Coventry

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This article is about the city in England. For other uses, see Coventry (disambiguation).

Coventry

City and metropolitan borough

Skyline of Coventry city centre

view from One Friargate

Flag

Coat of arms
 Shown within the West Midlands county

Coventry

Location within England

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Coordinates:  52°24′29″N 1°30′38″WCoordinates:  52°24′29″N 1

°30′38″W

Sovereign state United Kingdom

Country England
Region West Midlands
Ceremonial county West Midlands
Historic county Warwickshire
Administrative HQ Council House

Founded 1043
Founded by Leofric, Earl of Mercia

Government
 • Type Metropolitan borough
 • Body Coventry City Council
 • Leadership Leader and cabinet
 • Lord Mayor Linda Bigham
 • Council Leader George Duggins (Lab)
 • Chief Executive Martin Reeves
 • MPs Colleen Fletcher (L)
Taiwo Owatemi (L)
Zarah Sultana (L)

Area
 • City and metropolitan 38.09 sq mi (98.64 km2)
borough

Population
 (ONS mid-year estimates)
 • City and metropolitan 371,521 (Ranked 18th)
borough
 • Density 8,050/sq mi (3,108/km2)
 • Metro 651,600[1]

Demonyms Coventrian

Time zone UTC+0 (Greenwich Mean

Time)
 • Summer (DST) UTC+1 (British Summer
Time)

Postcode CV
Area code(s) 024

ISO 3166-2 GB-COV

ONS code 00CQ (ONS)
E08000026 (GSS)
OS grid reference SP335785
NUTS 3 UKG33
2018 mid-year estimate [2]
366,785
Ethnicity 73.8% White (66.6% White
 (2011 Census)[3] British)
16.3% Asian
5.5% Black
2.7% Mixed Race
1.6% Other

Website Coventry

Coventry (/ˈkɒvəntri/ ( listen) KOV-ən-tree[4] or /ˈkʌv-/ KUV-)[5] is a city, administrative centre

and metropolitan borough in England and the United Kingdom. It is built on the River
Sherbourne, which remains largely hidden by infrastructure, although it can be seen by the
canal. Coventry has been a large settlement for centuries, although it was not founded and
given its city status until the Middle Ages; since then it has become one of the most
important and largest cities in the country. The conurbation consists of the Coventry and
Bedworth Urban Area, being the 20th largest in the country; the city is governed by Coventry
City Council.
Historically part of Warwickshire, Coventry had a population of 316,915 at the 2011 census,
[6]
 making it the 9th largest city in England and the 11th largest in the United Kingdom.[7] It is
the second largest city in the West Midlands region, after Birmingham, and is separated
from the West Midlands conurbation (Greater Birmingham & The Black Country) by
the Meriden Gap. Despite its size and significance, Coventry is not amongst the UK's Core
Cities Group due to its proximity to Birmingham.
Coventry is 19 miles (31 km) east-southeast of Birmingham, 24 miles (39 km) southwest
of Leicester, 11 miles (18 km) north of Warwick and 94 miles (151 km) northwest of London.
Coventry is also the most central city in England, being only 12 miles (18 km) south-
southwest of the country's geographical centre in Leicestershire; it is located in the West
Midlands.[8][9]
The current Coventry Cathedral was built after most of the 14th century cathedral church of
Saint Michael was destroyed by the Luftwaffe in the Coventry Blitz of 14 November 1940.
Coventry motor companies have contributed significantly to the British motor industry. The
city has three universities, Coventry University in the city centre, the University of
Warwick on the southern outskirts and the smaller private Arden University, with its
headquarters close to Coventry Airport.
On 7 December 2017, the city won the title of UK City of Culture 2021, after
beating Paisley, Stoke-on-Trent, Swansea and Sunderland to the title. It will be the third title
holder of the quadrennial award which began in 2013. [10] Following this, Coventry City of
Culture Trust released a manifesto film, [11] celebrating the city of Coventry and announcing
the brand for Coventry UK City of Culture 2021, 'Coventry Moves'. [12]

