
The Dublin quays () refers to the two roadways and
quay
A wharf, quay (, also ), staith, or staithe is a structure on the shore of a harbour or on the bank of a river or canal where ships may dock to load and unload cargo or passengers. Such a structure includes one or more berths ( mooring locati ...
s that run along the north and south banks of the
River Liffey
The River Liffey ( Irish: ''An Life'', historically ''An Ruirthe(a)ch'') is a river in eastern Ireland that ultimately flows through the centre of Dublin to its mouth within Dublin Bay. Its major tributaries include the River Dodder, the Ri ...
in
Dublin
Dublin (; , or ) is the capital and largest city of Ireland. On a bay at the mouth of the River Liffey, it is in the province of Leinster, bordered on the south by the Dublin Mountains, a part of the Wicklow Mountains range. At the 2016 ...
, Ireland. The stretches of the two continuous streets have several different names. However, all but three of the names (Swift's Row, Bachelors Walk and Usher's Island) share the same "Quay" designation. The quays have played an important part in Dublin's history.
Much of the southern roadway and about half of the northern roadway is part of the
R148 road, while the other half of the northern roadway is part of the
R801 road.
Routes description

Both roadways run approximately 4.3 km (2.7 mi) from
Sean Heuston Bridge in the west. The eastern end of the north roadway is at
East-Link Bridge while the south roadway turns southward at the
Grand Canal. Seventeen bridges cross the river along the line of The Quays; three of them are exclusively pedestrian bridges, one a railway bridge, one other for
Luas
Luas (pronounced ; Irish for "speed") is a tram/ light rail system in Dublin, Ireland. There are two main lines: the Green Line, which began operating on 30 June 2004, and the Red Line which opened on 26 September 2004. Since then, both lin ...
trams (with another planned) and pedestrians, and the remainder for vehicular and pedestrian use.
The name designations of the north roadway are (from west to east): Wolfe Tone Quay, Sarsfield Quay, Ellis Quay, Arran Quay, Inns Quay, Upper Ormond Quay, Lower Ormond Quay,
Bachelors Walk,
Eden Quay
Eden Quay () is one of the Dublin quays on the northern bank of the River Liffey in Dublin. The quay runs the bank between O'Connell Bridge and Butt Bridge. The quay is bisected by Marlborough Street and Rosie Hackett Bridge, roughly ha ...
, Custom House Quay and North Wall Quay.
The name designations of the south roadway are (from west to east): Victoria Quay, Usher's Island, Usher's Quay, Merchant's Quay,
Wood Quay, Essex Quay, Wellington Quay, Crampton Quay, Aston Quay, Burgh Quay,
George's Quay, City Quay,
Sir John Rogerson's Quay and
Britain Quay.
A majority of the roadways in the city centre are
one-way
One-way or one way may refer to:
*One-way traffic, a street either facilitating only one-way traffic, or designed to direct vehicles to move in one direction
*One-way travel, a trip that does not return to its origin
Music
*One Way (American ban ...
with the north roadway being eastward and the south being westward.
History

Vikings were among the first settlers in Dublin and many Viking artefacts were found at what is now Wood Quay.
The quays were first developed during the time of
King John in the early 13th century when the monarch licensed citizens to erect buildings on the River Liffey.
They became the centre of the Irish shipping trade until the 1800s when the river in this section was considered too shallow for the more modern heavy ships.
On 11 March 1597 there was a substantial
gunpowder explosion that took place on the quays. The explosion demolished as many as forty houses, and left dozens of others badly damaged. The explosion claimed the lives of 126 people and inflicted countless injuries.

The Custom House
The Custom House ( ga, Teach an Chustaim) is a neoclassical 18th century building in Dublin, Ireland which houses the Department of Housing, Local Government and Heritage. It is located on the north bank of the River Liffey, on Custom House Quay ...
