DUBLIN, county borough and seaport, and the metropolis of the Irish Free State. It lies at the head of a bay of the Irish Sea, to which it gives name, about midway on the eastern coast of the island, and 7o m. W. of Holyhead. The Gaelic name, Baile Atha Cliath, "Town of the Ford of the Hurdles," is now used by the Post Office. Pop. (1936) 467,691. (For map, see IRELAND.) History.—The name of Dublin signifies the "Black pool." It is recorded that the inhabitants of Leinster were defeated by the people of Dublin in the year 291. Christianity was introduced by St. Patrick about 45o. In the 9th century the Danes took Dublin. The first Norse king was Thorkel I. (832), though the Danes had appeared in the country as early as the close of the previous cen tury. Thorkel established himself strongly at Armagh. In 1014 Brian Boroihme, king of Munster, fought the battle of Clontarf against the Danes, and he and his son and ii,000 of his followers fell. The Irish, however, won the battle, but the Danes reoccupied the city. Constant struggles with the Irish resulted in intermis sions of the Danish supremacy from 1052 to 1072, at various intervals between 1075 and 1118 and from 1124 to 1136. The Danes were finally ousted by the Anglo-Normans in 1171. In 1172 Henry II. came to Dublin and held his court there. Previous to his departure for England, Henry bestowed the government on Hugh de Lacy, having granted by charter "to his subjects of Bristol his city of Dublin to inhabit, and to hold of him and his heirs for ever, with all the liberties and free customs which his subjects of Bristol then enjoyed at Bristol and through all Eng land." In 1176 Strongbow, earl of Pembroke, died in Dublin and was buried in Christ Church cathedral. A fresh charter was granted in 1207 by King John to the inhabitants of Dublin, who were at constant feud with the native Irish. In 1216 Magna Carta was granted to the Irish by Henry III. In 1217 the fee farm of the city was granted to the citizens at a rent of 200 marks per annum; and about this period many monastic buildings were founded. In 1227 the same monarch confirmed the charter of John fixing the city boundaries and the jurisdiction of its magistrates.
During the invasion of Ireland by Edward Bruce in 1315 some of the suburbs of Dublin were burnt to prevent their falling into his hands. The inroad of Bruce had been countenanced by native Irish ecclesiastics, whose sentiments were recorded in a state ment to Pope John XXII.
Richard II. erected Dublin into a marquisate in favour of Robert de Vere, whom he also created duke of Ireland. The same monarch entered Dublin in 1394, and after holding a parliament and making much courtly display before the native chieftains, returned to England. Five years later Richard returned to Ireland and visited Dublin, where he remained a fortnight.
In 1534 Lord Thomas Fitzgerald, son of the Lord Deputy Kil dare, organized a rebellion against the English Government and attacked the city of Dublin itself, but raised the siege on certain conditions. After many vicissitudes, Lord Thomas and others were executed at Tyburn in 1536.
At the outbreak of civil war in 1641, a conspiracy to seize Dublin Castle was disclosed, and the city was thus preserved for the king's party ; but the Irish outside began an indiscriminate extermination of the Protestant population. In 1646 Dublin was besieged unsuccessfully by the Irish. The city had been put in an efficient state of defence by the marquess of Ormonde, then lord lieutenant ; but in the following year, to prevent its falling into the hands of the Irish, he surrendered it on conditions to Colonel Jones, commander of the Parliamentary forces. In 1649 Ormonde was totally defeated at the battle of Baggotrath, near Old Rath mines, in an attempt to recover possession. The same year Crom well landed in Dublin, as commander-in-chief under the parlia ment.