Contents

 1History
o 1.1Industrial age
o 1.2German bombing of Coventry
 o 1.3Post-Second World War
 2Geography
o 2.1Climate
o 2.2City boundaries
o 2.3Suburbs and other surrounding areas
o 2.4Compass
o 2.5Places of interest
 2.5.1Cathedral
 2.5.2Cultural institutions
 3Demography
 4Government and politics
o 4.1Local and national government
o 4.2Council affiliation
o 4.3Twinning with other cities; "city of peace and reconciliation"
 5Arts and culture
o 5.1Literature and drama
o 5.2Music and cinema
o 5.3Customs and traditions
 6Venues and shopping
 7Sports
o 7.1Football
o 7.2Rugby Union
o 7.3Rugby League
o 7.4Speedway
o 7.5Ice hockey
o 7.6Stock car racing
o 7.7Cricket
o 7.8Athletics
o 7.9Field hockey
o 7.10Other
 8Economy
o 8.1Redevelopment
o 8.2Media
 8.2.1Radio
 8.2.2Written media
 8.2.3Television news
 8.2.4Digital-only media
o 8.3Electricity
o 8.4Waste management
 9Transport
o 9.1Road
o 9.2Railway
o 9.3Light rail
o 9.4Bus
o 9.5Air
o 9.6Water
 10Accent
o 10.1Origins
 o 10.2Coventry and Birmingham accents
o 10.3Coventry accent on television
 11Honours
 12Education
o 12.1Universities and further education colleges
o 12.2Schools
 13Notable people associated with Coventry
o 13.1History and politics
o 13.2Science, technology and business
o 13.3The arts
o 13.4Sports
 14Freedom of the City
o 14.1Individuals
o 14.2Military units
 15See also
 16References
 17Further reading
 18External links

History[edit]

The coat of arms of Coventry in stained glass in Holy Trinity Church

Main article: History of Coventry

The Romans founded a settlement in Baginton, next to the River Sowe, and another formed
around a Saxon nunnery, founded c.  AD 700 by St Osburga,[13] that was later left in ruins
by King Canute's invading Danish army in 1016. Earl Leofric of Mercia and his wife Lady
Godiva built on the remains of the nunnery and founded a Benedictine monastery in 1043
dedicated to St Mary.[14][15] In time, a market was established at the abbey gates and the
settlement expanded.
Coventry Castle was a motte and bailey castle in the city. It was built in the early
12th century by Ranulf de Gernon, 4th Earl of Chester. Its first known use was during The
Anarchy when Robert Marmion, a supporter of King Stephen, expelled the monks from the
adjacent priory of Saint Mary in 1144, and converted it into a fortress from which he waged a
battle against the Earl. Marmion perished in the battle. [16] It was demolished in the late
12th century and St Mary's Guildhall was built on part of the site. It is assumed the name
"Broadgate" comes from the area around the castle gates.
By the 14th century, Coventry was an important centre of the cloth trade, and throughout
the Middle Ages was one of the largest and most important cities in England. The bishops
of Lichfield were often referred to as bishops of Coventry and Lichfield, or Lichfield and
Coventry (from 1102 to 1541). 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.[17][18] The plays that William Shakespeare witnessed in Coventry during his boyhood
or 'teens' may have influenced how his plays, such as Hamlet, came about.[19]
Industrial age[edit]
In the 18th and 19th centuries, Coventry became one of the three main British centres
of watch and clock manufacture and ranked alongside Prescot,
in Lancashire and Clerkenwell in London.[20][21] 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 motorbike,
car, machine tool and aircraft industries.
In the late 19th century, Coventry became a major centre of bicycle manufacture. The
industry energised by the invention by James Starley and his nephew John Kemp Starley of
the Rover safety bicycle, which was safer and more popular than the pioneering penny-
farthing. The company became Rover. By the early 20th century, bicycle manufacture had
evolved into motor manufacture, and Coventry became a major centre of the British motor
industry. The research and design headquarters of Jaguar Cars is in the city at their Whitley
plant and although vehicle assembly ceased at the Browns Lane plant in 2004, Jaguar's
head office returned to the city in 2011, and is also sited in Whitley. Jaguar is owned by the
Indian company, Tata Motors.

A 1972 Hillman Avenger, produced in Coventry by Chrysler Competitions Department

Coventry precinct with spire of ruined cathedral in the background, before the Coventry 2021 preparations.

