Birmingham Polytechnic Institution was a

polytechnic Polytechnic is most commonly used to refer to schools, colleges, or universities that qualify as an institute of technology or vocational university also sometimes called universities of applied sciences. Polytechnic may also refer to: Educat ...

formed in 1843 in

Birmingham Birmingham ( ) is a city and metropolitan borough in the metropolitan county of West Midlands in England. It is the second-largest city in the United Kingdom with a population of 1.145 million in the city proper, 2.92 million in the We ...

England England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe ...

. It was supported by leading Liberals in the city such as George Dawson. The Polytechnic mainly taught languages, chemistry and mathematics and had a library of 4,000 volumes. George Battison Haines, who was involved with the local freehold land movement, acted as librarian.

Charles Dickens Charles John Huffam Dickens (; 7 February 1812 – 9 June 1870) was an English writer and social critic. He created some of the world's best-known fictional characters and is regarded by many as the greatest novelist of the Victorian e ...

was among the visiting academics who gave speeches at the Polytechnic, he gave a speech for the Polytechnic in the Birmingham Town Hall in May 1846. Other guest lecturers included

Sir Robert Peel Sir Robert Peel, 2nd Baronet, (5 February 1788 – 2 July 1850) was a British Conservative statesman who served twice as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom (1834–1835 and 1841–1846) simultaneously serving as Chancellor of the Exchequer ...

, who gave a lecture on Switzerland. In 1845 the dramatist Douglas Jerrold presided over a meeting of the Polytechnic where its second literary soiree was held. He was presented with an "elegant gold ring" by the jewellers of the city and he gave what is said to have been his first public speech. Although the Polytechnic had over 500 members at one stage, including over 100 women, support fell away with the institution not commanding as much support from the middle and working classes as had been hoped for.Daily News (London, England), Thursday, October 11, 1849; Issue 1054 The Polytechnic closed in 1853.

References

Education in Birmingham, West Midlands Educational institutions disestablished in 1853 Educational institutions established in 1843 1843 establishments in England {{UK-edu-stub