Municipal incorporation occurs when such municipalities become
self-governing entities under the laws of the state or province
in which they are located. Often, this event is marked by the
award or declaration of a municipal charter. With the notable
exception of the City of London Corporation, the term has fallen
out of favour in the United Kingdom, but the concept remains
central to local government in the United Kingdom, as well as
former British colonies such as India and Canada. Municipal
charters  A city charter or town charter (generically, municipal
charter) is a legal document establishing a municipality such as
a city or town. The concept developed in Europe during the
middle ages and is considered to be a municipal version of a
constitution. Traditionally the granting of a charter gave a
settlement and its inhabitants the right to town privileges
under the feudal system. Townspeople who lived in chartered
towns were burghers, as opposed to serfs who lived in villages.
Towns were often "free", in th