, one of Dublin's major landmarks on Custom House Quay, was completed in 1791. The quay takes its namesake from the building. Later, the
Four Courts
The Four Courts ( ga, Na Ceithre Cúirteanna) is Ireland's most prominent courts building, located on Inns Quay in Dublin. The Four Courts is the principal seat of the Supreme Court, the Court of Appeal, the High Court and the Dublin Circuit ...
on Inns Quay was completed in 1802 and is currently home to the
Supreme Court of Ireland
, image = Coat of arms of Ireland.svg
, imagesize = 120px
, alt =
, caption = Coat of Arms of Ireland
, image2 = Four Courts, Dublin 2014-09-13.jpg
, imagesize2 =
, alt2 ...
and the
High Court. Both were designed by noted architect
James Gandon
James Gandon (20 February 1743 – 24 December 1823) was an English architect best known for his work in Ireland during the late 18th century and early 19th century. His better known works include The Custom House and the surrounding Beresfor ...
.
Burgh Quay is named after Elizabeth Burgh, wife of Anthony Foster whose son was Rt. Hon. John Foster, last speaker of the
Irish House of Commons
The Irish House of Commons was the lower house of the Parliament of Ireland that existed from 1297 until 1800. The upper house was the House of Lords. The membership of the House of Commons was directly elected, but on a highly restrictive fr ...
. Burgh Quay was once the site of the Tivoli Theatre. The Corn Exchange Building, designed by
George Halpin in 1815, was approved by the
Wide Streets Commission in 1816 and work commenced on this building soon afterwards. Its granite facade still remains on Burgh Quay. Shipping came as far upstream as Burgh Quay until 1879 when
Butt Bridge
The Butt Bridge () is a road bridge in Dublin, Ireland which spans the River Liffey and joins Georges Quay to Beresford Place and the north quays at Liberty Hall.
The original bridge on this site was a structural steel swing bridge, designed b ...
was constructed. A number of the buildings on Burgh Quay (including number 8) still retain remnants of the shopfronts designed for the Wide Streets Commissioners.
The 20th century saw much development to the quays. In 1845, McBirney, Collis & Company opened a store at 16 and 17 Aston Quay,
and remained on the site as a department store as
McBirney's until 1984. The building incorporated a set of three three-bay houses on the site, which was later remodelled in 1865. The building still retains an original store frontage of the department store.
The building was later occupied by a
Virgin Megastore
Virgin Megastores is an international entertainment retailing chain, founded in early 1976 by Richard Branson as a record shop on London's Oxford Street.
In 1979 the company opened their first Megastore at the end of Oxford Street and Tottenha ...
from 1986, and is now a branch of the supermarket chain,
SuperValu. A controversial development was at Wood Quay by the
Dublin Corporation
Dublin Corporation (), known by generations of Dubliners simply as ''The Corpo'', is the former name of the city government and its administrative organisation in Dublin since the 1100s. Significantly re-structured in 1660-1661, even more sign ...
in the late 1970s, when there were many archaeological Viking finds. This led to a very public and unsuccessful campaign to halt the development.
Among the other quays that lost period buildings in the 1980s was Arran Quay, when 5 Georgian houses were demolished illegally in January 1989 by Linders of Smithfield.
Announced in 1998 and with the first phase opened in late 2000, the
Liffey Boardwalk is a series of pedestrian walkways which were developed along the quays in the early 21st century.
On 21 February 2004, near the
Clarence Hotel
The Clarence Hotel is a four-star 51-room hotel located at 6–8 Wellington Quay, Dublin, Ireland. It is in the Temple Bar neighbourhood, on the River Liffey. It was built in 1852, and bought by U2 lead singer Bono and lead guitarist The Edge ...
on
Wellington Quay, a
Dublin Bus
Dublin Bus ( ga, Bus Átha Cliath) is a State-owned bus operator providing services in Dublin. By far the largest bus operator in the city, it carried 138 million passengers in 2019. It is a wholly-owned subsidiary of Córas Iompair Éireann.
...
lost control and mounted the pavement, crashing into a queue of 30 people boarding another bus to
Maynooth
Maynooth (; ga, Maigh Nuad) is a university town in north County Kildare, Ireland. It is home to Maynooth University (part of the National University of Ireland and also known as the National University of Ireland, Maynooth) and St Patrick ...
.
Five people were killed and 14 injured. The city's south quays were closed as rescue workers attended the scene.
Driving conditions on the day were noted as being dry and clear
and the driver was tried for dangerous driving causing death. His trial began in February 2007 at Dublin
Circuit Court, but he was acquitted. It was found that the most likely cause of the accident had been a power surge in the engine.
