Hull, East Riding of Yorkshire

Kingston upon Hull
City and Unitary authority
Top: The Deep at night, Queen's Gardens and Maritime Museum Middle: Hull College and Wilberforce Monument Bottom: Hull City Hall, Ferens Art Gallery
Coat of arms
Nickname(s): Hull
Hull shown within the East Riding of Yorkshire
Kingston upon Hull Location of Kingston upon Hull within England Show map of England Kingston upon Hull Kingston upon Hull (the United Kingdom) Show map of the United Kingdom Kingston upon Hull Kingston upon Hull (Europe) Show map of Europe
Coordinates: 53°44.66′N 0°19.95′W / 53.74433°N 0.33250°W / 53.74433; -0.33250Coordinates: 53°44.66′N 0°19.95′W / 53.74433°N 0.33250°W / 53.74433; -0.33250
Sovereign state	United Kingdom
Constituent country	England
Region	Yorkshire and the Humber
Ceremonial county	East Riding of Yorkshire
Founded	12th century
City Status	1897
Administrative HQ	Guildhall
Government
• Type	Unitary authority, City
• Governing body	Hull City Council
• Leadership:	Leader & Cabinet
• Executive:	Labour
• MPs:	Emma Hardy (Lab) Diana Johnson (Lab) Karl Turner (Lab)
Area
• City	27.59 sq mi (71.45 km2)
Population (mid-2016 est.)
• City	260,200 (Ranked 58th)
• Density	9,030/sq mi (3,486/km2)
• Urban	573,300 (LUZ)
• Ethnicity (2011 Census)	89.7% White British 0.3% White Irish 4.1% Other White 1.1% S. Asian 1.2% Black 1.3% Mixed Race 2.3% Chinese and other (0.8% Chinese)
Time zone	Greenwich Mean Time (UTC+0)
• Summer (DST)	British Summer Time (UTC+1)
Postcode Area	HU
Area code(s)	(01482)
ISO 3166-2	GB-KHL
ONS code	00FA (ONS) E06000010 (GSS)
NUTS 3	UKE11
Website	www.hull.gov.uk

Kingston upon Hull, usually abbreviated to Hull, is a city and unitary authority in the East Riding of Yorkshire, England. It lies upon the River Hull at its confluence with the Humber Estuary, 25 miles (40 km) inland from the North Sea, with a population of 260,200 (mid-2016 est.).

The town of Hull was founded late in the 12th century. The monks of Meaux Abbey needed a port where the wool from their estates could be exported. They chose a place at the confluence of the rivers Hull and Humber to build a quay.

The exact year the town was founded is not known but it was first mentioned in 1193. Renamed Kings-town upon Hull by King Edward I in 1299, Hull has been a market town, military supply port, trading hub, fishing and whaling centre and industrial metropolis.

Hull was an early theatre of battle in the English Civil Wars. Its 18th century Member of Parliament, William Wilberforce, took a prominent part in the abolition of the slave trade in Britain.

The city is unique in the UK in having had a municipally owned telephone system from 1902, sporting cream, not red, telephone boxes.

After suffering heavy damage in the Second World War (the 'Hull Blitz'), Hull weathered a period of post-industrial decline, gaining unfavourable results on measures of social deprivation, education and policing. In the early 21st century spending boom before the late 2000s recession the city saw large amounts of new retail, commercial, housing and public service construction spending.

Tourist attractions include the historic Old Town and Museum Quarter, Hull Marina and The Deep, a city landmark. The redevelopment of one of Hull's main thoroughfares, Ferensway, included the opening of St Stephen's Hull and the new Hull Truck Theatre. Spectator sports include Championship League football and Super League Rugby. The KCOM Stadium houses Hull City football club and Hull F.C. rugby league club and KCOM Craven Park Stadium rugby league club Hull Kingston Rovers. Hull is also home to the English Premier Ice Hockey League Hull Pirates.