Rio London Silver Coin Olympic Games 2012 Jesus Christ Great Britain Retro Samba

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Seller: Top-Rated Seller lasvegasormonaco ✉️ (3,187) 99.7%, Location: Manchester, Take a look at my other items, GB, Ships to: WORLDWIDE, Item: 266484363722 Rio London Silver Coin Olympic Games 2012 Jesus Christ Great Britain Retro Samba. New Year's Eve fireworks at Copacabana Beach. Youth and students. 1928[59] IX Netherlands Amsterdam 28 July – 12 August 1928. Multi-sport events. 2032: Australia Brisbane. 2028: United States Los Angeles.   Olympic Hand Over Coin From London 2012 to Rio 2016 This silver plated coin is to commerate the Olympic Hand over from London to Rio The other side has an image of London with Tower Bridge and an image of Rio the Statue of Christ It has the words Londres 2012 and Rio 2016 with the word Brasil One Side has the Olympic Flag with the Olympic Rings   The Medal is 40mm in diameter, weighs about  1 oz. Comes in air-tight acrylic holder In Excellent Condition Would make an Excellent Gift or Collectable Keepsake souvenir of the worlds most famous and greatest sporting event
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Summer Olympic Games Olympic Games Olympic Rings Main topics BidsBoycottsCeremoniesCharterHost citiesIFsIOCMedalMedal tablesMedalistsNOCsOlympismPierre de Coubertin medalScandals and controversiesSportsSymbolsTelevisionTorch relaysVenuesWomen participation Games SummerWinter Youth AfricanAsianEuropeanPacificPan-American AncientIntercalated Motorsport vte The Summer Olympic Games (French: Jeux olympiques d'été), also known as the Games of the Olympiad, and often referred to as the Summer Olympics, is a major international multi-sport event normally held once every four years. The inaugural Games took place in 1896 in Athens, Greece, and the most recent edition was held in 2021 in Tokyo, Japan. The International Olympic Committee (IOC) is responsible for organising the Games and for overseeing the host city's preparations. The tradition of awarding medals began in 1904; in each Olympic event, gold medals are awarded for first place, silver medals for second place, and bronze medals for third place. The Winter Olympic Games were created out of the success of the Summer Olympic Games, which are regarded as the largest and most prestigious multi-sport international event in the world. The Summer Olympics have increased in scope from a 42-event competition programme in 1896 with fewer than 250 male competitors from 14 different nations, to 339 events in 2021 with 11,420 competitors (almost half of whom were women) from 206 nations. The Games have been held in nineteen different countries over five continents: four times in the United States (1904, 1932, 1984, and 1996); three times in Great Britain (1908, 1948, and 2012); twice each in Greece (1896 and 2004), France (1900 and 1924), Germany (1936 and 1972), Australia (1956 and 2000), and Japan (1964 and 2020); and once each in Sweden (1912), Belgium (1920), the Netherlands (1928), Finland (1952), Italy (1960), Mexico (1968), Canada (1976), the Soviet Union (1980), South Korea (1988), Spain (1992), China (2008), and Brazil (2016). London was the first city to host the Summer Olympic Games three times. As of 2022, Paris, Los Angeles, Athens and Tokyo have each hosted twice; Paris will host for the third time in 2024, followed by Los Angeles which will host the Games in 2028.[1] Only five countries have participated in every Summer Olympic Games: Australia, France, Great Britain, Greece, and Switzerland. Great Britain is the only country to have won a gold medal at every edition of the Games. The United States leads the all-time medal count at the Summer Olympics, and has topped the medal table on 18 separate occasions—followed by the USSR (six times), and France, Great Britain, Germany, China, and the ex-Soviet 'Unified Team' (once each). Hosting Map of Summer Olympic Games locations – countries that have hosted one Summer Olympics are shaded green, while countries that have hosted two or more are shaded blue. The United States hosted the Summer Olympic Games four times: the 1904 Games were held in St. Louis, Missouri; the 1932 and 1984 Games were both held in Los Angeles, California, and the 1996 Games were held in Atlanta, Georgia. The 2028 Games in Los Angeles will mark the fifth occasion on which the Summer Games have been hosted by the U.S. In 2012, Great Britain hosted its third Summer Olympic Games in London, which became the first city ever to have hosted the Summer Olympic Games three times. The cities of Los Angeles, Paris, and Athens (excluding 1906) have each hosted two Summer Olympic Games. In 2024, France will host its third Summer Olympic Games in its capital, making Paris the second city ever to have hosted three Summer Olympics. And in 2028, Los Angeles will in turn become the third city ever to have hosted the Games three times. Australia, France, Germany, Greece and Japan all hosted the Summer Olympic Games twice (with France and Australia planned to host in 2024 and 2032, respectively, taking both countries to three each). Tokyo, Japan, hosted the 2020 Games and became the first city outside the predominantly English-speaking and European nations to have hosted the Summer Olympics twice, having already hosted the Games in 1964;[2] it is also the largest city ever to have hosted, having grown considerably since 1964. The other countries to have hosted the Summer Olympics are Belgium, Brazil, Canada, China, Finland, Italy, Mexico, Netherlands, South Korea, Soviet Union, Spain, and Sweden, with each of these countries having hosted the Summer Games on one occasion. Asia has hosted the Summer Olympics four times: in Tokyo (1964 and 2020), Seoul (1988), and Beijing (2008). The 2016 Games in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, were the first Summer Olympics to be held in South America and the first that was held completely during the local "winter" season. The only two countries in the Southern Hemisphere to have hosted the Summer Olympics have been Australia (1956, 2000, and upcoming 2032) and Brazil (2016), with Africa having yet to host any Summer Olympics. Stockholm, Sweden, has hosted events at two Summer Olympics, having been sole host of the 1912 Games, and hosting the equestrian events at the 1956 Summer Olympics (which they are credited as jointly hosting with Melbourne, Australia).[3] Amsterdam, Netherlands, has also hosted events at two Summer Olympic Games, having been sole host of the 1928 Games and previously hosting two of the sailing races at the 1920 Summer Olympics. At the 2008 Summer Olympics, Hong Kong provided the venues for the equestrian events, which took place in Sha Tin and Kwu Tung. History Early years The opening ceremony of the first modern Olympic Games in the Panathenaic Stadium, Athens The International Olympic Committee (IOC) was founded in 1894 when Pierre de Coubertin, a French pedagogue and historian, sought to promote international understanding through sporting competition. The first edition of The Olympic Games was held in Athens in 1896 and attracted just 245 competitors, of whom more than 200 were Greek, and only 14 countries were represented. Nevertheless, no international events of this magnitude had been organised before. Female athletes were not allowed to compete, though one woman, Stamata Revithi, ran the marathon course on her own, saying "If the committee doesn't let me compete I will go after them regardless".[4] The 1896 Summer Olympics, officially known as the Games of the Olympiad, was an international multi-sport event which was celebrated in Athens, Greece, from 6 to 15 April 1896. It was the first Olympic Games held in the modern era. About 100,000 people attended for the opening of the games. The athletes came from 14 nations, with most coming from Greece. Although Greece had the most athletes, the U.S. finished with the most champions. 11 Americans placed first in their events vs. the 10 from Greece.[5] Ancient Greece was the birthplace of the Olympic Games, consequently Athens was perceived to be an appropriate choice to stage the inaugural modern Games. It was unanimously chosen as the host city during a congress organised by Pierre de Coubertin in Paris, on 23 June 1894. The IOC was also established during this congress. Despite many obstacles and setbacks, the 1896 Olympics were regarded as a great success. The Games had the largest international participation of any sporting event to that date. Panathinaiko Stadium, the first big stadium in the modern world, overflowed with the largest crowd ever to watch a sporting event.[6] The highlight for the Greeks was the marathon victory by their compatriot Spiridon Louis, a water carrier. He won in 2 hours, 58 minutes and 50 seconds, setting off wild celebrations at the stadium. The most successful competitor was German wrestler and gymnast Carl Schuhmann, who won four gold medals. Greek officials and the public were enthusiastic about the experience of hosting an Olympic Games. This feeling was shared by many of the athletes, who even demanded that Athens be the permanent Olympic host city. The IOC intended for subsequent Games to be rotated to various host cities around the world. The second Olympics was held in Paris.[7] Four years later the 1900 Summer Olympics in Paris attracted more than four times as many athletes, including 20 women, who were allowed to officially compete for the first time, in croquet, golf, sailing, and tennis. The Games were integrated with the Paris World's Fair and lasted over five months. It has been disputed which exact events were Olympic, as some events were for professionals, some had restricted eligibility, and others lacked international competitors. Francis Field of Washington University in St. Louis during the 1904 Summer Olympics Dorando Pietri finishes the modern marathon in 1908 at the current distance. Tensions caused by the Russo–Japanese War and the difficulty of getting to St. Louis may have contributed to the fact that very few top-ranked athletes from outside the US and Canada took part in the 1904 Games.[8] The "Second International Olympic Games in Athens", as they were called at the time, were held in 1906.[9] The IOC does not currently recognise these games as being official Olympic Games, although many historians do and credit the 1906 games with preventing the demise of the Olympics. The 1906 Athens games were the first of an alternating series of games to be held in Athens in even non-Olympic years, but the series failed to materialise. The games were more successful than the 1900 and 1904 games, with over 850 athletes competing, and contributed positively to the success of future games. The 1908 London Games saw numbers rise again, as well as the first running of the marathon over its now-standard distance of 42.195  km (26 miles 385 yards). The first Olympic Marathon in 1896 (a male-only race) was raced at a distance of 40  km (24 miles 85 yards). The new marathon distance was chosen to ensure that the race finished in front of the box occupied by the British royal family. Thus the marathon had been 40 km (24.9 mi) for the first games in 1896, but was subsequently varied by up to 2 km (1.2 mi) due to local conditions such as street and stadium layout. At the six Olympic games between 1900 and 1920, the marathon was raced over six distances. The Games saw Great Britain winning 146 medals, 99 more than second-placed Americans, its best result to this day. At the end of the 1908 marathon, the Italian runner Dorando Pietri was first to enter the stadium, but he was clearly in distress and collapsed of exhaustion before he could complete the event. He was helped over the finish line by concerned race officials and later disqualified for that. As compensation for the missing medal, Queen Alexandra gave Pietri a gilded silver cup. Arthur Conan Doyle wrote a special report about the race in the Daily Mail.[10] The Games continued to grow, attracting 2,504 competitors, to Stockholm in 1912, including the great all-rounder Jim Thorpe, who won both the decathlon and pentathlon. Thorpe had previously played a few games of baseball for a fee, and saw his medals stripped for this 'breach' of amateurism after complaints from Avery Brundage. They were reinstated in 1983, 30 years after his death. The Games at Stockholm were the first to fulfil Pierre de Coubertin's original idea. For the first time since the Games started in 1896, all five inhabited continents were represented with athletes competing in the same stadium. The scheduled 1916 Summer Olympics were cancelled following the onset of World War I. Interwar era The 1920 Antwerp Games in war-ravaged Belgium were a subdued affair, but again drew a record number of competitors. This record only stood until 1924, when the Paris Games involved 3,000 competitors, the greatest of whom was Finnish runner Paavo Nurmi. The "Flying Finn" won three team gold medals and the individual 1,500 and 5,000 meter runs, the latter two on the same day.[11] The 1928 Amsterdam Games was notable for being the first games which allowed females to compete at track & field athletics, and benefited greatly from the general prosperity of the times alongside the first appearance of sponsorship of the games, from the Coca-Cola Company. The 1928 games saw the introduction of a standard medal design with the IOC choosing Giuseppe Cassioli's depiction of Greek goddess Nike and a winner being carried by a crowd of people. This design was used up until 1972.[citation needed] The 1932 Los Angeles Games were affected by the Great Depression, which contributed to the low number of competitors. Olympiastadion in Berlin, during the 1936 Games The 1936 Berlin Games were seen by the German government as a golden opportunity to promote their ideology. The ruling Nazi Party commissioned film-maker Leni Riefenstahl to film the games. The result, Olympia, was widely considered to be a masterpiece, despite Hitler's theories of Aryan racial superiority being repeatedly shown up by "non-Aryan" athletes. In particular, African-American sprinter and long jumper Jesse Owens won four gold medals. The 1936 Berlin Games also saw the introduction of the Torch Relay.[12] Due to World War II, the 1940 Games (due to be held in Tokyo and temporarily relocated to Helsinki upon the outbreak of war) were cancelled. The 1944 Games were due to be held in London but were also cancelled; instead, London hosted the first games after the end of the war, in 1948. After World War II The first post-war Games were held in 1948 in London, with both Germany and Japan excluded.[13] Dutch sprinter Fanny Blankers-Koen won four gold medals on the track, emulating Owens' achievement in Berlin.[14] At the 1952 Helsinki Games, the USSR team competed for the first time and quickly emerged as one of the dominant teams, finishing second in the number of gold and overall medals won. Their immediate success might be explained by the advent of the state-sponsored "full-time amateur athlete". The USSR entered teams of athletes who were all nominally students, soldiers, or working in a profession, but many of whom were in reality paid by the state to train on a full-time basis, hence violating amateur rules.[15][16] Finland made a legend of an amiable Czechoslovak Army lieutenant named Emil Zátopek, who was intent on improving on his single gold and silver medals from 1948. Having first won both the 10,000- and 5,000-meter races, he also entered the marathon, despite having never previously raced at that distance. Pacing himself by chatting with the other race leaders, Zátopek led from about halfway, slowly dropping the remaining contenders to win by two and a half minutes, and completed a trio of wins.[17] The 1956 Melbourne Games were largely successful, with the exception of a water polo match between Hungary and the Soviet Union, which ended in a pitched battle between the teams on account of the Soviet invasion of Hungary.[18] The equestrian events were held in Stockholm due to a foot-and-mouth disease outbreak in Britain at the time and the strict quarantine laws of Australia. At the 1960 Rome Games, a young light-heavyweight boxer named Cassius Clay, later known as Muhammad Ali, arrived on the scene. Ali would later throw his gold medal away in disgust after being refused service in a whites-only restaurant in his home town of Louisville, Kentucky.[19] He was awarded a new medal 36 years later at the 1996 Olympics in Atlanta.[20] Other notable performers in 1960 included Wilma Rudolph, a gold medallist in the 100 meters, 200 meters, and 4 × 100 meters relay events.[21] The 1964 Tokyo Games were the first to be broadcast worldwide on television, enabled by the recent advent of communication satellites.[22] These Games marked a turning point in the global visibility and popularity of the Olympics and are credited for heralding the modern age of telecommunications. Judo debuted as an official sport, and Dutch judoka Anton Geesink caused a stir when he won the final of the open weight division, defeating Akio Kaminaga in front of his home crowd.[23] The opening ceremony for the 1968 Games, in Mexico City, the first held in Latin America Performances at the 1968 Games in Mexico City were affected by the altitude of the host city.[24] These Games introduced the now-universal Fosbury flop, a technique which won American high jumper Dick Fosbury the gold medal.[25] In the medal award ceremony for the men's 200-meter race, black American athletes Tommie Smith (gold medal winner) and John Carlos (bronze medal winner) took a stand for civil rights by raising their black-gloved fists and wearing black socks in lieu of shoes.[26] The two athletes were subsequently expelled from the Games by the IOC. Věra Čáslavská, in protest against the 1968 Soviet-led invasion of Czechoslovakia, and the controversial decision by the judges on the balance beam and floor, turned her head down and away from the Soviet flag while the national anthem was played during the medal ceremony.[27] She returned home as a heroine of the Czechoslovak people but was made an outcast by the Soviet-dominated government. The Olympic flag at halfmast in Kiel (host city of the sailing events), after the Munich massacre at 1972 Games Politics again intervened at the 1972 Games in Munich, but this time with lethal consequences. A Palestinian terrorist group named Black September invaded the Olympic village and broke into the apartment of the Israeli delegation. They killed two Israelis and held nine others as hostages, demanding that Israel release numerous prisoners. When the Israeli government refused the terrorists' demands, the situation developed into a tense stand-off while negotiations continued. Eventually, the captors, still holding their hostages, were offered safe passage and taken to an airport, where they were ambushed by German security forces. In the ensuing firefight, 15 people were killed, including the nine captive Israeli athletes and five of the terrorists.[28] After much debate, the decision was taken to continue the Games, but the proceedings were understandably dominated by these events.[29] Some memorable athletic achievements did occur during these Games, notably the winning of a then-record seven gold medals by United States swimmer Mark Spitz, Finland's Lasse Virén taking back-to-back gold medals in the 5,000 meters and 10,000 meters, and the winning of three gold medals by Soviet gymnastic star Olga Korbut, who achieved a historic backflip off the high bar. There was no such tragedy at the 1976 Montreal Games, but bad planning and fraud led to the cost of these Games far exceeding the budget. Costing $1.5 billion (equivalent to $6.83 billion in 2021),[30][31] the 1976 Summer Games were the most expensive in Olympic history (until the 2014 Winter Olympics) and it seemed, for a time, that the Olympics might no longer be a viable financial proposition. In retrospect, it is believed that contractors (suspected of being members of the Montreal Mafia) skimmed large sums of money from all levels of contracts while also profiting from the substitution of cheaper building materials of lesser quality, which may have contributed to the delays, poor construction, and excessive costs. In 1988, one such contractor, Giuseppe Zappia "was cleared of fraud charges that resulted from his work on Olympic facilities after two key witnesses died before testifying at his trial".[32] The 1976 Games were boycotted by many African nations as a protest against a recent tour of apartheid-run South Africa by the New Zealand national rugby union team.[33] Romanian gymnast Nadia Comăneci made history when she won the women's individual all-around gold medal with two of four possible perfect scores. She won two other individual events, with two perfect scores in the balance beam and all perfect scores in the uneven bars.[34] Lasse Virén repeated his double gold in the 5,000 and 10,000 meters, making him the first athlete to ever win the distance double twice.[35] End of the 20th century Following the Soviet Union's 1979 invasion of Afghanistan, 66 nations, including the United States, Canada, West Germany, and Japan, boycotted the 1980 Games held in Moscow. Eighty nations were represented at the Moscow Games – the smallest number since 1956. The boycott contributed to the 1980 Games being a less publicised and less competitive affair, which was dominated by the host country. In 1984 the Soviet Union and 13 Soviet allies reciprocated by boycotting the 1984 Summer Olympics in Los Angeles. Romania and Yugoslavia, notably are the only two countries from the Eastern Bloc that did attend the 1984 Olympics. These games were perhaps the first games of a new era to make a profit. Although a boycott led by the Soviet Union depleted the field in certain sports, 140 National Olympic Committees took part, which was a record at the time.[36] The Games were also the first time mainland China (People's Republic) participated. According to British journalist Andrew Jennings, a KGB colonel stated that the agency's officers had posed as anti-doping authorities from the IOC to undermine doping tests and that Soviet athletes were "rescued with [these] tremendous efforts".[37] On the topic of the 1980 Summer Olympics, a 1989 Australian study said "There is hardly a medal winner at the Moscow Games, certainly not a gold medal winner, who is not on one sort of drug or another: usually several kinds. The Moscow Games might as well have been called the Chemists' Games."[37] Documents obtained in 2016 revealed the Soviet Union's plans for a statewide doping system in track and field in preparation for the 1984 Summer Olympics in Los Angeles. Dated prior to the country's decision to boycott the Games, the document detailed the existing steroids operations of the programme, along with suggestions for further enhancements.[38] The communication, directed to the Soviet Union's head of track and field, was prepared by Dr. Sergei Portugalov of the Institute for Physical Culture. Portugalov was also one of the main figures involved in the implementation of the Russian doping programme prior to the 2016 Summer Olympics.[38] The 1988 Games, in Seoul, was very well planned but the games were tainted when many of the athletes, most notably men's 100 metres winner Ben Johnson, failed mandatory drug tests. Despite splendid drug-free performances by many individuals, the number of people who failed screenings for performance-enhancing chemicals overshadowed the games. The 1992 Barcelona Games featured the admittance of players from one of the North American top leagues, the NBA, exemplified by but not limited to US basketball's "Dream Team". The 1992 games also saw the reintroduction to the Games of several smaller European states which had been incorporated into the Soviet Union since World War II. At these games, gymnast Vitaly Scherbo set an inaugural medal record of five individual gold medals at a Summer Olympics, and equaled the inaugural record set by Eric Heiden at the 1980 Winter Olympics. By then the process of choosing a location for the Games had become a commercial concern; there were widespread allegations of corruption potentially affecting the IOC's decision process. At the Atlanta 1996 Summer Olympics, the highlight was 200 meters runner Michael Johnson annihilating the world record in front of a home crowd. Canadians savoured Donovan Bailey's recording gold medal run in the 100-meter dash. This was popularly felt to be an appropriate recompense for the previous national disgrace involving Ben Johnson. There were also emotional scenes, such as when Muhammad Ali, clearly affected by Parkinson's disease, lit the Olympic torch and received a replacement medal for the one he had discarded in 1960. The latter event took place in the basketball arena. The atmosphere at the Games was marred, however, when a bomb exploded during the celebration in Centennial Olympic Park. In June 2003, the principal suspect in this bombing, Eric Robert Rudolph, was arrested. The 2000 Summer Olympics in Sydney, Australia, were known as the "Games of the New Millennium". The 2000 Summer Olympics, held in Sydney, Australia, showcased individual performances by locals favorites Ian Thorpe in the pool and Cathy Freeman, an Indigenous Australian whose triumph in the 400 meters united a packed stadium., Briton Steve Redgrave who won a rowing gold medal in an unprecedented fifth consecutive Olympics, and Eric "the Eel" Moussambani, a swimmer from Equatorial Guinea, received wide media coverage when he completed the 100 meter freestyle swim in by far the slowest time in Olympic history. He nevertheless won the heat as both his opponents had been disqualified for false starts. His female compatriot Paula Barila Bolopa also received media attention for her record-slow and struggling but courageous performance. The Sydney Games also saw the first appearance of a joint North and South Korean contingent at the opening ceremonies, though they competed in all events as different teams. Controversy occurred in the Women's Artistic Gymnastics when the vaulting horse was set to the wrong height during the All-Around Competition. Start of the 21st century In 2004, the Olympic Games returned to their birthplace in Athens, Greece. At least $7.2 billion was spent on the 2004 Games, including $1.5 billion on security. Michael Phelps won his first Olympic medals, tallying six gold and two bronze medals. Pyrros Dimas, winning a bronze medal, became the most decorated weightlifter of all time with four Olympic medals, three gold and one bronze. Although unfounded reports of potential terrorism drove crowds away from the preliminary competitions at the first weekend of the Olympics (14–15 August 2004), attendance picked up as the Games progressed. A third of the tickets failed to sell,[39] but ticket sales still topped figures from the Seoul and Barcelona Olympics (1988 and 1992).[citation needed] IOC President Jacques Rogge characterised Greece's organisation as outstanding and its security precautions as flawless.[40] All 202 NOCs participated at the Athens Games with over 11,000 participants. The 2008 Summer Olympics was held in Beijing, People's Republic of China. Several new events were held, including the new discipline of BMX for both men and women. Women competed in the steeplechase for the first time. The fencing programme was expanded to include all six events for both men and women; previously, women had not been able to compete in team foil or sabre events, although women's team épée and men's team foil were dropped for these Games. Marathon swimming events were added, over the distance of 10 km (6.2 mi). Also, the doubles events in table tennis were replaced by team events.[41] American swimmer Michael Phelps set a record for gold medals at a single Games with eight, and tied the record of most gold medals by a single competitor previously held by both Eric Heiden and Vitaly Scherbo. Another notable star of the Games was Jamaican sprinter Usain Bolt, who became the first male athlete ever to set world records in the finals of both the 100 and 200 metres in the same Games. Equestrian events were held in Hong Kong. London held the 2012 Summer Olympics, becoming the first city to host the Olympic Games three times. In his closing address, Jacques Rogge described the Games as "Happy and glorious". The host nation won 29 gold medals, the best haul for Great Britain since the 1908 Games in London. The United States returned to the top of the medal table after China dominated in 2008. The IOC had removed baseball and softball from the 2012 programme. The London Games were successful on a commercial level because they were the first in history to completely sell out every ticket, with as many as 1 million applications for 40,000 tickets for both the Opening Ceremony and the 100m Men's Sprint Final. Such was the demand for tickets to all levels of each event that there was controversy over seats being set aside for sponsors and National Delegations which went unused in the early days. A system of reallocation was put in place so the empty seats were filled throughout the Games. Recent Games The 2020 Summer Olympics in Tokyo, Japan, had few attendees as a result of excluding public spectators amid the CVID-19 pandemic. Rio de Janeiro in Brazil hosted the 2016 Summer Olympics, becoming the first South American city to host the Olympics, the second Olympic host city in Latin America, after Mexico City in 1968, as well as the third city in the Southern Hemisphere to host the Olympics after Melbourne, Australia, in 1956 and Sydney, Australia, in 2000. The preparation for these Games was overshadowed by controversies, including political instability and an economic crisis in the host country, health and safety concerns surrounding the Zika virus, and significant pollution in the Guanabara Bay. However, these concerns were superseded by a state-sponsored doping scandal involving Russian athletes at the Winter Olympics held two years earlier, which affected the participation of its athletes in these Games.[42] The 2020 Summer Olympics were originally scheduled to take place from 24 July to 9 August 2020 in Tokyo, Japan. The city was the fifth in history to host the Games twice and the first Asian city to have this title. Due to the CVID-19 pandemic, the then-Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, the IOC and the Tokyo Organising Committee announced that the 2020 Games were to be delayed until 2021, marking the first time that the Olympic Games have been postponed. Unlike previous Olympics, these Games took place without spectators due to concerns over CVID-19 and a state of emergency imposed in the host city.