54 



MOORISH A RCHITECTUK:: MORALES. 



who had already designated general Moore as " the 

 ailminition of the whole army, ' committed to him the 

 prosecution of his enterprise, together with the govern- 

 ment of the island ; and this charge, undertaken 

 with reluctance, and rendered full of danger and labour 

 from the hostility of the natives and the number of 

 Maroon negroes, who constantly infested the country, 

 was managed with a decision and activity that over- 

 came every obstacle. Two successive attacks of the 

 yellow fever soon forced general Moore to leave the 

 \Vest Indies, but, in company with Sir Ralph Aber- 

 crombie, he was destined to earn still higher distinc- 

 tion. The first scene in which they again acted 

 together, was the Irish rebellion ; and during those 

 unhappy contests, notwithstanding the disorganized 

 state of the army, general Moore's conduct was such 

 as to obtain universal approbation. 



After Sir Ralph's expedition to Holland, (1799,) 

 in which general Moore was severely wounded, a 

 wider and more brilliant theatre was soon afterwards 

 presented for their united exertions in the expedition 

 to Egypt. During this celebrated campaign, gen- 

 eral Moore fully supported the reputation for bravery 

 and coolness which his former services had acquired. 

 An important charge in disembarking the troops was 

 assigned to him ; and the battalion which he led was 

 among the foremost in the far-famed enterprise of 

 storming the French batteries, erected on a neigh- 

 bouring eminence of sand to oppose their landing. 

 His subsequent efforts ably seconded the comman- 

 der's arrangements, and contributed materially to the 

 happy issue of their undertaking. That victory 

 which was purchased with the life of Sir Ralph 

 Abercrombie, disabled general Moore for a time 

 from farther exertion : a dangerous wound in his leg 

 confined him first on board one of the transports, and 

 afterwards in the neighbourhood of Rosetta, till the 

 conclusion of the expedition. His merits were re- 

 warded on his return to Britnin by the order of 

 knighthood ; and public opinion seemed to point him 

 out as a fit person for conducting any military opera- 

 tion in which the country might require his services. 



After a few years of repose, general Moore (1808) 

 was called to take upon him the command of an arma- 

 ment which the British government had prepared in 

 aid of the Spanish patriots, now engaged in hostili- 

 ties with Napoleon. It would take up too much 

 room in this place to relate the particulars of this 

 expedition. It is enough to observe, that after an 

 advance to Salamanca, in which he was chagrined by 

 every species of disappointment, cramped by restric- 

 tions, perplexed by misinformation, and after a fruit- 

 less attempt to penetrate into Portugal, general Moore 

 commenced a retreat to the coast, conducted it suc- 

 cessfully in the face of an enemy greatly superior, 

 and by his masterly dispositions at Corunna, repelled 

 the formidable attack, in which a cannon-ball deprived 

 him of life, though not till his last moments were 

 consoled by intelligence that victory had secured a 

 safe embarkation for his troops. He died with the 

 equanimity which became him, on the 16th of Jan., 

 1809. His death excited a great sensation through- 

 out the country. The house of commons ordered a 

 monument to be erected for him in St Paul's cathe- 

 dral, and his native city, Glasgow, also erected one 

 to his memory. The extent of his merits as a mili- 

 tary commander, has been a subject of much contro- 

 versy, but all, except those blinded by party zeal, 

 allow, that in proportion to the means intrusted to 

 him, they were very great. 



MOORISH ARCHITECTURE. See Architec- 

 ture. 



MOORS; a class of the inhabitants of Western 

 Africa, particularly of the states of Fez and Morocco. 

 The Arabians call them medainien (mariners); they 



call llrmselves Moslem (the faithful), and are strict 

 Mohammedans. They are of Arabian origin; they 

 live in towns, and are employed principally in traffic. 

 The Romans called a part of Western Africa Mauri- 

 tania, and the inhabitants Moors. Their wars with 

 the Romans are well known. This territory was 

 afterwards under the dominion of the Vandals, whose 

 king Genseric (429) established a powerful kingdom, 

 which was, however, overthrown (534) by Belisarius. 

 The Saracens (Arabians), followers of Mohammed, 

 extended their conquests in the seventh century to 

 this part of Africa, which was governed by a deputy 

 of the caliph of Damascus. Subsequently (711 13) 

 they took advantage of the disorders in the Spanish 

 kingdom of the Visigoths to reduce that country, 

 with the exception of a small part, under (heir yoke. 

 The Spanish writers gave them the name of Moors 

 from their residence in Mauritania. While the 

 greatest part of Europe was sunk in barbarism, 

 learning and the arts flourished among the Arabians 

 in Spain, where remarkable monuments of their 

 labours are still seen , but the division of the country 

 among different rulers, and their dissensions, so weak- 

 ened the power of the Moors, that they could no 

 longer resist the incessant encroachments of the 

 princes of the newly established Christian states in 

 Spain, and were finally reduced to the possession of 

 the kingdom of Grenada. Ferdinand the Catholic, 

 after a ten years' war (1491), conquered this also, 

 and thereby put an end to the dominion of the Moors 

 in Spain, after it had lasted nearly 800 years. A 

 part of the Moors went to Africa; most of them 

 remained in Spain, where they were industrious, 

 peaceful subjects, and adopted generally the exter- 

 nal forms of Christianity. These last were called, 

 in Spain, Moriscos. Philip II., in his ferocious zeal 

 for Christianity, resolved upon their entire destruc- 

 tion. His oppressions and persecutions excited an 

 insurrection of the Moriscos in Grenada (1571), after 

 the suppression of which, above 100,000 of them were 

 banished. Philip III., in the same spirit of fanati- 

 cism, completed their expulsion from the country. 

 Nearly a million of the Moriscos emigrated to 

 Africa. As they were the most ingenious and in- 

 dustrious inhabitants of Spain, they were a great 

 loss to the country. Agriculture speedily fell into 

 decay. This expulsion of the Moriscos is regarded 

 as one of the leading causes of the decline of Spain. 

 The History of the Reign of the Moors in Spain, by 

 doctor Jos. Ant. Conde, is drawn from Arabian 

 manuscripts. 



MOOSE. See Deer. 



MORA; a game known even among the ancients, 

 and at present much in vogue in the south of Europe. 

 It is played by two persons. Both present, at the 

 same time, one hand, of which some fingers are ex- 

 tended, or all, or none. At the same moment each 

 of the parties calls out a number. If the number 

 pronounced by one of the players agrees with the 

 number of the fingers stretched out by both, he who 

 pronounced it counts one, and lifts one finger of the 

 unemployed hand. He who first succeeds in op- 

 ening all the fingers of this hand, wins the game. 

 It is generally played to determine who is to pay for 

 the wine, and the like. A person unacquainted with 

 the game finds it difficult to conceive how it can be 

 interesting ; yet you see it played with the greatest 

 animation everywhere in Italy. 



MORALES, Louis DE, commonly called el Divino, 

 from his having painted nothing but sacred subjects, 

 was born at Badajoz, in 1509. His pencil is bold, 

 his touch vigorous, yet delicate, and his pictures all 

 have life and action. They are generally of a small 

 size, and commonly on copper. He painted hair with 

 peculiar excellence. Morales visited all the cities of 



