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GERSTEIN SCIENCE INFORMATION CENTRE
THE
ENGLISH CYCLOPAEDIA.
ilcfo JDictionaru of SSmbersal
CONDUCTED BY CHARLES KNIGFIT.
BIOGRAPHY. VOLUME I.
LONDON :
BRADBURY AND EVANS, 11, BOUVERIE STREET.
1856.
THE
ENGLISH CYCLOPEDIA.
BIOGRAPHY.
The names of thoie licing at the lime of the emtinuout fabrication of tht ' XnolM Cyclopadia of Biography,' are preceded ty an asterisk.
AARON.
ABATI.
AARON", the first high-priest of the Jews. He was the elder brother
of Moses, aud was, by the express appointment of Heaveii, asso-
ciated with that illustrious legislator in the enterprise of delivering
their countrymen from Egyptian bondage, and conducting them to
the promised land. Under the direction of his brother, Aaron, who
was a ready and eloquent speaker, announced the command of God
to I'liaraoh, and attested it by the series of miracles recorded in the
earlier chapters of the book of Exodus. During the sojourn in the
wilderness he was far from manifesting the steady confidence and
undaunted disregard of popular clamour which characterised the
conduct of Moses ; but, notwithstanding his timidity and weakness,
in yielding to the demand of the multitude that he would make them
a golden calf to worship, he was consecrated to the priesthood, of
which the highest office was made hereditary in his family. Having
ascended the summit of Mount Hor, in company with Moses and his
eldest son Eleazar, he died there, after Moses, as commanded by God,
had stripped him of his sacerdotal robes, and put them upon his son.
This event happened when Aaron was in the 123rd year of his age,
forty years after the departure of the Israelites from Egypt, and,
according to the commonly received chronology, in the year B.C. 1451,
or 2553 years from the creation of the world. The history of Aaron
is to be found in the book of Exodus, and the three following books
of the Pentateuch.
ABA'NO, PIE'TRO DI, or Petrvt Apdnui, was born in 1250 at
Abano, the Roman name of which was Aponus, a village which is
5.J miles from Padua. He studied first at Padua, then went to Con-
stantinople to learn Greek, and afterwards to Paris, where he devoted
himself to mathematics and medicine. He travelled in England and
Scotland, whence he was recalled to Padua, in 1303 or 1304, to take
the professorship of medicine, then vacant. His reputation was very
great, and his charges for attendance very high. Ho combined astrology
with astronomy, and perhaps made some pretence to magic. At all
events he was regarded as a magician, and in 1306 he was brought
before the tribunal of the Inquisition as a heretic and atheist ; but
defended himself so well a., to obtain an acquittal. In 1314 he
removed to Treviso, in compliance with the invitation of the inhabit-
ants. In 1315 another accusation was brought against him before the
Inquisition ; but he died before the inquiry was completed, in the
year 1316, at the age of 66. His judges however continued the inquiry
after his death, found him guilty, and ordered his body to be burnt.
Abano wrote several works on philosophy and medicine, and made
translations of ancient and Arabic medical writers. In his expositions
there is little of his own observation or of original thought ; but in
the knowledge acquired from the works of others he was not surpassed
by any physician of his time.
AIJA'TJ, or ABBA'TI, NICCOLO', was born at Modena in 1512.
He is more frequently called Dell' Abate, but erroneously according
to the showing of Tiraboschi, as his family name was AbatL Before
Tiraboschi, Niccolo's surname was supposed to be unknown, and the
n.ime of Dell' Abate was given to him from the circumstance of his
being less known for his own works than as the assistant of Prirna-
ticcio, who was called L' Abate by the Italians, after he was made
Abb<S of St. Martin near Troyes, by Francis L of France. Abati
executed in fresco the Adventures of Ulysses and other works from
the designs of Primaticcio, for the palace of Fontainebleau, the decora-
tion of which was entrusted to Primaticcio after the death of II Rosso.
Print* from the Adventures of Ulysses, by Van Thulden. were pub-
BIOO. civ. VOL. i.
lished in Paris in 1630 : the original works were destroyed with the
building in 1738, to make room for a new structure.
Abati's own works however, in Modena and Bologna, were produc-
tions of the greatest merit, according to the Carracci ; and in a sonnet
of Agostino, which is a sort of recipe for making a great painter, he is
mentioned in conclusion as combining in himself all the required
excellences. There are few of Abati's works remaining, and the.-; are
chiefly frescoes; he seems to have painted comparatively little in oil.
It is not known who his master was, or whether he had any other
master than bis father Giovanni Abati, who was an obscure painter
and modeller of Modena. From a similarity in hU works to the style
of Correggio, some have supposed that he was a pupil of Correggio ;
he is al-o said to have studied under the sculptor Begarelli : if so he
was probably well acquainted with Correggio, with whom Begarelli
was intimate.
His earliest essays upon his own account were in partnership with
another painter, Alberto Fontaua, a practice not unusual at that period
in Italy, when there was little or no distinction between artists and
artisans in the manner of employing them or estimating their works.
In 1537 he painted with Foutana, at Modena, some frescoes in the
butchers' market, by which he obtained some reputation; and he
acquired great distinction by some frescoes in the Scandiauo Palace,
from Ariosto and the ^Eneid of Virgil, which are still extant ; they
have been engraved by Gajani. These with some conversation-pieces
and concertos in the Institute of Bologna, a Nativity of Christ under
the portico of the Leoni Palace, and a large symbolical picture in
the Via di San Mamolo, in the same city, are the only frescoes now
extant by Abati ; and his oil-pictures are likewise very scarce.
Of the works in the Institute, Zanotti has written an account
'Delle Pitture di Pellegrino Tibaldi e Niccolo Abbati,' &c., in which
there are engravings of them : Malvasia also has given a laudatorv
description of them : they have been compared with the works o'f
Titian. The Nativity of the Leoni Palace, which has been engraved
by Gondolfi, is mentioned in the highest terms by Count Algarotti,
who discovered in it " the symmetry of Raphael, the nature of Titian,
and the grace of Parmegiano." Of his easel-pictures in oil the most
celebrated is the Martyrdom of St. Peter and St. Paul, a large picturo
on wood, which was painted for the Church of the Benedictines at
Modena in 1546. It is now in the Dresden Gallery, and has been
engraved by Folkema for tho 'Rccueil d'Eatampes aprfcs les plus
ccli'bres Tableaux de la Galerie de Dresde.'
From about 1546 until 1552, when he accompanied Primaticcio to
France, Abati lived in Bologna, and his Bolognese works were painted
during this interval: he died in Paris in 1571.
Abati's principal faculty was painting in fresco, in which he had
surprising facility. According to Vasari he never retouched his works
when dry, which cannot be said of many fresco-painters ; yet, says
Vasari, the paintings of an entire apartment were executed with such
uniformity that they appeared to be the work of a single day. Abati
excelled in landscape, for his period ; there is a Rape of Proserpine
in the Duke of Sutherland's collection, of which the background is
an extensive landscape ; it was formerly in the Orleans Gallery, and
was sold at the sale in this country for 160J.
Several of Abati's relations also distinguished themselves as painters :
bis brother Pietro Paolo was a clever horse and battlo painter ; his son
Giulio Camillo, bis gruml-on Ercole, and his great grandson Pietro
Paolo the younger, were all painters of ability, especially Ercole, who
ABAUZIT FIRMIN
ABBAS THE GREAT.
a* w u
.-.:.
JtoWBMs.MrfMlfcA.
V f**ri tti Jfittaat. TbrabosohL AalMt *V
A^I^IWllK! bar. 1T, di*d 1WT. aged .ST. Hfc> taUjr
i aa Arahiaa ahraWaa, who sattM at ToolooM to
H* was bora * Data, m Uaga.dnc. of protattaat
*jaa| *ir**a>*taa**. tad lost hi* nvther when b* was only
of
h* ristUd Oetmaay, Holland, France,
Him of many wolneot mea, among
Kiac William wished to retain him to
to Onera. Tb*r* h* took part to
which appeared to 1726. and
. far Us W2oa*. In 1727 the
oo him the righta of citiMnahip.
I* oa* *f th* ato* resasrksnl* iadaaoe* on record of a combina-
tW *f aairwaUHy tad depth of taming. Ery man who talked
with Ahaaatt *a hi* oa narUesOar atady, imagined that, whatever
be, hi* asMeial attention had been reserved
caaang. X*wtoa sd.li.sii.l him-lf to
;> d*id* between him and LeibniU.
, thought b* had pasted his life to the
* be had devoted himself to the study
at sacisat axMte. Ia" hi* temper h* WM siaguUrly mild and enduring
For a asaa of hi* attainments w* have not much remaining
Whh Ik* tutatina of some antiquarian papers, to Spon's
*> la TB* d* Ofa**** aad th* Journal Helrelique,' b*
"is war* published after
Urtih*
pt were burnt by his
from hit own, which were
king of the M*w Islands, became known to
of th* wreck of th* East India Company's
ind of Oroolong, on* of th* group of the
10th of August, 17SS. The unfortunate mariners were
by th* aatJw, and were *oon honoured with visit from
it h* had a*r*r awa a white man, nor any rtesd larger
hk> Mrpria* WM unbounded ; but it WM the effect of
s most attracted hit attention. It was not long before
h* laitaarf WOMa, th* captain of th* AnUlope, to grant him assistance
hit van with th* adghnnnrmg islander, in four several expeditions,
wtkft w*r* gaMntty nader Ik* command of Abba Thulle himself.
TW amrrl mod* of attack of th* stracucer. proved to effectire, that on
th* las* lllian* th* ptopl. of Artinrall, the island against which the
attack vat dtrittad. Mbmtttad without reeistance to the king of Pelew.
WhsM Ihi* WM going on, the rest of the Antelope't crew, and all at
other ttaita, wtr* *agag*d m bnilding a r**rl, then- own baring gone
ia which they hoped to b* abl* to tak* passage to China;
b work Abba Thnttt, who took a great interest to it, rendered
When th* TOSM! WM computed, h* declared
I hit second ton, Lee Boo, to hi* new friends,
mthk
that h* aaght atnti|iaiy tba aad tee th* wonders of Europe. On
th* ISU *f Xotambar. 1788. th* Oroolong (to called from the Island
*Wr b WM baft) proceeded on It* royage, to preaenc* of the king
aatl a lary* **awan* of Ik* pwpl* of I View, who took an affectionate
W. rftWfrtatKl*, and WU.I them with prs*tiu. Lee Boo. after
a taadwaartdtg with hto father, acoompanUd them; but a seaman,
MM* BlaiaWd. drfkjbtad with hb protMcta at th* ialaoda, totktad
a ratjalabMT btkfarf. B*fcr aailiag, Abba Thull* bad proclaimed
Engiithm*n'. Land.' and It WM formally taken pottet-
of King Oorg* III. Captain Wil-oii brought Lee
hwt h* afcrtuuMily died toon afterwards. In 1790
ly rwotvad to amd out an expedition to Pelew,
of Informing Abba Thulle of th* death of his
th* Compaoy's sou* of hit kindn*t* to th*
-Unf him with a quantity of live stock, and u-e-
Mm+mtlmjim** A.aw^h^ylh.'Paniw'Md^KTdMTour,'
!? Til!. ** a? 1 * . M<a "*. *! ** < th.ir officer.
*IBM Wldto aad W*4*^harMtt*4. who had bam with Captato Wilson,
f tn Bo* wHh
tf-WMl..*!,
UkbalhMB
t.ttre*oyl
wrte*
for a tim*. and then
" IPH'fTgood).
;.,, :,.-.
"--' .with th*
son, and
ited with
but it
the grwt oann of the
mrtignty WM rttioh>d,
WM iriren up to Abba Thulle without bloodshed. The expedition left
I'elew IB 1701, but returned to 1793. Abba Thulle had died ia the
meantime, about three mouth, after the expedition had left Pelew, or
la August, 1701. He WM luppoeed to be nearly seventy yean of age,
and WM *uoo**d*d by hii only surviving brother, who had been till
thro " clow am kooker," or, general of the troops. Abba Thulle IIM
been called the IVter the Qreat of Pelew, but it would be bard to nay
for what reason ; hli thought* ran upon war, and war only, and much
of hi* hospitality to Wilson and hia craw may be attributed to the
they gave him against hia enemies. (Keato, Account of the
ABDAS TH E < : UK AT, or, with liis full name, Shah Abbot Bahadur
ATA**, WM the fifth King of the SuS dynasty which ascended the
throne of Persia in the year 1501 of our era. During the latter part
of tbe reign of Shah Mohammed Khodabende, his father, ho ailed the
situation of governor in the province of Khorasan ; and on the death
of that prince in 1586 succeeded him in the government Kboraaan
bad just then been occupied by the Usbeki, and it WM the first object
of Shah AbbM to recover possession of it But his efforts proved for
a time ineffectual. Not being able to take Herat, the capital of Kho-
rasan, from the Unbeks, he wu obliged to content himself with leaving
a garrison at Meshhed, and even this town, considered M sacred by the
Sbiites on account of the tomb of a celebrated Mohammedan saint,
Imam Ali Ken, fell again into the bauds of the enotny. About the
same time the internal peace of Persia was interrupted by a revolt at
Itttkbar, which WM however soon repressed, and terminated with the
execution of the prime mover, Yakub Khan. The year 1590 WM
distinguished by victories in Qilun and Azerbijaii over the Turks, who
had collected a considerable force on tbe banks of the river Kur, and
threatened Persia with an invasion. The Turks lost, through this
campaign, their influence in Qilan, but retained for the present posse*'
sion of th* fortresses of Nuhavend, Tebriz, Tillic, and utmost the
whole of Aierbijan and Georgia. During this time, one of the generals
of AbbM conquered the province of Lar in the south, and the Bahrein
Islands to the Pertitn Gulf, important on account of thtir pearl
fithery.
Tbe Usbeks still remained masters of Khorasan, and, owing to their
desultory mode of carrying on their attacks, many attempts at bringing
them to a regular action had failed. At last however in the year
1597, t!iey were totally defeated by the Persian troops, near Herat, and
Khorasan WM for a long time release.) from their predatory incursions.
Two English knights, Sir Anthony, and his brother Sir Robert
Shirley, arrived about this time M private travellers in Persia. They
were honourably received by Shah AbbM, whose confidence they soon
gained to such a degree, that while Sir Robert Shirley remained to
Persia, his brother Sir Anthony was sent as envoy from the Persian
court to the Christian princes of Europe, to offer them the Shah's
friendship, chiefly with a view to tome future common undertaking
against the Turks, who were then the terror of Kurope. [SHIRLEY.]
Between Persia and Turkey hostilities were still carried on. Nuba
vend, Tebrix, and Baghdad were taken ; a Turkish army of 100,000 men
WM defeated by about half that number of Persians; Abbas recovered
Azerbijan, Shirwan, part of Georgia, and Armenia, and subsequently
also Kurdistan, Mosul, and Diarbekir; and the Turks were ever after
this victory kept in check. They formed a league with the Tartars of
Kaptchak, but the united forces of both were vanquished to a battle
fought between Sultanieh and Tebriz, 1618, the last memorable battle
that occurred during the reign of Shah Abbas. Negotiations were
then commenced between Abbas and the Sultan at Constantinople ;
but insurrections and conflict* in the frontier provinces, fomented and
secretly instigated by the Turkish government, still continued for
some time.
Shah AbbM encouraged the trade of Europeans with Persia : he
protects I the factories which the English, the French, and the Dutch
bad at Gombroon; but he looked with jealousy on the flourishing
establishment of the Portuguese on the small island of Ormuz, situated
near the entrance of the Persian Gulf, which bad been in their posaea-
sion ever since 1607, when Albuquerque occupied it, and had now
become the emporium of an extensive commerce with India, Persia,
Arabia, and Turkey. This settlement the Persians and the English
East India Company agreed to attack with joint forces. The English
furnished tbe naval, the Persians the military, forces ; and the island
WM taken on the 22nd April, 1622. For this service the English
received part of the plunder, and a grant of half the customs at the
port of Gombroon ; but their hopes of further advantages for their
commerce in these part* were frustrated, and the mission of Sir
Dodmoro Cotton from England to the Persian court, to 1627, likewise
failed in procuring them.
After a reign ofupwards of forty years, Shah AbbM died at Kaswto
to 1028. Like most of the monarch s of the Sufi dynasty, he was exces-
sively cruel, and haty in awarding capital punishment, often on very
slight grounds. All bis i ons fell victims to his suspicion and jen!
only one grandson survived him, who succeeded him on the throne as
Shah Sufi. AbbM WM a zealous Shiite, and used to make frequent
pilgrimage* to tbe tomb of Imam All Reza, at Meshhed ; but ho
abowrd great tolerance to those that profe*od other regions, and
nweUllj to Christians. His belief in astrology WM so firm that he
ren vacated the throne for a short period during which it had
ABBASIDES.
ABBASIDES.
been predicted that danger menaced the life of the Shah. He made
Isfahan the capital of the empire, and embellished that town by magni-
ficent gardens and palaces. He favoured commerce, and rendered
the communications in the interior easier by caravanserais and high-
ways.
(Malcolm, History of Pertia.)
ABBASIDES. The name of this family of sovereigns is derived
rom their ancestor, Abbas ben Abd-al-Motalleb, a paternal uncle of
the Arabian prophet Mohammed. On account of their descent from
so near a relation of the prophet, the Abbaaides had, ever since the
introduction of the Islam, been held in very high esteem among the
Arabs, and had at an early period begun to excite the jealousy of the
Ommaiade kalifs, who, after the defeat of Ali ben Abi-Taleb, the son-
in-law of Mohammed (A.D. 661), occupied the throne of the Arabian
empire. The Abbaaides had already for some time asserted their claims
to the kalifat, in preference to the reiguing family, when, hi 746, they
formed a strong party, and commenced open hostilities against the
government of the Ommaiades in the province of Khorasau. Three
years afterwards (749) the Abbaside Abul-Abbas Abdallah ben Moham-
med, surnatned Al-Saffah, or 'the bloodhedder,' was recognised as
kalif at Kufa. A battle on the banks of the river Zab, not far from
Mosul (in the same neighbourhood where, more than a thousand years
before, the battle of Gaugamela had made Alexander master of the
Persian empire), decided (Jan. 750) the ruin of the Ommaiades.
Merwan II., the last kalif of that lineage, fled before the advancing
forces of Al-Saffah from Mosul to Emesa, thence to Damascus, and
finally to Egypt, where he was overtaken and killed. So great was the
hatred of the victorious party against the vanquished royal family,
that not less than ninety Ommaiades were doomed to a cruel and igno-
minious death, while even the remains of those that were already dead
were t;iken out of their tombs, and publicly insulted. A survivor of
the fallen dynasty, Abd-alrahman, a grandson of the kalif Hesham,
escaped to Spain, the westernmost province of the Arabian empire.
There his name prqcured him a favourable reception ; he was saluted
as king, and an Ommaiade lineage continued to reign for nearly three
centuries (756-1031) over the eight Mohammedan provinces of Spain.
Al-Saffah died in 753, and was succeeded in the kalifat by his
brother Al-Mansur (753-774), who removed the seat of government
from Damascus to the new-built city of Baghdad. He was successful
in wars with the Turcomans, and with the Grecian empire in Asia
Minor ; but the internal tranquillity of hia reign was often disturbed
by insurrections in the distant provinces. In the reign of his son,
Mohdi (774-784), a Mohammedan army, under the command of the
youthful Harun-al-Rashid, penetrated the Grecian provinces of Lesser
Asia as far as the Hellespont. During the short reign of Mohdi's SOD,
Hadi (784-786), an attempt at an overthrow of the Abbaside dominion
was made at Medina by Hossein, a descendant of Ali ben Abi-Taleb.
Hadi was followed by the celebrated Hanm-al-Kashid, a grandson
of Al-Mansur, whose early military exploit* have already been alluded
to. When called to the throne, he soon displayed a love of justice and
peace, and a zeal for literature and the arts, which corresponded to his
valour as a military commander. He opened friendly communications
with Charlemagne ; the presents which he sent him (among others a
curious sort of clock, a description of which is given by Eginhard),
while they show the regard which he entertained for his great Euro-
pean contemporary, afford at the same time an illustration of the
progress which the mechanical arts must at that time have made
among the Arabs. In conducting the internal affairs of his empire,
Harun was chiefly guided by his two ministers, Yahya and Jafar, of
the ancient Persian family of the Barmekides, whose ancestors had
through many generations, previous to the introduction of the Islam,
held the hereditary office of priests at the fire-temple of Balkh. But
the high degree of popularity which the Bannckides enjoyed aroused
Harun's jealousy, and the rashness and cruelty with which he indulged
himself in his suspicion by putting to death not only the two ministers,
but almost all their relations, form an odious exception to the praise
of mildness and equity with which his memory is honoured by eastern
chronicle. The epoch of his reign has, in the remembrance of
Mohammedan nations, become the golden age of their dominion. The
wealth and the adopted luxury of the conquered nations had given to
social life that refinement, and to the court of Baghdad that splendour,
of which such lively pictures are exhibited in many of the tales of
the ' Arabian Nights." Flourishing towns sprung up in every part of
the empire; traffic by land and by sea increased with the luxury of
the wealthy classes; and Baghdad rivalled even Constantinople in
magnificence.
To wage war against the infidels was with the Arabs a matter of
religion and of faith ; as soon therefore as a conquered nation embraced
the Mohammedan belief, it was no longer regarded as siftject to the
victors, but was raised to an equality with them, and formed an
integral part of the same body. The different elements of the empire
were thus held together by the tie of a common religion, and the
laniruage of the Koran (which the Mahommedans have always deemed
it unlawful to profane by translations) became the medium of commu-
nication for the nations from the banks of the Indus to those of the
Tagus and the Ebro. The supreme pontificate and the secular sove-
reignty, the two elements whose conflict forms the prominent feature
in the history of the Christian world during the middle ages, were in
the Mohammedan empire united in the person of the kalif, who,
invested with the mantle, signet, and staff of the Prophet, and bearing
the title of Emir-al-Mumenin (that is, Commander of the Faithful),
wielded the supreme spiritual and temporal rule without any other
restriction or control besides the ordinances of the established religion.
The only formal recognition of the sovereignty of the kallfs (and sub-
sequently of all other independent Mohammedan princes) was the
prerogative of having the money of the state stamped with their name,
and of having their name also introduced into the public prayers at
the mosques. According to the ancient Persian plan, the several pro-
vinces of the empire were governed by delegates, with military and
administrative powers. But this system soon proved fatal to the
kalifat ; for the lieutenants in the distant parts of the empire would
often revolt, and aspire to independent authority. On an expedition
to Khorasan, undertaken against such a disloyal satrap, Haruu died
at Tus, in 808.
The throue was for some years contested between his two sons,
Amin and Mamun ; but in 813 Mamun came to the sole and undis-
puted possession of it. His reign (813-833) forms an important epoch
in the history of science and literature, the cultivation of which was
conspicuously patronised by that kalif. The Arabs were avowed bor-
rowers in science ; they were chiefly indebted to the Hindoos and the
Greeks; and even what they received from these nations seems often
to have exceeded their comprehension. Their claims to originality of
invention, and to the merit of having made real additions to the stock
of our knowledge, are not great ; but they are entitled to our gratitude
for having kept alive and diffused tho light of letters, and for having
preserved a sort of scientific tradition from classical antiquity, during
an age when science and literature in Europe lay buried under ignor-
ance and barbarism. Mamun founded colleges and libraries in the
principal towns of his dominions, such as Baghdad, Bassora, Kufa, and
Nishabur. Syrian physicians, and Hindoo mathematicians and astro-
nomers, lived at his court; and works on astronomy, mathematics,
metaphysics, natural philosophy, and medicine, were translated from
the Sanscrit and Greek into Arabic. Mamun took personally a parti-
cular interest in astronomy. He built observatories, had accurate
instruments constructed, improved by their means the astronomical
tables, and caused a degree of the meridian to be measured in the
sandy desert between Palmyra and Kacca oa the Euphrates. At his
command, Mohainmed-ben-Musa wrote an elementary treatise on
algebra, the earliest systematic work extant on that branch of mathe-
matics, for their knowledge of which, as well as for much of their
astronomy, the Arabs seem to be chiefly indebted to the Hindoos.
The investigation of the structure of their own language, and the
systematic development of the Mobammedaq theology and jurispru-
dence, both founded chiefly on the Koran, afforded an opportunity of
applying practically the principles of the Aristotelian philosophy.
The period of prosperity which the Arabian empire enjoyed under
Harun-al-Rasbid and Mamun was only of short duration. The chival-
rous enthusiasm with which Mohammed had inspired his nation became
soon extinguished under voluptuousness and love of enjoyment. Many
provinces in the west (Spain, Fez, and Tunis) had already shaken off
their allegiance to the kalifat, and the attachment of others in the East
was likewise doubtful. From the north the empire was threatened
by the Turks, some tribes of whom had been compelled to adopt the
Mohammedan religion. Turkish youths were soon brought as merce-
naries to Baghdad, and Motasem (833-842), the brother and successor
of Mamun, formed of them a body-guard, which, under the reign of
Vathek (842-846), Motawakkel (846-861), and Montaser (861, 862),
became to the kalifat what the pnetorian guards had been under
the Roman emperors. Mostai'n (862-866) was obliged to concede to
them the privilege of electing their own commander, and thus lost
much of his authority at home, while the provinces of his empire were
infested by invasions from the Greeks. Under his successor, Motaz
(866-868), a native of Sejestan, Yakub-al-Laith, surnamed Al-Soffar
(that is, the brazier), made himself master of Khorasan, Kerman, Persia
proper, and Khuzistan, and united these provinces into an independent
kingdom, with Nishabur for its capital, which continued in the posses-
sion of his family (the Soffarides) till 917.
The successors of Motaz were Mohtadi (868, 869), Motamed (869-
892), Motadhed (892-902), Moktafi (902-907), Moktader (907-932), and
Kahir (932-934). Under the reign of Radhi (934-940) the disorder of
the empire had reached such a height, that the kalif, in order to
restore public order and tranquillity, was obliged to call Mohammed-
ben-Rayek, the governor of Wasith, to Baghdad, and to confide to him,
with the title of Emir-al-Omara, or Commander of the Commanders,
an almost unlimited authority in the government. From this timo
the kalifat became a mere nominal dignity; all the efficient power was
in the hands of tho mighty Emirs-al-Omara. After the short reign of
Mottaki (940-943), Mostakfi (943, 944) came to the kalifat; but he was
soon dethroned by Moizzeddaula the Buide (properly Bawaihide),
who, in concert with his two brothers, had rendered himself master
of a great part of Persia and Irak. Moizzeddaula conferred the kalifat,
now limited to the mere pontifical dignity and to tho possession of tho
town of Baghdad, on Mothi Lilian (946-973), and reserved to himself
the powerful office of Emir-al-Omara, which continued hereditary in
his family during the kalifat of Tayi-lillah (973-991), and Kadir-billah
(991-1031), till the year 1056, when, in the kalifat of Kaim-b'iamr-illah
ABDALLATIF.
to UM
Natir(li7-122<!). during wboat
I^UM Tatars woWOat^KbaaiiavaJodP'nia. Dahir ooeoptod
t_ f- Ijfcj l fnjr . * tB.-M.ik. Illi innsma nr M
!* **> ^ 1 J ** *" BKJOMMfc OJi BWCTJBBBtOr, t
d PW ft ita*> A T^MfWM iwAaAsMMM to UM ftdTMot of IM
tt^ssasA t^B>4 k kal aarMt if s^slak^sMVJ* Wai a4a*B^ss^ntMi at^aft Bt iH^arl t>W tlftat
r Htjtaka. wbo took Baghdad, Md pot a> od to UM gmnuaont
ir. i.dtoKcypt.whrreSulUiiIl.l*,
him a* kabT But IM woo mat hit
ibUsk hi* right to UM throne of
tin till* of \' tu on ainHtm
ewduU, vndOT UM proUeUoo
afflhl
Emt till 1417. whs* UM Uaman Turin conquered Egypt Sultan
Bate took the bat Abbatide kalif. MotewakkeL to Constantinople,
where be kept Usa for aoaaa tiaM aa a priaonor. bl afterward, allowed
In* to ratam to Egypt, wbero he lived at Cairo till his death, to ISM.
ABBOT. CHABCBB, [Cobauern, Loan.)
ABBOT. CHARLK& (tnrrtwa, LOB&]
ABBOT. UEURQE. m EagUah prelate of UM 17th century. He
was bom to IMS. at Uuildfard, to Surrey, where hit father waa a
ker. From UM granunar-ecbool of Us native town he
lUol CoUege, Oxford, in 1578, and in 1S7 obtained his
r being elected Matter of fniversity College. After
ItaMa appointed Vica-ChaooaUor of the University.
; which he enjoyed has been attributed as much to
Uu.
Tb.
ssjMrior bitty or I
ht ad Laud that
and Anninianiam as to his
t Mk>^M|nameitM wl
BM& H ne OM / eijbl to wboa U
MM. *Hk UM nwptioB of UM EfieUtm,
w .niillil rfcihlej to UM Mtibliihn
rr 1 of theological sentiment, which,
Involving thrm eveBtoally In political hostility and In a oonteat of
ptrscsMl atabHinti, aaade them rivsla and eoemiea for life. The Master
of faiveralty Passage, bowerer, asnst have been to considerable tstssm
sr ha. sraiikassi aa well aa far hie orthodoxy, seeing that we And him
to I l an* UM |raana charged with the new translation of UM
UM whole of the New Taste-
i intrusted. In 1608 be
I of UM Earl of Dunbar,
at the. tisae UM kiag's ebief favourite. Boon after the earl w
4eapatobed I* Saaajand to order to tnmmsnci. that attempt to bring
i Hi i Mm alliintl ulniinss ulilili in jissUi
root bto of the line of Stuart. Abbot
I hiaa OB this mMoo. and gave himself to ite object with
> Ml as to secnre UM highest approbation and favour both
reh. He had in 160 obtained the deanery
, and to DeeaaUr of the earn* year he was made Bishop
In UM February-following ha was traoe-
and. in little mora than a month after
i rcnbiahop.it of Canterbury. Abbot,
his UMOMD wat of a afferent oompUxion from that of his
W LiekfcM rf Ca^nUr. l
*m4 to UM aaa of LOB&B,
BBB^^H. WBM BI'B^^J bk AB^B
ewnaea to IM
If aearetly lea inclmed to
were awl prerofaUrai of hi.
bia oondoot WM ae arUlnu-T
ea^ ne wW bad
ii|iriir to tba of bodi UM
I . >. :
UM oadeataaueal trOmal; and
wattle* to eet op iu authority a*
aod UM common kw. It U abw
MaB^awt.,t to Utoatteative^ortrtMariiisi towards
ir^er wwkteg clergy, la other reapers, he wat aotire and
i m the isrfcimtnai of UM duties of his hlffa
' B rii ft ^ =I * li ' <lo * fc - of
^BBBBI^W Vfa^HUtBBBBBI |BJ MMfT
*, ho.tiei. wben lliiiiiailiiiiiii placed him to
. o, oiai, wea enaaMtaoo* n<
^etio. to tb. rUac UiMo. of hi. oM adfman lU
*4of aa4 art jfa.riMlat M U polrtioe, M well M
M*4 a* fcr a* |ijili trooi thoee of tbat boadlot
The party to whom Abbot was opposed, employed every effort
tare thttacei&at to hit dindvantage, both with the public and
with the kin. ; and Jam**, although he very sensibly remarked that
"aa7ange4mV >* nitoarried in this sort," found it necessary to
anotot a oiinimUsini to consider the case of the archbishop, and to
pfcathsr he had not, by this act of chance medley, inca-
i| MT 'f aa Laud and bis partisans asserted, fur discharging
dntie* of his nmftt The adjudication of the commissioners was,
infer more than M irregularity had bora committed, but that
t wouldbe neosstary for the archbishop to receive the king's pardon,
dispensation before he could resume the exercise of his
Tbea* formt were accordingly gone through ; but the
fm+. nn great vexation and distress to Abbot, both from the scandal
o which H subjected him, and from the feelings with which ho natu-
rally contemplated the event of which he had been unintentionally
he oauaa. It i. said that, throughout the remainder of his life, ho
observed a monthly fast on the day of the week which had thus
rt^hv^ his band with blood ; and he also settled a pension of twenty
pounds for life on Hawkins's widow. After this he withdrew for somo
fane from bis attendance at the Council Board, and took no part in
public aftaira, Tbe following year, however, on hearing it reported
Jut the king intended to proclaim a toleration to the Papist*, he
wrote a letter to his majesty, dissuading him from that measure. He
aha, soon after this, strenuously opposed in parliament the projected
m .t*t. between the Prince of Wales and the Infanta of Spain. On
the 2nd of February, 1626, Abbot crowned Charles I. in Westminster
Abbey, Land officiating as Dean of Westminster. The new reign
confirmed the ascendancy of Laud and Buckingham, and left the
archbishop and his politics leas influence at court than ever. In these
circumstances he selected and steadily persevered in that Independent
th in which alone he was now to find either honour or safety. In
6S7, when Dr. Manwaring was brought to the bar of the House of
Lords, and sentenced to be fined, admonished, suspended, and im-
prisoned, for a sermon in which he asserted tbat " the king is not
sound to observe the laws of the realm concerning the subject's rights
and liberties, but that his royal will and command in imposing loans
and taxes, without common consent in parliament, doth oblige the
subjects' conscience upon pain of eternal damnation," Abbot, in
' landing the culprit, by order of the House, expressed in energetic
his abhorrence of so audacious a doctrine. He also refused to
another discourse of a similar description, which had been
preached at Northampton by Dr. Sibthorp, and for this he was sus-
pended from his archiepiaoopal functions, and ordered into confine-
nent in one of bis country houses. This most arbitrary and oppressive
treatment was mainly the work of bis vindictive enemy Laud, whoso
character, accordingly, the archbishop has delineated with a pen dipped
in gall, in a narrative of the affair which he drew up in his own
vindication, and which Rushworth has printed. It was found neces-
sary however, soon after, to restore him to favour, and ho received
ais summons as usual to the parliament, which assembled in March,
1628. During the rest of his life ho continued the same course of
opposition to the arbitrary and oppressive measures of the court.
He died at bis palace of Croydon, on Sunday, the 4th of August, 1 C33,
and was buried in Trinity Church, Ouildford, where a costly monu-
ment waa erected to his memory. He was the founder of a well-
endowed hospital, which still exists in that town ; and other instances
art recorded of his charity and munificence.
Archbishop Abbot U the author of several literary productions,
among which are an ' Exposition on the Prophet Jonah,' published
in 1600, and 'A Brief Description of the whole World," published
i. ;.
Tke
. !5*r'i M -* **% *. tonoW br an cos
"fat took a%Ml advantage. On the 24th of
JJy. ins, UM ar^hia. ., ^ J^sjeJ > nynsjnt In Lord Zonch't
; l V M *5'r if *> * ***"* from hu
-TUM pM^etcws. F*t, Hawktaa, to UM Bon.
left am, and n.iin* ii fine nWaoWfa lees than au
Hnlanmca ; Wood, Alhaue Oxoniciutt, by Bliss; Fuller,
Eoyiitk H'orUia; Bayla, Dictumaairt Critique; Rushworth, CW-
Ufiion ; Southey, Book o/ (Ac <7ArcA.)
ABUALLATIK, or, with hi. full name, Momtf&cddin Abu Mokam-
td AUattf bt )/ bt* Mokammtd ben AU ben Abi Said, a
distinguished Arabic writer, whose name has became familiar to us
chieBy through an excellent description of Egypt, of which ho is the
author. The Baron 8ilve.tr. da Sacy has appended to hU French
> of this tnatiac, a notice of the life of Abdallatif, taken
jrom UM bibliographical work of Ebn-Abi-Osaibia, who knew A
latif personally, and to a gnat extent quotes an account of his lifo
written by himself.
We laarn from this notice that Abdallatif was born at Baghdad in
7 (A.0. 1161). From his earliest years he received a lettered
oeation. Agreeably to the prevailing fashion of his age and country,
wniob considered a thorough familiarity with the copious and classical
Arabic Unman as the indispensable groundwork for every liberal
eownt, h waa Ud to commit to memory the Koran, the much-
Makamat, r novels of Hariri, and other compositions dis-
for tlie purity and elegance of their diction, besides Koverul
LS.i^EiL l T. Un i!L on i' ty i a l r * r inm r - NMt * the *
adiaa, be bad already bestowed some attention on
Mulman jurisprudence, when the arrival at Baghdad of Ebn-al-
i, a naturalist from the western provinces of the Arabian empire,
is curiosity towards natural philosophy and alchemy, of
the illusory nature of which Utter pur.uit he seems not till late, and
neb watte of time and labour, to have convinced hit.
ABD-EL-KADER.
ABD-EL-KADER.
10
Damascus, the residence of Saladin, had about this time, through
the liberality of that celebrated sultan, become a rallying point for
learned men from all parts of the Mohammedan dominions. It is
here that we find Abdallatif commencing his literary career by the
publication of several works, mostly on Arabic philology. But the
celebrity of several scholars then residing in Egypt, among others the
Rabbi Moses Maimonides, drew him to that country to seek their
personal acquaintance. A letter from Fadhel, the vizir of S-iladin,
introduced him at Cairo, and he was delivering lectures there while
Saladin was engaged with the crusaders at Acca (St. Jean d'Acre).
Soon, however, the news of Saladin's truce with the Franks (1192)
induced Abdallatif to return to Syria, and he obtained from Saladin
a lucrative appointment at the principal,mosque of Damascus. After
the death of Saladin, which took place in the next year, we find
Abdallatif going back to Cairo, where he lectured on medicine and
other sciences, supported for a time by Al-Aziz, the son and successor
of Saladin. It was during this residence at Cairo that Abdallatif
wrote his work on Egypt. But the troubles of which Egypt now
became the scene, induced Abdallatif to retire to Syria, and subse-
quently to Asia Minor, where he seems to have lived for a long time
quietly at the court of a petty prince, Alaeddin Daud, of Arzenjan.
Aftr the death of that prince (1227) he went to Aleppo, to lecture
there partly on Arabic grammar, and partly on medicine and on the
traditions, an important branch of Mohammedan theology and juris-
prudence. Four years after this, Abdallatif set out on a pilgrimage
to Mecca, and took Ms route through Baghdad, to present some of his
works to the then reigning kalif Mostanser, when he died there
in 1231.
Ebn-Abi-Osaibia has given a list of the works composed by Abdal-
latif, which, in the Arabic appendix to Baron do Sacy's translation,
fills three closely-printed quarto pages. The description of Egypt,
through which his name has become so familiar to all friends of
antiquarian research in Europe, and in which he displays an accuracy
of inquiry, and an unpretending simplicity of description almost
approaching to the character of Herodotus, is dedicated to the kalif
Nasir-ledin-illah. It is divided into two books : the first treats, in
six chapters, on Egypt generally, on its plants, its animal*, its ancient
monument)), peculiarities in the structure of Egyptian boats or vessels,
and on the kind of food used by the inhabitants ; the second book
gives an account of the Nile, the causes of its rise, &c., and concludes
with a history of Egypt during the dreadful famines of the years
1200 and 1201.
The only manuscript copy of this work, of the existence of which
we are aware, is preserved in the Bodleian Library at Oxford. From
this manuscript the Arabic text was edited for the first time at Tubin-
gen, in 1787, by Paulus, and again, with a Latin translation, by Pro-
fessor White, at Oxford, 1800, 4to. The French translation published
by Biiron de Sacy, under the title 'Relation de 1'Egypte,' &c. (Paris,
1810, 4to), besides its greater fidelity, has through the copious notes
added to it become one of the most important works that the scholar
can consult on the geography, the history, or the antiquities of
Egypt.
ABD-EL-KADER (Sidi-d-Hadji-Ouled-Mahiddin), formerly Emir
and Bey of Mascara, and celebrated for his protracted resistance to
the French arms in Algiers, was born in the early part of 1807, in the
neighbourhood of Mascara, in what is now known as the province of
Oran. [AU;KIUE, L', in OEOGIIAPHICAL DIVISION of Exo. CYC. voL i.
col. 206.] He was the third son of a marabout, of the Arab tribe of
Hashem, named Sidi-el-Hadji-Mahiddin, who had acquired great influ-
ence on account of his sanctity as well as his rank. Over the early
days of Abd-el-Kader has been thrown something of the romantic
colouring which would seem of right to belong to an Oriental hero,
and one who has figured so conspicuously in the annals of France.
He had in infancy accompanied his father in a pilgrimage to the birth-
place of the prophet. From his boyhood he had been carefully
trained in both the secular and sacred learning of his race. By open-
ing manhood he had obtained the reputation of a scholar well instructed
in the history and the literature of Arabia ; and he had crowned his
study of the Koran and its commentators by a second pilgrimage, in
1828, to Mrcca, and received in consequence the title of Hadji, or
saint. At the same time, so far from neglecting equestrian and mili-
tary exercises, though of small stature and little physical strength, he
had rendered himself remarkable even in those arts in which all his
countrymen excel the management of the horse, the lance, and the
yataghan.
When the French began seriously to push their conquests into the
interior of Algiers, Abd-el-Kader was living in retirement with his
wife and two children, distinguished by the austerity of his manners
and his strict olnervance of all the precepts of the Koran. But when
the severe measures of the Duke of Rovigo caused a general rising of
the native tribes, he joined his countrymen in arms. The father of
Abd-el-Kader had for some time been exerting all his influence to
effect a union of the tribes ; urging them to make a great and com-
bined effort to drive the- French out of the country, as then, from the
humiliated condition to which the Turks had been reduced, the Arab
might again with little trouble become the ruler of the land. The
confederation of the tribes was formed, and the chiefs besought
Mahiddin to take the direct inn of it. He refused however, ploading
that his advanced age unfitted him to act as a military leader at such
a juncture ; but he directed them to his sou as one designated by
nature and education for the purpose : and he repeated to them
various omens which had marked his birth and childhood, and related
how during the pilgrimage to Mecca an aged fakir had solemnly
announced to him that he should become Sultan of the Arabs. The
tribes acquiesced, and Abd-el-Kader was proclaimed Emir at Mascara.
Accompanied by his father he at once begau to preach a Holy War,
and to call on the faithful to assist in the expulsion of the infidels.
By the spring of 1832 Abd-el-Kader found himself at the head of
10,000 warriors. His first blow was struck in May of that year
against Oran, or Warran. The assault was several times repeated with
great impetuosity during three successive days, but was each time
repelled with heavy loss to the Arabs. Abd-el-Kader though un-
successful as far as the capture of Oran was concerned, acquired great
reputation by his personal skill and daring, and the siege is said to
have done much towards accustoming the Arabs to face artillery,
from which they had previously shrunk. Before making another
determined effort to dislodge the invaders, he resolved to extend the
basis of his power, by persuading or compelling the tribes of the
interior to acknowledge his supremacy ; and after some opposition ho
appears to have succeeded with both Kabyles and Arab?. The French
on their part were chiefly anxious to secure the cities and strong-
holds along the coast, and left the Emir to take his own course in tho
interior. So strong indeed was the desire of the French governor of
Oran, General Desmichels, to obtain a respite from any further attack
while carrying out this purpose, that he entered into a treaty (Febru-
ary 26, 1834,) with Abd-el-Kndcr, by which he agreed, on his acknow-
ledging the French supremacy, to recognise him as Emir of Mascara,
including the sovereignty of Oran, except such portions of the coast
as were in the possession of the French. Along with the sovereignty
was also ceded to him the monopoly of the commerce with the interior.
This treaty was disapproved in Paris, but to Abd-el-Kader it was of
great advantage, from the vast accession of consequence he derived in
the eyes of the natives from this formal recognition of his sovereignty
by the French authorities. But it also aroused jealousy and fear
among the chiefs, and several of them refused to submit to his preten-
sions. By one of these, Mustapha-Ben-Ismail, chief of the Douaires,
he was surprised in a night attack, and his forces routed ; the Emir
himself only escaping with extreme difficulty. Other chiefs on
receiving news of this defeat also rose against him, but he quickly
collected a considerable body of troops, and General Desmichels having
supplied him with muskets and powder, he soon forced them to
succumb.
It has been disputed whether the French or Arab general first broke
the terms of the treaty. Probably each regarded it as nothing more
than a convenient armistice, to be kept only as long as suited his
purpose. Certain it is, that Abd-el-Kader having availed himself to
the utmost of the opportunity to secure his influence over the tribes,
and to put his army into an efficient state including the training for
the first time among Arabs of a regular infantry corps, and an artillery
service crossed the ShelUf and entered Medayah in triumph, announc-
ing that he was about to expel the French. General Tivzel who had
succeeded Desmichels, at once took the field agaiust him. The armies
met on the banks of the Sig. That of the Emir was much the more
numerous ; but the superior discipline of the French amply com-
pensated for the disparity of numbers, and Abd-el-Kader, after a
resistance which extorted the admiration of his enemies, was compelled
to fall back. Trezel was however in no condition to pursue his
success. He had lost 240 men ; and the army of the Emir though
defeated, was still much the larger and well kept together. Trczel
decided to retreat towards Arzew ; and the Emir followed him. At
the Pass of Makta, where Trczel, cumbered with wounded and
baggage, was at a manifest disadvantage, the Emir fell upon him in
force (June 28, 1835), and it was only by the most desperate exertions,
and with a loss of 500 men, that the French general was able to
extricrte a portion of his army. This, the first serious check which
the French had suffered in Africa, produced the greatest excitement
among the native population. In Paris, on the other hand, it caused
much irritation, and Marshal Claueel was despatched with imperative
orders to inflict a striking punishment on Abd-el-Kader. On arriving
in Algiers the Marshal appointed a Bey of Oran, with a view to weaken
the authority of the Emir by raising up a native rival. Clausel then
marched with a considerable force upon Mascara ; but the Emir
caused the inhabitants to quit the city, and when Clausel entered it,
December 6, 1835, he found little more than bare walls. Unable to
hold the city, Clausel completed the work of ruin by setting it on
fire. Abd-el-Kader now made Tremecen, or Tlemsen, on the borders
of Morocco, his head-quarters; but on the approach of Clausel he was
forced to evacuate it, and retreat still farther into the interior.
Clausel continued his pursuit, and the Emir was again compelled to
break up his camp. Soon after a large auxiliary force, including
several thousand horsemen, who had come from Marocco to unite with
the Emir in the Holy War, was surprised and defeated ; and Clausel
returned to Algiers, boasting in his bulletins that he had effectually
destroyed the power of the redoubtable Emir. But Abd-el-Kader had
continued to follow at a distance the movements of tlie French, and
he now showed that he was still formidable, by attacking and
ABD-EL-KADER.
/ is
Ml with
UM Imfe to <** ettker by treat* er by ferea.
.eiftc PrtoreV, beA they w-.^ieeded ; ad
advenary wee kvyiaf
Wprorid^a Ur,.
befer* kirn.
Ml* eeJ mul**. e*d M abM epfJy of
Ik* (MVMaa of TU*B**a, *! hi. convoy s
ad Abd-el KAder Hill
lie* far a. uwpae. of
eeMe.1 Ik* Kmir reeolved to
i. ike op*. Md; MM! Uwy.oe their pert, had found
- to the Be> of C~eta.Ua*, wham from
In order to
ceo**. General
to Abd-el Kader for
took place oo UM bank* of
u Ta^a.U.^arW^ilijr*. a treaty was drawngp with
II fnnTj. Md loly <*gd aod sealed. May 30, 1M7, by which
"- - feds* emed to ackBoejIedfe UM eovereJcety of France. UK) to
tnbate of certain qtMAtitv of corn and cettl*; and, on UM
Wd. U we* naimiJ in hi. UUe of Kmir. and received
OK .b.1. of Oi ead Tteerf. ad e iwrtn of Algi-ra, except
MI tew**. teeMme; Om. Musuganoim, Anew, and MOM other*
we. UM OHM, kkk were to raoain in UM bends of UM French.
Abdei liedr tnt ear*, oo Ufa* releaeed from UM neoeeiity of
milk MM UM irnnitimji of UM Knock ray, we to receive UM
*** W UM tribe* throughout UM country iMJpifcl to him.
OMMteJIy UMy raedUy ga their allegiance, but agaiaet torn. he
faud M urinary to reeort to svr. mamm-ii ; end on. tribe, that
of OeJed-Utoem. be WM akirmj by DM eesmiei with having mu-
VaUee, UM Fraevck governor-general. took umbrage
Ian; Md U ocW to oraraw* UM Emir, and to
' witk rmte., toblirfnd ounp of MOO
of Kh^mH IB OOOMOOMMM of UM ctnMur
i of UM rtfctl. wko i*iriil kirn with bracb of UM
^^Mt BM A^^Mll Ok I'ag-JB l*AAV*Bh -j n |, ^^ ^ ^k
W^H ^t wj i w owjnBB 1MB pnvJBw wo
! UM ^M, Md UMtted to kMoutt* modiAwtioD
r Pfliaial to tb Uwty.
t U Mii^H. *bd l-Kkr ddr<*Md himttlf to th.
i *f orpMMB ijlia of <lb>riHn lot kit torritory. H.
f bit flomnMrt, photaf ii oadw lulif ;
fate T dlTMkMM. iB Mob Of Whkk k*
. Md UMM diriMoo. IM tf^a brok* on
of whiob b pUoftl uixUr u> Hbir. witk
od; Uuw proTtding M far *
UM ctrawUi of kk ubjoU. UK!
OB. At UM MOM tiOM b* I. *ud
of igri-
two yM. TlM Fraaah lud
oftkBBirtoMrnttlM
W cwaia f fafteMM, Md to otawd kk
o dtr^Uy ^objoot to kkv WUk . TMW. m
r. !<! FNMk vny. witk UM Dk. of DrtoMM at iU
^k^kfCa^Mi tek> 1^1 lal^*^^ *u4 *-- ^Mt^^h*. i 1 ^_l.
*^ ^^ ^^ ! laiOTvr. MM UM pnao noHToa wita
i iwjiiiny UM bilrin f tBtiawj BMM. Tki* wu followi
d-oJlory
r Urg* ipcnditure of men and moooy, and lou.l
,. wr raiwd in France against the inrtlidrnt manner iu which
it wa r-nt-"*^ 1 Tne goTcrntneut annuunoed that it bad detarmined
M IOOMT to baar with Abd-al-Kader, and iu Dooamber 1840 it replaced
Uarabal Vallaa by Ooxral Bugeaud. From thii time the war wai
oarrkd on with th* nunort rljoiir. A Tery large body of troop, wat
ant from Fraaoa, and a half-indigwiou. oorpa, the Zouavea, waa rawed
witk a TMW to check the actiT. irragular Arab, by aoldiens poawaalng
all their pCT|lir Tiracity and rapidity of motion, but more amenlili-
cally traiood. Buf*aud made it hi. object in the campaign of 1841 to
agora la aawamion aa many a. poaaible of the atrongaolda of the
Kn.(, (0' detach from him by promiare and threat, the native tribea,
and wb*r*Tr any nfuacd their adhealon to France, to destroy their
crop, and ravage their village*. It waa a mercileaa, but it waa an
-fZ^..i OOUTM. By the end of the year the general had overrun a
eooaktorabU portion of the Kmir'. torritory, and wherever the French
arm* had penetrated, th* country had become an ally or a waato. In
th* ipaooh to the Chamber*, February 1842, it waa formally announced
tfr.t Algier* waa annexed to the French crown; and from this time
UM Emir wa. treated aa a rebel
Ilia condition aeoaad indeed to hare become utterly deaperate. Tho
French occupied all hi. ciUoa, moat of hi. fortreeaea, and four-nfth. of
meet UM French army in a regular encounter, he couatautly haraaaed
them by rapid deaoenta upon outpotta, drtachmenU, and convoy.,
and by dettrnctive inroad, upon the countries of the friendly tribes;
while the rapidity and unexpectodneei of hi. movement, baffled alike
precaution and punuit But the linea were being drawn atoadily
more and more cloaely about Him, Hia camp of reserve waa already
on the edge of th* desert; and the French had now an army of
100,000 man accumulated in the country, beaidea a large body of
auziliariea. The razzia, of the French continually destroyed his
nwource* ; rnora than once all hi* preaence of mind and daring, and
the devotion of hi* followers, had scarcely auffioed to prevent him from
falling into the hand, of his opponent*. On one occasion, in May
1843, the Duke of Orleans, at the head of a body of cavalry, ha<i
succeeded, by a brilliant imitation of the Emir', tactic., iu .urprUiug
his .mala, or camp, during the absence of the great body of hi. Arabs.
Abd-el-Kader, aa usual, escaped ; but with the loss of almost
thing. 11 is Arab* and Kabylea however quickly rallied around him, and
be contrived to inflict in oumeruu. de.ultory attack, heavy blows upon
the French, who indeed during this summer lost an unusual number
of offican. But be waa now unable to bring more thau a small force
into the field at any one time; and a defeat which ho .uifered at
Oued-tlalah, and in which his most-trusted lieutenant, Kalif bcu-
Allah, the One-Eyed, was killed, completed hi* ruin, though it did not
put an end to hi. effort*.
Forced to take refuge within the frontier of Morocco, he aet about
preaching than a new outbreak of hostilities against the infidela. The
emperor. If he did not directly sanction, did not oppose hu proceed-
ings ; aad several member, of the court entered with ardour into his
views. An army was soon raised; but th* French declared war
against Marocoo, bombarded several of it* coast town., defeated iU
army at Way, and before the cloae of 1844 had compelled the emperor
to agree to use hi. beat effort* to prevent Abd-l-Kader from again
annoying UM French in Algiers. Abd-el-Kader once uior* took to th*
open country. U* continued for above two yean longer to evade the
pursuit of the French ; but every effort to make head against hi. foe*
proved unavailing. The Emperor of Marocoo wa* at last compelled
by Uio French to put in motion an army against him, and seized hi.
kalif, ilou Uamedt, whom he bad sent to endeavour to obtain terms.
Abd-el-Kader in repriaal made a night attack (November 11, 1847)
upon the Itooriah camp, which by a daring stratagem he succeeded
in throwing into confuaion. Hut though be achieved a momentary
"****> the ma., of troop* waa too gnat for him to produce a perma-
nent impreatiao. A body of native* who attempted to prevent hi*
retreat be had little difficulty in defeating ; but when he found the
Freooh cavalry had got between him and the desert, he acknowledged
that, cloaely pressed a. be wa. on every other aide, it would be uselaei
to ofbr further resistance, and tent meaiengers to General Latnoriciere,
f> Frew* eommander, offering to urreuder on condition of being
sent to Alexandria or St. Jean-d' Acre. Lamoriciore acceded to the
torn*; and oo UM 23rd of December AUUl-Kader yielded himself
with hi* family into the hand* of th* general.
The Due d'Aumale, governor-general of Algiera, in the despatch
in which be announced to Uie French government the .urrender of
UM Kmir aad hi. arrival at Algier*, aaya, - I have ratified the promiae
given by Oeoeral Umoriciere, and 1 firmly tnut the government of
hi* aajeety will add it* aanction. I announced to the Emir that ho
moat embark UM next day forOran with hi* family: he submitted,
but Dei without emotion and repugnanoo-it i. th. last drop in the
lie.," Mot quit, the laat drop. The French government refused
to ratify UM engagement, and the Emir wa* transferred, with hi.
famUy.*, prUoner to Fort Lamalgue, at Toulon. After the revolution
148, Abd-cl-Kader presented a formal requUition to
UM republican government for the performance of the engagement
13
ABDU-L-MEJID.
ABDU-L-MEJID.
11
upon which he had surrendered. His request was not acceded to,
but he was removed to a healthier prison, first at Pau and then at
Amboise, and his confinement was rendered much less irksome.
When Louis Napoleon was elected president, Abd-el-Kader renewed
his claim, and though he was not immediately successful, he received
the most marked attention, and became a prisoner in little more than
name. Finally, in October 1852, Napoleon granted him his freedom,
on condition that he gave a solemn promise not to return to Algiers
or to conspire against the French power in Africa ; and Brussa in
Asia Minor was named as his future residence. For that place he
embarked in the beginning of 1853, and there he continued to reside
until June 1855, when, in consequence of the destruction of that city
by au earthquake, he received permission from the French govern-
ment to remove to Constantinople. In the autumn of 1855 he paid
a short visit to Paris to view the Exposition, and received from the
Emperor a distinguished reception. He is said to have resigned him-
self to his fate with true eastern calmness, but his health has been
permanently broken by his reverses and his imprisonment.
Abd-el-Kader is beyond question a man of remarkable ability and
force of character. He has displayed many of the evidences of great
military genius, self-reliance, activity, indomitable energy, marvellous
resources in defeat as well as in victory, power of wielding the wills
of others and of controlling his own ; and he seemed to possess much
of that administrative ability which men of superior military power
often exhibit But he had a rude and uncivilised people to govern
and to employ, and he had the first and most highly trained military
power in Europe to contend with ; and all her greatest commanders
were in succession sent against him, and all her resources called into
exercise, and he failed where success was hardly conceivable. But
for fifteen years he maintained this unequal struggle ; he has borne
his reverses manfully, and his old opponents are foremost in render-
ing homage to his great ability, and in testifying to his honourable
fulfilment of his share of the final engagement.
ABDL r -L-MEJID, reigning Sultan of Turkey, was born April 23,
1323, and was the eldest son of Mahmud II., whom he succeeded on
the 1st of July, 1839. As is customary with the sons of the sultan,
the early years of Abdu-1-Mejid were spent in the harem. Hia father
is said to have desired that he should receive a European education,
but the repugnance of the Mohammedan priests to such an innovation
compelled him to give way. The education of Abdu-1-Mejid has
therefore been necessarily very imperfect; but he has done what he
could to make up for his deficiencies by surrouuding himself with
men of attainments, and seeking to acquire the information which he
believes himself to need.
