LY'ONS (Fr. Lyon, Lat. Lugdunum). The third city of France in respect to population, and second only to Paris in industrial impor- tance. It is the' capital of the Department of the Rhone, and is situated at the confluence of the Rhone with the SaOne, 240 miles southeast of Paris and 170 miles north by west of Marseilles (Jlap: France, L 6). Its position, commanding both the Rhone and the Saone, gives it not only a great commercial, but also an immense strat- egic importance. It is a military station of the first class, and is surrounded by a circle of forti- fications which since 1871 has been improved, extended, and removed farther from the centre of the city, and now has a circumference of 44 miles. The Rhone and the Safme divide Lyons into three parts, the central and most important business section being built on the long, narrow peninsula between the rivers. This peninsula is very low. the southern extremity having been reclaimed from the river in the eighteenth cen- tury by the construction of dikes, which along a considerable length of river-front protect the city from inundation. The northern part of the peninsula rises abruptly in the hill of La Croix Rousse, and the west bank of the SaOne is high and steep, formed by the rugged hill of the Fourvi^re, on the slopes of which stands the old part of the city, still preserving its mediaeval aspect. Thirteen bridges lead across the Saone to the middle city, whose centre is the Place Bellecour, the principal square, sur- rounded by fine facades and containing gar- dens and fountains, and in the centre a statue of Louis XIV. Xorth of this square are the large commercial establishments, and south of of it as far as the Cours du Midi is the aristo- cratic quarter. The Cours du Jlidi is a broad opening extending from river to river and planted with trees. South of this, extending to the point of the peninsula, are the large railroad stations. the custom-house, arsenal, prisons, abattoirs, and gas plants. From the middle city nine bridges cross the Rhone to the extensive, modern, and rapidly growing quarter of La Guilloti&re. which is the" home of the great working population, and contains numerous factories. It is encircled b.v a boulevard which ends north of the eit.v in tiie large Pare de la TOte d'Or on the bank of the Rhone, a handsome, rustic pleasure-ground, containing a large lake with several islands. At the entrance to the park stands the large Monu- ment des Enfants du Rhone, erected to the mem- ory of the heroes of 1870-71. The Place Carnot contains a monument to the French Republic, and the Place des Terreaux a monumental foun- tain by Bartholdi,
Lyons has preserved the remnants of Roman baths, and of a theatre, several tombs, and por- tions of the Roman wall and of the aqueducts. The oldest building in the city is the Cluirch of Saint ilartin d'.inay, built on the site of a Roman temple, several columns of which are still preserved in the portal. The Cathedral of Saint .Jean is one of the most interesting in France. It was begun in 1110, and continued by various architects till the end of the fifteenth centurv. The Church of Xotre Dame de la Four- vi&re is a new edifice, finished in 1804. in an eclectic stvle, with sumptuous decorations. It stands on the summit of the hill west of the Saone. and commands a fine view over the city of the peaks of the .Tura and the Savoy Alps. The most prominent public buildings are the handsome HOtel-de-Ville, built in 1040-55; the Exchange, with a monumental facade, finished in 1801 ; the Palais des Arts, a vast buihling, con- taining a library and various museums: and the Grand Theatre," whose arcades are occupied by shops.
The University of Lyons ranks next to that of Paris among the French universities in the num- ber of its students, the attendance being about 2600.
Lyons is the stronghold of French Catholi- cism. By the side of the State University there are four free faculties, science, theology, letters, and law, constituting in reality a Catliolic uni- versity. In addition there are the Ecole Centrale L3"onnaise,a number of commercial, technical, and industrial high schools, and a national school of fine arts. The Palais des Arts contains the mu- nicipal library of 130,000 volumes, and very rich nuiseums of art, arch.T»ology, and natural history. The city has nine public hospitals and a large number of asylums and other charitable institutions,
Lyons has been a flourishing industrial centre since the Roman period. Its industries have been fostered from time to time by royal grants of privileges; thus Francis I, granted the work- ers of Lyons exemption from militarv service. Although' it suffered heavily through emigration after the revocation of the Edict of Nantes, it still retains its place as the chief centre of the silk industry in the world. One-third of all the raw silk produced in or brought to Europe is prepared at Lyons or its immediate surround- ings. Two-thirds of this quantity is imported from the Orient, one-eighth comes from Italy, and only one-tenth is produced in France. About one half of the prepared silk is used in the local industries, the rest being exported. The total value of the silk manufactures of Lyons and the surrounding region in 1809 was .$87,674,400. and, with the allied industries, they gave employ- ment to over 200.000 persons. The chief of the allied industries is the manufacture of chem- icals, especiall.v of d.ves ; the annual value of the chemical products amounts to over .$10,000,000. There are also extensive iron-works and machine- shops, and establishments for the preparation of leather and skins, while printing has for cen- turies been one of the distinctive industries. The commerce of the city is also considerable. Lyons is one of the principal railroad centres of France, and the river traflic in 1899 amounted to 1,325.- 000 tons. The city has 13 miles of quays along the river-fronts, and the width of the Rhone at this point is 625 feet, while that of the Saone is from 250 to 4.50 feet. The principal trade, be- sides that in silk products, is in grain and wine, amounting respectively to $30,000,000 and .$20,- 000.000 annuall.v. Lvons is also, next to Paris, the most important financial centre of France. Its exchange is almost independent of that of Paris, and it has large amounts of capital in- vested in foreign enterprises. At the head of it- financial institutions is the Credit Lyonnai-. which has branches in over one hundred citio-. The I'nited States is represented by a consul. The population of the city, in 1901, was 450.000. In 1891 the population was 438.077, and in 1801, 109.500. though before 1789 it was over 200.000.
Lyons was an ancient Gallic town with the nanie of Lugdunum. In B.C. 43 L. :Manutius
