The etymology of the name and the origin of the town are equally uncertain, and there is not a single moiiument of antiquarian interest upon which to found a conjecture. About the beginning of the 16th century Belfast is described as & " town and fortress," but it was in reality a mere fishing-village in the hands of the house of O Neil. This sept had all along been opposed to the English, and had forfeited every baronial right ; but in 1552 Hugh O Neil of Clandeboye promised allegiance to the reigning monarch, and obtained the castle of Carrickfergus, the town and fortress of Belfast, and all the surrounding lands. His turbulent successors having been routed by the English, the town and fortress fell into the hands of Sir Thomas Smyth, a favourite of Queen Elizabeth, but were afterwards forfeited by him to the Lord-Deputy Sir Arthur Chichester, who, in 1612, was created Baron Chichester. At this time the town consisted of about 120 houses, mostly built of mud and covered with thatch, while the castle, a two- storied building, was roofed w r ith shingles. In 1632 Thomas Wentworth, Earl Stafford, was appointed first lord-deputy of Ireland, and Belfast soon shared largely in the benefits of his enlightened policy, receiving, among other favours, certain fiscal rights which his lordship had purchased from the corporation of Carrickfergus. Two years after the rebellion of 1641 a rampart was raised round the town, pierced by four gates on the land side. In 1662, as appears by a map still extant, there were 150 houses within the wall, forming five streets and as many lanes ; and the upland districts around were one dense forest of giant oaks and sycamores, yielding an unfailing supply of timber to the woodmen of Carrickfergus.
Throughout the succeeding fifty years the progress of Belfast surpassed that of most other towns in Ireland. Its merchants, in 1686, owned forty ships, of a total carrying power of 3300 tons, and the customs collected were close upon 20,000. When King William arrived at Belfast in 1690 there were only two places of worship in the town, the old corporation church in the High Street, and the Presbyterian meeting-house in Rosemary Lane, the Roman Catholics not being permitted to build their chapels within the walls of corporate towns.
At the commencement of the 18th century Belfast had become known as a place of considerable trade, and what was then thought a handsome, thriving, and well-peopled town, with many new houses and good shops. During the civil commotions which so long afflicted the country, it suffered less than most other places ; and it soon after wards attained the rank of the " greatest town for trade in the north of Ireland." James Blow and Co. introduced letterpress printing in 1696, and in 1704 issued the first copy of the Bible produced in the island. In September 1737, Henry and Robert Joy started the Belfast Neivs Letter, which not only still maintains its existence, but has long been at the head of the Irish Conservative press. Twenty years afterwards the town contained 1800 houses and 8549 inhabitants, 556 of the latter being members of the Church of Rome. It was not, however, till 1789 that Belfast obtained the regular communication, which towns of less importance already enjoyed, with Dublin by stage coach, a fact which is to be explained by the badness of the roads and the steepness of the hills between Newry and Belfast.
The increased freedom of trade with which Ireland was favoured, the introduction of the cotton manufacture by Robert Joy in 1777, the establishment in 1791 of ship building on an extensive scale by William Ritchie, an energetic Scotchman, combined with the rope and canvas manufacture already existing, supplied the inhabitants with employment, and increased the demand for skilled labour. The population now made rapid strides as well by ordinary extension as by immigration from the rural districts. At the close of last century there were about 20,000 inhabi tants in the borough, and this total had risen in 1821 to 37,277, in 1831 to 53,287, in 1841 to 70,447, in 1851 to 87,062, in 1861 to 121,602, and in 1871 to 174,412 males 79,815, and females 94,597. In 1875 the popula tion is estimated at 200,000. At the last census the fol lowing were the religious professions of the population, viz., Presbyterian, 60,249 ; Catholic, 55,675 ; Episcopal, 46,423; Methodist, 6775; Unitarian, 1498; and various, 3892. The number of persons who could read and write at the same date was 95,986 ; who could read, only 71,700 ; and who were illiterate, 46,726, or about 27 per cent, of the whole. The number of houses in 1871 amounted to 29,918, viz., inhabited, 27,961; uninhabited, 1761; and building 196.
Belfast Lough is exceedingly picturesque, whether entered by the Antrim or by the Down side of the channel. The outer harbour is one of the safest in the kingdom, great improvements having been made within the last thirty years on the more immediate entrance to the port. The course of the Lagan, which runs past the quays and down to Gramoyle, was originally most tortuous and somewhat difficult to navigate; but, about 1840, the late William Dargan was employed to make a straight cut from the lower part of the harbour and to deepen the channel, so that ships of large draught can be brought to the quays, which extend for about a mile below Queen s Bridge on both sides of the river. There are also seven extensive docks and tidal basins supplied with the necessary con- veniencies for the shipping. The following table of vessels entered inwards shows the increase of shipping frequenting the port:—
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Year. No. of Vessels. Tonnage. Year. No. of Vessels. Tonnage. 1728 1786 1805 1825 1835 370 770 840 2060 2950 0,180 34,287 64,585 183,441 290,769 1845 1855 1S61 1871 1873 3655 5211 G737 8213 8417 445,537 768,505 902,578 1,223,821 1,397,407
The exports from Belfast being largely conveyed by steamer to London, Liverpool, and Glasgow, and thence trans-shipped to their destinations, do not appear in the Board of Trade returns, as only the direct business with foreign countries, which does not reach any consider able amount, is registered in those tables. Thus other ports get credit for business which really belongs to Belfast. The best illustration of this is afforded by the Board of Trade returns for 1858. Belfast is there stated to have exported goods that year to the amount of 9,344, while the actual sum was 8,569,504. In 1810 the total value of exports was 2,904,820, and in 1835 4,341,791; in 1852 the amount was 6,573,198, and for 1866 it ran up to 11,915,000. For some years past no official data have been published on this subject, but it may be safely estimated that the gross value of the exports from Belfast exceeds 20,000,000 annually.
The amount of customs and excise collected at the port in 1762 was 32,900, and in 1810 the sum was 428.174. As trade increased with London and Liverpool, a large share of the duties on goods disposed of in Belfast was paid to the merchants of those ports. In 1821 the customs amounted to 306,243, and in 1848 to 376,767. The ciistoms paid in Belfast in 1851 reached 369,415, which, added to that paid in London and Liverpool (184,750), made a total of 554,165. During the year 1874 the duty paid in Belfast on tea, wine, spirits, and tobacco, amounted to 1,215,191.
