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beft calculations, is about go,000,000; the number of Proteftants only 24,000,000, which is a proportion of nearly 4 to 1.

A concife view of the feveral counties of Europe, proceeding from fouth to north, follows. My authorities are Zimmermann and Guthrie.

PORTUGAL.

Miles.

Length 300
Breadth 100

Between

{37° and 42° North Latitude.
7° and 10° Weft Longitude.

Boundaries.] BOUNDED north and eaft, by Spain; fouth and weft, by the Atlantic Ocean. Containing 19 towns, 527

villages, 3343 parishes.

Rivers. Every brook in Portugal is called a river. Its rivers rife in Spain, and run weft through Portugal, into the Atlantic. The moft noted is the Tagus.

Capital.] LISBON, at the mouth of the Tagus, containing about 150,000 inhabitants. In 1755, it was laid level with the ground by a tremendous earthquake, which was fucceeded by a general conflagration, in which catastrophe upwards of 10,000 people loft their lives.

Climate, Productions, and Commerce.] Portugal, fituated in a genial climate, abounds in excellent natural productions, and is well watered. It poffeffes very rich provinces in, and upon the coaft of, Afia, Africa, and America. It is, however, not proportionably powerful; its inhabitants are indigent, and the balance of trade is against it. It is even obliged to import the neceffaries of life, chiefly corn, from other countries. Portugal produces wine, wool, oil, filk, honey, anifeed, fumac, a variety of fine fruits, fome corn, flax, and cork. In 1785, the goods imported from Great-Britain and Ireland into Portugal, confifting of woollens, corn, fifh, wood, and hard ware, amounted to upwards of .960,000 fterling. The English took in return, of the produce of Portugal and Brafil, to the amount of £.728,000 fterling. Only 15 millions of livres are fuppofed to circulate in a country which draws annually upwards of £1,500,000 fterling, or 36 millions of livres, from the mines of Peru. Since the discovery of these mines, that is, within 60 years, Portugal has brought from Brafil about 2400 millions of livres, or £.100,000,000 fterling.

Government and Religion.] Since the council of the three estates, viz. the clergy, the nobility, and the cities, the members of which are nominated by the king, was fubftituted in the room of diets, or meetings of the states (which event took place the latter end of the laft century); the govern. ment of the kingdom of Portugal has been absolutely monarchical. The proceedings of the courts of justice are flow and arbitrary, and the number of lawyers and law officers is exceedingly great.

The

The fate of religion in Portugal is the fame as in Spain. The Portuguefe clergy confift of one patriarch, a dignity granted to the church of Portugal in the year 1716, of 3 archbishops, and 15 bishops. The whole number of ecclefiaftics is 200,000; 30,000 of which, and some fay 60,000, are monks and nuns. The number of convents is 745. The number of clerical perfons to that of the laymen is as 1 to 11.

Hiftory.] Portugal was anciently called Lufitania, and inhabited by tribes of wandering people, till it became fubject to the Carthaginians and Phoenicians, who were difpoffeffed by the Romans 250 years before Chrift. In the fifth century it fell under the yoke of the Suevi and Vandals, who were driven out by the Goths of Spain, in the year 589; but when the Moors of Africa made themfelves masters of the greateft part of Spain, in the beginning of the eighth century, they penetrated into Lufitania z there they established governors, who made themfelves kings. After many fruitless attempts made by the kings of Leon on this part of Spain, Alonzo V. king of Caftile and Leon, carried here his victorious arms, and to infure his conqueft, he gave it, in the year 1088, with the title of count, or earl, to Henry, grandfon of Robert, king of France, who had married Therefa, Alonzo's natural daughter. Henry was fucceeded in his earldom by his fon Alonzo, who, encouraged by his conquefts over the Moors, in the year 1139 affumed the title of king of Portugal. His fucceffors continued till 1580, when, upon the death of Henry, furnamed the Cardinal, it was feized upon by Philip II. king of Spain, after a war of two or three years; but in 1640, the people rebelled, fhook off the Spanish yoke, and elected for their king the duke of Braganza, who took the name of John IV. in whofe family it has ever fince remained independent of Spain. Her prefent Majefty's name is Mary Frances Ifabella, who acceded to the throne in the year 1777•

Miles.

SPA I N.
PAIN.

Length 700 Between 3 and 10 Eaft Longitude.

36° and 44° North Latitude.

Breadth 500 J {30 14

Boundaries.] BOUNDED weft, by Portugal and the Atlantic ; north, by the Bay of Bifcay and the Pyrenean mountains, which divide it from France; east and fouth, by the Mediterranean fea, and the Straits of Gibraltar.

Spain is divided into 14 diftricts, in which are 139 towns, and 21,083 villages and boroughs.

Rivers.] The Deuro, the Tagus, the Guadiana, the Guadalquiver, all which fall into the Atlantic ocean, and the Ebro, the ancient Îberus, which falls into the Mediterranean.

Capital. MADRID, fituated on a branch of the river Tagus, containing 140,000 inhabitants. CADIZ, fituated on the Atlantic, a little

to

to the northward of the Straits of Gibraltar, is the great emporium of Spain, and contains 80,000 inhabitants.

Wealth and Commerce.] The advantages of Spain, as to climate, foil, natural productions, rivers, navigation, and foreign poffeffions, which are immensely rich, ought to raife this monarchy high above all other powers of Europe. Yet the reverfe is the cafe: Spain is but thinly peo pled-has but little commerce-few manufactures-and what commerce it has, is almost entirely in the hands of ftrangers, notwithstanding the impediments thrown in their way by the government.

Spain produces excellent oranges, lemons, almonds, figs, grapes, pome. granates, dates, pistachios, capers, chefnuts, tobacco, foda, faffron, honey, falt, faltpetre, wines of a rich and delicious flavour; cotton, rice, corn, oil, wool, filk, hemp, flax, &c. which, with proper industry, might be exported to an amazing amount. And yet all the exports of Spain, moft articles of which no other country can fupply, are estimated at only 3,333.333 fterling. Spain does not produce eorn enough for its own confumption, and is under the neceffity of importing large quantities.

Government.] Spain is an abfolute monarchy. The provinces of Navarre, Bifcay, and Arragon, have preferved fome of their ancient privileges. The king's edicts must be registered in the court of Caftile, before they acquire the force of laws. The crown is hereditary both in the male and female line. By a law made in 1715, female heirs cannot fucceed till after the whole male line is extinct.

Religion.] The Roman Catholic religion, to the exclufion of all others, is the religion of the Spanish monarchy; and it is, in these countries, of the moft bigotted, fuperftitious, and tyrannical character. All other denominations of Chriftians, as well as Jews, are expofed to all the feveri, ties of perfecution. The power of the court of Inquifition, established in Spain in 1578, has been diminished, in fome refpects, by the interference of the civil power. It is fuppofed that the clergy of this kingdom amount to 200,000, half of whom are monks and nuns, diftributed in 3000 convents. The revenue of the archbishop of Toledo is 300,000 ducats. There are in the kingdom of Spain 8 archbishops, 46 bishops; in America 6 archbishops and 28 bishops; in the Philippine ifles, one archbishop and 3 bishops. All thefe dignities are in the gift of the king. Fifty-two inferior ecclefiaftical dignities and offices are in the gift of the

pope.

Hiftory.] The firft inhabitants of Spain were the Celta, a people of Gaul; after them the Phoenicians poffefled themfelves of the moft fouthern parts of the country, and may well be fuppofed to have been the first civilizers of this kingdom, and the founders of the moft ancient cities. After thefe followed the Grecians; then the Carthaginians, on whofe departure, fixteen years before Chrift, it became fubject to the Romans, till the year 400, when the Goths, Vandals, Suevi, Alans, and Sillingi, on Conftantine's withdrawing his forces from that kingdom to the east, invaded it, and divided it amongst themselves; but the Goths in a little time were fole mafters of it under their king ALARICK I. who founded the Spanish monarchy. After a regular fucceffion of monarchs, we come to the prefent king CHARLES IV, who afcended the throne in 1788.

