Leicester
Leicester ( ▶? / I [ ɫɛstə ] / [ ɫɛstɘ ʳ ] ) is a city in the English East Midlands on Soar. It is traditionally administrative center of the county of Leicestershire and is on the edge of the English National Forest.
General
The city lies on the M1 Motorway and the rail transport, interurban route between London and Sheffield.
The main industries of Leicester today include the production of food, hosiery, shoes, knitwear and machines. There are also electronic industry, printing and plastics processing plants.
In Leicester, there are two universities, the University of Leicester (founded 1952) and the De Montfort University ( est. 1992 ).
The city center is mainly built in the Victorian style, later buildings blend in quite well. The heart of downtown is the clock tower, which stands at the junction of five roads leading into the city. Today, two of these streets pedestrian zones. Nearby is Leicester Market, the largest covered market in Europe.
The historic core of the town lies a little west of the center. Here you will find Leicester Castle, the Cathedral, the Church of St. Mary de Castro and the Jewry Wall.
History
Leicester is one of the oldest cities in England; its history dates back almost 2000 years. The city was founded around 50 AD by the Romans as a military camp. These the Romans called Ratae Corieltavorum; the name derives from the Corieltauvi, a Celtic tribe who lived in this area before the Romans. Ratae Coritanorum became an important commercial and military center and one of the largest towns in Roman Britain.
When the Roman soldiers left Britain in the 5th century, the city was largely uninhabited, but was later repopulated by the Saxons. A part of the Roman road network is still visible today.
It is believed that the name " Leicester " from the words castra (Latin for camp, camp ) of the Ligore - formed - Population on the River Legro (the former name of the Soar ). In the 8th century it is mentioned as Legro ceaster. Three centuries later it is recorded in the Domesday Book as Ledecestre. This name has evolved over time to the present Leicester.
In the Middle Ages Leicester got some importance. In the Domesday Book it is listed as ' civitas ' (city) (city ) - but the city lost status Leicester in the 11th century in the power struggle between the Church and the nobility. It was not until 1919 Leicester were awarded city rights again.
1265 V. Simon de Montfort forced King Henry III. to convene the first parliament of England in Leicester Castle.
The construction of the Grand Union Canal in the 1790s, was joined by the Leicester with London and Birmingham, began a rapid industrialization. Mainly hosiery and shoes were produced - in the 20th century mainly machines.
With the opening of the Leicester and Swannington Railway, the railway reached Leicester in 1832. 1840, the city was connected by the Midland Counties Railway with the national railway network - this provided a further boost for the industrial growth. Since 1900, the Great Central Railway provided an alternative rail connection to London - the route was decommissioned in 1966; on the section of Leicester North to Loughborough operates a heritage railway today.
The Borough Leicester grew during the 19th century; 1892 took the places Belgrave, Aylestone and North Evington it. Leicester became a county borough - these were abolished in 1972 and Leicester became a district of Leicestershire. In 1997 it was for the unitary authority and thus to an independent administrative unit of Leicestershire. The city belongs only to the Lord- Lieutenancy purposes for ceremonial county of Leicestershire.
In the decades after the Second World War, many immigrants moved from the Indian subcontinent to Leicester; in the early 1970s, was also a lot of people from Uganda, again mostly Indians. Immigrants make up about 40 percent of the population of Leicester - hence, the city is one of the most ethnically diverse in the UK. Leicester is now often taken as a model for tolerance, although the neo-fascist British National Front was able to record high share of the vote in the 1970s. It is expected that by 2012 Leicester was the first of the great English cities have a non-white majority population will have.
Culture
Among the cultural sites
- The Haymarket Theatre
- The Phoenix Arts Centre
- The De Montfort Hall.
Sports
The two most popular sports clubs are the football club Leicester City, and the rugby union team Leicester Tigers. Furthermore, there is the basketball team Leicester Riders and the Leicestershire County Cricket Club. In Leicester, the British and World Championships were held in track cycling. The two largest stadiums are the King Power Stadium ( football) and the Welford Road Stadium (Rugby). The speedway team Leicester starts in the British Premier League.
Media
Every working day, the daily newspaper Leicester Mercury appears. The BBC operates in Leicester the studio for the radio program BBC Radio Leicester.
Attractions
- Belgrave Hall,
- Jewry Wall,
- Leicester Cathedral
- Leicester Botanic Gardens,
- Abbey Park,
- Victoria Park,
- Gorse Hill City Farm
- Abbey Pumping Station,
- National Space Centre
Famous People
- David and Richard Attenborough
- Simon de Montfort, 6th Earl of Leicester
- George Fox
- Engelbert Humperdinck ( singer)
- Kasabian
- David Icke
- Jon Lord
- King Richard III.
Sons and daughters of the town
Famous people from Leicester include the entomologist and folklorist William Forsell Kirby, the naturalist, evolutionary biologist and entomologist Henry Walter Bates, the swimmer and Olympic champion John Arthur Jarvis, the writer Charles Percy Snow and Colin Wilson, the actor Graham Chapman and Richard Armitage, the film producer Stephen Frears, the musicians Jon Lord and John Deacon, the racing driver Roger Williamson and Jamie Green, the football player Peter Shilton, Gary Lineker and Emile Heskey and the snooker player Mark Selby.
Twinning
Leicester is twinned with