241-538: Salford ( / ˈ s ɒ l f ər d / SOL -fərd ) is a city in Greater Manchester , England, situated on the western bank of the River Irwell which forms its boundary with Manchester city centre . Landmarks in the city include the former town hall , Salford Cathedral , Salford Lads' Club and St Philip's Church . In 2021 it had a population of 129,794. The demonym for people from Salford
482-552: A Bronze Age cremation urn during the construction of a road on the Broughton Hall estate in 1873. The Brigantes were the major Celtic tribe in what is now Northern England . With a stronghold at the sandstone outcrop on which Manchester Cathedral now stands, opposite Salford's original centre, their territory extended across the fertile lowland by the River Irwell that is now Salford and Stretford . Following
723-525: A cathedral in 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
964-548: A ford by the willows , (also known as sallows), in reference to the trees growing on the banks of the River Irwell. The ford was about where Victoria Bridge is today. Willow trees are still found in Lower Broughton . Salford appears in the pipe roll of 1169 as "Sauford" and in the Lancashire Inquisitions of 1226 as "Sainford". The earliest known evidence of human activity in what is now Salford
1205-478: A 10-hour working day, equivalent to about £16 per day in 2010. In terms of machinery, the project made use of more than 200 miles (320 km) of temporary rail track, 180 locomotives, more than 6000 trucks and wagons, 124 steam-powered cranes, 192 other steam engines, and 97 steam excavators. Major engineering landmarks of the scheme included the Barton Swing Aqueduct ,
1446-517: 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
1687-521: A controlled manner. Each consists of a set of mechanically driven vertical steel roller gates, supported by masonry piers. Originally, manually operated Stoney Sluices were used; these were replaced in the 1950s by electrically driven units, with automation technology introduced from the late 1980s. The sluices are protected against damage from drifting vessels by large concrete barriers. Stop logs can be inserted by roving cranes, installed upstream of each sluice; at Weaver Sluices, accessed by boat, this task
1928-739: A cost of just over £15 million, (equivalent to £2,107,000,000 in 2023). It is still the longest river navigation canal and remains the world's eighth-longest ship canal, only slightly shorter than the Panama Canal in Central America. More than 54 million cubic yards (41,000,000 m³) of material were excavated, about half as much as was removed during the building of the Suez Canal . An average of 12,000 workers were employed during construction, peaking at 17,000. Regular navvies were paid 4 + 1 ⁄ 2 d per hour for
2169-478: A diversified export trade, which meant that ships frequently had to return down the canal loaded with ballast rather than freight. However traffic gradually developed and the Canal became successful, paying dividends from 1921 onwards. As the import trade in oil began to grow during the 20th century the balance of canal traffic gradually switched towards the west, from Salford to Stanlow. Unlike most other British canals,
2410-625: A failed rebellion attempt against Henry I . In around 1115, for their support during the rebellion, Henry I placed the Hundred of Salford under the control of the Earldom of Lancaster , and it is from this exchange that the Hundred of Salford became a royal manor . The Lord of the Manor was either the English monarch , or a feudal land owner who administered the manor for the king. During
2651-492: A further stimulus for Salford's industrial development. The opening of the Bridgewater Canal in 1761 improved the transport of fuel and raw materials, reducing the price of coal by about 50%. The later Manchester, Bolton & Bury Canal (which terminated at Salford) brought more cheap coal from pits at Pendleton, Agecroft Colliery and beyond. By 1818 Manchester, Salford and Eccles had about 80 mills, but it
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#17327661737962892-718: A hub for employment in its factories and docks. In 1848, Salford Roman Catholic Cathedral opened, reflecting the large Irish-born community in Salford at that time. In the decades following the Second World War, Salford experienced significant population decline, as residents followed employment opportunities to other locations in Greater Manchester, taking advantage of a greater choice in the type and location of housing. County Borough 1901–1971 • Urban Subdivision 1981–2001 In 2011, Salford had
3133-532: A local government district of the new metropolitan county of Greater Manchester , with triple the territory of the former City of Salford, taking in neighbouring Eccles, Swinton and Pendlebury, and Worsley and Irlam. Both Salford and the wider City of Salford are unparished areas . Salford is represented by the Member of Parilament (MP) for the Salford constituency , which was (re)created in 2023 and first used in
3374-443: A lot more ethnically diverse since the previous census, mostly due to boundary changes, but also due to the relocation of many BBC departments from London between 2011 and 2012. This has created many jobs and encouraged migration to the area, which was previously very deprived since the loss of many traditional industries in the 20th century. According to the 2001 UK census, the industry of employment of Salford's residents aged 16–74
3615-563: A man-made cut through the Dee estuary . Faced with conflicting evidence, Parliament rejected the bill. Later mass meetings were held, including a large demonstration at Pomona Gardens on 24 June 1884. Strong opposition from Liverpool led the House of Commons Committee to reject the committee's second bill on 1 August 1884. The unresolved question of what would happen to the Mersey estuary if
3856-401: A multi-lattice iron girder centre span of 120 feet (37 m) in length. It opened to freight on 27 February 1893 and to passenger traffic on 29 May 1893. Following the withdrawal of passenger services in 1964, the line became freight only. When expensive repairs to the viaduct were needed in the early 1980s British Rail opted to close it, together with the line to Glazebrook. At
4097-408: A near resemblance to it in streets and edifices; contains several public buildings and a great public park, which belong fully more to Manchester than to itself". Greengate, the original centre of Salford, is located at a fording point on the river opposite Manchester Cathedral . In 1969 Nikolaus Pevsner wrote: That [neighbouring] Stretford and Salford are not administratively one with Manchester
4338-551: 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
4579-409: 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
4820-720: 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
5061-833: A part-glazed roof. City status in the United Kingdom City status in 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,
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#17327661737965302-483: A payment of £10 million. The deal extricated Manchester Council from a politically difficult conflict of interest, as Whittaker was proposing to develop a large out of town shopping centre on land owned by the Ship Canal Company at Dumplington , the present-day Trafford Centre . The council opposed the scheme, believing that it would damage the city centre economy, but accepted that it was "obviously in
5543-459: A population of 103,886, which is about the same size as Rochdale . The population increased from 72,750 in the previous census, mainly due to boundary changes. In 2011, 22.7% of the population in the Salford USD (Urban Subdivision) were non-white British, compared with 15.6% for the surrounding borough. The USD had a slightly larger percentage of Asian and black people. Salford has become
5784-485: A quarter of expected net revenue, and throughout at least the first nineteen years of the canal it was unable to make a profit or meet the interest payments to the Corporation of Manchester. Many ship owners were reluctant to dispatch ocean-going vessels along a "locked cul-de-sac" at a maximum speed of 6 knots (11 km/h; 6.9 mph). The Ship Canal Company, which developed the canal, found it difficult to attract
6025-412: A range of building stock. Some inner-city areas are noted for chronic urban decay . Salford's housing stock is characterised by an oversupply of older, smaller terraced housing and flatted accommodation that declined in value during the late 20th century. As demand fell, it left many owners in negative equity and often without the means to maintain their homes in reasonable condition. As a result, much of
6266-414: A rise of approximately 15 feet (4.6 m). The locks are at Eastham; Latchford , near Warrington; Irlam; Barton near Eccles and Mode Wheel, Salford. Five sets of sluices and two weirs are used to control the canal's depth. The sluices, located at Mode Wheel Locks, Barton Locks, Irlam Locks, Latchford Locks and Weaver Sluices, are designed to allow water entering the canal to flow along its length in
6507-642: A scratch collection of 240,000 people cut off from Manchester by the river". In 1961, a small part of the Municipal Borough of Eccles was added to the city, and in 1966, Salford was twinned with Clermont-Ferrand in France. In 1974 the City and County Borough of Salford was abolished under the Local Government Act 1972 , and was replaced by the metropolitan borough of City of Salford ,