[43][44][45] Nevertheless, the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games featured many memorable moments and feats of technical excellence. One star of the games, the US gymnast Simone Biles, gracefully bowed out to focus on her mental health, but later returned to claim an individual bronze medal. Norway's Karsten Warholm smashed his own world record in the 400m hurdles.[original research?] Sports Main article: Olympic sports There has been a total of 42 sports, spanning 55 disciplines, included in the Olympic programme at one point or another in the history of the Games. The schedule has comprised 33 sports for recent Summer Olympics (2020); the 2012 Games featured 26 sports because of the removal of baseball and softball.[46] The various Olympic Sports federations are grouped under a common umbrella association, called the Association of Summer Olympic International Federations (ASOIF).   Current sport     No longer included Sport Years 3x3 Basketball Since 2021 Archery 1900–1908, 1920, since 1972 Artistic swimming Since 1984 Athletics All Badminton Since 1992 Baseball 1992–2008, 2020, 2028 Basketball Since 1936 Basque pelota 1900 Breaking To begin 2024 Boxing 1904, 1908, since 1920 Canoeing Since 1936 Cricket 1900 Croquet 1900 Cycling All Diving Since 1904 Equestrian 1900, since 1912 Fencing All Field hockey 1908, 1920, since 1928 Football 1900–1928, since 1936 Golf 1900, 1904, since 2016 Gymnastics All Handball 1936, since 1972 Jeu de paume 1908 Judo 1964, since 1972 Karate 2020 Lacrosse 1904, 1908 Modern pentathlon Since 1912 Polo 1900, 1908, 1920, 1924, 1936 Rackets 1908 Roque 1904 Rowing Since 1900 Rugby union 1900, 1908, 1920, 1924 Rugby sevens Since 2016 Sailing 1900, since 1908 Shooting 1896, 1900, 1908–1924, since 1932 Skateboarding Since 2020 Softball 1996–2008, 2020, 2028 Sport climbing Since 2020 Surfing Since 2020 Swimming All Table tennis Since 1988 Taekwondo Since 2000 Tennis 1896–1924, since 1988 Triathlon Since 2000 Tug of war 1900–1920 Volleyball Since 1964 Water motorsports 1908 Water polo Since 1900 Weightlifting 1896, 1904, since 1920 Wrestling 1896, since 1904 Qualification Qualification rules for each of the Olympic sports are set by the International Sports Federation (IF) that governs that sport's international competition.[47] For individual sports, competitors typically qualify by attaining a certain place in a major international event or on the IF's ranking list. There is a general rule that a maximum of three individual athletes may represent each nation per competition. National Olympic Committees (NOCs) may enter a limited number of qualified competitors in each event, and the NOC decides which qualified competitors to select as representatives in each event if more have attained the benchmark than can be entered.[48] Nations most often qualify teams for team sports through continental qualifying tournaments, in which each continental association is given a certain number of spots in the Olympic tournament. Each nation may be represented by no more than one team per competition; a team consists of just two people in some sports. Popularity of Olympic sports The IOC divides Summer Olympic sports into five categories (A – E) based on popularity, gauged by six criteria: television viewing figures (40%), internet popularity (20%), public surveys (15%), ticket requests (10%), press coverage (10%), and number of national federations (5%). The category of a sport determines the share of Olympic revenue received by that sport's International Federation.[49][50] Sports that were new to the 2016 Olympics (rugby and golf) have been placed in Category E. vte Olympic rings without rims.svg Summer Olympics medal table leaders by year Number of occurrences  United States — 18 times  Soviet Union — 6 times  France — once  Great Britain — once  Germany — once  China — once  Unified Team — once List of Summer Olympic Games The IOC has never decided which events of the early Games were "Olympic" and which were not.[51] The founder of the modern Olympics, Pierre de Coubertin, ceded that determination to the organisers of those Games. Olympiad No. Host Games dates / Opened by Sports (Disciplines) Competitors Events Nations Top nation Total Men Women 1896[52] I Kingdom of Greece Athens 6–15 April 1896 King George I 9 (10) 241 241 0 43 14+1[A] United States 1900[53] II France Paris 14 May – 28 October 1900 N/A 19 (20) 1226 N/A N/A 95[B] 26+4[C]+1[A] France 1904[54] III United States St. Louis 1 July – 23 November 1904 Former Mayor David R. Francis 16 (17) 651 645 6 95[D] 12+1[A] United States 1908[55] IV United Kingdom London 27 April – 31 October 1908 King Edward VII 22 (25) 2008 1971 37 110 22 Great Britain 1912[56] V Sweden Stockholm 6–22 July 1912 King Gustaf V 14 (18) 2407 2359 48 102 28 United States 1916 VI[E] Awarded to Germany (Berlin). Cancelled due to World War I 1920[57] VII Belgium Antwerp 14 August – 12 September 1920 King Albert I 22 (29) 2626 2561 65 156[F] 29 United States 1924[58] VIII France Paris 5–27 July 1924 President Gaston Doumergue 17 (23) 3089 2954 135 126 44 United States 1928[59] IX Netherlands Amsterdam 28 July – 12 August 1928 Duke Henry of Mecklenburg-Schwerin 14 (20) 2883 2606 277 109 46 United States 1932[60] X United States Los Angeles 30 July – 14 August 1932 Vice President Charles Curtis 1332 1206 126 117 37 United States 1936[61] XI Nazi Germany Berlin 1–16 August 1936 Chancellor Adolf Hitler[G] 19 (25) 3963 3632 331 129 49 Germany 1940 XII[E] Originally awarded to Japan (Tokyo), then awarded to Finland (Helsinki). Cancelled due to World War II 1944 XIII[E] Awarded to United Kingdom (London). Cancelled due to World War II 1948[62] XIV United Kingdom London 29 July – 14 August 1948 King George VI 17 (23) 4104 3714 390 136 59 United States 1952[63] XV Finland Helsinki 19 July – 3 August 1952 President Juho Kusti Paasikivi 4955 4436 519 149 69 United States 1956[3] XVI Australia Melbourne 22 November – 8 December 1956 Philip, Duke of Edinburgh 3314 2938 376 151[H] 72[I] Soviet Union 1960[64] XVII Italy Rome 25 August – 11 September 1960 President Giovanni Gronchi 5338 4727 611 150 83 Soviet Union 1964[65] XVIII Japan Tokyo 10–24 October 1964 Emperor Hirohito 19 (25) 5151 4473 678 163 93 United States 1968[24] XIX Mexico Mexico City 12–27 October 1968 President Gustavo Díaz Ordaz 18 (24) 5516 4735 781 172 112 United States 1972[29] XX West Germany Munich 26 August – 11 September 1972[J] President Gustav Heinemann 21 (28) 7134 6075 1059 195 121 Soviet Union 1976[66] XXI Canada Montreal 17 July – 1 August 1976 Queen Elizabeth II 21 (27) 6084 4824 1260 198 92 Soviet Union 1980[67] XXII Soviet Union Moscow 19 July – 3 August 1980 Communist Party General Secretary Leonid Brezhnev[K] 5179 4064 1115 203 80 Soviet Union 1984[36] XXIII United States Los Angeles 28 July – 12 August 1984 President Ronald Reagan 21 (29) 6829 5263 1566 221 140 United States 1988[68] XXIV South Korea Seoul 17 September – 2 October 1988 President Roh Tae-woo 23 (31) 8391 6197 2194 237 159 Soviet Union 1992[69] XXV Spain Barcelona 25 July – 9 August 1992 King Juan Carlos I 25 (34) 9356 6652 2704 257 169 Unified Team 1996[70] XXVI United States Atlanta 19 July – 4 August 1996 President Bill Clinton 26 (37) 10318 6806 3512 271 197 United States 2000[71] XXVII Australia Sydney 15 September – 1 October 2000 Governor-General Sir William Deane 28 (40) 10651 6582 4069 300 199 United States 2004[72] XXVIII Greece Athens 13–29 August 2004 President Konstantinos Stephanopoulos 10625 6296 4329 301 201 United States 2008[73] XXIX China Beijing 8–24 August 2008 President Hu Jintao[L] 28 (41) 10942 6305 4637 302 204 China 2012[74] XXX United Kingdom London 27 July – 12 August 2012 Queen Elizabeth II 26 (39) 10768 5992 4776 302 204 United States 2016[75] XXXI Brazil Rio de Janeiro 5–21 August 2016 Acting President Michel Temer 28 (41) 11238 6179 5059 306 207 United States 2020[76] XXXII Japan Tokyo 23 July – 8 August 2021[M] Emperor Naruhito 33 (50) 11656 5982 5494 339 206 United States 2024[77] XXXIII France Paris 26 July – 11 August 2024 President Emmanuel Macron (expected) 32 (48) 10500[N] TBA TBA 329 TBA TBA 2028[78] XXXIV United States Los Angeles 14–30 July 2028 TBA TBA TBA TBA TBA TBA TBA TBA 2032[79] XXXV Australia Brisbane 23 July – 8 August 2032 TBA TBA TBA TBA TBA TBA TBA TBA A.1 2 3 The IOC site for the 1896, 1900 and 1904 Summer Olympic Games does not include Mixed teams (teams of athletes from different nations) as separate "nation" when counting participating nations. At the same time the IOC shows Mixed team in the results of competitions where these teams competed. Thus, specified number of national teams plus Mixed teams participated in the Games. B.^ At an earlier time the IOC database for the 1900 Summer Olympics listed 85 medal events, 24 participating countries and 997 athletes (22 women, 975 men).[80] The Olympic historian and author, Bill Mallon,[81] whose studies have shed light on the topic, suggested the number 95 events satisfying all four retrospective selection criteria (restricted to amateurs, international participation, open to all competitors and without handicapping) and now should be considered as Olympic events. In July 2021, the IOC upgraded its complete online database of all Olympic results explicitly to incorporate the data of the Olympic historians website, Olympedia.org, thus accepting Mallon's recommendation (based on four applied criteria) for events of the 1900 Olympic Games. The eleven events, the results of which had nevertheless been shown within the earlier IOC database, have been added over the former total of 85. Оne shooting event (20 metre military pistol, which was an event for professionals) have been removed. Acceptance of Mallon's recommendation increased the number of events to 95, and also entailed increasing the number of participation countries up to 26 and athletes up to 1226. After upgrading of the IOC online database the IOC web site results section contains 95 events.[82] However the IOC webpage for the 1900 Summer Olympics shows a total of 96 (not 95) medal events, 26 participating countries and 1226 athletes.[53] The reason for the discrepancy in the number of events on the IOC webpage is unknown. Furthermore, the IOC factsheet "The Games of the Olympiad" of November 2021 refers to 95 events, but still refers to old numbers of participating countries (24) and athletes (997).[8] C.^ According to the International Olympic Committee, 26 nations sent competitors to this edition.[53] The concept of "national teams" chosen by National Olympic Committees did not exist at this point in time. When counting the number of participating countries in the early Olympic Games, the IOC does not take into account otherwise unrepresented countries whose citizens competed for other countries. Modern research shows[81] that at the 1900 Olympics, the athletes of at least four otherwise unrepresented countries (Canada, Luxembourg, Colombia, New Zealand) competed for other countries in both individual and team sports. The IOC website lists all of them in the results section under their nationalities,[82] but does not include their countries among the 26 participating countries.[53] D.^ The IOC webpage for the 1904 Summer Olympics[54] sets the number at 95 events, while at one time the IOC webpage[83] listed 91. The figure of 91 is sourced to a work by Olympic historian and author, Bill Mallon,[84] whose studies have shed light on the topic. Events satisfying all four of these retrospective selection criteria — restricted to amateurs, allowing international participation, open to all competitors and without handicapping — are now regarded as Olympic events. E.1 2 3 Although the Games of 1916, 1940, and 1944 were cancelled, the Roman numerals for those Games were still applied because the official titles of the Summer Games count the Olympiads, not the Games themselves, per the Olympic Charter.[85] This contrasts with the Winter Olympics, which ignore the cancelled Winter Games of 1940 and 1944 in their numeric count. F.^ The IOC webpage for the 1920 Summer Olympics[57] gives the figure of 156 events, while at one time the IOC webpage[86] listed 154 (difference was two sailing events in Amsterdam). G.^ IOC records state Hitler opened these Games as "Chancellor" (Head of Government), but in 1934 that office was consolidated with "President" (Head of State) into "Führer und Reichskanzler", or "Führer".[87] H.^ The IOC webpage for the 1956 Summer Olympics[3] gives a total of 151 events (145 events in Melbourne and six equestrian events in Stockholm). I.^ Owing to Australian quarantine laws, six equestrian events were held in Stockholm for the 1956 Summer Olympics several months before the other events in Melbourne; five of the 72 nations competed in the equestrian events in Stockholm, but did not attend the main Games in Melbourne. J.^ The 1972 Summer Olympics was originally scheduled to end on 10 September 1972, but was postponed to a day on 11 September after events had been suspended for 34 hours due to the Munich massacre, which happened after day 9. K.^ IOC records state Brezhnev opened the Moscow Games as "President", a title used at that time by the Chairman of the Presidium of the Supreme Soviet, or de jure head of state. (The office of President of the Soviet Union was not created until 1990, a year before the nation broke up.) Though Brezhnev was also de facto ruler as General Secretary of the Communist Party, that title is not reflected in IOC records.[87] L.^ IOC records state Hu Jintao opened the Beijing Games as "President", de jure head of state. Though Hu was also de facto ruler as General Secretary of the Chinese Communist Party, that title is not reflected in IOC records.[87] M.^ Originally scheduled for 24 July – 9 August 2020, the Games were postponed by one year due to the CVID-19 pandemic. However, the event was still referred to as the 2020 Summer Olympics (marking the 32nd Olympiad) to preserve the four-year Olympiad cycle.[43] N.^ Number of athletes will be in limited quota into an equal number of gender participants.[88] See also Olympic Games portal List of participating nations at the Summer Olympic Games List of Olympic Games scandals and controversies Lists of Olympic medalists Olympic Games ceremony Olympic Stadium Summer Paralympic Games Paralympic Games Winter Olympic Games Candidate Cities for future Olympic Games vte Olympic rings without rims.svg Olympic Games Ceremonies people who opened the Olympicskeepers of the Olympic flagCharterParticipating nations Summer OlympicsWinter OlympicsHost cities bidsvenuesIOC NOCscountry codesMedal medal tablesmedal table leaders by yearmedaliststiesdiplomaScandals and controversies colonialismdopingSportsSymbols torch relaysPierre de Coubertin medalWomenDeaths WWIWWIIOlympic video gamesIncentives for Olympic medalists Summer Games 1896 Athens 1900 Paris 1904 St. Louis 1908 London 1912 Stockholm 1916† 1920 Antwerp 1924 Paris 1928 Amsterdam 1932 Los Angeles 1936 Berlin 1940‡ 1944‡ 1948 London 1952 Helsinki 1956 Melbourne 1960 Rome 1964 Tokyo 1968 Mexico City 1972 Munich 1976 Montreal 1980 Moscow 1984 Los Angeles 1988 Seoul 1992 Barcelona 1996 Atlanta 2000 Sydney 2004 Athens 2008 Beijing 2012 London 2016 Rio de Janeiro 2020 Tokyo§ 2024 Paris 2028 Los Angeles 2032 Brisbane 2036 Olympic rings Winter Games 1924 Chamonix 1928 St. Moritz 1932 Lake Placid 1936 Garmisch-Partenkirchen 1940‡ 1944‡ 1948 St. Moritz 1952 Oslo 1956 Cortina d'Ampezzo 1960 Squaw Valley 1964 Innsbruck 1968 Grenoble 1972 Sapporo 1976 Innsbruck 1980 Lake Placid 1984 Sarajevo 1988 Calgary 1992 Albertville 1994 Lillehammer 1998 Nagano 2002 Salt Lake City 2006 Turin 2010 Vancouver 2014 Sochi 2018 Pyeongchang 2022 Beijing 2026 Milan Cortina 2030 †Cancelled due to World War I‡Cancelled due to World War II§Postponed to 2021 due to the CVID-19 pandemic Ancient Olympic GamesIntercalated Games 1906Paralympic GamesYouth Olympic Games Olympic Games portal  Category Commons vte Olympic rings without rims.svg National Olympic Committees that have competed at the Olympic Games Nations at the Summer OlympicsNations at the Winter Olympics tropical nations Olympic rings without rims.svg Summer Olympic Games host cities 1896: Greece Athens 1900: France Paris 1904: United States St. Louis 1908: United Kingdom London 1912: Sweden Stockholm 1916: None[c1] 1920: Belgium Antwerp 1924: France Paris 1928: Netherlands Amsterdam 1932: United States Los Angeles 1936: Germany Berlin 1940: None[c2] 1944: None[c2] 1948: United Kingdom London 1952: Finland Helsinki 1956: Australia Melbourne 1960: Italy Rome 1964: Japan Tokyo 1968: Mexico Mexico City 1972: West Germany Munich 1976: Canada Montreal 1980: Soviet Union Moscow 1984: United States Los Angeles 1988: South Korea Seoul 1992: Spain Barcelona 1996: United States Atlanta 2000: Australia Sydney 2004: Greece Athens 2008: China Beijing 2012: United Kingdom London 2016: Brazil Rio de Janeiro 2020: Japan Tokyo[c3] 2024: France Paris 2028: United States Los Angeles 2032: Australia Brisbane [c1] Cancelled due to World War I; [c2] Cancelled due to World War II; [c3] Postponed to 2021 due to the CVID-19 pandemic vte Multi-sport events Global Olympics Olympic Games SummerWinterYouth Olympic Games Parasports Paralympic Games SummerWinterCerebral Palsy GamesDeaflympicsDéfi sportifIBSA World GamesINAS Global GamesInvictus GamesIWAS World GamesWorld Dwarf GamesSpecial Olympics SummerWinter Professions International Army GamesLumberjack World ChampionshipWorld Air GamesMilitary World GamesWorld Police and Fire GamesWorld Firefighters Games Youth and students GymnasiadeInternational Children's GamesSELL Student GamesUniversiadeWorld Interuniversity GamesWorld School Sport GamesCommonwealth Youth GamesCPLP Games Other types Arafura GamesCSIT World Sports GamesDew TourMind Sports OlympiadWorld Mind Sports GamesWorld Mind GamesTAFISA World GamesWorld Beach GamesWorld Combat GamesWorld GamesWorld Masters GamesWorld Roller GamesWorld Urban GamesX Games Intercommunity Commonwealth GamesCroatian World Games1Gay GamesIslamic Solidarity GamesJeux de la FrancophonieLusofonia GamesMaccabiah GamesPan Arab GamesPan-Armenian GamesWorld Transplant GamesWorld Eskimo Indian OlympicsWorld Indigenous GamesWorld Nomad GamesWorld OutgamesWorld Polonia Games Regional National Historical1 Winter games 1 Defunct2 Sub-national3 51 component games in 36 U.S. states  Category List WikiProject Authority control Edit this at Wikidata General VIAF 1WorldCat National libraries GermanyUnited StatesCzech RepublicKorea Other SUDOC (France) 1 Categories: Summer Olympic GamesRecurring sporting events established in 1896Olympic GamesQuadrennial sporting eventsSummer multi-sport events London Capital city London montage. Clicking on an image in the picture causes the browser to load the appropriate article. About this image Clockwise from top: City of London in the foreground with Canary Wharf in the far background; Trafalgar Square; London Eye; Tower Bridge; and a London Underground roundel in front of Elizabeth Tower London is located in the United KingdomLondonLondon Location within the United Kingdom Show map of the United Kingdom Show map of England Show map of Europe Show map of Earth Show all Coordinates: 51°30′26″N 0°7′39″WCoordinates: 51°30′26″N 0°7′39″W Sovereign state United Kingdom Country England Region London (Greater London) Ceremonial counties Greater London (ceremonial county) City of London Local government districts 32 London boroughs and the City of London Settled by Romans AD 47; 1975 years ago[2] as Londinium Government  • Type Executive mayoralty and deliberative assembly within unitary constitutional monarchy  • Body Greater London Authority • Mayor Sadiq Khan (L) • London Assembly  • London Assembly 14 constituencies  • UK Parliament 73 constituencies Area  • Total[A] 606.96 sq mi (1,572.03 km2)  • Urban 671.0 sq mi (1,737.9 km2)  • Metro 3,236 sq mi (8,382 km2)  • City of London 1.12 sq mi (2.89 km2)  • 32 London boroughs (total) 605.85 sq mi (1,569.14 km2) Elevation[3] 36 ft (11 m) Population (2021 except where stated)  • Total[A] 8,799,800[1]  • Density 14,500/sq mi (5,598/km2)  • Urban (2011)[4] 9,787,426  • Metro (2019)[5] 14,257,962 (London metropolitan area)  • City of London 8,600[1] Demonyms Londoner GVA (2020)[6]  • Total £504 billion  • Per capita £55,974 Time zone UTC (Greenwich Mean Time)  • Summer (DST) UTC+1 (British Summer Time) Postcode areas 22 areas Area codes 9 area codes Budget £19.376 billion ($25 billion)[7] International airports Inside London: Heathrow (LHR) City (LCY) Outside London: Gatwick (LGW) Stansted (STN) Luton (LTN) Southend (SEN) Rapid transit system London Underground Police Metropolitan (county of Greater London) City of London (City of London square mile) Ambulance London Fire London GeoTLD .london Website www.london.gov.uk Edit this at Wikidata London is the capital and largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million.[1] It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a 50-mile (80 km) estuary down to the North Sea, and has been a major settlement for two millennia.[9] The City of London, its ancient core and financial centre, was founded by the Romans as Londinium and retains its medieval boundaries.[note 1][10] The City of Westminster, to the west of the City of London, has for centuries hosted the national government and parliament. Since the 19th century,[11] the name "London" has also referred to the metropolis around this core, historically split between the counties of Middlesex, Essex, Surrey, Kent, and Hertfordshire,[12] which largely comprises Greater London,[13] governed by the Greater London Authority.[note 2][14] As one of the world's major global cities,[15] London exerts a strong influence on its arts, entertainment, fashion, commerce and finance, education, health care, media, science and technology, tourism, and transport and communications.[16][17] Its GDP (€801.66 billion in 2017) makes it the largest urban economy in Europe,[18] and it is one of the major financial centres in the world. With Europe's largest concentration of higher education institutions,[19] it is home to some of the highest-ranked academic institutions in the world—Imperial College London in natural and applied sciences, the London School of Economics in social sciences, and the comprehensive University College London.[20][21] London is the most visited city in Europe and has the busiest city airport system in the world.[22] The London Underground is the oldest rapid transit system in the world.[23] London is home to the most 5-star hotels of any city.[24] London's diverse cultures encompass over 300 languages.[25] The mid-2018 population of Greater London of about 9 million[26] made it Europe's third-most populous city,[27] accounting for 13.4% of the population of the United Kingdom[28] and over 16% of the population of England. The Greater London Built-up Area is the fourth-most populous in Europe with about 9.8 million inhabitants at the 2011 census.[29][30] The London metropolitan area is the third-most populous in Europe with about 14 million inhabitants in 2016,[note 3][5][31] granting London the status of a megacity. London has four World Heritage Sites: the Tower of London; Kew Gardens; the combined Palace of Westminster, Westminster Abbey, and St Margaret's Church; and also the historic settlement in Greenwich, where the Royal Observatory, Greenwich defines the prime meridian (0° longitude) and Greenwich Mean Time.[32] Other landmarks include Buckingham Palace, the London Eye, Piccadilly Circus, St Paul's Cathedral, Tower Bridge, and Trafalgar Square. London has many museums, galleries, libraries and cultural venues, including the British Museum, National Gallery, Natural History Museum, Tate Modern, British Library, and numerous West End theatres.[33] Important sporting events held in London include the FA Cup Final (held annually at Wembley Stadium), Wimbledon Tennis Championships and the London Marathon. In 2012, London became the first city to host three Summer Olympic Games.[34] Toponymy Main article: Etymology of London London is an ancient name, already attested in the first century AD, usually in the Latinised form Londinium;[35] for example, handwritten Roman tablets recovered in the city originating from AD 65/70–80 include the word Londinio ('in London').[36] Over the years, the name has attracted many mythically based explanations. The earliest attested appears in Geoffrey of Monmouth's Historia Regum Britanniae, written around 1136.[35][37] Modern scientific analyses of the name must account for the origins of the different forms found in early sources: Latin (usually Londinium), Old English (usually Lunden), and Welsh (usually Llundein), with reference to the known developments over time of sounds in those different languages. It is agreed that the name came into these languages from Common Brythonic; recent work tends to reconstruct the lost Celtic form of the name as *Londonjon or something similar. This was adapted into Latin as Londinium and borrowed into Old English.[38] The toponymy of the Common Brythonic form is debated. Prominent was Richard Coates' 1998 argument that it derived from pre-Celtic Old European *(p)lowonida, meaning "river too wide to ford". Coates suggested this was a name given to the part of the River Thames that flows through London, from which the settlement gained the Celtic form of its name, *Lowonidonjon.[39] However, most work has accepted a plain Celtic origin. Recent studies favour an explanation of a Celtic derivative of a Proto-Indo-European root *lendh- ('sink, cause to sink'), combined with the Celtic suffix *-injo- or *-onjo- (used to form place-names). Peter Schrijver has specifically suggested that the name originally meant "place that floods (periodically, tidally)".[40][38] Until 1889, the name "London" applied officially only to the City of London, but since then it has also referred to the County of London and to Greater London.[41] In writing, "London" is occasionally contracted to "LDN".[42][43] Such usage originated in SMS language and often appears in a social media user profile, suffixing an alias or handle. History Part of a series on the History of London Roman London Anglo-Saxon London Norman and Medieval London Tudor London Stuart London 18th-century London 19th-century London London 1900–1939 London in World War II Modern London (from 1945) London in the 1960s See also Timeline icon London portal vte Main article: History of London For a chronological guide, see Timeline of London. Prehistory In 1993, remains of a Bronze Age bridge were found on the south foreshore upstream from Vauxhall Bridge.[44] This either crossed the Thames or reached a now-lost island in it. Two of the timbers were radiocarbon dated to 1750–1285 BCE.[44] In 2010, foundations of a large timber structure, dated to 4800–4500 BCE,[45] were found on the Thames's south foreshore downstream from Vauxhall Bridge.[46] The function of the mesolithic structure is unclear. Both structures are on the south bank of the Thames, where the now-underground River Effra flows into the Thames.[46] Roman London Main article: Londinium In 1300, urban area of the City was still largely confined within the Roman walls. Despite the evidence of scattered Brythonic settlements in the area, the first major settlement was founded by the Romans about four years[2] after the invasion of 43 AD.[47] This only lasted until about 61 AD, when the Iceni tribe led by Queen Boudica stormed it and burnt it to the ground.[48] The next planned incarnation of Londinium prospered, superseding Colchester as capital of the Roman province of Britannia in 100. At its height in the 2nd century, Roman London had a population of about 60,000.[49] Anglo-Saxon and Viking-period London With the early 5th-century collapse of Roman rule, London ceased to be a capital and the walled city of Londinium was effectively abandoned, although Roman civilisation continued around St Martin-in-the-Fields until about 450.[50] From about 500, an Anglo-Saxon settlement known as Lundenwic developed slightly west of the old Roman city.[51] By about 680 the city had become a major port again, but there is little evidence of large-scale production. From the 820s repeated Viking assaults brought decline. Three are recorded; those in 851 and 886 succeeded, while the last, in 994, was rebuffed.[52] The Lancastrian siege of London in 1471 is attacked by a Yorkist sally. The Vikings applied Danelaw over much of eastern and northern England, its boundary running roughly from London to Chester as an area of political and geographical control imposed by the Viking incursions formally agreed by the Danish warlord, Guthrum and the West Saxon king Alfred the Great in 886. The Anglo-Saxon Chronicle records that Alfred "refounded" London in 886. Archaeological research shows this involved abandonment of Lundenwic and a revival of life and trade within the old Roman walls. London then grew slowly until a dramatic increase in about 950.[53] By the 11th century, London was clearly the largest town in England. Westminster Abbey, rebuilt in Romanesque style by King Edward the Confessor, was one of the grandest churches in Europe. Winchester had been the capital of Anglo-Saxon England, but from this time London became the main forum for foreign traders and the base for defence in time of war. In the view of Frank Stenton: "It had the resources, and it was rapidly developing the dignity and the political self-consciousness appropriate to a national capital."[54][55] Middle Ages Westminster Abbey, as seen in this painting (by Canaletto, 1749), is a World Heritage Site and one of London's oldest and most important buildings. After winning the Battle of Hastings, William, Duke of Normandy was crowned King of England in newly completed Westminster Abbey on Christmas Day 1066.[56] William built the Tower of London, the first of many such in England rebuilt in stone in the south-eastern corner of the city, to intimidate the inhabitants.[57] In 1097, William II began building Westminster Hall, close by the abbey of the same name. It became the basis of a new Palace of Westminster.[58][59] In the 12th century, the institutions of central government, which had hitherto followed the royal English court around the country, grew in size and sophistication and became increasingly fixed, for most purposes at Westminster, although the royal treasury, having been moved from Winchester, came to rest in the Tower. While the City of Westminster developed into a true governmental capital, its distinct neighbour, the City of London, remained England's largest city and principal commercial centre and flourished under its own unique administration, the Corporation of London. In 1100, its population was some 18,000; by 1300 it had grown to nearly 100,000.