ALEC`TO, one of the three Eumenides or Furies. ALEMAN`, a Spanish novelist, author of the celebrated romance _Guzman de Alfarache_, which in 6 years ran through 26 editions, was translated several times into French; died in Mexico in 1610. ALEMAN`NI, a confederacy of tribes which appeared on the banks of the Rhine in the 3rd cent., and for long gave no small trouble to Rome, but whose incursions were arrested, first by Maximinus, and finally by Clovis in 496, who made them subject to the Franks, hence the modern names in French for Germany and the Germans. ALEMTE`JO (369), a southern province of Portugal; soil fertile to the east. ALENCON (17), a town in the dep. of Orne, 105 m. W. of Paris, once famous for its lace. ALENCON, COUNTS AND DUKES OF, a title borne by several members of the house of Valois--e. g. CHARLES OF VALOIS, who fell at Crecy (1346); JEAN IV., who fell at Agincourt (1415). ALEP`PO (130), a city in Northern Syria, one of the finest in the East, once one of the greatest trading centres in the world. ALE`SIA, a strong place in the E. of Gaul, which, as situated on a hill and garrisoned by 80,000 Gauls, cost Caesar no small trouble to take. ALESIUS, or ALANE, a noted Reformer, born in Edinburgh, converted to Protestantism by Patrick Hamilton; was driven first from Scotland and then from England, till he settled as a theological professor in Germany, and took an active part in the Reformation there (1500-1563). ALESSANDRIA (78), a strongly fortified and stirring town on the Tenaro, in Northern Italy, the centre of 8 railways, 55 m. SE. of Turin. ALESSI, architect, born at Perugia, architect of the monastery and church of the ESCURIAL, q. v. (1500-1572). ALETSCH GLACIER, THE, the largest of the glaciers of the Alps, which descends round the south of the Jungfrau into the valley of the Upper Rhone. ALEU`TIAN ISLANDS (2) a chain of volcanic islands, 150 in number, stretching over the N. Pacific from Alaska in N. America, to Kamchatka, in Asia. ALEXANDER THE GREAT, the king of Macedonia, son of Philip by Olympias, daughter of Neoptolemus, king of Epirus; born at Pella, 356 B.C.; had the philosopher Aristotle for tutor, and being instructed by him in all kinds of serviceable knowledge, ascended the throne on the death of his father, at the age of 20; after subduing Greece, had himself proclaimed generalissimo of the Greeks against the Persians, and in 2 years after his accession crossed the Hellespont, followed by 30,000 foot and 5000 horse; with these conquered the army of Darius the Persian at Granicus in 334 and at Issus in 333; subdued the principal cities of Syria, overran Egypt, and crossing the Euphrates and Tigris, routed the Persians at Arbela; hurrying on farther, he swept everything before him, till the Macedonians refusing to advance, he returned to Babylon, when he suddenly fell ill of fever, and in eleven days died at the early age of 32. He is said to have slept every night with his Homer and his sword under his pillow, and the inspiring idea of his life, all unconsciously to himself belike, is defined to have been the right of Greek intelligence to override and rule the merely glittering barbarity of the East. ALEXANDER, ST., patriarch of Alexandria from 311 to 326, contributed to bring about the condemnation of Arius at the Council of Nice; festival, Feb 26. ALEXANDER, SOLOMON, first Protestant bishop of Jerusalem, of Jewish birth, cut off during a journey to Cairo (1799-1845). ALEXANDER III., pope, successor to Adrian IV., an able man, whose election Barbarossa at first opposed, but finally assented to; took the part of Thomas a Becket against Henry II. and canonised him, as also St. Bernard. Pope from 1159 to 1181. ALEXANDER VI., called Borgia from his mother, a Spaniard by birth, obtained the popehood by bribery in 1492 in succession to Innocent VIII., lived a licentious life and had several children, among others the celebrated Lucretia and the infamous Caesar Borgia; _d_. in 1503, after a career of crime, not without suspicion of poison. In addition to Alexanders III. and VI., six of the name were popes: Alexander I., pope from 108 to 117; Alexander II., pope from 1061 to 1073; Alexander IV., pope from 1254 to 1261; Alexander V., pope from 1409 to 1410; Alexander VII., pope from 1653 to 1667, who was forced to kiss his hand to Louis XIV.; Alexander VIII., pope from 1689 to 1691. ALEXANDER I., king of Scotland, son of Malcolm Canmore and Margaret, sister of Edgar Atheling, a vigorous prince, surnamed on that account _The Fierce_; subdued a rising in the North, and stood stoutly in defence of the independent rights of both Crown and Church against the claim of supremacy over both on the part of England; _d_. 1124. ALEXANDER II., of Scotland, successor of William the Lion, his father, a just and wise ruler, aided the English barons against John, and married Joan, the sister of Henry III.; _d_. 