The Industrial Revolution started in Birmingham and transformed the world. By the mid-19th century, Birmingham was the prime industrial town in Britain, becoming known as the City of a Thousand Trades and Workshop of the World. The city was particularly known for its metal work, producing a wide variety of small, high value items – in particular pens, guns and jewellery. Birmingham’s Jewellery Quarter stills produces over 40% UK made Jewellery, and is home to several museums and independent restaurants. If you have time, please explore this part of the city, which starts about a 5 minutes walk away from where you are now.

Unlike other British cities, Birmingham’s manufacturing growth in the 19th century was predominantly highly skilled and specialised, creating immense wealth for the city. The wealth was used to develop grand projects in the city, like Council House (the large building next to you, along Margaret St) built in 1879, and the Birmingham Museum and Art Gallery (seen later on this trail). This trail will take you to many landmarks and buildings, which were built using the wealth from this manufacturing era.

Other examples of how this wealth was used, include the establishment of the Birmingham and Midland Institute (seen next to you) in 1854, a pioneer of scientific and technical education, and the University of Birmingham, established first as the Birmingham School of Medicine and Surgery in 1825 and Mason College of Science in 1875.

This trail will take you to new buildings and old, including museums, art galleries, churches, and more, which capture the history of Birmingham and its ongoing resurgence.

One of the largest Victorian buildings in Birmingham, the Grand Hotel was first opened in 1879 during a period of great industrial growth in the City. During its heyday, in the early 20th Century, the hotel played host to film stars, royalty and politicians, including Winston Churchill, King George VI, Neville Chamberlain, Charlie Chaplin and more. The hotel reopened in 2021 (having closed in 2002) following a major refurbishment and is a splendid example of Birmingham’s ongoing revival.

The Hotel has several bars & restaurants, which are worth a visit!

Walk through and explore this beautiful historic shopping arcade, filled with independent shops and restaurants.

Railways first came to Birmingham in 1837, with lines to Manchester, Liverpool, and London. The arrival of trains was both a catalyst for and consequence of the industrial revolution. Great Western Railway (GWR) opened a line from Birmingham to Oxford & Paddington in 1852, which caused a significant increase in business and tourism - a key reason for the opening of the Grand Hotel just 25 years later.

A tunnel in the GWR line existed between Moor St and Snow Hill train stations. Between 1875-1877, the tunnel was built over, to build a new shopping arcade, the Great Western Arcade.

Please explore this Cathedral, which stands as a rare example of English Baroque architecture still standing.

St Philip’s Church designed by Thomas Archer - the designer of Chatsworth House - was built in 1715 at a cost of £5,012 (or equivalent to £200,000 today). When Birmingham became a city in 1889, Joseph Chamberlain decided that St Philip’s should become the Cathedral of Birmingham, which it did in 1905.

Joseph Chamberlain was one of the most important political leaders in Britain during the 19th century and a significant figure within Birmingham in the late 1800s. He is the father of Prime Minister Neville Chamberlain.

This pub and theatre are in a former Victorian Bank building, which has beautiful interiors, including a very high glass-domed roof, that’s worth seeing. We recommend getting a drink here, to take in the impressive interiors.

Enjoy the view of the outside of Birmingham Town Hall, from Victoria Square.

The Birmingham Triennial Musical Festival was a classical music festival which ran from 1784 to 1912, making it the longest-running music festival of its kind. It was started to raise funds to build a new General Hospital for the people of Birmingham, and then became a permanent feature running every three years, to raise money for the hospital.

It was first hosted in St Philip’s Cathedral, but due to its increasing popularity a new venue was needed - so the Birmingham Town Hall was built in 1834 to house it. To this day, the Birmingham Town Hall serves as a concert hall.

Enjoy the view of this impressive and vast building, from Victoria Square.

Mayor Joseph Chamberlain laid the first stone in 1874, with the building construction finishing in 1879. The building housed and continues to house the Birmingham City Council, which is the largest council in Europe with 101 elected councillors.

