Overview
Plymouth is a city of 243,795 inhabitants (2001 census) in the south-west of England, or alternatively the West Country, and is situated within the traditional and ceremonial county of Devon at the mouths of the rivers Plym and Tamar and at the head of one of the world's largest and most spectacular natural harbours, Plymouth Sound.

The city has a rich maritime past and was once one of the two most important Royal Navy bases in the United Kingdom, a factor that made the city a prime target of the Luftwaffe during the Second World War. After the destruction of the dockyards and city centre in the Blitz of 1941, Plymouth was rebuilt under the guidance of architect Patrick Abercrombie and is now one of the few remaining naval dockyards in the United Kingdom and the largest naval base in Western Europe.

Important locations in the city include The Royal Citadel, Devonport Dockyard and The Barbican from where the Pilgrims left for the New World in 1620.

People born in Plymouth are known as Plymothians or less formally as Janners. In the Royal Navy, "Guzz" is a nickname for Devonport.

History
The earliest known settlement in Plymouth dates back to 1000 BC with a small Iron Age trading port located at Mount Batten in Plymstock. It is thought that tin was brought here from Dartmoor via the Plym and traded with the ancient Phoenicians. As part of the Roman Empire this same port continued to trade tin along with cattle and hides. The small port was later overshadowed by the rise of the fishing village of Sutton, whose name means 'south town'.

At the time of the Domesday Book (1086) the manor of Sutton was held by the King, but Henry I granted it to the Valletort family whose local powerbase was at nearby Trematon Castle. The Valletorts in turn granted parts to the Augustinian priory at Plympton, a larger and older settlement than Plymouth at the head of the tidal estuary of the river Plym.

That part of the town owned by Plympton Priory was granted a market charter in 1254, and the whole town and its surrounding area achieved municipal independence in 1439, becoming the first town to be incorporated by Act of Parliament English Parliament. As the higher parts of the Plym estuary silted up, ships used the port at the Plym's mouth instead of Plympton. And so, the name of the town of Sutton slowly became Plymouth instead, but the name 'Sutton' still resonates in the area, for example in the naming of its old harbour.

In 1403, the town was briefly occupied and burnt by the French, especially the Bretons. Indeed, the town was often the target of enemies across the channel, especially during the Hundred Years' War. Plymouth had a castle at the mouth of Sutton Pool, as well as barricades across the seafront on the Hoe, but all of these have either been demolished or built upon by later fortifications dating to the Tudor and Stuart eras.

Sutton Harbour Lock GatesDuring the 16th century, Plymouth came to prominence as the home port for a number of successful maritime traders, amongst them Sir William Hawkins (or Hawkyns) and his son, Sir John Hawkins, who defied the Treaty of Tordesillas. It was Sir William Hawkins who led the first English participation in the triangle trade. In 1562 Sir John Hawkins, with the full support of Queen Elizabeth I, led England's first foray into the slave trade, kidnapping hundreds of men and women from Sierra Leone and elsewhere in West Africa to trade in the Spanish colonies in the Americas.

As an Atlantic port Plymouth has seen the arrival and departure of many historical figures in English history. Catherine of Aragon and Pocahontas both arrived in England via the port in 1501 and 1616 respectively. It was also from Plymouth that the Pilgrims sailed to the New World in 1620 aboard the Mayflower before landing at and founding the "Plymouth Colony". Napoleon Bonaparte was brought to Plymouth aboard the HMS Bellerophon which remained on the Plymouth Sound for two weeks before his exile to St Helena in 1815 and the surviving crew of the RMS Titanic disaster disembarked at Millbay docks on their return to England in 1912.

On 14 December 1810, Plymouth was struck by the strongest tornado yet reported in the UK (as of August 2005), with a T8 rating on the TORRO scale, and a wind speed of 213 to 240 mph.

