Coordinates: 55.858°N 4.259°W Glasgow From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia Glasgow (/ˈɡlɑːzɡoʊ, ˈɡlæ-, -s-/;[4][5] Scots: Glesga; Glasgow Scottish Gaelic: Glaschu [ˈklˠ̪ as̪xu]) is the largest city Scottish Gaelic: Glaschu in Scotland, and the third largest in the United Kingdom (after London and Birmingham). Historically part of Lanarkshire, it is situated on the River Clyde in the country's West Central Lowlands. Inhabitants of the city are often referred to as Glaswegians. Glasgow grew from a small rural settlement on the River Clyde to become the largest seaport in Britain. Expanding from the medieval bishopric and royal burgh, and the later establishment of the University of Glasgow in the 15th century, it became a major centre of the Scottish Enlightenment in the 18th century. From the 18th century the city also grew as one of Great Britain's main hubs of transatlantic trade with North America and the West Indies. With the onset of the Industrial Revolution, the population and economy of Glasgow and the surrounding region expanded rapidly to become one of Clockwise from top-left: View of Glasgow Science the world's pre-eminent centres of chemicals, textiles Centre, Duke of Wellington statue outside Gallery of and engineering; most notably in the shipbuilding and Modern Art, Royal Exchange Square, cityscape view from The Lighthouse, Gilbert Scott Building of marine engineering industry, which produced many University of Glasgow, Finnieston Crane, Glasgow innovative and famous vessels. Glasgow was the City Chambers "Second City of the British Empire" for much of the Victorian era and Edwardian period, although many cities argue the title was theirs.[6][7][8][9] In the late 19th and early 20th centuries Glasgow grew in population, reaching a peak of 1,128,473 in 1939.[10] Comprehensive urban renewal projects in the 1960s, resulting in large-scale relocation of people to new towns and peripheral suburbs, followed by successive boundary changes, reduced the population Old Glasgow Coat of Arms (1866 version). of the City of Glasgow council area to 599,650[11] with 1,209,143[12] people living in the Greater Glasgow urban area. The entire region surrounding the conurbation covers about 2.3 million people, 41% of Scotland's population.[13] At the 2011 census, Glasgow had a population density of 8,790/sq mi (3,390/km2), the highest of any Scottish city.[14] Glasgow hosted the 2014 Commonwealth Games. Glasgow is also well known in the sporting world for the football rivalry of the Old Firm between Celtic and Rangers. Glasgow is also known for Glasgow patter, a distinct dialect that is noted for being difficult to understand for most. Contents 1 History 1.1 Origins and development Glasgow 1.2 Trading port 1.3 Industrialisation Glasgow shown within Scotland 1.4 Toponymy Area 175.5 km2 (67.8 sq mi) [1] 1.5 Heraldry Population 606,340 (2015)[2] 2 Local Government – density 8,541.8/sq mi (3,298.0/km2) 3 Central Government Urban[3] 1,787,515 3.1 Scottish Government & Parliament Demonym Glaswegian Language English, Scots, 3.2 UK Government & Parliament 4 Geography OS grid reference NS590655 – Edinburgh 49 mi (79 km) 4.1 Location – London 352 mi (566 km) Council area Glasgow City Council 4.2 Climate Lieutenancy area Glasgow Country Scotland 5 Demography Sovereign state United Kingdom 6 Districts and suburbs Post town GLASGOW 6.1 City centre Postcode district G1–G80 Dialling code 0141 6.1.1 Retail and theatre district Police Scottish Fire Scottish 6.1.2 Merchant City Ambulance Scottish 6.1.3 Financial district EU Parliament Scotland UK Parliament Glasgow Central 6.2 West End Glasgow East Glasgow North 6.3 East End Glasgow North East Glasgow North West 6.4 South Side Glasgow South Glasgow South West 6.5 North Glasgow Scottish Parliament Glasgow Anniesland 7 Culture 7 Culture Glasgow Cathcart Glasgow Kelvin 7.1 Recreation Glasgow Maryhill and Springburn 7.2 Music scene Glasgow Pollok Glasgow Provan 7.3 Media Glasgow Shettleston Glasgow Southside 7.4 Religion Website www.glasgow.gov.uk (http://w 7.5 Language ww.glasgow.gov.uk/) List of places: UK · Scotland 7.6 Architecture 8 Economy 9 Transport 9.1 Public transport 9.2 Shipping 9.3 Roads 9.4 Airports 10 Housing 11 Healthcare 12 Education 13 Sport 13.1 Football 13.2 Rugby union 13.3 Rugby league 13.4 Ice hockey 13.5 Swimming 13.6 Basketball 13.7 Other sports 13.8 2014 Commonwealth Games 14 Major incidents and tragedies 15 Twin towns and sister cities 15.1 Partnerships 16 Notable people 17 See also 18 References 18.1 Citations 18.2 Bibliography 19 External links History Origins and development The present site of Glasgow has been settled since prehistoric times; it is for settlement, being the furthest downstream fording point of the River Clyde, at its confluence with the Molendinar Burn. After the Romans left Caledonia, the settlement was part of the extensive Kingdom of Strathclyde, with its capital at Dumbarton 15 mi (24 km) downstream, which merged in the 9th century with other regions to create the united Kingdom of Scotland.