1249. ALEXANDER III., son of the preceding, married a daughter of Henry III., sided with him against the barons, successfully resisted the invasion of Haco, king of Norway, and on the conclusion of peace gave his daughter in marriage to Haco's successor Eric; accidentally killed by falling over a cliff near Kinghorn when hunting in 1285. ALEXANDER I., emperor of Russia, son and successor of Paul I., took part in the European strife against the encroachments of Napoleon, was present at the battle of Austerlitz, fought the French at Pultusk and Eylau, was defeated at Friedland, had an interview with Napoleon at Tilsit in 1813, entered into a coalition with the other Powers against France, which ended in the capture of Paris and the abdication of Napoleon in 1814. Under his reign Russia rose into political importance in Europe (1777-1825). ALEXANDER II., emperor of Russia, son and successor of Nicholas I., fell heir to the throne while the siege of Sebastopol was going on; on the conclusion of a peace applied himself to reforms in the state and the consolidation and extension of the empire. His reign is distinguished by a ukase decreeing in 1861 the emancipation of the serfs numbering 23 millions, by the extension of the empire in the Caucasus and Central Asia, and by the war with Turkey in the interest of the Slavs in 1877-78, which was ended by the peace of San Stephano, revised by the treaty of Berlin. His later years were clouded with great anxiety, owing to the spread of Nihilism, and he was killed by a bomb thrown at him by a Nihilist (1818-1881). ALEXANDER III., emperor of Russia, son of the preceding, followed in the footsteps of his father, and showed a marked disposition to live on terms of peace with the other Powers; his reign not distinguished by any very remarkable event. The present Czar is his son and successor (1845-1894). ALEXANDER I., king of Servia, _b_. 1876. ALEXANDER NEVSKY, grand-duke of Russia, conquered the Swedes, the Danes, and the Teutonic Knights on the banks of the Neva, freed Russia from tribute to the Mongols, is one of the saints of the Russian Church. ALEXANDER OF HALES, the _Doctor irrefragabilis_ of the Schools, an English ecclesiastic, a member of the Franciscan order, who in his "Summa Universae Theologiae" formulated, by severe rigour of Aristotelian logic, the theological principles and ecclesiastical rites of the Romish Church; _d_. in 1222. ALEXANDER OF PARIS, a Norman poet of the 16th century, who wrote a poem on Alexander the Great in twelve-syllabled lines, called after him Alexandrines. ALEXANDER OF THE NORTH, Charles XII. of Sweden. ALEXANDER SEVE`RUS, a Roman emperor, a wise, virtuous, and pious prince, conquered Artaxerxes, king of Persia, in an expedition against him, but setting out against the Germans, who were causing trouble on the frontiers of the empire, fell a victim, along with his mother, to an insurrection among his troops not far from Mainz (205-235). ALEXAN`DRIA (230), a world-famous city, the chief port of Egypt, founded by Alexander the Great in 332 B.C., at one time a great centre of learning, and in possession of the largest library of antique literature in the world, which was burned by the Caliph Omar in 640; at one time a place of great commerce, but that has very materially decayed since the opening of the Suez Canal. Alexandria, from its intimate connection with both East and West, gave birth in early times to a speculative philosophy which drew its principles from eastern as well as western sources, which was at its height on the first encounter of these elements. ALEXANDRIA (14), a town on the Potomac, 7 m. S. of Washington, accessible to vessels of the largest size; also a thriving town (7) on the river Leven, 3 m. N. of Dumbarton. ALEXANDRIAN CODEX, an MS. on parchment of the Septuagint Scriptures in Greek in uncial letters, which belonged to the library of the patriarchs of Alexandra. ALEXANDRIAN LIBRARY, the library burned by the Caliph Omar in 642, said to have contained 700,000 volumes. ALEXANDRI`NA LAKE, a lake in Australia into which the river Murray flows. ALEXANDRINE PHILOSOPHY, a Gnostic philosophy, combining eastern with western forms of thought. ALEXANDRINES. See ALEXANDER OF PARIS. ALEXAN`DROPOL (22), the largest town in the Erivan district of Russian Armenia, and a fortress of great strength. ALEXIS, ST., the patron saint of beggars and pilgrims, represented in art with a staff and in a pilgrim's habit; sometimes lying on a mat, with a letter in his hand, dying. ALEXIS MICHAELOVITCH, czar of Russia, the father of Peter the Great, the first czar who acted on the policy of cultivating friendly relations with other European states (1630-1677). ALEXIS PETROVITCH, son of Peter the Great, conspired against his father as he had broken the heart of his mother, was condemned to death; after his trial by secret judges he was found dead in prison (1695-1718). ALEXIUS COMNE`NUS, emperor of the East, began life as a soldier, was a great favourite with the soldiers, who, in a period of anarchy, raised him to the throne at the period of the first crusade, when the empire was infested by Turks on the one hand and Normans on the other, while the crusaders who passed through his territory proved more troublesome than either. He managed to hold the empire together in spite of these troubles, and to stave off the doom that impended all through his reign of thirty-seven years (1048-1118). ALFA, an esparto grass valuable for making paper. AL`FADUR, the All-Father or uncreated supreme in the Norse mythology. ALFARA`BI, an Arabian philosopher of the 10th century, had Avicenna for a disciple, wrote on various subjects, and was the first to attempt an encyclopedic work. ALFIE`RI, an Italian dramatist, spent his youth in dissipation before he devoted himself to the dramatic art; on the success of his first drama "Cleopatra," met at Florence with the Countess of Albany, the wife of Charles Edward Stuart, on whose death he married her; was at Paris when the Revolution broke out, and returned to Florence, where he died and was buried. Tragedy was his _forte_ as a dramatist (1749-1803). ALFONSINE TABLES, astronomical tables drawn up at Toledo by order of Alfonso X. in 1252 to correct the anomalies in