Made in Birmingham

Paul Lay on the self-deprecating nature of Brummies.

Paul Lay | Published in 10 Dec 2014

Birmingham in 1732The first statue of Horatio Nelson was erected not in London’s Trafalgar Square but in Birmingham, in 1809. It has been fiddled with and moved since then and now stands between Selfridges and the spruced up Bull Ring shopping centre. Nelson was born in Norfolk, a long way from Birmingham, a city with little maritime heritage, but he made a splash when he visited the bustling town, as it then was, in August 1802, enough to inspire the locals to raise £2,500 to commemorate his heroics. 

To continue reading this article you will need to purchase access to the online archive.

Buy Online Access  Buy Print & Archive Subscription

If you have already purchased access, or are a print & archive subscriber, please ensure you are logged in.

Please email digital@historytoday.com if you have any problems.