Phil Colclough (11 January 1940 - 23 September 2019) was an English contemporary folk singer and songwriter. His best known works, co-written with his wife, June Colclough (1941 – 12 October 2004), are " A Song for Ireland " and "The Call and the Answer".
128-599: June and Phil Colclough both came from North Staffordshire , England, and both had careers in education. Phil had been a navigator in the Merchant Navy , which provided source material for some of his songs. The Colcloughs founded the first folk music club in Stoke-on-Trent in 1960. In 1966, they moved to London, where they were members of the Critics Group led by Ewan MacColl and Peggy Seeger ; they eventually left
256-551: A stipendiary magistrate . Only two years later the people of Fenton voted in favour of incorporation of the borough, while further meetings in Stoke and Burslem came out against incorporation but reiterated calls for the appointment of a stipendiary magistrate. Later the same year, a further call for better policing was made at a meeting chaired by the Duke of Sutherland . These calls were heard and in 1839 two acts of Parliament were passed,
384-513: 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. In 1928, Plymouth submitted an application for city status. As the borough had more inhabitants than Portsmouth and had absorbed Devonport and East Stonehouse , the King agreed to the request. However, he indicated that he had "come to an end of city making", and Southampton's application in
512-505: A board of commissioners control over policing and lighting along with the ability to levy rates for these purposes. Important steps as they were, none were directed towards any form of co-operation between Burslem, Hanley or any other of the Potteries towns. The first tentative step towards co-operation was taken in 1817, when a meeting in Hanley mooted "future joint public meetings called by
640-541: A borough in 1878. In Tunstall (1855) and Fenton (1873), the boards of commissioners were superseded by local boards of health . Introduction of the Local Government Bill in March 1888 caused much debate in the Potteries about the position of the towns under the proposed council structure. The bill proposed the creation of county councils across England and Wales and the granting of county borough status to towns with
768-495: A complicated valuation of the properties belonging to each municipality, something that none of the towns wished to carry out. Nevertheless, Hanley, Longton and Tunstall all supported the draft order while Stoke, Fenton and Burslem opposed it. Once the draft order had been issued, the locus of the process moved from the Potteries to London with the Local Government Provisional Order (No. 3) Bill introduced in
896-489: A conference of local authorities held in 1905, delegates from Longton again raised the issue of confederation but their proposal was not well received. Undaunted, the Longton delegates amended their suggestion to: "On the grounds of sanitation, education, and other matters of common interest it is desirable that the parliamentary borough of Stoke-upon-Trent should be formed into one municipal borough on some equitable basis, and that
1024-450: A differential rating system for the next 20 years had been settled on. No valuation of assets would be undertaken and each town was responsible for discharging any outstanding loans as of 31 December 1907. At this point the committee redrafted the bill according to the terms agreed by the towns and it was passed by the House of Lords on 19 December 1908. Returned to the House of Commons the bill
1152-456: A marker of prestige and confer local pride. The status does not apply automatically on the basis of any particular criterion, though until 1889 in England and Wales it was limited to towns with diocesan cathedrals . This association between having an Anglican cathedral and being called a city was established in the early 1540s when King Henry VIII founded dioceses (each having a cathedral in
1280-533: A number of applications, but in 1955 the borough's town clerk was told not to pursue the matter any further. Outside the boundaries of the county, the County Borough of Croydon made three applications, all of which were dismissed as it was not seen as being sufficiently separate from London. When the successor London Borough of Croydon applied in 1965 the Assistant Under Secretary of State summarised
1408-427: A number of local conferences to agree a scheme for federation of all six towns. These were duly held everywhere except Tunstall, where the council refused to participate. Fenton council made it clear that it would not back any proposal that did not have the support of its electorate. In Burslem, a high turnout of 74 per cent of voters delivered a vote of 3:2 against federation. The Staffordshire Advertiser described
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#17328444353881536-409: A number of local government districts which are not themselves towns. Each includes a number of towns and villages outside the urban area from which the district takes its name. In some of these cases city status was awarded to districts where the largest settlement had city status before 1974. In other cases a borough was formed to govern an area covering several towns and then city status was granted to
1664-702: A number of other boroughs, but only Cardiff was successful in being designated a city in 1905 and granted a Lord Mayoralty as "the Metropolis of Wales". The London Government Act 1899 abolished the existing local authorities within the County of London and replaced them with 28 metropolitan boroughs . Among the bodies to be dissolved was the Court of Burgesses of the City of Westminster . William Burdett-Coutts , one of Westminster's members of parliament, brought forward an amendment at
1792-477: A population exceeding 100,000. County borough status would allow such places to govern themselves independently of the county council. Consensus in the Potteries was against coming under the control of Staffordshire County Council and the idea developed of the Potteries seeking to become a county in their own right. Accordingly, a proposal was submitted to the Local Government Board on 2 July 1888 for
1920-518: A system of districts created. The four districts of Aberdeen , Edinburgh , Dundee and Glasgow had City included in their titles by the Act. The 1975 districts were replaced with the present council areas in 1996 by the Local Government etc. (Scotland) Act 1994 , and the same four cities were designated. Since the 1996 reorganisation, four more Scottish cities have been designated: Inverness as part of
2048-488: A variety of criteria, including population size. The abolition of some corporate bodies as part of successive local-government reforms, beginning with the Municipal Corporations (Ireland) Act 1840 , has deprived some ancient cities of their status. However, letters patent have been issued for most of the affected cities to ensure the continuation or restoration of their status. At present, Rochester and Elgin are
