 These three had been cities since time immemorial before the loss of city status.The formal definition of a city has been disputed, in particular by inhabitants of towns that have been regarded as cities in the past such as Colchester, which was considered a city from Roman times until 1542, and Dunfermline, although neither are legally cities today.Additionally, although the Crown clearly has the right to bestow "official" city status, some have doubted the right of the Crown to define the word "city" in the United Kingdom.