Plymouth is a city in the southwest of England, or alternatively the Westcountry, and is situated within the traditional county of Devon. It is located at the mouths of the rivers Plym and Tamar and at the head of one of the world's largest and most spectacular natural harbours, the Plymouth Sound. The city has a rich maritime past and was once one of the two most important Royal Navy bases in the United Kingdom, a factor that made the city a prime target of the Luftwaffe during the Second World War. After the destruction of the dockyards and city centre in the blitz of 1941, Plymouth was rebuilt under the guidance of architect Patrick Abercrombie and is now one of the few remaining naval dockyards in the United Kingdom and the largest naval base in Western Europe. Important attractions in the city include The Royal Citadel, Devonport Dockyard and The Barbican from where the Pilgrims left for the New World in 1620.

Museums, Art Galleries and Historic Buildings
The Plymouth city Museum and Art Gallery is home to vast collections of fine and decorative arts, natural history and human history. The museum's natural history collection consists of over 150,000 specimens of insects, birds, mammals, skeletons, plants, fossils and rocks along with an historic natural history library and archive. Many prehistoric artefacts from Dartmoor, important Bronze Age and Iron Age material from Mount Batten and medieval and post-medieval finds from Plymouth are found in the human history collection alongside artefacts from ancient Egypt and other ancient cultures of Europe and the Middle East. The Art Gallery boasts ever-changing art displays and exhibitions showcasing local and international art ranging from the 16th to the 20th centuries. The collections include 750 easel paintings, over 3000 watercolours and drawings, at least 5000 prints and a sizeable collection of sculptures. Work by local artists include that of Sir Joshua Reynolds and Robert Lenkiewicz along with work by artists of the 19th century Newlyn School, the influential 20th century St. Ives group of painters and works by the Camden Town Group.
The Plymouth Arts Centre is located in the historic Barbican and offers displays of work by a wide range of local, British and international artists such as Beryl Cook, Richard Deacon, Andy Goldsworthy and Sir Terry Frost. As well as promoting art, many independent art house and foreign films are also shown here. In a spectacularly converted church on North Hill is the Sherwell Centre that plays host to regular exhibitions, concerts, recitals, lectures and other public events. Many more small and privately owned galleries can be found on The Barbican.
Other museums in Plymouth include the Plymouth Dome, the Plymouth & West Devon Record Office, Smeatons Tower, the Elizabethan House and Merchants House in addition to thousands of historic documents at various other locations.
Plymouth is also home to the  National Marine Aquarium. It is the United Kingdom's foremost aquarium.
The synagogue, in Catherine Street, was built in 1762. It is the oldest Ashkenazi synagogue still standing in the English-speaking world.