volume 2, page 106.

BASQUES, The.

"The western extremity of the Pyrenees, where France and Spain join, gives us a locality ... where, although the towns, like Bayonne, Pampeluna, and Bilbao, are French or Spanish, the country people are Basques or Biscayans--Basques or Biscayans not only in the provinces of Biscay, but in Alava, Upper Navarre, and the French districts of Labourd and Soule. Their name is Spanish (the word having originated in that of the ancient Vascones), and it is not the one by which they designate themselves; though possibly it is indirectly connected with it. The native name is derived from the root Eusk-; which becomes Euskara when the language, Euskkerria when the country, and Euskaldunac when the people are spoken of."

_H. G. Latham, Ethnology of Europe, chapter 2._

ALSO IN: _I. Taylor, Origin of the Aryans, chapter 4, section 4._

See, also, IBERIANS, THE WESTERN, and APPENDIX A, volume 1.

BASSANO, Battle of.

See FRANCE: A. D. 1796 (APRIL-OCTOBER.)

BASSEIN, Treaty of (1802).

See INDIA: A. D. 1798-1805.

BASSORAH.

See BUSSORAH.

BASTARNÆ, The. See PEUCINI.

BASTILLE, The.

"The name of Bastille or Bastel was, in ancient times, given to any kind of erection calculated to withstand a military force; and thus, formerly in England and on the borders of Scotland, the term Bastel-house was usually applied to places of strength and fancied security. Of the many Bastilles in France that of Paris, ... which at first was called the Bastille St-Antoine, from being erected near the suburb of St-Antoine, retained the name longest. This fortress, of melancholy celebrity, was erected under the following circumstances: In the year 1356, when the English, then at war with France, were in the neighbourhood of Paris, it was considered necessary by the inhabitants of the French capital to repair the bulwarks of their city. Stephen Marcel, provost of the merchants, undertook this task, and, amongst other defences, added to the fortifications at the eastern entrance of the town, a gate flanked with a tower on each side." This was the beginning of the constructions of the Bastille. They were enlarged in 1369 by Hugh Aubriot, provost of Paris under Charles V. He "added two towers, which, being placed opposite to those already existing on each side of the gate, made of the Bastille a square fort, with a tower at each of the four angles." After the death of Charles V., Aubriot, who had many enemies, was prosecuted for alleged crimes, "was condemned to perpetual confinement, and placed in the Bastille, of which, according to some historians, he was the first prisoner. After some time, he was removed thence to Fort l'Evêque, another prison," from which he was liberated in 1381, by the insurrection of the Maillotins (see PARIS: A. D. 1381). "After the insurrection of the Maillotins, in 1382, the young king, Charles VI., still further enlarged the Bastille by adding four towers to it, thus giving it, instead of the square form it formerly possessed, the shape of an oblong or parallelogram. The fortress now consisted of eight towers, each 100 feet high, and, like the wall which united them, nine feet thick. Four of these towers looked on the city, and four on the suburb of St-Antoine. To increase its strength, the Bastille was surrounded by a ditch 25 feet deep and 120 feet wide. The road which formerly passed through it was turned on one side. ... The Bastille was now completed (1383), and though additions were subsequently made to it, the body of the fortress underwent no important change. ... Both as a place of military defence, and as a state prison of great strength, the Bastille was, even at an early period, very formidable."

History of the Bastille (Chambers's Miscellany, no. 132, volume 17).

For an account of the taking and destruction of the Bastille by the people, in 1789,

See FRANCE: A. D. 1789 (JULY).

ALSO IN: _D. Bingham, The Bastille._

_R. A. Davenport, History of the Bastile._

BASTITANI, The.

See TURDETANI.

BASUTOS, The.

See SOUTH AFRICA: A. D. 1811-1868.

BATAVIA (Java), Origin of.

See NETHERLANDS: A. D. 1594-1620.

BATAVIAN REPUBLIC, The.

See FRANCE: A. D. 1794-1795 (OCTOBER-MAY).

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BATAVIANS, OR BATAVI, The.

"The Germanic Batavi had been peacefully united with the [Roman] Empire, not by Cæsar, but not long afterwards, perhaps by Drusus. They were settled in the Rhine delta, that is on the left bank of the Rhine and on the islands formed by its arms, upwards as far at least as the Old Rhine, and so nearly from Antwerp to Utrecht and Leyden in Zealand and southern Holland, on territory originally Celtic--at least the local names are predominantly Celtic; their name is still borne by the Betuwe, the lowland between the Waal and the Leck with the capital Noviomagus, now Nimeguen. They were, especially compared with the restless and refractory Celts, obedient and useful subjects, and hence occupied a distinctive position in the aggregate, and particularly in the military system of the Roman Empire. They remained quite free from taxation, but were on the other hand drawn upon more largely than any other canton in the recruiting; this one canton furnished to the army 1,000 horsemen and 9,000 foot soldiers; besides, the men of the imperial body-guard were taken especially from them. The command of these Batavian divisions was conferred exclusively on native Batavi. The Batavi were accounted indisputably not merely as the best riders and swimmers of the army, but also as the model of true soldiers."

_T. Mommsen, History of Rome, book 8, chapter 4._

"When the Cimbri and their associates, about a century before our era, made their memorable onslaught upon Rome, the early inhabitants of the Rhine island of Batavia, who were probably Celts, joined in the expedition. A recent and tremendous inundation had swept away their miserable homes. ... The island was deserted of its population. At about the same period a civil dissension among the Chatti--a powerful German race within the Hercynian forest--resulted in the expatriation of a portion of the people. The exiles sought a new home in the empty Rhine island, called it 'Bet-auw,' or 'good meadow,' and were themselves called, thenceforward, Batavi, or Batavians."