Abdu 1-Mejid ascended the throne at a time when the affairs of
Turkey were in a very threatening condition. The reforms of his
father had hardly become sufficiently consolidated to withstand the
strong tide of fanaticism which was setting in against them. The
battle of Nezib, June 24, 1839, which had resulted in the total defeat
of the Turkish army, by that of the Pasha of Egypt, had been
followed within a week by the death of the Sultan, whose determined
character and unflinching will had served hitherto to keep in awe the
opponents of the new order of things ; and these were now, it was
believed, prepared to make common causa with Mehemet Ali, whom
they, in common with the great bulk of the Mohammedan race,
remarried as the true representative and champion of the ancient faith.
The rood to Constantinople was open to the Egyptian army; the
inhabitants were in a disturbed state ; and the new Sultan, a lad of
sixteen, wan scarcely seated on his throne when the Turkish fleet, by
an unparalleled act of treachery on the part of its commander, was
placed in the hands of the enemy. Fortunately the Pasha refrained
from striking the blow which the weakness of the Sultan seemed to
invite ; and the leading European powers stepped in to offer their
mediation, which Abdu-1-Mejid at onco accepted. Mehemet Ali
refused the terms proffered, and a treaty was signed in London, July
15, 1840, in accordance with which an Anglo- Austrian fleet bom-
barded several of the fortified towns on the coast of Syria, and com-
pelled Mehemet Ali to submit. The ancient dynasty was saved, and
the arrangement then made between the Sultan and the Pasha has
not again been disturbed.
The dangers which threatened the young Sultan from domestic
treason, though fomented, as was thought, by Russian agents, were
as effectually averted. On his death-bed Mahmud had sent for his son,
and earnestly entreated him to pursue the course of reform which he
had commenced. The adherents of the old system, on the other
hand, reckoned confidently on being able, under Mahmud's feeble
successor, to uproot all which the late Sultan had so long laboured
to effect An end was soon put to nil suspense. A hatti-aheriff,
solemnly published at Gulhand on the 3rd of November 1839, gave
to the civil reforms of Mahmud a definite and formal shape, and added
somewhat to them. This measure guaranteed to all the subjects of
the Sultan, without regard to rank or religion, security for person and
property ; and promised to introduce a regular and impartial system
of taxation, public administration of justice, the right of free trans-
.11 of property, and the removal of many of the hardships of
tlie conncnption, as well as other improvements. Convinced that
there w.ia to be no recession from the path of reform, bat rather a
great advance, the more determined zealots organised a powerful con-
spiracy with the view to effect an entire revolution; and by the aid
of the priests set about exciting the populace by assurances that the
concessions to the unbelievers were an assault upon the true faith.
But the conspiracy was detected, several of the leaders were put to
death, and tranquillity was gradually restored. In two or three years
Abdu-1-Mejid had outlived the suspicion with which he had at first
been regarded, and become, as he has since remained, exceedingly
popular with all classes of his subjects. Partial revolts occurred in
1840 and subsequent years in ISyria, Bosnia, and Albania ; but they
were suppressed without much difficulty, and in their suppression it
was that Omar Pasha first displayed his remarkable military skill.
The tanzimat, as the system of reform is called, has been carried out
in little more than name beyond the immediate circle of the capital ;
but Abdu-1-Mejid has always evinced a strong desire to improve the
condition of hia subjects, though the general spread of rapacity and
corruption among the ruling classes, and the progress of decay
throughout the kingdom, have almost rendered it a hopeless task.
Among the objects on which the attention of the Sultan is said to
have been most fixed, is that of the extension of education in Turkey.
In 1846 he established a council of education, and he at that time,
or subsequently, founded a university, extended the system of primary
schools, and established military, medical, and agricultural colleges.
The privileges conceded to Christians by the tanzimat, the Sultan has
always firmly defended ; and when opportunity served he has shown
his readiness to extend them. The Earl of Shaftesbury, speaking in
the House of Lords, March 10, 1854, as the representative of several
of the leading Protestant religious societies, bore warm testimony to
the liberality with which Protestants have been, during the present
Sultan's reign, on all occasions treated by the Sublime Porte ; and in
the almost continual disputes between the Latin and Greek churches,
the Sultan appears to have endeavoured to act strictly as a mediator,
or arbitrator, aiming to satisfy the wishes of each party as far as was
compatible with the demands of the other. Since the commencement
of the war with Russia the Porte has directed that the evidence of
Christians shall be received in courts of justice, and issued other
orders, which altogether have gone as far as the prejudices of his
Moslem subjects would at present allow in the path of tolerance, and
much farther than many Christian states have advanced. The army
reforms and other changes, some of which, unquestionably, in the
present state of the country, have been of very doubtful advantage,
have ulso been steadily persevered in.
We have not dwelt on the great historic events which have occurred
during the reign of Abdu-1-Mejid, they having been already fully
noticed under TCBKEY, in the GEOGRAPHICAL Division of the
ENGLISH CYCLOPEDIA, voL iv., cols. 927-8. Here it may be enough
to mention, that after having continually advanced step by step
towards reducing Turkey to the position of a dependent state, the
Emperor Nicholas of Russia availed himself, in the early part of 1853,
of a difference respecting the guardianship of the 'Holy Places' to
claim the protectorate over the Greek Christians in Turkey; and
when this was refused by the Porte, though with every effort at con-
ciliation compatible with the retention of sovereignty, the Russian
troops were at once sent to occupy the principalities of Moldavia and
Wallachia as a ' material guarantee.' War was declared by the Porte
on the 5th of October, 1853, with the full accord of the governments
of England and France, whose assistance had been formally invoked.
In November following the Turkish fleet in the Black Sea waa attacked
off Sinope by au overwhelmingly superior Russian fleet and totally
destroyed. Before Silistria, however, at Giurgevo, and elsewhere, the
Russian army was on several occasions defeated by the Turks. In
March 1854, England and France, in order to "support the sovereign
rights of the Sultan," declared war against Russia, and soon after
despatched armies to the assistance of the Porte. On the 14th of
September, 1854, an Anglo-French army landed in the Crimea, and,
after winning the battle of the Alma on the 20th, proceeded to invest
Sebastopol on the 26th. The army, strengthened by very large rein-
forcemeLta from France and England, by a Turkish army, and by a
Sardinian contingent (that power having joined the alliance in the
early part of 1855), has continued the siege up to the end of 1855 ;
and during this time has defeated the Russians in every engagement
in the open field, and, in September 1855, succeeded in compelling
them to evacuate the southern side of Sebastopol, thereby inflicting
on them an enormous loss of men and property. The successes of the
Anglo-French fleets in the Black Sea, the Sea of Azof, and the Baltic
call only for a reference. In Asia, the Turkish army met, during the
early part of the campaign, with several serious reverses, and endured
much suffering, chiefly, as is believed, through the incompetency and
peculation of the Turkish officers. Subsequently, chiefly by the skill
and energy of an English officer, General Williams, the Turkish garri-
son of Kara, about 12,000 strong, notwithstanding the most terrible
privations, succeeded during several months in sustaining a close siege
by a Russian army of 35,000 men ; and repulsed, in the most brilliant
manner, a grand assault made by it, causing a loss to the Russians of
more than 6000 killed. Somewhat later, Omar Pasha defeated a strong
Russian force which opposed his progress towards the interior. But
the garrison of Kars were compelled by famine to surrender in Novem-
ber, 1855.
However great may be the effect of this war on the future destiny
ABEL, NIELS 1IKNK1K.
MlMbofiU<
r of ih. Sulun. Whoa ho appealed to
i and England, and they embarked in a war of
_ Jtende, to miimemert. M a necessary cons*-
Wtolnotr hand*; but it may b* hoped, that when it
i to a lletKnry ooooUston. an important result of
I U to OMBM to UM tells* what UM Wootern Power* declared
to hoabadms oh}*** of their tasstawoa-hb rlffate as a ""fen
wiUJn hb own tamwry; due security being token for th* eaUUUh-
msn* of UMM *Hal nfhts which hav* boen prombed to all classes of
.ft SBVlBBBBBBB^Sst.
AWel Mejid b dosoribod M somewhat above UM middle height;
lender early bun*, bat now Inclining to oorpuleooe ; slightly
b (aid to be oalm and mild, with
oly. Tho Earl of CarUaU (' Diary in
fit* and One* Waters.' n. *) peaking of an interview with him
. i IU1. *y, " Th l|ee<jn his aspect conveys is of a man gentle,
tins, ft i>iK onstmng. doomed ; no energy of purpose gleamed
MUMtMtoftoMe; DO augnry of victory sat on that still brow."
Bnt tUs nbfi&ty of bearing at an interview, is th* first leason in
lUsjaoMi whidh UM MMS; Twk ha. to lean, and through life he is
lwy osnfeJ to n ifililn it; to exhibition UMrafor* at UM formal
miBtin of ilbHnMbhed English nobleman, whan thora was
noUung to oat. peesion of enykind, b otrtainly no evidence of
eoeosof Mrpo**. U would appear however, from what U said
MM who have bad opportonitie. of fairly estimating his character,
UM ftsJtoa b of enhewteelly mOd dbpo^ticoTiind prone to leave
iMHiaalof oJUrs to hb minister, and the relative, who sur-
tf and deoisfen of psvpena. Tho refusal to surrender the Hun-
end Poobh rWbfMs. after th. Hongarian revolution of 1848, U
. 1 to havohoM UM fir, anal act of Abdu-l-Mejid ; and he
to UM imporioos demand* of Kuatia and
rL^PalsMntasvthonfaro^nminUter,
of UM Salun'. resolution by moving UM Bnglwh
, and thu. etttkd the dispute During the
I in thai nfamJ.
oontiBMsw* of UM nrssant war. to trying to the resources of his
Msyl m k UM SBndo> of UM SoJtan has bera invariably firm, frank,
*Jha.onTh>s ahto towards hb nabjoaU and UM alliec
ABEL, tho aoond aon of Adam. Hb bbtory b contained in the
pMtthonasferof OOMSM, whor* wo ar. informed, that, ho being a
U>f*r of tkftf, whfl* Cain was UUer of UM ground, the two
nthiH of r*d snorUea* tototbsr to UM Lord ; the fonaor bringing
n**t of UM oomd for that pmrnoos, and the latter of the dr*t-
hbtock. Tho o&rbic of Abtl aloo* was accepted
f Ik* frvit of UM
; and the
of UM sufleriog and glory of the
of UM World. Tbb nrisHbaos of faith pervaded his life,
OwhtoBMd Lord (lUiL. xti.l 15) rlubpstes him -righteous Abet
U wo are told (I John, tti IS) that Cain aUw hb brother * t
hb brother's righucus.-
own woras were evfl. and hb brother'
LBBL, CHARLES KSEDEWCK. a
natire of Germany, and _
ba*Ua Beetu WM neh dbUoguisbed as a eompW and
h UM mtddb and towards UM dose of the lastoentury.
of rated, at Dread*; hot hb teloots Uing very "inadequauiy
''I*'*. 1<tod Us* service in 174*. with only throTdonar. in
h*. nnslMt, and reacn*d Enclaad UM following year, whore he soon
M wah n , .,; tUdid not end in empty pnbe. When
UM OOMI of Oeolf* III. bed her estahlbhnMot fixed, Abel was
iMsfaHl ehombsr **Um on h, at salary of SOOt per annum;
Aortly after be unitej with 1. ChrisUao Bath In formmg a weekl/
continue.! to be highly
chief instrument was the
itrings, now fallen into
auditor, which scarcely
lowed instruments, and
y * kb dagio*. or slow movement*. " His com-
heartntb* concert, whioh for many years i
ill Mil 1 1 end hUrally soMwrtei. HU chi
*l da samU. a small vlolonoaUo with sis
Vssm VithU^heprodaeedaneftVotoohb
W MsWsW ssMM IMWA dKts* IA utkl**A nn W
^"f ^^*^ nwn^nw e^nwii Wfej t*9 BsUsTTV QQ D"
vwwveowe i UJUKIV eUUB. *U 1U
itwiitt.z'ttj' "S^w*" mot p*"' > Wned
tfcw. the rbheet harmony, and the most elegant and polished
iffil" 1 " 1 wilh _* >. taste, and science, that
pnrioctioa or Dtrformanoe with which iW then
TT^JlH! 1 ^* BMm l P rf ati n -" ('Hist of
f !?* ""^ kowOTer of the present day, who has
~* ** kmd by Haydn, Mosmrt, Beethoven Chi-
Dweev_ Cx&x^^f AJ* f i. t i. - n
^" *! irean in BUS memory, will not deny the
" btter productions. Abel-judging him by
-to Uun imagination ; more knowledge
anner of performance, than vigour of
Homey admits tCt "hi. later productions,
Us
of
compared with those of younger compoaen, appeared aomewh.it Ian*
guid and monotonoua," But we suspect the fact to be, that they wero
more accurately estimated when compared with the productions of a
more advanced age. Abel was intemperate in the use of fermented
liquor*, and brought his life to a hasty oloae in the year 17S7.
ABEL, NIELS HENltIK, was born August 5th, 1802, in Norway,
at Fiiidoe, in the diocese of ChrUtiansand, of which parish hU father
wai then minister. He wai sent in 1815 to the cathedral school of
Christiania, where be did not show any remarkable sign of progreu,
until 1818, when M. Holmboe, a newly-appointed professor of mathe-
matics, afterwards the writer of Abel's life, and editor of his works,
discovered his talent for mathematics, and aided him in pursuing
those sciences beyond the elements. In July, 1821, he went to tho
University of Christiana, whore, his father having died and left him
without the means of continuing hU studies, he was first maintained
by a subscription of the professors, and afterwards, for two years, by
a pension from the government. His earliest mathematical essay was
an attempt at the old question of the solution of the equation of tho
fifth degree, in which, after discovering his own failure, he determined
either to find a solution, or to show the impossibility of finding any;
and produced his celebrated paper on the last point, of which we shall
presently speak. In July, 1825, he obtained an increased pension
from the government to enable him to travel. lie first went to
Berlin, where he formed an acquaintance with Crelle, whioh became
an intimate friendship. The mathematical journal, now so well knwii,
which bears the name of the latter, was commenced in 1820, and
Abel was one of the earliest and principal contributors. Abel continued
bis travels through Germany, Italy, and Switzerland : ho arrived at
Paris in July, 1826, where he made acquaintance with the most distin-
guished French mathematicians. He returned home by way of Berlin,
in January, 1827, and continued his private studies (which his journey
had not interrupted) with an activity of whioh there is the most extra-
ordinary evidence. In December, 1828, he went to the iron-fouudriea
of Froland, near Arendal, where resided the family of a lady to whom
he was betrothed. He was there seized with illness, in January,
1829, and died of consumption on the Cth of April of the same year.
M. Holmboe gires the moat direct contradiction to the statement
which has several times been made, that Abel was neglected by the
Swedish government, and died in extreme poverty. He was, when he
died, pro tempore professor of mathematics, during the absence of
Haiwtetii in Siberia, and would have succeeded to the first vacant
chair. A few days after his death, a most honourable invitation
arrived from the Prussian government, to remove his residence to
Berlin. In the obituary published by Crelle, in hi. 'Journal,' he
states distinctly that the large number of important memoirs which
Abel had ready for publication was the immediate reason of tho
'Journal* being undertaken.
The Swedish government published the works of Abel in 1839, in
two volumes, 4to, and in the French language. The first volume
contain, all that he published himself (in ' Crelle's Journal ' and else-
where, moitly in German), translated, as just remarked. The second
volume contains all that he left in manuscript, finished or unfinished.
Nothing can be a severer trial to a mathematician's character than the
publication of his loose papers ; but, however crude the speculation,
Abel is never lowered. He had read comparatively so little, that all
which he has left bears the stamp of his own moat original power.
The great point to which Abel turned his attention was tho theory
of elliptic functions. Lcgendro, who had devoted a large port of hU
life to the development of these functions, and to the formation of
tables by which to use them, found himself, when his toil was just
finished, completely distanced by the young Norwegian, of whom MJ
one bad ever heard. The frankness of the acknowledgment made by
Legendre, and the spirited manner in which the old man et to work
to incorporate the new discoveries into his own books, will never be
forgotten by any biographer of AbeL It is unnecessary to specify the
particular methods of the latter ; all who study the subject of elliptic
functions are fully aware how much is due to him.
The number of different ways in which Abel turned aside from this
subject into questions of development, definite integration, &c., makes
the sum total of bis labours an astonishingly large quantity, if the age
at which he died be considered. He appears to have fully developed
in his own mind the subject of the separation of symbols of operation
and quantity, not indeed to the extent of founding its results upon an
algebraical theory, but to that of giving the theory a wider amount of
application. He was a daring generaliscr, and sometimes went too
far : had he lived/.he would have corrected some of his writings,
yet ho appears to have been deeply impressed with the notion that a
(Teat part of mathematical analysis is rendered unsound by the em-
ployment of divergent series.
The celebrated attempt at the proof of the impossibility of repre-
senting under one formula the five roots of on equation of the fifth
degree involves some rather obscure consideration*. It can hardly be
said to be generally admitted ; perhaps it has not been generally read ;
Tor proofs of negative propositions, when complicated, are not usually
of a high order of interest. Sir \V. Hamilton ('Trans. It. I. A.,'
vol. xviii.) has examined Abel's proof nt great length, and arrives at
.he same conclusion, though with some degree of departure from his
principle.
ABELARD.
ABENCERAGES.
18
ABELARD, or ABAILARD, PIERRE, waa born in 1079, at Palais,
in Brittany. His father waa a man Of some rank and property, and
spared no expense in the education of Abelard. He left Palais before
he was twenty years of age, and went to Paris, where he became a
pupil of Ouillaume de Champeaux, a teacher of logic and philosophy
of the highest reputation in those times. At first the favourite disciple,
by degrees Abelard became the rival, and finally the antagonist of
Champeaux. To escape the persecution of his former master, Abelard,
at the age of 22, removed to Melun, and established himself there as
a teacher, with great success. Thence he removed to Corbeil, where
his labours seem to have injured bis health ; and he sought repose and
restoration by retirement to his native place, Palais, where he remained
a few years, and then returned to Paris ; the controversy between the
two antagonists was then renewed, and the contests continued till
Champeaux's scholars deserted him ; and he retired to a monastery.
Abelard having paid a visit to his mother at Palais, found on his
return to Paris in 1113, that Champeaux had been made bishop of
Chalons-sur-Marne.
The dialectic conflicts having now ceased, Abelard commenced the
study of divinity, under Anselm, at I.aon. Here also the pupil became
the rival of his master, and Anselm at length had him expelled from
Laon, when he returned to Paris, and established a school of divinity,
which was still more numerously attended than his former schools
had been. Ouizot says, " In this celebrated school were trained one
pope (Celestine II.), nineteen cardinals, more than fifty bishops and
archbishops, French, English, and German ; and a much larger number
of those njen with whom popes, bishops, and cardinals, had often to
contend, guch as Arnold of Brescia, and many others. The number
of pupils who used at that time to assemble round Abelard has been
estimated at upwards of 5000."
Abelard was about thirty-five or thirty-six years of age, when he
formed an acquaintance with Heloise, the niece of Fulbert, a canon in
the cathedral of Pans. She was probably under twenty years of age.
Abelard fell in love with Heloise, and got himself introduced into the
house of Fulbert as the tutor of his niece. The result wag a criminal
intercourse between the two lovers, which was at length discovered by
Fulbert, and Heloise was removed by Abelard to the residence of his
sister in Brittany, where she gave birth to a boy.
Fulbert insisted that the wounded honour of his niece should be
repaired by a marriage, to which Abelard assented willingly ; but
Heloise with more reluctance, probably from a fear that his prospects
would be ruined, the highest dignities of the church in those days
being exclusively bestowed on unmarried ecclesiastics. The marriage
took place at Paris, and it was agreed to be kept secret ; but Fulbert
took pains to make it public, while Heloise, who resided with him,
denied it ; the consequence of which was that her uncle treated her
with great harshness, and Abelard took her away and placed her in
the convent of Argenteuil, near Paris. Fulbert, who seems to have
thought that he intended to make her a nun in order to get rid of
the incumbrance of a wife, vowed a cruel revenge, which he soon
found means to execute. The valet having been bribed, admitted
Fulbert and hig party into Abelard's bed-room by night, when they
performed a mutilation upon his person. The perpetrators fled, but
the valet and another were taken, and were punished by putting out
their eyes and the infliction of a similar mutilation. The canon
Fulbert was banished from Paris, and all his property was confiscated.
Abelard recovered from the wound ; but as the canon law rendered
him incapable of holding any ecclesiastical preferment, he entered
the abbey of St. Denis aa a monk, and Heloise became a nun in the
convent of Argenteuil.
The abbot and monks of St Denis were dissolute, and Abelar.l
reproved them in a course of lectures which he delivered in a cell
detached from the abbey ; the monks got up a charge of heresy against
a work which he wrote on the Trinity, and by a council held in 1121
at Soissons, in which he was not permitted to defend himself, the book
was condemned and ordered to be burnt. Abelard had also denied
that the abbey of St. Denis was founded by Uionysius of Athens, the
Areopagite, as the monks asserted. This enraged the monks and
abbots still more, and by a series of persecutions and threats Abelard
was compelled to fly from St. Denis and place himself under the pro-
tection of the Count of Champagne. In a solitary spot of the territory
of Troyes he erected a small oratory of wickerwork and thatch, and
commenced giving lectures, to which numerous scholars crowded from
far and near ; the wickerwork was then changed into a building of
stone and timber, and Abelard named it Paraclete, or the Comforter.
But persecution still attending him, he left the Paraclete to become
superior of the monks in the abbey of St. Gildaa of Ruys, near Vannes,
in Britanny.
Heloise too was not without her share of troubles. The convent
of Argenteuil, of which she had been made prioress, was claimed by
an abbot as belonging to his abbey, and Heloise and her nuns were
ordered to leave it. Abelard gave them the oratory of the Paraclete,
and there they were established, Abelard himself, after eleven years
of separation from Heloise, officiating in the ceremony of consecration.
U> rnard, abbot of Clairvaux, whose monastery was not far from
tin- I'arnolate, having objected to some of the forms of prayer used
by Helr>ifle and her nuns, Abelard defended them ; and this led to a
controversy with the abbot, who eventually accused Abelurd of heresy.
Bioo. DIV. vo. L
Abelard appealed to a council, which waa held in the year 1140, in
the cathedral of Sens, in Champagne, where he defended himself. But
the influence of Bernard was more powerful than the logic of Abelard ;
he was condemned by the assembly ; but he appealed to the Pope, and
set out on his journey to Rome, which however he never reached,
having been induced by Peter the Venerable to remain in his monastery
at Cluni, near Ma9on. The Pope confirmed the sentence of the council
of Sens, and Abelard was ordered to be confined, all his works to be
burned, and he himself was prohibited from writin? anything more.
Peter the Venerable addressed a remonstrance to the Pope, Innocent II.,
and the sentence was suspended. During this suspension Abelard was
removed to the priory of St. Marcel, near Chalons, for change of air,
and there he died April 21, 1142, in the sixty-third year of his age.
He was at first interred by the monks of Cluni in their monastery, but
his remains were afterwards removed to the Paraclete.
Heloise lived twenty years afterwards as prioress of the Paraclete,
and when she died was buried, at her own request, in Abelard's tomb.
The remains of Abelard and Heloise continued undisturbed for upwards
of 300 years, till in 1497 they were removed to the church of the abbey,
and were afterwards shifted to other places. In 1800 they were re-
moved to the garden of the Musee Francais at Paris, and in 1817 were
placed in the cemetery of Pere la Chaise, where they still remain
beneath their gothic tomb.
Abelard was a proficient in the scholastic learning of the times, a
dexterous dialectician, and a subtle thinker. His theological works
gave an impulse to the age, and though his writings are of little value
now, they belong to the history of philosophy and the progress of
the human mind. The disputes of that age turn largely on verbal
trifles, but these disputes form part of the effort of philosophy to
emancipate itself from the fetters of religious intolerance. Though
Abelard possessed a large share of the learning of the times, it is
probable that he knew little of Greek or Hebrew, and yet Heloise,
according to his testimony, knew Latin, Greek, and Hebrew. The
personal character of Abelard is best shown by hia letters and those
of Heloise. When he had once transgressed the bounds of his duty
by his illicit commerce with Heloise, he lost all self-control, and appears
a sensualist When his misfortunes drove him from the world, he
became cold and unfeeling towards the noble-minded woman, whose
passion and ardent attachment show that she was capable of the most
unbounded devotion to him whom she loved. The most complete
edition of their works is ' Petri Abelardi et Heloisse Conjugis ejua
Opera, nunc primum edita ex MSS. Codd. Franciaci Ambcesi,' Paris,
1616, 4to. M. Victor Cousin has also published ' Ouvrages luddits
d'Abailard,' Paris, 1836. There are several other editions, some of
which have portions, such as the ' Letters,' translated.
(Biographical Dictionary, published by the Useful Knowledge
Society; Biographic Univertelie; Bayle, Dictionary.}
ABEN ESRA, or with his complete name, Abraham ben Meir ben
Esra, a celebrated Jewish scholar, was born at Toledo, probably in
1119, and died about 1194, at the age of seventy-five yenrs. A con-
siderable portion of his life was spent in travelling. He visited Mantua
in 1145, and the island of Rhodes in 1156; in 1159 he was in England,
and in 1167 at Rome. His celebrity among his contemporaries, as a
scholar and as an accomplished writer of the Hebrew language, was
very great. Among ourselves Abeu Esra has become known chiefly
through his great commentary on the Old Testament, which it seems
he wrote at different periods, between the years 1140 and 1167. It
has been printed in the great Rabbinical editions of the Bible, which
have appeared at Venice, Bale, and Amsterdam ; and there have been
besides many separate editions of single parts of it. Abeu Esra wroto
also on mathematics, astronomy, philosophy, medicine, philology, and
astrology. His treatise in verse on the game of chess, translated by
Thomas Hyde (Oxford, 1667, 1694), affords us a specimen of his skill
in poetic composition. For an enumeration of the works of Abeu
E.'ra, which are still preserved in manuscript in several of the libraries
of Europe, see the article ABEN ESBA, by Hartmaun, in Ersch uud
Gruber's ' Encyclopaedia."
ABHNCERAGES (Beni Serraj), is the name given by Spanish
chroniclers and romance writers to a noble family in the Arabic king-
dom of Grenada, several members of which distinguished themselves
during the period immediately preceding the fall of the Mohammedan
empire in Spain. The history of the Abencerages is intimately con-
nected with that of the then reigning dynasty of Grenada. In the
year 1423 of our era, died Yussuf III., a wise and valiant prince. He
was succeeded by his son Mohammed VII., surnamed Al-Haizari, or
the Left-Handed, who followed the example and advice of his father
in maintaining friendly relations with the Christian court of Castille,
and with the Arab princes on the northern coast of Africa, but lost
the affection of his subjects by his pride and tyranny. The discon-
tent which soon manifested itself against the youthful monarch, was
for a time kept in check by the watchfulness of his principal chamber-
lain, Yussuf-ben-Zerragh, then the chief of the noble family which
probably derived from him the common designation of the Abencer-
ages. But, in 1427, an open revolt broke out, which had been incited
by one of the king's cousins, Mohammed-al-Zaghir. The royal palace,
called the Alhambra, was invested by the conspirators. Moham-
med VII., disguised as a fisherman, escaped to Africa, where the King
of Fez, Mulei-ben-Fariz, kindly received him, while Mohammed-al-
AMiUCTIMi. JOHN, M.D.
ABERCROMUV, SIR RALI'll.
YaMMM^teiMk, with
ovtioMto CastilU; and
t Grenada were
k.kBd
TIL to foi
late wt* Jok. IL
to Uvoorof
brok* oat. and John
*\n ttminttt to
*
wkioh a. kx. aod Y
I Bdlo
\'mr wi
oorapUd Grenada. wbJU
ll.%h*^BB> Tlu* MoOBjd inWfnipiiou of Mohani*
r only of short deration. H* refaiood hi*
* after Ik* doath of YoBBf-b*D-Albamar. which
of
fc
of t*W C^trHlfcin ooaiDMUvtlcr Coorl*. A on of
, B UM k**d T Mt*** hud of valiant knight*,
UasarU, ud fell w a halt!* (14S8), in
od orach lot*. Kw distarhaBOr. woo
reoada. Hohamsaod Vlt wa. (in 1444)
OMB !. SBBBfOBBB 1 by eo of hi* BOBbcwa, Orain-aJ- A boat But
. who WM Mapportod by John II.. and
14U. preT.tM.T.rhMOf>naMM. Booo after thi*, John II.
WSB *tmmA*4 ia th* juTiianxm of CMtilk by Henry IV.. who WM
wlw**t to Mooi.u**)4Nl-^B]o-lMD*uL owjd mirwwd Ux bu<inili<ii r which,
<NM Iks* Ma** took a tan oMdodly uBfavwombl* to th* kingdom of
that, aboot thiTtW an
by the Abonoerage*,
ononeoftfceirownfamily.
M .;,.',.
HiMlm of IkoM dUnrbinon to oocupy tk* foctnoi
Tk* Anhi* nlinlol>i My othing of web an *r*Bt,
If tkora b* aay tnrth in Ut*
lr litili
Of Ik. frwl. of Ik* At, II NIMH With th. Z
Ankian family in tk. kiafdom of Onoada. who
M Ik* M*4M*BBMdank*s of Cordon, of tk*
with th* ZefriM, another noble
who traced their dotcent
of thirty
UMporndy of their oppoosote, and
iraoad Vb. Chrutian
told ia tk. OOOTTM cTviU. d.' Oranada, by (Jinw
rk which |irn< to b* a IranaUtioo from an
but is of doobtfel aatkratioity. The work
.
*|mly miiili of two *otaM*. bot in ntort dittoo* only tb. fint
b iBfWtoa. and ipflu of tk* mini ar* mud to b. now extrwMly
nr. wtrn to Hpain. Am "-g^^ tr.nlrtlna of tb. flnt part, by
naiiiBiM.iiiiiiilwdattk*Ult*fTkaTUWar.ofOranad,'
KlMBII, JOHH. M.D, Follow of th. Koyal Collrge. of
Mrf IVnMM of BdWrnith, X WM born oath* llth of
Um WM Ik* OM of UM Rrr. Mr. Aboraronbio, for
Mof tk.
ia .
4k of JBM. 1HO. II.
Utfk. Md IMBBM a r0ow of Ik* Royal CoU*f* of
.
MIBM Ik* amovj** of a
kjk) flajlv oaraor atoordaw
that
. Aborcrombie. for
of Abordota. Abrrerombi.
took hi. dogn* there on th*
aracsU* MbotqaenUy in Edin-
.[*on* in the
to teach onr.ry, and taking the
-, though b* so far
witklkatof a Bhyaieian ovon in
. Ician; and
of Ik. ooUbratod
Dr. Abworombi* btgan to
M a praotiainK and
H.b*un.allotiatooflb.
and In 1814 WM admitted .
to the offio* of phyiicUu in ordinary to her Mnjerty for Sootlanil.
In the numerou* religioiu will beiiovolent ocieti* of K'linl.ur^li lie
hold a high and honourable potitinn. Dr. Aberorombie diol IMK!-
draly. ou ThurmUy, November 14, 1844, at hi* houje in York Place,
Edinburgh. Tho immediate cause of hi. death WM the bur- tin.; ..i
the coronary artery of the heart
The writing* of Dr. Abercrombie contributed no Ion to the eU-
Ui*hm*nt and mainteoaaoe of hi* fame than hU very ucful career a*
a praotioal member of bii profeation. In the early part of hi* oourw
h* ooofined hi. literary labour* to the 'Edinburgh Medical nu I
Surgical Journal,' and other periodical! in hi. own department of
eieooe. Mil fint dUtinot work of moment, leaving out of cousider-
atioo publiahad OM*. of dieeue and limilar minor traatuoi, WM one
entitled ' Pathological and Practical Kesearoha. on DiteuM of the
Brain and th. Spinal Cord,' Edinburgh, 1823, 8ro. In thi work,
which i* ohanoteriacd by no ordinary degree of purely scientific
knowledge, be also gar* an indication of the bent of hii geniua to tbo
tucly of mind and ite relations to the body. He jmblUhed about
tk* game time another profeaiional volume, and one which elevated
him (till more highly among the modern cultivator* of meilicin-,
tylrd Pathological and Practical Reaearcha* on the Dueate* of the
Inteelinal Canal, Liver, and other Vuoera of the Abdomen,' rxiin-
borgh, 1828, Svo. He now began to throw together the medical fact*
accumulated in the oourse of hi* extensive experience and reading,
and to examine their bearing, on the varioui metaphyical and moral
yitem* that have bean eetebluhed. The result of hi* labour* i* to
be found in two work*: the on. entitled ' Inqairie* concerning the
Intellectual Power* and the Investigation of Truth,' KJiubviivli.
Svo; and the other called 'The Philosophy of the Moral Feelings,'
London, 1883, Svo. The latter is in some meaiura a sequel to the
first, and th. whole composes a view of human nature intellectually
and morally, in which the faote of science and the revelations of
religion ar* shown to harmonise. Dr. Abercrombie also published
several tract* or easay* on religioiu topics, which inauifost the depth
of hi* piety and hi* earneetnoat in th* promotion of the welfare of
hi* Csllow-mon. In the disruption of the Scottish Established Church,
in 1848. Dr. Abercrombie took part with the Free Church, of whose
eldership he was, M he had been for many yean in the Established
Church, one of the moot active and exemplary members. For range
of acquirements Dr. Abercrombie perhaps stood unequalled among
the Scottish physician" of hi* day. He earned by his writings a name
that will not soon be forgotten, and be will long be remembered, a* a
private individual, for hi* piety and benevolence.
AUERCKOltBT, SIR RALPH, a British general, dirtinguishe I for
many gallant and important service*. He wa* the son of Qeorge
Aberoromby, Esq., of Tullibodie, hi CUokmannanahire, where he WM
born in 1738. After receiving a liberal education, ho entered the
army in March, 1756, M a cornet in the 3rd regiment of Dragoon
Ouird*. By the year 1787 he bad reached the rank of major-general
When the war with Franca broke out, in 1793, Aberoromby wag gont
to Holland, with the local rank of lieutenant-general, in the expe-
dition commanded by the Duke of York. Hi* bravery during thu
prosperou* commencement of this attempt was not more conspicuous
than the humanity with which he exerted hi* best energies in the
disastrous .equal to alleviate, M far M possible, the miseries of the
tick and wounded troop*, whom h* wa* charged to conduct in their
.: ..t.
Soon after hi* return to England, in April, 1795, he WM made a
Knight of the Bath ; and in August of the same year he WM sent
out to the West Indies, M coimnimdei -in-chief of the forces there,
and by February, 1797, he had taken in succession Grenada, Demerara,
Katequibo, SU Lucia, St Vincent, and Trinidad. He then returned
to Europe, having been previously raised to the rank of lieutenant-
general, and on reaching England he received the command of tho
Scot* Oreys, and the appointment of lieutenant-governor of the Islo
of Wight In 1798, on the breaking out of the rebellion in 1
Sir Ralph proceeded thither as commander-in-chief ; but after a short
time h. WM transferred to the chief military command in Scotland,
and the governorship of Fort Augustus and Fort George. He wag
soon however called again to active service abroad, on occasion of th.-
Moond expedition sent against the French in Holland, iu August,
1799, with the conduct of which he WM entrusted before the arrival
of the Duke of York. It proved, M is well known, equally unfortu-
nate with the former ; but it did not the leu afford many
lunitie* to General Abercromby of displaying his activity, intrepidity,
and high military talent In 1801 he WM employed to command the
English forces despatched for the relief of Egypt; and, in spite of
the utmost exertions of the French to prevent his design, he . ;
tb* landing of bis troop*, on the 8th of March, at Aboukir, though
not without the los* of 2000 men. A few day* after, the enemy
mail* a general attack upon the invading forces, M they lay cue .
near Alexandria, but were speedily repulsed. On the 21st WM fought,
on the same ground, the more obstinate and sanguinary
usually designated the battle of Alexandria, in which t
wen again driven back at all point*. Sir Ralph WM unhorsed and
severely wounded at an early period of the action, by one of tho
enemy, whom notwithstanding he disarmed, delivering his sword to
Sir Sidney Smith, whom he soon after met Then remounting hi*
21
ABERDEEN, EARL OF.
ABERNETHY, JOHN.
Ijorse, he concealed his situation from those about him till lonp after
the action was over, when he fainted through weakness and loss of
blood. The injuries which he had received, and which he thus nobly
bore in silence, were past the skill of surgery : he was immediately
conveyed to the ship of the Admiral, Lord Keith, and there lingered
till the 28th, when he expired. His body was interred iu the burial-
ground of the Commandery of the Grand Master, under the walls of
the Castle of St. Elmo, near the town of La Valetta, in Malta. A
monument has since been erected to his memory, by order of the
House of Commons, in St. Paul's Cathedral. Sir Ralph Abercromby,
whose private character was as excellent as his public merits were
great, left four sons. Hig widow was created Baroness Abercromby,
with remainder to her issue male by her late husband. A pension
of 2000?. a year was also settled upon Lady Abercromby and the three
succeeding inheritors of the title, of whom the present baron is
the last.
"ABERDEEN, GEORGE HAMILTON GORDON, EARL OF, was
born January 28, 1784, and succeeded to the title on the death of
his grandfather in 1802 : he was created Viscount Gordon in the
peerage of the United Kingdom in 1814, and it is by this title that he
sita in the House of Lords. After completing his education, the Earl
of Aberdeen spent some time in travelling. Both in Greece and Italy
he paid considerable attention to the study of the remains of anti-
quity ; and he was one of the original members of the Athenian
Club. These circumstances gave the point, such as it was, to Lord
Byron'a notice, in his ' Hours of Idleness,' of " the travell'd thane
Athenian Aberdeen." The result of the earl's antiquarian pursuits
was given to the world in an ' Introduction ' to Wilkins's transla-
tion of Vitruvius's 'Civil Architecture,' 1812; and this 'Introduction'
having been revised and extended, his lordship published as a distinct
work in 1822 under the title of 'An Inquiry into the Principles of
Beauty in Grecian Architecture.' In 1813 the earl was sent to Vienna
on a special mission, and he was instrumental in obtaining the adhe-
sion of Austria to the alliance against France, the preliminary treaty
for which he signed as the representative of England, at Tbplitz, in
October of that year. As the English Ambassador-Extraordinary to
the Emperor Francis I., he shared in the negociations which preceded
and followed the return of Napoleon to France from Elba. Subse-
quently to Ms retirement from the embassy, the Earl of Aberdeen
was known in politics as a steady adherent of the tory party, and on
the formation of the Duke of Wellington's first administration in
January, 1828, the earl accepted the office of Secretary of State for
Foreign Affairs, which he held till the resignation of the ministry in
November, 1830. His first act in office was to express his disapproval
of the policy which led to the destruction of the Turkish fleet at
Navarino; and the passage in the king's speech (January 29, 1828),
which termed that an " untoward event," and expressed the deter-
mination of the government to uphold the independence of Turkey,
has been generally attributed to him. In this his first term of office
it fell to the lot of the earl to assist in establishing the independence
of Greece, and to acknowledge the " constitutional monarchy " of
France as the result of the revolution of 1830 : and the prompt and
frank recognition of both of these measures did much to secure the
good-will of those countries. In the short-lived administration of Sir
Robert Peel (November 1834 to April 1835) the Earl of Aberdeen
held the office of Colonial Secretary. When Sir Robert Peel was
restored to office, September 1841, the Earl of Aberdeen again re-
ceived the appointment of Foreign Secretary, and continued to hold it
until the defeat of the ministry in July 1846. His administration of
foreign affairs may be said generally to have been marked by a
cautious pacific policy, but at the same time there i> no other evidence
than the heated language of political opponents to show that he was
ever neglectful of the honour and dignity of the country. In the
dispute with the United State? on the Oregon question he took a firm
yet conciliatory position, and the credit of the satisfactory settle-
ment, of what at one time threatened to be a serious difficulty, is due
to him. At a very early period, as is shown by his despatch to Lord
Heytesbury, the English ambassador at St. Petersburg, dated Oct. 81,
1829, the Earl of Aberdeen had suspected if he had not clearly pene-
trated the designs of the Emperor Nicholas upon Turkey; and it
was probably with a view more effectually to counteract those designs,
that he laboured, during his possession of office, to strengthen as
much as possible the alliance with Austria. From his long connection
with Sir Robert Peel, the Earl of Aberdeen had come to be regarded
not merely aa the exponent of that statesman's views on foreign
policy, but as, next to the Duke of Wellington, his chief supporter and
representative in the House of Lords; and on the death of Sir
Robert, the earl was selected as the president of the great public
meeting of hi friends and admirers held at Willis's Rooms, July 23,
1850. From this time the Earl of Aberdeen may be regarded as
virtually the head of what was known as the Peel party ; and on the
defeat of the Derby ministry, in December 1852, he was entrusted
with the formation of the new administration. This he effected by
inducing a number of the leaders of the whigs to unite with his own
followers, thus forming a coalition ministry which lasted rather more
th;m two vears, and is likely to remain long a theme of aa much con-
troversy as other coalition ministries, whose acts and policy have so often
exercised the pens and tongues of political writers and debaters. As
at every other period of his political life, the earl was as prime
minister earnestly bent on the maintenauce of peace ; yet, despite of
his best efforts, " the country drifted into war," and a war, the mag-
nitude of which few probably better appreciated than himself. But
Lord Aberdeen, even after war was officially declared, clung to an
early restoration of peace, and rested for that purpose on his favourite
expedient of the Austrian alliance, more than was probably wise or
justifiable at any rate more than the public liked to see ; and this,
with the general feeling that the war was not being prosecuted with
the vigour which its importance and the character of the country
demanded, deprived the Aberdeen ministry of all support, except
from their immediate followers ; so that when the earl resolved to
treat Mr. Roebuck's motion (January 29, 1855) for an inquiry into the
state of the army before Sebastopol, as a vote of want of confidence,
and Lord John Ruasell seceded from the Cabinet, the motion was
carried by a majority greater probably than ever before defeated the
most unpopular ministry. The earl at once resigned, and has not
during the remainder of 1855 taken any prominent part in public
affairs. The war overturned all the earl'a calculations, and arrested
moat of those measures of social and political improvement, which he
had taken an early opportunity of announcing aa the basis of his
system of policy. Yet his administration will be remembered as
having effected an important change in the government of India ;
largely and beneficially modified the exclusive system of Oxford
University ; carried several measures tending to improve the con-
dition of the people; extended still further the principles of free
trade; and laid the foundation of a better system of admission to,
and improved management of the civil service of the country.
The Earl of Aberdeen has never been eminent as an orator. His
influence in the House of Lords has been due to his high personal
character, administrative ability, and social position. AVith foreign
potentates, with whom he has been brought into contact aa a minister,
he has always been a favourite. Since the publication of his work on
Grecian architecture, the Earl of Aberdeen haa not publicly evinced
any partiality for literature or its practitioners; and his government in
rather badly distinguished by his having appropriated to decayed
members of aristocratic families the larger portion of the fund pre-
vioualy set apart for the reward of persons eminent in literature aud
science. His lordship, however, holds various honorary offices usually
bestowed on the patrons of intellectual pursuits : he is Chancellor of
King's College, Aberdeen, President of the British Institution, aud a
governor of Harrow School and the Charterhouse ; and for some years
he was President of the Society of Antiquaries.
ABERNETHY, JOHN, a distinguished surgeon, born in the year
1763-4, either at the town of Abernethy in Scotland, or at that of
Deny in Ireland, for each claims the honour of having been the place
of his birth. He died at Enfield, after a protracted illness, on the
18th of April, 1881, in the sixty-seventh year of his age. In early
youth he removed from the place of his birth, and resided with his
parents in London, in which city his father was a merchant. He
received the elements of grammatical and classical instruction at a
day-school in Lothbury, and also attended school at Wolverhamptou.
At the usual age he was apprenticed to Sir Charles Blick, surgeon to
St. Bartholomew's Hospital, under whom, find especially in the wards of
that hospital, he had ample opportunities of acquiring a thorough
knowledge of his profession, of which he availed himself with dili-
gence. Competent judges, who observed at this early period the
qualities of his mind and his habits of study, predicted that he would
one day acquire fame, if not fortune. Though he appeared before the
public early aa an author, and though his very first works stamped
him as a man of genius, endowed with a philosophical aud original
mind, yet he did not rise into reputation nor acquire practice with
rapidity. In 1786 he succeeded Mr. Pott as assistant-surgeon to St.
Bartholomew's Hospital, and shortly afterwards took the place of
that gentleman as lecturer on anatomy and surgery. For a consider-
able time he had but few pupils, and he was at first by no means a
good lecturer, his delivery being attended with a more than ordinary
degree of hesitation. On the death of Sir Charles Blick, hia former
master, he was elected surgeon in hia room ; and subsequently
St. Bartholomew's Hospital obtained under him a reputation which it
had never before acquired. Ou the 9th of January, 1800, Abernethy
married Miss Ann ThrelfalL
Abernetby was a pupil of John Hunter, and the earnestness and
delight with which, at an early age, he received the lessons of this
his great master, were indications of the soundness of his own judg-
ment. It was from this profound and original thinker, who exercised
an extraordinary influence over the understanding, tastes, aud pur-
suits of his young pupil, that Abernethy derived that ardent love of
physiology, by the application of which to surgery he was destined to
convert a rude art into a beautiful science. He made himself
thoroughly acquainted with anatomy, but it was that he mi^ht bo
admitted into the then new world of physiology ; he studied structure,
but it was that he might understand function ; and the moment he
had obtained a clear insight into these two sciences, he saw the appli-
cations of which they were capable to the treatment of disease.
From that moment he looked with contempt on the empiricism then
almost universal iu surgery; he ridiculed its jargon ; he exposed the
narrowness of its principles, if it be at all allowable to designate by
fBTHT. JOHN.
ABINQER, LORD.
14
fife I
which aloe* nffulatod th* praotio*
"I with oeridio* what
of, and mainly coo-
to buM p. a MW edinos. By the dUigeal stadv of nature.
'isjUaail nwMliH oo what b* saw. and. M he himself ex-
it, th* MMsMsMioe, of what b* MW, b* reduced to order
HMbsrie th* Miflm bad looked upon the
I by nrtt
Hd K h*
I of *liMin whieb It WM hi* part to tnat, diseMM which almost
>lwJJ have IOM! Ma*. M iH which bar* also a local origin.
i which an to b* cured by local applies-
merit of first perceiving, in
MM EM
-j _ L-
OT| WIMB M WH^U W D*
i of th* treatment that grew oat of it In
i and original observation, and *xhibWng
ophioal views, entitled, 'The Constitutional
To AUatethy bslnssp the greet m.rit of ant perceivin
aiMl. OMltar {MOBp^ibOity of Ub aotioa with tbe
I of Looal DUeae**/ b* lay* down Mid **tabliah*s
tbss~ frsoi principle : Thai local dieeM** art symptoms of di-
sTtst c*M*it.)uQ)SX srlrt
I pri*V*w*VTT tod il)<Wp*MX}sM)t HuUjsVdiAsl ; 4U*d
thai iWy re to b* cored by reoiedle. oatoojated to make a salutary
laaMWMM) oo th* gMMral from*, not by topical drMsing, DOT any
SWM* MfailhtlMsl of sarnry. Tbi* aingl* principle changed th*
SMBOOI ** the eaOre told of surgYrr, and elevated it from a manual
art into th. rank of soiiBO*. And to this Brat prineipl* be added
eoood. the runs of which I* perhara aocofwhat IMS extenaive, but
Ik* *i*n*l*il ItsaqrwMO* of which is scaroely inferior to that of the
.. tW this dsaordorad state of the comtitution either
from, or i* liforoosly allied with derangement, of tbe
only b* reached by remedies
thin organ*. The
ly
aa.1 bowels, aad that it
is* HIHW.I a curaUre iufl
:. !
mankind
benete d^ly aad booriT oooferred upon mankind by the elucidation
and seUhtiibaswt of the** two prioc.pl-, both by the prevention and
tbe altsgaiiosi of diM aad sunenug, it were rain to attempt to
tutd U Is awt ***y to pay to
wmieb i. hi. due.
awJt | ::. U*f
of tb* structure and function.
iliU>h* of which bM SSM* bow attended with ipUodid suooeM-
MMtjr.th* tying Ih* carotid and th* external iliac arteri**. The
iiiiiiBint of th* p*tformaoo* of UMM capital operation, at once
imtillilil hi* reputation M a sorg*
the Kssjtish sobooltbioutl
Orsai
J throughout Eoropo.
M WM th* reputation which
|fk|gBSlS^ BsltlVMOLslVilljl.
s ow^ his e^brity clueaTtobU i
' and sissnil t
operation*
andlncroMed tbe e*t**m of
MSVSM*, impiwalva, an 1 fMrimHtw manner, whatever
krw. EMy and fluMt, y*t not inelegant abounding w
Uon *>> MMilit*. ye* Msthodiool-kciMl. yet often witt;
Mwslly tnuaoroo* almost to nmraonM* M!I! imnui
thU distinguished man
.n, it is probable
a teacher. Gifted
h* WM endowed
; to others in a clear,
be himself
rith illustro-
yet often witty, and ooesv
to imrMOMS seldom impusiooed, yet
rar allowing th* attention of hi* audi.no.
wraategj* sMtMOt-it WM rare, ind*d. that b* nuled to
whoever beard him, and u ran that b* failed to make
WM Mwvinesd iiillii partiMn. N.vrth*less, a highly
it IU ill, MiiklH apporeotly boa a careful and mature
> oY tk^ impra*sM mod* opon bis own mind by th* preleo-
.f hi. MMtor. gjv th* followtof aooount, whiou, if true, i.
U*T sfiiinnkh M U th* Miwi nsolt of tb* mod* and
spirit of hi* lectoring. " H* s *JoqunUy expounded soto. of ih*
i^.t 1 r-IV^.*Dr. I-h,T^ b. i SSTS-Ju^W
ibJMt*; bemad* that *o easy which
UM of SOOBT absent
Mjimonh, Ibot
for
portion of hi.
Bt be ienrl all hi.
be eo reel paid it, eo aet
-* W IM U. wfll know wkt In.) ;
Uborioo. Uanher. after
W.
-*2* fc tlf?5 tw " P* I
We should bar. bsM ashamed to do
i* with **.aulim. Md voted oarMlfwj by
- of Motel IkUtoonhoi^ M the M y rate
TWgrwt Lord Chatham, it is said, had
piso*nev into th* sniod* of other meo,
WM erw.qusrter of **, boor in hi* oocapuv without
Ui Lord ChoOaa WM th* An* MM ta UiTWorld sad
W* *^**bil i * d .*.** *** wM> * P> oopii* and MrT*
that he
to get at it, ud
at all eyenU in no mood to be aatUAed with anything but the cutiro
truth,
Tbe private character of Mr. Abernetby was blameleu. He waa
highly honourable in all hi. tranaaotiona, and incapable of duplicity,
niMDDiM. artifice, or aervility. HU manner, in the domestic circle
were gentle, and eren playful ; be gave to tboM about him a large
portion of what hi. heart really abounded with teudenieas and affec-
tion ; and on hi. part he wu tenderly beloved by hi. children aud by
all the mnnben of bit family. In public, and more especially to hi.
patieaU, hi. maoDen were coane, ctpriciou., churlub, and eouutime*
brutal. It would not be difficult to account for tliw anomaly
wan then any uee in punuiug the investigation : hi. conduct iu thi
reepect merit, unqualified ceniure.
For a lUt of the vanou. Tract* published by Mr. Abernethy, eee
Watt'. ' Bibliotbeca Britannica.' A collected Edition of hi. Surgical
Work* appeared in 1S15, 2 rols. 8vo. ('Memoir, of Abernethy,' by
George Macilwain. 2 voU. 8ro. London, 1853.)
ABINQER, LORD. Janet Scarlett wai a native of Jamaica, where
hi. family wa. wealthy and of long standing. He wa. the aeoond son
of Robert Scarlett, Eeq., and wu born in or about the year 1769. Hi.
mother', name wa. Eluabeth Anglin. The family estates went, it may
be praeumed, to the eldeet eon ; a third aon, who also remained at
home, and followed the profewioo of tbe law in Jamaica, became Sir
William Anglin Scarlett, and Chief Justice of Jamaica, and died there,
after having held that office for many yean. Jarnee wu at an early
age tent to England. Having finished his elementary education, he
waa, about tbe year 1736, entered a Fellow Commoner at Trinity
College, Cambridge ; and he wu also, a year or two after, admitted a
student of the loner Temple. He took hii degree of B.A. in 1790;
wu called to the bar 8th July, 1791 ; and graduated M.A. in 1791.
HU success at tbe bar wu very decided from the first, and every year
added to his reputation and his emolument*. It wu soon discovered
that, from whatever cause, no young barrister gained so large a propor-
tion of verdict*. Even while he was still a junior counsel, he wu
very frequently eutnuted with the sole conduct of important case*.
At last, in 1816, he received a silk gown ; aud from that date ire wu
reoogniaed u the leader of his circuit (the Northern), and u occupying
also a foremost place in Westminster Hall.
He had made an attempt to be returned to parliament for the
borough of Lewes at the general election in October, Is 12, but wan
defeated by Mr. Qeorge Shiffner, who wu brought in, u second member,
by a majority of 164 to 154 ; and he failed also in a second attempt on
the same borough when a vacancy wu occasioned in 1816 by the
death of the other member, Mr. T. It Kemp, being then defeated by
Sir John Shelley. He wu first introduced to the Hoiue of Commons
in 1818, u one of the member, for the city of Peterborough, under
the patronage of Earl Kitzwilliam. He did not however make a figure
in parliament correeponding to his eminence at the bar ; nor wu he
a frequent apeaker, although be supported both Sir Samuel Komilly
and Sir James Macintoah in their efforts to mitigate the severity of the
criminal law, and also occasionally took part in debates on financial
subject*.
He wu returned again for Peterborough at the general election in
1820 ; but be resigned hi* seat in 1822 to stand for the University of
Cambridge, when, however, be wu left at the bottom of the poll.
Upon this he wu re-elected for Peterborough, but not till after a
contest with Mr. Samuel Well*. Up to this time he bad been consi-
dered M distinctly belonging to the Whig party, although to the most
moderate section of it ; but hi* opinions gradually assumed more of a
Conservative complexion, and when the new Tory or mixed adminis-
tration of Canning came into power in April, 1827, Mr. Scarlett, having
been again returned for Peterborough at the general election in the
preceding year, accepted th* office of Mtorney-generaL He wu at the
same time knighted. Having been once more returned for Peter-
borough be retained his place throughout the administration of Lord
Ooderioh ; wu succeeded by Sir Charles Wetherell when the Duke of
Wellington became premier in January, 1828 ; but wu reinstated in
May, 1829, upon the dismissal of Sir Charles for his opposition to the
Koman Catholic Emancipation Bill; and, having been returned for
Maldon at the general election in 1830, he remained attorney-general
till the accession to office of the Whigs in November of that year, when
he wu succeeded by Mr. (afterwards Lord) Deumau.
At th* general election in May, 1831, Sir James Scarlett wu returned
to parliament for Cookermouth. At the next, which took place after
the paving of the Reform Bill, in December, 1832, he wu returned,
after a contest, for Norwich, along with Lord Stormont (now Earl of
Mansfield). When this parliament wu dissolved in December, 1834,
on Sir Robert Peel being appointed premier Sir James Scarlett wu
mad* Chief Baron, and a peer by the title of Baron Abiuger, of Abiu-
gcr, in tbe county of Surrey, and of the city of Norwich.
Lord Abinger died of a sudden attack of illness at Bury St. Edmunds,
while on the circuit, on the 7lh of April, 1844. He had been Uice
married ; first in August, 1792, to the third daughter of Peter Camp-
bell, Esq., of Kilmorey, in Argyletbire, who died iu March, 1829
secondly, in September, 1843, to Elizabeth, daughter of Lee Steere
Steer*, Esq., of Jays, Surrey, aud widow of the Rev. H. J. Ridley, of
Ockley. By bis first wife he bad three sons and two daughters. Hia
eldest son succeeded to his title and estate*; hi* eldest daughter, the
ABINGTON, FRANCES.
ABU-BEKR.
28
wife of Lord Campbell, was created a peeress in 1836 by the title of
Baroness Stratheden.
Lord Abinger was a skilful and dexterous rather than an eloquent
advocate, and while on the bench he was more distinguished for the
clearness with which he summed up a case to a jury than for the pro-
foundness or subtlety of his legal views. Yet he was considered also
a sound and good lawyer. In the great art of gaining verdicts he was
unrivalled ; and no practitioner at the bar had ever before received so
large a sum in fees in any year as he drew in the height of his practice.
His conduct as attorney-general under the Tories in 1829, when he
filed a number of criminal informations against the opposition news-
papers, naturally exposed him to some severe animadversions from
those who still continued attached to the more democratic political
creed which he had originally been accustomed to profess.
(Gent. Mag. for June, 1844.)
ABINGTON, FRANCES, was born in 1731, or, according to some,
in 1738. Her maiden name was Barton, and her father, although of
respectable descent, is said to have been only a common soldier. Early
in life she obtained her livelihood by running on errands, and one of
her places happening to be at a French milliner's, she soon contrived
to pick up the language. She was afterwards a dower-girl in St.
James's Park, London. Her first appearance on the stage was as
Miranda in the ' Busy Body,' at the Haymarket Theatre, on August 21st,
1755. Not making much impression on the public, she went to Dublin,
previously to which she was married to Mr. Abington, who had become
known to her as her music-master, and from whom she separated in a
few months. At Dublin she made her first step to fame, as Kitty, in
' High Life below Stairs,' which was brought out for the benefit of
Tate Wilkinson, who has left an animated account of her great success.
