selected it as a winter residence, it ultimately acquired the rank of the sole capital of their dominions. On the fall of the Parthian empire it naturally declined ; but on the establishment of the Persian dynasty of the Sassanids it recovered somewhat of its prosperity, and was occasionally chosen as the residence of royalty on account of the pleasure-grounds and hunting-parks in the vicinity. At the time when it fell into the hands of the Eoman emperor Severus (232 A.D.) its population must have been very great, as it furnished no fewer than 100,000 prisoners of war. About 263 it was besieged by Odenathus, king of Palmyra; and in the minority of Sapor II. it was taken by storm by a Mesopotamian chieftain named Thair. Though the emperor Julian gained the day in a great battle before the city, and its capture seems to have been one of the chief objects of his. Manoeuvres, he retired without attempting an investment, e In 637 it was abandoned by Yezdejird, the last of the Sassanids, and seized by Sa ad, the Arabian general, who found within its walls so extensive and costly a booty that, after the works of art and a fifth of the whole were set apart for the caliph, he was able to bestow 12,000 dirhems, or upwards of X300, on each of his 60,000 soldiers. After this date the destruction of the city seems to have been rapidly accomplished ; and in the present day the site is marked by desolate ruins which, instead of preserv ing the ancient name of Ctesiphon or the more modern name of Maidan, are known to the people of the district as the burial-place of Soliman Pak, the barber of Mahomet. Amid the mounds of sun-dried bricks, one building still remains sufficiently entire to give some authentication to the glowing descriptions of the Arabian writers. This is the Takht-i-Khesra (throne of Chosroes), Tak-i-Khesra (arch of Chosroes), or, using the other form of Chosroes s name, the arch of Nushirvan, which consists of the great central hall of the palace, built in all probability by the monarch whose name it perpetuates. According to Tabari, the edifice when complete was 450 feet in length, 180 feet in breadth, and 150 feet in height : adorned in front by a portico of twelve marble pillars of the noblest dimensions; and the vaulted hall, which had a height of 85 feet and a width of 72, was decorated with the signs of the zodiac in golden stars. The whols building appears from the remains to have been composed of baked bricks covered with a coating of plaster ; but the Arabian writers speak of it as consisting of polished stons. See Flandin, Voyage en
Perse ; Rawlinson, The Seventh Oriental Monarchy.
Islands, and the most important colony of Spain, was dis covered by Columbus on 28th October 1492, during his first voyage. It was first called Juana in honour of Prince John, son of Ferdinand and Isabella ; but after Ferdinand s death it received the name of Fernandina. It was sub sequently designated Santiago, from the patron saint of Spain ; and still later Ave Maria, in honour of the Virgin. Its present name is that by which it was known among the natives at the time of its discovery. It was then divided into nine independent principalities, under as many caciques. The aborigines are described as living in a state of happy tranquillity among themselves, and possessing a religion devoid of rites and ceremonies, but inculcating a belief in the existence of a great and beneficent Being and in the immortality of the soul. Cuba was twice visited by Columbus after its discovery in April 1494, and again in 1502. In 1511 his son Diego Columbus, for the purpose of colonizing the island, fitted out an expedition, consisting of above 300 men, under Diego Velasquez, who had accompanied his father on his second voyage. Their first settlement was Baracoa, and in 1514 they founded Santiago and Trinidad. In July 1515 was planted a town called San Cristoval de la Havana, which name was transferred in 1519 to the present capital, the first-named place Toeing now called Batabano. In 1538 Havana was reduced to ashes by a French privateer ; and to prevent a similar disaster in future the Castillo de la Fuerza, a fortress which still exists, was built by Fernando de Soto, governor of Cuba, afterwards famous for his explorations in the southern and western regions of the United States, as well as for the discovery of the Mississippi. In 1 554 the French again attacked and destroyed Havana. The early settlers devoted themselves principally to the rearing of cattle ; but about 1580 the cultivation of tobacco and the sugar-cane was commenced, and this led to the introduction of the system of negro slavery. Previous to 1600 two other fortresses were built for the defence of Havana the Moro and the Punta, which are still in existence. For about a century and a half after this period the island was kept in a state of almost perpetual fear of invasion from the French, English, Dutch, or the pirates infesting these seas ; and several ineffectual efforts were made to reduce it. About 1665 the walls of Havana were commenced. In 1762 Havana was taken by an English fleet and army under Lord Albemarle, the former consisting of more than 200 vessels of all classes, and the latter of 14,041 men, while the Spanish army numbered 27,610 men. The defence was exceedingly obstinate. The English commerced operations on the 6th of June ; but it was not until the 30th of July that the Moro Castle surrendered ; and on the 14th August the city capitulated. The spoil divided among the captors amounted to 736,185. By the treaty of Paris, in February of the following year Cuba was restored to the Spaniards, and from that time its progress has been rapid ; indeed, this restoration is regarded by native writers as the true era whence its importance and prosperity are to be dated. The administration of Las Casas, who arrived as captain-general in 1790, is represented by all Spanish writers as a brilliant epoch in Cuban history. He promoted with indefatigable perseverance a series of public works of the first utility, introduced the culture of indigo, extended the commercial importance of the island by removing as far as his authority extended the trammels imposed upon it by the old system of privilege and restriction, and made noble efforts to effect the emancipation of the enslaved native Indians. By his judicious administration the tranquillity of the island was maintained uninterrupted at the time of the revolution in San Domingo ; although, as is generally believed, a con spiracy was formed at the instigation of the French among the free people of colour in Cuba. In 1795 a number of French emigrants arrived from San Domingo. In 1802 Jesu Maria, a populous suburb of Havana, was destroyed by a fire, which deprived 11,400 people of their habita tions. On the deposition of the royal family of Spain by Napoleon (the news of which arrived in July 1808) every member of the Cabildo took oath to preserve the island for the deposed sovereign, and declared war against Napoleon. Since that time the island has been ruled over by a succes sion of governor-captain-generals from Spain, armed with almost absolute authority, some of whom have conducted themselves honourably, while the names of others aro loaded with infamy, the office having been frequently sought and bestowed only as the means of acquiring a fortune. The deprivation of political, civil, and religious liberty, and exclusion from all public stations, combined with a heavy taxation to maintain the standing army and navy, have resulted in a deadly hatred between the native Cubans and the mass of officials sent from Spain. This has manifested itself in frequent risings for greater privileges and freedom. Of this kind were the conspiracy of the "Black Eagle" in 1829, the insurrection of the black
population in 1844, the conspiracy of Narciso Lopez in