List of cities in the United Kingdom

For a list of the largest urban areas in the UK, including conurbations, see List of urban areas in the United Kingdom.

This is a list of cities in the United Kingdom that are officially designated such as of 1 November 2022. It lists those places that have been granted city status by letters patent or royal charter. There are currently a total of 75 such cities in the United Kingdom: 55 in England, eight in Scotland, seven in Wales, and five in Northern Ireland. Of these, 23 in England, two in Wales, and two in Northern Ireland have Lord Mayors; four in Scotland have Lord Provosts. In some cases, the area holding city status does not coincide with the built up area or conurbation of which it forms part. In Greater London, for example, the City of London and that of Westminster each hold city status separately but no other local authority has been granted city status, nor has Greater London as a whole. In other cases, such as the Cities of Canterbury and Lancaster, the status applies to a local government district which extends over a number of towns and rural areas outside the main settlement proper. In England, the status sometimes applies to civil parishes, such as the City of Ripon; though the status may not apply to the local government district which share their name. For example, the civil parishes of Lichfield and Chichester each hold city status, but the Lichfield District and the Chichester District, in which they are situated, respectively, do not.

The list does not include places like Luton, Northampton and Reading which, despite having populations of over 200,000, have not been awarded city status and thus formally remain as towns.

In addition to the cities on the main list, six new cities in the UK were announced in May 2022 to celebrate the Platinum Jubilee of Elizabeth II, which once confirmed will take the total number within the UK to 76, comprising 55 in England, eight in Scotland, seven in Wales and six in Northern Ireland. As of 2022, there are currently 5 ceremonial counties which contain 3 cities - Cambridgeshire, Essex, Hampshire, West Midlands and West Yorkshire.

In the British Overseas Territories and Crown Dependencies, there are currently four cities. The number will increase as part of the Platinum Jubilee celebrations, as Gibraltar, Hamilton in Bermuda, Jamestown in St Helena and Stanley in the Falkland Islands will be joined by Douglas in the Isle of Man.

History

Main articles: City status in the United Kingdom and Ireland, also Roman Cities in Britain.

The initial cities (Latin: civitas) of Britain were 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.

The title of city was initially informal and, into the 20th century, royal charters were considered to recognise city status rather than to grant it. The usual criterion in early modern Britain was the presence of a cathedral, particularly after King Henry VIII granted letters patent establishing six new cities when he established a series of new dioceses in the 1540s as part of the English Reformation. No new cities were created between the 16th and 19th centuries, but following the Industrial Revolution and the accompanying population boom and growth in urbanisation, new sees were established at Ripon (1836) and Manchester (1847); their councils began to style them cities immediately. Inverness in Scotland was even refused a charter at the time of the Jubilee honours of 1897, in part because it would have drawn more attention to the other traditional "cities" still not formally chartered as such.

Beginning in the mid-19th century, however, the process became more formal. A visit by Queen Victoria in 1851 prompted Manchester to petition Parliament for recognition of its status. Ripon followed in the 1860s, and a series of hitherto informal "cities" were formally recognised in the 1880s and 1890s. On the basis of its size, importance, and regular government, Belfast was elevated in spite of its lack of a cathedral in 1888; other large municipalities followed, while smaller applicants began to be rejected. King Edward VII and the Home Office established three criteria for future applicants in 1907—a minimum population of 300,000, a good record of local government, and a "local metropolitan character" – but these criteria were not made public, and following Leicester's successful elevation in 1919 a series of exceptions were made. The 1972 Local Government Act effectively eliminated all authorities holding city status outside Greater London on 1 April 1974; most of their replacements were confirmed in their predecessor's status—even in cases such as the City of Carlisle, where much of the local authority area is undeveloped countryside—but the Borough of Medway was not permitted to continue Rochester's title. In recent times there have been competitions for new grants of city status. Towns or councils that claim city status or add "city" to their name have been known to be rebuked by the Advertising Standards Authority.

The cities of Scotland and Ireland were treated separately. Scottish towns irregularly applied the description to themselves, but were formally organised as royal burghs; the special rights of these were preserved by Article XXI of the Treaty of Union which established the single state of Great Britain in 1707. Edinburgh and Glasgow were confirmed as cities "by ancient usage" in the 18th century, as was Aberdeen, and this was later reconfirmed in the Act enlarging the burgh in 1891. Dundee was granted letters patent in 1889 and Elgin and Perth were recognised as cities by the Home Office in 1972, before the privilege was removed by the Scottish Local Government Act of 1973.