_J. L. Motley, Rise of the Dutch Republic, introduction., section 2._

BATAVIANS: A. D. 69. Revolt of Civilis.

"Galba [Roman Emperor], succeeding to the purple upon the suicide of Nero, dismissed the Batavian life-guards to whom he owed his elevation. He is murdered, Otho and Vitellius contend for the succession, while all eyes are turned upon the eight Batavian regiments. In their hands the scales of Empire seem to rest. They declare for Vitellius and the civil war begins. Otho is defeated; Vitellius acknowledged by Senate and people. Fearing, like his predecessors, the imperious turbulence of the Batavian legions, he, too, sends them into Germany. It was the signal for a long and extensive revolt, which had well-nigh overturned the Roman power in Gaul and Lower Germany. Claudius Civilis was a Batavian of noble race, who had served twenty-five years in the Roman armies. His Teutonic name has perished. ... After a quarter of a century's service he was sent in chains to Rome and his brother executed, both falsely charged with conspiracy. ... Desire to avenge his own wrongs was mingled with loftier motives in his breast. He knew that the sceptre was in the gift of the Batavian soldiery. ... By his courage, eloquence and talent for political combinations, Civilis effected a general confederation of all the Netherland tribes, both Celtic and German. For a brief moment there was a united people, a Batavian commonwealth. ... The details of the revolt [A. D. 69] have been carefully preserved by Tacitus, and form one of his grandest and most elaborate pictures. ... The battles, the sieges, the defeats, the indomitable spirit of Civilis, still flaming most brightly when the clouds were darkest around him, have been described by the great historian in his most powerful manner. ... The struggle was an unsuccessful one. After many victories and many overthrows, Civilis was left alone. ... He accepted the offer of negotiation from Cerialis [the Roman commander]. ... A colloquy was agreed upon. The bridge across the Nabalia was broken asunder in the middle and Cerialis and Civilis met upon the severed sides. ... Here the story abruptly terminates. The remainder of the Roman's narrative is lost, and upon that broken bridge the form of the Batavian hero disappears forever."

_J. L. Motley, Rise of the Dutch Republic, introduction., sections. 3-4._

ALSO IN: _Tacitus, History, books. 4-5._

BATAVIANS: End----------

BATH, The Order of the.

"The present Military Order of the Bath, founded by King George I. in the year 1725, differs so essentially from the Knighthood of the Bath, or the custom of making Knights with various rites and ceremonies, of which one was Bathing, that it may almost be considered a distinct and new fraternity of chivalry. The last Knights of the Bath, made according to the ancient forms, were at the coronation of King Charles II.; and from that period until the reign of the first George, the old institution fell into total oblivion. At the latter epoch, however, it was determined to revive, as it was termed, The Order of the Bath, by erecting it into a regular Military Order'; and on the 25th May, 1725, Letters Patent were issued for that purpose. By the Statutes then promulgated, the number of Knights, independent of the Sovereign, a Prince of the Blood Royal, and a Great Master, was restricted to 35." It has since been greatly increased, and the Order divided into three classes: First Class, consisting of "Knights Grand Cross," not to exceed 50 for military and 25 for civil service; Second Class, consisting of "Knights Commanders," not to exceed 102 for military and 50 for civil service; Third Class, "Companions," not to exceed 525 for military and 200 for civil service.

_Sir B. Burke, Book of Orders of Knighthood, page 104._

BATH, in Roman times.

See AQUÆ: SOLIS.

BATHS OF CARACALLA, Nero, etc.

See THERMÆ.

BATONIAN WAR, The.

A formidable revolt of the Dalmatians and Pannonians, A. D. 6, involved the Roman Empire, under Augustus, in a serious war of three years duration, which was called the Batonian War, from the names of two leaders of the insurgents,--Bato the Dalmatian, and Bato the Pannonian.

_T. Mommsen, History of Rome, book 8, chapter 1._

BATOUM: Ceded to Russia. Declared a free port.

See TURKS: A. D. 1878.

BATTIADÆ, The.

See CYRENE.

BATTLE ABBEY.

See ENGLAND: A. D. 1066 (OCTOBER).

BATTLE ABOVE THE CLOUDS, The.

See UNITED STATES OF AMERICA: A. D. 1863 (OCTOBER-NOVEMBER: TENNESSEE).

BATTLE OF THE CAMEL.

See MAHOMETAN CONQUEST: A. D. 661.

BATTLE OF THE KEGS, The.

See PHILADELPHIA: A. D. 1777-1778.

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BATTLE OF THE NATIONS (Leipsic).

See GERMANY: A. D. 1813 (SEPTEMBER-OCTOBER), and (OCTOBER).

BATTLE OF THE THREE EMPERORS. The battle of Austerlitz

See FRANCE: A. D. 1805 (MARCH-DECEMBER)--was so called by Napoleon.

BATTLES.

The battles of which account is given in this work are so numerous that no convenience would be served by collecting references to them under this general heading. They are severally indexed under the names by which they are historically known.

BAURE, The.

See AMERICAN ABORIGINES: ANDESIANS.

BAUTZEN, Battle of.

See GERMANY: A. D. 1813 (MAY-AUGUST).

BAUX, Lords of; Gothic Origin of the.

The illustrious Visigothic race of the "Balthi" or "Baltha" ("the bold"), from which sprang Alaric, "continued to flourish in France in the Gothic province of Septimania, or Languedoc, under the corrupted appellation of Baux, and a branch of that family afterwards settled in the kingdom of Naples."

_E. Gibbon, Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire,