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Liverpool, England
Liverpool is a city and metropolitan borough in Northwest England.
The city is governed by Liverpool City Council, one of five councils within the Metropolitan county of Merseyside. The population of the borough in 2002 was 441,477, and that of the Merseyside conurbation was 1,362,026. Whilst it has lost most of its manufacturing base, Liverpool is still internationally famous as a port. In sporting terms, it boasts two internationally-known football clubs, Liverpool F.C. and Everton F.C. In the year 2008, Liverpool will hold the European Capital of Culture title. Liverpool is one of England's core cities.
Liverpool is situated along the eastern side of the Mersey Estuary, with the city centre located about 5 miles inland from the Irish Sea. Liverpool has a varied topography being built across a ridge of hills rising up to a height of around 70 metres above sea-level at Everton Hill.
The city's urban area runs directly into Bootle and Crosby in Sefton, Huyton and Prescot in Knowsley. It faces Wallasey and Birkenhead across the River Mersey.
River Mersey)]]
History
In 1190 the place was known as 'Liuerpul', meaning a pool or creek with muddy water. Other origins of the name have been suggested, including 'elverpool', a reference to the large number of eels in the Mersey.
The origins of the city are usually dated from August 1207 when letters patent were issued by King John advertising the establishment of a new borough at Liverpool, and inviting settlers to come and take up holdings there. It is thought that the king wanted a port in the district that was free from the control of the earl of Chester. Initially it served as a dispatch point for troops sent to Ireland, soon after Liverpool Castle was built, which was removed in 1726. For four centuries, Liverpool was relatively unimportant. In the middle of the 16th century the population of Liverpool was only around 500, and the port was regarded as subordinate to Chester until the 1650s. A number of battles for the town were waged during the English Civil War, including an eighteen-day siege in 1644.
In the year 1571 the inhabitants of Liverpool sent a memorial to Queen Elizabeth, praying relief from a subsidy which they thought themselves unable to bear, wherein they styled themselves "her majesty's poor decayed town of Liverpool." Some time towards the close of this reign, Henry Stanley, 4th Earl of Derby, on his way to the Isle of Man, stayed at his house at Liverpool called the Tower; at which the corporation erected a handsome hall or seat for him in the church, where he honoured them several times with his presence.
From this time until the end of the next century, Liverpool made but a slow progress in the extent of its trade and in the number of its inhabitants. Neither is there any remarkable occurrence recorded of it except the siege of it by Prince Rupert, in the English Civil Wars in 1644, some traces of which were discovered when the foundation of the Liverpool Infirmary was sunk, particularly the marks of the trenches thrown up by the prince, and some cartouches, etc., left behind by the besiegers.
In 1699 Liverpool was made a parish on its own by Act of Parliament, separate from that of Walton-on-the-Hill, with two parish churches. From that time may be traced the rapid progress of population and commerce, until Liverpool had become the second metropolis of Great Britain.
In the 18th century, as trade from the West Indies was added to that of Ireland and Europe, Liverpool began to grow. The first wet dock in Britain was built in Liverpool in 1715. Substantial profits from the slave trade helped the town grow and prosper. Liverpool's black community dates from this period and grew rapidly, reaching a population of 10,000 within five years. By the beginning of the 19th century, 40% of the world's trade was passing through the docks at Liverpool. During the 1840's, the Irish began arriving by the thousands due to the Great Famine 1845-1849. By 1851, approximately 25% of the city was Irish-born.
Irish]
Liverpool expanded significantly in the 19th century and a number of major buildings were constructed (St. George's Hall, Lime Street Station etc.). When the American Civil War broke out Liverpool became a hot bed of intrigue. The last Confederate ship, the CSS Alabama, was built at Birkenhead on the Mersey and the CSS Shenandoah surrendered there. Liverpool was granted city status in 1880.
During the first part of the 20th century Liverpool continued to expand, pulling in emigrants from Europe.
Adolf Hitler's half-brother Alois and his Irish sister-in-law Bridget Dowling are known to have lived in Upper Stanhope Street in the 1910s. Bridget's alleged memoirs, which surfaced in the 1970s, said that Adolf stayed with them in 1912-1913, though this is much disputed and many believe the memoirs to be a forgery.[http://www.btinternet.com/~m.royden/mrlhp/local/hitlerinliverpool/hitlerinliverpool.htm] [http://www.bbc.co.uk/legacies/myths_legends/england/liverpool/user_1_index.shtml]
The maiden voyage of Titanic was originally planned for Liverpool, but relocated to Southampton — this is often a point of confusion — no part of Titanic was actually constructed in Liverpool.
Aside from the large Irish community in Liverpool, there were other pockets of cultural diversity. The area of Gerard, Hunter, Lionel and Whale streets, off Scotland Road, was referred to as Little Italy. Inspired by an old Venetian custom, Liverpool was 'married to the sea' in September 1928. Liverpool was also home to a large Welsh population and was sometimes referred to as the Capital of North Wales. In 1884, 1900 and 1929, Eisteddfod were held in Liverpool. The population of the city exceeded 850,000 in 1930.
During World War II there were eighty air-raids on Merseyside, with an especially concentrated series of raids in May 1941 which interrupted operations at the docks for almost a week. Although 'only' 2,500 people were killed, almost half the homes in the metropolitan area sustained some damage and 11,000 were totally destroyed. John Lennon, one of the founding members of The Beatles, was born in Liverpool during an air-raid on October 9, 1940.
Significant rebuilding followed the war, including massive housing estates and the Seaforth Dock, the largest dock project in Britain. However, the city has been suffering since the 1950s with the loss of numerous employers. By 1985 the population had fallen to 460,000. Declines in manufacturing and dock activity struck the city particularly hard.
Seaforth Dock
In the 1960s Liverpool became a centre of youth culture. The city produced the distinctive Merseybeat sound, and, most famously, The Beatles.
From the 1970s onwards Liverpool's docks and traditional manufacturing industries went into sharp decline. The advent of containerization meant that Liverpool's docks became largely obsolete.
Historically Liverpool was part of Lancashire, it became a county borough in 1888. In 1974, it became a metropolitan district within the newly created metropolitan county of Merseyside.
The 1980s saw Liverpool's fortunes sink to their lowest point. In the early 1980s unemployment rates in Liverpool were amongst the highest in the UK. In 1981 the infamous Toxteth Riots took place, during which, for the first time in the UK outside Northern Ireland, tear gas was used by police against civilians.
Liverpool City Council was taken over by the far-left wing Militant group during the 1980s, under the de facto leadership of Derek Hatton (although Hatton was formally only Deputy Leader). The city council sank heavily into debt, as the City Council fought a campaign to prevent central government from reducing funding for local services. Ultimately this led to 49 of the City's Councillors being removed from office by the unelected District Auditor, for refusing to make staff redundant or remove council services to reduce their spending.