In Ireland, only the seat of the primate at Armagh was accorded city status by ancient usage, and this status was abolished by the Irish Municipal Corporations Act of 1840. All other cities have been those explicitly recognised as such.

List of cities

City	Year granted or confirmed	City council status	Nation/region	Image	Population
Aberdeen32 (Scots: Aiberdeen) (Scottish Gaelic: Obar Dheathain)	189131 (Burgh: 1179)	Local government district (Council area) Map	Scotland		222,79338
Armagh11 (Irish: Ard Mhacha) (Ulster-Scots: Airmagh)	1994	None. Represented on Armagh City, Banbridge and Craigavon Borough Council Map	Northern Ireland		14,777 (2011)
Bangor, Wales1	time immemorial	Community Map	Wales		18,808 (2011)
Bath1	1090	Charter trustees Map	South West, England		88,859 (2011) 97,311 (urban area, 2010)
Belfast (Irish: Béal Feirste) (Ulster-Scots: Bilfawst)	1888	Local government district Map	Northern Ireland		333,871 (2011)
Birmingham2	188933	Local government district (Metropolitan borough) Map	West Midlands, England		1,092,330 (2013)
Bradford1	1897	Local government district (Metropolitan borough) Map	Yorkshire and the Humber, England		522,452 (2011)
Brighton & Hove15	2001	Local government district (Unitary) Map	South East, England		273,369 (2011)
Bristol1	1542	Local government district (Unitary and county) Map	South West, England		428,234 (2011)
Cambridge3	195125	Local government district (Non-metropolitan borough) Map	East, England		123,867 (2011)
Canterbury3	time immemorial	Local government district (Non-metropolitan borough) Map	South East, England		151,145 (2011)
Cardiff9 (Welsh: Caerdydd)	190529	Local government district (Principal area) Map	Wales		346,090 (2011)
Carlisle1	1133	Local government district (Non-metropolitan borough) Map	North West, England		107,524 (2011)
Chelmsford37	2012	Local government district (Non-metropolitan borough) Map	East, England		168,310 (2011)
Chester3	1541	Charter trustees‡ Map	North West, England		91,733 (urban area, 2010)
Chichester1	1075	Civil parish Map	South East, England		26,795 (2011)
Colchester	202244	Local government district (Non-metropolitan borough) Map	East, England		194,706
Coventry1	1102	Local government district (Metropolitan borough) Map	West Midlands, England		316,915 (2011)
Derby13	1977	Local government district (Unitary) Map	East Midlands, England		248,752 (2011)
Derry39 (Irish: Doire) (Ulster-Scots: Derrie)	1604	None. Represented on Derry City and Strabane District Council Map	Northern Ireland		107,877 (2011)
Doncaster	202247	Local government district (Metropolitan borough) Map	Yorkshire and the Humber, England		110,000
Dundee32 (Scottish Gaelic: Dùn Dèagh)	188930 (Burgh: 1191)	Local government district (Council area) Map	Scotland		147,26838
Dunfermline	202246	None Map	Scotland		49,706
Durham1	time immemorial	Charter trustees‡ Map	North East, England		94,375 (2011)
Edinburgh32 (Scottish Gaelic: Dùn Èideann)	18th century (Burgh: 1329)	Local government district (Council area) Map	Scotland		476,62638
Ely1	1109	Civil parish Map	East, England		20,256 (2011)
Exeter1	time immemorial	Local government district (Non-metropolitan borough) Map	South West, England		127,709 (2020)
Glasgow32 (Scots: Glesga) (Scottish Gaelic: Glaschu)	18th century (Burgh: 1492)	Local government district (Council area) Map	Scotland		593,24538
Gloucester1	1541	Local government district (Non-metropolitan borough) Map	South West, England		121,688 (2011)
Hereford119	time immemorial	Civil parish Map	West Midlands, England		58,896 (2011)
Inverness (Scots: Inerness)(Scottish Gaelic: Inbhir Nis)	2001	None Map	Scotland		79,415
Kingston upon Hull12	1897	Local government district (Unitary) Map	Yorkshire and the Humber, England		256,406 (2011)
Lancaster1	193726	Local government district (Non-metropolitan borough) Map	North West, England		138,375 (2011)
Leeds1	1893	Local government district (Metropolitan borough) Map	Yorkshire and the Humber, England		751,485 (2011)
Leicester1	191922	Local government district (Unitary) Map	East Midlands, England		329,839 (2011)
Lichfield17	time immemorial	Civil parish Map	West Midlands, England		32,219 (2011)
