FERROL, a city of north-west Spain, province of Corunna; 41 m. by rail N.E. of the city of Corunna; on the Bay of Ferrol, an inlet of the Atlantic ocean. Pop. Ferrol ranks with Cartagena and San Fernando, near Cadiz, as one of the principal naval stations of Spain. The town, beautifully situated on a headland on the north shore of the bay, is concealed by rocky hills from view from the sea. Its fine. natural harbour, one of the best in Europe, and the largest in Spain, except those of Vigo and Cartagena, is deep and safe; but the entrance is a narrow strait about 2 m. long, which admits only one vessel at a time, and is commanded by powerful modern batteries and forts on either side of the bay. Ferrol has extensive shipbuilding yards and a large arsenal basin, with workshops and foundries, and two dry docks. Across a broad inlet west of the headland lies the submarine base of La Grana. Since the 1908 decree for bringing the Spanish navy up to date, considerable constructional work has gone on in the dockyards. Local industries are mainly connected with the build ing or refitting of naval vessels. Owing to the competition of Corunna, at so short a distance, and in the past to the lack of railway communication, Ferrol is not a first class commercial port. It is now connected by rail with Betanzos, and in 1928 a line was under construction from Gijon; but the exports are in significant, consisting mainly of pit-props, and the chief imports are coal, cement, timber, iron and machinery, for use in the ship ping industries.
Ferrol was a mere fishing village until, in 1726, Charles IV. chose it as the site for a naval arsenal, and Ferdinand VI. (1746 ' 759) later set up shipbuilding yards here. In 1799 the British made a fruitless attempt to capture it, but on Nov. 4, 1805, they defeated the French fleet in front of the town, which they corn pelled to surrender. Delivered by treachery to the French on Jan. 27, 1809, it was vacated by them on July 22. After a month's blockade Ferrol surrendered to the French on Aug. 27, 182 3.