from the mainland in 1421, by an inundation which swept away 72 villages, and about 100,000 inhabitants. Con cerning its origin there is no authentic information, but it is certainly one of the oldest cities of Holland, and probably dates from the 10th century. It was surrounded by walls in 1231 by Florent IV., count of Holland, who made it his residence, and granted it many important privileges. In 1457, almost the entire town, including the church of Notre Dame, founded in 1366, and other public buildings, was destroyed by fire. One of the first towns in the Netherlands to embrace the Reformed religion, and to throw off the yoke of the Spanish king, it was chosen in 1572 as the meeting-place of the deputies by whom the independ ence of the United Provinces was first asserted ; and in 1618 and 1619 it became intimately associated with the theological history of Europe, as the seat of the great synod which declared against the Arminian party. Among its celebrities are the De Witts and Ary Scheffer the artist. The town- hall is a handsome building, and the principal church is an old Gothic structure 300 feet long by 125 wide, with a heavy square tower, and numerous monumental stones, some of great antiquity. The hall in which the synod was held is now demolished. The houses are generally of an antique fashion, with the gables turned outwards, and many of them date from the period of the Spanish occupation. Dort possesses a good harbour, from which two canals lead to the centre of the town. It carries on an extensive trade in corn, flax, salt fish, train oil, and the timber which is brought down the Rhine ; and it has shipbuilding docks, saw-mills, sugar-refineries, tobacco- factories, linen-bleacheries, salt-works, and white-lead works. Population in 1850, 20,878, and in 1874,
25,577.DORT, Synod of, an assembly of the Reformed Dutch Church, with deputies from France, Switzerland, the Pala tinate, Scotland, and England, called to decide the theological differences existing between the Arminians (or Remonstrants) and the Calvinists (or Counter Remonstrants), was held at Dort or Dordrecht in the years 1618 and 1619. During the life of Arminius a bitter controversy had sprung up between his followers and the strict Calvinists, led by Francis Gomar, his professorial colleague at Leyden ; and, in order to decide their disputes, a synodical conference was proposed, but Arrninius died before it could be held. At the conference held at the Hague in 1610, the Armiuians addressed a remonstrance to the States-general in the form of five articles, which henceforth came to be known as the five points of Arminianism. This conference had no influence in reconciling the opposing parties, and another, held at Delft in the year 1613, was equally un successful In 1614, at the instance of the Arminiau party, an edict was passed by the States-general, in which toleration of the opinions of both parties was declared, and further controversy forbidden ; but this act only served, by rousing the jealousy of the Calvinists, to fan the contro versial flame into greater fury. Gradually the dispute pervaded all classes of society, and in nearly all the towns both parties began to hold large meetings, and to indulge in threatening words and gestures, until finally, in Nov. 1617, Prince Maurice of Orange, iu order finally to decide tha controversy, called a synod which met at Dort in Nov. 1618 This synod was strictly national called by the national authority to decide a national dispute, and not intended to have more than a national influence. The foreign deputies were invited to attend, only to assist by their advice in the settlement of a controversy which con cerned the Netherland church alone, and which the Netherlaud church alone could decide. At the fourth sitting it was decided to cite Simon Episcopius and twelve other Remonstrants to appear within i4 days before the synod, to state and justify their doctrines. It was also agreed to allow the Arminian deputies to take part in the delibera tions, only on condition that they forbore to consult with, or in any way assist, their cited brethren, but this they refused. During the interval between the citation and the appearance of the accused, the professorial members of the synod were instructed to prepare themselves to be able to confute the Arminian errors, and the synod occupied itself with deliberations as to a new translation of the Bible, for which a commission was named, made arrangements regarding the teaching of catechisms, and granted permis sion to the missionaries of the East Indies to baptize such children of heathen parents as were admitted into their fami lies. At the 25th sitting Episcopius and the others cited ap peared, when Episcopius surprised the deputies by a buld and outspoken defence of his views, and even went so far as to say that the synod, by excluding the Arminian deputies, could now only be regarded as a schismatic assembly. The Remonstrants were asked to file copious explanations of the five points in dispute, but objecting to the manner in which they were catechized, they were, at the 57th sitting, dis missed from the synod as convicted " liars and deceivers." The synod then proceeded in their absence to judge them from their published writings, and came to the conclusion that as ecclesiastical rebels and trespassers they should be deprived of all their offices. The synodical decision in regard to the five points, and the sentence against the Remonstrants was, at the 144th sitting, read in Latin before a large audience in the great church. The Remonstrants were required to subscribe the condemnation, and many of them refusing were banished. The synod was concluded on 29th April 1619, by a magnificent banquet given by the chief magistrate of Dort.
DORTMUND, a town of Germany, capital of a circle of the same name, in the district of Arnsberg, and Prussian province of Westphalia, is situated on the Emscher, in 51* 31 25" N. lat. and 7 27 9" E. long. Among the chief structures may be mentioned the large railway station, the workshop and factories of which give employment to upwards of 1 000 hands, the Reinoldikirche, with a choir built in 1421–1450, the old Marienkirche, and the Gothic Dominican church. To the W. of the station is one of the ancient linden trees of the Kouigshof, where the meetings of the supreme court of the formidable Vehmgericht, or secret tribunal of the Middle Ages, were held. In the vicinity of Dortmund are collieries, in the working of which several thousands of persons are engaged. Since the dis covery of iron-ore in the coal district, in 1850, many forges and blast-furnaces have been erected. The manufactures include tobacco, iron and steel, machinery, porcelain, earthenware, oil and flour, and woollen, linen, and cotton fabrics. In 1875 the town had 47 breweries, which fur nished more than 6^- millions of gallons of beer. The population in 1875 was 57,742.
Dortmund, the Throtmanni, Tmtmanna, Trntmonia, Trcmonia, and Trotmunde of early history, was already a town of some im portance in the year 800. In 1005 it was the scene of an ecclesi astical council, and in 1016 and 1180 of imperial diets. The town was walled in the 12th century, and in 1387–88 successfully with stood the troops of the archbishop of Cologne, who besieged it for 21 months. About the middle of the 13th century it joined the Hanseatic League. At the close of the Thirty Years War the population had become reduced to 3000. In 1803 Dortmund lost its rights as a free town, and was annexed to Nassau. The French occupied it in 1806, and in 1808 it was made over by Napoleon to the grand duke of Burg, and became the chief town of the department of Ruhr. Through the cession of Westphalia by the king of the Netherlands, May 31, 1815, it became a Prussian town.
fish belonging to the family ticombridce, held in such esteem by the ancient Greeks that they called it Zeus after their
principal divinity. Its English name is probably a corrup-