The West Midlands, in its broadest sense, is the western part of central England (and therefore part of the United Kingdom as well). The region is heavily populated and industrialised, including several of the largest cities in the country, though still retaining much natural beauty in the rural counties.
From around the 1870s until the 1970s, the region was "the workshop of the world", especially known for engineering, metal industries, beer production (due to the waters), and pottery from Stoke-on-Trent. There was also extensive coal mining. The centre of the industrial region, Birmingham, was known as "the city of a thousand trades" due to a vibrant free market in skills and an independent-minded population of workers. For complex reasons, this industrial base began to collapse from the 1960s onwards. Although much industry still remains, 100,000's of industrial factory-based jobs have been lost over the last 30 years.
The English counties that surround the urban core are still some of the most beautiful in England, especially Warwickshire, Worcestershire, most of north Staffordshire, and certain parts of Shropshire.
The West Midlands region includes several traditional English counties as well as a central urban county called, confusingly enough, The West Midlands County:
| Herefordshire | |
| Worcestershire | |
| Warwickshire | |
| West Midlands County | |
| Shropshire | |
| Staffordshire |
The main access points are Birmingham International Airport, and Birmingham New Street railways station.
The West Midlands is well served by motorways connecting with other English regions. From London, the M40 and the M1/M6 are the most obvious choices, connecting directly with Birmingham and the northwestern part of the West Midlands respectively.
The road network is extensive, if convoluted. There are also good bus and rail networks, as well as national cycle-routes and a large canal network for narrowboats.
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