The more fashionable theatre in Crow-street was soon deserted for the
obscure house in Smock Alley; the head-dress that Mrs. Abiugton
wore was copied by every milliner, and the "Abington cap" in a;few
days figured in ev;ry shop window, and on the head of every lady
who had any pretensions to fashion. Mrs. Abington continued a first-
rate favourite at both the Dublin theatres until her return to England,
in 1765, when she was warmly welcomed by Garrick. In a few seasons,
by the retirement of Mrs. Pritchard and Mrs. Clive, the field was left
open to her, and she quickly became the first comic actress of her
day ; a station which she long retained. Her last public appearance
was on the 12th of April, 1799. She died at her house in Pall Mall,
London, 4th March, 1815. She left a legacy to each of the theatrical
funds.
ABLANCOURT, PERROT NICOLAS D', one of the most esteemed
French translators of the classic authors in the 17th century, was
born at Chalous-sur-Marne, in Champagne (now in the department of
Marne), in 1606, and died at Ablancourt in November, 1664. Ablau-
court commenced his career at the bar, but quitted it almost imme-
diately for literary pursuits ; and at the same time abandoned the
Protestant creed, in which he had been brought up. He returned
however to bis first belief; for six years afterwards he studied with
the deepest attention, under the learned Stuart for three years, at the
end of which time he abjured the Roman faith, and immediately
after retired into Holland, to be near the learned Saumaise, and enjoy
the society of that famous scholar ; perhaps also to let the scandal of
his second abjuration die away. From Holland he repaired to England,
and thence to Paris, where he became intimately acquainted with Patru,
one of the moat celebrated writers and distinguished lawyers of that
day, aud also with other eminent literary characters. In 1637 he was
received a member of the French Academy, and gave his whole atten-
tion to the translation of the works of Tacitus; but being eoon
obliged to quit Paris on account of the war which broke out, he went
to reside at his seat at Ablancourt, in Champagne, for the remainder
of his life, with the exception of the time he spent in Paris during
the printing of his works. Of his numerous translations, those most
known are, the whole of Tacitus, of which there have been ten
editions; four orations of Cicero; Ctesar; the Wars of Alexander,
by Arrian the most esteemed of bis translations as regards) the style ;
Thucydides ; the Anabasis of Xenophon ; and an imitation, rather
than a translation, of Lucian. During his life he appears to have been
held in general estimation as a translator, but his versions are very far
from accurate, and are now obsolete.
In 1C62 Colbert proposed him to Louis XIV. as the historian of his
reign, but Louis would not have a Protestant to commemorate its
events. However, he did not deprive him of his pensiou of 120/. per
annum, which had been granted to him as hUtoriogapher. Ablan-
court's life was written by his friend Patru.
ABRAHAM (originally Abram), the great ancestor and founder of
the Jewish nation, and the first depositary of the divine promises in
favour of the chosen people. He was the ion of Terab, the eighth in
descent from Sbrra, the eldest son of Noah, and was born probably at
Ur, a town of Chajdsea, about 2000 years before the Christian, era.
Hi* history occupies about a fourth part of the book of Genesis,
namely, from tlie llth to the 25th chapters inclusive. Having mar-
ried Sarah (originally Sarai), the daughter of his brother Haran, he
accompanied his father and his nephew Lot to Haran, where Terah
died ; and then, at the command of God, taking Lot along with him,
he left Harun, and proceeded towards the south till he reached the
plain of Moreh, in Canaan. The epoch of the commencement of this
journey, which happened when he was 75 years old, is called by chro-
nologists the Call of Abraham. Soon after, a famine forced the
patriarch to make a journey into Egypt, from which country, when
he had returned to the place of his abode in Canaan, he found that
the increase of his own flocks, and those of his nephew, made it
necessary that they should choose separate settlements ; and accord-
ingly, by mutual consent, Lot withdrew towards the east, and
established himself among the cities in the plain of Jordan, while
Abraham removed to the plain of Mamre, in Hebron. He had reached
his 99th year, and his wife (who had been hitherto barren) her 89th,
when God appeared to him, and declared that there should yet spring
from them a great nation a promise which was confirmed by the
birth of Isaac the following year. The severe trial of Abraham's
faith, in the command given him to sacrifice this beloved son, so
beautifully related in the 22nd chapter of Genesis, is familiar to every
reader. Some time before this he had given another striking proof of
his submission to the divine will and his implicit reliance on the
promises of God, in his dismissal of his son Ishruael, whom he had by
Hagar, the Egyptian bondwoman, on the assurance of his Heavenly
Father, that of him too would he make a nation, because he was the
patriarch's seed. The Arabs claim to have sprung from Ishmael, as
did the Hebrews from Isaac. After the death of Sarah, at the age of
127, Abraham man-led Keturab, and by her had six other sons. The
venerable patriarch died at the age of 175, and was buried, by Isaac
and Ishmael, in the tomb which contained his first wife in Mamre.
ABCJ-BEKR, properly called Aldattah-Atik-ben-Abi-Kohafah, but
better known under the name of Abu-Bekr (that is, 'Father of the
Maiden,' in allusion to his daughter Ayeshah, whom the Arabian
prophet married very young), was the first kalif or successor of
Mohammed in the government of the new empire founded by him.
Mohammed died in A.D. 632, without leaving any male issue. The
succession to the sovereignty was at first contested between his father-
in-law, Abu-Bekr, and AH-ben-Abi-Taleb, his cousin-german, who was
also, through marriage with the prophet's daughter Fatima, his son-
in-law. Between the two rivals themselves the dispute was settled
without an appeal to arms. Abu-Bekr prevailed, aud AH, though
disappointed, submitted to the authority of his successful opponent.
But among the Mohammedans the respective claims of the two com-
petitors became a point of perpetual controversy, and gave rise to
the great division of tbe whole Mohammedan community into Sunnites
and Shiites ; the former asserting the right of Abu-Bekr and his two
successors, Omar and Othman, while the Shiites condemn these three
kalifs as unlawful intruders, and maintain the exclusive right of AH-
ben-Abi-Taleb and his lineal descendants to the commandership over
the Faithful [ALI-BEX-ABI-TALEB.]
After the death of Mohammed, only the three important towns of
Mecca, Medina, and Tayef declared themselves for Abu-Bekr. It was
the first and principal object of the newly-appointed sovereign to
establish his authority in the other parts of Arabia, especially iu the
countries of Yemen, Tehama, Oman, and Bahrain. In reducing to
obedience these refractory provinces, Abu-Bekr was powerfully sup-
ported by Omar, afterwards his successor, and especially by Khaled-
ben-Walid, a military commander of extraordinary courage and
presence of mind. Besides this rebellion of some of its members, the
Mohammedan state had to encounter other difficulties from several
new pretenders to prophetship. Mosailamah seems to have been the
most formidable of these enemies of the Islam. He was however
defeated by Khaled, and killed in a battle near Akrabah. This con-
flict is memorable on another account. The precepts promulgated
at different times by Mohammed had till then been in a great measure
preserved by oral tradition, or handed about in fragments written on
palm-leaves, or pieces of parchment Many of the personal associates
of Mohammed, who were from memory familiar with his doctrine,
fell in the war with Mosailamah ; and Abu-Bekr, in order to obviate
any future uncertainty about the genuine text of the ordinances,
caused all the fragments to be collected, the passages remembered by
heart to be written out, and the whole to be embodied in the volume
known under the title of the Koran.
Abu-Bekr, anxious to increase the Mohammedan dominions, dis-
patched Khaled into Irak, where he subdued several of the frontier
provinces along the Euphrates. Two other commanders, Yezid-ben-
Abi-Sofyan and Abu-Obeidah, entered Syria and defeated tbe troops
of the Grecian emperor Heraclius. After a decisive victory over a
Greek army of 70,000 men, near Ajnaidain, the capture of Damascus
by the united forces of Abu-Obeidah and Khaled established the
dominion of the Arabs over Syria, and iu fact over the whole country
between the Euphrates and the Mediterranean.
On the day of the capture of Damascus (August 23rd, 634) Abu-
Bekr died, at the age of 63 years. Not one of his three sons, Abdallah,
Abd-al-rahman, and Mohammed, survived him; and in his will he
appointed Omar as bis successor. Eastern writers praise the simplicity
of his habits and manners, and his disregard of wealth and the luxu-
ries or even comforts of life. Every Frulay he distributed all the
surplus of his income among such persons as he thought deserving of
it. His short reign, of little more than two years, forms an eventful
epoch in the history of Mohammedanism ; and oriental authors have
vied with one another in recording details about the early conquests
of the armies of the Faithful. The volume of the great Arabic
ACHARn. FRArICOIS*!HARLF..S.
Auriih sf Tabsij
Ittl Itet. U entirely i
.Mr-.naj-: tW b*ter
trsashti < by Ka
i wi* only th.
(Qreirewmld.
part of Abu-
er the history *f tb* e*qoe.t. of Irak
A hicbly biter**tfasf account of
UtiT*l AW, from th. Arabia
be load to Ookley's -Hlrtory of tb*
AUrLFARAtJICS (properly JTr Onyenw AMfmj, also called
wsWMv AvAtAvw)i wo MI oritobU writer of maeh cl*brltT, who
iWt^thelMtsataryofoareca. Hs was bora in ISM, at btalatia,
srsMtt*. a town iltosl linear tb* western bank of tb* Euphrates in
Lsanr Asia, where bis mtbtr. Aaron, followed tb* profession of a
byesesea, TLo^ tbe oaVpriac of a Jewish bmily, he embraced the
Sill II I bdssltowbisb, aotwTtbstandiag a *urmiM to tb* contrary,
b* eeatismd ttHbf ol till hi* death. AbuUarej studied theology, phllo-
eoby.sirfmiiH.hii, R* speat tb* gre***r part of hi* Web Syria,
At tb. early at* of tweoty b* was appointed bishop of Ouba. and
isjiiisasstly sf AWppo. b 1M4 b* was elected Primate of all the
J*abs* CJilitJini b tbe East. He died U Meragha in Aserbijan,
I.1IML
Ahsbaraj was tbe aothor of a greet number of Arabic and Syriac
Mrfca, tmt Ib* composition through which bis name ha* become best
BseshA^SHK *aukA ** *- si eoebleB^SBshKl Ik^ssVassaa) earwlM^M !* flwlsu* Kt ri*
BssWB ssstPPff O> BOITT/f^sssI DIBVOsTTf WmND IB OJTUwO* UU WWD**
btted by tb* autbor llsinlf into Arabic, to which be has given the
UUsef Hirtoryoftbo DynsHisa.' It is divided into ten Mctions
tbslntof which lira son* account of tb* patriarch. ; the eecond.
rftb*
the jodge.; and the third, of the
!
errors are observable, into which
ntlleo through his ignorance of the classical language*
Thoogh written by a Christian, thi* work i* held in
Jew* and Mohammedans in the East. To u* it*
in the curious details which it contains con-
nsmhsf. tb* history of science among tb* Arab*, particularly nnder
tb* tbr<* Abbssid* kali*. Mmnsnr, Harun-al-Rashid, and Mamun. An
edMoo of tb* Arabia text of tb* Dynasties,' accompanied with a
Latin tramlatioo. was pubUsbed by Edward Pococke, at Oxford, in
IMS. 4to. ; tb* Syriac text, likewise with a Latin version, was edited
by Brans and Kincb, at Leipxig. hi 1789 4to.
ABUL-KAZU soo of ttb.ikb Mobsrik, was the vuir of the
ulitrssii Mogul emperor Akbar, who reigned from A.R 1555 to
106. b 1401, when returning from an expedition to the Oeoean, he
WM murdered in tb* district of Nurwar by banditti, and, it was sus-
peeted. bv tb* contrivance of Akbar's son Selim. who arWwards
ssisiisilid U* father on the throne, nnder th* name of Jehangir.
Tbe extensive sad valuable work* which Abul-Faxl found leisure to
write, have bwnrsd him a ooespieaous pUoe among th* bast authors,
; tbe most enlightened
statesmen, of the East Hi*
prbMipal work Is tb* Akbar-S ameb,' which *xi*te a* yet only in
sasmssript. sad oootain* history of tb* reign of th* sovereign
bom be served, sod to whom be was most devotedly attached ; thi*
Ustory Abul-Fast carried down till very near tbe time of his own
death, sod it was afterward* continued by Sheikh Enaietullah in a
Mill * !, entitled Takmueb-l-Akbar-Nameh.' Bat the work
wbkh bas toost *oa*rlbuted to make his name f.miliar to us ls the
Ayavi-Akbari,' or lostrtates of Akbar, a statistical and political
lliH|ilii of Ib* Mogul empire, sad of tb* several branches of
!* a Mead to theoppr.^ Hindoos.
in tb* Bast oa
style, I* tb* Ay*r i-Dwrf*.' or Touchstone of Intellect, a
Arabic of tb* well known fabla. of
id to bold tbst dignity *v*a after tb. E
Jddhvlbek, bad bvl^ art an eod to tb.
Jrria and Egypt. AomUrda was bora in 1
bU Camilybsd lad Wfor. tb* MojoU, who tbsn
"susr*** r v u * 1 ^
bsaBas.l.ooe.seBtasamb**.
tb* Ayu-
; - : ,
.
(IM)bs
of Hamah, on an expedition again*! the Mogols. After the death of
Modhaffar. in 12IW, the Bahrito lulUn Naitir declared the fief which
the Ayubit** bald under him to hare become extinct, and aatigned a
email penaion for their maintenance. When however, ten years after-
ward*, Sulten Nasir became personally acquainted with Abulfeda, he
not only reetored to him (1310) the former dignity of his family, but
aooo after, u an acknowledgement for hii aerrioe*, raUed him to the
rank of malik, or king. In 1316 Abulfeda was obliged to give up the
town of Maarrah and It* territory to the Arab Emir Mohammed-Ben-
lea, who demanded this boon as a reward fur bis defection from the
MogoU ; but he retained Barin and Haraah, and with his troops often
rendered military eervioel to Sultan Nasir. He continued on the most
friendly terms with Nasir till he died in 1331. The numerous works
which he has left behind attest the extent and variety of his informa-
tion. Among them we find mentioned works on medicine, Mohammedan
jurisprudence, mathematics, and philosophy : those most commonly
known are a treatise on geography, entitled ' Takwim-al-boldnn,' or
'Disposition of the Countries;' and an historical work called 'Hukhtaaar
fl akhbaral-baabar,' that is, ' A Compendium of the History of Mankind.'
The geographical treatise consist* of an introduction and twenty-eight
sections on particular countries, each containing, first, a tabl-, showing
the latitudes and longitudes of the most remarkable places, and after-
ward* detailed statistical and topographical notices respecting them.
In the description of such places as he had not seen himself, he takes
care to name the authorities from whom he draws his information.
The descriptions of single countries have been edited by Qraviua,
Reiske, Rommel, Koehler, Michaelia, and other*. The historical work
U a chronicle after the usual comprehensive plan of oriental works of
this kind. It* main object U the history of Mohammed, and of the
Arabian empire, which it carries down as far as the year 1328. The
earlier centuries of the Mohammedan power are but briefly treated.
Farther on the narrative become* fuller and richer in interesting details.
For the history of the Crusade* it is one of the most important oriental
source* which we possum, The latter part of the work, or the history
of Mohammedanism, was translated by Reiske, and edited with the
Arabic text by Adler, at Copenhagen, in five volume*, 4 to, 1739-17'.') ;
an edition and translation of the ante-Islamitic part has been published
by Fleischer, Leipzig, 1831, 4 to.
AHYDE'NUS (' Affutrirti), a Greek historian who wrote a history of
Assyria ('Airmfxamt), of which some fragment* are preserved by Kusc-
bius, Cyrillus, SynoaUus, and Moses of Chorene. His work was valuable
for chronology, and a fragment found in the Armenian translation of
the Chronioon of Enaebiua settles some difficulties in Assyrian history.
The time at which he lived i* not certain ; he mult however belong to
a later period than IlcitMns, one of hi* authorities, who lived about
B.C. 440. The fragments of his history are collected in Scaliger's work,
' De Kmendationa Tempo rum,' and more completely in J. D. O. Richter,
'Berod Chaldsei Historic qua lupersunt,' Ac., Leipzig, 1326, 8vo, p.
S3, Ac., and p. 85, Ac.
ACHARD, FRANCOIS-CHARLES, a chemist and experimental
philosopher, supposed to have been of French extraction, was born at
Berlin in 1763 or 1764, and died in 1821. He was the author of various
work*, written in the German language, on experimental physics,
chemistry, ami agriculture ; and he was long an active contributor to
different scientific journals, particularly the ' Memoirs ' of the Academy
of Berlin. In 1780 he published at Berlin a work entitled ' Chymisch-
Phyi*cbe Schriften,' which contains a great number of experiments
utrthe subject of the adhesion of different bodies to each other. Tables
containing the result* of three experiments, which seem to have been
conducted with great care, may b* seen in the ' Encyclopedic Metho-
diqne (ChlmieV torn, i., p. 469.
Acliard it however chiefly known for his proposal to extract sugar
from beet-root. Another I'russian chemist, Margraff, had discovered
the existence of a certain portion of sugar in this root a* early as 1 747.
He communicated his discovery to the Scientific Society at Berlin ;
but he himself thought it of little practical importance, as he declared
he could not produce sugar nnder 100 francs the pound. Achard, who
in this particular appears to have been somewhat of a visionary, on the
contrary, described the beet-root a* " one of the most bountiful gift*
whieh the divine munificence had awarded to man upon the earth."
He affirmed that not only sugar could be produced from beet-root, but
tobacco, m<ilsssi, coffee, rum, arrack, vinegar, and beer. The Institute
of Paris, in 1 800, gave Achard the honour of a vote of thank* ; but after
aeries of careful experiments they reported that the renulU were so
nnsattsfsetory, thai U would be unwise to establish any manufacture
of sugar from beet-root. But Napoleon I. In 1612 succeeded in forming
an imperial manufactory of sugar at lUmbonillet, when his decree*
bad deprived France of the produce of the West Indie*. The sugar
made at bom* was sold at a great price ; and consequently, after the
pemos, when foreign sugar was once more introduced, ite cheapness put
an and to the beet-root establishment*. The government of France
bow*r*r cboee to levy high duties upon the sugars of English colonies
to protect thoM of Martinique, Quadalonpe, and Bourbon ; and the
tax upon English colonial sugar, being 6 francs the 100 kilogramme*,
or about half a franc per pound, amounted to a prohibition. Tho
beetroot manufacture therefore was revived, and, with some fluetii-
has continued to increase. The aamo duty is now levied upon
igmr M upon French colonial sugar, but the consumption of
29
ACHILLES.
ADAM.
30
sugar in France is very limited in comparison with that of England.
In 1850, 160.917,000 Ibs. of beet-root sugar were made in France. The
average yearly consumption in France ia less than 10 Ibs. for each
individual ; in the United Kingdom, in 1850, it exceeded 30 Ibs. each.
Beet-root sugar is also made extensively in Belgium, Russia, Prussia,
and Germany. The improvements in the processes for the manufac-
ture of beet-root sugar have led to attempts being made to introduce
its use into the United Kingdom. A company carries on operations
in Ireland on a scale of some magnitude.
ACHI'LLES, one of the most celebrated characters of the mythic
age of Greece ; a distinction due rather to his having been selected by
Homer as the hero of the ' Iliad,' than to the number or wonderful
nature of the exploits ascribed to him. He belongs to that interme-
diate period between truth and 6ction, during which it is generally
hard to say how much ia real, how much imaginary. In the cir-
cumstances of his life however, as they are told by Homer, there is
scarcely anything impossible, or even improbable, allowing for poetical
embellishment.
The story of Achilles, as we find it in Homer, is soon told. He
was the son of Peleus, king of Phthia, and the adjoining parts of
Thessaly, and of Thetis, a sea-goddess, daughter of Nereus. He was
educated l>y Phcenix, a refugee at his father's court. From his mother
he learned that his fate was to gain renown before Troy, and die
early ; or to enjoy a long but inglorious life. He chose the former
alternative, and joined the Grecian army, in which he was pre-eminent
in valour, strength, swiftness, and beauty. During the first nine years
of the Trojan war we have no minute detail of his actions ; in the
tenth year a quarrel broke out between him and the general-in-chief,
Agamemnon, which led him to withdraw entirely from the contest.
The Trojans, who before scarcely ventured without their walls, now
waged battle in the plain, till they reduced the Greeks to extreme
distress. The Greek council of war sent its most influential members
to soothe the anger of Achilles, but without effect. He allowed his
friend and companion Patroclus, however, clothed in the celestial arms
which Hephiestus (Vulcan) gave his father, Peleus, to lead the Myr-
midons, his followers, out to battle. Patroclus was slain, and stripped
of these arms by Hector. Rage and grief induced Achilles to return
to battle. Thetis procured from Hephaestus a fresh suit of armour
for her son, who at the close of a day of slaughter killed Hector, and
dragged him at his chariot-wheels to the camp. Here ends the history
of Achilles, go far as it is derived from Homer, except that we may
infer, from a passage in the last book of the ' Odyssey,' that he was
slain in battle under the wall* of Troy. But the genuineness of the
last book of the ' Odyssey ' has, on good grounds, been disputed by
gome excellent ancient and modern critics.
By later authors a variety of fable is mixed up with this simple
narrative. Thetis is said to have dipped him, while an infant, in the
Styx, which rendered him invulnerable except in the heel, by which
she held him, and he was killed at hut by a wound in the heel. The
centaur Chiron is made his tutor instead of Phccnix, and feeds him upon
the marrow of lions and other wild beastx, to improve his strength and
courage. From this singular instructor he learned music and a number
of sciences, even before the age of nine years ; at which time Thetis,
anxious to prevent him going to Troy, removed him, disguised as a
girl, to the court of Lycomedes, king of the island Scyros. Here he
became the father of Neoptolemux, or Pyrrhus, by the king's daughter,
I>i' lamia, rather precociously ; for he had not been a year on the island
when Ulysses was sent by the confederate Greeks to seek him, in con-
sequence of an oracle which declared that Troy could not be taken
without the help of Achilles. Ulysses arrived at the island, discovered
him among the females of Lycomedes' s household, and carried him
away to join the army. He was betrothed to Iphigenia, daughter of
Agamemnon. The manner of his death ia variously told. Some make
him fall in battle ; others say that he was treacherously slain in a
temple, on the occasion of his nuptials with Polyxena, daughter of
i'ri:un ; but it is generally agreed that he was killed by Paris, Apollo
directing the arrow. He was entombed on the promontory of Sigseum,
and mighty barrow raised over his remains, which still rivets the
attention of travellers ; though it must always remain doubtful to
who>:e memory this mound of earth was really raised. Here Alexander
of Macedon celebrated splendid games in honour of the hero whom he
affected to emulate.
ACHI'LLKS TA'TIUS, a Greek astronomer, who lived probably in
the first half of the 4th century of our era, and wrote a treatise on
the sphere. There is still extant a fragment of Achilles Tatius, entitled
' An Introduction to the Phenomena of Aratus ;' it may be seen in the
' Uranologion ' of Petavins. Suidaa confounds this Achilles Tatius
with another, called by him Achilles Statins, who wrote a Greek
romance, 'The History of Leucippe and Clitophon.' This Achilles
was a native of Alexandria, and must have beeu later than Heliodorus,
whose romance he imitated. He probably wrote near the close of the
5th century. His romance is in eight books, and is preferred by some
of the earlier critics to that of Heliodorus. This latter, however,
appears to us one of the most tedious stories that ever was written.
The Greek romance writers give us no vivid picture of their own times,
but a distorted image of earlier forms of society, without any of the
spirit of historic truth. (Schoell, llitt. Greek Lilt. ; J'oreiyn Quarterly
>. 9.)
ACOSTA, JOSEPH D', a Spanish writer of the 16th century. He
was born at Medina del Campo in Leon, about the year 1539 ; and,
jefore attaining the age of fourteen, entered the Society of the Jesuits,
;o which his four elder brothers already belonged. He was remark-
able for his rapid progress both in literature and science ; and on
inishing his course, he became professor of theology at Oraua. In
1571 he went as a missionary to South America, aud became eventually
provincial of his order at Peru. During his residence in South
America, till 1588, he wrote an account of that continent, which was
published at Seville, in 4to, in 1590, under the title of ' Historia
Natural y Moral de las ludias.' This work, which is highly esteemed
as an authority on the early condition of South America, has been
translated into French, Italian, German, Dutch, and English. There
is a Latin translation of the work in Part IX. of De Bry's ' Collec-
tiones Peregrinationum in Indiam.' Acosta, after his return to his
native country, became a great favourite of Philip II., and had suc-
cessively the dignities of Visitor of his order for Arragon and
Andalusia, Superior of Valladolid, and Rector of the University of
Salamanca. He died February 15th, 1600. Besides the work we have
mentioned, he ia the author of another on the same subject, published
in 1589 in Latin, under the title of ' De Natura Novi Orbis Libri
Duo,' which was translated by himself into Spanish, and inserted in
his History. He is also the author of several theological treatises ;
and, among the rest, of a volume of sermons, in Latin. (Moreri;
Biog. Univ.; Robertson, America; Biblioth. Serif lor. Soc. Jesu, a
Jliliadeneira Alleyambe, et Sotvello.)
ACTON, JOSEPH, the prime minister of the court of Naples for
several years, was the sou of an Irish gentleman who practised medi-
cine at Besanjon, in France. He was born in 1737. He was originally
in the French naval service ; but subsequently obtained the command
of a frigate from Leopold, Duke of Tuscany. In an unsuccessful
expedition against Algiers, in 1774, in which the government of
Tuscany co-operated with that of Spain, Acton commanded thu
Tuscan vessels ; and by his gallant conduct succeeded in saving 3000
or 4000 Spanish soldiers, who must otherwise have perished. His
food conduct here was the cause of his advancement. He was recom-
mended to the service of the King of Naples. His intriguing disposi-
tion secured him the favour of the King and Queen of Naples ; and
ho was successively minister of the navy, of war, of finance, aud
ultimately became prime minister. In his policy he was constantly
opposed to the French party in Italy. Many of the persecutions for
political opinions, and the violations of justice, which occurred at
Naples subsequent to the period of the French invasion in 1799, arc
ascribed to the power or the influence of Acton. He is said to have
died in obscurity in Sicily, in 1803.
ADAIR, SIR ROBERT, was the son of Robert Ad.iir, sergeant-
surgeon to George III., by a daughter of the second Earl of Albe-
marie, through whom he became connected with many families of
political influence. He was born in London on May 24, 17C3, aud
was educated at Westminster school, whence he proceeded to Gottin-
gen to complete his studies. On his return iu 1780 he became
acquainted with Mr. Fox, took his side in politics, and wrote a pamphlet
or two, one of which, a letter to Mr. Burke, brought on him the
ridicule of Canning in the Anti-Jacobin. But in February 1806,
when Fox succeeded to power, he was sent as minister to Vienna,
where he conducted himself ably, and of which mission he published
a memoir in 1845 ; and in 180S, Canning, when iu office, though he
had rediculed his appointment to Vienna, selected him for a special
mission to the Porte, with Mr. Canning (now Lord Stratford tic
Redcliffe) and Mr. Morier as assistants, where he negociated iiio
treaty of the Dardanelles, concluded in 1809, and of this mission
he has also published an account. On its successful termination he
was made a Knight Grand Cross of the Order of the Bath. In April
1809 he was appointed ambassador at Constantinople, which office he
held till 1811. In July 1831 he was despatched by Earl Grey on a
special mission to Belgium, where Prince Leopold, recently elected to
the throne of that kingdom, was besieged in Liege by the Dutch
troops under William Prince of Orange. Sir Robert urged Priiico
Leopold to fly ; but he declined, saying, that " flight ought not to be the
first act of his reign ; he was ready to fight, but would allow him to
negociate,'' and Sir Robert, fastening a, handkerchief to a ramrod,
sought the hostile army, and in an interview with Prince William,
succeeded in gaining his connivance for Leopold to withdraw to
Maliues, whither he accompanied him. In this port he remained till
1835, when he retired with the rank of privy councillor, and a pen-
sion of 20002. per annum. He died on October 3, 1855, after a short
illness. Sir Robert had represented Appleby in 1802, and Camelford
in 1806 and 1807. In 1805 he had married Angelique Gabrielle,
daughter of the Marquis of Hazincourt, but left no issue. Sir Robert
possessed a wide range of information, aud his views with regard to
Russia have beeu remarkably confirmed by recent events.
ADAM, the first man, and progenitor of the human race, whom
God formed of the dust of the ground, on the sixth and last day of
the creation, as related in the first aud second chapters of Genesis.
The whole of the authentic history of Adam is contained in the first
five chapters of that book. His loss of the state of innocence aud
felicity which he originally enjoyed, is commonly known by the name
of ' The Fall.' It was after this event, and his expulsion from the
ADAM. ALEXANDER, LUD.
ADAM, ROBERT.
**ta**r>of
or Uu tan shrill raraitirr. Mr 4 BM*ld**A*oa Cain
d soTWAbrf. and hi. third Ma, or Shath,
b* was 130yanold. H* k also stated to lure
an not givso. H. dUd
to UM commonly received
hrist Man:
as?
of Christ
iad kU* qasMfeM raj***, by UMnbbinieal writer.
iBBliiiilliu Adan. for which UMW i no warrant whatever
. Th* reader who may be etiriooi to B** om* of tbeae
D***1U1T pVsTVQiB. OW v *JV
Bol*noa.' T. 10. Acconling to Ladol
MM ' beautiful, e*>nC *.; deoot
of God. la the N*w Te*tam*at UM
.
th* articte. in BayU. and in Calm*t's Dictionary of tb.
TawordAd*ia*saVtob*id.'BBdKfa*iippo**d thatin
to UM Hg-i^H^. of this Hbr*w verb, tbo earth out of
which Adam was mad* was called Aduwli ; ' while othen think tint
UM MOM Adaa ' wn'^ff* an allueioo to Ura reddiah oolonr of a
healthy asnoa. Be* th* a*s of the word 'adorn ' in the ' Song of
' LodoJf. 'Adamah, 1 in the Ethiopic.
I mat to be the chief work
ipresaion* the last Adam,"
UM aacoad OMB," are UM! to dsaignal* oar Saviour, M the head of
tb* aew creation. ia UM kingdom of heaven.
ADAM. ALEXANDER, LUD., an eminent teacher of Latin, who
WM bora in Jun. 1741, at CoaU of Burjrie, in the pariah of Rafford,
Manrahir*. Scotland. Baring acquired the ordinary knowledge of
Latin in Ib* parish school, b* prooraded to Aberdeen, in the hope of
irtrt-tntng one of UM bursari** which are open for annual competition
at King* CoUtg*. Dsmppolntod in thu expectation, he enterrd him-
aalf at UM r Diversity of Edinburgh in UM winter of 17S8. His
cVsaoaHis* and privation* while attending collrge were very great ;
hut although sometime* reduced to cncb destitution as not to know
wberr to obtain a mouthful of bread, be manfully persevered till lie
gained tb* reputation of bain? on* of the beat scholars in the Uni-
wrstty. His merits wan at length rewarded by hi* appointment, in
171, to the offlce of one of the toaebera in Watoon'a Hospital, an
invitation in Edinburgh for the education and rappoH of the sons of
deoaved I in sans*. In 1767 be wa* eboaan assistant to the Rector of
UM High School, tb* chief daadcal aeminary of the city. In 1771,
OB tb* death of UM Rector, Adam waa elected by the magistrate* aa
hat auoc*aior ; and in thU honourable port be remained throughout
th* reet of bu life. The Ant yean of bis rectorship however were
aooMwbat atonuy. In 1772 lie publuhed a little work entitled, ' The
riiBnlBsai of Latin and English Grammar,' and introduced it into the
aebool a* a aubatHuU for ' Koddimaa'i Grammar.' The four under-
Msten raaiatod thia innoration, and, after repeated applications to
UM ihs^Miata*. aa natron* of the school, obtained, in 1786, a prohibi-
tion again** tb* Rector's book. It baa nevertheless gone through
atraral +ilrH"Dt 1 and has been to aome extent used in the other school*
of ftmillaml Dr. Adam alao publuhed the following works : In
1791 a volume entitled ' Roman Antiquitiea,' which has gone through
rvrral edition*, and been traaalatod into Gorman, French, and Italian ;
hi 17t. a 'Summary of Geography and History,' also several times
reprinted; in 1 SOO, a Dictionary of CUasloal Biography ; and.inlSOS,
Latin Dictionary. under th* Utt* of 'Lexicon Lingual Latins) Com-
pendJarfam,' bates; aa abridgment of a larger work on which be bad
bean toot iBias.il A awoad edition of this Urt baa been published
aim the Bothers death, with vary considerable alterations, both in
Ih* way of addition and of curtailment Both this dictionary and
the ' Eoasaa Antiqviti**' era much used in th* achools of Scotland.
Ho penoa UUof B public situation waa more universally respected
awl isliMiii to Scotland than Dr. Adam in his Utter days. Hi*
ahswartaf waa on* of great manliness ; so much so, aa to make biui
BSSBsMimi perhaps htdfaerwtiy bold in to* xpreeaion of whatever be
Wl His political opinion. wan of a atrongly liberal complexion;
Bad b* ha* has* acooasd of not acrnpling sometime* to give them
*a with soasHanlli sotphaasa in UM praence of hi* claas. But
I wa th* general regard felt for him. that this charge, which,
by bis
._ Of hi* life was puMiab*d in 8vo. in 1810.
Of UM foot work* jo* ecmnMrsted, UM moat valuable and the beat
la UM lrnls.1 oa Roman Antiquities. Few book* in so small
BO lama a maa* of turful information ; and the
BBS*. 14 M " - -
work, baa
toBM of th* R
itUoblcbnnyptaof
to th* enVta C/UBM in changing tb*
anal an*, be hs* often ao arranged UM pasaage*
atracUd by him frooj Tatte authors oa tbia enbject, M sottnly to
both biasaalf aad hi* reader. Mom. orreotioea aad many
i an noaind w the tswtioa oa UM Roman y**r, particularly
tWttoaav1od*DtiertoUJ<lMaeonet.<io. No llul* caution .bould
ha ohswnd la r-diag th* na*rlu oa Roman money, a .object of
v.ta whioh U I* oftea awrspradeat to bei
^Mcsal diSeHy, t, whash to U often faor* pro*at to beMtisM
with spuraBii^ th*a to adopt UM ordiaary trpr*tatiooa. Th*
mhM *ad aaax. of th* Kooea coin* wan ooaeUatly cbaaginx, and
.hi. aa4.mlHii.Hly. tMsta, UM Buaa.tc*! oototioa *m P V'1 by
Ih* IfaNaaa* i* parUeuiuly UaM* to comnrfioa in tb* BMnuncripU:
and, *v*n where the text is not corrupted, the interpretation is un-
certain. With all these drawbacks, the work is of great value to
all who read the history or the literature of Rome, and does great
credit to Dr. Adam. It ought not to detract from his reputation
that be has not anticipated the important discoveries made by the
German* since he wrote.
The treat! v on classical biography is intended chiefly for the illus-
tration of Roman history. It deserves a much more extensive circu-
lation than we believe it possess** in England. We may say the same
of Dr. Adam's Latin dictionary, notwithstanding its inconvenient
arrangement, which often neglects the alphabetical order to bring
together words etymologically connected. The summary of history
and geography, published by Dr. Adam, has in parts great merit, but
it aim* at much more than can be fairly executed within the limits.
We need only aay that it professes to give, 1st, A summary of all
history, ancient and modern, Grecian, Roman, Persian, English, French,
German, Indian, American, &c. &c., with the manners and customs of
these nations; 2ndly, the mythology of the Greeks; 3rdly, the
geography of all ages and all countries, not excluding even the local
situations of remarkable cities ; 4thly, an account of the progress of
astronomy and geography, from the earliest periods to the present
time, with a brief account of the planetary system. Not satis&ed
with all this, the publishers have added an extensive index of geography,
and 13 maps of little value. When we look at ail that Dr. Adam
did, we can fairly aay, that no writer in the British 1 -lauds has ever
done more to assist the young student of Latin, or, what is perhaps
still more important, to connect that study with the attainment of
general knowledge.
ADAH, JAMES, an architect, who is chiefly known as the partner
and associate of his brother Robert, the subject of the following
article. He died in 1704.
ADAM, ROBERT, was born at Kirkaldy, in Kifeshire, according to
some authorities, and, according to others, at Edinburgh, in the year
1728, and wns the son of William Adam, Esq., of Maryburgh, near
Kirkaldy, who is said to have furnished the designs for Hopetoun
House and the Royal Infirmary of Edinburgh ; but whether be wns
himself professionally an architect or not does not appear. Robert
received his literary education at the University of Edinburgh; and,
from hi* father, William Adam, it seems most likely that be derived
instruction in the principles and practice of his future profession.
When be was in his 26th year Mr. R. Adam went to Italy, and
remained there several years. His contemporaries, James Stuart and
Nicholas Revett, were, at the time of Adam's residence in Italy, en-
gaged in exploring, and preparing for publication, the architectural
remains of Athens ; but so little was Grecian architecture known and
appreciated, that he went, instead, to Spalatro in Ualmatia, to measure
and delineate the ruins of the palace of Diocletian there, a structure
indicating alike the decline of civilisation and the progress of bar-
barism. In this tour he was accompanied by Cldrisseau, a French
architect, whose name is connected with a work on the remains of
a Roman temple at Nisuies, in Languedoc. Mr. Adsm returned from
the continent about the year 1762, and settled in London, and shortly
after published there, in a large folio volume, engraved representations
and descriptions, with attempted restorations, of the Dalmatian palace.
About the same time, 1763-4, Mr.. It Adam was appointed architect
to the king. In the course of a very few years he designed, and, in
conjunction with his brother James, executed a great many public
and private buildings in England and in Scotland. In 17T3 the
brothers commenced the publication of their works, in large folio
engravings, with letter-press descriptions and critical and explanatory
notes, in numbers, which were continued at intervals down to 1778.
The principal designs included in these are, the screen fronting the
high road, and the extensive internal alterations of Sion House, a seat
of the Duke of Northumberland, near Brentford in Middlesex ; Lord
Mansfield'* mansion at Caen- Wood, or Kenwood, also in Middlesex ;
Luton House, in Bedfordshire, erected for Lord Bute ; the screen to
the Admiralty Office, London ; the Register Office, Edinburgh ; Shel-
burne House, now Lansdowne House, Berkeley-square, London ; the
parish church of Mlatley in Essex, *c. ftc. At a later period the Messrs.
Adam designed the Infirmary at Glasgow, and some extensive new
buildings in the Univenity of Edinburgh, though their practice, after
th* year 1780, lay principally in London, where a great many of their
production* still exist, and are easily recognised by any one accustomed
to discriminate architectural deign. Portland, Stratford, and Hamil-
ton Place*, tb* south and east sides of FiUroy-square, and the build-
ing* of th* Adelphi, are the most extensive of their works. Their
Interest in, aad connection with, thia last-mentioned expensive under-
taking, U intimated by th* name Adelphi, which is the Greek term
for brother*. 1 The Meeers. Adam were among the first, if they were
not themselves tbo very first, to make use in London of a stucco iu
imitation of stone, for external architectural decorations.
The style of architecture introduced by the Messrs. Adam was
peculiar to themwlvea, and very faulty ; but then is nevertheless
an air of prettinesa, and some good taste in it ; and the credit may
certainly be claimed for ite authors of having done much to improve
tb* strict architecture of London, for which species of composition
their tyl* waa betUr adapted than for detached and insulated
tructar**.
S3
ADAM.
ADAMS, JOHN.
Mr. R. Adam did not retain the appointment of architect to the
king more than four or five years, for he resigned it on being returned
to parliament for the county of Kinross in 1763. This latter circum-
stance however does not appear to have interrupted his professional
avocations, for we find that he continued to be actively engaged in
business down to the period of his death, which took place in March
1792. He was buried in Westminster Abbey, in the south transept of
which is a tablet to his memory.
As an architect Mr. Adam displayed an original and independent
mind ; for it required in hU day no small degree both of originality
and independence to break through the trammels which had been
imposed upon architecture. This Adam did nevertheless, and though
the result was that he became a mannerist, after a very peculiar and
not very elevated or classical style of his own, the effect on English
architecture was on the whole good. With Mr. Adam we believe ori-
ginated the idea of giving to a number of unimportant private edifices
the appearance of one imposing structure, by external architectural
arrangements ; and he certainly has the credit of having carried this
principle extensively into effect in several of the instances we have
mentioned.
ADAM (Sculptors). There were three brothers of this name, who
all enjoyed some reputation as sculptors in France in the early part
of the last century. They were the sons of a sculptor named Jacob-
Sigisbert Adam, who lived at Nancy. The eldest, Lambert-Sigisbert,
was born there in 1700, and made his first appearance at Paris in
1719. After remaining in that city for four years, he gained the first
prize in the Academy, and proceeded to Rome on a pension allowed
him by the king. Here he spent about ten years, and among other
works furnished the design which was adopted by Clement XII., one
of sixteen which were presented for the intended fountain of Trevi.
Tha offers of the French government then induced him to return to
Paris. On the 25th May 1737 he was admitted a member of the
Academy, and he was afterwards appointed professor in that institu-
tion. The two best known of this sculptor's productions are a group
of Neptune and Amphitrite, which he executed for the basin of Nep-
tune at Versaille, and on which he spent five years; and a figure of
St. Jerome, originally intended for the Hospital des Invalides, but now
placed in the church of St Roch at Paris. They are fair specimens
of the French school of that age, which however was one of the
least brilliant periods in the history of modern art. Adam published
in 1754 a work entitled ' Recueil de Sculptures Antiques Grecques et
Romaines." He died in 1759. Nicolas Sebastian, the next brother,
was born in 1705. He came to Paris at the age of IS, and went to
Rome in 1726, where, two years after, he obtained one of the prizes
at the Academy of San Luca. Having remained there for nine years,
he returned to Paris ; and after some time was also, like his elder
brother, received into the Academy. Among the designs which he
produced was one for the Mausoleum of the Cardinal de Fleury. His
two principal works were a tomb for the wife of King Stanislaus of
Poland, and his Prometheus chained to the Rock (which has been
commonly assigned by mistake to his elder brother). For the latter
work he had an offer from the King of Prussia of 30,000 francs ; but
he declined accepting it, on the ground that the sculpture belonged to
his own sovereign, for whom it had been at first intended. He died
in 1778. The third brother, Franeois-Gaspard, was born in 1710.
He made his way, like his elder brother, to Rome, and also on his
return from Italy fixed his residence in Paris. He worked for some
years at Berlin, in the service of the King of Prussia, and died at
Paris in 1795. (Biographie Univeridle.)
ADAMS, JOHN, a distinguished American statesman. He was
born in the town of Braintree, near Boston, in Massachusetts, on the
1'Jth October 1735, of a family which bad come from England at the
first settlement of the colony. At the usual age he was sent to Har-
vard College, in the neighbouring town of Cambridge ; after leaving
which, he proceeded to study the law, and was in due time called to
the bar. He soon raised himself in the profession which he had thus
chosen to great reputation and extensive practice. In 1765, when the
first opposition of the people of America was excited by the Stamp
Act, Mr. Adams took an active part in those measures of constitutional
opposition which eventually forced the repeal of that obnoxious statute.
An offer of the lucrative office of Advocate-General in the Court ol
Admiralty, made to him the following year by the Crown, with the
view of detaching him from the popular cause, was instantly rejected.
Ho was one of the select men, or state-representatives, deputed by
the several towns of the province, who in 1770 met in convention at
Boston, on the announcement of the intention of the British govern-
ment to station a military force in that town, in order to control the
populace, exasperated by the new Act imposing duties on glass, paper,
tea, ice., which had been passed in 1767, and by the other measures
which indicated a determination in the mother-country to maintain
at least the principle of her late aggression. Soon after this however
Mr. Adams gave a proof both of his intrepidity and of the modera-
tion which was associated with his zeal, by undertaking the defence
of Captain Preston and his men, who, on the 5th of March 1770 had
killed several of the people of Boston in a riot a transaction which
used to pass under the name of the Boston massacre. He delivered a
very powerful speech on this occasion, when the jury acquitted all
the prisoners of murder, and only found two of them guilty of man
moo. DIV. VOL. L.
slaughter. To the honour of his countrymen, the part he had tbua
taken did not diminish his popularity or influence ; and he continued,
during the remaining first years of the struggle, to exert himself con-
spicuously in the front rank of the friends and supporters of the
colonial cause. In 1773, and again in 1774, he was returned by the
House of Assembly a member of the Council of the State ; but on
both occasions the governor, General Gage, put his negative on the
nomination. The latter year however he was elected one of the four
representatives from the province of Massachusetts Bay to the General
Congress, which met at Philadelphia on the 26th of October, and
which, among other proceedings, entered into a resolution to suspend
the importation of British goods ; and he was also a member of the
second assembly of the same nature, held some time after, which took
measures to enrol the people in an armed national militia. In 1775
be was offered the appointment of Chief Justice of his State ; but
this he declined, feeling that he could better serve his country in
another sphere. It had already become evident to many indeed that
the contest with Great Britain must finally be decided by the sword ;
and Adams seems to have been one of the first who adopted this con-
viction. He was accordingly one of the chief promoters of the Decla-
ration of Independence, passed on the memorable 4th of July 1776.
The motion was made by Mr. Lee of Virginia, and seconded by Mr.
Adams ; who, along with Mr. Jefferson, was appointed the sub-com-
mittee to prepare the declaration. It was actually drawn up by Mr.
Jefferson. In November 1777 Mr. Adams proceeded to Paris as a
Commissioner from the United States to that court ; and after remain-
ing for a short time in France returned to America, when he was
elected a Member of the Convention for preparing a new constitution
for Massachusetts. In 1780 he was sent by the United States as their
ambassador to Holland; from which country, about the end of 1782,
he proceeded to France, to co-operate with Dr. Franklin and his brother
commissioners in the negociations for peace with the mother country.
In 1785 he was appointed the first ambassador from the United States
to Great Britain ; and he had his first audience with his Majesty in
that character on the 2d of June. He remained in England till
October 1787. In 1789, when Washington was elected President of
the Union, Mr. Adams was elected Vice-President, and he was re-
elected to the same office in 1793. In 1797, on the retirement of
Washington, he was chosen President ; but he failed to be re-elected
on the expiration of his first term of four years, his competitor, Mr.
Jefferson, who had also been opposed to him on the former occasion,
having a majority of one vote. The general tone of the policy of
Adams had been opposed to that of the democratic party, which was
represented by Jefferson ; but he does not appear to have given com-
plete satisfaction to the other great party whose leading principles he
espoused. On failing in being re-elected President, he retired from
public affairs to the quiet of his country residence at Quincy ;
declining, although nominated, to stand candidate at the next annual
election for the governorship of Massachusetts. The rest of his life
he spent in retirement. For some years before his death his health
had become extremely feeble, and at last little more remained of the
once active and eloquent statesman than the mere breath of life. In
this state he was when the morning arrived of the 4th of July, 1826,
the fiftieth anniversary of the Declaration of Independence. Awakened
from sleep by the ringing of bells and other rejoicings of that grand
jubilee, the venerable patriot was asked if he knew the meaning of
what he heard. " Oh, yes," he replied, the glow of old times seeming
to return to him for a moment, " It is the glorious 4th of July !
God bless it God bless you all ! " Some time after he said, " It is
a great and glorious day, adding, after a pause apparently of deep
thought, " Jefferson yet survives." These were the last words he was
heard to utter. About noon he became alarmingly ill, and at six in
the evening he expired. The same day also terminated the career of
Jefferson, his fellow-labourer in laying the foundations of the inde-
pendence of their common country, and afterwards his successful
rival. Except for a short time, however, these two distinguished men
were friends throughout life. Mr. Adams was the author of a work
first printed in 3 vols. 8vo., in 1787, while ho was in this country,
under the title of ' A Defence of the Constitution and Government of
the United States,' but afterwards remodelled and reprinted in 1794,
with the new title of a ' History of the Principal Republics of the
World.' It is designed to serve, by an ample induction from history,
as a vindication of the federal principles of the American Constitu-
tion, an attachment to which, indeed, has always been considered the
distinctive characteristic of this statesman and his party.
ADAMS, JOHN, sometimes called 'the Patriarch of Pitcaim's
Island.' When H.M.S. ' Bounty ' was seized by a part of her crew,
in April, 1789, John Adams was one of the mutineers. He had not
been previously aware of the intentions of the ringleader, Christian,
and was in his hammock when the mutiny broke out, where he
remained until the distribution of arms among the men, when he
joined the rest, and assisted in keeping watch over the officers on
deck, while Captain Bligh was secured below. [Buon.] After Bligh
and those who adhered to him had been set adrift in an open boat,
the cry was raised " Huzza for Otaheite !" and the 'Bounty' shaped
tier course accordingly. Provisions having been obtained there, the
mutineers sailed for the island of Toobooai, on which they intended
to settle; but the hostility of the natives preventing this, they
D
ADAMS, JOHX.
ADAMS, SAMUEL.
Moat of Ik*
molred to ramaia at that
.faaxM r.:,h .: -..! >r>
iacftooloay in aoma of UM
Of tha usual track of
bomwa* Adama, joined
_ to their taking tha
. carrying with tkam six mala
aativ*. of Otakaite. Arriving at Pitoairn'. laUad,
la U * r IT' N. U>, ISO I' ' W. long., they found a
they resolved to fix
wte*w*B> Kick t of Vf* companion*, M
with Urn, aad UM net offering BO
wW, UM* art eail in UM 'Boa^,'
ll.7to.faMl. MUM. Of OUMiU.
whfak i. in 24' 3' 37' N. Ul, ISO* 8" V W
Mtfttlaoilpbatyof wood and water, aadmoa
bU of iilnii again** any numben; and bare
their abod* They landed thalr atone, and 01
bode. They landed their atone, and on UM ttrd January,
1TM, a* fir* to UM 'Bounty,' and thiu cut off all communication
witk Ik. world
a Tillafa was' built, aad tba wl.ol. land of UM island
UM white man. Tba Ouhotan. war. tmUd
broke OOt tnaar tk- which
to UM mountain*, and only returned upon a promiae
to spar. Ua Ufa. Ha aooo recovered of hi* woun
UM two raeaa wara now aqnal in number, but the
i of tk* wif. of oa* of the Otaheitena being eeUad by a
whoa* own wife had died. This led to a plot among tha
. for UM deatroetioo. of their maaten. which wa* discovered
aad foiled, aad two of the Otabaitana wen killed. The oppression
of UM white* continued to be ao galling, that a second attempt to
dotroy tken waa made, which resulted in the death of Christian
aad fear of hi* oompanioaa. On Uu* oooasion Adams waa ahot
through UM body, aad otherwise derperately wounded, but ha eaeaped
wSmiUmOtSSn
wound*. The men of
bites, by taking
> of iliurial. among UM OtaheiUna, and by treachery, sue-
a* Uagth in killing the Otehaitana, the la*t two being butchered
m aold blood by Adama and another white man. on the 3rd of October,
1793. Ewn after tbia, UM death of tha white men wa* repeatedly
plotted by the Otebeitea women, but without effect During 1798, one
of UM man discovered a method of distilling spirit from a root, which
gave ria* to continual drunkeon.es, aad was the cause of hi* own
death. Shortly after, on. of the three remaining original settlers
having rVirr'r' UM Uvea of tha other two, they put him to death.
Tka two survivors, Adama and Young, dUgusted at the scenes which
they had witaaaaad, and reflecting deeply on their situation, resolved
to eflect a thorough ehaage. During Christian', lifetime dirine service
had barn pat tot mad only once ; they now determined to introduce
daily morning and evening prayer*, with divine service every Sunday,
aad to train np the children in habit* of piety and virtue. Young,
who had been aa omcer oa board the ' Bounty,' was very useful in the
of this scheme, but be died one year after the plan was
id. Jhn Adama felt tha death of his companion deeply,
bat It only ooafmed him in Ua resolution. Than wan now nineteen
children on the Uland, many of them between eight and nine yean of
ran attended
}-. BBBH :.. '. T
idiepfeyedaa
with great succeas ; the Otaheitan
. -ility in receiving the doctrine* of
UM children wan ao ardent in the pursuit of scrip-
. thai ha had aooe ao further trouble than to answer
They grew op in habit* of strict morality, and became,
no* of Adams, a modal of a well-regulated society.
la IMS' the American whale-ahip < Topaa* accidentally touched at
Hwaira'a bland ; but tha account, which the captain. Polgier, gave
of tab community attracted little attention, until in 1814 the British
Irlaaln ' Briton' and 'Tagna' alao viaitod the Uland. In an interview
with MM aspaalas. Adama axpnaaad a wuh to be taken to England, in
roar, a* be expneaed H, to aaa hi* native land one* more, although he
felt ooaviaoad be abold ba banged for hU share in the mutiny ; and
M wa* oar/ oa Momg UM pain which his determination caused, espe-
ato k daagbtor. that ha gave up tha deaign. In December,
Oaaaria Baaohey. in UM i Btoaaom/ anchored at Pitoain'i Island,
shore
wkae. ke raiMliail sixteen daya. moat of which be paved on aho
with Adama. The aeeonnl of Adam* aad hi* colony in the narrati
of Binhiy'* Toyace la UM moat complete that we pomand till the
of Mr. Murray'. inUmting little TO) time. A long grace
waa arid bafcn aad after every meal by John Buflea, a aaafarlng~man,
wko had noaaUy artllad oa UM Uland. and tha utmoet can wa.
bit of bread abould ba eaten without prayer.
aarvio* waa performed five times, tha pnyen on
- aad UM exhortation aad hymn*
Aitt*
i acted a* a aort of chaplain, and
d tha oennon thna timea ovir, to
; .bt Adama Umaalf read prayen,
prayer*,
UM attea
A *
from' UM KaglUb Ritod, d bAaMTdf the
r appropriate or not Captain Baaohay
UM noagnpHou M mnat exempUry ; and
again at. Uter boor. Marrkaj. wm
eUkbw akowad the graateat
wa. al prfornMd. and hyma. rang.
.
UM eoajpU* Uw* oa U*
a* aki. patea, UM* ka
ate aW tka Otokate
own
ftatE
lateiaUyrafnlated; thi
had with MM ring united all
aw* waa ao troabUd
^,tor*adth**arvioato
be lived, and who wa* now
BBt
taIl,troog,aadmttacuUr; UM woman
aoaroaly lea. ao than UM men, though feminine in appearance, and
with oonaideraUe preteoaioo* to beauty. They were fully pc.
in attending to their crop* of yarn* and taro-root, on which they
ehiefly aubaictrd, la fishing, repairing their houMM, net*, Ac., and in
their religious duties. Adama ipent several days on board the
< Bloaaom/ the wind not aarving for hi* return to land ; and among
hie countrymen be displayed hi* cheerfulness without restraint, joining
with great spirit in all the songs and dance* of the forecatle. H,
still retained the habit* of a man-of-war' s-tnan, stroking down his bald
forehead whenever addreaaed by an officer, and showing much embar-
raaament when spoken to familiarly by those whom he bad of old been
aeeoatomad to consider ao much above him.
On leaving the island, present* of useful articles were made to all
tha inhabitant*, and Captain Beechey became the bearer of a request
from Adama to the British government to give its aid in removing
them to some larger island, aa the population, then amounting to 66,
had already begun to press on the means of subsistence. The propo-
sition was favourably considered ; but before any determination could
be come to John Adams died, in March 1829, at the age of 69. An
Englishman named Nobbs, who had recently come to the island,
became his successor, and is now a regularly ordained minister. In
1854 the population amounted to 200, nearly all descendants of the
original settlers, and all speaking and reading English.
There is a characteristic portrait of Adams in liecchey's ' Voyage,'
with a fao-aimile of his hand-writing, aa attached to his own narrative
of the mutiny and it* consequences. The name John Adams, by
which he is universally known, waa an assumed one ; his real name
was Alexander Smith. The change was msde after Captain Folgier
had touched at the island, in order probably to avoid recognition,
although he seems never to have concealed his share in the mutiny.
The incidents of hi* life have been frequently made the subject of
dramatic representation. The subsequent history and present con-
dition of the island are noticed in the article PITCAIRN'S ISLAND, in the
OEOO. Dnr. Eno. Cic.
(Jiioyraphical Dictionary of the Society for the Diffusion of I'teful
Knowledyt ; Rev. K. Murray, PUcairn, London, 1853.)
ADAMS, JOHN COUCH, one of the discoverers of the planet
Neptune, was born at a farm-house on the Bodmin Moon, Cornwall,
about 1817. He entered at St. John's College, Cambridge, in 1839,
where he soon distinguished himself in those studies which have since
placed him in the foremost rank of modern astronomers. In July,
1841, ho formed a design of investigating the irregularities in the
motion of Urauus, and commenced his task, after taking his degree,
in 1848. In September of 1845, and 1846, be communicated the
results of his calculation* to the astronomer royal, and in November
of the Utter year a paper to the Astronomical Society, entitled ' An
Explanation of the Observed Irregularities in the motion of Uranus,'
Ac., in which the existence of the supposed remoter planet (Nf)
was mathematically demonstrated. But as Le Verrier's investigation
of the same subject was first made public, he is regarded as the first
discoverer. There U however no doubt that each ono made hu
discovery perfectly ignorant of what the other was doing.
Other valuable paper* by Adam* are printed in the ' Memoirs of
the Astronomical Society.' In 1853 he sent to the Royal Society a
paper 'On the Secular Variation of the Moon'* Mean Motion,' in
which a question left "essentially incomplete " by Laplace is rectified.
ThU paper appears in the ' Philosophical Transactions.'
In November, 1845, Adam* wa* elected a Fellow of the Astrono-
mical Society, wa* made Vice-president in 1848, and President in
1851. In 1848 the Koyal Society gave him their highest scientific
award the Copley medal. He wa* elected a Fellow of that society in
1849, and wa* named of the Council the same year. He is a Fellow
alao of other scientific societies.
