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City status in the United Kingdom

2007 Schools Wikipedia Selection. Related subjects: Geography of Great
Britain


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   Historically, city status was associated with the presence of a
   cathedral, such as York Minster.
   Enlarge
   Historically, city status was associated with the presence of a
   cathedral, such as York Minster.

   City status in the United Kingdom is granted by the British monarch to
   a select group of communities. The status does not apply automatically
   on the basis of any particular criteria, although it was traditionally
   given to towns with diocesan cathedrals. This association between
   having a cathedral and being called a city was established in the early
   1540s when Henry VIII founded dioceses (and therefore cathedrals) in
   six English towns and also granted them all city status by issuing
   Letters Patent.

History

   Until the sixteenth century, a town was recognised as a city by the
   Crown if it had a diocesan cathedral within its limits. This means some
   cities today are very small, because they were unaffected by population
   growth during the industrial revolution — notably Wells, which has a
   population of about 10,000 (see Smallest cities in the United Kingdom).
   After the sixteenth century, no new dioceses (and no new cities) were
   created until the nineteenth century, but the practice was revived with
   the creation of the diocese of Ripon in 1836. A string of new dioceses
   and cities followed. This process was changed in 1888 to allow
   Birmingham and other large settlements that did not have cathedrals to
   become cities (Birmingham's parish church later became a cathedral).

City status conferrment

   City status is conferred by letters patent and not by a royal charter
   but there are some British cities that predate the historical monarchy,
   and have been regarded as cities since " time immemorial".

   City status brings no benefits other than the right to be called a
   city. It should be noted that all cities have to be re-issued with
   letters patent reconfirming city status following local government
   re-organisation where the original city has been abolished. This
   process was followed by a number of cities since 1974, and York and
   Hereford's status was confirmed in both 1974 and again in the 1990s.
   Failure to do so leads to the loss of city status as happened at
   Rochester in 1998 (see below).

   Charters originated as charters of incorporation, allowing a town to
   become an incorporated borough, or to hold markets. Some of these
   charters recognised officially that the town involved was a city. Apart
   from that recognition, it became accepted that such a charter could
   make a town into a city. The earliest examples of these are Hereford
   and Worcester, both of which date their city status to 1189.

   Some people have disputed the official definition, especially
   inhabitants of places that have been considered cities in the past but
   are not generally considered cities today. Additionally, although the
   Crown clearly has the right to bestow 'official' city status, some have
   doubted the right of the Crown to define the word "city" in the United
   Kingdom. In informal usage, "city" can be used for large towns or
   conurbations that are not formally cities. The best-known example of
   this is London, which contains two cities (the City of London, and the
   City of Westminster) but is not itself a city.

Officially-designated cities

   There are currently 66 officially-designated cities in the UK, of which
   eight have been created since 2000 in competitions to celebrate the new
   millennium and Queen Elizabeth II's Golden Jubilee. The designation is
   highly sought after, with over 40 communities submitting bids at recent
   competitions.

Modern practice of granting city status

   Towns that became seats of bishoprics in the twentieth century, such as
   Chelmsford, Guildford, and Blackburn, were not automatically granted
   city status. However, well into the twentieth century it was often
   assumed that the presence of a cathedral was sufficient to elevate a
   town to city status, and that for cathedral cities the city charters
   were recognising its city status rather than granting it. On this
   basis, the 1911 Encyclopedia Britannica said that Southwell (diocese
   established 1884) and St Asaph (an historic diocese) are cities. These
   towns were never granted letters patent recognising this by the Crown,
   and so when the letters patent became the important criterion they were
   no longer generally considered cities.

   In 1911 an application for city status by Portsmouth was refused.
   Explaining the Home Secretary's reason for not recommending the King to
   approve the petition, the Lord Advocate stated: "..during the reign of
   his late Majesty it was found necessary, in order to maintain the value
   of the distinction, to lay down a rule as to the minimum population
   which should ordinarily, in connexion with other considerations, be
   regarded as qualifying a borough for that higher status."

