Freedom of the City is an honour bestowed by some municipalities in Australia, Canada, Ireland, France, Italy, New Zealand, South Africa, Spain, the United Kingdom, and Zimbabwe to esteemed members of its community and to organisations to be honoured, often for service to the community; the term applies to two separate honours, one civilian and one military. Key to the City is a similar award made in several other countries, and is more prevalent in the United States.
Forms of freedom of the city
Military privilege
Freedom of the City is an ancient honour granted to martial organizations, allowing them the privilege to march into the city "with
drums beating,
colours flying, and
bayonets fixed".
This honour dates back to the laws of ancient Rome that made it a capital offence for Roman legions to enter the city in formation or with weapons without permission. This was meant to ensure that ambitious generals did not mount a military coup against the Senate. (It was the law that Julius Caesar broke when crossing the Rubicon.) Similar laws were passed by cities throughout the Medieval era, also to protect civic security and rights, even against their own king's troops.
However, legions, regiments, or other martial groups that had given heroic service or whose honour was beyond question, might be granted Freedom of the City: the group would not have to disarm or break ranks before the city gates were opened to them. Given the serious risk the city would be running, this was a rare honour.
Today, martial freedom of the city is an entirely ceremonial honour, but remains the oldest and one of the highest civic honours in the Commonwealth of Nations.
Entitlement to civil privileges
A slightly more common freedom of the city is connected to the medieval concept of "free status", when city and town charters drew a distinction between
freemen and
vassals of a
feudal Lord. As such, freemen actually pre-date 'boroughs'. Early freedom of the boroughs ceremonies had great importance in affirming that the recipient enjoyed privileges such as the right to trade and own property, and protection within the town.
Before parliamentary reform in 1832, freedom of the city or town conferred the right to vote in the 'parliamentary boroughs' for the MPs. Until the Municipal Corporations Act 1835 the freemen were the exclusive electorate for the boroughs. These two Acts together curtailed the power of the freemen and extended the franchise to all 'householders' (local rate payers). The private property belonging to the freemen collectively was retained. York, Oxford and Newcastle-upon-Tyne still own considerable areas within their towns, although the income is effectively given to support charitable objects. The Local Government Act 1972 specifically preserved Freemen's rights. The Local Democracy, Economic Development and Construction Act 2009 removed any restrictions entitling only men to be freemen.
Freedom of the City of London
Liveryman and Freeman of the City of London driving a sheep over
London Bridge in 2009]]
In
England, the most extensive borough freedom is that conferred by the Freedom of the
City of London, first recorded in 1237. This is closely tied to the role and status of the Livery Companies. From 1835 the Freedom "without the intervention of a Livery Company" has been bestowed by a general resolution of Common Council, by 'redemption' (purchase), at one time for an onerous sum, but now for a donation to the Freemen's School.
New Freemen are enrolled in a ceremony in Guildhall, when they receive a guide to conducting their lives in an honourable fashion and an impressive sealed certificate. Freemen's children get admission preference at the City of London Freemen's School. There are a number of rights traditionally but apocryphally associated with Freemen—the right to drive sheep and cattle over London Bridge; to a silken rope, if hanged; to carry a naked sword in public; or that if the City of London Police finds a freeman drunk and incapable, they will bundle him or her into a taxi and send them home rather than throw them into a cell. While sheep have occasionally been driven over London Bridge on special occasions, the rest of these "privileges" are now effectively symbolic.
The belief that freemen have droving rights over the bridges appears to be a misinterpretation of freemen's historic freedom from bridge tolls when bringing animals into the City for sale. Nevertheless, this "invented" right has been exercised periodically in modern times:
On August 19, 1999, Jef Smith, a Freeman of London walked 2 sheep over Tower Bridge in order to bring attention to the rights of older citizens.
On June 17, 2006, a flock of about thirty sheep was driven across the Millennium Bridge to mark the start of London Architecture Week.
On August 31, 2008, Amanda Cottrell, a former High Sheriff of the City, marched six rams across London Bridge to promote fundraising for the restoration of Canterbury Cathedral and "a scheme backing local food production"
On September 17, 2008, the Lord Mayor and some 500 Freemen drove a flock of Romney ewes in relay across the bridge to raise funds for the Lord Mayor's charities (Orbis and Wellbeing of Women).
Today the Freedom of the City of London is still taken up by some 1,800 people every year. Prior to 1996, the Freedom was only open to British or Commonwealth Citizens over 21 years of age and of good character. Now, however, it has been extended globally, and persons of any nationality may apply either by nomination, by patrimony or by being presented by a Livery Company. There is a long-standing tradition of admitting women, who used to be called 'free sisters' but who are now also called Freemen.
Although the Freedom is not an honour except in the case of Honorary Freedom, many people who have lived or worked in the City are proud to become part of the City's history by becoming Freemen. The Freedom is open to all who are genuinely interested and invited or born to it.
Other UK cities
The status of Freeman is still thriving in many towns and cities in the United Kingdom. Each town or city where the admission of Freemen is carried out has its own regulations and customs for admission, and the fact that it is still taken seriously is evidenced by the promotion of a
Local Act of Parliament, the Beverley Freemen Act 2010, to extend the categories of people entitled to be Freemen of the town of
Beverley in the
East Riding of Yorkshire.
The qualifications for borough freedom differ between each city or town, but generally fall into two categories, 'patrimony' (inheritance) and 'servitude' (apprenticeship). For example, in Chester and York, only the children or grandchildren (or great grandchildren in York) (male or female) of freemen may apply for admission. In York, apprenticeship to a freeman of the city will also allow admission though now rare, it has been used as recently as 2000. In Great Grimsby, the widow of a freeman passes his rights to her second husband who retains the privilege after either divorce from or death of the widow. The borough freedom is strongest in York, Chester, Newcastle upon Tyne and Coventry, in the last named freedom is qualified by having served an apprenticeship. In England, Durham and Northampton have extended their admission criteria to those who have served an apprenticeship without being 'bound' (trained by) by a Freeman directly.
Full information is available at the local authority of each city where Freemen are created.
Republic of Ireland
In the
Republic of Ireland borough freedom of the city is generally given to noted foreign and national dignitaries and the list rarely exceeds a few dozen. The
cities of the Republic of Ireland generally give various privileges, for instance
Dublin allows the right to vote in certain
elections, bring goods for sale in the city without
customs and the right to pasture sheep on common ground such as
College Green and
St. Stephen's Green.
Civic honour
In contemporary society, the award of honorary freedom of the city or
borough tends to be entirely ceremonial, given by the local government in many towns and cities on those who have served in some exceptional capacity, or upon any whom the city wishes to bestow an honour.
Today, the grant of honorary freedom in the United Kingdom is governed by the Local Government Act 1972 (as amended by the Local Democracy, Economic Development and Construction Act 2009). The 1972 Act enabled the councils of cities, royal boroughs, boroughs, and parishes (or, in Wales, communities) with the status of a royal town, to confer the status of honorary freeman on "persons of distinction and persons who have, in the opinion of the council, rendered eminent services" to the local area. The 2009 Act extends the ability to grant the status of Freeman to any county, city, district, borough, town, parish or community council (so removing the requirement for the town to have 'royal' status, and also enabling county councils to confer the honour). A special meeting of the council can grant the honour by passing a resolution with a two thirds majority at a specially convened meeting.
The key to the city award is used in many places, in a manner similar to freedom of the city (see below).
Key to the City
Dmitry Medvedev received the Golden Key to the City of
Madrid during his state visit to
Spain in March 2009.]]
The
Key to the City is a similar award that is descended from Freedom of the City. It is used in several countries, but is especially popular in the United States.
An ornamental key is presented to esteemed visitors, residents, or others the city wishes to honour. Evoking medieval walled cities whose gates were guarded during the day and locked at night, the key symbolises the freedom of the recipient to enter and leave the city at will as a trusted friend of city residents.
In some cities in the Netherlands, Belgium and Germany, the key to the city is given to the so-called "Prince carnival", which leads the carnivals which take place the week prior to Septuagesima. The tradition is that the mayor steps down for the days, and so the power is transferred to the prince carnival, who returns the key at the end of Shrove Tuesday/Mardi Gras. Today, the handing over of the key is mostly symbolic and marks the start and end of the carnival.
Military freedom of the city
Australia
;
Adelaide, South Australia
No. 24 Squadron RAAF
;
Sydney, New South Wales
Royal Australian Navy: March 14, 2009
;
Maitland, New South Wales
: 2006
Canada
exercising the
Freedom of the City in front of
Quebec City's City Hall, on July 3, 2006.]]
;
Airdrie, Alberta
Calgary Highlanders
;
Banff, Alberta
National Army Cadet Summer Training Centre (formerly BNACC)
;
Calgary,
Alberta
14 (Calgary) Service Battalion
Calgary Highlanders: 1956
King's Own Calgary Regiment
Lord Strathcona's Horse (Royal Canadians)
4 Wing Cold Lake: 11 May 1999
;
Courtenay, British Columbia
: 2008
;
Edmonton,
Alberta
The Loyal Edmonton Regiment (4th Battalion, Princess Patricia's Canadian Light Infantry)
;
Halifax, Nova Scotia
Maritime Forces Atlantic
;
Hamilton,
Ontario
(Naval Reserve)
Argyll and Sutherland Highlanders of Canada
Royal Hamilton Light Infantry
;
Kelowna,
British Columbia
British Columbia Dragoons: 11 February 1963
;
Kingston, Ontario
Royal Military College of Canada: 1976
;
London, Ontario
The Royal Canadian Regiment (1st Battalion) 1980
;
Ottawa, Ontario
The Royal Canadian Regiment (1st Battalion) 1953
The Cameron Highlanders of Ottawa: 1969
26/28 Service Battalion: 2009
: October 16, 2010
;
Quebec City,
Quebec
Royal 22e Régiment
;
New Westminster,
British Columbia
Royal Westminster Regiment, then called the Westminster Regiment, on 1963 May 24
, on October 3, 2010
;
Saskatoon,
Saskatchewan
;
Toronto,
Ontario
48th Highlanders of Canada
The Queen's Own Rifles of Canada: 1948
The Toronto Scottish Regiment (Queen Elizabeth the Queen Mother's Own)
;
Uxbridge, Ontario
UNICEF Team Canada: 2008
;
Waterloo, Ontario
31 Combat Engineer Regiment
;
Vancouver, British Columbia
15th Field Regiment, Royal Canadian Artillery: 1977
12 (Vancouver) Field Ambulance: 2007
;
Vegreville, Alberta
41 Combat Engineer Regiment (From predecessor unit)
;
Vernon, British Columbia
Vernon Army Cadet Summer Training Centre August 4, 1979
;
Victoria, British Columbia
Princess Patricia's Canadian Light Infantry (3rd Battalion)
Maritime Forces Pacific
The 5th (B.C.) Field Battery Royal Regiment of Canadian Artillery
The Canadian Scottish Regiment (Princess Mary's)
Major-General, The Honourable George Randolph Pearkes, V.C.
Royal Roads Military College
;
Montreal,
Quebec
Canadian Grenadier Guards
Le Régiment de Maisonneuve
3rd Field Engineer Regiment (34 CER)
The Royal Canadian Hussars (Montreal)
United Kingdom
;
Birmingham
The (Royal British Legion)
;
Bristol
266 (Gloucestershire Volunteer Artillery) Battery, Royal Artillery (Volunteers)
57 (City and County of Bristol) Squadron, Royal Corps of Signals (Volunteers)
;
Chester
1st Battalion The Royal Welsh 5 June 2010
HMS Albion 2003
;
Plymouth
The Royal Naval Reserve 22 March 2009
;
Preston
The Loyal Regiment (North Lancashire) 7 August 1952 (This was subsequently transferred to:)
* The Queen's Lancashire Regiment 9 September 1972
* The Duke of Lancaster's Regiment 1 July 2006
;
St Edmundsbury,
East Anglia
The 3 Regiment Army Air Corps (Wattisham), 22 June 2010.
Notable non-military awards of 'freedom of the city' and 'key to the city'
Australia
; Canberra, Australian Capital Territory
: 'Freedom of the City' or 'Key to the City' has been granted twice in recent history.
2001: Royal Military College Duntroon During that year's GMC 400
2006: 1 April Scout Association of Australia, ACT Branch in recognition of the branch's 25th Anniversary
Albania
;
Tirana
1995:
Norman Wisdom
Colombia
;
Bogotá
:
Key to the city:
March 30, 1994:
Cheddi Jagan,
President of Guyana.
March 8, 2000:
Abderrahmane Youssoufi,
Prime Minister of Morocco.
April 24, 2000:
David de Ferranti,
World Bank vicepresident.
July 12, 2000:
Nicolás Léoz, President of
CONMEBOL.
April 5, 2001:
Vicente Fox,
President of Mexico.
May 3, 2001:
Hugo Chávez,
President of Venezuela.
November 11, 2003:
Ricardo Maduro,
President of Honduras.
December 2, 2003:
Jorge Batlle Ibáñez,
President of Uruguay.
March 29, 2004:
Chavela Vargas, Mexican singer.
April 14, 2004:
Alejandro Toledo,
President of Peru.
July 21, 2004:
Felipe González,
Prime Minister of Spain.
October 11, 2004:
Didier Borotra, Member of the
Senate of France.
November 16, 2004:
Óscar Berger,
President of Guatemala.
March 30, 2005:
José Luis Rodríguez Zapatero,
Prime Minister of Spain.
September 1, 2005:
Ricardo Lagos,
President of Chile.
November 2, 2005:
Leonel Fernández,
President of the Dominican Republic.
December 13, 2005:
Lula da Silva,
President of Brazil.
March 12, 2007:
Horst Köhler,
President of Germany.
March 17, 2008:
Angela Merkel,
Chancellor of Germany.
May 27, 2009:
Felipe de Borbón,
Prince of Asturias.
August 13, 2009:
Felipe Calderón,
President of Mexico.
August 15, 2009:
Hilary Duff, American actress and singer.
March 23, 2010:
Oscar Arias,
President of Costa Rica.
July 9, 2010:
Princess Haya of Jordan.
Republic of Ireland
; Dublin, Ireland
: See also
Freedom of Dublin City
Nelson Mandela
Bill Clinton
Bono
The Edge
Adam Clayton
Larry Mullen Jr.
Derek Kelly
;Galway, Ireland
John F. Kennedy
United Kingdom
;
Aberdeen,
Scotland
: Aberdeen has a long history of bestowing the honour. See
Freedom of the City of Aberdeen for details.
;
Bath, England
Amy Williams the first female to receive the honour in Bath.
;
Bradford, England
J. B. Priestley was awarded the Freedom of Bradford.
;
Bury St Edmunds, England
Actor Ian McShane was given freedom of the borough in 1996 after he played the title role in the television series Lovejoy, filmed in and around Bury.
;
Cardiff,
Wales
June 16, 1998:
Nelson Mandela, former
South Africa President and
anti-apartheid activist
April 10, 2006:
Sir Tasker Watkins, former president of the
WRU and
Glamorgan Wanderers. He was awarded the Victoria Cross for his efforts in the second world war.
;
Derby, England
2003: former Derby County football manager Brian Clough.
;
Douglas,
Isle of Man
Musicians The Bee Gees given freedom of the city in June 2009.
;
Durham, England
December 8, 2008: Sir Bobby Robson received the Freedom of the City of Durham in honour of his services to football and charitable work. Robson was born in Sacriston, County Durham and went on to manage several successful football clubs across Europe including PSV Eindhoven, Sporting Lisbon, FC Porto, FC Barcelona and Newcastle United.
;
Ipswich, England
May 5, 2008: Sir Bobby Robson received the Freedom of the Borough of Ipswich. Robson won the FA Cup in 1978 with Ipswich Town. Robson also went on to manage England.
;
Kingston upon Hull, England
Recipients of Freedom of the City of Hull include:
* 1999: Archbishop Desmond Tutu, when he was invited to give the annual Wilberforce Lecture in Kingston upon Hull, commemorating the life and achievements of the anti-slavery campaigner William Wilberforce. Tutu used the occasion to praise the people of the city for their traditional support of freedom and for standing with the people of South Africa in their fight against apartheid.
;
Frome, England
May 4, 2010: Formula One driver Jenson Button received the freedom of the town, following his victory in the 2009 World Drivers' Championship.
;
Leeds, England
April 30, 2001: Nelson Mandela
;
Liverpool, England
Recipients of Freedom of the City of Liverpool include:
* April 30, 1970: Elizabeth Margaret Braddock, better known as Bessie Braddock, Liverpool-born British Labour politician.
* November 23, 1983: Bob Paisley, best known for being one of the most successful managers in English football history whilst managing his only team Liverpool Football Club in the 1970s and 1980s.
* March 7, 1984: George Harrison, Liverpool-born rock guitarist, singer, songwriter, author and sitarist best known as the lead guitarist of The Beatles.
* March 7, 1984: John Lennon, Liverpool-born songwriter, singer, musician, graphic artist, author and political activist, one of the founders of The Beatles. (Posthumous)
* March 7, 1984: Paul McCartney, Liverpool-born songwriter, singer, musician, graphic artist, author and political activist, one of the founders of The Beatles.
* March 7, 1984: Ringo Starr, real name Richard Starkey Jr, Liverpool-born musician, singer, songwriter and actor, best known as the drummer of The Beatles.
* July 6, 1994: Nelson Mandela, 11th President of South Africa.
* September 14, 2008: Duke of Lancaster's Regiment Soldiers returning from duty in Iraq and Afghanistan were awarded freedom of the city in recognition of their bravery and sacrifice.
* September 30, 2008: Sir Simon Rattle Conductor awarded Freedom of Liverpool. He was presented with the honour by the Lord Mayor, Councillor Steve Rotheram.
* April 15, 2009: Families of the victims of the Hillsborough disaster were given this honour in a ceremony recognising the 20th anniversary of the event.
; London, England
Freedom of the City of London awarded to Charles Lindbergh.
1991: Freedom of the City of London awarded to
Sunil Thakore the youngest person to receive the honour in London.
1995: Freedom of the City of London granted to
Norman Wisdom.
2005: Freedom of the City of London granted to
Luciano Pavarotti.
2008: Freedom of the City of London granted to
Otto von Habsburg.
2010: Freedom of the City of London granted to
Barbara Windsor
;
Manchester, England
October 6, 1899: Mrs Enriqueta Augustina Rylands
June 15, 1906: Businessman and Liberal Member of Parliament
Sir William John Crossley was presented with a key on June 15, in honour of the Stamford Park County School. He was made a
baronet later the same year. He, with his brother Francis, founded the pioneering locomotive company
Crossley and the (now defunct) car manufacturer
Crossley Motors and was a Director of the Manchester Ship Canal.
1907: James W. Southern, another director of the Manchester Ship Canal, was presented with the Freedom of the City in the form of a silver casket and scroll.
1974: Nellie Beer
October 31, 1977: Astronomer Sir Bernard Lovell was presented with the Freedom of the City in the form of a simple salver.
1984: Dame Kathleen Ollerenshaw
March 2, 2009: Sir Bobby Charlton was awarded the Freedom for promoting the city of Manchester.
November 2, 2009: UK Olympic Cycling Team in recognition of their achievements
;
Norwich
2011 Paul Lambert, manager of Norwich City FC, after steering the club to two back-to-back promotions from League One to the English Premier League.
;
Nottingham
1920 Jesse Boot, founder of Boots the Chemist
;
Plymouth
March 22, 2009: The Merchant Navy
;
Preston, England
1997: Nick Park was awarded the Freedom of Preston for his Oscar-winning Wallace and Gromit films.
2005: Andrew Flintoff was awarded the Freedom of Preston for his contribution in the Ashes Series.
;
Portsmouth, England
October 28, 2008: Former
Portsmouth F.C. manager
Harry Redknapp was made a freeman of the city for his achievements in leading Portsmouth to the
FA Cup in 2007-8. Ironically he had left Portsmouth FC for
Tottenham Hotspur 2 days earlier and he was booed by fans at the presentation.