ADAMS, JOHN QU1NCY, the eldest son of John Adams, the
second President of the United States, waa born in Maasaohusette,
June 11, 1767. Some of his early years were spent in Europe, whither
he accompanied hU father. lu 1801 and 1802 he was minister pleni-
potentiary from the United States to Berlin, and during thU time be
travelled through Silesia, which country, its manufactures, and more
particularly it* educational establishment*, were described by him in
a series of letters addressed to his brother at Philadelphia. Thene
letter*, which were originally publuhed in a journal called ' The
Portfolio,' were collected in a volume and published in 1804. During
the presidency of Jefferson, Adams waa recalled from his embassy at
Berlin. Upon hi. return he became a professor in Harvard College,
aad wa* subsequently elected a deputy to Congress for Massachusetts.
Having been previously attached to the federalist party, he now allied
himself to the democratic party. He wa* next charged with a
miarioo to Ruatla, and in 1814 joined the Congress at Vienna as
plenipotentiary of the United Statea. In 1816 he was ambassador at
UM Court of St Jamea'p. In 1817 he became secretary of state for
the Interior; and in 1825 be succeeded Mr. Monroe as President of
UM Union. He was not however re-elected, hU place being supplied
by General Jackson. In 1 820 he waa elected deputy to Congress,
where ha distinguished himself until hU death by hU advocacy of the
abolition of slavery. He died at Washington, February 17, 1848.
ADAMS, SAMUEL, a conspicuous actor in the American revolution.
Ha was born at Boston on the 27th of September, 1722, and received
37
ADANSON, MICHAEL.
ADDISON, JOSEPH.
38
his education at Harvard College. On the first outbreaking in his
native province of the irritation and disturbances occasioned by the
Stamp Act in 1 765, Adams threw himself with zeal and determination
on the popular side. From that moment the forwarding and main-
taining the cause of his country's independence became the business
of his life. His name appears subscribed to the Declaration of Inde-
pendence in 1776. After the conclusion of the war he was nominated
a member of the convention for settling the constitution of Massachu-
setts ; and he afterwards occupied a seat in the senate of that state,
and presided over it for some years. In 1789 he was elected to the
office of lieutenant-governor, and in 1794 to that of governor, to which
he was re-elected annually till 1797, when he retired from public life.
He died at Boston on the 2nd of October, 1803. Samuel Adams was
one of the firmest and most active patriots of the revolution, and
powerfully contributed to the happy termination of the great cause
to which he devoted his life. But he was not a politician of very
enlarged views ; and useful as he proved in the subordinate sphere in
which he acted, there can be little doubt, from many parts of his
conduct, that the national struggle would hardly have been brought
to the successful issue with which it was eventually crowned, if it had
not been guided by wiser heads than his. He was actuated in the
whole course of his political career almost exclusively by one idea or
fueling jealousy of delegated power, however guarded. " Samuel
Adams," says one of his friends and admirers, "would have the state
of Massachusetts govern the Union, the town of Boston govern
Massachusetts, and that he should govern the town of Boston, and
then the whole would not be intentionally ill-governed."
ADANSON, MICHAEL, a French naturalist of high reputation,
was born at Aix in Provence, April 7, 1727. He was of Scotch
extraction, but his family had become exiles in consequence of the
troubles that distracted Scotland in the early part of the 18th century.
At a very early age he was placed in the University of Paris, under
the care of the celebrated Reaumur and of Bernard de Jussieu ; and
it is supposed that from these preceptors he imbibed that love of the
s-.tudy of natural history by which he afterwards became distinguished
in so eminent a degree. His successes in carrying off the academical
prizes from his competitors soon attracted attention, and Needham,
the well-known microscopic observer, having upon one occasion been
witness to his triumph, presented him with a microscope, accom-
panied, it is said, by these prophetic words " Young man, you have
studied books enough ; your future path will be among the works of
nature, not of man." At this time great originality of thought and a
strong bias for systematic arrangement had already begun to develop
itself. Emulous of the reputation of Linnams, which had already
found its way among the French, young Adanson is said, when only
14, to have sketched out not less than four methods of classifying
plants. His friends had destined him for the church, but a feeling
that his pursuits, and perhaps his temper, were but ill adapted to the
duties of the priesthood, induced him to resolve upon seeking some
other employment, in case his slender patrimony should proye
insufficient for his wants.
The genius of Adanson was much too active to allow him to remain
in the walks of quiet life. An opportunity occurring of visiting the
country whence ivory, and gums, and frankincense were procured, he
eagerly embraced the occasion, although at the expense of a consider-
able portion of his fortune. At that time the natural history of
Africa was almost unknown, except from such of its commercial
products as were brought to Europe. In 1748 he embarked for
Senegal, being then 21. Five years were spent by him in this colony,
duriug which time he succeeded in forming considerable collections
in every branch of natural history. Not only were botany and
(oology the objects of his attention, but he amassed a large store of
meteorological observations ; he made himself acquainted with the
language of the native tribes, and carefully preserved their respective
vocabularies ; he traced the river Senegal to a considerable distance in
the interior, formed charts of the country, and finally returned to
Paris in 1753, rich in knowledge, but impoverished in worldly means.
His ' Natural History of Senegal,' published at Paris four years after-
wards, is a mass of original views, and of valuable practical informa-
tion. Among other things, it contained the first attempt upon record
of classifying shells according to the animals they contain, instead of
their external forms alone. The opinions that Adanson had early held
of the insufficiency of the classifications in natural history at that time
received in Europe, had become confirmed by his discoveries in Africa.
He saw that however easy and complete the systems of Linnaeus and
Touruefort might seem to those acquainted with the European Flora
only, they were both essentially defective when applied to vegetation
in a more extended manner. He perceived that the sexual system of
Linnaeus was founded upon incomplete and partial views. To the
method of Tournefort the objections appeared fewer, and accordingly
he determined to attempt a classification of his own, of which that of
Tournefort might serve as the basis. This appeared in 1763, in two
Toluines 8vo, under the name of ' Families of Plants.' In this work
Adanson particularly insisted upon the indispensable necessity of a
system being so far in accordance with nature, that all those objects
which most resemble each other may be classed together; he demon-
strated tnat, to effect this, it is absolutely necessary for a system to be
founded upon a consideration of all the ports of the objects which it
comprehends, and that it cannot be confined to differences in the
nature of a few organs only ; the artificial system of Linnaeus he for
that reason most justly considered inferior to the method of Tourne-
fort. In many respects this work of Adanson's deserves the eulogium
passed upon it by one of his historians, who pronounces it a production
not more brilliant than profound. Unfortunately for its author, and
still more for science, his views were more advanced than those of his
contemporaries; his perceptions of botanical truths, however just,
were of a nature not to be valued by those who had less experience
or acuteness than himself ; he also attempted to introduce a barbarous
nomenclature, which, it must be confessed, was at variance with com-
mon sense ; and what was worse than all, he had unceremoniously
rejected that system of Linnaeus which had become the basis of the
botanical creed of almost all Europe. For these reasons, notwith-
standing the high character of Adanson's ' Families of Plants,' they
have scarcely had any circulation beyond France ; and when, in 1789,
the ' Genera Plantarum ' of Jussieu made its appearance, the utility
of his work generally ceased.
From this period we have little to record concerning the scientific
career of Adanson. A few miscellaneous papers, a chimerical project
of a vast ' Encyclopaedia of Natural History' to contain 40,000 figures,
and a portion of the early part of the botanical division of the ' Sup-
plement to the French Encyclopaedia,' are all that he has executed.
Up to the period of the French revolution, he appears to have been
chiefly occupied in amassing collections for the stupendous work he
had in contemplation, and in making experiments upon vegetable
physiology. That political catastrophe overwhelmed him in the ruiu
it brought for a time upon his country ; the little that remained of his
fortune was annihilated ; he had the mortification to see his plantations
of mulberry-trees, which had been long the object of his simple care,
destroyed by a ferocious rabble ; and he full into so lamentable a state
of destitution, that when, upon the establishment of the Institute of
France some years after, he was invited to become one of the earliest
members, he was obliged to refuse the invitation to attend " because
he had no shoes." In his latter days he enjoyed a small pension from
the French government ; but his constitution was broken by the cala-
mities he had nndergone : a complication of maladies tormented him,
a softening of the bones confined him to his bed, and on the 6th of
August 1806 he was finally released from his afflictions by the hand
of death, in the 80th year of his age.
As a philanthropist, his name will always be respected by every
friend of civil liberty ; for he was among the first to plead the cause
of the slaves, and to insist upon the impolicy, as well as injustice, of
forced labour. In 1753 a plan, very like that upon which the new
American colony of Liberia hai been established, was presented by
him to the French government, for the whole of the French provinces
in Africa. The ministers of such a sovereign as Louis XV. were not
the men to listen favourably to a project of this nature, and it fell to
the ground. Such was his love of his country, that, although his cir-
cumstances do not seem ever to have been very good, he had firmness
enough to resist offers from the Emperor of Austria, Catherine of
Russia, and the King of Spain, to enter into their service. Under the
cruel misfortunes that attended his latter days he is represented to have
exhibited great patriotism and magnanimity, which was the more to be
commended because he was of an impetuous and irascible temper.
(Bibl. Univ., vol. i. ; Spreng., Hist. Jt. Herb., v. ii. ; Art. ' Adanson,'
in Rees's Oycl. Suppl.)
ADDINGTON. [SIDMOUTH, LORD.]
ADDISON, JOSEPH. This eminent writer was the son of the Rev.
Lancelot Addison, a clergyman of considerable learning, who eventually
obtained the deanery of Lichfield, but was at the time of the birth of
his son rector of the parish of Milston, near Amesbury, in Wiltshire.
Here Addisou was born on the 1st of May, 1672. After having been
put first to a school in Amesbury taught by the Rev. Mr. Nash, and
then to that of the Rev. Mr. Taylor at Salisbury, he was sent to the
Charterhouse, at which seminary he first became acquainted with his
afterwards celebrated friend Steele. From this school he went about
the age of fifteen to Queen's College, Oxford, and removed to Magdalen
College upon obtaining a scholarship two years afterwards. He is
said already to have obtained considerable facility in the writing of
Latin verse; and this talent, which he continued to cultivate and exer-
cise, first brought him into reputation at the university. Several of
bis Latin poems, most of which were probably produced before he had
attained his 26th year, were afterwards published in the second volume
of the collection entitled ' Musarum Anglicanarurn Analecta.' Tho
first composition which he gave to the world in his native language
was a copy of verses addressed in 1694 toDryden, which procured him
the acquaintance and patronage of that distinguished poet. He soon
after published a translation in verse of part of Virgil's Fourth
'Georgic;' and he had also the honour of writing the critical dis-
course on the ' Qeorgics,' prefixed by Dryden to his translation, which
appeared in 1697. But before this Addison had made himself known
to one of the most'enlightened and influential patrons of literature in
that day, the Lord Keeper Somers, by a poem which he addressed to
him on one of the campaigns of King William. He was also intro-
duced by Congreve to the Chancellor of the Exchequer, Mr. Montague,
afterwards Lord Halifax. The advantageous connections which ho
hod thus formed seem, together with other considerations, to have
ADDISOX, JOSEPH.
ADDISON, JOSEPH.
40
Usato
ram, MM! he MM Ml * on tour to 1
of going into the church.
ofMOCayearfroBthe
Here be remained till
UM death of Ktaf WHOM*, hi UM *prif ofl7, <Uprrred him of hi*
i^^ Md 2^1 H Wl to hb MDMtallMI oflMiBf ppebUd to
a ptac* MS* the parm of MM* aUjiii, then commending the
ta Italy. Meanwhile be had addreesed from that
cMir; U. wctTkaowa |>oUtkal iMter' to l^ord Halifax, which WM
greatly I .fairs* both in tf>ari and Italy, and WM translated into
Tube. bytWAbbeteSeMBJ; Greek profer at rlorenoe. Boon after
hi. N*4 IMM k at p^>U4Md Ct-TnT^,' which b* dedicated
to Lord BosMra. Hb Msade being ovtcrf power, be now remained for
i being ovt of power, he now remained for
tent; bat at length the victory of Blen-
td a wish in the tuinisten to find some
celebrate iU glories; and the Treasurer
A the matter to Lord Halifax, the latter
on M UM Attest person to execute the
plied to, and UM consequence WM the
The
rear. " Oodolohin, npWseeing it when' little
.WM so much pleased with the performance
the author a Commissions of Appeals. In
UM following year' Addiaon accompanied Lord Halifax to Hanover;
and in IT'* b. became aoder-aecretary to Sir Charle. Hodges, on the
appotetSMt of UM latter M secretary of state. He continued to hold
the MUM DIM* odor UM Earl of SonderUnd, by whom Sir Charle.
WM in a few nsah. aoestail But although he had thus fairly
on a political career, be did not desert literature. Hi* next
was nil English opera, entitled ' Kosamond ;' and he also
ted hi. Moad Stesle Us pky of UM Tender Husband,' not only
a proloyn* to UM piece, but with several of its most effective
. In 1707 an able anonymous pamphlet appeared under the
'The Present State of the War, and the Necessity of an
L' which ha* since been printed among Mr.
o' work*, and WM no doubt the production of hi* pen. In
1709 ho went over to I rats nil M secretary to the new Lord Lieutenant,
UM Maraoi. of Wbarton; the Queen also bestowed upon him the
Ace of Keeper of UM Records in that kingdom, with an increased
alary of SON. He WM in Ireland when the first number of ' The
Tatter' appeared on the 12th of April (OA) in that year-the happy
Idea of Steak, whose connection with the publication Addison U said
to have Jrteetid from an observation on Virgil which he had himself
ecnmunioated to his friend. The active part which he immediately
took in the conduct of this periodical work i* well known. The change
of ministry in 1710, by relsering him from hi* official duties, and
allowing him to retain to England, enabled him to make his contri-
butions still more frequent. In UM course of this and the following
year ho is alao undentood to have contributed several papen to the
political work, ' The Whig Examiner,' which WM started about this
SSM hi opposition to UM famous Tory print, ' The Examiner,' in
which Swift excreiMd hi* powerful pen. These papen, which are five
in all. are printed among his collected work*. The Taller' terminated
a UM tad of January, 1711 ; but on the 1st of March following
appeared its stfll more celebrated successor, The Spectator,' which
WM mihiJ tin UM 0th of December, 1712, and of which during
UM whole of that time Addison WM undoubtedly the chief support
' The Hpeetetor' WM followed by ' Th* Guardian,' of which the fint
Mtber WM published on the lth of March, and the 175th and last
on UM let of October, 1718; and in this also bis pen WM actively
Jill /ill. A* anonymous pamphlet directed against the commercial
Mia* of UM inkiry, and bearing UM title of The late Trial and
Convwtion of Count Tariff/ which appeared this year, is likewise
believed to be AddisocTt, and bss been printed among his work*.
Th. MUM year he aeqnind still greater fame than any of bis former
prodisstion. bed brought him by hit celebrated tragedy of ' Cato,' which
WM ftawMil with extraordinary appUoee, both on the stage and when
ft hMMd tram UM prtea. It WM played thirty-fir* night* in ucceaaion
ns of popularity for which it WM doubtless In part indebted to
Mspobtioala* well M to ite poetical merits; and it WM also translated
soon after fatto French, Italian, Latin, and Oerman. On the 18th of
J*a, 1714, sppeared UM ftnt number of a continuation of 'The
periodical publication in support
UUe of The Freeholder,' which be con-
st the rate of two papers a week, till the
the following yr. He had nowlndeed for some time
IB pobLe attain, having on the death of Queen
C.T.ppointed thS? Mortar, by the Lord.
g over of UM new king, having again cone
tol.io^Ltonant, Se^^uM^
th made a Urd
IU.
!!!'" 1 '!*' WiCowjUM of Warwick,
tatyr he WM nominated one of hi. Majert/.
Mate. if* OOQ howjT<r fomxl it n**owu.*rv tn
ill health, but in reality, M DM been generally undentood, in conse-
quence of hi* entire inaptitude both for debate in parliament and for
the ordinary business of hi. office. Hi. health however had also beeu
for some time impaired by attacks of asthma, the effect* of which were
probably in no alight degree aggravated by a habit of over-indulgence
in wine. He left office in March, 1718. It wa* hoped at fint that hi*
release from bushiest would have brought about his restoration, and
for some time the expected effect seemed to follow. In the course of
the year 1719 he WM so far recovered a* to be able to engage in a
somewhat acrimonious controversy with his old friend Steele on the
subject of the bill for the limitation of the peerage, then under din-
eoasion in parliament, which Steele had attacked in a paper called
' The Plebeian.' Addison's defence of the measure appeared in two
suooeative anonymous pamphlets, bearing the title of ' The Old Whig.'
They are not printed among his collected works, but are undoubtedly
his. He again however fell ill, and after lingering for some time, at
hut expired at Holland House, Kensington, on the 17th of June, 1711',
when just commencing his forty-eighth year. He left a daughter by
the Countess of Warwick.
Soon after Addison's death hit works were collected and published
in four volumes quarto by his friend Mr. Tickell, upon whom he had
expressly devolved that duty. Beside* the compositions already men-
tioned, and some translations from Ovid and other poetical pieces,
this edition contain* a ' Treatise on Ancient Medals,' in the form of
dialogues, which i* undentood to have been prepared by the author
many yean before his death ; and a portion of a work which he had
commenced in defence of the Christian religion, being that which is
commonly known by the name of hi* ' Evidences.' The comedy of
' The Drummer, or the Haunted House,' which bad been published
anonymously in his lifetime, with a preface by Sir Richard Steele, was
soon after reprinted by Sir Kichard, and declared to be Addison's.
Addison however has been charged with having been the author of
a poetical translation of the fint book of the ' Iliad,' which was pub-
lished in 1715 by Mr. Tickell, then his private secretary ; and by which
it has been said he intended to aim a covert blow at the popularity
and success of Pope'* ' Iliad,' the first volume of which had then just
issued from the press. The celebrated character of Atticus, now
inserted in the ' Epistle to Ur. Arbuthnot,' i* said to have been com-
posed by Pope after this, and sent by him to his former friend. Tho
clearest examination which this story has received will bo found in a
long and elaborate note in Dr. Kippia's edition of the ' Biographia
Britannic*,' (voL i. p. 86, 4c.) which is known to have been contributed
by Sir William Blackntone. The learned judge has undoubtedly suffi-
ciently refuted many points in the common statement ; but still it is
certain that a coolness did arise between Addiaon and Pope not long
after the appearance of Tickell's book, and there is also reason to
believe that their separation was not unconnected with that somewhat
injudicious and ill-timed publication. As for the authorship of the
translation however, it was probably Tickell's own.
Anecdotes of Addison'* private life, and trait* of hi* habit* and
character, have been handed down in great abundance by Spenoe and
other*. The strongest testimony has been borne by those who knew
him intimately to the charm* of hi* conversation when he felt himself
free from all restraint. " He was," says Steele, " above all men in
that talent called humour, and enjoyed it in such perfection that I
have often reflected, after a night spent with him apart from all the
world, that I had had the pleasure of convening with an intimate
acquaintance of Terence and Catullus, who had all their wit and
nature, heightened with humour more exquisite and delightful than
any other man ever possessed." {Preface to The Drummer.') Lady
Mary Wortley Montague told Speuce that " Addison was the best
company in the world." ('Anecdote*,' p. 232.) Dr. Young's account
waa, that, though he was rather mute in society on some occasions,
^ when he began to be company, he was full of vivacity, and went on
in a noble stream of thought and language, so a* to chain the attention
of every one to him." (p. 836.). " Addison," said Pope, " wo* perfect
good company with intimates; and had something more charming in
hi* conversation than 1 ever knew in any other man." (p. 50.) But
this was only when there was no one by of whom he was afraid.
" With any mixture of strangers," Pope added, "and sometimes only
with one, he seemed to preserve his dignity much, with a stiff sort of
silence." Young admitted that " be wa* not free with his superiors."
Johnson quote* Lord Chesterfield as somewhere affirming that "Addition
was the most timorous and awkward man that ho ever knew." Coarser
mind*, again, from the formality and stiffness of manner in which ho
wrapped himself up from their inspection, were led to set him down
for a mere piece of hypocrisy and cant. Mandeville, the author of the
1 Fable of the Bee*,' after an evening's conversation with him, charac-
terised him a* " a panton in a tye-wig;" and Tonson, who hated panons
in any kind of wigs as much as Mandeville, and who, besides, had
quarrelled with Addiaon, and did not like him, used to say of him
after he had quitted his secretaryship, " One day or other you'll sco
that man a bishop I I'm sure he looks that way ; and, indeed, I ever
thought him a priest in his heart." (Spence, p. 200.) It must be
acknowledged that this caution and cowardice spoiled Addisou's charac-
ter in some points of great importance ; he was not a man on whom
his friend, could rely ; and the way in which he lost or offended more
than one of them was not to his credit. In his conduct both to Pope
ADELUNG, JOHANN CHRISTOPH.
ADONIS.
and to Steele, there was something underhand and treacherous
something of the " willing to wound, but yet afraid to strike," which
the former had imputed to him. To Gay, again, he seems to have
behaved ill without having been either detected or suspected at the
time. A fortnight before his death he sent Lord Warwick for Gay,
who had not gone to see him for a great while; and when they met,
Addison told him " that he had desired this visit to beg his pardon ;
that he had injured him greatly; but that if he lived he should find
that he would make it up to him." (Spence, p. 150.) Here again we
see the conscientiousness of the man struggling with, and, in the end,
very nobly mastering, his more ignoble propensities ; for it would be a
great mistake to conclude from these instances of deceit and littleness,
that the regard he professed for virtue was not both real and deeply
felt. The pious composure in which he died, as evinced by the anec-
dote of his parting interview with the young nobleman, his stepson,
first told by Dr. Young in his ' Conjectures on Original Composition,'
published in 1759, though previously alluded to by Ticket! in his
Elegy on Addison is known to most readers. Dr. Young's words
are : " After a long and manly bat vain struggle with his distemper,
he dismissed his physicians, and with them all hopes of life. But with
his hopes of life he dismissed not his concern for the living, but sent
for a youth nearly related, and finely accomplished, but not above
being the better for good impressions from a dying friend. He came ;
but, life now glimmering in the socket, the dying friend was silent :
after a decent and proper pause, the youth said, ' Dear .Sir, you sent
for me ; I believe and hope that you have some commands : I shall
hold them most sacred.' May distant ages not only hear but feel the
reply. Forcibly grasping the youth's hand, he softly said, 'See in
what peace a Christian can die.' He spoke with difficulty, and soon
expired." Lord Warwick did not long survive his step-father.
Addison's writings present something of the same struggle of opposite
principles or tendencies which we find in his character as a man, re-
sulting likewise in the same general effect, of the absence of everything
offensive combined with some qualities of high, but none perhaps of
the highest excellence. Notwithstanding all the hesitation and em-
barrassment he is said to have shown on some occasions in the
performance of his official duties, so that a common clerk would have
to be called in to draw up a dispatch which could not wait for his
more scrupulous selection of phraseology, he usually wrote easily and
rapidly. " When he had taken his resolution," Steele h.-n told us,
"or made his plan for what he designed to write, he would walk
about a room and dictate it into language with as much freedom and
ease as any one could write it down, and attend to the coherence and
grammar of what he dictated." (Preface to ' The Drummer.') Pope
told Spence however that, though he wrote very fluently, " he was
sometimes very slow and scrupulous in correcting." " He would show
his verses," said Pope, " to several friends, and would alter almost
everything that any of them hinted at as wrong. He seemed to be
too diffident of himself, and too much concerned about hi* character as
a poet; or, as he worded it, ' too solicitous for that kind of praise, which,
Clod knows, is but a very little matter after nit' " ('Anecdotes,' p. 49.)
The literary greatness of Addison in the estimation of his contempo-
raries probably stood upon somewhat different grounds from those
upon which it a now usually placed. In his own day he was looked
upon as a dramatist and a poet of a very high order ; and appears to
have been not so much admired for anything else an for being the
author of ' Cato.' That stately but frigid tragedy has long ceased to
give the same pleasure, by its sonorous declamation and well-expressed
common-places, which it seems to have afforded to our ancestors. The
taste which then prevailed in poetry was the most artificial which has
distinguished any age of English literature. The quality which chiefly
drew admiration was a cold and monotonous polish the warmth of
genuine nature was accounted rudeness and barbarism. The return
of the public mind to truer principles of judgment in such matters
has been fatal both to the dramatic and to the poetical fame generally
of Addison ; and although his verses are still read with pleasure as
the productions of an elegant and accomplished mind, they are not
felt to possess any high degree of that power which we now look for
in poetry. His glory is now that of one of our greatest writers in
prose. Here, with his delicate sense of propriety, his lively fancy,
and above all, his most original and exquisite humour, he was iu his
proper walk. He is the founder of a new school of popular writing ;
in which, like most other founders of schools, he is still unsurpassed
by any who iave attempted to imitate him. His ' Tatlers,' ' Specta-
tors,' and ' Guardians,' gave us the first examples of a style possessing
all the best qualities of a vehicle of general amusement and instruc-
tion ; easy and familiar without coarseness, animated without extra-
vagance, poliahed without unnatural labour, and from its flexibility
adapted to all the varieties of the gay and the serious.
(liiographia Jiritanntca ; Life by Johnson; Spence's Anccdotet ;
Work, by Tickell.)
ADELUNG, JOHANN CHKISTOPH, grammarian and universal
linguist, was born at Spantekon, a village near Auklam in Pomerania,
on the 8th of August, 1732. He received his first education at the
town school of Anklam, and at Kloster-Berge, near Magdeburg ; and
afterwards visited the university of Halle. In 1751) he was appointed
profejBor in the evangelical gymnasium at Erfurt : but he held this
situation only till 1701, when, in consequence of a dispute with the
Catholic town-magistrates about a point of difference in religion, he
found himself under the necessity of leaving Erfurt. Adelung now
went to Leipzig, where he continued to reside till 1787. He supported
himself by literary labours, and chiefly by translations of valuable
works of foreign literature. The number of volumes which he thus
prepared for the press and many of which he enriched with extensive
additions of his own, is surprisingly great. The works by which ho
is best known iu this country, are ' Deutsche Sprachlehre fur Schulen,"
Berlin, 1781, 8vo., and ' Umstiiudliches Lehrgebiiude der Deutscheu
Sprache,' Leipzig, 1782, 2 vols. Svo., &c. In 1787 Adeluug was called
to Dresden, and appointed principal librarian to the electoral library
there. Adelung died on the 10th of September, 1S06.
ADOLPHUS, JOHN, was born in 1770 and died July 17, 1845.
Mr. Adolphus was a barrister of high standing in the criminal courts,
and at his decease was father of the Old Bailey bar. He was a keen
advocate, a fluent speaker, and a good lawyer. His practice, previously
very considerable, was highly increased by the manner in which he
distinguished himself as leading counsel for Thistlewood and the other
prisoners charged with a treasonable conspiracy in 1820, though he
was retained on their behalf only a few hours before the trial. As a
literary man Mr. Adolphus is best known as the author of the
' History of England from the Accession of George III.,' originally
published in 3 volumes in 1805, but which he subsequently revised
and greatly extended. Of this enlarged edition the seventh volume
appeared just before his death, but it left the work unfinished, and
the conclusion has not been published. It is a work of considerable
research and very carefully executed, but it does not exhibit very high
historical powers. He was also the "author of 'Biographical Memoirs
of the French Kevolution;' ' Political State of the British Empire,'
4 vols., 1818 ; 'Memoirs of John Bannister' ; and some fugitive piecea
and pamphlets.
ADONIS, the name of a personage of considerable importance iu
Pagan mythology, of whose story the following is a brief sketch :
Adonis, son of Myrrha, daughter of Cinyras, king of Cyprus, was
born in Arabia, whither his mother had fled iu consequence of cer-
tain transactions which it is not necessary to relate. Before the
birth of her sou she was transformed into a tree which produces
the fragrant gum called by her name ; this however did not hin-
der his being brought into the world in due season ; he grew up a
model of manly beauty, and was passionately beloved by Aphrodite
(Venus), who quitted Olympus to dwell with him. Hunting was his
favourite pursuit, until, haviug gone to the chase against the entreaties
of his mistress, he was mortally wounded iu the thigh by a wild boar.
After death he was said to stand as high in the favour of Persephone
(Proserpine) as before in that of Aphrodite ; but the latter being incon-
solable, her rival generously consented that Adouis should spend half
the year with his celestial, half with his infernal mistress. The fable
has been variously interpreted. One explanation makes the alternate
abode of Adonis above and under the earth, typical of the burial of
seed, which in due season rises above the ground for the propagation
of its species ; another, of the annual passage of the sun from the
northern to the southern hemisphere. In the time of Pausanias, in the
2nd century of our era, there existed an ancient temple of Adonis
and Aphrodite, at Amathus, iu Cyprus.
The story of Adonis appears to have been introduced into Greece
from Syria. According to Pausanias, Sappho sung of Adonis ; and
his name, with allusion to his rites, occurs in a fragment of Alctous.
But it is by the Greek poets of later date, Theocritus and Bion, and
their Latin imitators, Ovid and others, that his story has been expanded,
and invested with the elegance which is the peculiar character of
Grecian mythology. The Adonia are mentioned by Aristophanes
among the Athenian festivals, and this is, we believe, the earliest
mention of them, except some notice in the poems attributed to
Orpheus (the epoch of which is however too doubtful to be received
as authority), and the songs attributed to Sappho and Alescus. The
rites began with mourning for the death of Adonis (thus Ezekiel,
viii. 13, " He brought me to the door of the Lord's house . . . and
behold, there sat women weeping for Thammuz") ; then changed into
rejoicing for his return to life and to Aphrodite ; and concluded with
a procession, in which the images of Adonis and Aphrodite were car-
ried, with rich offerings, in separate couches ; after which the former
appears to have been thrown into the sea. (See Theocritus, ' Idyll.' xv.)
In the time of Pausanias, the women of Argos, in the Peloponnesus,
lamented Adonis.
In Syria we know the worship of Adonis (if, according to tho
received notion, he be the same personage as Thamrauz) to be probably
of much older date. We know, from the passage in Ezekiel already
quoted, that the adoration of the latter was one of the abominations
of Judah six centuries before Christ Whatever resemblance there
may have been between the early Syrian and Grecian rite,', the former
were far more deeply polluted by the atrocities of a brutish supersti-
tion, to which the natives of Syria were unusually prone.
Adonit (Nahfrel-Ibrahiin) is also the ancient name of a river iu
Syria, which rises iu the mountains of Lebanon. Byblos, a town near
the river Adonis, was one of the chief seats of the worship above
mentioned, which was intimately connected with a peculiarity incident
to the river. Its waters, at a certain period of tho year, assume a
deep red, and were said to be discoloured by the blood of Adouis.
ADRIAN
I ! Ueaaea aUerea
TW tyriaa easatsl. to hmmt bis tsie
Walls **>! Aaeais fresa Us asilvt 'rotk
lsap.nO. lo Ike sse, sejposed with blood
Panelse Lest,' L 441.
*u> ypmasPiaon hu been obecrred by modern travellers, aad is
attributed to the rain*, which brine; a quantity of red earth into the
stream. (See MaundreUi 'Travel*.') Thia, which probably is the
true solution, WM sugeeted even in the time of Luciau ( De Dea
--, :.;,.
At': ope, born at Rome, MOO*M BttttMO IIL in 772.
Like hie tic*Jlo*nir. be had to .truggl* against the power of the
invaded tlie Exarchate and other provinces
on the Roman lee. Devastat-
rbiuo, and other cities, they
r, and threatened Home with
Doekisriu*, king of the Longobard*, bad taken under
the two woe of Carioman, the deceased brother of
and be wiabed Adrian to consecrate them ai king* of
the Franks, in opposition to their uncle. Adrian refiued to do this,
and hence aroee the bitter enmity of Donderius. Adrian applied to
The king of the Krmnk. croeeod the Alpe
b4owd by Pepin. kinf of the Frank*, on
ing with fire tod .word Siuigaglia. Urb
advanced a far a. Otriooli, oo the liber,
by the way of Sow, defeated Deaidenua, and orwthrew the kingdom
of the Loofobarda in Italy, in 771. Charlemagne then went to Rome,
where be arrired on Beater ere, and wai reotirod by Adrian with
great honour*. They repaired together to the lUailica of SL Peter,
where Adrian acknowledged Cbarlee ai king of Italy, and ' Patrician
of BOOM,' and the latter renewed the grant of the province* bestowed
on the Boman eee by Pepin. Charlemagne paid another visit to
Adrian at Rome in 787 when hit ton Pepin wai christened by the
Pope. In 787 the seventh general council of the church wai held at
NioBa, in Bithynia, where Adrian cent hi* legatee, and in which the
worship of image* wu confirmed, and the Tconoclatta were excom-
In 791
municated.
there WM a dreadful inundation at Rome cauiod
by the overflowing of the Tiber, and Adrian exerted himself in
upplying the inhabitanU with provuion*. by meant of boat*, which
plied to the Tarioui parte of the city. He also rebuilt the wall, and
tower* of Rome, and wae liberal to the poor. He died aft-T a long
pontificate of nearly 24 yean, on Christmas-dsy, 795. Charlemagne
wa* much grieved at the new* of hi* death, and wrote his epitaph in
Latin versa*, in which he affectionately call* him ' father.' Adrian
wai a man of talent and dexterity. Under him Rome began to
breathe again after the continual alarmi caused by the Longobards, the
he* of the barbarian invader* of the Weatern Empire. (See ' Anuta-
eiae' In Muratori Ktnm Ilalicarnm Scriptortt, torn, iii.)
ADRIAN II., bora at Rome, succeeded Nicholai I. in the papal
chair, fan M7. He bad been married, and had a daughter by hi* wife
Besiinaiiii, from whom be afterward* aeparated in order to lire in
celibacy. After hi* election, hi* wife and daughter continued to lire
at Rome in a **paraU home, when an unprincipled man, called
Eleathenu*, carried off the girl by violence, and on the pontiff re-
taking bi* child, forced hi* way into the houee and murdered both
other and daughter. The murderer wa* tried and aenteuced to
death by the imperial
JiJiMeaii at Rone. It waa during Adrian'* pontificate that Photius,
Den, who still exerclaed the high
g Adrian'* pontificate that Photius,
of Constantinople, withdrew from the Church of Rome,
ninf the schism between the Greek and Latin churches,
which continue, to tail day. Adrian died in 872, and wu luooeeded
by John VIII.
ADRI A N 1 1 L, born at Borne, luooeoded Marinua in 884, and died
the following year on hi* journey to attend the imperial diet at
Worn, after a pontificate of only fifteen months.
ADRIAN IV, an Englishman, whose name wu Nicholas Break-
Needed AnaMasiuj IV, in 11J4. He had been a monk, and
'atep of Alb.no by Eoftniu* III., who *ent him u hi*
then in a
t" ' **? ** tb " D *"** to D"""* "d Norway. On hi*
be WM eteoted Pope much against hi* inclination. Rome wu
then in a very disturbed *
dMpteof Aoekrd,bed DM
early a* I1J9. bat bring dn
bed taken refoge at Zurleh.
RoeMn people, who had revc
against hk
dUturbed" etate. Arnaldo of Brescia, a monk and a
begun to preach a reform in the church u
dnven out of Rome by Pope Innocent II.,
wfc.jertZ.ir.eli. In 1143 however he wJTeealled by the
people, who had revolted against Innocent, and had proclaimed
- republic, which Amaldo contributed to constitute. Several
Popes, CeUetin IL, Lucius IL, and Bugoniu. III. kept up a
*to*1*na* ifmlnit thU popular reformer. Luciu. in
WM petted with itooea, and died of the Injury received.
aeoiua, WM obliged to leave Rome and retire into
confusion that prevailed in Uu city, the popu-
afterward* polled down the house* of many
interdict oa
, end cat^d all religioui Mrvion to
Ud the dUM to banlah Amaldo, who took
beroM of Campanle; and Adrian then came to
reaide in the LaUran palace. Frederic of Hohen*tauOu, known in
Italian hiatory by the name of Barbaroaia, bad lately been elected
emperor by the German Diet, and wai on bii way to Rome to be
crowned. The Pope'* legate* met him on the road, and among other
remonttnaeea, requested that the heretic Arnaldo should be givcu up
by the Viaoount of Campania, in order to be tried. Frederic axented
to thia, and ieroed order, in oonaequenoe ; other* *ay that Cardinal
Gerard took Arnaldo priaoner, alter an obetinate reautauce. He wu
brought to Rome, and delivered to the prefect of the city, by whoee
WM hanged, hi* body burnt, and the aihe* scattered to
the wind*, in the year 1155. Meantime Frederic approached Rome
with hi* army, and Adrian went to meet him near Sutri, where, on
the latter diunounttog, Frederic refused to hold hi* stirrup, a ceremony
on which the pope* alwayi inatsted, u a mark of reapect for tbcir
spiritual supremacy. The Pope, ou hi* aide, refused to aalute the
Kinperor with the 'kin of peace,' upon which the cardinal* were
terrified and ran away to Civitiv Cutellana. The queition of the
ceremonial wu debated for two daya, when Frederic, having aaoer-
tained that iuch had been the practice with hi* predecessor*, agreed
to conform to it They met, therefore, again at Nepi, and Frederic
having held the itirrup, Adrian gave him the ' oaculum p ici%' and
both proceeded toward* Rome. Frederic with hi* aruiy took posses-
sion of the Leonine city on the north bank of the Tiber, and of St.
Peter'* church, where he wu crowned by the Pope on tlio following
day. The Roman* took no part in the ceremony, but after having
held a council in the Capitol, tallied out and attacked the German
soldiers unaware*. A general battle took place, and continued with
great slaughter on both sides, till night separated the combatant*.
The city continuing in a disturbed state, both the Pope and Emperor
withdrew to Tivoli, whence Frederic returned toward* Lombanly.
Adrian went afterward* to Benevento, where he made peace with
William L, king of Sicily, whom he ha I excommunicated ; and upon
their reconciliation he agreed to give him the inveetiture of .Sicily,
Calabria, and Apulia, in 1156, on condition of the latter paying a
yearly tribute to the see of Rome. The Pope returned loaded with
rich present* of silk*, gold, and silver, and passing through Rome,
went to reside at Orvieto, which wu subject to the Roman aee,
Frederic now complained that the Pope had violated his faith, by
receiving ambassador* and entering into treaties with the King of
Sicily and the Greek Emperor, without hi* participation. Ue also
resented the pretensions of the Pope and hi* legates, who seemed to
assume that the imperial crown wu granted as a btneficium, or fee of
the see of Rome. Adrian, on hi* part, complained of the exaction* of
the imperial commissioner* who were lent to administer justice at
Rome without hi* participation ; he maintained that the patrimony
of the church should be exempt from paying foderum, or feudal
tribute to the Emperor ; and, lastly, he claimed the restitution of the
lands and revenues of Countess Matilda, of the duchy of Spoloti, and
even of Corsica and Sardinia. Thua arose that spirit of bitter
hostility between the popes and tho house of Hohenntauffen, which
lasted until the utter extinction of the latter. Adrian died in tho
beginning of September, 1159, in tho town of Anagni, and was suc-
ceeded by Alexander III. From the above (ketch it may be seen that
Adrian IV. stretched the papal prerogative* as for a* any f his
predecessor* had done, Gregory VII. not exempted. (See Floury,
llittove SccUtiaitiquc, and liaumer, Gttchichte der Hoherutau/en vnd
litre > 2 tit.)
ADRIAN V., a Genoese, succeeded Innocent in 1276, and died five
weeks after his election. He wu succeeded by John \ X .
ADRIAN VI., born at Utrecht in the Netherlands, of an obscure
family, advanced himself by hi* talenta to the post of vice-chancellor
of the University of Louvain. The Emperor Maximilian chose him
u preceptor to his grandson, afterward! Charles V. Ferdinand of
Spain gave him the bishopric of Tortoso. After Ferdinand's death
he waa co-regent of Spain with Cardinal Ximenes. He was elected
pope in 1522, after the death of Leo X., chiefly through the influence
of Charles V. whose authority wu then spreading over Italy. Adri-m
endeavoured to reform the numerous abuse* of the court and clergy
of Rome, practised a severe economy, and lived frugally, lly so doing
be displeased the Romans, who had been accustomed to the luxury
and prodigality of Leo; and when he died, in September, 1523, after
a *hort pontificate, the people could not conceal their joy. They
ityled hi* physician, 'the aaviour of hi* country.' He wu succeeded
by Clement VII. Adrian appears to have been an honest conacienti-
oui man, who fell upon evil times, and wu unequal to the difficulties
which he bad to encounter. He wu deairou* of maintaining peace,
and of .topping, if possible, the aohism of the Lutherans by reforming
the church, but he did not live long enough to effect any thing essential .
Burmann published hi* life at Utrecht, in 1727
^EOINHARD. [EuiittiABD.]
.KLKKIC, an eminent Saxon prelate. He is said to have been tho
ion of an Earl of Kent, but at an early age he embraced a devotional
life, and assumed the habit of the Benedictine!, in tho monastery of
Abingdon. In 983, when Athclwold, the abbot of that house, became
Btahop of WinoheiUr, he took ^Elfrio along with him, and made him
one of the prieete of hi* cathedral. Here be remained till 987, when
be removed to Cerne Abbey. Next year he wu made Abbot of St.
Alban*. and eooa after wu promoted to the bUhopric of Wilton.
yELIANOS.
.ENEAS.
Finally, in 994, he was translated to the archbishopric of Canterbury,
over which see he presided with great ability till his death, on the
16th of November 1005. .<Elfric was one of the most learned eccle-
siastics of that age, and distinguished himself throughout his life by
a very praiseworthy zeal and activity in the diffusion of knowledge.
The following are the principal works which have been attributed to
him : 1. A Latin and Saxon Glossary, printed by Somner at Oxford,
in 1659. 2. A Saxon translation of most of the historical books of
the Old Testament, part of which was printed at Oxford in 1698.
3. A charge to his clergy, in articles, commonly called his Canons,
which was published by Spelman in the first volume of his ' English
Councils.' 4. Two volumes of Saxon Homilies, translated from the
Latin fathers. 5. A Saxon Grammar in Latin. There were however
other Saxon ecclesiastics of his name, and it has been doubted if all
the works enumerated were the productions of the Archbishop of
Canterbury.
^ELIA'NUS. A person of this name wrote a book on the military
tactics of the Greeks, which he dedicated to the Emperor Hadrian.
There are several editions and translations of this work. A German
translation, by A. H. Baumgiirtuer, appeared in his complete collection
of the Greek writers on military tactics, Frankenthal and Mannheim,
4to., 1779. There is an English translation by Lord Dillon, 4to.,1814.
.ELIA'XUS, CLAU'DIUS, a Roman citizen and a native of Pra-
ncste (Palestrina), probably lived about the middle of the 3rd century
of the Christian era. Like Cicero, Atticus, and many other Romans,
he made himself so completely master of the Greek language as to
write it with ease and correctness. There is extant a work of his in
fourteen books, entitled ' Various or Miscellaneous History,' which
is a compilation or collection of extracts made by the author in his
extensive reading. The value of it does not consist in what the com-
piler has written, but in the passages of lost writer] that he has been
the means of preserving. An edition of this work was published at
Paris iu 1805, 8vo., with Heraclides of Pontus nd Nicolaus of Damas-
cus, by the learned Greek Coray. There is a French translation of
.Elian's work, by M. B. T. Dacier, Paris, 1772, 8vo., with notes.
Another work of ^Elian's, in seventeen books, also written in Greek,
is entitled ' On the Peculiarities of Animals.' Though the author
cannot claim tho merit of being a scientific naturalist, he has pre-
served a number of curious facts, collected from the works he had
read. Some critics are of opinion that the two works belong to dif-
ferent authors. (Schoell, vol. ii. ' Greek Lit.') J. G. Schneider
published an edition of the work on animals in 1784 ; but the latest
edition of the Greek text is by F. Jacobs, Jena. There are also
twenty Greek letters extant attributed to .'Elian.
.EMI'LH, the name of a patrician gens, or clan, in ancient Rome,
who pretended to derive their origin from Mamercus, the son of
Pythagoras. Of the families included in this gens, the most distin-
guished were the Pauli, or Paulli, the Lepidi, and the Scauri. [LEPIDI ;
SCAUBUS.] Among the Paulli the most worthy of notice was Lucius
.'Emilius Paullus, the son of the consul bearing the same name, who
fell in the battle near Cannco (B.C. 216), after -using his utmost efforts
to check the rashness of his colleague. Young vEmilius was a mere
boy at the death of his father, yet by his personal merits and the
powerful influence of his friends he eventually attained to the highest
honours iu his country. His sister ^Emilia was married to Publius
Cornelius Scipio, the conqueror of Hannibal, who was consul for the
second time B.C. 1 94 ; and this very year .'Emilius, though he had
held no public office, was appointed one of three commissioners to
conduct a colony to Croton, in the south of Italy, a city with which
lie might claim some connection on the ground of his descent from
the Pythagoreans. Two years after, at the age of about thirty-six,
he was elected a curule eedile, in preference, if we may believe Plu-
tarch, to twelve candidates of such merit that every one of them
afterwards consul. His aodileship was distinguished by many
improvements in the city and neighbourhood of Rome. The follow-
ing year, B.C. 191, he held the office of praetor, and in that capacity
was governor of the south-western part of the Spanish peninsula,
with a considerable force under his command. The appointment was
renewed the year after, with enlarged powers, for he now bore the title
<if 1'roconsul, and was accompanied by double the usual number of
lictors. In an engagement however with the Lusitani, 6000 of his
men were cut to pieces, and the rest only saved behind the works of
the camp. But this disgrace was retrieved in the third year of his
government by a signal defeat of the enemy, in which 18,000 of their
men were left upon the field. For this success a public thanksgiving
was voted by the senate in honour of ^Emilius. Soon after he returned
to Rome and found that he had been appointed, in his absence, one of
ii commis-ioners for regulating affairs in that part of western
Asia which had l.itely been wrested by the two Scipios from Antiochus
the Great. .(Emilius was a member also of the college of augurs from
an early age, but we do not find any means of fixing the period of his
election. As a candidate for the consulship he met with repeated j
'<, and only attained that honour in B.C. 182, nine years after
li'ilding the office of pnetor. During this and the following year ho
commanded an army in Liguria, and succeeded in the complete reduc-
tioii "f a powerful people called tho Ingauni, who have left their name
in tho maritime town of Albenga, formerly Albium Ingaunum. A
public thanksgiving of three days was immediately voted, and on his
return to Rome he had the honour of a triumph. For the next ten
years we lose sight of jEmilius, and at the end of this period he is
only mentioned as being selected by the inhabitants of Farther Spain
to protect their interests at Rome, an honour which at once proved
and added to his influence. It was at this period, B.C. 171, that the last
Macedonian war commenced, and though the Romans could scarcely
have anticipated a struggle from Perseus, who inherited from his
father only the shattered remains of the great Macedonian monarchy,
yet three consuls, iu three successive years, were more than baffled by his
arms. In B.C. 168 a second consulship, and with it the command against
Perseus, was entrusted to .Emilius. He was now at least sixty years
of age, but he was supported by two sons and two sons-in-law, who
accompanied him to the war in Macedonia, and contributed iu a marked
manner to his success. Perseus was strongly posted in the range of
Olympus to defend the passes from Perrlisebia into Macedonia, but
he allowed himself to be outmanoeuvred. ^Emilius made good his
passage through the mountains, and the two armies were soon in view
of each other near Pydna. On the night before the battle an eclipse
of the moon occurred. The Roman soldiers, forewarned of its occur-
rence, regarded it with amusement rather than fear. In the Mace-
donian camp, on the other hand, superstition produced the usual effect
of horror and alarm ; and on the following day the result of the battle
corresponded to the feelings of the night. In a single hour the hopes
of Perseus were destroyed for ever. The monarch fled with scarcely
a companion, and on the third day reached Amphipolis. Thence ho
proceeded to Samothrace, where he soon after fell into the hands of
the conqueror. The date of the battle of Pydna has been fixed by
the eclipse to the 22d of June. After reducing Macedonia to the form
of a Roman province, ^Emilius proceeded on his return to Epirus.
Here, under the order of the senate, he treacherously surprised seventy
towns, and delivered up to his army 150,000 of the inhabitants as
slaves, and all their property as plunder. On his arrival in Rome
however he found in this army, with whom he was far from popular,
the chief opponents of his claim to a triumph. This honour he at
last obtained, and Perseus with his young children, some of them too
young to be sensible of their situation, were paraded for three succes-
sive days through the streets of Rome. But the triumphant general
had a severe lesson from affliction in the midst of his honour. Of
two sons by a second wife (he had long divorced Papira), one, aged 12,
died five days before the triumph ; the other, aged 1 4, a few days after ;
go that he had now no son to hand down his name to posterity. .-Euii-
lius lived eight years after his victory over Perseus, in which period
we need only mention his censorship, B.C. 164. At his death, B.C. 160,
his two sons, who had been adopted into other families, Fabius and
Scipio, honoured his memory iu the Roman fashion by the exhibition
of funeral games; and the 'Adelphi' of Terence, the last comedy the
poet wrote, was first presented to the Roman public on this occasion.
.(Emilius found in his grateful friend Polybius one willing and able to
commemorate, perhaps to exaggerate, his virtues. Few Romans have
received BO favourable a character from history. (Polybius ; Liry ;
Plutarch.)
^ENE'AS, a Trojan prince of the royal blood, son of Anchises and
Venus. According to Homer he commanded the Dardanians, and his
name occurs frequently in the ' Iliad,' but not in the first rank of
heroes. He owes his celebrity to those stories which make him the
founder of the Roman empire iu Italy, and to his being the hero of
Virgil's poem. According to the Latin poets, on the night when Troy
was taken, or, as others say, before its capture, .(Eneas quitted the city,
bearing on his shoulders his aged father, and the images of his house-
hold gods, accompanied by his wife Creusa, who perished by the w^y,
and his son lulus, also called Ascauius. The older authors do not
speak of the multitude of followers and number of ships with which
Virgil has adorned his narrative. According to them he quitted the
Trojan shores in a single ship to seek his fortune in the unknown
regions of the west. After many wanderings he reached the coast of
Latium with 100 followers, and was favourably received by Latinus,
king of the country, who assigned a small tract of ground as a settle-
ment for the Trojans. But war soon broke out between the strangers
and the natives. Turnus, prince of the Hutuli, joined Latinus to
expel the foreigners ; but the allied princes were defeated, and Latinus
was slain in the first battle. Lavinia, his daughter, became tho bride
of the victor, and tho citadel of Laureutum fell into his hands. JEueoa
now built the city of Lavinium, which was hardly completed when
Turnus again appeared in arms, assisted by Mezentius, king of Caere.
Another battle ensued, in which Turnus fell; but the Latins were
defeated, and jEneas was drowned, or at least disappeared in the river
NumiCius. He was afterwards adored as Jupiter Indiges : a temple
was raised to him on the bank of the river ; and the Latins, and in
later ages the consuls of Rome, offered yearly sacrifices to him under
that name. lulus, his son by Creusa, succeeded to the throne, and
founded a city, celebrated in the history of Latium, called Alba Longn.
He was succeeded by Sylvius, son of ^Eneas and Lavinia, from whom
a long line of Latin kings descended. Such is a sketch of the chief
traditions about this reputed Trojan prince and his settlement in Italy,
(Niebuhr, Roman History, voL L p. 176. Hare and Thirlwall's
translation.)
The only allusion in Homer to the history of .(Eneas after the Trojan
war, is a prediction that he and his children shall reign for centuries
JEPIHUS, PRAXflS THEODORE.
AESCHYLUS.
MT the TrejeB.; Bothinf i. Mid of UM place of their BtttUoMot.
nOia*t DkT*9 iMlppOMtl tA4%l DA) FCQMUMd IO to* TtXMfed, tsMXi
of hi.
.n i
to I
of the 'Xoti
that the ^ .ry
.. of foundation.
MARIA* ULiuc THEODORE, a celebrated
of the I8th century, who was bom at Rostock in Lower
iber IX 1734. but of whow life few particulars have
; he died at Dorpat la Livonia, in 1801
toin by .Epinaa, relating to mathematical and philo-
ibjeete, were printed the TUt, 8th, th, and 10th volume.
irii P.tropoL/ aod in UM Mcmoire.' of tb
BermAdny for 1745 adm. U UM volume for UM latter year,
and aUo in a RecsjsO de Memoir**,' publiabed at St. Petersburg
v -- 1~_. i. n-*uu. J
1 7t b his paper eBtitbd De qnibo
wirfoh ooBtiM UM discovery of UM
a ininl which DM nine* been M
ACL.
electrical polarity of tourmalin*,
much noticed on account of iu
to polarised light .ttpinus found that on
-
of the mineral U. a brat between WJ- and 812' Kahr
it acquired UM vitreon* and UM other the rrainou
M 101> volume of UM ' Novi Comment' i* hi* nape
>per
nriac the esfcct of parallax OB the duration of a transit of Venus
the diet of the euB. ia cooseqaenee of the position of the
OB the earth MHBM* ; and in the same volume is
produced by looking directly at the ran. Also,
hi UM ISUt volume of UM earn, work there b contained an account of
UM electrical properties of UM Brazilian emerald, a eryatal which hu
bee* riBce found to b* merely a variety of tourmaline. In 1758 he
of
81. Petersburg Ml academical diacoune concerning the
eUefcteiti and magnetism; and in 1761, at the aame
Me entitled 'CogitatioiMS da Distributione Calorii per
Caloris per
.Kpinu* i* chiefly duitinjruiahed by hi* 'Tentamcn Tbeoriic
IdteU* et Msgnetumi,' which, in 1759, was published also at
Unburg. IB tU* work he sets out by assuming that there
i in all bodies a fluid whoa* particle* mutually repel one another
' KB flinrmJng a* the distances between them increase, and,
to the same law, attract the particle* of the bodie* with
. are in combination. He assume, also that the electrical
fluid penetrate, with dimculty through the bodies called electric., a.
glass, resin, Jtc,; and that it meet, with no sensible obstruction iu
pessmg through such as are called non-electric* or conductors, a* the
metela, unbaked wood, etc. ; and be has succeeded in showing, by the
striot process of mathematio.1 analysis, that the phenomena of elec-
tricity depend chiefly on the tendency of the fluid to attain a state of
equilibrium, by passing from a body which contain* an excess to those
about H which may have lea* than the natural quantity. The intricate
i distribution of electricity and mtSSm
. ' ....
. .1. .-.,.'
of bodie* of given form., a* _
and though UM neult* of the investigations, so far a* they
t __ f . _ * . . *
on the surface*
i* however left un-
stew), accord satisfactorily with phenomena, >et there remain* an
BBBlBiuuuliil dHBcully in UM fact that, when a body i* deprived of
UM electrical fluid, it* particle* are held together by coheaion, while
UM UMory requires that in euch a atato the partiolei ahould exert on
. ,. H T T. : .'.-.: *JH
In UM -raUophkel Transactions' for 1771, there i* an elaborate
paper em
prmdple*
Mr. CaTra
_ a MtrnmaUeal theory of electricity, on the same
as those assumed by .Kpinus, which was written by
Mr. Cavendish without any knowledge of what had been previously
" *. U _~*"+* .*H-"l*f S -V d * .of the
_
IUuy in 1787 > UDd<r * utle
U. Tbeorte de lEUctridU!.'
n*mt the m*an* of charging a plate of air with
electricity, when it I* confined between two board.. He appear* to
ba*. directed hi. attention to mechanical lubject* ; for he diicoTered
U>et wbra aay force*, acting upon the arm* of a balance, keep them in
quiUbrio, UM *um of the f.ircea, deoocnpoaed in the direction of the
The brief notice, of the diaoorerie* of
J te taken from the work, named above.)
UM Philosopher, wa. one of the scholar* of Socratea,
h the furnace of modern criticism, have been declared not to
fee* by him. The langnag. of the** dialogue, proves them
rr to beloH to an (* wbm Greek wa. still written with great
be wn y m.
bowerer to belonc to
voice and a fine person,
iher he stepped fremthe t_,,
of pblic lity we do not know? but he -
tAMechtwt at an e1y (*,* a public BM.
K a littl* oldsr, if we trust the
a kind of clerk to som* of the
*r wa. somewhat bolder: having a
he tried hi* fortune on the
By having discharged
hi. function, a* a clerk, and having been in the service of the orator*
Arissaphon and Eubulu* in some similar capacity, ho had acquired
some knowledge of the law* of hi* country. In *hort, he wa* a bold
adventurer, gifted with many of those qualities that are calculated to
inure svoce** in the dubiou* game of political warfare.
Only three oration* of .Machine* are extant, all of which relate to
important event, in hi. public life. He wa* accused by Demosthenes,
on* of hi* fellow ambassador*, of malversation and corruption in hi.
second embassy to King Philip, the object of which wa* to obtain
Philip's ratification of the treaty of peace, and to this attack he
replied in hi* oration entitled ' On Malversation iu hi* Embassy.'
Timarchus, a friend of Demosthenes, had joined in the attack on
.Eechine* ; but the orator .poedily rid himself of thu adversary by
prosecuting him for a disreputable course of life. /Kuchinrs gained
hi* cause, and Timarchu*, according to some accounts, concluded the
affair by hanging himself. The oration on this subject i. called
4 Against Timarchus.' The delay caused by the prosecution of Timar-
chus deferred the prosecution of .Machines till about three years after
hi* return from the second embassy, which wa. no doubt favourable
to the accused, a* it tended to destroy the popular feeling Against
-tjchines, who finally escaped from a verdict against him. The third
oration is entitled ' Against Ctesiphon,' but is in fact an attack on
Demosthenes, who replied in his famous oration called ' The Crown.'
The pretext on which .Vochines attacked Ctesiphon was this : For
some public services which Demosthenes had rendered to the state, it
was proposed by Ctesiphon that ho should receive a golden crown,
but this proposition was considered by .Kochine* to contain plaumi*
contrary to existing law*. He also denied the claim of Demosthenes
on the ground of public services. A* early as ao. 338, .Machine* had
declared his intention to prosecute Cte.iphon, but the cause was not
tried till B.C. 330, after the death of Philip, whilst Alexander was in
the midst of his Asiatic conquests. ./Eschines lost his cause, and not
having obtained one-fifth part of the votes of the jury, he was com-
pelled to leave Athens, being unable to pay the penalty in that case
required by the law. He retreated to the island of Ithodes, where, it
i* (aid, he resumed the profession of his earlier days, by opening
clssso. for instruction in elocution, and became tho founder of a
school of eloquence. He is said to have died at Samoa, B.C. :',17.
