Bradford

Bradford is the major settlement in the City of Bradford Metropolitan District, in the county of West Yorkshire in the north of England. It became a borough in 1847, and received its charter as a city in 1897. The city status was transferred to the Metropolitan District when it was formed in 1974. It has a population of 295,000 with 478 800 inhabitants in the district as a whole.

It was not until the Industrial Revolution that Bradford became one of the leaders in the field of wool trade. It was able to maintain this position until the beginning of World War II. What was a common thing in the larger part of England, happened in Bradford as well: the industry collapsed and the Bradfordians had to find other means of living. At present, tourism and chemistry factories have taken over the textile industry, but it won’t be a problem to see (and hear) stories of the glorious woolen past.

Bradford has some interesting museums (check out the UK’s National Museum of Photography, Film and Television), fine parks and is located on the edge of the Yorkshire Moors. The same moors that inspired the Bronte sisters, who were actually born in one of the suburbs of Bradford. The city has a large Pakistani/Indian community and although it always claimed to be the example of the peaceful living together of different nationalities, Bradford appeared recently in the news because of severe riots going on between the different groups.