Page:Collier's New Encyclopedia v. 01.djvu/545

BATHS OF AGRIPPA 445 BATTENBERa Psalm li, and among tJie ancestors of Christ (Matt, i: 6). BATHS OF AGBIPPA, the earliest of the Roman thermae; erected by Marcus Agrippa in the reign of Augustus. It stood in the Campus Martius, about 20 feet behind the Pantheon. BATHS OF CARACALLA, one of the most magnificent of the Roman thermae in the S. E. part of the city; 2,300 men could bathe in it at the same time. It was begun in 206 A. D. by Caracalla, and completed by Severus. The ruins which still remain are among the most re- markable in Rome. BATHS OF DIOCLETIAN, the most extensive of the Roman thermae; in the N. E. part of the city, and covering most of the ground between the Porto CoUina and the Porta Viminalis. Over 3,000 per- sons could bathe in it at the same time. It contained a library, picture gallery, odeum, etc. Michael Angelo transformed the great hall of the Tepidarium into a nave for the Church of S. Marie degli Angeli. One of the laconica (hot rooms) forms the vestibule of the church. BATHS OF TITUS, a structure on the Esquiline hill in Rome; built by the Em- peror Titus. Considerable ruins are found N. E. of the Coliseum. BATHURST ISLAND, on the north Australian coast, belonging to South Australia, separated from Melville Island by a narrow strait; triangular in shape, with a wooded area of about 1,000 square miles. Also an island in the Arctic Ocean, discovered by Parry, W. of Cornwallis and E. of Melville Island, 76° N., 100° W. BATON ROUGE (-rozh), city, capital of the State of Louisiana and of East Baton Rouge parish; on the Mississippi river, and several railroads; 89 miles N. W. of New Orleans. It is built on a bluff on the E. bank of the river, and commands a fine view of the surrounding territory. Architecturally, it possesses much interest, because of the mixture of French and Spanish styles. The Capitol is a structure in the Elizabethan style, showing also Gothic windows and battle- mented towers. Baton Rouge contains the State University, occupying the old United States Arsenal, the State Agri- cultural and Mechanical College, the State Asylum for the Deaf, Dumb and Blind, the State Penitentiary, an insane asylum, two orphans' homes, a collegiate institute, and other institutions. The city has National and State banks; several laily and weekly newspapers; and a lar^e trade with the surrounding cotton and sugar growing regions. It was here, on Jan. 26, 1861, that the State Conven- tion adopted the ordinance of secession; on May 7, 1862, the city was taken by the United States forces; on August 5, following, a determined Confederate at- tack was repulsed; and the city was held by the Union troops till the close of the war. Baton Rouge was the capital of the State from 1847 to 1864, when the seat of government was removed to New Orleans, but on March 1, 1882, it was again located in this city, where it has since remained. Pop. (1910) 14,897; (1920) 21,782. BATOUM, or BATUM (ba-tom'), a port on the E. coast of the Black Sea, acquired by Russia by the Treaty of Ber- lin, on condition that its fortifications were dismantled and it was thrown open as a free port. It rapidly grew to be the main outlet for Transcaucasia; its harbor was enlarged for alleged commer- cial reasons; an arsenal was built out- side it; it was connected by a military road with Kars; and, finally, in July, 1886, the Russian government declared it to be a free port no longer. As a re- sult of the World War Batoum became part of the Republic of Georgia {q. v.). It is the capital of the province of the same name (area, 6,129 square versts; pop., about 123,000). The Allied Su- preme Council, in April, 1920, interna- tionalized it and made it the common outlet for Armenia, Azerbaijan, and Georgia. The city is the terminus of the Transcaucasian railway and of the petroleum pipe line from Baku and the principal center of export for petroleum from the Baku fields. Pop. about 25,000. BATTALION, an assemblage of com- panies; the tactical and administrative unit of infantry — that is, the first body that is, as a rule, used independently, and commanded by a field officer (major or lieutenant-colonel). BATTENBERG, name of a family conspicuous in British and Bulgarian history. The title Countess of Batten- berg was conferred in 1851 on Prince Alexander of Hesse's morganatic spouse, the Countess Hauke (1825-1895). Fruits of that union were Prince Louis Alex- ander (born at Gratz, May 24, 1854; ad- miral British royal navy), who in 1884 married the eldest daughter of the Prin- cess Alice; and in 1917 was created by royal decree Marquis of Milford Haven, dropped his former title of Prince of Battenberg, and, together with the other members of the British branch of the House of Battenberg, assumed the family name of Mountbatten; Prince Alexander ' (1867-1893) see below; and Prince