Bristol is a city, unitary authority and ceremonial county in South West England, 105 miles (169 km) west of London, and 44 miles (71 km) east of Cardiff.
With an approximate population of 410,950, and urban area of 550,200, it is England's sixth, and the United Kingdom's ninth most populous city, one of England's core cities and the most populous city in South West England.
It received a royal charter in 1155 and was granted county status in 1373. For half a millennium it was the second or third largest English city, until the rapid rise of Liverpool, Birmingham and Manchester in the Industrial Revolution in the later part of the 18th century.
It borders on the Counties of Somerset, and Gloucestershire, between the cities of Bath, Gloucester and Newport, and has a short coastline on the estuary of the River Severn, which flows into the Bristol Channel.
Bristol is one of the centres of culture, employment and education in the region. From its earliest days, its prosperity has been linked to that of the Port of Bristol, the commercial port, which was in the city centre but has now moved to the Severn estuary coast at Avonmouth and Portbury. In more recent years the economy has been built on the aerospace industry, and the city centre docks have been regenerated as a centre of heritage and culture.
