79-465: Coventry Corporation Tramways operated a tramway service in Coventry , England, between 1912 and 1940. The Coventry and District Tramways Company successfully promoted a bill in 1881 to construct tramways between Coventry station and Bedworth . A proposed extension to Nuneaton was withdrawn owing to opposition. The track was laid in 1883 and initial steam powered services started in 1884. Trial trips by
158-454: A Saxon landowner called Cofa , and a tree which might have marked either the centre or the boundary of the settlement. Around c. AD 700 a Saxon nunnery was founded here by St Osburga , which was later left in ruins by King Canute's invading Danish army in 1016. Leofric, Earl 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. It
237-661: A combined annual budget of around £1 billion. In 2021 Coventry became the UK City of Culture . A range of artistic and local history events and projects took place over the next year, including "Coventrypedia" and the creation of the Coventry Atlas local history map. As with the rest of the British Isles and the Midlands, Coventry experiences a maritime climate with cool summers and mild winters. The nearest Met Office weather station
316-471: A larger conurbation known as the Coventry and Bedworth Urban Area , which in 2021 had a population of 389,603. Coventry is 19 miles (31 km) east-south-east of Birmingham , 24 miles (39 km) south-west of Leicester, 10 miles (16 km) north of Warwick and 94 miles (151 km) north-west of London . Coventry is also the most central city in England, being only 12 miles (19 km) south-west of
395-506: A net profit of £1,443, and a balance (after allowing for amounts appropriated for new plant) of £185. In May 1915 the Coventry Tramways Committee approved a trial of employing women as conductors in view of the demand of the war for more men. In 1918 there were two serious accidents. On 19 May, car no. 20 overturned at Longford. Over 20 passengers were injured. On 16 October two trams collided on White Street, which resulted in
474-403: A particularly severe blow: By 1981, Coventry was in an economic crisis, with one in six of its residents unemployed. By 1982, the number of British Leyland employees in the city had fallen from 27,000 at its height, to just 8,000. Other Coventry industrial giants such as the tool manufacturer Alfred Herbert also collapsed during this time. In the late-1970s and early-1980s, Coventry also became
553-565: A population of 345,324 at the 2021 census, making it the tenth largest city in England and the 13th largest in the United Kingdom. It is the second largest city in the West Midlands region , after Birmingham , from which it is separated by an area of green belt known as the Meriden Gap ; it is the third largest in the wider Midlands after Birmingham and Leicester . The city is part of
632-487: A profit of £3,360 (equivalent to £491,112 in 2023). By 1911 the profit had reached £12,599, (equivalent to £1,620,658 in 2023). the highest in the company history. On Sunday 15 December 1907, car 9 overturned on turning the corner into Lower Ford Street after descending Far Gosford Street. This company was taken over by the Coventry Corporation in 1912 at a cost of £202,132 (equivalent of £25,278,206 in 2023). For
711-553: 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. 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. Several new suburbs were constructed in
790-497: A while, this caused a devastating slump in Coventry's economy. A second wave of industrialisation, however, began soon after. Coventry's pool of highly skilled workers attracted James Starley , who set up a company producing sewing machines in Coventry in 1861. Within a decade, he became interested in bicycles , and developed the penny-farthing design in 1870. His company soon began producing these bicycles, and Coventry soon became
869-590: Is Coundon/Coventry Bablake. Temperature extremes recorded in Coventry range from −18.2 °C (−0.8 °F) in February 1947, to 38.9 °C (102.0 °F) in July 2022. The lowest temperature reading of recent years was −10.8 °C (12.6 °F) during December 2010. Coventry forms the largest part of the Coventry and Bedworth Urban Area . The city proper covers an area of almost 100 km (39 sq mi). The protected West Midlands Green Belt , which surrounds
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#1732858720803948-636: Is a cathedral city and metropolitan borough in the West Midlands county, in England , on the River Sherbourne . Coventry had been a large settlement for centuries. Founded in the early Middle Ages , its city status was formally recognised in a charter of 1345. The city is governed by Coventry City Council , and the West Midlands Combined Authority . Formerly part of Warwickshire until 1451, and again from 1842 to 1974, Coventry had
