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Coventry |
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Coventry is an industrial city in the Midlands at the head of the Avon Valley. Coventry was originally an old monastic settlement and became a prosperous market town and weaving centre in the Middle Ages. Its interests in textiles were stimulated by the arrival of French Huguenot emigrants in the early 18th century, who introduced the manufacture of silk and ribbons. The latter are still produced in association with the making of rayon. A watch-making industry, also introduced from abroad, declined with the competition of cheaper Swiss and American products, but the inherited skill of the craftsmen has been diverted into the manufacture of bicycles, motor-cars and, more recently, aircraft. Daimler made his first motor-car in Coventry in 1896. In the Second World War, Coventry was the first target for the German Air Force's new strategic bombing plan, using radar. On the night of 14th November, 1940, German bombing caused tremendous damage and destroyed the cathedral. A new cathedral was dedicated in 1962, built on a site next to the ruins of the old one, and an entirely new, modern civic centre has been built. | ||
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