In 1989, 96 Liverpool fans died and many more were severely injured in the Hillsborough disaster at a football game in Sheffield. This had a traumatic effect on people in both cities, and resulted in legally imposed changes in the way in which football fans have since been accommodated. In particular this led to strong feeling in Liverpool because it was widely reported in the media that the Liverpool fans were at fault. It has since become clear that South Yorkshire Police made a range of mistakes at the game, though the senior officer in charge of the event retired soon after.
A similar outpouring of grief and shock occurred in 1993 when two year-old James Bulger was killed by two ten year-old boys, Jon Venables and Robert Thompson. And again over the murders of Kenneth Bigley in 2004 and Anthony Walker in 2005.
In recent years, the city has emphasised its cultural attractions, winning the accolade of European City of Culture for 2008. Capitalising on the popularity of the 1960s pop group The Beatles and other groups of the Merseybeat era, tourism has also become a significant factor in Liverpool's economy.
A general economic and civic revival has been underway since the mid-nineties. For all of this period Liverpool's economy has grown faster than the national average and crime levels have remained lower than most other metropolitan areas in England and Wales, with recorded crime per head in Merseyside comparable to the national average — unusually low for an urban area.
Culture
nineties
Inhabitants of Liverpool are referred to as "Liverpudlians" and nicknamed "Scousers", though this term is often (erroneously) used to cover other Merseysiders. They are noted for their distinctive accent and dialect, called Scouse.
Liverpool has a vibrant artistic life.
Several pre-Raphaelites are among the important paintings in the Walker Art Gallery. Sudley House contains another major collection of pre 20th century art. [http://www.liverpoolmuseums.org.uk/] The Tate Liverpool gallery houses the modern art collection of the Tate in the north of England. The Liverpool Biennial is a festival of arts held (as the name implies) every two years. The festival generally runs from mid September to late November and comprises three main sections; the International, The Independents and New Contemporaries although many fringe events are timed to coincide.[http://www.biennial.org.uk/]
A flourishing orchestra, the Royal Liverpool Philharmonic Orchestra performs in its own hall, the Philharmonic Hall. The city also became well known for the Liverpool poets, of whom Adrian Henri and Roger McGough are among the best known. The city is also home to several successful theatre companies — The Everyman & Playhouse [http://www.everymanplayhouse.com/] as well as The Unity Theatre [http://www.unitytheatreliverpool.co.uk/].
Unity Theatre]
In 2003, Liverpool became European Capital of Culture for 2008 and started a £750 million regeneration of the city centre. A proposed tram system, Merseytram, was in development, but was cancelled in November 2005 due to spiralling costs.
Liverpool has two Premier League football clubs — Everton F.C. at Goodison Park and Liverpool F.C.aka scousers at Anfield which is a stadium. Over the water at Tranmere are Tranmere Rovers F.C..
Important landmarks and buildings
Tranmere Rovers F.C.
Tranmere Rovers F.C.
The built environment of Liverpool contains over 2,500 listed buildings (26 Grade I and 85 Grade II
- ) it is the inheritance of high-minded public spirit since the later 18th century, largely with Dissenter impetus, that has resulted in more public sculpture than in any UK city aside from Westminster, more listed buildings than any city apart from London and, surprisingly, more Georgian houses than the City of Bath.
In 2004 Liverpool's waterfront was inscribed as a UNESCO World Heritage site, the justification is Liverpool's importance in the development of world trading system and dock technology.
Amongst its superlatives: Liverpool has the largest panel of stained glass in the world (in Liverpool Metropolitan Cathedral), the largest brick building in the world, and the first enclosed integrated dock system in the world. The Anglican Cathedral has the longest nave, largest organ and heaviest and highest peal of bells in the world. Architects well represented in Liverpool: Giles Gilbert Scott, Peter Ellis, Harvey Lonsdale Elmes, and John Foster. Sir Edwin Lutyens is represented by the completed crypt of his projected Metropolitan Cathedral, which was built to a simpler design by Frederick Gibberd.
- Albert Dock
- Bluecoat Arts Centre
- Cast Iron Shore
- Cunard Building
- Lime Street Station
- Royal Liver Building
- Liverpool John Moores University
- Liverpool School of Tropical Medicine
- Liverpool University
- Merseyside Maritime Museum
- Museum of Liverpool Life
- Oriel Chambers design by Peter Ellis.
- The Philharmonic Dining Rooms
- Pier Head
- Port of Liverpool Building
- Quiggins
- St George’s Hall
- Stanley Dock Tobacco Warehouse
- The Beatles Story
- Town-Hall
- Walker Art Gallery
- Wellington's Column
- William Brown Library
- Williamson's tunnels
Williamson's tunnels
Williamson's tunnels
Williamson's tunnels]
Theatres
- Empire
- Everyman
- Neptune
- Philharmonic Hall
- The Playhouse
- Royal Court
- Unity
Ritual sites
- Greek Orthodox Church of St Nicholas
- Gustav Adolfus Kyrka The Swedish Seamen's Church.
- Liverpool Cathedral (Anglican)
- Liverpool Metropolitan Cathedral of Christ the King (Roman Catholic),
- Princes Road Synagogue
- Church of St Luke, Liverpool
- Church of Our Lady and Saint Nicholas the seafarers church and Liverpool parish church.
Education
In Liverpool primary education is available in various forms supported by the state include secular, Church of England, Islamic, Jewish and Roman Catholic. Currently no specific Islamic secondary education is provided.
One of Liverpool important early schools was The Liverpool Blue Coat School was founded in 1708 as a charitable school, it continues today. Liverpool College[http://www.liverpoolcollege.org.uk/] is the leading private school. Another of Liverpool's notable senior schools is St. Edward's College, a former private high school located in West Derby.
Liverpool has three universities, the University of Liverpool, Liverpool John Moores University and Liverpool Hope University. It also has a university college, Edge Hill College of Higher Education, which has re-located to Ormskirk in South-West Lancashire. Liverpool John Moores University is one of the polytechnics given university status in 1992 and is named after the owner of the Littlewoods retail group. The Liverpool School of Tropical Medicine was founded to address some of the problems created by trade, today it continues as a post graduate school and is one of only two institutions on planet Earth that house the de facto standard anti-venom respository.
The Liverpool Institute for Performing Arts which was set up by Sir Paul McCartney in 1996, to train artistes and technicians, in the building which formerly housed the Liverpool Institute for Boys.
Transport
There are three tunnels under the River Mersey: one railway tunnel, the Mersey Railway Tunnel, and two road tunnels, Queensway Tunnel and Kingsway Tunnel. There is also the Mersey Ferry, made famous by the song Ferry Cross the Mersey by Gerry and the Pacemakers. In fact the song is now played on the ferryboats themselves every time they prepare to dock at Liverpool.