FRANCE,

FRANCE.

Miles.
Length 600

Between

{450 and East Longitude.

145° and 51° North Latitude.

OUNDED north, by the English channel and the Boundaries.] Netherlands; eaft, by Germany, Switzerland, and Italy; fouth, by the Mediterranean and Spain; weft, by the Bay of Bifcay. Containing 400 cities, 1500 fmaller towns, 43,000 parishes, 100,000 villages.

Climate, Soil, Rivers, Commerce, &c.] France is fituated in a very mild climate. Its foil in moft parts is very fertile; it is bounded by high ridges of mountains, the lower branches of which crofs the greater part of the kingdom; it confequently abounds with large rivers, fuch as the Rhone, the Loire, the Garonne, the Seine, &c. to the amount of 200, which are navigable; and it is contiguous to two oceans. Thefe united advantages render this kingdom one of the richest countries of Europe, both with refpect to natural productions and commerce. Wine is the ftaple commodity of France. One million fix hundred thousand acres of ground are laid out in vineyards; and the net profit from each acre is estimated at from 4 to 7 pounds fterling. France annually exports wines to the amount of 24 millions of livres. The fruits and other productions of France do not much differ from thofe of Spain, but are raised in much greater plenty. France has very important fisheries, both on her own, and on the American coaft.

In 1773, there were in France 1500 filk mills, 21,000 looms for filk ftuffs, 12,000 for ribbands and lace, 20,000 for filk ftockings, and the different filk manufactures employed 2,000,000 of people.

In point of commerce, France may be ranked next to England and Holland. The French have the greatest share of the Levant trade-they enjoy fome valuable commercial privileges in Turkey---but their WeftIndia poffeffions, which are admirably cultivated and governed, are the richeft. Before the late American war, the balance of commerce in favour of France was estimated at 70,000,000 livres, and has not fince been diminished.

Government.] This is a point which is not yet fettled. When a permanent government fhall be fixed, we fhall give an accurate delineation of it in a future edition.

Religion.] The established religion of this kingdom is the Roman Catholic; but all others are now tolerated.

In France there are 18 archbishops, 111 bishops, 166,000 clergymen. Learning.] The fciences have arifen to a very great height in this kingdom, and this nation can boast of having produced great mafter pieces

K k

in

in almost every branch of fcientific knowledge and elegant literature. There are 20 universities in France. The royal academies of fciences, of the French language, and of infcriptions and antiquities at Paris, are juftly celebrated.

Hiftory.] France was originally the country of the ancient Gauls, and was conquered by the Romans twenty-five years before Chrift. The Goths, Vandals, Alans, and Suevi, and afterwards the Burgundi, divided it amongst them from A. D. 400 to 476, when the Franks, another fet of German emigrants, who had fettled between the Rhine and the Maine, completed the foundation of the present kingdom under Clovis, It was conquered, except Paris, by Edward III. of England, between 1341 and 1359. In 1420 an entire conqueft was made by Henry V. who was appointed regent, during the life of Charles VI. acknowledged heir to the crown of France, and homage paid to him accordingly. The English crown loft all its poffeffions in France during the reign of Henry VI. between 1434 and 1450.

The prefent king of this empire, is Lewis XVI. who was born Aug. 23, 1754; married Maria Antonietta of Auftria, May 16, 1770; ac ceded to the throne upon the death of his grand-father Lewis XV. May 10, 1774; and was crowned at Rheims, June 12, 1775

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ITA

TALY is a large peninfula, fhaped like a boot and fpur; and is bounded north, by the Alps, which divide it from France and Switzerland; eaft, by the gulf of Venice, or Adriatic fea; south and west, by the Mediterranean fea.

The whole of the Italian dominions comprehending Corfica and Sardinia, are divided as follows:

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