the Ptolemaic tables; they divided the year into 365 days, 5 hours, 49 minutes, 16 seconds. ALFONSO I., the "Conqueror," founder of the kingdom of Portugal, was the first king, originally only count, as his father before him; in that capacity took up arms against the Moors, and defeating them had himself proclaimed king on the field of battle, a title confirmed to him by the Pope and made good by his practically subjecting all Portugal to his sway (1110-1185). ALFONSO X., the Wise, or the Astronomer, king of Castile and Leon, celebrated as an astronomer and a philosopher; after various successes over the Moors, first one son and then another rose against him and drove him from the throne; died of chagrin at Seville two years later. His fame connects itself with the preparation of the Alfonsine Tables, and the remark that "the universe seemed a crank machine, and it was a pity the Creator had not taken advice." It was a saying of his, "old wood to burn, old books to read, old wine to drink, and old friends to converse with" (1226-1284). ALFONSO III., surnamed the Great, king of Asturias, ascended the throne in 866, fought against and gained numerous victories over the Moors; the members of his family rose against him and compelled him to abdicate, but on a fresh incursion of the Moors he came forth from his retreat and triumphantly beat them back; died in Zamora, 910. ALFORD, HENRY, vicar of Wymeswold and afterwards Dean of Canterbury; his works and writings were numerous, and included poems and hymns. His great work, however, was an edition of the Greek New Testament, with notes, various readings, and comments (1810-1871). ALFORD, MICHAEL, a learned English Jesuit, left two great works, "Britannia Illustrata" and "Annales Ecclesiastici et Civiles Britannorum." ALFRED, DUKE OF SAXE-COBURG AND GOTHA, son of Prince Albert and Queen Victoria; _b_. 1844. ALFRED THE GREAT, king of the West Saxons, and the most celebrated and greatest of all the Saxon kings. His troubles were with the Danes, who at the time of his accession infested the whole country north of the Thames; with these he fought nine battles with varied success, till after a lull of some years he was surprised by Gunthrum, then king, in 878, and driven to seek refuge on the island of Athelney. Not long after this he left his retreat and engaged Gunthrum at Edington, and after defeating him formed a treaty with him, which he never showed any disposition to break. After this Alfred devoted himself to legislation, the administration of government, and the encouragement of learning, being a man of letters himself. England owes much to him both as a man and a ruler, and it was he who in the creation of a fleet laid the first foundation of her greatness as monarch of the deep. His literary works were translations of the "General History" of Orosius, the "Ecclesiastical History" of Bede, Boethius's "Consolations of Philosophy," and the "Cura Pastoralis" of Pope Gregory, all executed for the edification of his subjects (849-901). ALGAE, sea-weeds and plants of the same order under fresh water as well as salt; they are flowerless, stemless, and cellular throughout. ALGAR`DI, an Italian sculptor of note, born at Bologna; his greatest work is an alto-relievo, the largest existing, of Pope Leo restraining Attila from marching on Rome (1602-1654). ALGARO`TTI, FRANCESCO, a clever Italian author, born at Venice, whom, for his wit, Frederick the Great was attached to and patronised, "one of the first _beaux esprits_ of the age," according to Wilhelmina, Frederick's sister. Except his wit, it does not appear Frederick got much good out of him, for the want of the due practical faculty, all the faculty he had having evaporated in talk (1712-1764). ALGAR`VE (240), the southernmost province of Portugal, hilly, but traversed with rich valleys, which yield olives, vines, oranges, &c. ALGEBRA, a universal arithmetic of Arabian origin or Arabian transmission, in which symbols are employed to denote operations, and letters to represent number and quantity. ALGE`RIA, in the N. of Africa, belongs to France, stretches between Morocco on the W. and Tripoli and Tunis on the E., the country being divided into the Tell along the sea-coast, which is fertile, the Atlas Highlands overlooking it on the S., on the southern slopes of which are marshy lakes called "shotts," on which alfa grows wild, and the Sahara beyond, rendered habitable here and there by the creation of artesian wells; its extent nearly equal in area to that of France, and the population numbers about four millions, of which only a quarter of a million is French. The country is divided into Departments, of which Algiers, Oran, and Constantine are the respective capitals. It has been successively under the sway of the Carthaginians, the Romans, the Vandals, the Arabs, the Byzantines, and the Berbers, which last were in the 16th century supplanted by the Turks. At the end of this period it became a nest of pirates, against whom a succession of expeditions were sent from several countries of Europe, but it was only with the conquest of it by the French in 1830 that this state of things was brought to an end. ALGESI`RAS (12), a town and port in Spain on the Bay of Gibraltar, 5 m. across the bay; for centuries a stronghold of the Moors, but taken from them by Alfonso IX. after a siege of twenty months. ALGIERS` (75), the capital of Algeria, founded by the Arabs in 935, called the "silver city," from the glistening white of its buildings as seen sloping up from the sea, presenting a striking appearance, was for centuries under its Bey the head-quarters of piracy in the Mediterranean, which only began to cease when Lord Exmouth bombarded the town and destroyed the fleet in the harbour. Since it fell into the hands of the French the city has been greatly improved, the fortifications strengthened, and its neighbourhood has become a frequent resort of English people in winter. ALGINE, a viscous gum obtained from certain sea-weeds, used as size for textile fabrics, and for thickening soups and jellies. ALGO`A BAY, an inlet at the E. of Cape Colony, 20 m. wide, on which Port Elizabeth stands, 425 m. E. of the Cape of Good Hope. AL`GOL, a double star in the constellation Perseus, of changing brightness. ALGONQUINS, one of the three aboriginal races of N. American Indians, originally occupying nearly the whole region from the Churchill and Hudson Bay southward to N. Carolina, and from the E. of the Rocky Mts. to Newfoundland; the language they speak has been divided into five dialects. ALHAM`BRA (Red Castle), an ancient palace and stronghold of the Moorish kings of Granada, founded by Muhammed II. in 1213, decorated with gorgeous arabesques by Usuf I. (1345), erected on the crest of a hill which overlooks Granada; has suffered from neglect, bad usage, and earthquake. A`LI, the cousin of Mahomet, and one of his first followers at the age of sixteen, "a noble-minded creature, full of affection and fiery daring. Something chivalrous in him; brave as a lion; yet with a grace, a truth and affection worthy of Christian knighthood." Became Caliph in 656, died by assassination in the Mosque at Bagdad; the Sheiks yearly commemorate his death. See Carlyle's "Heroes." ALI BABA. See BABA, ALI. A`LI PASHA, pasha of Janina, a bold and crafty Albanian, able man, and notorious for his cruelty as well as craft; alternately gained the favour of the Porte and lost it by the alliances he formed with hostile powers, until the Sultan sentenced him to deposition, and sent Hassan Pasha to demand his head; he offered violent resistance but being overpowered at length surrendered, when his head was severed from his body and sent to Constantinople (1741-1822). ALICAN`TE (40), the third seaport-town in Spain, with a spacious harbour and strongly fortified, in a province of the same name on the Mediterranean. ALIGARH` (61), a town with a fort between Agra and Delhi, the garrison of which mutinied in 1857. ALIGHIE`RI, the family name of Dante. AL`IMA, an affluent on the right bank of the Congo, in French territory. ALIMENTARY CANAL, a passage 5 or 6 times the length of the body, lined throughout with mucous membrane, extends from the mouth to the anus, and includes mouth, fauces, pharynx, oesophagus, stomach, and small and large intestines. ALISON, ARCHIBALD, an Episcopal clergyman in Edinburgh, of which he was a native, best known for his "Essay on the Nature and Principles of Taste" (1757-1839). ALISON, SIR ARCHIBALD, son of the preceding, a lawyer who held several prominent legal appointments, and a historian, his great work being a "Modern History of Europe from the French Revolution to the Fall of Napoleon," afterwards extended to the "Accession of Louis Napoleon" (1792-1867). ALISON, W. PULTENEY, brother of the preceding, professor of medicine in Edinburgh University, and a philanthropist (1790-1859). ALIWAL`, a village in the Punjab, on the Sutlej, where Sir Harry Smith gained a brilliant victory over the Sikhs, who were provided with forces in superior numbers, in 1846. AL`KAHEST, the presumed universal solvent of the alchemists. ALKALIES, bodies which, combining with acids form salts, are soluble in water, and properly four in number, viz., potash, soda, lithia, and ammonia. ALKALINE EARTHS, earths not soluble in water, viz., lime, magnesia, strontia, and baryta. ALKALOIDS, bodies of vegetable origin, similar in their properties, as well as toxicologically, to alkalies; contain as a rule carbon, hydrogen, oxygen, and nitrogen; many of them are poisonous and invaluable in medicine. ALKMAAR` (14), the capital of N. Holland, 25 m. NW. of Amsterdam, with a large trade in cattle, grain, and cheese. ALKMER, HENRIK VAN, the reputed author of the first German version of "Reynard the Fox." ALL THE TALENTS, ADMINISTRATION OF, a ministry formed by Lord Grenville on the death of Pitt in 1806. AL`LAH, the Adorable, the Arab name for God, adopted by the Mohammedans as the name of the one God. ALLAHABAD` (175), the City of God, a central city of British India, on the confluence of the Ganges and the Jumna, 550 m. from Calcutta, and on the railway between that city and Bombay. ALLAN, DAVID, a Scottish portrait and historical painter, born at Alloa; illustrated Ramsay's "Gentle Shepherd"; his greatest work is the "Origin of Painting," now in the National Gallery at Edinburgh (1744-1796). ALLAN, SIR WILLIAM, a distinguished Scottish historical painter, born at Edinburgh, many of his paintings being on national subjects; he was a friend of Scott, who patronised his work, and in succession to Wilkie, president of the Royal Scottish Academy; painted "Circassian Captives" and "Slave-Market at Constantinople" (1782-1850). ALLANTOIS, a membrane enveloping the foetus in mammals, birds, and reptiles. ALLARD`, a French general, entered the service of Runjeet Singh at Lahore, trained his troops in European war tactics, and served him against the Afghans; died at Peshawar (1785-1839). ALLEGHA`NY (105), a manufacturing city in Pennsylvania, on the Ohio, opposite Pittsburg, of which it is a kind of suburb. ALLEGHA`NY MOUNTAINS, a range in the