Editing Liverpool (section)

==History==
{{Main|History of Liverpool|Timeline of Liverpool}}
[[File:Liverpool in 1680.jpg|thumb|left|The earliest-known image of ''Liverpool'', in 1680]]
[[File:Original 7 streets of Liverpool.jpg|thumb|left|A map of Liverpool's original seven streets (north to the left)]] 
[[File:Bluecoat Chambers, Liverpool (2).jpg|thumb|left|[[Bluecoat Chambers]], completed in 1725, the oldest-surviving building in [[Liverpool city centre]]]]

===Early history===

In the [[Middle Ages]], Liverpool first existed as farmland within the [[West Derby Hundred]]<ref>{{Cite web|title=The Victoria history of the county of Lancaster. Edited by William Farrer and J. Brownbill|url=https://archive.org/stream/victoriahistoryo04farruoft/victoriahistoryo04farruoft_djvu.txt?referer=clickfind.com.au|access-date=8 October 2023|website=clickfind.com.au}}</ref> before growing into a small town of farmers, fishermen and tradesmen and tactical army base for [[John of England|King John of England]]. The town was planned with its own [[Liverpool Castle|castle]], although due to outbreaks of disease and its subordinance to the nearby [[Deva Victrix|Roman port of Chester]], the town's growth and prosperity stagnated until the late 17th and early 18th centuries. There was substantial growth in the mid- to late 18th century, when the town became the most heavily involved European port in the [[Atlantic slave trade]].<ref>{{Cite web|title=European traders|url=https://www.liverpoolmuseums.org.uk/history-of-slavery/europe|website=liverpoolmuseums.org.uk|access-date=23 September 2023|archive-date=19 June 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180619190054/http://www.liverpoolmuseums.org.uk/ism/slavery/europe/index.aspx|url-status=live}}</ref>

[[John of England|King John]]'s [[letters patent]] of 1207 announced the foundation of the borough of Liverpool (then spelt as ''Liuerpul''). There is no evidence that the place had previously been a centre of any trade. The borough was probably created because King John decided that it would be a convenient place to embark men and supplies for his [[John's first expedition to Ireland|Irish campaigns]]: in particular his [[Lordship of Ireland|Irish campaign of 1209]].<ref>{{cite book|title=Memorials of Liverpool|volume=1. Historical|first=J.A.|last=Picton|edition=2nd|date=1875|publisher=Longmans, Green & Co.|location=London|pages=11–12|url=https://archive.org/details/memorialsliverp02pictgoog/page/10/mode/2up?view=theater|oclc=10476612}}</ref><ref name="BHOLderhun">{{cite web|title=West Derby hundred: The City of Liverpool|url=https://www.british-history.ac.uk/vch/lancs/vol4/pp1-4#h3-0002|publisher=British History Online|access-date=9 September 2023|archive-date=18 September 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230918184736/https://www.british-history.ac.uk/vch/lancs/vol4/pp1-4#h3-0002|url-status=live}}</ref> The original street plan of Liverpool is said to have been designed by King John near the same time it was granted a [[royal charter]], making it a borough. The original seven streets were laid out in the shape of a double cross: Bank Street (now [[Water Street, Liverpool|Water Street]]), [[Castle Street, Liverpool|Castle Street]], [[Chapel Street, Liverpool|Chapel Street]], [[Dale Street]], Juggler Street (now [[High Street, Liverpool|High Street]]), Moor Street (now [[Tithebarn Street]]) and Whiteacre Street (now [[Old Hall Street]]).<ref name="BHOLderhun"/> [[Liverpool Castle]] was built before 1235, and survived until it was demolished in the 1720s.<ref name="BHOLcastle">{{cite web|title=Liverpool: The castle and development of the town|url=https://www.british-history.ac.uk/vch/lancs/vol4/pp4-36|publisher=British History Online|access-date=9 September 2023|archive-date=31 July 2018|archive-url=https://archive.today/20180731173644/https://www.british-history.ac.uk/vch/lancs/vol4/pp4-36|url-status=live}}</ref> By the middle of the 16th century, the population was still around 600, although this was likely to have fallen from an earlier peak of 1,000 people due to slow trade and the effects of the [[1557 influenza pandemic|plague]].<ref>{{Cite web|title=History of Liverpool|url=https://www.history.co.uk/article/history-of-liverpool|access-date=20 September 2023|website=history.co.uk|archive-date=2 October 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231002185750/https://www.history.co.uk/article/history-of-liverpool|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|title=Medieval port|url=https://www.liverpoolmuseums.org.uk/stories/medieval-port|access-date=20 September 2023|website=liverpoolmuseums.org.uk|archive-date=2 October 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231002191249/https://www.liverpoolmuseums.org.uk/stories/medieval-port|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|title=Liverpool in the Middle Ages|url=https://localhistories.org/a-history-of-liverpool|access-date=20 September 2023|website=localhistories.org|date=14 March 2021|archive-date=28 September 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230928053327/https://localhistories.org/a-history-of-liverpool/|url-status=live}}</ref>

In the 17th century, there was slow progress in trade and population growth. Battles for control of the town were waged during the [[English Civil War]], including a brief siege in 1644.<ref>{{Cite web|title=The York March, 1644|url=http://bcw-project.org/military/english-civil-war/northern-england/the-york-march|access-date=1 May 2022|website=bcw-project.org|archive-date=25 December 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221225084838/http://bcw-project.org/military/english-civil-war/northern-england/the-york-march|url-status=live}}</ref> In 1699, the same year as its first recorded [[slave ship]], ''Liverpool Merchant'', set sail for Africa,<ref>{{cite web|title=Liverpool's Slavery History Trail|publisher=Lodging-World.com|date=16 August 2017|url=https://www.lodging-world.com/blog/liverpools-slavery-history-trail|access-date=16 August 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170817214544/https://www.lodging-world.com/blog/liverpools-slavery-history-trail/|archive-date=17 August 2017|url-status=dead}}</ref> Liverpool was made a parish by [[Act of Parliament]]. But arguably, the legislation of 1695 that reformed the Liverpool council <!-- how? in what way? -->was of more significance to its subsequent development.<ref>{{cite journal|journal=Transactions of the Historic Society of Lancashire and Cheshire|title=Creating a Port: Liverpool 1695–1715|first=Michael|last=Power|volume=149|year=1999|pages=51–71|url=https://www.hslc.org.uk/wp-content/uploads/2017/05/149-4-Power.pdf|access-date=31 August 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190831041026/https://www.hslc.org.uk/wp-content/uploads/2017/05/149-4-Power.pdf|archive-date=31 August 2019|url-status=dead}}</ref> Since [[Roman Britain|Roman times]] nearby [[Chester]] on the [[River Dee, Wales|River Dee]] had been the region's principal port on the [[Irish Sea]]. However, as the Dee began to [[Silt|silt up]], maritime trade from Chester became increasingly difficult and shifted towards Liverpool on the neighbouring [[River Mersey]]. The first of the [[Port of Liverpool|Liverpool docks]] was constructed in 1715, and the system of docks gradually grew into a large interconnected system.<ref>{{Cite web|title=Liverpool: The docks|url=https://www.british-history.ac.uk/vch/lancs/vol4/pp41-43|access-date=21 September 2023|website=british-history.ac.uk|archive-date=18 September 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230918184748/https://www.british-history.ac.uk/vch/lancs/vol4/pp41-43|url-status=live}}</ref>