Lincoln3	1072	Local government district (Non-metropolitan borough) Map	East Midlands, England		93,541 (2011)
Lisburn (Irish: Lios na gCearrbhach)	2002	None. Represented on Lisburn and Castlereagh City Council Map	Northern Ireland		45,370 (2011)
Liverpool2	1880	Local government district (Metropolitan borough) Map	North West, England		466,415 (2011)
City of London6	time immemorial	Local government district (sui generis and ceremonial county) Map	London, England		7,375 (2011)
Manchester1	185334	Local government district (Metropolitan borough) Map	North West, England		503,127 (2011)
Milton Keynes	202241	Local government district (Unitary) Map	South East, England		248,821 (2011)
Newcastle upon Tyne1	1882	Local government district (Metropolitan borough) Map	North East, England		280,177 (2011)
Newport14 (Welsh: Casnewydd)	2002	Local government district (Principal area) Map	Wales		145,736 (2011)
Newry (Irish: Iúr Cinn Trá) (Ulster-Scots: Newrie)	2002	None. Represented on Newry, Mourne and Down District Council Map	Northern Ireland		29,946 (2008, settlement population)
Norwich1	1094	Local government district (Non-metropolitan borough) Map	East, England		132,512 (2011)
Nottingham1	1897	Local government district (Unitary) Map	East Midlands, England		305,680 (2011)
Oxford1	1542	Local government district (Non-metropolitan borough) Map	South East, England		151,906 (2011)
Perth (Scots: Pairth) (Scottish Gaelic: Peairt)	2012 (Burgh: 12th century)	None Map	Scotland		45,77038
Peterborough2	1541	Local government district (Unitary) Map	East, England		183,631 (2011)
Plymouth1	192827	Local government district (Unitary) Map	South West, England		256,384 (2011)
Portsmouth1	192624	Local government district (Unitary) Map	South East, England		205,056 (2011)
Preston14	2002	Local government district (Non-metropolitan borough) Map	North West, England		140,202 (2011)
Ripon1	1865	Civil parish Map	Yorkshire and the Humber, England		16,702 (2011)
Salford1	192624	Local government district (Metropolitan borough) Map	North West, England		233,933 (2011)
Salisbury35	1227	Civil parish‡ Map	South West, England		40,302 (2011)
Sheffield3	1893	Local government district (Metropolitan borough) Map	Yorkshire and the Humber, England		552,698 (2011)
Southampton1	1964	Local government district (Unitary) Map	South East, England		236,882 (2011)
Southend-on-Sea	202245	Local government district (Unitary) Map	East, England		173,658 (2011)
St Albans7	187736	Local government district (Non-metropolitan borough) Map	East, England		140,644 (2011)
St Asaph37 (Welsh: Llanelwy)	2012	Community Map	Wales		3,355 (2011)
St Davids20 (Welsh: Tyddewi)	1994	Community Map	Wales		1,841 (2011)
Stirling (Scots: Stirlin) (Scottish Gaelic: Sruighlea)	2002	None Map	Scotland		34,79038
Stoke-on-Trent3	192528	Local government district (Unitary) Map	West Midlands, England		249,008 (2011)
Sunderland18	1992	Local government district (Metropolitan borough) Map	North East, England		275,506 (2011)
Swansea9 (Welsh: Abertawe)	196923	Local government district (Principal area) Map	Wales		239,023 (2011)
Truro1 (Cornish: Truru)	1877	Civil parish Map	South West, England		18,766 (2011)
Wakefield3	1888	Local government district (Metropolitan borough) Map	Yorkshire and the Humber, England		325,837 (2011)
Wells1	time immemorial	Civil parish Map	South West, England		10,536 (2011)
Westminster21	1540	Local government district (London borough) Map	London, England		219,396 (2011)
Winchester1	time immemorial	Local government district (Non-metropolitan borough) Map	South East, England		116,595 (2011)
Wolverhampton16	2001	Local government district (Metropolitan borough) Map	West Midlands, England		249,470 (2011)
Worcester3	time immemorial	Local government district (Non-metropolitan borough) Map	West Midlands, England		98,768 (2011)
Wrexham (Welsh: Wrecsam)	202243	Local government district (Principal area) Map	Wales		134,844 (2011)
York1,8	time immemorial	Local government district (Unitary) Map	Yorkshire and the Humber, England		198,051 (2011)

Future UK cities

The following UK locations are due to be granted city status as part of Queen Elizabeth II's 2022 Platinum Jubilee celebrations.