When James II. landed in Ireland in 1689 to assert his right to the British throne, he held a parliament in Dublin, which passed acts of attainder against upwards of 3,00o Protestants. The governor of the city, Colonel Luttrell, at the same time issued a proclamation ordering all Protestants not housekeepers, except ing those following some trade, to depart from the city within 24 hours, under pain of death or imprisonment, and in various ways restricting those who were allowed to remain. In the hope of relieving his financial difficulties, the king depreciated the coinage. After his defeat at the battle of the Boyne, James re turned to Dublin for a few hours. William III. on the following day proceeded in state to St. Patrick's cathedral to return thanks for his victory.
In 1783 a convention of delegates from all the volunteer corps in Ireland assembled in Dublin for the purpose of procuring a reform in parliament ; but the House of Commons refused to entertain the proposition. In May 1798 a conspiracy planned by the United Irishmen to seize the city was frustrated. In 1803 an insurrection broke out, but was immediately quelled, with the loss of some lives in the tumult, and the death of its leaders on the scaffold. In 1848 the lower classes in Dublin were greatly agitated, but the city was saved from much bloodshed. In 1867 the most serious of modern conspiracies, that known as the Fenian organi zation, came to light. The Habeas Corpus Act was suspended at one sitting by both Houses of Parliament and about 96o arrests were made in Dublin in a few hours. Dublin Castle was fortified; and the citizens lived in a state of terror for several weeks to gether. For later history, see IRELAND.
The cathedral of Christ Church, or Holy Trinity, was founded by Sigtryg, a Christianized king of the Danes of Dublin, in 1038, but dates its elevation to a deanery and chapter from 1541. It was restored in 187o-77 by G. E. Street, who rebuilt the choir and south side of the nave, but the model of the ancient building was followed with great care. The crypt embodies remains of the founder's work; the rest is Transitional Norman and Early Eng lish in style. Among the monuments is that of Strongbow, the invader of Ireland, to whom the earlier part of the superstructure (117o) is due. Here the tenants of the church lands were accus tomed to pay their rents. Synods were occasionally held in this church, and parliaments also, before the Commons' Hall was de stroyed in 1566. Here also the pretender Lambert Simnel was crowned.
The portions of the city immediately around the castle nucleus represent the development up to the first half of the 19th century. There was considerable growth to the north of the river where Sackville (O'Connell) street is one of the principal thoroughfares, although it was badly damaged in 1922. In it is the Nelson pillar, 134 ft. in height with a statue of the admiral on the top. Farther to the east are the docks. The customs house was destroyed in 1922 but is to be rebuilt. The most interesting buildings, however, are to the south of the river.
A short distance south from Christ Church, through the squalid quarter of Nicholas and Patrick streets, stands the cathedral dedi cated to St. Patrick, the foundation of which was an attempt to supersede the older foundation of Christ Church, owing to jeal ousies, both ecclesiastical and political, arising out of the Anglo Norman invasion. It was founded about 1190 by John Comyn, archbishop of Dublin ; but there was a church dedicated to the same saint before. It was burnt about 200 years later, but was rebuilt. At the Reformation it was deprived of its status as a cathedral, and the building was used for some of the purposes of the courts of justice. Edward VI. contemplated its change into a university, but the project was defeated. In the succeeding reign of Mary, St. Patrick's was restored to its primary destination. The installations of the knights of St. Patrick were originally held here. This cathedral contains the monument of Dean Swift. Attached to the cathedral is Marsh's library, incorporated in 1707, by a request of Primate Marsh, archbishop of Armagh.
Westmoreland street is a continuation to the south of Sack ville street and, where it meets Dame street, which leads up to the castle, are situated the Bank of Ireland and Trinity college. The Bank of Ireland was formerly the House of Parliament. There are three fronts ; the principal, towards College Green, is a colonnade of the Ionic order, with facade and two projecting wings; it connects with the western portico by a colonnade of the same order, forming the quadrant of a circle. The eastern front, which was the entrance of the House of Lords, is of the Corinthian order. The House of Lords contains tapestry dating from and remains in its original condition, but the octagonal House of Commons was demolished by the bank directors. The building was begun in 1729, but the fronts date from the end of the cen tury ; the remodelling took place in 1803.
