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Bristol is a city and ceremonial county in England. It is home to nearly 430,000 people. The River Avon runs through it to the Severn estuary.
Bristol | |
|---|---|
| City of Bristol transcription(s) | |
  .jpg)  Clockwise from top: Bristol Skyline, Wills Memorial Building, Clifton Suspension Bridge and Cabot Tower | |
 Coat of arms | |
| Motto(s): Virtute et industria (With courage and industry) | |
| Sovereign state |  United Kingdom |
| Country |  England |
| Region | South West |
| Royal Charter | 1155 |
| County status | 1373 |
| Status | City, county and unitary authority |
| Government | |
| • Type | Unitary authority |
| • Governing body | Bristol City Council |
| Area | |
| • City and county | 110 km2 (40 sq mi) |
| Elevation | 11 m (36 ft) |
| Population (2017) | |
| • City and county | 463,400 (Ranked 10th district and 43rd ceremonial county) |
| • Density | 3,892/km2 (10,080/sq mi) |
| • Urban | 724,000 |
| • Metro | 1,006,600 (LUZ 2,009) |
| • Ethnicity[1] |
|
| Demonym | Bristolian |
| Time zone | UTC+1 (GMT (UTC)) |
| • Summer (DST) | BST |
| Postcode | BS |
| Area code(s) | 0117, 01275 |
| ISO 3166 code | GB-BST |
| Website | www.bristol.gov.uk |
It is between the counties of Gloucestershire and Somerset. In 1373, King Edward III ordered that it should be a county itself forever. However, it lost county status in 1974, the year after its 600-year celebrations. It became the largest district within the new Avon county. Avon was never popular and was abolished in 1996, when county status returned to Bristol, which became a unitary council.
The Bristol name means "the place where the bridge is" in Old English. It has been a port for 800 years. Now, ships are too big to reach it. It has a new seaport at Avonmouth.
Historical sites
It has many historic churches and other buildings. The Clifton Suspension Bridge crosses high above the river. The University of Bristol is also in Clifton.
Bristol was a centre for the slave trade.[2][3] During the 2020 George Floyd protests, a crowd pushed down the statue of 17th century slave trader Edward Colston and threw it in the harbour.[4]
Bristol was badly damaged during World War II. It now has many new factories and offices. The Concorde supersonic airliner was made here.
It is also the birthplace of the music genre trip hop,[5] with 3 trip hop bands originating there: Massive Attack, Portishead (named after a North Somerset town) and Tricky.[6]
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Some of the most notable people who are currently living, or who are from the city include:
- Banksy - graffiti artist [7][8][9]
- Stephen Merchant - writer and comedian
- Russell Howard - comedian and television presenter
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