As trade from the [[West Indies]], including sugar, surpassed that of Ireland and Europe, and as the [[River Dee, Wales|River Dee]] continued to silt up, Liverpool began to grow even faster. The first commercial [[wet dock]] was built in Liverpool in 1715.<ref>{{cite web|title=The Lost Dock of Liverpool|publisher=Channel 4: Time Team, 21 April 2008|url=http://www.channel4.com/history/microsites/T/timeteam/2008/liverpool/liverpool-found.html|access-date=2 June 2008|archive-date=4 June 2011|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110604145405/http://www.channel4.com/history/microsites/T/timeteam/2008/liverpool/liverpool-found.html|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news|title=Liverpool Dock System|newspaper=The New York Times|date=2 January 1898|url=https://query.nytimes.com/gst/abstract.html?res=9C07EFD91039E433A25751C0A9679C94699ED7CF|access-date=2 June 2008|archive-date=9 August 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160809181141/http://query.nytimes.com/gst/abstract.html?res=9C07EFD91039E433A25751C0A9679C94699ED7CF|url-status=live}} Note: "pdf" reader needed to see full article</ref> Substantial profits from the [[Atlantic slave trade|slave trade]] and tobacco helped the town to prosper and rapidly grow, although several prominent local men, including [[William Rathbone IV|William Rathbone]], [[William Roscoe]] and [[Edward Rushton]], were at the forefront of the [[Abolitionism in the United Kingdom|local abolitionist movement]].<ref>{{Cite ODNB|title=Roscoe circle|url=https://www.oxforddnb.com/display/10.1093/ref:odnb/9780198614128.001.0001/odnb-9780198614128-e-101301|access-date=20 September 2023|date=2004|doi=10.1093/ref:odnb/101301}}</ref>

===19th century===
[[File:Opening Liverpool and Manchester Railway.jpg|thumb|left|Inaugural journey of the [[Liverpool and Manchester Railway]] in 1830, the first-ever commercial railway line in the world]]
[[File:Liverpool1890s.jpg|thumb|left|[[Lime Street, Liverpool|Lime Street]], Liverpool, in the 1890s, [[St. George's Hall, Liverpool|St.George's Hall]] to the left, [[Great North Western Hotel]] to the right, [[Walker Art Gallery]] and [[sessions House, Liverpool|Sessions House]] in the background. Statues of [[Albert, Prince Consort|Prince Albert]], [[Benjamin Disraeli|Disraeli]], [[Queen Victoria]] and [[Wellington's Column]] in the middle ground.]]
The 19th century saw Liverpool rise to global economic importance. Pioneering, [[History of Liverpool|world first]], technology and civic facilities launched in the city to serve the accelerating population which was fuelled by an influx of ethnic and religious communities from all around the world.

By the start of the 19th century, a large volume of trade was passing through Liverpool, and the construction of major buildings reflected this wealth. In 1830, Liverpool and [[Manchester]] became the first cities to have an intercity rail link, through the [[Liverpool and Manchester Railway]]. The population continued to rise rapidly, especially during the 1840s when [[Irish diaspora|Irish]] migrants began arriving by the hundreds of thousands as a result of the [[Irish Potato Famine (1845–1849)|Great Famine]]. While many Irish people settled in the city at that time, a large percentage also emigrated to the United States or moved to the industrial centres of [[Lancashire]], Yorkshire and the [[Midlands]].<ref>{{Cite web|title=Irish cultural expression in Liverpool|url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/legacies/immig_emig/england/liverpool/article_1.shtml|access-date=20 September 2023|publisher=BBC|archive-date=13 August 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230813020309/https://www.bbc.co.uk/legacies/immig_emig/england/liverpool/article_1.shtml|url-status=live}}</ref>{{wikisource|Letitia Elizabeth Landon (L. E. L.) in Fisher's Drawing Room Scrap Book, 1833/Liverpool|'Liverpool', a poetical<br/>illustration by L. E. L.}}
In her poetical illustration "Liverpool" (1832), which celebrates the city's worldwide commerce, [[Letitia Elizabeth Landon]] refers specifically to the [[Macgregor Laird]] expedition to the Niger River, at that time in progress.<ref>{{Cite web|last=Cope|first=Jonas|date=May 2012|others=Dr. Noah Heringman, Dissertation Supervisor|title=The Dissolution of Character in Late Romantic British Literature 1816–1837|url=https://mospace.umsystem.edu/xmlui/bitstream/handle/10355/14984/research.pdf?...2|access-date=4 April 2021|website=MOspace Institutional Repository|page=115|archive-date=9 May 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210509230958/https://mospace.umsystem.edu/xmlui/bitstream/handle/10355/14984/research.pdf?...2|url-status=live}}</ref> This is accompanied by a painting by [[Samuel Austin (artist)|Samuel Austin]], ''Liverpool, from the Mersey''.<ref>{{cite book|last=Landon|first=Letitia Elizabeth|title=Fisher's Drawing Room Scrap Book, 1833|url=https://digital.tcl.sc.edu/digital/collection/annuals/id/9591|section=picture|year=1832|publisher=Fisher, Son & Co.|access-date=14 November 2022|archive-date=14 November 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221114184109/https://digital.tcl.sc.edu/digital/collection/annuals/id/9591|url-status=live}}{{cite book|last=Landon|first=Letitia Elizabeth|title=Fisher's Drawing Room Scrap Book, 1833|url=https://digital.tcl.sc.edu/digital/collection/annuals/id/9592|section=poetical illustration|pages=14-15|year=1832|publisher=Fisher, Son & Co.|access-date=14 November 2022|archive-date=14 November 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221114184110/https://digital.tcl.sc.edu/digital/collection/annuals/id/9592|url-status=live}}</ref>

Britain was a major market for cotton imported from the [[Deep South]] of the United States, which fed the [[Textile manufacture during the British Industrial Revolution|textile industry]] in the country. Given the crucial place cotton held in the city's economy, during the [[American Civil War]] Liverpool was, in the words of historian [[Sven Beckert]], "the most pro-Confederate place in the world outside the [[Confederate States of America|Confederacy]] itself".<ref>{{Cite book|title=Empire of Cotton: a Global History|last=Beckert|first=Sven|publisher=Knopf|year=2014|location=New York}}</ref> Liverpool merchants helped to bring out cotton from ports blockaded by the [[Union Navy]], built ships of war for the [[Confederate States of America|Confederacy]], and supplied
the [[Southern United States|South]] with military equipment and credit.<ref>{{Cite web|title=Emancipation and Empire: Reconstructing the Worldwide Web of Cotton Production in the Age of the American Civil War|url=https://dash.harvard.edu/handle/1/3207344|website=dash.harvard.edu|access-date=23 September 2023|archive-date=17 November 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231117123448/https://dash.harvard.edu/handle/1/3207344|url-status=live}}</ref>

During the war, the [[Confederate States Navy|Confederate Navy]] ship, the [[CSS Alabama|CSS ''Alabama'']], was built at [[Birkenhead]] on the Mersey, and the [[CSS Shenandoah|CSS ''Shenandoah'']] surrendered there (being the final surrender at the end of the war). The city was also the centre of Confederate purchases of war materiel, including arms and ammunition, uniforms, and naval supplies to be smuggled by [[Blockade runners of the American Civil War|British blockade runners to the South]].<ref>{{cite web|url=https://ldhi.library.cofc.edu/exhibits/show/liverpools-abercromby-square/abercromby-southern-club/embassy-confederacy|title=Liverpool's Abercromby Square and the Confederacy During the U.S. Civil War|publisher=Lowcountry Digital History Initiative|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230410173112/https://ldhi.library.cofc.edu/exhibits/show/liverpools-abercromby-square/abercromby-southern-club/embassy-confederacy|archive-date=10 April 2023}}</ref>

