Birstall (West Yorkshire)

Birstall is a place about 10 km south- west of Leeds in West Yorkshire, England. It is part of the Metropolitan Borough of Kirklees. The place has a picturesque triangular market square from the Victorian period, which replaced an earlier Georgian market place on the higher high street. In this marketplace, a market is still held every Thursday.

Birstall is centrally located between the towns of Leeds, Bradford, Huddersfield and Wakefield, close to the M62 Motorway. The village has always benefited from excellent transport links that has to rapid growth led in recent times by workers at the nearby city of Leeds, who want to live as a commuter in the more rural area. At the edge of town is a commercial area with a IKEA, a Borders store and a multiplex cinema Showcase Cinemas has settled.

Birstall was not listed as a separate place in the Domesday Book, but it has been mentioned as one of two main settlements within Gomersals. In Pigot 's National Commercial Directory for 1828-29 Birstall was listed as one of the four villages of the municipality of Gomersal.

1937 Birstall had its own council (Urban District Council ), but financial problems led to the infamous merger with the municipal council of the neighboring village Batley. After 30 years, the two places were again incorporated during the formation of townships in the municipality of Kirklees.

In the dictionary of Yorkshire there is a saying cahr quiet li 'the' do i ' Birstall. However, it was given no reason why Birstall should be connected to stay calm (quiet ), where locals insist that this is so, because never a Birtaller Luddite was arrested.

History

Birstall is best known as the birthplace of Joseph Priestley, the discoverer of oxygen, among others. Priestly was intense with a great interest in science, formed by the then Vicar of Birstall, a highly educated Edinburgh. He also was a student of Batley Grammar School for Boys, which was founded in 1612 by Rev. William Lee. The school still exists today and is on Carlinghow Hill, about a mile outside Birstalls.

From Birstall also comes John Nelson, a stonemason who was converted by Charles Wesley during his work in London for Methodism. He later returned as one of Wesley's most important preachers after Birstall.

Birstall enjoyed before the industrial revolution, a certain prosperity, since the location is in an area that was a stronghold of the English cloth industry. However, due to the Industrial Revolution of the village saw tremendous growth and the period's architecture today dominates the cityscape. The environment was due to the heavy woolen cloth manufactured here as a Heavy Goods Want District known. Nowadays this term, with the exception of local sport, rarely used due to the decline of the cloth industry. The most striking structural feature of this period is the cobbled town square where a statue of Priestley is. The statue was created in 1912 to public order by Frances Darlington. It is one of the very few she has created works of art that are accessible to the public.

The staff responsible for the local development committee of the Municipal Council has, after a long, hard struggle with the citizens' initiative recently decided to allocate £ 900,000 ( € 1.33 million) for the renovation of the market square and town center of Birstall. As part of the renewal of the ancient paving stones of the market square will be replaced by a new, smoother pavement, because the old patch has become a health and safety risk. It is in talks to use some of the old stones in the new design, especially around the statue of Joseph Priestley 's.

In Birstall the picturesque St. Peter's Church is from the time of Henry VIII, whose tower, however, is much older and has probably heard to the original " Pittsburgh stable " or " Fortified Place". Nearby is Oakwell Hall, an Elizabethan manor house that Charlotte Brontë was the model for ' Fieldhead ' in her novel " Shirley ".

Another attraction is a windmill dating from the 18th century, stands on the site of St Saviour 's Junior School.

Everyone should visit the Black Bull Inn, which is located directly behind St. Peter's interested in the history Birstalls. The pub has dozens of pictures of the place, most of the period between 1900 and 1930. Upstairs in the pub once served as a courtroom for Birstall and Batley. The Luddites stopped at this pub regularly have meetings.