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 CATANIA

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CATANIA

the Prince of Yiana, who was generally beloved by the Catalans. From this resulted a war lasting twelve years. The marriage of Fernando (Ferdinand) II of Aragon with Isabel of Castile established Spanish unity and Castilian preponderance, to which, also, the discovery of America in the name of Castile, together with the diversion of commerce from the Mediterra- nean to the Atlantic, and the consequently dimin- ishing economic importance of Barcelona and other ports on that coast, largely contributed. Catalonia no doubt played an important part in the direction of Spanish policies in Italy, and the principality lived in a st ate of contentment under the first three Austrian monarchs. But the misgovernment of Philip IV provoked an uprising in Catalonia (Feast of Corpus Christi, 1640), and the insurgents named Louis XIII of France Count of Barcelona. This insurrection, however, was suppressed by the Castilians. In the War of the Succession Catalonia embraced the cause of the Archduke of Austria against Philip V, who punished the Catalans (1713) by abolishing their ancient fueros, or constitutional rights. Catalonia was the first region of Spain to rise against the Napo- leonic tyranny, and overthrew the French in 1808.

The Catalan Renascence. — A revival of the local spirit, beginning with the cultivation of the Catalan language, resulted in the birth of a considerable liter- ature during the nineteenth century. In 1859 the Floral Games were revived, and. thanks to this insti- tution, the study of Catalan history and literature has been so fostered as to arouse, first among the literary classes and then among the masses of the people, new aspirations for a Catalan autonomy within the Spanish monarchy. The literary move- ment has. indeed, developed into a political, and the Catalans, bound together by one common aspiration, are demanding of the Spanish monarchy the restitu- tion of their ancient rights.

Actual Conditions. — What was anciently the Countship of Barcelona is now the Principality of Catalonia, divided into the four provinces of Barce- lona, Tarragona, Lerida, and Gerona.

The Province of Barcelona, with an area of 2965 square miles, includes 327 municipalities. Its prin- cipal city, Barcelona (pop. 525,977), beautifully situated between the sea and a chain of verdant mountains, possesses a port which is considered one of the best on the Mediterranean, both by nature and by its recent improvements. The city combines the attractions of a great modern metropolis with the interesting associations of a long history, the presence of so many magnificent old buildings seeming to stimulate modern enterprise in the same direction. (See Barcelona.) Many smaller cities — e. g. Sabadell. Tarrasa, Manresa (see Ignatius Loyola, Saint), Reus — depend industrially on Barcelona, and the banks of the Llobregat and the Ter are bor- dered with paper-, spinnum-. and other mills, which utilize the motive power of the numerous waterfalls.

The 184 municipalities of Tarragona aggregate 2503 square miles in area. The province produces wine, vinegar, and fruits in great abundance. Its capital, Tarragona (pop. 25,000), was selected by the Romans for its exceptionally fine situation upon a slight eminence, the sea on one side, and a very fertile fruit-producing district on the other: in spite of the excellence of its harbour, its importance lias decreased through the transfer of industries to Reus and of com- merce to Salou, a little farther south. Historically, Tarragona is one of the world's most interesting cities. Tortosa, an ancient episcopal see, is also commercially famous for its vinegar.

Lerida. the largest, but the least wealthy, province of Catalonia, has an area of 4685 square miles, divided into 324 municipal districts. Its resources are agri- cultural, chiefly fruits and timber. Besides Lerida. the capital (the ancient llerda), the most important

cities of this province are: Cervera, in ancient times the seat of a university celebrated for its theological faculty, Seo de I'rgel. and Solsona.

The Province of Gerona (the ancient Marco. His- ■panka), with an area of 2261 square miles, divided into 249 municipal districts, has a generally moun- tainous surface, which produces large quantities of cork of the best quality. Its long coastline, with numerous small harbours, is excellently adapted for both fishing and navigation. Its principal cities are: Gerona. the capital (pop. about 15,000), a city of great historical importance, famous for its remark- able variety of mineral waters: Figueras, with its once redoubtable fortress: Olot, situated in a volcanic region abounding in springs.

In the judiciary department of its government Catalonia is served by a single district court {audien- cia), that of Barcelona, with criminal tribunals in the four provincial capitals. Barcelona having seven- teen courts of first instance (five of them in the capital itself). Tarragona eight, Lerida eight, and Gerona six. In the military administration, the Captaincy- General of Catalonia is one of the fourteen military districts of Spain, and is divided into four military governments. It belongs to the naval department of Cartagena, and has stations at Barcelona, Tarra- gona, Tortosa, Mataro, and Palamos. It has only one university, that of Barcelona, with four provin- cial and two local institutes (Figueras and Reus).

Ecclesiastical Divisions. — The principality of Catalonia forms the ecclesiastical province of Tarra- gona, the archiepiscopal see of which is. according to tradition, one of the most ancient in Spain, dating from the first century of Christianity. The suffragan dioceses are Barcelona (a see claiming Apostolic origin), Gerona, Lerida Solsona. Tortosa. Urgel, and Vich. The following table gives briefly the most complete statistics obtainable of religious communi- ties in the Province of Tarragona: —

Religious Communities

Dioceses

Mt n

Women

tered

Clois-

Not clois

tered

Colleges

Houses

Benevolent

institutions

Tarragona

2

9

2

Barcelona

19

8

39

12

Gerona

2

7

Lerida

5

6

13

Solsona

8

19

24

10

Tortosa

5

13

19

6

12

Urgel

6

3

28

33

4

Vich

8

5

(See also separate articles on Tarragona, Barce- lona, Gerona, and the other dioceses.)

Boi chill, Historia < \ra de Cataluna (Barce-

lona); IUrroso. Anuario Madrid, 1904):

l'Ogr-ipca._.p,ir In flirrceinn general del liixtltuto

Qeoardfico y Ettadtotico (Madrid, L888); El Prmeipado d, Cata-

tuna in Bulttln de la Real Aeademia de hi Historia, XL, 261. Ramon Ruiz Amado.

Catania, Archoiocese of (Catanensis). Ca- tania, a seaport and capital of the province' of the same name in Sicily, is situate.! on the eastern side of Mount I .i hi in :i vi ry fertile region. It was known to the ancients as Catana or Catma. Founded (c. 730 b. c.) by Chalcidian emigrants from Naxos, Catania was soon a flourishing city. Hiero I. King of Syracuse,

in 4 7t > B. C. transported these first settlers to Leon- tini (now Lentini) and tilled Catania with Syracusans and Peloponnesians. The former inhabitants at- tempted to regain possession of the city, but were driven back by Dionysius and Agathocles. Catania accepted the Woman yoke during the First Punic War, and after the fall of the Roman Empire shared the