In 2001, Speke Airport was renamed Liverpool John Lennon Airport, in honour of the late Beatle John Lennon. The airport's logo consists of a sketch that Lennon had drawn of himself, and the words "Above us only sky", lyrics from his song "Imagine". The airport was the starting point for many Beatles tours in the sixities, and image of the boys boarding planes there were seen throughout the world.In 2002 716,000 passengers used the Port of Liverpool, with the Isle of Man and Ireland being the two most important passenger routes.
Liverpool has a train system called Merseyrail, the sections in the city centre are mostly underground. The lines terminate at Southport, Ormskirk, Kirkby, Hunts Cross, Ellesmere Port, West Kirby, New Brighton and Chester. The inner loop from Edge Hill station to Kirkdale, no longer carries passenger services and Liverpool Overhead Railway has long since disappeared. Liverpool once possessed a very integrated transport system, until the deregulation of bus and rail services which started in 1986. In 2001 a plan to build a light rail system, Merseytram, was developed, which would have been the first since the city's tram system was dismantled in the 1950s; however the Merseytram concept was cancelled by the government in 2005 because of increasing costs.
Famous Liverpudlians
A great many famous names have been associated with Liverpool; for a list, see List of famous people from Liverpool.
Media
The city has two daily newspapers: the Liverpool Daily Post in the morning and the evening Liverpool Echo, both published by the same company. The Daily Post, especially, serves a wider area, including north Wales. Broadcast media include BBC Radio Merseyside, Juice FM and Radio City as well as Magic 1548. The last two are both based in St. John's Beacon which dominates the [http://www.liverpoolskyline.co.uk/ Liverpool Skyline]. The local television station is [http://www.itv.com/granada ITV Granada], based on the city's waterfront. The independent media organisation [http://www.indymedia.org.uk/en/regions/liverpool Indymedia] also covers Liverpool.
Economy
The economy of Liverpool is beginning to recover from its long post WWII decline. Between 1995 and 2001 GVA per head grew at 6.3% annum. This compared with 5.8% for inner London and 5.7% for Bristol. The rate of Jobs growth was 9.2% compared with a national average of 4.9% for the same period, 1998-2002.
Like the rest of the United Kingdom the city has seen a large growth in service industries and has several major call centres. The activities of the port have left the site with a communications infrastructure that had for a long time exceeded requirements. Growth in the areas of New Media has been helped by the existence of a relatively large Computer game development community.
Tourism is a major factor in the economy and will be of increasing importance in the run up to the Liverpool years as European Capital of Culture. This has led to a great increase in the provision of high quality services such as Hotels, restaurants and clubs. The buildings of Liverpool not only attract tourists but also film makers, who regularly use Liverpool to double for many cities around the worlds and making it the second most filmed city in the UK.
Films set in Liverpool
- The Magnet (1950) filmed in New Brighton & Liverpool
- Violent Playground (1958)
- Ferry 'Cross The Mersey (1965) Gerry & The Pacemakers
- Gumshoe (1972) starring Albert Finney
- Letter to Brezhnev (1985).
- Distant Voices, Still Lives (1988)
- Dancin' Thru the Dark (1990)
- The Long Day Closes (1992)
- Three Businessmen (1999)
- Liam (2000)
- Going Off Big Time (2000)
- Revengers Tragedy (2002)
- The 51st State (2002)
Districts of Liverpool
Parliamentary constituencies
:See also: List of Parliamentary constituencies on Merseyside
- Liverpool Garston
- Liverpool Riverside
- Liverpool Walton
- Liverpool Wavertree
- Liverpool West Derby
See also
- Liverpool F.C.
- Everton F.C.
- Cream (nightclub)
- Vestey Group
- Port of Liverpool
- Liverpool Garden Festival
- Williamson's tunnels
- List of television shows set in Liverpool
External links
- [http://www.liverpool.gov.uk/ Liverpool City Council]
- [http://www.liverpoolpictorial.co.uk/ Liverpool Pictorial]
- [http://www.liverpool08.com/root/index.asp Liverpool: European Capital of Culture 2008]
- [http://whc.unesco.org/pg.cfm?cid=31&id_site=1150 UNESCO citation]
- [http://www.mersey-gateway.org/ Port Cities Liverpool]
- [http://members.ispwest.com/ronsmith/liverpool/intro.htm Ron's Liverpool]
- [http://www.bbc.co.uk/liverpool/localhistory/journey/american_connection/alabama/bulloch_liverpool.shtml CSS Alabama]
- [http://www.multimap.com/map/photo.cgi?client=public&X=344685&Y=386052&width=700&height=410&gride=334580.994651215&gridn=390838.420417347&srec=0&coordsys=gb&db=freegaz&pc=&zm=0&out.x=4&out.y=12&scale=100000 MultiMap Aerial Photograph]
- [http://www.lmu.livjm.ac.uk/lhol/ Liverpool John Moores University History Project]
- [http://www.merseyside.com/streets/ Liverpool street index]
Category:Cities in England
Category:Coastal cities
Liverpool, U.K.
Category:World Heritage Sites in England
Category:Metropolitan boroughs
ja:リヴァプール
City
:For alternate meanings see city (disambiguation)
A city is an urban area that is differentiated from a town, village, or hamlet by size, population density, importance, or legal status.
Introduction
In most parts of the world, cities are generally substantial and nearly always have an urban core, but in the United States many incorporated areas which have a very modest population, or a suburban or even mostly rural character, are designated as cities. City can also be a synonym for "downtown" or a "city centre".
A city usually consists of residential, industrial and business areas together with administrative functions which may relate to a wider geographical area. A large share of a city's area is primarily taken up by housing, which is then supported by infrastructure such roads, streets and often public transport routes such as a subway or a metro rail system. Lakes and rivers may be the only undeveloped areas within the city. The study of cities is covered extensively in human geography.
"The city is a human habitat that allows people to form relations with others at various levels of intimacy while remaining entirely anonymous." (This definition was the subject of an exhibition at the Israeli pavilion at the 2000 Venice Biennale of architecture)
The difference between towns and cities
The difference between towns and cities is differently understood in different parts of the English speaking world. There is no one standard international definition of a city: the term may be used either for a town possessing city status; for an urban locality exceeding an arbitrary population size; for a town dominating other towns with particular regional economic or administrative significance. Although city can refer to an agglomeration including suburban and satellite areas, the term is not appropriate for a conurbation (cluster) of distinct urban places, nor for a wider metropolitan area including more than one city, each acting as a focus for parts of the area.
In the United Kingdom, a city is a town which has been known as a city since time immemorial, or which has received city status by royal charter — which is normally granted on the basis of size, importance or royal connection (traditional pointers have been whether the town has a cathedral or a university). Some cathedral cities, for example St. David's in Wales, are quite small, and may not be known as cities in common parlance. (See the City status in the United Kingdom.) A similar system existed in the medieval Low Countries where a landlord would grant settlements certain privileges (city rights) that settlements without city rights didn't have. This include the privilege to put up city walls, hold markets or set up a judicial court.
