Editing Westminster (section)

===Local government===
[[File:Westminster Met. B Ward Map 1916.svg|thumb|The [[Metropolitan Borough of Westminster]] was almost co-terminous with the older [[City and Liberty of Westminster]], with ancient Oxford Street as the northern boundary.]]

====Parish of Westminster St Margaret====
[[File:John Norden's Map of Westminster Large version.jpeg|thumb|[[John Norden]]'s map of Westminster (1593)]]
Most of the parishes of Westminster originated as daughter parishes of [[Westminster St Margaret and St John#Governance|St Margaret's parish]], in the [[City and Liberty of Westminster]], [[Middlesex]]. The exceptions to this were [[St Clement Danes]], [[St Mary le Strand]] and possibly some other small areas.

The ancient parish was [[Westminster St Margaret and St John|St Margaret]]; after 1727 this became the civil parish of 'St Margaret and St John', the latter a new church required for the increasing population. The area around Westminster Abbey formed the extra-parochial [[Close of the Collegiate Church of St Peter]]. Like many large parishes, Westminster was divided into smaller units called ''[[Civil Parish#sub-divisions|Hamlets]]'' (meaning a territorial sub-division, rather than a small village). These would later become independent daughter parishes.

Until 1900 the local authority was the combined [[vestry]] of St Margaret and St John (also known as the [[Westminster District Board of Works]] from 1855 to 1887), which was based at [[Caxton Hall|Westminster Town Hall]] in [[Caxton Street]] from 1883.<ref>[http://legacy.london.gov.uk/mayor/planning_decisions/strategic_dev/2003/oct0803/caxton_hall_report.pdf GLA planning report PDU/0583/01] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120317181446/http://legacy.london.gov.uk/mayor/planning_decisions/strategic_dev/2003/oct0803/caxton_hall_report.pdf|date=17 March 2012}} 2003</ref>

====City and Liberty of Westminster====
The Liberty of Westminster, governed by the [[Westminster Court of Burgesses]], also included [[St Martin in the Fields (parish)|St Martin in the Fields]] and several other [[City and Liberty of Westminster#Constituent parishes and other areas|parishes and places]]. Westminster had its own [[quarter sessions]], but the Middlesex sessions also had jurisdiction.

====Metropolitan Borough of Westminster====
[[File:Westminster City Hall, Victoria Street SW1 - geograph.org.uk - 1284668.jpg|thumb|[[Westminster City Hall]], completed in 1965]]
Under local government reforms in 1889, the area fell within the newly created [[County of London]], and the local government of Westminster was further reformed in 1900, when the court of burgesses and the parish vestries were abolished and replaced by the [[Metropolitan Borough of Westminster]]. The borough was given [[City status in the United Kingdom|city status]] at the same time, allowing it to be known as the [[City of Westminster]] and its council as [[Westminster City Council]].

The [[City and Liberty of Westminster]] and the [[Metropolitan Borough of Westminster]] were very similar in extent, covering the parts of the wider modern [[City of Westminster]] south of the [[Oxford Street]], and its continuations Hyde Park Place. The exception is that part of [[Kensington Gardens]], south of that road, are part of [[Paddington]].

Westminster merged with St Marylebone and Paddington in 1965, but the combined area was allowed to keep the title [[City of Westminster]].<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.legislation.gov.uk/ukpga/1963/33/contents|title=Local Government Act 1963|publisher=Legislation.gov.uk|access-date=25 April 2020}}</ref>