1027-529: Is known as the Lunt Fort . The fort was probably constructed around AD 60 in connection with the Boudican revolt , and then inhabited sporadically until around 280 AD. The origins of the present settlement are obscure, but Coventry probably began as an Anglo-Saxon settlement. Although there are various theories of the origin of the name, the most widely accepted is that it was derived from Cofa's tree ; derived from
1106-473: Is thought likely that the idiom " sent to Coventry ", meaning to ostracise someone, derived from this period, owing to the often hostile attitude displayed towards the prisoners by the city folk. Following the restoration of the monarchy , as punishment for the support given to the Parliamentarians, King Charles II ordered that the city's walls be slighted (damaged and made useless as defences) which
1185-599: The Coventry Blitz was too great to be repaired. The council decided in December 1940 to abandon the system. The remaining system was abandoned in February 1941. A new light rail system for Coventry known as Coventry Very Light Rail is planned with the first line, originally planned to be operational by 2024. Now set back to at least 2026. Coventry Coventry ( / ˈ k ɒ v ən t r i / KOV -ən-tree or rarely / ˈ k ʌ v -/ KUV - )
1264-766: The Coventry Gazette and Birmingham Chronicle , first published in 1757; the Coventry Herald, first published in 1808; the Coventry Observer, first published in 1827; and the Coventry Advertiser , first published in 1852. The ribbon weaving and clock industries both rapidly collapsed after 1860, due to cheap imports following the Cobden–Chevalier free trade treaty , which flooded the market with cheaper French silks, and Swiss Made clocks and watches. For
1343-672: The English Civil War Coventry became a bastion of the Parliamentarians : In August 1642, a Royalist force led by King Charles I attacked Coventry. After a two-day battle, however, the attackers were unable to breach the city walls, and the city's garrison and townspeople successfully repelled the attack, forcing the King's forces to withdraw. During the Second Civil War many Scottish Royalist prisoners were held in Coventry; it
1422-680: The FKI Group of Companies acquired the Hawker Siddeley Electric Power Group from BTR for a price of £182 million. On 1 July 2008 Melrose plc , a specialist investor in the manufacturing industry, bought FKI. During the last 125 years, various Brush companies (Brush Switchgear, Brush Transformers , Brush Traction and Brush Control Gear) have existed on the Falcon Works site, but throughout this period Brush Electrical Machines Ltd manufacturing generators and motors has always been
1501-519: The Great War. Approximately 35,000 men from Coventry and Warwickshire served during the First World War , so most of the skilled factory workers were women drafted from all over the country. Due to the importance of war production in Coventry it was a target for German zeppelin attacks and defensive anti-aircraft guns were established at Keresley and Wyken Grange to protect the city. In June 1921,
1580-502: The Peugeot factory at Ryton-on-Dunsmore in 2006, ended volume car manufacture in Coventry. 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. Since
1659-547: The War Memorial Park was opened on the former Styvechale Common to commemorate the 2587 soldiers from the city who lost their lives in the war. The War Memorial was designed by Thomas Francis Tickner and is a Grade II* building. It was unveiled by Earl Haig in 1927, with a room called the Chamber of Silence inside the monument holding the roll of honour. Soldiers who lost their lives in recent conflicts have been added to
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#17328587208031738-553: The Wars of the Roses , the Royal Court was moved to Coventry by Margaret of Anjou , the wife of Henry VI , as she believed that London had become too unsafe. On several occasions between 1456 and 1459 parliament was held in Coventry, including the so-called Parliament of Devils . For a while Coventry served as the effective seat of government, but this would come to an end in 1461 when Edward IV
1817-489: The doom painting at Holy Trinity Church which features Christ in judgement, figures of the resurrected, and contrasting images of Heaven and Hell. By the 13th century, Coventry had become an important centre of the cloth trade, especially blue cloth dyed with woad and known as Coventry blue . Throughout the Middle Ages , it was one of the largest and most important cities in England, which at its Medieval height in
