Leamington Spa

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Image:Leamington Spa pumphouses.jpg Leamington Spa, properly Royal Leamington Spa but commonly just Leamington, (pronounced Lemmington — IPA: Template:IPA) is a spa town in central Warwickshire, in England. According to the 2001 census the town had a population of 45,114. It is named after the River Leam which flows through the town. Leamington lies near the centre of England - indeed, a young tree called the Midland Oak, at Lillington, just to the north-east of the town centre, is marked by a plaque claiming that it marks the very centre of the country.

Leamington is the most populous town in the southern half of Warwickshire (the county is almost split in two by Coventry, now in the West Midlands). The town is split north and south by the river Leam, which can flood at times (notoriously so around Easter 1998). The town is extending rapidly, particularly to the south. Industry in the town is light to medium and is concentrated along the route to the M40, south of the town. Many people commute from Leamington to Coventry, 10 miles north and Birmingham, 25 miles northwest. Template:GBmap The town is noted for its parks and gardens, particularly the Jephson Gardens, close to the Royal Pump Rooms and next to the River Leam. These were seriously damaged in the floods of 1998, but have been restored, and even improved with funding from the National Lottery. The other side of the River Leam, on Priory Terrace close to the Parish Church, features a 19th century slipway down to the river which was specifically constructed so that resident circus elephants could be watered. The central part of the town is the Parade, a street which hosts the Royal Priors shopping centre and a wide range of high street chains.

A large number of students and staff of the University of Warwick reside in Leamington, which as a result has a vibrant nightlife with a wide range of restaurants and bars, ranging from cheap to extravagant.

There is much Georgian and early Victorian architecture, including numerous Georgian townhouses, giving Leamington a somewhat grand appearance. Population growth has lead to Leamington becoming practically joined to the neighbouring town of Warwick.

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Transport

Leamington is close to the M40 motorway which links it to Birmingham and London. It is also served by the A46 which links it to Coventry.

For rail Leamington railway station is served by the Chiltern Main Line which links London (Marylebone) to Birmingham (Snow Hill). Fast train services on this route are operated by Chiltern Railways. Central Trains operate local services to Birmingham and onwards to Worcester.

There is also a line connecting Leamington to Coventry which is used by Virgin Trains cross-country services to Reading and Oxford to the south. And to Coventry, Birmingham (New Street), Manchester, Newcastle and Edinburgh to the north.

The Grand Union Canal also runs through the town.

Image:SP3266 LansdowneCrescent.jpg

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Education

Its main secondary schools are North Leamington Community School and Arts College, Campion School, Trinity Catholic Technology College and Kingsley School. Myton School, Warwick School and King's High School in Warwick also have substantial numbers of pupils from Leamington who attend them. The main campus of Warwickshire College is also in Leamington. The college also has centres in Moreton Morrell, Rugby and Henley, and the newest Trident Park centre just outside of Leamington.

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History

Image:Leamington Church.jpg Leamington is a fairly modern town, which barely existed before the 19th century. Until the beginning of the 1800s the town was actually little more than a village which went by the name of Leamington Priors. Leamington was first mentioned in the domesday book of 1086 as Lamintone. For 400 years the settlement was under the control of Kenilworth Priory.

Leamington would have probably remained as a small village near Warwick, had it not been for the re-discovery of the healing properties of spa waters (they had been known about in Roman times). The first spring was discovered in Leamington in 1784 by William Abbott and Benjamin Satchwell, and steps were soon underway to develop the town.

In 1814 the Royal Pump Rooms and Baths were opened close to the River Leam, which runs through centre of the town. This grand structure attracted many visitors, hoping to soothe various aches, pains and ailments by bathing in pools filled with the salty spa water. It also included the world's first gravity fed piped hot water system in modern times, which was designed and installed by the engineer William Murdoch. Leamington soon became a popular spa resort which attracted the wealthy and famous, and construction began of numerous Georgian townhouses to accommodate visitors. Image:Leamington town hall.jpg

Leamington's reputation soon spread. The town gained its "Royal" prefix in 1838, following a visit by Queen Victoria, whose statue still stands in the town. The statue was almost destroyed by a German bomb during World War II, and was actually moved by two inches on its plinth in the blast. The statue has yet to be returned to its original position.

The function of the Pump Rooms changed several times over the following years. From around the end of the Second World War until 1996 it served as a medical centre. In 1996 the local district council finally closed the facility and re-opened the building as a culture and heritage centre. It features the Leamington Art Gallery, a museum and library as well as a Tourist Information Centre and café. Spa water can still be sampled at the museum, although it is said to be undrinkable. Image:River Leam at Leamington.jpg In the mid 19th century, spa resorts went out of fashion. Whilst Leamington suffered something of a financial 'crash' as a result, it became a popular place of residence for retired people and for prosperous members of the middle-class moving out from Coventry and Birmingham. The spending-power of its wealthy residents led to the development of Leamington as a popular place for shopping.

By 1901 the population of Leamington had grown from a few hundred to nearly 27,000. During the twentieth century, the population has grown further, to over 45,000.

Leamington has subsumed the villages of Lillington and New Milverton (though the village of Old Milverton still exists just outside of the town) to the north. The area of modern and more run-down housing, Sydenham, to the south is a major suburb of Leamington.

Leamington is closely associated with the foundation of the game of Lawn Tennis, and the first tennis club in the world was formed in 1872 just behind the former Manor House Hotel. It was in Leamington Tennis Club that the modern rules of Lawn Tennis were drawn up in 1874.

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Administration

Leamington Spa is administered by several local authorities, each with different responsibillities, the two main authorities are Warwickshire County Council and Warwick District Council. Since 2002 Leamington has also been a civil parish and therefore has its own Town Council [1].

Between 1875 and 1974 Leamington was a municipal borough [2]. As part of the 1974 local government reform it was merged with Warwick, Kenilworth and surrounding rural areas into the Warwick district, the headquarters of which are based in Leamington.

Leamington is part of the Parliamentary constituency of Warwick and Leamington. Since 1997 the sitting MP has been James Plaskitt of the Labour Party .

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Associations

Leamington has been featured in a number of television series, including the BBC situation comedy Keeping Up Appearances, the drama Dangerfield and comedy detective series Mayo.

The John Betjeman poem Death in Leamington portrays one view of Leamington's milieu.

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Culture

For over 25 years Leamington has held an annual Peace Festival, a celebration of alternative culture, at the Pump Room gardens. Until 2005, Leamington also played host to a classical music festival although this folded due financial difficulities within the Warwick Arts Society.

The town is colloquially referred to as "Leam" by some locals and is commonly thought to have a north-south divide by the majority of residents. The "North" of Leam contains prestigious, extravagant townhouses, where the "South" (thought to begin by the railway bridge) contains poorer quality, more densely populated housing often occupied by students from the University of Warwick, a major demographic group in the town.

Leamington also has a thriving music scene with local bands playing most nights at local bars.

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Nearby places

  • Warwick - 2.5 miles west (the two towns have become joined together through growth)
  • Whitnash - 2 miles south (the two towns border each other)
  • Cubbington - 2 miles northeast (a village which borders Leamington)
  • Kenilworth - 4.5 miles north.
  • Stratford-upon-Avon - 11 miles southwest
  • Rugby 15 miles northeast.
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External links

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