Appalachian system in U.S., extending from Pennsylvania to N. Carolina; do not exceed 2400 ft. in height, run parallel with the Atlantic coast, and form the watershed between the Atlantic rivers and the Mississippi. ALLEGORICAL INTERPRETATION, assigning a higher than a literal interpretation to the Scripture record of things, in particular the Old Testament story. ALLEGORY, a figurative mode of representation, in which a subject of a higher spiritual order is described in terms of that of a lower which resembles it in properties and circumstances, the principal subject being so kept out of view that we are left to construe the drift of it from the resemblance of the secondary to the primary subject. ALLEGRI, the family name of Correggio; the name of an Italian composer, born at Rome, the author of a still celebrated _Miserere_ (1580-1652). AL`LEINE, JOSEPH, a Puritan writer, author of a book once, and to some extent still, much in favour among religious people, entitled "Alarm to the Unconverted" (1632-1674). ALLEN, BOG OF, a dreary expanse of bogs of peat E. of the Shannon, in King's Co. and Kildare, Ireland; LOUGH OF, an expansion of the waters of the Shannon. ALLEN, ETHAN, one of the early champions of American independence, taken prisoner in a raid into Canada; wrote a defence of deism and rational belief (1738-1789). ALLEN, GRANT, man of letters, born in Kingston, Canada, 1848, and a prolific writer; an able upholder of the evolution doctrine and an expounder of Darwinism. ALLEN, JOHN, an M.D. of Scotch birth, and a contributor to the _Edinburgh Review_ (1771-1843). ALLEN, WM., a distinguished chemist and philanthropist, son of a Spitalfields weaver, a member of the Society of Friends, and a devoted promoter of its principles (1770-1843). ALLENTOWN (34), a town on the Lehigh River, 50 m. NW. of Philadelphia, the great centre of the iron trade in the U.S. ALLE`RION, in heraldry, an eagle with expanded wings, the points turned downwards, and without beak or feet. ALLEYN, EDWARD, a celebrated actor in the reigns of Elizabeth and James I., the founder of Dulwich College, and was voluntarily along with his wife one of its first beneficiaries and inmates; was a contemporary of Shakespeare (1566-1626). AL`LIA, a stream flowing into the Tiber 11 m. from Rome, where the Romans were defeated by the Gauls under Brennus, 387 B.C. ALLIANCE, THE TRIPLE, in 1668, between England, Holland, and Sweden against Louis XIV.; the QUADRUPLE, in 1718, between France, England, Holland, and the Empire to maintain the treaty of Utrecht; the HOLY, in 1815, between Russia, Austria, and Prussia against Liberal ideas; the TRIPLE, in 1872, between Germany, Austria, and Russia, at the instigation of Bismarck, from which Russia withdrew in 1886, when Italy stepped into her place. Under it the signatories in 1887 guarantee the integrity of their respective territories. ALLIER, a confluent of the river Loire, in France, near Nevers; also the department through which it flows. ALLIES, the name generally given to the confederate Powers who in 1814 and 1815 entered France and restored the Bourbons. ALLIES, THOMAS WILLIAM, an English clergyman who turned Roman Catholic, and wrote, in defence of the step, among others, the "See of St. Peter, the Rock of the Church." ALLIGATOR, a N. American fresh-water crocodile, numerous in the Mississippi and the lakes and rivers of Louisiana and Carolina; subsists on fish, and though timid, is dangerous when attacked; is slow in turning, however, and its attacks can be easily evaded. ALLINGHAM, WILLIAM, a poet and journalist, born in Ireland, of English origin; his most celebrated works are "Day and Night Songs" and "Lawerence Bloomfield in Ireland"; was for a time editor of _Fraser's Magazine_ (1824-1889). ALLMAN, GEORGE J., M.D., Emeritus Professor of Natural History in Edinburgh, an eminent naturalist; born in Ireland (1812-1898). ALLOA (12), a thriving seaport on north bank of the Forth, in Clackmannan, 6 m. below Stirling, famous for its ale. ALLOB`ROGES, a Celtic race troublesome to the Romans, who occupied the country between the Rhone and the Lake of Geneva, corresponding to Dauphine and Savoy. ALLOPATHY, in opposition to homoeopathy, the treatment of disease by producing a condition of the system different from or opposite to the condition essential to the disease to be cured. ALLOTROPY, the capability which certain compounds show of assuming different properties and qualities, although composed of identical elements. ALLOWAY, the birthplace of Burns, on the Doon, 2 m. from Ayr, the assumed scene of Tam o' Shanter's adventure. ALLOWAY KIRK, a ruin S. of Ayr, celebrated as the scene of the witches' dance in "Tam o' Shanter." ALL-SAINTS' DAY, the 1st of November, a feast dedicated to all the Saints. ALL-SOULS' DAY, a festival on the 2nd November to pray for the souls of the faithful deceased, such as may be presumed to be still suffering in Purgatory. ALLSPICE, the berry of the pimento, or Jamaica pepper. ALLSTON, WASHINGTON, an American painter and poet, whose genius was much admired by Coleridge (1779-1843). ALMA, a river in the Crimea, half-way between Eupatoria and Sebastopol, where the allied English, French, and Turkish armies defeated the Russians under Prince Menschikoff, Sept. 20, 1854. ALMACK'S, a suite of assembly rooms, afterwards known as Willis's Rooms, where select balls used to be given, admission to which was a certificate of high social standing. ALMADEN (9), a town on the northern slope of the Sierra Morena, in Spain, with rich mines of quicksilver. ALMA`GRO, DIEGO D', a confederate of Pizzaro in the conquest of Peru, but a quarrel with the brothers of Pizzaro about the division of the spoil on the capture of Cuzco, the capital of Chile, led to his imprisonment and death (1475-1538).