BRIEL 180 BRIGANDS it is addressed. The brief is an official document, but of a less public char- acter than the bull. BRIEL, or BRIELLE, sometimes THE BRILL, a fortified seaport town of South Holland, on the N. side of the island of Voorne, near the mouth of the Maas. It contains a government arsenal and military magazines, and possesses a good harbor. Pop. 4,000, chiefly en- gaged as pilots and fishermen. Briel may be considered as the nucleus of the Dutch republic, having been taken from the Spaniards by William de la Marck in 1572. This event was the first act of open hostility to Philip II., and paved the way to the complete liberation of the country. The celebrated admirals De Witt and Van Tromp were natives. BRIENNE (bre-en') a town of France, in the department of Aube; 15 miles N. W. of Bar-sur-Aube. It is remark- able as formerly possessing a military college where the Emperor Napoleon I. received the first rudiments of his ed- ucation. Here also he attacked Bliicher, Jan. 29, 1814, forcing him from the town and compelling him to retreat to Trannes. BRIEY, BASIN OF, a rich mineral district in Lorraine, close to the former frontier between France and Germany, on the railway that runs due west from Verdun to Metz. It is the greatest iron producing district in the world. In 1916 the mines of the Briey basin produced nearly 42,000,000 tons. At that time the district was in the hands of the German invaders. Had not the rush of the German armies in 1914 gained possession of the district, Germany would never have been able to prolong the war, for during the conflict it pro- duced 80 per cent, of the steel for the German armament. Had Germany won, it was the announced purpose of her rulers to make the possession of the dis- tinct one of the terms of peace. The Basin of Briey runs from the Belgium-Luxemburg frontier up the left bank of the Moselle at an average dis- tance of 10 miles from the river. It has an area of 225 square miles, its greatest length being 35 miles and its greatest breadth 21 miles. The bound- ary line between France and Germany cut the district nearly in two. At the outbreak of the war, Germany was min- ing about 21,000,000 tons annually from her part of the Basin and France 15,000,- 000. All through the conflict Germany was adding the French production to her own, and in addition was mining about 6,000,000 tons from that part of the dis- trict that reached over into Luxemburg. It gave her an incalculable advantage in the struggle. The Treaty of Peace with Germany put the Briey district under the control of France. BRIG (contracted from brigantine), a vessel with two masts, square-rigged on both. BRIGADE, a portion of an army, whether infantry, cavalry, or artillery, consisting of two or more regiments, under the command of a brigadier- general. BRIGADE MAJOR, a staflF officer at- tached to the brigade to assist the of- ficer by whom it is commanded, BRIGADIER, an abbreviation of brig- adier-general. It is in common use in the armies of modem civilized nations, the forces being divided into brigades in charge of brigadiers. BRIGADIER-GENERAL, a military officer of intermediate rank, between a major-general and a colonel. See Brevet. BRIGANDINE, a piece of defensive armor worn in the Middle Ages, con- sisting of thin jointed scales of plate, generally sewed upon linen or leather, the whole forming a coat or tunic. BRIGANDS, a name originally given to the mercenaries who held Paris dur- ing King John's imprisonment (1358), and who made themselves notorious for their ill behavior. It was applied by Froissart to a kind of irregular foot soldiery, and from them was trans- ferred to simple robbers; it is now used especially of such of these as live in bands in secret mountain or forest retreats. In Cuba, in 1888, political dis- content was made the excuse for the brigandage then rampant in the island, where four provinces were on this ac- count declared in a state of siege. Re- ligious persecution also has encouraged brigandage; in Bosnia, which has always produced the most perfect speci- mens of bandits, it was formerly very common, the unhappy Christians, who were reduced by the Turks to the con- dition of serfs, frequently taking to the mountains in despair, and then wreak- ing vengeance on their oppressors. Gen- erally speaking, in countries with a notably scanty population, which is yet in many districts as notably over- crowded, brigandage will be found still in existence. Vigorous steps have been taken during the last 50 years to re- press the practice, and in some coun-