   In 1927 a Royal Commission on Local Government was examining local
   authority areas and functions in England and Wales. The question arose
   as to which towns were entitled to be called cities, and the chairman,
   the Earl of Onslow, wrote to the Home Office to seek clarification. The
   Home Office replied with a memorandum which read:

   "The title of a city which is borne by certain boroughs is a purely
   titular distinction. It has no connexion with the status of the borough
   in respect of local government and confers no powers or privileges. At
   the present time and for several centuries past the title has been
   obtained only by an express grant from the Sovereign effected by
   letters patent; but a certain number of cities possess the title by
   very ancient prescriptive right. There is no necessary connexion
   between the title of a city and the seat of a bishopric, and the
   creation of a new see neither constitutes the town concerned a city nor
   gives it any claim to the grant of letters patent creating it a city.

   If a town wishes to obtain the title of a city the proper method of
   procedure is to address a petition to the King through the Home Office.
   It is the duty of the Home Secretary to submit such petitions to his
   Majesty and to advise his Majesty to the reply to be returned. It is a
   well-established principle that the grant of the title is only
   recommended in the case of towns of the first rank in population, size
   and importance, and having a distinctive character and identity of
   their own. At the present day, therefore, it is only rarely and in
   exceptional circumstances that the title is given."

   A town can now apply for city status by submitting an application to
   the Lord Chancellor, who makes recommendations to the sovereign. Such
   competitions are usually held to mark special events, such as
   coronations, royal jubilees or the Millennium.

Lord Mayors

   Only 28 cities have ceremonial Lord Mayors. Patrick John Stannard (Lord
   Mayor of Oxford) wears the chain of that office, 2004
   Enlarge
   Only 28 cities have ceremonial Lord Mayors. Patrick John Stannard (Lord
   Mayor of Oxford) wears the chain of that office, 2004

   Some cities in England, Wales and Northern Ireland have the further
   distinction of having a Lord Mayor rather than a simple Mayor - in
   Scotland, the equivalent is the Lord Provost. Lord Mayors have the
   right to be styled "The Right Worshipful The Lord Mayor". The Lord
   Mayors and Provosts of Belfast, Cardiff, Edinburgh, Glasgow, City of
   London, and York all have the further right to be styled " The Right
   Honourable the Lord Mayor" (or Provost), though they are not members of
   the Privy Council as this style usually indicates. The style is
   associated with the office, not the person holding it, so "The Right
   Worshipful Joe Bloggs" would be incorrect.

   There are currently 66 recognised cities (including 30 Lord Mayoralties
   or Lord Provostships) in the UK: 50 cities (23 Lord Mayoralties) in
   England, five cities (two Lord Mayoralties) in Wales, six cities (four
   Lord Provostships) in Scotland and five cities (one Lord Mayoralty) in
   Northern Ireland.

Anomalies

   Rochester was recognised as a city from 1211 to 1998. On April 1, 1974
   the city was abolished, becoming part of the Borough of Medway, a local
   government district in the county of Kent. However, under letters
   patent the area of the former city was to continue to be styled the
   "City of Rochester" to "perpetuate the ancient name" and to recall "the
   long history and proud heritage of the said city". The city was unique,
   as it had no council or charter trustees and no mayor or civic head. In
   1979 the Borough of Medway was renamed as Rochester-upon-Medway, and in
   1982 further letters patent transferred the city status to the entire
   borough. On April 1, 1998, the existing local government districts of
   Rochester-upon-Medway and Gillingham were abolished and became the new
   unitary authority of Medway. Since it was the local government district
   that officially held city status under the 1982 letters patent, when it
   was abolished, it also ceased to be a city. The other local government
   districts with city status that were abolished around this time ( Bath
   and Hereford) had decided to appoint Charter Trustees to maintain the
   existence of the city and the mayoralty. However, Rochester upon Medway
   City Council had decided not to. Medway Council apparently only became
   aware of this when, in 2002, they discovered that Rochester was not on
   the Lord Chancellor's Office's list of cities.