2176-679: A walled city, which was named "Londonderry" in recognition of the London Guilds that established the Society. In 1887, the Golden Jubilee of Queen Victoria was celebrated, and the Borough of Belfast submitted a memorial to the Lord Lieutenant of Ireland seeking city status. Belfast based its claim on its similarity to two English boroughs that had received the honour—the seaport of Liverpool and
2304-473: The Greater London area have been granted city status. The Home Office had a policy of resisting any attempt by metropolitan boroughs to become cities even when their populations, and other proposed claims as qualifying criteria, might otherwise have made them eligible. It was felt that such a grant would undermine the status of the two existing cities in the capital. The Metropolitan Borough of Southwark made
2432-555: The House of Commons in July 1908 by the Select Committee on Private Bills chaired by Sir George White . The bill received its third reading on 31 July 1908 but had undergone significant amendment during its passage through the House of Commons, most notably in the introduction of a complex, differential rating system for a period of 10 years. Few of the interested parties were pleased with
2560-605: The Industrial Revolution —notably Wells (population about 10,000) and St Davids (population about 2,000). After the 16th century, no new dioceses (and no new cities) were created until the 19th century in England ( a further city was created in Ireland during the rule of King James I in the 17th century). A long-awaited resumption of creating dioceses began in 1836 with Ripon . Ripon Town Council assumed that this had elevated
2688-567: The Lord Chancellor , who makes recommendations to the sovereign. Competitions for new grants of city status have been held to mark special events, such as coronations , royal jubilees or the Millennium . Some cities in England, Wales and Northern Ireland have the further distinction of having a lord mayor rather than just a mayor – in Scotland, the equivalent is the lord provost. Lord mayors have
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#17328444353882816-451: The Municipal Corporations (Ireland) Act 1840 . The only historic city with a charter in present-day Northern Ireland is Derry . The garrison town of Derry was attacked and destroyed by Cahir O'Doherty in 1608. The present city status is the result of a Royal Charter granted in 1615 to The Honourable The Irish Society as part of the Plantation of Ulster , providing for the building of
2944-611: The Royal Commission on Local Government in England in 1966, city grants were again in abeyance in England. Attempts by Derby , Teesside and Wolverhampton to become cities were not proceeded with. In Wales, Swansea campaigned for city status throughout the 1960s. The campaign came to a successful conclusion in 1969, in conjunction with the investiture of Charles, Prince of Wales . The Local Government Act 1972 abolished all existing local authorities outside London (other than parish councils ) in England and Wales. This meant that
3072-617: The Staffordshire Potteries Stipendiary Justice Act 1839 ( 2 & 3 Vict. c. 15) and the Staffordshire Potteries Improvement and Police Act 1839 ( 2 & 3 Vict. c. xliv). This legislation created additional boards of commissioners for Fenton, Longton and Stoke, with the same powers given to Hanley and Burslem by the 1825 acts. Following these amendments to local policing and justice, the discussion of co-operation and federation between
3200-464: The committee stage to rename the proposed borough of Greater Westminster to ' City of Westminster '. This was intended to give "recognition to the title which the area ... had possessed for over three and a half centuries". He felt that if the status was not retained for the new borough it "must necessarily disappear altogether". The amendment was rejected by the committee, however, with the First Lord of
3328-414: The parliamentary borough of Stoke-upon-Trent , which would elect two members to Parliament. Together with Stoke-upon-Trent itself, the parliamentary borough also comprised Burslem, Fenton, Hanley, Lane End, Shelton, the hamlet of Sneyd, Rushton Grange and Tunstall. The significance of the act was that for the first time and for one important reason only, through the election of Members of Parliament ,
3456-513: The parochial and manorial systems in use since the Middle Ages . In the Potteries towns this led to each of the townships having varying forms of government. Tunstall was parochially within Wolstanton and manorially part of Tunstall manor; Burslem, although manorially a part of Tunstall manor, parochially was part of Burslem parish. It was through these failing regimes, such as the 1813 lapse of
3584-414: The see city ) in six English towns and granted them city status by issuing letters patent . A city with a cathedral is often termed a cathedral city . City status in Ireland was granted to far fewer communities than in England and Wales, and there are only two pre-19th-century cities in present-day Northern Ireland . In Scotland, city status did not explicitly receive any recognition by the state until
3712-675: The 1665 letters patent provided for the Lord Mayor to hold the formal title of Right Honourable, this was repealed in 2001. There is also a Lord Mayor of Cork , a title granted in 1900 when Cork was part of the (then) United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland . In modern practice, competitions are held for cities that wish to gain the distinction of a lord mayor. The 2002 competition was entered by Bath , Cambridge , Carlisle , Chichester , Derby , Exeter , Gloucester , Lancaster , Lincoln , St Albans , St Davids , Salford , Southampton , Sunderland , Truro , Wolverhampton and Worcester ;
3840-454: The 1960s. The 1910 federation was the culmination of a process of urban growth and municipal change that started in the early 19th century. Little interaction between the separate settlements occurred until the 18th century when the pottery industry began to expand rapidly. By the early 19th century, initial steps had been made to ensure greater co-operation between the Potteries towns over the issue of law and order. The county plan of 1888 made
3968-415: The 19th century. At that time, a revival of grants of city status took place, first in England, where the grants were accompanied by the establishment of new cathedrals, and later in Scotland and Ireland. In the 20th century, it was explicitly recognised that the status of city in England and Wales would no longer be bound to the presence of a cathedral, and grants made since have been awarded to communities on