With many of the city's older properties becoming increasingly unfit for habitation, the
first council houses were let to their tenants in 1917. With Coventry's industrial base
continuing to soar after the end of the Great War a year later, numerous private and council
housing developments took place across the city in the 1920s and 1930s. The development
of a southern by-pass around the city, starting in the 1930s and being completed in 1940,
helped deliver more urban areas to the city on previously rural land.
German bombing of Coventry[edit]
Coventry suffered severe bomb damage during the Second World War. There was a
massive Luftwaffe air raid that the Germans called Operation Moonlight Sonata that was
part of the "Coventry Blitz", on 14 November 1940 and carrying on to the morning of 15
November 1940. Firebombing on this date led to severe damage to large areas of the city
centre and to Coventry's historic cathedral, leaving only a shell and the spire. More than
4,000 houses were damaged or destroyed, along with around three quarters of the city's
industrial plants. Between 380 and 554 people were killed, with thousands injured and
homeless.[22]
Aside from London, Hull and Plymouth, Coventry suffered more damage than any other
British city during the Luftwaffe attacks, with huge firestorms devastating most of the city
centre. The city was probably targeted due to its high concentration of armaments,
munitions, aircraft and aero-engine plants which contributed greatly to the British war effort,
although there have been claims that Hitler launched the attack as revenge for the bombing
of Munich by the RAF six days before the Coventry Blitz and chose the Midlands city
because its medieval heart was regarded as one of the finest in Britain. 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. Several structures were demolished
simply to make way for modern developments which saw the city centre's buildings and
road infrastructure altered almost beyond recognition by 1970. Bombs were often
abandoned if they fell in areas of little significant importance to the war effort, and continue
to be found during construction work to this day. Many old bombs were found to still be
viable explosive devices. On 12 March 2008, an unexploded Luftwaffe bomb was
discovered in Coventry's city centre. Police said the device seemed genuine but it was not
clear if it was live.[23] A cordon of 500 metres (1,600 feet) was enforced. The finding of the
bomb led to a performance of "One Night in November", a play about the Blitz, being
cancelled.[24] A Royal Engineers bomb disposal team conducted a controlled explosion early
on the morning of 13 March 2008.[25]
Post-Second World War[edit]
Further housing developments in the private and public sector took place after the Second
World War, partly to accommodate the growing population of the city and also to replace
condemned and bomb damaged properties, including a major prefabricated housing district
in West Canley which exists to this day.
In the post-war 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 one of the world's largest tapestries) was consecrated. Its
prefabricated steel spire (flèche) was lowered into place by helicopter.

View of Broadgate towards the Upper Precinct and Lower Precinct, part of the city's post-war development under the
Gibson Plan

Major expansion to Coventry had taken place previously, in the 1920s and 1930s, to provide
housing for the large influx of workers who came to work in the city's booming factories. The
areas which were expanded or created in this development
included Radford, Coundon, Canley, Cheylesmore and Stoke Heath.
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 amongst 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. Coventry's pedestrianised Precinct
shopping area came into its own and was considered one of the finest retail experiences
outside London. In 1965 the new University of Warwick campus was opened to students,
and rapidly became one of the country's leading higher-education institutions.
Coventry's large industrial base made it attractive to the wave
of Asian and Caribbean immigrants who arrived from Commonwealth colonies after 1948. In
1960, one of Britain's first mosques—and the very first in Coventry—was opened on Eagle
Street to serve the city's growing Islamic community.[26] The 1970s, however, saw a decline
in the British motor industry and Coventry suffered particularly badly, especially towards the
end of that decade. By the early 1980s, Coventry had one of the highest unemployment
rates in the country and crime rates rose well above the national average. [citation needed] Some 30
years later, Coventry is now considered as one of the UK's safer major cities and has
gradually recovered economically with newer industries locating there, although the motor
industry continues to decline. By 2008, only one motor manufacturing plant was operational,
that of LTI Ltd, producing the popular TX4 taxi cabs. On 17 March 2010 LTI announced they
would no longer be producing bodies and chassis in Coventry, instead producing them
in China and shipping them in for final assembly in Coventry. [27]
On the sporting scene, Coventry Rugby Football Club was consistently among the nation's
leading rugby football sides from the early 20th century, peaking in the 1970s and 1980s
with a host of major honours and international players. [citation needed] Association football, on the
other hand, was scarcely a claim to fame until 1967, when Coventry City F.C. finally won
promotion to the top flight of English football as champions of the Football League Second
Division.[28] They would stay among the elite for the next 34 years, reaching their pinnacle
with FA Cup glory in 1987—the first and to date only major trophy in the club's history.
[29]
 Their long stay in the top flight of English football ended in relegation in 2001, [30] and in
2012 they were relegated again to the third tier of English football. Highfield Road, to the
east of the city centre, was Coventry City's home for 106 years from 1899. They finally
departed from the stadium in 2005 on their relocation to the 32,600-seat Ricoh Arena some
three miles (4.8 kilometres) to the north of the city centre, in the Rowleys Green district.
[31]
 Since 2000, the city has also been home to one of the most successful Ice Hockey teams
in the country, the Coventry Blaze who are four time Elite League champions, and play their
home games at the SkyDome Arena.

Geography