1896-626: The 1850s, Coventry had overshadowed its rivals to become the main centre of British watch and clock manufacture, which by that time employed around 2,000 people. The watch and clock industry produced a pool of highly skilled craftsmen, who specialised in producing precision components, and the Coventry Watchmakers' Association was founded in 1858. As the city prospered industrially in the 18th and early 19th centuries, several Coventry newspapers were founded. These include Jopson's Coventry Mercury, first issued by James Jopson of Hay Lane in 1741;
1975-459: The 1980s, Coventry has recovered, with its economy diversifying into services, with engineering ceasing to be a mass employer, what remains of manufacturing in the city is driven by smaller more specialist firms. By the 2010s the biggest drivers of Coventry's economy had become its two large universities; the University of Warwick and Coventry University , which between them, had 60,000 students, and
2054-549: The Bishops of Coventry and Lichfield, or Lichfield and Coventry (from 1102 to 1541), and in the medieval period Coventry was a major centre of pilgrimage of religion. The Benedictines , Carthusians , Carmelites and Franciscans all had religious houses in the city of Coventry. The Carthusian Priory of St Anne was built between 1381 and 1410 with royal patronage from King Richard II and his queen Anne of Bohemia Coventry has some surviving religious artworks from this time, such as
2133-583: The Black Prince . In 1451 Coventry became a county in its own right , a status it retained until 1842, when it was reincorporated into Warwickshire . Coventry's importance during the Middle Ages was such, that on a two occasions a national Parliament was held there, as well as a number of Great Councils . In 1404, King Henry IV summoned a parliament in Coventry as he needed money to fight rebellion, which wealthy cities such as Coventry lent to him. During
2212-628: The Forst Street route to Gosford Green on 8 March 1936. The Earlsdon route was withdrawn on 11 April 1937 and railway station route on 18 July 1937. By 1938 the tram services were confined to the Bell Green and Bedworth tram routes. The Stoke via Payne's Lane route was closed on 12 August 1939, but during 1940 the track was repaired with rails from the abandoned Allesley Road route and service recommenced on 18 August 1940. Top covered cars, vestibuled lower deck, open balconies on Peckham Trucks The livery of
2291-606: The U.S. until 1889 when it was sold to the Thomson-Houston Company making Brush a wealthy man. In 1880, the Anglo-American Brush Electric Light Corporation was established in Lambeth , London. Its formation was to exploit the invention of Brush's first electric dynamo in 1876. As the business grew, due to the demand for new electrical apparatus, larger premises were sought, and in 1889
2370-650: 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 (named in recognition of a gift of timber from the Yugoslavian capital city ) was also constructed along with the Herbert Art Gallery . Coventry's pedestrianised Precinct shopping area came into its own and
2449-513: The cars was firstly chocolate and cream, with cream rocker panels. "Coventry Corporation Tramways" was painted in gilt letters on the rocker panels. After 1933, maroon replaced chocolate, and "City of Coventry" was painted on the rocker panels which was finally replaced by "Coventry Transport". Car 52 appeared in 1939 in a livery which was entirely cream except the window frames, which were maroon. The first air raid to affect tram services occurred on 12 October 1940, when several bombs, including one at
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2528-399: The cathedral tower The spire of the ruined cathedral forms one of the "three spires" which have dominated the city skyline since the 14th century, the others being those of Christ Church (of which only the spire survives) and Holy Trinity Church (which is still in use). St Michael's Cathedral is Coventry's best-known landmark and visitor attraction. The 14th century church
2607-700: The centre of the Two-tone musical phenomena. The two-tone style was multi-racial, derived from the traditional Jamaican music genres of ska , reggae and rocksteady combined with elements of punk rock and new wave . Bands considered part of the genre include the Specials , the Selecter , Madness , the Beat , Bad Manners , the Bodysnatchers and Akrylykz . Most famously the Specials 1981 UK no.1 hit ' Ghost Town ' reflected
