Page:The American Cyclopædia (1879) Volume III.djvu/768

 758 CAPMANY Y MONTPALATJ CAPO D'ISTRIA CAPMAJTV MONTPALAU, Antonio d, a Span- ish writer, born in Barcelona, Nov. 24, 1742, died in Cadiz, Nov. 14, 1813. lie served in the wars with Portugal in 1762, left the army in 1770, and joined Olavide in his scheme for colonizing and cultivating the Sierra Morena with Catalans. This enterprise terminated disastrously, and Capmany removed to Madrid. He was chosen secretary of the royal historical academy in 1790, filled several offices in the gift of the government, and travelled in Italy, Germany, France, and England. When the French entered Madrid in 1808, he fled to Seville, and joined the insurrection in defence of Spanish independence. He was chosen a member of the cortes of Cadiz, in which capa- city he made himself conspicuous by his patri- otism and active opposition to the usurpers. His works, which enjoy a high reputation in Spain, are numerous ; among them are Me- morias hutoricas sobre la marina, comercio y artes de la antigua ciudad de Barcelona (3 vols. 4to) ; Cuestiones criticas sobre varies pun- tos de historia, economica, politic y militar ; Teatro hutorico-critico de la elocuencia espa- nola ; and Diccionario frances-espaftol. His work on Barcelona contains valuable details upon the commerce, industry, and maritime law of the middle ages. CAPOCCI DI Kill. noMK. Eraeste, an Italian as- tronomer, born at Picinisco, March 28, 1798. He was early employed in the observatory of Naples, under the direction of his uncle, the chevalier Zuccari, and that of his successors. His labors relating to the orbits of new comets and spots on the sun were regarded as very valuable. For Encke's celestial atlas he pre- pared (1839-'42) the difficult description of the 18th hour of the heavens, for which he receiv- ed the acknowledgments of the academy of Berlin. He was appointed director of the obser- vatory of Naples, but lost the place on account of his sympathy with the liberal movement, as a member of the Italian parliament (1848-'9). He was reinstated in his position after the es- tablishment of the kingdom of Italy, and named senator, but has since retired. He wrote a his- torical novel, Le premier vice-roi de Naples (Paris, 1838). CAPO D'ISTRIA, a town of Istria, Austria, in a district of the same name, 8 m. S. S. E. of Trieste; pop. in 1869, 9,169. It occupies a nearly circular island, which is connected with the mainland by a stone causeway, built by the French in place of a former wooden bridge. The buildings are chiefly of a Venetian charac- ter, the most notable being the palazzo pubblico, built in an irregular Gothic style upon the site of an ancient temple of Cybele. The city has a good harbor, a cathedral, about 30 churches, two convents, an academy and gymnasium, an aqueduct, and extensive salt works. It is said to have been founded by the Colchians, under the name of '^Egida. In the 6th century many wealthy families sought a refuge there from the Lombards and Avars. Having been conquered by the emperor Justinian I., it was named by him Justinopolis, in honor of his uncle Justin I. Later it became an independent common- wealth ; was annexed to Venice in 932 ; con- quered by the Genoese in 1380; fell again un- der Venetian supremacy about 100 years later ; and was annexed to Austria in 1797. CAPO D'ISTRIA, or Capodlstrias, a noble family connected with the early history of the modern Greek kingdom. I. John Anthony, count of Capo d'Istria, born in Corfu about 1780, assassinated at Nauplia, Oct. 9, 1831. He was educated for a physician, but entered upon a political career. "When the Ionian Islands became a vassal state of Turkey, under British and Russian protec- tion, Capo d'Istria filled several public stations, from 1802 to 1807. The islands having been returned to France by the treaty of Tilsit, he accepted a place in the Russian ministry of foreign affairs, and was employed in many di- plomatic missions. In 1816 he was appointed secretary of foreign affairs in Russia. In 1819 he visited his native country in order to sound the popular feeling. The results of his visit were stated by him in a pamphlet, in which he endeavored to demonstrate that it was the province of absolute governments to educate the people for the enjoyment of freedom. This doctrine was not palatable to the leaders of the Greek insurrection, and the movement begun by them in 1821 was disavowed by Russia. Capo d'Istria lost his office in 1822, and went to Switzerland, where he succeeded in regain- ing the confidence of the Greek leaders. With the consent of the British ministry and the Russian government, he was elected president or regent of Greece by the national convention assembled at Damala in 1827. Before as- suming the government he went to St. Peters- burg, where, it is generally believed, he re- ceived secret instructions from the Russian government. He landed at Nauplia in January, 1828, and for a very short time commanded the confidence of the people ; but instead of ful- filling his pledge to form a great national army and repulse the Turkish army under Ibrahim Pasha, he left the defence of the country to foreign diplomacy, promulgated a code of laws of the utmost severity, opposed the election of Prince Leopold of Saxe-Coburg to the throne of Greece, and seemed to have no other object in view except to prepare Greece for Russian annexation. The island of Hydra became the seat of a violent opposition against his measures as early as 1829. In consequence of the French revolution of 1830, insurrectionary movements broke out which only Russian assistance ena- bled him to suppress. But at last he was stab- bed by the relatives Constantine and George Mavromichalis, as he was entering the church of St. Spiridion. II. Vlaro, eldest brother of the preceding, died in 1842. He was originally a jurist in Corfu, and in 1828 became a member of the Panhellenic organization, in the depart- ment of war and the marine, and was soon af- ter appointed governor of the western Spora-