Derry / Londonderry

"LONDONDERRY, a city, seaport, municipal and parliamentary borough exercising separate jurisdiction, but locally in the county of Londonderry, in the province of Ulster, Ireland, 144 miles from Dublin, and 70 miles from Belfast. It is the terminus of the Londonderry and Enniskillen and Coleraine lines of railway. It was originally and is still popularly called Derry. The ancient Irish called it Doire-Calyaich, or Derry-Calgach, and it was not until the incorporation of the Irish Society by James I. that the prefix London was added. The city was burnt twice by the Danes, in the 8th and 9th centuries; besieged in 1100 by Murtagh O'Brien, with a large fleet of foreign vessels (who was defeated by the son of MacLoughlin, Prince of Aileach); plundered and burnt five times during the 12th century, and five times during the 13th century, by the O'Nials and others. Derry was made a bishop's see in 1158, and given to Richard de Burgo in 1311. It was rebuilt and fortified by Sir H. Dockwra in 1600-3, but was burnt by O'Dogherty in 1608. The following year the city was rebuilt and fortified by the London companies, to whom James I. had sold the city, with all the surrounding forfeited territory. It was besieged by Sir Phelim O'Nial in 1641, and taken by Coote for the parliament in 1649. But the city is most memorable for the siege that took place in 1689, when more than 30,000 Protestants of the North sought refuge within its walls. On this occasion, the prentice boys having shut the gates against James II.'s troops, the garrison, of upwards of 7,000 volunteers, commanded by the celebrated George Walker, rector of Donoughmore, withstood a siege of 105 days by an army of 20,000 men, commanded by the king in person. After enduring unheard-of privations the besieged were relieved by the Dartmouth frigate; though not before one-half of the population had fallen a sacrifice to their heroic bravery. The centenary of this siege was celebrated in 1788-9. Londonderry is situated on the Donegal side of the river Foyle, on the summit of a hill, called, the "Island of Derry," which is 119 feet high, and is surrounded by massive walls 1,800 yards in circuit, 24 feet high; and broad enough to walk on. These walls were completed in 1617, at the expense of the Irish Society, and were defended by eight or nine bastions, in which are still remaining some of the old guns, with a pillar 81 feet high, set up in 1528 to the memory of Governor Walker, who so nobly defended the city in 1689, and was subsequently slain at the Boyne. The walls, which form a parallelogram, are pierced by six gates-one of which, the Bishop's Gate, is a triumphal arch built in 1789, at the centenary. Ferryquay Gate is the one which was closed by the prentices against the forces of James IT. The city has considerably increased since the Union, and now extends far beyond the ancient ramparts. The houses are chiefly built of brick, and the city is paved and lighted with gas. The waterworks on Brae Head were constructed by the' corporation, under an Act of the 40th George III., at an expense of £15,500. For municipal purposes the city is divided into three wards, East; North, and South, and returns six aldermen and 18 councillors, who, with the mayor and 12 borough magistrates-the latter appointed by the lord-lieutenant administer the government, under the style of the "mayor, aldermen, and burgesses of the borough of Londonderry." The mayor holds a court of conscience for pleas under 40s. Irish, and there is a court of record with pleas to an unlimited amount. The assistant-barrister and the recorder hold quarter sessions, and petty sessions are also held by the borough magistrates. The assizes for the county are held in the city. The population of the parliamentary borough in 1861 was 20,493, inhabiting 2,887 houses. Before the Union it returned two members to parliament, but since it has only returned one member-constituency in 1859, 825. The bridge, 1,068 feet in length, is of wood, and was constructed by an American, Lemuel Cox, in lieu of a ferry, in 1789-91, at an expense of more than £16,000. The principal public buildings are the cathedral and two other Protestant episcopal churches, two Roman Catholic chapels, six Presbyterian, an Independent, and two Methodist places of worship; the episcopal palace, built in 1761; Foyle College; the city court-house; prison; custom-house; Chamber of Commerce and News-room; Corporation Hall; barracks; workhouse; deanery, built in 1833; and county lunatic asylum. The cathedral, originally built in 1164, but destroyed by Dockwra, and rebuilt in 1633, is 240 feet long by 66 feet, with an eight-sided spire 288 feet high. The interior contains the tombs of Bishop Knox, by Behnes, and Dr. Hamilton; also two flags taken from the besiegers in a sortie in 1689. The other churches are a Free church, built in 1830 by Bishop Knox, and a chapel-of-ease. There are also five banks and a savings-bank, besides flax-mills, distilleries, breweries, large rope-walks, a foundry, tan-yard, and several flour-mills. Gwyn's Charitable Institution has accommodation for 120 orphans. There are several parochial and Roman Catholic schools, also almshouses for widows of the clergy. The harbour, formed by the estuary of the Foyle, is spacious, and possesses great natural advantages. It has an income of about £2,000, and at some of the quays vessels of 500 tons may unload. It is under the jurisdiction of the Irish Society, who appoint a vice-admiral for the harbour and adjoining coast. Two railways run along the harbour, and the traffic of the port is managed by a board of harbour commissioners, appointed under the Act 17 and 18 Vic. Abundance of salmon are caught in Lough Foyle, the greater portion being sent to Liverpool. The chief exports are corn, flour, flax, linen, hides, eggs, and provisions. A Cistercian nunnery was founded here in 1218, and a Dominican friary in 1274. Farquhar, the poet, was' a native of Londonderry. The newspapers published in the town are the Londonderry Journal, the Londonderry Sentinel, and the Londonderry Standard. It gives the titles of marquis and earl to the Stewarts. It gives name to a diocese in the province of Armagh; comprising the counties of Londonderry and Tyrone, with parts of Antrim and Donegal. The see contains 66 benefices, or 102 livings, of which two are unions, and 35 in the patronage of the bishop, whose income is £8,000, and seat Boom Hall Palace. Since 1836 the diocese of Raphoe has been joined to it. The chapter includes a dean, archdeacon, eight rural deans, three prebendaries, vicar general, and other officers. The Roman Catholic diocese comprises 36 parishes, the bishop's seat being at Derry. Races take place annually. Markets every day for provisions, Wednesday for linen, and Thursday for flax. Fairs are held on the first Wednesday in each month, and on 17th June, 4th September, and 17th October."

Transcribed from The National Gazetteer of Great Britain and Ireland 1868