For periods during the 19th century, the wealth of Liverpool exceeded that of London,<ref name="Ten facts about Liverpool">[https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/1431943/Ten-facts-about-Liverpool.html Ten facts about Liverpool] {{Webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210509225622/https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/1431943/Ten-facts-about-Liverpool.html |date=9 May 2021 }} ''The Daily Telegraph'', 4 June 2003</ref> and Liverpool's [[Custom House, Liverpool|Custom House]] was the single largest contributor to the [[British Exchequer]].<ref>{{cite web|last=Hatton|first=Brian|title=Shifted tideways: Liverpool's changing fortunes|website=[[The Architectural Review]]|date=28 March 2011|url=http://www.architectural-review.com/essays/2008-january-shifted-tideway-liverpools-changing-fortunes-by-brian-hatton/8613231.article|access-date=21 November 2015|archive-date=8 March 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190308080820/https://www.architectural-review.com/essays/2008-january-shifted-tideway-liverpools-changing-fortunes-by-brian-hatton/8613231.article|url-status=live}}</ref> Liverpool was the only British city ever to have its own [[Whitehall]] office.<ref>{{Cite book|last=Henderson|first=W.O.|title=The Liverpool office in London|publisher=[[London School of Economics]]|series=Economica xiii|pages=473–479|year=1933}}</ref> During this century, at least 40% of the world's entire trade passed through Liverpool.<ref>{{Cite web|title=A walk around maritime Livepool|url=https://www.discoveringbritain.org/activities/north-west-england/walks/liverpool-trade.html|access-date=20 September 2023|website=discoveringbritain.org|archive-date=2 October 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231002185745/https://www.discoveringbritain.org/activities/north-west-england/walks/liverpool-trade.html|url-status=live}}</ref>

In the early 19th century, Liverpool played a major role in the [[Antarctic]] [[seal hunting|sealing]] industry, in recognition of which [[Liverpool Beach]] in the [[South Shetland Islands]] is named after the city.<ref>[http://data.aad.gov.au/aadc/gaz/scar/display_name.cfm?gaz_id=137191 Liverpool Beach.] {{Webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120425164150/http://data.aad.gov.au/aadc/gaz/scar/display_name.cfm?gaz_id=137191 |date=25 April 2012 }} [[Composite Gazetteer of Antarctica|SCAR Composite Gazetteer of Antarctica]].</ref>

As early as 1851, the city was described as "the New York of Europe".<ref>{{Cite book|title=The Bankers' Magazine|publisher=Groombridge & Sons|location=London|series=v.11|year=1851|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=nC05AAAAMAAJ&q=new-york-of-europe&pg=PA783}}</ref> During the late 19th and early 20th centuries, Liverpool was attracting immigrants from across Europe. This resulted in the construction of a diverse array of religious buildings in the city for the new ethnic and religious groups, many of which are still in use today. The [[German Church, Liverpool|Deutsche Kirche]], [[Greek Orthodox Church of St Nicholas]], [[Gustav Adolf Church, Liverpool|Gustav Adolf Church]] and [[Princes Road Synagogue]] were all established in the 1800s to serve Liverpool's growing German, Greek, Nordic and Jewish communities, respectively. One of Liverpool's oldest surviving churches, [[St. Peter's Roman Catholic Church, Liverpool|St. Peter's Roman Catholic Church]], served the [[Poles in the United Kingdom|Polish community]] in its final years as a place of worship.

===20th century===
[[File:Liverpool, 1946.png|thumb|left|Liverpool's Lime Street area pictured from above in 1946]]
The 20th century saw Liverpool's established rank as a global economic powerhouse challenged. Its strategic location as an international seaport made it particularly vulnerable in two [[World war]]s. [[Economic depression]]s (both in the United Kingdom and across the world), changing [[Housing in the United Kingdom|housing patterns]] and [[Containerization|containerisation]] in the maritime industry contributed to a downtrend in the city's productivity and prosperity. Despite this, the city's influence on global popular culture excelled and by the end of the century, the continuing process of [[urban renewal]] paved the way for the redefined modern city of the 21st century.

The period after the [[World War I|Great War]] was marked by social unrest, as society grappled with the massive war losses of young men, as well as trying to re-integrate veterans into civilian life and the economy. Unemployment and poor living standards greeted many ex-servicemen. [[Trade unions in the United Kingdom|Union organising]] and [[1926 United Kingdom general strike|strikes]] took place in numerous locations, including a [[British police strikes in 1918 and 1919|police strike in Liverpool]] among the [[Merseyside Police|City Police]]. Numerous [[British Empire|colonial soldiers]] and sailors from Africa and India, who had served with the [[British Armed Forces]], settled in Liverpool and other port cities. In June 1919, they were subject to attack by whites in racial riots; residents in the port included [[Swedes in the United Kingdom|Swedish immigrants]], and both groups had to compete with native people from Liverpool for jobs and housing. In this period, race riots also took place in other port cities.<ref name=Tabili>[http://www.history.ac.uk/reviews/review/840 Dr Laura Tabili, "Review of Jacqueline Jenkinson, ''Black 1919: Riots, Racism and Resistance in Imperial Britain,'' Liverpool, Liverpool University Press, 2009] {{Webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160422181418/http://www.history.ac.uk/reviews/review/840 |date=22 April 2016 }}, {{ISBN|9781846312007}}", ''Reviews in History'' website, accessed 13 April 2016</ref>

The [[Housing Act 1919]] resulted in mass council housing being built across Liverpool during the 1920s and 1930s. In the 1920s and 1930s, as much as 15% of the city's population (around 140,000 people) was relocated from the inner-city to new purpose built, lower density suburban housing estates, based on the belief that this would improve their standard of living, though the overall benefits have been contested.<ref>{{Cite news|title=A legacy of the Great Depression|url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/local/liverpool/hi/people_and_places/history/newsid_8246000/8246344.stm|access-date=20 September 2023|publisher=BBC News|date=10 September 2009|archive-date=2 October 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231002185747/http://news.bbc.co.uk/local/liverpool/hi/people_and_places/history/newsid_8246000/8246344.stm|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{Cite journal|title=Municipal Suburbia in Liverpool, 1919–1939|url=https://www.jstor.org/stable/40112817|access-date=20 September 2023|journal=The Town Planning Review|jstor=40112817|last=McKenna|first=Madeline|date=30 October 1989|volume=60|issue=3|pages=287–318|doi=10.3828/tpr.60.3.4hk5074443483k74|archive-date=8 November 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231108060702/https://www.jstor.org/stable/40112817|url-status=live|issn=0041-0020|url-access=subscription}}</ref> Numerous private homes were also built during this era. During the [[Great Depression]] of the early 1930s, unemployment peaked at around 30% in the city. Liverpool was the site of Britain's first [[Liverpool John Lennon Airport|provincial airport]], operating from 1930.

During the [[Second World War]], the critical strategic importance of Liverpool was recognised by both [[Hitler]] and [[Winston Churchill|Churchill]]. The city was heavily bombed by the Germans, suffering a [[Liverpool Blitz|blitz]] second only to London's.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.liverpoolmuseums.org.uk/maritime/exhibitions/blitz/blitz.asp|title=Spirit of the Blitz : Liverpool in the Second World War|publisher=[[Liverpool Museums]]|year=2003|access-date=13 September 2010|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100606081949/http://www.liverpoolmuseums.org.uk/maritime/exhibitions/blitz/blitz.asp|archive-date=6 June 2010}}</ref> The pivotal [[Battle of the Atlantic]] was planned, fought and won from Liverpool.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.liverpoolmuseums.org.uk/maritime/archive/info-sheet.aspx?sheetId=4|title=Merseyside Maritime Museum, Sheet No. 4: Battle of the Atlantic|publisher=Liverpoolmuseums.org.uk|date=3 September 1939|access-date=4 October 2012|archive-date=3 March 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160303220910/http://www.liverpoolmuseums.org.uk/maritime/archive/info-sheet.aspx?sheetId=4|url-status=live}}</ref>

