Second city of the United Kingdom

Population of UK cities over time

The second city of the United Kingdom is typically held to be either Birmingham or Manchester, between which the title is disputed.[1][2][3][4] The title is unofficial and cultural and is often debated in the popular press between Birmingham, Manchester, and other candidates.

The United Kingdom has a primate city structure where London significantly surpasses other cities in size and importance and all other cities have much more in common with one another than with the capital,[5] but various cities have held some claim to the title of second city through history. Eboracum (York), the northern capital of Britannia Inferior, would have been considered the second city by virtue of its prominence in Roman times.[6] In medieval England, the second-largest city was Norwich. It was surpassed by Bristol in the seventeenth century. By the nineteenth century, the label "second city of the British Empire" had emerged and was widely applied to Dublin, the capital of Ireland.[7][8][9][10][11] Dublin was eclipsed over the coming decades by several rapidly industrialising cities in Britain.[12] Glasgow was sometimes described as the second city of the Empire during the Victorian era. Currently, Birmingham is commonly referred to as the UK's second city, although Manchester has also emerged as a contender.[13][1][2][3] Edinburgh, Cardiff, and Belfast also have alternative claims due to their status as capital cities of the other home nations.[14][15][16]

  1. ^ a b "No prizes for coming third: The fight to be Britain's second city". The Independent. 16 May 2011. Retrieved 10 January 2022.
  2. ^ a b "Splendidly pointless second city debate". Financial Times. 25 February 2013. Retrieved 10 January 2022.
  3. ^ a b "Birmingham or Manchester: Which is Britain's second city? Obviously, it's Birmingham". New Statesman. 10 June 2021. Retrieved 10 January 2022.
  4. ^ "How regeneration has cemented Manchester as the UK's second city". LCR Property.. "Manchester is frequently lauded as the UK's 'second city' ... While the claim to the 'second city' title may stir debate, particularly among those from Birmingham, experts are in unanimous agreement that Manchester is forging ahead"
  5. ^ "What Is the Law of the Primate City and the Rank-Size Rule?". ThoughtCo.
  6. ^ John Macky, A Journey Through England, p.208, 1722
  7. ^ "No prizes for coming third: The fight to be Britain's second city". The Independent. 16 May 2011. Retrieved 24 November 2023.
  8. ^ Christopher, A.J. (1997). "The Second City of the Empire: colonial Dublin, 1911". Journal of Historical Geography. 23 (2): 151–163. doi:10.1006/jhge.1996.0047. Retrieved 24 November 2023.
  9. ^ "Death of a Capital? Dublin and the Consequences of Union" (PDF). The British Academy. Retrieved 24 November 2023.
  10. ^ "A terrible problem is born". The Economist. Retrieved 24 November 2023.
  11. ^ Groom, Brian (25 February 2013). "Splendidly pointless second city debate". Financial Times. Retrieved 19 October 2021.
  12. ^ Sidney Edwards Morse and Jedidiah Morse, A New System of Geography, Ancient and Modern, p.177, 1824
  13. ^ "10 reasons to visit Birmingham, Britain's second city". Lonely Planet. 7 February 2019. Retrieved 11 January 2022.
  14. ^ Hopkins, Eric (2001). Birmingham: The Making of the Second City 4850-1939. Tempus Publishing. ISBN 0-7524-2327-4.
  15. ^ The New York Times, 6 August 1989: "Edinburgh's castle high on the rock has looked down on many a triumph and tragedy in the proud Scots capital, but every year since 1947, Britain's Second City steals the spotlight from London during the three weeks of the international festival."
  16. ^ Hoge, Warren (25 June 2003). "LETTER FROM EUROPE; The Last Hard Case: Bleak, Stubborn Belfast". The New York Times. Retrieved 23 May 2010.