[DIUOBTUENBS.J
The Greek and Roman critics considered the Rhodian school of
eloquence, of which ..-Kschines was the reputed founder, to be charac-
terised by a happy mean between the florid Asiatic and the dry and
more sententious Athenian style. The style of -Kscliinea is distin-
guished by great perspicuity and correctness of language. 11U
narrative and descriptive power* deserve high praise, nor ore we
disposed to undervalue his powers of abuse, though in this he falls far
below his great rival We have the strongest testimony to his per-
sonal qualifications as an orator, in the reluctant but unambiguous
manner in which Demosthenes acknowledges hi* own inferiority.
There are numerous edition* of ^Kschines : the latest and best, as
far a* the mere text i* concerned, is included in Brkker's edition of
the 'Attic Orators,' Oxford, 1822. One of the best editions of
JSschine. alone is by J. H. Bremius, 1824, 2 vol*., Svo. The Abbd
Auger translated the oration* and letters of Machine* into French,
and inserted them in the wcoud volume of his ' Demosthenes.' Tho
oration of Machines against Cteiiphon, with the reply of Demosthenes,
wa* translated into Latin by Cicero, and into German by Fr. liaumer,
1811. The oration against t'tesiphou has been translated into Kuglish
by Portal and Leland.
There arc twelve letter* extant attributed to Machines, the genuine-
a of which, we fear, would not stand the test of a thorough
examination. It wa* usual, iu the later ages of Greek literature, for
teacher* of rhetoric to employ themselves on fictions of thu kind.
.f SC'HYLUS, the son of Euphorion, and a native of Eleusis in
Attica, wa* born about B.C. 625, and died in Sicily probably about
in-. 456. A* the great father of the Athenian drama, ,'Eschylii.i
occupies one of the most prominent places in the history of the lite-
rature of his country. The particulars of his life that have come
down to us are however few and unimportant, with the exception th .it
be fought bravely iu the bottles of Marathon and Salami*. At 25
vears of age he contended for the prize of Tragedy. In hi* 41st year
bo gained his first victory, which was followed by twelve similar
triumphs. In his 57th year, indignant at the price being awarded to
bis younger rival, Sophocles, he retired to the court of Hioro, king of
Syracuse, who, being a patron of poets and learned men, hod collected
around him the most illustrious writers of that day, such as Pindar
and Simonides. An odd story i* told of the cause of the poet's death :
ao eagle carrying off a tortoise let it fall on the great dramatist's head,
mistaking the bald pate for a stone.
Seven tragedies of -fcschylus, out of a very large number that ho
wrote, still remain, entitled respectively, 'The Prometheus Bound,'
The Seven against Thebe.,' ' The Pemians,' ' The Female Supplianta,'
'Tho^ Agamemnon,' ' Cboi-phori ' (libation-bearers), and ' Eumenides,'
or ' Kiine*.' The three last form a continuous drama or action, which
contains (1) the return of Agamemnon from Troy, and his murder by
hi* wife Clytcmnestra ; (2) the revenge of Oretes, the ion of Aga-
memnon, who kill* his mother and the adulterer .iFginthun ; and (3)
the persecution of Orestes by the Furie., and hi* release therefrom l.y
AESCULAPIUS.
^ESOPUS.
the sentence of the high court of Areopagus, and the casting vote of
Minerva. It was usual with the candidates for the dramatic prize at
Athens to write three tragedies on some connected subject, to which
they added a fourth, called a satyric drama, on some subject treated
in a tragi-comic style. The ' Prometheus Bound ' of jEschylus belongs
to a set of this description, for we know that there was a play entitled
' Prometheus the Fire-stealer,' and a third named ' Prometheus
Loosed.'
The Greek drama, in its origin, consisted simply of a chorus or
company, who celebrated the festivals of a deity or hero by appro-
priate songs and dances. The introduction of a personage to tell
Borne story or history was an innovation, and the connecting this
narrator more closely with the chorua was another step towards the
drama, a Greek word, which signifies an action, or, in its more
technical sense, the representation of a series of events ending in
some striking catastrophe. But yKschylns carried improvements still
further, by introducing a second speaker, and thus making the
dialogue, as it really is, the essential part of tragedy. To the chorus
however ^Eschylus still allowed a great degree of importance, as we
may see from his extant plays, in which the choral songs occupy a
large part. He adds also to stage effect by improving the dress of the
actors, and giving them masks. Thespis, his predecessor, went about
the country in a waggon, and daubed the faces of his company with
lees of wine.
The plot or plan of his plays is exceedingly simple ; the personages
are few in number, and the events follow one another without any
complexity or occasioning any great surprise. Hia language is always
forcible, and the dialogue clear where the Greek text has escaped
damage ; but unfortunately few works of ancient writers have suffered
more serious injury from frequent copying than the plays of ^Eschylus.
In consequence of this the choral parts are often exceedingly obscure,
and this obscurity is increased by the wild and gigantic conceptions
of the poet, which often seem as if they strove with the imperfections
of language, and endeavoured to find utterance by a heaping together
of strong epithets and the use of long compound words. In spite of
these defects, which make the poetry of -Eschylus at times border on
bombast, and afforded a fair subject of ridicule to Aristophanes in his
play called the ' Frogs," we may often admire a real sublimity of con-
ception, a boldness of imagination, and a power to paint what is grand
and terrific, in language which for force, simplicity, and truth, bag
never been surpassed.
The play of the 'Persians' derives a peculiar interest from being
the only extant Greek tragedy which treats of a subject contempora-
neous with the age of the writer. It waa written or acted probably
about eight years after the battle of Salamis, and may be considered
as the most durable monument of the defeat of the Asiatic iuvader.
The poet writes as he fought, with a noble spirit of patriotism.
There are numerous editions of the works of --Eschylua. The first
was printed at Venice in 1518, 8vo, at the press of Aldus, after his
death; but the 'Agamemnon' and 'Choephori' are both incomplete
in this edition, and what there is of the ' Agamemnon' is oddly enough
tagged to the ' Choephori,' which has lost its beginning, consequently
this edition contains only six plays. The best recent editions are by
Wellauer, Lips., 1823; W.Dindorf, Lipa., 1827; and Scholefield, Camb.,
1830. There ia an English poetical version of /Eachylua by John
Potter, and also several poetical versions of the 'Agamemnon.' A prose
version is published in ' Bohu'g Classical Library.' The Germans have
several poetical translations of jEachylua ; the latest ia by Voss, 1826.
There is a translation of the 'Agamemnon' (1816) by William
Uumboldt.
^ESCULA'PIUS, or, according to the Greek form of his name,
Aiclepiot, was the god of medicine in ancient mythology. Several
yK.-iCulapii are said to have existed ; and it would not be easy to deter-
mine whether tradition pointed to so many distinct persons, or merely
handed down different versions of the parentage of the same man.
Cicero mentions three : the first, sou of Apollo, invented the probe,
and the art of bandaging wounds ; the second, son of Mercury, was
struck dead by lightning ; the third was of mortal parentage, son of
Arsippus and Arsinoe, and first practised purging and tooth-drawing.
The Egyptians also had their .(Eaculapiua (as the Greeks call him),
the eon of Hermes. Of the moat important of theae we proceed to
give a brief sketch.
Aaclepios waa the son of Apollo by Coronis, daughter of Phlegyas.
Hia mother, having succeeded in concealing her pregnancy, exposed
the child upon Mount Myrtium, afterwards called Titthium, in Argolia,
near Epidaurus. A shepherd, missing bis dog and one of his goats,
ought the wanderers throughout the country; and at last found them,
the dog keeping watch over a child enveloped in flames, which the
goat was suckling. The herdsman, " thinking that it was something
divine," and being frightened, went away ; but he spread the marvel
abroad, and it waa aoon noised over all the globe that Asclepios could
heal every disease, and besides bring the dead to life.
Another version of the story nays that Apollo, in a fit of jealousy,
having caused the mother's death, the unborn child was snatched by
Mercury (or, according to Pindar, by Apollo himself) from her funeral
pile. 'H'U circumstance may be connected with the other story, which
assigns the parentage of /Eculpius to Mercury.
According to Pindnr, Apollo sent the child to be educated by the
DI v. VOL. I.
Centaur Chiron, who instructed him in medicine, as at au after-period
he did Achilles. Having reached manhood, ho went with Castor aud
Pollux on the Argonautic expedition, Returning to Greece, he prac-
tised with eminent success ; not merely curing all diseases, but recalling
the dead to life. Among others, he did this service to Hippolytus, sou
of Theseus. The gods regarded this as an invasion of their privileges,
and at last Zeus (or Jupiter) struck the bold practitioner dead with
lightning, in consequence of a complaint lodged by Pluto, that the
infernal regions were depopulated by these new proceedings. Apollo
revenged the death of hia son by killing all the Cyclopes, who forged
thunderbolts for Zeus. Finally, Asclepios was raised to heaveu, and
made a constellation, under the natne of Ophiuchus, the serpent-
holder ; though some say that Ophiuchus is Hercules.
In the latter ages of paganism, when scepticism was very prevalent,
and it was the fashion to see allegory iu every mythological story, the
whole was thus explained : ^Esculapius signified the air, the medium
of health and life. The Sun was his father, because the sun, shaping
his course agreeably to the changes of the seasons, produces a healthy
atate of the atmosphere. The same spirit is visible in the names given
to his daughters, which all but one bear reference to the father's art :
Hygieia, health ; Panakeia, universal remedy ; laso, healing ; Aigle,
splendour.
In Greece, the original seat of Asclepios's worship was in the neigh-
bourhood of hia birthplace at Epidaurus, where a splendid temple was
erected to his honour, adorned with a chryselephantine (or gold and
ivory) statue. He was represented sitting ; one hand holding a staff,
the other resting on a serpent's head ; a dog couched at his feet. In
coins aud other ancient remains he ia commonly seen with a long beard,
holding a staff with a serpent twined about it. Often he is accompanied
by a cock ; sometimes by an owl. The cock was commonly sacrificed
to him. These animals seem meant to typify the qualities which a
physician should possess ; the owl being emblematic of wisdom, tho
cock of vigilance, the serpent of sagacity, and, besides, of long life.
The serpent was especially sacred to Asclepios. At Epidaurus there
was a peculiar breed of yellowish-brown snakes, of large size, harmless,
and easily tamed, which frequented the temple, and in the form of
which the god was supposed to manifest himself. In this shape he
waa conveyed to Sicyon, and at a later period, about B.C. 400, to Home,
when that city, being afflicted by pestilence, sent an embassy, at the
command of an oracle, to fetch Asclepios to their help. On the
ambassadors being introduced into the temple, a serpent came from
under the statue, aud glided through the city, and on board their ship.
Arriving in the Tiber, he swam ashore to the island upon which his
temple afterwards was built. A few inscriptions have been found in
this island relating cures, and the means employed. The means are
of such a nature that the cures must have been impostures, or have
been wrought by the force of imagination. It was customary to placo
similar inscriptions in all temples of Asclepioa. At Epidaurus there
were stones in the sacred precinct erected in commemoration of cures
performed by the god, recording in the Doric dialect the namea and
diseases of the patients, and detailing the methods of cure employed.
Six of these remained when Pausanias visited the place, aud, besides,
an ancient pillar, commemorating the gift of twenty horses by
Hippolytus, in gratitude for his restoration to life.
Of the extent of Asclepios's knowledge, and of his method of practice,
or rather of that which prevailed in the early ages before the Trojan
war, we know little. His sons, Machaon and Podaleirios, who fought
before Troy, and are often mentioned in Homer, seem only to have
meddled with external injuries. Pindar, in a passage of rather doubtful
meaning, seems to confine the father's skill within the same limits,
when he speaks of him as healing those afflicted with self-produced
ulcers, wounds from brass or atone, or injuries from summer heat or
cold. Hia remedies, on the same authority, were incantations, soothing
drinks, external applications, and the knife. There is a remarkable
passage in which Plato ('Rep.,' iii. 14), inveighing against tho
effeminacy of his own times, contrasts the attention of physicians to
diet, exercise, &c., with the negligence of the sons of Asclepios iu
these respects ; quoting a passage from Homer, in which Maohaon,
returning from battle severely wounded, partakes immediately of a
mess of meal and cheese, mixed up in strong Pramnian wine. (' II.,'
xL 639.)
For some centuries after the Trojan war medical science, if it deserves
that name, seems to have been confined to the temples of Asclepios, in
which hia descendants, the Asclepiada;, who formed the priesthood,
were alone allowed to practise ; until in later times pupils were admitted
into the brotherhood, having been solemnly initiated, and sworu to
conform to ita rules. The most celebrated temples, besides that at
Epidaurus, were those of Rhodes, Cnidos, and Cos, where Hippocrates,
a native of the island, ia said to have profited by the records preserved
in the temple. Croton and Cyreno also possessed schools of medicine.
The practice seems to have been intended chiefly to work on the
imagination. The god often gave his own prescriptions in dreams and
visions, aud the patients were to be prepared by religious rites for this
divine intercourse.
jESO'PUS, now commonly called ^Eaop, a Grecian author, who lived
about the middle of the 6th century before Christ, contemporary with.
Solon and Piaistratus. He ia usually acknowledged as the inventor
of those short moral fictions to which we especially appropriate tho
II
JMOTO&
ttoritaof him an derived from a ' Lif.,'
lacuooof FabUa, bearing tb* nan* of
i Oaaetoaltocpolitaa monk, about the
Thai contain* a distorted vl*w of tb*
l.i -k <mi h *mU SA he known, uiixe.1
AETIC8.
tl
of confe*ting hi* wit and acuteneat
a* totaQy unworthy of credit. Thar* b no allusion to the** pereo
aataliaritii* to any rti*alt*.l antbor, and etroog negative reaton* have
bean urt*d for believing tbat non* tuch existed. So* Bentiey't
DtoMrtation upon flfann. tnVJnlntil to that upon Pbalaria.
Tb* pita* of kit birth, like thai of Homer, it matter of qnortion ;
Samoa, flaroia, CotitMun to Phrygia, and lloMmbria ia Thrace, laying
claim aba* to that honour, the early part of hi* life wat tpent to
aad th* name* of thre* of hi* nutter* have been preserved :
, AthraUa, ia wboM sci-rioe be ia said to bar* acquired a
oorrt and pui knowledge of Greek ; Xanthns. a SamUo, who flgura*
In riaaude* M philosopher ; and ladmoo, or Idmon, aootber Samian,
by whom be waa enfranchi^d. Ha acquired a bigh reputation in
time* for tbat tp*d*t of composition which, after him, wai called
ia oooaaqiMoo* wat toliciied by CroMus to take op bii
ahod* at th* Lydian court. Hera be i* (aid to have met Solon, and
to haw nbuktd tb* tag* for hi* nnconrtly way of inculcating moral
I* aaid to Uav* vUted Athena during the usurpation of
Piaittrataa, and to bav* eompoetd th* fable of 'Jupiter and the Frogs'
far tb* tottrneUon of th* dtuann. (Phaxlnu, i. 1) Being charged
by Cretan* with an *mba**y to Del | hi. to the course of which he waa
to dieti Ihato a torn of money to every Delphian, a quarrel arose between
Urn and tb* uilltaas, to contoquano* of which he returned the money
to bit patron, alleging that those for whom it was meant were unworthy
of iL Th* disappointed party in return got up a charge of sacrilege,
upon which Ibejr put him to death. A pestilence which ensued waa
attributed to tbl* crime, and to consequence they made proclamation
at all tb* public a-embliet of the Grecian nation, of their willingness
lo make eomptnaallnn for -taop't death to any on* who thould appear
to claim it A grandson of hi* matter ladmon at length claimed and
received it, no parson more cloeely connected with the lufferer baring
appeared. Thi* ingular tale rette on the authority of Herodotus.
The time of .Kaup't death it uncertain. Some place it as early at
In* 6Jrd Olympiad, about B.C. 665. If however then be any truth
to tb* tcmtterrd notions which we have combined, he wai at Athent
daring tb* ntnrpatten of Piaittratua, and met with hit death in the
errricc of Cromu, and therefore before the capture of Sardia and fall
of the Lydian kingdom. This, according to Newton's chronology,
would Ax hi* death in th* 67th or 68th Olympiad, between the year*
sxc. 640 and 664. Tb* Athenian* erected to hi* honour a statue from
the hand of tb* celebrated sculptor Lysippus.
There it abundant proof that fabl** patting under the name of .-Ksop
wan current and popular to Athens during the moat brilliant period
of ita literary bbtory, and not much more than a century after the
death of th* suppoatd antbor. Th* ' drolleries of ,*op ' (AlfmwuA
>XMal are moaUoMd by ArUtophane* in terms which lead u* to
sfpOM that they won commonly repntUd at convivial partiei.
Bon-ate*, to priton, tunw.l into veree those tbat he knew ;" and
Plato, who hanlsat* the action* of Homer from hia ideal republic,
>of the tendency of thoee of .Eeop. Demetrius
a collection of JUop.an fable* ; and w* hear of two
metrical veraioas of thorn of still later date, one by an anonymous
utt,/, tb* other by Ilabrina. PbaHrus published a collection of
fahie* to Latin v*rw to tb* Urn* of Tibtriua, tb* u.ateriuls of which
b* prafitatt to bav* taken from S*a\> ; and it ia not improbable that
the nearest approach to tb* tnbatanc* of the original apologue* may
there b, bund. Another collection wat written to elegia?vri*, in
tb* 4tb otatury, by A vicuna.
Ther* I, no ground whatever for blUving that th* Greek prate
thlea which pa* under tb* turn* of X*>\> are really of hit COUIIH>-
aWa~at toaai, tbat they cam* from hi* band* in their prevnt state.
Tbos* which are mbttenlially the tamo with the fabl.t of Pbttdrut,
the *U*.t to which w* aw aign certain dale, may be believed, for
eon* alreadjr .tjsgntrf. to have originally emanated from the
number of them it about 200 or 300, and
i..
to aaaiber 144,
contain internal eridenoe that, aa
> fc V rt date, an,i probably
Lj^hHT^^i ** * ** *** ananmcripte couteto* th* fable*
I bf Plaaudee; and that th* editor expreti.t bit belief that
H-T. " k k of dJbreat band*. 8om* b. attribute* to the
toaaa, Btatuti tt*y ooatata aUation* to tb* monastic lif*. which I*
at Uatt toBciagt evidonc* of tbtsr late date. Tbl. edition, wUd
?.*?? *7 **?** /'*"'. "ootetot 897 fable* aacribtd to ,*op and
40 of th* )** Ankllimlna I.,. li._l 1. "H. >uu
**t n * M iwiHi* wuu tivtu In ins 3rd CMULIIPV *
. i , w v^ wu.urT ,
Ulaal vtiMiiiii to Ortek and Latin.
rVeoMteTB pbilotoplwr and fabutitt Lokmaa U vppoaid by many
to bar* b**a the earn* peraon aa .Kop. The former, by the Mohaiu-
medaa anthoritiea, ia mad* eontomporary with David and Solomon ;
but bia hiatory it too uncertain for ut to (peculate upon it The name
fable* are to be found current under the namea of each, and the cor-
raepondenoe between their peraonal hittorie*, at commonly told, ia too
dote to be entirely accidental (BABBIUS ; LonuM.] Many tranala-
tiooa of the (able* attributed to j&top bar* been made in mott modern
languaget : th* moat recent English translation U by the Her. Thomas
Jamea.
ACTION CAcrfer), a celebrated Greek painter, and, according to
Lucian, on* of the beat ancient colourUts. That writer mentions
Action, Aprllea, Euphranor, and Polygnotut, at the mott successful
of the ancient Greek painters in the mixing and laying on of colour*.
Action'* exact time it uncertain, although, from the manner in which
he it mentioned by Luciau, notwithstanding the Dame* he ia associated
with, be lired probably in Lucian's own time, or at most very shortly
before him. He tpeakt of him aa the most distinguished painter of
hit time, and describe* a very celebrated picture by him of the marriage
of Alexander and Roxana, which the painter exhibited at the Olympic
games, and which pleated Proxenidaa, one of the judges, so much that
he gave Aiition hia daughter in marriage. " It may be asked," lays
Lucian, " what wai there to marvellous in that painting, aa should
indue a man of such high rank to reward the painter, who withal
was a stranger, by bestowing on him his daughter ? The picture U
"till in Italy, and I am able to speak of it from personal inspection.
It repratente an extremely magnificent bed-chamber with a nu;>ti.il
bed. In it U teen sitting Uoxana, the most beautiful virgin that can
be conceived. Her eye* are modestly fixed on the ground bcfuro
Alexander, standing near her. She ia surrounded by several smiling
Cupids. One of them behind her lifts up the bridal veil from her
forehead, and shows it to the bridegroom. Another, in the attitude
of a slave, it officiously employed in drawing off her shoes, that she
may no longer be detained from lying down. A third has bold of
Alexander's robe, pulling him with all hia might towards Roxaiia.
The king presents the maiden with a crown, and betide him stands
HepbiMtion at a bridcman, holding a lighted torch in his hand, sup-
ported by a wonderfully fine youth, whom I guess to represent the
god of marriage, for the name it not beneath. On the other side of
the piece are drawn several more Cupids, playing with the arms of
Alexander. Two of them carry his spear, and teem almost ov rlmr-
deued with the weight of it. Another couple take his buckler, with a
figure like the king stretched upon it, trailing it along by the handles.
Another creeps backwards into the coat of mail, where he seems to
lurk in order to frighten the two little porters as they coma on."
" These collateral incident*," continues Lucian, " are by no means
the mere wantonness and idle sport of the artist's fancy ; they arc to
show the martial disposition of the bridegroom, and timt bin lore for
Roxana had not effaced his passiou for arms and military glory."
(Tooke'a Translation.)
From this description Raphael is aaid to have made a design, of
which there are duplicate* or copies, and it wot executed in ft
the to-called Villa of Raphael, in the garden of the Villa liorghese at
Rome ; but the competition ia puerile, and does not at all inn-it the
praises which Lucian hat given to the ancient performance of Ai-tiou :
it hat been several timet etched or engraved by J. Caraglio, Volpato,
and other*.
Lucian in the above description remarks, that he guesses a fine
youth to represent the god of marriage, as "the name is not beneath."
He alludes to an ancient custom which prevailed among the Greeks,
of attaching the names in their pictures to the figures represented ;
the name* in mott cases were probably written below the feet of the
figure. In the picture* on vases we find the name sometimes written
by the aide of the figure, but the practice was not universal. In thi -
case, from Lucian's remark, it would seem that tome of the figures
had name* attached to them, as be speaks of the other characters with
certainty, and guesses only at the god of marriage, because there was
no name attached. It was a practice however seldom if at all had
recourse to in later times, and in case of ita employment the name was
probably to placed as not to disturb the pictorial effect. SoinctiuicH
sentences were inscribed on pictures, as for instance Zeuxis wrote
upon his picture of Helen three lines from Homer, celebrating her
extraordinary beauty. ('Iliad/ iii. 166-158; Valerius Maximum, iii. 7
S 8.) There are similar examples on works of the middle ages, and
also of much later times: inscriptions below allegories are very
common*
The circumstance that Pliny hns not mentioned Action is an addi-
tional reason for concluding that ho lived about Luciou's own time, or
in the early half of the 2nd century of our era, subsequent to 1'liny.
Some however have supposed that the Echion of Pliny and Cicero is
the Action of Lucian, especially as the former was celebrated for a
picture of a bride distinguished for the modesty of her expression;
'lit this implies a great blunder in Lucian, who speaks of him as a
painter of hia own time, and there ia no sufficient reason for such n
luppoeition.
(Ludan, Jfcrodottu or Ailio*, De Marctdt Conduct*, 412, and Jmag. 7;
1'liny. J/ut. Nat. xxxv. 10, 36 ; Cicero, Brutui, 18 ; Parad. v. 2.)
AK'TIUS ('A^TIOI), of Amida in Mesopotamia, a Greek writer on
medicine, who probably lived about the end of the 5th and the begin-
63
AFFRE, DENIS AUQUSTE.
AGAMEMNON.
ning of the 6th century of our era, aa we may infer from the persons)
whom he mentions in hia work. He studied medicine at Alexandria,
then the seat of the moat celebrated medical school, and afterwards
he went to Constantinople, where he appears to have been raised to a
high office at the court, since Photius (' Biblioth. Cod.' 221) calls him
K&fiTls o^dffou, comes obsequii, a title belonging to the principal officer
attending on the emperor. Aetiua waa a Christian, but not free from
the superstitions which at that time were introduced into Christianity
from Egypt, and which were connected with his profession. His work
contains some curious examples of the pretension to cure diseases by
means of superstitious ceremonies. The work of Aetius which has
come down to us entire bears the title of Bi0A.ia i'aTpik or ySi/SAi'ov
larpiK^v, and consists of 16 books. The whole however was afterwards
divided by some editor into four sections, each of which contained
four books, from which the work is also called Tetrabibli (TfTpdf3tf)\oi).
According to Photiua (1. c.), who gives a brief summary of the work,
it is a compilation made from the writings of Oribasius, Galen, Archi-
genes, Rufus, Dioscorides, Herodotus, and other eminent medical
authors; but the compilation ia made with judgment, and Ae'tius
appears to have introduced into it some original matter. The book
is a kiud of systematic encyclopaedia of medicine, embracing the whole
ranse of medical and surgical knowledge of the ancients. A complete
edition of the Greek original has never been published. The first
eight books appeared at Venice (1534, foL), and particular chaptera
have been edited at different times. Complete translations of the
whole work appeared at Venice (1534, 4to., 1543, &c., 8vo.), Easle
(1534 and 1539, foL), Lyon (1549, fpl.\ and at Paris (1567, foL)
among H. Stephens'a 'Medicss Artis Principes.' (Fabricius, 'Biblioth.
Gncc.' a. p. 228, &e., where a full account of the modern literature
on Aetius is given.)
AFFRE, DENIS AUGUSTE, archbishop of Paris, was born nt
St.-Rf.me, in the department of Tarn, Sept. 27, 1793. At an early
age he evinced a desire to devote himself to the Church, and he
became a student at the seminary of St.-Sulpice. He waa ordained
priest in 1S18, and discharged a variety of ecclesiastical functions till
he became archbishop of Paris in 1840. Although a man of ability
and learning, and the author of several treatises (amongst which WHS
one on Egyptian hieroglyphics), he would scarcely have found a
place in the history of his times, but for the lamentable circumstance
of his deatli on the 27th June, 1848. Paris was then the scene of a
fearful contest between the soldiery and a vast body of insurgents.
The archbishop was induced to apply to General Cavaii^iac, proposing
to stand between the contending bodies ns a messenger of peace.
The general told him that the course was full of danger. " My life,"
he replied, "is of small consequence." Some hours afterwards the
firing of the soldiery having ceased at his desire, the archbishop
mounted a barricade erected at the entrance of the Faubourg St.
Antoine : he was preceded by M. Albert, a national guard, wearing a
workman's dress, carrying in his hand a green branch aa an emblem
of peace; and he bad nt bis aide a faithful servant named Pierre
Sellier. The devoted ecclesiastic was not received with the confidence
that he expected to inspire. Some indeed of the combatants stretched
out their hands, but others remained silent, while others groaned and
hooted. The prelate endeavoured to speak a few words; but the
insurgents, fancying themselves betrayed, opened a fire upon the Garde
Mobile, and the archbishop fell. Then a cry of horror went up from
the crowd, and many, even of the insurgents, rushed to his aid.
Albert and Sellier were leading him away, when Sellier was also
struck by a ball. The insurgents who surrounded the archbishop
cried out that the Garde Mobile had inflicted the wound, and that
they would avenge him. " No, no, my friends," he replied ; " there
has been blood enough shed ; let mine be the last that is spilt." He
was carried to the archiepiscopal palace, and died the same day. The
National Assembly issued a decree announcing its profound grief at
the event of his death, and his public funeral took place on the 7th
of July, amidst the deepest feelings of popular regret. (Nouvelle
flioyrapkie Univerielle, 1852.)
AFRICANUS, LEO. [LEO, JOHN.]
AFRICANUS, SEXTUS CJ3CILIUS, a Roman jurist. Many
excerpts from his Nine Books of ' Qutestiones ' are contained ia the
'Digest.' He was a pupil or friend of Salviua Julianus, whose
>ns he often cites. ('Digest' 25, tit. 3, a. 3.) This fixes the
: of Africanua to the reign of Hadrian, who died A.D. 138, and
t of bis successor Antoninus Pius. As Julianus belonged to
the legal sect of the Sabiniani, it is probable that Africanus also
ii'l. Aulus Gelliua (xx. 1) has given the substance of a discussion
between .iSextus Cfecilius, a distinguished jurist, and Favorinus, a
philosopher, on the Twelve Tables; and the date of the Twelve
Tables is fixed in thia discussion aa near 700 years prior to the
time of Gellius. As Golliua probably was not living later than
'70, and the Laws of the Twelve Tables were finally enacted
B.C. 449, the number of 700 is too much by a century for the age of
us. This error is no objection to our concluding that the Sextus
Csccilius mentioned by Gellius is Sextus Caecilius Africanus. Lam-
priding ('Alex.Sev.' 68) makes Africanus a disciple of Papinian and
a friend of Alexander Severus, but Cujacius exposes the anachronism
liy mi extract from Africanus founded on a legal maxim which was no
' in force in the time of Papinian. The Excerpts of Africanua
treat of many subtle legal points, and have been well illustrated by
Cujacius (' Opera,' torn. i.. tract 9).
AFRICANUS, SEXTUS JULIUS, a Christian writer of the 3rd
century, is considered by some authors to have been a native of
Africa, and was, according to Cave, bishop of Emmaus, A.D. 232.
Clavier, in the 'Biographie Uuiverselle,' makes him the descendant
of an African family, and born in Palestine. Between 218 and 222
Africanus was employed in an embassy to the Emperor Heliogabalus
for the restoration of Emmaus, which city, in consequence of hia
entreaties, was rebuilt under the name of Nicopolis. He attended the
lectures of Bishop Heracliua at Alexandria before the year 231.
Eusebius ascribes to Africanus a work which contains, under the
title 'Kesti* (embroidered girdles), a collection of passages from
various authors, chiefly on physical and mathematical questions, and
topics which belong to domestic economy ; medicine, botany, minera-
logy, and the military sciences. Fragments of thia work are printed
among the 'Mathematical Veteres," Paris, 1693, folio, and reprinted
in the 7th volume of the works of Meursius, Florence, 1746, but it is
not quite certain whether this work contains the real ' Kesti ' of
Africanus. The section on the military art has been translated by
Guischardt, in his ' Mdmoires Militaires des Grecs et des Remains,"
1758, 4to. There is a translation by Africanus of the book of Abdias
of Babylon, under the title ' Historia Certamiuis Apostolici,' 1566, 8vo.
Africanua wrote a chronological work in five sections under the
title of ' Pentabiblos,' containing, as some learned men think, an
abridgment and a continuation of Manetho's work. The ' Peutabiblos '
was a sort of universal history, composed to prove the antiquity of
true religion and the novelty of paganism. Fragments of this chro-
nology are extant in the works of Eusebius, Syncellus, Malala,
Theophanes, Cedrenus, and in the 'Chronicou Paachale.' The 'Penta-
biblos' commences with the creation, B.C. 5499, and closes with A.D.
221. The chronology of Africanua places the birth of Chriat three
years before the commencement of our era. But under the reign of
Diocletian ten years were taken from the number which had elapsed,
and thus the computation of the churches of Alexandria and Antioch
were reconciled. According to Fabricius, 'BibL Gr,' ed. nova, viii.
p. 9, there exista at Paris a manuscript containing an abstract of the
' Pentabibloa.' Scaliger has borrowed, in hia edition of Eusebiu-;, the
chronology of Africanua extant in ' Geo. Syncelli Chronographia ab
Adamo ad Dioclesianum, a Jac. Goar, Gr. et Lat.,' Paris, 1652, fol.
Africanus wrote a learned letter to Origen, in which he disputes the
authenticity of the apocryphal history of Susannah. This letter has
been printed at Baale, in Greek and Latin, 1674, 4to. A great part
of another letter of Africanus to Aristides, reconciling the disagree-
ment between the genealogies of Christ iu Matthew and Luke, is
extant in Etisebius's ' Ecclesiastical History." In order to reconcile
the difference between the genealogies, he has recourse to the law of
adoption among the Jews, by which brothers were obliged to marry
the wives of their brothers who died without children.
The fact of a man so learned and intelligent aa the chronologor
Africanus being a Christian, refutes the error of those who think that
all Christians iu the first centuries of our era were illiterate. The
criticisms of Africanus upon the apocryphal books seem to attest that
he did not receive the canonical writings of the Now Testament
without previous examination ; and from hia manner of reconciling
the different genealogies of Chriat, it appears certain that ha recog-
nised the authenticity of the Gospels in which they occur.
AGAMEMNON, king of Mycenoo, and commander-iu-chief of the
Grecian army at tho siege of Troy. According to the fabulous
genealogies of the poets, he was fourth in descent from Jupiter, and
grandson to Pelops, who came from Asia into Greece, and laid the
foundation of a new dynasty of princes, which soon supplanted the
older race of the Danai. Pelops acquired the kingdom of Pisa by
marriage. Atrexis, son of Pelops, beiug banished from his father's
house for having slain his brother Chrysippus, fled to Myoenaj, where
his sister's son Eurystheus, grandson of Perseus, then reigned. He
ingratiated himself so much with the people, that he was chosen king
on the death of Eurystheus, and left the sceptre to his eldest son
(or, some have said, grandson) Agamemnon. The dominion of
Myceute comprehended the northern part of Argolis, Corinth and
Sicyon, with the territories annexed to them, and ^Egialos, afterwards
called Acliaia ; thus including the whole northern coast of Pelopon-
nesus. Menelaus, second son of Atreus, obtained the kingdom of
LacediBmon by marriage with Helena, daughter of Tyndareus and
Leda. The southern and larger portion of Argolis, though governed
by a monarch of its own, was probably dependent to a great degree
on its more powerful neighbour of Mycenoo. It does not appear who
inherited tho kingdom of Pisa after Pelops ; none of the four chiefs
who led the Eleians to Troy were of hia family, so that the degree of
influence which thePelopid princes possessed over Elis can hardly bo
ascertained. A large portion of Measenia, according to Strabo, was
occupied by colonists who followed Pelops from Asia. Thus, in at
leaat four, probably in fivo, of the six principal divisions of Pelopon-
nesus (Arcadia being the one excepted), the house of Atreua had a
direct family interest and influence.
The history of Agamemnon, before tho Trojan war, is comprised iu
two sentences : he was the son of Atreus, whence he and his brother
were called Atridso; and he married G'lytemnestra, sister of Helen.
IXUflUA
AQASSIZ, LOUIS.
M
Tb.Tn.JM war an*, out of the abdncUon of Helen by Pari., utber
*. eafid Alexandras, son of Priam, king of Troy. It i* commonly
aid, UkU a numhrr of UM prince* of Grew* having been drawn
toswUMr a* suilon by UM extraordinary beauty of Helen, Tyndareus
, ____ l.y UM extraordinary beaoty of Helen. Tyndarvus
uclad an U> from them. Uui on whomsoever UM ohoio* should
faU, if 111* maid should U carried off all the rest should uniU to
recover her; and thai, in virtuo of this oath. UM confederate prince*
ssssmblsd under UM command of Agamemnon. In reference to thi*
dorr. Thucydide* ha* expressed bit belief; - that Agamemnon got
tontiwr that <*, not 10 much for thai be had with him Uw uitort
of lltleaa. bound thereto by oath to Tyndareoa, as for this, that be
rioKilfel U>* rest in power." In continuation, the hutoriao layi
wot sirs** npun hk naal power, u evinced by bU being, in Homer'*
wooU. " king of many ialanda," and by hia leading sixty akip* to the
Arcadians, bssidis conducting a hundred fiUcd with LU own follower*,
a larger number than waa led by any other chief.
The asMBbbd fUat wae detained at AulU by contrary wind*. The
aeer Cstosas, being consulted bow the anger of the goda might be
averted. and UM delay obviated, declared that Iphigenia, daughter of
Agamemnon, who bad incurred the displeasure of Diana by killing
her favooriU iUg, muit be sacrificed to the goddess. The natural
reluctance of the father wae overcome by importunity and ambition ;
and UM intended victim waa summoned to AulU, under pretence of
betrothing her to Achilla*. At the point of death ahe waa miraculoualy
saved by Uuuia, wboee prieawea abe afterwards became among a aavage
neopk of Asia, oaUed the Tauri. Thia atory u related neither by
Homer nor Hewxl ; it reata however on the early authority of Pimlar
C PyUL,' U.) and JCschylu* ; and u pregnant with too important con-
to be omitted, aince the alienation of Clytcmnestra from
ber husband i* said by those authors to have originated in her horror
of tab unnatural action. Tb* siege of Troy wss protracted for ten
The most memorable event of it i* the quarrel between
and Achilles, the subject of the ' Iliad? in which Aga-
i placed himself completely in the wrong. Homer represent*
him a* brave, and expert in arms, insomuch, that when a Grecian
warrior was selrcUd by tut who should contend with Hector in aingle
combat, it wss the general prayer that the lot might fall on Ajax,
Dittoed**, or Agamemnon. Still it is aa the commander, rather than
a* UM soldier, that he i* presented to our notice, and usually with
some reference to bis wealth and power : ' king of men ' i* the distin-
S' thing epithet constantly added to hi* name, a* 'swift-footed' i* to
name of Achillea, Hesiod also (' Fragm.,' 48) lays that the
Olympian god has given strength to the descendant* of ..Uacui,
wealth to those of Atreus. Returning from Troy, with Coseandra,
tb* daughter of Priam, ha was murdered by hi* wife, who had formed
an aduluron* attachment to ^Egiatliua, son of hi* uncle Thyesto*.
Thi* catastrophe is the subject of the ' Agamemnon ' of .Eschylus,
on* of UM moat sublime composition* in the range of the Grecian
drama, Orestes, son of Agamemnon, then a child, was saved by the
car* of hi* tutor. After passing seven yean in exile, he returned in
secret, avenged hi* father'* death by the slaughter of hia mother and
of .i&risUina, and recovered bis paternal kingdom, which he ruled
with honour. These Irgend* of the house of Agamemnon formed a
favourite subject with the Greek tragedians.
AOA8I AS, a Onek sculptor of Epbesus, whoso age is not accurately
known. The stitue now at Bom* called the Borgheae Fighter, which
is a fine spMimen of skill in representing a figure in action, and also
shows a cartful study of external anatomy, is the work of this Agasias.
On tb* support behind UM figure is the following inscription in
Omsk :-" Apsis* tb* son of Dositneus of Kphesus made it"
AOA8SI2, LOUIS, on* of tb* most distinguished naturalist* of
UM present dsy. He was born about the beginning of the present
rectory, in Switzerland, and was for many yean Professor of Natural
History at NeofebaUl. About the year 1 847 be accepted an invitation
tj beooso* professor in an American college, and he i* now Profeasor
of Natural Hi.tory at Cambridge, MassachuietU. Hi* public career a*
a nsturalUt date, from 1828, in which year be published descriptions
of two new Uu* in tb* 1*1*' and ' Linns*,' two foreign periodical.
<Uvotod to natural history. In 1829 be assisted Spix and Martius in
describing the grnen and specie* of fishes found in the Brazil*. In
Us* asm* Tew also we find the gnat tnasorndental anatomist, Okn,
^aJs'* discoveries before the Berlin meeting of German
VlM tfab time till now hi* publication* upon various
' ~7 bave been constant and most important
J of UMM contribution* to the knowledge of
, may b. rsekoned bis rosesrch. upon fossil fish**. Th* result*
IMS. research** bav* been published in various form, in the natural
ibUtry journals of tb* day, and in the Transactions of scientific societies.
Mst taportaat of UMSS labours have been directed to the strata of
rtUs*, so many of which are rich in the remains of fishes belong-
l~ MUM ps* iwriods of UM world's history. In 1834 be published^
o UM ' Fossa Fish of Scotland. 1 in ' ~
:'
of UM OU
. Since that time
fa tb*s*we Transaction*. In
Posl TabU of British Fish*.,'
" fwlogkej formsUon*. [Fun, in NAT.
'
. -
,- and i,, 1844 a ^portupoo those found in
the I/radon Clay. Agassii was the first to propose the division of
fossil fisnes according to the forms of their scales, and ha* thus placed
in the hands of the paleontologist a ready means of dUtinguinhing, by
their Male* alone, fishes belonging to the Cartilaginous and Osseous
tribes. His papers on this subject will be found in the 13th and 14th
volumes of the second series of the 'Annalcs dee Science* Naturellea,'
in the 'Comnte* Kendu*' for 1840, and in the 28tb volume of the
' Edinburgh New Philosophical Journal' Hi* researches have not
however been confined to fossil fishes ; and numerous papers scattered
through the scientific periodical* of Europe and America attest hi*
knowledge of recent a* well a* fossil forms.
Another family, in both their recent and fossil form?, has attracted
the attention of Agassis, and these are the Star- Fishes, or E,-hin<>-
dcmtata. Hi* researches upon this family have resulted in a great
work containing illustrative figure*, entitled ' Monograpb.es il'Echino-
dermes Vivaua et Foasile*,' and published in parU, from 1837 to 1842.
Several papers on this family attest the zeal And care with which he
hnx studied these animals, which have through successive period* of
time pUyed an important part amongst the organic beings of the j-lul"-.
Although the attention of Professor Agasaiz has been chiefly directed
to object* not requiring microscopic investigation, he has successfully
investigated many of the forms of /n/iuorto, which are only seen by
mean* of this instrument. He was not only one of the earliest to
confirm Mr. Shuttle-worth's curious discovery of the existence of
animalcule* among the red snow of the Alps, but also to point out
the existence of higher forms of animal Ufa (such as the Rotifera)
than had been suspected by that observer. [SNOW, KED, in NAT.
HIST. Drv.] In some recent researches upon the habits and structure
of animalcules, he has even proposed to abolish the class of /n/tuon'a
altogether, endeavouring to show that all these beings may be placed
amongst the Polypi/era, Jtliizopoda, plants, and ova of higher aninmU.
[INFUSORIA, in NAT. HIST. Div.]
His researches upon fossil animals would naturally draw his attention
to the circumstances by which they have been placed in their present
position. The geologist has been developed as the result of natural
history studies. Surrounded by the ice-covered mountains of Switzer-
land, bU mind was naturally led to the study of the phenomena which
they presented. The moving glaciers, and their resulting morains,
furnished him with facts which seemed to supply the theory of a large
number of phenomena in the past history of the world. He saw in
other parts of the world, whence glaciers have long since retired,
proofs of their existence in the parallel roads and terraces, at the bases
of hills and mountains, and in the scratched, polished, and striated
surface of rocks. Although this theory has been applied much moro
extensively than is consistent with all the facts of particular cases by
his disciples, there is no question in the minds of the most competent
geologist* of the present day that Agassiz has, by his researches on
this subject, pointed out the cause of a large series of geological pheuo-
uetua. His papers on this subject are numerous, and will be found in
the 'Transactions of the British Association' for 1840, in the 3rd
volume of the ' Proceedings of the Geological Society,' in the 1 8th
volume of the ' Philosophical Magazine ' (third series), and in the 6th
volume of the 'Annals and Magazine of Natural History.'
In hia writings Professor Agassiz show* a strong tendency to gene-
ralisation ; and if a suspicion has grown up of the unsoundness of his
viewa in certain departments of natural history inquiry, it baa arisen
from this peculiar mental disposition. He has embraced the doctrine
of the successive creation of higher organised beings upon the sur-
face of the earth, and a paper of his on this subject will be found
in the thirty-third volume of the 'Edinburgh New Philo.-ojihi.Ml
Journal.' A more detailed account of his views on this subject will
be found in the ' Outline* of Comparative Physiology,' written by
Professor Agaaaiz in conjunction with Mr. A. A. Gould. This work,
originally publiahed in America, has been republUbed in England, with
notes and additions by Dr. T. Wright. It is unnecessary to say here
that these vinws have upholders and opponents in KngUnd. Amongst
the moat distinguished of the former are Professor Owen and Professor
Sedgwick, whilst the latter number amongst them the late Professor
Edward Forbes and Sir Charles Lyell. Both parties are equally
opposed to the theory of organic development, as proposed in an
anonymous work called 'The Vestiges of the Natural History of
Creation.' Professor Agassiz ha* written in this controversy with
great sagacity, and brought his researches on the ' Embryology of the
Siilmoiiidiu ' to bear upon the argument. This work was published at
Neufcbatel in 1842.
Another general subject on which Professor Agassiz has entered with
his usual enthusiasm, is the question of the origin of the human race
from a single pair. Although the doctrine of a multiplicity of stock*
must alwaya be received with more than usual suspicion when coming
from persons living in communities where slavery is legalised, it is
only fair to Professor Agassiz to say that, before his residence in
America, bo maintained the theory of the creation of the same species
in several distinct centres, both in time and space. It H therefore not
to be wondered at that be should uphold the same theory with regard
to man. His views on this subject will be found most distinctly
enunciated in a paper forming part of a volume published in America
in 1 -:. I under the title of ' Typet of Mankind,' and edited by Dr. Nott
and Mr. Gliddon.
67
AGATH ARCH IDES.
AGATHOCLES.
68
Amidst all his original labours, Professor Agnssiz has found time to
devote himself to the general literature of natural history. Ill 1842
he published hia ' Nomenolator Zoologicus," which contains the syste-
matic names of the genera of animals both living and fossil, with
references to the authors and the books in which they are described.
He also laid the foundations of the great work entitled ' Bibliographia
Zoologise et Geologise," which has been published in England, edited
by the late Hugh E. Strickland and Sir W. Jardine, Bart., in the series
of works issued by the Ray Society. It consists of four volumes,
comprising an alphabetical list of all writers on Geology and Zoology,
with a list of their works. We must refer to this work for a com-
plete list of Professor Agassiz's own writings up to the time the first
volume was published in 1848.
When the chair of natural history in Edinburgh became vacant by
the death of the late Professor Edward Forbes, it was offered to
Professor Agassiz ; but he declined accepting it, preferring his honour-
able and wide sphere of usefulness in the New World to returning to
Europe, where he won the first triumphs of his great reputation.
AGATHARCHIDES, a Greek writer on geography, a native of
Cnidos in Asia Minor. He lived in the time of Ptolemy Philometer,
king of Egypt (who reigned from B.C. 181 to 145), and wrote
numerous works on geography, and among them one on the
Erythrcean Sea.
This work is only kuown to us by extracts from the first and fifth
books preserved by the Greek patriarch Photius, and some extracts in
Diodorus. The works of Agatharchides contained a great deal of
seful information, as we may fairly infer from the fragments which
remain. He is the earliest writer who attributes the annual rise of
the Nile to the periodical rains in the upper regions of that river.
(DiodoruB, i 41.) He has left a very minute account of the mode of
working the gold-mines which lay between the Nile and the Red Sea ;
and he is the first writer who mentioned the giraffe, a quadruped
peculiar to the African continent. His remarks on the mode of
hunting elephants, and ou the inhabitants of the Red Sea coasts,
prove him to have been an inquisitive and careful writer.
What remains of Agatharchides may be seen in Hudson's 'Minor
Greek Geographers,' vol. i. The description of the gold-mines is also
to be found in Diodorus, iii. 12.
AGATHARCHUS, a Greek painter, who apparently, from a passage
in Vitriivius, may be considered, if not the inventor, at least the first
artist who applied the laws of perspective practically in painting. He
painted a dramatic scene for /Eschylus in perspective, which was the
first work of the kind exhibited to the Greeks ; as the contemporary
of jEschylus therefore, he was a man of mature years about B.C. 480.
The words " scenam fecit," in the passage in Vitruvius referred to,
have been interpreted, "he constructed a stage," but this interpretation
is shown by the context to be incorrect The whole passage is as
follows : " When -EschyluB was exhibiting tragedies at Athens,
Agatharchus made a scene, and left a treatise upon it With the
assistance of this treatise, Democritus and Anaxagoras wrote on the
same subject, showing how the extension of rays from a fixed point of
sight should be made to correspond to lines according to (natural
reason, so that the images of buildings in painted scenes might have
the appearance of reality ; and although painted upon flat vertical
surfaces, some parts should seem to recede and others to come
forward."
This kind of scene-painting was termed Scenography (amivayfatftia.)
by the Greeks, and was sometimes practised by architects; Diogenes
I.aertius mentions Clisthenes of Eretria as scenograph and architect.
Aristotle gives Sophocles the credit of introducing scene-painting ; he
may have first treated it as indispensable in a dramatic representation,
and rendered the practice common, or Vitruvius may have erroneously
ascribed its introduction to /Eschylua instead of Sophocles.
There was another Greek painter of the name of Agathitrchus, who
live 'd about half a century later than the above. He was contem-
porary with Zeuxis, and Plutarch relates an anecdote of the two, how
Xeuxirt reproved Agatharchus for boasting in company of the rapidity
with which he painted, by quietly observing that he (Zeuxis) painted
very slowly. This Agatharchus is the painter whom Alcibiades shut
up in his house until he had painted certain pictures in it The
circumstance is noticed by Plutarch and by Andocides, but they give
different accounts of the conclusion of the affair.
(Vitruvius, viL, Pnef.; Diogenes, ii. 125; Aristotle, Poetic., iv. ;
Plutarch, Periclet, 13, AIM., 16; Andocides, Oral, in Alcib., 7.)
AiiATHEMEUUS, a Greek writer who lived about the middle of
the 3rd century, and wrote a short treatise on general geography.
His work, as we possess it, is a collection of heads, or rather a kind
of syllabus for a set of lectures. There are two books extant, of
which the second is so confused and contradictory, that critics are
disposed to assign it to a pupil of Agatbemerus. His first chapter
HIS a sketch of the history of geography, with the names of
those who haxl rendered the moat eminent services to the science.
His sixth chapter treats of the spherical figure of the earth, and what
is now called the doctrine of the sphere, &c. (Hudson, Minor Qeo-
ijrapheri, vol. ii.)
AGATHIAS, a Greek historian and poet, who lived under the
11 .lii.-.tiniiiii und Justinus the Younger. Ho was a sou of
McinuoniuH, and born at Myrina in Asia Minor, about A. D. 030, but
he received his education at Alexandria, whence he went in A.D. 554 to
Constantinople, where his father seems to have settled during his son's
stay at Alexandria. Agathias now commenced studying the law, and
afterwards distinguished himself as a speaker in the courts of justice.
The title of Scholasticus (SXO^CWTIKIJS), which some writers give him,
and which appears in the manuscripts of his work, refers to his pro-
fession of advocate, for Scholasticus at that time signified an advocate.
But notwithstanding the great reputation he acquired, he never liked
his profession, which he practised, according to his own account, only
for the sake of gaining a livelihood : his favourite pursuits were poetry
and history. He was esteemed by many of the most distinguished
men of the time, and seems to have been rather given to courting the
great. Some of his epigrams contain incontrovertible proofs that
Agathias was a Christian. He died a short timo before the death of
Tiberius Thrax and the accession of Mauritius, A.D. 582.
Agathias was the author of the following works: 'Daphniaca'
(Aa^piaKa), or a collection of erotic poems in hexameter verse. It
consisted of nine books, but is completely lost. He calls it a juvenile
production. 2. ' Cyclus ' (KwcAos), a poetical anthology, in which he
collected the poems of his contemporaries, especially of his illustrious
friends, and also many of his own. The collection is lost, with the
exception of the introduction. His epigrams, which are still extant
in the ' Greek Anthology," may have formed a part of the ' Cyclus : '
they show that Agathias had considerable poetical talent and wit.
3. ' History of his Own Time,'' is the most important among hia works,
and is complete. It breaks off abruptly in the 25th chapter of the
fifth book, probably in consequence of the author's death ; for he states
that this history was commenced at a late period of his life. It con-
tains the history of the short period from A.D. 553 to 559. He appears
throughout this work as a good and honest man, and as a faithful
writer, but wanting in historical and geographical knowledge, especially
with regard to the West of Europe. HU language is a compound of
nearly all the dialects of ancient Greece, in which however the Ionic
predominates. Among the editions of this work the most important
are that of Bonaventura Vulcanius (Lugdun. 1594), those in the Paris
and Venice collections of the Byzantine writers, and above all that of
B. G. Niebuhr, which forms the third volume of the ' Corpus Scrip-
torum Histories Byzantinao" (Bonn, 1828, 8vo.), and contains a good
account of the life of Agathias, and also his Epigrams.
AGATHOCLES, a Syracusan of low extraction, who became ruler
of Syracuse and great part of Sicily. The principal events in hia life
range between B.C. 330 and 289. He was the sou of a potter, and is
said to have worked at his father's trade. He was remarkable for
beauty, strength, and capacity for enduring labour. In the outset
of life he belonged to a baud of robbers ; afterwards he served as a
private soldier, and in that capacity gained the favour of a patron
named Dainas, who, being chosen general of Agrigeutum, advanced
him to the rank of chiliarch, or commander of a thousand men. On
the death of Dainas, who bequeathed his great wealth to his wife,
Agathocles married the widow, and became one of the richest citizens
of Syracuse. In this state of his fortune he distinguished himself by
his eloquence in the assembly of the people. But his conduct now
was as seditious as his former life had been profligate.
The constitution of Syracuse, as established by Timoleon, was
democratical ; but in the outset of Agathocles' political life, the
aristocratical party, headed by Sosistratus, a personal enemy of his
own, drove him into exile ; and he retreated into Italy, where for some
time he lived as a soldier of fortune. The restoration of democracy,
and the banishment of Sosistratus and his friends, enabled him to
return. The Carthaginians interfered in behalf of these new exiles ;
and a war ensued, in which Agathocles bore a distinguished part : but
he was suspected of aiming at the tyranny, and was a second timo com-
pelled to quit Syracuse. In banishment he collected an army which
overawed both Carthage and Syracuse. After frequently defeating the
troops of the former, he was recalled, under the pledge of an oath
that he would attempt nothing against the democracy; and he was
chosen general and protector, for the ostensible purpose of reconciling
or putting down faction. Strong in the support of his own mercenary
troops, united with some of the poorest and most desperate of the
citizens, he proceeded to arrest and execute by military process the
leaders of the aristocratical party, and gave up their adherents to the
fury of his soldiery. Four thousand persons are said to have been
murdered, and six thousand to have fled. The wives aud children of
the latter, those of them who were unable to accompany the fugitives,
fell victims to the soldiery.
Agathocles now declared his intention of retiring into private life ;
but he knew that the partners of his crimes could not maintain them-
selves without his countenance. At their call he consented to retain
his office, on condition of holding it without a colleague (B.C. 317).
He did not assume the state of a monarch, but exercised the powers
of the most absolute king, with the title of ' autocrator ; ' that is,
ruler according to his own pleasure. He had risen as the champion of
the poor; and he. fulfil led his promises by the abolition of debts aud
the distribution of lands. He aimed at the dominion of the whole
island ; and succeeded in reducing all except the subjects of Carthage.
Hut the Carthaginians made a strong effort to crush him. He was
defeated with great slaughter (B.C. 309), his subjects nearly all revolted,
aud he was obliged to shut himself up in Syracuse. In the following
AOATHOn.KMOX.
y*r be adopted U>. bold plan of carrying the war into Africa : but
moory was required for thb purpose: and hi* contrivance for raising
It *>tns borrowed (ram UM habit* of hi* early life He offered to
U ell b feared UM hardships of a *e retire from Syracuse, and
Iw ami an armed fore, to plunder and murder thoee who availed
jbafjiihn of UM permMoaj. By thai atrodo.ii act he at once gained
aupftUea, *** r**wtfted himself upon hi* eoemta*.
On hi* Undue; m Africa he burnt hi* ship., tl.it hts loldlen might
Uv M bap* but In victory. H. took aeveral towns, defeated a power-
Ad OtrUMfiaian fore. Mot to oppose him. and threw Carthage iUeif
iato free* alarm. But a new ihsagiir threatened the rule of Agatbooles,
from UM powwful dty of Agrigentum. which proflted by the exhaus.
lion of Carthage and 8yracu to invii. the Sicilian, to shake off the
dominion of both, Afatboeiee returned In haste, and reduced torn*
of the revolted eitise. But the foroai of the rest under the command
of Democrat.*, a Syracusan. proved too strong for him. Moreover,
hit preMtx* WM again required In Africa, where the Csrthaginians had
repaired their tone*, and regain* I their ascendancy. He saw the pro
Ubility that the Ryraenmn* might call in Deinocratea in hi* absence.
In thi* dOeeam*. he took advantage of a public festival to ascertain
who wr hi* eucmiea, and put to death the chief men of the party to
the number of 600.
H* WM received on his return to Africa by a mutiny among his
troops, in aaajaaquaaea of his son Aroharathns having been dilatory in
furniehine; their pay. H. harangued the soldiery, saying that they
net |H their pay from the enemy, and that the booty should be in
common. Bat UM neeesaity of recovering the good will of his army
betrayed him into imprudence*. He attacked the Carthaginian* unad-
ri**diy. and loat UM battle, and a Urge portion of hi* men. He wa*
compelled to retreat to hi* camp, where he saw that his rashness had
art the eoldiers against him ; and he bad reason to fear thst they would
renew UM mutiny on account of the arrears of par. He therefore fled
n the night, accompanied by Archafathu*. They were pursued, nml
the eon was taken : the father, with better fortune, reached the ships
In which be had returned from Sicily, and escaped. All his sons were
murdered by the enraged soldiers, who then made terms with the
Carthaginiaus. Agathocla* avenged himself in kind on the murderers
of hU tout, by (laying UM kindred of those who had (erred with him
in Africa.