6748-699: A second road to the west, ran through what is now Salford, but few Roman artefacts have been found in the area. The withdrawal of the Romans in AD ;410 left the inhabitants at the mercy of the Saxons . The Danes later conquered the area and absorbed what was left of the Brigantes. Angles settled in the region during the Early Middle Ages and gave the locality the name Sealhford , meaning "ford by
6989-573: A small textile-chain making business in Ordsall from James Slater and founded the Hans Renold Company , what is now Renold, a firm which still produces chains. Renold invented the bush roller chain shortly after and began producing it. It is the type of chain most commonly used for transmission of mechanical power on bicycles, motorbikes, to industrial and agricultural machinery to uses as varied as rollercoasters and escalators . During
7230-529: 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
7471-498: 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
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7712-710: 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
7953-439: Is Salfordian . Salford is the main settlement of the wider City of Salford metropolitan borough, which incorporates other towns including Eccles , Pendlebury , Swinton and Walkden . Nearby towns in other metropolitan boroughs include Stretford , Urmston , Bolton , Sale and Bury , Prestwich , and Radcliffe . Salford is represented by the Member of Parilament for the Salford constituency , created in 2023. Salford
8194-528: Is a Neo-classical brick building dressed in stone, designed by Richard Lane . Closer to Manchester, the tower of the Church of the Sacred Trinity dates from 1635, the main building from 1752. It was restored between 1871 and 1874. Public swimming baths were provided, on Blackfriars Road. Now in commercial use, the two-storey building was constructed in about 1890 from brick, with terracotta dressings and
8435-406: Is a safe place to visit. In August 2005, a survey by Channel 4 television rated the city as the 9th worst place to live in the United Kingdom, based on criteria of crime, education, environment, lifestyle and employment. Salford has suffered from high levels of unemployment, housing, and social problems since around the 1960s, although there are regeneration schemes to reverse its fortunes. Many of
8676-719: Is contiguous with other towns on all sides, and as defined by the Office for National Statistics forms the sixth-largest settlement in the Greater Manchester Urban Area , the United Kingdom's second-largest conurbation . The M602 motorway enters Salford from Eccles to the west. The A580 "East Lancashire Road" terminates at Salford, entering the area from Pendlebury . Salford is polycentric (has more than one centre). The main city centre could be considered to be located around Bexley Square near where
8917-602: Is named after the artist L. S. Lowry , who attended Salford School of Art and lived in nearby Pendlebury for 40 years. Many of his paintings of Salford and Manchester mill scenes, populated with small matchstick-like figures, are on display. A notable regeneration project is MediaCityUK , located at Salford Quays. The development houses BBC departments including CBBC , BBC Sport and Radio 5 Live which moved in 2011 and BBC Breakfast , which moved from London in spring 2012. In recent years, various large residential schemes have been built in Salford. A notable development,
9158-475: Is now privately owned by Peel Holdings , whose plans include redevelopment, expansion and an increase in shipping from 8,000 containers a year to 100,000 by 2030 as part of their Atlantic Gateway project. The canal was completed just as the Long Depression was coming to an end, but in its early years it was not the commercial success its sponsors had hoped for. At first gross revenue was less than
9399-556: Is one of the most curious anomalies of England. The Irwell, sourced at Cliviger in Lancashire, flows from the north and for a distance forms the statutory boundary between Salford and Manchester. Flooding has historically been a problem and the Irwell has seen much modification along its course in Salford with some bends being removed, channelisation , and the construction of levees and bank reinforcements. Salford has expanded along
9640-518: Is performed by a floating crane. Woolston Siphon Weir, built in 1994 to replace an earlier structure and located on an extant section of the Mersey near Latchford, controls the amount of water in the Latchford Pond by emptying canal water into the Mersey. Howley Weir controls water levels downstream of Woolston Weir. Further upstream, Woolston Guard Weir enables maintenance to be carried out on both. Seven terminal docks were constructed for
9881-562: Is provided by the Neolithic flint arrow-heads and workings discovered on Kersal Moor and the River Irwell, suggesting that the area was inhabited 7–10,000 years ago. The raw material for such tools was scarce and unsuitable for working, and as a result they are not of the quality found elsewhere. Other finds include a neolithic axe-hammer found near Mode Wheel, during the excavation of the Manchester Ship Canal in 1890, and
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10122-651: Is situated opposite the 'Old Church' of Manchester". The effect on Salford of the Industrial Revolution has been described as "phenomenal". The area expanded from a small market town into a major industrial metropolis ; factories replaced cottage industries, and the population rose from 12,000 in 1812 to 70,244 within 30 years. By the end of the 19th century it had increased to 220,000. Large-scale building of low quality Victorian terraced housing did not stop overcrowding, which itself led to chronic social deprivation. The density of housing
10363-577: The 2024 UK general election . Its MP is Rebecca Long-Bailey , who served as a Labour Party MP in Salford since 2015. As of 2024 she sits as an independent MP, after Labour suspended her for voting against a cap on child benefits, contradicting the party whip . Salford was enfranchised as a parliamentary borough by the Great Reform Act of 1832 , returning a single Member of Parliament (MP). It has been subject to numerous constituency changes throughout history. From 1868 it returned two MPs to
10604-505: The Anti-Corn Law League , their strategy was ultimately successful: local offices were acquired, secretaries hired and further meetings organised. The weekly Ship Canal Gazette , priced at one penny, was by the end of the year being sold at newsagents in towns across Lancashire. The Gazette was part of a prolonged print campaign organised by the committee, to circulate leaflets and pamphlets, and write supportive letters to
10845-628: The Charlestown and Lower Kersal New deal for Communities , have concentrated on renovating existing terraced housing stock by block improvement and alleygating, as well as demolishing unsuitable properties and building new facilities, in consultation with the local community. Salford now has many tourist attractions, such as Ordsall Hall , the Bridgewater Canal and the Lowry Centre , an award-winning theatre and art gallery complex, consisting of two theatres and three art galleries. The centre
11086-635: The Civil War of 1640–49, Salford supported the Royalist cause, in contrast to Manchester just across the Irwell which declared in favour of the Parliamentarians . Royalist forces mounted a siege of Manchester across what is now the site of Victoria Bridge, which although short-lived, "did little to improve relations between the two towns". A century later, in 1745, Salford was staunchly in support of Bonnie Prince Charlie , in his attempt to seize
11327-483: The Great Depression of the 1920s and 1930s, and a significant economic decline in the decades following the Second World War contributed toward a fall in Salford's population. By 1939 local coal mining had almost stopped, and, by 1971, cotton spinning had ceased completely. Between 1921 and 1939, the population of Salford decreased by 29%, from 234,045 to 166,386, far greater than the rate of decline within
11568-480: 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
11809-686: The House of Commons until the Redistribution of Seats Act 1885 , when the constituency was split into three single-member divisions: Salford North , Salford South and Salford West . Boundaries changed again under the provisions of the Representation of the People Act 1948 when the constituencies were reorganised into Salford East and Salford West. From 1997, Salford lay within a reconstituted Salford parliamentary constituency . From
12050-514: 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
12291-808: The London and North Western Railway . The third was to the south, operated by the Cheshire Lines Committee (CLC), whereby the MSC Railway had taken over the old and abandoned route of the CLC, giving them a monopoly on traffic to the new soap works and steel mill. The MSC Railway's steam locomotives were designed to negotiate the tight curves of the sidings and industrial tracks on which they ran. Originally specifying 0-4-0 wheel arrangements, later 0-6-0 locomotives – purchased to cope with increasing traffic and loads – had flangeless centre axles, whilst
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#173276617379612532-585: 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
12773-608: The Manchester Blitz in 1940) was Europe's largest grain elevator. It had a capacity of 40,000 tons and its automatic conveying and spouting system could distribute grain into 226 bins. The CWS bought land on Trafford Wharf in 1903, where it opened a bacon factory and a flour mill. In 1906 it bought the Sun Mill, which it extended in 1913 to create the UK's largest flour mill, with its own wharf, elevators and silos. Inland from
13014-586: The Mersey and Irwell Navigation Company . By 1734 boats "of moderate size" were able to make the journey from quays near Water Street in Manchester to the Irish Sea , but the navigation was only suitable for small ships; during periods of low rainfall or when strong easterly winds held back the tide in the estuary, there was not always sufficient depth of water for a fully laden boat. The completion in 1776 of
13255-399: 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
13496-416: The Port of Liverpool . The company announced a £50 billion Atlantic Gateway plan in 2011 to develop the Port of Liverpool and the Manchester Ship Canal as a way of combating increasing road congestion. Their scheme involves the construction of a large distribution centre to be named Port Salford and an additional six sites along the canal for the loading and unloading of freight. Peel Ports predict that
13737-439: The Roman conquest of Britain , General Agricola ordered the construction of a Roman fort named Mamucium (Manchester) to protect the routes to Deva Victrix ( Chester ) and Eboracum ( York ) from the Brigantes. Salford was founded when the fort was completed in AD 79, and for over 300 years the Pax Romana brought peace to the area. Both the main Roman road to the north, from Mamucium to Ribchester , and
13978-553: 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
14219-475: The Stanlow Refinery just east of Ellesmere Port, and also in smaller tankers to Runcorn. The limitations imposed by the canal on the maximum size of container vessel meant that by the mid-1970s Manchester Liners was becoming uncompetitive; the company sold its last ship in 1985. Mersey Ferry operate the river cruise along Manchester Ship Canal. The amount of freight carried by the canal peaked in 1958 at 18 million long tons (20 million short tons), but
14460-416: The Throne of England . He entered the town at the head of his army and was blessed by the Reverend John Clayton before leaving "in high spirits" to march on London; he returned to Salford in defeat just nine days later. Salford has a history of textile processing that pre-dates the Industrial Revolution , and as an old town had been developing for about 700 years. Before the introduction of cotton there
14701-424: The Wirral side of the Mersey, which seal off the tidal estuary, are the largest on the canal. The larger lock is 600 feet (180 m) long by 80 feet (24 m) wide; the smaller lock is 350 feet (110 m) by 50 feet (15 m). Four additional sets of locks lie further inland, 600 feet (180 m) long and 65 feet (20 m) wide and 350 feet (110 m) by 45 feet (14 m) for the smaller lock; each has
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#173276617379614942-412: 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
15183-533: The general election of 2010 , Salford (excluding Broughton and Kersal) was part of the new constituency of Salford and Eccles until it was replaced again with the Salford constituency by the 2023 periodic review of Westminster constituencies . At 53°28′59″N 2°17′35″W / 53.48306°N 2.29306°W / 53.48306; -2.29306 (53.483°, −2.2931°), and 205 miles (330 km) northwest of central London , Salford stands about 177 feet (54 m) above sea level, on relatively flat ground to
15424-530: The night-time economy folded amid criminal "intimidation", "drug use, fights and demands for money". In early 2005, the Government of Latvia appealed to the European Union to advise people against travelling to Salford after a Latvian man was stabbed in the head in Lower Broughton . However, a crackdown by Greater Manchester Police coupled with investment in, and structural changes to the housing stock, began changing Salford's fortunes; population decline has slowed, and Salford's city councillors have insisted it
15665-622: 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 ;
15906-405: The 1930s. From 2007, multiple media companies set up headquarters at the MediaCityUK development in Salford Quays , an area established in the 1980s on former dockland. Notable organisations based in the city include the University of Salford , Salford City Football Club , Salford Red Devils , BBC North and ITV Granada . The name of Salford derives from Old English : Sealhford , meaning
16147-421: The 1980s and 1990s the area experienced high levels of deprivation and unemployment, particularly during the recessions of the early years of both decades. This social deprivation was a major factor in the increased levels of gang crime linked to illegal narcotics, firearms and robberies. This was comparable to the similar issues faced in parts of neighbouring Manchester including Moss Side , as well as areas of
16388-403: The 200-acre (81 ha) Moore Nature Reserve , which is bisected by the de-watered Runcorn to Latchford Canal , comprises lakes, woodland and meadows. The reserve is open to the public and contains a number of bird hides , from which native owls and woodpeckers may be viewed. Near Thelwall , Woolston Eyes (a corruption of the Saxon Ees ), is a Site of Special Scientific Interest . It
16629-604: The CWS operated a weekly service to Rouen . Manchester Liners established regular sailings by large ocean-going vessels. In late 1898 the Manchester City , at 7,698 gross register tons , became the largest vessel to reach the terminal docks. Carrying cattle and general cargo, it was met by the Lord Mayor of Manchester and a large welcoming crowd. In 1968 Manchester Liners converted its fleet to container vessels only. To service them it built two dedicated container terminals next to No. 9 Dock. The four container vessels commissioned that year, each of 11,898 gross tons, were
16870-436: The City of Salford but significantly higher than 28.9% in all of England. 15.9% of Salford's residents aged 16–74 had an educational qualification such as first degree, higher degree, qualified teacher status, qualified medical doctor, qualified dentist, qualified nurse, midwife, health visitor, etc. compared to 20% nationwide. As a result of 19th-century industrialisation, Salford has had "a special place in
17111-425: 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
17352-520: The Hundred of Salford to Roger the Poitevin , and in the Domesday Book of 1086 the Hundred of Salford was recorded as covering an area of 350 square miles (906 km) with a population of 35,000. Poitevin created the subordinate Manor of Manchester out of the hundred, which has since in local government been separate from Salford. Poitevin forfeited the manor in 1102 when he was defeated in
17593-586: The Hundred of Salford unless they also lived in the borough. Salford's status as a burgage encouraged an influx of distinguished families, and by the Late Middle Ages Salford was "rich in its manor houses ", with over 30 within a 5-mile (8 km) radius of Ordsall . These included Ordsall Hall (owned by the Radclyffe family) and Broughton Hall , owned by the Earls of Derby . During
17834-487: The Irwell, Medlock , and Irk rivers are responsible for industrial contaminants found in the canal. Matters have improved since 1990 when the National Rivers Authority found the area between Trafford Road Bridge and Mode Wheel Locks to be "grossly polluted". The water was depleted of dissolved oxygen , which in the latter half of the 20th century often resulted in toxic sediments normally present at
18075-528: The Irwell, and in 1806 was the first large cotton mill to use gas lighting. Many engineering companies were established in this area, including Samuel Ellis and Company at the Irwell Foundry. However, it was outnumbered by the numerous smaller factories and mills throughout the area, including Nathan Gough's steam-driven mule spinning mill, near Oldfield Road, where a serious accident occurred on 13 October 1824 (see illustration). Canal building provided
18316-770: The Manchester Ship Canal was never nationalised. The idea that the rivers Mersey and Irwell should be made navigable from the Mersey Estuary in the west to Manchester in the east was first proposed in 1660 and revived in 1712 by the English civil engineer Thomas Steers . The necessary legislation was proposed in 1720, and the act of Parliament for the navigation, the Rivers Mercy and Irwell Navigation Act 1720 ( 7 Geo. 1. St. 1 . c. 15), passed into law in 1721. Construction began in 1724, undertaken by
18557-556: The Mersey and Irwell Navigation was transferred to the Bridgewater Trustees, and in 1872 it was sold to the Bridgewater Navigation Company for £1.112 million. The navigation had by then fallen into disrepair, its owners preferring instead to maintain the more profitable canal; in 1882 the navigation was described as being "hopelessly choked with silt and filth", and was closed to all but
18798-462: The Mersey northwest of Ellesmere Port, was constructed from soil taken from the excavations. It and the adjacent Manisty Cutting were named after the engineer in charge. The last section built was the passage from Weston Point through the Runcorn Gap to Norton ; the existing docks at Runcorn and Weston had to be kept operational until they could be connected to the completed western sections of
19039-623: The Mersey's catchment). In 2010 the Environment Agency issued a report concluding that the canal "does not pose a significant barrier to salmon movement or impact on migratory behaviours". Despite the canal's poor water quality there are several nature reserves along its banks. Wigg Island , a former brownfield site east of Runcorn , contains a network of public footpaths through newly planted woodlands and meadows. Wildlife includes multiple butterfly and dragonfly species, kestrels , swallows and house martins . Further upstream