The ''[[Luftwaffe]]'' made 80&nbsp;[[Liverpool Blitz|air raids on Merseyside]], killing 2,500&nbsp;people and causing damage to almost half the homes in the metropolitan area. Significant rebuilding followed the war, including massive housing estates and the [[Seaforth Dock]], the largest dock project in Britain. Since 1952, Liverpool has been twinned with [[Cologne]], Germany, a city which also suffered severe aerial bombing during the war. In the 1950s and 1960s, much of the immediate reconstruction that took place in the city centre proved to be deeply unpopular. The historic portions of the city that had survived German bombing suffered extensive destruction during urban renewal. It has been argued that the so-called "Shankland Plan" of the 1960s, named after the town planner [[Graeme Shankland]], led to compromised town planning and vast road-building schemes that devastated and divided inner city neighbourhoods. Concrete [[brutalist architecture]], compromised visions, botched projects and grand designs that were never realised became the subject of condemnation. Historian [[Raphael Samuel]] labelled Graeme Shankland "the butcher of Liverpool".<ref>{{Cite news|title=Unbuilt Liverpool: the city that might have been|url=https://www.theguardian.com/cities/2017/jul/04/unbuilt-liverpool-city-might-have-been-in-pictures|access-date=20 September 2023|newspaper=The Guardian|date=4 July 2017|last=Dunmall|first=Giovanna}}</ref><ref>{{Cite journal|title=Graeme Shankland: a Sixties Architect-Planner and the Political Culture of the British Left|url=https://www.cambridge.org/core/journals/architectural-history/article/graeme-shankland-a-sixties-architectplanner-and-the-political-culture-of-the-british-left/63B1F4114E777DE29569BCF5035952B2|access-date=20 September 2023|journal=Architectural History|date=2014|doi=10.1017/S0066622X00001477|last=Smith|first=Otto Saumarez|volume=57|pages=393–422|archive-date=2 October 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231002185745/https://www.cambridge.org/core/journals/architectural-history/article/graeme-shankland-a-sixties-architectplanner-and-the-political-culture-of-the-british-left/63B1F4114E777DE29569BCF5035952B2|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|title=Walkways in the Sky and the Liverpool 'masterplan' that was never built|url=https://www.liverpoolecho.co.uk/news/business/gallery/walkways-sky-liverpool-masterplan-never-15874583|access-date=20 September 2023|website=liverpoolecho.co.uk|date=20 June 2020|archive-date=2 October 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231002185747/https://www.liverpoolecho.co.uk/news/business/gallery/walkways-sky-liverpool-masterplan-never-15874583|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|title=The Liverpool City Plan|url=https://www.udg.org.uk/publications/articles/liverpool-city-plan|access-date=20 September 2023|website=udg.org.uk|date=April 2020|archive-date=2 October 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231002185746/https://www.udg.org.uk/publications/articles/liverpool-city-plan|url-status=live}}</ref>

A significant [[West Indies|West Indian]] black community has existed in the city since the first two decades of the 20th century. Like most British cities and industrialised towns, Liverpool became home to a significant number of [[Commonwealth of Nations|Commonwealth]] immigrants, beginning after World War I with colonial soldiers and sailors who had served in the area. More immigrants arrived after World War II, mostly settling in older inner-city areas such as [[Toxteth]], where housing was less expensive. The black population of Liverpool was recorded at 1.90% in 2011. In the [[2021 United Kingdom census|2021 Census]], 5.2% described themselves as black African, Caribbean, mixed white and black African, mixed white and Caribbean or 'other black'.<ref>{{Cite web|title=Ethnicity – Census 2021|url=https://liverpool.gov.uk/council/key-statistics-and-data/census-2021/ethnicity|access-date=29 September 2023|website=liverpool.gov.uk|archive-date=18 September 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230918184737/https://liverpool.gov.uk/council/key-statistics-and-data/census-2021/ethnicity|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|title=The ethnic population of England and Wales broken down by local authority|url=https://www.theguardian.com/news/datablog/2011/may/18/ethnic-population-england-wales|url-status=live|website=The Guardian|date=18 May 2011|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210723001845/https://www.theguardian.com/news/datablog/2011/may/18/ethnic-population-england-wales|archive-date=23 July 2021}}</ref>

[[File:Southern side view, Mathew Street, intersection with Temple Court, Liverpool (2019-05-25 14.35.34 by HarshLight).jpg|thumb|right|[[Mathew Street]] is one of many tourist attractions related to the Beatles, and the location of [[The Cavern Club]] and [[Liverpool Wall of Fame]].]]
In the 1960s, Liverpool was the centre of the "[[Beat music|Merseybeat]]" sound, which became synonymous with [[the Beatles]] and fellow Liverpudlian rock bands. Influenced by American rhythm and blues and rock music, they also in turn strongly affected American music. [[The Beatles]] became internationally known in the early 1960s and performed [[List of the Beatles' live performances|around the world together]]; they were, and continue to be, the most commercially successful and musically influential band in popular history. Their co-founder, singer, and composer [[John Lennon]] was killed in New York City in 1980. [[Liverpool John Lennon Airport|Liverpool Airport]] was renamed after him in 2002, the first British airport to be named in honour of an individual.<ref name=fola>{{cite web|publisher=Friends of Liverpool Airport|url=http://www.fola.org.uk/current.html|title=Recent History and Current Developments|access-date=10 February 2013|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120624063000/http://www.fola.org.uk/current.html|archive-date=24 June 2012}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|title=Airports Named For Celebrities|url=http://www.airportparkingmarket.co.uk/airports-named-for-celebrities/|website=Airport Parking Market|access-date=10 July 2015|archive-date=15 July 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190715155301/https://www.airportparkingmarket.co.uk/airports-named-for-celebrities/|url-status=dead}}</ref>

Previously part of Lancashire, and a county borough from 1889, Liverpool became a [[metropolitan borough]] within the newly created metropolitan county of [[Merseyside]], in 1974. From the mid-1970s onwards, Liverpool's docks and traditional [[manufacturing industries]] declined due to restructuring of shipping and heavy industry, causing massive losses of jobs. The advent of [[containerisation]] meant that the city's docks became largely obsolete, and dock workers were made unemployed. By the early 1980s, unemployment rates in Liverpool were among the highest in the UK,<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.localhistories.org/liverpool.html|title=A History of Liverpool|publisher=Localhistories.org|access-date=13 December 2011|archive-date=9 May 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210509140259/http://www.localhistories.org/liverpool.html|url-status=dead}}</ref> standing at 17% by January 1982 although, this was about half the level of unemployment that had affected the city during the Great Depression some 50 years previously.<ref>{{cite news|url=https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=gJJVAAAAIBAJ&pg=1176,3408501&dq=liverpool+million+unemployment&hl=en|title=Number of people unemployed at three-million mark in Britain|work=The Leader-Post ([[Google News Archive]])|date=28 January 1982|access-date=21 November 2015|archive-date=9 May 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210509220751/https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=gJJVAAAAIBAJ&pg=1176,3408501&dq=liverpool+million+unemployment&hl=en|url-status=live}}</ref> During this period, Liverpool became a hub of fierce left-wing opposition to the central government in London.<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/magazine-29953611|title=The English city that wanted to 'break away' from the UK|publisher=BBC News|date=8 November 2014|access-date=17 June 2022|archive-date=11 November 2014|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141111000034/http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/magazine-29953611|url-status=live}}</ref> Liverpool in the 1980s has been labelled as Britain's 'shock city'. Once the acclaimed second city of the [[British Empire]] which rivalled the capital city in global significance, Liverpool had collapsed in to its 'nadir' at the depths of [[Decolonization|post-colonial]], [[Post-industrial society|post-industrial]] Britain.<ref>{{Cite web|title=Shock City: Sailortown, Liverpool|url=https://historicengland.org.uk/images-books/publications/on-the-waterfront/waterfront-part2|access-date=20 September 2023|website=historicengland.org.uk|archive-date=8 December 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231208085224/https://historicengland.org.uk/images-books/publications/on-the-waterfront/waterfront-part2/|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|title=Review: 'Ferocious Love' by Mikhail Karikis at Tate Liverpool|url=https://ymliverpool.com/review-ferocious-love-mikhail-karikis-tate-liverpool/42520?fbclid=IwAR1R9nOwYUklo_JroymFQjgvh5fJRq0C4CB0SX7ncTx0XypO8e8R9EHxoyM|access-date=20 September 2023|website=YM Liverpool|first=Tom|last=Beattie|date=29 July 2020|archive-date=2 October 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231002185749/https://ymliverpool.com/review-ferocious-love-mikhail-karikis-tate-liverpool/42520?fbclid=IwAR1R9nOwYUklo_JroymFQjgvh5fJRq0C4CB0SX7ncTx0XypO8e8R9EHxoyM|url-status=live}}</ref>
In the late 20th century, Liverpool's economy began to recover. The late 1980s saw the opening of a regenerated [[Royal Albert Dock, Liverpool|Albert Dock]] which proved to be a catalyst for further regeneration.<ref>{{Cite web|title=Regeneration|url=https://www.liverpoolmuseums.org.uk/royal-albert-dock-liverpool/regeneration|access-date=20 September 2023|website=liverpoolmuseums.org.uk|archive-date=2 October 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231002185747/https://www.liverpoolmuseums.org.uk/royal-albert-dock-liverpool/regeneration|url-status=live}}</ref> In the mid-1990s, the city enjoyed growth rates higher than the national average. At the end of the 20th century, Liverpool was concentrating on regeneration, a process that continues today.