[60] Disaster struck in the form of the Black Death in the mid-14th century, when London lost nearly a third of its population.[61] London was the focus of the Peasants' Revolt in 1381.[62] London was also a centre of England's Jewish population before their expulsion by Edward I in 1290. Violence against Jews occurred in 1190, when it was rumoured that the new king had ordered their massacre after they had presented themselves at his coronation.[63] In 1264 during the Second Barons' War, Simon de Montfort's rebels killed 500 Jews while attempting to seize records of debts.[64] Early modern Map of London in 1593. There is only one bridge across the Thames, but parts of Southwark on the south bank of the river have been developed. During the Tudor period the Reformation produced a gradual shift to Protestantism. Much of London property passed from church to private ownership, which accelerated trade and business in the city.[65] In 1475, the Hanseatic League set up a main trading base (kontor) of England in London, called the Stalhof or Steelyard. It remained until 1853, when the Hanseatic cities of Lübeck, Bremen and Hamburg sold the property to South Eastern Railway.[66] Woollen cloth was shipped undyed and undressed from 14th/15th century London to the nearby shores of the Low Countries, where it was considered indispensable.[67] Yet English maritime enterprise hardly reached beyond the seas of north-west Europe. The commercial route to Italy and the Mediterranean was normally through Antwerp and over the Alps; any ships passing through the Strait of Gibraltar to or from England were likely to be Italian or Ragusan. The reopening of the Netherlands to English shipping in January 1565 spurred a burst of commercial activity.[68] The Royal Exchange was founded.[69] Mercantilism grew and monopoly traders such as the East India Company were founded as trade expanded to the New World. London became the main North Sea port, with migrants arriving from England and abroad. The population rose from about 50,000 in 1530 to about 225,000 in 1605.[65] In the 16th century, William Shakespeare and his contemporaries lived in London during English Renaissance theatre. Shakespeare's Globe Theatre was constructed in 1599 in Southwark. Stage performances came to a halt in London when Puritan authorities shut down the theatres in the 1640s and 1650s.[70] The ban on theatre was lifted during the Restoration in 1660, and London's oldest operating theatre, Drury Lane, opened in 1663 in what is now the West End theatre district.[71] By the end of the Tudor period in 1603, London was still compact. There was an assassination attempt on James I in Westminster, in the Gunpowder Plot of 5 November 1605.[72] Defensive Lines of Communication, planned during the English Civil War, c. 1643, surrounded the City, Westminster, Southwark, Lambeth and related areas (Vertue, 1738). In 1637, the government of Charles I attempted to reform administration in the London area. This called for the Corporation of the city to extend its jurisdiction and administration over expanding areas around the city. Fearing an attempt by the Crown to diminish the Liberties of London, coupled with a lack of interest in administering these additional areas or concern by city guilds of having to share power, caused the Corporation's "The Great Refusal", a decision which largely continues to account for the unique governmental status of the City.[73] In the English Civil War the majority of Londoners supported the Parliamentary cause. After an initial advance by the Royalists in 1642, culminating in the battles of Brentford and Turnham Green, London was surrounded by a defensive perimeter wall known as the Lines of Communication. The lines were built by up to 20,000 people, and were completed in under two months.[74] The fortifications failed their only test when the New Model Army entered London in 1647,[75] and they were levelled by Parliament the same year.[76] London was plagued by disease in the early 17th century,[77] culminating in the Great Plague of 1665–1666, which killed up to 100,000 people, or a fifth of the population.[78] The Great Fire of London destroyed many parts of the city in 1666. The Great Fire of London broke out in 1666 in Pudding Lane in the city and quickly swept through the wooden buildings.[79] Rebuilding took over ten years and was supervised by polymath Robert Hooke as surveyor for the City of London.[80][81][82] In 1708 Christopher Wren's masterpiece, St Paul's Cathedral, was completed. During the Georgian era, new districts such as Mayfair were formed in the west; new bridges over the Thames encouraged development in South London. In the east, the Port of London expanded downstream. London's development as an international financial centre matured for much of the 18th century.[83] In 1762, George III acquired Buckingham House, which was enlarged over the next 75 years. During the 18th century, London was said to be dogged by crime,[84] and the Bow Street Runners were established in 1750 as a professional police force.[85] A total of more than 200 offences were punishable by death,[86] including petty theft.[87] Epidemics during the 1720s and 30s saw most children born in the city die before reaching their fifth birthday.[88] Coffee-houses became a popular place to debate ideas, as growing literacy and development of the printing press made news widely available, with Fleet Street becoming the centre of the British press. The invasion of Amsterdam by Napoleonic armies led many financiers to relocate to London and the first London international issue was arranged in 1817. Around the same time, the Royal Navy became the world's leading war fleet, acting as a major deterrent to potential economic adversaries. The repeal of the Corn Laws in 1846 was specifically aimed at weakening Dutch economic power. London then overtook Amsterdam as the leading international financial centre.[89][90] According to Samuel Johnson: You find no man, at all intellectual, who is willing to leave London. No, Sir, when a man is tired of London, he is tired of life; for there is in London all that life can afford. — Samuel Johnson, 1777[91] Late modern and contemporary With the onset of the Industrial Revolution in Britain, an unprecedented growth in urbanisation took place, and the number of High Streets (the primary street for retail in Britain) rapidly grew.[92][93] London was the world's largest city from about 1831 to 1925,[94] with a population density of 325 per hectare.[95] In addition to the growing number of stores selling goods such as Harding, Howell & Co. on Pall Mall—a contender for the first department store—the streets had scores of street sellers loudly advertising their goods and services.[92] London's overcrowded conditions led to cholera epidemics,[96] claiming 14,000 lives in 1848, and 6,000 in 1866.[97] Rising traffic congestion led to the creation of the world's first local urban rail network. The Metropolitan Board of Works oversaw infrastructure expansion in the capital and some surrounding counties; it was abolished in 1889 when the London County Council was created out of county areas surrounding the capital.[98] From the early years of the 20th century onwards, teashops were found on High Streets across London and the rest of Britain, with Lyons, who opened the first of their chain of teashops in Piccadilly in 1894, leading the way.[99] The tearooms, such as the Criterion in Piccadilly, became a popular meeting place for women from the suffrage movement.[100] The city was the target of many attacks during the suffragette bombing and arson campaign, between 1912 and 1914, which saw historic landmarks such as Westminster Abbey and St Paul's Cathedral bombed.[101] British volunteer recruits in London, August 1914, during World War I A bombed-out London street during the Blitz, World War II London was bombed by the Germans in the First World War,[102] and during the Second World War, the Blitz and other bombings by the German Luftwaffe killed over 30,000 Londoners, destroying large tracts of housing and other buildings across the city.[103] The 1948 Summer Olympics were held at the original Wembley Stadium, while London was still recovering from the war.[104] From the 1940s, London became home to many immigrants, primarily from Commonwealth countries such as Jamaica, India, Bangladesh and Pakistan,[105] making London one of the most diverse cities in the world. In 1951, the Festival of Britain was held on the South Bank.[106] The Great Smog of 1952 led to the Clean Air Act 1956, which ended the "pea soup fogs" for which London had been notorious.[107] Starting mainly in the mid-1960s, London became a centre for worldwide youth culture, exemplified by the Swinging London sub-culture[108] associated with the King's Road, Chelsea[109] and Carnaby Street.[110] The role of trendsetter revived in the punk era.[111] In 1965 London's political boundaries were expanded in response to the growth of the urban area and a new Greater London Council was created.[112] During The Troubles in Northern Ireland, London was hit from 1973 by bomb attacks by the Provisional Irish Republican Army.[113] These attacks lasted for two decades, starting with the Old Bailey bombing.[114][115] Racial inequality was highlighted by the 1981 Brixton riot.[116] Greater London's population declined in the decades after the Second World War, from an estimated peak of 8.6 million in 1939 to around 6.8 million in the 1980s.[117] The principal ports for London moved downstream to Felixstowe and Tilbury, with the London Docklands area becoming a focus for regeneration, including the Canary Wharf development. This was born out of London's increasing role as an international financial centre in the 1980s.[118] The Thames Barrier was completed in the 1980s to protect London against tidal surges from the North Sea.[119] The Greater London Council was abolished in 1986, leaving London with no central administration until 2000 and the creation of the Greater London Authority.[120] To mark the 21st century, the Millennium Dome, London Eye and Millennium Bridge were constructed.[121] On 6 July 2005 London was awarded the 2012 Summer Olympics, as the first city to stage the Olympic Games three times.[122] On 7 July 2005, three London Underground trains and a double-decker bus were bombed in a series of terrorist attacks.[123] In 2008, Time named London alongside New York City and Hong Kong as Nylonkong, hailing them as the world's three most influential global cities.[124] In January 2015, Greater London's population was estimated to be 8.63 million, its highest since 1939.[125] During the Brexit referendum in 2016, the UK as a whole decided to leave the European Union, but most London constituencies voted for remaining.[126] Administration Local government Main articles: Local government in London, History of local government in London, and List of heads of London government Arms of the Corporation of the City of London: Argent, a cross gules in the first quarter a sword in pale point upwards of the last; Supporters: Two dragons with wings elevated and addorsed argent on each wing a cross gules; Crest: On a dragon's wing displayed sinister a cross gules[127] The administration of London is formed of two tiers: a citywide, strategic tier and a local tier. Citywide administration is coordinated by the Greater London Authority (GLA), while local administration is carried out by 33 smaller authorities.[128] The GLA consists of two elected components: the mayor of London, who has executive powers, and the London Assembly, which scrutinises the mayor's decisions and can accept or reject the mayor's budget proposals each year. The headquarters of the GLA is City Hall, Newham. The mayor since 2016 has been Sadiq Khan, the first Muslim mayor of a major Western capital.[129][130] The mayor's statutory planning strategy is published as the London Plan, which was most recently revised in 2011.[131] The local authorities are the councils of the 32 London boroughs and the City of London Corporation.[132] They are responsible for most local services, such as local planning, schools, social services, local roads and refuse collection. Certain functions, such as waste management, are provided through joint arrangements. In 2009–2010 the combined revenue expenditure by London councils and the GLA amounted to just over £22 billion (£14.7 billion for the boroughs and £7.4 billion for the GLA).[133] The London Fire Brigade is the statutory fire and rescue service for Greater London, run by the London Fire and Emergency Planning Authority. It is the third largest fire service in the world.[134] National Health Service ambulance services are provided by the London Ambulance Service (LAS) NHS Trust, the largest free-at-the-point-of-use emergency ambulance service in the world.[135] The London Air Ambulance charity operates in conjunction with the LAS where required. Her Majesty's Coastguard and the Royal National Lifeboat Institution operate on the River Thames,[136][137] which is under the jurisdiction of the Port of London Authority from Teddington Lock to the sea.[138] National government 10 Downing Street, official residence of the Prime Minister London is the seat of the Government of the United Kingdom. Many government departments, as well as the prime minister's residence at 10 Downing Street, are based close to the Palace of Westminster, particularly along Whitehall.[139] There are 73 members of Parliament (MPs) from London, elected from local parliamentary constituencies in the national Parliament. As of December 2019, 49 are from the Labour Party, 21 are Conservatives, and three are Liberal Democrats.[140] The ministerial post of minister for London was created in 1994. The current Minister for London is Paul Scully MP.[141] Policing and crime Main article: Crime in London Policing in Greater London, with the exception of the City of London, is provided by the Metropolitan Police ("The Met"), overseen by the mayor through the Mayor's Office for Policing and Crime (MOPAC).[142][143] The Met is also referred to as Scotland Yard after the location of its original headquarters in a road called Great Scotland Yard in Whitehall. The City of London has its own police force – the City of London Police.[144] The British Transport Police are responsible for police services on National Rail, London Underground, Docklands Light Railway and Tramlink services.[145] The Ministry of Defence Police is a special police force in London, which does not generally become involved with policing the general public.[146] Crime rates vary widely across different areas of London. Crime figures are made available nationally at Local Authority and Ward level.[147] In 2015, there were 118 homicides, a 25.5% increase over 2014.[148] The Metropolitan Police have made detailed crime figures, broken down by category at borough and ward level, available on their website since 2000.[149][150] Recorded crime has been rising in London, notably violent crime and murder by stabbing and other means have risen. There were 50 murders from the start of 2018 to mid April 2018. Funding cuts to police in London are likely to have contributed to this, though other factors are also involved.[151] Geography Main article: Geography of London Scope Satellite view of London in June 2018 London, also known as Greater London, is one of nine regions of England and the top subdivision covering most of the city's metropolis.[note 4] The City of London at its core once comprised the whole settlement, but as its urban area grew, the Corporation of London resisted attempts to amalgamate the City with its suburbs, causing "London" to be defined several ways.[152] Forty per cent of Greater London is covered by the London post town, in which 'LONDON' forms part of postal addresses.[153][154] The London telephone area code (020) covers a larger area, similar in size to Greater London, although some outer districts are excluded and some just outside included. The Greater London boundary has been aligned to the M25 motorway in places.[155] Further urban expansion is now prevented by the Metropolitan Green Belt,[156] although the built-up area extends beyond the boundary in places, producing a separately defined Greater London Urban Area. Beyond this is the vast London commuter belt.[157] Greater London is split for some purposes into Inner London and Outer London,[158] and by the River Thames into North and South, with an informal central London area. The coordinates of the nominal centre of London, traditionally the original Eleanor Cross at Charing Cross near the junction of Trafalgar Square and Whitehall, are about 51°30′26″N 00°07′39″W.[159] Based on the centre of gravity of its map, the geographical centre of London is in the London Borough of Lambeth, 0.1 miles (150 m) to the north-east of Lambeth North tube station.[160] Status Within London, both the City of London and the City of Westminster have city status and both the City of London and the remainder of Greater London are counties for the purposes of lieutenancies.[161] The area of Greater London includes areas that are part of the historic counties of Middlesex, Kent, Surrey, Essex and Hertfordshire.[162] London's status as the capital of England, and later the United Kingdom, has never been granted or confirmed by statute or in written form.[note 5] Its status as a capital was established by constitutional convention, which means its status as de facto capital is a part of the UK's uncodified constitution. The capital of England was moved to London from Winchester as the Palace of Westminster developed in the 12th and 13th centuries to become the permanent location of the royal court, and thus the political capital of the nation.[166] More recently, Greater London has been defined as a region of England and in this context is known as London.[167] Topography London from Primrose Hill Greater London encompasses a total area of 611 square miles (1,583 km2) an area which had a population of 7,172,036 in 2001 and a population density of 11,760 inhabitants per square mile (4,542/km2). The extended area known as the London Metropolitan Region or the London Metropolitan Agglomeration, comprises a total area of 3,236 square miles (8,382 km2) has a population of 13,709,000 and a population density of 3,900 inhabitants per square mile (1,510/km2).[168] Modern London stands on the Thames, its primary geographical feature, a navigable river which crosses the city from the south-west to the east. The Thames Valley is a flood plain surrounded by gently rolling hills including Parliament Hill, Addington Hills, and Primrose Hill. Historically London grew up at the lowest bridging point on the Thames. The Thames was once a much broader, shallower river with extensive marshlands; at high tide, its shores reached five times their present width.[169] Since the Victorian era the Thames has been extensively embanked, and many of its London tributaries now flow underground. The Thames is a tidal river, and London is vulnerable to flooding.[170] The threat has increased over time because of a slow but continuous rise in high water level caused by climate change and by the slow 'tilting' of the British Isles (up in Scotland and Northern Ireland and down in southern parts of England, Wales and Ireland) as a result of post-glacial rebound.[171][172] In 1974 a decade of work began on the construction of the Thames Barrier across the Thames at Woolwich to deal with this threat. While the barrier is expected to function as designed until roughly 2070, concepts for its future enlargement or redesign are already being discussed.[173] London has had a small number of earthquakes over the years, notably those of 1750 which macroseismic information indicates had their epicentres directly under the city. In 2018, two active faults were discovered running parallel to each other, directly under the centre of the city.[174] Furthermore, the city has been damaged at least twice (with fatalities) in the earthquakes of 1382 and 1580. Those earthquakes had their epicentres under the English Channel.[175] London's building code is being redrawn so that every new structure must be able to withstand an earthquake of at least 6.5 on the Richter scale.[176] Climate Main article: Climate of London London, England Climate chart (explanation) J F M A M J J A S O N D   59  83   45  93   39  124   42  156   46  189   47  2212   46  2414   53  2314   50  2012   65  169   67  115   57  93 Average max. and min. temperatures in °C Precipitation totals in mm Imperial conversion London has a temperate oceanic climate (Köppen: Cfb). Rainfall records have been kept in the city since at least 1697, when records began at Kew. At Kew, the most rainfall in one month is 7.4 inches (189 mm) in November 1755 and the least is 0 inches (0 mm) in both December 1788 and July 1800. Mile End also had 0 inches (0 mm) in April 1893.[177] The wettest year on record is 1903, with a total fall of 38.1 inches (969 mm) and the driest is 1921, with a total fall of 12.1 inches (308 mm).[178] The average annual precipitation amounts to about 600 mm, which is half the annual rainfall of New York City, but also lower than Rome, Lisbon, and Sydney, Australia.[179][180][181] Despite its relatively low annual precipitation, London still receives 109.6 rainy days on the 1.0 mm threshold annually. However, London is vulnerable to climate change in the United Kingdom, and there is increasing concern among hydrological experts that London households may run out of water before 2050.[182] Temperature extremes in London range from 40.2 °C (104.4 °F) at Heathrow on 19 July 2022 down to −16.1 °C (3.0 °F) at Northolt on 1 January 1962.[183][184] Records for atmospheric pressure have been kept at London since 1692. The highest pressure ever reported is 1,049.8 millibars (31.00 inHg) on 20 January 2020.[185] Summers are generally warm, sometimes hot. London's average July high is 23.5 °C (74.3 °F). On average each year, London experiences 31 days above 25 °C (77.0 °F) and 4.2 days above 30.0 °C (86.0 °F). During the 2003 European heat wave prolonged heat led to hundreds of heat-related deaths.[186] There was also a previous spell of 15 consecutive days above 32.2 °C (90.0 °F) in England in 1976 which also caused many heat related deaths.[187] A previous temperature of 37.8 °C (100.0 °F) in August 1911 at the Greenwich station was later disregarded as non-standard.[188] Droughts can also, occasionally, be a problem, especially in summer, most recently in summer 2018,[189] and with much drier than average conditions prevailing from May to December.[190] However, the most consecutive days without rain was 73 days in the spring of 1893.[191] Winters are generally cool with little temperature variation. Heavy snow is rare but snow usually falls at least once each winter. Spring and autumn can be pleasant. As a large city, London has a considerable urban heat island effect,[192] making the centre of London at times 5 °C (9 °F) warmer than the suburbs and outskirts. This can be seen below when comparing London Heathrow, 15 miles (24 km) west of London, with the London Weather Centre.[193] Main articles: List of districts of London and London boroughs The West End theatre district in 2016 Places within London's vast urban area are identified using district names, such as Mayfair, Southwark, Wembley, and Whitechapel. These are either informal designations, reflect the names of villages that have been absorbed by sprawl, or are superseded administrative units such as parishes or former boroughs. Such names have remained in use through tradition, each referring to a local area with its own distinctive character, but without official boundaries. Since 1965 Greater London has been divided into 32 London boroughs in addition to the ancient City of London.[207][208] The City of London is the main financial district,[209] and Canary Wharf has recently developed into a new financial and commercial hub in the Docklands to the east. The West End is London's main entertainment and shopping district, attracting tourists.[210] West London includes expensive residential areas where properties can sell for tens of millions of pounds.[211] The average price for properties in Kensington and Chelsea is over £2 million with a similarly high outlay in most of central London.[212][213] The East End is the area closest to the original Port of London, known for its high immigrant population, as well as for being one of the poorest areas in London.[214] The surrounding East London area saw much of London's early industrial development; now, brownfield sites throughout the area are being redeveloped as part of the Thames Gateway including the London Riverside and Lower Lea Valley, which was developed into the Olympic Park for the 2012 Olympics and Paralympics.[214] Architecture Main articles: Architecture of London, List of tallest buildings and structures in London, and List of demolished buildings and structures in London The Tower of London, a medieval castle, dating in part to 1078 London's buildings are too diverse to be characterised by any particular architectural style, partly because of their varying ages. Many grand houses and public buildings, such as the National Gallery, are constructed from Portland stone. Some areas of the city, particularly those just west of the centre, are characterised by white stucco or whitewashed buildings. Few structures in central London pre-date the Great Fire of 1666, these being a few trace Roman remains, the Tower of London and a few scattered Tudor survivors in the city. Further out is, for example, the Tudor-period Hampton Court Palace, England's oldest surviving Tudor palace, built by Cardinal Thomas Wolsey in about 1515.[215] The east wing public façade of Buckingham Palace was built between 1847 and 1850; it was remodelled to its present form in 1913. Part of the varied architectural heritage are the 17th-century churches by Wren, neoclassical financial institutions such as the Royal Exchange and the Bank of England, to the early 20th century Old Bailey and the 1960s Barbican Estate. The 1939 Battersea Power Station by the river in the south-west is a local landmark, while some railway termini are excellent examples of Victorian architecture, most notably St. Pancras and Paddington.[216] The density of London varies, with high employment density in the central area and Canary Wharf, high residential densities in inner London, and lower densities in Outer London. Trafalgar Square and its fountains, with Nelson's Column on the right The Monument in the City of London provides views of the surrounding area while commemorating the Great Fire of London, which originated nearby. Marble Arch and Wellington Arch, at the north and south ends of Park Lane, respectively, have royal connections, as do the Albert Memorial and Royal Albert Hall in Kensington. Nelson's Column (built to commemorate Admiral Horatio Nelson) is a nationally recognised monument in Trafalgar Square, one of the focal points of central London. Older buildings are mainly brick built, most commonly the yellow London stock brick or a warm orange-red variety, often decorated with carvings and white plaster mouldings.[217] Modern styles juxtaposed with historic styles; 30 St Mary Axe (dubbed "The Gherkin") In the dense areas, most of the concentration is via medium- and high-rise buildings. London's skyscrapers, such as 30 St Mary Axe, Tower 42, the Broadgate Tower and One Canada Square, are mostly in the two financial districts, the City of London and Canary Wharf. High-rise development is restricted at certain sites if it would obstruct protected views of St Paul's Cathedral and other historic buildings.[218] This protective policy, known as 'St Paul’s Heights', has been in operation by the City of London since 1937.[219] Nevertheless, there are a number of tall skyscrapers in central London (see Tall buildings in London), including the 95-storey Shard London Bridge, the tallest building in the United Kingdom. Other notable modern buildings include The Scalpel, originally a nickname coined by the Financial Times due to its distinctive angular design but subsequently designated as its official name,[220] 20 Fenchurch Street, dubbed "The Walkie-Talkie" because of its distinctive shape that resembles a two-way radio handset,[221] the former City Hall in Southwark with its distinctive oval shape,[222] the Art Deco BBC Broadcasting House plus the Postmodernist British Library in Somers Town/Kings Cross and No 1 Poultry by James Stirling. What was formerly the Millennium Dome, by the Thames to the east of Canary Wharf, is now an entertainment venue called the O2 Arena.[223] Cityscape The Houses of Parliament and Elizabeth Tower (Big Ben) on the right foreground, the London Eye on the left foreground and The Shard with Canary Wharf in the background; seen in September 2014 Natural history The London Natural History Society suggests that London is "one of the World's Greenest Cities" with more than 40 per cent green space or open water. They indicate that 2000 species of flowering plant have been found growing there and that the tidal Thames supports 120 species of fish.[224] They also state that over 60 species of bird nest in central London and that their members have recorded 47 species of butterfly, 1173 moths and more than 270 kinds of spider around London. London's wetland areas support nationally important populations of many water birds. London has 38 Sites of Special Scientific Interest (SSSIs), two national nature reserves and 76 local nature reserves.[225] Amphibians are common in the capital, including smooth newts living by the Tate Modern, and common frogs, common toads, palmate newts and great crested newts. On the other hand, native reptiles such as slowworms, common lizards, barred grass snakes and adders, are mostly only seen in Outer London.[226] A fox on Ayres Street, Southwark, South London Among other inhabitants of London are 10,000 red foxes, so that there are now 16 foxes for every square mile (6 per square kilometre) of London. These urban foxes are noticeably bolder than their country cousins, sharing the pavement with pedestrians and raising cubs in people's backyards. Foxes have even sneaked into the Houses of Parliament, where one was found asleep on a filing cabinet. Another broke into the grounds of Buckingham Palace, reportedly killing some of Queen Elizabeth II's prized pink flamingos.[227] Generally, however, foxes and city folk appear to get along. A survey in 2001 by the London-based Mammal Society found that 80 per cent of 3,779 respondents who volunteered to keep a diary of garden mammal visits liked having them around. This sample cannot be taken to represent Londoners as a whole.[228][229] Other mammals found in Greater London are hedgehog, brown rat, mice, rabbit, shrew, vole, and grey squirrel.[230] In wilder areas of Outer London, such as Epping Forest, a wide variety of mammals are found, including European hare, badger, field, bank and water vole, wood mouse, yellow-necked mouse, mole, shrew, and weasel, in addition to red fox, grey squirrel and hedgehog. A dead otter was found at The Highway, in Wapping, about a mile from the Tower Bridge, which would suggest that they have begun to move back after being absent a hundred years from the city.[231] Ten of England's eighteen species of bats have been recorded in Epping Forest: soprano, Nathusius' and common pipistrelles, common noctule, serotine, barbastelle, Daubenton's, brown long-eared, Natterer's and Leisler's.[232] Among the strange sights in London have been a whale in the Thames,[233] while the BBC Two programme Natural World: Unnatural History of London shows feral pigeons using the London Underground to get around the city, a seal that takes fish from fishmongers outside Billingsgate Fish Market, and foxes that will "sit" if given sausages.[234] Herds of red and fallow deer also roam freely within much of Richmond and Bushy Park. A cull takes place each November and February to ensure numbers can be sustained.[235] Epping Forest is also known for its fallow deer, which can frequently be seen in herds to the north of the Forest. A rare population of melanistic, black fallow deer is also maintained at the Deer Sanctuary near Theydon Bois. Muntjac deer, which escaped from deer parks at the turn of the 20th century, are also found in the forest. While Londoners are accustomed to wildlife such as birds and foxes sharing the city, more recently urban deer have started becoming a regular feature, and whole herds of fallow deer come into residential areas at night to take advantage of London's green spaces.[236][237] Population density map The 2011 census recorded that 2,998,264 people or 36.7% of London's population were foreign-born making it the city with the second largest immigrant population after New York, in terms of absolute numbers. About 69% of children born in London in 2015 had at least one parent who was born abroad.[239] The table to the right shows the commonest countries of birth of London residents. Note that some of the German-born population, in 18th position, are British citizens from birth born to parents serving in the British Armed Forces in Germany.[240] Increasing industrialisation swelled London's population throughout the 19th and early 20th centuries, and for some time in the late 19th and early 20th centuries it was the most populous city in the world. It peaked at 8,615,245 in 1939, just before the outbreak of the Second World War, but had declined to 7,192,091 by the 2001 Census. However, the population then grew by just over a million between the 2001 and 2011 Censuses, to reach 8,173,941 in the latter.[241] However, London's continuous urban area extends beyond Greater London and numbered 9,787,426 people in 2011,[30] while its wider metropolitan area had a population of 12–14 million, depending on the definition used.[242][243] According to Eurostat, London is the second most populous metropolitan area in Europe. A net 726,000 immigrants arrived there in the period 1991–2001.[244] The region covers 610 square miles (1,579 km2), giving a population density of 13,410 inhabitants per square mile (5,177/km2)[245] more than ten times that of any other British region.[246] In population terms, London is the 19th largest city and the 18th largest metropolitan region.[247][248] Age structure and median age Children younger than 14 constituted 20.6% of the population in Outer London in 2018, and 18% in Inner London. The 15–24 age group was 11.1% in Outer and 10.2% in Inner London, those aged 25–44 years 30.6% in Outer London and 39.7% in Inner London, those aged 45–64 years 24% and 20.7% in Outer and Inner London respectively. Those aged 65 and over are 13.6% in Outer London, but only 9.3% in Inner London.[249] The median age of London in 2018 was 36.5, which was younger than the UK median of 40.3.[249] Ethnic groups Main article: Ethnic groups in London Maps of Greater London showing percentage distribution of selected ethnic groups according to the 2011 Census White White Asian Asian Black Black According to the Office for National Statistics, based on 2011 Census estimates, 59.8 per cent of the 8,173,941 inhabitants of London were White, with 44.9% White British, 2.2% White Irish, 0.1% gypsy/Irish traveller and 12.1% classified as Other White.[250] Meanwhile 20.9% of Londoners were of Asian and mixed-Asian descent, 19.7% being of full Asian descents and those of mixed-Asian heritage 1.2% of the population. Indians accounted for 6.6%, followed by Pakistanis and Bangladeshis at 2.7% each. Chinese peoples accounted for 1.5% and Arabs for 1.3%. A further 4.9% were classified as "Other Asian".[250] 15.6% of London's population were of Black and mixed-Black descent. 13.3% of full Black descent, with mixed-Black heritage comprising 2.3%. Black Africans accounted for 7.0% of London's population, with 4.2% as Black Caribbean and 2.1% as "Other Black". 5.0% were of mixed race.[250] The history of African presence in London extends back to the Roman period.[251] As of 2007, one fifth of primary school across London were from ethnic minorities.[252] Altogether at the 2011 census, of London's 1,624,768 population aged 0 to 15, 46.4% were White, 19.8% Asian, 19% Black, 10.8% Mixed and 4% another ethnic group.[253] In January 2005, a survey of London's ethnic and religious diversity claimed that more than 300 languages were spoken in London and more than 50 non-indigenous communities had populations of more than 10,000.[254] Figures from the Office for National Statistics show that in 2010, London's foreign-born population was 2,650,000 (33%), up from 1,630,000 in 1997. The 2011 census showed that 36.7% of Greater London's population were born outside the UK.[255] Some of the German-born population were likely to be British nationals born to parents serving in the British Armed Forces in Germany.[256] Estimates by the Office for National Statistics indicate that the five largest foreign-born groups living in London in the period July 2009 to June 2010 were born in India, Poland, the Republic of Ireland, Bangladesh and Nigeria.[257] Religion Main article: Religion in London According to the 2011 Census, the largest religious groupings were Christians (48.4%), followed by those of no religion (20.7%), Muslims (12.4%), no response (8.5%), Hindus (5.0%), Jews (1.8%), Sikhs (1.5%), Buddhists (1.0%) and other (0.6%).[258] London has traditionally been Christian, and has a large number of churches, particularly in the City of London. The well-known St Paul's Cathedral in the City and Southwark Cathedral south of the river are Anglican administrative centres,[259] while the Archbishop of Canterbury, principal bishop of the Church of England and worldwide Anglican Communion, has his main residence at Lambeth Palace in the London Borough of Lambeth.[260] St Paul's Cathedral, the seat of the Bishop of London The BAPS Shri Swaminarayan Mandir London is the second-largest Hindu temple in England and Europe. Important national and royal ceremonies are shared between St Paul's and Westminster Abbey.[261] The Abbey is not to be confused with nearby Westminster Cathedral, which is the largest Roman Catholic cathedral in England and Wales.[262] Despite the prevalence of Anglican churches, observance is low within the denomination. Church attendance continues a long, steady decline, according to Church of England statistics.[263] Notable mosques include the East London Mosque in Tower Hamlets, which is allowed to give the Islamic call to prayer through loudspeakers, the London Central Mosque on the edge of Regent's Park[264] and the Baitul Futuh of the Ahmadiyya Muslim Community. After the oil boom, increasing numbers of wealthy Middle-Eastern Arab Muslims based themselves around Mayfair, Kensington and Knightsbridge in West London.[265][266][267] There are large Bengali Muslim communities in the eastern boroughs of Tower Hamlets and Newham.[268] Large Hindu communities are found in the north-western boroughs of Harrow and Brent, the latter hosting what was until 2006,[269] Europe's largest Hindu temple, Neasden Temple.[270] London is also home to 44 Hindu temples, including the BAPS Shri Swaminarayan Mandir London. There are Sikh communities in East and West London, particularly in Southall, home to one of the largest Sikh populations and the largest Sikh temple outside India.[271] The majority of British Jews live in London, with notable Jewish communities in Stamford Hill, Stanmore, Golders Green, Finchley, Hampstead, Hendon and Edgware in North London. Bevis Marks Synagogue in the City of London is affiliated to London's historic Sephardic Jewish community. It is the only synagogue in Europe to have held regular services continually for over 300 years. Stanmore and Canons Park Synagogue has the largest membership of any Orthodox synagogue in Europe, overtaking Ilford synagogue (also in London) in 1998.[272] The London Jewish Forum was set up in 2006 in response to the growing significance of devolved London Government.[273] Accents Cockney is an accent heard across London, mainly spoken by working-class and lower-middle class Londoners. It is mainly attributed to the East End and wider East London, having originated there in the 18th century, although it has been suggested that the Cockney style of speech is much older.[274] Some features of Cockney include, Th-fronting (pronouncing "th" as "f"), example, "some fings in life are bad" (heard in opening of "Always Look on the Bright Side of Life" in Monty Python's Life of Brian), "th" inside a word is pronounced with a "v" (brother becomes brovva), H-dropping, example 'Ampshire for Hampshire (as Eliza Doolittle said in My Fair Lady), and, like most English accents, a Cockney accent drops the "r" after a vowel, for example, "car" is pronounced "cah".[275] John Camden Hotten, in his Slang Dictionary of 1859, makes reference to Cockney "use of a peculiar slang language" (Cockney rhyming slang) when describing the costermongers of the East End. Examples include: using the word "treacle" to mean sweetheart (rhymes with Treacle tart), and "porkies" to mean lies (rhymes with Pork pies).[276] Since the start of the 21st century the Cockney dialect is less common in parts of the East End itself, with modern strongholds including other parts of London and suburbs in the home counties.[277][278] Estuary English is an intermediate accent between Cockney and Received Pronunciation.[279] It is widely spoken by people of all classes in London and south-eastern England, associated with the River Thames and its estuary.[280] Multicultural London English (MLE) is a multiethnolect becoming increasingly common in multicultural areas amongst young, working-class people from diverse backgrounds. It is a fusion of an array of ethnic accents, in particular Afro-Caribbean and South Asian, with a significant Cockney influence.[281] Received Pronunciation (RP) is the accent traditionally regarded as the standard for British English.[282] It has no specific geographical correlate,[283] although it is also traditionally defined as the standard speech used in London and south-eastern England.[284] It is mainly spoken by upper-class and upper-middle class Londoners.[285][286] Economy Main article: Economy of London The City of London, one of the largest financial centres in the world[287] London's gross regional product in 2019 was £503 billion, around a quarter of UK GDP.[288] London has five major business districts: the city, Westminster, Canary Wharf, Camden & Islington and Lambeth & Southwark. One way to get an idea of their relative importance is to look at relative amounts of office space: Greater London had 27 million m2 of office space in 2001, and the City contains the most space, with 8 million m2 of office space. London has some of the highest real estate prices in the world.[289][290] London is the world's most expensive office market according to world property journal (2015) report.[291] As of 2015 the residential property in London is worth $2.2 trillion – the same value as that of Brazil's annual GDP.[292] The city has the highest property prices of any European city according to the Office for National Statistics and the European Office of Statistics.[293] On average the price per square metre in central London is €24,252 (April 2014). This is higher than the property prices in other G8 European capital cities; Berlin €3,306, Rome €6,188 and Paris €11,229.[294] The City of London The London Stock Exchange at Paternoster Square and Temple Bar London's finance industry is based in the City of London and Canary Wharf, the two major business districts in London. London is one of the pre-eminent financial centres of the world as the most important location for international finance.[295][296] London took over as a major financial centre shortly after 1795 when the Dutch Republic collapsed before the Napoleonic armies. For many bankers established in Amsterdam (e.g. Hope, Baring), this was only time to move to London. Also, London's market-centred system (as opposed to the bank-centred one in Amsterdam) grew more dominant in the 18th century.[83] The London financial elite was strengthened by a strong Jewish community from all over Europe capable of mastering the most sophisticated financial tools of the time.[89] This unique concentration of talents accelerated the transition from the Commercial Revolution to the Industrial Revolution. Writing about capitalism and the utility of diversity in his book on English society, French philosopher Voltaire expounded upon why England at that time was more prosperous in comparison to the country's less religiously tolerant European neighbours: The Royal Exchange in 1886 Take a view of the Royal Exchange in London, a place more venerable than many courts of justice, where the representatives of all nations meet for the benefit of mankind. There the Jew, the Mahometan [Muslim], and the Christian transact together, as though they all professed the same religion, and give the name of infidel to none but bankrupts. There the Presbyterian confides in the Anabaptist, and the Churchman depends on the Quaker's word. If one religion only were allowed in England, the Government would very possibly become arbitrary; if there were but two, the people would cut one another's throats; but as there are such a multitude, they all live happy and in peace. — Voltaire in Letters on the English, 1733.[297] The Bank of England, established in 1694, is the model on which most modern central banks are based. By the mid-19th century, London was the leading financial centre, and at the end of the century over half the world's trade was financed in British currency.[298] Still, as of 2016 London tops the world rankings on the Global Financial Centres Index (GFCI),[299] and it ranked second in A.T. Kearney's 2018 Global Cities Index.[300] London's largest industry is finance, and its financial exports make it a large contributor to the UK's balance of payments. Around 325,000 people were employed in financial services in London until mid-2007. London has over 480 overseas banks, more than any other city in the world. It is also the world's biggest currency trading centre, accounting for some 37 per cent of the $5.1 trillion average daily volume, according to the BIS.[301] Over 85 per cent (3.2 million) of the employed population of greater London works in the services industries. Because of its prominent global role, London's economy had been affected by the financial crisis of 2007–2008. However, by 2010 the city had recovered, put in place new regulatory powers, proceeded to regain lost ground and re-established London's economic dominance.[302] Along with professional services headquarters, the City of London is home to the Bank of England, London Stock Exchange, and Lloyd's of London insurance market.[303] Over half the UK's top 100 listed companies (the FTSE 100) and over 100 of Europe's 500 largest companies have their headquarters in central London. Over 70 per cent of the FTSE 100 are within London's metropolitan area, and 75 per cent of Fortune 500 companies have offices in London.[304] In a 1992 report commissioned by the London Stock Exchange, Sir Adrian Cadbury, chairman of his family's confectionery company Cadbury, produced the Cadbury Report, a code of best practice which served as a basis for reform of corporate governance around the world.[305] Media and technology Broadcasting House in central London, headquarters of the BBC Media companies are concentrated in London, and the media distribution industry is London's second most competitive sector.[306] The BBC is a significant employer, while other broadcasters also have headquarters around the city. Many national newspapers are edited in London; the term Fleet Street (where most national newspapers operated) remains a metonym for the British national press. London is a major retail centre and in 2010 had the highest non-food retail sales of any city in the world, with a total spend of around £64.2 billion.[307] The Port of London is the second largest in the UK, handling 45 million tonnes of cargo each year.[308] A growing number of technology companies are based in London, notably in East London Tech City, also known as Silicon Roundabout. In 2014 the city was among the first to receive a geoTLD.[309][310][311] In February 2014 London was ranked as the European City of the Future[312] in the 2014/15 list by fDi Intelligence.[313] Computer science pioneer Alan Turing hails from Maida Vale, west London. A museum in Bletchley Park, where Turing was based during World War II, is in Bletchley, 40 miles (64 km) north of central London, as is The National Museum of Computing.[314][315] The gas and electricity distribution networks that manage and operate the towers, cables and pressure systems that deliver energy to consumers across the city are managed by National Grid plc, SGN[316] and UK Power Networks.[317] Tourism Main article: Tourism in London The British Museum The National Gallery London is one of the leading tourist destinations in the world and in 2015 was ranked as the most visited city in the world with over 65 million visits.[318][319] It is also the top city in the world by visitor cross-border spending, estimated at US$20.23 billion in 2015.[320] Tourism is one of London's prime industries, employing 700,000 full-time workers in 2016, and contributes £36 billion a year to the economy.[321] The city accounts for 54% of all inbound visitor spending in the UK.[322] As of 2016 London was the world top city destination as ranked by TripAdvisor users.[323] In 2015 the top most-visited attractions in the UK were all in London. The top 10 most visited attractions were: (with visits per venue)[324] British Museum: 6,820,686 National Gallery: 5,908,254 Natural History Museum (South Kensington): 5,284,023 Southbank Centre: 5,102,883 Tate Modern: 4,712,581 Victoria and Albert Museum (South Kensington): 3,432,325 Science Museum: 3,356,212 Somerset House: 3,235,104 Tower of London: 2,785,249 National Portrait Gallery: 2,145,486 The number of hotel rooms in London in 2015 stood at 138,769, and is expected to grow over the years.[325] Transport Main articles: Transport in London and Infrastructure in London Journeys in Greater London by mode from 1997 to 2018[326] Transport is one of the four main areas of policy administered by the Mayor of London,[327] but the mayor's financial control does not extend to the longer-distance rail network that enters London. In 2007 the Mayor of London assumed responsibility for some local lines, which now form the London Overground network, adding to the existing responsibility for the London Underground, trams and buses. The public transport network is administered by Transport for London (TfL).[328] The lines that formed the London Underground, as well as trams and buses, became part of an integrated transport system in 1933 when the London Passenger Transport Board or London Transport was created. Transport for London is now the statutory corporation responsible for most aspects of the transport system in Greater London, and is run by a board and a commissioner appointed by the Mayor of London.[329] Aviation Main article: Airports of London Heathrow Airport is the busiest airport in Europe as well as the second busiest in the world for international passenger traffic. (Terminal 5C is pictured.) London is a major international air transport hub with the busiest city airspace in the world. Eight airports use the word London in their name, but most traffic passes through six of these. Additionally, various other airports also serve London, catering primarily to general aviation flights. Heathrow Airport, in Hillingdon, West London, was for many years the busiest airport in the world for international traffic, and is the major hub of the nation's flag carrier, British Airways.[330] In March 2008 its fifth terminal was opened.[331] In 2014, Dubai gained from Heathrow the leading position in terms of international passenger traffic.[332] Gatwick Airport,[333] south of London in West Sussex, handles flights to more destinations than any other UK airport[334] and is the main base of easyJet,[335] the UK's largest airline by number of passengers.[336] Stansted Airport,[337] north-east of London in Essex, has flights that serve the greatest number of European destinations of any UK airport[338] and is the main base of Ryanair,[339] the world's largest international airline by number of international passengers.[340] Luton Airport, to the north of London in Bedfordshire, is used by several budget airlines (especially easyJet and Wizz Air) for short-haul flights.[341] London City Airport, the most central airport and the one with the shortest runway, in Newham, East London, is focused on business travellers, with a mixture of full-service short-haul scheduled flights and considerable business jet traffic.[342] Southend Airport, east of London in Essex, is a smaller, regional airport that caters for short-haul flights on a limited, though growing, number of airlines.[343] In 2017, international passengers made up over 95% of the total at Southend, the highest proportion of any London airport.[344] Rail Underground and DLR The London Underground is the world's oldest and third-longest rapid transit system. The London Underground, commonly referred to as the Tube or just the Underground, is the oldest[345] and third longest[346] metro system in the world. The system serves 272 stations.[347] and was formed from several private companies, including the world's first underground electric line, the City and South London Railway.[348] It dates from 1863.[349] Over four million journeys are made every day on the Underground network, over 1 billion each year.[350] An investment programme is attempting to reduce congestion and improve reliability, including £6.5 billion (€7.7 billion) spent before the 2012 Summer Olympics.[351] The Docklands Light Railway (DLR), which opened in 1987, is a second, more local metro system using smaller and lighter tram-type vehicles that serve the Docklands, Greenwich and Lewisham. Suburban There are 368 railway stations in the London Travelcard Zones on an extensive above-ground suburban railway network. South London, particularly, has a high concentration of railways as it has fewer Underground lines. Most rail lines terminate around the centre of London, running into eighteen terminal stations, with the exception of the Thameslink trains connecting Bedford in the north and Brighton in the south via Luton and Gatwick airports.[352] London has Britain's busiest station by number of passengers—Waterloo, with over 184 million people using the interchange station complex (which includes Waterloo East station) each year.[353][354] Clapham Junction is the busiest station in Europe by the number of trains passing. With the need for more rail capacity in London, the Elizabeth Line (also known as Crossrail) opened in May 2022.[355] It is a new railway line running east to west through London and into the Home Counties with a branch to Heathrow Airport.[356] It was Europe's biggest construction project, with a £15 billion projected cost.[357][358] Inter-city and international St Pancras International is the main terminal for high-speed Eurostar and High Speed 1 services, as well as commuter suburban Thameslink and inter-city East Midlands Railway services. London is the centre of the National Rail network, with 70 per cent of rail journeys starting or ending in London.[359] King's Cross station and Euston station, which are both in London, are the starting points of the East Coast Main Line and the West Coast Main Line – the two main railway lines in Britain. Like suburban rail services, regional and inter-city trains depart from several termini around the city centre, directly linking London with most of Great Britain's major cities and towns.[360] Some international railway services to Continental Europe were operated during the 20th century as boat trains, such as the Admiraal de Ruijter to Amsterdam and the Night Ferry to Paris and Brussels. The opening of the Channel Tunnel in 1994 connected London directly to the continental rail network, allowing Eurostar services to begin. Since 2007, high-speed trains link St. Pancras International with Lille, Calais, Paris, Disneyland Paris, Brussels, Amsterdam and other European tourist destinations via the High Speed 1 rail link and the Channel Tunnel.[361] The first high-speed domestic trains started in June 2009 linking Kent to London.[362] There are plans for a second high speed line linking London to the Midlands, North West England, and Yorkshire.[363] Freight Although rail freight levels are far down compared to their height, significant quantities of cargo are also carried into and out of London by rail; chiefly building materials and landfill waste. As a major hub of the British railway network, London's tracks also carry large amounts of freight for the other regions, such as container freight from the Channel Tunnel and English Channel ports, and nuclear waste for reprocessing at Sellafield.[364] Buses, coaches and trams A New Routemaster (which replaced the AEC Routemaster) entered service in 2012. The red double-decker bus is an emblematic symbol of London. London's bus network runs 24 hours a day with about 9,300 vehicles, over 675 bus routes and about 19,000 bus stops.[365] In 2019 the network had over 2 billion commuter trips per year.[366] Since 2010 an average of £1.2 billion is taken in revenue each year.[367] London has one of the largest wheelchair-accessible networks in the world[368] and from the third quarter of 2007, became more accessible to hearing and visually impaired passengers as audio-visual announcements were introduced.[369] London's coach hub is Victoria Coach Station, an Art Deco building opened in 1932. The coach station was initially run by a group of coach companies under the name of London Coastal Coaches; however, in 1970 the service and station were included in the nationalisation of the country's coach services, becoming part of the National Bus Company. In 1988, the coach station was purchased by London Transport which then became Transport for London. Victoria Coach Station has over 14 million passengers a year and provides services across the UK and continental Europe.[370] London has a modern tram network, known as Tramlink, centred on Croydon in South London. The network has 39 stops and four routes, and carried 28 million people in 2013.[371][372] Since June 2008, Transport for London has completely owned and operated Tramlink.[373] Cable car London's first and to date only cable car is the London Cable Car, which opened in June 2012. The cable car crosses the Thames and links Greenwich Peninsula with the Royal Docks in the east of the city. It is integrated with London's Oyster Card ticketing system, although the Emirates Air Line fares are not included in the Oyster daily capping.[374] It cost £60 million to build and can carry up to 2,500 passengers per hour in each direction at peak times. Similar to the London Cycle Hire Scheme bike hire scheme, the cable car was sponsored in a 10-year deal by the airline Emirates.[375] Cycling Main article: Cycling in London Santander Cycle Hire near Victoria in Central London In the Greater London Area, around 670,000 people use a bike every day,[376] meaning around 7% of the total population of around 8.8 million use a bike on an average day.[377][378] This relatively low percentage of bicycle users may be due to the poor investments for cycling in London of about £110 million per year,[379] equating to around £12 per person, which can be compared to £22 in the Netherlands.[380] Cycling has become an increasingly popular way to get around London. The launch of a bicycle hire scheme in July 2010 was successful and generally well received.[381] Port and river boats The Port of London, once the largest in the world, is now only the second-largest in the United Kingdom, handling 45 million tonnes of cargo each year as of 2009.[308] Most of this cargo passes through the Port of Tilbury, outside the boundary of Greater London.[308] London has river boat services on the Thames known as Thames Clippers, which offer both commuter and tourist boat services.[382] At major piers including Canary Wharf, London Bridge City, Battersea Power Station and London Eye (Waterloo), services depart at least every 20 minutes during commuter times.[383] The Woolwich Ferry, with 2.5 million passengers every year, is a frequent service linking the North and South Circular Roads.[384] Roads Although the majority of journeys in central London are made by public transport, car travel is common in the suburbs. The inner ring road (around the city centre), the North and South Circular roads (just within the suburbs), and the outer orbital motorway (the M25, just outside the built-up area in most places) encircle the city and are intersected by a number of busy radial routes—but very few motorways penetrate into inner London. A plan for a comprehensive network of motorways throughout the city (the Ringways Plan) was prepared in the 1960s but was mostly cancelled in the early 1970s.[385] The M25 is the second-longest ring-road motorway in Europe at 117 miles (188 km) long.[386] The A1 and M1 connect London to Leeds, and Newcastle and Edinburgh. The hackney carriage (black cab) is a common sight on London streets. Although traditionally black, this is not a requirement with some painted in other colours or bearing advertising. The Austin Motor Company began making hackney carriages (London taxis) in 1929, and models include Austin FX3 from 1948, Austin FX4 from 1958, with more recent models TXII and TX4 manufactured by London Taxis International. The BBC states, "ubiquitous black cabs and red double-decker buses all have long and tangled stories that are deeply embedded in London’s traditions".[387] London is notorious for its traffic congestion; in 2009, the average speed of a car in the rush hour was recorded at 10.6 mph (17.1 km/h).[388] In 2003, a congestion charge was introduced to reduce traffic volumes in the city centre. With a few exceptions, motorists are required to pay to drive within a defined zone encompassing much of central London.[389] Motorists who are residents of the defined zone can buy a greatly reduced season pass.[390][391] The London government initially expected the Congestion Charge Zone to increase daily peak period Underground and bus users, reduce road traffic, increase traffic speeds, and reduce queues;[392] however, the increase in private for hire vehicles has affected these expectations. Over the course of several years, the average number of cars entering the centre of London on a weekday was reduced from 195,000 to 125,000 cars – a 35-per-cent reduction of vehicles driven per day.[393][394] Education Main article: Education in London Tertiary education See also: List of universities and higher education colleges in London Imperial College London, a technical research university in South Kensington London is a major global centre of higher education teaching and research and has the largest concentration of higher education institutes in Europe.[19] According to the QS World University Rankings 2015/16, London has the greatest concentration of top class universities in the world[395][396] and its international student population of around 110,000 is larger than any other city in the world.[397] A 2014 PricewaterhouseCoopers report termed London the global capital of higher education.[398] King's College London, established by Royal Charter in 1829, is one of the founding colleges of the University of London. A number of world-leading education institutions are based in London. In the 2022 QS World University Rankings, Imperial College London is ranked No. 6 in the world, University College London (UCL) is ranked 8th, and King's College London (KCL) is ranked 37th.[399] All are regularly ranked highly, with Imperial College being the UK's leading university in the Research Excellence Framework ranking 2021.[400] The London School of Economics has been described as the world's leading social science institution for both teaching and research.[401] The London Business School is considered one of the world's leading business schools and in 2015 its MBA programme was ranked second-best in the world by the Financial Times.[402] The city is also home to three of the world's top ten performing arts schools (as ranked by the 2020 QS World University Rankings[403]): the Royal College of Music (ranking 2nd in the world), the Royal Academy of Music (ranking 4th) and the Guildhall School of Music and Drama (ranking 6th).[404] With students in London[405] and around 48,000 in University of London Worldwide,[406] the federal University of London is the largest contact teaching university in the UK.[407] It includes five multi-faculty universities – City, King's College London, Queen Mary, Royal Holloway and UCL – and a number of smaller and more specialised institutions including Birkbeck, the Courtauld Institute of Art, Goldsmiths, the London Business School, the London School of Economics, the London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine, the Royal Academy of Music, the Central School of Speech and Drama, the Royal Veterinary College and the School of Oriental and African Studies.[408] Members of the University of London have their own admissions procedures, and most award their own degrees. St Mary's Hospital, a constituent of Imperial College School of Medicine, where in 1928 Alexander Fleming discovered penicillin in the second floor laboratory A number of universities in London are outside the University of London system, including Brunel University, Imperial College London,[note 6] Kingston University, London Metropolitan University,[409] University of East London, University of West London, University of Westminster, London South Bank University, Middlesex University, and University of the Arts London (the largest university of art, design, fashion, communication and the performing arts in Europe).[410] In addition, there are three international universities in London – Regent's University London, Richmond, The American International University in London and Schiller International University. London is home to five major medical schools – Barts and The London School of Medicine and Dentistry (part of Queen Mary), King's College London School of Medicine (the largest medical school in Europe), Imperial College School of Medicine, UCL Medical School and St George's, University of London – and has many affiliated teaching hospitals. It is also a major centre for biomedical research, and three of the UK's eight academic health science centres are based in the city – Imperial College Healthcare, King's Health Partners and UCL Partners (the largest such centre in Europe).[411] Additionally, many biomedical and biotechnology spin out companies from these research institutions are based around the city, most prominently in White City. Founded by pioneering nurse Florence Nightingale at St Thomas' Hospital in 1860, the first nursing school is now part of King's College London.[412] There are a number of business schools in London, including the London School of Business and Finance, Cass Business School (part of City University London), Hult International Business School, ESCP Europe, European Business School London, Imperial College Business School, the London Business School and the UCL School of Management. London is also home to many specialist arts education institutions, including the Central School of Ballet, London Academy of Music and Dramatic Art (LAMDA; president Benedict Cumberbatch), London College of Contemporary Arts (LCCA), London Contemporary Dance School, National Centre for Circus Arts, Royal Academy of Dramatic Art (RADA; president Sir Kenneth Branagh), Rambert School of Ballet and Contemporary Dance, the Royal College of Art, Sylvia Young Theatre School and Trinity Laban.[413][414] The BRIT School in the London borough of Croydon provides training for the performing arts and the technologies that make performance possible, with actor Tom Holland among their alumni.[415] Primary and secondary education The majority of primary and secondary schools and further-education colleges in London are controlled by the London boroughs or otherwise state-funded; leading examples include Ashbourne College, Bethnal Green Academy, Brampton Manor Academy, City and Islington College, City of Westminster College, David Game College, Ealing, Hammersmith and West London College, Leyton Sixth Form College, London Academy of Excellence, Tower Hamlets College, and Newham Collegiate Sixth Form Centre. There are also a number of private schools and colleges in London, some old and famous, such as City of London School, Harrow, St Paul's School, Haberdashers' Aske's Boys' School, University College School, The John Lyon School, Highgate School and Westminster School. Societies Important scientific learned societies based in London include the Royal Society—the UK's national academy of sciences and the oldest national scientific institution in the world—founded in 1660,[416] and the Royal Institution, founded in 1799; the basement of the latter is where Michael Faraday first demonstrated electric motion in 1821.[417] Since 1825, the Royal Institution Christmas Lectures have presented scientific subjects to a general audience, and speakers have included aerospace engineer Frank Whittle, naturalist David Attenborough and evolutionary biologist Richard Dawkins.[418] Culture Main article: Culture of London Leisure and entertainment See also: List of annual events in London and West End theatre Piccadilly Circus Leisure is a major part of the London economy. A 2003 report attributed a quarter of the entire UK leisure economy to London[419] at 25.6 events per 1000 people.[420] The city is one of the four fashion capitals of the world, and, according to official statistics, is the world's third-busiest film production centre, presents more live comedy than any other city,[421] and has the biggest theatre audience of any city in the world.[422] Harrods in Knightsbridge Within the City of Westminster in London, the entertainment district of the West End has its focus around Leicester Square, where London and world film premieres are held, and Piccadilly Circus, with its giant electronic advertisements.[423] London's theatre district is here, as are many cinemas, bars, clubs, and restaurants, including the city's Chinatown district (in Soho), and just to the east is Covent Garden, an area housing speciality shops. The city is the home of Andrew Lloyd Webber, whose musicals have dominated West End theatre since the late 20th century.[424] Agatha Christie's The Mousetrap, the world's longest-running play, has been performed in the West End since 1952.[425] The Laurence Olivier Awards–named after Laurence Olivier–are given annually by the Society of London Theatre. The Royal Ballet, English National Ballet, Royal Opera, and English National Opera are based in London and perform at the Royal Opera House, the London Coliseum, Sadler's Wells Theatre, and the Royal Albert Hall, as well as touring the country.[426] Scene of the annual Notting Hill Carnival, 2014 Islington's 1 mile (1.6 km) long Upper Street, extending northwards from Angel, has more bars and restaurants than any other street in the UK.[427] Europe's busiest shopping area is Oxford Street, a shopping street nearly 1 mile (1.6 km) long, making it the longest shopping street in the UK. It is home to vast numbers of retailers and department stores, including Selfridges flagship store.[428] Knightsbridge, home to the equally renowned Harrods department store, lies to the south-west. Opened in 1760 with its flagship store on Regent Street since 1881, Hamleys is the oldest toy store in the world.[429] Madame Tussauds wax museum opened in Baker Street in 1835.[430] London is home to designers Vivienne Westwood, Galliano, Stella McCartney, Manolo Blahnik, and Jimmy Choo, among others; its renowned art and fashion schools make it one of the four international centres of fashion. Mary Quant designed the miniskirt in her King's Road boutique in Swinging Sixties London.[431] London offers a great variety of cuisine as a result of its ethnically diverse population. Gastronomic centres include the Bangladeshi restaurants of Brick Lane and the Chinese restaurants of Chinatown.[432] There are Chinese takeaways throughout London, as are Indian restaurants which provide Indian and Anglo-Indian cuisine.[433] Around 1860, the first fish and chips shop in London was opened by Joseph Malin, a Jewish immigrant, in Bow.[387][434] The full English breakfast dates from the Victorian era, and many cafe's in London serve a full English throughout the day.[435] London has five 3-Michelin star restaurants, including Restaurant Gordon Ramsay in Chelsea.[436] Many hotels in London provide a traditional afternoon tea service, such as the Oscar Wilde Lounge at the Hotel Café Royal in Piccadilly, and a themed tea service is also available, for example an Alice in Wonderland themed afternoon tea served at the Egerton House Hotel, and Charlie and the Chocolate Factory themed afternoon tea at One Aldwych in Covent Garden.[437][438][439] The nation's most popular biscuit to dunk in tea, chocolate digestives have been manufactured by McVitie's at their Harlesden factory in north-west London since 1925.[440] Shakespeare's Globe is a modern reconstruction of the Globe Theatre on the south bank of the Thames. There is a variety of annual events, beginning with the relatively new New Year's Day Parade, a fireworks display at the London Eye; the world's second largest street party, the Notting Hill Carnival, is held on the late August Bank Holiday each year. Traditional parades include November's Lord Mayor's Show, a centuries-old event celebrating the annual appointment of a new Lord Mayor of the City of London with a procession along the streets of the city, and June's Trooping the Colour, a formal military pageant performed by regiments of the Commonwealth and British armies to celebrate the Queen's Official Birthday.[441] The Boishakhi Mela is a Bengali New Year festival celebrated by the British Bangladeshi community. It is the largest open-air Asian festival in Europe. After the Notting Hill Carnival, it is the second-largest street festival in the United Kingdom attracting over 80,000 visitors from across the country.[442] First held in 1862, the RHS Chelsea Flower Show (run by the Royal Horticultural Society) takes place over five days in May every year.[443] LGBT scene Comptons of Soho during London Pride in 2010 The first gay bar in London in the modern sense was The Cave of the Golden Calf, established as a night club in an underground location at 9 Heddon Street, just off Regent Street, in 1912 and became a haunt for the wealthy, aristocratic and bohemian.[444] While London has been an LGBT tourism destination, after homosexuality was decriminalized in England in 1967 gay bar culture became more visible, and from the early 1970s Soho (and in particular Old Compton Street) became the centre of the London LGBT community.[445] G-A-Y, previously based at the Astoria, and now Heaven, is a long-running night club.[446] Wider British cultural movements have also influenced LGBT culture: for example, the emergence of glam rock in the UK in the early 1970s, via Marc Bolan and David Bowie, saw a generation of teenagers begin playing with the idea of androgyny, and the West End musical The Rocky Horror Show, which debuted in London in 1973, is also widely said to have been an influence on countercultural and sexual liberation movements.[447] The Blitz Kids (which included Boy George) frequented the Tuesday club-night at Blitz in Covent Garden, helping launch the New Romantic subcultural movement in the late 1970s.[448] Today, the annual London Pride Parade and the London Lesbian and Gay Film Festival are held in the city.[445] Literature, film and television Main articles: London in fiction, London in film, List of television shows set in London, and London Television Archive Sherlock Holmes Museum in Baker Street, bearing the number 221B London has been the setting for many works of literature. The pilgrims in Geoffrey Chaucer's late 14th-century Canterbury Tales set out for Canterbury from London—specifically, from the Tabard inn, Southwark. William Shakespeare spent a large part of his life living and working in London; his contemporary Ben Jonson was also based there, and some of his work, most notably his play The Alchemist, was set in the city.[449] A Journal of the Plague Year (1722) by Daniel Defoe is a fictionalisation of the events of the 1665 Great Plague.[449] The literary centres of London have traditionally been hilly Hampstead and (since the early 20th century) Bloomsbury. Writers closely associated with the city are the diarist Samuel Pepys, noted for his eyewitness account of the Great Fire; Charles Dickens, whose representation of a foggy, snowy, grimy London of street sweepers and pickpockets has been a major influence on people's vision of early Victorian London; and Virginia Woolf, regarded as one of the foremost modernist literary figures of the 20th century.[449] Later important depictions of London from the 19th and early 20th centuries are Arthur Conan Doyle's Sherlock Holmes stories.[449] In 1898, H. G. Wells' sci-fi novel The War of the Worlds sees London (and the south of England) invaded by Martians.[450] Also of significance is Letitia Elizabeth Landon's Calendar of the London Seasons (1834). Modern writers pervasively influenced by the city include Peter Ackroyd, author of a "biography" of London, and Iain Sinclair, who writes in the genre of psychogeography. In the 1940s, George Orwell wrote essays in the London Evening Standard, most notably "A Nice Cup of Tea", which concerned the nation's methods on making tea, and "The Moon Under Water", which provided a detailed description of his ideal pub.[451] In 1958, author Michael Bond created Paddington Bear, a refugee found in London Paddington station by the Brown family who adopt him. Paddington has been adapted for the screen, including Paddington (2014) which features the calypso song "London is the Place for Me".[452] Wikisource has original text related to this article: 'Calendar of the London Seasons', by L. E. L. Opened in 1937, the Odeon cinema in Leicester Square hosts numerous European and world film premieres. London has played a significant role in the film industry. Major studios within or bordering London include Pinewood, Elstree, Ealing, Shepperton, Twickenham, and Leavesden, with the James Bond and Harry Potter series among many notable films produced here.[453][454] Working Title Films has its headquarters in London.[455] A post-production community is centred in Soho, and London houses six of the world’s largest visual effects companies, such as Framestore.[456] The Imaginarium, a digital performance-capture studio, was founded by Andy Serkis.[457] London has been the setting for films including Oliver Twist (1948), Scrooge (1951), Peter Pan (1953), The 101 Dalmatians (1961), My Fair Lady (1964), Mary Poppins (1964), Blowup (1966), A Clockwork Orange (1971), The Long Good Friday (1980), The Great Mouse Detective (1986), Notting Hill (1999), Love Actually (2003), V for Vendetta (2005), Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street (2008) and The King's Speech (2010). Notable actors and filmmakers from London include; Charlie Chaplin, Alfred Hitchcock, Michael Caine, Emma Thompson, Gary Oldman, Guy Ritchie, Christopher Nolan, Alan Rickman, Jude Law, Helena Bonham Carter, Idris Elba, Tom Hardy, Keira Knightley and Daniel Day-Lewis. Ealing comedies have featured Alec Guinness, Hammer Horrors have starred Christopher Lee, while Richard Curtis's rom-coms have featured Hugh Grant. The largest cinema chain in the country, Odeon Cinemas was founded in London in 1928 by Oscar Deutsch.[458] First held in 1949, since 2017 the British Academy Film Awards (BAFTAs) have taken place at the Royal Albert Hall. Founded in 1957, the BFI London Film Festival takes place over two weeks every October.[459] London is a major centre for television production, with studios including Television Centre, ITV Studios, Sky Campus and Fountain Studios; the latter hosted the original talent shows, Pop Idol, The X Factor, and Britain's Got Talent, before each format was exported around the world.[460][461] Formerly a franchise of ITV, Thames Television featured comedians such as Benny Hill and Rowan Atkinson (Mr. Bean was first screened by Thames), while Talkback produced Da Ali G Show which featured Sacha Baron Cohen as Ali G, a faux-streetwise gangster from Staines, west of London.[462] Many television shows have been set in London, including the popular television soap opera EastEnders, broadcast by the BBC since 1985.[463] Museums, art galleries and libraries Aerial view of Albertopolis. The Albert Memorial, Royal Albert Hall, Royal Geographical Society and Royal College of Art are visible near the top; Victoria and Albert Museum and Natural History Museum at the lower end; Imperial College, Royal College of Music, and Science Museum lying in between. London is home to many museums, galleries, and other institutions, many of which are free of admission charges and are major tourist attractions as well as playing a research role. The first of these to be established was the British Museum in Bloomsbury, in 1753.[464] Originally containing antiquities, natural history specimens, and the national library, the museum now has 7 million artefacts from around the globe. In 1824, the National Gallery was founded to house the British national collection of Western paintings; this now occupies a prominent position in Trafalgar Square.[465] The British Library is the second largest library in the world, and the national library of the United Kingdom.[466][467][468] There are many other research libraries, including the Wellcome Library and Dana Centre, as well as university libraries, including the British Library of Political and Economic Science at LSE, the Central Library at Imperial, the Maughan Library at King's, and the Senate House Libraries at the University of London.[469][470] In the latter half of the 19th century the locale of South Kensington was developed as "Albertopolis", a cultural and scientific quarter. Three major national museums are there: the Victoria and Albert Museum (for the applied arts), the Natural History Museum, and the Science Museum. The National Portrait Gallery was founded in 1856 to house depictions of figures from British history; its holdings now comprise the world's most extensive collection of portraits.[471] The national gallery of British art is at Tate Britain, originally established as an annexe of the National Gallery in 1897. The Tate Gallery, as it was formerly known, also became a major centre for modern art. In 2000, this collection moved to Tate Modern, a new gallery housed in the former Bankside Power Station which is accessed by pedestrians north of the Thames via the Millennium Bridge.[472] Music The Royal Albert Hall hosts concerts and musical events, including The Proms which are held every summer, as well as cinema screenings of films accompanied with live orchestral music. London is one of the major classical and popular music capitals of the world and hosts major music corporations, such as Universal Music Group International and Warner Music Group, and countless bands, musicians and industry professionals. The city is also home to many orchestras and concert halls, such as the Barbican Arts Centre (principal base of the London Symphony Orchestra and the London Symphony Chorus), the Southbank Centre (London Philharmonic Orchestra and the Philharmonia Orchestra), Cadogan Hall (Royal Philharmonic Orchestra) and the Royal Albert Hall (The Proms).[426] The Proms, an eight-week summer season of daily orchestral classical music first held in 1895, ends with the Last Night of the Proms (works by Edward Elgar, Henry Wood, Thomas Arne and Hubert Parry feature at the climax). London's two main opera houses are the Royal Opera House and the London Coliseum (home to the English National Opera).[426] The UK's largest pipe organ is at the Royal Albert Hall. Other significant instruments are in cathedrals and major churches—the church bells of St Clement Danes feature in the 1744 nursery rhyme "Oranges and Lemons", and the lyrics journey through churches and bells of 18th century London.[473] Several conservatoires are within the city: Royal Academy of Music, Royal College of Music, Guildhall School of Music and Drama and Trinity Laban. Abbey Road Studios was given grade II listed status for its "cultural and historical importance" in 2010.[474] London has numerous venues for rock and pop concerts, including the world's busiest indoor venue, the O2 Arena,[475] and Wembley Arena, as well as many mid-sized venues, such as Brixton Academy, the Hammersmith Apollo and the Shepherd's Bush Empire.[426] Several music festivals, including the Wireless Festival, Lovebox and Hyde Park's British Summer Time, are held in London.[476] The city is home to the original Hard Rock Cafe and the Abbey Road Studios, where The Beatles recorded many of their hits. In the 1960s, 1970s and 1980s, musicians and groups like Elton John, Pink Floyd, David Bowie, Queen, The Kinks, Cliff Richard, The Rolling Stones, The Who, Eric Clapton, Led Zeppelin, Iron Maiden, T. Rex, Fleetwood Mac, Elvis Costello, Dire Straits, Cat Stevens, The Police, The Cure, Madness, Culture Club, Dusty Springfield, Phil Collins, Rod Stewart, Status Quo and Sade, derived their sound from the streets and rhythms of London.[477][478] London was instrumental in the development of punk music, with figures such as the Sex Pistols, The Clash and fashion designer Vivienne Westwood all based in the city.[479][480] Other artists to emerge from the London music scene include George Michael, Kate Bush, Seal, the Pet Shop Boys, Siouxsie and the Banshees, Bush, the Spice Girls, Jamiroquai, Blur, The Prodigy, Gorillaz, Mumford & Sons, Coldplay, Amy Winehouse, Adele, Sam Smith, Ed Sheeran, Ellie Goulding, Dua Lipa and Florence and the Machine.[481][482] Artists from London with a Caribbean influence include Hot Chocolate, Billy Ocean, Soul II Soul and Eddy Grant, with the latter fusing reggae, soul and samba with rock and pop.[483] London is also a centre for urban music. In particular the genres UK garage, drum and bass, dubstep and grime evolved in the city from the foreign genres of house, hip hop, and reggae, alongside local drum and bass. Music station BBC Radio 1Xtra was set up to support the rise of local urban contemporary music both in London and in the rest of the United Kingdom. The British Phonographic Industry's annual popular music awards, the Brit Awards, are held in London, usually in February.[484] Recreation Parks and open spaces Main articles: Parks and open spaces in London and Royal Parks of London See also: List of Sites of Special Scientific Interest in Greater London and List of local nature reserves in Greater London Hyde Park (with Kensington Gardens in foreground) has been a popular public space since it opened in 1637. A 2013 report by the City of London Corporation said that London is the "greenest city" in Europe with 14,164 hectares (35,000 acres) of public parks, woodlands and gardens.[485] The largest parks in the central area of London are three of the eight Royal Parks, namely Hyde Park and its neighbour Kensington Gardens in the west, and Regent's Park to the north.[486] Hyde Park in particular is popular for sports and sometimes hosts open-air concerts. Regent's Park contains London Zoo, the world's oldest scientific zoo, and is near Madame Tussauds Wax Museum.[487][488] Primrose Hill, immediately to the north of Regent's Park, at 256 feet (78 m)[489] is a popular spot from which to view the city skyline. Close to Hyde Park are smaller Royal Parks, Green Park and St. James's Park.[490] A number of large parks lie outside the city centre, including Hampstead Heath and the remaining Royal Parks of Greenwich Park to the southeast[491] and Bushy Park and Richmond Park (the largest) to the southwest,[492][493] Hampton Court Park is also a royal park, but, because it contains a palace, it is administered by the Historic Royal Palaces, unlike the eight Royal Parks.[494] Close to Richmond Park is Kew Gardens, which has the world's largest collection of living plants. In 2003, the gardens were put on the UNESCO list of World Heritage Sites.[495] There are also parks administered by London's borough Councils, including Victoria Park in the East End and Battersea Park in the centre. Some more informal, semi-natural open spaces also exist, including the 320-hectare (790-acre) Hampstead Heath of North London,[496] and Epping Forest, which covers 2,476 hectares (6,118 acres)[497] in the east. Both are controlled by the City of London Corporation.[498][499] Hampstead Heath incorporates Kenwood House, a former stately home and a popular location in the summer months when classical musical concerts are held by the lake, attracting thousands of people every weekend to enjoy the music, scenery and fireworks.[500] Epping Forest is a popular venue for various outdoor activities, including mountain biking, walking, horse riding, golf, angling, and orienteering.[501] Walking The Horse Ride is a tree tunnel (route overhung by trees) on the western side of Wimbledon Common. Walking is a popular recreational activity in London. Areas that provide for walks include Wimbledon Common, Epping Forest, Hampton Court Park, Hampstead Heath, the eight Royal Parks, canals and disused railway tracks.[502] Access to canals and rivers has improved recently, including the creation of the Thames Path, some 28 miles (45 km) of which is within Greater London, and The Wandle Trail; this runs 12 miles (19 km) through South London along the River Wandle, a tributary of the River Thames.[503] Other long-distance paths, linking green spaces, have also been created, including the Capital Ring, the Green Chain Walk, London Outer Orbital Path ("Loop"), Jubilee Walkway, Lea Valley Walk, and the Diana, Princess of Wales Memorial Walk.[502] Sport Main article: Sport in London Wembley Stadium, home of the England men and women's football team and the FA Cup Final, has a seating capacity of 90,000. It is the UK's biggest stadium.[504] Centre Court at Wimbledon. Held every June and July, Wimbledon is the oldest tennis tournament in the world, and the only major played on grass. Twickenham, home of the England national rugby union team, has a capacity of 82,000 seats. London has hosted the Summer Olympics three times: in 1908, 1948, and 2012,[505][506] making it the first city to host the modern Games three times.[34] The city was also the host of the British Empire Games in 1934.[507] In 2017, London hosted the World Championships in Athletics for the first time.[508] London's most popular sport is football, and it has seven clubs in the Premier League in the 2022–23 season: Arsenal, Brentford, Chelsea, Crystal Palace, Fulham, Tottenham Hotspur, and West Ham United.[509] Other professional men's teams in London are AFC Wimbledon, Barnet, Bromley, Charlton Athletic, Dagenham & Redbridge, Leyton Orient, Millwall, Queens Park Rangers and Sutton United. Four London-based teams are in the Women's Super League: Arsenal, Chelsea, Tottenham and West Ham United. From 1924, the original Wembley Stadium was the home of the English national football team. It hosted the 1966 FIFA World Cup Final, with England defeating West Germany, and served as the venue for the FA Cup Final as well as rugby league's Challenge Cup final.[510] The new Wembley Stadium serves the same purposes and has a capacity of 90,000.[511] The women's team defeated Germany at Wembley to win Euro 2022.[512] Three Premiership Rugby union teams are based in London, Harlequins, London Irish and Saracens.[513] Ealing Trailfinders, London Sottish and Richmond play in the RFU Championship; other rugby union clubs in the city include Scottish, Rosslyn Park F.C., Westcombe Park R.F.C. and Blackheath F.C. Twickenham Stadium in south-west London hosts home matches for the England national rugby union team and has a capacity of 82,000 now that the new south stand has been completed.[514] While rugby league is more popular in the north of England, there are two professional rugby league clubs in London – the London Broncos in the second-tier RFL Championship, who play at the Trailfinders Sports Ground in West Ealing, and the third-tier League 1 team, the London Skolars from Wood Green, Haringey. One of London's best-known annual sports competitions is the Wimbledon Tennis Championships, held at the All England Club in the south-western suburb of Wimbledon since 1877.[515] Played in late June to early July, it is the oldest tennis tournament in the world and widely considered the most prestigious.[516][517][518] Founded in London in 1881, Slazenger has provided tennis balls for Wimbledon since 1902, the oldest sponsorship in sport.[519] London has two Test cricket grounds, Lord's (home of Middlesex C.C.C.) in St John's Wood[520] and the Oval (home of Surrey C.C.C.) in Kennington.[521] Lord's has hosted four finals of the Cricket World Cup and is known as the Home of Cricket.[522] Other key events are the annual mass-participation London Marathon, in which some 35,000 runners attempt a 26.2-mile (42.2 km) course around the city,[523] and the University Boat Race on the Thames from Putney to Mortlake.[524] Notable people Main article: List of people from London See also icon London portal Cities portal flag England portal flag United Kingdom portal Outline of England Outline of London Notes  London region (Greater London administrative area)  See also: Independent city § National capitals  The Greater London Authority consists of the Mayor of London and the London Assembly. The London Mayor is distinguished from the Lord Mayor of London, who heads the City of London Corporation running the City of London.  According to the European Statistical Agency (Eurostat), London had the largest Larger Urban Zone in the EU. Eurostat uses the sum of the populations of the contiguous urban core and the surrounding commuting zone as its definition.  London is not a city in the usual UK sense of having city status granted by the Crown.  According to the Collins English Dictionary definition of 'the seat of government',[163] London is not the capital of England, as England does not have its own government. According to the Oxford English Reference Dictionary[164] definition of 'the most important town' and many other authorities.[165]  Imperial College London was a constituent college of the University of London between 1908 and 2007. Degrees during this time were awarded by the federal university; however, the college now issues its own degrees.  Geographic data related to London at OpenStreetMap Old maps of London, from the Eran Laor Cartographic Collection, National Library of Israel vte History of London Evolution LondiniumLundenwicCity of LondonCity of WestminsterMiddlesexCounty of LondonGreater LondonTimeline Periods Roman LondonAnglo-Saxon LondonNorman and Medieval LondonTudor LondonStuart London 18th-century London19th-century London1900–1939World War II (The Blitz)1945–200021st century Events Peasants' RevoltBlack DeathGreat PlagueGreat Fire1854 cholera outbreakGreat StinkGreat Exhibition1908 Franco-British ExhibitionThe Battle of Cable StreetFestival of BritainGreat SmogAbdication of Edward VIIICoronation of George VI and ElizabethCoronation of Elizabeth IISwinging LondonLondon Plan1966 FIFA World Cup FinalHyde Park and Regent's Park bombingsAnti-war protests7/7 bombingsOlympic Games (190819482012)2012 Summer ParalympicsGrenfell Tower fire cVID-19 pandemicCoronation of Charles III and Camilla Government Historic Metropolitan Board of WorksLondon County CouncilGreater London CouncilCurrent Greater London AuthorityLondon AssemblyMayor of London Politics Parties LabourConservativesLiberal DemocratsLondon independence Services Bow Street RunnersMetropolitan PoliceLondon Ambulance ServiceLondon Fire BrigadePort of London AuthorityLondon sewer systemLondon UndergroundLondon Metropolitan Archives City of London City of London CorporationLord Mayor of the City of LondonWards of the City of LondonGuildhallLivery CompaniesLord Mayor's ShowCity of London PoliceBank of England Structures St Paul's CathedralTower of LondonPalace of WhitehallWestminster HallLondon BridgeTower BridgeWestminster AbbeyBig BenThe MonumentFortifications  Category vte London landmarks Buildings and structures Bridges Albert BridgeBarnes Railway BridgeBattersea BridgeBlackfriars BridgeChelsea BridgeChiswick BridgeFulham Railway BridgeHammersmith BridgeHungerford Bridge and Golden Jubilee BridgesKew BridgeLambeth BridgeLondon BridgeMillennium BridgePutney BridgeSouthwark BridgeTower BridgeVauxhall BridgeWandsworth BridgeWaterloo BridgeWestminster Bridge Entertainment venues Cinemas BFI IMAXEmpire, Leicester SquareOdeon Luxe Leicester Square Football stadia Wembley Stadium (national stadium)Craven Cottage (Fulham)The Den (Millwall)Emirates Stadium (Arsenal)Loftus Road (Queens Park Rangers)London Stadium (West Ham United)Selhurst Park (Crystal Palace)Stamford Bridge (Chelsea)The Valley (Charlton Athletic)Tottenham Hotspur Stadium (Tottenham Hotspur) Other major sports venues All England Lawn Tennis and Croquet ClubThe Championship Course (rowing)Crystal Palace National Sports CentreLord's (cricket)Queen Elizabeth Olympic ParkThe Oval (cricket)Twickenham Stadium (rugby) Theatres AdelphiApollo VictoriaColiseumCriterionDominionLyceumOld VicPalladiumRoyal National TheatreRoyal Opera HouseShakespeare's GlobeTheatre Royal, Drury LaneTheatre Royal HaymarketVaudeville Other Alexandra PalaceBrixton AcademyExCeLHammersmith ApolloThe O2 ArenaRoyal Albert HallRoyal Festival HallWembley Arena Government 10 Downing StreetAdmiralty ArchBank of EnglandCity Hall (Southwark)City Hall (Newham)County HallGuildhallHorse GuardsMansion HouseThe National ArchivesOld BaileyPalace of WestminsterRoyal Courts of JusticeScotland YardSIS BuildingThames House Museums and galleries British MuseumChurchill War RoomsCourtauld GalleryCutty SarkGolden HindeGuildhall Art GalleryHMS BelfastImperial War MuseumMadame TussaudsMuseum of LondonNational GalleryNational Maritime MuseumNational Portrait GalleryNatural History MuseumRoyal Academy of ArtsRoyal ObservatoryScience MuseumTate BritainTate ModernTower of LondonVictoria and Albert MuseumWallace CollectionYoung V&A Places of worship All Hallows-by-the-TowerBAPS Shri Swaminarayan MandirBevis Marks SynagogueMethodist Central HallRegent's Park MosqueSt Clement DanesSt Margaret's, WestminsterSt Martin-in-the-FieldsSt Mary-le-BowSt Paul's CathedralSouthwark CathedralWestminster AbbeyWestminster Cathedral Retailing Shops Fortnum & MasonHamleysHarrodsHarvey NicholsHatchardsLibertyPeter JonesSelfridges Shopping centres and markets Borough MarketBrent CrossBurlington ArcadeCamden MarketKensington ArcadeLeadenhall MarketOne New ChangePetticoat Lane MarketRoyal ExchangeWestfield LondonWestfield Stratford City Royal buildings Partly occupied by the royal family Buckingham PalaceClarence HouseKensington PalaceSt James's Palace Unoccupied Banqueting HouseHampton Court PalaceKew PalaceThe Queen's GalleryRoyal Mews, Buckingham Palace Skyscrapers One Canada SquareOne Churchill Place8 Canada Square20 Fenchurch Street30 St Mary Axe122 Leadenhall StreetBroadgate TowerCitigroup CentreHeron TowerThe ShardSt George Wharf TowerTower 42 Structures Albert MemorialArcelorMittal OrbitBig BenThe CenotaphCleopatra's NeedleCrystal Palace transmitting stationLondon EyeLondon WallMarble ArchMonument to the Great Fire of LondonNelson's ColumnShaftesbury Memorial Fountain ("Eros")Thames BarrierWellington Arch Transport City AirportHeathrow AirportBlackfriars stationCannon Street stationCharing Cross stationClapham Junction stationEuston stationFenchurch Street stationKing's Cross stationLiverpool Street stationLondon Bridge stationPaddington stationSt Pancras stationStratford stationVictoria stationWaterloo stationLondon Cable CarVictoria Coach Station Other Barbican EstateBattersea Power StationBritish LibraryBT TowerKew GardensLambeth PalaceLloyd's buildingLondon ZooOxo TowerSmithfield MarketSomerset HouseSt Bartholomew's Hospital Parks Royal Parks Bushy ParkGreen ParkGreenwich ParkHampton Court ParkHyde ParkKensington GardensRegent's ParkRichmond ParkSt James's Park Other Battersea ParkBurgess ParkClapham CommonCollege GreenEpping ForestFinsbury ParkGunnersbury ParkHampstead HeathHolland ParkKew GardensMitcham CommonOsterley ParkTrent ParkVictoria ParkWandsworth CommonWimbledon Common Squares and public spaces Covent GardenHorse Guards ParadeLeicester SquareParliament SquarePiccadilly CircusSloane SquareTrafalgar Square Streets AldwychBaker StreetBishopsgateBond StreetCarnaby StreetCharing Cross RoadCheapsideCornhillDenmark StreetFenchurch StreetFleet StreetHaymarketJermyn StreetKensington High StreetKing's RoadLombard StreetThe MallOxford StreetPark LanePiccadillyPortobello RoadRegent StreetShaftesbury AvenueSloane StreetStrandTottenham Court RoadVictoria EmbankmentWhitehall vte Areas of London Central activities zone BloomsburyCity of London wardsHolbornMaryleboneMayfairPaddingtonPimlicoSohoSouthwarkVauxhallWaterlooWestminster Town centre network International KnightsbridgeWest End Metropolitan BromleyCroydonEalingHarrowHounslowIlfordKingstonRomfordShepherd's BushStratfordSuttonUxbridgeWood Green Major AngelBarkingBexleyheathBrixtonCamden TownCanary WharfCatfordChiswickClapham JunctionDalstonEast HamEdgwareElthamEnfield 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right: aerial view of Christ the Redeemer on Corcovado and Sugarloaf Mountain and Botafogo Bay in the background; Barra da Tijuca seen from Pedra da Gávea; Museum of Tomorrow; Maracanã Stadium at dusk; Rio-Niterói Bridge with Guanabara Bay in the background; panorama of the buildings of the Downtown, with the Metropolitan Cathedral in the middle Flag of Rio de Janeiro Flag Coat of arms of Rio de Janeiro Coat of arms Nickname: Cidade Maravilhosa (Marvellous City) Princesa Maravilhosa (Marvellous Princess) Cidade dos Brasileiros (City of Brazilians) Location in the state of Rio de Janeiro Location in the state of Rio de Janeiro Rio de Janeiro is located in BrazilRio de JaneiroRio de Janeiro Location within Brazil Show map of Brazil Show map of South America Show all Coordinates: 22°54′41″S 43°12′21″WCoordinates: 22°54′41″S 43°12′21″W Country Brazil Region Southeast State Rio de Janeiro Historic countries Kingdom of Portugal United Kingdom of Portugal, Brazil and the Algarves Empire of Brazil Settled 1555; 467 years ago Founded March 1, 1565; 457 years ago[1] Named for Saint Sebastian Government  • Type Mayor-council  • Body Municipal Chamber of Rio de Janeiro  • Mayor Eduardo Paes (PSD)  • Vice Mayor Nilton Caldeira (PL) Area  • Municipality 1,221 km2 (486.5 sq mi)  • Metro 4,539.8 km2 (1,759.6 sq mi) Elevation 2 m (7 ft) Highest elevation 1,020 m (3,349 ft) Lowest elevation 0 m (0 ft) Population (2020)[2]  • Municipality 6,747,815  • Rank 2nd  • Urban 11,616,000  • Metro 12,280,702 (2nd)  • Metro density 2,705.1/km2 (7,006/sq mi) Demonym Carioca Time zone UTC−3 (BRT) Postal Code 20000-001 to 23799-999 Area code 21 HDI (2010) 0.799 – high[3] Nominal 2018 US$ 93.9 billion (2nd)[4] Per Capita US$14,046 (2nd) Website prefeitura.rio UNESCO World Heritage Site Official name Rio de Janeiro: Carioca Landscapes between the Mountain and the Sea Type Cultural Criteria vi Designated 2012 (36th session) Reference no. 1100 Rio de Janeiro (UK: /ˈriːoʊ də dʒəˈnɪəroʊ/ REE-oh də jə-NEER-oh, US: /ˈriːoʊ diː ʒəˈnɛəroʊ/ REE-oh dee zhə-NAIR-oh, Portuguese: [ˈʁi.u d(ʒi) ʒɐˈne(j)ɾu] (listen);[a] literally 'River of January'), or simply Rio,[6] is the capital of the state of the same name, Brazil's third-most populous state, and the second-most populous city in Brazil, after São Paulo. Listed by the GaWC as a beta global city, Rio de Janeiro is the sixth-most populous city in the Americas. Part of the city has been designated as a World Heritage Site, named "Rio de Janeiro: Carioca Landscapes between the Mountain and the Sea", on 1 July 2012 as a Cultural Landscape.[7] Founded in 1565 by the Portuguese, the city was initially the seat of the Captaincy of Rio de Janeiro, a domain of the Portuguese Empire. In 1763, it became the capital of the State of Brazil, a state of the Portuguese Empire. In 1808, when the Portuguese Royal Court moved to Brazil, Rio de Janeiro became the seat of the court of Queen Maria I of Portugal. She subsequently, under the leadership of her son the prince regent João VI of Portugal, raised Brazil to the dignity of a kingdom, within the United Kingdom of Portugal, Brazil, and Algarves. Rio remained as the capital of the pluricontinental Lusitanian monarchy until 1822, when the Brazilian War of Independence began. This is one of the few instances in history that the capital of a colonizing country officially shifted to a city in one of its colonies. Rio de Janeiro subsequently served as the capital of the independent monarchy, the Empire of Brazil, until 1889, and then the capital of a republican Brazil until 1960 when the capital was transferred to Brasília. Rio de Janeiro has the second-largest municipal GDP in the country,[8] and 30th-largest in the world in 2008.[9] This is estimated at R$343 billion (nearly US$201 billion). It is headquarters to Brazilian oil, mining, and telecommunications companies, including two of the country's major corporations, Petrobras and Vale, and Latin America's largest telemedia conglomerate, Grupo Globo. The home of many universities and institutes, it is the second-largest center of research and development in Brazil, accounting for 17 percent of national scientific output according to 2005 data.[10] Despite the high perception of crime, the city actually has a lower incidence of crime than most state capitals in Brazil.[11] Rio de Janeiro is one of the most visited cities in the Southern Hemisphere and is known for its natural settings, carnival, samba, bossa nova, and balneario beaches[12] such as Barra da Tijuca, Copacabana, Ipanema, and Leblon. In addition to the beaches, some of the most famous landmarks include the giant statue of Christ the Redeemer atop Corcovado mountain, named one of the New Seven Wonders of the World; Sugarloaf Mountain with its cable car; the Sambódromo (Sambadrome), a permanent grandstand-lined parade avenue which is used during Carnival; and Maracanã Stadium, one of the world's largest football stadiums. Rio de Janeiro was the host of the 2016 Summer Olympics and the 2016 Summer Paralympics, making the city the first South American and Portuguese-speaking city to ever host the events, and the third time the Olympics were held in a Southern Hemisphere city.[13] The Maracanã Stadium held the finals of the 1950 and 2014 FIFA World Cups, the 2013 FIFA Confederations Cup, and the XV Pan American Games. History Main articles: History of Rio de Janeiro and Timeline of Rio de Janeiro Historical affiliations Portugal Portuguese Empire 1565–1815  United Kingdom of Portugal, Brazil and the Algarves 1815–1822  Empire of Brazil 1822–1889 Brazil Republic of Brazil 1889–present Pre-Colonial period The region of Rio was inhabited by the Tupi, Puri, Botocudo and Maxakalí peoples.[14] Colonial period Founding of Rio de Janeiro on 1 March 1565 Europeans first encountered Guanabara Bay on 1 January 1502 (hence Rio de Janeiro, "January River"), during a Portuguese expedition under explorer Gaspar de Lemos, captain of a ship in Pedro Álvares Cabral's fleet, or under Gonçalo Coelho.[15] Allegedly the Florentine explorer Amerigo Vespucci participated as observer at the invitation of King Manuel I in the same expedition. In 1555, one of the islands of Guanabara Bay, now called Villegagnon Island, was occupied by 500 French colonists under the French admiral Nicolas Durand de Villegaignon. Consequently, Villegagnon built Fort Coligny on the island when attempting to establish the France Antarctique colony. Eventually this French settlement became too much of a threat to the established Portuguese colony and in 1560 the order was made to get rid of them. A years-long military aggression was then initiated by the new Governor General of Brazil Mem De Sa, and later continued by his nephew Estacio De Sa. On 20 January 1567, a final defeat was imposed on the French forces and they were decisively expelled from Brazil for good. The city of Rio de Janeiro proper was founded on 1 March 1565 by the Portuguese, led by Estácio de Sá, including Antônio de Mariz [pt]. It was named São Sebastião do Rio de Janeiro, in honor of St. Sebastian, the saint who was the namesake and patron of the Portuguese then-monarch Sebastião. Rio de Janeiro was the name of Guanabara Bay. Until early in the 18th century, the city was threatened or invaded by several mostly French pirates and buccaneers, such as Jean-François Duclerc and René Duguay-Trouin.[16] In the late 17th century, still during the Sugar Era, the Bandeirantes discovered gold and diamonds in the neighboring captaincy of Minas Gerais, thus Rio de Janeiro became a much more practical port for exporting wealth (gold, precious stones, besides the sugar) than Salvador, Bahia, much farther northeast. On 27 January 1763,[17] the colonial administration in Portuguese America was moved from Salvador to Rio de Janeiro. The city remained primarily a colonial capital until 1808, when the Portuguese royal family and most of the associated Lisbon nobles, fleeing from Napoleon's invasion of Portugal, moved to Rio de Janeiro. Portuguese court and imperial capital Rio de Janeiro, then de facto capital of the Portuguese Empire, as seen from the terrace of the Convento de Santo Antônio (Convent of St. Anthony), c. 1816 The kingdom's capital was transferred to the city, which, thus, became the only European capital outside of Europe. As there was no physical space or urban structure to accommodate hundreds of noblemen who arrived suddenly, many inhabitants were simply evicted from their homes.[18] In the first decade, several educational establishments were created, such as the Military Academy, the Royal School of Sciences, Arts and Crafts and the Imperial Academy of Fine Arts, as well as the National Library of Brazil – with the largest collection in Latin America[19] – and The Botanical Garden. The first printed newspaper in Brazil, the Gazeta do Rio de Janeiro, came into circulation during this period.[20] When Brazil was elevated to Kingdom in 1815, it became the capital of the United Kingdom of Portugal, Brazil and the Algarves until the return of the Portuguese Royal Family to Lisbon in 1821, but remained as capital of the Kingdom of Brazil.[21] From the colonial period until the first independent era, Rio de Janeiro was a city of slaves. There was a large influx of African slaves to Rio de Janeiro: in 1819, there were 145,000 slaves in the captaincy. In 1840, the number of slaves reached 220,000 people.[22] Between 1811 and 1831, 500,000 to a million slaves arrived in Rio de Janeiro through Valongo Wharf, which is now a World Heritage Site.[23] The Port of Rio de Janeiro was the largest port of slaves in America.[24] When Prince Pedro proclaimed the independence of Brazil in 1822, he decided to keep Rio de Janeiro as the capital of his new empire while the place was enriched with sugar cane agriculture in the Campos region and, especially, with the new coffee cultivation in the Paraíba Valley.[21] In order to separate the province from the capital of the Empire, the city was converted in Neutral Municipality in 1834, passing the province of Rio de Janeiro to have Niterói as capital.[21] Botafogo Bay in 1869 Botafogo Bay in 1889 As a political center of the country, Rio concentrated the political-partisan life of the Empire. It was the main stage of the abolitionist and republican movements in the last half of the 19th century.[21] At that time the number of slaves was drastically reduced and the city was developed, with modern drains, animal trams, train stations crossing the city, gas and electric lighting, telephone and telegraph wiring, water and river plumbing.[21] Rio continued as the capital of Brazil after 1889, when the monarchy was replaced by a republic. On 6 February 1889 the Bangu Textile Factory was founded, with the name of Industrial Progress Company of Brazil (Companhia Progresso Industrial do Brasil). The factory was officially opened on 8 March 1893, in a complex with varying architectural styles like Italianate, Neo-Gothic and a tower in Mansard Roof style. After the opening in 1893, workers from Great Britain arrived in Bangu to work in the textile factory. The old farms became worker villages with red-bricks houses, and a neo-gothic church was created, which still exists as the Saint Sebastian and Saint Cecilia Parish Church. Street cinemas and cultural buildings also appeared. In May 1894, Thomas Donohoe, a British worker from Busby, Scotland, arrived in Bangu.[25] Donohoe was amazed to discover that there was absolutely no knowledge of football among Brazilians. So he wrote to his wife, Elizabeth, asking her to bring a football when she joined him. And shortly after her arrival, in September 1894, the first football match in Brazil took place in the field beside the textile factory. It was a five-a-side match between British workers, and took place six months before the first game organized by Charles Miller in São Paulo. However, the Bangu Football Club was not formally created until 1904.[26] Republican period Rio de Janeiro, c. 1910s The Sugarloaf cable car between the 1940s and 1950s A convoy of tanks along the streets of the city in 1968 during the military rule. At the time, Rio de Janeiro was a city-state, capital of Guanabara. At the time Brazil's Old Republic was established, the city lacked urban planning and sanitation, which helped spread several diseases, such as yellow fever, dysentery, variola, tuberculosis and even black death. Pereira Passos, who was named mayor in 1902, imposed reforms to modernize the city, demolishing the cortiços where most of the poor population lived. These people, mostly descendants of slaves, then moved to live in the city's hills, creating the first favelas.[27] Inspired by the city of Paris, Passos built the Municipal Theatre, the National Museum of Fine Arts and the National Library in the city's center; brought electric power to Rio and created larger avenues to adapt the city to automobiles.[28] Passos also named Dr. Oswaldo Cruz as Director General of Public Health. Cruz's plans to clean the city of diseases included compulsory vaccination of the entire population and forced entry into houses to kill mosquitos and rats. The people of the city rebelled against Cruz's policy, in what would be known as the Vaccine Revolt.[29] In 1910, Rio saw the Revolt of the Lash, where Afro-Brazilian crew members in the Brazilian Navy mutinied against the heavy use of corporal punishment, which was similar to the punishment slaves received. The mutineers took control of the battleship Minas Geraes and threatened to fire on the city. Another military revolt occurred in 1922, the 18 of the Copacabana Fort revolt, a march against the Old Republic's coronelism and café com leite politics. This revolt marked the beginning of Tenentism, a movement that resulted in the Brazilian Revolution of 1930 that started the Vargas Era. Until the early years of the 20th century, the city was largely limited to the neighborhood now known as the historic city center (see below), on the mouth of Guanabara Bay. The city's center of gravity began to shift south and west to the so-called Zona Sul (South Zone) in the early part of the 20th century, when the first tunnel was built under the mountains between Botafogo and the neighborhood that is now known as Copacabana. Expansion of the city to the north and south was facilitated by the consolidation and electrification of Rio's streetcar transit system after 1905.[30] Botafogo's natural environment, combined with the fame of the Copacabana Palace Hotel, the luxury hotel of the Americas in the 1930s, helped Rio to gain the reputation it still holds today as a beach party town. This reputation has been somewhat tarnished in recent years by favela violence resulting from the narcotics trade and militias.[31] Plans for moving the nation's capital city from Rio de Janeiro to the center of Brazil had been occasionally discussed, and when Juscelino Kubitschek was elected president in 1955, it was partially on the strength of promises to build a new capital.[32] Though many thought that it was just campaign rhetoric, Kubitschek managed to have Brasília and a new Federal District built, at great cost, by 1960. On 21 April of that year, the capital of Brazil was officially moved to Brasília. The territory of the former Federal District became its own state, Guanabara, after the bay that borders it to the east, encompassing just the city of Rio de Janeiro. After the 1964 coup d'état that installed a military dictatorship, the city-state was the only state left in Brazil to oppose the military. Then, in 1975, a presidential decree known as "The Fusion" removed the city's federative status and merged it with the State of Rio de Janeiro, with the city of Rio de Janeiro replacing Niterói as the state's capital, and establishing the Rio de Janeiro Metropolitan Region.[33] In 1992, Rio hosted the Earth Summit, a United Nations conference to fight environmental degradation. Twenty years later, in 2012, the city hosted another conference on sustainable development, named United Nations Conference on Sustainable Development. The city hosted the World Youth Day in 2013, the second World Youth Day in South America and first in Brazil. In the sports field, Rio de Janeiro was the host of the 2007 Pan American Games and the 2014 FIFA World Cup Final. On 2 October 2009, the International Olympic Committee announced that Rio de Janeiro would host the 2016 Olympic Games and the 2016 Paralympic Games, beating competitors Chicago, Tokyo, and Madrid. The city became the first South American city to host the event and the second Latin American city (after Mexico City in 1968) to host the Games. Geography Main article: Geography of Rio de Janeiro Satellite view of Greater Rio de Janeiro at night seen from ISS Rio de Janeiro is on the far western part of a strip of Brazil's Atlantic coast (between a strait east to Ilha Grande, on the Costa Verde, and the Cabo Frio), close to the Tropic of Capricorn, where the shoreline is oriented east–west. Facing largely south, the city was founded on an inlet of this stretch of the coast, Guanabara Bay (Baía de Guanabara), and its entrance is marked by a point of land called Sugar Loaf (Pão de Açúcar) – a "calling card" of the city.[34] The center (Centro), the core of Rio, lies on the plains of the western shore of Guanabara Bay. The greater portion of the city, commonly referred to as the North Zone (Zona Norte, Rio de Janeiro [pt]), extends to the northwest on plains composed of marine and continental sediments and on hills and several rocky mountains. The South Zone (Zona Sul) of the city, reaching the beaches fringing the open sea, is cut off from the center and from the North Zone by coastal mountains. These mountains and hills are offshoots of the Serra do Mar to the northwest, the ancient gneiss-granite mountain chain that forms the southern slopes of the Brazilian Highlands. The large West Zone (Zona Oeste), long cut off by the mountainous terrain, had been made more easily accessible to those on the South Zone by new roads and tunnels by the end of the 20th century.[35] The population of the city of Rio de Janeiro, occupying an area of 1,182.3 square kilometers (456.5 sq mi),[36] is about 6,000,000.[37] The population of the greater metropolitan area is estimated at 11–13.5 million. Residents of the city are known as cariocas. The official song of Rio is "Cidade Maravilhosa", by composer André Filho. Parks Parque Lage with Corcovado in the background Arches in the Botanical Garden Rodrigo de Freitas Lagoon The city has parks and ecological reserves such as the Tijuca National Park, the world's first urban forest and UNESCO Environmental Heritage and Biosphere Reserve; Pedra Branca State Park, which houses the highest point of Rio de Janeiro, the peak of Pedra Branca; the Quinta da Boa Vista complex; the Botanical Garden;[38] Rio's Zoo; Parque Lage; and the Passeio Público, the first public park in the Americas.[39] In addition the Flamengo Park is the largest landfill in the city, extending from the center to the south zone, and containing museums and monuments, in addition to much vegetation. Since 1961, the Tijuca National Park (Parque Nacional da Tijuca), the largest city-surrounded urban forest and the second largest urban forest in the world, has been a National Park. The largest urban forest in the world is the Floresta da Pedra Branca (White Rock Forest), which is located in the West Zone of Rio de Janeiro.[40] Environment Due to the high concentration of industries in the metropolitan region, the city has faced serious problems of environmental pollution. The Guanabara Bay has lost mangrove areas and suffers from residues from domestic and industrial sewage, oils and heavy metals. Although its waters renew when they reach the sea, the bay is the final receiver of all the tributaries generated along its banks and in the basins of the many rivers and streams that flow into it. The levels of particulate matter in the air are twice as high as that recommended by the World Health Organization, in part because of the large numbers of vehicles in circulation.[41] The waters of Sepetiba Bay are slowly following the path traced by Guanabara Bay, with sewage generated by a population of the order of 1.29 million inhabitants being released without treatment in streams or rivers. With regard to industrial pollution, highly toxic wastes, with high concentrations of heavy metals – mainly zinc and cadmium – have been dumped over the years by factories in the industrial districts of Santa Cruz, Itaguaí and Nova Iguaçu, constructed under the supervision of State policies.[42] The Marapendi lagoon and the Rodrigo de Freitas Lagoon have suffered with the leniency of the authorities and the growth in the number of apartment buildings close by. The illegal discharge of sewage and the consequent deaths of alge diminished the oxygenation of the waters, causing fish mortality.