Pretenders

   After its unsuccessful attempt to gain city status, the town of
   Reading, Berkshire started using the phrase "City Centre" on its buses
   and car park signs. In its planning, the government of the day intended
   Milton Keynes to be a "new city" in scale, it was referred to as such
   in contemporary supporting papers, but was gazetted in 1967 as a New
   Town. It has used the term "City Centre" on its buses and road signs
   for many years. Although it has been county town of Essex since the
   13th century and has a cathedral, Chelmsford does not have city status:
   nevertheless it's local football team calls itself Chelmsford City
   F.C..

List of cities

   The following are the official cities in the United Kingdom as in 2004.
   Those that have been cities since time immemorial are indicated with
   "TI" in the "since" column.

   Note that the Cathedral column lists the diocesan cathedrals that were
   the grounds for the granting of city status, that is, cathedrals of the
   established Church of England, and the formerly established Church in
   Wales or Church of Ireland, in cities recognised prior to 1888. The
   Church of Scotland has no bishops. Many of these cities have Roman
   Catholic cathedrals, but these are not listed. From 1888 on, the
   presence or absence of a cathedral ceased to be relevant and, for all
   subsequent cities, this entry is shown as not applicable.
   City Mayor Since Cathedral Council
   English Cities
   Bath   1590 Bath Abbey Charter Trustees
   Birmingham Lord Mayor 1889 not applicable metropolitan borough
   Bradford Lord Mayor 1897 not applicable metropolitan borough
   Brighton & Hove   2000 not applicable unitary authority
   Bristol Lord Mayor
   (The Rt Hon.) 1542 Bristol Cathedral unitary authority
   Cambridge   1951 not applicable district
   Canterbury Lord Mayor TI Christchurch Cathedral district
   Carlisle TI Carlisle Cathedral district
   Chester Lord Mayor 1541 Chester Cathedral district
   Chichester   TI Chichester Cathedral civil parish
   Coventry Lord Mayor 1345 Coventry Cathedral metropolitan borough
   Derby   1977 not applicable unitary authority
   Durham   TI Durham Cathedral district
   Ely   TI Ely Cathedral civil parish
   Exeter Lord Mayor TI Exeter Cathedral district
   Gloucester   1541 Gloucester Cathedral district
   Hereford   1189 Hereford Cathedral civil parish
   Kingston upon Hull Lord Mayor 1897 not applicable unitary authority
   Lancaster   1937 not applicable district
   Leeds Lord Mayor 1893 not applicable metropolitan borough
   Leicester Lord Mayor 1919 not applicable unitary authority
   Lichfield   1553 Lichfield Cathedral civil parish
   Lincoln   TI Lincoln Cathedral district
   Liverpool Lord Mayor 1880 Liverpool Cathedral (1880) metropolitan
   borough
   City of London Lord Mayor
   (The Rt Hon.) TI St Paul's Cathedral Corporation of London
   Manchester Lord Mayor 1853 Manchester Cathedral (1847) metropolitan
   borough
   Newcastle upon Tyne Lord Mayor 1882 Newcastle Cathedral (1882)
   metropolitan borough
   Norwich Lord Mayor 1195 Norwich Cathedral district
   Nottingham Lord Mayor 1897 not applicable unitary authority
   Oxford Lord Mayor 1542 Christ Church Cathedral district
   Peterborough   1541 Peterborough Cathedral unitary authority
   Plymouth Lord Mayor 1928 not applicable unitary authority
   Portsmouth Lord Mayor 1926 not applicable unitary authority
   Preston   2002 not applicable district
   Ripon   1836 Ripon Cathedral (1836) civil parish
   Salford   1926 not applicable metropolitan borough
   Salisbury   TI Salisbury Cathedral Charter Trustees
   Sheffield Lord Mayor 1893 not applicable metropolitan borough
   Southampton   1964 not applicable unitary authority
   St Albans   1877 St Albans Cathedral (1877) district
   Stoke-on-Trent Lord Mayor 1925 not applicable unitary authority
   Sunderland   1992 not applicable metropolitan borough
   Truro   1877 Truro Cathedral (1877) civil parish
   Wakefield   1888 Wakefield Cathedral (1888) metropolitan borough
   Wells   1205 Wells Cathedral civil parish
   Westminster Lord Mayor 1540 Westminster Abbey London borough
   Winchester   TI Winchester Cathedral district
   Wolverhampton   2000 not applicable metropolitan borough
   Worcester   1189 Worcester Cathedral district
   York Lord Mayor
   (The Rt Hon.) TI York Minster unitary authority
   Scottish Cities
   Aberdeen Lord Provost 1891 ( royal burgh: 1179) not applicable unitary
   authority
   Dundee Lord Provost 1889 (royal burgh: 1191) not applicable unitary
   authority
   Edinburgh Lord Provost
   (The Rt Hon.) 1329 (royal burgh;
   city status has never
   been formally granted) not applicable unitary authority
   Glasgow Lord Provost
   (The Rt Hon.) 1492 (royal burgh;
   city status has never
   been formally granted) not applicable unitary authority
   Inverness Provost 2000 not applicable former royal burgh
   Stirling Provost 2002 not applicable former royal burgh
   Welsh Cities
   Bangor   TI Bangor Cathedral community
   Cardiff Lord Mayor
   (The Rt. Hon.) 1905 not applicable unitary authority
   Newport   2002 not applicable unitary authority
   St David's   1994 not applicable community
   Swansea Lord Mayor 1969 not applicable unitary authority
   Northern Irish Cities
   Armagh   1994 not applicable unitary authority
   Belfast Lord Mayor
   (The Rt Hon.) 1888 not applicable unitary authority
   Derry/ Londonderry   1613 St Columb's Cathedral unitary authority
   Lisburn   2002 not applicable unitary authority
   Newry   2002 not applicable none

