The Humber estuary drains Yorkshire’s great rivers into the sea. But, for sea-faring folk
these are treacherous waters. Sandbanks lurk beneath the surface and for over 1,000 years,
going back to the time when this place was known as Wyke, carefully acquired local knowledge
has had to work out where to dredge the channels to keep shipping safe. But, what does history
tell us? Well, in the year 1293, King Edward I bought lands from the abbey of Meaux, which
was about seven miles to the north. He wanted a base for his soldiers, repelling the incursions
of the Scots. And he called the place: King’s Town upon Hull. Hull, of course, is the river
which drains into the estuary just over there.
Hull’s position facing Europe across the North Sea
meant it quickly developed as a port. What happened was that woollen exports
went out that way; and, timber, oil, linen and spices came in across the North Sea. And,
that’s how this chap made his money: William de la Pole. He became the first Lord Mayor
of Hull in 1332.
The other sculpture here, a naked figure, is one of a pair, and the
other is in Vik in Iceland, and together they mark the rapprochement between Hull and Iceland
at the end of the Cod Wars in 1976. Cod Wars which, of course, led to the virtual extinction of the
deep sea fishing industry here in Hull. But, behind me over there, that’s The Deep, a
fascinating place where you can come up close and personal, with 3,500 species of fish.
To reflect its growing importance as a port, Holy Trinity church was re-built in stone
in the 14th century. Technically speaking though, it was only a chapel of ease to the
main parish church at Hessle, five miles to the west. But, at 270ft long, it was bigger
than Hessle. And when Holy Trinity finally became a parish church in its own right in
1661, it was also the biggest parish church in England.
Well, overlooking it all, on the other
side of the Square is a statue to the Hull poet, Andrew Marvell. He was born, brought
up and educated in the city, at the grammar school. And he also had connections with the
other building which overlooks this Square - Trinity House.
This is the home to the Mariners’ Guild.
It was established as a charitable organisation in the mid 15th century. It took
on the responsibility of ensuring the safe guidance of shipping in and out of the port.
This is the river Hull after which the city is named. Now until the 18th century when
the docks began to be built, everything that came in and out of this port was loaded and
off-loaded down here. There were also shipyards where they built the traditional
Humber Keels and Sloops, which carried goods up and down the coast, and also to the inland
ports. But, if you had been here in the 18th century, what would you have seen? Well, you’d
have seem them loading and unloading all sorts of exotic goods from the East: coffee; tea;
cocoa; and, even whales from the Arctic. Well down here, you can see behind me, there’s
an old trawler, The Arctic Corsair. Now she is the last sidewinder trawler to sail out
of Hull. She’s now a floating museum. But, incidentally, she didn’t unload whales,
because the last one to be captured and brought into this port, was in 1869.
This must be one of the few High Streets in the country where there are no shops!
But if you had been here in the 19th century it would have been rather different: what you’d have heard
would have been the clatter of the cart wheels over the cobbles, echoing off the walls of
the merchants’ houses and the warehouses. These days though, all you hear is the chatter
of visitors who have come here to the city’s Museum Quarter. The Museum of Hull and East
Yorkshire; the Street Life museum; and, of course, one of the most important and iconic
museums in the whole of Hull.
This 16th century house was the birthplace, on August 24th 1759,
of one of Hull’s most famous sons’: William Wilberforce. He was MP for the city by the
time he was 21. But, of course, he’ll always be remembered, and revered, for his crucial
role in the abolition of slave trade in 1833.
By the 19th century Hull was the country’s third largest port.
But it wasn’t until 1897 that Hull actually became a city;
and then the magnificent Guildhall was built to provide a home for Hull City Council.
Incidentally, if you look on the roof, you’ll see those two magnificent, and very large sculptures,
Neptune’s Daughter’s by Albert Hodge. Well now, the Guildhall was built next door
to the old Queen’s Dock. And the Queen’s Dock was one of the eleven built.
First in the centre of the city, and then out towards the east; between 1778 and 1969. But by 1930,
trade was beginning to tail off and so, the old Queen’s Dock was filled in.
In medieval times a wall was built 'round the city to protect the docks, and perhaps, more importantly,
its arsenal. And it was here, on this spot, in 1642 that the Parliamentarian Sir John Hotham
refused King Charles I entry into the city of Hull. He was after the city’s arms cache.
And it is one of the incidents which sparked off the English Civil War. A conflict which
did neither man any good: Hotham was executed for treason in 1645; King Charles I had his
head removed by the regicide four years later, in 1649.
Well, over here this unusual looking three cornered building,
is the old Dock Office. Now home to the Maritime Museum.
Next door is Hull City Hall; a 1,700 seat concert venue for all sorts of classical and popular music.
Indeed, The Beatles famously once played Hull City Hall.
And, finally, over here, in this corner,
this glass fronted building, is the Princes Quay Shopping Centre.
Hull may longer be a centre of the fishing industry, but it is still a major port. Timber, speciality oils
and cocoa products are still staples. And, of course, Hull is a major passenger terminal.
Over 1 million people every year travel on the overnight ferries to Zeebrugge and to Rotterdam.
And, let’s not forget, all the pleasure craft crammed here into the marina - what used
to be the old Railway Dock. So there are still many reasons to come to the ancient and historic
city of Kingston upon Hull.