[43][44] There are, on the other hand, signs of decontamination in the lagoon made through a public-private partnership established in 2008 to ensure that the lagoon waters will eventually be suitable for bathing. The decontamination actions involve the transfer of sludge to large craters present in the lagoon itself, and the creation of a new direct and underground connection with the sea, which will contribute to increase the daily water exchange between the two environments. However, during the Olympics the lagoon hosted the rowing competitions and there were numerous concerns about potential infection resulting from human sewage.[45] Panorama of the city of Rio de Janeiro highlighting the mountains of Corcovado (left), Sugarloaf (center, background) and Two Brothers (right), from the Chinese Belvedere Climate Night storm with lightning in Rio de Janeiro, view from Sugarloaf Mountain Copacabana Beach on a sunny day Rio has a tropical savanna climate (Aw) that closely borders a tropical monsoon climate (Am) according to the Köppen climate classification, and is often characterized by long periods of heavy rain between December and March.[46] The city experiences hot, humid summers, and warm, sunny winters. In inland areas of the city, temperatures above 40 °C (104 °F) are common during the summer, though rarely for long periods, while maximum temperatures above 27 °C (81 °F) can occur on a monthly basis. Along the coast, the breeze, blowing onshore and offshore, moderates the temperature. Because of its geographic situation, the city is often reached by cold fronts advancing from Antarctica, especially during autumn and winter, causing frequent weather changes. In summer there can be strong rains, which have, on some occasions, provoked catastrophic floods and landslides. The mountainous areas register greater rainfall since they constitute a barrier to the humid wind that comes from the Atlantic.[47] The city has had rare frosts in the past. Some areas within Rio de Janeiro state occasionally have falls of snow grains and ice pellets (popularly called granizo) and hail.[48][49][50] Drought is very rare, albeit bound to happen occasionally given the city's strongly seasonal tropical climate. The Brazilian drought of 2014–2015, most severe in the Southeast Region and the worst in decades, affected the entire metropolitan region's water supply (a diversion from the Paraíba do Sul River to the Guandu River is a major source for the state's most populous mesoregion). There were plans to divert the Paraíba do Sul to the Sistema Cantareira (Cantareira system) during the water crisis of 2014 in order to help the critically drought-stricken Greater São Paulo area. However, availability of sufficient rainfall to supply tap water to both metropolitan areas in the future is merely speculative.[51][52][53] Roughly in the same suburbs (Nova Iguaçu and surrounding areas, including parts of Campo Grande and Bangu) that correspond to the location of the March 2012, February–March 2013 and January 2015 pseudo-hail (granizo) falls, there was a tornado-like phenomenon in January 2011, for the first time in the region's recorded history, causing structural damage and long-lasting blackouts, but no fatalities.[54][55] The World Meteorological Organization has advised that Brazil, especially its southeastern region, must be prepared for increasingly severe weather occurrences in the near future, since events such as the catastrophic January 2011 Rio de Janeiro floods and mudslides are not an isolated phenomenon. In early May 2013, winds registering above 90 km/h (56 mph) caused blackouts in 15 neighborhoods of the city and three surrounding municipalities, and killed one person.[56] Rio saw similarly high winds (about 100 km/h (62 mph)) in January 2015.[57] The average annual minimum temperature is 21 °C (70 °F),[58] the average annual maximum temperature is 27 °C (81 °F),[59] and the average annual temperature is 24 °C (75 °F).[60] The average yearly precipitation is 1,069 mm (42.1 in).[61] Sugarloaf Cable Car approaching the summit Temperature also varies according to elevation, distance from the coast, and type of vegetation or land use. During the winter, cold fronts and dawn/morning sea breezes bring mild temperatures; cold fronts, the Intertropical Convergence Zone (in the form of winds from the Amazon Forest), the strongest sea-borne winds (often from an extratropical cyclone) and summer evapotranspiration bring showers or storms. Thus the monsoon-like climate has dry and mild winters and springs, and very wet and warm summers and autumns. As a result, temperatures over 40 °C (104 °F), that may happen about year-round but are much more common during the summer, often mean the actual "feels-like" temperature is over 50 °C (122 °F), when there is little wind and the relative humidity percentage is high.[62][63][64][65] Between 1961 and 1990, at the INMET (Brazilian National Institute of Meteorology) conventional station in the neighborhood of Saúde, the lowest temperature recorded was 10.1 °C (50.2 °F) in October 1977,[66] and the highest temperature recorded was 39 °C (102.2 °F) in December 1963.[67] The highest accumulated rainfall in 24 hours was 167.4 mm (6.6 in) in January 1962.[68] However, the absolute minimum temperature ever recorded at the INMET Jacarepaguá station was 3.8 °C (38.8 °F) in July 1974,[66] while the absolute maximum was 43.2 °C (110 °F) on 26 December 2012[69] in the neighborhood of the Santa Cruz station. The highest accumulated rainfall in 24 hours, 186.2 mm (7.3 in), was recorded at the Santa Teresa station in April 1967.[68] The lowest temperature ever registered in the 21st century was 8.1 °C (46.6 °F) in Vila Militar, July 2011.[70] Ethnic groups The census revealed the following numbers: 3,239,888 White people (51.2%), 2,318,675 Pardo (multiracial) people (36.5%), 708,148 Black people (11.5%), 45,913 Asian people (0.7%), 5,981 Amerindian people (0.1%).[77] The population of Rio de Janeiro was 53.2% female and 46.8% male.[77] The black community was formed by residents whose ancestors had been brought as slaves, mostly from Angola and Mozambique, as well by people of Angolan, Mozambican and West African descent who moved to Rio from other parts of Brazil. The samba (from Bahia with Angolan influence) and the famous local version of the carnival (from Europe) first appeared under the influence of the black community in the city. Today, nearly half of the city's population is by phenotype perceptibly black or part black.[78] A large majority has some recent sub-Saharan ancestor. White in Brazil is defined more by having a European-looking phenotype rather than ancestry, and two full siblings can be of different "racial" categories[79] in a skin color and phenotype continuum from pálido (branco) or fair-skinned, through branco moreno or swarthy Caucasian, mestiço claro or lighter skinned multiracial, pardo (mixed race) to negro or black. Pardo, for example, in popular usage includes those who are caboclos (mestizos), mulatos (mulattoes), cafuzos (zambos), juçaras (archaic term for tri-racials) and westernized Amerindians (which are called caboclos as well), being more of a skin color rather than a racial group in particular. Immigration and migration Main article: Immigration to Brazil Race and ethnicity in Rio de Janeiro Ethnicity Percentage White 51.2% Pardo (Multiracial) 36.5% Black 11.5% Asian 0.7% Amerindian 0.1% Different ethnic groups contributed to the formation of the population of Rio de Janeiro. Before European colonization, there were at least seven different indigenous peoples speaking 20 languages in the region. A part of them joined the Portuguese and the other the French. Those who joined the French were then exterminated by the Portuguese, while the other part was assimilated.[80] Rio de Janeiro is home to the largest Portuguese population outside of Lisbon in Portugal.[81] After independence from Portugal, Rio de Janeiro became a destination for hundreds of thousands of immigrants from Portugal, mainly in the early 20th century. The immigrants were mostly poor peasants who subsequently found prosperity in Rio as city workers and small traders.[82] Portuguese immigrant in Rio de Janeiro, considered the largest "Portuguese city" outside Portugal[83] The Portuguese cultural influence is still seen in many parts of the city (and many other parts of the state of Rio de Janeiro), including architecture and language. Most Brazilians with some cultural contact with Rio know how to easily differentiate between the local dialect, fluminense, and other Brazilian dialects. People of Portuguese ancestry predominate in most of the state. The Brazilian census of 1920 showed that 39.7% of the Portuguese who lived in Brazil lived in Rio de Janeiro. Including all of the Rio de Janeiro, the proportion raised to 46.3% of the Portuguese who lived in Brazil. The numerical presence of the Portuguese was extremely high, accounting for 72% of the foreigners who lived in the capital. Portuguese born people accounted for 20.4% of the population of Rio, and those with a Portuguese father or a Portuguese mother accounted for 30.8%. In other words, native born Portuguese and their children accounted for 51.2% of the inhabitants of Rio, or a total of 267,664 people in 1890.[84] Rio de Janeiro city (1890) Group Population Percentage[85] Portuguese immigrants 106,461 20.4% Brazilians with at least one Portuguese parent 161,203 30.8% Portuguese immigrants and their descendants 267,664 51.2% As a result of the influx of immigrants to Brazil from the late 19th to the early 20th century, also found in Rio de Janeiro and its metropolitan area are communities of Levantine Arabs who are mostly Christian or Irreligious, Spaniards, Italians, Germans, Japanese,[86] Jews, and people from other parts of Brazil. The main waves of internal migration came from people of African, mixed or older Portuguese (as descendants of early settlers) descent from Minas Gerais and people of Eastern European, Swiss, Italian, German, Portuguese and older Portuguese-Brazilian heritage from Espírito Santo in the early and mid-20th century, together with people with origins in Northeastern Brazil, in the mid-to-late and late 20th century, as well some in the early 21st century (the latter more directed to peripheries than the city's core). Genomic ancestry of non-related individuals in Rio de Janeiro[87] Race or skin color Number of individuals Amerindian African European White 107 6.7% 6.9% 86.4% Pardo (Mixed race) 119 8.3% 23.6% 68.1% Black 109 7.3% 50.9% 41.8% According to an autosomal DNA study from 2009, conducted on a school in the poor suburb of Rio de Janeiro, the "pardos" there were found to be on average about 80% European, and the "whites" (who thought of themselves as "very mixed") were found to carry very little Amerindian and/or African admixtures. The results of the tests of genomic ancestry are quite different from the self made estimates of European ancestry. In general, the test results showed that European ancestry is far more important than the students thought it would be. The "pardos" for example thought of themselves as 1⁄3 European, 1⁄3 African and 1⁄3 Amerindian before the tests, and yet their ancestry on average reached 80% European.[88][89] Other studies showed similar results[87][90] Religion Religion in Rio de Janeiro (2010 Census)[91] Religion Percent Roman Catholicism 51.1% Protestantism 23.4% Other Christian 2.4% No religion 13.6% Spiritism 5.9% Others 3.6% See also: Religion in Brazil, Protestantism in Brazil, and Roman Catholic Church in Brazil Christ the Redeemer Religion in Rio de Janeiro is diverse, with Catholic Christianity being the majority religion. According to data from the Brazilian Institute of Geography and Statistics (IBGE), in 2010 the population of Rio de Janeiro had 3,229,192 Roman Catholics (51.1%), 1,477,021 Protestants (23.4%), 372.851 Spiritists (5.9 percent), 37,974 Jehovah's Witnesses (0.6 percent), 75,075 Buddhists (0.2 percent), 52,213 Umbanda (0.8 percent), 21,800 Jews (0.3 percent), 25,743 Brazilian Catholic Apostolic Church (0.4%), 16,776 new eastern religious (0.2%), 28,843 Candomblé (0.4%), 3,853 Mormons (<0.1%), 5,751 Eastern Orthodox Christians (<0.1%), 7,394 spiritualists (0.1%), 964 Muslims (<0.1%), 5,662 esoteric (<0.1%), 802 were Hindu (<0.1%).Others 858,704 had no religion (13.5%), and 113,530 followed other forms of Christianity (1.8%).[91] Rio de Janeiro has had a rich and influential Catholic tradition. The Roman Catholic Archdiocese of São Sebastião do Rio de Janeiro is the second largest archdiocese in Brazil after São Paulo.[92] The Rio de Janeiro Cathedral was inaugurated in 1979, in the central region of the city. Its installations have a collection of great historical and religious value: the Archdiocesan Museum of Sacred Art and the Archdiocesan Archive.[93] In a Contemporary architecture, it has a conical shape, with 96 meters of internal diameter and capacity to receive up to 20 thousand faithful. The splendor of the building, with straight and sober lines, is due to the changing stained glass windows carved on the walls up to the dome. Its design and execution was coordinated by Monsignor Ivo Antônio Calliari (1918–2005).[93] Saint Sebastian is recognized as the city's patron saint, which is why it received the canonical name of "Saint Sebastian of Rio de Janeiro."[94] Many Protestant creeds coexist in the city, Presbyterian, Congregational, Lutheran and Anglican Churches. In addition to evangelical churches such as the Baptist, Methodist, Seventh-day Adventist and Pentecostal churches, such as the Universal Church of the Kingdom of God, Assembly of God, Christian Congregation in Brazil and The Foursquare Church.[91] Afro-Brazilian religions such as Umbanda and Candomblé find support in various social segments, although professed by less than 2% of the population, many Cariocas simultaneously observe those practices with Roman Catholicism.[91][95] Education Main article: List of Rio de Janeiro schools, colleges, universities and research centers Center for Human Science of the Federal University of the State of Rio de Janeiro The Portuguese language is the official and national language, and thus the primary language taught in schools. English and Spanish are also part of the official curriculum. There are also international schools, such as the American School of Rio de Janeiro, Our Lady of Mercy School, SIS Swiss International School, the Corcovado German School, the Lycée Français and the British School of Rio de Janeiro.[96] The city has several universities and research institutes. The Ministry of Education has certified approximately 99 upper-learning institutions in Rio.[97] The most prestigious university is the Federal University of Rio de Janeiro. It is the fifth-best in Latin America; the second-best in Brazil, second only to the University of São Paulo; and the best in Latin America, according to the QS World University Rankings.[98][99] Some notable higher education institutions are Federal University of Rio de Janeiro (UFRJ); Federal University of the State of Rio de Janeiro (UNIRIO); Rio de Janeiro State University (UERJ); Federal Rural University of Rio de Janeiro (UFRRJ, often nicknamed Rural); Fluminense Federal University (UFF); Pontifical Catholic University of Rio de Janeiro (PUC-Rio); Getúlio Vargas Foundation (FGV); Military Institute of Engineering (IME); Superior Institute of Technology in Computer Science of Rio de Janeiro (IST-Rio); College of Publicity and Marketing (ESPM); The Brazilian Center for Research in Physics (CBPF); National Institute of Pure and Applied Mathematics (IMPA); Superior institute of Education of Rio de Janeiro (ISERJ) and Federal Center of Technological Education Celso Suckow da Fonseca (CEFET/RJ). There are more than 137 upper-learning institutions in whole Rio de Janeiro state.[100] Superior institute of Education of Rio de Janeiro (ISERJ) The Rio de Janeiro State University (public), Federal University of Rio de Janeiro (public), Brazilian Institute of Capital Markets (private) and Pontifical Catholic University of Rio de Janeiro (private) are among the country's top institutions of higher education. Other institutes of higher learning include the Colégio Regina Coeli in Usina, notable for having its own 3 ft (914 mm) narrow gauge[101] funicular railway on its grounds.[102] Primary schools are largely under municipal administration, while the state plays a more significant role in the extensive network of secondary schools. There are also a small number of schools under federal administration, as is the case of Pedro II School, Colégio de Aplicação da UFRJ and the Centro Federal de Educação Tecnológica of Rio de Janeiro (CEFET-RJ). In addition, Rio has an ample offering of private schools that provide education at all levels. Rio is home to many colleges and universities. The literacy rate for cariocas aged 10 and older is nearly 95 percent, well above the national average.[103] In Rio, there were 1,033 primary schools with 25,594 teachers and 667,788 students in 1995. There are 370 secondary schools with 9,699 teachers and 227,892 students. There are 53 University-preparatory schools with 14,864 teachers and 154,447 students. The city has six major universities and 47 private schools of higher learning.[104] Social issues Main articles: Social issues in Brazil, Social apartheid in Brazil, Rocinha, and Favela Rocinha slum (favela) There are significant disparities between the rich and the poor in Rio de Janeiro, and different socioeconomic groups are largely segregated into different neighborhoods.[105] Although the city clearly ranks among the world's major metropolises, large numbers live in slums known as favelas, where 95% of the population are poor, compared to 40% in the general population.[106] There have been a number of government initiatives to counter this problem, from the removal of the population from favelas to housing projects such as Cidade de Deus to the more recent approach of improving conditions in the favelas and bringing them up to par with the rest of the city, as was the focus of the "Favela Bairro" program and deployment of Pacifying Police Units. Rio has more people living in slums than any other city in Brazil, according to the 2010 Census.[107] More than 1,500,000 people live in its 763 favelas, 22% of Rio's total population. São Paulo, the largest city in Brazil, has more favelas (1,020), but proportionally has fewer people living in favelas than Rio. Rio also has a large proportion of state-sanctioned violence, with about 20% of all killings committed by state security.[108] In 2019, police killed an average of five people each day in the state of Rio de Janeiro, with a total of 1,810 killed in the year. This was more police killings than any year since official records started in 1998.[109] Politics Municipal government São Sebastião Administrative Center, seat of City Hall Palácio Pedro Ernesto, in Cinelândia, seat of Municipal Council In Rio de Janeiro, the executive power is represented by the mayor and the cabinet of secretaries, in accordance with the model proposed by the Federal Constitution. The Organic Law of the Municipality and the current Master Plan, however, stipulate that the public administration must provide the population with effective tools for the exercise of participatory democracy. In this way, the city is divided into subprefectures, each of which is headed by a sub-mandatory appointed directly by the mayor.[110] Legislative power is constituted by the municipal council, composed of 51 councilors[111] elected for four-year terms (in compliance with the provisions of article 29 of the Constitution, which disciplines a minimum number of 42 and a maximum of 55 for municipalities with more than five million inhabitants).[112] It is up to the House to prepare and vote on fundamental laws for the administration and the Executive, especially the participatory budget (Lei de Diretrizes Orçamentárias). Although the veto power is granted to the mayor, the process of voting on the laws that oppose him usually generates conflicts between the Executive and the Legislative.[113] There are also municipal councils, which complement the legislative process and the work engendered in the secretariats. Compulsorily formed by representatives of various sectors of organized civil society, they are on different fronts — although their effective representation is sometimes questioned. The following are currently in operation: Municipal Council for the Protection of Cultural Heritage (CMPC), Defense of the Environment (CONDEMAM), Health (CMS), the Rights of Children and Adolescents (CMDCA), Education (CME), Social Assistance (CMAS) and Anti-Drugs.[114] International relations See also: List of twin towns and sister cities in Brazil Twin towns – sister cities Rio de Janeiro is twinned with:  Arganil, Portugal[134]  Atlanta, United States[135]  Baku, Azerbaijan[136]  Barcelona, Spain[136]  Beijing, China[137]  Beirut, Lebanon[138]  Braga, Portugal[139]  Buenos Aires, Argentina[140]  Busan, South Korea[141]  Cape Town, South Africa[136]  Tangier, Morocco[142]  Cologne, Germany[136] Portugal Guimarães, Portugal[143]  Guiyang, China[144]  Istanbul, Turkey[136]  Kyiv, Ukraine[145]  Kobe, Japan[146]  Lahore, Pakistan[147]  Lisbon, Portugal[148]  Liverpool, United Kingdom[149]  Madrid, Spain[150]  Montpellier, France[151]  Nice, France[152]  Nairobi, Kenya  Oklahoma City, United States[153]  Olhão, Portugal[154]  Ramat Gan, Israel[155]  Saint Petersburg, Russia[156]  Samarkand, Uzbekistan[157]  Santa Cruz de Tenerife, Spain[158]  Viana do Castelo, Portugal[159]  Viseu, Portugal[160]  Warsaw, Poland[161] Partner cities Rio de Janeiro has the following partner/friendship cities:  Berlin, Germany[162]  Kansas City, United States[163]  Moscow, Russia[164]  New York, United States[165]  Paris, France[166]  Philadelphia, United States[167]  Tokyo, Japan[168]  Toronto, Canada[169]  Yerevan, Armenia[170] Union of Ibero-American Capital Cities Rio de Janeiro is a part of the Union of Ibero-American Capital Cities.[171] Economy Main articles: Economy of Rio de Janeiro and Economy of Brazil Treemap showing the market share of exports, by product, for the city of Rio de Janeiro in 2014 generated by DataViva[172] Downtown Rio, in the financial district of the city Rio de Janeiro has the second-largest GDP of any city in Brazil, surpassed only by São Paulo. According to the IBGE, it was approximately US$201 billion in 2008, equivalent to 5.1% of the national total. Taking into consideration the network of influence exerted by the urban metropolis (which covers 11.3% of the population), this share in GDP rises to 14.4%, according to a study released in October 2008 by the IBGE.[173] Greater Rio de Janeiro, as perceived by the IBGE, has a GDP of US$187 billion, constituting the second largest hub of national wealth. Per capita GDP is US$11,786.[174] It concentrates 68% of the state's economic strength and 7.9% of all goods and services produced in the country.[175] The services sector comprises the largest portion of GDP (65.5%), followed by commerce (23.4%), industrial activities (11.1%) and agriculture (0.1%).[176][177] Benefiting from the federal capital position it had for a long period (1763–1960), the city became a dynamic administrative, financial, commercial and cultural center. Rio de Janeiro became an attractive place for companies to locate when it was the capital of Brazil, as important sectors of society and of the government were present in the city, even when their factories were located in other cities or states. The city was chosen as headquarters for state-owned companies such as Petrobras, Eletrobras, Caixa Econômica Federal, National Economic and Social Development Bank and Vale (which was privatized in the 1990s). The Rio de Janeiro Stock Exchange (BVRJ), which currently trades only government securities, was the first stock exchange founded in Brazil in 1845. Despite the transfer of the capital to Brasília in 1960, many of these headquarters remained within the Rio metropolitan area. The off-shore oil exploration in the Campos Basin began in 1968 and became the main site for oil production of Brazil. This caused many oil and gas companies to be based in Rio de Janeiro, such as the Brazilian branches of Shell, EBX and Esso. For many years Rio was the second largest industrial hub of Brazil,[178] with oil refineries, shipbuilding industries, steel, metallurgy, petrochemicals, cement, pharmaceutical, textile, processed foods and furniture industries. Largo da Carioca, in Downtown Rio Barra da Tijuca Major international pharmaceutical companies have their Brazilian headquarters in Rio such as: Merck, Roche, Arrow, Darrow, Baxter, Mayne, and Mappel. A newer electronics and computer sector has been added to the more-established industries. Construction, also an important activity, provides a significant source of employment for large numbers of unskilled workers and is buoyed by the number of seasonal residents who build second homes in the Greater Rio de Janeiro area. Rio is an important financial center, second only to São Paulo in volume of business. Its securities market, although declining in significance relative to São Paulo, is still of major importance. Recent decades have seen a sharp transformation in its economic profile, which is becoming more and more one of a major national hub of services and businesses.[179] The city is the headquarters of large telecom companies, such as Intelig, Oi and Embratel. Major Brazilian entertainment and media organizations are based in Rio de Janeiro like Organizações Globo and also some of Brazil's major newspapers: Jornal do Brasil, O Dia, and Business Rio. Tourism and entertainment are other key aspects of the city's economic life. The city is the nation's top tourist attraction for both Brazilians and foreigners.[180] To attract industry, the state government has designated certain areas on the outskirts of the city as industrial districts where infrastructure is provided and land sales are made under special conditions. Oil and natural gas from fields off the northern coast of Rio de Janeiro state are a major asset used for developing manufacturing activities in Rio's metropolitan area, enabling it to compete with other major cities for new investment in industry.[181] Owing to the proximity of Rio's port facilities, many of Brazil's export-import companies are headquartered in the city. In Greater Rio, which has one of the highest per capita incomes in Brazil, retail trade is substantial. Many of the most important retail stores are located in the center, but others are scattered throughout the commercial areas of the other districts, where shopping centers, supermarkets, and other retail businesses handle a large volume of consumer trade.[182] Rio de Janeiro is (as of 2014) the second largest exporting municipality in Brazil. Annually, Rio exported a total of $7.49B (USD) worth of goods.[183] The top three goods exported by the municipality were crude petroleum (40%), semi finished iron product (16%), and semi finished steel products (11%).[184] Material categories of mineral products (42%) and metals (29%) make up 71% of all exports from Rio.[185] Compared to other cities, Rio de Janeiro's economy is the second-largest in Brazil, behind São Paulo, and the 30th largest in the world with a GDP of R$ 201,9 billion in 2010. The per capita income for the city was R$22,903 in 2007 (around US$14,630).[186] Largely because of the strength of Brazil's currency at the time, Mercer's city rankings of cost of living for expatriate employees, reported that Rio de Janeiro ranked 12th among the most expensive cities in the world in 2011, up from the 29th position in 2010, just behind São Paulo (ranked 10th), and ahead of London, Paris, Milan, and New York.[187][188] Rio also had the most expensive hotel rates in Brazil, and the daily rate of its five star hotels were the second most expensive in the world after only New York.[189] Tourism Botafogo with the Sugarloaf Mountain Museum of Tomorrow Main article: Tourism in Brazil Rio de Janeiro is Brazil's primary tourist attraction and resort. It receives the most visitors per year of any city in South America with 2.82 million international tourists a year.[190] The city boasts world-class hotels, like Belmond Copacabana Palace, approximately 80 kilometers of beaches and the famous Corcovado, Sugarloaf mountains and Maracanã Stadium. While the city had in past had a thriving tourism sector, the industry entered a decline in the last quarter of the 20th century. Annual international airport arrivals dropped from 621,000 to 378,000 and average hotel occupancy dropped to 50% between 1985 and 1993.[191] The fact that Brasília replaced Rio de Janeiro as the Brazilian capital in 1960 and that São Paulo replaced Rio as the country's commercial, financial and main cultural center during the mid-20th century, has also been cited as a leading cause of the decline.[192] Rio de Janeiro's government has since undertaken to modernize the city's economy, reduce its chronic social inequalities, and improve its commercial standing as part of an initiative for the regeneration of the tourism industry.[192] Rio de Janeiro is an international hub of highly active and diverse nightlife with bars, dance bars and nightclubs staying open well past midnight.[193] The city is an important global LGBT destination, 1 million LGBT tourists visiting each year.[194] The Farme de Amoedo Street "Rua Farme de Amoedo" is located in Ipanema, a famous neighborhood in the South Zone of Rio de Janeiro. The street and the nearby beach, famous tourist spots, are remarkable for their popularity in the LGBT community. Rio de Janeiro is the most awarded destination by World Travel Awards in the South American category of "best destination."[195] Transportation Airports The city of Rio de Janeiro is served by the following airports for use: Rio de Janeiro–Galeão International Airport Rio de Janeiro–Santos Dumont National Airport Galeão–Antônio Carlos Jobim International Airport: used for all international and most of the domestic flights. Since August 2004, with the transfer of many flights from Santos-Dumont Airport, Rio de Janeiro International Airport has returned to being the main doorway to the city. Besides linking Rio to the rest of Brazil with domestic flights, Galeão has connections to 19 countries. It has a capacity to handle up to 30 million users a year in two passenger terminals. It is located 20 km (12 mi) from downtown Rio. The airport complex also has Brazil's longest runway at 4,000 m (13,123.36 ft), and one of South America's largest cargo logistics terminals. The airport is connected to the express bus service.