   Note (1): City Status confirmed by Letters Patent issued under the
   Great Seal dated April 1, 1974.

   Note (2): City Status confirmed by Letters Patent issued under the
   Great Seal dated June 25, 1974.

   Note (3): City Status confirmed by Letters Patent issued under the
   Great Seal dated May 28, 1974.

   Note (4): Bath Abbey and Westminster Abbey are no longer cathedrals.

   Note (5): Coventry has had three cathedrals: the first, St Mary's from
   1043 to 1539; the second, St Michael's, from 1918 to 1940, when it was
   destroyed by German bombardment; and its replacement, also St
   Michael's, built alongside the old cathedral, consecrated in 1962.

   Note (6): Note that the City of London covers only the "square mile",
   and is usually just referred to as "the City". The larger conurbation
   of Greater London has no city charter, and consists of the City of
   London, the City of Westminster and 31 other London boroughs. This can
   be compared to the City of Brussels, within Brussels.

   Note (7): City status was confirmed by Letters Patent dated July 9,
   1974. The city status extends to the entire district, although the
   district council calls itself "St Albans District Council" or "St
   Albans City and District".

   Note (8): Letters Patent under the Great Seal conferring City Status
   were issued to the unitary authority of York on 1st April, 1996,
   confirming the right of the Lord Mayor to be styled "Right Honourable",
   in continuation to those granted to the previous City Council abolished
   March 31, 1996.

   Note (9): Letters Patent under the Great Seal were issued on March 29,
   1996 ordaining that the counties of Swansea and Cardiff should have the
   status of cities from April 1, 1996. The counties replaced the previous
   district councils which had enjoyed city status.

   Note (10): According to the Municipal Year Book, 1972 the royal burghs
   of Perth and Elgin officially enjoyed city status. The royal burghs of
   Brechin, Dunfermline and Kirkwall had also been officially described as
   "cities". As all burghs were abolished in 1975, these areas are now
   often called "former cities". Although Brechin does not have city
   status, the community council formed for the area uses the title "City
   of Brechin and District".

   Note (11): The Provost of Inverness is the Area Convenor of the
   Inverness Area Committee of Highland Council.