[15] The origins of Glasgow as an established city derive ultimately from its medieval position as Scotland's second largest bishopric. Glasgow increased in importance during the 10th and 11th centuries as the site of this bishopric, reorganised by King David I of Scotland and John, Bishop of Glasgow.[16] There had been an earlier religious site established by Saint Mungo in the 6th century. The bishopric became one of the largest and wealthiest in the Kingdom of Scotland, bringing wealth and status to the town. Between 1175 and 1178 this position was strengthened even further when Bishop Jocelin obtained for the episcopal The seal or signet of Jocelin, Bishop settlement the status of Burgh from King William I of Scotland, of Glasgow, founder of the burgh of allowing the settlement to expand with the benefits of trading Glasgow. monopolies and other legal guarantees. Sometime between 1189 and 1195 this status was supplemented by an annual fair, which survives as the Glasgow Fair. Glasgow grew over the following centuries. The first bridge over the River Clyde at Glasgow was recorded from around 1285, giving its name to the Briggait area of the city, forming the main North-South route over the river via Glasgow Cross. The founding of the University of Glasgow in 1451 and elevation of the bishopric to become the Archdiocese of Glasgow in 1492 increased the town's religious and educational status and landed wealth. Its early trade was in agriculture, brewing and fishing, with cured salmon and herring being exported to Europe and the Mediterranean.[15] Following the Reformation and with the encouragement of the Convention of Royal Burghs, the 14 incorporated trade crafts federated as the Trades House in 1605 to match the power and influence in the town council of the earlier Merchants' Guilds who established their Merchants House in the same year.[15] Glasgow was subsequently raised to the status of Royal Burgh in 1611. Glasgow's substantial fortunes came from international trade, manufacturing and invention, starting in the 17th century with sugar, followed by tobacco, and then cotton and linen. Daniel Defoe visited the city in the early 18th century and famously opined in his book A tour thro' the Whole Island of Great Britain, that Glasgow was "the cleanest and beautifullest, and best built city in Britain, London excepted." At that time the city's population was about 12,000, and the city was yet to undergo the massive expansionary changes to its economy and urban fabric, brought about by the Scottish Enlightenment and Industrial Revolution. Trading port After the Acts of Union in 1707, Scotland gained further access to the vast markets of the new British Empire, and Glasgow became prominent as a hub of international trade to and from the Americas, especially in sugar, tobacco, cotton, and manufactured goods. The city's Tobacco Lords created a deep water port at Port Glasgow on the Firth of Clyde, as the river within the city itself was then too shallow.[17] By the late 18th century more than half of the British tobacco trade was concentrated on Glasgow's River Clyde, with over 47,000,000 lb (21,000 t) of tobacco being imported each year at its peak.[18] At the time, Glasgow held a commercial importance as the city participated in the trade of sugar, tobacco and later cotton.[19] Industrialisation The opening of the Monkland Canal and basin linking to the Forth and Clyde Canal at Port Dundas in 1795, facilitated access to the extensive iron-ore and coal mines in Lanarkshire. After extensive river engineering projects to dredge and deepen the River Clyde as far as Glasgow, shipbuilding became a major industry on the upper stretches of the river, pioneered by industrialists such as Robert Napier, John Elder, George Thomson, Sir William Pearce and Sir Alfred Yarrow. Shipping on the Clyde, Atkinson The River Clyde also became an important source of inspiration Grimshaw, 1881. for artists, such as John Atkinson Grimshaw, John Knox, James Kay, Sir Muirhead Bone, Robert Eadie, Stanley Spencer and L.S. Lowry, willing to depict the new industrial era and the modern world. Glasgow's population had surpassed that of Edinburgh by 1821. The development of civic institutions included the City of Glasgow Police in 1800, one of the first municipal police forces in the world. Despite the crisis caused by the City of Glasgow Bank's collapse in 1878, growth continued and by the end of the 19th century it was one of the cities known as the "Second City of the Empire" and was producing more than half Britain's tonnage of shipping[20] and a quarter of all locomotives in the world.[21] In addition to its pre-eminence in shipbuilding, engineering, industrial machinery, bridge building, chemicals, explosives, coal and oil industries it developed as a major centre Glasgow University in the 1890s in textiles, garment-making, carpet manufacturing, leather processing, furniture-making, pottery, food, drink and cigarette making; printing and publishing.