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4096-479: The Home Office identified nine candidates for city status: Blackburn , Brighton , Croydon , Derby , Dudley , Newport , Sandwell , Sunderland and Wolverhampton . Ultimately, Derby received the award as the largest non-metropolitan district not already designated a city. In April 1980 a parish council was created for Lichfield, and the charter trustees established six years earlier were dissolved. City status
4224-410: The Local Government Board or the House of Commons. With prorogation of the current parliament on the horizon, this would have led to delays that jeopardised the passage of the whole bill through Parliament during that parliamentary session . On 16 December 1908, less than a week after the committee made its announcement, the six towns informed the committee that an agreement had been reached and that
4352-844: The Millennium celebrations, the new cities were Brighton and Hove and Wolverhampton ; in 2002 for the Queen's Golden Jubilee it was Preston and Newport , and in 2012 for the Queen's Diamond Jubilee it was Chelmsford and St Asaph . From June 2021, submissions for city status were invited to mark the Platinum Jubilee of Elizabeth II in 2022. Places submitting bids (some for a second or subsequent time) included Bangor (Northern Ireland), Bournemouth , Doncaster , Dunfermline , Dudley , Marazion , Middlesbrough , Milton Keynes , Reading , St Andrews and Wrexham . Bids were also accepted from overseas territories and crown dependencies for
4480-603: The Potteries were to become a county borough or county in their own right. Ritchie re-iterated his hope that the matter could be resolved by way of provisional order bill and with that both amendments were withdrawn. The Local Government Act 1888 received royal assent on 13 August 1888 with Hanley listed among those places to be granted county borough status. The corporation of Hanley vacillated for several months as to how best to proceed, then in February 1889 opted for Hanley to take its county borough status, effectively killing both
4608-506: The Queen had accepted the advice of the Home Secretary to raise the London borough to the title and dignity of city. This example, of a successor local authority to a merged local government entity taking on that former entity's city status, was to be replicated in many instances as a result of the 1972/74 local government reforms across England and Wales (see below). With the establishment of
4736-551: The Treasury , Arthur Balfour , believing it would be "an anomaly which, I think, would be not unnaturally resented by other districts which are as large in point of population as Westminster, although doubtless not so rich in historical associations". The government eventually relented, with Balfour stating that "as soon as the necessary arrangements under the London Government Act have been completed, there will be conferred on
4864-730: The UK: 52 cities (23 lord mayoralties) in England, six cities (two lord mayoralties) in Wales, seven cities (four lord provostships) in Scotland and five cities (two lord mayoralties) in Northern Ireland. In the Republic of Ireland , the ceremonial head of the city government of Dublin is the Lord Mayor of Dublin . This title was granted by Charles II in 1665 when Dublin was part of the Kingdom of Ireland . Whilst
4992-628: The United Kingdom is granted by the monarch of the United Kingdom to specific centres of population, which might or might not meet the generally accepted definition of cities . As of 22 November 2022 , there are 76 cities in the United Kingdom —55 in England , seven in Wales , eight in Scotland , and six in Northern Ireland . Although it carries no special rights, the status of city can be
5120-628: The United Kingdom, but Gibraltar and St Helena remain British Overseas Territories . This practice ended in 1865, and led to legal disputes about whether these letters patent were valid or not in territories with responsible government (primarily those in present day Australia, Canada, New Zealand and South Africa). Goulburn in Australia for example found itself declared a city twice – once by letters patent in 1863 and once by law in 1885 after doubts arose to its status. Hamilton, Bermuda
5248-462: The article). This association between having a cathedral and being called a city was established when Henry VIII founded new dioceses (each having a cathedral in the see city ) in six English towns and also granted them city status by issuing letters patent , demonstrating these were discrete procedures. Some cities today are very small because they were granted city status in or before the 16th century, then were unaffected by population growth during
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5376-400: The author Arnold Bennett in his contemporary (1908) novel The Old Wives' Tale . With Fenton, Tunstall and Burslem all opposing federation it was left to Hanley, Stoke and Longton to submit proposals to the Local Government Board. The Local Government Board ruled that only the submission made by Longton met the statutory and other formal requirements and that it alone would form the basis of
5504-750: The bill that "[t]he district of the Staffordshire Potteries, comprising the municipal boroughs of Hanley, Stoke-upon-Trent, Longton, and Burslem, the urban sanitary district of the Fenton Local Board of Health, and the urban sanitary district of the Tunstall Local Board of Health, the six towns comprising the Pottery District should be formed into a county". In response, the President of the Local Government Board , Charles Ritchie , proposed
5632-560: The bill, having been the initial instigators of the scheme. Petitions objecting to the bill were submitted to the House of Lords by Staffordshire County Council , Burslem, Fenton, Stoke, and Tunstall councils, the Longton justices , the North Staffordshire Railway Company , and individual Tunstall ratepayers. The House of Lords select committee assigned to deal with the bill was chaired by Lord Cromer and sat during November and December 1908. After several sessions,
5760-407: The borough of Westminster, as constituted under the Act, the title of city, originally conferred in the time of Henry VIII". Letters patent were duly issued granting the title of "city" to the newly created Metropolitan Borough of Westminster . In 1907, the Home Office and King Edward VII agreed on a policy that future applicants would have to meet certain criteria. This policy, which was not at
5888-420: The borough's first charter of incorporation. It was anticipated that the coronation of Elizabeth II in 1953 would lead to the creation of a city, and Wolverhampton , Preston and Southampton made approaches; the only civic honour given was that of a lord mayoralty to Coventry . Croydon applied in 1954, but failed as it was felt not to have a sufficient identity apart from Greater London , and reports on
