Calthorpe Park is a

public park An urban park or metropolitan park, also known as a city park, municipal park (North America), public park, public open space, or municipal gardens (United Kingdom, UK), is a park or botanical garden in cities, densely populated suburbia and oth ...

Birmingham Birmingham ( ) is a City status in the United Kingdom, city and metropolitan borough in the metropolitan county of West Midlands (county), West Midlands, within the wider West Midlands (region), West Midlands region, in England. It is the Lis ...

, England, created in 1857 and managed by

Birmingham City Council Birmingham City Council is the local authority for the city of Birmingham in the West Midlands, England. Birmingham has had an elected local authority since 1838, which has been reformed several times. Since 1974 the council has been a metropo ...

Geography

The park lies in the city council ward of Balsall Heath West, adjacent to and east of the A441 Pershore Road, a short distance south of the Birmingham Middle Ring Road (A4540) and north of Edgbaston Cricket Ground. The River Rea bisects the park, following south-west to north-east and crossed by two bridges.

History

The park takes its name from the Calthorpe family, whose Frederick Gough, 4th Baron Calthorpe provided the land for its creation in 1857, from the Calthorpe Estate. The freehold was signed over by his son, Augustus Gough-Calthorpe, 6th Baron Calthorpe, in 1894. The park was formally opened on 1 June 1857, by

Prince George, Duke of Cambridge Prince George, Duke of Cambridge (George William Frederick Charles; 26 March 1819 – 17 March 1904) was a member of the British royal family, a grandson of King George III and cousin of Queen Victoria. The Duke was an army officer by professio ...

. The opening ceremony, which featured a

triumphal arch A triumphal arch is a free-standing monumental structure in the shape of an archway with one or more arched passageways, often designed to span a road, and usually standing alone, unconnected to other buildings. In its simplest form, a triumphal ...

, was recorded in a painting by Samuel Lines Snr. After a lunch at the

Town Hall In local government, a city hall, town hall, civic centre (in the UK or Australia), guildhall, or municipal hall (in the Philippines) is the chief administrative building of a city, town, or other municipality. It usually houses the city o ...

, and arriving via a procession through the streets, the Duke, Lord Calthorpe, and the Mayor,

John Ratcliffe John Lee Ratcliffe (born October 20, 1965) is an American politician and attorney who has served as the ninth director of the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) since 2025. He previously served as the sixth director of national intelligence from ...

, each planted a Cedar tree. The event was followed by a dinner for the dignitaries and 250 guests at Bee's Royal Hotel, as well as a free concert "for artisans" at the Town Hall, a free ball at a music hall in Coleshill Street and a free meal for 700 soldiers and pensioners at

Bingley Hall Bingley Hall in Birmingham was the first purpose-built exhibition hall in Great Britain. It was built in 1850 and burned down in 1984. The International Convention Centre now stands on the site. Precursor The precursor of Bingley Hall was an " ...

. These events were funded by John Ratcliffe.

Features

A lodge-house sits at the north-western corner of the park. A bandstand formerly stood near to it. An 1855 statue of

Robert Peel Sir Robert Peel, 2nd Baronet (5 February 1788 – 2 July 1850), was a British Conservative statesman who twice was Prime Minister of the United Kingdom (1834–1835, 1841–1846), and simultaneously was Chancellor of the Exchequer (1834–183 ...

by Peter Hollins, which formerly stood in the park, is now outside the nearby ''Tally Ho!'' police training centre, although the original plinth is still in the park.

References

{{Birmingham parks Parks and open spaces in Birmingham, West Midlands Edgbaston Gough-Calthorpe family 1857 establishments in England