Second City

I’ve noted that my friend has mentioned the Birmingham relief road and humorously suggests that Manchester has no need of a by-pass. But isn’t this exactly what the M62 is? A road that links those two great northern cities of Leeds and Liverpool and in the process by-passes Manchester. When John Lennon was asked if Ringo was the best drummer in the world, he famously replied “He’s not even the best drummer in the Beatles” and so it is with Manchester; Is Manchester the second city in England? It’s not even the second city in the North.
I feel at this point I should perhaps address some of the points my colleague raised about Neville Chamberlain. It’s certainly true to say that The Munich Agreement overshadows any other issue when considering the achievements of the man which included during his time in office in Birmingham, establishing the world-renowned CBSO, establishing the hugely successful Birmingham Municipal Bank, stock-piling coal for distribution to the poor and even with some considerable foresight, establishing creches for workers. It is also worth noting that during his time in office at National Government level, he was responsible for the Widows, Orphans and Old Age Pensions Act, 1925. Subsequent examination of documents now released under the thirty year rule at least provide us with some counter-balancing arguments regarding Chamberlain’s reputation in the aftermath of the Munich agreement but to examine these in detail would be to side-track the main debate.
However any personal failings in Chamberlain regarding this matter pale into insignificance when one considers the monumental naivete of Manchester’s own Lloyd-George who following his trip to Berchtesgaden in March 1936 where he met with Adolf Hitler, subsequently made the surprising public comments describing Hitler as "the greatest living German", "the George Washington of Germany"
It’s a shame that our Manchester friend has to use such examples of ‘Manchester firsts’ as the first mill to use steam power on Miller Street. Overlooking the fact the powers that be in Manchester have chosen to tarmac over this important heritage site and turn it into a car park, there’s a little more to the history of Arkwright’s mill than first imagined. Arkwright initially chose to power the Mill with a Newcomen engine which unfortunately failed and resulted in the construction of a water wheel to power the mill. This sorry state of affairs was fortunately rescued by Messrs Boulton and Watt of Birmingham who supplied the mill with a 6 horsepower double-acting sun and planet engine which thankfully managed to power the mill machinery directly and very successfully. Boulton as we know is one of the founding fathers of the industrial revolution and established the first modern factory in the world - The Soho foundry, situated in Birmingham. So it can be truly said that here in Birmingham was the beginning of the modern world.
As for my friends claim that Manchester University was the home for the world’s first computer, well let’s just say that’s a contentious claim and entirely depends on how one defines a computer. There are many other claims for the development of the first computer, Babbage of course and the Z1 developed by Conrad Zeus in Germany. I would certainly not wish to challenge the towering achievements of Alan Turing but I would dispute his claim that Turing was a son of Manchester. He was in fact born in Maida Vale, London. He worked and studied in various places throughout his career, latterly at Manchester University. He was however arrested, charged and convicted of homosexuality in Manchester, offered Chemical castration as an alternative to imprisonment and later committed suicide in Manchester.
But perhaps the most risible of my friends claims is that Manchester has any kind of history in motor manufacture. Can a natter over a cup of tea and cucumber sandwich in a Manchester Hotel really be compared with the enormity of motor manufacturing history in Birmingham:
Lucus Industries – Manufacturing a variety of car parts, notably Headlights.
Dunlop – The first pneumatic tyre factory – situated in Birmingham
Herbert Austin – Founder of the mighty Austin Empire and manufacturer of the Austin 7
William Morris – founder of the Morris Motor Company.
Wolsey – Started life in Washwood Heath, Birmingham
Vickers – situated in Castle Bromwich made aero engines, buses and cars. (They also made the Vickers Vimy, the aircraft that took Alcock and Brown across the Atlantic and now claimed by my colleague as credit to Manchester)
Sir Alec Issigonis – designer of the Morris Minor and of course The Mini.
I have already mentioned the Lanchester Brothers and their contributions to the Motor Industry and there are many more examples.
There is a great deal more evidence that I shall be detailing here in forthcoming posts but I’m sure that even by now, readers will be coming to the only sensible conclusion. That there simply is no comparison between the two cities. Birmingham is a large city, a city with a profound industrial heritage, one that transformed the whole world, not just some vacuous and ephemeral concept of ‘cool’. From that first modern-style factory in Birmingham we saw the rise of the modern-style city, indeed is can be rightly said that Manchester owes it’s very existence to those pioneering folk of Birmingham.