6016-413: The borough. The largest "city" district in terms of area was until 1 April 2023 the City of Carlisle , which covered some 400 square miles (1,000 km ) of mostly rural landscape in the north of England, and was larger than smaller counties such as Merseyside or Rutland . (The largest now is the City of Winchester at 250 square miles (650 km ).) Such cities include: There are some cities where
6144-446: The boroughs of Derby and Nottingham were disappointed that they would not be able to claim the title of city. The link with Anglican dioceses was broken within England in 1889 when Birmingham successfully petitioned for city status (it was pre-empted in Ireland by Belfast in 1888) on the grounds of its large population and history of good local government. At the time of the grant, Birmingham lacked an Anglican cathedral, although
6272-483: The case against Croydon: "...whatever its past history, it is now just part of the London conurbation and almost indistinguishable from many of the other Greater London boroughs". The same objections were made when the London Boroughs of Croydon and Southwark unsuccessfully entered the competition for city status to mark the millennium: Croydon was said to have "no particular identity of its own" while Southwark
6400-737: The city. During the British Empire , the Colonial Office had the power to declare cities in Crown colonies by letters patent when appointing bishops. When the Bishop of Guyana was created in 1842, Georgetown (then part of British Guiana ) was officially declared the "City of Georgetown". The same process was followed for Gibraltar , Jamestown, St Helena , Bridgetown, Barbados , St. John's, Antigua and Barbuda , Victoria, Hong Kong and Nassau, Bahamas . Most of these have since gained independence from
6528-473: The committee declared several important decisions. It reaffirmed that federation would benefit of the people of the Potteries, that a differential rating system for a fixed period was required, that asset valuation in each town should be abandoned, and that the committee reserved the right to decide a course of action should the parties not be able to reach agreement. This last point was important because without it all disputes would have to be passed back either to
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#17328444353886656-434: The complex financial issues of rates , assets and loans caused Fenton to pull out, quickly followed by Burslem and Stoke, and the proposal was abandoned in 1903. The second and final federation process, between 1905 and 1910, was instigated by Longton Town Council with support from Stoke and Hanley and opposition from Fenton, Tunstall and Burslem. Issues again arose over the financial settlement and discussions continued during
6784-483: The conduct of local government in the town were unfavourable. Derby and Southwark made unsuccessful applications in 1955. The planned reorganisations by the Local Government Commissions for England and Wales from 1958 effectively blocked new city grants. Southampton lodged a petition in 1958. Initially refused in 1959, pending the decision of the commission, it was eventually allowed in 1964. In
6912-477: The county proposal and the county borough proposal. Why Hanley corporation made such a decision is not recorded, but it was reported in the Staffordshire Sentinel of 5 February 1901 that it was because Stoke Corporation insisted that the administrative centre of the new county be in Stoke, not Hanley, and this was something that Hanley could not agree to. The following year Longton Town Council proposed
7040-521: The creation of a county of the Staffordshire Potteries. However, on 9 July 1888 it was proposed to amend the bill to reduce the population requirement for county borough status from 100,000 to only 50,000, which if adopted would have allowed Hanley to become a county borough of its own right, while the rest of the towns would have come under the control of Staffordshire. On 13 July 1888, Captain Heathcote, MP for Staffordshire North West , moved an amendment to
7168-412: The early part of the 19th century the six towns that eventually became Stoke-on-Trent—Burslem, Tunstall, Stoke-upon-Trent, Hanley, Fenton and Longton—were all established settlements. Despite occupying only a small geographic area and all based around the pottery industry, there was little political or social co-operation between them. Prior to the 19th century, local government remained largely based on
7296-638: The events surrounding this poll with both proponents and opponents – chiefly the Association for Promoting the Federation of the Pottery Towns and the Burslem Anti-Federation League – making every effort to ensure their supporters voted. An indication of the strength of feeling and interest in the proposal is that the events surrounding the federation proposal were used as a background setting by
7424-480: The first attempts to form the six towns into one county borough, following an act of Parliament that restructured the county system and created the administrative county of Staffordshire . Wishing to remain independent, the Potteries towns discussed uniting to form a separate county, the Staffordshire Potteries . When it became apparent that such a move would fail, the proposal was revised to one of uniting
7552-580: The first municipal elections) by the Local Government Board. So as not to show bias towards any of the six town halls, the council held its inaugural meeting at the North Stafford Hotel . On 1 July 1925 the county borough of Stoke-on-Trent became the City of Stoke-on-Trent under letters patent from King George V dated 5 June 1925. City status in the United Kingdom City status in
7680-577: The first time. The applicants were George Town (in the Cayman Islands ), Gibraltar , Stanley (in the Falkland Islands ), Douglas and Peel (both in the Isle of Man ). It was later discovered that Gibraltar had been previously named a city, researchers at The National Archives confirming that Gibraltar's city status was still in effect, with the territory missing from the official list of cities for
7808-608: The first time. The competition closed on 8 December 2021 with 39 locations on the shortlist, and the winners were to be announced in June 2022. On 18 October 2021, the Prime Minister announced in Parliament that the Queen, in advance of the closing date, would accord city status to one of the applicants, Southend-on-Sea . This was in memory of Sir David Amess , the town's MP who was murdered three days earlier and had long pressed for
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#17328444353887936-424: The following year was turned down. In 1932 Sunderland 's petition to gain city status was turned down, as was Derby 's in 1935. The next city to be created was Lancaster in 1937 as part of the celebrations of the coronation of King George VI and Queen Elizabeth . With a population of a little over 50,000, Lancaster was stated to be an exception due to the town's "long association with the crown" and because it
