It is home to engine manufacturer Rolls-Royce and Alstom (formerly Bombardier Transportation) has a production facility at the Derby Litchurch Lane Works; Toyota's UK headquarters is located in the south-west of the city at Burnaston.

[10] Modern research (2004) into the history and archaeology of Derby has provided evidence that the Vikings and Anglo-Saxons would have co-existed, occupying two areas of land surrounded by water.

These troops took part in the defence of nearby Nottingham, the siege of Lichfield, the battle of Hopton Heath and many other engagements in Nottinghamshire, Staffordshire and Cheshire, as well as successfully defending Derbyshire against Royalist armies.

Stuart called at The George Inn on Irongate (where the Duke of Devonshire had set up his headquarters in late November after raising The Derbyshire Blues) and demanded billets for the 9,000 troops under his command.

[16] There were several attempts to ban the game, described in 1846 as "the barbarous and disgusting play of Foot-Ball, which for a great number of years has annually disgraced our town".

The partners were Jedediah Strutt, William Woollatt (who had been joined in 1758 by John Bloodworth and Thomas Stafford, all leading hosiers in Derby).

Messrs Wright, the bankers of Nottingham, recommended that Richard Arkwright apply to Strutt and Need for finance for his cotton spinning mill.

In 1771 Richard Arkwright, Samuel Need and Jedediah Strutt built the world's first commercially successful water-powered cotton spinning mill at Cromford, Derbyshire, developing a form of power that was to be a catalyst for the Industrial Revolution.

[24] The beginning of 19th century saw Derby emerging as an engineering centre, with manufacturers such as James Fox, who exported machine tools to Russia.

The borough did not increase substantially again until 1968, when under a recommendation of the Local Government Boundary Commission it was expanded into large parts of the rural district of Belper, Repton and South East Derbyshire.

[27][28] The early activities of the club, (even through World Wars), pushed the boundaries of 'wireless' technologies at the time in England, and promoted it into becoming a hobby for many local folk.

[30] Slum clearance in the 1920s and 1930s saw the central area of Derby become less heavily populated as families were rehoused on new council estates in the suburbs, where houses for private sale were also constructed.

Derby was awarded city status on 7 June 1977 by Queen Elizabeth II to mark the 25th anniversary of her ascension to the throne.

This may in part have been because of jamming against the German radio-beam navigations systems (X-Verfahren and Knickebein, camouflage and decoy techniques ("Starfish sites") were built, mainly south of the town, e.g. out in fields near Foremark.

[citation needed] The Royal School for the Deaf on Ashbourne Road provides education in British Sign Language and English.

Notes: Derby has a green belt area defined to the north and east of the city, first drawn up in the 1950s, to prevent convergence with the surrounding towns and villages.

Other companies of note include railway systems engineering firm Alstom, who manufacture railway rolling stock at Derby Litchurch Lane Works; First Source, who deal with much of Sky's telephone support; and Triton Equity, who took over Alstom's manufacturing plant for large power plant boilers and heat exchangers in 2014.

[70] Derby was the home of Core Design (originally based on Ashbourne Road), who developed the successful video game Tomb Raider.

The Silk Mill stands at the southern end of the 24 km (15 mi) stretch of the River Derwent designated a World Heritage Site in 2001.

[81] The city is on several National Express routes; destinations include Birmingham, Gatwick Airport, Leicester, Leeds and London.

On 8 October 2021 it was announced that Derby had been included in the longlist of bids to host UK City of Culture 2025, but in March 2022 it failed to make it onto the shortlist.

The indie pop band White Town, fronted by Jyoti Mishra, is from Derby, and his video "Your Woman", features scenes from the city centre.

[88] Founding member and songwriter of Mercury Prize nominated alternative rock band Maxïmo Park and solo artist Duncan Lloyd is from Derby.

Three of her albums, Adelphi Has to Fly, Single Flame and I Dreamt I Was a Bird, have been critically acclaimed and have each received four-starred reviews in the British national press.

Sinfonia Viva is a chamber orchestra based in Derby, presenting concerts and educational events in the city, across the East Midlands, and occasionally further afield.

It includes strong input from the local History Network[102] which was awarded a Heritage Lottery grant to pursue its work on marking the 100th anniversary of World War 1.

On 10 November 2021, Derby City Council approved plans for the UK's first large-scale urban rewilding project, in Allestree Park.

Former players include Colin Todd, Roy McFarland (who both later had brief and unsuccessful stints as manager at the club), Dave Mackay, Peter Shilton, Dean Saunders, Craig Short, Marco Gabbiadini, Horacio Carbonari, Fabrizio Ravanelli, Steve Bloomer and Tom Huddlestone.

Graham Street Prims and Borrowash Victoria are both members of the East Midlands Counties League (level ten) and play on adjacent grounds at the Asterdale complex in Spondon.

The development was controversial and local opponents accuse it of drawing trade away from the older parts of the city centre where independent shops are located.