Birmingham
The name Birmingham comes from the Old English Beormingaham, meaning the home or settlement of the Beormingas. This tribe or clan took its name from a figure called Beorma, who may have been their leader at the time of Anglo-Saxon settlement, a shared ancestor, or a mythical tribal figurehead. Place names ending in ham are characteristic of primary settlements established during the early phases of Anglo-Saxon colonisation of an area. This suggests that Birmingham was probably in existence by the early 7th century at the latest. Surrounding settlements with names ending in ton, wood, and ley are likely to be secondary settlements created by the later expansion of the Anglo-Saxon population. Evidence of early human activity in the Birmingham area dates back to around 8000 BC. Stone Age artefacts suggest seasonal settlements, overnight hunting parties, and woodland activities such as tree felling. The many burnt mounds that can still be seen around the city indicate that modern humans first intensively settled and cultivated the area during the Bronze Age. A substantial but short-lived influx of population occurred between 1700 BC and 1000 BC, possibly caused by conflict or immigration in the surrounding area. During the 1st-century Roman conquest of Britain, the forested country of the Birmingham Plateau formed a barrier to the advancing Roman legions. They built the large Metchley Fort in the area of modern-day Edgbaston in AD 48. It became the focus of a network of Roman roads. Birmingham was then later established by the Beormingas around the 6th or 7th century as a small settlement in the then heavily forested Arden region in Mercia.
By 1791, it was being hailed as the first manufacturing town in the world. Birmingham's distinctive economic profile featured thousands of small workshops practising a wide variety of specialised and highly skilled trades. This encouraged exceptional levels of creativity and innovation. It provided an economic base for prosperity that lasted into the final quarter of the 20th century. Between 1760 and 1850, the core years of the Industrial Revolution, Birmingham residents registered over three times as many patents as those of any other British town or city. The demand for capital to feed rapid economic expansion saw Birmingham grow into a major financial and commercial centre with extensive international connections. Lloyds Bank was founded in the town in 1765. Ketley's Building Society, the world's first building society, opened in 1775. By 1800 the West Midlands had more banking offices per head than any other region in Britain, including London. In 1709 the Birmingham-trained Abraham Darby I moved to Coalbrookdale in Shropshire. He built the first blast furnace to successfully smelt iron ore with coke. This transformed the quality, volume, and scale on which it was possible to produce cast iron. In 1732 Lewis Paul and John Wyatt invented roller spinning. They called it the one novel idea of the first importance in the development of the mechanised cotton industry. In 1741 they opened the world's first cotton mill in Birmingham's Upper Priory. In 1746 John Roebuck invented the lead chamber process. It enabled the large-scale manufacture of sulphuric acid. In 1780 James Keir developed a process for the bulk manufacture of alkali. Together these marked the birth of the modern chemical industry. In 1765 Matthew Boulton opened the Soho Manufactory. It pioneered the combination and mechanisation under one roof of previously separate manufacturing activities through a system known as rational manufacture. As the largest manufacturing unit in Europe, this came to symbolise the emergence of the factory system. Most significant was the development in 1776 of the industrial steam engine by James Watt and Matthew Boulton. Freeing for the first time the manufacturing capacity of human society from the limited availability of hand, water, and animal power, this was arguably the pivotal moment of the entire Industrial Revolution.
Birmingham rose to national political prominence in the campaign for political reform in the early 19th century. Thomas Attwood and the Birmingham Political Union brought the country to the brink of civil war during the Days of May that preceded the passing of the Reform Act 1832. The union's meetings on Newhall Hill in 1831 and 1832 were the largest political assemblies Britain had ever seen. Lord Durham, who drafted the act, wrote that the country owed Reform to Birmingham, and its salvation from revolution. This reputation for having shaken the fabric of privilege to its base in 1832 led John Bright to make Birmingham the platform for his successful campaign for the Reform Act 1867. It extended voting rights to the urban working class. The original charter of incorporation, dated the 31st of October 1838, was received in Birmingham on the 5th of November. Elections for the first Birmingham Town Council were held on the 26th of December. Sixteen aldermen and 48 councillors were elected. William Scholefield became the first mayor and William Redfern was appointed as town clerk. Birmingham Town Police were established the following year. By 1700 Birmingham's population had increased fifteen-fold. The town was the fifth-largest in England and Wales. The 18th century saw this tradition of free-thinking and collaboration blossom into the cultural phenomenon now known as the Midlands Enlightenment. The town developed into a notable centre of literary, musical, artistic, and theatrical activity. Its leading citizens, particularly the members of the Lunar Society of Birmingham, became influential participants in the circulation of philosophical and scientific ideas among Europe's intellectual elite.
From the summer of 1940 to the spring of 1943, Birmingham was bombed heavily by the German Luftwaffe in what is known as the Birmingham Blitz. The damage done to the city's infrastructure led to extensive urban regeneration in subsequent decades. This included the construction of large tower block estates such as Castle Vale. The Bull Ring was reconstructed and New Street station was redeveloped. In the decades following World War II, the ethnic makeup of Birmingham changed significantly. It received waves of immigration from the Commonwealth of Nations and beyond. The city's population peaked in 1951 at 1,113,000 residents. The city suffered heavy bomb damage during World War II's Birmingham Blitz. The city was also the scene of two scientific discoveries that were to prove critical to the outcome of the war. Otto Frisch and Rudolf Peierls first described how a practical nuclear weapon could be constructed in the Frisch, Peierls memorandum of 1940. That same year the cavity magnetron, the key component of radar and later of microwave ovens, was invented by John Randall and Henry Boot. Details of these two discoveries, together with an outline of the first jet engine invented by Frank Whittle in nearby Rugby, were taken to the United States by the Tizard Mission in September 1940. A single black box later described by an official American historian as the most valuable cargo ever brought to our shores contained them.