In Australia and New Zealand, city is used to refer both to units of local government, and as a synonym for urban area. For instance the [http://www.southperth.wa.gov.au City of South Perth] is part of the urban area known as Perth, commonly described as a city. On the other hand, Gisborne in New Zealand is known as the first city to see the sun, despite being administered by a district council, not a city council.
An interesting phenomenon in American English is the generalisation of the term city to all settlements. Britons may be bemused by forms with fields headed, not Town and Postal code, but City and ZIP, even though the person needing to fill it in could be living in a city, a town without city status, or even a village or hamlet.
In turn, many Americans often talk of "City Halls" when referring to town halls in quite small European towns and villages.
Strangely, even though Americans are well aware that "village" means something smaller than a town, the word has often been co-opted by enterprising developers to make their projects sound welcoming and friendly. The result are so-called villages with 20 and 30-story high-rises, like Westwood Village in Los Angeles.
Geography
Westwood Village, of around 1550. The city is completely surrounded by a city wall and defensive canal. The square shape is inspired by Jerusalem.]]
The geographies of cities, both physical and human, are diverse. Often cities will either be coastal and have a harbour or be situated near a river giving economic advantage. Water transports on rivers and oceans were (and in most cases still are) cheaper and more efficient than road transport over long distances.
Older European cities often have historically intact central areas where the streets are jumbled together, seemingly without a structural plan. This quality is a legacy of earlier unplanned or organic development, and is often perceived by today's tourists to be picturesque.
Modern city planning has seen many different schemes for how a city should look. The most commonly seen pattern is the grid, almost a rule in parts of the United States, and used for thousands of years in China. Derry was the first ever planned city in Ireland, begun in 1613, with the walls being completed 5 years later in 1618. The central diamond within a walled city with four gates was thought to be a good design for defence. The grid pattern chosen was subsequently much copied in the colonies of British North America [http://worldfacts.us/UK-Londonderry.htm]. However, the grid has been used for a long time in history. The Greeks gave their colonies around the Mediterranian often with a grid. One of the best examples around is the city of Priene. This city even had it's different districts. Much like modern city planning today. Also in de Medival times we see a preference for lineair planning. Good examples are the cities establish in the south of France by various rulers. And city expantions in old Dutch and Flanders cities.
Other forms may include a radial structure in which main roads converge on a central point, often the effect of successive growth over long time with concentric traces of town walls and citadels - recently supplemented by ring-roads that take traffic around the edge of a town. Many Dutch cities are structured that way: a central square surrounded by a concentric canals. Every city expansion would imply a new circle (canals + town walls). In cities like Amsterdam and Haarlem this pattern is still clearly visible.
History of cities
Towns and cities have a long history, although opinions vary on whether any particular ancient settlement can be considered to be a city. The first true towns are sometimes considered to be large settlements where the inhabitants were no longer simply farmers of the surrounding area, but began to take on specialized occupations, and where to trade, food storage and power was centralized. Societies that live in cities are often called civilizations.
By this definition, the first towns we know of were located in Mesopotamia, such as Ur, and along the Nile, the Indus Valley Civilization and China. Before this time it was rare for settlements to reach significant size, although there were exceptions such as Jericho, Çatalhöyük and Mehrgarh.
The growth of ancient and medieval empires led to ever greater capital cities and seats of provincial administration, with ancient Rome, its eastern successor Constantinople and successive Chinese and later Indian capitals approaching or exceeding the half-million population level. It is estimated that ancient Rome population exceeded one million people by the end of the last century BCE, which is considered the only city to reach that number until the Industrial Revolution, however, Alexandria population was close to one million at the same time. Similar large administrative, commercial, industrial and ceremonial centres emerged in other areas, though on a smaller scale.
During the European Middle Ages, a town was as much a political entity as a collection of houses. City residence brought freedom from customary rural obligations to lord and community: "Stadtluft macht frei" ("City air makes you free") was a saying in Germany. In Continental Europe cities with a legislature of their own wasn't unheard of, the laws for towns as a rule other than for the countryside, the lord of a town often being another than for surrounding land. In the Holy Roman Empire (i.e. medieval Germany and Italy) some cities had no other lord than the emperor.
In exceptional cases like Venice, Genoa or Lübeck, cities themselves became powerful states, sometimes taking surrounding areas under their control or establishing extensive maritime empires. Similar phenomena existed elsewhere, as in the case of Sakai, which enjoyed a considerable autonomy in late medieval Japan.
Most towns remained far smaller places, so that in 1500 only some two dozen places in the world contained more than 100,000 inhabitants: as late as 1700 there were fewer than forty, a figure which would rise thereafter to 300 in 1900. A small city of the early modern period might contain as few as 10,000 inhabitants, a town far fewer still.
While the city-states, or poleis, of the Mediterranean and Baltic Sea languished from the 16th century, Europe's larger capitals benefited from the growth of commerce following the emergence of an Atlantic economy fuelled by the silver of Peru. By the 18th century, London and Paris rivalled the well-developed regionally-traditional capital cities of Baghdad, Beijing, Istanbul, Kyoto and Venice.
The growth of modern industry from the late 18th century onward led to massive urbanization and the rise of new great cities, first in Europe and then in other regions, as new opportunities brought huge numbers of migrants from rural communities into urban areas. In the Great Depression of the 1930s cities were hard hit by unemployment, especially those with a base in heavy industry. Today the world's population is about half urban, with millions still streaming annually into the growing cities of Asia, Africa and Latin America.
Modern conceptions
Traditional approach
A universal linear approach to cities has been in place and accepted for a long time. As this approach falls short of explaining a number of aspects of city life, such as the diversity between cities, new ways have been sought. Influenced by post-structuralist thinking a new approach was born: using spatial thinking it is possible to not only fill the gaps, but indeed replace the old completely.
Three characteristics have been identified as defining a city: the number of people to area (density), the networks of the city, as well as a particular way of life. None of these characteristics alone is enough to make a place a city.
Until recently cities were almost exclusively viewed as part of a single, linear line of development. Starting with the Greek city-state, this linear approach placed each city somewhere, and it was believed that it was only a matter of time until the next stage along the prescript path of advancement was reached. For each stage an exemplar was identified. Step by step from Athens onwards to Venice and London, Los Angeles seemed to be the ultimate stage of a postmodern city. Such an approach regarded a city as a single static entity, which could be studied disconnected in time and space. This leads to a theoretical framework with little connection to real cities, but these were simply seen as less clear examples. In spite of apparent shortcomings, this approach is still very commonplace in respected and popular publications.