   Note (12): The Provost of Stirling is the civic head of the entire
   Stirling council area, although city status only extends to the town of
   Stirling.

   Note (13): Armagh had previously enjoyed city status, with St Patrick's
   Cathedral the site of the metropolitan primate of all Ireland. The city
   status was lost in 1840 when the city corporation was abolished.
   However, the successor urban district council and district council
   frequently used the title of city without official sanction prior to
   1994.

   Note (14): City Status confirmed by Letters Patent issued under the
   Great Seal dated March 18, 1975.

   Note (15): City status granted by Letters Patent dated June 7, 1977.

   Note (16): City status granted to the "Town of Newport in the County
   Borough of Newport" and the "Town of Preston" by Letters Patent dated
   May 15, 2002.

   Note (17): Letters Patent dated January 31, 2001 ordained that "the
   Towns of Brighton and Hove shall have the status of a City".

   Note (18): Letters Patent dated January 31, 2001 ordained that "the
   Town of Wolverhampton shall have the status of a City".

   Note (19): Letters Patent dated November 4, 1980 ordained that the
   "Town of Lichfield shall have the status of a City". A town council had
   been constituted in 1980 leading to the dissolution of the Charter
   Trustees of the City of Lichfield.

   Note (20): City status granted by Letters Patent dated March 23, 1992.

   Note (21): City status was conferred on Hereford Town Council October
   11, 2000. The status had previously been confirmed to the district
   council formed in 1974. When that council was abolished in 1996 charter
   trustees were formed for the City of Hereford. On the formation of a
   town council for Hereford in April 2000 the charter trustees were
   dissolved, and the city status temporarily lapsed.

   Note (22): Letters Patent dated September 16, 1994 ordained that the
   "Town of St. David's shall have the status of a City".

   Note (23): The title of City was used "by courtesy" after 1550 when
   Westminster ceased to be the see of a bishop. By Letters Patent dated
   October 27, 1900 city status was conferred on the newly created
   Metropolitan Borough of Westminster from November 1. This status was
   continued on the creation of the City of Westminster as a london
   borough in 1965.

   Note (24): A letter from the Home Secretary to the Mayor of Leicester
   confirming that the city status would be bestowed, noted that this was
   a "restoration to your ancient town of its former status of a city."

   Note (25): Letters Patent dated December 10, 1969.

   Note (26): Letters Patent dated April 21, 1926.

   Note (27): Letters Patent dated March 21, 1951.

   Note (28): Letters Patent dated May 14, 1937.

   Note (29): Letters Patent dated October 18, 1928.

   Note (30): Letters Patent dated June 5, 1925.

   Note (31): Letters Patent dated October 28, 1905, which also granted
   the title of Lord Mayor.

   Note (32): Letters Patent dated March 22, 1982

   Note (33): Letters Patent dated July 13, 1988

   Note (34): Letters Patent dated March 10, 1992

   Note (35): Letters Patent dated June 6, 1953

   Note (36): Letters Patent dated May 1, 2002

   Note (37): Declaration that the Chief Magistrate and Officer of the
   City to bear the style and title of Lord Mayor due to the city's high
   position in the roll of ports of [the] kingdom June 26, 1914

   Note (38): Declaration that the Chief Magistrate to bear the honorary
   title of Lord Mayor July 11, 1906

   Note (39): Declaration that the Chief Magistrate of the City to bear
   the style and title of Lord Mayor July 10, 1928 in consideration of its
   antiquity and importance

   Note (40): Letters Patent dated October 23, 1962

   Note (41): Letters Patent dated May 10, 1935, in commemoration of his
   Majesty's silver jubilee

   Note (42): Letters Patent dated March 11, 1966

   Note (43): Style of "Right Honourable" conferred on Lord Mayor by
   Letters Patent dated October 26, 1956. The city was designated the
   capital of wales at that date.

