Hull, officially Kingston upon Hull, city and unitary authority (2011 pop. 256,406), NE England, on the north shore of the Humber estuary at the influx of the small Hull River. Its port is one of the chief outlets for the surrounding area, which is also accessible by rail. Imports include oilseed, wood, foodstuffs, wool, metal ores, and petroleum; exports include coal, coke, machinery, automobiles, tractors, iron and steel products, and textiles. Hull is also one of the world's largest fishing ports. Among its many manufactures are processed foods, chemicals, iron and steel products, and machinery. Flour mills and sawmills are nearby.

Hull was founded late in the 13th cent. by Edward I, and the construction of docks, which extend for miles along the Humber, was begun c.1775. In July, 1981, the Humber Bridge was opened; communication with other cities thus improved, and Hull's economic value increased. The Wilberforce House, Municipal Museum, and Ferens Art Galleries are noteworthy. The grammar school, founded in 1486, was attended by Andrew Marvell and William Wilberforce, who were born in Hull. Schools include the Univ. of Hull, Endsleigh College, and Kingston upon Hull College. Trinity House, established in 1369 to aid sailors, has been Trinity House Navigation School since 1787. Hull's annual fair is one of the largest in England.

Kingston upon Hull. Yorkshire port at the junction of the river Hull with the Humber, usually called just ‘Hull’. It originated as a monastic wool-exporting port, but was acquired and renamed by Edward I (1293). Its huge Holy Trinity church, and its Trinity House for mariners, testify to its late medieval importance. Henry VIII made it a fortified base, crucial enough for its control to become the flashpoint for civil war in 1642. Hull's MPs included Andrew Marvell in the 17th cent. and William Wilberforce in the 18th. By 1800 it was the third British port (measured by volume of trade) after London and Liverpool. The city (as it became in 1897) was hard hit by Second World War bombing, and by the collapse of its fishing industry in the 1970s.

David M. Palliser

Hull (officially Kingston upon Hull) City and unitary authority on the n bank of the Humber estuary, ne England. Britain's third largest port, it was founded in the late 13th century and grew around its fishing industry. Hull gained city status in 1897. The decline of the fishing industry has been partly offset by the construction of the Humber Bridge (1981), one of the world's longest single-span suspension bridges. The city is home to the University of Hull (1954) and the University of Humberside (1992). Pop. (1994 est.) 269,144.

Kingston upon Hull: see Hull, England.

Hull, Kingston upon. See Kingston upon Hull.

Kingston upon Hull Official name of Hull