19280-478: The Mersey's tributaries, has encouraged the migration into the canal of fish populations from further upstream. The canal's water quality remains low, with mercury and cadmium in particular present at "extremely high levels". Episodic pollution and a lack of habitat remain problems for wildlife, although in 2005, for the first time in living memory, salmon were observed breeding in the River Goyt (a part of
19521-862: 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
19762-555: The Panama Canal has been able to handle vessels of 1,201 feet (366 m) in length with a beam of 161 feet (49 m) and a draft of 50 feet (15.2 m), and cargo capacity up to 14,000 twenty-foot equivalent units (TEU). Ships passing under the Runcorn Bridge have a height restriction of 70 feet (21 m) above normal water levels. In 1984 Salford City Council used a derelict land grant to purchase
20003-507: The Port of Liverpool put off potential investors; by May 1887 only £3 million had been raised. As a temporary solution Thomas Walker, the contractor selected to construct the canal, agreed to accept £500,000 of the contract price in shares, but raising the remainder required another act of Parliament to allow the company's share capital to be restructured as £3 million of ordinary shares and £4 million of preference shares . Adamson
20244-687: The Provisional Manchester Ship Canal Committee, said in 1882: No few individuals should be expected to subscribe and form a company for mere gain; it should be taken on by the public, and if it is not ... I for one should say drop the scheme ... unless I see the public coming forward in a hearty manner. The act of Parliament forbade the company from issuing shares below £10 so, to make them easier for ordinary people to buy, they issued shilling coupons in books of ten so they could be paid for in instalments. The construction costs and expected competition from
20485-517: 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
20726-642: The River Irwell to Hunts Bank, near Manchester Cathedral . In 1893 the Ship Canal Company sold a parcel of land just east of the Mode Wheel Locks to the newly established Manchester Dry Docks Company. The graving docks were constructed adjacent to the south bank of the canal, and a floating pontoon dock was built nearby. Each of the three graving docks could accommodate ocean-going ships of up to 535 feet (163.1 m) in length and 64 feet (19.5 m) in beam, equivalent to vessels of 8,000 gross register tons. Manchester Liners acquired control of
20967-627: The Runcorn extension of the Bridgewater Canal , followed in 1830 by the opening of the Liverpool and Manchester Railway , intensified competition for the carriage of goods. In 1825 an application had been made to Parliament for an act to allow the construction of a ship canal between the mouth of the River Dee and Manchester at a cost of £1 million, but "the necessary forms not having been observed", it did not become law. In 1844 ownership of
21208-529: The Ship Canal Committee resolved to lend a further £1.5 million on condition that Manchester Corporation had an absolute majority on the canal company's board of directors and its various sub-committees. The corporation subsequently appointed 11 of the 21 seats, nominated Alderman Sir John Harwood as deputy director of the company, and secured majorities on five of the board's six sub-committees. The cost to Manchester Corporation of financing
21449-459: The Ship Canal Company had a significant impact on local taxpayers. Manchester's municipal debt rose by 67 per cent, resulting in a 26 per cent increase in rates between 1892 and 1895. However well this arrangement served the corporation, by the mid-1980s it had become "meaningless". Most of the company's shares were controlled by the property developer John Whittaker , and in 1986 the council agreed to give up all but one of its seats in return for
21690-565: 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
21931-486: The UK it was not nationalised in 1948, and at its peak it had 790 employees, 75 locomotives, 2,700 wagons and more than 230 miles (370 km) of track. The MSC Railway was able to receive and despatch goods trains to and from all the UK's mainline railway systems, using connecting junctions at three points in the terminal docks. Two were to the north of the canal, operated by the Lancashire and Yorkshire Railway and
22172-458: The UK's imports and 4.4% of its exports. Commodities handled included cotton, grain, wool, textile machinery and steam locomotives. For centuries, textiles and related trades were the main source of employment in the town. Bleaching was a widely distributed finishing trade in Salford, carried over from the earlier woollen industry. In the 18th century, before the introduction of chemical bleaching, bleaching fields were commonplace, some very close to
22413-761: 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
22654-645: 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
22895-505: The United Kingdom. The construction railway followed the route of the former River Irwell. To bring in construction materials, the construction railway had a connection to the Cheshire Lines Committee (CLC) east of Irlam railway station . Every month this allowed more than 10,000 tons of coal and 8,000 tons of cement to be delivered to sites along the canal excavation. All existing railway companies with lines along
23136-465: The administration of Lancashire County Council . Following a campaign supported by William Joynson-Hicks , Home Secretary and Member of Parliament (MP) for a neighbouring constituency of Manchester, city status was granted to the county borough by letters patent dated 21 April 1926. This was in spite of the opposition of civil servants in the Home Office who dismissed the borough as "merely
23377-462: 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
23618-453: The basis of a bill to be submitted to Parliament later that year. To generate support for the scheme, the provisional committee initiated a public campaign led by Joseph Lawrence, who had worked for the Hull and Barnsley Railway . His task was to set up committees in every ward in Manchester and throughout Lancashire, to raise subscriptions and sell the idea to the local public. The first meeting
23859-467: 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
24100-420: 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
24341-413: 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
24582-446: 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
24823-422: The bottom of the turning basin in what is now Salford Quays rising to the surface during the summer months, giving the impression of solid ground. Previously, only roach and sticklebacks could be found in the canal's upper levels, and then only during the colder parts of the year, but an oxygenation project implemented at Salford Quays from 2001, together with the gradual reduction of industrial pollutants from
25064-601: The built environment is poor. Land use in Salford is overwhelmingly urban, with a number of green spaces. The largest is Kersal Dale country park, which covers about 32 hectares (0.32 km). Others include Kersal Moor in Higher Kersal, The Meadow, Peel Park and the adjacent David Lewis Recreation Ground close to the University of Salford , and Albert Park and Clowes Park in Broughton. The territory of Salford
25305-579: The canal the British Westinghouse Electric Company bought 11 per cent of the estate. Westinghouse's American architect Charles Heathcote was responsible for much of the planning and design of their factory, which built steam turbines and turbo generators . By 1899 Heathcote had also designed fifteen warehouses for the Manchester Ship Canal Company. During construction, a year after
25546-719: The canal is joined by the Shropshire Union Canal , at a site now occupied by the National Waterways Museum . The area formerly consisted of a 7-acre (2.8 ha) canal port linking the Shropshire Union Canal to the River Mersey. Designed by Thomas Telford , it remained operational until the 1950s. It was a "marvellously self-contained world" with locks , docks , warehouses, a blacksmith's forge, stables, and cottages for
25787-570: The canal was built had remained a sticking point. During questioning, an engineer for the Mersey Docks and Harbour Board was asked how he would avoid such a problem. His reply, "I should enter at Eastham and carry the canal along the shore until I reached Runcorn, and then I would strike inland", prompted Williams to change his design to include this suggestion. Despite continued opposition, the committee's third bill, presented in November 1884,
26028-487: The canal's north bank and under the Irlam viaduct. The canal company also developed large complexes of sidings along the route, built to service freight to and from the canal's docks and nearby industrial estates, especially at: Salford Docks; Trafford Park; Partington North Coaling Basin (both sides of the canal); Glazebrook sidings; and a small but busy marshalling yard east of Irlam locks. Unlike most other railway companies in
26269-490: 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
26510-497: The centres of Salford and Manchester, where supplies of labour and coal were more readily available (the first steam-powered mill was built in Manchester in 1780). One of the first factories to be built was Philip's and Lee's Twist Mill in Salford, completed in 1801, the second iron-framed multi-story building to be erected in Britain. The large Salford Engine Twist Company mill was built to the west of Salford, between Chapel Street and
