Nottingham is a city in central England. It originated as an Anglo-Saxon settlement before Danish Vikings conquered the city in the 8th century. Nottingham became part of the Danelagen and was a fortified city during this period. After the Vikings, William I conquered England in 1066, and two years later he built a castle in Nottingham, and the city grew around the castle. It was around this structure that the legends of Robin Hood later arose.

A part of the city’s inhabitants lived in the many caves that had been carved out of the sandstone subsoil over time, and they were inhabited until the 18th century by e.g. workers in Nottingham’s tanneries. In 1642, the English Civil War started in Nottingham when King Charles I raised his banner on the city’s castle. The city grew during the Industrial Revolution, where Nottingham’s prosperity came not least from the textile industry.

Today you can make some lovely walks in Nottingham, where the Old Market Square forms the center of the city. It is a large square where, at the eastern end, you can see the Nottingham Council House, which was built in neo-baroque style in the years 1927-1929. Nottingham Council House was opened as the city’s town hall and is magnificently decorated with fine staircases, banqueting hall and the building’s inner dome as examples of the grand interior.

At the facade you can see the city’s two well-known lion statues in art deco style. The town hall tower is 61 meters high, and the distinctive dome is today one of Nottingham’s landmarks. Under the dome and in the entire rear part of the Council House is the shopping arcade The Exchange, which, like the Town Hall, is beautiful in its architecture. From Old Market Square, you can also walk further along some of Nottingham’s pedestrian streets.

If you go south-west from the Old Market Square, you come to Nottingham Castle, which was first built as a wooden fort in 1068. In the 12th century, Henry II built the castle of stone instead, and throughout the Middle Ages the castle became important to the king, and it was occasionally also used as a residence. The inner residence of the castle is located on a hill above the other parts of the fortress, such as the large main gate.

The current residence castle was built by Newcastle’s Duke Henry Cavendish between 1674 and 1679. Incidentally, it was here at Nottingham Castle that the final and decisive confrontation between the Sheriff of Nottingham and Robin Hood took place according to the legend of Robin Hood. Today, Nottingham Castle is open as a museum, where you can explore historical and archaeological collections as well as various art.

In the city, you can visit a unique museum, City of Caves, where you can get an experience of the old caves under Nottingham. The city’s subsoil is sandstone, which is easy to excavate with simple tools. The caves were used for living and for various purposes such as storage rooms and workshops. During World War II, they also functioned as shelters. Hundreds of caves have been identified today.

Close to the City of Caves is St Mary’s Church, which is the largest Anglican church in Nottingham. The church was primarily built in the 1300s and 1400s. The neighborhood around St Mary’s Church is called the Lace Market, and it was once the center of the world’s lace industry. Today there are many Victorian buildings in this area that have a special character. Towards the northwest of the city, you can visit the city’s largest church, the Cathedral Church of St. Barnabas, which is a cathedral in the Roman Catholic Church. The cathedral was built 1841-1844 and has a beautiful interior.