The 2021 census recorded 1,144,900 people living in Birmingham. This is an increase of around 6.7% from 2011 when 1,073,045 were recorded. Around 305,688 or 26.7% of the population in 2021 were foreign-born. It is a city with one of the largest migrant populations in Europe. According to figures from the 2021 census, 48.7% of the population was White. Of that group, 42.9% were White British, 1.5% White Irish, 4.0% Other White, 0.2% Roma, and 0.1% Irish Traveller. Thirty-one percent were Asian. This included 17.0% Pakistani, 5.8% Indian, 4.2% Bangladeshi, 1.1% Chinese, and 2.9% Other Asian. Ten point nine percent were Black. Five point eight percent were African, 3.9% Caribbean, and 1.2% Other Black. Four point eight percent were Mixed race. One point seven percent identified as Arab. Four point six percent had Other ethnic heritage. The 2021 census showed 26.7% of the population were born outside the UK. An increase of 4.5 percentage points from 2011. Figures showed that the five largest foreign-born groups living in Birmingham were born in Pakistan, India, Bangladesh, Romania, and Jamaica. In 2011, 57% of primary and 52% of secondary pupils were from non-White British families. As of 2021, 31.6% of school pupils in Birmingham were White. Thirty-seven point seven percent were Asian. Twelve point six percent were Black. Nine point seven percent were Mixed race. Eight point four percent were Other.
The City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra's home venue is Symphony Hall. Other notable professional orchestras based in the city include the Birmingham Contemporary Music Group, the Royal Ballet Sinfonia, and Ex Cathedra. The Orchestra of the Swan is the resident chamber orchestra at Birmingham Town Hall. Weekly recitals have also been given by the City Organist since 1834. The Birmingham Triennial Music Festivals took place from 1784 to 1912. Music was specially composed, conducted, or performed by Mendelssohn, Gounod, Sullivan, Dvořák, Bantock, and Edward Elgar. Elgar wrote four of his most famous choral pieces for Birmingham. His The Dream of Gerontius had its début performance there in 1900. Composers born in the city include Albert William Ketèlbey and Andrew Glover. Jazz has been popular in the city since the 1920s. There are many regular festivals such as the Harmonic Festival, the Mostly Jazz Festival, and the annual International Jazz Festival. During the 1960s, Birmingham was the home of a music scene comparable to that of Liverpool. It was a seething cauldron of musical activity. The international success of groups such as The Move, The Spencer Davis Group, The Moody Blues, Traffic, and the Electric Light Orchestra had a collective influence that stretched into the 1970s and beyond. The city was a centre for early heavy metal music. Pioneering metal bands from the late 1960s and 1970s included Black Sabbath, Judas Priest, and half of Led Zeppelin. The next decade saw the metal bands Napalm Death and Godflesh emerge from the city. Benediction and the extreme black death metal act Anaal Nathrakh also came later.
Birmingham grew to prominence as a centre of manufacturing and engineering. The economy of Birmingham is dominated by the service sector. This accounted for 88% of the city's employment in 2012. Birmingham is the largest centre in the UK for employment in public administration, education, and health. After Leeds it is the second-largest centre outside London for employment in financial and other business services. The Gun Quarter is a district of the city that was, for many years, a centre of the world's gun-manufacturing industry. The first recorded gun maker in Birmingham was in 1630. Locally made muskets were used in the English Civil War. The wider metropolitan economy is the second-largest in the United Kingdom with a GDP of $121.1 billion (2014 estimate, PPP). Major companies headquartered in Birmingham include the engineering company IMI plc, Mobico Group, Patisserie Valerie, Claire's, and Mitchells & Butlers. With major facilities such as the National Exhibition Centre and International Convention Centre, Birmingham attracts 42% of the UK's total conference and exhibition trade. Economic inequality in Birmingham is greater than in any other major English city. It is exceeded only by Glasgow in the United Kingdom. Levels of unemployment are among the highest in the country. Ten percent of the economically active population was unemployed in June 2016. In the inner-city wards of Aston and Washwood Heath, the figure is higher than 30%. Two-fifths of Birmingham's population live in areas classified as in the 10% most deprived parts of England. Overall Birmingham is the most deprived local authority in England in terms of income and employment deprivation.
Common questions
What is the origin of the name Birmingham?
The name Birmingham comes from the Old English Beormingaham, meaning the home or settlement of the Beormingas. This tribe took its name from a figure called Beorma, who may have been their leader at the time of Anglo-Saxon settlement.
When was Birmingham established as a settlement by the Beormingas?
Birmingham was established by the Beormingas around the 6th or 7th century as a small settlement in the then heavily forested Arden region in Mercia. Evidence suggests it existed by the early 7th century at the latest.
Who invented the industrial steam engine in Birmingham and when did they do it?
James Watt and Matthew Boulton developed the industrial steam engine in 1776. This invention freed manufacturing capacity from the limited availability of hand, water, and animal power.
How many people lived in Birmingham according to the 2021 census?
The 2021 census recorded 1,144,900 people living in Birmingham. This represents an increase of around 6.7% from 2011 when 1,073,045 were recorded.
Which famous bands originated from the music scene in Birmingham during the 1960s and 1970s?
Pioneering metal bands from the late 1960s and 1970s included Black Sabbath, Judas Priest, and half of Led Zeppelin. Other notable groups such as The Move, The Spencer Davis Group, The Moody Blues, Traffic, and the Electric Light Orchestra also emerged from the city.