WATERFORD, the chief town of co. Waterford, Ireland. Pop. (1926) 26,646. It is situated on the Suir 4 m. above its junction with the Barrow at the head of the tidal estuary called Waterford Harbour. The Suir is crossed by a wooden bridge of 39 arches, and 832 ft. long, connecting Waterford with the suburb of Ferrybank.
Anciently Waterford was called the haven of the sun. By early writers it was named Menapia. It first acquired importance under the Danes, of whom it remained one of the principal strongholds until its capture by Strongbow in 1171. In 1172 Henry II. landed near Waterford, and received here the hostages of the people of Munster. It became a cathedral city in 1096. The Protestant dioceses of Cashel, Emly, Waterford and Lismore were united in 1833. John landed at Waterford in 1185. After ascending the English throne he granted it a fair in 1204, and in 1206 a charter of incorporation. He landed at Waterford in 1210, in order to establish within his nominal territories in Ireland a more distinct form of government. The city received a new charter from Henry III. in 1232. Richard II. landed at Waterford in Oct. 1394 and again in 1399. In 1447 it was granted by Henry VI. to John Talbot, earl of Shrewsbury, who was created earl of Waterford. In 1497 it successfully resisted an attempt of Perkin Warbeck to capture it, in recognition of which it received various privileges from Henry VII.
In 1603, after the accession of James I. to the English crown, the city, along with Cork, took a prominent part in opposition to the Government and to the Protestant religion, but on the approach of Mountjoy it formally submitted. From this time, however, the magistrates whom it elected refused to take the oath of supremacy, and, as by its charter it possessed the right to refuse admission to the king's judges, and therefore to dispense with the right of holding assizes, a rule was obtained in the Irish chancery for the seizure of its charter, which was carried into effect in 1618. In 1619 an unsuccessful attempt was made to induce Bristol merchants to settle in the city and undertake its government, and in 1626 the charter was restored. The city resisted Cromwell in 1649, but surrendered to Ireton in 165o. After the battle of the Boyne James II. embarked at it for France (July 169o). Shortly afterwards it surrendered to William, who sailed from it to England. It sent two members to parliament from 1374 to 1885, when the number was reduced to one. In 1898 it was constituted one of the six county boroughs having separate county councils.
The city is built chiefly along the banks of the river, occupying for the most part low and level ground except at its western extremity. The modern Protestant cathedral of the Holy Trinity, generally called Christ Church, occupies the site of the church built by the Danes in 1096, in the Mall. Near it are the episcopal palace and deanery. There is a Roman Catholic cathedral, and St. John's college, a training seminary for priests. The principal secular buildings are the town-hall, the county and city courts and prisons, the custom-house and the barracks. At the extremity of the quay is a large circular tower, called Reginald's tower, forming at one time a portion of the city walls, and occupying the site of the tower built by Reginald the Dane in 1003. Other remains of the fortifications, consisting of towers and bastions, are to be seen as in the Tramore railway sidings and in Castle street. The leper house, founded in the reign of King John, is now used practically as an infirmary. The town possesses breweries, salt houses, foundries and flour mills ; and there is a large export trade in cattle, sheep and pigs, and in agricultural produce. It is the headquarters of extensive salmon and sea fisheries. Water ford is second in importance to Cork among the ports of the south coast of Ireland. There is regular communication by steamer with Cork, with Dublin and Belfast, with Fishguard and with many English ports.
Waterford harbour is a winding and well-sheltered bay formed by the estuary of the river Suir, and afterwards by the joint estuary of the Nore and Barrow. Its length to the sea is about 15 miles. Its entrance is 3 m. wide, and is lighted by a fixed light on the ancient donjon of Hook Tower (r39 ft. in height) and others. The natural harbour is formed by the Suir from Water ford to its confluence with the Barrow and thence to the sea, a distance of 18 miles. The entrance is 3 m. wide. The Suir is navigable to Waterford for vessels drawing 22 ft. The shores of the harbour are studded with country residences and waterside villages, of which Passage and Duncannon are popular resorts of the citizens of Waterford.
See C. Smith's Antient and Present State of the County and City of Waterford (1746) ; R. H. Ryland, Topography and Antiquities of the County and City of Waterford (i824) ; P. M. Egan, Guide to Water ford (1896) ; Power, Parochial History of the Diocese of Waterford and Lismore (1912) ; E. Downey, The Story of Waterford (1914).