8064-589: The formation of a county borough comprising Stoke, Fenton and Longton but the proposal came to nothing. In December 1900, Stoke Town Council proposed a meeting with "a view to federal action" and issued invitations to the boroughs of Burslem, Hanley, Longton, and Newcastle-under-Lyme ; the urban districts of Audley , Fenton, Kidsgrove, Smallthorne , and Tunstall; and the rural districts of Stoke and Wolstanton . The parishes of Chesterton , Chell , Goldenhill, Milton and Silverdale were also invited. The meeting took place in February 1901 and resolved "that it
8192-676: The fortified settlements organised by the Romans as the capitals of the Celtic tribes under Roman rule . The British clerics of the early Middle Ages later preserved a traditional list of the " 28 Cities " ( Old Welsh : cair ) which was mentioned by Gildas and listed by Nennius . In the 16th century, a town was recognised as a city by the English Crown if it had a diocesan cathedral within its limits, for which 22 dioceses existed in England & Wales (see City status conferment further in
8320-796: The four boroughs and two urban districts met and agreed unanimously that "the principle of federation of the Pottery towns by the constitution of a county borough should be adopted, subject to the resolutions passed by each authority for the preservation of their respective interests." Hanley council made a formal proposal in 1902 to the Local Government Board for the expansion of the County Borough of Hanley to include Burslem, Fenton, Longton, Stoke and Tunstall and also two other districts; Smallthorne Urban District, Wolstanton Rural District, and seven parishes; Caverswall , Chell, Goldenhill, Milton, Stoke Rural, Stone and Trentham . Only Longton council supported
8448-438: The grounds that there is no corporate body or legal persona to whom arms can be granted. City status in Ireland tended historically to be granted by royal charter. There are many towns in Ireland with Church of Ireland cathedrals that have never been called cities. In spite of this, Armagh was considered a city, by virtue of its being the seat of the Primate of All Ireland , until the abolition of Armagh's city corporation by
8576-608: The group due to bitter disputes stemming from MacColl's "authoritarian tendencies". In the 1970s, the Colcloughs returned to North Staffordshire, where they produced a folk music radio program for BBC Radio Stoke . "A Song for Ireland" was inspired by a trip the Colcloughs took to the Dingle Peninsula . Described as a "modern classic", it has been recorded by numerous artists, including Dick Gaughan , Luke Kelly , Mary Black , Ralph McTell , Celtic Spirit , The Dubliners , Brendan Hayes, Damien Leith , and Scott Appel . North Staffordshire The federation of Stoke-on-Trent
8704-487: The head constables of the various settlements to be held in Hanley". This was the first instance of a call for greater law and order in the Potteries, although there seemed to be little interest in other forms of co-operation. Apart from the establishment of the boards of commissioners in Hanley and Burslem, no further changes occurred until the 1830s when passing of the Reform Act 1832 ( 2 & 3 Will. 4 . c. 45) sparked renewed interest in incorporation. The act created
8832-413: The idea as concurrently, Sir Hugh Owen, a former secretary to the Local Government Board, presented the six towns committee with a scheme of financial adjustment. Under this proposal, the net assets of each town would be calculated by deducting outstanding debts and liabilities from the values of its various properties. The proportion each town needed to contribute to the overall value of the county borough
8960-413: The idea of federation, while a poll of ratepayers in Burslem came out strongly against federation. Burslem council then withdrew from the scheme to be followed shortly afterwards by Stoke. Faced by such strong opposition, Hanley council felt compelled to withdraw its submission to the Local Government Board bringing the first attempt at federation in the twentieth century to an unsuccessful conclusion. At
9088-407: The inquiry examined rating schemes based largely on the Owen or Geen proposals from the previous federation attempt. On 23 February 1908, less than six weeks after the inquiry closed, the Local Government Board issued a draft provisional bill for the federation of the six towns. This was not unexpected but the rating scheme proposed differed from the schemes discussed during the inquiry and included
9216-405: The leaflet were likely to be aware of [the] official definition of a city". Scotland had no cities by royal charter or letters patent before 1889. The nearest equivalent in pre-Union Scotland was the royal burgh . The term city was not always consistently applied, and there were doubts over the number of officially designated cities. The royal burghs of Edinburgh and Perth anciently used
9344-484: The local government district is in fact smaller than the historical or natural boundaries of the city. Examples include: Manchester , where the traditional area associated includes areas of the neighbouring authorities of Trafford , Tameside , Oldham , Bury and the City of Salford ; Kingston upon Hull , where surrounding areas and villages that are effectively suburbs, such as Cottingham , come under East Riding of Yorkshire Council ; Glasgow , where suburban areas of
9472-631: The manorial court of Tunstall, that the long process towards federation began. The earliest changes were seen in Hanley and Burslem when in 1813 the Hanley Market Act ( 53 Geo. 3 c.cxv ) gave statutory control of Hanley market to a board of trustees outside manorial control. In 1825 the Hanley and Shelton Improvement Act (6 Geo. 4 c.lxxiii) and the Burslem Markets, Lighting and Police Act (6 Geo. 4. c.cxxxi), for Hanley and Burslem respectively, gave
9600-523: The matter be resolved by way of a provisional order bill in the next parliamentary session and that he would undertake to introduce such a bill. William Woodall , MP for Hanley , supported the amendment but accepted Ritchie's assurance. However, he was also bound to protect Hanley's interests and moved that Hanley be added to the proposed list of county boroughs under the Local Government (England and Wales) Bill, but would surrender that right if all of
9728-479: The meantime, the administration of London was reformed under the London Government Act 1963 . While the City of London was permitted to continue in existence largely unchanged, Westminster was merged with two neighbouring authorities to form a new London borough from 1 April 1965. In December 1963 it was announced that a charter was to be granted incorporating the new authority as "Westminster", and that
