Origins

August 2007 marked 800 years of Liverpool’s existence and this it was greeted with much celebration. Although some reports date Liverpool slightly earlier than the official 1207 date (citing references to a ‘Liuerpul’ from 1190) it is this year which the local authority chooses to recognise. The then monarch, King John, issued letters of patent to allow settlers to take up land there. It is believed he wanted a port in the area, which wasn’t under the control of the nearby Earl of Chester.

Liverpool remained largely unimportant until the 1650s. It had a church, small market square and a fishing community of around 500, but was largely seen as subordinate to the nearby Chester. It was about this time that Liverpool’s importance started to increase as it became a significant port as trade grew with America and the West Indies. It was mostly cloth, coal and salt, coming from the surrounding Lancashire which was exported in exchange for sugar and tobacco. The growth meant that in 1699 Liverpool was made a parish (governing unit) in its own right.

An International Port

From this time onwards Liverpool began to boom as it milked the profits to be made from the international slave trade. The first recorded slave ship arrived back in Liverpool in 1700, marking the start of over 130 years of legal trading. The income from the trade allowed the city to make technological breakthroughs including the first wet dock in Britain (1715) and the first enclosed wet dock in the world, which could take up to 100 ships. By the end of the 1700s 40 per cent of the world’s slave trade involved ships which passed through Liverpool. By the time the trade was abolished in 1834 Liverpool was the countries second most important financial centre (after London). Liverpool formally apologised for its role in the slave trade in 1999.

Inland transport helped the city grow to a population of around 80,000. This transport links included the world’s first inter city railroad with Manchester (in 1830) and an extensive canal/barge network. It was also during this time that the Town Hall and Corn Exchange were built to accommodate the needs of the city’s many merchants. Trading links with the Far East and India further helped the city to grow. As Liverpool became rich from the money of the British Empire many of the more remarkable buildings, such as Saint George’s Hall and Lime Street Station were constructed.

The Irish Influx

Liverpool as a port on the Irish Sea understandably has had long connection with Ireland. The Irish Famine of 1845-1849, led thousands to Britain, and especially Liverpool as the first port of call. By 1851 around 25 per cent of the cities population was Irish born. Even today the city is called the second capital of Ireland. Indeed, outside of Ireland itself, Liverpool was the only city to elect a member of the Irish Parliamentary Party (from 1885-1929). The large Irish population, has given Liverpool and unusually large Catholic population, compared with the rest of the mostly protestants country.

Up until the end of World War Two

Changes in the structure of the world’s economy started to affect Liverpool at the beginning of the centaury. Cotton made goods were no longer in such high demand, and like the whole of the North West Liverpool’s economy suffered. This coupled with the Great Depression which struck the whole of the country, meant that by the outbreak of war in 1939 Liverpool was a city which had at the very least stagnated, if not declining.

Merseyside suffered heavily during the war, targeted as one of the allies’ major ports. Almost half the homes in the area sustained some sort of damage and the docks were shut down for over a week in 1941.

The 1960s

Liverpool’s most famous export, the Beatles emerged from the world renowned Merseybeat sound which came from the city in the 1960s. Numerous other bands and famous stars came from the city during a period when the city was the centre of youth culture, the reverberations of which can still be felt throughout the world.

Up until the mid-nineties

Like many northern industrial or shipping centres, Liverpool suffered heavily in the 70s and especially the 80s as the country was restructured into a service based economy. Large unemployment plagued the city, the docks slowly ground to a halt and the advent of a Thatcher led government all pilled pressure on the city.

The population consequently was in decline up until the turn of the centaury as Liverpool struggled to find a role in a changing world. The famous Toxteth riots in 1981 saw the police use tear gas for the first time on a civilian population, and a local government which clashed with London saw the removal of local officials fro their elected positions and a reduction of services in the city.

From the mid nineties onwards

It is widely perceived amongst those in power that Liverpool has experienced an upturn since from the middle of the nineties until the present day. Indeed, economically there has been much investment in the city, tourism has boosted the economy and the turn of the new millennium saw an increase in population figures for the first time in over twenty years. Large areas of the city however are still in severe poverty; Liverpool was one of the biggest receivers of European Union development aid before the expansion of the EU in 2004. Large scale building is underway in the city centre and millions have been poured into the area as Liverpool remodels herself as a prime tourist destination.