===21st century===
[[File:Liverpool Cruise Terminal (2023).jpg|thumb|left |The [[Liverpool Cruise Terminal]] and surrounding office and residential developments, part of the [[Liverpool Waters]] megaproject]]
Ongoing regeneration combined with the hosting of internationally significant events has helped to re-purpose Liverpool as one of the most visited, tourist orientated, cities in the United Kingdom. City leaders are focussing on long-term strategies to grow the city's population and economy, while national government explores the continuous potential for devolution in the city.

In 2002, Queen [[Elizabeth II]] and [[Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh]] visited Liverpool to mark the [[Golden Jubilee of Elizabeth II|Golden Jubilee]]. On speaking to an audience at [[Liverpool Town Hall]], the Queen recognised Liverpool as "one of the most distinctive and energetic parts of the United Kingdom", and paid tribute to the city's "major orchestras, world-class museums and galleries". She also acknowledged Liverpool's bid to become the [[European Capital of Culture]].<ref>{{Cite web|title=Golden Jubilee visit to Liverpool, 25 July 2002|url=https://www.royal.uk/golden-jubilee-visit-liverpool-25-july-2002|access-date=21 September 2023|website=royal.uk|date=25 July 2002 |archive-date=7 November 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231107220701/https://www.royal.uk/golden-jubilee-visit-liverpool-25-july-2002|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|title=The life of Queen Elizabeth II – a timeline in Liverpool|url=https://liverpoolexpress.co.uk/the-life-of-queen-elizabeth-ii-a-timeline-in-liverpool|access-date=21 September 2023|website=liverpoolexpress.co.uk|date=9 September 2022|archive-date=2 October 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231002185748/https://liverpoolexpress.co.uk/the-life-of-queen-elizabeth-ii-a-timeline-in-liverpool/|url-status=live}}</ref> To celebrate the [[Golden Jubilee of Elizabeth II]] in 2002, the conservation charity [[Plantlife]] organised a competition to choose [[county flower]]s; the [[Eryngium maritimum|sea-holly]] was Liverpool's final choice. The initiative was designed to highlight growing threats to the UK's flower species and also ask the public about which flowers best represented their county.<ref>{{Cite news|title=UK counties choose floral emblems|url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/sci/tech/3684291.stm|access-date=21 September 2023|publisher=BBC News|date=5 May 2004|archive-date=14 March 2006|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20060314235205/http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/sci/tech/3684291.stm|url-status=live}}</ref>

Capitalising on the popularity of 1960s rock groups, such as [[the Beatles]], as well as the city's world-class art galleries, museums and landmarks, tourism and culture have become a significant factor in Liverpool's economy.
[[File:Modern waterfront developments in Liverpool.jpg|thumb|Modern developments on the Liverpool Waterfront]]
In 2004, property developer [[Grosvenor Group|Grosvenor]] started the [[Liverpool One|Paradise Project]], a £920&nbsp;million development based on [[Paradise Street, Liverpool|Paradise Street]]. This produced one of the most significant changes to Liverpool's city centre since the post-war reconstruction. Renamed as '[[Liverpool One]],' the centre opened in May 2008.

In 2007, events and celebrations took place in honour of the 800th anniversary of the founding of the borough of Liverpool. Liverpool was designated as a joint [[European Capital of Culture]] for 2008. The celebrations included the erection of [[La Princesse]], a large mechanical spider 20 metres high and weighing 37 tonnes, which represented the "eight legs" of Liverpool: honour, history, music, the Mersey, the ports, governance, sunshine and culture. [[La Princesse]] roamed the streets of the city during the festivities, and concluded by entering the [[Queensway Tunnel]].

Spearheaded by the multi-billion-[[Pound sterling|pound]] Liverpool ONE development, regeneration continued throughout the 2010s. Some of the most significant redevelopment projects included new buildings in the [[Liverpool City Centre#Commercial District|Commercial District]], [[King's Dock, Port of Liverpool|King's Dock]], [[Mann Island]], around [[Lime Street, Liverpool|Lime Street]], the [[Baltic Triangle]], [[RopeWalks, Liverpool|RopeWalks]], and [[Edge Lane]].<ref>{{Cite web|title=20 things that shaped Liverpool in the 2010's|url=https://theguideliverpool.com/20-things-that-shaped-liverpool-in-the-2010s|access-date=23 September 2023|website=theguideliverpool.com|archive-date=2 October 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231002175430/https://theguideliverpool.com/20-things-that-shaped-liverpool-in-the-2010s/|url-status=dead}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|title=Lime Street|url=https://www.murraywood.com/lime-street|access-date=23 September 2023|website=murraywood.com|date=22 July 2022|archive-date=2 October 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231002185751/https://www.murraywood.com/lime-street/|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|title=Raves, craft ale and the 'abandoned' square that shaped modern Liverpool|url=https://www.liverpoolecho.co.uk/news/liverpool-news/raves-craft-ale-abandoned-square-24195648|access-date=23 September 2023|website=liverpoolecho.co.uk|date=11 June 2022|archive-date=2 October 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231002185745/https://www.liverpoolecho.co.uk/news/liverpool-news/raves-craft-ale-abandoned-square-24195648|url-status=live}}</ref>
[[File:Mann Island Liverpool 2023.jpg|thumb|right|Headquarters of [[Liverpool City Region Combined Authority]], which invests in Liverpool's major infrastructure and regeneration projects]]
Changes to Liverpool's governance took place in 2014. The local authority of [[Liverpool City Council]] decided to pool its power and resources with surrounding boroughs through the formation of the [[Liverpool City Region Combined Authority]] in a form of [[Devolution in the United Kingdom|devolution]]. With a devolved budget granted by [[Government of the United Kingdom|central government]], the authority now oversees and invests in foremost strategic affairs throughout the [[Liverpool City Region]], including major regeneration projects. The authority, along with Liverpool City Council itself, has embarked on long-term plans to grow the population and economy of the city.<ref>{{Cite web|title=A plan for prosperity|url=https://www.liverpoolcityregion-ca.gov.uk/growing-our-economy/plan-for-prosperity|access-date=23 September 2023|website=liverpoolcityregion-ca.gov.uk|archive-date=3 October 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231003045617/https://www.liverpoolcityregion-ca.gov.uk/growing-our-economy/plan-for-prosperity/|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|title=Growing the Liverpool City Region Economy|url=https://www.liverpoolcityregion-ca.gov.uk/growing-our-economy|access-date=23 September 2023|website=liverpoolcityregion-ca.gov.uk|archive-date=7 November 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231107220118/https://www.liverpoolcityregion-ca.gov.uk/growing-our-economy|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|title=The Liverpool Local Plan 2013–2033|url=https://liverpool.gov.uk/planning-and-building-control/plan-making-in-liverpool/the-liverpool-local-plan-2013-2033|access-date=23 September 2023|website=liverpool.gov.uk}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|title=Liverpool set to launch new 20-year plan to maximise city's development & investment opportunities|url=https://investliverpool.com/news/delivering-liverpools-development-potential|access-date=23 September 2023|website=investliverpool.com|date=15 August 2023|archive-date=31 August 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230831151030/https://investliverpool.com/news/delivering-liverpools-development-potential/|url-status=live}}</ref>