;
Romsey, England
July 14, 2009: Soldiers from the 1st Battalion (Armored Tigers) of the
Princess of Wales's Royal Regiment were given the Freedom of Romsey for their service in
Iraq and
Afghanistan. The ceremony followed a parade held to welcome the unit home. Technically, the PWRR already had the Freedom of Romsey, as it inherited it from the
Royal Hampshire Regiment as a result of the 1992
Options for Change merger with the
Queen's Regiment.
;
Salford, England
January 7, 2010: Manchester United footballer Ryan Giggs was awarded freedom of the city for "exceptional contributions to the city".
;
Sheffield, England
2005: Winning Captain Michael Vaughan was awarded Freedom of the City for his contribution in the Ashes Series.
March 8, 2006:
Aung San Suu Kyi, winner of the
Nobel Peace Prize was granted martial Freedom of the City, ironically, in recognition of her non-violent work against the military dictatorship in
Burma.
* Dr. Leon Picon, one of the founding members of the Assembly of Turkish American Associations and a former Secretary-General.
Paul E. Ruestow, U.S. Major General
Bill Effinger, former Mayor of Buena Park, California, 1959.
John Glenn, presented by Tokyo Gov. Rotaro Azuma on May 30, 1963.
Francis Sumner Carruth, Lieutenant Colonel in the United States Air Force. His management skills played an important role in heading off a labor strike in Tokyo.
* Dr. Albert M. Schwartz, a vascular surgeon and a Colonel in the US Army.
Puerto Rico
1984: Wilfred Benitez, the three time world boxing champion, received the keys to the city of Carolina, after his victory over Stacy McSwain.
United States
;Beverly Hills, California, United States
September 2, 2010: The
Kardashian-Jenner family and
Larry King were awarded the key to the city of
Beverly Hills, California, which falls on the City’s famous zip code, 90210.
;Corona, California, United States
March 12, 2010: “Scarlett’s Magic”, a Savannah (cat), owned by the Draper family (Lee, Kimberly, Marty and Matteo) and home to The Savannah Cat Shoppe was awarded the key to city of, Corona, California for being recognized in the 2011 Guinness Book of World Records for World's Tallest Cat measuring 45.9 centimeters or 18.1 inches from shoulder to toe.
;Dallas, Texas, United States
December 13, 2009: M. K. Asante was awarded the key to the city of Dallas, Texas for his work as an author, filmmaker, and professor.
;Danville, California, United States
January 16, 2009:
Chesley B. Sullenberger III was awarded the keys to city of his hometown,
Danville, California, for his actions in saving
US Airways Flight 1549.
; San Francisco, California, United States
2010: The San Francisco Giants were awarded the key to city of San Francisco, California, for winning the 2010 World Series.
1916: Russian-born American businessman, candy-maker and inventor, Sam Born was awarded the key to city of San Francisco, California, for inventing a machine that mechanically inserted sticks into lollipops. Later he went on to found the notable Just Born candy company in New York, New York.
;Washington, District of Columbia, United States
2008:
Alexander Ovechkin, received the key of the city in honour of being the first player in
NHL history to receive the
most valuable player,
outstanding player,
top scorer, and
goal scoring leader awards in the same season.
;Miami, Florida, United States
2004: The mayors of Miami-Dade County and the city officially welcomed Shaquille O'Neal and presented him with the keys to the city before a press conference was held in the American Airlines Arena.
August 19, 2009: Miami Commissioner Thomas Regalado presented Armando Perez (aka Pitbull) with the key to the city during a morning ceremony.
;Franklin Springs, Georgia, United States
2007: Georgia Governor Sonny Perdue received the key to the city of Franklin Springs, Georgia, after visiting the city and cutting the ribbon to the city's new Public Safety and City Hall buildings; the original buildings were destroyed in 2004 by Hurricane Ivan.