Location	Year granted or confirmed	Council status	Nation/region	Image	Population (as of the 2011 census)
Bangor, County Down	2022	None. Represented on Ards and North Down Borough Council Map	Northern Ireland		61,011

Map of the cities

Below is a map of the 74 cities in the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, as well as the 2 future cities listed in the Queen's Platinum Jubilee Honours (in blue). Also shown is the one future city in a UK Crown Dependency, Douglas in the Isle of Man. (For cities in UK Overseas Territories, see below.)

The 31 cities with a Lord Provost (in Scotland) or a Lord Mayor (in England, Wales, and Northern Ireland) are labelled in ALL CAPS. They will be joined by Southampton as part of the Platinum Jubilee Honours. See List of lord mayoralties and lord provostships in the United Kingdom.

The six cities where the Lord Mayor or Lord Provost has the right to the style The Right Honourable are indicated in BOLD ITALICS: York, the City of London, Edinburgh, Glasgow (since 1912), Belfast (since 1923), and Cardiff (since 1956).

Bath

Birmingham

Bradford

Brighton and Hove

Bristol

Cambridge

Canterbury

Carlisle

Chelmsford

Chester

    Chichester

Colchester

Coventry

Derby   

Doncaster

Durham

Ely

Exeter

Gloucester

Hereford

Kingston upon Hull

Lancaster

Leeds

Leicester

Lichfield

Lincoln

Liverpool

City of London

Manchester

Milton Keynes

Newcastle-upon-Tyne

Norwich

Nottingham

Oxford

Peterborough

Plymouth

Portsmouth

Preston

Ripon

Salford

Salisbury

Sheffield

Southampton

Southend-on-Sea

St Albans

Stoke-on-Trent

Sunderland

Truro

Wakefield

Wells

Westminster

Winchester

Wolverhampton

Worcester

York

Aberdeen

Dundee

Dunfermline

Edinburgh

Glasgow

Inverness

Perth

Stirling

Bangor

Cardiff

Newport

St Asaph   

St Davids

Swansea

Wrexham

Armagh

Bangor

Belfast

Lisburn

Newry

Derry

Douglas

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Location of cities in the United Kingdom and the Isle of Man:
Diocese cities before 1230
English reformation cities (1540–42); Derry (1604)
18th century cities to September 2022
Future 2022 cities

Gibraltar

Hamilton

Jamestown

St. John's

Nassau

Bridgetown

Victoria

Stanley

Douglas

class=notpageimage|

Location of current and former cities in British Overseas Territories and Crown Dependencies:
Cities of current British Overseas Territories
Cities of British Overseas Territories that since gained independence
Cities named in 2022

British Overseas Territories and Crown Dependencies

British Overseas Territories and Crown Dependencies are mainly self-governing territories that do not form part of the United Kingdom. Association of city status with cathedrals ended in 1865. There are presently four capitals amongst these with city status, and a further location is due to receive city status in 2022 as part of the celebrations of Queen Elizabeth II's Platinum Jubilee, listed below:

City (current/future)	Year granted or confirmed	Cathedral (pre-1865)	Territory/Dependency	Status	Image	Population (Census)
Gibraltar	184242	Cathedral of the Holy Trinity	Gibraltar, southwestern Europe Map	British Overseas Territory		32,194 (2012)
Hamilton	1897	not applicable	Bermuda, North Atlantic Ocean Map	British Overseas Territory		854 (2016)
Jamestown	1859	St Paul's	St Helena, Ascension and Tristan da Cunha, South Atlantic Ocean Map	British Overseas Territory		629 (2016)
Stanley	202240	not applicable	Falkland Islands, South Atlantic Ocean Map	British Overseas Territory		2,460 (2016)
Douglas (Manx: Doolish)	2022 (to be confirmed)	not applicable	Isle of Man, Irish Sea Map	Crown Dependency		27,938 (2011)

See also

• City status in the United Kingdom
• Centre for Cities
• List of lord mayoralties and lord provostships in the United Kingdom
• List of towns in the United Kingdom
• List of urban areas in the United Kingdom
• City status in Ireland
• List of smallest cities in the United Kingdom
• Royal burgh
• Cities portal