On hi* return to Sicily, he found that a large portion of the troops,
and trveral of the cities, bad gone over to Deinocrates, who himself
Mpired to UM sovereignty. He therefore made peace, with the Cartba-
**"! and commenced a war against the exiles, whom he defeated,
and treacherously slew to the number of 7000, after they had laid
down their arm* under aunranoe of safety. But he received Deiuo-
erate* with favour, and appointed him his general After thia he
undertook an expedition into Italy against the liruttii, laid the Lipari
Island* under contribution, and made himself master of Crotona, but
WM obliged by severe illnen to leave hi* main design* uncompleted.
Hi* ambition wa* to render Sicily a great naval power ; and he had
advanced far in the prosecution of this attempt when he died, by one
account of a miserable and wasting sickness, by another of poison
admibistored by Msinon, one of hi* lasociates, in concert with his own
grandson. Hi* death took place in the year B.C. 289, at the age of 72,
after a r^ign of 28 years.
AOATII ' f Alexandria, a map-maker, and apparently the
author of UM map* found In the olde*t manuscripts of the geography
of Claodlu* PtoUmsra*. There can be no doubt that the work of
Plnlimam WM accompanied by map* ; if indeed it U pocaiblo that a
tabular lyatom of geography like hi* could be without them. Maps
on plat*, of copper are mentioned by Herodotus, who wrote above
M* year* before PtoUmeraa. But a* we know nothing at all about
UM of Atalhodroon. we cannot conclude, M some do, that the
map. of PtoUmsro* wen constructed by him. It i* more likely that
U wa. a Uter editor or amender of them. In the Vienna and Vene-
tian manuscript* the following not. In Greek U found at the end of
the maps : " According to the eight books of the Geographical work*
of Claudius Ptohtnajos, Aathodmon of Alexandria delineated the
wboU earth." It has been inferred from this, that Agathodemon was
eowUtoporary of Ptolcm.ro*. But thi* doe* not seem to be quite
**"** Tbe Aape which A*athodmon gave to th. different
i of UM Mrth maintained iu ground on modern map* till the
* refuUr rorveya became in use : and indeed till of late yean,
our map* were only the traditional delineations of
m of Alexandria. (Schoell, ToL ii. ; Hecren, l)t
Protxmcrs. CLADDIUI.)
Id
new election previous to obtaining the imperial confirmation of the
bishop elect The confirmstion Itself however continued to be re-
quired for a considerable time after, if not from the emperor, at least
from the exarch of Ravenna, who was the emperor** representative in
Italy. Aptthon died A.D. 682. He Is numbered by the Church of
Rome among ite sainU. (Sandioi, Vila Pontijicum Romn*onu x
Antlquii lf<mttmra/u ColltOa.)
AUESILA'DS, younger son of Arcbidamui, king of Lacedannon,
succeeded hie brother Agis, B.C. 398, to the exclusion of his nephew
Leotvchidea, who laboured under the stigma of bastardy, being Where .1
to be the son of Alcibiades, and not of Agis, hi* reputed father. As
the crown descended in direct line fi-ora father to son, the succession of
Agesilaua seemed, in his youth, to be barred ; and hi* education win
conducted a* that of a private person, in all the itriotness of Spartan
discipline. He was lame, and advantage wa* taken of this to excite a
prejudice againit him ; yet so high wss bis personal character, or so
general the belief in the spurious birth of Leotychides, that by a
vote of the general assembly, the heir-apparent was passed over,
and Agesilaus was appointed king.
In the first year of his reign a plot was formed to effect a change of
government. The political constitution, established by Lycurgus, had
degenerated into an oligarchy of a peculiar kind. Almost nil political
power, with the exclusive right to hold hi. -It civil or military office,
was engrossed by those families who boasted to be of puro Spartan
blood, the term Spartan being opposed to Lacedajmonian. The Lace-
demonians are conjectured to have been the progeny of enfranchised
Helots, strangers associated into the citizenship, a remnant of the
Aclirci, and in a word, all who could not trace an unblemished line of
Spartan descent to the early ages of the monarchy. Foreigners might
become members of the community and Lacedtomouinna ; but th-y
could never become Spartans ; at least, Herodotus only knew of two
instances up to this time (ix. S3, 85). The object of Cinadon's con-
spiracy, who complained that he counted ouly forty Spartans in tho
agora, or place of assembly, and that these were all official person*,
was to extend the right nf holding their high office* to all citizens.
The plot was discovered before it wa* ripe ; Cinadon, the author and
ringleader, was executed, and the Spartans held fast their monopoly.
In order to prosecute wore effectually the war with Persia (B.C.
396), Ageiilaus was sent to command in Asia. At setting out, he
pledged himself either to conclude an honourable peace, or to disable
his enemies from giving any further disturbance to the Greeks. lli<
first object was to conciliate the Asiatic citiea by prudent manage-
ment and liberality ; and he succeeded in reconciling their factious.
It may bo doubted whether the design of Agesilaua was limited to
tho protection of tho Greek state* of Asia, but the war that broke
out in Greece, sfti-r he had been about two years in Asia, did not
allow him to follow up his sucoense*,
The intrigue* of the Persians and the hatred of the Spartan influ-
ence had occasioned a dangerous league to be fonned against Sparta.
Thebes, Argos, and Corinth declared against the Lacedemonians, and
Athena followed the example at the pressing instance of the Tuebans.
The ephori ordered Agesilaus home ; in the height of his glory, and
with the prospect of victory, he instantly obeyed. The Lacedte-
! moniaus and their enemies met near Coroneia in Ilceotia, and a fierce
battle took place (August, B.C. 39*). The Thebons alono made a
gallant resistance. The Spartan king was wounded, and obtained only
a doubtful victory. He returned to Sparta, not importing with him
I the luxuries of Asia, but adhering to the temperance and frugality
characteristic of his country's discipline. The probability of .'
recovering her former power after her walls were rebuilt (D.C. 892),
induced the Spartan* to *end Antalcidas (n.c. 887) with proposals to
Persia, favourable to themselves, but disadvantageous to the rest of
Greece. The bearer of these offers was the personal enemy of Agesi-
lau*, and was supposed to have a mean pleasure in lessening hi*
power and tamihing his glory. The Persians dictated the treaty
in the language of conquerors (Xen. ' Hellen.' v., i. 31 ), and Artaxcrxes
concluded with denouncing war against those who should not submit
> to hi* terms. The Thcbans refused ; but their steadiness was shaken
by preparations for coercion on the part of the ephori, invidiously
I recommended by Agesilaus, in revenge for a former aflr
had now, though not worthily, recovered her power in Greece. ' 1 1. r
virtms, indeed, were to be found rather in adversity than prosperity ;
nor did she profit by her own experience, that tyranny lead* to the
destruction of the tyrant Plirobidas, one of her generals, on hi
march into Thrace against Olynthus, was encamped iu the neighbour-
I hood of Thebc*, while parties were so nearly balanced, that Is
OATIIOX. a native of Sicily, succeeded Domnui in the see of and Leontiade*; the head* of opposite factions, excrci-.-.l the chief
' Conetentin* Poronatus havlnir con. magistracy together. Leontiades, who courted the friendship of
, succeee omnni
Emperor Conetantine Pogonatus having con-
^y^Sy^ *iv MO - A *" h *
concurred in condemning the heresy of the Mono-
rlitea, .bo enntendrd that, hi oonaaquence of the union of the two
**?"? Chrht, there wa* In him only one will and
W, an opinion which appear* to have been till then coun-
.V** > *' t * A ty Pol* Honoriu* I. These
al aetoetlona, to .hiaj, ,], of y,, oriental*
i_to bar. puded at time, the more aober and matter-
i Lacedamon, aecretly introduced rhmbidas and his troops iuto the
Cadmela, the citadel of Thebes (n.c. 382). This at once gave
*. line whiohUM of Rom. pSitotta Si^ uCr?
. .
the luperiority to that party of which he was tin
was apprehended, and 400 of his friends immediately fled to Athens.
Complaint was made at Sparta of this treacherous aggression in time
of peac<-. Agesilaus was, in general, more just and liberal tlinii Hi
rest of his countrymen ; but he contended that it wo* necessary to
examine whether the poiaesaion of the Cadmeia wa* of advantage to
Sparta. Tho decree of the Spartans was, as we might expect, in
their own favour. The assembly resolved to koi-p tho citndel, and to
81
AGIS I.
AGIS IV.
bring Ismenias to trial. But a counter-revolution was soon effected ;
aatl the Spartans were compelled to evacuate the citadel.
That the Lacedaemonians, when now at the height of power, were
all at once involved in a train of misfortunes which effectually broke
their supremacy, is ascribed by Xenophon to the divine anger against
their perfidious seizure of Thebes. Agesilaus probably had come
round to the same opinion ; for he excused himself from the com-
mand of the army sent to reduce the Theban revolutionists, oti the
plea of being weighed down by age. His colleague, Cleombrotus, was
appointed in his stead. The events which occurred during the absence
of Agesilaus, form no part of the present subject. On returning
home, Cleombrotus left Sphodrias at Theapiae, in command of part of
his army. Sphodrias, whether from his own folly, or, as many
believed, induced by Pelopidas, made a most unwarrantable and faith-
iroad upon Attica. The Athenians complained to Sparta, and
Sphodrias was recalled, and brought to trial. Unfortunately, Agesilaus
was persuaded to exert his influence in the delinquent's favour, und
he was acquitted ; at which the Athenians were so much offended,
that they immediately concluded an alliance with Thebes against
Sparta. Agesilaus then resumed the command and held it through
two successive campaigns, till obliged to resign through failing
health.
The battle of Leuctra (B.C. 371), in which the Lacedaemonians under
Cleombrotus were overcome by inferior numbers, produced a striking
instance of Spartan character. The news arrived at Sparta during a
relk'ious festival, but the ephori did not allow the celebration of it to
be interrupted. The list of the elain was sent to the houses of their
kindred, and the women were told to bear their sorrows in silence.
Those parents whose children had met with a glorious death went
abroad the next day to receive congratulations ; the friends of the
survivors kept their houses, as if in shame and sorrow. On this
occasion, a number of the combatants having fled, Agesilaus was
allowed to suspend the law which visited cowardice with disgraceful
punishment. He prudently announced that it might sleep for one
day only, and then resume its power.
There was a proverb, frequently repeated by Agesilaus, that "a
Spartan woman had never seen the smoke of an enemy's camp ; "
but he had the mortification to fee his proverb belied. The Theban
army increased daily by the defection of the allies of Sparta ; it pene-
trated into Laconia, and laid waste the whole country; the city how-
ever was saved by the prudence of Agesilaus, who shut himself up in
Sparta, and avoided au engagement. Epaminondas did not venture
to assault the city ; and at last, his allies growing weary of the service,
the winter approaching, and relief coming to Sparta from Athens, the
Theban general found it necessary to retreat.
After the death of Epamiuondas, at the battle of Mantinea (B.C. 362),
the weariness of all parties produced a partial cessation of hostilities.
: m was now above eighty years old, but he had still vigour enough
left to lead an army into Egypt, to assist the Egyptians who had
rebelled agaiunt the Persian king. According to Plutarch, Agesilaus
went expressly to help Tachos against his master King Artaxerxes II.;
luit a rival to Tachos starting up in the person of .Nectanebos, another
Egyptian, Agesilaus found it convenient to change sides. After esta-
blishing Xectanebos in the government of Egypt, the old king set out
on his voyage homewards, loaded with money and presents, the reward
of bis services and his treachery. Being driven by contrary winds on
the coast of Africa, he died there at the advanced age of eighty-four.
His attendants preserved the body in melted wax, and took it to Sparta
to be buried, consistently with the usages of their country, which did
not allow the body of a king to rest in a foreign land.
The character of Agesilaus is exalted by Xenophon far above its
merit*. The historian was on terms of personal intimacy with the
Spartan king, and was besides no great admirer of the constitutional
forms of Athens, his native city, which he loved to contrast disadvan-
tageously with those of Sparta. We may admire the energy and
vigour of Agesilaua, and grant him a full share of those peculiar
virtues which characterised his country. He may have been temperate
in hia habits, kind to his friends, and not cruel to his enemies ; but
more than one public act of his life throw suspicion on his integrity
as an individual and a statesman.
(Plutarch, Life of AgeiUaut ; Xenophon, Hdltnica, and Panegyric
on Ayftilaut; Pausanias, iii. 9.)
AGIS I., king of Sparta, wag the son of Eurysthenes, and grandson
of Aristodemuft, to whom Laconia was allotted after the Heracleid
invasion. Aristodemus had two sons, Eurysthenes and Procles : and
this Agi was, therefore, the second in one of the series of that double
race of kings, which reigned conjointly. His reign is said to have
commenced about B.C. 1032, but no certain dates can be assigned to
these early times. Agis deprived the conquered people of the equal
political rights to which his father had admitted them. The inhabit-
ant* of the town of Helos having attempted to regain their freedom
were reduced by him to the abject bondage so long endured by the
clan of the Helots. (Pausanias, iii. 2.)
A' MS II., the son of Archidamus II., reigned from B.c. 427 or 420
to 397. In the fourteenth year of the Peloponnesian war the Lace-
demonians endeavoured to recover their influence in Peloponnesus,
and marched out with nil their force under Agis. The Argeian army,
against which his operations were directed, was completely hemmed
in. Two Argeians went privately to Agis, and pledged themselves to
effect a reconciliation if he would grant a truce of four months. To
this he consented. The order to retreat was heard with astonish-
ment by the army of Agis, and the Argeians, on their part, were
highly incensed against their countrymen for having defrauded them
of an opportunity, as they thought, of destroying the enemy. Agia
was called to account, and it was proposed to fine him, and demolish
his house ; but his humble demeanour and earnest entreaty prevailed,
and he was allowed to resume the command, under the mortifying
restriction of a superintending council. He made amends, a short
time after, by defeating the Argeians, and their allies the Athenians,
in the great battle of Mantineia. (Thucydides, v. ; Pausanias, iii. 8.)
At the siege and surrender of Athens, B.C. 401, accompanied with the
mortifying demolition of the long walls, and the fortifications of
Peirams, Pausanias and Agis, the two kings of Sparta, conducted tho
operations by land, while Lysander blockaded the city with his fleet.
In B.C. 401 Agis conducted an army into Elis, which yielded him
abundant spoil, since, as the scene of the Olympic games, it had
usually been held sacred, and exempted from the ravages of war.
Having gone to Delphi to dedicate a tenth of the spoil, he fell sick
on his return, and died a few days after he reached Sparta. Agis
was succeeded by his brother Agesilaus.
AGIS III., the son of Archidamus III., reigned from B.C. 338 to
331 or 330. At the time of the battle of Issus (333) he communi-
cated with the Persian commanders in the ^Egeaa, to obtain supplies
for carrying on the war against Alexander iu Greece. While Alex-
ander was engaged in hia fourth campaign iu Asia, Agis laid siege to
Megalopolis, a town in Peloponnesus, which held out till the arrival
of Antipater, the governor of Macedonia. A bloody battle was fought,
in which the Lacedaemonians behaved with their accustomed gallantry,
but were overpowered by superior numbers. Agis fell after his
phalanx was broken, and with him above 5300 of the Lacedecmouians
and their allies. The Lacedaemonians sued for peace, and obtained
it ; giving hostages that they would submit to Alexander's decision on
their fate. (Pausan., iii. 10 ; Arrian, ii. 13.)
AGIS IV., son of Eudamidas II., reigned from B.C. 244 to 240.
The year after his accession he was defeated in an engagement with
Aratus, the general of the Achaean league. But the chief interest of
his reign lies in the attempt he made to restore the institutions of
Lycurgus. Public manners had degenerated from their ancient
severity ; the privileged class, to whom the name of Spartans was
confined no longer, enjoyed the equal portion of land prescribed by
the ancient discipline. Of 700 families, to which their number was
now reduced, not more than 100 possessed estates. These were rich,
haughty, and licentious ; the poor were oppressed and burdened with
debt. The two great features of the proposed reformation were, a
new partition of the lands, and the abolition of all debts. Agis also
proposed to abolish the distinction between Spartans and Laced&uio-
uians, retaining that between the Lacedaemonians and the Perioeci, or
people of the smaller towns. These latter, however, were to be
trained in the strict discipline of Lycurgus, and to succeed to the
privilege of citizenship as vacancies occurred. In laying his propo-
sals before the senate Agis recommended them by the offer of the
first personal sacrifice, iu the contribution of his own lands and money
to the common stock. His mother and his kindred followed his
example. The multitude applauded : but his colleague Leouidas and
the rich men opposed the plan, and persuaded the senate to reject it ;
the question was lost by a majority of only a single vote. To rid
himself of Leonidas, Agis contrived to get Lysander appointed one
of the ephori ; who forthwith accused Leonidas of having violated thj
laws, by marrying a stranger, and residing for a time iu a foreign
land ; two acts forbidden to the race of Hercules. Leonidas could
not venture to make his appearance : he was therefore deposed, and
his crown devolved to his son-in-law, Cleombrotus, who co-operated
with Agis in his measures of reform. On tho expiration of Lysander's
office, a reaction took place. As the reformers despaired of succeeding
by mild means, Agis and Cleombrotus went to the place of assembly,
plucked the ephori, now of the anti-reforming party, from their seats,
and placed others in their room. The life of Leonidas, who had
returned into the city during the short triumph of his faction, was
threatened ; but Agis himself protected him from assassination,
meditated against him by Agesilaus, who was the uncle of Agis.
The want of sincerity in this unworthy relation of the reforming
king occasioned the failure of the scheme, when all its difficulties
seemed to have been nearly overcome. Agesilaus was deeply in-
volved hi debt : he therefore persuaded the two kings to burn all
deeds, registers, and securities in the first instance. When the divi-
sion was proposed he devised repeated pretexts for deluy. Before tho
lirst measure, owing to these underhand practices, could bo completed,
the Achsoans, who were allies of Sparta, applied for assistance against
the ^Etoliaus, who threatened to lay waste the country of Pelopon-
nesus. Agis was sent to command the army, and exhibited the same
republican virtues tn his military office as in his civil administration.
He joined his forces to those of Aratus, whose over-caution gave no
opportunity for enhancing the glory of the Lacedaemonian soldiery :
but the conduct of the troops, and the rigid performance of every
duty oa the part of their commander, impressed both the allies and
the enemy with respect for the commonwealth.
A'-.I.A !'! 'V.
AGRICOLA. CN^DB JULIUS.
On UM return of Alia, be fond that a change had Ukeo place in
th. JSijrs i^siw UM p~'. iidto * >
wa. again one of the ephori, the lands were not
I thrown themselves into the party
of their owa enemies, and .uflered them to dethrone Cleombrotu.
mA restore L-oaM- to powrr. Agfa wee compelled to flyU . BUM-
taery Some ti aiilierniii friend* entrapped him, and dragged him to
pcWo. Being nmeticaid by the ephori. whether be did not repent of
Crmg faWuij innovation. F bTWplied, that in the face (/death
he would not repent of eo worthy an eoterprUe. He was oon-
dMDMd. aad exeootod with mdeotnt haete; the plea for thi* wai the
deacer of a leuiui. One of his exeoutionen wai moved to tear*.
Agfa said to USB, * Lament me not ; *un>ring unjustly, I am happier
than my murderers," The cruelty of the victorious party did not
end hers: hfa mother and grandmother were strangled on hi* body.
Bb widow wae forcibly taken out of her house by Leoaidaa, and
married against her will to his son Cleomenea. Though a huibanu
by oompaUon. Oeomenei was attached to hi* wife, whose conversa-
tion inspired bun with the desire of accomplishing the projected
reform. rCLo*mJ (Plutarch. HJttf Ago.)
aUPHON. There were two distinguished Greek painters of
A'OLAOPHON
this name, who were probably related.
Bottiger tup
that the
III Mil ' the grandson of the elder, and tb*~*on of Aristophon the
brother of Polygnotoa.
The elder Aglaophon lived about B.C. 500, and wai a native of the
island of Tbaeoe, where hit Mm Polygnotu* wai also burn. Aglao-
pbon'a greateet distinction ia that of baring been the father and the
Instructor of Porygnotna, who ii the fint painter recorded in history
who attained great fine. Quintilian it the only writer who speak* of
the atyle of Agtaophon, but he indieoriminately couple* him with
Polygnotaa. He eaya, " Notwithstanding the aimple colouring of
Polmoto* and Aglaophon, which wai little more than the crude
br-jiffAi*; of what wai afterward* accomplished, many hare, certainly
with MOM affectation, preferred their works to thoee of the greatest
matter* who succeeded them." There can be as little doubt that this
pierap refer* to the elder, aa that the following, from Cicero, refer* to
the younger : Ciocro aayt, .peaking of style*, Aglaophon, Zeuxis, and
ApeUe* were all different in their MTeral styles, yet each was perfect
in hi* own style.
None of the works of the elder Aglaophon are particularly mentioned,
nnlr-i the winged Victory spoken of by the scholiast on the ' Birds '
of Arietophanei (T. 573) may be attributed to him.
The two picture* of Alcibiade* mentioned by Athenicus must have
been by the younger. After Alribiadea, aay* Atheuxus, returned to
Athene a victor at the Olympic game*, he exhibited two picture* of
himaelf, one mmeeiiliin. (Jlympia* and Pythias crowning him, and in
UM other be wa* painted extremely beautiful, lying on the knee* of
Nenea. Plutarch attributes the latter of these pictures to ArUtophon,
Ike brother of Polygnotaa, and the (uppaeed father of the younger
Aglaophon ; bat a* the account of Athenarai accords better with the
time, it M more probably correct, at least under the supposition that
there were two artuta of thi* name. The beautiful hone ipoken of by
.tOian wa* probably the work of the younger Aglaophon.
(Mdai ; (juinUuen. /net. Orator, til 10, 3; Atbenstua, xil 634 ; Pin-
Unej.JMoM<ie),I;aeero,/>iOnU.iii.T; .Elian, I* A*im. i Kpilom.)
AUNKH, MAIUA OAETANA, wa* born at Milan in 1718. When
Tery yooof, eh* dietintruUhed henelf by the acquisition of the Latin,
Greek. Hebrew, French, German, and Spanish language*. She then
turned her attention to mathematic* and philosophy, and at the age
of 1 wrote in defence of W these*, which were published in 1738,
ndcr the title of Proposition*. Philosophic*.' In 1748 she pub-
meet celebrated work, Institution* Analitiche ad Uso dell*
Italiana,' in two volume* 4 to. The first volume contain*
of Algebra, with th* application of Algebra to Geometry;
tain* an excellent treatise on the Differential and Integral
Cabal**. In 1780, her father, who waa then a professor of the univer-
sity of Bologna, being 111, ahe obtained permission from the Pope
Benedict XIV. to supply hi* place. She ended her career, but in what
year we cannot ascertain, by retiring into a convent, and taking the
veil She died m January. 17W. aged 81.
The second volume of the 'Analytical Institutions ' wai translated
into French by tXAntslmy, with additions by Boesut, and published
** Part* in 1776. The whole was translated into English, and pub-
hehed et the expense of Baron Masen* in 1801.
AOSOLO, BACCIO !>'. a Florentine, wee at first a wood-engraver,
sad afterwards aa architect H* wa* born in 1460. and bad already
,
his art and boaineaa a* a wood-
engraver,
probably for the means of rubsfatence, and hi. studio, or workshop,
we. fun mil il by the meet eminent men of taste aud learning then
tL H b^nJoio7 ^lUofcel Angilo, Sansovino, and
C)BsetUins;bwslfasanarehiUctinFlonnoe, Baccio was engaged
la erreral work* of importance there, and acquired notoriety of a
olsagrteaSU natnr* through deviation from the ordinary | r,
the time. He adorned the window* of a mansion or palazxo (as tho
Italian* term the large town-house of a distinguished person), in tho
Pious di Santa Trinit-X with frontispieces, and put a frontispiece,
~~uu..ft of columns with a regular entablature, to the portal, in tin-
manner, indeed, which has been so commonly practised ever since,
and i* at the present time in vogue, but which had been restricted to
churches up to tbii time. All the wits in Florence aet upon poor
Baocio, who wa* lampooned and ridiculed in every possible way, for
making, a* it wa* said, a palace into a church ; indeed, he was almost
induced to retrace his steps, but being conscious that he hnd dono
well, "he took heart and stood firmly/' It was a novelty, and aa tho
biographer of all the architect* says, ' like almost all other novelties,
it wai at the first scorned and afterwards worshipped." Hut the same
writer is somewhat severe on him for making perhaps too bold a
crowning cornice to the front of this identical edifice, saying that it
looked like a boy with a huge hat on his head.
Baocio had been engaged to complete the architectural arrangements
about the tholobate or drum of the cupola of the metropolitan church
of Santa Maria del Fiore, which were left incomplete by lirunelleschi,
and whose design for that part was lost. Baccio wai about to supply
what was wanting after hi* own invention, and had begun to cut away
the toothing* left by Brunelleschi in the work because they did not suit
what he proposed to do. At this juncture Michel Angelo happened
to coma to Florence from Rome, and attacked him so violently on the
unfitness of hi* design, that Baocio was (topped, and in consequence
of subsequent disputes on the subject, the edifice, in that particular,
still remains incomplete.
liaccio d'Agnolo died in 1543, being eighty-three years of age, and
left a son Giuliano, an engraver and architect, who succeeded to the
direction of his father's works. The most esteemed of Baccio' s pro-
ductions are the villa Borghesini, near Florence, and the campanile
or bell-tower of the church di Santo Spirito (a production of Brunei-
leschi's), in Florence. By some writers, the great palaz/o Salviati, iu
the Transtiborino portion of Rome, is attributed to this architect,
but it ia more commonly referred to Nanni <li Baccio Bigio, a mau of
far inferior merit and reputation to Baccio d'Agnolo.
AGRICOLA, CN^EUS JULIUS, was born June 13, A.D. 87, at
Forum Julii, now Frejus, in Provence. His father was Julius One-
cinus, a writer of some eminence on agriculture, and distinguished as
a senator for his eloquence and integrity. His virtues were the cause
of his destruction. The emperor Caligula, desirous to get rid of hi>
father-in-law, M. Silanus, called upon Gnecinus to undertake the accu-
sation which was to be the pretext for hh destruction. Gr.ecimis
refused, aud met with the same fate as the unfortunate Silanus.
Agricola was an infant at tho time of his father's death. His mother
was Julia Procilla, who appears to have watched with great care over
the education of her son. After having studied philosophy at MassilU,
now Marseilles, the principal seat of learning in Gaul, Agricola was
sent to Britain, where he served under the immediate eye of Suetonius
Paulinus, tho period of his service including the grand insurrection
under Boadicea, in 61. In 62 he returned to Rome, where ho married
Domitia Decidiana, a lady belonging to one of tho first families. In 63
he went as qutcetor to Asia, where he proved his integrity by refusing
to unite with the proconsul Salvius Titionus in the system of extortion
so common in the Roman provinces. During the latter part of Nero's
reign he was tribune and pnctor, but from a regard to the jealousy
of the emperor remained comparatively inactive. On the accession of
Oalba in 68 he was appointed to examine the property of the temples,
and to restore whatever had been taken away by Nero. In the con-
testa between Otho and Vitellius his mother was murdered by a detach-
ment from Otho's fleet, which landed in Liguria and ravaged tho estates
of the family near Intemelium (Vintitniglia). On his way from tho
funeral of bis mother, he learned that Vespasian had been proclaimed
by the legions of the east. He declared in his favour, and was rewarded
by the command of the 20th legion in Britain. On his return to Rome
about 73 be was enrolled by the emperor among the patrii-i.-m*, an. I
appointed governor of Aquitania, a province which included the south-
western port of Usllia, from tho Pyrenees to the Loire. After a suc-
cessful administration of nearly throe years, he was recalled to receive
the still higher honour of the consulship. His daughter was now
betrothed to the historian Tacitus, and the next year she was giveu
to him in marriage. Agricola, at the expiration of hi* consulship, was
appointed governor of Britain, and proceeded thither about 78. lit!
passed seven or perhaps eight summers iu Britain ; iu the first of
which he added North Wales and the sacred island of Anglesey to the
Roman province. By the end of the fourth campaign the whole island
south of the Clyde and the Fortli.was secured to the Roman* by a lino
of fort* running from tho one mtuary to the other. Kvery summer
extended tho dominion of the Roman arms, but it was only in tho lost
year of his government that he entirely broke the spirit of the BriUw
by the defeat of Qalgocus on the Grampian Hills. At the close of
this campaign a Roman fleet, for the first time, railed round the island.
Agricola taught the Briton* to settle in towns, to improve their dwell-
ing*, to erect temple*, and to cultivate the arts of civilised life. Ho
*et up a system of education for the sons of tho chiefs, who adopted
in time the language and the drees of Rome. By these means he in n
great measure reconciled tho natives to the yoke which they hod pre-
viously so ill rmlured. Th<i>e 'I'lemli 1 s'lce-fc* ivcro unpalatable to
65
AGRICOLA, RODOLPHUS.
AGRIPPA, MARCUS VIPSANIUS.
the suspicious Domitian, and Agricola was honourably recalled, under
the pretext of being sent as governor to Syria. By order of the
emperor he entered Rome at night, and, after a cold reception, retired
into private life. When his consular rs.nk a few years after entitled
him to the proconsulship of Asia or Africa, he wisely declined an
appointment which had been fatal to the previous possessor. He died
on August 23, A.D. 93, in the 56th year of his age, not without suspicion
of poison. The emperor could not endure the presence of one who was
universally regarded as the only man equal to the exigency of the
times. Dion Cassius asserts that he was killed by Domitian. His
property was left between his wife Domitia, his only child the wife of
Tacitus, and the emperor Domitian. All that we know of Agricola,
with the exception of a single chapter in Xiphilin (66, 20), which is
very inaccurate, is from the pen of Tacitus, whose interesting narrative
exhibits him in the character of a great, wise, and good man.
(Tacitus, Agricola.)
AGRICOLA, RODOLPHUS, one of the most learned and remark-
able men of the 15th century, was born at a village variously written
Bafflon, Baffeln, Bafflen, Baffel, or Bafflo, two or three miles from
Groningen, in Friesland, about the end of August, 1443, not in 1442,
as often stated. (See the inscription on his tombstone as given in
SI. Adam's 'Apograph. Monument. Haidelburgens,' p. 22.) In a short
notice of Agricola by M. Guizot, in the ' Biographic Universelle," it is
said, but we do not know upon what authority, that his name was
properly Huesmann. His first master is also there said to have been
the famous Thomas h Kempis. After distinguishing himself at school
he proceeded to the college of Louvain, where he remained till he took
his degree of Master of Arts. He was then solicited to accept a professor-
ship in that college, which he declined, and set out on his travels. He
went to Paris, whence, after remaining some time, he proceeded to
Italy, and arrived in 1476 at Ferrara, where he resided during that
and the following year, and attended the prelections of Theodore Gaza
on the Greek language. He also extended his own reputation by giving
a similar course on the language and literature of Rome. The favour
of the duke, Hercules D'Este, and the admiration of the most famous
scholars of Italy, were liberally bestowed upon the accomplished
foreigner, who used to contend, we are told, in amicable rivalry with
the younger Guarino in writing Latin prose, and with the Strozzis in
verse. After visiting Rome and some of the other cities of Italy, he
left that country, probably in 1479. On hU return to Holland he
appears to have occupied a chair for a short time in the university of
Groningen, and he was also chosen a syndic of that city, in which
capacity he spent about half a year at the court of the emperor
Maximilian I. In the year 1482 he removed to Heidelberg on the
invitation of Joannes Dalburgius, the bishop of Worms, whom he
had taught Greek, and by whom he was appointed to one of the pro-
fessorships in the university of Heidelberg. The remainder of his life
seems to have been spent partly at Heidelberg and partly at Worms,
where he lodged in the house of his friend the bishop. At the request
of the Elector Palatine, who greatly delighted in his conversation, he
composed a course of lectures on ancient history, which he delivered
at Heidelberg, the Elector being one of his auditors. He also, after
coming to reside in the Palatinate, commenced the study of the Hebrew
tongue. In this new study Agricola had made great progress, when a
sudden attack of illness carried him off at Heidelberg on October 28,
1485, at the early age of 42. There was certainly no literary name out
of Italy BO celebrated as that of Agricola during his age ; and, if we
except Politian and Miranrlola, perhaps not even Italy could produce
a scholar equal to him. The most eminent cultivators of classical
learning in the next age have united in placing Agricola among the
first of his contemporaries. We need only mention Cardinal Bembo,
Ludovico Vives, the elder Scaliger, and, above all, Erasmus. Agricola
indeed may be regarded as the immediate forerunner of the last great
writer, and in gome degree as the model on which he was formed.
Agricola, in the same manner as Erasmus, appears to have clearly
discerned many of the ecclesiastical abuses of his time, and to have
anticipated the revolution in the opinions of men that was at hand,
although he refrained from doing anything to urge on the crisis.
I!csidia his skill in ancient learning, Agricola was a skilful practitioner
of the arts of music and painting. His collected works were published,
as it is commonly stated, in two volumes 4to at Cologne, in 1539, under
the title of ' R. Agricola) Lucubrationes aliquot,' &c. According to
Gesner's ' Bibliotheca Universalis," and the Bibliotheca Belgica ' of
Foppens, the principal contents of this collection are his three books
' De Inventione Dialectica ;' some letters, orations, and poems ; and
some translations from Aphthonius, Lucian, Isocrates, and other
Greek authors. It does not appear to contain, as commonly stated,
his abridgment of ' Universal History. 1 The work ' De Inventione
Dialectica' is the most celebrated of Agricola's performances. It has
been repeatedly printed with ample scholia : in 1534 a compendium of
it, tiy Joannes Visorius, appeared at Paris ; and an Italian translation
of it was published in 4to at Venice, in 1567, by Oratio Toscanella. It
idered to have been one of the earliest treatises which attempted
to change the scholastic philosophy of the day. Morhof speaks of it
;ng anticipated in several respects the ' Logic ' of Peter Ramus.
In th(s in junctions given by Henry VII I. to the University of Cambridge
in 1 S35, the ' Dialectics ' of Agricola and the genuine ' Logic ' of Aristotle
are ordered to be taught instead of the works of Scotus and Barlams ;
BIOQ. DIV. VOL. I.
and in the statutes of Trinity College, Oxford, founded some years:
later, we find a similar recommendation.
(Besides the works already mentioned, the following authorities may
be referred to for further information respecting Agrieola : Bayle,
Dictionnaire ; Baillet, Jugemens des Sarans ; Vital Germanorum Philo-
sopkorum, a Melchiori Adamo; Vie d'Erasme, par Burigny, Paris,
1757, vol. i., p. 17 ; Vita R. Agricol/F, autore Ger. Geldenhaurio Novio-
mago, in Virorum Eruditione et Doctrina Illastrium Vitis, Francfort,
1536, p. 83, &c. See also an interesting letter on the habits and cha-
racter of Agricola, from Melancthon, dated Frankfort, March 28, 1539,
in the edition of Agricola's works published at Cologne.)
AGRIPPA, HENRY CORNELIUS, a remarkable personage, who
may be ranked with his contemporaries, Paracelsus and Cardan, as at
once a man of learning and talent, and a quack. Agrippa was born
at Cologne, of a noble and ancient family, on September 14, I486.
HU first employment was as secretary at the court of the Emperor
Maximilian, after which he served in the wars in Italy, where, having
repeatedly signalised himself by his bravery, he obtained the honour
of knighthood. About his 20th year he seems to have assumed the
character of a scholar, and to have commenced a wandering life. The
profession which he took up was that of a physician ; but he allowed
himself also to be regarded as an alchemist, an astrologer, and even as
a practitioner of magical arts. Not satisfied with this extensive range,
he thought proper to set up likewise for a great theologian, as well as
to indulge himself with occasional excursions into other departments
of literature and science. The effect of all this pretension, supported
as it was by unquestionable talent and by real acquirements of great
extent, was to raise Agrippa, for a time at least, to high estimation
and importance. Pressing invitations were sent to him by several
monarchs that he would enter into their service by our Henry VIII.
among the rest. He appears to have visited England before this, one
of his pieces being dated from London in 1510. His excessive impru-
dence however was continually involving him in difficulties ; and
especially, having by some of the effusions of his satiric spirit pro-
voked the enmity of the monks of the church, he experienced the
consequences to the end of his days. After having led for many
years what may almost be called a fugitive life, he died at Grenoble,
in 1535. He had been thrice married, and had several children. Tho
works of Agrippa were published in two volumes, Svo., at Leyden, in
1550, and also at Lyon in 1600. The most remarkable of them, and
the only one which is now remembered, is his treatise ' On the Vanity
of the Sciences,' which is a caustic satire on the kinds of learning
most in fashion in that age.
(Bnyle, Dictiannaire Jfistorique, art. Agrippa ; Gabriel Naud<5,
Apology for the Great Men who have been inspected of Magic.)
AGRIPPA, HEROD. [HEBOD.]
AGRIPPA, MARCUS VIPSANIUS, was born B.C. 63, within a
few months of Octavius, afterwards the Emperor Augustus, with
whom throughout life he was so intimately associated. They studied
together at Apollonia in Illyria. The death of Julius Cresar brought
them both to Rome, and Agrippa was charged by Octavius to receive
the oath of fidelity from the legions that were favourable. In B.C. 43
he was chosen consul, and conducted the prosecution of Cassius, one
of the murderers of C;esar. Two years later he had a command as
prator, in the war against Lucius Antonius, whom he besieged in
Perusia. In B.C. 40 the town was taken by him, and towards the close
of the same year he recovered Lipontum from M. Antonius. In
B.C. 38 he added to his reputation by a victory over the Aquitani, and
rivalled the glory of Julius Ctesar by leading a second Roman army
across the Rhine. Octavius, now Octavianus, offered him a triumph,
which he declined; but the consulship was conferred on him in B.C. 37.
Seztiis Pompeius, being at this time master of the sea, Agrippa was
charged with the construction of a fleet. By cutting a passage through
the barrier of Hercules, which separated the Lucrine Lake from the
sea, he converted that lake and the interior lake of the Avernus into
a serviceable harbour, giving it the name of Portus Julius. Having
there prepared a fleet and exercised his mariners, he, in B.C. 36,
defeated Sextus Pompeius at Mylrc, and completely broke his naval
supremacy at Naulochus, on the coast of Sicily. For these victories
he received a naval crown, and was most probably the first on whom
that honour was conferred. In the year B.C. 33, though of consular
rank, he accepted the office of ocdile, his administration of which was
distinguished by the restoration of the numerous aqueducts, and the
erection of fountains throughout the city. The victory of Actium,
B.c. 31, which left Augustus without a rival, was mainly owing to tho
skill of Agrippa as admiral of the fleet. In reward for his services,
he shared with Maecenas the confidence of Augustus, who associated
him with himself in the task of reviewing the senate ; and in B.C. 28
again raised him to the consulate, giving him, at the same time, in
marriage his own niece, the sister of the young Marcellus. Agrippa
had been previously married to tho daughter of Cicero's friend,
Atticus. Attica, by whom he had Vipsania, afterwards the wife of
Tiberius, may have been dead, or it is not improbable that he divorced
her to make room for Mnrcella. A third consulate awaited him tho
year following, in which he dedicated to Jupiter, in commemoration
of the victory near Actium, the celebrated Pantheon, which remains
to the present day, perhaps the most beautiful specimen of Roman
architecture. It is now called, from its form, Santa Maria della
ACHTESSBAU, HENRI FRANCOIS D 1 .
superior titfc. A rivalry sprang up between I
tamft by the ambtgnoos conduct of Augustus, me
Us severe illness In n.r. S2, when, apparently on his <
y seat Us itat to Agripp*. On the recovery of
tosnrtpUon. "M. Agripp* L. F. Co*.
MBMtoa AogttttaM ill to* rwnwtioti of
had the honour of reprMenting the
II the mifcrtuaiM Julia and Mwcellua,
out as the ruutiiMui of Augustas. Tet the
upon hoiedUMi dsiesnt, was not yet
M; and the splendid deedi of Agrippa,
with Marcella. gave him in some
reen them, which
us, more especially
n his death-bed, he
i itaf to Agripp*. On the recovery of the emperor,
wd Us mBnenos, and Agripp* WM sent by Augustus
exile m y/vwnot of Syria. Death in a few months
removed Us rival, sad he WM not merely recalled to Rome, hut, at the
rsmsM> of the ouiueiui. divorced his wife Marcella to marry the young
widow Julia. In r. 10 h* finally subdued the Cantabri, who had
gain been in srms for more than two year*. Agrippa was now looked
upon M the undoubted suctessur of Augustus ; and in the following
fated in the imperial dignity as to share the
i the emperor for five years. In B.C. 17 he pro-
time to the Kart, where his administration seems to
satisfaction, more especially among the Jewish
who benefit*! largely by bis protection. On his return he
d the tnbunirian power fo'r a second period of five yean. His
last military duty WM to quell in insurrection smong the Ponnonians,
for which his messoos WM sufficient After this expedition he
itUsfpod to Campania, where he died suddenly in March, B.C. 12. His
family by Julia were Cains and t.ucim, whom Augustus adopted,
Julia. Agrippin*. and Agripp* Postuinii., born, as his name imports,
after the death of hi* father. It has been observed that every
oo* of tacM CUM to premature end. (Appian, Plutarch, Dion,
:
AORIPI'IXA, the daughter of M. Vipsanins Agrippa and Julio, the
only child of Augustus, married Oermanieus, the son of Drums, and
nephew of Tiberius, to whom she bore nine children. Of these three
died in their infancy, but among the remaining six were Caligula,
afterwards emperor, and the second Agrippina, the mother of Nero.
On the death of Augustus, A.n. 14, Oermanieus and his wife were
with the army on the banks of tho Rhine, where they had much
difficulty in restraining the soldiery from proclaiming Germanicus in
opposition to his uncle. On this occasion Agrippina, by her deter-
mined bearing, showed herself worthy of her descent from Augustus,
and the following yew she had an opportunity of evincing the same
spirit, in a panic occasioned by report that the army of Cacina had
been eat off by Armminf, and that the victorious Germans were on
the point of crowing the Rhine and invading Oaul. It was proposed
to destroy th* bridge ; but Agrippina, in the absence of her husband,
unissilsj the disgraceful expedient, and herself received the worn-out
troop* of Caeina, supplying them with clothing, and all that was
necessary tor th* enre of their wounds. In A.D. 17 Agrippina accom-
panied her hnsband to the East, and WM with him in Syria when he
Ml victim, as be snspocted, to the srts of the emperor and his
mother, Livie, Disregarding his entreaty that she would restrain her
rMsntmont, she proceeded to Italy, and landing at Brundi.ium with
tWO ?f.^ <r cbiWrr0 ' nd '"""g herself the funenl urn of Oennani-
CM, seemed to court th* attention of tho people, who received her in
Two pnetortsn cohorts, sent by Tiberius for the purpo.e,
nfed her to Rome, where she wss met by the consuls, the
. and a larf* body of the dtiwns. The subsequent tenor of
her oodoet WM rach M to exasperate Tiberius, and when her cousin
idia Pulebr* (A.O. Jl was about to be the object of prosecution
**J*lfsd by th* emperor, sb* ventured to express her resentment
!*"^l^J W T^'" l>OBMMtlr * d '*" A nppina had now remained
in widowhood for seven years, when she o.kcd bis permission to
choose another hmsband. But Tiberius knew too well that the bus-
lnd of Afrippin* would b* a dangerous enemy, and he parted from
ntboat giving any answer. The artifice* of Sejanus completed
th*t Ttbssfr* intended to remove herby poison, and Agrippina fatally
rorby opwdy exhibiting her suspicion.. She was
'. Her two el,le.t ons, Nero and Dnmis,
Inonu'. (Tacitus ; Suetonius.)
' th * <l ** l ^I^ 0f " 1n " 1 . ict " "d **> Agrippina of
*. 28, to Cn.
^ e had a son, who at fint bore the
5 torwm ** ld * r tl>tof Nero became Kmpe
Xl *'*? *" i0 ' her 5S
from
gln a widow, and now directed her
of IKT uncl-, the Kmprror Clsudiu..
""^ *" nmprror <Jlsu<1i
WM held to fa* incoftaous, bnt on the death
Meesalioa it was legalised by a decree of the senate, and Agrippina
became the fifth wife of the emperor. Her fint object was to secure
to her own son those expectations to which Britoimicus, the son of
Claudius by the infamous Measalina, was more equitably entitlnl.
The marriage of Domitius to Outarm, daughter of the emperor, and
hii adoption by the emperor himself, from which ho derived the name
of Nero, at once placed him shore Brltannicus ; and in th- year 54
Agrippina completed the object of her ambition by poisoning her
imperial hnsband. Her power over her son, who was now at the
head of the empire, soon disappeared; and though for a time she
partially recorered it by means of an incestuous intercourse with him,
the beauty of I'oppsca destroyed eren this influence ; and in the sixth
year of bis reign Nero determined, under the encouragement of
Poppies, to rcmoYR bis mother by her own arts. But it was not easy
to poison one, who, familiar herself with poison, was ever on her
gnarJ. Nero therefore changed his course. After an unsuccessful
attempt to effect her death near Bajeo by means of a vessel with a
false bottom, she was dispatched by assassin, in March in the year CO.
Her last words, as she presented herself to the sword of her
murderer were, "Ventrem feri," strike the womb (which pare birth
to such a son). To enumerate all her debaucheries, murders, and
other crimes, would require a much larger space than we think it
necessary to assign to them. Agrippina wrote some commentaries
concerning henelf and hrr family, which Tacitus says he consulted.
They are alto quoted by Pliny, vii. 8. (Tacitus ; Suetonius ; Dion.)
AOUE33EAU, HKNRI FRANCOIS V, a chuncellor of France.
He was born Norember 27, 1668, at Limoges, the principal town of
the then province of Limousin, and now the chief town of tho depart-
ment of Hante-Vienne. His father, who was intendant of that
province, devoted himself to the education of his sou. The abilities
of Agnesseau brought him early into notice. At the age of twenty-
one he was admitted an advocate at the ChAtelet ; and, three months
after, he was mode one of the three advocates general It has been
said that this high office was conferred upon him through the recom-
mendation of his father, in whom Louis XI V., the then reigning
monarch, placed great confidence. During ten years that he
the situation, be obtained the great reputation which secured U<
future elevation.
In the year 1700 he was appointed Procureur-Ge'n<?ral (Solicitor-
General). His opposition to the registration in parliament of the
papal bull Unigemtus, which he considered as an assumption of the
papacy inconsistent with the rights of the French nation, nnd de-
structive of the independence of the Galilean church, hod nearly
caused his disgrace with the king. But he maintained his position
by the force of his talents and integrity. He employed his authority
as Prccureur-Gc'ne'ral in most coses wisely and honeatly. He reformed
the system of the management of public hospitals; improved tho
discipline of courts of justice; and instituted a quicker mode in the
investigation of criminal coses previous to their being brought to
judgment. Agnesseau aspired through life to the high but difficult
reputation of a legal reformer : and it is in this particular that his
character has the greatest claim upon our respect. His principal
objects were to define the limits of particular jurisdictions ; to intro-
duce uniformity in the administration of justice through the vnriuux
provinces; and to secure the right to the subject of a just testa-
mentary disposition of his property. His praiseworthy attempts were
resisted no doubt by all those whose mistaken interests suggested to
them that the attainment of justice ought to bo kept expensive and
uncertain, instead of being rendered cheap and secure. He is said
to have confessed that he did not go so for as he wished, because he
did not like to reduce the profits of his professional brethren. This
was a mistake even in mere worldly policy ; for when law, as Wrll
as any other article of exchange, is dear and worthless, the purchasers
will be few. D'Aguesseau was not much before his age, probably, in
the knowledge of political economy, or he yielded to popular clamour.
During the famine which afflicted France in 170!), ho carried on
vigorous prosecutions against what were called forestallers and mono-
polists, that is, holders of corn a class of persons who, by equali-ing
th" price of corn, by buying in times of plenty, and selling at a profit
in times of scarcity, have done the only thing which could relieve
the pressure of bad harvests upon the people.
In 1717 Agucsseau succeeded Vov.in in the chancellorship. His
appointment to this high office by the Regent (Due d'Orh'ans), in
the minority of Louis XV., gave genenl satinfiiction. However bo
did not retain it long, for he was dismissed and exiled the following
year, on account of his opposition to Law's financial system. His
perception of the fallacy of this adventurer's schemes for substituting
fictitious wealth for real capital showed that in some points of
political philosophy his views were sound. His recall, two years
afterwards, at the moment of the great crisis brought about by Law's
. was a signal triumph for Agues-can. His l,i,'h sense ot
integrity and justice would not allow him to hear of a national bank-
ruptcy : ho moisted on making good the government obligations, or
at least allowing those who held its paper to lose only :i i
part; and, by thus preventing a bankruptcy, he contribt:'
degree to restoring general confidence.
New agitations were again raised on account of the bull Unigenitus,
the registering of which parliament still opposed. Agucssoau, by
AHASUEEUS.
AIKIN, JOHN, M.D.
70
endeavouring to conciliate both parties, exposed himself to the charge
of a change of opinion in this matter. The parliament were on the
eve of being exiled to Blois, when they at last consented to register
the bull with modifications.
Cardinal Dubois, the unworthy favourite of the Regent, claimed
precedence in the council ; and Agueaseau retired from office in 1722,
rather than yield to him. He lived in the quiet cultivation of his
literary tastes at Fresne, until 1727, when he was reappointed chan-
cellor. From his reappoiutment to office, till 1750, he continued to
administer justice uninterruptedly; he was then eighty-two years of
age, and feeling himself unable to discharge the high duties of his
station, he sent in his resignation to the king, who accepted it, and
granted him an annuity of 100,000 francs. This he did not enjoy
long, as he died the following year, on the 9th of February. Aguesseau
was buried by the side of his wife, in the churchyard of his pariah
church ; but during the first French revolution the remains of the
chancellor were removed to another place, into which they were
thrown with the bones of thousands. A statue of him was erected
in front of the Palais Legislatif, by command of Napoleon, by the
side of the one erected in honour of L'HopitaL
The principal features of Agueaseau's character, says the Due of
St. Simon, were much natural talent, application, penetration, and
general knowledge ; gravity, justice, piety, and purity of manners.
According to Voltaire, he was the most learned magistrate that France
ever possessed. Independently of his thorough acquaintance with
the laws of his country, he understood Greek, Latin, Hebrew, Italian,
Spanish, Portuguese, &c. His knowledge of general literature, assisted
by his intimacy with Boileau and Racine, gave an elegance to his
forensic speeches which was previously unknown at the French bar.
His works now extant form 13 voU. 4 to : they consist principally of
his pleadings and appeals (' nSquisitores"), when advocate and solicitor-
general, and of his speeches at the opening of the sessions of
parliament
AHASUERUS, or ACHASHVEROSH, is the name of the Persian
monarch whose feastiugs, revelry, and decrees are recorded in the
book of Esther. The apocryphal additions to that book, as well as
the Septuagint, and Josephus, call him Arthasastha or Artaxerxes.
He is probably the same king as the Artaxerxes Lougimanus of the
Greek historians, whose reign commenced B.C. 405. The name Achash-
verosh occurs also, Dan. ix. 1, where some interpreters take it for
Astyages, king of the Medes ; and Ezr. iv. 6, where Cambyses seems
to be meant by it. (Eichhorn's ' Repertoriuin fur Bibiische und
Urientalische Literatur,' voL xv. p. 1, seq.) The word Achashverosh
has been explained by means of the modern Persian as signifying ' an
excellent or noble prince.' (Winer's ' Lexic. Hebr.,' s. v.) This would
nearly agree with the explanation given by Herodotus (vi. 98) of the
name Artaxerxes, which according to him means a great warrior.
The signification of the name accounts for its being given to various
mouarcbs.
AHAZ, or ACHAZ, the son of Jotham (2 Kings, xv. 38 ; xvi. Ac.),
a king of Judah, who reigned B.C. 742-726, and was contemporary
with the prophets Isaiah, Hosea, and Micah. (Isaiah, i. 1 ; vii. 1,
Hoe. i. 1, Mich. i. 1.) He made the dial mentioned Is. xxxviii. 8.
Another Achaz is mentioned, 1 Chrou. viii. 35 ; ix. 42.
AHAZIAH, also written ACHAZIAH or AHAZIAH0, the son of
Ahab, a king of Israel, who reigned B.C. 897-896 (1 Kings, xxii. 40 ;
2 Chron. xx. 35). Another Ahaziah, the son of Jehoram, was king of
Judah, B.C. 884-883 (2 Kings, viii. 24; ix. 16), who occurs also under
the name of Jehoahaz (2 Chrou. xxi. 17) and Azariah (xxii. 6). The
name, according to its Hebrew etymology, is interpreted as signifying
' the property or possession of the Lord.'
AHMED I., the fourteenth sultan of the Ottoman empire, was the
son of Sultan Mohammed IIL He came to the throne in the year
1603, and contrary to the practice of many of hii predecessors, spared
the life of his brother Mustafa. He was unfortunate in a war with
Shah Abbas of Persia, during which he lost the important town of
Erivan. [ABBAS.] He at the same time supported an insurrection in
Hungary and Transylvania against the German emperor, Rudolph II. :
in 1606 however a treaty of peace was concluded at Komorn and
Situarok between the two monarchg. The efforts of Ahmed's govern-
ment were then directed towards the suppression of revolutionary
movements in the Asiatic part of the Ottoman dominions, which had
been instigated chiefly by two daring adventurers Kalendcr Ogli and
Janbulad-zade : both were finally subdued, and in 1609 tranquillity
was restored in the interior of the empire. Ahmed I. died in 1617.
He was of a mild and moderate disposition, and fond of the enjoy-
ments of a quiet and luxurious life : it is said that his seraglio con-
tained 3000 women, and that not less than 40,000 falconers were in
his pay. A magnificent mosque, which he built at Constantinople,
and a richly-ornamented curtain which ho sent to the sanctuary at
Mecca, attest, at the same time, that he was not indifferent about the
Mohamm>>dan religion.
AHMED II., the son and successor of Sultan Soleiman III., occupied
rone of the Ottoman empire from 1691 till 1695. He owed his
elev.ition to the throne chiefly to the influence of the celebrated
grand-viair Kiuprili or Kiuperli, who soon afterwards fell in a battle
against the Austriaus near Salankemen or Slankeiueut. Ahmed II.
was a weak and superstitious prince. His reign is marked by many
disastrous events. The plague, a famine, and au earthquake desolated
the empire, and the capital was afflicted with a destructive fire. The
Beduins of the Arabian desert, in defiance of the imperial safeguard,
dared to attack the caravan of the Mecca pilgrims; and at sea the
Turkish empire was infested by the Venetians, who took possession
of the island of Chios, and even threatened Smyrna. Ahmed II. died,
it is said, from grief, in 1695, at the age of 50 years. His successor
was Mustafa II., who reigned from 1695 till 1702.
AHMED III., the sou of Sultan Mohammed IV., was raised to the
throne of the Ottoman Empire in consequence of a revolt of the
Janissaries, in 1702. When, after the loss of the battle of Pultowa
(1709), King Charles XII. of Sweden took refuge at Bender in the
Turkish dominions, he was well received by Ahmed, who even made
him a present of ready money to the amount of 16,000 ducats.
Charles XII. succeeded in kindling a war between the Ottoman Porte
and Russia, which turned out favourably for the Turks. During
several days Czar Peter the Great was cut off, and placed in a most
embarrassing situation on the banks of the river Pruth, almost within
the grasp of the Turkish army; and though the unskilfulness of the
Turkish commander Battaji Mohammed let him escape from this
difficulty, he was yet soon afterwards obliged to resign to the Turks
the important town of Azof. Ahmed III. was also fortunate in a war
with the Venetians, who were compelled to quit the Morea, and to
give up the islands of Cerigo and Cerigotto, and their possessions in
Cuudia. But he failed in an attempt to take Hungary from the
Austriaus. Prince Eugene of Savoy won an important victory over
the Turks near Belgrade, and by the subsequent peace (made at Passa-
rowitz, iu 1718) that town, as well as Orsowa, and part of Servia and
Wallachia, came under the Austrian dominion. In 1723 Ahmed
entered iutoxi treaty with Russia, and soon afterwards commenced a
war with Persia, which brought the frontier towns and provinces of
Erdilan, Kermanshah, Hamadan, Urmia, Ardebil, aud Tebriz into the
possession of the Turks, aud a peace subsequently concluded with the
Persian king, Ashraf Khan, secured to the victors the possession of
their conquests : but Nadir Shah, the successor of Ashraf Khan,
disregarded these stipulations, and by degrees retook the conquered
provinces. The news of the capture of Tebriz by the Persians caused
a revolt at Constantinople, in consequence of which Ahmed III. abdi-
cated the throne in favour of his nephew, Mahmud I. (1730). He died
six years afterwards in prison at the age of 74.
AiKIN, ARTHUR, the eldest son of John Aikin, M.D., the subject
of the following article, was born in 1784. Arthur Aikin begau his
literary career, we believe, as editor of ' The Annual Review ;' upon
the title-page of the first six volumes of which 1803-1808 his name
appears as editor. His earliest scientific work was ' The Manual of
Mineralogy,' of which the first edition was published in 1814. Besides
these he is the author of a ' Tour in North Wales,' a ' Dictionary of
Chemistry and Mineralogy,' and a ' Dictionary of Arts and Manufac-
tures ;' and also of numerous papers in various scientific journals.
For a long series of years Mr. Aikiu was the resident secretary of the
Society of Arts, and a frequent contributor to its ' Transactions.' He
was also one of the oldest fellows of the Limueau and Geological
societies. Mr. Aikin was a man of quiet retiring habits, and outlived
his scientific reputation ; but was well known in scientific circles as
one of the most regular frequenters of the meetings of the learned
societies in the metropolis, and was generally esteemed. He died at
his house in Bloomsbury April 15, 1854, in his eighty-first year.
