ITIL® Intermediate Level

About Manchester

Manchester, meaning “fortified town”, is located in Greater Manchester, England. It has a population of 530,300 as per 2015 statistics.  Manchester has its borders with the Cheshire Plain to the south with the Pennines to the north east. Also a group of towns with which it forms a continuous metropolis. Local governing authority of Manchester is Manchester City Council.

Manchester is said to have been first settled by the Romans as its history records. The Roman fort of Mamucium or Mancunium coming up somewhere in about AD 79 near the union of the rivers Medlock and Irwell. It was a part of Lancashire, although areas of Cheshire south of the River Mersey were incorporated in the 20th century. Throughout the Middle Ages Manchester remained a manorial township. It began to expand rapidly around the turn of the 19th century. Manchester's unplanned urbanisation was brought on by a boom in textile manufacture during the Industrial Revolution. It resulted in it becoming the world's first industrialised city.

Manchester achieved city status in 1853. The Manchester Ship Canal opened in 1894. This canal created the Port of Manchester and linking the place to the sea. After declined the Second World War, owing to deindustrialisation Its fortunes. The IRA bombing in 1996 but turned Manchester into as we know it today. In 2014, Manchester was ranked as a beta world city by the Globalization and World Cities Research Network. In the process became the highest-ranked British city apart from London.

Economy

Manchester’s economy grew between 2002 and 2012, with its growth rate 2.3% that is above the national average. Manchester with a GDP of $88.3bn is the third-largest economy in the United Kingdom. The UK economy as of today is recovering from the crisis it faced in 2008 – 2010. Manchester compare favourably to other geographies according to the latest figures. In 2012 it has shown the strongest annual growth in business stock.

Landmarks

Manchester has buildings with a variety of architectural styles, that range from Victorian to contemporary architecture. Manchester is also home to skyscrapers that were built during the 1960s and 1970s. The tallest of these towers was the CIS Tower located near Manchester Victoria station until the Beetham Tower was completed in 2006. Till date, the Beetham Tower remains the tallest building outside London. This tower has been described as the United Kingdom's only real skyscraper outside the capital. The city has 135 parks, gardens, and open spaces.

Two large squares are holding many of Manchester's public monuments. Albert Square has monuments to Prince Albert, Bishop James Fraser, Oliver Heywood, William Ewart Gladstone, and John Bright. Piccadilly Gardens has monuments dedicated to Queen Victoria, Robert Peel, James Watt and the Duke of Wellington. 

Sports

Manchester is known to be a games city. Two decorated Premier League football clubs bear the city name – Manchester United and Manchester City. Manchester United has its home ground at Old Trafford. Manchester City's home ground is the City of Manchester Stadium (or the Etihad Stadium). The City of Manchester Stadium came into existence as the main athletics stadium for the 2002 Commonwealth Games. Later on, it was changed into a football stadium. Manchester has hosted various football competitions such as domestic, continental and international at the Fallow field Stadium and the City of Manchester Stadium. Other events are FIFA World Cup (1966), Olympic Football (2012), UEFA European Football Championship (1996), UEFA Cup Final (2008) and UEFA Champions League Final (2003). Four FA Cup Finals (1893, 1911, 1915, 1970) and three League Cup Finals were held in Manchester.