Shortcomings
Despite its wide acceptance this traditional approach to cities had serious shortcomings. Firstly, leaving the latest stage aside, it was completely eurocentric. It was believed that every city in the world could be compared with a past stage in the history of one European city. Secondly, there was no real explanation when and how changes occurred, how another stage in the line of development was achieved. There seemed no need to follow the changes of one city, but instead attention was turned to another exemplar. Thirdly, the disconnected view of cities is problematic. It implies that history, culture and connections of a place do not influence a place, which is questionable. Some thinkers argue that a history ignoring connections is necessary incomplete. Fourthly, the traditional approach failed to define what makes a city. It is unclear why one place is regarded as a city while another one is not. Lewis Mumford argued in 1937 for a social dimension, describing cities as geographical plexuses. Finally, viewing cities as a single body misses modern conceptions that there is more than one story to a place. The city of an aristocrat will surely differ from that of a slave. This also reflects a shift away from one single history of the powerful élites (often referred to as city élites) to a multidimensional perception of history. The notion of city rhythms has been introduced to highlight the different aspects of city life...
The term city can be used to mean either an area of contiguous urbanization or a particular municipality (an [http://www.demographia.com/db-world-muni.htm area within the political borders of an incorporated municipality]). There is a substantial variation in municipalities around the world. The largest municipality, Chongqing, is approximately the same size as the state of Indiana and contains much more rural territory than continuous urbanization. In most cases, however, the continuous urbanization popularly thought of as the city extends well beyond the boundaries of the core incorporated city.
Modern approach
As a modern approach to cities, urban thinking analyzes various issues that arise in urban areas. It focuses largely upon connections and internal divisions which helps create a better understanding of the dynamics of cities. Using such spatial thinking, it is possible to understand various aspects for which the traditional approach did not provide an adequate explanation.
One important aspect of spatial thinking is looking at the connections of a city. Such connections allow one to understand the unique character of a place. Rather than treating all cities the same, places are seen as interconnected through networks of culture, economics, trade or history. So while London and Tokyo are economically linked through stock markets, Graz and Stockholm are linked via the Cultural Capital of Europe.
These networks overlap and are concentrated in cities. Arguably this concentration of networks creates a unique feeling of a place. Such networks, however, do not only link cities with cities, but also a city to its surroundings. The notion of a city footprint reflects the idea that a city on its own is not sustainable: it depends on produce from its surroundings, it needs trade links and other connections for economic viability. Looking at networks, it becomes possible to explain the rise and fall of cities. This has to do with the changing importance of connections and is maybe best illustrated with the arrival of Spanish colonizers in America. Within a short time, connections to Madrid became more important than connections to the former centre Tenochtitlán.
The concentration of networks in cities can be used as an explanation of urbanization. It is the access to certain networks that attracts people. As various networks spatially run together in a confined area, people gather in cities. At the same time, this concentration of people means the introduction of new networks, such as social links, increasing the creation of new possibilities within cities. Urban social movements are a direct result of this possibility of making new connections. It is this openness to new connections that makes cities both attractive and to a certain degree unpredictable.
Another important aspect of modern urban thinking is looking at the divisions within a city. This internal differentiation is linked to the external connections of a city. As places of meeting histories, cities are hybrid and heterogeneous. Hybrid they are as the connections which link places are bilateral, involving giving and taking in both directions. Heterogeneous they are because of the dynamism of cities. New encounters are ongoing processes where social relations and differences are constantly negotiated and shaped, reflecting the unequal power involved.
Neither the internal differentiations nor the connections and networks of a place on their own define a city. Internal divisions are caused by external links, while at the same time connections to the outside open up the possibility of new social divisions. Divisions and connections in every city are intertwined, and only by considering both aspects of spatial thinking the complexity of cities is approachable. Immigration illustrates this interconnection of external networks and internal divisions well. The networks concentrated in the core of the city attract immigrants. As they immigrate, the newcomers bring along their histories, bringing new networks or enforcing existing ones. At the same time, their history offers opportunities to identify with or likewise exclude. Division and connection come hand in hand. Rather than attempting to eradicate such tensions and contradictions in the theoretical framework, modern urban thinking – influenced by poststructuralist thought – accounts for both sides. Static universal bodies are replaced by multidimensional networks, allowing for fluidity and dynamism.
Global cities
A global city, also known as a world city, is a prominent centre of trade, banking, finance, innovations, and markets. The term "global city", as opposed to megacity, was coined by Saskia Sassen in a seminal 1991 work. Whereas "megacity" refers to any city of enormous size, a global city is one of enormous power or influence. Global cities, according to Sassen, have more in common with each other than with other cities in their host nations. Bangkok, Beijing, Brussels, Chicago, Hong Kong, Johannesburg, London, Moscow, Mumbai, New York, Los Angeles, Paris, São Paulo, Seoul, Shanghai, Singapore, Sydney, Tokyo, and Toronto are commonly referred to as global cities, however, the term is also applied to other cities.
The notion of global cities regards the power of cities as contained within cities. The city is seen as a container where skills and resources are concentrated. The more successful city is able to concentrate more of these skills and resources. This makes the city itself more powerful in terms that it can influence what is happening around the world. Following this view of cities, it is possible to rank the world's cities hierarchically (John Friedmann and Goetz Wolff, "World City Formation: An Agenda for Research and Action," International Journal of Urban and Regional Research 6, no. 3 (1982): 319.).
Critics of the notion point out to the different realms of power. The term global city narrowly focuses on economics. Cities like Rome are powerful in religious terms. Additionally, it has been questioned whether the city itself can be regarded as an actor.
In 1995 Kanter argued that successful cities can be identified by three elements. To be successful, a city needs to have good thinkers (concepts), good makers (competence) or good traders (connections). The interplay of these three elements, Kanter argued, means that good cities are not planned but managed.
Environmental effects
Modern cities are known for creating their own microclimates. This is due to the large clustering of hard surfaces that heat up in sunlight and that channel rainwater into underground ducts. As a result, city weather is often windier and cloudier than the weather in the surrounding countryside. Conversely, because these effects make cities warmer (urban heat shield or urban heat islands) than the surrounding area, tornadoes tend to go around cities. Additionally towns can cause significant downstream weather effects.
Garbage and sewage are two major problems for cities, as is air pollution coming from internal combustion engines (see public transport). The impact of cities on places elsewhere, be it hinterlands or places far away, is considered in the notion of city footprinting (ecological footprint).
Inner city
Main article: Inner city
In the United States, United Kingdom and Republic of Ireland, the term "inner city" is sometimes used with the connotation of being an area, perhaps a ghetto, where people are less educated and wealthy and where there is more crime. These connotations are less common in other Western countries, as deprived areas are located in varying parts of other Western cities. In fact, with the gentrification of some formerly run-down central city areas the reverse connotation can apply - in Australia the term "outer suburban" applied to a person implies a lack of sophistication. For instance, in Paris the inner city is the richest part of the metropolitan area, where housing is the most expensive, and where elites and high-income individuals dwell.