9856-484: The millennium celebrations, Stirling in 2002 to commemorate Queen Elizabeth II's Golden Jubilee , Perth in 2012 to mark the Queen's Diamond Jubilee and Dunfermline in 2022 to mark the Queen's Platinum Jubilee. In the case of these four cities, there are no city councils and no formal boundaries. In January 2008, a petition to matriculate armorial bearings for the City of Inverness was refused by Lord Lyon King of Arms on
9984-459: The minimum population which should ordinarily, in connexion with other considerations, be regarded as qualifying a borough for that higher status. Following the First World War , the King made an official visit to Leicester in 1919 to commemorate its contributions to the military victory. The borough council had made several applications for city status since 1889, and took the opportunity of
10112-465: The only former cities in the United Kingdom. The name "City" does not, in itself, denote city status; it may be appended to place names for historic association (e.g. White City ) or for marketing or disambiguation (e.g. Stratford City ). A number of large towns (such as those with over 200,000 residents) in the UK are bigger than some small cities. The initial cities ( Latin : civitas ) of Britain were
10240-422: The other authorities concerned be invited to take the subject into their consideration" The parliamentary borough of Stoke-upon-Trent consisted of Longton, Stoke and Fenton. While Stoke town council was in favour, the voters of Fenton were not and voted overwhelmingly against the proposal. Despite this setback, Longton and Stoke submitted their proposal to the Local Government Board in early 1907. A local inquiry
10368-450: The parish church later became a cathedral in 1905. This new precedent was followed by other large municipalities: Leeds and Sheffield became cities in 1893, and Bradford , Kingston upon Hull and Nottingham were honoured on the occasion of Queen Victoria's Diamond Jubilee in 1897. The last three had been the largest county boroughs outside the London area without city status. Between 1897 and 1914, applications were received from
10496-462: The past 140 years. Stanley and Douglas were later granted the honour, and after confirmations this will take the overseas total to five cities . According to a Memorandum from the Home Office issued in 1927, 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
10624-560: The progress of the Federation Bill through Parliament . The bill was passed in the House of Commons and was still under debate in the House of Lords when the six towns announced that they had come to an agreement. Passed in December 1908, the act came into force on 31 March 1910. The new Stoke-on-Trent was a county borough from then until 1974 . In addition, city status was granted to Stoke-on-Trent by King George V on 1 July 1925. By
10752-418: The proposal and, although the differential system was welcomed, a period of 20 years was preferred with the complicated valuation required of all public assets proving unpopular. As a result, Tunstall withdrew its support for the order leaving only Hanley and Longton to promote the bill in the House of Lords . Neither council was particularly in favour of the financial settlement but felt honour bound to promote
10880-432: The recipients of the honour. Dunfermline, a previous royal capital of Scotland, was granted the privilege. Bangor in Northern Ireland was also a recipient, and the title in Wales was granted to Wrexham. These awards increased the number of official mainland cities to 76, with 55 in England, eight in Scotland, seven in Wales, six in Northern Ireland. Other than the cities of London and Westminster , no local authorities in
11008-423: 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
11136-501: The restoration of the dignity to St David's , historic see of a bishop. Since 2000, city status has been awarded to towns or local government districts by competition on special occasions. A large number of towns have applied for the honour in recent decades including Blackpool , Colchester , Croydon , Gateshead , Ipswich , Middlesbrough , Milton Keynes , Reading , Swindon and Warrington . Four successful applicants in England have become cities, as well as two in Wales; in 2000 for
11264-572: The right to be styled "The Right Worshipful The Lord Mayor". The lord mayors and provosts of Belfast , Cardiff , Edinburgh , Glasgow , the City of London and York have the further right to be styled " The Right Honourable the Lord Mayor" (or Provost), although 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. There are currently 70 recognised cities (including 31 lord mayoralties or lord provostships) in
11392-492: 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 1 April 1998, the existing local government districts of Rochester-upon-Medway and Gillingham were abolished and became the new unitary authority of Medway . Since it
11520-476: The six towns into one county borough. This plan failed after Hanley Corporation and Stoke Corporation could not agree on the location of the future administrative centre. Instead, only Hanley gained county borough status because the other towns did not meet the criteria for such designation. The first federation attempt was made in 1900 with a resurrection of the county plan. In 1902, Hanley Council led attempts to form an expanded county borough, but disagreement over
11648-457: 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
11776-425: The status. City status was officially granted by letters patent dated 26 January 2022. They were presented to Southend Borough Council by Charles, Prince of Wales , on 1 March 2022. An announcement on 20 May 2022 declared that eight new cities were to be created from the shortlist, with at least one in every UK country as well as in overseas locations . In England, Milton Keynes, Colchester and Doncaster were to be
11904-504: The subsequent local inquiry, held in January 1908. Before the inquiry opened, a poll was conducted in Tunstall where ratepayers of the town showed themselves to be in favour of federation. As the council itself had voted against federation, it decided not to oppose or support federation but instead to achieve the best deal it could for the town. The three-day inquiry opened on 8 January 1908 and
12032-510: The successful candidate was Exeter . In 2012 a further competition was held, as part of the Diamond Jubilee celebrations, with Armagh receiving the distinction. Other than Armagh, eleven cities had entered the contest in 2012, namely: Cambridge, Derby, Gloucester, Lancaster, Newport , Peterborough , Salford, Southampton, St Albans, Sunderland, and Wakefield . Since local government reorganisation in 1974 city status has been awarded to
