SEVRES SEWARD 791 Interior of the Alcazar of Seville. man colony, patronizing it in opposition to Cordova, which had espoused the cause of Pompey. When the Goths invaded the coun- try they made it their seat of power, but in the 6th century the court was removed to Toledo. It was in the hands of the Moors from 711 till 1248, and under them attained great splendor, and a population of 300,000. In 1248 Ferdinand III. of Castile and Leon took it after a long siege, and made it the capital of those united kingdoms, which it remained until the reign of Charles V. A treaty was concluded at Seville in 1729 be- tween Spain, France, and England. The city surrendered to the French under Soult in 1810, when the inhabitants were cruelly treat- ed, the plunder and money extorted from them being estimated at $30,000,000. They evacuated it in August, 1812, when the Eng- lish entered the town. It was besieged by Espartero in July, 1843. SEVRES, a town of France, in the depart- ment of Seine-et-Oise, on the left bank of the Seine, 6 m. S. W. of Paris; pop. in 1872, 7,096. It stands in a valley between the hills of Meudon and St. Cloud, and the main street is of great length, being traversed by the Ver- sailles road. The celebrated porcelain factory was removed hither in 1756 from Vincennes, and in 1760 became the sole property of Louis XV. (See POTTERY AND PORCELAIN, vol. xiii., p. 785.) Connected with it is a museum, and in 1875 a school of mosaics was established. There are also manufactories of shawls, cord- age, leather, and chemical substances, and va- rious chemical arts are carried on. Sevres was occupied by the Germans Sept. 19, 1870, bombarded by the French Oct. 5, and attacked by the troops of the commune April 4, 1871. SEVRES, Deux, a W. department of France, in the old provinces of Poitou and Angou- mois, bordering on Maine-et-Loire, Vienne, Charente, Charente-Inferieure, and Vendee; area, 2,317 sq. m. ; pop. in 1872, 331,243. A chain of hills which have a mean height of 450 ft. traverses the department S. E. and N. W., dividing it into two distinct por- tions. The Sevre-Nantaise and Sevre-Nior- taise, which rise in the department and give it its name, flow respectively N. W. to the Loire at Nantes and W. to the Atlantic, pass- ing Niort. The Thouet and several other small rivers also have their sources here. The de- partment is traversed by seven canals. Iron, rock crystals, and saltpetre are found. The vineyards in the S. W. part produce good brandy and white wines. There are manu- factories of woollen, linen, and cotton goods, leather, earthenware, brandy, cutlery, and pa- per. It is divided into the arrondissements of Bressuire, Melle, Niort, and Parthenay. Capital, Niort. SEWiRD. I. A S. E. county of Nebraska, intersected by the Big Blue river and its forks ; area, 576 sq. m. ; pop. in 1875, 6,601. The surface is undulating and the soil productive. It is traversed by the Midland Pacific railroad. The chief productions in 1870 were 58,579 bushels of wheat, 58,637 of Indian corn, 81,- 620 of oats, 18,488 of potatoes, 35,601 Ibs. of butter, and 5,205 tons of hay. There were 1,214 horses, 718 milch cows, 1,161 other cat- tle, 509 sheep, 1,296 swine, and 3 saw mills. Capital, Seward. II. An unorganized S. W. county of Kansas, bordering on Indian terri- tory ; area, 720 sq. m. It is watered by afflu- ents of the Cimarron river. The surface con- sists of rolling prairies.
