Moving to Glasgow?
Scotland’s largest city, Glasgow, is located in the West Central lowlands. The third
longest river in Scotland, the River Clyde, flows through the city. The area around
the river has long been an area of historical importance with evidence of settlement
dating back to prehistoric times; it has always been good for salmon fishing!
Most of Glasgow’s architecture was constructed from the locally quarried grey granite,
during the Victorian Era. As a result of this, Glasgow was nicknamed, the ‘Grey
City’, or ‘Granite City’. More romantically it was sometimes known as the ‘Silver
City with the Golden Sands’, due to the mica deposits within the granite, that sparkle
like silver. Granite is one of the most durable materials available and therefore
buildings constructed using granite need very little structural maintenance. Marischall
College, which was opened by Kind Edward VII in 1906, is the second largest granite
building in the world, second only to the Escorial, in Madrid.
In 1451 the University of Glasgow was founded. It granted Bishop William Turnbull
permission to add the university to the city’s cathedral, which gives the university
a rather spectacular appearance. It is the fourth oldest university in the English-speaking
world, and is presently ranked amongst the top 100 universities of the world!
The 18th Century witnessed Glasgow’s growth and its impressive status in becoming
one of Britain’s main sites for transatlantic trade. This was followed by the arrival
of the Industrial Revolution during which the city, and surrounding area, became
one of the world’s most important centres for Heavy Engineering: Most recognisably
so in the shipbuilding industry and in marine engineering – many famous vessels
have been produced in Glasgow.
Culturally Glasgow has a great deal to offer, from ballet to football – with so
much more in between! The city’s west end is home to the more bohemian district,
and with its abundance of bars, restaurants, clubs, boutiques, cafes, tearooms,
music venues and more, it is an understandably popular area for tourists. The Kelvingrove
Art Gallery and Museum has one of Europe’s best civic art collections! It is also
where the University of Glasgow is located. Every June, for sixteen days, the ‘West
End Festival’ is held here. This is one of Glasgow’s largest festivals, and a starting
point for many other festivals.
Glasgow is listed as the 57th most liveable city in the world! It is easy to see
why! It has a great many notable achievements, including: In 1990 Glasgow was designated
to be the European City of Culture; In 2003 the city was named European City of
Sport, and In 1999, it was named the UK City of Architecture. There is more!
A fun city with a great music scene, food scene, art, theatre, sport, etc – the
list just goes on and on! Glasgow can easily be said to be a fantastic place to
call home!