I.

Introduction

Merseyside, non-administrative metropolitan county, north-western England, bounded by Lancashire to the north, Greater Manchester metropolitan county to the east, the county of Cheshire to the south, and the Irish Sea to the west. Merseyside is largely urbanized, but it includes a narrow band of less heavily populated coastal land, stretching from the Ribble estuary southwards to Crosby. The county was created in 1974, taking most of the peninsula known as the Wirral from Cheshire, and a section of the southern part of Lancashire. The area of the county is 652 sq km (252 sq mi).

II.

Land and Resources

The larger part of Merseyside is based on Carboniferous rocks; the coastal strip northwards to Southport is composed chiefly of blown sand. The estuary of the River Mersey dominates the southern half of Merseyside, and cuts off the Wirral from the rest of the county. The climate is moderate. Annual rainfall for the county is in the region of 760 to 1,000 mm (30 to 40 in). The Ainsdale Sand Dunes are designated as a National Nature Reserve. A wide variety of seabirds can be seen, and the dunes are also the home of sand lizards and natterjack toads. The coastal dunes, south of Southport, continue southwards to Formby Point, where there is a reserve for red squirrels.

III.

Population and Administration

The population of the county was estimated in 2001 to be 1,362,034. The principal towns are Liverpool (2001, 439,476) and St Helens (1996 estimate, 179,483). Other towns of note include Birkenhead (1991, 93,087), Bootle (1991, 65,454), Crosby (1991, 52,869), Formby (1991, 25,356), Kirkby (1991, 43,017), Southport (1991, 90,959), and Wallasey (2001, 60,895). Liverpool has city status. It is one of the most cosmopolitan of English cities, a reflection of its role as a port. However, one group has helped give it a very particular flavour, the great many immigrants from Ireland. Merseyside still has a large population of Irish descent, which explains the fact that the county has a higher proportion of Roman Catholics among its population than any other English county.

From 1975 to 1986, the senior administrative authority in Merseyside was the metropolitan county council (based in Liverpool). In 1986, the single-tier metropolitan district councils of Knowsley, Liverpool, St Helens, Sefton, and Wirral were created and took over most of the responsibilities of the former county council.

IV.

Education and Culture

The University of Liverpool (founded 1881) and John Moores University (Liverpool Polytechnic until 1992) are both in Liverpool. The latter is named after the founder of the football pools company, Littlewoods, which is one of the city's largest employers (see Gambling). Merchant Taylors' public school, Crosby, was founded in 1620. In 1996 the Liverpool Institute of Performing Arts (LIPA), the brain-child of former Beatle Paul McCartney, was opened.

Liverpool is the home of two of the country's top football teams, Liverpool FC and Everton FC. Tranmere Rovers FC is based in Birkenhead. Rugby league has many fans in the area, and the golf courses at Hoylake and Royal Birkdale are used for international tournaments. One of the country's most important and popular sporting events, the Grand National Steeplechase, the premier British steeplechase race, is held at Aintree, on the outskirts of Liverpool.

Lobscouse, a stew of which the principal ingredients are salt beef and potatoes, is so associated with Merseyside, and particularly Liverpool, that its shortened form, “scouse”, has come to be a synonym for “Liverpudlian”. Certainly, as long ago as the beginning of the 19th century any Irish-Liverpudlian sailor was likely to be nicknamed “Scouse”. Nowadays someone who comes from Liverpool may well be a “Scouser”, and the distinctive accent of the speaker is referred to as Scouse. Lobscouse may have been invented by cooks on sailing ships. However, it seems likely that it was Liverpool's Irish immigrants who would have substituted the potato for the barely edible ship's biscuit that sailors had eaten with the stewed beef.

V.

Places of Interest

The Anglican cathedral church of Christ and the Roman Catholic Metropolitan cathedral church of Christ the King are both in Liverpool (see Liverpool Cathedrals). The construction of the Anglican cathedral, which was designed by Sir Giles Gilbert Scott, began in 1904 and was completed in 1978. The Roman Catholic cathedral was designed by Sir Frederick Gibberd, and built between 1962 and 1967. The city is rich in art galleries and museums, among which the Walker Gallery and the Tate Gallery are particularly notable. The city has two major theatres: the Liverpool Playhouse, famous as a repertory theatre, and the Liverpool Empire, with one of the largest auditoria in the country. The Philharmonic Hall is the home of the Royal Liverpool Philharmonic Orchestra.

Liverpool has a number of other striking buildings, including the Port of Liverpool Building, with its large green dome, and the Royal Liver Building, the twin towers of which are surmounted by the so-called Liver Birds, from which the city is supposed to have got its name. Liverpool was the birthplace of The Beatles, and the Cavern Club, where they first performed in 1961, is a popular tourist attraction. The house where another celebrated Liverpudlian was born, William Ewart Gladstone, can also be seen. Albert Dock on the River Mersey in Liverpool is one of Britain’s most popular visitor attractions. As well as many shops and galleries, it houses the Merseyside Maritime Museum. The celebrated Mersey ferries still operate, and also provide short cruises along the Liverpool waterfront. Speke Hall, just south of Liverpool, is one of the most notable half-timbered houses in the country. Southport is a seaside resort, somewhat more sedate than Blackpool, its near neighbour to the north. At Prescot, on the outskirts of Liverpool, is a museum of Clock and Watchmaking, a craft for which the town was once famous. St Helens is the home of Pilkington, the world's largest glassmaking concern, and has a Glass Museum. Mersyside’s museums include the Liverpool Museum, the Pilkington Glass Museum, and another devoted to the story of the Beatles.

VI.

Economy

Liverpool continues to be the main British port for transatlantic freight shipping, and handles more than 25 million tonnes of cargo every year. St Helens is a major centre for glassmaking, and is also the location of the county's one coal mine. Soap is still made in the Lever Brothers’ Port Sunlight factory, as is margarine. The county has suffered badly in the recessions of the past 20 years, but government assistance has enabled it to diversify into many small industries, including chemicals, the manufacture of vehicles, and electrical goods.

VII.

History

The main events in the county's history are those of Liverpool. By the time that King John was planning to conquer Ireland, in the early years of the 13th century, Liverpool was already established as a port. Because the strong tides on the Mersey prevented the channel from silting up, as some of its rivals on the coast of Lancashire did, Liverpool grew and prospered, particularly from the 17th century, after neighbouring Chester declined because of the silting up of the River Dee. Once long sea journeys became commonplace, Liverpool developed into Britain's main port for transatlantic shipping, used for the transport of such cargoes as cotton and the textiles manufactured from it. In addition, until 1807, when slavery was outlawed by Britain, Liverpool was a major port for the slave trade; this past is remembered in a new exhibition on the slave trade in the city. Later in the 19th century, Liverpool was the major departure port for the millions of emigrants who went to seek their fortunes in the United States. A statue of Christopher Columbus in Liverpool bears the inscription “The Discoverer of America was the Maker of Liverpool”. During the 19th century, shipbuilding became a major industry, but it has since declined. Liverpool was the principal port involved in the World War II Battle of the Atlantic, and was a frequent target for German bombers; over 1,000 tonnes of bombs were dropped on the city.