12160-433: The textile centre of Manchester —and the fact that it had (at the time) a larger population than the City of Dublin . Following some legal debate, city status was conferred in 1888. The grant of the honour on the grounds of being a large industrial town, rather than a diocesan centre, was unprecedented. Belfast's example was soon followed by Birmingham in England and Dundee in Scotland. In 1994, Armagh's city status
12288-508: The time made public, had the effect of stemming the number of city creations. The 1907 policy contained three criteria: However, well into the 20th 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 Encyclopædia Britannica said that Southwell and St Asaph were cities. The policy laid down by Edward VII
12416-412: The title city for any other burgh. In 1969, the Home Secretary, James Callaghan , stated that there were six cities in Scotland (without naming them) and Aberdeen , Dundee , Edinburgh , Elgin , Glasgow and Perth were the only burghs listed as cities in 1972. The Local Government (Scotland) Act 1973 completely reorganised Scotland's local administration in 1975. All burghs were abolished, and
12544-421: The title civitas , but the term city does not seem to have been used before the 15th century. Unlike the situation in England, in Scotland there was no link between the presence of a cathedral and the title of city . Aberdeen , Glasgow and Edinburgh were accepted as cities by ancient usage by the 18th century, while Perth and Elgin also used the title. In 1856, the burgh of Dunfermline resolved to use
12672-401: The title of city in all official documents in the future, based on long usage and its former status as a royal capital. The status was not officially recognised until 2022. In 1889, Dundee was granted city status by letters patent. The grant by formal document led to doubts about the use of the title city by other burghs. In 1891, the city status of Aberdeen was confirmed when the burgh
12800-441: The title of Royal Borough in 2012. Rochester was recognised as a city from 1211 to 1998. On 1 April 1974, the city council was abolished, becoming part of the Borough of Medway , a local government district in the county of Kent . However, under letters patent the former city council area 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
12928-498: The town to the rank of a city, and started referring to itself as the City and Borough of Ripon . The next diocese formed was Manchester and its Borough Council began informally to use the title city . When Queen Victoria visited Manchester in 1851, widespread doubts surrounding its status were raised. The pretension was ended when the borough petitioned for city status, which was granted by letters patent in 1853. This eventually forced Ripon to regularise its position; its city status
13056-527: The towns awaited a report from Alderman Frederick Geen of Stoke on the implications of the Owen proposal, Fenton council decided that it would impose undue financial hardship on the ratepayers of the district as the net assets of the district would show a deficiency and therefore a higher rate would have to be set. Fenton district council could not accept such a move and withdrew from the discussions on federation forthwith. Geen's July 1903 report increased opposition to
13184-512: The townships of the Potteries effectively became one. Shortly after the Reform Act came into effect, a Municipal Corporations Bill was introduced which proposed that the new parliamentary boroughs should be granted charters of incorporation. The bill failed with the prorogation of that Parliament, while the Potteries were excluded from the reforms of the later Municipal Corporations Act 1835 ( 5 & 6 Will. 4 . c. 76). Interest in incorporation
13312-483: The urban areas, for example the cities of Bradford , Leeds and Winchester . Three non-local authority preservations arose: here charter trustees were established for the cities of Lichfield and Salisbury (or New Sarum) being neither districts nor civil parishes, and special letters patent for a time preserved the city of Rochester . In 1977, as part of the celebrations of the Silver Jubilee of Elizabeth II ,
13440-416: The various local authorities that held city status ceased to exist on 1 April 1974. To preserve city status new letters patent were issued to the most relevant metropolitan borough , non-metropolitan district or successor parish councils created by the Act. Some of these came to cover local government districts many times wider than the previous city, even taking in many square miles of rural land outside
13568-414: The various townships was subdued for several decades. Changes in local government between 1840 and 1888 saw the end of the parochial and manorial systems. The townships of Stoke-upon-Trent, Penkhull and Boothen were formed into the borough of Stoke-upon-Trent in 1874 while Longton and Lane End became the borough of Longton in 1865. Hanley and Shelton became the borough of Hanley in 1857 and Burslem became
13696-418: The visit to renew its request. Leicester had a population of approximately 230,000 at the previous census, but its petition was granted as an exception to the policy, as it was officially a restoration of a dignity lost in the past. When the county borough of Stoke-on-Trent applied for city status in 1925, it was initially refused as it had only 294,000 inhabitants. The decision was overturned, however, as it
13824-557: Was "part of London with little individual identity". When the competition was held to mark the Golden Jubilee of 2002, Croydon made a sixth application, again unsuccessful. It was joined by the London Borough of Greenwich , which emphasised its royal and maritime connections, while claiming to be "to London what Versailles is to Paris". In this vein Greenwich joined Kingston-upon-Thames and Kensington and Chelsea in London in having
13952-457: Was "the county town of the King's Duchy of Lancaster". Following the Second World War , members of Cambridge Borough Council made contact with Lancaster officials for assistance in their application. Cambridge became a city in 1951, again for "exceptional" reasons, as the only ancient seat of learning in the kingdom not a city or royal burgh and to coincide with the 750th anniversary of
14080-435: Was chaired by Major Norton of the Local Government Board. Norton's appointment itself caused controversy with the delegation from Burslem walking out on the first day protesting that Norton had already declared himself in favour of federation. The walkout did not disrupt the hearing but left only Fenton and Staffordshire County Council opposed to the plan, with Tunstall neutral and Hanley, Stoke and Longton in favour. The bulk of
14208-412: Was considered favourably by the Home Secretary, William Joynson-Hicks , who had once been a Member of Parliament (MP) for a neighbouring constituency of Manchester North West . Following protests from Portsmouth , which felt it had better credentials as a larger town and as the "first Naval Port of the kingdom", both applications were approved in 1926. In 1927, a Royal Commission on Local Government