   Note (44): The first Lord Mayor was appointed June 3, 1896

   Note (45): Letters Patent dated September 16, 1907

   Note (46): The Lord Mayoralty of Bristol was granted as part of the
   Birthday Honours in 1899

   Note (47): The Lord Mayoralty was granted in 1897

   Note (48): The Lord Mayoralty was granted in 1928

   Note (49): The Lord Mayoralty was granted in 1892

   Note (50): The Lord Mayoralty was granted in 1892

   Note (51): The Lord Mayoralty was granted in 1910 in view of the
   position occupied by that city as the chief city of East Anglia and of
   its close association with his Majesty

   Note (52): The Lord Mayoralty was granted in 1927

   Note (53): The Lord Mayoralty was granted July 12, 1897

   Note (54): The Lord Mayoralty was granted July 10, 1928

   Note (55): Warrant issued 28 January 1889 that Letters Patent be issued
   under the Seal appointed by the treaty of union to be used in place of
   the Great Seal of Scotland, ordaining and declaring that the Burgh of
   Dundee shall be a City, and shall be called and styled "The City of
   Dundee"

   Note (56): Burghs of Old Aberdeen and Woodside and the district of
   Torry incorporated as the City and Royal Burgh of Aberdeen by the
   Aberdeen Corporation Act 1891 (1891 c.cxxiv)

   Note (57): The present council areas are designated "cities" by virtue
   of the Local Government etc. (Scotland) Act 1994, which also reserves
   the post of Lord Provost for the convener of the four councils. The
   previous local government districts and district councils created by
   the Local Government (Scotland) Act 1973 enjoyed the same privileges.

   Note (58): Letters Patent dated January 14, 1889

Cities now in the Republic of Ireland

   These current cities in the Republic of Ireland were created using this
   system when Ireland was part of the United Kingdom.
     City      Mayor    Since    Church of Ireland Cathedral         Council
                            Republic of Ireland Cities
   Cork      Lord Mayor 1172  Saint Finbarre's Cathedral         City Council
   Dublin    Lord Mayor 1171  Christchurch Cathedral

                              St Patrick's Cathedral
                                                                 City Council
   Limerick             1197  St Mary's Cathedral                City Council
   Galway               1484  none                               City Council
   Kilkenny             1609  St Canice's Cathedral              Borough Council
   Waterford            1171  Christ Church Cathedral, Waterford City Council

City councils

   Being a city gives a settlement no special rights other than that of
   calling itself a city. Nonetheless, this is considered very prestigious
   and competitions for the status are hard fought.

   Most cities have "city councils", which have varying powers depending
   upon the type of settlement. There are unitary authorities (including
   metropolitan and London boroughs) that are responsible for all local
   government services within their area. (The only London borough having
   city status is the City of Westminster). Many cities have ordinary
   district councils, which share power with county councils. At the
   bottom end of the scale, some cities have civil parish councils, with
   no more power than a village.

   Some cities have no council at all. Where they used to have a city
   council but it has been abolished they may have Charter Trustees, drawn
   from the local district council, who appoint the mayor and look after
   the city's traditions.

   Most "cities" are not cities in the traditional sense of the word (that
   is, a large urban area) but are in fact local government districts that
   have city status, and which often include large rural areas. For
   example the City of Canterbury and City of Wakefield cover large rural
   areas. The largest "city" district in terms of area is the City of
   Carlisle, which covers some 400 square miles (1040 km²) of mostly rural
   landscape in the north of England, and is larger than smaller counties
   such as Merseyside or Rutland. The City of Sheffield contains part of
   the Peak District National Park. This is however merely a curiosity and
   has had no impact on the general usage of the word "city" in the UK,
   which has unambiguously retained its urban meaning in British English.
   Residents of the rural parts of the "City of Carlisle" and the like
   might be aware of the name of their local council, but would not
   consider themselves to be inhabitants of a city with a small "c".

