Southampton

Southampton
City and Unitary authority area
Montage of Southampton. Clockwise from top-left: Bargate; Guildhall; Top of west walls; Wool house and custom house; Southwestern house
Nickname(s):  "Soton/So'ton", The Gateway to the World
Southampton shown within Hampshire
Sovereign state	United Kingdom
Constituent country	England
Region	South East England
Ceremonial county	Hampshire
Admin HQ	Southampton
Settled	c. AD43
City status	1964
Unitary authority	1997
Government
• Type	Unitary authority, City
• Governing body	Southampton City Council
• Leadership	Leader and Cabinet
• Executive
• MPs	Royston Smith (C) Alan Whitehead (L) Caroline Nokes (C)
Area
• Urban	28.1 sq mi (72.8 km2)
Population  (2010 est)
• City and Unitary authority area	253,651 (Ranked 57)
• Density	13,190/sq mi (5,094/km2)
• Urban	855,569
• Metro	1,547,000
• Ethnicity (United Kingdom 2005 Estimate)	85.9% White (77.7% White British) 8.4% Asian 2.2% Black. 1.2% other 2.4% Mixed Race
Demonym	Sotonian
Time zone	UTC+0 (Greenwich Mean Time)
• Summer (DST)	UTC+1 (British Summer Time)
Postcode span	SO14-SO19
Area code	023
GVA	2013
• Total	£9.7 bn ($15.7 bn) (12th)
• Growth	2.6%
• Per capita	£21,400 ($34,300) (15th)
• Growth	0.6%
GDP	US$ 51.6 billion
GDP per capita	US$ 37,832
Website	www.southampton.gov.uk

Southampton is a city in the United Kingdom. The city is in Hampshire. It is about in the middle of the south coast of England. Southampton is the largest city on the south coast.

It is an important port. It is the nearest city to the New Forest. In 1912, the RMS Titanic sailed from there as was common with most ocean liners at the time. It contains several memorials and museum exhibitions related with the doomed ship.

Places in Southampton

Bargate

The Bargate

Southampton has lots of landmarks, of which one is the Bargate. This is the old main gate of the city wall of Southampton, and nowadays is used as the beginning of the guided tour of Southampton, Walk the Walls. In medieval Southampton, a bell was rung at dusk every day to tell people that the gates would shortly be locked.

Today, the Bargate Shopping Centre is nearby.

The Mayflower

Named after The Mayflower, which set sail from Southampton to the "New World" (via Plymouth), the Mayflower is the theatre in Southampton. It was built in 1928.

Docks

The Queen Mary 2 on Southampton Water, with Hythe Ferry in front

Southampton is home to many cruise ships and ocean liners, including the Queen Victoria and the Queen Mary 2.

There is also a regular ferry service to Hythe (a small village on the other side of Southampton Water), which leaves every half hour.

Sport

Southampton has a football team Southampton F.C., which is nicknamed "The Saints". In 2001, the team moved stadiums, from "The Dell", to St. Mary's Football Stadium. The club was founded in 1885, and has been playing ever since.

Twinned Cities

Southampton is twinned with:

• Le Havre, France (since 1973)
• Rems-Murr-Kreis, Germany (since 1991)
• Miami, USA

Southampton is also sister cities with

• Hampton, Virginia
• Qingdao, China (since 1998)