Table notes

• ^‡ The status bearers of these cities changed on 1 April 2009 due to local government reforms. Salisbury became a civil parish, while charter trustees were formed for the former district council areas of Chester and Durham in the new unitary authorities of Cheshire West and Chester and County Durham respectively.
• ^1 City status confirmed by Letters Patent issued under the Great Seal dated 1 April 1974.
• ^2 City status confirmed by Letters Patent issued under the Great Seal dated 25 June 1974.
• ^3 City status confirmed by Letters Patent issued under the Great Seal dated 28 May 1974.
• ^4 Bath Abbey and Westminster Abbey are no longer cathedrals.
• ^5 Coventry has had three cathedrals: the first, St Mary's, from 1043 to 1539 (it became a cathedral in 1102); 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.
• ^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.
• ^7 City status was confirmed by Letters Patent dated 9 July 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".
• ^8 Letters Patent under the Great Seal conferring City Status were issued to the unitary authority of York on 1 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 31 March 1996.
• ^9 Letters Patent under the Great Seal were issued on 29 March 1996 ordaining that the counties of Swansea and Cardiff should have the status of cities from 1 April 1996. The counties replaced the previous district councils which had enjoyed city status.
• ^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".
• ^11 Armagh had previously enjoyed city status, with St Patrick's Cathedral the seat 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.
• ^12 City Status confirmed by Letters Patent issued under the Great Seal dated 18 March 1975.
• ^13 City status granted by Letters Patent dated 7 June 1977.
• ^14 City status granted to the "Town of Newport in the County Borough of Newport" and the "Town of Preston" by Letters Patent dated 15 May 2002.
• ^15 Letters Patent dated 31 January 2001 ordained that "the Towns of Brighton and Hove shall have the status of a City".
• ^16 Letters Patent dated 31 January 2001 ordained that "the Town of Wolverhampton shall have the status of a City".
• ^17 Letters Patent dated 4 November 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.
• ^18 City status granted by Letters Patent dated 23 March 1992.
• ^19 City status was conferred on Hereford Town Council 11 October 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.
• ^20 St David's historically had city status because of the presence of St David's Cathedral. In 1849 it was noted that the city had no municipal corporation: There was however a recognised "city" in which a mayor had limited jurisdiction. A Royal Commission appointed in 1876 reported that the corporation had long been extinct, and the city was formally abolished in 1886 under the provisions of the Municipal Corporations Act 1883. Letters Patent dated 16 September 1994 ordained that the "Town of St. David's shall have the status of a City".
• ^21 The title of City was used "by courtesy" after 1550 when Westminster ceased to be the see of a bishop. By Letters Patent dated 27 October 1900 city status was conferred on the newly created Metropolitan Borough of Westminster from 1 November. This status was continued on the creation of the City of Westminster as a London borough in 1965.
• ^22 A letter from the Home Secretary to the Mayor of Leicester dated 14 June 1919, 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".
• ^23 Letters Patent dated 10 December 1969.
• ^24 Letters Patent dated 21 April 1926.
• ^25 Letters Patent dated 21 March 1951.
• ^26 Letters Patent dated 14 May 1937.
• ^27 Letters Patent dated 18 October 1928.
• ^28 Letters Patent dated 5 June 1925.
• ^29 Letters Patent dated 28 October 1905, which also granted the title of Lord Mayor.
• ^30 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".
• ^31 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 (54 & 55 Vict. c. cxxiv).
• ^32 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.
• ^33 Letters Patent dated 14 January 1889.
• ^34 Letters Patent dated 29 March 1853.
• ^35 Letters Patent dated 1 April 2009. City status had been held prior to this date (and since 1974) by the Charter Trustees of the City of New Sarum. The city of Salisbury's formal name was New Sarum (see also: Old Sarum) from 1227 until 2009.
• ^36 Letters Patent dated 28 August 1877.
• ^37 Letters Patent dated 1 June 2012 "to ordain that the Town of Chelmsford in the County of Essex and the Town of St Asaph in the County of Denbighshire shall have the status of a City".
• ^38 [2015] Localities (Glasgow)
• ^39 Legally, the city and county are called "Londonderry", while the local government district is called "Derry". See Derry/Londonderry name dispute.
• ^40 Letters Patent dated 14 June 2022.
• ^41 Letters Patent dated 15 August 2022.
• ^42 Letters Patent dated 30 September 1842
• ^43 Letters Patent dated 1 September 2022
• ^44 Letters Patent dated 5 September 2022
• ^45 Letters Patent dated 26 January 2022
• ^46 Letters Patent dated 28 July 2022
• ^47 Letters Patent dated 7 September 2022, with effect from 1 November 2022

References

Sources

• Beckett, J.V. (2005). City Status in the British Isles, 1830–2002. Aldershot: Ashgate Publishing. ISBN 0-7546-5067-7.