The United States, in particular, suffers from a culture of anti-urbanism that some say dates back as far as Thomas Jefferson who wrote that "The mobs of great cities add just so much to the support of pure government as sores do to the strength of the human body." On the businessmen who brought manufacturing industry into cities and hence increased the population density necessary to supply the workforce, he wrote "the manufactures of the great cities... have begotten a depravity of morals, a dependence and corruption, which renders them an undesirable accession to a country whose morals are sound." Modern anti-urban attitudes are to be found in America in the form of a planning profession that continues to develop land on a low-density suburban basis, where access to amenities, work and shopping is provided almost exclusively by car rather than on foot.
However, there is a growing movement in North America called "New Urbanism" that calls for a return to traditional city planning methods where mixed-use zoning allows people to walk from one type of land-use to another. The idea is that housing, shopping, office space, and leisure facilities are all provided within walking distance of each other, thus reducing the demand for road-space and also improving the efficiency and effectiveness of mass transit.
See also
Lists
- List of cities by country
- List of cities by latitude
- List of metropolitan areas by population
- Thirty most populous cities in the world
- List of city nicknames
- List of fictional cities
Miscellaneous
- City status in Sweden
- City status in the United Kingdom
- benign neglect
- The City
- County
- Independent city
- Megacity
- municipal government
- global city
- planned city
- urban geography
- urban planning
- Ville
- Burning Man, a week-long festival as a temporary city (housing 35,000 residents in 2004)
- SimCity, a popular series of city simulators, sometimes used in education.
- Freedom Ship, concept for a floating city
References
- Toynbee, Arnold (ed), Cities of Destiny, New York: McGraw-Hill, 1967. Pan historical/geographical essays, many images. Starts with "Athens", ends with "The Coming World City-Ecumenopolis".
External links
- [http://www.populationdata.net/palmaresvilles.html All 1M+ major urban areas]
- [http://www.p.lodz.pl/I35/personal/jw37/EUROPE/europe.html Place Names of Europe]
- [http://www.tageo.com/index.htm Place Names of the world - Index of 2M cities]
- [http://www.nationmaster.com/graph-T/geo_lar_cit&int=-1&b_ac=1 Most populous city of each country]
- [http://www.world-gazetteer.com/st/statb.htm For all countries, number of cities per size category]
- [http://www.nationmaster.com/graph-T/geo_lar_cit_pop_cap&int=-1 For each country, part of its population that lives in its most populous city] (with some odd figures due to the comparison of data of different years)
- [http://www.nlc.org/nlc_org/site/ The National League of Cities] (United States)
- [http://www.innercitypress.org Inner City Press] (Weekly publication on cities, United States)
- [http://etext.lib.virginia.edu/cgi-local/DHI/dhi.cgi?id=dv1-52 Dictionary of the History of ideas:] The City
- [http://www.morganquitno.com/cit05list.htm Morgan Quinto's 11th Annual America's Safest (and Most Dangerous) Cities]
- [http://www.skyscraperpage.com A friendly website designed by skyscraper enthusiasts featuring diagrams and descriptions of the buildings of cities around the world.]
- [http://www.bifurcaciones.cl bifurcaciones.cl, urban cultural studies journal]
- [http://worldheritage-forum.net/de/ Worldheritage-Forum] Weblog and Informationen on UNESCO World Heritage topics (with focus on cities)
Category:Urban studies and planning
Category:Cities
ja:都市
ja:市
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th:เมือง
Northwest England
North West England is one of the regions of England. It is one of the two regions (along with Yorkshire and the Humber) that were expected to have a referendum about the establishment of an elected regional assembly. However, when the North East region of England recently rejected having an elected regional assembly in a referendum, Deputy Prime Minister John Prescott subsequently announced that he will not move orders for other referendums. The proposals for elected regional assemblies in England therefore are on hold.
The highest point in the region is Scafell Pike, in Cumbria, at 978m.
Two large connurbations, centred on the cities of Liverpool and Manchester, dominate the south of the region. The north of the region (ie. north Lancashire and Cumbria) is largely rural. This has caused questions to be asked whether the region should be altered so that Cumbria is transferred to the North East region (creating a new North region of England), as currently there are stark contrasts within the North West region.
Counties and Districts
See Counties of England and Districts of England
The region is divided into the following local government areas:
- Cheshire (shire county)
- Ellesmere Port and Neston
- Chester
- Crewe and Nantwich
- Congleton
- Macclesfield
- Vale Royal
- Halton (unitary authority)
- Warrington (unitary authority)
- Cumbria (shire county)
- Barrow-in-Furness
- South Lakeland
- Copeland
- Allerdale
- Eden
- Carlisle
- Greater Manchester (metropolitan county)
- Bolton
- Bury
- Manchester
- Oldham
- Rochdale
- Salford
- Stockport
- Tameside
- Trafford
- Wigan
- Lancashire (shire county)
- West Lancashire
- Chorley
- South Ribble
- Fylde
- Preston
- Wyre
- Lancaster
- Ribble Valley
- Pendle
- Burnley
- Rossendale
- Hyndburn
- Blackpool (unitary authority)
- Blackburn with Darwen (unitary authority)
- Merseyside (metropolitan county)
- Knowsley
- Liverpool
- St Helens
- Sefton
- Wirral
Districts that form the metropolitan counties are known as metropolitan boroughs.
External links
- [http://www.go-nw.gov.uk Government Office for the North West]
- [http://www.nwda.co.uk Northwest Development Agency]
- [http://www.nwra.gov.uk North West Regional Assembly]
Category:Regions of England
Metropolitan county
The metropolitan counties are a type of county-level subnational entity in current use in England. There are six metropolitan counties and they cover large urban areas. They were created in 1974 and are each divided into several metropolitan districts.
The county councils were abolished in 1986 with most of their functions being devolved to the individual boroughs or taken over by joint-boards.
Counties and districts
The six metropolitan counties and their metropolitan districts (also known as boroughs) are:
The structure of Greater London is similar to the metropolitan counties and it is sometimes considered to be one. It was created in 1965 under different legislation and was not defined as a metropolitan county.
History
Creation
The idea for creating administrative areas based upon the large conurbations outside London, was first mooted by the Redcliffe-Maud Report in the late 1960s. The report proposed the creation of three large "metropolitan areas" based upon the conurbations surrounding Manchester, Liverpool and Birmingham.
The proposals of the report were radically altered when Edward Heath's Conservative government came to power in 1970. The metropolitan areas were re-named metropolitan counties, and three new areas were added (Tyne and Wear, West Yorkshire, South Yorkshire). In their final form, the counties were also far smaller than in the original proposals.
The metropolitan counties were established by the Local Government Act 1972, the county councils were first elected in 1973, and were formally established in April 1974.
Structure
The metropolitan counties were first created with a two-tier structure of local government. Local government fuctions were divided between the metropolitan district councils as lower tier authorities and metropolitan county councils (MCCs) as the upper tier.
The structure differed from the shire counties (non-metropolitan counties) in the allocation of powers between the county and district councils. The metropolitan districts had more powers than the non-metropolitan districts. They were responsible for services such as education, and social services. In the shire counties these were the responsibillity of the county councils.
