Page:The American Cyclopædia (1879) Volume IV.djvu/628

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616 OITTl VECCHIA CIUDAD RODEIGO comes a delicate sweetmeat. From the out- side of the fruit and the leaves the oil of citron is prepared ; the pulp furnishes citric acid ; the seeds are very bitter and tonic ; and the bark of the root is a febrifuge. There are 12 well known varieties of citron raised in Italy, and about 20 in French and 6 in English nurseries. There are 17 varieties described and figured, and the methods of their culture minutely given, in Risso's Histoire naturelle des Grangers (Paris, 1818). CITTi VECCHIA, or < itta Notabile, a city of Malta, situated on high ground almost in the centre of the island, 6 m. W. of Valetta ; pop. about 7,000. It contains a fine Roman Catholic cathedral and other churches, vast catacombs, several convents, an episcopal seminary, and an ancient palace of the grand masters of the or- der of St. John. Previous to the foundation of Valetta, in the latter part of the 16th century, it was the capital of Malta, under its old Arabic name of Medina (the city), and it continues to be the seat of a Roman Catholic bishop. It lias lost all strategical importance, though it is walled. Some authorities regard it as identi- cal with the town of Melita mentioned by an- cient geographers. Others state that St. Paul, after having been shipwrecked on his journey to Rome, took refuge during three months in a grotto underneath the ancient church, on the site of the present cathedral. ( II DAI) REAL, Mexico. See SAN CRISTOBAL. CIUDAD REAL. I. A S. province of Spain, comprising the greater part of the old prov- ince of La Mancha, and a portion of New Castile proper; area, 7,837 sq. m. ; pop. in 1867, 264,908. It consists mainly of barren plains skirted N. and S. by lofty sierras, some of which are clad with forests, and enclose many deep valleys. They give rise to several rivers, most of them affluents of the Guadiana, which impart fertility to the land in their im- mediate vicinity. The Guadiana itself, which rises near the border of the province, traverses it from E. to W. Wheat, rye, barley, maize, oats, beans, peas, heinp, flax, aniseed, and esparto are cultivated, and horned cattle, horses, mules, asses, sheep, goats, and pigs are reared. The mountains contain iron, silver, copper, lead, antimony, cinnabar, coal, marble, granite, quartzite, jasper, &c. In the S. W. corner of the province is the famous quicksil- ver mine of Almaden. Hot and cold mineral springs are abundant. The manufactures in- 4 elude woollens, linen, cotton, silk, hardware, earthenware, saltpetre, soap, wine, oil, and brandy, and the exports consist of these ar- ticles, with many of the natural products. The imports are lace, perfumery, sugar, coffee, and rice. Manzanares, Almodovar, Calatrava, and Valdepefias are among the more important places. II. The capital of the province, situ- ated in a low plain about 5 m. from the Gua- diana and 100 m. S. S. W. of Madrid ; pop. about 10,000. Built after the expulsion of the Moors from La Mancha to serve as a check upon the remnant of that people who still maintained themselves in the Sierra Morena, it was origi- nally a place of strength, and yet retains a portion of its ancient defences, which, with its solid-looking houses and rich surrounding vege- tation, convey on a distant view a pleasing im- pression. A closer inspection shows the walls to be ruinous, the town dull and half deserted. The streets, however, are wide, level, and regular ; most of the houses have iron railings and balconies, and those facing the principal public square are lined with arcades. The handsomest building is the church of Santa Maria, consisting only of a Gothic nave of magnificent proportions, with a high stone tower. There are several other churches, six monasteries, three nunneries, hospitals, a sec- ondary college, a superior school, a house of refuge for juvenile vagrants, and fine barracks. It is the seat of a bishopric. The manufac- tures consist chiefly of coarse strong woollens, linens, table cloths, and watches. Trade is confined principally to grain, potatoes, wine, fruits, and mules. The railway from Madrid to Badajoz passes through it. Before the final conquest of Granada this was a frontier city and seat of the court of chancery for the south. It was the headquarters of the Hermandad, or holy brotherhood, founded in 1249, for the suppression of highway robbery. A battle was fought in the vicinity, March 27, 1809, in which Gen. Sebastiani, with 12,000 men, gained an easy victory over 19,000 Spaniards com- manded by Urbino, count of Cartoajal. The Spaniards lost 1,000 killed, 3,000 prisoners, and a quantity of arms and provisions. CIIJDAD RODRIGO, a town of Spain, in the province and 44 m. S. W. of Salamanca, situ- ated on the right bank of the Agueda, 15 m. from the Portuguese boundary ; ' pop. about 6,500. It occupies one of the most important positions on the frontiers of Spain, and is forti- fied by walls, a ditch, a castle, and other works, ranking as a fortress of the second class. It derives its name from its founder, Count Ro- drigo Gonzales Giron, who lived about the middle of the 12th century. It is indifferently built, but has a few interesting structures, in- cluding the cathedral, a cruciform edifice which has suffered somewhat from sieges, the chapel of Cerralbo, still beautiful despite its dilapida- tion, an Augustinian convent and church, and a handsome bridge of seven arches across the Agueda, connecting the city with its suburbs. In the market place are three Roman columns .with inscriptions, brought from ancient Mala- briga, and borne by the city for its arms. It occupies a prominent place in the early annals of Spain, but its present historical importance depends mainly upon the events of the pen- insular war. In 1810 it was invested by the French under Mass6na, was gallantly defended by the Spanish garrison, and after a siege of about 40 days was forced to capitulate. On Jan. 8, 1812, Wellington suddenly crossed the Agueda, carried one of the advanced redoubts