2686-536: The centre of the British bicycle industry. Further innovation came from Starley's nephew, John Kemp Starley , who developed the Rover safety bicycle , the first true modern bicycle with two equal-sized wheels and a chain drive in 1885. By the 1890s Coventry had the largest bicycle industry in the world, with numerous manufacturers, however bicycle manufacture went into steady decline from then on, and ended entirely in 1959, when
2765-515: The city a connection to the growing national canal network. Nevertheless, during the 18th century, Coventry lost its status as the Midlands' most important city to nearby Birmingham , which overtook Coventry in size. During the same period, Coventry became one of the three main British centres of watch and clock manufacture and ranked alongside Prescot , in Lancashire and Clerkenwell in London. By
2844-510: 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. 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
2923-476: The city centre, the University of Warwick on the southern outskirts and the smaller private Arden University with its headquarters close to Coventry Airport . In addition, Coventry was awarded UK City of Culture for 2021. The Romans founded a large fort on the outskirts of what is now Coventry at Baginton , next to the River Sowe , it has been excavated and partially reconstructed in modern times and
3002-522: The city centre. The city was probably targeted owing 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
3081-429: The city on all sides, has prevented the expansion of the city into both the administrative county of Warwickshire and the metropolitan borough of Solihull (the Meriden Gap ), and has helped to prevent the coalescence of the city with surrounding towns such as Kenilworth , Nuneaton , Leamington Spa , Warwick and Rugby as well as the large village of Balsall Common . Panoramic views of Coventry City Centre from
3160-464: The city was badly hit by Henry VIII 's dissolution of the monasteries . Between 1539 and 1542, monasteries, priories and other properties belonging to the Carmelites , Greyfriars , Benedictines and Carthusians , were either sold off or dismantled. The greatest loss to the city was of Coventry's first Cathedral, St Mary's Priory and Cathedral which was mostly demolished, leaving only ruins, making it
3239-444: The city, starting in the 1930s and being completed in 1940, helped deliver more urban areas to the city on previously rural land. In the 1910s plans were created to redevelop Coventry's narrow streets and by the 1930s the plans were put into action with Coventry's medieval street of Butcher Row being demolished. even before the war, the plans had been put in place to destroy the medieval character of Coventry. The London Road Cemetery
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3318-530: The corporation moved 100 miles north into the newly acquired Falcon Engine and Car Works at Loughborough under the new name, Brush Electrical Engineering Company Limited. In 1914, the company began manufacturing Ljungstrom steam turbines under licence. Over the next sixty years, the business grew by acquisitions, until in 1957, the Brush companies were incorporated into the Hawker Siddeley Group. Within
3397-665: The country's geographical centre in Leicestershire . Coventry became an important and wealthy city of national importance during the Middle Ages . Later it became an important industrial centre, becoming home to a large bicycle industry in the 19th century. In the 20th century, it became a major centre of the British motor industry ; this made it a target for German air raids during the Second World War , and in November 1940, much of
3476-508: The death of a passenger, Frederick William Pinfold, who hit the glass door panel of one of the tramcars and sustained fatal injuries. Alfred Walter Freeman, aged 44, the tram driver, was charged with manslaughter. The fleet was expanded further after the First World War with new vehicles arriving in 1921, 1925, 1929 and 1931, which took the total fleet size to 73. Services developed such that by 1926 there were three full-length cross-city tram routes with seven short workings. A new tram loop
3555-467: The depot at Foleshill Road and the depot, boiler house and power station at Priestley's Bridge on Stoney Stanton Road. In 1912 the Corporation ordered ten new vehicles from Brush Electrical Machines of Loughborough. These were delivered in phases between 1913 and 1914. A further vehicle was delivered in 1916. In the first fifteen months of corporation ownership it was reported that the tramways had made
