The county has an area of 1,713 square kilometres (661 sq mi) and a population of 1,131,052. 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. The county historically included the north-west of the West Midlands county, including Walsall, West Bromwich, and Wolverhampton.
Staffordshire is hilly to the north and south. The southern end of the Pennines is in the north, containing part of the Peak DistrictNational Park, while the Cannock ChaseAONB and part of the National Forest are in the south. The River Trent and its tributaries drain most of the county. From its source, near Biddulph, the river flows through Staffordshire in a southwesterly direction, meeting the Sow just east of Stafford; it then meets the River Tame and turns north-east, exiting into Derbyshire immediately downstream of Burton upon Trent. (Full article...)
An 1821 depiction of bull running elsewhere in England
The Tutbury bull run was a blood sport that took place in Tutbury, Staffordshire, from the 14th century until 1778. It formed part of the annual Court of Minstrels, a ceremonial legal proceeding for travelling musicians in the nearby counties. The Tutbury bull run is first recorded in 1414 but may be of earlier origin, though a story that it was begun by John of Gaunt to remind his Spanish wife of home is believed false. The bull was provided to the minstrels by Tutbury Priory and, after the Dissolution of the Monasteries, by the Duke of Devonshire. The bull would be chased through the town by the minstrels who could claim it if it was caught. It was afterwards baited to death and served in a feast. The event developed into a competition between Staffordshire and Derbyshire residents who competed to catch the bull within their own counties. After the decline of the Court of Minstrels the bull run developed into a drunken revel. It was abolished in 1778 after a man was killed during a mass brawl. (Full article...)
Mow Cop Castle is a folly at Mow Cop, near Harriseahead, Staffordshire.Traces of a prehistoric camp have been found here, but in 1754, Randle Wilbraham of nearby Rode Hall built an elaborate summerhouse looking like a medieval fortress and round tower.
Image 14Vale Park, home of Port Vale. Completed in 1950, at the time of its construction it was nicknamed 'The Wembley of the North'. (from Stoke-on-Trent)
The Staffordshire Portal 
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