26751-627: The city are located in East Dunbartonshire , East Renfrewshire , North Lanarkshire , Renfrewshire , South Lanarkshire and West Dunbartonshire . Manchester Ship Canal The Manchester Ship Canal is a 36-mile-long (58 km) inland waterway in the North West of England linking Manchester to the Irish Sea . Starting at the Mersey Estuary at Eastham , near Ellesmere Port , Cheshire , it generally follows
26992-545: The city being about 40 miles (64 km) inland. Since its opening in 1894, the canal has handled a wide range of ships and cargos, from coastal vessels to intra-European shipping and intercontinental cargo liners. The first vessel to unload its cargo on the opening day was the Pioneer , belonging to the Co-operative Wholesale Society (CWS), which was also the first vessel registered at Manchester;
27233-461: The city's wealthier inhabitants. The sympathetic Manchester City News reported that "the rich men of South and East Lancashire, with a few notable exceptions, have not rivalled the enthusiasm of the general public". The Mersey Docks Board opposed the committee's first bill, presented late in 1882, and it was rejected by Parliament in January 1883 for breaching Standing Orders . Within six weeks
27474-759: 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
27715-453: The committee organised hundreds of petitions from a range of bodies across the country: one representing Manchester was signed by almost 200,000 people. The requirement for Standing Orders was dispensed with, and the represented bill allowed to proceed. Some witnesses against the scheme, worried that a canal would cause the entrance to the Mersey estuary to silt up, blocking traffic, cited the case of Chester harbour. This had silted up due to
27956-562: The community and townscape ... has gone from Salford, replaced by tall blocks of flats". Large areas of the city were redeveloped in the 1960s and 1970s, with Victorian era terraced housing estates that inspired painter L. S. Lowry and soap opera Coronation Street giving way to concrete tower blocks and austere architecture. Salford Quays became the site of the second British multiplex when Cannon opened their cinema there in December 1986. Despite extensive redevelopment, throughout
28197-406: The company in 1974, to ensure the availability of facilities for the repair of its fleet of ships. Two years after the opening of the ship canal, financier Ernest Terah Hooley bought the 1,183-acre (4,790,000 m ) country estate belonging to Sir Humphrey Francis de Trafford for £360,000 (£52.6 million in 2009). Hooley intended to develop the site, which was close to Manchester and at
28438-414: The company's only source of income, was closed after a fall of ice. The company decided to take over the contracting work and bought all the on-site equipment for £400,000. Some railway companies, whose bridges had to be modified to cross the canal, demanded compensation. The London and North Western Railway and Great Western Railway refused to cooperate, and between them, they demanded about £533,000 for
28679-495: 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
28920-405: The confluence of the Mersey and Irwell near Irlam, the canal follows the old course of the River Irwell into Manchester. Vessels travelling to and from the terminal docks, which are 60 feet (18 m) above sea level, must pass through several locks. Each set has a large lock for ocean-going ships and a smaller, narrower lock for vessels such as tugs and coasters. The entrance locks at Eastham on
29161-565: The corporation decided, on the committee's recommendation, to lend the necessary £3 million, to preserve the city's prestige. In return, the corporation was allowed to appoint five of the fifteen members of the board of directors. The company subsequently raised its estimates of the cost of completion in September 1891 and again in June 1892. An executive committee was appointed as an emergency measure in December 1891, and on 14 October 1892
29402-479: The country, than it was from Liverpool. A ship canal was proposed as a way to reduce carriage charges, avoid payment of dock and town dues at Liverpool, and bypass the Liverpool to Manchester railways by giving Manchester direct access to the sea for its imports and its exports of manufactured goods. Historian Ian Harford suggested that the canal may also have been conceived as an "imaginative response to [the] problems of depression and unemployment" that Manchester
29643-474: The coupling rods had a hinged central section that permitted several inches of lateral play. A long term user of Hudswell Clarke , from their steam through to diesel locomotives, like many industrial railways later motive power was often provided by the purchase of refurbished former "big-four" operated types, with the advantage that crew were readily available to operate them. Post-WWII purchases included several war-surplus Hunslet 'Austerity' 0-6-0 saddle tanks;
29884-495: The death of Walker, the directors of the canal company and Walker's trustees came to an agreement for the canal company to take ownership of the construction assets. These included the more than 200 miles (320 km) of temporary rail track, 180 locomotives and more than 6,000 trucks and wagons. These formed the basis of the Manchester Ship Canal Railway, which became the largest private railway in
30125-441: The docks at Salford from the Ship Canal Company, rebranding the area as Salford Quays . Principal developers Urban Waterside began redevelopment work the following year, by which time traffic on the canal's upper reaches had declined to such an extent that its owners considered closing it above Runcorn. In 1993 the Ship Canal Company was acquired by Peel Holdings ; as of 2014 it is owned and operated by Peel Ports, which also owns
30366-550: The double-tracked Detroit Swing Bridge, which after closure of the MSC Railway in 1988 was floated down the canal to be placed in Salford Quays. The only major deviation was to allow construction of the CWS Irlam soap works and the adjacent Partington Steel & Iron Co. works at Partington (both of which had their own private railways and locomotives), with the MSC Railway's deviation route pushed south to run alongside
30607-474: The early 18th century. Goods were also transported on the Runcorn extension of the Bridgewater Canal (from 1776) and the Liverpool and Manchester Railway (from 1830) but by the late 19th century the Mersey and Irwell Navigation had fallen into disrepair and was often unusable. Manchester's business community viewed the charges imposed by Liverpool's docks and the railway companies as excessive. A ship canal
30848-482: The early 20th century, improvements in regional transport infrastructure precipitated the decline of Salford's existing industries, including those at the Salford Docks . Increased foreign competition began to undermine the competitiveness of local textile processing businesses. Life in Salford during the early 20th century was described by Robert Roberts, in his study The Classic Slum . Rising unemployment during
31089-536: The economic activity of residents aged 16–74, 4.4% students were with jobs, 9.1% students without jobs, 6.3% looking after home or family, 11.2% permanently sick or disabled, and 4.8% economically inactive for other reasons. The proportion of students economically active in Salford was higher than the City of Salford and England averages (3.0% and 2.6% respectively); the same is true for economically inactive students (5.1% in City of Salford and 4.7% in England). The rest of
31330-523: The economics of road transport resulted in a gradual dwindling of traffic on the MSC Railway system, and hence contraction in the MSC Railway itself. Traffic reduction was added to by the 1969 closure of the CWS Irlam soap works; post nationalisation British Steel Corporation building their own line to Glazebrook to junction with BR; and severe reductions in traffic of ICI's soda ash trains, British Tar Products and reduced domestic coal consumption. With
31571-407: The end of construction, the canal company left in place the original construction railway route, and eventually developed track along 33 miles (53 km) of the canal's length, mainly to its north bank. Built and operated mainly as a single-track line, the busiest section from Weaste Junction through Barton and Irlam, to Partington was all double-tracked. The railway's access to Trafford Park was over
31812-470: The end of the canal, as an exclusive housing estate, screened by woods from industrial units constructed along the 1.5-mile (2.4 km) frontage onto the canal. With the predicted traffic for the canal slow to materialise, Hooley and Marshall Stevens (the general manager of the Ship Canal Company) came to see the benefits that the industrial development of Trafford Park could offer to both
32053-404: The fairs were abolished during the 19th century. The Earls of Chester aided the development of the caput, and in 1230 Ranulf de Blondeville, 6th Earl of Chester made Salford a burgage , or free borough. The charter gave its burgesses certain commercial rights, privileges and advantages over traders living outside Salford; one of the 26 clauses of the charter stated that no one could work in
32294-637: The figures were roughly inline with national trends. Salford has a series of bridges over the Manchester Ship Canal and onto the River Irwell , including the Grade II listed Blackfriars Bridge , completed in 1820. The settlement is dominated by the several railway viaducts built in the 19th century. Another Grade II* listed building, Salford Cathedral , is a decorated neo-Gothic Roman Catholic church built between 1844 and 1848. Salford (Old) Town Hall, situated in Bexley Square off Chapel Street,
