After Stoke-on-Trent (258,366), the largest settlements are Tamworth (78,646), Newcastle-under-Lyme (75,082), Burton upon Trent (72,299) and Stafford (71,673); the city of Lichfield has a population of 33,816.

For local government purposes Staffordshire comprises a non-metropolitan county, with nine districts, and the unitary authority area of Stoke-on-Trent.

Staffordshire contains a number of Iron Age tumuli and Roman camps, and was settled by the Angles in the sixth century; the oldest Stafford knot, the county's symbol, can be seen on an Anglian cross in the churchyard of Stoke Minster.

In 1553, Queen Mary made Lichfield a county corporate, meaning it was administered separately from the rest of Staffordshire, remaining so until 1888.

A significant boundary change occurred in 1926 when the east of Sedgley was transferred to Worcestershire to allow the construction of the new Priory Estate on land purchased by Dudley County Borough council.

[5] A major reorganisation in the Black Country in 1966, under the recommendation of the Local Government Commission for England, led to the creation of an area of contiguous county boroughs.

In July 2009, the largest hoard of Anglo-Saxon gold ever found in Britain was discovered in a field near Lichfield.

The artefacts, known as The Staffordshire Hoard, have tentatively been dated to the 7th or 8th centuries, placing the origin of the items in the time of the Kingdom of Mercia.

[7] By the late 1930s, they were established First Division members and boasted arguably the finest footballer in England at the time in right-winger Stanley Matthews, who had two spells with the club between 1930 and his retirement in 1965 at the age of 50.

[12] Port Vale, who like Stoke City play in Stoke-on-Trent, were formed in 1876 and became members of the Football League in 1892.

Another FA Cup success came in February 1988 when they eliminated seven-time winners Tottenham Hotspur from the competition.

[13] West Bromwich Albion, Wolverhampton Wanderers and Walsall are also notable clubs based in the historic county boundaries.

Famous international cricketers produced by the county include Sydney Barnes, Bob Taylor and Dominic Cork, all of whom went on to represent England.

From its source, near Biddulph, the Trent flows through Staffordshire in a southwesterly direction and meets the River Sow just east of Stafford.

It then meets the River Tame and turns north-east, exiting into Derbyshire immediately downstream of Burton upon Trent.

Staffordshire contains sectors of three green belt areas, two of which surround the large conurbations of Stoke-on-Trent and the West Midlands, and were first drawn up from the 1950s.

[21] The brewing companies such as Coors Brewers are in Burton on Trent, as well as Marmite, Marston's Brewery, GNC UK (health supplements).

Newell Rubbermaid UK (owner of Parker Pen, Berol, Paper Mate and DYMO), a large RDC of Tesco, and Zytek (motorsport) is at Fradley Park, on an old airfield.

Steelite International (pottery) is based at Middleport, in west Burslem, next to the Trent and Mersey Canal.

Wade Ceramics is at Etruria to the east of Wolstanton, near the HQ of The Sentinel newspaper (Harmsworth Printing).

Premier Foods make Mr Kipling slices and Cherry Bakewells at Trent Vale in the south of Stoke-on-Trent.

Premier Foods make Bird's Custard, Angel Delight and Marvel powdered milk in Knighton, west of Eccleshall near the Shropshire boundary.

Ornua, best known for the Kerrygold brand, have a large cheese production site in Leek on Sunnyhills Road.

This is a chart of trend of regional gross value added of the non-metropolitan county of Staffordshire at current basic prices by Office for National Statistics with figures in millions of British pounds sterling.

The theme park Alton Towers is in the Staffordshire Moorlands and several of the world's largest pottery manufacturers are based in Stoke-on-Trent.

The ceremonial county of Staffordshire (including the unitary authority of Stoke-on-Trent) is represented by twelve Members of Parliament (MPs) in the House of Commons.

Primitive Methodism was founded in Staffordshire by Hugh Bourne, a native of Stoke-on-Trent, at a public gathering in the village of Mow Cop.

This station is also the terminus of the North Staffordshire line to Derby via Uttoxeter, which narrowly avoided closure in the 1960s.

Several major roads intersect the county, making it a popular location for commuters working in Birmingham.

Staffordshire is served by the ITV Central and BBC West Midlands television regions, both of which have their studios in Birmingham.