AIKIN, JOHN, M.D., born in 1747, was the only son of the Rev.
John Aikiu, D.D., for many years tutor in divinity at the dissenting
academy at Warrington, in Lancashire. He was educated chiefly at
Warriugton, and having chosen the medical profession, he studied at
the University of Edinburgh, and was subsequently a pupil of Dr.
William Hunter. As a surgeon, he first settled at Chester, and after-
wards at Warrington; but finally took the degree of Doctor of Medi-
cine at Leydeu, aud established himself as a physician in London. He
is now chiefly remembered as a popular author; and to him, in con-
junction with his sister, Mrs. Barbauld, we owe some of the first aud
best attempts to take science out of the narrow confines of the profes-
sionally learned, and to render it the means of enlarging the under-
standings and increasing the pleasures of the general body of readers.
The most popular as well as the most useful of Dr. Aikin's works
still maintains its reputation, ' Evenings at Home.' The volumes of
this work appeared successively, tho sixth and last in June, 1795.
This was the joint production of Dr. Aikin and Mrs. Barbauld, whose
contributions however did not exceed half a volume in the whole.
The object of these volumes was a favourite one with their authors,
who desired to teach things rather thau words. In the execution of
their task they presented, iu a manner sufficiently attractive to engage
the attention of young persons, a good deal of natural history, with
some of the elements of chemistry and mineralogy ; but the principal
charm and value of the work consist in its just views of hurnau cha-
racter, and in th(j uncompromising integrity visible in every line.
Another work of Dr. Aikin's has been the foundation of many descrip-
tions of the appearances of nature; but none have surpassed 'The
Natural History of the Year ' in conciseness and accuracy.
The professional success of Dr. Aikin seems to have been impeded
by his zealous endeavours to obtain a recognition from the state of the
great principle of liberty of conscience ; he was, moreover, of delicate
:i
AIMOI.V.
AJAX.
ri
Ia W8 he relinquished hi* .
of tie life at Stoke Newingtoa, ooneteaUy employed in
wrary undertaking*, of which UM eaten number wu r
-
AJMOIN,
of Vule-Kraneoe, in UM province of Prrigord. He wrote, or rather
began, afetory of UM French, which he dedicated to hi* patron and
daaiaal. Abboa, abbot of FUurteur- Loire. It is -id in hi. preface
that he intended to giv an account of the origin of the French nation,
and to bring hi* narrative down to Pepto-W-Bref, father of Charlemagne
(741) ; bat what w, have of UM work bring, u. down only to the six-
tenth year of Clovi* IL (690). Two book* were afterward* added by
an unknown writer. Thi* history of Aimoin i* incorrect, and he doe*
not dwell eufficiraUy oa UM event* he hu to relate. Hi* best and
moat litaartiag work b an account of the life of Abbon. Aimoin
died ia 1008.
AINSWURTH, ROBERT, the author of a well-known 'Latin
ntntiaa*.ry.' He wu born at WcodvaU, about four mile* from Man-
oh alter, in September, 160. Having completed hi* education a*
Bolten, he afterward* taught a school for some time in that town. He
then came to London, and formed an establishment at Bethnal Green,
from which he nuioved. Ant to Hackney, and afterward* to other
village* hi UM neighbourhood of the metropolis. About 1714 he wu
induced by UM often of the bookseller* to commence the compilation
of hi* Dictionary ; but the execution of the work wu frequently
upended, and it did not appear till 1736. Ainsworth died near
London on the 4th of April, 1743, and wu buried at Poplar, where
an inscription of hi* own composition, in Latin verse, wu placed over
hi* remain* and tho** of his wife. Having acquired a competency,
he had retired from teaching for some time before his death. Dr.
KippU, in hi* edition of the Biographia Britannica,' ssya, from
private information, that in the latter part of hi* life he u*ed to be
fond of rummaging in the shops of the low broken ; by which means
he often picked up old coin* and other valuable curiosities at little
expense. He i* aaid to have written aome Latin poem* ; and he also
published ' Proposal* for making Education leu Chargeable,' and some
other Utatiees, the list of which may be seen in Watt'* ' Bibliotbeca ;'
bat hii Dictionary i* the only work for which he is now remembered.
A Mcond edition of it, edited by Mr. Samuel Patrick (with a notice of
Aioaworth'* life prefixed), appeared in two volumes, 4to, 1746, and it
has since been frequently republuhed. One edition, which came out
in 1753, i* in two folio volumes, and used to be in some request u a
handsome specimen of typography. It wu superintended by tho
Her. William Young, the supposed original of Fielding's Parson
Adams. Another, in two volumes, 4 to, wu published in 1773, by
Dr. Thomu MorelL Both Young and Morell also edited abridgments
of Ainsworth' s Dictionary, which, until lately, wore much used in
ashool*. The best edition of the larger work is that which appeared
in 1816, in one volume, 4to, under the care of Dr. Carey. This
Dictionary, regarded u a mere word-book, U a laborious and useful
work ; but it hu no chum to be considered u a philosophical exposi-
tion of the etymology of tho Latin language, or u anything like a
complete exhibition of UM usage of words by Latin authors. Not-
withstanding UM corrections which it hu received from the labours
of its loeenalve editors, it (till remains di*Bgurod by many errors
and de&cionci**, which leave the book a great way behind tho present
Mate of philological learning.
AINSWORTH, WILLIAM HARRISON, wu born at Manchester,
ia February 1805. Ho wu originally intended for the profession of
barruAer, but he at an early age quitted hi* legal studios for the
more attractive pursuit* of literature. For aome time he wu chiefly
known u a prolific contributor of eauy* and sketches to the Mag.-
sine* ; but hi* Ant novel, Rookwood, published in 1834, at once gave
him a place among UM meat popular novel writen of the day. His
peculiar popularity arc*, mainly from the circumstance of hi* having
elected a. UM hero*, of hi. tele. Jack Sheppard aud other* who
Ann in the annal* of crime. Hence aj*o hi* novel* wen seized upon
wiU. atid.tv by a certain clan of dnmaUste u fumiahing the rtimu-
laUng condiment so much in request at the lower suburban tbeatro*-
Ir Aianrorth's reputation came to be coupled in the public
i hero.* rather more unpltaaantly than the novel* alone
rotJd perUp. have ruected. In later tale*, u tho Star Chamber,'
f London,' and tho like, he went beyond the Newgate
Astronomer Royal,
AIRY. OEOROK BIDDELL, the
t^ at Ainwld^ Northumberland, in iuiy.ioui. Me received hi* early
- ** -^ A *'* tte^ma^oS
fS&^JS&jLHjtt* * ?** Cauv
i WW a . ,
frf TSfc_ kJi^vJVS* &" * wu elected
^E! i t ^**5 Uo * " ** of K-A. ln 182 .
r-pointed to the LucaaUn Professorship, of which chair he may
be amid to have re-created the duUot by delivering coune* ofpubUo
><" BxperiaMoUl Philo P by, smoa. whidTth. prdectionVon
ELf .^ir ' 5 3 !r r 25*^*^*5
u |>|muluiMt ia 1838, on Uioz elected Plumiau Professor
at AMTflBou-y-a poet which, wUinii^ the EsperuMatal Lecture.,
involved also the management of the then newly-erected Cambridge
Observatory. He devoted himself earnestly to that work, and devised
a *y*tem of calculation and publication of hi* observations so much
more complete and ervieeablo than any preceding that it hu been
adopted by other observatories ; and be introduced many important
improvement* in the mounting of the instrument*.
In 1835, on the resignation of Mr. Pond, then Astronomer-Royal,
Mr. Airy wu appointed to the honourable post, which he hu since
held, with signal advantage to science and to our national reputation.
Under his administration, the observatory at Greenwich bu become
second to none in tho world. The yearly observations are published
in a form and with a regularity never before attempted ; and, zealous
for the cause of science, Mr. Airy has reduced and published the
long-neglected observations of the Moon and Planets from 1750 to
1830, "by which" to quote the words of Admiral Smyth "an
immense magazine of dormant fact*, contained iu the annals of the
Royal Observatory, are rendered available to astronomical use," and
from which " wo may perhaps date a new epoch in planetary
astronomy." The observatory itself, with new methods and new
instruments, is more efficient than over ; and since 1843 magnetic*!
and meteorological observations have been token, as well as astronomi-
cal, and regularly published.
A long list might be written of Mr. Airy's claims to scientific
distinction. His writings on mechanics and optics are well known.
He wrote the articles ' Figure of the Earth ' and ' Tides and Waves '
for the ' Encyclopedia Metropolitana,' and ' Gravitation ' for tho
'Penny Cyclopaedia;' and, to mention but a few of big labours
which have a national character : he ha* been for many years Chair-
man of the Commission for the Restoration of the Standards of
Weight and Measure ; he reported on the comparative merits of tho
broad and narrow gauge of railways, and on the national clock to be
erected at Westminster; he bos undertaken the determination ot
longitude by means of the electric telegraph ; hu suggested a remedy
for the deviation of the compass in iron ships ; and has accomplished
a series of pendulum experiments for the determination of that
difficult question, the density of the earth. On the two hitter sub-
jects he has communicated elaborate papers to the Royal Society ; and
the ' Philosophical Transactions,' the ' Memoirs of the Astronomical
Society,' and the ' Transactions of the Cambridge Philosophical
Society,' contain numerous highly valuable papers from his pen.
Mr. Airy wu elected a Fellow of the Astronomical Society iu 1823,
and became President in 1835, since when he has repeatedly filled the
Chair and sat on the Council. He ho* received two of the Society's
medals one for the planetary observations before mentioned ; tho
other, "for his discovery of the long inequality of Venus and the
Earth," the investigation of which was published in the 'Philosophical
Transactions.' He wu elected a Fellow of the Royal Society iu 1836,
hu received their Copley and Royal medals, and hu been often
chosen into the Council. He hu also received the Lahuide medal
of the French Academy of Sciences ; he is a corresponding member
of the Academy, and a member of other scientific societies in Europe
and America,
AJAX, a son of Telamon, aud third iu direct male descent from
Jupiter, wu one of the most renowned heroes of the Trojan War.
According to Homer and Pindar, he wu next in beauty and iu war-
like prowess to Achilles. He U said by later poet* to havo been
invulnerable. Pindar (Isthm. 6) relates the story fully ; but, as in the
case of Achilles, it is not found in Homer. Telamon, banished from
.cEgina by his father .ICocus, for killing his brother 1 'hocus, retired to
the island of Salamis, and wu choseu king. During his father'* life,
Ajax led the forces of Salamis to Troy, in conjunction with the Athe-
nian*. His chief exploit*, recorded in the ' Iliad,' are his duel with
Hector, in the 7th book, when tho Trojan prince challenged any of
the Greek army to siugle combat ; aud his obstinate defence of tho
ships, in the protracted battle described in the 13th, 14th, 1.1th, 10th,
an. I 17th book*. In the funeral games of Patroclus ho contended for
three prizes : iu wrestling with Ulysses, single combat with Diomedes,
and throwing the quoit; but without obtaining the prize in any.
Blunt in manners, nigged in temper, and somewhat obtuse in intellect.,
hi* strength and stubborn courage made him a most valuable soldier,
but no favourite ; and his confidence in these qualities induced him
to despise divine aid, by which he roused tho anger of Pallas, tho
author of his subsequent misfortunes. After Achilla's death, the
armour of that hero wu to be given as a prize to him who had
deserved best of the Greeks. Ajax and Ulysses alone advanced tl>> ir
chums : the former depending on bis pre-eminence in arms ; the latter,
on the services which his inventive genius had rendered ; thoorscmUeJ
prince* awarded tho splendid prize to Ulysses (Ovid's 'Met.' b. 14.)
Ajax wu so much mortified at this, that ho went mod, and iu his fury
attacked the herds and flocks of tho camp, mistaking them for the
Grecian leaders, by whom bo thought himself so deeply injured. On
recovering his senses, and seeing to what excesses he had been trans-
ported, he slew himself with the sword which Hector had given him
after their combat. This cataitropho U the subject of that noble
tragedy of Sophocles, ' Ajax the Scourge-Bearer.' The circumstances
of his death are differently told by other authors. The Greeks
honoured him with a splendid funeral, and raised a vast tumulus on
Uo promontory of llhwteum, opposite that of Achilles, on the pro-
73
AJAX.
AKBAR, JALAL-UD-DIN MOHAMMED.
71
montory of Sigeum. He left a son named Eurysaces, who succeeded
Telamon on the throne of Salamis. One of the Attic tribes was
named after Ajax. Some of the moat illustrious Athenians, as Mil-
tiades, Cimon, and Alcibiades, traced their descent from him. He
was worshipped as the tutelary hero of Salamis, where there was a
temple to him with a statue ; and with all the ^Eacidie, or descendants
of YEacus, was honoured as a demi-god in Attica. The traditions
concerning him supplied not only themes to the poets, but subjects to
the painters and sculptors of antiquity. (Herod., viii. 64, 65.)
AJAX, son of Oileus, a leader in the Trojan War, remarkable for
swiftness of foot, and skill in using the bow and javelin. He is called
the Lesser Ajax, and fills a less important part in the ' Iliad ' than his
namesake, though he is distinguished by his defence of the ships in
company with Ajax, son of Telamon. At the Back of Troy he offered
violence to Cassandra in the temple of Pallas. For this profanation,
the goddess, on his voyage home, raised a tempest, which wrecked his
vessel, with many others of the Grecian fleet. Ajax escaped to a rock,
and might have been preserved, had he not said he would escape in
spite of the gods. Neptune cleft the rock with his trident, and
tumbled him into the sea. (' Od.' iv. 502.) Virgil relates his death
differently. (' JEu.' i. 39.) Some authors say that the charge of
violating Cassandra was a fiction of Agamemnon's, who wished to
secure her for himself.
AKBAR, JALAL-UD-DIN MOHAMMED, the greatest and wisest
of all the monarch.? who have swayed the sceptre of Hindustan. At
the early age of 13 he succeeded his father Humayun, Feb. 15, 1556.
About the time of Akbar's birth, his father Humayun, a mild and
lenient prince, was deprived of his kingdom through the restless
ambition of his brothers Kamran and Hindal. The dissensions thus
excited enabled Sher Khan, a Patan, or Afghan chief, to usurp the
government of India. Humayun, attended by a few faithful adherents,
became a wanderer and an exile. In his flight through the western
desert towards the banks of the Indus, he and his little baud experi-
enced a train of calamities almost unparalleled. The country through
which they fled being an entire desert of sand, they were in the
utmost distress for water. Some went mad, others fell down dead.
At length those that lived reached the town of Amerkote, where, on
Oct, 14, 1542, the wife of Humayun gave birth to a son, Akbar.
Humayun sought shelter in Persia, where he was hospitably received
by Shah Tahmasp. After twelve years' exile, he waa once more
restored to his throne at Delhi, but in less than a year died from the
effects of a fall down the palace stairs. When Akbar ascended the
throne the whole empire of India was in a very distracted state ; and
though he was possessed of unusual intelligence for his age, he was
incapable of administering the government. Sensible of his own
inexperience, he conferred on Bahrain Khan, a Turkoman noble who
had ever proved faithful to hia late father, a title and power equivalent
to that of regent or protector. Bahram for some time proved him-
self worthy of the young king's choice; but he was more of the
soldier than the statesman, and there were numerous complaints of
hia arbitrary if not cruel disposition, though these qualities were
essential for maintaining subordination in his army, which consisted
of licentious adventurers, and for quelling the rebellious chiefs who
abounded in every province of the empire. In the course of a few
years the energy of Bahram succeeded in restoring the country to
comparative tranquillity. Hitherto hia domination was submitted to
even by Akbar himself, because the general safety depended on his
exercise of it ; but now that tranquillity was restored, the pressure of
his rule became less tolerable. Akbar therefore, in 1558, made a
successful effort to deliver himself from the thraldom which he had
hitherto endured. He concerted a plan with those around him, and
took occasion, when on a hunting party, to make an unexpected
journey from Agra to Delhi on the plea of the sudden illness of his
mother. He was no sooner beyond the reach of hia minister's
influence than he issued a proclamation announcing that he had taken
the government into his own hands, and forbidding obedience to any
orders not issued under his own seal. The proud Bahram perceived,
when too late, that his authority was at an end. He endeavoured to
establish an independent principality in Malwa ; but, after two years
of unsuccessful rebellion, he came, in the utmost distress, to throw
himself at the feet of his sovereign. Akbar, mindful of his former
services, raised him with his own hands, and placed him in his former
station at the head of the nobles. He gave him hia choice of a high
military command in a distant province or an honoured station at
court. Bahram replied that the king's clemency and forgiveness were
a sufficient reward for his former services, and that he now wished to
turn his thoughts from this world to another. He therefore begged
that his majesty would afford him the means of performing the
pilgrimage to Mecca. The king assented, and ordered a proper retinue
to attend him, at the same time assiguiug him a pension of 50,000
rupees.
The first objects of Akbar's attention were to establish his authority
over hia chiefs, and to recover the various portions of his empire that
had been lost during o many revolutions. When he ascended the
throne his territory was limited to the Panjab and the provinces of
Agra and Delhi In the fortieth year of his reign, according to Abu-1-
Fazl, the empire comprised fifteen fertile provinces, extending from the
Hiudu-Coosh to the borders of the Deccau, and from the Brahmaputra
to Candahar. These provinces were not recovered without great
efforts and the sacrifice of many lives, yet we have no reason to attri-
bute this career of conquest to mere restless ambition on the part of
Akbar. The countries which he invaded had been formerly subject
to the throne of Delhi, and he would have incurred more censure than
praise among his contemporaries if he had not attempted to recover
them. To every province thus recovered a well-qualified subahdar,
or viceroy, was appointed, whose duty it was to administer justice and
give protection to all, without any regard to sect or creed. Thus his
conquests, when once concluded, were permanent, for good govern-
ment is the surest safeguard against rebellion. Of the vigilance with
which Akbar watched the proceedings of his viceroys, and the extreme
attention which he paid to the administration of his more remote pro-
vinces, we have ample proofs in his letters preserved by Abu-1-Fazl.
Unlike most eastern princes, his fame is founded on the wisdom of
his internal policy, not on the vain-glorious title of subduer of regions.
One of the most striking traits in his character as a Mohammedan
prince was the tolerant spirit which he displayed towards men of other
religions, and he felt great interest in all inquiries respecting the
religious belief and forms of worship prevalent among mankind. In
the summer of 1582 he wrote a letter to the " wise men among the
Franks," that is, the Portuguese ecclesiastics at Goa, requesting them
to send him a few of their more learned members, with whom he
might converse respecting the Christian religion. This curious docu-
ment is preserved in Abu-1-Fazl's collection, and was translated by
Fraser in hia 'History of Nadir Shah.' Fraser makes a mistake
however in saying that it was addressed to the king of Portugal.
Accordingly, on the 3rd of December following, three learned padres,
by name Aquaviva, Monserrate, and Euriques, departed on this im-
portant mission. Travelling by easy stages by way of Surat, Mandoo,
and Ougein, they reached Agra in about two months. They were
immediately admitted into the presence of Akbar, who gave them a
most gracious reception. The missionaries then solicited a public
controversy with the mullas, or doctors of the Mohammedan religion,
which was readily granted. Of this disputation the Christians and
Mohammedans give different accounts. Akbar, who is strongly sxis-
pected to have sought amusement as well as instruction from these
discussions, informed the padres that an eminent mulla had under-
taken to leap into a fiery furnace with a Koran in his hand, to prove
by this ordeal the superior excellence of his faith ; and he trusted that
they would do the same with the Bible. The worthy fathers, who had
during the discussion made some pretensions to supernatural powers,
were considerably embarrassed by this proposal, which however they
wisely declined. Abu-1-Fazl says that " the disputants having split on
the divinity of their respective scriptures, the Christian offered to walk
into a flaming furnace bearing the Bible, if the Mohammedan would
show a similar confidence in the protection of the Koran ; to which
the Moslems only answered by a torrent of abuse, which it required
the emperor's interference to stop. He reproved the mullas for their
intemperate language, and expressed his own opinion that God could
only be worshipped by following reason, and not yielding implicit faith
to any alleged revelation." The missionaries seeing that Akbar showed
BO little partiality to the Mussulman religion, naturally concluded that
they had made him a convert. At that time however his attention
waa distracted by disturbances in Cabul and Bengal, and hia visitors
returned under a safe conduct to Goa, which they reached in May,
1583., It appears that Akbar requested and received two other similar
missions in the course of his reign, which, after going through the same
round as their predecessors, returned without any further result. It
would appear also that at Akbar's request one of the missionaries,
Jeronymo Xavier, remained at Agra, for the purpose of translating
the Gospela into Persian. He was assisted in his task by Mulana
'Abd-ul-sitar-ben-Kasim of Lahore, and the work was completed in
1602. It is very much on the plan of our Diatessaron, and divided
into four books. The first book is entirely occupied with the history
and life of the Virgin Mary, and our Saviour's infancy. These puerile
legends have been long declared apocryphal even by the Church of
Rome, and it is difficult to conceive why the worthy padre should
have ventured to interweave them with the sublime truths of the
Gospel : yet this compilation, such as it is, has had considerable cir-
culation among the Moslems of India, who have naturally viewed it as
a standard authority in judging of the Christian religion, from the
circumstance of its being issued forth under the patronage of Akbar.
Of the encouragement which general literature received under this
enlightened monarch there are numerous monuments extant. He
established schools throughout the country, at which Hindoo as well
as Moslem children were educated, each according to his circumstances
and particular views in life. He encouraged the translation of works
of science and literature from the Sanscrit into Persian, the language
of his court. In this he was ably seconded by the two brothers Faizi
and Abu-1-Fazl ; the former the most profound scholar and the latter
the most accomplished statesman then existing. Faizi was the first
Moslem who applied himself to the language and learning of the
Brahmins. Assisted by qualified persons, ho translated into Persian
two works on algebra, arithmetic, and geometry, tho ' Vija Ganitu '
and ' Lilavati,' from the Sanscrit of Bhaskara Acharya, an author of
the 12th century of our era. Under Faizi's able superintendence were
also translated the Vcdas, or at least the more interesting portions of
t
AKBAK, JALAlrUD-DIN MOHAMMED.
AKENSIDE, MARK.
tiMai * Utt Btvml piaM of UK Mth^^v*^ w**l RHflfjMi* ; *u*l >to>
a eurioas bUory of Cashmere during the 4000 yean previous to it*
, by Akbar. remarkable as UM only specimen of historic*!
' i in the Sanscrit language. Abu-I-Kasl long held the highest
reak,bota military and civil, under Akbar. His great work, the* Akbar
Nam*,' is a lasting monument of his master's lame, and of bis own
ifcHngilik 1 111 Hi u I i ' ' J Maniucript copi of it have been
multlplMd in abundance, particularly the third volume called the
Ayin-i Akberi,' which is descriptive of the Indian empire.
For a more ample and detailed account of the many admirable
works, original and translated, which were written under the poirjuag*
of Akbar. the reader i* referred to the first volume of Qladwiu'* trau.-
ution of the Ayin i-Akberi.' But of all the measures of Akbsr's
i sage, perhaps there is none which redounds more to bis true glory
Uuo hi* humane and liberal policy toward* the Hindoos, who formed,
as already stated, the majority of his subject*. Thi* injured race had
long been subjected to a capitation tax. imposed upon them by their
haughty conquerors as a punish moot for what they were pleased to
osll their infidelity. This odious impost, which served to keep up
animosity between the peopU and their ruler*, was abolished early iu
Akbar'* nifu. He at the *ame time abolished all taxes on pilgrimages,
nhcsniin " that it wa* wrong to throw any obstacle in the way of the
devout, or of interrupting UMU mod. of intercourse with their Maki '
Bt though Akbar sho
,'
lindtol
i to the Hindoos in the exer-
cise of their religion, he was not blind to the abuse* of the Brshminical
yatem. lie forbade trial* by ordeal, and the slaughter of animals
for senriflf* lie also mjoined widows to many a second time, con-
trary to the Hindoo Uw. Abore all, ha positively prohibited the burning
of Hindoo widows sgaiast their will ; and used every precaution to
aincrtsin. in the case of a suttee, that the resolution was free and
wainHaenned. U i* sUtod in the ' Akbar Kama ' (hat on one occasion,
rsrinr. that the raj* of Joudpoor was about to force bis son's widow
to the pile, he mounted hi* bores, and rode with all speed to the spot
in order to prevent the intended sacrifice. It may be observed, that
all those ewe* in which Akbar interfered with the religion of the
i really abuses originating with the corrupt priestcraft of
Such prohibition*, being of a purely benevolent nature,
would nowia* affect the loyalty and atUchmrnt of the great body of
the people. In fact, we have an interesting memorial of the impression
mads upon the Hindoos by the mild sway of Akbar in a spirited ninou-
trance, sddreejnri a century after to the bigoted AuruugMbe, by the
descendabt of the very raja of Joudpoor above mentioned. The then
raja eays : ' Your ancestor Akbar, whose throne is now in heaven,
oood noted UM affun of his empire in equity and security for the space
of fifty year*, lie preserved every tribe of men in ease and happiness,
whether they were followers of Jesus or of Moses, of Brahma or of
Mohammed uf whatever sect or creed they might be, they all
equally enjoyed his countenance and favour ; insomuch that his people,
u gratitude for the iadiseriminate protection which be afforded them,
distinguished him by the appellation of -Guardian of Mankind.' "
In the revenue department Akbar effected vast reforms. He estab-
lished a uniform standard of weight* and measures, and caused a
correct measurement of the land to be made throughout the empire.
He ssnertsipid the value of the soil in every inhabited district, and
fixed the nte of taxation that each should pay to government, He
strictly prohibited bis officer, from fanning any branch of the revenue,
the collector, being enjoined to deal directly with individual culti-
vate**, and not to depend en the headman of a village or district
For the iiialasetreliMCj of justice he appointed oourU composed of
two oncer, with differtnt powers; the one for conducting the trial
and expounding the Uw, and the other, who was the superior authority,
far reeling Judgment Thee* were enjoined to be .paring of capital
paniehmeai, and, unless, in oases of dangerous sedition, to inflict none
until the proceedings were sent to court, and the emperor'* confirma-
tion returned. He also enjoined that in no case should capital punish-
moat be accompanied by any additional severity. Akbar was fully
acute of UM Importance of commerce, which he greatly promoted.
Ue improved the roads leading to all part, of the empire, andreudered
InveUtsw cafe by UM establishment of an efficient polio*. Above all,
I a vast Dumber of vexations imnoel* which merely fettered
prohibited bis
afl M , i. ,
by Akbar for
> country, perhaps the least snoosscful was bu
. , * TT? l ' |ito *** r- V m - * *" wb J * "a*
wfll mad ample awbraaattoa In the franeacUoos of the Literary Society
of Bombay/ vol. u, contribute b, Cclancl KdUMdy of that presidency
It aces not appear that Akbsr's faith made an j great progreu beyond
ilaca. In fact it had numberUss foes to encounter
d both of Mohammed and Brahma, who throve
of their rcspecUve flock*
he abolished a inet number of ve
trade without enriching the treasury. He strictly pro
owsear* (roes reeeivingTees of any kind, and thus cut of
source of abac*. Asaocg the numerous ofbrU made by
UM IsjilUfiminl of Us country, perhaps the least SUOOSM
.
the a
___ , .~MT(..,r. Akbar bad three
seeaaaet the Utter days of hi. life were embittered.
cut of in early youih Uirougb habits of dMpa-
m carvivcr (afterward* Jehan-ghir), repeatedly raised
ilien sgciast bis father. These -*Hii-ns. tonther
wtU, UM k. of ajceVTl.. l-a.auW.^b^^lT^up^
Akbar's wind. He died iu September 1005, in the Cith year of Li*
age, after a prosperous and beneficent reign of half a century. In
person Akbar U described as strongly built, with an agreeable expres-
sion of countenance and very captivating manners. Ue was possessed
of great bodily strength and activity; temperate in his habits, and
indulging in little sleep. He frequently spent whole nights in those
philosophical discussions of which bo wss so foud. His early life
abounds with in.tanixs of romantic courage, better suited to a kui^ht
errant than the ruler of a mighty empire. The first half of his reign
required almost bis constant presence at the head of his army, y< t ho
never neglected the improvement of the civil government; and by a
judicious distribution of his time be was enabled not only tu dispatch
all essential business, but to enjoy leisure for study and amusement
Klpuiustoue, Uiitory of India; Ferihta, JJulory ;
and Traiuac'iuHt of the Literary Society of Bombay, voL ii.)
AKENSIDE, MARK, was the second son of Mark Akenside, a
butcher of NewcasUe-ou-Tyue, and of his wife Mary LuuisJ.
was born in the street called Butchers' Bank iu that town, on Kuv. it,
17-1. The Rev. John Brand, who was also a native of Newcastle,
states, in his ' Observations on Popular Antiquities,' that a halt which
Akeuaide had in his gait was occasioned by the falling of a i .
from his father's stall upon him when he was a boy ; and " this,'' addd
Brand, who was himself bred a shoemaker, " must have been
petual remembrance of his bumble origin." It is said that Akeuside
wss far from regarding the ever-present memento either with com-
placency, or even with the most philosophic composure. Thu butcher
was a strict Presbyterian ; and young Mark's original destination was
to be a clergyman in that communion, with which view, according to
the common account, he was sent to a duseutiog academy in his native
town, whence, at about the age of eighteen, that is to say, probably in
November 1739, be proceeded to the University of Edinburgh. But
it appears from a Memoir of Richard Dawes (the author of the ' Mis-
cellanea Critic*') by the Rev. Mr. Hodgson, in the 'Ju.l volume of the'
' Archseologia -Eliaua,' 4 to., Newcastle, 1632, that Akeuside was a
pupil under Dawes, who was appointed head master of the Royal
Grammar School at Newcastle in July 173S. If this was the cose, his
attendance at the school could not have been long. The expense of
his residence at Edinburgh, or part of it, was defrayed by the Dissen-
ters' Society. But after studying divinity for one session, he deter-
mined to change his intended profession, and the remaining two years
of his attendance at college were given to the medical classe
afterward* returned the money he had received from the Dissenters'
Society. In 1742 be went to finish his medical course at Leydeu, and
he was admitted by the university to the degree of M.D. May 16, 1744,
on which occasion he published a thesis, or Latin inaugural discourse,
on the human foetus (' Ue Ortu et Incremento Foatus lluinaui '), iu
which he is said to have displayed eminent scientific ingenuity and
judgment in attacking some opinions of Leeuweuhoek, and other
puthoritiea of the time, which have now been generally or universally
abandoned. But if the date of his graduation (given by Johnson, and
copied by all his subsequent biographers) be correct, Akenside hod
already made a brilliantly successful literary debut before the appear-
ance of this professional essay. His English didactic blank verse poem,
iu three books, entitled ' The Pleasures of Imagination,' which, accord-
ing to one account, be had begun, and even, it is absurdly said, finished,
while he was on a visit to some relations at Morpeth, before he went
to college at Edinburgh, was published at London in February 1744.
He had taken to verse-making at an early age ; in the 7th volume of
the ' OeuUeman's Magazine,' published in 1737, is a poem, entitled
'The Virtuoso, in imitation of Spenser's Style and Stanza,' dated
from Newcastle, having the signature of Marcus, and stated to be the
production of a writer in his sixteenth year, which is undoubtedly his ;
this was followed by other poetical contributions to the same miscel-
lany ; and while at Edinburgh he had written some of the odes and
other minor pieces which have since been printed among his works.
But he bad as yet published nothing iu a separate form or with his
name, and was conqueutly altogether unknown, when he took or
sent his ' Pleasures of Imagination to Dodsley the bookseller, with a
demand of 1201. for the copyright Johnson, who mentions this, says
that he had heard Dodsley himself relate that, hesitating to give so
Urge a price, "ho carried the work to Pope, who, having looked into
it, advised him not to make a niggardly oiler, for this was no every-
day writer." Pope, who diod in the end of May of the year iu which
it appeared, lived nevertheless long enough to see his judgment ratified
by the extraordinary success of the poem. It reached a second editi >n
in May, and continued in constant demand. The poem was first pub-
lished anonymously, and a story is told by Boswell, on Johnson's
authority, of the authorship being claimed by a person of the name
of Roll, who is even said to have had an edition of it printed in Dublin
with bis name on the tiUe-page; but in England, at least, the name of
the true author appears to have been very well known all along. Akeu-
side wa* certainly in England before his poem was published : if tlio
date of his graduation be correct, he probably returned to Leydeu to
go through t hat ceremony. His firnt attempt to < < .ictice
as a physician wss at Northampton ; but he only continued there for
about a year and a half, during which he appears to have written
more poetry than prescriptions. It seems however to have been before
he settled at Northampton that ha wrote hi* ' Epistle to Curio,' a satire
77
AKENSIDE, MARK.
ALARCON Y MENDOZA, DON JUAN RUIZ DE.
78
on Pulteney, recently created Earl of Bath, which was published by
Dodsley in a quarto pamphlet in 1744. While at Leyden, Akenside
had formed an intimacy with one of his fellow-students, Jeremiah
Dyson, a man of fortune, who afterwards became clerk of the House
of Commons, then one of the members for Horsham, subsequently
secretary to the Treasury and a lord of the Treasury, and ultimately
cofferer to the household and a privy councillor. They had returned
from Holland together, and on Akenside, shortly after the publication
of his great poem, being attacked by Warburton in a preface to a new
edition of hia * Divine Legation,' for something he had said in a note
in support of Shaftesbury's notion about ridicule being a test of truth,
Dyson took up his pen in defence of his friend, and published, anony-
mously, ' An Epistle to the Reverend Mr. Warburton, occasioned by
his Treatment of the Author of the " Pleasures of Imagination." '
Warburton took no notice of this appeal ; but he afterwards reprinted
his strictures at the end of his ' Dedication to the Freethinkers ' in
another edition of his work. Dyson now gave Akenside a more sub-
stantial proof of his friendship by making him an allowance of 300Z.
a year, to be continued till he should be able to live by his practice.
Thus secured in an income, he came up to London, and established
himself in the first instance at Hampstead, and after being two years
and a half there he removed to London, and fixed himself in Blooms-
bury-square, where he resided till his death. This change of residence
occurred in 174S. In 1745 he had published, in quarto, ten of his odes,
under the title of ' Odes on Several Subjects ;' hU ' Ode to the Earl of
Huntingdon' appeared in 1748 in the same form; and several others
of his poems appeared afterwards from time to time in ' Dodsley's
Collection,' then in course of publication. An ' Ode to the Country
Ocntlemen of England, 1 4to., 1753, and an 'Ode to Thomas Edwards,
Esquire, on the late Edition (by Warburton) of Mr. Pope's Works,'
fol. 1766, are almost his only separate poetical productions after this
late. Besides being admitted by mandamus to the degree of M.D. in
the University of Cambridge, he became in course of time physician
to St. Thomas's Hospital, a Fellow of the College of Physicians, and
one of the physicians to the Queen ; but he was probably indebted for
these honours as much to his literary as to his professional reputation.
His practice is said never to have been considerable. The late Dr. John
Aikin, who himielf attempted to combine the pursuit of literature
witli the practice of physic, says, in his ' Select Works of the British
Poets,' " It is affirmed that Dr. Akenside assumed a haughtiness and
ostentation of manner which was not calculated to ingratiate him with
his brethren of the faculty, or to render him generally acceptable."
Another account that has been given is, that his manner in a sick*oom
was so grave and sombre as to be thought more depressing and inju-
rious to hia patients than his advice or medicines were serviceable.
Tet his latest and most elaborate biographer, Mr. Bucke, has noted
that he had practice enough to enable him, with his pension, to keep
a carriage ; and he also sustained his reputation at a respectable point
by various professional publications. In 1755 he read the Qulstonian
Lectures before the College of Physicians ; and an extract from them
containing some new views respecting the lymphatic vessels being
afterwards read before the Royal Society (of which he was elected a
fellow in 1753) was published in the ' Philosophical Transactions' for
17">7. This publication drew Akenside into a controversy with Dr.
Alexander Monro of Edinburgh, who in a pamphlet, entitled ' Obser-
vations Anatomical and Physiological," both accused him of some
inaccuracies, and also insinuated a charge of plagiarism from a treatise
of his own published the preceding year. Akenside replied to these
charges in a small pamphlet published in 1758. In 1759 he delivered
the Harveian Oration before the College of Physicians ; and it was
published by Dodsley, ia 4to, in the beginning of the next year, under
the title of ' Oratio Anniveraaria,' &c. An ' Account of a Blow on the
Heart, and its Effects/ by Akenside, appeared in the ' Philosophical
Transactions' for 1763. In 1764 he published, in 4to, what is
accounted the most important of bis medical works, his treatise on
dysentery, in Latin, 'De Dysenteria Commentarius,' "considered,"
says Johnson, "as a very conspicuous specimen of Latiuity, which
entitled him to the game height of place among the scholars as he
-^ed before among the wits." It has been translated into English
both by Dr. Dennis Kyan and by Motteux. To these performances
are to be added several papers in the first volume of the ' Medical
Transaction^,' published by the College of Physicians in 1767; and,
having been appointed Krohnian Lecturer, he also delivered three
lectures before the college on the history of the revival of learning,
which have not been printed. He might probably have risen to
greater professional eminence and more extended practice if his life
'en protracted ; but he was cut off by a putrid fever on the 23rd
of June, 1770, in his forty-ninth year.
As a poet, Akenside has been very differently estimated. He must
be judged of principally by hi* ' Pleasures of Imagination, 1 which is
admitted on all hands to be bis greatest work. Johnson, who hated
Ij'.tli the kind of verse in which it was written and the politics of the
author, which, always whig, were at the time when it was composed
almost republican, admits that " ho is to bo commended as having
fewer artifices of disgust than most of his brethren of the blank song;"
but seern to regard the poem on the whole as having more splendour
than substance, more sound than sense. Akenside had a warm and
susceptible, but not a creative imagination ; there is probably not in
bis whole poetry a thought which can properly be called his own, or
even a new and striking image or metaphor, or a felicity of expression
not borrowed or imitated. He interests and affects his readers chiafly
through the sympathetic glow which he excites by his enthusiasm in
behalf of truth and beauty, and other elevating conceptions ; he has
no touches of nature, no pathos, no dramatic power, little or no
invention ; and even his pictures of natural scenery, which are
perhaps what he has done best, are brought out always by an elabo-
rate accumulation, of details, never by those happy characteristic
strokes which flash forth at once the lineaments and spirit of a scene
like sudden sunshine. All is operose, cumbrous, and cloudy, witli
abundance of gay-colouring and well-sounding words, but filling the
eye oftener than the imagination, and the ear oftener than either.
Something of all this was natural enough in a poem written at so
early an age as the ' Pleasures of Imagination ; ' and Akenside him-
self, after a time, became so dissatisfied with the work, that he
proceeded not so much to rewrite it as to compose a new poem on the
same subject. Of this second poem, which was to have been much
more extended than the first, he had finished three books and part of
a fourth before his death ; and he had eveu printed the first and
second books, although he did not publish them. Both poems were
published by his friend Mr. Dyson, in a complete edition of Akenside'e
works, 4to and also 8vo, London, 1773 ; but his admirers have con-
tinued to prefer their original favourite, its rapid flow being felt to
have more of pleasurable excitement than the greater correctness and
more matured thought of the later composition. Akenside's minor
pieces have the same beauties and defects with his chief work. They
are mostly odea and hymns, and are full of lofty sentiments and
swelling verse, which are farther made impressive by a spirit of
earnestness and ardour coming from the thorough conviction and
sincerity of the writer. A few are in a less ambitious style, consisting
of plain sense neatly expressed ; but, although he sometimes
attempted the gayer flights of the muse, he had no wit or humour,
and what he has done in this way is wholly unsuccessful.
(Kippis, Siograpltia Britannica ; Johnson, Lives of the Poets; Bucke,
ft, Writingt, and Qeniut of Aktmide, 8vo, London, 1832.)
AKEKBLAD, JOHN DAVID, a Swedish scholar, who distin-
guished himself by his researches in Runic, Phoenician, Coptic, and
hieroglyphic literature. He enjoyed in early life an opportunity of
travelling over several countries in the East in consequence of being
appointed secretary to the Swedish embassy at Constantinople. While
holding this appointment he made a journey to Jerusalem, in 1792.
In 1797 he visited the Troad. Some years after he was appointed
Charg<5 d' Affaires to the king of Sweden in France. He spent his last
days in Rome, where he was supported by the bounty of the Duchess
of Devonshire and other admirers of his talents. He died in that
city at an early age, on the 8th of February, 1819. The following
are the titles of some of hia publications : ' Lettre h, M. Silvestre de
Sacy sur 1'Ecriture cursive Copte,' published in the 'Magasin Ency-
clope'dique ' for 1810. ' Inscriptionis Phosnicise Oxouiensis Nova
Interpretatio,' Paris, 1802; 31 pp. 8vo. 'Lettre sur 1'Inscription
Egyptienne de Rosette, adressde a M. Silvestre de Sacy,' Paris, 1802 ;
70 pp. 8vo. ' Notices sur Deux Inscriptions en Caracteres Runiques,
trouv<Ses a Venise, et sur les Varanges ; avec les Remarques de
M. d'Ansee de Villoison,' Paris, 1804 ; 55 pp. 8vo. ' Inscrizione
Greca sopra una Lamina di Piombo, trovato in uno Sepolcro nelle
Vicinanze d'Atene,' 4to, Rome, 1813. He was preparing a new and
enlarged edition of this work at tho time of his death. ' Lettre sur
une Inscription Phdnicienne trouvde Ji Athenes," Rome, 1817 ; 23 pp.
4 to. M. Akerblad is said to have been able to speak as well as read
various eastern and European languages. He was a corresponding
member of the French National Institute, and a member of several
other learned societies.
ALARCON Y MENDOZA, DON JUAN RUIZ DE, a Spanish
dramatic writer of the reign of Philip IV. Of the writers of Spain,
unless pre-eminent in reputation as well as talent, biographical notices
are by uc means abundant. Nicolas Antonio did not know the place
of his birth nor the time of his death, but supposed him to have been
a native of Mexico. Ferdinand Denis however, in the ' Nouvelle
Biographic Universelle,' states, that he was born towards the end of
the 16th century, at Tlasco, or Tlachco, in the ancient province of
Mexico, of a noble family, which was originally from the little town
of Alarcon, in the province and diocese of Cuenza in Spain. His
time is generally fixed about the middle of tho 17th century ; but in
a preface to a second volume of his 'Comedias,' published in 1634, he
says that he is the author of twenty pieces, aud complains that some
of them had been attributed to others, as indeed they had, by certain
booksellers, to Lope de Vega and Montalvau. This fact carries back
his labours to a much earlier date, and places him among the compe-
titors of the most celebrated dramatists of his country ; and it also
indicates the reputation he enjoyed. It has been conjectured that he
was an actor ; but of this there is no sufficient evidence. He xvas a
licentiate, a jurisconsult by profession, and instances appear in his
dramas of research into the ancient laws of Spain. Though without
positive data, we have a strong persuasion that he was a cadet of the
noble family of Ruiz de Alarcon ; but his best history is In his works.
They show, not only that his attainments wore of a very high order,
but that he was deservedly esteemed for his noble qualities and
ALARIC.
ALARIC II.
It i* iMflraQy admitted that the be** ptatar* of SpanM.
the r*i(n of UM Philip* U eoouioed in the Spanish
_ Jtton to UM divine unities, u Boilaan and La Harp*
UMB. they nevertheleas tool* M h*Id tho minor up to
ad sbo**d the very age and body of U> time hia form and
* also DO mean historians
' and they WOT* aso DO mean historians of Ui* chlrmlrotti
. praeadeJ UMM ; Ihiy UM t~t part* of the Ticotooa
of ibsfe aaearton, in their own *ooorous and majestic
. rvwy S(as*a*MD*.i*>pif<of lyrwal poetry. Alarcon
DM Mi May portraiiar** of that d%nin*d deportment, that generou*
aod manly sentiment, that punctilious MOM of honour, and that
honor of Weh of faith, which characterised th. old nobility of l,i.
country (aquaUo* Chrfathon* Tieio.); and he bat akatehetl them wit!,
DO IMB fcUltty tad apirit than Lop*, Calderon, and DC Cattro. No
wriur ha* ever nor* bwaUfully ddioaaUJ that true and delicate
mcud for hcnale character in UM high-born Spaniah cralier, for
whieh b* DM b*i and i* still distinguished.
Tbw* i* mor*ot*r in mott of hit drama* a tone of morality which
do** him honour, and plaon them unquestionably among the beat
of thU branch of literature. It hai been truly obMrred
coovry
Pared**
annotator, "Hi*
.
pieoa* not only amuse, but generally
chastisement of the backbiter in ' La*
(' Wall* bar* Kan '), and of the Liar in ' La Verdad
('Suspicious Truth'), are example* of this. It is no
amall proof of the merit of the hut-named piece, that Corneille, who,
to OM hi* own phrase, partly translated, partly imitated it for tha
Parisian ****, under the title of ' Le Menteur,' affirms that he hud
often Mid b* would give two of hi* best piece* if he could call the
invention of that drama hi* own. Alarcon's plot* are ingenious, his
well marked, his style nervous, pure, and elegant, and hi*
IB easy and harmonious. His piece* are also free from tie
i and extravagance which disfigure the work* of most of his
contemporaries, and the object of which seem* to bare been to mys-
tify and te-*, rather than to instruct and delight. Among tho
numerous Spanish poet* of thi* class, none could be more fitly
selected as a model for a real national drama than Alarcon. Huerta
fftM the title* of thirty of hi* comedie*. Th* 'Oanar Aniigos,' ' La
Verdad ospecboea,' ' La* Parcde* oyen,' *nd ' El Examen de Maridos,'
are beat known. The 'Teiedor d* SegovU' was Terr popuUr. Like
Schiller's ' Robber*,' to which it bean a great resemblance, it has been
UM subject both of much censure and much praise. No complete
edition of Alaroon'* work* ha* appeared, nor any volumes except the
in the article. Hi* pieces are only found in mUcel-
(Nkolau* Antoniua, BiUio&cem EitpaAa ; Coleccim General th
CwsMfcs*, Madrid, 1826-34.)
AI.ARIC, on* of the most eminent of those northern chiefs who
*nec*a*iv*!y overran Italy during the decline of tho western empire,
aod UM fini of them who gained possession of imperial Rome. He
learned the art of war under the celebrated emperor of the East,
Tbeodoaios, who curbed th* depredations of the Goths, settled them
in different province* of the empire, and recruited hi* armies from the
youth of the nation ; but they threw off the yoke as soon a* the
powerful band which bad imposed it ceased to hold the sceptre, and
AUric, born of one of the noblest families of the nation, waa chosen
by bis countrymen as their leader. L'nder bis guidance the Visigoths,
th* division of th* Gothic nation to which he belonged, issued from
Thrace, where they bad ben settled, and overran Greece, A.D. 396.
AUric look Athens; but instead of treating it with severity and
destroying to edifice*, aa ha* cometine* been aaserted, it is most
probable that b* did very little damage to it* work* of art, although
be carried off rack a* were moveable. The Goths were soon com-
pelled by Btflieho to evacuate that country, and to return into Kpinii
About (be year A.D. 398, Alarie, on the ground* of his high military
WM proclaimed King of the VMgoths; and about the same
diua, UM uceMor of Theodo*iu>, alarmed at hi* repeated
time Arcadiu*. the
td to identify hi* interest* with thwe of the empire
by declaring him Matter General of th* Eastern Illyrian Prefecture.
The Visigoth* who obeyed hi* order* were thoroughly organized a* an
army, tat u yet bad few claim* to the civil character and stability of
nation. They threatened both empire* equally at the same time,
and sold their alliance to each alternately. Alarie at last determined
to make bis way into UM empire of the west, for tho purpose of
Early In UM year A.D. 403 h* appeared before Milan, which was
ImmrdlaUly evactuUd by UM Emperor Honorius. Besieged in the
fortrs** of AHa, Hoooriu* wss on the point of surrendering, when
MHebo CUM to hi* axisUnoe, with an army hastily recalled from the
frontier* of Haul and Germany. On Kasbr-day, A.D. 403, waa fought
UM battle of PoUeati*. Th* testimony of historians vane* a* to the
*v, nt of it ; but the advantage isms to have been on tho side of the
RocBeos. In a mbwqnent bstUe, near Verona, AUric was completely
defeated by Htilkbo, aad wa* compiled by the voice of his people to
MOfpt term* which bis pride would have rejected to ratify a treaty
witi. the Mapire of UM west, and to retire from Italy with the remains
of his army. (Claudian, I)e IU-llo Oetioo.')
After hi* retreat from Italy, Alarie concluded a precarious peace
with Hoooriu*, and crrn entered into hi* service, being nominated
Master-Oeneral of the Western Illyrian Prefecture, In this capacity
be WM required to enforce the claims of the court of Ravenna to
certain province* held by the eaitera empire ; but hi* effort* were
ineffectual, and at the end of a few yean, when his army was recruit. .1
by the German youth* who were attracted by his fame, he renewed
kit design of eatablishing himself in Italy. Claiming an extravagant
reward for the service* which he had performed, be plainly intimated
that war would be the consequence of a refusal. The demand waa
made in the year A.D. 403. The emperor was then at Rome, and it
was debated in the senate what steps were proper to be taken. Tho
majority were for war; but by Stilicho's advice it was determined to
buy off the enemy by a contribution of four thousand pounds weight
of gold. One of the senators exclaimed, in the language of Cicero,
"This is not a treaty of peace, but a contract of slavery." Tho
minister maintained the demand to be nothing more than just, a*
Aloric had remained three years in Epirus for the service of Honorius.
While the Visigoth* were at the foot of the Alps, tho cowardly and
weak Honorius procured the assassination of Stilicho, the only man
who could still have defended the empire. Hia son and almost all his
officer* were murdered along with him. Those Visigoths win
serving in the pay of the empire hod left their wive* and children in
the Roman cities : they were all massacred at the same time. All the
treaties concluded by Stilicho with AUric were annulled, and tin-
court of Ravenna seemed to take pleasure in provoking an enemy
whom it was unable to resist. Alarie crossed Yenetia without encoun-
tering any Roman soldiers; with tho rapidity of a traveller who meet*
with no obstruction, he advanced under the very walla of Rome, and
formed the siege. An application for terms was made on the part of
the Romans, with an intimation that if once they took up arm* they
would fight desperately. Alarie returned this pithy answer : " Tho
cloeer bay is pressed, the more easily it i* cut." He demanded all
the wealth of Home. The ambassadors asked what he would leave
to the inhabitants ; " Their lives." He at length however consented
to retire, on condition of receiving a heavy ransom. But Honoriti.",
although he had taken no measures for the defence of hia capital,
refused to ratify the treaties by which it might have been saved.
Alarie laid siege to Rome a second time in A.D. 409. The imposing
name of the Eternal City seemed to inspire the barbarian with
involuntary respect. He endeavoured to save it from the consequences
to which he was otherwise pledged, by appointing a new emperor in
the person of Attains, prefect of tho city ; but the weakness of Attains
rendered it necessary for tho Visigoth conqueror to undo the work of
his ytn hands, and Honorius was reinstated on a powerless throne.
A treacherous attack on the Goths at Rarenna, while the conferences
were still open, exhausted tho patience of Alarie. The city was a
third time besieged, and Alarie entered at midnight on the 24th of
August, 410, when he gave the town up to be pillaged for six days,
but with orders to hi* soldiers to be sparing of blood, to respect the
honour of the women, and not-to burn buildings dedicated to religion.
After the limited period of plunder and vengeance he hastened to
withdraw his troops, and led them into the southern provinces of
Italy ; but he died in the course of a few months, after a very short
illness, while besieging Coeenza in Calabria. Alarie not only dispUyed
great courage and military skill in his various campaigns, but was
distinguished by his moderation and justice in the intervals of pence.
The works of art and the usages of civilised life were respected by
him, and bis humanity restrained not a little the excesses of hia
followers. He showed by his reverence for the churches of Hume
during the sack of the city, that he was in some measure umlrr tin-
influence of the Christian faith, which he bod learned from Arian
teacher*, and while some regarded him as an instrument of vengeance
against the remaining paganism of Rome, he seems to have mado
pretensions at times to an impulse from Heaven.
(Zosimus; Claudian ; Jornandez, DcJlcbta Geticit; Gibbon, ch. xxix.,
xxxi.)
ALARIC II., ALARICUS, king of the West Goths, succeeded his
father Eudcs in A.D. 484. Gothio, the then name of the West Gothic
kingdom, had been considerably enlarged by Eudes, and exi
over Hispr.nia Tarraconensis and Bxtica, and in Gaul as far as the
Loire and the Rhone, by which rivers it was separated from the king-
dom* of the Franks, tho Burgundians, and the East Goths, who \\.T.-
matter* of the province. If we can trust Isidorus, Alarie had spent
bis youth in idleness and luxury, though the truth seems to be that,
preferring a peaceful reign to war, which in the eyes of the Goths was
the only occupation worthy of kings, ho incurred that reproach because
he wa* not fond of bloodshed. He wa* an Arian, like most of his
countrymen, but very tolerant, as wo sec from tho acts of the Council
of Agde, which wa* held in A.D. 506, and by which many privileges
were granted to the orthodox Catholics. Clovis, king of the Franks,
having overthrown tho last remnants of the Itomnu power in Gaul,
coveted the fine countries west of the Loire ; and there being still
many Catholics in Qothia who were dissatisfied because their king
did not adopt the Catholic faith, be declared war against Alarie. The
old East Gothic king, Thcodoric the Great, whose daughter Tlieudi-
gotha was the wife of Alarie, foresaw the war, and tried to prevent it
by conciliatory mrans : the letters which be wrote to that (-fleet to
the king* of the Franks, the West Goths, and the Burgumlians, are
given by Casaiodorua ; but his endeavour* were in vain, nnd the war
81
ALAVA, MIGUEL RICARDO D'.
ALBA, DUKE OK
83
broke out in 507. In a pitched battle near Vougld, in the environs
of Poitiers, the result proved fatal to King Alaric, whose army was
eutirely defeated. Alaric fled, but was overtaken and killed. The
Goths made a halt at Narbonne, and quarrelled among themselves
about the choice of a new king. One part of them chose Gesalic, or
Gisolcc, the elder but bastard sou of Alaric ; and another Amalaric,
the lawful son of Alaric and Theudigotha. This prince being too
young to rule, the regency over the West Gothic kingdom was
intrusted to his grandfather, the East Gothic king Theodoric, who
drove out Gesalic, and compelled the Franks to restore their con-
quests. A proof that Alaric was peaceful because he appreciated the
blessings of peace, and that he was able to consolidate that peace
by a regular system of legislation, is the code called Breviarium
Alaricianum.
(Cassiodorus, Variar. 3, ep. 1, &<x; Gregorius Turonensis, ii. 36;
Procopius, De Sell Outh. ii. 12; Jornandez, DC Reb. Goth. p. 129;
Mascou, Hist, of the Ancient Germans, translated by Lediard; Asch-
bach, GetcMchte der Westgothen.)
ALAVA, MIGUEL RICARDO D', was born at Vitoria, in Spain,
in 1771. He first entered the naval service of his country, in which
he attained the rank of captain of a frigate, which he then exchanged
for a corresponding rank in the army. At the beginning of the
French occupation of Spain in 1807, Alava, as a member of the
assembly of Bayonne, signed the new constitution given on the
nomination of Joseph Bonaparte as king of Spain ; and he subse-
quently accompanied Joseph to Madrid. He soon however saw reason
to be dissatisfied with the side he had taken, and he joined the army
of the independents. In the progress of the war the Duke of Wel-
lington appointed him one of his aides-de-camp, in which capacity,
after the battle of Vitoria, he was enabled to save his native town
from pillage ; he ultimately attained the rank of general of brigade.
When Ferdinand VII. was restored, he remembered Alava's first
defection more vividly than his recent services, and he was thrown
into prison, but the intervention of the Duke of Wellington procured
his liberation within a few days. Alava at length succeeded in ingra-
tiating himself with Ferdinand, who appointed him ambassador to
the Netherlands, where his kindness to his banished countrymen
occasioned, it is said, his recal in 1319. At the commencement of
the revolution of 1820 he was elected member of the Cortes for the
province of Alava, and was President in May 1822. When in June of
that year the insurrection took place against the Cortes, he fought
with Ballastcros and Murillo against its enemies at Madrid, and
followed the Cortes to Cadiz, whither they had conveyed the king.
When Cadiz was invested by the French army in 1823, Alava was
commissioned by the Cortes to negociate with the Due d'Angouleme,
and under the assurance of the Due that he would use his influence
to obtain from Ferdinand (whose liberty was first stipulated for) a
constitution insuring the freedom of Spain. Ferdinand was conveyed
to the quarters of the French general, having previous to his leaving
Cadiz repeated the assurances in proclamations published in his name.
Arrived in the French camp, Ferdinand lost no time in declaring the
promises null, as well as all the acts of the government during his
captivity. Alava, with many other members of the Cortes, retired to
Gibraltar, and thence to England. After the death of Ferdinand VII.
he returned to Spain, embraced the cause of the Queen Dowager and
her daughter against Don Carlos, was appointed ambassador to
London in 1S34, and to Paris in 1835. After the insurrection of La
Granja he refused to take the oath of allegiance to the constitution
of 1812, retired to France, and died at Bareges in 1843.
(Nouvelle Biographic Universelle, 1852.)