   Equally, there are some cities where the local government district is
   in fact smaller than the historical or natural boundaries of the city.
   Four examples of this are Manchester (where the traditional area
   associated includes areas of the neighbouring authorities of Trafford,
   Tameside and Bury), Glasgow (where suburban areas of the city are
   located in East Dunbartonshire, East Renfrewshire, North Lanarkshire
   and South Lanarkshire), Wolverhampton (areas of the neighbouring
   authorities of Walsall, Dudley and South Staffordshire) and most
   obviously, London (Greater London outside the City of London).

   This contrasts with the situation in the United States, where the
   primary meaning of the word "city" is any area contained within city
   limits, completely disregarding whether or not that area is
   recognisable as a traditional "city".

   Due to the widespread interest in information about towns and cities,
   and for comparisons between urban populations and with those living
   outside towns, the Government at each census produces a report Key
   Statistics for Urban Areas that separates the population of the actual
   town or city from the population of the area controlled by the council
   bearing its name.

City applications

   City status grants have been used to mark special royal and other
   occasions. Swansea was granted city status in 1969 to mark the
   investiture of Charles, Duke of Cornwall as Prince of Wales. At the
   Queen's Silver Jubilee in 1977, Derby was granted the honour. The use
   of formal competitions for city status is a recent practice. The first
   competition was held in 1992, to mark the fortieth anniversary of the
   Queen's reign. Sunderland was the winner. In 1994 two historic seats of
   Bishoprics — St David's and Armagh — were granted city status. They had
   been considered cities historically, but this status had lapsed. For
   the city applications in 2000, held to celebrate the millennium, the
   following towns and boroughs requested city status:
     * England: Blackburn, Blackpool, Bolton, Brighton & Hove, Chelmsford,
       Colchester, Croydon, Doncaster, Dover, Guildford, Ipswich, Luton,
       Maidstone, Medway, Middlesbrough, Milton Keynes, Northampton,
       Preston, Reading, Shrewsbury and Atcham, Southend-on-Sea,
       Southwark, Stockport, Swindon, Telford and Wrekin, Warrington,
       Wolverhampton.
     * Wales: Aberystwyth, Machynlleth, Newport, Newtown, St Asaph,
       Wrexham.
     * Scotland: Ayr, Inverness, Paisley, Stirling.
     * Northern Ireland: Ballymena, Lisburn.

   The three winners were Brighton & Hove, Wolverhampton, and Inverness.

   For the 2002 applications, held to celebrate the Queen's Golden
   Jubilee, the entrants included all of the above towns except Southwark,
   together with Greenwich and Wirral in England, Dumfries in Scotland and
   Carrickfergus, Coleraine, Craigavon and Newry in Northern Ireland.
   There was controversy in the rest of the UK — especially in Wales —
   over the fact that two of the three winners of the 2000 competition
   were English towns, so 2002 was run as four separate competitions. The
   winners in Great Britain were Preston in England, Newport in Wales, and
   Stirling in Scotland. In Northern Ireland it was decided to award city
   status to two entrants: Lisburn (predominantly unionist) and Newry
   (predominantly nationalist) so that offence would not be caused to
   either community. Exeter was awarded Lord Mayoralty status in a
   separate application.

Cathedral towns

England, Wales and Northern Ireland

   Now that being the seat of a Church of England diocese is no longer
   sufficient (or necessary) to become a city, there are a number of
   cathedral towns. These are sometimes referred to as cities by their
   residents — particularly St Asaph and Rochester.
        Place              Cathedral             Diocese established
   Blackburn        Blackburn Cathedral      1926
   Brecon           Brecon Cathedral         1923
   Bury St. Edmunds St Edmundsbury Cathedral 1914
   Chelmsford       Chelmsford Cathedral     1914
   Guildford        Guildford Cathedral      1927
   Rochester        Rochester Cathedral      historic;
                                             previously a city, see above
   Southwark        Southwark Cathedral      1905
   Southwell        Southwell Minster        1884
   St Asaph         St Asaph Cathedral       historic

   Additionally Llandaff, which is now part of the City of Cardiff local
   government district, is home to Llandaff Cathedral.

