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Plymouth is a city in the South West of England, or alternatively the Westcountry, and is situated within the traditional county of Devon. more...

It is located at the mouths of the rivers Plym and Tamar and at the head of one of the world's largest and most spectacular natural harbours, the Plymouth Sound. The city has a rich maritime past and was once one of the two most important Royal Navy bases in Britain, a factor that made the city a prime target of the Luftwaffe during the Second World War. After the destruction of the dockyards and city centre in the blitz of 1941, Plymouth was rebuilt under the guidance of architect Patrick Abercrombie and is now one of the few remaining naval dockyards in Britain and the largest naval base in Western Europe. Important locations in the city include The Royal Citadel, Devonport Dockyard and The Barbican from where the Pilgrims left for the New World in 1620.

People born in Plymouth are known as Plymothians or less formally as Janners. In the Royal Navy, "Guz" is a nickname for Devonport.

History

The earliest known settlement in Plymouth dates back to 1000BC with a small iron age trading port located at Mount Batten. It is thought that tin was brought here from Dartmoor via the Plym and traded with the ancient Phoenicians. When part of the Roman Empire this same port continued to trade tin along with cattle and hides. The small port was later overshadowed by the rise of the fishing village of Sutton.

Sutton became a market town in 1254 and later was the first town incorporated by the English Parliament on 12 November, 1439. At the same time the name of the town was changed from Sutton to Plymouth.

In 1403, the town was briefly occupied and burnt by the French, it was also from Plymouth that the Pilgrims sailed to the New World in 1620 aboard the Mayflower before landing at and founding the "Plymouth Colony". Plymouth was where the defeated Napolean Bonaparte was brought aboard the HMS Bellerophon before his exile to St Helena in 1815 and the surviving crew of the RMS Titanic disaster disembarked on their return to England in 1912.

On 14 December 1810, Plymouth was struck by the strongest tornado yet reported in the UK (as of August 2005), with a T8 rating on the TORRO scale, and a wind speed of 213 to 240 mph.

Most visitors to Plymouth are drawn to the spectacular Plymouth Hoe, a stretch of greensward overlooking Plymouth Sound; it is believed that this is the place where Sir Francis Drake completed his game of bowls before setting sail to defeat the Spanish Armada.

Plymouth during the Civil War

Plymouth sided with the Parliamentarians against Charles I in the English Civil War. The town held out for almost four years until the defeat of the Royalists. There are a number of Forts and Keeps from that era, the remains of which can still be seen. After the restoration of the monarchy, construction of The Royal Citadel began in 1665. It is interesting to note that cannons were placed on the walls both facing out to sea and towards the town. A reminder to the people of Plymouth what consequences a repeated stance against the monarchy could have in future.

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