By the 2020s, urban regeneration throughout the city continues. [[Liverpool Waters]], a mixed-use development in the city's disused northern docklands, has been identified as one of the largest megaprojects in the UK's history. [[Everton Stadium|Everton's new stadium]] at [[Bramley-Moore Dock]] was regarded as the largest single-site private sector development in the United Kingdom at the time of construction.<ref>{{Cite web|title=Liverpool Waters|url=https://peellandp.co.uk/what-we-do/regeneration/peel-waters/liverpool-waters|access-date=23 September 2023|website=peellandp.co.uk|archive-date=7 November 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231107220904/https://peellandp.co.uk/what-we-do/regeneration/peel-waters/liverpool-waters|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|title=A year of progress on the new Everton Football Club stadium|url=https://www.laingorourke.com/company/press-releases/2022/a-year-of-progress-on-the-new-everton-football-club-stadium|access-date=23 September 2023|website=laingorourke.com|archive-date=27 September 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230927122836/https://www.laingorourke.com/company/press-releases/2022/a-year-of-progress-on-the-new-everton-football-club-stadium/|url-status=live}}</ref>

Major events, business and political conferences regularly take place in the city and form an important part of the economy. In June 2014, Prime Minister [[David Cameron]] launched the International Festival for Business in Liverpool, the world's largest business event in 2014,<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.ifb2014.com/Quick-Guide-to-IFB-2014-i25.html|title=QUICK GUIDE TO IFB 2014, IFB BUSINESS CLUB& BUSINESS BROKERAGE &#124; International Festival for Business 2014|access-date=5 May 2014|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140625135233/http://ifb2014.com/Quick-Guide-to-IFB-2014-i25.html|archive-date=25 June 2014}}</ref> and the largest in the UK since the [[Festival of Britain]] in 1951.<ref>[http://www.liverpoolecho.co.uk/news/liverpool-news/david-cameron-international-festival-business-7235969 ''Liverpool Echo''] {{Webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210515065011/https://www.liverpoolecho.co.uk/news/liverpool-news/david-cameron-international-festival-business-7235969 |date=15 May 2021 }}, David Cameron's speech</ref> The [[Labour Party (UK)|Labour Party]] has chosen Liverpool numerous times since the mid 2010s for their annual [[Labour Party Conference]]. Liverpool hosted the [[Eurovision Song Contest 2023]].

===Inventions and innovations===
[[File:Liverpool School Tropical Medical School 3.JPG|thumb|left |The [[Liverpool School of Tropical Medicine]], the first such school in the world]]

Liverpool has been a centre of invention and innovation. Railways, transatlantic [[steamship]]s, municipal trams,<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.vam.ac.uk/collections/periods_styles/19thcentury/steam/other_transport/index.html|title=Victoria and Albert Museum. London|publisher=Vam.ac.uk|date=1 June 2005|access-date=3 August 2010|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100316194133/http://www.vam.ac.uk/collections/periods_styles/19thcentury/steam/other_transport/index.html|archive-date=16 March 2010}}</ref> and electric trains were all pioneered in Liverpool as modes of mass transit. In 1829 and 1836, the first railway tunnels in the world were constructed under Liverpool ([[Wapping Tunnel]]). From 1950 to 1951, the world's first scheduled passenger helicopter service ran between Liverpool and [[Cardiff]].<ref>{{Cite book|last=Bagwell|first=Philip Sidney|title=Transport in Britain 1750–2000|publisher=Continuum International Publishing Group|year=2006|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=OcY5PkqeqgIC&q=helicopter+1950+liverpool+cardiff&pg=PA170|isbn=978-1-85285-590-1}}</ref>

The first [[Royal School for the Blind (Liverpool)|School for the Blind]],<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.rsblind.com/#/history/4559365884|title=Royal School for the Blind, Liverpool|publisher=Rsblind.org.uk|date=12 March 1999|access-date=3 August 2010|archive-date=9 May 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210509201744/http://www.rsblind.com/#/history/4559365884|url-status=dead}}</ref> [[Mechanics' Institutes|Mechanics' Institute]],<ref>[https://books.google.com/books?id=cXZKAAAAYAAJ&dq=liverpool+mechanics+july+1823&pg=PA152 ''Speeches of Henry, Lord Brougham''] {{Webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230906100006/https://books.google.com/books?id=cXZKAAAAYAAJ&dq=liverpool+mechanics+july+1823&pg=PA152 |date=6 September 2023 }}, Vol. II, 1841, Lea and Blanchard, Philadelphia</ref> High School for Girls,<ref>{{Cite book|last=Bisson|first=Frederick|title=Our schools and colleges|publisher=Simpkin, Marshall|location=London|year=1884|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=XcNJZAcjHQwC&q=girls+school+1844+liverpool+first}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://dickens.classicauthors.net/speeches/speeches7.html|title=Charles Dickens, speech, 26 Feb, 1844|publisher=Dickens.classicauthors.net|access-date=3 August 2010|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100704081557/https://dickens.classicauthors.net/speeches/speeches7.html|archive-date=4 July 2010}}</ref> council house,<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.scottiepress.org.uk/projects/martinplq.htm|title=The Scottie Press|publisher=The Scottie Press|access-date=3 August 2010|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100303172146/http://www.scottiepress.org.uk/projects/martinplq.htm|archive-date=3 March 2010|url-status=dead}}</ref> and Juvenile Court<ref>{{Cite journal|last=Adler|first=N|title=The work of Juvenile Courts|journal=Journal of Comparative Legislation and International Law|volume=7|issue=4|series=Third Series, Vol.7, No.4|pages=217–227|year=1925|jstor=753176}}</ref> were all founded in Liverpool. Charities such as the [[RSPCA]],<ref>{{Cite book|last=Garner|first=Robert|title=Animals, politics, and morality|publisher=University Press|location=Manchester|year=1993|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=GSK8AAAAIAAJ&q=liverpool+rspca+wanton-cruelty&pg=PA41|isbn=978-0-7190-3575-3}}</ref> [[NSPCC]],<ref>{{Cite book|last=Hendrick|first=Harry|title=Child welfare and social policy – an essential reader|publisher=The Policy Press|year=2005|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=eYr7CllxrLUC&q=nspcc+liverpool+first&pg=PA37|isbn=978-1-86134-566-0}}</ref> [[Age Concern]],<ref>{{cite web|first=Derren|last=Hayes|url=http://www.communitycare.co.uk/Articles/2009/01/01/110282/liverpool-pss-planting-the-seed-of-modern-social-work.html|title=communitycare.co.uk|publisher=communitycare.co.uk|access-date=3 August 2010|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090818163026/http://www.communitycare.co.uk/Articles/2009/01/01/110282/liverpool-pss-planting-the-seed-of-modern-social-work.html|archive-date=18 August 2009}}</ref> [[Relate]], and [[Citizen's Advice Bureau]]<ref>{{cite news|first=Jackie|last=Rand|url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/programmes/politics_show/8022549.stm|title=BBC Politics Show, 1 May 2009|publisher=BBC News|date=1 May 2009|access-date=3 August 2010}}</ref> all evolved from work in the city.