Birmingham is the youngest city in Europe with almost 40% of its 1.2m population being made up of under 25s. It is also the most diverse city (outside of London) in the UK.

Please enter and explore to see everything from Renaissance masterpieces and contemporary art to Egyptian mummies and the world’s largest collection of Pre-Raphaelite paintings.

The Birmingham Museum and Art Gallery first opened in 1885, as a successor to several other smaller museums which were established after The Museums Act 1845, which set out to expand access to culture and history across Britain. Jesse Collings - Mayor of Birmingham 1878-79 - established this museum, as well as free libraries across Birmingham. It was first opened in part of Council House but has been expanded many times since then.

Enjoy this public space.

Chamberlain Square has recently reopened, at the centre of the Paradise Square redevelopment project. Since 1880, the Chamberlain Memorial has stood at the centre of this square, as a memorial to Joseph Chamberlain. The Birmingham Central Library - a brutalist building - stood at the corner of this square, until its demolition in 2016.

As you explore the next two stops - The Library of Birmingham & The Exchange - both on the perimeter of Centenary Square, please take a moment to see the Hall of Memory.

The Hall of Memory was built in 1925, as a memorial to the 12,320 Birmingham citizens who died in World War I.

Go inside and explore the largest public library in the UK. Get 360° views across Birmingham from the 7th-floor Secret Garden and 3rd-floor Discovery Terrace. Also, make sure you visit the William Shakespeare Library (on the 3rd floor).

This library was opened in 2013, for a cost of £190m. It was the flagship project for the city’s redevelopment and is now visited by over 2.5 million people per year. It was built to replace the brutalist Birmingham Central Library, mentioned earlier.

Brutalism was the defining architecture of Birmingham from the 1970s until the mid-2010s. As a result of heavy damage during WWII and the high cost of maintenance, in the mid-1970s, many historic Victorian buildings were demolished and replaced with Brutalist concrete buildings - seen then as the future of city planning. Central Birmingham was also redesigned (in the 70s) with pro-car planning, resulting in large roads cutting through the city centre.

Brutalist architecture and heavy traffic are still the way many people view Birmingham, but this couldn’t be further from the reality of our city today. Since the turn of the millennium, Birmingham city centre has transformed, with the Brutalist Central Library, old New Street Train Station, and old Bullring Shopping centre all being demolished and replaced with the modern buildings you see today.

Tunnels were built to move the traffic underground and many areas have been pedestrianized, to create one of the best city centres in the UK for exploring on foot. The development of the city continues to this day, with many new buildings under construction - which you’re sure to notice on the trail route today!

Explore the exhibits, or use the cafe, within this beautifully restored former Bank, with stunning interiors.

The Exchange was opened in 2021, in the former headquarters of the Birmingham Municipal Bank. This Grade II listed building was first opened on 27 November 1933 by Prince George (who later became King George VI). Birmingham continues to have a significant financial sector, including HSBC’s UK headquarters, in the office building next to The Exchange.

Currently, the University of Birmingham operates The Exchange, to provide event spaces and showcase some of the incredible research the University undertakes. The University is a member of the Russell Group and has produced two Prime Ministers; eleven Nobel Laureates; and many famous alumni (like Edward Elgar). It has a beautiful Red Brick campus (about 15 minutes on the train from New Street), including Europe’s tallest clock tower, a historic Great Hall, two museums and much more, all of which you can explore for free. If you have time, we recommend giving it a visit!

Walk through the ICC from Centenary Square to Brindley Place.

The International Convention Centre (ICC) is a major conference venue that was opened by Queen Elizabeth II in 1991. It was the host venue of the 24th G8 summit in 1998.

The Symphony Hall is a beautiful venue, and home to the City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra. Not only is Birmingham known for its classical music scene, but it is also the birthplace of Heavy Metal, with Black Sabbath, Judas Priest and the lead singer of Led Zeppelin all coming from this city. Birmingham also produced Laura Mvula, Duran Duran, Wizard, The Streets and UB40!

