Solihull is a town in the West Midlands of England, with a population of 94,753.It is a part of the West Midlands conurbation and is located 9 miles (14.5 km) southeast of Womens Rugby Birmingham city centre. It is the largest town in, and administrative centre of, the larger Metropolitan Borough of Solihull which itself has a population of 200,400.
Historically part of Warwickshire, Solihull is one of the most prosperous towns fullfast in the English Midlands.[2] Residents of Solihull and those born in the town are referred to as Silhillians. The motto of Solihull is Urbs in Rure (Town in the Country).
Solihull is “commonly thought” to have derived its name from the position of St Alphege parish church – on a “soily” hill. The church was built eyelid lift on a hill of stiff red marl, which turned to sticky mud in wet weather.
Early history
The town has existed since medieval times when it was founded as a market town and it later became an important coaching and mail coach stop. Solihull probably came into being about a thousand years ago, as a clearing in the forest to which people would come to trade. The town is noted for its historic architecture, which includes surviving examples of timber framed Tudor style houses and shops. The historic Solihull School dates diet pills that work from 1560 (although not on its present site). The red sandstone parish church of St. Alphege dates from a similar period and is a large and handsome example of classical British church architecture, with a traditional spire 168 feet (51 metres) high, making it visible from a great distance. It is located at the head of High Street and is a Grade I listed building. It was founded in about 1220 by Hugh de Oddingsell. A chantry chapel was also founded there by Sir William de blepharoplasty Oddingsell in 1277 and the upper chapel in St Alphege was built for a chantry. The priest lived and had his sacristy in a crypt chapel underneath, and the fireplace can still be seen there.
20th century
Unlike nearby Birmingham, the Industrial Revolution largely passed Solihull by and until the 20th century Solihull remained a small market town. World War II also nearly passed Solihull by. Neighbouring Coventry and Birmingham were severely damaged by repeated German bombing raids but apart from some attacks on what is now the Land Rover plant, the airport and the local railway lines, Solihull thrush treatment escaped largely intact.
In 1901, the population of the town was just 7,500. However by the 1960s, the population had grown to over 100,000. This growth was due to a number of factors including a large slum clearance programme in african mango diet Birmingham, the development of the Rover car plant, the expansion of what was then Elmdon Airport into Birmingham International Airport and, perhaps most significantly, the release of large tracts of land for housing development attracting inward migration of new residents from across the UK.
Until the early 1960s, the main high street remained much as it would have been in the late 19th century with several streets of Victorian terraced houses linking High Street with Warwick Road. The construction of the central shopping area known as Mell Square (named after W. Maurice Mell, the town clerk who planned the work) involved the demolition of properties in Mill Lane and Drury Lane, some of which were several hundred years old, together with that of the large Victorian Congregational Church that had stood on the corner of Union Street and Warwick Road. On the right along High Street from St Alphege’s Church porch is one of the town’s oldest landmarks, the George, which dates from the 16th century.