is based at Holme Pierrepont, with a 2000m regatta lake for rowing, canoeing and sailing, and a white water slalom course fed from the river. A number of other sailing, rowing and canoeing clubs are also based along the River Trent, as is the boatbuilder Raymond Sims.
Every Year since 1981 Nottingham has played host to the 'Robin Hood Marathon' taking in many of the cities historic and scenic sights. The race is ran alongside a Half Marathon and a Fun Run among other events and is widely considered to be the second best Marathon in the UK.
Media
Television
The BBC has its East Midlands headquarters in Nottingham. BBC East Midlands Today is broadcast from the city every weeknight at 6:30. Central TV was broadcast from Nottingham on ITV until recently, but has now been moved to Birmingham. This decision was controversial and although a petition was set up to try to stop it, the TV studios where shut down in early 2005. Central News still keep a news bureau in the city, though. The former studios were purchased by the University of Nottingham to accommodate their administrative departments.
Radio
Nottingham is the home of 96 Trent FM, the most listened to commercial radio station in the county of Nottinghamshire. The building that houses 96 Trent FM is a converted Victorian Hospital which connects to the underground network of caves. Many famous presenters have been employed at 96 Trent FM (formerly Radio Trent), including Dale Winton, Kid Jensen, John Peters, Penny Smith, as well as being the home of Nottinghamshire's award winning Jo & Twiggy.
Several other radio stations broadcast in the city including BBC Radio Nottingham, and Heart 106 (formerly Century FM) are the main stations, along with Classic Gold GEM and student radio on AM. Heart 106 has its headquarters in the same business park as the BBC, while Trent FM's (and Classic Gold GEM's) building is on the other side of the Nottingham City Centre near to Nottingham castle.
Student Radio is broadcast in the city permanently by URN (University Radio Nottingham). URN has won many awards for quality and which is broadcast on medium wave (AM) around the main campus (University Park) at 1350 kHz and from Sutton Bonnigton campus on 1602 kHz. It is also streamed over the internet at www.urn1350.net
Newspapers
Nottingham has one daily newspaper, Nottingham Evening Post. There are also a number of weekly/monthly publications available which focus on individual areas within the city, for instance the Hucknall and Bulwell Dispatch.
A community news project called Nottinghamshire Indymedia, which was set up in April 2005, works within a variety of groups to create community media and collaboration between communities throughout the county. The Notts Indymedia Videogroup makes community film and at the centre of the project is an online news site, which is run on the principles of open publishing.
Religion
In Nottingham one can find places of worship for all the major world religions, including Islam, Hinduism, Sikhism and Taoism. The Synagogue on Shakespeare Street is particularly well appointed.
Nottingham is generally regarded as a cathedral city, due to the Roman Catholic Cathedral of St. Barnabas that is located on Derby Road. It was designed by the architect Augustus Welby Northmore Pugin, was consecrated in 1844 and is the cathedral church for the Roman Catholic Diocese of Nottingham which covers Derbyshire, Leicestershire, Nottinghamshire and Lincolnshire.
Nottingham's Anglicans fall under the Diocese of Southwell and Nottingham, based at Southwell Minster in Southwell. Nottingham has three historic parish churches all of which date back to medieval times. St. Mary the Virgin, in the Lace Market is the oldest foundation (dating from the eighth or ninth centuries) but the building is at least the third on the site dating from 1377 to 1485. St. Mary's is considered the mother church of the City and Civic Services are held here, including the welcome to the new Lord Mayor of Nottingham each year. St. Peter's in the heart of the city is the oldest building in continuous use in Nottingham with traces of building starting in 1180. St. Nicholas' was rebuilt after destruction in the Civil War.
Non-conformism was strong from the seventeenth century onwards and a variety of chapels and meeting rooms proliferated throughout the town. Sadly many of these grand buildings have been demolished, including Halifax Place Chapel, but some have been re-used, notably the Unitarian Chapel on High Pavement which is now a public house.
William Booth, the founder of the Salvation Army, was born in Nottingham in 1829.
Areas in the City of Nottingham
Areas of Nottingham outside of the City
- Arnold
- Beeston
- Carlton
- Chilwell
- Eastwood
- Hucknall
- Kimberley
- Long Eaton (Derbyshire)
- Ruddington
- Sandiacre (Derbyshire)
- Stapleford
- Toton
- West Bridgford
Twin cities
See also
- Nottingham Declaration on Climate Change
- Xylophone Man (famous busker in Nottingham)
External links
- Student guide to Nottingham
- URN, Student Radio for Nottingham
- this is nottingham
- globalnet.co.uk
- BBC Nottingham
- The Open Guide to Nottingham
- Nottingham Express Transit
- trent barton buses
- Nottingham City Transport
- Nottinghamshire Independent Media Centre
- Ye Olde Trip to Jerusalem Inn
- The Park Estate
- Nottingham Trent University
- New College Nottingham
- Nottingham High School
- Nottingham Playhouse
- Nottingham Theatre Royal and Concert Hall
- Nottinghamshire County Cricket Club
- History of Nottinghamshire
- The University of Nottingham
- Left Lion - Nottingham Culture
- Nottingham Web Resources - Nottingham directory and pictures
- Nottingham Inter Faith Council - linking local religious groups
- Weather For Nottingham
- Nottingham business guide
- Gig guide for Nottingham
- Mapperley Park Community Website
- Flickr Nottingham A blog maintained by members of the Nottingham Flickr Group showcasing local photography
- A Brief History of Nottingham From "Local and National Histories" by Tim Lambert
- Sky Mirror