Sheffield Free Walking Tour

We will meet in Castlegate alongside Lady's Bridge, Sheffield's oldest bridge. This is the birthplace of the city. From a clearing in the woods where two great rivers, The Don and The Sheaf, meet, Sheffield grew to become the UK's 4th largest city and to be known around the world as the Steel City.

We'll reimagine Sheffield Castle, the prison of Mary Queen of Scots, and learn of its destruction. We'll meander through the old town, along its still cobbled streets, visiting sites where criminals were active, police officers killed on duty, chartists conspired, and razor gangs battled.

Who was the chartist leader of the Sheffield Uprising, and how is he commemorated in the city today? Who was Charlie Peace, and why was he England's most wanted man with waxwork effigy displayed in London's Madame Tussauds and had film and stage plays written about his life? Why was Sheffield known as 'Little Chicago' during the 1920s, and what exactly was the 'Rhino Whip' affair in 1963 that caused the then Chief Constable to resign? All of this and more will be explored, and the tour concludes in the Peace Gardens, today's Heart of the City.