Most visitors to Plymouth are drawn to the spectacular Plymouth Hoe, a stretch of greensward on Plymouth Limestone (Devonian) low cliffs, overlooking Plymouth Sound; it is believed that this is the place where Sir Francis Drake completed his game of bowls before setting sail to defeat the Spanish Armada. A giant chalk feature "Gog M'a Gog" was once featured here.

Civil War
Plymouth sided with the Parliamentarians against Charles I in the English Civil War. The town held out for almost four years until the defeat of the Royalists. There are a number of Forts and Keeps from that era, the remains of which can still be seen. After the restoration of the monarchy, construction of The Royal Citadel began in 1665. It is interesting to note that cannons were placed on the walls both facing out to sea and towards the town. A reminder to the people of Plymouth what consequences a repeated stance against the monarchy could have in future.

World War II
Royal William Victualling YardPlymouth was one of the United Kingdom's principal naval dockyards, a naval tradition that continues to this day. The city was extensively blitzed during the Second World War, to the extent that approximately twice the amount of housing stock that existed prior to the war was destroyed during it (as a consequence of rebuilt houses being successively hit). Although the dockyards were the principal targets, civilian casualties were inevitably very high.

The first bomb fell on the city on Saturday 6 July 1940 at Swilly, killing 3 people. The last attack came on 30 April 1944. Altogether 1,172 people were killed and 3,269 people were injured - these figures do not include the many service casualties. At one point the population fell from 220,000, at the start of the conflict, to 127,000. Probably the worst single raid of the blitz was on a central area of the town called Portland Square. On the evening of the 22 April 1941 the communal air raid shelter took a direct hit, killing 70 people. This has been remembered by the university who recently named a new building after the incident and also commissioned a local artist to create a piece that paid honour to the tragedy.

The two main shopping centres and nearly every civic building were destroyed, along with 20 schools and 40 churches. 3,754 houses were destroyed with a further 18,398 seriously damaged. In the midst of that devastation a famous wooden sign was anonymously posted over the door of St Andrew's Church saying simply "Resurgam" (a Latin word meaning "I shall rise again"), indicating the wartime spirit. To this day the entrance of the church has been referred to as Resurgam door and a granite plaque with the word engraved is now permanently placed there.

Plymouth was also one of the principal staging posts for the Normandy landings in June 1944, with Normandy Way (near the Tamar bridges) leading down to one of a series of embarcation points for US troops.

Nightlife
The centre of Plymouth's nightlife for over a century has been the infamous Union Street. Once lined with numerous music halls and cinemas, the street is now home to a wide number of bars, clubs and casinos such as Club Jesters, Kularoos Sports Bar, Walkabout Bar and The Stanley Grand Casino. The Millennium Complex was the major club on this thoroughfare incorporating three clubs in one, but was shut down due to allegations that drug dealers were operating within the premises. Union Street maintains a reputation for unruly drunken behaviour but guarantees a wild night out. Although most clubs play commercial dance and R&B, there are some such as C103s which plays a variety of rock, spanning from classic to new age. You also have clubs such as Flares and Reflex, which play hits from the 60's, 70's and 1980's. Another location of clubs and bars is at the Barbican Leisure Park and the gay friendly Zero's on Lockyer Street.

There are a number of bars with live music such as the Barbican Jazz Cafe, The Cider Press, The Cooperage and The Three Crowns on The Barbican and Yates's Wine Lodge on Royal Parade. The Plymouth Gin Distillery on the Barbican serves award winning cocktails. Major cinemas include the ABC Cinema on Derry's Cross and the Vue multiscreen complex at the Barbican Leisure Park.

Mutley Plain, a road in the area of Mutley, is a pleasant residential shopping area and also now has many bars like Cafe Sol and The Underground; due to the increase of student population in the city. The Fortescue Hotel is a good natured & busy pub that has a wide range of beers, customers and a downstairs bar that boasts The Acoustic Cafe every Thursday night and Bizarre, Mutley (stand up comedy) on the 1st Saturday of each month.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Plymouth