--DIEGO D', his son, who avenged his death by killing Pizzaro, but being conquered by Vaca de Castro, was himself put to death (1520-1542). AL-MAMOUN, the son of HAROUN-EL-RASCHID, the 7th Abbaside caliph, a great promoter of science and learning; _b_. 833. ALMANACH DE GOTHA, a kind of European peerage, published annually by Perthes at Gotha; of late years extended so as to include statesmen and military people, as well as statistical information. ALMANSUR, ABU GIAFAR, the 2nd Abbaside caliph and the first of the caliphs to patronise learning; founded Bagdad, and made it the seat of the caliphate; _d_. 775. ALMANSUR, ABU MOHAMMED, a great Moorish general in the end of the 10th century, had overrun and nearly made himself master of all Spain, when he was repulsed and totally defeated by the kings of Leon and Navarre in 948. AL`MA-TAD`EMA, LAURENCE, a distinguished artist of Dutch descent, settled in London; famous for his highly-finished treatment of classic subjects; _b_. 1836. ALMAVIVA, a character in Beaumarchais' _Marriage de Figaro_, representative of one of the old noblesse of France, recalling all their manners and vices, who is duped by his valet Figaro, a personification of wit, talent, and intrigue. ALMEIDA, a strong fortress in the province of Beira, on the Spanish frontier of Portugal. ALMEIDA, FRANCESCO, the first Portuguese viceroy of India, a firm and wise governor, superseded by Albuquerque, and killed on his way home by the Kaffirs at the Cape in 1510.--LORENZO, his son, acting under him, distinguished himself in the Indian seas, and made Ceylon tributary to Portugal. ALMERIA (37), a chief town and seaport in the S. of Spain, an important and flourishing place, next to Granada, under the Moors, and at one time a nest of pirates more formidable than those of Algiers. ALMIGHTY DOLLAR, the Almighty whom the Americans are charged with worshipping, first applied to them, it would seem, by Washington Irving. ALMOHADES, a Moslem dynasty which ruled in N. Africa and Spain from 1129 to 1273. ALMO`RA, a high-lying town at the foot of the Himalayas, 85 m. N. of Bareilly. ALMORAVIDES, a Moslem dynasty which subdued first Fez and Morocco, and then S. Spain, from 1055 to 1147. ALNWICK, the county town of Northumberland, on the Aln; at the north entrance is Alnwick Castle, the seat of the Duke of Northumberland, one of the most magnificent structures of the kind in England, and during the Border wars a place of great strength. ALOE, a genus of succulent plants embracing 200 species, the majority natives of S. Africa, valuable in medicine, in particular a purgative from the juice of the leaves of several species. ALOES WOOD, the heart of certain tropical trees, which yields a fragrant resinous substance and admits of high polish. ALOST (25), a Belgian town on the Dender, 19 m. NW. from Brussels, with a cathedral, one of the grandest in Belgium, which contains a famous painting by Rubens, "St. Roche beseeching Christ to arrest the Plague at Alost." ALOYSIUS, ST., See GONZAGA. ALOYSIUS, ST., an Italian nobleman, who joined the Society of Jesus; canonised for his devotion to the sick during the plague in Rome, to which he himself fell a victim, June 21, 1591. ALPACA, a gregarious ruminant of the camel family, a native of the Andes, and particularly the tablelands of Chile and Peru; is covered with a long soft silky wool, of which textile fabrics are woven; in appearance resembles a sheep, but is larger in size, and has a long erect neck with a handsome head. ALP-ARSLAN (Brave Lion), a sultan of the Seljuk dynasty in Persia, added Armenia and Georgia to his dominions (1030-1072). ALPES, three departments in SE. France: the BASSES-A, in NE. part of Provence, bounded by Hautes-Alpes on the N. and Var on the S., sterile in the N., fertile in the S., cap. Digne; HAUTES-A., forming part of Dauphine, traversed by the Cottian Alps, climate severe, cap. Gap; A. MARITIMES, E. of the Basses-A., bordering on Italy and the Mediterranean, made up of the territory of Nice, ceded by Italy, and of Monaco and Var; cap. Nice. ALPHE`US, a river in the Peloponnesus, flowing west, with its source in Arcadia; also the name of the river-god enamoured of the nymph Arethusa, and who pursued her under the sea as far as Sicily, where he overtook her and was wedded to her. ALPINE CLUB, a club of English gentlemen devoted to mountaineering, first of all in the Alps, members of which have successfully addressed themselves to attempts of the kind on loftier mountains. ALPINE PLANTS, plants whose natural habitat approaches the line of perpetual snow. ALPS, THE, the vastest mountain system in Europe; form the boundary between France, Germany, and Switzerland on the N. and W., and Italy on the S., their peaks mostly covered with perpetual snow, the highest being Mont Blanc, within the frontiers of France. According to height, they have been distributed into _Fore, Middle_, and _High:_ the Fore rising to the limit of trees; the Middle, to the line of perpetual snow; and the High, above the snow-line. In respect of range or extent, they have been distributed into _Western, Middle_, and _Eastern:_ the Western, including the Maritime, the Cottian, the Dauphine, and the Graian, extend from the Mediterranean to Mont Blanc; the Middle, including the Pennine and Bernese, extend from Mont Blanc to the Brenner Pass; and