Claim: Bradford is a capital.

Bradford -LSB- ˈbrædfərd -RSB- is in the Metropolitan Borough of the City of Bradford in West Yorkshire , England , in the foothills of the Pennines 8.6 mi west of Leeds , and 16 mi northwest of Wakefield . Bradford became a municipal borough in 1847 , and received its charter as a city in 1897 . Following local government reform in 1974 , city status was bestowed upon the wider metropolitan borough .   Bradford forms part of the West Yorkshire Urban Area conurbation which in 2001 had a population of 1.5 million and it is the fourth largest urban area in the United Kingdom with the Bradford subdivision of the aforementioned urban area having a population of 528,155 .   Historically a part of the West Riding of Yorkshire , Bradford rose to prominence during the 19th century as an international centre of textile manufacture , particularly wool . It was a boomtown of the Industrial Revolution , and amongst the earliest industrialised settlements , rapidly becoming the `` wool capital of the world '' . The area 's access to a supply of coal , iron ore and soft water facilitated the growth of Bradford 's manufacturing base , which , as textile manufacture grew , led to an explosion in population and was a stimulus to civic investment ; Bradford has a large amount of listed Victorian architecture including the grand Italianate City Hall .   The textile sector in Bradford fell into decline from the mid-20th century . Since this time , Bradford has emerged as a tourist destination , becoming the first UNESCO City of Film with attractions such as the National Science and Media Museum , Bradford City Park , the Alhambra theatre and Cartwright Hall . However , Bradford has faced similar challenges to the rest of the post-industrial area of Northern England , including deindustrialisation , social unrest and economic deprivation .