Tamworth is located in the South East of Staffordshire,
around 15 miles North East(ish) of Birmingham, where
the River Tame meets the River Anker. It's primary route
is off junction 10 of the M42, but some of the country
routes are more interesting. The name probably comes
from the river Tame and a fortification ("Worth")
which was redeveloped into the castle in Norman times.
The town today covers just 12 square miles and has a
population of 76,000, give or take a few monthly births,
deaths and new residents escaping from Birmingham. Believe
it or not people have lived in the area since Roman
times around 1500 years ago but it wasn't until the
Saxons took over management of the country that Tamworth
had any real consequence (around 6AD more or less).
Tamworth was capital of Mercia - no honestly it was
- and the home of King Offa, who had a large mound of
earth surrounding the place, creating of course Offa's
Dyke.
As the years progressed Tamworth had other little niches
carved out for it, including being the home of Robert
Peel and having one of Guy Fawkes' conspirators amongst
its MPs. Perhaps of less significance is the fact that
Tamworth was the home of Reliant 3-wheelers, but hey,
nowhere is perfect!
So much for the potted history, if you want to know
more I'd suggest visiting the Tamworth Heritage Trust
site at: www.tamworthheritagetrust.co.uk.
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So what about today? Well the town has a population
between of around 75000 and is growing at 8000 people
per year at the moment, what with births and people
moving in. The features of the town most people will
be familiar with are the Snowdome, Drayton Manor, Stryker's
Bowling Alley, the Castle and Ventura Park. Surprisingly
- even to some residents - is that life outside these
fine establishments is not only available but thriving
as well.
Tamworth on the whole retains its 'towny' feel, the
atmosphere in the centre on a sunny weekend is laid
back and unhurried, the parks are full of families and
the litter is on the whole- remarkably - stuck in bins.
The canal's and river walks are well kept, if not exactly
modernised like Birmingham and Manchester's, but perhaps
retain more charm because of this.
The markets are busy but seldom hectic and even the
skateboarders apologise when they knock the grannies
over.
What more could you want?
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