The University of Sheffield (informally Sheffield University) is a research university in the city of Sheffield in South Yorkshire, England. It received its royal charter in 1905 as successor to the University College of Sheffield, which was established in 1897 by the merger of Sheffield Medical School (founded in 1828), Firth College (1879) and Sheffield Technical School (1884). As one of the original red brick universities, it is also a member of the prestigious Russell Group of research-intensive universities.