Leeds is the UK’s third largest city and lies on the River Aire, West Yorkshire.
It was an agricultural market town in the Middle Ages, a Merchant town in Tudor times and then became an Industrial town making machinery for spinning, steam engines and machine tools. Other industries included textiles, chemicals, leather, pottery and coal mining.
Some large engineering firms still remain making a variety of products including turbine blade, surgical and hospital equipment, radiators and printing supplies.
Leeds was very prosperous in the Victorian times and some of this era can be seen today in the ornate and stained glass shopping arcades and the Town Hall opened by Queen Victoria in 1858.
Leeds can claim fame to having the first steam locomotive railway in the world and the first sets of automatic traffic lights in 1928.
Tourism is big in Leeds with l.4m visitors staying overnight and 1.8m daily visitors annually. It not only is a historical city but also acts as a good base for exploring this part of Yorkshire.
Leeds is easily accessible with good train services to Kings Cross in two and a half hours, Sheffield, York and Manchester.
The M1 and M62 motorways are just south of the city and the A1 is to the East. The A58, A61, A62, A63, A64 and A65 all serve Leeds.
Leeds Bradford International Airport has flights to Europe, Egypt and Turkey.
There are always plenty of properties for rent in Leeds with prices around £250 - £450pcm for l bed flat, £425 - £525pcm for a 2 bed flat and £525 - £695pcm for a 3 bed house.
St. Anne’s Cathedral is in the heart of the city. Construction of the present cathedral was started in 1901 and finished in 1904. It was re-opened in November 2006 after major restoration work. It is a Catholic cathedral providing silence, prayer and refuge from the busy city.
Leeds is the UK’s second most important finance centre after London with around a quarter of the workforce in financial and business services. There is a very low unemployment rate in the city indicating the rise in its economic structure.
There are many attractions to see in Leeds including the City Art Gallery that holds a fine collection of 20th century art. The Henry Moore Institute was added in 1993 and has a reading room, study centre, library and video gallery together with galleries housing sculptures of all ages.
Armley mills Museum is situated in a 19th century woollen mill. It explores the industrial heritage of Leeds with the original equipment, sound effects and models in 19th century clothes.
Tropical World has crystal pools, a rain forest house, butterflies and tropical fish. This is a very popular place for children.
Also a favourite of children is the farm and Rare Breed Centre in the grounds of Temple Newsom House.
Several events are held in and around Leeds these include a German Christmas Market held from the 17th November to 17th December annually.
The Leeds West Indian Carnival takes place in Chapelton each summer..
The Ice Cube, Europe’s largest open air skating rink is held annually in Millennium Square each year.
Annual summer and Christmas concerts are held in the Town Hall and involve hundreds of school children from around Leeds.
One of England’s biggest rock concerts, Leeds Festival, is held every August and is spread over four stages.
The city is also fortunate of have Opera Houses, theatres and cinemas.
The nightlife in Leeds is good with plenty of public houses, some dating back to 1898. There’s good selection of bars and nightclubs including the Hifi Club, Fruit Cupboard, Wire and Warehouse.
Leeds is known as the Knightsbridge of the North and has everything for the shopper from markets selling everything from food to jewellery and a pedestrianised town centre with a huge variety of shops. Some of the shops to be found in Leeds include Harvey Nicholls, Louis Vuitton, and a wide selection of High Street department stores along with smaller shops like Bara, Room 7, USC Ltd, White Label Clothing, Wickid and Just Kidding.
Leeds also has a huge variety of restaurants serving all types of dishes to suit every taste and pocket.
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