;Milton, Georgia, United States
2007: The original Governor's Commission for the City of Milton (Ron Wallace, Brandon Beach, Gregory Mishkin, Dan Phalan and Cecil Pruitt) was awarded the key to the city of Milton in recognition of their work in the creation of the city. They were also presented a proclamation that officially declares December 1 as "Commissioning Day" in honour of their achievements and recognizes the five men as the "Founding Fathers" of the City.
;Chicago, Illinois, United States
1996: The famous Lebanese Arab singer, Najwa Karam was presented with the Key to the City of Chicago.
December 30, 1871
Grand Duke Alexei Alexandrovich of Russia received the "Freedom of the City of Chicago"
;New Orleans, Louisiana, United States
November 21, 2006: Kentucky-New Orleans Architecture Studio, for its work on restoration and re-design efforts of Mickey Markey Park in Bywater.
April 26, 2007: The Harris County Hospital District, in recognition of its efforts to provide health care to
Hurricane Katrina evacuees at its Astrodome Clinic in September 2005.
;Portland, Maine, United States
July 13, 2008: moe., a band from upstate New York, was presented the key to the city in recognition of a two day fundraising concert they organised for the Prebble Street Resource Center .
;Albion, Michigan, United States
Recipients include:
1960s: Ann Landers, upon her visit to Starr Commonwealth for Boys.
;Detroit, Michigan, United States
Recipients include:
1980: Then-Iraqi President Saddam Hussein was awarded by Mayor Coleman Young for having donated hundreds of thousands of dollars to a local church.
*January 31, 2006: Detroit native Jerome Bettis was awarded by Mayor Kwame Kilpatrick days before his Super Bowl win.
*On January 2, 2007 Steve Yzerman after his retirement and having his jersey retired.
*Geri Allen an internationally known award-winning composer and pianist.
;Flint, Michigan, United States
1989:
Lois M. Craig
June 10, 2007:
American Idol finalist
LaKisha Jones received a proclamation and key to the city from Mayor
Don Williamson.
;Buffalo, New York, United States
May 19, 2009: Terell Owens received the key to the city of Buffalo with the provisions that he catch a minimum of 10 touchdown passes for the Bills and lead the team into the playoffs. The Bills fail to make the playoffs and Owens is released at the end of the 2009 season.
;New York, New York, United States
The City of New York bestows the "Key to the City" upon individuals that it wishes to honour in such a manner. Recipients include:
*1702: Viscount Cornbury on June 27 was presented the "Freedom of the City".
*Andrew Hamilton received the "Freedom of the City" for his defence of John Peter Zenger.
Charles Lindbergh
*February 5, 2008: The New York Giants players, coaches and owners received keys to the city in recognition of their victory at Super Bowl XLII. Presentation took place at City Hall after a ticker-tape parade up the Canyon of Heroes in lower Manhattan.
February 9, 2009: Chesley B. Sullenberger III, pilot of US Airways Flight 1549 departing from LaGuardia Airport, who safely landed in the Hudson River after mid-air faults from a bird collision, saving the lives of all 155 people on board. The First Officer of the Flight, Jeffrey B. Skiles, flight attendants Sheila Dail, Doreen Welsh and Donna Dent also received keys to the city.
May 8, 2009: Captain Richard Phillips and crewman William Rios received keys to the city in recognition of their heroism aboard the Maersk Alabama during the 2009 hijacking by Somali Pirates.
*November 6, 2009: The New York Yankees players, coaches and owners received keys to the city in recognition of their 2009 World Series victory.
;Memphis, Tennessee, United States
February 15, 2011:
Grandmaster Hikaru Nakamura received the key to the city of
Memphis for his supertournament victory at the 2011
Tata Steel Chess Tournament in
Wijk aan Zee.
References
External links
Guild of Freemen of the City of London
City of London's Freedom of the City
The Gild of Freemen of the City of York
Military Context of "Freedom of the City"(broken link)
Royal Engineers Museum Freedoms granted to the Royal Engineers
Freemen of the City of Liverpool
What Can You Open With a Key to the City? Capt. Sully Sullenberger just got a key to New York. Can I call him if I lock myself out? By Juliet Lapidos. SLATE. February 10, 2009.
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