Volvo Bus Ltd, the manufacturers of Dublin Bus engines, said they were aware of "other cases of power surges in Ireland" in their engines.
In 2006, local politicians proposed renaming some of the quays. MEP Gay Mitchell proposed renaming George's Quay or Victoria Quay to Joyce Quay or Behan Quay, for the Irish writers James Joyce
James Augustine Aloysius Joyce (2 February 1882 – 13 January 1941) was an Irish novelist, poet, and literary critic. He contributed to the Modernism, modernist avant-garde movement and is regarded as one of the most influential and important ...
and Brendan Behan
Brendan Francis Aidan Behan (christened Francis Behan) ( ; ga, Breandán Ó Beacháin; 9 February 1923 – 20 March 1964) was an Irish poet, short story writer, novelist, playwright, and Irish Republican activist who wrote in both English and ...
.
Dublin quays in culture
A number of artists have found inspiration from the quays. In 1898, author Frances A. Gerard described the Dublin quays as follows: "Much of the picturesque appearance of Dublin is due to the Quays which intersect the City and the Bridges which span the Liffey; they impart to it a foreign air resembling the Quays of Paris
Paris () is the capital and most populous city of France, with an estimated population of 2,165,423 residents in 2019 in an area of more than 105 km² (41 sq mi), making it the 30th most densely populated city in the world in 2020. ...
." Irish novelist James Joyce had many of his storylines take place at the Dublin quays, including '' Eveline'' (1904) and ''An Encounter
"An Encounter" is a short story by James Joyce. It is second in a collection of Joyce's short stories called '' Dubliners''. In the story, two young boys experience an eerie encounter with a strange, old man. It deals with themes such as routine ...
'' (1914). Joyce biographer Michael H. Begnal wrote, "Joyce associated the Liffey Quays with the desire for escape."
Artist Jack Butler Yeats
Jack Butler Yeats RHA (29 August 1871 – 28 March 1957) was an Irish artist and Olympic medalist. W. B. Yeats was his brother.
Butler's early style was that of an illustrator; he only began to work regularly in oils in 1906. His early pict ...
painted ''Dublin Quays'' in 1916.
The 1987 film ''The Dead
The Dead may refer to:
* The dead, those who have experienced death
Arts, entertainment, and media Literature
* ''The Dead'' (Higson novel), 2010 novel by Charlie Higson
* ''The Dead'' (Kracht novel), 2016 novel by Christian Kracht
* "The Dead ...
'', adapted from Joyce's story, was filmed by John Huston at Usher's Island. In Joyce's story ''The Dead
The Dead may refer to:
* The dead, those who have experienced death
Arts, entertainment, and media Literature
* ''The Dead'' (Higson novel), 2010 novel by Charlie Higson
* ''The Dead'' (Kracht novel), 2016 novel by Christian Kracht
* "The Dead ...
'', the sisters Kate and Julia Morkan host their annual dance at their "dark gaunt house on Usher's Island." 'Ushers Island' was the name of a competitor in the 1994 Grand National at Aintree
Aintree is a village and civil parish in the Metropolitan Borough of Sefton, Merseyside, England. Historically in Lancashire, it lies between Walton and Maghull on the A59 road, north-east of Liverpool city centre, in North West England.
It ...
, falling at the third fence. In 2015, folk musician Andy Irvine launched a band called ' Usher's Island' (a reference to the Dublin quay), with members including Dónal Lunny
Dónal Lunny (born 10 March 1947) is an Irish folk musician and producer. He plays left-handed guitar and bouzouki, as well as keyboards and bodhrán. As a founding member of popular bands Planxty, The Bothy Band, Moving Hearts, Coolfin, Mozai ...
, Paddy Glackin and Michael McGoldrick
Michael McGoldrick (born 26 November 1971, in Manchester, England) is a folk musician who plays Irish flute, uilleann pipes, low whistle and bodhran. He also plays other instruments such as acoustic guitar, cittern, and mandolin.
Bands
M ...
.[''Celtic Connections: Usher's Island at Old Fruitmarket, Glasgow''](_blank)
heraldscotland.com, 28 January 2015; retrieved 18 March 2017.
