Tamworth
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- This article describes Tamworth, Staffordshire in England. Tamworth is also the name of other cities and towns: Tamworth, New South Wales in Australia and Tamworth, New Hampshire and Tamworth, Virginia in the USA.
Borough of Tamworth | |
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Missing image StaffordshireTamworth.png Tamworth Shown within Staffordshire | |
Geography | |
Status: | Borough |
Region: | West Midlands |
Admin. County: | Staffordshire |
Area: - Total | Ranked 336th 30.85 km² |
Admin. HQ: | Tamworth |
ONS code: | 41UK |
Demographics | |
Population: - Total (2003 est.) - Density | Ranked 306th 74,118 2,403 / km² |
Ethnicity: | 98.1% White |
Politics | |
Tamworth Borough Council http://www.tamworth.gov.uk/ | |
Leadership: | Leader & Cabinet |
Executive: | Conservative |
MP: | Brian Jenkins |
Template:GBmap Tamworth is a historic town and local government district in Staffordshire England, located 17 miles (25km) north-east from the city of Birmingham. The town gained its name from the River Tame, which flows through the town. In 2002 the town had a population of 74,581
Tamworth is the home of the historic Tamworth Castle, and has a minorly successful non-league football team by the name of Tamworth FC. It is also home to the Snowdome, the first indoor ski slope in the UK.
The town's main industries include: engineering, paper, clothing, and brick and tile manufacturing. It was also home to the Reliant car company.
History
Tamworth has existed since Saxon times, it was sacked by Danes in the 9th century. Defences in the form of a castle were constructed against Danish invaders by Ethelfleda Queen of the kingdom of Mercia.
In the 11th century, a Norman castle was built on the site of the Saxon one, which still exists to this day.
The town grew rapidly in the 18th and 19th centuries. during the Industrial Revolution, due largely to the surrounding coal mines. And it also became a hub of the canal network, with the Coventry Canal and the Birmingham and Fazeley Canal being built through the town. Later the railways arrived with the Midland Railway route from Derby to Birmingham, and later the London and North Western Railway, which provided direct trains to the capital.
The Victorian Prime Minister Sir Robert Peel served as the town's MP from 1830 until his death in 1850. It was in Tamworth that Robert Peel unveiled his Tamworth Manifesto in 1834 which effectively invented the modern Conservative Party.
Tamworth has grown rapidly in the post-war years due to overspill population from Birmingham. Its population has tripled since the 1940s.
Tamworth was historically split between Staffordshire and Warwickshire, with the border running through the city centre. Staffordshire was made to include the entire borough in 1888.
Nightlife
Tamworth has a very limited night life with a shortage of bars, the most popular of which are 'Yates', 'Weatherspoons' and 'B79'. The only nightclubs which the majority of locals consider going to are 'Kube' and 'The Embassy' (affectionately known by locals as "The Embo".) Recently an indie sub-culture has developed, admittedly this is roughly ten years after the emergance of indie music into popular culture. (If you consider the release of Definitely Maybe to be roughly around the beginning of indie music) Venues such as 'Nightowls' and 'Bonds' have started to play alternative music.
Districts of England - West Midlands | |
Birmingham | Bridgnorth | Bromsgrove | Cannock Chase | Coventry | Dudley | East Staffordshire | Herefordshire | Lichfield | Malvern Hills | Newcastle-under-Lyme | North Shropshire | North Warwickshire | Nuneaton and Bedworth | Oswestry | Redditch | Rugby | Sandwell | Shrewsbury and Atcham | Solihull | South Shropshire | South Staffordshire | Stafford | Staffordshire Moorlands | Stoke-on-Trent | Stratford-on-Avon | Tamworth | Telford and Wrekin | Walsall | Warwick | Wolverhampton | Worcester | Wychavon | Wyre Forest | |
Administrative Counties with multiple districts: Shropshire, Staffordshire, Warwickshire, West Midlands, Worcestershire |