The metropolitan county councils (MCCs) were intended to be strategic authorities that ran regional services such as main roads, public transport, emergency services, civil protection, and were responsible for strategic town and country planning. The MCCs functioned between 1974 and 1986. The last elections to the councils were held in May 1981.
Abolition of the county councils
Just a decade after they were established: the MCCs, and Ken Livingstone's Greater London Council had several high profile clashes with the Conservative government of Margaret Thatcher.
In 1983 the government published a White Paper entitled Streamlining the cities which proposed the abolition of the MCCs, together with the abolition of the Greater London Council (GLC), the government enacted the report in the Local Government Act 1985. And the MCCs and the GLC were abolished in 1986.
The government claimed that this was an efficiency measure. Although it is widely believed that they were abolished for political reasons, because all of the county councils were controlled by the Labour Party.
Most of the functions of the MCCs passed either to the metropolitan borough councils, or to joint-boards. Some assets were given to residuary bodies for disposal.
The status today
The metropolitan counties are sometimes refered to as "former metropolitan counties", although this description is not entirely correct; although the county councils were abolished, the metropolitan counties still exist legally, and are also ceremonial counties (or geographic counties), they are also used in government statistics.
Some local services are still run on a metropolitan county-wide basis, administered by joint-boards, these include emergency services, (policing and fire) public transport (by joint Passenger Transport Executives), waste disposal and civil defence. These joint-boards are made up of councillors appointed by the boroughs.
In the 1990s many of the so-called 'artificial' counties which were created in 1974 such as Avon, Cleveland and Humberside were abolished completely due to their unpopularity. However the metropolitan counties were judged to be a success and were retained in their post-1986 form.
The abolition of the GLC was extremely controversial, but the MCCs less so. In 1997 Tony Blair's new Labour government legislated to restore a successor body to the GLC: the Greater London Authority. Despite some talk of doing so, no bodies have been established to replace the MCCs. The Blair government instead pursued the idea of elected Regional Assemblies, although this idea now looks dead.
One possible alternative floated subsequent to the rejection of regional assemblies is that of the City region, an idea which is currently under exploration by the government and several think tanks. For instance, an ODPM strategy paper in 2005 proposed that new directly elected mayors could instead hold office across several urban councils, in effect a city region.
Since the 1995, the cities of Birmingham, Bristol, Leeds, Liverpool, Manchester, Newcastle, Nottingham and Sheffield have assembled together in the Core Cities Group. This organisation accords no distinct legal status on these councils over any other city council in England but appears to be organically moving towards some kind of recognition of their role as regional capitals outside of London.
See also
- List of articles about local government in the United Kingdom
Category:Subnational entities
Category:Local government of England
2002
2002 (MMII) is a common year starting on Tuesday of the Gregorian calendar. It was designated the:
- International Year of Ecotourism and Mountains
- Year of the Outback in Australia
- National Science Year in the United Kingdom
- Autism Awareness Year in the United Kingdom
See also Wikipedia's almanac of events for this year.
Overview of the year
In contrast to 2000 and 2001, which retained elements of the late 1990s, 2002 shifted into a new cultural decade. With the declining popularity of late 1990s and early 2000s acts like 'N Sync and The Backstreet Boys after band break-ups, rap acts like 50 Cent and Eminem rose in popularity. Pop-Punk acts like Good Charlotte and New Found Glory also appealed to adolescents. 2002 also marked the begining of the controversial Iraq War, which many say, along with 9/11, was the true generation definer of the 2000s.
Events
- January 1 - The Republic of China officially joins the World Trade Organization, as Chinese Taipei.
- January 1 - The Open Skies mutual surveillance treaty, initially signed in 1992, officially enters in to force.
- January 5 - Charles Bishop, a 15 year-old student pilot, crashes a light aircraft into a Tampa, Florida building, evoking fear of a copycat 9/11 terrorist attack.
- January 9 - The United States Department of Justice announces it is going to pursue a criminal investigation of Enron.
- January 10 - Enrique Bolaños began his five-year term as President of the Republic of Nicaragua.
- January 13 - President George W. Bush faints after choking on a pretzel.
- January 14 - The case of Adelaide Abankwah comes into trial in New York
- January 16 - A student shoots 6 people at the Appalachian School of Law, killing three.
- January 16 - John Ashcroft announces that American Taliban member John Walker Lindh would be tried in the United States.
- January 16 - The UN Security Council unanimously establishes an arms embargo and the freezing of assets of Osama bin Laden, Al-Qaida, and the Taliban.
- January 17 - Eruption of Mount Nyiragongo in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, displacing an estimated 400,000 people.
- January 18 - A Canadian Pacific Railway train carrying anhydrous ammonia derails outside of Minot, North Dakota, killing one.
- January 22 - AOL Time Warner brings a federal suit against Microsoft seeking damages. The suit alleges that the market for AOL's Netscape Navigator Internet browser was harmed when Microsoft started to give away a competing browser.
- January 22 - Kmart Corp becomes the largest retailer in American history to file for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection.
- January 22 - Clyde Hood sentenced for 14 years in prison for Omega Trust fraud
- January 24 - Terrorist suspect John Walker Lindh's hearing begins.
- January 27 - Several explosions at a military dump in Lagos, Nigeria kill more than 1,000.
- February 2 - Crown Prince Willem-Alexander of the Netherlands marries Máxima, Princess of Orange in Amsterdam.
- February 3 - Costa Rica: elections for President and Congress
- February 8-February 24 - 2002 Winter Olympics in Salt Lake City, Utah
- February 12 - The trial of former President of the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia Slobodan Milošević begins at the United Nations war crimes tribunal in The Hague
- February 12 - Nuclear waste: US Secretary of Energy makes the decision that Yucca Mountain is suitable to be the United States' nuclear repository.
- February 13 - Queen Elizabeth II gives former New York City mayor Rudolph Giuliani an honorary knighthood.
- February 16 - Rachel Thaler, aged 16, blown up at a pizzena in an Israeli shopping mall following a suicide bombing attack on a crowd of teenagers.
- February 19 - NASA's Mars Odyssey space probe begins to map the surface of using its thermal emission imaging system.
- February 20 - In Reqa Al-Gharbiya, Egypt, a fire on a train injures over 65 and kills at least 370
- February 20 - In most of the world, at 20:02 (8:02 PM) local time, date (written as day/month), time, and year are all 2002, making each of them alone, any two together, and the combination of all three, all palindromes.
- February 22 - Norwegian-facilitated ceasefire begins in Sri Lanka
- February 23 - FARC kidnaps Ingrid Betancourt in Colombia when she campaigns for presidency
- February 27 - Ethnic conflict in India: 59 Hindu pilgrims die aboard a train burned by a Muslim mob in Godhra, India, sparking a series of riots, leaving hundreds dead
- February 28 - The ex-currencies of all euro members officialy (at EU-level) cease to be legal tender.
