Lichfield, ENG - Postcode - WS13 7JS

Description of Lichfield

Lichfield, in the county of Staffordshire in England, is home to both a cathedral and a civil parish. Located about 18 miles (29 km) to the south-east of Stafford, 9 miles (14 km) to the north-east of Walsall, 7.9 miles (12.7 km) to the north-west of Tamworth, and 13 miles (21 km) to the south-west of Burton Upon Trent, Lichfield is a major city in the West Midlands. A total of 32,219 people called the Lichfield District home as of the 2011 Census, with an additional 100,700 people living in the surrounding area.

Samuel Johnson, the compiler of the first definitive Dictionary of the English Language, was born in Lichfield, a city famous for its three-spired ancient cathedral. In 669 A.D., when Chad of Mercia arrived to set up his Bishopric, the city began to develop as the Mercian ecclesiastical center. The Staffordshire Hoard, covering an area of 5.9 km (3.7 mi), was discovered to the south-west of Lichfield in 2009. It is the greatest trove of Anglo-Saxon gold and silver metalwork ever discovered.

In the 12th century, the city's growth was cemented by Roger de Clinton, who built a wall around the Cathedral Close and gave the city its distinctive "ladder" street layout. Lichfield became a thriving coaching city in the 18th century, its golden age. Samuel Johnson, David Garrick, Erasmus Darwin, and Anna Seward were all Lichfield natives, and Johnson famously remarked that the city was "a city of philosophers" because of the level of intellectual activity occurring there at the time.

Geographical description of Lichfield

Lichfield, located in the south-east of Staffordshire in England's West Midlands, with a land area of around 5.41 square miles (14.0 km2). It lies around 200 kilometers (120 miles) north-west of London and about 27 kilometers (or 17 miles) north of Birmingham. Cannock Chase rises to the west, while the Trent and Tame rivers form valleys to the east of the city. Red sandstone, produced during the dry desert conditions of the Triassic era, serves as the bedrock here. The Elmhurst and Curborough areas of the city's northern and northern-most outskirts are underlain by Mercia Mudstone. Lichfield Cathedral and the Church of St. Chad are just two of the numerous historic structures in the city that make use of the red sandstone that serves as the foundation for most of Lichfield. 

Within the municipal limits, elevations range from 116 meters in the northwest to 86 meters on the sandstone shelf upon which Lichfield Cathedral is built. A ridge, reaching 103 m at St. Michael on Greenhill, may be found to the south and east of the city center. Borrowcop Hill, the highest point in Boley Park, stands at 113m. Where Tamworth Road exits the city and enters Freeford to the south-east, the elevation reduces to 69 meters. Both Berry Hill Farm (at 123 m) and Harehurst Hill (near the city boundary at Aldershawe) are located on a high ridge to the south-west of the city. 

Two streams, the Trunkfield Brook and the Leamonsley Brook, flow west into the valley, and the Curborough Brook flows north-east out of the valley and into the River Trent. The city is built on both sides of the valley. South of the cathedral, on Dam Street, two streams were dammed to create Minster Pool and near St. Chad's Road, Stowe Pool was created.

The prosperity of Lichfield increased alongside its status as a major religious hub. The original settlement thrived as a result of the influx of visitors to the St. Chad shrine, who remained devoted to the saint even after its destruction during the Reformation.

The production of woolen textiles and leather goods were Lichfield's primary economic activities during the Middle Ages. There were a number of farms in the region, and much of it was open pasture.

Lichfield flourished as a coaching hub in the 18th century. To meet the need for lodging, a plethora of inns and hostels sprung up, and businesses providing goods and services essential to the coaching trade, such as saddlers, tanneries, and hay and corn merchants, flourished. The city's prosperity was largely due to the money spent by the many tourists who visited it. Lichfield's fortunes fell as the development of railroads caused a decline in the popularity of coach travel.

Brewing had become the main industry by the end of the 19th century, and nearby market gardens fed the expanding cities of Birmingham and the Black Country.

In the present day, the eastern half of the city is home to a number of light industrial neighborhoods that are not centered around any one industry. The area is well-known thanks to two manufacturers: Armitage Shanks (who build bathtubs, bidets, and showers) and Arthur Price of England (who make high-quality cutlery and silverware). In fact, many locals travel to Birmingham every day for work.