3634-587: The early 15th century had a population of up to 10,000, making it the most important city in the Midlands , and possibly the fourth largest in England behind London , York and Bristol . Reflecting its importance, in around 1355, work began on a defensive city wall , which, when finally finished around 175 years later in 1530, measured 2.25 miles (3.62 km) long, at least 12 feet (3.7 m) high, and up to 9 feet (2.7 m) thick, it had two towers and twelve gatehouses. Coventry's city walls were described as one of
3713-484: The engine round the curve. Two days later a more concerning incident occurred when an engine left the rails at the same point. The tramway was closed for a few days for alterations to the track. The steam trams seem never to have been very successful, frequently de-railing and experiencing difficulty in ascending the Bishop Street gradient. The service headway was one hour. Steam traction ceased in 1893, after which there
3792-582: The equipment was supplied by the Westinghouse Company, and the Peckham cantilever trucks for the tramcars were also American. Coventry was the first tramway in Britain to have side poles with span wires to carry the overhead electrification. The first electric tram ran to Foleshill Depot (grid reference SP 34481 82294 ) on 5 December 1895 and the service was extended to Bedworth one week later. A new depot
3871-562: The finest in Britain. Following the raids, the majority of Coventry's historic buildings were demolished by a council who saw no need of them in a modern city, although some of them could have been repaired and some of those demolished were unaffected by the bombing. 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
3950-421: The group, the company manufactured a vast range of electrical products, including turbo generators , salient pole machines, induction motors, traction motors and generators, traction locomotives, switchgear, transformers and fuses. In November 1991 Hawker Siddeley Electric Power Group was subject to a successful hostile takeover bid of £1.5 billion from BTR plc , a large engineering conglomerate. In November 1996
4029-491: The growth of the car industry attracting workers, Coventry's population doubled between 1901 and 1911. For most of the early-20th century, Coventry's economy boomed; in the 1930s, a decade otherwise known for its economic slump , Coventry was noted for its affluence. In 1937 Coventry topped a national purchasing power index, designed to calculate the purchasing power of the public. Many Coventry factories switched production to military vehicles, armaments and ammunitions during
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#17328587208034108-503: The historic city centre was destroyed by a large air raid . The city was rebuilt after the war, and the motor industry thrived until the mid-1970s. However, by the late-1970s/early-1980s, Coventry was in an economic crisis, with one of the country's highest levels of unemployment due to major plant closures and the collapse of the respective local supply-chain. In recent years, it has seen regeneration and an increase in population. The city also has three universities: Coventry University in
4187-640: The history of the Corporation's bus operations in the city, see Coventry Corporation Transport . The power house in 1895 was built at Foleshill Depot with two Browett, Lindley & Co horizontal engines, running at 240 r.p.m, driving at 650 r.p.m, 4 pole 100 kW generators by means of belts. In 1899 a new power house was built at Priestley's Bridge. This took in the engines from the Foleshill Depot, and two new direct coupled 250 r.p.m sets with Browett, Lindley & Co engines and 100 kW, 6 pole generators. These remained until January 1930 after which power
4266-416: 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 . As the population grew, the city boundaries underwent several expansions, in 1890, 1928, 1931 and 1965, and between 1931 and 1940 the city grew by 36%. The development of a southern by-pass around
4345-463: The largest company. Over 5,000 staff were employed on the site during the 1960s and 70s. The following products are manufactured by Brush: In 2022, Brush Electrical Machines became a part of Baker Hughes. In 1915, Brush Electrical was one of a number of companies outside the established aviation contractors selected by the Royal Navy to receive orders for aircraft to meet the expanding needs of