   The 1911 Encyclopedia Britannica refers to Llandaff, Southwell and St
   Asaph as cities, along with Armagh and Lisburn in Northern Ireland.
   (The latter two achieved city status formally in 1994 and 2002
   respectively.)

   There are four towns in Northern Ireland with Anglican Cathedrals that
   do not have city status — Clogher, Downpatrick, Dromore and
   Enniskillen.

   In total there are 17 English, Welsh and Northern Ireland towns that
   have city status but do not have Anglican cathedrals within their
   borders - Bath (a former cathedral), Brighton & Hove, Cambridge, Hull,
   Lancaster, Leeds, Newry, Nottingham, Plymouth, Preston, Salford,
   Southampton, Stoke-on-Trent, Sunderland, Swansea, Westminster (but
   Westminster Abbey was a cathedral briefly during the reign of Henry
   VIII) and Wolverhampton. Cities to have acquired cathedrals after 1888
   are Birmingham, Bradford, Derby, Leicester, Newport, Portsmouth and
   Sheffield.

Scotland

   The national church of Scotland, the Church of Scotland, is
   presbyterian in governance with no bishops or dioceses, and thus has
   high kirks rather than cathedrals. However the pre- Reformation and
   modern Roman Catholic dioceses, and the modern dioceses of the Scottish
   Episcopal Church, do have extant cathedrals. There are three towns in
   Scotland that have Episcopal cathedrals but do not have city status —
   Millport, Oban and Perth. Perth is often called a city, the fair city
   of Perth, but Oban is not. Additionally, Brechin and Elgin are often
   referred to as cities, as they had pre-Reformation cathedrals. In the
   past Elgin, Brechin and Perth were all cities.

   Stirling, which was awarded city status in 2002, has never had an
   Episcopal or Catholic cathedral.

Large towns

   As noted above, in ordinary discourse, "city" can refer to any large
   settlement, with no fixed limit.

   There are certain towns which have large urban areas, which could
   qualify for city status on the grounds of their population size. Some
   have applied for city status and had the application turned down.
   Northampton is one of the most populous urban districts not to be a
   London Borough, metropolitan borough or city; on this basis the council
   claims that it is the largest town in England.

   At every census the government produces the report Key Statistics for
   Urban Areas which shows that the following are the largest nine urban
   sub-areas outside London not a part of a city or having a city as a
   component:
     * Reading — 232,662
     * Dudley — 194,919
     * Northampton — 189,474
     * Luton — 185,543
     * Milton Keynes (urban area) — 184,506
     * Walsall — 170,994
     * Bournemouth — 167,527
     * Southend-on-Sea — 160,257
     * Swindon — 155,432

   See List of English cities by population for further such examples in
   England.

   It should be noted that city status is usually not granted to urban
   areas, but to local government areas such as civil parishes and
   boroughs, the boundaries, and hence populations, of which are not
   necessarily the same. The City of Stirling and the City of Inverness
   provide counterexamples here. Stirling Council's application for city
   status was specifically for the urban area of the (now former) Royal
   Burgh of Stirling - proposed city boundaries were included, and so not
   all of the council area has city status.

   This leads to the oddity whereby city status can be granted to areas
   that are not generally regarded as towns. Historical or "federal
   cities" of this type would be Stoke on Trent, Sunderland and Brighton &
   Hove - in all these cases the borough was formed and then city status
   granted to it afterwards.

   The largest local authorities to have applied for city status in the
   recent competitions are
     * London Borough of Croydon — 330,587
     * Metropolitan Borough of Wirral — 312,293
     * Metropolitan Borough of Doncaster — 286,866
     * Metropolitan Borough of Stockport — 284,528
     * Metropolitan Borough of Bolton — 261,037
     * Borough of Medway — 249,488
     * London Borough of Southwark — 244,866
     * London Borough of Greenwich — 214,403
     * Borough of Milton Keynes — 207,057
     * Borough of Northampton — 194,458
     * Borough of Warrington — 191,080
     * Borough of Luton — 184,371
     * Borough of Swindon — 180,051
     * Borough of Southend-on-Sea — 159,600

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