The first [[Lifeboat (rescue)|lifeboat]] station, public bath and wash-house,<ref>{{Cite book|last=Wohl|first=Anthony S.|title=Endangered Lives: Public Health in Victorian Britain|publisher=Taylor & Francis|year=1984|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=E5kOAAAAQAAJ&q=public+baths+liverpool+rathbone&pg=PA73|isbn=978-0-416-37950-1}}</ref> sanitary act,<ref>{{cite journal|pmc=2092966|page=298|volume=1|issue=4545|journal=Br Med J|title=The First M.O.H|doi=10.1136/bmj.1.4545.298-a|year=1948|last=Brockington|first=C. F}}</ref> medical officer for health ([[William Henry Duncan]]), district nurse, [[Slum clearance in the United Kingdom|slum clearance]],<ref>{{Cite book|last=Dennis|first=Richard|title=English Industrial Cities of the Nineteenth Century: A Social Geography|publisher=Cambridge University Press|year=1986|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=NQQQ5Dq9RWgC&q=liverpool+first+slum+clearance&pg=PA167|isbn=978-0-521-33839-4|access-date=19 October 2020|archive-date=26 August 2024|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240826163331/https://books.google.com/books?id=NQQQ5Dq9RWgC&q=liverpool+first+slum+clearance&pg=PA167#v=snippet&q=liverpool%20first%20slum%20clearance&f=false|url-status=live}}</ref> purpose-built ambulance,<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.lmi.org.uk/ambulance_merseyside.html|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110716102900/http://www.lmi.org.uk/ambulance_merseyside.html|url-status=dead|archive-date=16 July 2011|title=Liverpool Medical Institution|publisher=Lmi.org.uk|access-date=3 August 2010}}</ref> X-ray medical diagnosis,<ref>{{Cite book|last=Peltier|first=Leonard F.|title=Fractures: a history and iconography of their treatment|publisher=Norman Publishing|year=1990|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=kdBfBd5BdEwC&q=first+x-ray+1896+lodge+liverpool&pg=PA227|isbn=978-0-930405-16-8|access-date=19 October 2020|archive-date=26 August 2024|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240826163426/https://books.google.com/books?id=kdBfBd5BdEwC&q=first+x-ray+1896+lodge+liverpool&pg=PA227#v=snippet&q=first%20x-ray%201896%20lodge%20liverpool&f=false|url-status=live}}</ref> school of tropical medicine ([[Liverpool School of Tropical Medicine]]), motorised municipal fire-engine,<ref>{{Cite book|last=Wallington|first=Neil|title=One Hundred Years of the British Fire Engine|publisher=Jeremy Mills Publishing|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=7LZain9YBTkC&q=fire-engine+motorised+liverpool+1901&pg=PA9|isbn=978-1-906600-30-3|year=2008|access-date=19 October 2020|archive-date=26 August 2024|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240826163336/https://books.google.com/books?id=7LZain9YBTkC&q=fire-engine+motorised+liverpool+1901&pg=PA9|url-status=live}}</ref> free school meal,<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.liverpoolmuseums.org.uk/mol/collections/liverpoollives/jessie_reid_crosbie.aspx|title=National Museums, Liverpool|publisher=Liverpoolmuseums.org.uk|access-date=3 August 2010|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110607163458/https://www.liverpoolmuseums.org.uk/mol/collections/liverpoollives/jessie_reid_crosbie.aspx|archive-date=7 June 2011}}</ref> cancer research centre,<ref>[http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk/91322.stm BBC News] {{Webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20151107000250/http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk/91322.stm |date=7 November 2015 }} 12 May 1998</ref> and [[zoonosis]] research centre<ref>[http://www.liv.ac.uk/news/press_releases/2006/02/zoonosis.htm Liverpool University] press release, 22 February 2006</ref> all originated in Liverpool. The first British Nobel Prize was awarded in 1902 to [[Ronald Ross]], professor at the School of Tropical Medicine, the first school of its kind in the world.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.liv.ac.uk/lstm/about/history_of_the_school.htm|title=Liverpool School of Tropical Medicine|publisher=Liv.ac.uk|access-date=3 August 2010|archive-date=31 August 2009|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090831103320/http://www.liv.ac.uk/lstm/about/history_of_the_school.htm|url-status=dead}}</ref> [[Orthopaedic surgery]] was pioneered in Liverpool by [[Hugh Owen Thomas]],<ref>{{cite journal|title=Liverpool's Contributions to Medicine|author=Lord Cohen of Birkenhead|author-link=Henry Cohen, 1st Baron Cohen of Birkenhead|journal=[[BMJ]]|date=10 April 1965|issue=5440|pages=945–948|pmc=2165718|pmid=14260621|volume=1|doi=10.1136/bmj.1.5440.945}}</ref> and modern medical anaesthetics by [[Thomas Cecil Gray]].

The world's first integrated [[History of water supply and sanitation|sewer system]] was constructed in Liverpool by [[James Newlands]], appointed in 1847 as the UK's first borough engineer.<ref>{{Cite book|last=Girling|first=Richard|title=Rubbish!: Dirt on Our Hands And Crisis Ahead|publisher=Random House|location=London|year=2011|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=SWplmVrFxacC&q=james-newlands+sewers+liverpool+first+world&pg=PT15|isbn=9781446436943}}</ref><ref>{{Cite book|last=Geher|first=Robert|title=Complexity and Public Policy: A New Approach to 21st Century Politics, Policy And Society|publisher=Routledge|location=Abingdon, Oxon|year=2012|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=ik66g-HflKIC&q=james-newlands+sewers+liverpool+first+world&pg=PA95|isbn=9780415556620}}</ref> Liverpool also founded the UK's first [[Underwriting|Underwriters']] Association<ref>{{Cite book|title=125 years of the International Union of Marine Insurance|publisher=Verlag Versicherungswirtsch|year=1999|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=RdVOPhSMsvMC&q=world+liverpool-underwriters+association+oldest+OR+first+1802+OR+1803&pg=PR7|access-date=14 July 2009|isbn=9783884877760}}</ref> and the first [[Institute of Chartered Accountants in England and Wales|Institute of Accountants]]. The Western world's first financial derivatives (cotton futures) were traded on the [[International Cotton Association|Liverpool Cotton Exchange]] in the late 1700s.<ref>{{Cite book|title=The Professional Risk Managers' Guide to Financial Markets|publisher=McGraw Hill Professional|year=2007|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=upN4A6jOpkoC&q=futures+cotton+derivative+liverpool+rice&pg=PA126|access-date=14 July 2009|first1=Carol|last1=Alexander|first2=Elizabeth|last2=Sheedy|isbn=978-0-07-154648-5|archive-date=26 August 2024|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240826163913/https://books.google.com/books?id=upN4A6jOpkoC&q=futures+cotton+derivative+liverpool+rice&pg=PA126|url-status=live}}</ref>

[[File:Oriel Chambers - geograph.org.uk - 530888.jpg|thumb|right|[[Oriel Chambers]], the first "modern" building in the world with its iron-framed [[Curtain wall (architecture)|curtain-wall]]]]
In the arts, Liverpool was home to the first lending library ([[The Lyceum, Liverpool|The Lyceum]]), athenaeum society ([[Liverpool Athenaeum]]), arts centre ([[Bluecoat Chambers]]),<ref>{{cite news|url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/england/merseyside/7397702.stm|title=BBC news, 13 May 2008|publisher=BBC News|date=13 May 2008|access-date=3 August 2010|archive-date=17 May 2008|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080517052113/http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/england/merseyside/7397702.stm|url-status=live}}</ref> and public art conservation centre ([[National Conservation Centre]]).<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.culture24.org.uk/mw189|title=Culture 24|publisher=Culture 24|date=26 November 2006|access-date=3 August 2010|archive-date=15 May 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210515045216/https://www.culture24.org.uk/mw189|url-status=dead}}</ref> It is also home to the UK's oldest surviving classical orchestra ([[Royal Liverpool Philharmonic Orchestra]])<ref>{{Citation|last1=Henley|first1=Darren|last2=McKernan|first2=Vincent|year=2009|title=The Original Liverpool Sound: The Royal Liverpool Philharmonic Society|location=Liverpool|page=68|publisher=Liverpool University Press|isbn=978-1-84631-224-3}}</ref> and repertory theatre ([[Liverpool Playhouse]]).<ref>{{Citation|last1=Hartnoll|first1=Phyllis|last2=Found|first2=Peter|year=1996|title=The Concise Oxford Companion to the Theatre|edition=2nd|location=Oxford|publisher=Oxford University Press|isbn=978-0-19-282574-2|doi=10.1093/acref/9780192825742.001.0001|url-access=registration|url=https://archive.org/details/conciseoxfordcom0000unse}}</ref>