4424-650: The last bicycle manufacturer in the city relocated. By the late-1890s, bicycle manufacture began to evolve into motor manufacture. The first motor car was made in Coventry in 1897, by the Daimler Company . Before long Coventry became established as one of the major centres of the British motor industry . In the early-to-mid 20th century, a number of famous names in the British motor industry became established in Coventry, including Alvis , Armstrong Siddeley , Daimler , Humber , Jaguar , Riley , Rootes , Rover , Singer , Standard , Swift and Triumph . Thanks to
4503-486: 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 castle which was held by the Earl. Marmion perished in the battle. It was demolished in the late 12th century. 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. The Bishops of Lichfield were often referred to as
4582-549: The only English Cathedral to be destroyed during the dissolution. Coventry would not have another Cathedral until 1918, when the parish church of St Michael was elevated to Cathedral status, and it was itself destroyed by enemy bombing in 1940. Coventry therefore has had the misfortune of losing its Cathedral twice in its history. William Shakespeare , from nearby Stratford-upon-Avon , may have witnessed plays in Coventry during his boyhood or 'teens', and these may have influenced how his plays, such as Hamlet , came about. During
4661-411: The post-war period, including Tile Hill , Wood End , and Stoke Aldermoor . Coventry's motor industry boomed during the 1950s and 1960s and Coventry enjoyed a 'golden age'. In 1960 over 81,000 people were employed in the production of motor vehicles, tractors and aircraft in Coventry. During this period the disposable income of Coventrians was amongst the highest in the country and both the sports and
4740-422: The raid on 12 October 1940. There were sufficient cars isolated on the outer end of the route to operate the service on the Bell Green side of the crater. The through service was restored on 14 October but on 23 October the route began to operate in three sections as a result of further damage. By 28 October repairs had been made to allow the service to operate in two sections with a break at Peel Street. This break
4819-532: The rest of the cathedral. Brush Electrical Machines Brush Electrical Machines is a manufacturer of electrical generators typically for gas turbine and steam turbine driven applications. The main office is based at Loughborough in Leicestershire , UK . Charles Francis Brush , born in Cleveland , Ohio in 1849, founded the Brush Electric Light Company, which stayed in business in
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#17328587208034898-401: The roll of honour over the years. 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 in 1918, numerous private and council housing developments took place across the city in the 1920s and 1930s to provide housing for
4977-529: The steam tram were run in August 1884 from the depot at Foleshill to the City Centre, and then to Bedworth. The tramway opened soon afterwards but as anticipated by the inspector, there was difficulty in turning the sharp corner at the top of Bishop Street where the lines became double. On Monday 22 September 1884 an engine and car running up Bishop Street became locked in the points and it took repeated attempts to get
5056-462: The time of the Norman Conquest in 1066, Coventry was probably a modest sized town of around 1,200 inhabitants, and its own minster church. 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
5135-509: The top of Bishop Street, caused the Bedworth service to be cut back from Broadgate to Eagle Street. Two days later a bomb just beyond Foleshill Depot caused the Bedworth service to be curtailed at that point. On 24 October, the service was restored between Broadgate and Foleshill Depot. The Bell Green route operated in two sections on either side of the Prince of Wales cinema, Paradise, as the result of
5214-593: The unemployment and desolation of Coventry at the time. Some motor manufacturing continued into the early 21st century: 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 . The closure of
5293-475: The very first in Coventry—was opened on Eagle Street to serve the city's growing Pakistani community. 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 1970s, most of Coventry's motor companies had been absorbed and rationalised into larger companies, such as British Leyland and Chrysler which subsequently collapsed. The early 1980s recession dealt Coventry
5372-426: The wonders of the late Middle Ages. Today, Swanswell Gate and Cook Street Gate are the only surviving gatehouses and they stand in the city centre framed by Lady Herbert's Garden . Coventry claimed the status of a city by ancient prescriptive usage , and was granted a charter of incorporation and coat of arms by King Edward III in 1345. The motto " Camera Principis " (the Prince's Chamber) refers to Edward,