[196] Santos Dumont Airport: used mainly by the services to São Paulo, some short and medium-haul domestic flights, and general aviation. Located on Guanabara Bay just a few blocks from the heart of downtown Rio, during the 1990s Santos-Dumont began to outgrow its capacity, besides diverging from its specialization on short-hop flights, offering routes to other destinations in Brazil. For this reason, in late 2004 Santos-Dumont returned to its original condition of operating only shuttle flights to and from Congonhas Airport in São Paulo, along with regional aviation. The passenger terminal has undergone extensive renovation and expansion, which increased its capacity to 9,9 million users a year. The airport is connected to the city light rail system (Rio de Janeiro Light Rail), which connects several transport systems to downtown.[197] Jacarepaguá-Roberto Marinho Airport: used by general aviation and home to the Aeroclube do Brasil (Brasil Flying club). The airport is located in the district of Baixada de Jacarepaguá, within the municipality of Rio de Janeiro approximately 30 km (19 mi) from the city center.[198] Military airports include: Galeão Air Force Base: A Brazilian Air Force airbase, sharing some facilities with Galeão - Antônio Carlos Jobim International Airport; Santa Cruz Air Force Base: A Brazilian Air Force airbase. Formerly called Bartolomeu de Gusmão Airport, it was built by the Luftschiffbau Zeppelin. Today it is one of the most important Air Force Bases in Brazil; Afonsos Air Force Base: One of the historical Brazilian Air Force airbases. It is also the location of the University of the Air Force (Universidade da Força Aérea),[199] the Museu Aeroespacial,[200] and where air shows take place. Ports Port of Rio de Janeiro The Port of Rio de Janeiro is Brazil's third busiest port in terms of cargo volume, and it is the center for cruise vessels. Located on the west coast of the Guanabara Bay, it serves the States of Rio de Janeiro, São Paulo, Minas Gerais, and Espírito Santo. The port is managed by Companhia Docas de Rio de Janeiro. The Port of Rio de Janeiro covers territory from the Mauá Pier in the east to the Wharf of the Cashew in the north. The Port of Rio de Janeiro contains almost seven thousand meters (23 thousand feet) of continuous wharf and an 883-meter (2,897-foot) pier. The Companhia Docas de Rio de Janeiro administers directly the Wharf of the Gamboa general cargo terminal; the wheat terminal with two warehouses capable of moving 300 tons of grains; General Load Terminal 2 with warehouses covering over 20 thousand square meters (215 thousand square feet); and the Wharves of Are Cristovao with terminals for wheat and liquid bulk.[201] At the Wharf of Gamboa, leaseholders operate terminals for sugar, paper, iron and steel products. Leaseholders at the Wharf of the Cashew operate terminals for roll-on/roll-off cargoes, containers, and liquid bulk. In 2004, the Port of Rio de Janeiro handled over seven million tons of cargo on almost 1700 vessels. In 2004, the Port of Rio de Janeiro handled over two million tons of containerized cargo in almost 171 thousand TEUs. The port handled 852 thousand tons of wheat, more than 1.8 million tons of iron and steel, over a million tons of liquid bulk cargo, almost 830 thousand tons of dry bulk, over five thousand tons of paper goods, and over 78 thousand vehicles. In 2003, over 91 thousand passengers moved through the Port of Rio Janeiro on 83 cruise vessels.[202] Public transportation Public transport map of Rio de Janeiro In Rio de Janeiro, buses are the main form of public transportation. There are nearly 440 municipal bus lines serving over four million passengers every day, in addition to intercity lines. Although cheap and frequent, Rio's transportation policy has been moving towards trains and subway in order to reduce surface congestion and increase carrier capacity. Rio's public transportation service has been a target of many critics and the motive of the 2013's protests and manifestations that started in São Paulo and spread through the entire country. According to the people, the raise in the bus and subway fares are invalid, seeing that the amount charged is too high for the low quality of the services. The average amount of time people spend commuting with public transit in Rio de Janeiro, for example to and from work, on a weekday is 95 min. 32% of public transit riders, ride for more than two hours every day. The average amount of time people wait at a stop or station for public transit is 19 min, while 35% of riders wait for over 20 minutes on average every day. The average distance people usually ride in a single trip with public transit is 12.3 kilometers (8 mi), while 37% travel for over 12 kilometers (7 mi) in a single direction.[203] Urban rail Main articles: Rio de Janeiro Metro, SuperVia, Rio de Janeiro Light Rail, and Santa Teresa Tram Urban train from SuperVia Train of Rio de Janeiro Metro Rio de Janeiro Light Rail Santa Teresa Tram The Rio de Janeiro Metro has three subway lines with 58 kilometers (36 mi) and 41 stations plus several commuter rail lines.[204] The Metro is Rio's safest and cleanest form of public transport in the city.[205] The first line runs from General Osório in Ipanema to Uruguai Station in Tijuca; the second runs from Botafogo terminating at Pavuna in northern Rio; and the third line General Osório to Jardim Oceânico Station, in Barra da Tijuca neighborhood. Integration with buses are possible in several forms.[206][207] The city also has a commuter rail system operated by SuperVia that connects the city of Rio with other locations in Greater Rio de Janeiro with surface trains. It has 8 lines and 270 kilometers (168 mi), with 102 stations.[208] It carries around 750,000 passengers[209] a day on a railroad network comprising 104 stations in 12 cities: Rio de Janeiro, Duque de Caxias, Guapimirim, Nova Iguaçu, Nilópolis, Mesquita, Queimados, São João de Meriti, Belford Roxo, Japeri, Paracambi and Magé. The Rio de Janeiro Light Rail is a modern light rail system serving with 28 kilometers (17 mi), 42 stations, distributed in 3 lines.[210] The trams are the first in the world to use a combination of ground-level power supply (APS) and on-board supercapacitor energy storage (SRS), in order to eliminate overhead lines along the entire route.[211][212] The network uses 32 Alstom Citadis 402 low-floor trams carrying 420 passengers each. They are bi-directional, air-conditioned, have seven sections, and eight doors per side.[213][214] The Santa Teresa Tram is the oldest operating electric tramway in Latin America,[215] commenced electric operation in 1896, replacing horse-drawn trams and extending the route.[216] At this time the gauge was altered to 1,100 mm (3 ft 7+5⁄16 in), which remains the case today.[216] It was designated a national historic monument in 1985.[216]: 111  After a derailment occurred on 27 August 2011,[217] which left six dead, tram service was suspended to improve the system. The elderly tramcars, which dated from the 1950s,[218] were retired and replaced with newly built replicas that have the appearance of the old fleet but with new mechanical equipment and additional safety features;[219] delivery began in 2014.[220] The line's track was also rebuilt, and after some delays, about one-third of the line reopened in July 2015. More sections reopened later in stages, following repair of additional sections of track. The line was restored to its full pre-2011 length of 6 km (4 mi) in January 2019.[221] Ferry Rio de Janeiro ferry The most geographically close sister city to Rio that is on the other side of Guanabara Bay is Niterói. Many people who live in Niterói, as well its neighboring municipalities São Gonçalo and Maricá, commute to Rio de Janeiro to study and work. There are several ferry services that operate between the Rio Centro (Praça XV) and Niterói (Centro and Charitas). There is a traditional boat as well as several "fast cat" hydrofoil boats. One of the city neighborhoods is Paquetá Island, which can only be accessed by ferryboats or hydrofoil boats. The ferryboat to Paquetá leaves every hour, from early in the morning until around midnight. There is also a ferry to Cocotá. Buses Main article: Bus transport in Rio de Janeiro TransOeste Bus Rapid Transit (BRT) City buses cost about R$3.80 to ride. They come in both non-air conditioned (R$3.80)[222] and air conditioned versions (R$3–R$5.40).[223] The system may be relatively safe by day but less so at night.[224] Integration of bus lines has been recently implemented, allowing users to take two non-air conditioned bus rides in two hours paying just one ticket. It is necessary to have a registered electronic card (the "Bilhete Único Carioca (BUC)") in order to benefit of this system. Another type of local bus is called the "Frescão" (air-conditioned). These buses run several routes, the main being from Centro through Botafogo, Copacabana and Ipanema to Leblon (and vice versa), and from the International Airport to Barra, through the beach road. They are air conditioned – about 22 °C (72 °F) – more upscale/comfortable and cost between R$6.00–R$12.00.[225] However, it is only available during weekdays. The buses also run more frequently during the rush hours in the morning and evening. Going in the direction of Centro (city center), the bus can be flagged down on the beach road (buses with plaques showing "Castelo"). Road transport Rio-Niterói Bridge Bike Rio rental station in Mauá Square, Downtown Rio Driving in Rio de Janeiro, as in most large cities of Brazil, might not be the best choice because of the large car numbers. The city is served by a number of expressways, like Linha Vermelha, Linha Amarela, Avenida Brasil, Avenida das Américas and Avenida Infante Dom Henrique (Aterro do Flamengo); in spite of this, traffic jams are very common.[226] Because of the organization of the 2016 Olympics the city is installing four BRT systems to link Barra da Tijuca with other major neighborhoods: TransOlimpica (between Barra and Deodoro); TransBrasil (over the Avenida Brasil expressway); TransCarioca (between Barra and the Galeão International Airport); and TransOeste (between Barra and Santa Cruz, over Avenida das Américas). In Brazil, most interstate transportation is done by road. A large terminal for long-distance buses is in the Santo Cristo neighborhood of Rio de Janeiro. There are also two port facilities for cargo and passenger ships (Rio de Janeiro and Sepetiba port). Rio has roads to all neighbor States. Some roads (like Via Dutra, to São Paulo, and a stretch of the BR-101 which covers the Rio-Niterói bridge) were chartered to private enterprises. The quality of the highways improved much, but was accompanied by a significant increase of the toll fees. From São Paulo: take the BR-116 (Presidente Dutra Federal Highway) or the BR-101 (Rio-Santos Federal Highway). From Belo Horizonte: BR-040. From Salvador: BR-101 or BR-324/BR-116/BR-393/BR-040. Bicycles The city has 160 km (99 mi) of cycle paths that, wherever they exist, are very much preferable to riding in the city's traffic. Most paths run alongside beaches and extend intermittently from the Marina da Glória, Centro, through Flamengo, Copacabana and Ipanema, to Barra da Tijuca and Recreio dos Bandeirantes. six kilometers (3.7 miles) of cycle paths traverse the Tijuca National Park.[227] The Bike Rio began operations in October 2011. This bicycle sharing system is sponsored by the municipal government of Rio de Janeiro in partnership with Banco Itaú. The bike sharing system has 600 bicycles available at 60 rental stations in 14 neighborhoods throughout the city.[228][229] Culture Museum of Modern Art National Museum of Fine Arts Rio de Janeiro is a main cultural hub in Brazil. Its architecture embraces churches and buildings dating from the 16th to the 19th centuries, blending with the world-renowned designs of the 20th century. Rio was home to the Portuguese Imperial family and capital of the country for many years, and was influenced by Portuguese, English, and French architecture.[230] Rio de Janeiro has inherited a strong cultural role from the past. In the late 19th century, there were sessions held of the first Brazilian film and since then, several production cycles have spread out, eventually placing Rio at the forefront of experimental and national cinema. The Rio de Janeiro International Film Festival[231] has been held annually since 1999.[232] Rio currently brings together the main production centers of Brazilian television.[233] Major international films set in Rio de Janeiro include Blame it on Rio; the James Bond film Moonraker; the Oscar award-winning, critically acclaimed Central Station by Walter Salles, who is also one of Brazil's best-known directors; and the Oscar award-winning historical drama, Black Orpheus, which depicted the early days of Carnaval in Rio de Janeiro. Internationally famous, Brazilian-made movies illustrating a darker side of Rio de Janeiro include Elite Squad and City of God. Rio has many important cultural landmarks, such as the Biblioteca Nacional (National Library), one of the largest libraries in the world with collections totalling more than 9 million items; the Theatro Municipal; the National Museum of Fine Arts; the Carmen Miranda Museum; the Rio de Janeiro Botanical Garden; the Parque Lage; the Quinta da Boa Vista; the Imperial Square; the Brazilian Academy of Letters; the Museu de Arte Moderna do Rio de Janeiro; and the Natural History Museum. Literature Main article: Literature of Brazil Brazilian Academy of Letters After Brazilian independence from Portugal in 1822, Rio de Janeiro quickly developed a European-style bourgeois cultural life, including numerous newspapers, in which most 19th-century novels were initially published in serial. Joaquim Manuel de Macedo's A Moreninha (1844) was perhaps the first successful novel in Brazil and inaugurates a recurrent 19th-century theme: a romantic relationship between idealistic young people in spite of cruelties of social fortune. The first notable work of realism focusing on the urban lower-middle class is Manuel Antônio de Almeida's Memórias de um sargento de milícias (1854), which presents a series of picaresque but touching scenes, and evokes the transformation of a town into a city with suggestive nostalgia. Romantic and realist modes both flourished through the late 19th century and often overlapped within works.[234] The most famous author of Rio de Janeiro, however, was Machado de Assis, who is also widely regarded as the greatest writer of Brazilian literature[235] and considered the founder of Realism in Brazil, with the publication of The Posthumous Memoirs of Bras Cubas (1881).[236] He commented on and criticized the political and social events of the city and country such as the abolition of slavery in 1888 and the transition from Empire to Republic with his numerous chronicles published in newspapers of the time.[237] Many of his short stories and novels, like Quincas Borba (1891) and Dom Casmurro (1899), are placed in Rio. The headquarters of the Brazilian Academy of Letters is based in Rio de Janeiro. It was satirized by the novelist Jorge Amado in Pen, Sword, Camisole. Amado, himself, went on to be one of the 40 members of the academy. National Library of Brazil Royal Portuguese Cabinet of Reading The Biblioteca Nacional (National Library of Brazil) ranks as one of the largest libraries in the world. It is also the largest library in all of Latin America.[238] Located in Cinelândia, the National Library was originally created by the King of Portugal, in 1810. As with many of Rio de Janeiro's cultural monuments, the library was originally off-limits to the general public. The most valuable collections in the library include: 4,300 items donated by Barbosa Machado including a precious collection of rare brochures detailing the History of Portugal and Brazil; 2,365 items from the 17th and 18th centuries that were previously owned by Antônio de Araújo de Azevedo, the "Count of Barca", including the 125-volume set of prints "Le Grand Théâtre de l'Univers;" a collection of documents regarding the Jesuítica Province of Paraguay and the "Region of Prata;" and the Teresa Cristina Maria Collection, donated by Emperor Pedro II. The collection contains 48,236 items. Individual items of special interest include a rare first edition of Os Lusíadas by Luis de Camões, published in 1584; two copies of the Mogúncia Bible; and a first edition of Handel's Messiah.[239] The Real Gabinete Português de Leitura (Portuguese Royal Reading Library) is located at Rua Luís de Camões, in the Centro (Downtown). The institution was founded in 1837 by a group of forty-three Portuguese immigrants, political refugees, to promote culture among the Portuguese community in the then capital of the Empire. The history of the Brazilian Academy of Letters is linked to the Real Gabinete, since some of the early meetings of the academy were held there.[240] Music Tim Maia, the greatest representative of soul music in the country's history, from Rio de Janeiro The official song of Rio de Janeiro is "Cidade Maravilhosa", which means "marvelous city". The song is considered the civic anthem of Rio, and is always the favorite song during Rio's Carnival in February. Rio de Janeiro and São Paulo, are considered the center of the urban music movement in Brazil.[241] "Rio was popularized by the hit song "The Girl from Ipanema", composed by Antônio Carlos Jobim and Vinicius de Moraes and recorded by Astrud Gilberto and João Gilberto, Frank Sinatra, and Ella Fitzgerald. It is also the main key song of the bossa nova, a music genre born in Rio. A genre unique to Rio and Brazil as a whole is Funk Carioca. While samba music continues to act as the national unifying agent in Rio, Funk Carioca found a strong community following in Brazil. With its genesis in the 1970s as the modern black pop music from the United States, it evolved in the 1990s to describe a variety of electronic music associated with the current US black music scene, including hip hop, modern soul, and house music."[242] Brazil's return to democracy in 1985 allowed for a new music expression which promoted creativity and experimentation in expressive culture, in a wave of Rock'n'roll that swept the 80s. Lobão emerged as the most legendary rocker in Brazil.[243] Commercial and cultural imports from Europe and North America have often influenced Brazil's own cultural output. For example, the hip hop that has stemmed from New York is localized into forms of musical production such as Funk Carioca and Brazilian hip hop. Bands from Rio de Janeiro also had influence in the mid-to-late development of the Punk in Brazil, and that of Brazilian thrash metal. Democratic renewal also allowed for the recognition and acceptance of this diversification of Brazilian culture.[244] Some of the best singers in the history of Rio de Janeiro are Lobão, Tim Maia, Agepê, Emílio Santiago, Evandro Mesquita, Byafra, Erasmo Carlos, Elymar Santos, Gretchen, Latino, Kátia Cega, Rafael Ilha, Sérgio Mallandro e Wilson Simonal. Theater Municipal Theatre of Rio de Janeiro City of Arts Rio de Janeiro's Theatro Municipal is one of the most attractive buildings in the central area of the city. Home of one of the largest stages in Latin America and one of Brazil's best-known venues for opera, ballet, and classical music, the building was inspired by the Palais Garnier, home of the Paris Opera. Construction of the Theatro Municipal began in 1905 following designs of the architect Francisco Pereira Passos. The statues on the top, of two women representing Poetry and Music, are by Rodolfo Bernardelli, and the interior is rich with furnishings and fine paintings. Inaugurated in 1909, the Teatro Municipal has close to 1,700 seats. Its interior includes turn of the century stained glass from France, ceilings of rose-colored marble and a 1,000 pound crystal bead chandelier surrounded by a painting of the "Dance of the Hours". The exterior walls of the building are dotted with inscriptions bearing the names of famous Brazilians as well as many other international celebrities.[245] Cidade das Artes (City of Arts) is a cultural complex in Barra da Tijuca in the Southwest Zone of Rio de Janeiro, which was originally planned to open in 2004. Formally known as "Cidade da Música" (City of Music), it was finally inaugurated at the beginning of 2013. The project will host the Brazilian Symphony Orchestra becoming a main center for music as will be the largest modern concert hall in South America, with 1,780 seats. The complex spans approximately 90 thousand square meters (1 million square feet) and also features a chamber music hall, three theaters, and 12 rehearsal rooms. From the terrace there is a panoramic view of the zone. The building was designed by the French architect Christian de Portzamparc and construction was funded by the city of Rio de Janeiro. A series of covered theaters collectively known as Lona Cultural, administered by the city's Municipal Secretary of Culture, serve throughout the city as venues for cultural activities such as concerts, plays, workshops, art and craft fairs, and courses. Events New Year's Eve fireworks at Copacabana Beach Every 31 December, 2.5 million people gather at Copacabana Beach to celebrate New Year's in Rio de Janeiro. The crowd, mostly dressed in white, celebrates all night at the hundreds of different shows and events along the beach. It is the second-largest celebration only next to the Carnival. People celebrate the New Year by sharing chilled champagne. It is considered good luck to shake the champagne bottle and spray around at midnight. Chilled champagne adds to the spirit of the festivities.[246] Rio Carnival, is an annual celebration in the Roman Catholic tradition that allows merry-making and red meat consumption before the more sober 40 days of Lent penance which culminates with Holy or Passion Week and Easter. The tradition of Carnaval parades was probably influenced by the French or German courts and the custom was brought by the Portuguese or Brazilian Imperial families who had French and Austrian German ancestors. Up until the time of the marchinhas, the revelry was more of a high class and Caucasian-led event. The influence of the African-Brazilian drums and music became more noticeable from the first half of the 20th century. Rio de Janeiro has many Carnaval choices, including the famous samba school (Escolas de Samba)[247] parades in the sambadrome exhibition center and the popular blocos de carnaval, street revelry, which parade in almost every corner of the city.[248] In 1840, the first Carnaval was celebrated with a masked ball. As years passed, adorned floats and costumed revelers became a tradition among the celebrants. Carnaval is known as a historic root of Brazilian music.[249] Rock in Rio is a music festival conceived by entrepreneur Roberto Medina for the first time in 1985, and since its creation, recognized as the largest music festival in the Latin world and the largest in the world, with 1.5 million people attending the first event, 700,000 attending the second and fourth, about 1.2 million attending the third, and about 350,000 people attending each of the 3 Lisbon events. It was originally organized in Rio de Janeiro, from where the name comes from, has become a world level event and, in 2004, had its first edition abroad in Lisbon, Portugal, before Madrid, Spain and Las Vegas, United States. The festival is considered the eighth best in the world by the specialized site Fling Festival.[250] Samba Parade at the Sambódromo (Sambadrome) during the Rio Carnival Sports See also: Sport in Brazil Further information: Football in Rio de Janeiro Maracanã Stadium Nilton Santos Olympic Stadium As in the rest of Brazil, association football is the most popular sport. The city's major teams are Flamengo, Vasco da Gama, Fluminense and Botafogo. Madureira, Bangu, Portuguesa, America and Bonsucesso are small clubs. Famous players born in the city include Zico, Romário and Ronaldo.[251] Rio de Janeiro was one of the host cities of the 1950 and 2014 FIFA World Cups, for which on both occasions Brazil was the host nation. In 1950, the Maracanã Stadium hosted 8 matches, including all but one of the host team's matches. The Maracanã was also the location of the infamous tournament-deciding match between Uruguay and Brazil, where Brazil only needed a draw to win the final group stage and the whole tournament. Brazil ended up losing 2–1 in front of a home crowd of more than 199,000. In 2014, the Maracanã hosted seven matches, including the final, where Germany beat Argentina 1–0.[252] Barra Olympic Park, built for 2016 Summer Olympics On 2 October 2009, the International Olympic Committee selected Rio de Janeiro to host the 2016 Summer Olympics.[253] Rio made their first bid for the 1936 Summer Olympics, but lost to Berlin. They later made bids for the 2004 and 2012 Games, but failed to become a candidate city both times. Those games were awarded to Athens and London respectively.[254] Rio is the first Brazilian and South American city to host the Summer Olympics. Rio de Janeiro also became the first city in the southern hemisphere outside of Australia to host the games – Melbourne in 1956 and Sydney in 2000. In July 2007, Rio successfully organized and hosted the XV Pan American Games. Rio de Janeiro also hosted the 2011 Military World Games from 15 to 24 July 2011. The 2011 Military World Games were the largest military sports event ever held in Brazil, with approximately 4,900 athletes from 108 countries competing in 20 sports.[255] Rio de Janeiro hosted the 2016 Olympics and Paralympics. The Olympic Games were held from 5 to 21 August 2016. The Paralympics were held from 7 to 18 September 2016. The city has a history as host of major international sports events. The Ginásio do Maracanãzinho was the host arena for the official FIBA Basketball World Championship for its 1954 and 1963 editions. Later, the Jacarepaguá circuit in Rio de Janeiro was the site for the Formula One Brazilian Grand Prix from 1978 to 1989. Rio de Janeiro also hosted the MotoGP Brazilian Grand Prix from 1995 to 2004 and the Champ Car event from 1996 to 1999. WCT/WQS surfing championships were contested on the beaches from 1985 to 2001. The Rio Champions Cup Tennis tournament is held in the spring. As part of its preparations to host the 2007 Pan American Games, Rio built a new stadium, Estádio Olímpico João Havelange, to hold 45,000 people. It was named after Brazilian ex-FIFA president João Havelange. The stadium is owned by the city of Rio de Janeiro, but it was rented to Botafogo de Futebol e Regatas for 20 years.[256] Rio de Janeiro has also a multi-purpose arena, the HSBC Arena. The Brazilian dance/sport/martial art capoeira is very popular. Other popular sports are basketball, beach football, beach volleyball, Beach American Football, footvolley, surfing, kite surfing, hang gliding, motor racing, Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu, Luta Livre, sailing, and competitive rowing. Another sport that is highly popular in beaches of Rio is called frescobol (pronounced [fɾe̞ɕko̞ˈbɔw]), a type of beach tennis. Rio de Janeiro is also paradise for rock climbers, with hundreds of routes all over the city, ranging from easy boulders to highly technical big wall climbs, all inside the city. The most famous, Rio's granite mountain, the Sugar Loaf (Pão de Açúcar), is an example, with routes from the easy third grade (American 5.4, French 3) to the extremely difficult ninth grade (5.13/8b), up to 280 meters (919 feet). Horse racing events are held Thursday nights and weekend afternoons at Hipódromo da Gávea. An impressive place with excellent grass and dirt tracks, it runs the best horses in the nation. Hang gliding in Rio de Janeiro started in the mid-1970s and quickly proved to be well-suited for this town, because of its geography: steep mountains encounter the Atlantic Ocean, which provide excellent take-off locations and great landing zones on the beach. One of the most popular sea sports in the city is yachting. The main yacht clubs are in Botafogo area that extends halfway between Copacabana and the center of town. Though the most exclusive and interesting is probably the Rio Yacht club, where high society makes it a point to congregate. Most yacht clubs are open to members only and gate crashing is not easy. Copacabana is also a great place to surf, as well as "Arpoador of Ipanema" beach and "Praia dos Bandeirantes". The sea at these beaches is rough and dangerous, and the best surfers from Brazil and other sites of the world come to these beaches to prove themselves.[257] Pan American Games host cities Summer 1951: Argentina Buenos Aires 1955: Mexico Mexico City 1959: United States Chicago 1963: Brazil São Paulo 1967: Canada Winnipeg 1971: Colombia Cali 1975: Mexico Mexico City 1979: Puerto Rico San Juan 1983: Venezuela Caracas 1987: United States Indianapolis 1991: Cuba Havana 1995: Argentina Mar del Plata 1999: Canada Winnipeg 2003: Dominican Republic Santo Domingo 2007: Brazil Rio de Janeiro 2011: Mexico Guadalajara 2015: Canada Toronto 2019: Peru Lima 2023: Chile Santiago 2027: Colombia Barranquilla Winter 1990: Argentina Las Leñas vte World's 50 most-populous urban areas     Tokyo Jakarta Delhi Manila Seoul Mumbai Shanghai New York São Paulo Mexico City Guangzhou–Foshan Shenzhen Beijing Dhaka Osaka–Kobe–Kyoto Cairo Moscow Bangkok Los Angeles Kolkata Lagos Buenos Aires Karachi Istanbul Tehran Tianjin Kinshasa–Brazzaville Chengdu Rio de Janeiro Lahore Lima Bangalore Paris Ho Chi Minh City London Bogotá Chennai Nagoya Hyderabad Johannesburg Chicago Taipei Wuhan Dongguan Hanoi Chongqing Onitsha Kuala Lumpur Ahmedabad Luanda vte Megacities Africa (3) CairoKinshasaLagos Asia (28) BangaloreBangkokBeijingChengduChennaiChongqingDelhiDhakaGuangzhouHangzhouHo Chi Minh CityHyderabadIstanbulJakartaKarachiKolkataKyoto–Osaka–Kobe (Keihanshin)LahoreMetro ManilaMumbaiNagoyaSeoulShanghaiShenzhenTehranTianjinTokyoXiamen Europe (5) IstanbulLondonMoscowParisRhine-Ruhr North America (3) Los AngelesMexico CityNew York City South America (5) BogotáBuenos AiresLimaRio de JaneiroSão Paulo  Cities portal Authority control Edit this at Wikidata General ISNI 1VIAF 1WorldCat National libraries France (data)GermanyIsraelUnited StatesJapanCzech Republic Other MusicBrainz areaNational Archives (US)SUDOC (France) 1 Categories: Rio de Janeiro (city)Former national capitalsGuanabara BayMunicipalities in Rio de Janeiro (state)Populated coastal places in Rio de Janeiro (state)Port cities in BrazilPopulated places established in 15651565 establishments in Brazil1565 establishments in the Portuguese EmpireWorld Heritage Sites in Brazil
  • Condition: New
  • Type: Coin
  • Theme: Americana
  • Country/Region of Manufacture: United States
  • Modified Item: No

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