The outer portions of the city extending as far as the circular road which skirts the periphery date from the second half of the 19th century, whilst beyond this boundary has been some more recent development. A considerable amount of building has oc curred during the last few years and thus the congestion in the tenements of the older quarter has to some extent been relieved, although much remains to be done. Near St. Stephen's Green is University college, which occupies the site of the International Exhibition of 1865.
Trade.—Dublin was for long stigmatized as lacking, for so large a city, in the proper signs of commercial enterprise. About the time of the Revolution, the woollen trade flourished in Dublin, and the produce attained great celebrity. The cheapness of labour attracted capitalists, who started extensive factories in that quarter of the town known even now as the Liberties. This quarter was inhabited altogether by workers in wool. About 170o the English legislature prevailed on William III. to assent to laws which directly crushed the Irish trade. All exportation except to Eng land was forbidden, and the woollen manufacture soon decayed. But at the close of the 18th century there were 5,000 persons at work in the looms of the Liberties. About 1715 parliament favoured the manufacture of linen, and the Linen Hall was built. The cotton trade was soon afterwards introduced ; and silk manu facture was begun by the Huguenots, who had settled in Dublin in considerable numbers after the revocation' of the edict of Nantes. Acts favourable to these enterprises were passed, and they flourished apace. But the old jealousy arose in the reign of George I., and in the reign of George III. an Act was passed which tended directly to the ruin of the manufacture. The linen shared the same fate. Dublin poplins, however, keep their reputa tion. However adverse influences may have been combated, Dublin yet produces little for export save whisky and porter ; but a considerable export trade, principally in agricultural produce, passes through Dublin from the country. To the manufacturing industries of the city there should be added mineral water works, biscuit-making, glass-making, cigarette-making, foundries and ship building.
By continual dredging a great depth of water is kept available in the harbour. The Dublin Port and Docks Board, which was created in 1898, undertook considerable works of improvement at the beginning of the 2oth century. These improvements, inter alia, enabled vessels drawing up to 23 ft. to lie alongside the ex tensive quays which border the Liffey, at low tide. The extensive Alexandra tidal basin, on the north side of the Liffey, admits vessels of similar capacity. The Custom House Works on the north side have about 17 ft. of water. With docks named after them are connected the Royal and Grand canals, passing respec tively to north and south of the city, the one penetrating the great central plain of Ireland on the north, the other following the course of the Liffey, doing the same on the south, and both join ing the river Shannon. The docks attached to the canals, and cer tain other smaller docks, are owned by companies, and tolls are levied on vessels entering these, but not those entering the docks under the Board.
The direct route to Dublin from London and other parts of England is by the Holyhead route, controlled by the L.M.S.R. with steamers to the port of Dublin itself, while the company also works in conjunction with the mail steamers of the City of Dublin Steam Packet Company to the outlying port of Kingstown, 7 m. S.E. Passenger steamers, however, also serve Liverpool, Hey sham, Bristol, the south coast ports of England and London; Edin burgh and Glasgow, and other ports of Great Britain. The rail ways leaving Dublin are the following : the Great Northern, with suburban lines and a main line running north to Drogheda, Dun dalk and Belfast, with ramifications through the northern coun ties; the Great Southern to Kilkenny, Athlone and Cork; the Mid land Great Western to Cavan, Sligo and Galway; and there is the North Wall station of the L.M.S.R., with the line known as the North Wall extension, connecting with the other main lines. The internal communications of the city are excellent, electric tram-. ways traversing the principal streets, and connecting all the principal suburbs.
The county borough of Dublin is divided into two constituencies —Dublin North and Dublin South, the former returning eight members to the Dail Eireann and the latter seven. The powers and duties of the lord mayor, aldermen and councillors have been temporarily transferred to commissioners, and the problem of the future government of the city is at present being considered.