Acity charter ortown charter (generically,municipal charter) is a legaldocument (charter) establishing amunicipality such as acity ortown. The concept developed inEurope during theMiddle Ages.
Traditionally, the granting of a charter gave asettlement and its inhabitants the right totown privileges under thefeudal system. Townspeople who lived in chartered towns wereburghers, as opposed toserfs who lived in villages. Towns were often "free", in the sense that they were directly protected by the king or emperor, and were not part of a feudalfief.
Today, the process for granting is determined by the type of government of the state in question. In monarchies, charters are still often aroyal charter given bythe Crown or the authorities acting on behalf of the Crown. In federations, the granting of charters may be within the jurisdiction of the lower level of government, such as aprovince.
In Canada, charters are granted byprovincial authorities.
| Province | City/Regional Municipality | Charter | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Ontario | Toronto | City of Toronto Act, 2006 | [1] |
| Quebec | Quebec | Charter of Ville de Montréal, metropolis of Québec | [2] |
| British Columbia | Vancouver | Vancouver Charter | [3] |
| Alberta | Edmonton | City of Edmonton Charter, 2018 Regulation | [4] |
| Alberta | Calgary | City of Calgary Charter, 2018 Regulation | [4] |
| Manitoba | Winnipeg | The City of Winnipeg Charter Act | [5] |
| Alberta andSaskatchewan | Lloydminster | Lloydminster Charter | Governs the status of Lloydminster as a border city[6] |
| New Brunswick | Saint John | An Act Respecting the Royal Charter of the City of Saint John | First city charter in Canada[7] |
| Nova Scotia | Halifax | Halifax Regional Municipality Charter | [8] |
Since the beginning of American colonial rule, Philippines cities were formally established through laws enacted by the various national legislatures in the country. ThePhilippine Commission gave the city of Manila its charter in 1901, while the city of Baguio was established by thePhilippine Assembly which was composed by elected members instead of appointed ones. During theCommonwealth era, theNational Assembly established an additional ten cities. Since achieving independence from the United States in 1946 thePhilippine Congress has established 149 more cities (as of September 2024[update]), the majority of which required the holding of aplebiscite within the proposed city's jurisdiction to ratify the city's charter.
InSweden until 1951, cities were established byroyal charter.
In theUnited Kingdom, cities are established byroyal charter.
In theUnited States, such charters are established either directly by astate legislature by means oflocal legislation, or indirectly under a generalmunicipal corporation law, usually after the proposed charter has passed a referendum vote of the affected population.
A municipal charter is the basic document that defines the organization, powers, functions and essential procedures of the city government. The charter is, therefore, the most important legal document of any city.[9] Municipalities without charters, in states where such exist, are known asgeneral-law municipalities or cities.