'' Bachelors Walk'' was a comedy-drama aired on RTÉ
(RTÉ) (; Irish for "Radio & Television of Ireland") is the national broadcaster of Ireland headquartered in Dublin. It both produces and broadcasts programmes on television, radio and online. The radio service began on 1 January 1926, while ...
during March 2001, following the lives of three bachelors who lived on the titular quay.
Rudyard Kipling
Joseph Rudyard Kipling ( ; 30 December 1865 – 18 January 1936)''The Times'', (London) 18 January 1936, p. 12. was an English novelist, short-story writer, poet, and journalist. He was born in British Raj, British India, which inspired much o ...
began his poem "Belts" with the lines:
:"There was a row in Silver Street, that's near to Dublin Quay / Between an Irish regiment an' English cavalree."
Notable buildings on the Dublin quays
*3Arena
The 3Arena (originally The O2) is an indoor amphitheatre located at North Wall Quay in the Dublin Docklands in Dublin, Ireland. The venue opened as The O2 on 16 December 2008. It was built on the site of the former Point Theatre, a smaller musi ...
, previously the Point Depot and the O2 (North Wall Quay)
*Central Bank of Ireland
The Central Bank of Ireland ( ga, Banc Ceannais na hÉireann) is Ireland's central bank, and as such part of the European System of Central Banks (ESCB). It is the country's financial services regulator for most categories of financial fi ...
(North Wall Quay)
* Church of the Immaculate Conception ("Adam and Eve's", Merchant's Quay)
*Clarence Hotel
The Clarence Hotel is a four-star 51-room hotel located at 6–8 Wellington Quay, Dublin, Ireland. It is in the Temple Bar neighbourhood, on the River Liffey. It was built in 1852, and bought by U2 lead singer Bono and lead guitarist The Edge ...
(Wellington Quay)
*Convention Centre Dublin
The Convention Centre Dublin () is a convention centre in the Dublin Docklands, Ireland. The Convention centre overlooks the River Liffey at Spencer Dock. It was designed by the Irish-born American architect Kevin Roche. Construction started ...
(North Wall Quay)
* The Old Custom House (Wellington Quay) (demolished c.1814)
*The Custom House
The Custom House ( ga, Teach an Chustaim) is a neoclassical 18th century building in Dublin, Ireland which houses the Department of Housing, Local Government and Heritage. It is located on the north bank of the River Liffey, on Custom House Quay ...
(Custom House Quay)
*Dublin City Council
Dublin City Council ( ga, Comhairle Cathrach Bhaile Átha Cliath) is the authority responsible for local government in the city of Dublin in Ireland. As a city council, it is governed by the Local Government Act 2001. Until 2001, the council ...
Civic Offices (Wood Quay)
*Four Courts
The Four Courts ( ga, Na Ceithre Cúirteanna) is Ireland's most prominent courts building, located on Inns Quay in Dublin. The Four Courts is the principal seat of the Supreme Court, the Court of Appeal, the High Court and the Dublin Circuit ...
(Inns Quay)
*Guinness Brewery
St. James's Gate Brewery is a brewery founded in 1759 in Dublin, Ireland, by Arthur Guinness. The company is now a part of Diageo, a company formed from the merger of Guinness and Grand Metropolitan in 1997. The main product of the brewery is G ...
(Victoria Quay)
*Heuston railway station
Heuston Station ( ; ga, Stáisiún Heuston; formerly Kingsbridge Station) also known as Dublin Heuston, is one of Dublin's largest railway stations and links the capital with the south, southwest and west of Ireland. It is operated by Iar ...
(near Victoria Quay)
*Liberty Hall
Liberty Hall ( ga, Halla na Saoirse), in Dublin, Ireland, is the headquarters of the Services, Industrial, Professional, and Technical Union (SIPTU). Designed by Desmond Rea O'Kelly, it was completed in 1965. It was for a time the tallest bu ...
(Eden Quay)
* Merchants' Hall (Wellington Quay)
*Smock Alley Theatre
Since the 17th century, there have been numerous theatres in Dublin with the name Smock Alley.
The current Smock Alley Theatre () is a 21st-century theatre in Dublin, converted from a 19th-century church building, incorporating structural mat ...
(Essex Quay)
* Sunlight Chambers (Essex Quay)
References
{{reflist, 35em
Dublin Docklands
Quays in Dublin (city)