In 1864, [[Peter Ellis (architect)|Peter Ellis]] built the world's first iron-framed, [[Curtain wall (architecture)|curtain-walled]] office building, [[Oriel Chambers]], which was a prototype of the skyscraper. The UK's first purpose-built department store was [[Compton House, Liverpool|Compton House]], completed in 1867 for the retailer J.R. Jeffrey.<ref>''Pevsner Architectural Guides: Liverpool'', Joseph Sharples, 2004, Yale University Press</ref> It was the largest store in the world at the time.<ref>''Black's Guide to Liverpool and Birkenhead'', 1871, Adam and Charles Black, Edinburgh</ref>

[[File:Lewis's, Liverpool 2018-2.jpg|thumb|upright=1.1|left|[[Lewis's]] department store on Ranelagh Street. In 1879, the [[Santa's workshop|Christmas grotto]] was conceived in the store.]]
Between 1862 and 1867, Liverpool held an annual [[Olympic Games#Forerunners|Grand Olympic Festival]]. Devised by [[John Hulley]] and [[Charles Pierre Melly]], these games were the first to be wholly amateur in nature and international in outlook.<ref>George R. Matthews (2005). ''America's First Olympics: The St. Louis Games of 1904'' University of Missouri Press {{ISBN|978-0-8262-1588-8 }}</ref><ref>Ingomar Weiler (2004). "The predecessors of the Olympic movement, and Pierre de Coubertin", ''European Review,'' Vol. 12, No. 3, Cambridge University Press</ref> The programme of the first modern Olympiad in [[Athens]] in 1896 was almost identical to that of the Liverpool Olympics.<ref>Craig Reedie, Jim Parry, Vassil Girginov (2005). ''The Olympic Games Explained: A Student Guide to the Evolution of the Modern Olympic Games,'' Routledge {{ISBN|978-0-415-34604-7 }}</ref> In 1865, Hulley co-founded the National Olympian Association in Liverpool, a forerunner of the [[British Olympic Association]]. Its articles of foundation provided the framework for the [[Olympic Charter]].

A concept devised by retail entrepreneur [[David Lewis (English merchant)|David Lewis]], the first [[Santa's workshop|Christmas grotto]] opened in [[Lewis's]] department store in Liverpool in 1879.<ref>{{cite news|title=Liverpool's record breaking Christmas grotto beloved by generations|url=https://www.liverpoolecho.co.uk/news/nostalgia/liverpools-record-breaking-christmas-grotto-25517874|access-date=16 April 2024|work=Liverpool Echo|archive-date=26 December 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231226182024/https://www.liverpoolecho.co.uk/news/nostalgia/liverpools-record-breaking-christmas-grotto-25517874|url-status=live}}</ref> Sir [[Alfred Lewis Jones]], a shipowner, introduced bananas to the UK via Liverpool's docks in 1884.<ref>{{cite ODNB|last=Read|first=J. Gordon|chapter=Jones, Sir Alfred Lewis (1845–1909), shipping entrepreneur and colonial magnate|title=Oxford Dictionary of National Biography|date=23 September 2004|doi=10.1093/ref:odnb/34222}}</ref> The [[Mersey Railway]], opened in 1886, incorporated the world's first tunnel under a tidal [[estuary]]<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.disused-stations.org.uk/l/liverpool_central_ll/|title=Disused Stations: Liverpool Central Low Level Station|website=Disused-stations.org.uk|access-date=18 January 2018|archive-date=26 February 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210226181807/http://www.disused-stations.org.uk/l/liverpool_central_ll/|url-status=live}}</ref> and the world's first deep-level underground stations ([[Liverpool James Street railway station]]).

[[File:Bessie Braddock 1899 - 1970 Labour politician and campaigner lived here 1945 - 1970.jpg|thumb|upright|Liverpool was the first city outside London to be chosen to have an official [[Blue plaque]] and now has the largest number outside London.<ref>{{Cite web|title=Take a Blue Plaque tour of the homes of Liverpool's most notable residents|url=https://www.liverpoolecho.co.uk/whats-on/whats-on-news/blue-plaque-tour-liverpool-history-12606938|access-date=26 September 2023|website=liverpoolecho.co.uk|date=15 February 2017|archive-date=26 September 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230926173819/https://www.liverpoolecho.co.uk/whats-on/whats-on-news/blue-plaque-tour-liverpool-history-12606938|url-status=live}}</ref>]]
In 1889, borough engineer [[John Alexander Brodie]] invented the football goal net. He was also a pioneer in the use of [[pre-fabricated]] housing<ref>{{cite book|last=Hogan-O'Neill|first=William|title=Prefabricated and Modular Architecture: Aligning Design with Manufacture and Assembly|date=22 February 2021|publisher=The Crowood Press|isbn=978-1-78500-807-8|page=313|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=f90NEAAAQBAJ&pg=PT313|access-date=18 September 2023|archive-date=18 September 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230918184737/https://books.google.com/books?id=f90NEAAAQBAJ&pg=PT313|url-status=live}}</ref> and oversaw the construction of the UK's first ring road ([[A5058 road|A5058]]) and intercity highway ([[East Lancashire Road]]), as well as the [[Queensway Tunnel]] linking Liverpool and [[Birkenhead]]. Described as "the eighth wonder of the world" at the time of its construction, it was the longest underwater tunnel in the world for 24 years.

In 1897, the [[Auguste and Louis Lumière|Lumière brothers]] filmed Liverpool,<ref>[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_i5ApsjD46o Liverpool Scenes 1896/1897] {{Webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20091028081858/http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_i5ApsjD46o |date=28 October 2009 }} ''YouTube''</ref> including what is believed to be the world's first [[tracking shot]],<ref>[http://www.liverpool.gov.uk/News/newsdetail_2754.asp Liverpool City Council]{{Dead link|date=August 2023 |bot=InternetArchiveBot |fix-attempted=yes }} News, 14 October 2008</ref> taken from the [[Liverpool Overhead Railway]], the world's first elevated electrified railway. The Overhead Railway was the first railway in the world to use [[electric multiple unit]]s, employ automatic signalling, and install an escalator.

Liverpool inventor [[Frank Hornby]] was a visionary in toy development and manufacture, producing three of the most popular lines of toys in the 20th century: [[Meccano]], [[Hornby Model Railways]] (both in 1901), and [[Dinky Toys]] in 1934.<ref>{{cite news|last=Matilda|first=Battersby|url=https://www.independent.co.uk/life-style/gadgets-and-tech/news/google-doodle-celebrates-visionary-toy-maker-frank-hornbys-150-birthday-8616721.html|title=Google Doodle celebrates visionary toy maker Frank Hornby's 150 birthday|newspaper=The Independent|date=15 May 2013|access-date=15 October 2024}}</ref> The [[British Interplanetary Society]], founded in Liverpool in 1933 by Phillip Ellaby Cleator, is the world's oldest existing organisation devoted to the promotion of [[spaceflight]]. Its journal, the ''[[Journal of the British Interplanetary Society]]'', is the longest-running astronautical publication in the world.<ref>[http://www.historytoday.com/nigel-watson/reaching-stars "Reaching for the Stars"] {{Webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181116043845/https://www.historytoday.com/nigel-watson/reaching-stars |date=16 November 2018 }}, ''[[History Today]],'' Volume: 63 Issue: 1 2013</ref>

In 1999, Liverpool was the first city outside London to be awarded [[blue plaques]] by [[English Heritage]] in recognition of the "significant contribution made by its sons and daughters in all walks of life".<ref>[http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/entertainment/353286.stm BBC News] {{Webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20151107000305/http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/entertainment/353286.stm |date=7 November 2015 }}, 26 May 1999</ref>