In the United Kingdom a city is a densely populated urban area usually consisting of a number of borough and/or districts. Confusingly some people believe a city is a place that has a Cathedral but this is not the case. A city is formed by a charter granted by the Crown (Head of State) to celebrate some national event, the last cities were created at the Golden Jubilee of HM Queen Elizabeth II, although this is not always the case. Large towns can petition the Queen to see if she, and her Government, will grant them the status of a city. Once a town is granted the status of a city they gain a significant degree of self government and are responsible to Parliament and not the county in which they are located. Many cities also have the right to elect a Lord Mayor, the most famous and prestigious of which is that of the Lord Mayor of London. Nowadays most cities are officially Unitary Authorities.
City Parishes are locations that have held their Royal Charter granting them the status of a city for a very long period of time. Although today we would recognise them only as towns when the charter was originally granted they were nationally important religious or commercial centres.
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