- March 1 - U.S. invasion of Afghanistan: In eastern Afghanistan, Operation Anaconda begins.
- March 1 - 28 people die in continuing violence in Ahmedabad. Police shoot and kill five while attempting to control rioters.
- March 1 - The Envisat environmental satellite successfully reaches an orbit 800km above the Earth on its 11th launch, carrying the heaviest payload to date at 8500kg.
- March 1 - Space Shuttle Columbia flies Hubble Space Telescope service mission (STS-109).
- March 1 - Peseta discontinued as official currency of Spain and is replaced with the euro (€)
- March 3 - São Tomé and Príncipe: elections for the legislature
- March 6 - France agrees to return the remains of Saartje Baartman to South Africa
- March 10 - Colombia: elections for the legislature; Togo: elections for the Parliament
- March 11 - BBC 6 Music, the first new BBC music radio station in decades, is launched
- March 12 - In Texas, Andrea Yates is found guilty of drowning her five children on June 20, 2001. She is later sentenced to life in prison
- March 17 - Portugal: elections for the Parliament
- March 19 - US Attack on Afghanistan: Operation Anaconda ends (started on March 1) after killing 500 Taliban and al Qaeda fighters with 11 allied troop fatalities
- March 21 - In Pakistan, Ahmed Omar Saeed Sheikh along with three other suspects are charged with murder for their part in the kidnapping and killing of Wall Street Journal reporter Daniel Pearl
- March 27 - Netanya suicide attack: A suicide bomber kills 28 people in Netanya, Israel
- March 31 - Ukraine: elections for the Parliament
April
- April 2 - Israeli forces surround the Church of the Nativity in Bethlehem, when militants take shelter there. A siege ensues.
- April 9- Funeral of Queen Elizabeth, the Queen Mother takes place in Westminster Abbey, London.
- April 15 - An Air China Boeing 767-200 crashes into a hillside during heavy rain and fog near Pusan, South Korea, killing 128
- April 15 - The Alameda Corridor transportation project in Los Angeles, California opens to rail traffic, ceasing operations of through freight trains on the 120-year-old BNSF Harbor Subdivision.
- April 17 - Four Canadian infantrymen are killed in Afghanistan by friendly fire from two U.S. F-16s.
- April 18 - New order of insects, Mantophasmatodea, announced.
- April 25 - South African Mark Shuttleworth blasts off from the Baikonur cosmodrome; he had paid £15 million for the trip.
- April 26 - Robert Steinhauser opens fire on his former teachers and other students in Erfurt, Germany and then kills himself: 16 dead.
- April 27 - Three people killed in Laughlin, Nevada River Run Riot.
- April 30 - Pakistan: Pakistani voters approve a referendum granting a five-year term for Pakistani president Pervez Musharraf.
May]
- May 4 - In Germany, BV Borussia Dortmund wins the Bundesliga title after a 2-1 victory over SV Werder Bremen.
- May 6 - In the Netherlands, politician Pim Fortuyn is killed by Volkert van der Graaf.
- May 7 - Gay Canadian teenager Marc Hall is granted a court injunction ordering that he be allowed to attend his high school prom with his boyfriend.
- May 9 - The 38-day stand-off in the Church of the Nativity in Bethlehem comes to an end when the Palestinians inside agreed to have 13 suspected militants among them deported to several different countries. The standoff started April 2.
- May 9 - In Kaspiysk, Russia, a remote-control bomb explodes during a holiday parade, killing 43 and injuring at least 130.
- May 10 - FBI agent Robert Hanssen is sentenced to life without the possibility of parole for selling American secrets to Moscow for $1.4 million in cash and diamonds.
- May 12 - Former President Jimmy Carter arrives in Cuba for a five-day visit with Fidel Castro becoming the first President of the United States, in or out of office, to visit the island since Castro's 1959 revolution.
- May 15 - The Netherlands: elections for the Lower House.
- May 16 - Star Wars: Attack of the Clones is released in theaters.
- May 20 - Restoration of East Timor independence
- May 21 - US State Department releases report citing seven State-Sponsors of Terrorism;Iran,Iraq,Cuba,Libya,North Korea,Sudan,andSyria.
- May 22 - In Washington, DC, Chandra Levy's remains are found in Rock Creek Park.
- May 22 - American civil rights movement: 16th Street Baptist Church bombing: A jury in Birmingham, Alabama convicts former Ku Klux Klan member Bobby Frank Cherry of the 1963 murders of four girls.
- May 23 - Irish Football Captain, Roy Keane, Is sent home from the Training Camp in Saipan, by Manager Mick McCarthy after an Argument over Training arrangements. This cause a huge Media sensation in Ireland and Britain. Many people were split over two sides and some called it the Second Irish Civil War.
- May 23 - First Eurovision Song Contest in a former Soviet country: Estonia
- May 25 - The Boston Celtics come back from twenty-six points down to defeat the New Jersey Nets in Game 3 of the National Basketball Association's Eastern Conference Finals.
- May 25 - China Airlines Flight 611 broke up near the Penghu Islands at Taiwan Strait, killing all 225 people on board.
- May 26 - The Mars Odyssey finds signs of huge water ice deposits on the planet Mars.
- May 28 - Washington DC's medical examiner declares that Chandra Levy's death was the result of homicide.
- May 31 through June 30 - 17th Football World Cup in South Korea and Japan
June over London in a fly past for Queen Elizabeth II on her Golden Jubilee]]
- June 1 - The Los Angeles Lakers def the Sacramento Kings 112-106, to win Game 7 of the National Basketball Association's 2002 Western Conference Finals.
- June 3 - The "Party in the Palace" takes place at Buckingham Palace, London for Queen Elizabeth II's Golden Jubilee celebrations.
- June 4 - Quaoar is discovered.
- June 4 - Queen Elizabeth II and the Duke of Edinburgh ride in the gold state coach from Buckingham Palace to St Paul's Cathedral for a special service marking the Queen's 50 years on the throne. In New York, the Empire State Building is lit in purple for her honour.
- June 5 - Elizabeth Smart is kidnapped from her Salt Lake City, Utah home.
- June 5 - Mozilla 1.0, the first 'official' version, is released.
- June 6 - The United States House of Representatives Energy and Commerce Committee announces it is probing Martha Stewart's ImClone stock sales.
- June 8 - Serena Williams defeats her sister Venus Williams in straight sets to win the 2002 French Open.
- June 10 - Annular solar eclipse.
- June 11 - Antonio Meucci was recognised as the first inventor of the telephone by the United States Congress.
- June 12 - The Los Angeles Lakers def the New Jersey Nets 4 games to 0 to win the 2002 NBA Finals.
- June 13 - The Detroit Red Wings def the Carolina Hurricanes 4 games to 1 in the | | |