ALBA, or ALVA, FERNANDO ALVAREZ DE TOLEDO, DUKE
OF, General of the imperial army, and Minister of State of Charles V.,
was born in 1 508. He was the son of Don Garcia, and grandson of
Don Fadrique, or Frederic, who was first-cousin of King Ferdinand
the Catholic, and the second Duke of Alba de Tormes. His father
having lost his life in an engagement against the Moors of Gelvez,
his grandfather superintended his education. He entered very young
into the service of the emperor, and accompanied him in his expe-
ditions to Algiers, Tunis, and Pavia. He afterwards followed him to
Hungary ; and it is said that the emperor promoted him to the first
rank in the army, more as a mark of favour than from any considera-
tion of his military talents. His reserved disposition, and the pecu-
liar bent of his mind to politics, had at first given an unfavourable
idea of his talents as a general. On the emperor wishing to know
his opinion about attacking the Turks, he advised him rather to build
them a golden bridge than offer them a decisive battle. Through his
wise measures, however, the emperor obtained a complete victory
over Frederic of Saxony at Muhlberg, where the elector was made
prisoner. Alba subsequently commanded at the siege of Mentz.
About 1556 Pope Paul IV. had deprived the house of Colonna of
their states, and added them to the territory of the church. The
French favoured the Pope ; and the duke was ordered by Philip II.
to proceed thither against the united French and papal army. Having
obtained the title of Lieutenant of all the Austrian dominions in
Italy, with unlimited power, he entered the Italian territory. Imme-
diately upon his arrival, he obliged the Count of Brisac to raise the
siege of Ulpian ; placed Milan in a state of security ; and, proceeding
to Naptai, where the Pope by his intrigues had caused serious distur-
BIO'.. DIV. VOL. I.
bances, he restored tranquillity, and secured respect for the Spanish
authority. He then entered the Papal States, and made himself
master of the Campagna of Rome, with a determination to humblo
both the Pope and the French; but having received fresh orders from
his court, he was obliged to conclude an honourable treaty of peace
with the Pope, not without telling his master that timidity and scru-
pulousness were incompatible with the policy of war. This proud
warrior, before whom the bravest trembled, was subjected to the
humiliation of asking the Pope's pardon; and, as he himself cou-
fessed, was so struck with awe at the ceremony, that he could scarcely
utter a word.
About 1560 the Flemish provinces of Spain began to manifest
symptoms of discontent. Philip, a bigoted Catholic, was determined
to maintain the Roman religion in all its purity throughout his
dominions. He disliked the Belgians as much as his father had been
well-disposed towards them ; and his whole conduct was calculated
rather to alienate than to gain their affection. He attempted to
destroy their liberty and privileges, and to establish the Inquisition at
any hazard. When one of his ministers represented to him, that if
he did not abolish the inquisitorial edicts, he exposed himself to the
risk of losing the states, he answered, that he " would rather have
no subjects at all than have heretics for his subjects." A rebellion
was the result of this ungenerous policy. To quell it, Alba was
furnished with troops and money, and invested with unlimited powers.
He set sail from Spain in '1567, and landed at Geuoa, where he
strengthened his army with some Italian troops, and proceeded to
Brussels. On his arrival, the country, which, through the mild and
conciliatory measures adopted by the amiable regent, Margaret of
Parma, was comparatively tranquil, became full of alarm. Events
proved that the fears of the people were not unfounded. The Priuco
of Orange fled to Germany, and in vain urged the counts of Egmont
and Horn to do the same. Alba summoned a council of state to his
house, to consult about the best means of restoring tranquillity and
repressing sedition. The two counts came as councillors, when Alba
seized them, with the secretary, Cassenbrot, and put them in prison.
The princess-regent, seeing herself deprived of her authority, retired
to Italy, and left the government of the country in the hauds of
the duke.
Immediately upon the imprisonment of D'Egmont, Alba instituted
a council, composed of twelve judges, whom ho named ' Judges of
the Tumults ; ' by his victims they were called the ' Court of Blood.'
He was himself president. He summoned the Prince of Orange, and
all the other nobles and citizens who had fled from the country, to
appear before his tribunal, under the penalty of confiscation of their
property. All the prisons were filled with victims, who were speedily
condemned and executed. The principal cities were fortified, and
filled with soldiers; and a country which had hitherto enjoyed all
the benefits of rational liberty, under one of the mildest governments
of Europe, was now converted into a military camp. More than
30,000 persons sought refuge in the neighbouring countries. All the
laws which curb the strong and protect the weak, were virtually
abolished : there was no other rule but the will of the tyrant
The Prince of Orange had collected an army in Germany, with
which he advanced into Friesland, and defeated a body of Spaniards
at Groningen. The news of this reverse exasperated the duke. He
hurried the trials of the counts of Egmont and Horn to a speedy
conclusion. They were condemned and beheaded; and the secretary
of D'Egmont was torn alive by four horses. The Prince of Orauge
was desirous to give battle to the Spaniards, but the duke avoided an
engagement ; and by his prudent movements, without losing a single
man, he caused the patriot army to disband. Alba returned co
Antwerp to carry on the fortifications of the citadel. The works
were soon finished ; and in the middle of the fortress the duke
caused his />wn statue in brass to be erected. This statue represented
him in full armour, and at his feet a two-headed monster, referring
allegorically to the nobility and the people. The whole was sup-
ported by a pedestal of marble, with the following inscription : " In
honour of the Duke of Alba, for having restored the Belgians to
their allegiance to the king and the church, and the country to tran-
quillity, peace, and justice." This insult was greater than a nation
could endure. It was so revolting, that it alienated even his friends ;
and from that moment his dictatorship was virtually ended. His fall
was hastened by the cruelty practised towards the inhabitants of
Haarlem, where he caused more than 2000 persons to be executed,
after having led them to expect forgiveness if they surrendered.
He now began to encounter misfortunes and disappointments on
every side. His health was in a weak state ; the greater part of
Holland had openly revolted, and proclaimed the Prince of Orange
stadtholder ; his armies had ceased to be invincible ; and he earnestly
requested to be recalled. In December, 1573, he published a general
pardon, and left a country which he had rendered desolate ; iu which
he had delivered into the hands of the executioners 18,000 victims,
and kindled a war which raged for thirty-seven years, and cost Spain
the blood of her Best troops, immense treasures, and the final loss of
some of her richest provinces. The first act of his successor's
authority was to demolish his statue ; so that nothing remained in
Flanders after his departure but the memory of hia cruelty.
On his arrival iu Spain, far from being well received at court, he
AI.IUNI.
ALBERONI, CARDINAL.
Of Spain put I
.,' i
iUsboB.alU.
The Uukof
He ws pnacipi
US BOettoM. SI
in hi. army. 11
which wouldh
M be always did. ai
bishop urged him to
the victory.- Durii
loetahattk The 1
a* Alba, surrounded
belong to intolrnn*
UM bigot and tyran
' :
of Ueed*. Foot TMIB after his
ving no rightful h-ir. Philip 1 1.
farad by the sword. Alba WH
i, and at the head of 12,000 men
MSSIS he pUonl Philip in pot
Three jean after, 1583, he died
dly the ablest general of hi* age.
hii alill and prudence in choosing
cement of the stricteat discipline
atisnf stratagem those advantages
ray or dsarly acquired by a pre-
Being at Cologne, and avoiding,
ith toe Dutch troops, the arch-
bject of a general," answered the
tt ; be fight* enough who bbtaini
> many jean' warfare, he never
, and caution of mch a character
all the evil circumstance* which
i, were only instrument* to render
and odious. Under more favour-
of society, they might haro produced a juit and benevolent
(Mariana, But, <f- />/>., Bentivoglio, Ouerr. di Plandr.; Do Campo,
Hi*l. de Portugal)
ALBAXI, a patrician Roman family, originally from the town of
t'rbrao. One of ite members. Cardinal Gian Pranceeoo Albani, was
raued to the papal see in 1700, when he auumed the name of
Clemen* XL Since that time the Albani have been classed among
the Roman princes, and have furnished the Church of Rome with a
sooceesion of cardinal*, who hare been in general men of taste and
abilities. Cardinal Alesaandro Albani, in the last century, was known
a* a patron of the art*. During the course of fifty years he enriched
his villa outside of Porta Salaria with a magnificent collection of
objects of art, which rendered the Villa Albani one of the most
Inlarselliis! spot* about Rome. When the French republican army
invaded Rome in 1798, this villa was stripped of all it* treasures.
The cardinal, however, escaped to Naples. After the death of Pius VI.,
Cardinal Albani repaired to the conclave at Venice, which elected
Pius VII., and soon after died at an advanced age. The lay repre-
sentative of the Albani family is possessed of the estate of Soriano
near Viterbo, and of other domains in the papal states. [CLEMENT XI.]
ALBAXI. FRANCESCO, was born at Bologna, March 17, 1678.
and was placed under the tuition of Denys Calvert, to be instructed
in painting. Ouido Rent was studying at the same time under that
mastrr, and being more advanced in art than Albani he was enabled
to afford him effectual assistance in his studies. The two youths
quitted Calvert, and placed themselves under Ludovico Cnrracci, whose
school began about this time to be conspicuous in Lombardy, and
undtr that great master they pursued their studies with an emulation
advantageous to both. Having made considerable proficiency, Ouido
proceeded to Rome, whither he was followed by Albani, whose taleuta
soon excited attention in that metropolis of art. Annibale Carrocci
had been employed to ornament the chapel of San Diego, in the
National Church of the Spaniards; but being disabled by illness, he
recommended Albani to continue the work, which he finished so
successfully aa to obtain universal applause. He afterwards painted
several large picture* at Rome, Mantua, and Bologna, but it is on his
1 picturw that Albani's reputation is chiefly founded. The natural
> of hi* mind was towards subjects of feminine and infantine
to high finishing rather than bold effect All his latter work*
sM |
elaborate; they became extremely fashionable during
Us day. Albani was well acquainted with ancient sculpture, but
diapUys DO indication of such knowledge in hi* male figures; his
women and children are better drawn. He might have become a good
' ' I .::; :.:.. I:. I v.i.i !,
Impairs tha brilliancy of his tints, and gives his flesh the appearance
of ivory. There are at Borgbley House, the seat of the Marquis of
Exeter, some tapestries from his designs. Three of his pictures,
namely the Three Marys at the Sepulchre, and two Holy Families,
* **li fTl jr** BobCT * Strange. Albani died Oot 4, 1060.
ALBANY, LOUISA, COUNTESS 'oF, daughter of Prince Stolberg
Oedern. in Gennanv, was born in 1768, and was married in 1772 to
9 tarii- ... Jal 2? Rfw " p '*f U d U Young Pretender, grandson of
James II. They resided at Rome, and had a little court, by which
were addressed as king and quean. In 1780 Louisa left her
Ml ill, "ho wai much older than herself, and with whom she did
ot apse, and retired to a eonveat She afterward* went to France ;
but upoo her husband's death in 1788, she returned to Italy, and
!?Zi g !i U 7 i f* P* 00 *- >> WM thn secretly married to Count
AlfUri. the Italian poet, who died at her house in 1803. She however
, as the widow of the last of
blob happened at Florence,
and of the art*, and her
by the most distinguished person* at Florence.
"* " '"""nt by Caoova to bo erected in 1810, in the
Santa Cme, to the memory of AUUrL
ALBATKOXIUS (Astronomer). D'Herbelot calls him Mohammed
Uon Oiaber, but Mr. Uayangos, who has given more particulars of him
than any one else (in the ' Iliogr. Diet' of the Society for D. U. K.),
names him iloltammrd /on JAlir Ibn Snuln AbA AbdUtah. The term
Albategnius is the Latinised form of El Batani, or El Bateni, from
Batenra Mesopotamia, where he was born. He lived in parts of the
!>th and 10th centuries, beginning bis astronomical observations in
A.D. 877, and continuing them till his death in 029. He generally
resided at Rakkah (Aracta) or at Baghdad. His writings comprise
abridgements of Ptolemeens and Archimedes, with comments ; a work
on astronomy, chronology, and geography; a treatise on the rising of
the constellations, and various other points of astronomy ; an elemen-
tary treatise on astronomy, and one on astrology, with minor works.
The treatise on the rising of the constellations (Lnlunde in verb.
'DeUmbre') was translated from Arabic by one Plato Tiburtinus, but
badly (as was detected by H alley ). This translation was twice printed :
first as ' Alfragani Rudimenta Astronomic, et Albategnii Liber do Motu
Stellarum . . . cum Job. de Regiomonto Oratione Introductoria . . .
Norimbergte, 1637,' 4to: next as 'Albateguii de Scientist Stellarum
Liber, cum aliquot Additionibus J. liegiotnontani . . . edidit Bernar-
dinus Ugulottus, Bononbe, 1645,' 4 to. Both editions leave out the
tables which the book was written to explain, from which it is difficult
to form a very accurate idea of the labours of Albategnius ; but there
is enough to show that he was an astronomer of great merit, and of a
very independent turn of thought : it is likely that he was among the
first, if not the very first, to find out that the data used by PtoltCMMS
required correction. He seems to have had no other guide : the Indian
numerals are not found in his work, so that it is difficult to suppose
that he derived any astronomy from that quarter.
He was the first who rejected the chords, and substituted sines in
their place, and of this apparently trifling improvement we are reaping
the fruits to this day : he also used versed sines and (though without
seeing the full extent of their utility) tangents. He determined tha
obliquity of the ecliptic with the paraUactic instrument as described
by Ptolemanis, in such manner that his observation, compared with
those of our time, gives 0-505" for the annual diminution of that
element; our modern tables give it, at this time, 0'475 '. His sines
gave trigonometry, even iu his own hands, quite a new appearance
and a new power ; and he had a much greater number of methods in
spherical trigonometry than the Greeks. It is most likely that he
invented these himself, for he distinctly intimates himself to be tha
first who abandoned the chorda : the rules for finding the third side
from two sides and the included angle, and the angles from the sides,
must be attributed to him; with great simplifications in the doctrine
of right-angled triangles. He determined the length of the tropical
year, making it only 2m. 26s. too short ; a result much more exact
than that of Ptoletmeus. The same may bo said of his determina-
tions of the precession of the equinoxes, of the place of the solar
apogee, and of the eccentricity of the earth's orbit. Looking at his
determinations of the two latter, and seeing that he does not infer
that they are changeable elements, wo are left to conclude that ho
attributed the difference between himself and Ptolemicus to errors of
observation. But as it is by the research of Albategnius that succeeding
astronomers were able to infer the variability iu question, and as the
only reason for his not inferring it was bis well-grounded want of
confidence in Ptolemaous's results, he has the merit of the discovery.
Several writers have affirmed that he did announce it ; but incorrectly.
The changes which ho made in the lunar theory of Ptolemtcus are
slight, and in his plnnotary theory he has very little success. For a
fuller account of his work, see DeUmbre, ' Hist de 1'Astrou. Moyenno,'
p. 10-62. This learned and excellent historian, who rarely lete an
author go without stripping a few leaves from his crown, shows
Albategnius to great advantage in comparison with Ptolemrous as an
observer, and with his European follower liegiuiuontanus as a theorist :
and the subject of our article may fairly take rank as the greatest of
the Arabic school, which forms the link between that of the Greeks
and our own.
ALBEMAHLE, DUKK OF. [Moult.]
ALBERONI, QUILIO, CARDINAL, was born in the state of
Piaoeoca, in May, 1664. Ho was bred to the church, and became
curate of a country parish. The Duke of Vondome, who commanded
the French army in Italy during the war of the Spanish Succession
in 1702-1704, happening to be in the states of Parma, and being in want
of corn for his troops, sent for AlberouL The curate had become
personally known several years before to Campistron, the poet, one of
the duke s followers, when the Utter, travelling through Italy, and
being stripped by robbers in the same neighbourhood, was kindly
taken home by him, and his wants supplied. Alberoui, who was a
man of natural abilities and quickness, rendered himself useful to the
French general ; on which account however he became obnoxious to
the opposite, or imperial party. When Vrnddmo was recalled fnmi
Italy he took Alberoui with hint, and obtained for him a pension of
1000 French crowns from Louis XIV. Alberoni followed the duka
into Spain, where the war was then raging iu Catalonia. Vendomc
employed Alberoni in his negociations with the court of Philip V.,
where at that time the Princess Jes U rains enjoyed the greatest influ-
ence. Alberoni found favour with the princess, whoso intriguing mind
was congenial to bis own, and he became her confidant Through her
85
ALBERT I.
ALBERT, PRINCE,
86
means he was constituted agent of the Duke of Parma at the court
of Madrid, in which capacity he wag instrumental in bringing about
the marriage of Philip V. with Elizabeth Farnese, daughter of the
Prince of Parma. He set off for Parma to stipulate the marriage-
contract in the king's name. In the meantime the Princess des Ursins,
having understood that the character of the future bride was not so
mild as it had been represented by Alberoui, and that she was likely
to endanger her own influence at court, prevailed on the king to
despatch a courier to Parma, with orders to Alberoni to suspend the
negociation. The courier arrived on the eve of the day appointed for
affixing the signatures. Alberoni, it was said, by threats or bribe,
prevailed upon the man not to make his appearance until the day
after. The marriage-contract was signed in December, 1714, and the
new queen set off for Spain. The first favour she asked of her husband,
in writing, was to dimiss the Princess des Ursins from court. The
latter, who had set off from Madrid to meet her, received an order
from Philip to quit Spain immediately. The new queen, in gratitude
to Alberoui, had him appointed a member of the king's council, bishop
of Malaga, and, lastly, prime minister of Spain. He now devoted all
his energies to rouse Spain from the state of weakness into which she
had fallen during the preceding century, and mako her act a principal
part in the affairs of Europe. Alberoni was not scrupulous about
means. In violation of the Peace of Utrecht he suddenly invaded the
island of Sardinia, which had been secured to the emperor, and after-
wards in like manner conquered Sicily the Duke of Savoy being then
at peace with Spain. All Europe was astounded at this new war stirred
up by Alberoni; England, France, and the emperor resented his con-
duct; and an alliance was formed against Spam in 1719. Alberoni
defied them all : he favoured the Pretender, in order to find employ-
ment for the English at home ; he tried to excite disturbance in
France, especially among the Protestants in the south, by claiming
for Philip V. the regency of that kingdom during the minority of
Louis XV. ; and he even corresponded with Ragotski of Transylvania,
and with the Sultan, in order to divert the attention of the Emperor.
The latter sovereign was in consequence obliged to recal Prince Eugene
in the midst of his successful campaigns against the Turks, and to
conclude with the latter a disadvantageous peace at Passarowitz. The
clamour against Alberoni, on account of these intrigues, was universal.
Pope Clement XI., who had been induced by Philip V. to make Albe-
roni a cardinal, was loud in his remonstrances against him. The fall
of Alberoni was resolved by the allied powers as the only means of
restoring peace to Europe. The Duke of Parma was prevailed upon
to use his influence with the court of Spain, and especially with the
queen, who being already weary of the haughty and overbearing tone
of the cardinal-minister, induced Philip V. to write with his own hand
an order for Alberoni'g deposition, aud his banishment from the Spanish
territories. This happened at the end of 1719, after Alberoni had been
minister about three years. Alberoni repaired to Italy, where he had
transmitted large sums of money. Orders had been given by the Pope
for his arrest, which Alberoni however evaded. A process was insti-
tuted at the same time against him at Rome, which he also contrived
to protract. Pope Clement XI. having died in March, 1721, Alberoni
suddenly repaired to Rome to attend the conclave, to the astonishment
of the people, who crowded to see this famous personage. The new-
elected Pope, Innocent XIII., quashed the proceedings against him.
Some time after, Alberoni was sent as legate to Roraagna. But he
had not yet totally forgotten his habits of intrigue ; and being now
unable any longer to disturb the peace of Europe, he contrived to
embroil the diminutive republic of San Marino, which unfortunately
was placed in the neighbourhood of his government. Under the pretence
of remedying gome discontents he entered the town of San Marino, and
called upon the citizens to swear allegiance to the Pope. Some ran
away, others refused, and the rest complied through fear. The Pope
however disapproved of Alberoni's conduct, and sent another legate,
who reinstated the republican government. This occurred at the
beginning of 1740. Alberoni after this retired to Piaceuza, his native
country, where he lived in affluence, and built a large religious house.
He remained in retirement, forgotten by the world, till the 26th of
June, 1752, when he died at the advanced age of 88.
Alberoni left a quantity of manuscripts, from which a work, called
his ' Political Testament,' published at Lausanne in 1753, was said to
be derived. He is remarkable as one of the most prominent examples
of that class of statesmen who rose to power by the most pitiful
intrigue* ; and who, being uncontrolled by public opinion, thought
their own ambition and their pretended zeal for their despotic masters
n sufficient motive to plunge the people of Europe into continual
wan, in which they had no real interest, and whose effects have so
long retarded the natural progress of mankind in civilisation by the
efforts of peaceful industry.
(Muratori, Annali d' Italia; Botta, Storia d' Italia; Cox, Alenoin of
the A'inyt of .Spain of the Haute of Bourbon.)
ALBERT I., Duke of Austria, and afterwards Emperor of Germany,
was the son of liudolf of Hapiburg, the founder of the imperial Austrian
dynasty. Albert married the heiress of the former dukes of Austria.
After his father's death in 1291 he assumed the imperial title, in oppo-
ition to the votes of the electors, who had chosen Adolphus of Nassau.
After several years' war between the two competitors, Albert defeated
Adolphus, who wa> killed in battle in 1298. Albert then ascended the
imperial throne, and received after many difficulties the confirmation of
the Pope, Boniface VIII. He was next engaged in wars with the Bohe-
mians, whose country he attempted to conquer, but without success.
Soon after this the Swiss forest cantons revolted, on the 1st of Jauuary,
1308, against Albert's lieutenants, whose government was arbitrary and
oppressive : this was the beginning of the Swiss Confederation. [SWIT-
ZERLAND, in GEOG. Div.] Albert, full of indignation, came with troops
to chastise them : he advanced as far as Badcu in Aargau, where he
summoned his vassals, aud held a council for the reduction of tho
revolted cantons. On the 1st of May, 1308, Albert left Baden to
return to Rheinfelden, where the Empress Elizabeth was. As he
crossed the river Reuss at Windisch in a boat, he was separated from
the greater part of his suite, his nephew, John of Hapsburg, and three
other noblemen only, crossing over with the emperor. John, who had
lately come of ago, had been importunate with his uncle to restore to
him his father's estates in Suabia, which Albert seemed determined
to keep in his owu possession. The nephew, despairing of justice,
had formed a conspiracy with the three noblemen already mentioned ;
and as the party landed on the opposite bank of the Reuss, the con-
spirators fell upon the emperor and murdered him, in sight of his
attendants on the other side of the river, who could give their master
no assistance. Albert expired in the arms of a poor countrywoman
who happened to pass that way. The murderers fled : two of them
were afterwards taken and executed, as well as a number of other
persons mostly innocent, who 'were suspected to have been concerned
in the conspiracy. Agnes, Albert's daughter, and queen of Hungary,
carried her vengeance for her father's death to a most dreadful extent.
Nearly one hundred noble families, and one thousand persons not
noble, of every age and sex, were involved in this inhuman proscription.
The executions lasted several months. After this butchery Agnes built
a monastery on the spot where Albert had been murdered, which waa
called Konigsfelden, and here she shut herself up for the rost of her
days. The remains of this monastery and church are still to be seen,
as well as the apartments which Queen Agnes occupied. Konigsfelden
is on the high road from Basla to Baden and Zurich in Switzerland,
and in sight of the castle of Hapsburg, whence the house of Austria
origiually sprung. (Johann Miiller, Geschichte der Schweitzer.)
ALBERT, Archduke of Austria, son of the Emperor Maximilian II.,
was made a Cardinal and Archbishop of Toledo. He was appointed
by Philip II. in 1596 governor of the Low Countries, and succeeded
the Duke of Parma in the difficult task of carrying on the war against
the Dutch, who had revolted from Spain. He resigned the cardinal-
ship, and married Elizabeth of Austria, daughter of Philip II., who
brought him Flanders and Franche-Comtd as her dowry : he thus
became sovereign, nominally at least, of the Belgian provinces. lu
July, 1600, be fought the battle of Nieuport against the Dutch under
Maurice of Nassau : this engagement, in which Albert was defeated,
decided the independence of Holland. Albert next besieged Ostend,
which he took after a long and murderous siege, in which 100,000
men are said to have lost their lives on both sides. In 1609 Albert
concluded a truce with the Dutch for twelve years, before the expiration
of which he died, in 1621. He left no children, and the dominion of
Flanders reverted to Spain.
ALBERT, Prince of Mecklenburg, was called to the throne of
Sweden in 1364 by the nobility who had deposed King Magnus. The
partisans of the latter, joined with Haquin, king of Norway, carried
on the war for several years ; at last Magnus formally gave up the
crown to Albert in 1371. Waldemar, king of Denmark, dying in 1376,
his daughter Margaret, widow of Haquin, king of Norway, became
queen of both Denmark and Norway ; and soon after the Swedes, being
dissatisfied with Albert, who favoured his German countrymen at their
expense, offered to Margaret the crown of Sweden. After several more
years of war, a decisive battle was fought at Talkoping in West Goth-
land, in which the queen's forces defeated Albert, and took him prisoner
in 1388. Peace however was not re-established in Sweden till 1395,
when Albert consented to give up his claims to the crown. He then
retired into Mecklenburg, whero he died. Margaret of Waldemar thus
united ihe three northern kingdoms under one sceptre.
ALBERT, Margrave of Brandenburg, and first duke of Prussia, was
born in 1490. He was elected in 1511 Grand Master of the Teutonic
Order, who held dominion over Prussia proper, that part of the present
kingdom of Prussia which borders on the Baltic Sea. He fought
against Sigismund, kiug of Poland, for the defeuce of his order, who
had been for ages at war with the Poles. Peace was made in 1525 at
Cracow, in which Albert managed to havo the duchy of Prussia secured
to himself and his descendants as a fief of the crown of Poland, thus
laying aside the rights of the order. Albert some time after embraced
the Protestant faith, and married a princess of Denmark. One of hia
descendants, Frederic William, elector of Brandenburg, threw off the
allegiance of Poland ; and his son, Frederic I., changed the title of Duko
into that of King of Prussia in 1701. [BRANDENBURG, in GEOU. Div.]
ALBERT DORER. [DiiRER.1
ALBERT, PRINCE. Albert Francis Augustus Charles Emmanuel,
prince of Saxe-Coburg-Gotha, and consort of Queen Victoria, was bora
August 26, 1819, and was the second son of the Duke Ernest I., who
died in 1 844. Prince Albert was educated along with his elder brother,
Prince Ernest, the present Duke-regnant of Saxe-Coburg-Gotha, under
the Consistorial Councillor Florschutz, and subsequently at the
IT
Al.nEKTL LKO.V BATTI8TA.
ALIJKRTUS 1CAQXU5.
M* of i|hte*a. UK Prince U to bo Regent until .uch an
A* IVioc. wa. not unmindful of th grave responsibilities
Hi* studies are described a* tneludlni. besides
/. th* physical and natural sciences ; and also
_ in both of which arts h* attained considerable
PriaoT Albert wa* married to Queen Victoria on tb* 10th
of February 1840 at St. James'* chapel, having a few days before been
nrturalised by Act of Parliament By * Act which received the royal
4. 1840, it was provided that, in ease of the demise of
' ill have attained the
is reached.
which his
oast upon Urn, or of those" which might possibly accrue,
immediately after hi* settlement in this country h* read a
I of Eojtiah eoosUtotioaal history and law with one of our highest
authorilieaTMr. Selwyn ; and whilst h* has most judiciously held him-
erlf aloof from all political parties, h* ha* at different times shown an
intimate -~r~b>**~* with th* general bearing of great public move-
ments, such a* could only result from a careful study of the principles
of oar social economy, a dear knowledge of English institutions, and
a eooeidente observance of th* progress of events. In many of those
public questions which are distinct from party politics, and in nearly
all those which boar on the improvement of the physical condition of
the poorer cbset*, on th* progress of the mechanical and fine arts,
and in various benevolent project*, the Prince has taken a very active
part; and his speeches on public occasions have always shown an
intelligent appreciation of the objects sought to be accomplished. As
the head of the Fine Arts Commission the Prince did much towards
in motion that effort to reach the higher purposes of art which
mtiaie*! th* painting and sculpture of the last twelve or
years ; aad he has, by his zealous patronage of schools of
evinced an equal dear* to aid in raising the artistic character
of our manufacture*. But it was as the Chairman of the Council of
the Great Exhibition of 1851 that his activity and knowledge found
iu wideet scope aad fullest development ; and it seemed to be admitted
by all who were intimately connected with the origin and progress of
that great undertaking, that it owed very much of it* high position
aad ultimate raoccis to the taste, judgment, and tact of Prince Albert
Th* Prince is a field-marshal in the English army and a colonel of
the Grenadier Guards, and he is said to take much interest in the state
of the army and the condition of the soldier ; but his tastes and pur-
suit* are 'for the most part entirely of a pacific character. The fine
and mechanical art* do not, however, engross his attention. His
name appears in the list* at the Smithfield Club, and other leading
agricultural exhibitions, as a competitor, and generally as a successful
competitor, for the prize* annually adjudicated for superior breeds of
cattle, Ac. He has indeed given a good deal of time to agricultural
pursuit*, and his 'model farms' at Windsor are said by practical
farmer* to be really entitled to their designation.
Besides those above mentioned, the Prince holds several offices under
the crown. H* was elected in 1842, after a sharp contest, Chancellor
of th* University of Cambridge ; aad he is president of the Society of
ArU, Grand Master of the Freemasons, and patron or president of
various benevolent and other institutions.
ALBERTI, LEON BATTISTA, a distinguished mathematician, but
more celebrated a* an architect, and hardly less so as a philosopher,
poet, painter, and sculptor. He was of the ancient and noble family
of the Alberti of Florence, but was born in Genoa in 1404. He was
nephew of the Cardinal Alberto degl' Alberti, and he himself became
a canon of tb* metropolitan church of Florence. Having devoted
much of hi* attention to the acquisition of tho principles of architec-
ture, by the observation aad admeasurement of the remains of ancient
edifices in various part* of Italy, Alberti became distinguished among
tb* promoter* of tb* then new style, which ha* been colled a restoration
of th* ancient and classical When at Rom* he was employed by the
Fope, Nicholas V., to repair the ancient aqueduct of the Aqua Vergine,
and to construct th* Footeoa di Trevi ; but the structure was so much
decorated by Salvi, in th* pontificate of Clement XII., that not a
T**U|* now remain* of th* design of Alberti.
At Florence, Alberti succeeded to the direction of several works
which had been commenced by Brunellesohi, and left unfinished at
hi* death. H* himself designed and executed in Morenos the Palazzo
RoeeUai, th* choir and tribune of the church of the Annunciation ;
and some attribute to Alberti th* principal front of th* church of
Suite Maria Novell*. At Mantua h* executed several edifice* for the
Duke Ludovioo Gonzaga. But tb* most esteemed architectural work
of Alberti U the church of St Francis at Rimini, which ha was
empiojed to decorate by Sifianoixio MalaUsU, lord of that city. He
wrote a work on sculpture, Delia Statua,' which was followed by
other on painting, 'b. Motor*/ which h* call* pnedilectissima
*P*aU, UudaU art, " ( a most delightful art, never suffi-
iently praised"); but hi* hut and most esteemed work is hi* treatise
on architecture, De Re .Kdificatori*.' This wa* not published until
after hi. death, when it wa. edited by hi. brother Brtrend, and at
Us own detir* dedicated to Lorenzo d*' Medici. He died in 1472.
n^ntomiMt of hi* dually yet exieU in tb* church of Suite Croce,
< Vaeari. fiu <U Pillori, Ac,, ed. Soborn. : Tireboscbl 4c.)
_ALBBRTIKKLLI, MAKloTTO. on. of ltb*b*.t of the earl,
, wa* bora at Florence about 1475. U* was th*
pupil of Cosimo Ruselli, but he became eventually the frirnil :m.l
imitator of Fra Bartolomeo, whom he assisted in some of his work*.
In tone Albertinelli equalled, if he did not excel, Fra Bartolomeo.
Thar* are three of his works in the gallery of the academy at
Florence, one of which, the Annunciation of the Virgin, is a master-
piece in ton*. H* excelled for his period also in design, and some of
bis works are drawn in a style worthy of the best of the Ciuqueceu-
tisti, as the Italians term the painters of the 16th century. He drew
from the antiques in the garden of Lorenzo de' Medici. His master-
piece is considered the Visitation of Elizabeth to the Virgin, in tho
imperial gallery of Florence ; it contains however only the two saints,
but beneath it U a predella in three compartments, illustrating in
small figures the Annunciation, the Nativity, and the Presentation in
the Temple ; it has been engraved by V. dclla Bruua.
Albertinelli was of a very singular disposition, and of dissipated
habits. At one time he forsook painting, having taken offence at
some criticisms upon his works, and turned publican, an occupation
however which he soon exchanged for his original profession, lie
painted several works in partnership with his friend Fra Bartolomeo,
and when that painter joined the order of the Dominicans, Alberti-
nelli completed his unfinished works, among which was the Last
Judgment, for the cemetery of Santa Maria Nuova, which, says
Vasari, many suppose to have been the entire work of liartolomeo.
Albertinelli was so much distressed at losing the society of Bartolomeo,
when the latter turned monk, that his friends had much difficulty in
preventing him from following his example. Vasari says that he died
about 1520, aged 45, the victim of his own debaucheries. Ho had
some distinguished scholars ; the best was Viaino, who, according
to Vasari, died in Hungary ; others were Giuliauo Bugiardiui,
Franciabigio, and Innocenzio da Iniola.
Albertinelli painted in fresco in Florence, in Viterbo, and in Rome.
Visari mentions a very excellent portrait by him of tho mother of
Lorenzo de' Medici, Donna Alfonsina Orsini, daughter of Roberto
Orsini, the constable of Naples. A picture in the Louvre by him U
inscribed " Maricocti Debertinellis Opus. Anno. Dom. 1LD.VI.'' In
the chapter-house of the Carthusians at Florence, a crucifixion iu
fresco, with the same date, is marked " Mariotti Florentine Opus."
(Vasari, Vite de' Pittori, &c.)
ALBERTRANDY, JAN CHRZCICIEL, or JOHN CHRIST! AN.
bishop of Zenopolis, was born at Warsaw in the year 1731. His
father was by birth an Italian. On the death of his mother, which
occurred when he waa very young, he was placed entirely under the
care of the Jesuits, and educated in their public school. Here his
progress was so rapid, and the ability he displayed so extraordinary,
that at the age of 15 he was admitted into the order, and immediately
on the completion of his novitiate, namely, iu his 19th year, was sent
as public tutor to the college of Pultusk ; he subsequently filled the
same important post at Plovzko, Nieswiez, and Wiliia. In the year
1 700, Bishop Zolusk i, having determined to throw his extensive library
open for the benefit of the public, appointed Albertrandy his librarian.
This post he occupied four years, during which time he drew up a
very elaborate catalogue of the entire collection, stated to contain
200,000 volumes. In 1764 the Prince Lubienski confided to his
charge his grandson, Count Felix Lubienski, afterwards minister of
justice in the duchy of Wai-saw. In the year 1770 he accompanied
his pupil into Italy, to the Academy of Siena, and afterwards to
Rome. The growing inclination of tho young Lubieuski for the study
of antiquities, particularly numismatics, attracted the attention of his
instructor, who applied himself with redoubled diligence to this
science, and in the course of two years gained for himself a place
amongst the first numismatists of Europe. Two years later, Count
Felix Lubienski, having presented his collection of coins to Kin ;
Stanislaus, with a request that they might be continued under tho
care of Albertrandy, the king appointed him keeper of his medals, and
subsequently his lecturer and librarian, and keeper of his prints.
Albertraudy, anxious to avail himself of the royal confidence for tho
good of his country, proposed to the king to collect from foreign
countries the various scattered notices relating to Poland. He was iu
consequence sent into Italy in 1782, and in the course of three years
bad gleaned from the Vatican and sixteen other libraries in Rome, and
also from various collections iu other pluccs, their most important
contents relative to Poland. He shortly afterwards went to Sweden
upon a similar mission. The product of these two journeys formed
a most valuable collection of historical materials in almost 200 folio
volumes, which arc stated to have been deposited in the library of
Pulawy, by Prince Czartoryski. King Stanislaus, as an acknowledg-
ment of the extraordinary merit of Albertraudy, presented him with
the great medal of merit, and the cross of the order of St Stanislaus,
and made him Bishop of Zeuopolis. When 70 years of age he was
unanimously called upon to preside over the newly-formed Royal
Society of the Friends of Science of Warsaw, and he continued to
direct its operations with the greatest activity and zeal, enriching its
transaction* with numerous papers, until his death, which took placo
on the 10th of August, 1808. (Biographical Dictionary of the Society
for the Di/iuion of Uleful Knowledge.)
ALBERTUS MAGNUS. It is a matter of controversy whether
this celebrated scholar derived his laudatory name from tho admi-
ration of his contemporaries, or whether it was a Latinised form of
ALBINUS, BERNARD SIEGFRIED.
ALBOIN.
90
the surname Groot, or Grot. He was born at Lauingen, in Siiabia,
according to some in 1205, according to others in 1193. In 1222 he
entered the order of Dominicans. During a long series of years he
gave public lectures at Cologne, which were frequented by the prin-
cipal scholars of the age; and he filled many places of trust and
dignity. He was however unambitious of worldly honours, and he
resigned even a bishopric which was forced upon him by the Pope,
that he might enjoy the retirement of his cell, teach, and compose
books. He died in 1280. His works form 21 volumes in folio, and
are devoted to logic, physics, metaphysics, and theology.
There is great difficulty in classifying the works of Albertus, so as
to obtain a correct estimate of his system, owing to his having been
more a man of great erudition than a comprehensive and coherent
thinker. He had read more than he had thoroughly digested ; his
mind in some measure broke down beneath the extent and variety of
his learning. He had a taste for information of every kind ; but the
multiplicity of inquiries into which this universality prompted him
to enter, rendered it impossible for him to retain them except by the
mere formal memory. When any branch of science was mentioned,
his tenacious memory recalled what the authors he had read delivered
concerning it, their arrangement, and manner of dividing the subject.
He had a vigilant and sharp eye to the phenomena of external nature,
and a singular talent for clear exposition. His style and manner are
too formal ; the logical framework is pedantically ostentatious ; but
what he knows himself he makes clear to others.
All that we know of Albertus as an author or as a man is calculated
to inspire us with respect for him. If his writings do not evince the
subtle intellect of his scholar Thomas Aquinas, or the comprehensive
genius of hU master Aristotle, they evince an enthusiastic love of
knowledge, an extraordinary power of persevering labour, and a pure
and elevated disposition. Though frequently called to take part in
public business, both civil and ecclesiastical, he was free from
ambition ; his cloister-cell was his favourite abode ; adding to his
store of knowledge, and communicating it to others, his favourite
occupations. Yet such was his reputation for integrity, that laymen
selected him as umpire in disputes with dignitaries of the church who
were his personal friends, and popes consulted him even when the
interests of his order might have been supposed to bias his opinion.
When, in addition to these qualities, his influence in promoting the
progress of knowledge in Europe is taken into account, his being the
first to present the students of the middle ages with an encyclopaedia
of knowledge, it is easy to enter into the feelings of those who
bestowed upon him the name of ' Great.' There are not many
among those to whom that abused epithet has been applied who have
so well deserved it.
(Biographical Dictionary of the Society for the Difftuion of Utefal
Knowledge.)
ALBINUS, BERNARD SIEGFRIED, oue of the most celebrated
anatomists of the 18th century, was born at Frankfurt, in the year
1697. His father was professor of the practice of medicine in the
University of Frankfurt, but subsequently filled the chair of anatomy
at Leyden, then the most celebrated school of medicine in Europe.
The position of his father afforded him the advantage of studying
" om his early youth under the greatest masters of the age Boerhaave,
' luysch, and Rao. In 1718 he went to Paris to study at the hospitals,
but in the following year was recalled to Leydeu to take the office of
reader in anatomy and surgery. In 1721, on the death of his father,
he was" unanimously elected to the professorship of those sciences,
and for more than twenty years from that time he entirely devoted
himself to the study and teaching of them. In 1745 he was chosen
professor of therapeutics, and he remained in this office till his death
in 1770.
Bernard Siegfried Albinus, though the best anatomist of his time,
was not a great discoverer. The knowledge of many single facts is
due to his investigations; but he was not the author of any important
principle in anatomy or physiology. His merit consists in the accuracy
with which he investigated all the subjects of his study, the clearness
and completeness of his descriptions, and the cara which he bestowed
on the delineation of the various structures of the body. In all these
he was unequalled ; and he thus contributed more than any of his
predecessors to render descriptive anatomy an exact science. The
commencement of that close study of anatomy by which it is now
nearly perfected in its adaptation to surgery may be traced in the
publication of his works. The engraving* of the bones and muscles,
by Vandelaar, have never been surpassed in fidelity, and have rarely
been equalled in beauty of execution. They are said to have cost
Albinus 30,000 florins, for the artist lived several years under his roof,
and many of the first engravings were destroyed for trivial inaccuracies
or defects. (For a lUt of the works of Albinus, see Watt's ' Biblio-
theca Britannica,' vol. i. p. 11, :.)
ALBITTE, ANTOINE LOUIS, one of the most violent Jacobins of
the French revolution, and afterwards a humble satellite of the Emperor
Napoleon I. At an early age the violence of his principles procured
hi* election as a member of the Legislative Assembly for the depart-
ment of the Lower Seine, in September, 1791. His profession was
that of an advocate, which he carriud on at Dieppe. On the morning
after tin memorable 10th of August, 1792, he and his colleague Sera
:d and carried the resolution that every statue of a king should
be destroyed, and a statue of Liberty erected in its stead. He was
sent in September with Lecointre-Puyraveau to the department of the
Lower Seine, to disarm suspected persons, and deport the priests who
refused to take the oath. He executed his commission with great
severity, and in return was elected by the department to the National
Convention. Here he was of the number of those who voted, on the
21st of December, against allowing Louis XVI. counsel on his trial,
and shortly afterwards for putting him to death. On the 23rd of
March, 1793, he carried the decreo that emigrants taken prisoners in
foreign countries should be massacred, whether found with or without
arms. In Paris he was always the ardent opponent of the Girondins,
and the proposer or supporter of the most violent measures ; but it
was in the country, and as commissioner to the armies of the republic,
in which he attained the military rank of adjutant-general, that his
atrocities were carried farthest. He wag present in this character at
the siege of Lyon, and at the partial demolition of that city after its
capture, at the operations of Carteaux against the insurgents of the
south, and at the opening of the siege of Toulon, where he made the
acquaintance of Bonaparte, which was useful to him in after-life. His
cruelty was accompanied with luxury and avarice : at Bourg he is said
to have bathed every inoruin; in the milk that was brought for the
consumption of the town. His success and his excesses seem at this
time almost to have turned his brain : he amused himself by having
the pope, the king of England, &c., guillotined in effigy ; and when one
day at the Theatre Franjais, the pit applauded the hemistich in
Chenier's ' Caius Gracchus,' which may be translated " Let us have
laws, not blood," he rose in auger, and vociferating imprecations on the
audience, shouted out, " Let us have blood, not laws." On the fall of
Robespierre numerous denunciations of his conduct were sent in to
the Convention from the departments, and one from the adminis-
trators of the district of Bourg was referred to a committee. Albitte,
thus pressed by danger, joined in a conspiracy to re-establish the reign
of terror, which burst out in the insurrection of the first of Prairial
in the year 3 (the 20th of May, 1795), one of the most terrible days of
the whole revolution. It was on this occasion that the insurgents
broke into the Convention, compelled that assembly to pass several
decrees at the point of the sword ; and after murdering Ferand, one of
the members, presented his head on a pike to the president Boissy
d'Anglas. After a desperate contest in the hall of the Convention,
the insurgents were defeated and driven out ; and the legislative body
revoked the decrees it had passed under the influence of force, and
voted, at the proposal of Tallien, the instant arrest of the members
who had dared to bring them forward, or to countenance the conduct
of the insurgents. Albitto was ably defended by his younger brother
Jean Louis, also a representative of the Lower Seme, who, on this
occasion, broke through a course of habitual inaction ; the decree for
his arrest was nevertheless passed, but it was found that during the
confusion he had escaped. He was condemned in default of appear-
ance ; his colleagues were sentenced to death, and committed suicide
in a body to avoid the guillotine. Albitte remained concealed till the
general amnesty for revolutionary offences issued on the 26th October,
1795 (the 4th Brumaire, year 4), soon after which he was appointed
by the Directory municipal commissary at Dieppe. On the overthrow
of the Directory by Bonaparte, he became a warm partisan of his old
acquaintance, who rewarded his zeal by naming him sub-inspector of
reviews, a post which ho maintained during the imperial government.
He accompanied Napoleon I. in this capacity in the invasion of Russia,
and died of cold, fatigue, and hunger, on the retreat from Moscow, on
the 25th December, 1812. It is said that he maintained existence
during three days with the remains of a flask of brandy, which in his
last moments he shared with one of his unfortunate companions, cue
only act of benevolence that is recorded in his history. (Abridged
from the Biographical Dictionary of the Society for the Diffusion of
Uieftd Knowledge.)
ALBOIN, one of those northern princes who established kingdoms
in Italy upon the ruins of the Roman empire. He was the sou of
Audoin, king of the Lombards [LONGOBAUDS], who, about the middle
of the "ith century, were settled in, Pannonia. Here they became
engaged in hostilities with the rival monarchy of the Gepidte ; and in
the early stage of this contest, Alboin, then a youth, signalised his
courage, strength, and skill in arms ; and the prince of the Gepidte fell
by his hand. After his accession to the Lombard throno ho became
enamoured of Rosamond, daughter of Cunimond, king of the Gepidse,
and sister of him whom he had slain, and sought her in marriage. His
suit being rejected, he carried her off by force. The Gepidso, supported
by a Roman army, were strong enough to compel the restoration of
! the princess. But the love or resentment of Alboin led to the renewal
f of hostilities : he obtained the assistance of the Avars ; the Gepida;,
abandoned by the Romans, were defeated with great slaughter (A.D. 566),
and their name and uatiou passed away. Cunimond fell by the hand
of Alboin ; and Rosamond became the bride of the victor, whose savago
temper led him to fashion the skull of the deceased monarch into a
drinking-cup, loug_preserved as a trophy by the Lombard princes.
In the year 568 Alboin led the Lombards into Italy, and overran
the whole inland district, to the gates of Rome and Ravenna, without
meeting an army in the field. Milan opened its gates on the 4th of
September, 569. Before Pavia he was detained more than three
years ; and, in anger, he vowed to put all the inhabitants to the sword.
CAKIULLO DE.
ALBUQUERQUE, ALFONSO DE.
The olty at length yielded to famine. A* he entered the g.U hi*
km* bit. and could not l ri*o.| from the ground ; and UM humanity
of ooe f hi* attendant*. who (aUrpnUd thu accident w a token of
Unnei's wrath enittt bU bloody denign. induced kirn to counter-
maud UM intended BatMcre. l>.-l:ghud with UM situation. he fixed
hu ab^ el frvu, and it muaiiied for tome ag*tU chief city of the
I |M*\| ,4_rim.lM.tnl
By UM joetiee and mildness of bit government Alboin wound the
JlsrtfcMtl of bu subject*. The conquest of tbe Lombards was in eome
sort UM epoch of the ragmmUon of tbe people. Independent princi-
palities, oommuniuo., and republics, began to be formed on all sides ;
principle of life wo infused into tbe country, which bad boon to
low boned in letbarfio slumber. Tbe series of monarch* who sue-
oeeded Alboin were long dirtingiiisheil by their prudence, and by
making tbe law* their rate of conduct.
Alboin life wai terminated by domeetic treachery. Hnving drunk
deep at a feaet with tbe chief of bis countrymen, he called for tha cup
of victory, tbe akull of Cunimood ; and when it had paeied round the
circle, ordered it to be carried to Roeamond, with hU requeet tint she
would Uete tbe win*, and reioioe with her departed father. Tbe
queen obeyed, but the determined on revenge. One evening, wh-u
Alboin, oppress* d by wine and aleep, had retired to bU chamber, she
unbolted UM door to her puraraour, the king'* armour-bearer, after
UM bad benelf fattened hU tword to the scabbard. Alboin wai the
beet aad braveet of tbe Lombard warrion; but, unarmed and sur-
prised, be fell an ea*y victim. Hit valour, geuerotity, and luooesaM
were celebrated in the aongi of the German nations even to the age of
Cfcarlemegnc.
(Paul Waroefrid, Dt Gatil Zoayooanfonrai ; Huratori; Gibbon,
chap. xlv. ; Mroxd, ///ory o/ forma**. Load. 1819.)
ALBOItXO'Z. (ill. CAUIU1.I.O DE, a celebrated cardinal, WM
born at Cueooa, about the beginning of tho 14th ceutury, and became
Archbishop of Toledo. In thoee dayi churchmen were annu-times
warrion, ae well a* politician, Albornoi caved the life of hi* king,
Alphonso XL, in an engagement with the Moon at Tarifa ; wai at the
lege of Algccira*; and wae dubbed a knight by the king himself.
I>riven from Spain by hi* conscientious oppoaition to the criminal life
of Peter tbe Cruel, he sought refuge in Avignon with Pope Clement VI.,
and WM created a cardinal In 13it he wa* appointed legate, and
entrusted with the important minion of the reoonqueat of the Papal
State*. When Urban V. came to Italy, Albornos went to meet him
al Viterbo, an I tbe Pope called bu legate to give him an account of
hit administration. The cardinal ordered a cart loaded with old keys
and locks to be brought into the court of the house, and showing
it to tbe pontiff, said, " I have spent all my fund* in placing your
holiness in possueion of all tbe town* and castles, the key* of which I
present to yon." The pope, sensible of bis ungrateful mistrust towards
a man who had done so much for him, embraced him cordially, and
always after entertained for him tbe greatest esteem. Having been
appoint*<l legate of Bologna, be gave to that city a new constitution,
and at nil own expense founded there a college for the Spaniards.
Cardinal Albornoz died at Viterbo in 1361.
ALURECHT. WILHELM, was born in Germany, in 1786. He
WM one of tbe most distinguished pupil* of Thaer, in the agricultural
school at Mogbin, in Pruatia ; and he afterwards taught rural economy
in PelleaberB?* school at Hofwyl. In 1819 he was employed by the
government of Nassau to edit a weekly publication devoted to agri-
cultural subject* ; and in the following year he was made director of
an experimental agricultural school, established at Iditciu. The
experimental farm was transferred to Geubeiy, near Wiesbaden, and
it became at one* distinguished as the source of agricultural improve-
Beats for tbe west of Germany. As it was found impossible con-
stauUy to employ all tbe pupils on tbe farm, Albrvcht determined to
open tbe school, during the six winter-months, for instruction in the
theory of agriculture ; while in April of each year the students went
to the homes of their parent*, or to some farming establishment, in
Older to familiarise themselves with the practical labours of an agri-
culturist. During tbe life of Albreoht tbe school was highly success-
fuL " Tbe best students for our institute," said be, " are young men
from about eighteen to twenty-two, who, after distinguishing them-
elves at UM primary schools, have followed agriculture for eome
year* at borne, or on tome well-managed farm ; they bring a well-
disposed mind, not fatigued will, study, nor distracted by too many
pursuits." While managing theie establinhmenU, Albrecht, besides
bis weekly pap-r. edited tbe 'Annals of tbe Agricultural Society of
;' to which society he was perpetual secretary. Albreoht
1818, al bit bouse in Frauoonio, whither he had retired on
the dinotion of tbe establishment at Oeisberg, a short time
k>ljr. (AVweeU* .
LBUQUKHqUB. ALFONSO I)K (or, as tbe Portuguese write his
am*. AKr'OX.S') |> Al.ll .yUKBQUK), ...roamed -the Qreat,' and
O Mart* PortugiMs)' (tbe Portuguese Msrs), owing to his great
e*pl.*te, was born in 1163, at a country villa near tbe town of
Albandra. about tO miles from Lisbon, and not at Melinda, in Africa,
as generally .tat-.L Ue wa* tbe tseood son of Oonialvo d 1 Albu-
querque, lord of Villaverde. desceoded of a bastard branch of the
royal fatally of Portugal IB bis youth be was first eequire to King
John II. j but be fires becomes well known to us in tbe year 1603,
when, in conjunction with Francisco Albuquerque, bin cousin, or
uncle, be conducted a fleet to India, and secured the King of (
on bis throne, which bad been endangered by his powerful neighbour,
the Zamorin of Calicut In gratitude for their services they obtained
leave to build a fort at Cochin, which, according to the Portuguese
authors, is to be considered a* the foundation of their national empire
in tbe East Francisco Albuquerque was wrecked on hi* voyage home.
Alfonso reached Lisbon safely, July 16, 1501, and was favourably
received by tbe king, who sent him out to India again, in 1506, in
command of a squadron of five ships, composing part of a fleet of
sixteen, under the orders of Tristan da Cunha. For a time the
generals carried on a prosperous warfare against the Moorish cities on
tha eastern coast of Africa. Da Cunha, sailing for ludia, left Albu-
querque to command in the Arabian seas; who appeared before
Ormuz, 25th September, having already in bis cour*e reduced most of
the chief trading towns between the Red Sea and the 1'eraian Oulf.
The terms of his message to tbe prince whose territory he invaded
are worthy of attention. He came, he said, not to bring war, but
peace, peace however to bo obtained only by paying tribute to the
King of Portugal, instead of the King of Persia; but then the Portu-
guese monarch was so great a lard, th:it it was better to be hit vassal
than to command empires, /eifndiu, king of Ormuz, was obliged to
submit, after the shipping and part of the town had been burnt.
Cogi-Atar, bis prime-minister, however, concerted a revolt, which
proved successful. Albuquerque was compelled to evacuate the
place; and after an unsuccessful attempt to reduce it by famine,
returned to the island of Socotra, off Cape Guardafui, leaving hU
chief purpose unaccomplished.
Ileing joined by three ships bound to India, he set sail for tho
Malabar coast, in 150S. He had received a secret commission,
authorising him to supersede Don Francisco d' Almeida, governor of
tbe Indies, when the period of his commission should have expired.
On arriving at Caunnor he informed Almeida of this ; but the governor
received him very coldly, declined either to surrender the govern-
ment, or to accept his services in any subordinate capacity, and finally
threw him into prison, where he remained three months. The arrival
of the Grand Marshal of Portugal, with a powerful fleet, restored him
to liberty. Almeida returned home, and Albuquerque was acknow-
ledged General and Commander-in-Chief in India.
This fleet waa intended to act against the Zamorin of Calicut, whoao
long-continued hostility had made him very obnoxious to the Portu-
guese. The fleet accordingly was divided into two squadrons, of
which the marshal commanded one. Albuquerque's division gained
the start in landing, and emulation induced the marshal to venture
too fur with a small number of followers, in hopes of gaining possession
of the Zumoriu's palace. He succeeded in this; but the Indi.in-i
rallied, and he was surrounded and slain, with most of his principal
officer*. Albuquerque, in attempting to rescue him, was desperately
wounded ; and the Portuguese were forced to return to their vessels
with considerable loss, paving done much injury to the town and
shipping.
The court of Portugal had now divided their Indian government
into three portions one comprehending the eastern coast of Africa
uu'l the coaat of Asia, from the tropic of Capricorn to Cambay ; the
second, Hindustan, which was allotted to Albuquerque; the third, the
rest of India east of the Gauges, ltd chief object was to prosecute
its conquests in the Red Sea, and to monopolist) tho Indian trade by
destroying that carried on between India and Egypt. With this view
the greater part of the reinforcements sent to the East were <>i
to act in the Red Sea, under the command of George d'Aguiar ; and
Albuquerque thus seemed placed in a secondary command : but by
good fortune and good policy he succeeded in frustrating, in some
degree, the designs of the court, and contrived to gain nearly as
extensive authority as his predecessors had held. After some intrigue*
to avoid assisting his unsuccessful coadjutors, he resolved to sail to
Uoa ; and that rich and prosperous city fell into his hands almost
without reiistanoe. His energy may be judged from the rapidity
with which his enterprises were conducted. He appeared before
Calicut January 2, 1610, and though severely wounded there, ha
entered Uoa February 17th following. Hut he was unable to hold it.
That town, in name belonging to the Deocan, was governed by a
Moor named Idalcan, who, like other powerful Indian subject
little obedience to his nominal sovereign. He was absent when Albu-
querque took his town, but he lost no time in collecting a powerful
force, and by dint of numbers regained possession of it, and shut the
Portuguese up in the citadel. Albuquerque's difficulties were in-
creased, and in great measure produced, by the discontent, mutinous
conduqft, and almost treachery, of his officer*. At last he was reduced
to the alternative of abandoning the citadel and taking to his ships,
or suffering the river to be blocked up, and all chance of escape lost.
He chose the former. But the bar being impassable during the south-
west monsoon, which had already set in, he was obliged to remain i
the harbour, compelled by the enemy's fire constantly to shift bin
place, and exposed to all the evils of famine. His energy and tho
bravery of bin troops triumphed over their embarrassments; and
they maintained their ground, though not without much loss and
suffering, till tbe navigation was again open. Finally he left the
harbour, August 16, 1610.
03
ALBUQUERQUE, ALFONSO DE.
ALCAMENES.
94
In the course of the year strong reinforcements were sent out from
Portugal, and, at the same time, Lemos was recalled, and his com-
mand made over to Albuquerque. The same autumn Albuquerque
attacked Goa a second time, and carried it by storm, NOT. 25. Early
in the next year he meditated new conquests. A detachment of the
fleet, which had been sent out in the preceding year, was especially
ordered to proceed to Malacca under the command of Diego de
Vasconcellos. This Albuquerque forcibly prevented, seizing Vascon-
cellos, and sending him back to Portugal, and three of his officers
were put to death. As soon as Vasconcellos was removed, Albu-
querque sailed himself on the expedition against Malacca, which
hitherto he had put off on different pretexts, and, with some diffi-
culty, captured the town, which was given" up to plunder. Immense
wealth was obtained. The fifth of the booty, which was set apart for
the king, was valued at 200,000 gold crusadoes, exclusive of naval
and military stores, among which 3000 cannon were said to have
been found. In this expedition his troops amounted onl