City and metropolitan borough (pop., 2001: 715,404), metropolitan county of West Yorkshire , historic county of Yorkshire, England.
It lies along the River Aire, northeast of Manchester . It originated as an Anglo-Saxon township and was incorporated as a city in 1626, becoming an early centre of the woolen industry. The completion in 1816 of the Leeds and Liverpool Canal stimulated its growth, and the factory production of ready-made clothing expanded rapidly at the end of the 19th century. It is the seat of the University of Leeds.