5451-408: Was carried out in 1662. In the 18th and early 19th centuries, silk ribbon weaving and watch and clock making became Coventry's staple industries. In the 1780s, the silk ribbon weaving industry was estimated to employ around 10,000 weavers in Coventry, and its surrounding towns like Bedworth and Nuneaton . Coventry's growth was aided by the opening of the Coventry Canal in 1769, which gave
5530-421: 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 1950, one of Britain's first mosques —and
5609-461: Was designed by Joseph Paxton on the site of a former quarry to meet the needs of the city. Coventry suffered severe bomb damage during the Second World War . The most severe was a massive Luftwaffe air raid that the Germans called Operation Moonlight Sonata. The raid, which involved more than 500 aircraft, started at 7pm on 14 November 1940 and carried on for 11 hours into the morning of 15 November. The raid led to severe damage to large areas of
5688-423: Was during this time that the legend of Lady Godiva riding naked on horseback through the streets of Coventry, to protest against unjust taxes levied on the citizens of Coventry by her husband, was alleged to have occurred. Although this story is regarded as a myth by modern historians, it has become an enduring part of Coventry's identity. A market was established at the abbey gates and the settlement expanded. At
5767-567: Was installed on the throne. In 1506 the draper Thomas Bond founded Bond's Hospital , an almshouse in Hill Street, to provide for 10 poor men and women. This was followed in 1509 with the founding of another almshouse, when the wool merchant William Ford founded Ford's Hospital and Chantry on Greyfriars' Lane, to provide for 5 poor men and their wives. Throughout the Middle Ages Coventry had been home several monastic orders and
5846-411: Was largely destroyed by German bombing during the Second World War , leaving only the outer walls and spire. At 300 feet (91 metres) high, the spire of St Michael's is claimed to be the third tallest cathedral spire in England, after Salisbury and Norwich . Due to the architectural design (in 1940 the tower had no internal wooden floors and a stone vault below the belfry) it survived the destruction of
5925-631: Was no tramway service until December 1895. The steam tramway service was superseded by the Coventry Electric Tramways Company Ltd, which started operations in 1895. This company was a subsidiary of the New General Traction Company . The contractors for the electrification were the General Traction Company of Westminster, and the work was carried out under the supervision of Graff Baker and Winslow. Much of
6004-532: Was obtained from the Coventry Corporation Electricity Supply department and converted by two 500 kW Bruce Peebles rotary converters , installed in 1914, and a 1,000 kW Brush motor–generator installed in 1930. The Corporation purchased the entire undertaking on 1 January 1912 for £220,638 9s 0d, met by a 30-year loan. This included 10.5 miles of single track, 2.6 miles of double track, 41 tramcars, with another in construction,
6083-406: Was opened at Priestley's Bridge (grid reference SP 34277 80197 ) during 1899. On 6 March 1900 a tramway postal service was inaugurated, which continued until the end of tramway operation 40 years later. In latter days the postal car left Bedworth at 8.50pm, showing 'Postal Car' in red letters on the route indicator. The letter-box was fixed to the outside of the rear dash. In 1896 the company made
6162-474: Was opened in 1926 from Greyfriars Green along Queens Road to Albany Road, joining the existing Earlsdon route. Four years later, the last extension was opened from Bull's Head Lane along Binley Road to Uxbridge Avenue, for the new General Electric Company plc telephone works. In 1931 the track in Burgess was doubled which reduced delays in the central area. The Allesley Road route was abandoned on 5 March 1932, and
6241-412: Was repaired and through service was about to be restored when the heavy raid of 14 November 1940 brought all services to an end. There were eleven rail fractures, 4.5 miles of cable wire brought down along with 38 poles. Six buses were totally wrecked, thirteen required almost complete rebuilding, and 181 which had suffered as a result of the night of 14-15 November. The damage caused by heavy bombing during
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