Enjoy the contemporary art on display in this historic neo-gothic former board school.

The Ikon Gallery has been in a few locations since it was first established in 1965, by contemporary artists who felt unsupported by the other major art galleries across Birmingham. It now resides here, in the former Oozells Street Board School.

Enjoy relaxing in this public square or take a break in one of the many restaurants and bars in this area.

The area in which the modern offices and tourist attractions of Brindley Place now occupy, was once at the heart of Birmingham’s Industry, being home to many factories during the 20th century. By the 1970s, Britain’s manufacturing was in significant decline, resulting in many of these factories closing down and being left derelict. Birmingham City Council began to redevelop the area in 1993, to create a large mixed-use space.

Enjoy this 10-minute (or so) stroll along the Canalside, to The Mailbox.

As you may have heard already, Birmingham has more canals than Venice, with around 100 miles of canal navigations. The canals are of historical significance for the city and continue to be widely used today - for running, bike rides, or just to relax by their side.

As you walk along this part of the trail, you will come to a large open area, with many traditional narrowboats moored. This area is called Gas Street Basin, and is near where the first canal was built, between 1768-1772. The canal was built under the supervision of James Brindley - to whom Brindley Place is named after.

Canals were the lifeblood of the industrial revolution that took place in Victorian Birmingham, used to transport coal, building materials, metal and much more, from across the Black Country and into and out of Birmingham City centre.

Have some food, or enjoy shopping at The Mailbox, including luxury department store Harvey Nichols.

The Mailbox was opened in 2000, on the site of the Royal Mail’s former main sorting office in Birmingham. It underwent significant redevelopment in 2013.

Walk through this beautiful small shopping arcade, leading to the main shopping street in Birmingham.

First opened as a luxury cinema in 1910, the building was transformed into a shopping arcade in 1925.

The Bullring and connected Grand Central, combine to make the largest city centre-based shopping mall in the UK. Be sure to get a photo with the famous Bronze Birmingham Bull statue, the symbol of our city.

In 1160, Peter de Bermingham began a weekly market at his Manor, trading in goods from across the region – particularly corn. Later the market was used for trading Bulls, and by the 16th century, spectators would pay to watch Bull-baiting. Whilst this practice stopped in 1798, the market continued and retained the name, the Bull Ring.

The Bull Ring, in its current form, opened in 2003. Grand Central opened as part of a substantial redevelopment of New Street station, which was completed in September 2015. It's worth popping into the station, to see the main Foyer area.

The Statue was the first publicly funded statue in Birmingham, unveiled in 1809. Horatio Nelson visited Birmingham on 31 August 1802 – shortly before the Battle of Trafalgar, in which the British Royal Navy (led by Nelson) successfully defeated the French and Spanish Navies who were seeking to take the British Channel.

St Martin in the Bull Ring is our final stop on the trial, please enjoy this calming environment in the heart of the Birmingham shopping district. This gothic Victorian church was built in 1873, on the site of its predecessor, a church first recorded in 1263.

We hope you have enjoyed your trail through the Best of Birmingham and have learned something about our city’s history and culture.

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If you have more time, you are only a short walk to Chinatown, which has lots of great restaurants, with cuisines from across East Asia, and the Birmingham Back to Backs Museum, which tells the story of working-class life in the city from 1840 to the 1970s. Close by is the Electric Cinema, the oldest working cinema in the UK.

Alternatively, take a trip to Digbeth, specifically the Custard Factory area, which has vintage shops, cool bars, fun activities (like crazy golf & an arcade) and several independent restaurants.

With a bit more time, we recommend taking a trip to the University of Birmingham Edgbaston campus and to Bournville, home of Cadbury chocolate. Only 15 minutes by train from New Street station. Or a visit to the Birmingham Botanical Gardens.