the Eastern, including the Dolomite, the Julian, and the Dinaric, extend from the Brenner and Hungarian plain to the Danube. These giant masses occupy an area of 90,000 sq. m., and extend from the 44th to the 48th parallel of latitude. ALPUJAR`RAS, a rich and lovely valley which stretches S. from the Sierra Nevada in Spain. ALRUNA-WIFE, the household goddess of a German family. ALSACE-LORRAINE` (1,640), a territory originally of the German empire, ceded to Louis XIV. by the peace of Westphalia in 1648, but restored to Germany after the Franco-German war in 1870-71, by the peace of Frankfort; is under a governor general bearing the title of "Statthalter"; is a great wine-producing country, yields cereals and tobacco, its cotton manufacture the most important in Germany. ALSA`TIA, Whitefriars, London, which at one time enjoyed the privilege of a debtors' sanctuary, and had, till abolished in 1697, become a haunt of all kinds of nefarious characters. ALSEN (25), a Danish island adjacent to Sleswig, one of the finest in the Baltic, now ceded to Germany. AL-SIRAT, the hair-narrow hell-bridge of the Moslem, which every Mohammedan must pass to enter Paradise. ALSTEN, an island off the coast of Northland, Norway, with seven snow-capped hills, called the Seven Sisters. ALTAI` MOUNTAINS, in Central Asia, stretching W. from the Desert of Gobi, and forming the S. boundary of Asiatic Russia, abounding, to the profit of Russia, in silver and copper, as well as other metals. ALTDOR`FER, ALBRECHT, a German painter and engraver, a distinguished pupil of Albert Duerer, and as a painter, inspired with his spirit; his "Battle of Arbela" adorns the Muenich Picture Gallery (1488-1538). AL`TEN, KARL AUGUST, a distinguished officer, native of Hanover, who entered the British service, bore arms under Sir John Moore, was chief of a division, under Wellington, in the Peninsular war, and closed his military career at the battle of Waterloo (1763-1840). AL`TENBURG (33), capital of Saxe-Altenburg, and 4 m. S. of Leipsic; its castle is the scene of the famous "PRINZENRAUB" (q. v.), related by Carlyle in his "Miscellanies." ALTHEN, a Persian refugee, who introduced into France the cultivation of madder, which became one of the most important products of the S. of France. ALTON LOCKE, a novel, by Charles Kingsley, written in sympathy with the Chartist movement, in which Carlyle is introduced as one of the personages. ALTO`NA (148), a town and seaport of Sleswig-Holstein, now belonging to Germany, close to Hamburg, on the right bank of the Elbe, and healthier, and as good as forming one city with it. ALTO-RELIEVO, figures carved out of a tablet so as to project at least one half from its surface. AL`TORF, an old town in the canton Uri, at the S. end of the Lake of Lucerne; associated with the story of William Tell; a place of transit trade. ALTRUISM, a Comtist doctrine which inculcates sacrifice of self for the good of others as the rule of human action. ALUMBRA`DO, a member of a Spanish sect that laid claim to perfect enlightenment. ALURED OF BEVERLEY, an English chronicler of the 12th century; his annals comprise the history of the Britons, Saxons, and Normans up to his own time; _d_. 1129. ALVA, DUKE OF, a general of the armies of Charles V. and Philip of Spain; his career as a general was uniformly successful, but as a governor his cruelty was merciless, especially as the viceroy of Philip in the Low Countries, "very busy cutting off high heads in Brabant, and stirring up the Dutch to such fury as was needful for exploding Spain and him" (1508-1582). ALVARA`DO, PEDRO DE, one of the Spanish conquerors of Mexico, and comrade of Cortez; was appointed Governor of Guatemala by Charles V. as a reward for his valiant services in the interest of Spain; was a generous man as well as a brave. ALVAREZ, FRANCESCO, a Portuguese who, in the 15th century, visited Abyssinia and wrote an account of it. ALVAREZ, DON JOSE, the most distinguished of Spanish sculptors, born near Cordova, and patronised by Napoleon, who presented him with a gold medal, but to whom, for his treatment of his country, he conceived so great an aversion, that he would never model a bust of him (1768-1827). ALVIANO, an eminent Venetian general, distinguished himself in the defence of the republic against the Emperor Maximilian (1455-1515). AMADEUS, LAKE, a lake in the centre of Australia, subject to an almost total drying-up at times. AMADE`US V., count of Savoy, surnamed the Great from his wisdom and success as a ruler (1249-1323). AMADEUS VIII., 1st duke of Savoy, increased his dominions, and retired into a monastery on the death of his wife; he was elected Pope as Felix V., but was not acknowledged by the Church (1383-1451). AMADEUS I., of Spain, 2nd son of Victor Emmanuel of Italy, elected king of Spain in 1870, but abdicated in 1873 (1845-1890). AM`ADIS DE GAUL, a celebrated romance in prose, written partly in Spanish and partly in French by different romancers of the 15th century; the first four books were regarded by Cervantes as a masterpiece. The hero of the book, Amadis, surnamed the Knight of the Lion, stands for a type of a constant and deferential lover, as well as a model knight-errant, of whom Don Quixote is the caricature. AMADOU, a spongy substance, consisting of slices of certain fungi beaten together, used as a styptic, and, after being steeped in saltpetre, used as tinder. AMAIMON, a devil who could he restrained from working evil from the third hour till noon and from the ninth till evening. AMALARIC, king of the Visigoths, married a daughter of Clovis; _d_. 