32535-605: The finishing trades, including rexine and silk dyeing, and fulling and bleaching, at a string of works in Salford. Both Karl Marx and Friedrich Engels spent time in Salford, studying the plight of the British working class. In The Condition of the Working Class in England in 1844 , Engels described Salford as "really one large working-class quarter ... [a] very unhealthy, dirty and dilapidated district which, while other industries were almost always textile related
32776-461: The first swing aqueduct in the world, and a neighbouring swing bridge for road traffic at Barton , both of which are now Grade II* listed structures. In 1909 the canal's depth was increased by 2 feet (0.61 m) to 28 feet (8.5 m), equalling that of the Suez Canal. The Manchester Ship Canal enabled the newly created Port of Manchester to become Britain's third-busiest port, despite
33017-596: 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
33258-574: 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
33499-570: The following month, and the canal opened to its first traffic on 1 January 1894. On 21 May, Queen Victoria performed the official opening, the last of three royal visits she made to Manchester. During the ceremony she knighted the Mayor of Salford, William Henry Bailey, and the Lord Mayor of Manchester, Anthony Marshall; Edward Leader Williams was knighted on 2 July by letters patent . The ship canal took six years to complete at
33740-424: 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
33981-691: 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
34222-484: The general secretaries of several trade unions, was held on 13 November at the Free Trade Hall in Manchester. Regular night-time meetings were held across the region, headed by speakers from a range of professions. Harford suggests that the organisers' choice of orators represents their "canny ability" to choose speakers who might move their audiences to support their cause. By adopting techniques used by
34463-500: The greater number of tenants kept their houses clean and respectable under most adverse conditions". By 1933, slum clearance projects were under way, and by the end of 1956 over a thousand families had been rehoused in overspill estates at Little Hulton . These clearances have, for some, changed the character of the area to such an extent that "observers in search of the typical Salford may have to look in Eccles and Swinton, for much of
34704-492: 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
34945-542: The growth of containerisation during the 1970s and 80s meant that many ships were too big to use the canal and traffic declined, resulting in the closure of the terminal docks at Salford. Although able to accommodate vessels from coastal ships to intercontinental cargo liners , the canal was not large enough for most modern vessels. By 2011 traffic had decreased from its peak in 1958 of 18 million long tons (20 million short tons) of freight each year to about 8 million long tons (9.0 million short tons). The canal
35186-477: The high-rise housing blocks from the 1960s and 1970s were demolished during the 1990s, "a sign that the great social engineering schemes (from that period) had failed". However, the high-rises that remain are a striking feature of Salford's landscape. Work was scheduled to begin on the £180 million redevelopment of the Greengate area of Salford in January 2007. The plans include the construction of what will be
35427-454: The history of the British working class" ; together with Manchester it had the world's "first fully formed industrial working class" . Salford has not, in general, attracted the same minority ethnic and cosmopolitan communities as in other parts of Greater Manchester, although it did attract significant numbers of Irish in the mid-19th century. Many migrated to Salford because of the Great Hunger in Ireland combined with Salford's reputation as
35668-413: The inconvenience. The Ship Canal Company was unable to demolish the older, low railway bridges until August 1893, when the matter went to arbitration. The railway companies were awarded just over £100,000, a fraction of their combined claims. By the end of 1891, the ship canal was open to shipping as far as Saltport, the name given to wharves built at the entrance to the Weaver Navigation . The success of
35909-419: The increasing size of ocean-going ships and the port's failure to introduce modern freight-handling methods resulted in that headline figure dropping steadily, and the closure of the docks in Salford in 1984. Total freight movements on the ship canal were down to 7.56 million long tons (8.47 million short tons) by 2000, and further reduced to 6.60 million long tons (7.39 million short tons) for
36150-399: The interests of the shareholders". Thomas Walker was appointed as a contractor, with Edward Williams as chief engineer and designer and general manager. The 36-mile (58 km) route was divided into eight sections, with one engineer responsible for each. The first reached from Eastham to Ellesmere Port . Mount Manisty , a large mound of earth on a narrow stretch between the canal and
36391-406: The largest ever to make regular use of the terminal docks at Salford. In 1974 the canal handled 2.9 million long tons (3.25 million short tons) of dry cargo, 27 per cent of which was carried by Manchester Liners. The dry tonnage was, and is still, greatly supplemented by crude and refined oil products transported in large tanker ships to and from the Queen Elizabeth II Dock at Eastham and
36632-456: The last steam locomotive types purchased for the MSC Railway. A fleet of diesel locomotives was bought between 1959 and 1966, including 18 0-4-0 diesels from the Rolls-Royce -owned Sentinel Waggon Works from 1964 to 1966. These enabled the MSC Railways to complete its conversion from steam on 6 July 1966, more than two years before British Railways. However, as transshipment costs increased, and unprocessed bulk cargoes decreased in volume,
36873-405: 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
37114-484: 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
37355-456: The local press, often signed with pseudonyms. One of the few surviving leaflets, "The Manchester Ship Canal. Reasons why it Should be Made", argued against dock and railway rates, which were apparently levied "with the object of protecting the interests of Railway kings, [so that] trade is handicapped, and wages kept low". By the end of 1882 the provisional committee comprised members from several of Manchester's large industries, but notably few of
37596-416: 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
37837-437: 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
38078-402: 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
38319-402: The more distant neighbouring city of Liverpool . Organised crime in Salford, particularly in Ordsall and Pendleton, "began to have a disturbing effect on grass roots democracy. Both the Liberal Democrats and the Conservatives announced they would not contest certain Salford wards" because they regarded them as "unsafe" and would put their "party workers at risk". Salford's social amenities and
38560-541: The necessary act of Parliament to allow the scheme to go ahead until 1885. Construction took six years, beginning in 1887, and cost just over £15 million (equivalent to £2,107,000,000 in 2023). When the ship canal opened in January 1894 (12 years after the first meeting of the Manchester Ship Canal company) it was the largest river navigation canal in the world and enabled the new Port of Manchester to become Britain's third-busiest port despite being about 40 mi (64 km) inland. Changes to shipping methods and
38801-422: The new Salford borough was made up of the township of Salford and part of Broughton . The remainder of Broughton, the township of Pendleton , and a small part of Pendlebury were added in 1853. When the administrative county of Lancashire was created by the Local Government Act 1888 , Salford was elevated to become the County Borough of Salford and was, in modern terms, a unitary authority area exempt from
39042-411: The new port was a source of consternation to merchants in Liverpool, who suddenly found themselves cut out of the trade-in goods such as timber, and a source of encouragement to shipping companies, who began to realise the advantages an inland port would offer. Saltport was rendered useless when the ship canal was completely filled with water in November 1893. The Manchester Ship Canal Police were formed
39283-401: The number of containers transported along the canal could increase from the 8,000 carried in 2010 to 100,000 by 2030. From Eastham, the canal runs parallel to, and along the south side of the Mersey estuary, past Ellesmere Port. Between Rixton east of the M6 motorway 's Thelwall Viaduct and Irlam, the canal joins the Mersey; thereafter it roughly follows the route the river used to take. At
39524-420: 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
39765-422: The opening of the canal. Four small docks were located on the south side of the canal near Cornbrook, within the Borough of Stretford : Pomona Docks No. 1, No. 2, No. 3, and No. 4. The three main docks, built primarily for large ocean-going vessels, were in Salford , to the west of Trafford Road on the north bank of the canal, docks No. 6, No. 7, and No. 8. In 1905, No. 9 Dock
40006-474: The original routes of the rivers Mersey and Irwell through the historic counties of Cheshire and Lancashire . Several sets of locks lift vessels about 60 ft (18 m) to the canal's terminus in Manchester. Landmarks along its route include the Barton Swing Aqueduct , the world's only swing aqueduct, and Trafford Park , the world's first planned industrial estate and still the largest in Europe. The rivers Mersey and Irwell were first made navigable in
