History

Even back in the middle ages Birmingham was developing as a centre of industry. Metalwork has long been just one of the inhabitants' many skills, no doubt assisted by the seemingly endless quantities of coal and iron to hand. Over the centuries, craftsmen and their small workshops concentrated in the town and its reputation grew. Principal industries included jewellery and gunmaking, and both are still carried out today albeit on a smaller scale than a century ago. More recent industry has centred around motor manufacturing, but the local population has been hit hard by a downturn in this sector and only a last minute buy-out of the huge Rover Group based in Longbridge saved 20,000 more workers from redundancy. It is now to cultural institutions, conferencing and exhibitions that Birmingham looks as a base for its new economy, with many heritage museums providing welcome income to areas that were in danger of being nothing more than a sad and idle postscript to a bygone age.

However, it must never be forgotten that Birmingham was the cradle of the Industrial Revolution. This can be remembered at the Ironbridge Gorge Museums and Black Country Museum, both of which provide a fascinating insight into times past. The city also served as a crucible for some of the country's finest thinkers to thrash out new ideas. In the late 18th century the Lunar Society met in Birmingham: a group of the finest minds of the time, dedicated to tackling scientific and philosophical questions. It included James Watt, Matthew Boulton and Joseph Priestley amongst its subscribers, who between them devised steam engines, discovered oxygen and dreamt up Unitarianism.

The canal system developed greatly in the late 18th century, further enhancing trade, and suddenly Birmingham began producing guns, jewellery, pins, screws and buckles by the narrowboat-load. By 1790, the population had soared to 90,000 and the city had become one of Britain's most important trade centres. This period is encapsulated in the modern sculpture Forward.

In 1838 Robert Stephenson engineered the London-Birmingham railway line, which would supersede the canal trade-link to the capital. The subsequent plummeting of transport costs and explosion in trade resulted in a population boom — 296,000 inhabitants by 1860. This boom continued despite later economic recessions and with a current population of more than a million inhabitants Birmingham remains indisputably Britain's second city.

In recent times, Birmingham has become known for the "Spaghetti Junction" — an infamously complex motorway system on the city's periphery. But it has also developed an excellent reputation for the arts, based on renowned institutions such as the Barber Institute, the Rep Theatre and, in particular, the City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra, which flourished under the baton of premier conductor Simon Rattle. The modern Symphony Hall is famed for having the best acoustics in Europe and the Royal Ballet has also set up a provincial home in the city.

The entire city centre has undergone an expensive face-lift, evidenced by the renovated City Hall, Victoria Square and new exclusive shopping areas. The canals have once again become an important feature with the Gas Street Basin Development and Brindleyplace belying Birmingham's reputation for being a dull, industrial, urban sprawl. Just south-west of the city centre is Edgbaston Cricket ground where Warwickshire CCC won a number of trophies in the mid-1990s and where Test matches are played every summer against international touring sides. Gastronomically, Birmingham is renowned for its baltis and for being the home of Cadbury's confectionery - chocolate lovers can even visit the factory and sample the product on a highly-popular tour.

Birmingham was put on the global map with the European Summit in 1994, hosted at the International Conference Centre as was the G8 Summit in 1998, attended by President Clinton, Prime Minister Blair and their foreign counterparts. After years of being the butt of jokes from other British cities, Birmingham now rightly holds its head high on the national and international stage. It is even bidding to become European City of Culture in 2008 – it is a measure of just how far the city has progressed in a relatively short time that it does so with every chance of success.