14336-522: Was continued by his successor, George V , who ascended the throne in 1910. 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
14464-408: Was desirable in the interests of North Staffordshire to form a federation of local authorities", thereby indicating a preference for implementation of the county plan. Legal opinion suggested that the county plan was unlikely to succeed and that a more viable proposition would be to expand the county borough of Hanley to include the other Potteries towns. Accordingly, in March 1902, representatives of
14592-490: Was enlarged by local Act of Parliament. The Royal Burgh of Inverness applied for promotion to a city as part of the Jubilee honours in 1897. The request was not granted, partly because it would draw attention to the lack of any charter granting the title to existing cities. Aberdeen , Dundee , Edinburgh and Glasgow were constituted "counties of cities" by the Local Government (Scotland) Act 1929 . The Act made no statement on
14720-498: Was examining local council 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 that read: The title of a city which is borne by certain boroughs is a purely titular distinction. It has no connexion with
14848-409: Was felt to have outstanding importance as the centre of the pottery industry. The effective relaxation of the population rule led to applications from Portsmouth and Salford . The civil servants in the Home Office were minded to refuse both applications. In particular, Salford was felt to be "merely a scratch collection of 240,000 people cut off from Manchester by the river". Salford's case, however,
14976-453: Was held soon afterwards in Stoke, which reported back quickly and in April 1907 informed both Stoke and Longton councils that the proposed scheme was not sufficiently comprehensive and suggested holding another conference between the six towns to discuss a more complete proposal. The meeting took place in July and was addressed by John Burns , president of the Local Government Board, who called for
15104-404: Was named as a city in 1897 as part of the celebration of the Diamond Jubilee of Queen Victoria . Since the second Millennium, competitions have been arranged by the UK government to grant the status to settlements. In 2021 submissions for city status were invited to mark the Platinum Jubilee of Elizabeth II , with Crown Dependencies and British Overseas Territories being allowed to take part for
15232-508: Was not on the Lord Chancellor's Office 's list of cities. The council campaigned unsuccessfully to be one of 2012 Diamond Jubilee cities. The campaign's "City of Medway" logo was used on a council tourism leaflet titled "Historic Rochester and Maritime Chatham " until the Advertising Standards Authority upheld a 2010 complaint that it misleadingly implied Medway had "officially been granted city status" because "readers of
15360-418: Was not without opposition from the Home Office , which dismissed St Albans as "a fourth or fifth rate market town" and objected to Wakefield 's elevation on grounds of population. In one new diocese, Southwell , a city was not created, because it was a village without a borough corporation and therefore could not petition the Queen. The diocese covered the counties of Derbyshire and Nottinghamshire , and
15488-572: Was passed by the Commons the same day, with royal assent being received on 21 December 1908. The Local Government Provisional Order (No. 3) Confirmation Act (8 Edw. 7 c.clxiv) came into force on 31 March 1910 with the new council consisting of 78 councillors representing 26 wards . The new council as one of its first actions voted Cecil Wedgwood to be the first mayor of the county borough of Stoke-on-Trent. Wedgwood had previously been appointed acting mayor (primarily to act as returning officer for
15616-529: Was recognised by Act of Parliament in 1865. From this year Ripon bore city status whilst the rapidly expanding conurbation of Leeds – in the Ripon diocese – did not. The Manchester case established a precedent that any municipal borough in which an Anglican see was established was entitled to petition for city status. Accordingly, Truro , St Albans , Liverpool , Newcastle upon Tyne and Wakefield were all officially designated as cities between 1877 and 1888. This
15744-453: Was restored. In 2002, Lisburn and Newry were two of the five towns in the UK that were granted city status by Queen Elizabeth II to mark her Golden Jubilee. In the case of Lisburn , the status extended to the entire local government district. Newry , like Inverness and Stirling in Scotland, has no formal boundaries or city council. The letters patent were presented to representatives of Newry and Mourne District Council on behalf of
15872-525: Was sufficient for several meetings on the subject to take place; the Staffordshire Advertiser reported after one meeting in Burslem that incorporation would lead to one town having undue control over the affairs of the others, a theme that was to recur for many years. The same meeting revisited a topic raised pre–1820, the promotion of law and order in the Potteries, and called for the appointment of
16000-467: Was temporarily lost until new letters patent were issued in November of the same year. In 1992, on the fortieth anniversary of the monarch's accession, it was announced that another town would be elevated to a city. An innovation on this occasion was that a competition was to be held, and communities would be required to submit applications. Sunderland was the successful applicant. This was followed in 1994 by
16128-403: Was the 1910 amalgamation of the six Staffordshire Potteries towns of Burslem , Tunstall , Stoke-upon-Trent , Hanley , Fenton and Longton into the single county borough of Stoke-on-Trent . The federation was one of the largest mergers of local authorities , involving the greatest number of previously separate urban authorities, to take place in England between the nineteenth century and
16256-519: 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. Whilst the two other local government districts with city status ( Bath and Hereford ) that were abolished around this time decided to appoint charter trustees to maintain the existence of the city and the mayoralty, Rochester-upon-Medway City Council did not do so. Medway Council apparently only became aware of this when, in 2002, they discovered that Rochester
16384-432: Was then to be calculated. If the value of the net assets to be contributed by a town was less than the proportion calculated as due from that town towards the overall sum, then that town would need to set a higher general rate to be paid by the ratepayers of that town. Conversely, towns contributing a value of net assets greater than their proportion of the overall sum would be able to set a lower general rate. While five of
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