40247-450: 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
40488-462: 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
40729-416: The ready supply of water from the River Irwell and its tributaries, attracted entrepreneurs who built cotton mills along the banks of the river in Pendleton and Ordsall . Although Salford followed a similar pattern of industrial development to Manchester, most businesses preferred to build their premises on the Manchester side of the Irwell, and consequently Salford did not develop as a commercial centre in
40970-432: 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
41211-410: The reign of Henry II the Royal Manor of Salford passed to Ranulf de Gernon, 4th Earl of Chester . Salford began to emerge as a small town early in the 13th century. In 1228, Henry III granted the caput of Salford the right to hold a market and an annual fair. The fairs were important to the town; a 17th-century order forced each burgess – a freeman of the borough – to attend, but
41452-461: The remaining engines stationed at Ellesmere Port and Stanlow, maintenance on the line from Irlam through to Partington was halted in late summer 1977, and all through traffic except engineering trains stopped on 21 December 1977. The through-line was officially closed to all traffic in 1978, but many of the sidings complexes remained; the last operational section of the MSC Railway, at Trafford Park, closed on 30 April 2009. At Ellesmere Port
41693-423: 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
41934-501: 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
42175-517: 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
42416-417: The river valley to the north and south and on to higher ground on the valley sides at Irlams o' th' Height and Higher Broughton . Unconsolidated glacial deposits along the riverbank at Broughton have caused several landslides along the riverbank. The City Engineer's Department of the City of Salford recorded one such incident near Great Clowes Street in February 1882, and others in 1886, 1887 and 1888. In 1892
42657-399: The road was propped with timber supports. The tram service along the road was discontinued in 1925, and the road closed to mechanically propelled vehicles in January 1926. Further slips saw the road closed completely in July 1933, and although no substantial movements have been recorded since 1948 slow subsidence around the Cliff continues to this day. Salford's built environment is made up of
42898-455: The route had been given notice that their lines had to either be abandoned by a given date or raised to give a minimum of 75 feet (23 m) clearance with all deviation construction costs to be paid by the MSC. The CLC Glazebrook to Woodley mainline passed over the River Mersey at Cadishead and so they decided to build a deviation. Construction of the Cadishead Viaduct began in 1892, approached via earth banks, with two brick arches accessing
43139-443: 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
43380-404: The same way as its neighbour. Many of these earlier mills had been based on Arkwright -type designs. These relied on strong falls of water, but Salford is on a meander of the Irwell with only a slight gradient and thus mills tended to be built upstream, at Kersal and Pendleton. However, with the introduction of the steam engine in the late 18th century, merchants began to construct mills closer to
43621-497: The ship canal and the estate. In January 1897 Stevens became the managing director of Trafford Park Estates, where he remained until 1930, latterly as its joint chairman and managing director. Within five years Trafford Park, Europe's largest industrial estate , was home to forty firms. The earliest structures on the canal side were grain silos ; the grain was used for flour and as ballast for ships carrying raw cotton . The wooden silo built opposite No.9 Dock in 1898 (destroyed in
43862-400: The ship canal. For the first two years construction went according to plan, but Walker died on 25 November 1889. The work was continued by his executors, but the project suffered setbacks and was hampered by harsh weather and several serious floods. In January 1891, when the project had been expected to have been completed, a severe winter added to the difficulties; the Bridgewater Canal,
44103-407: The smaller boats for 264 out of 311 working days. Along with deteriorating economic conditions in the 1870s and the start of a period known as the Long Depression, the dues charged by the Port of Liverpool and the railway charges from there to Manchester were perceived to be excessive by Manchester's business community; it was often cheaper to import goods from Hull , on the opposite side of
44344-431: The state until 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
44585-416: The status of city can be 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
44826-405: 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
45067-425: 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
45308-453: 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
45549-433: 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
45790-508: 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
46031-412: 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
46272-421: 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
46513-401: 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
46754-441: 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
46995-399: The town hall and cathedral are located. However, its main shopping centres are Salford Shopping Centre in Pendleton and Salford Quays . As the city has expanded and incorporated Eccles , Walkden , Swinton and Pendlebury , there are now retail and economic centres belonging to these towns. As of the 2001 UK census , Salford had a population of 72,750. The 2001 population density
47236-498: 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
47477-464: The town. In 1773 there were 25 bleachers around Salford, most to the west of the township. Printing was another source of trade; the earliest recorded in the region was a calique printer in the Manchester Parish Register of 1763. These industries became more important as Salford faced increasing competition from the nearby towns of Bolton and Oldham . As its cotton spinning industries faltered its economy turned increasingly to other textiles and to
47718-423: The two canals run in parallel. The western four docks have been converted into the Salford Quays development; ships using the Manchester Ship Canal now dock at various places along the canal side such as Mode Wheel (Salford), Trafford Park, and Ellesmere Port. Most ships have to terminate at Salford Quays, although vessels capable of passing under Trafford Road swing bridge (permanently closed in 1992) can continue up
47959-404: The two tallest tower blocks in Salford. Plans also include a five-star hotel, a new public square and park, restaurants, cafes and 403 apartments. Work is ongoing to regenerate the area known as Middlewood Locks, with the restored Salford terminus of the Manchester Bolton & Bury Canal forming the centrepiece of a brand new residential development. As part of the Pathfinder initiative, Salford
48200-427: 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 ,
48441-416: 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
48682-418: 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
48923-427: The west of a meander of the River Irwell – the city's main topographical feature. In 1904, Salford was recorded as "within a great loop of the River Irwell ... roughly three-quarters of a mile from north to south and one mile from east to west". Salford is contiguous with Manchester , and has been described "in participation of its trade, and for all other practical purposes, an integral part of it; presents
49164-422: The whole of North West England . A survey in 1931 concluded that parts of Salford contained some of the worst slums in the country. Many houses were infested by rats and lacked elementary amenities. Inspectors found that of 950 houses surveyed, 257 were in a state of bad repair with leaking roofs, broken flooring and rotten woodwork. The inspectors were "struck by the courage and perseverance with which
49405-414: The willows". According to the Anglo-Saxon Chronicle , Sealhford was part of the Kingdom of Northumbria until it was conquered in 923 by Edward the Elder . Following the emergence of the united Kingdom of England , Salford became a caput or central manor within a broad rural area in part held by the Kings of England, including Edward the Confessor . The area between the rivers Mersey and Ribble
49646-490: The workers. Its Island Warehouse was built in 1871 to store grain. A few miles from Ellesmere Port, at Weston Point , near Runcorn , the ship canal also connects with the Weaver Navigation. Significant crossings of the Canal include: The quality of water in the ship canal is adversely affected by several factors. The high population density of the Mersey Basin has, historically, placed heavy demands on sewage treatment and disposal. Industrial and agricultural discharges into
49887-427: The year ending September 2009. The maximum length of vessel currently accepted is 530 feet (161.5 m) with a beam of 63.5 feet (19.35 m) and a maximum draft of 24 feet (7.3 m) . By contrast the similarly sized Panama Canal , completed a few years after the Manchester Ship Canal, was able to accept ships of up to 950 feet (289.6 m) in length with a beam of 106 feet (32.31 m). Since June 2016,
