England's fourth-largest city lies approximately 35mi/56km south of Leeds on the River Don, at the foot of the Derbyshire Hills. An industrial city, Sheffield is a popular base from which to explore the Peak District, the favorite recreational area of those living in this conurbation in Central England
Sheffield itself also has a number of well-tended parks and a beautiful greenbelt area. It is worth visiting the center of this university town, whose academic institutions have long worked closely with local industry. The most recent example of this is the new Technology Park, established to carry out research, which is situated near the technical college. Sheffield is famous for knives, all types of cutting tools, guns and high-grade steel production. As early as about 1478 Chaucer refers in his "Canterbury Tales" to a "Sheffield thwitel", the ancestor of the modern pocket knife. The knives and other implements were formerly made in home workshops; they are now manufactured in large factories and exported all over the world. Since the early 1980s, recession, a fall in sales and rationalization have resulted in the loss of more than 70% of jobs in this region; today's leading manufacturers comprise United Engineering Steels, Sheffield Forgemasters, British Steel Stainless, Davy Mackee and Arthur Lee. Another important employer is the confectioner Bassett, subsidiary of the Cadbury-Schweppes Group.
The A1/E15,M1 and M62 provide good access to the city. Sheffield does not have its own airport, but lies only 45mi/72km north of East Midlands Airport, 40mi/64km south of Leeds-Bradford Airport and 40mi/64km east of Manchester Airport. Sheffield Midland Station offers excellent rail links to the rest of the country.
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