581. AMALEKITES, a warlike race of the Sinaitic peninsula, which gave much trouble to the Israelites in the wilderness; were as good as annihilated by King David. AMAL`FI, a port on the N. of the Gulf of Salerno, 24 m. SE. of Naples; of great importance in the Middle Ages, and governed by Doges of its own. AMALFIAN LAWS, a code of maritime law compiled at Amalfi. AMA`LIA, ANNA, the Duchess of Weimar, the mother of the grand-duke; collected about her court the most illustrious literary men of the time, headed by Goethe, who was much attached to her (1739-1807). AMALRIC, one of the leaders in the crusade against the Albigenses, who, when his followers asked him how they were to distinguish heretics from Catholics, answered, "Kill them all; God will know His own;" _d_. 1225. AMALTHE`A, the goat that suckled Zeus, one of whose horns became the cornucopia--horn of plenty. AMA`RA SINHA, a Hindu Buddhist, left a valuable thesaurus of Sanskrit words. AMA`RI, MICHELE, an Italian patriot, born at Palermo, devoted a great part of his life to the history of Sicily, and took part in its emancipation; was an Orientalist as well; he is famous for throwing light on the true character of the Sicilian Vespers (1806-1889). AMARYL`LIS, a shepherdess in one of Virgil's pastorals; any young rustic maiden. AMA`SIA (25), a town in Asia Minor, once the capital of the kings of Pontus. AMA`SIS, king of Egypt, originally a simple soldier, took part in an insurrection, dethroned the reigning monarch and assumed the crown, proved an able ruler, and cultivated alliances with Greece; reigned from 570 to 546 B.C. AMA`TI, a celebrated family of violin-makers; Andrea and Niccolo, brothers, at Cremona, in the 16th and 17th centuries. AMATITLAN (10), a town in Guatemala, the inhabitants of which are mainly engaged in the preparation of cochineal. AMAUROSIS, a weakness or loss of vision, the cause of which was at one time unknown. AMAZON, a river in S. America and the largest on the globe, its basin nearly equal in extent to the whole of Europe; traverses the continent at its greatest breadth, rises in the Andes about 50 m. from the Pacific, and after a course of 4000 m. falls by a delta into the Atlantic, its waters increased by an immense number of tributaries, 20 of which are above 1000 m. in length, one 2000 m., its mouth 200 m. wide; its current affects the ocean 150 m. out; is navigable 3000 m. up, and by steamers as far as the foot of the Andes. AMAZONS, a fabulous race of female warriors, who had a queen of their own, and excluded all men from their community; to perpetuate the race, they cohabited with men of the neighbouring nations; slew all the male children they gave birth to, or sent them to their fathers; burnt off the right breasts of the females, that they might be able to wield the bow in war. AMBASSADOR, "an honest man sent to lie abroad for the commonwealth" (_Wotton_). AMBER, a fossil resin, generally yellow and semi-transparent, derived, it is presumed, from certain extinct coniferous trees; becomes electric by friction, and gives name to electricity, the Greek word for it being _electron_; has been fished up for centuries in the Baltic, and is now used in varnishes and for tobacco pipes. AMBERGER, a painter of Nuernberg in the 16th century, a disciple of Holbein, his principal work being the history of Joseph in twelve pictures. AMBERGRIS, an ashy-coloured odorous substance used in perfumery, presumed to be a morbid fragment of the intestines of the spermaceti whale, being often found floating on the ocean which it frequents. AMBERLEY, LORD, son of Lord John Russell, wrote an "Analysis of Religious Belief," which, as merely sceptical, his father took steps to secure the suppression of, without success. AMBLESIDE, a small market-town near the head of Lake Windermere, in the Wordsworth or so-called Lake District. AMBLYOPSIS, a small fish without eyes, found in the Mammoth Cave, U.S. AMBOISE (5), a town on the Loire, 14 m. E. of Tours, with a castle, once the residence of the French kings. The Conspiracy of A., the conspiracy of Conde and the Huguenots in 1560 against Francis II., Catharine de Medici, and the Guises. The Edict of A. (1563) conceded the free exercise of their worship to the Protestants. AMBOISE, GEORGE DE, CARDINAL, the popular Prime Minister of Louis XII., who, as such, reduced the Public burdens, and as the Pope's legate in France effected a great reform among the religious orders; is said to have died immensely rich (1460-1510). AMBOYNA (238), with a chief city of the name, the most important of the Moluccas, in the Malay Archipelago, and rich before all in spices; it belongs to the Dutch, who have diligently fostered its capabilities. AM`BROSE, ST., bishop of Milan, born at Treves, one of the Fathers of the Latin Church, and a zealous opponent of the Arian heresy; as a stern puritan refused to allow Theodosius to enter his church, covered as his hands were with the blood of an infamous massacre, and only admitted him to Church privilege after a severe penance of eight months; he improved the Church service, wrote several hymns, which are reckoned his most valuable legacy to the Church; his writings fill two vols. folio. He is the Patron saint of Milan; his attributes are a _scourge_, from his severity; and a _beehive_, from the tradition that a swarm of bees settled on his mouth when an Infant without hurting him (340-397). Festival, Dec. 7. AMBRO`SIA, the fragrant food of the gods of Olympus, fabled to preserve in them and confer on others immortal youth and beauty.
|