50128-461: The £700m Middlewood Locks began construction in 2016. Salford was anciently part of the Manchester parish of the Salford Hundred , an area much larger than the present-day city of Salford, within the historic county boundaries of Lancashire . A stroke of a Norman baron 's pen is said to have divorced Manchester and Salford, although it was not Salford that became separated from Manchester, but Manchester, with its humbler line of lords , that
50369-450: 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
50610-399: 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
50851-467: Was 18.0% retail and wholesale, 14.4% property and business services, 12.3% manufacturing, 11.7% health and social work, 8.6% education, 7.3% transport and communications, 6.8% hotels and restaurants, 5.8% construction, 4.4% finance, 4.2% public administration, 0.6% energy and water supply, 0.3% agriculture, 0.1% mining, and 5.7% other. Compared with national figures, Salford had a relatively low percentage of residents working in agriculture. The census recorded
51092-498: Was 9,151 per mi (3,533 per km), with a 100 to 98.4 female-to-male ratio. Of those over 16 years age, 44.0% were single (never married) and 36.7% married. Salford's 32,576 households included 44.1% one-person, 22.0% married couples living together, 7.6% were co-habiting couples, and 13.3% single parents with their children. Of those aged 16–74, 37.3% had no academic qualifications , similar to that of 35.5% in all of
51333-438: Was a considerable trade in woollen goods and fustians . Other cottage industries prevalent at this time included clogging , cobbling , weaving and brewing. The changes to textile manufacture during the Industrial Revolution had a profound effect on both on population and urbanisation, as well as the socioeconomic and cultural conditions of Salford. The well-established textile processing and trading infrastructure, and
51574-419: Was as high as 80 homes per acre. Private roads were built for the use of the middle classes moving to the outskirts of Salford. The entrances to such roads, which included Elleray Road in Irlams o' th' Height , were often gated, and patrolled. Salford is credited as the birthplace of the Bush Roller Chain . Hans Renold , a Swiss-born engineer, came to Salford in the late 19th century. In 1879 he purchased
51815-401: Was completed on the same site. Dock No. 5, known as Ordsall Dock, was part of Pomona Docks, but was dug on the Salford side of the river; it was never completed and was filled in around 1905. Pomona Docks have also been filled in except for the still intact No. 3 Dock, and are largely derelict. A lock at No. 3 Dock connects it to the nearby Bridgewater Canal at the point where
52056-412: 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
52297-411: 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
52538-405: Was convinced that the money should be raised from members of the public and opposed the debt restructuring , resigning as chairman of the Ship Canal Committee on 1 February 1887. Barings and Rothschild jointly issued a prospectus for the sale of the preference shares on 15 July, and by 21 July the issue had been fully underwritten , allowing construction to begin. The first sod
52779-410: Was cut on 11 November 1887, by Lord Egerton of Tatton , who had taken over the chairmanship of the Manchester Ship Canal Company from Adamson. The canal company exhausted its capital of £8 million in four years when only half the construction work was completed. To avoid bankruptcy they appealed for funds to Manchester Corporation , which set up a Ship Canal Committee. On 9 March 1891,
53020-448: Was divided into six smaller districts, referred to as "wapentakes", or hundreds . The south east district became known as the Hundred of Salford , a division of land administered from Salford for military and judicial purposes. It contained nine large parishes, smaller parts of two others, and the township of Aspull in the parish of Wigan . After the defeat of Harold II during the Norman conquest of England , William I granted
53261-440: 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
53502-399: 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
53743-527: Was experiencing during the early 1880s. Its proponents argued that reduced transport costs would make local industry more competitive and that the scheme would help create new jobs. The idea was championed by Manchester manufacturer Daniel Adamson , who arranged a meeting at his home, The Towers in Didsbury , on 27 June 1882. He invited the representatives of several Lancashire towns, local businessmen and politicians, and two civil engineers: Hamilton Fulton and Edward Leader Williams . Fulton's design
53984-409: 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,
54225-465: Was for a tidal canal, with no locks and a deepened channel into Manchester. With the city about 60 feet (18 m) above sea level, the docks and quays would have been well below the surrounding surface. Williams' plan was to dredge a channel between a set of retaining walls, and build a series of locks and sluices to lift incoming vessels up to Manchester. Both engineers were invited to submit their proposals, and Williams' plans were selected to form
54466-487: Was granted city status in 1926; the current wider borough was established in 1974. The economy of the city in the 18th and 19th centuries was focused on a major factory district for cotton and silk spinning and weaving , and as a major inland port after the opening of Salford Docks in 1894. Industrial decline in the 20th century led to the city having run-down and antisocial areas. Salford has been subject to slum clearances and other regeneration programmes since
54707-408: Was held on 4 October in Manchester's Oxford Ward, followed by another on 17 October in the St. James Ward. Within a few weeks meetings had been held throughout Manchester and Salford, culminating in a conference on 3 November attended by the provisional committee and members of the various Ward Committees. A large meeting of the working classes, attended by several local notables including
54948-489: Was identified in 2002 as one of nine areas in specific need of investment for new homes. Between 2003 and 2006 £115M was invested in the Manchester and City of Salford housing markets, £44M of which was invested in central Salford. Rows of terraces in neighbourhoods such as Seedley and Langworthy – once used for the title sequence of Coronation Street – are being compulsorily purchased, demolished and replaced by "modern sustainable accommodation". Other schemes such as
55189-404: 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
55430-430: Was named in the early middle ages , though evidence exists of settlement since neolithic times. It was the seat of the large Hundred of Salford in the historic county of Lancashire and was granted a market charter in about 1230, which gave it primary cultural and commercial importance in the region. It was eventually overtaken by Manchester during the Industrial Revolution . The former County Borough of Salford
55671-435: 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
55912-418: 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
56153-417: Was passed by Parliament on 2 May 1885, and received royal assent on 6 August, becoming the Manchester Ship Canal Act 1885 ( 48 & 49 Vict. c. clxxxviii). Certain conditions were attached; £5 million had to be raised, and the ship canal company was legally obliged to buy both the Bridgewater Canal and the Mersey & Irwell Navigation within two years. The estimated cost of construction
56394-402: Was proposed to give ocean-going vessels direct access to Manchester. The region was suffering from the Long Depression ; the canal's proponents argued that the scheme would boost competition and create jobs. They gained public support for the scheme, which was first presented to Parliament as a bill in 1882. Faced with stiff opposition from Liverpool, the canal's supporters were unable to gain
56635-481: 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
56876-453: 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
57117-415: Was separated from Salford. Salford received its town charter from Ranulf de Blondeville, 6th Earl of Chester , then Lord of the Manor , in 1230. From then until 1791, when police commissioners were appointed, it was governed by a reeve , a medieval administrator and law enforcement official. It was not recognised as a borough in the Municipal Corporations Act 1835 , but was granted borough status in 1844;
57358-416: 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
57599-418: Was the completion of the Manchester Ship Canal in 1894 which triggered Salford's development as a major inland port . Salford Docks , a major dockland on the Ship Canal 35 miles (56 km) east of the Irish Sea , brought employment to over 3,000 labourers. By 1914 the Port of Manchester , most of whose docks were in Salford, had become one of the largest port authorities in the world, handling 5% of
57840-519: 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
58081-434: Was £5.16 million, and the work was expected to take four years to complete. The Manchester Ship Canal Act 1885 stipulated that the ship canal company's £8 million share capital had to be issued within two years, otherwise the act would lapse. Adamson wanted to encourage the widest possible share ownership and believed the funds should be raised largely from the working population. Richard Peacock , vice-chairman of
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