Reading, a municipal, parliamentary, and county borough, the capital of Berkshire, on the Kennet, near its influx to the Thames, 36 miles by rail W. of London (by road 39, by river 74). Its strong castle was wholly demolished by Henry II.; and the splendid Benedictine abbey, founded in 1121 by Henry I., who was buried here, is represented by considerable ruins and a fine gateway, restored in 1861, and surrounded by public gardens. Nine parliaments were held within its hall; and the last of its mitred abbots was hanged by Henry VIII., with two of the brethren. There are handsome municipal buildings and two excellent town-halls, a lofty clock-tower, a free library, concert-room, museum, &c. Other buildings are the Italian assize courts (1861); a large grammar-school (1486; rebuilt 1870-71), of which Dr Valpy was long headmaster; St Lawrence's Church (1434; restored 1868); and the Royal Berkshire Hospital. University Extension (Oxford) College, opened in 1898, has accommodation for six hundred students; and the largest (59 acres) of three public parks was gifted in 1891 by Mr G. Palmer. Reading is an important mart for corn and other agricultural produce, and has manufactures of iron, paper, sauce, &c., whilst two of its industrial establishments are world-famous—Huntley and Palmer's huge biscuit-factory and Sutton's seed-emporium. Reading, which is in the diocese of Oxford, gives title to a suffragan bishop. Its representation was reduced from two to one in 1885, when, however, the parliamentary borough was extended. The first charter was granted by Edward III. Pop. (1851) 21,456; (1881) 46,054; (1891) 55,752; county borough (1891) 60,054. Reading suffered much from the Danes between 868 and 1006, and in 1643 surrendered to Essex after a ten days' siege. It was the birthplace of Archbishop Laud, Justice Talfourd, and Goldwin Smith, but not of Miss Edgeworth, who is often claimed as a native. It has memories also of Chaucer and Bunyan.
See works by Coates (1802-9), Man (1816), Doran (1835), and J. B. Jones (1870).