LEOPOLD LEPROSY. 



445 



by attachment to the clergy, irresolution, and 

 indulgence towards his ministers, to whom he in- 

 trusted the whole management of the government. 

 He was passionately fbml of music, and was himself 

 a composer. After he had uttered his last prayer, 

 on his death-bed, he caused his musicians to enter, 

 and departed to the sound of instruments. He was 

 thrice married. Two sons survived him Joseph I., 

 born in 1678, his successor, and Charles, archduke 

 of Austria, born 1685, who became emperor in 

 1711. 



LEOPOLD IT., emperor of Germany, born 1747, 

 on the death of his father, the emperor Francis I. 

 (1765), became grand duke of Tuscany, and, during 

 a reign of twenty-five years, almost regenerated that 

 country. He encouraged commerce, agriculture, 

 and manufactures, improved the roads, established 

 penitentiaries, abolished the inquisition, and pro- 

 claimed a new criminal code. His financial admini- 

 stration was admirable, and he was personally simple 

 in his manner of living. He preceded his brother 

 Joseph (q. v.), emperor of Germany, in measures of 

 ecclesiastical reform, but conducted them with more 

 prudence and caution, yet to the great displeasure of 

 the Roman court. When the death of Joseph II. 

 called him to the imperial throne, he found the here- 

 ditary states of Austria in a critical situation. In 

 pursuance of the terms of the convention of Reichen- 

 bach with Prussia (July 27, 1790), he concluded an 

 armistice with Turkey, which was followed by the 

 peace of Sistova, in 1791, surrendering all the Aus- 

 trian conquests to the Porte. After reducing the 

 revolted Netherlands, by force of arms, he allowed 

 them the enjoyment of their former privileges, and 

 restored many of the ecclesiastical establishments, 

 which had been abolished by Joseph. Quiet was 

 restored in Hungary, the police and the administra- 

 tion of justice were reformed, and public education 

 encouraged. In 1791, he had the celebrated inter- 

 view with the king of Prussia, at Pilnitz, on which 

 occasion the two monarchs declared the situation of 

 the king of France to be a subject of general interest 

 to all the sovereigns of Europe. After having re- 

 stored many institutions and usages, which Joseph's 

 ardent spirit had led him to abolish, Leopold died, 

 March 1, 1792. Leopold was one of the best dis- 

 posed monarchs who ever sat on a throne, and it is 

 not to be denied that he effected much good ; but it 

 was his lot to reign at the time of a great struggle 

 between old and new principles, which is always a 

 difficult, and generally a deplorable situation for a 

 prince, who is plunged into a whirlpool, where all 

 power of self-direction is lost. This should be kept 

 in mind, in judging of the convention of Reiehenbach. 



LEOPOLD I., prince of Dessau, a Prussian gen- 

 eral, born in 1676, early showed a strong inclination 

 for the military service, and, in his twelfth year, re- 

 ceived from the emperor Leopold the command of a 

 regiment. After having travelled two years, he 

 made his first campaign on the Rhine, in 1696. In 

 the war of the Spanish succession, he proved himself 

 a brave and skilful general. He had an honourable 

 share in the victory at Blenheim, and fought with 

 distinction in Italy. After havizig commanded the 

 Prussians in the Netherlands, he was made general- 

 field-marshal iu 1712, and Frederic William I., the 

 new king, was so much attached to him, that he kept 

 him constantly near his person. In a campaign 

 against the Swedes, he was again victorious. Fre- 

 deric the Great placed no less confidence in him, and 

 in 1742, he received the chief command in Silesia. 

 In 1745, he gained the bloody battle of Kesseldorf, 

 in consequence of which Dresden was taken by the 

 Prussians, and peace was concluded. When not in 

 the field, he paid great attention to agriculture. He 



died of apoplexy, in 1747. At the time of his death, 

 lie was imperial and Prussian general-field-marshal, 

 and governor of Magdeburg. His manners were 

 rough, often coarse ; but he was brave, sincere and 

 honest, and very much beloved by the soldiers. A 

 popular march, still often played in Germany, par- 

 ticularly in the North, is called the Dessauer Marsch, 

 because it was prince Leopold's favourite.* 



LEPANTO, or AINABACHTI ; formerly a san- 

 giac, in Rumili (Turkey), with 80,000 inhabitants. 

 The capital of the same name, a seaport, was anciently 

 called Naupactus ; Ion. 22 20' E. ; lat. 38 27' N. ; 

 population, 2000, according to Hassel. The town is 

 situated in a bay, formerly called the gulf of Corinth, 

 now the gulf of Lepanto, or gulf of Patrass, which 

 is seventy miles long. It is fortified and defended 

 with a castle built on an eminence. Being ceded by 

 the emperor to the Venetians, it was fortified by them, 

 and, in the year 1475, stood a siege of four months 

 against the Turks, who lost .'50,000 men. Near this 

 town, don John of Austria obtained a celebrated vic- 

 tory over the Turkish fleet, Oct. 7, 1571. Cervantes, 

 the celebrated author of Don Quixote, fought as a 

 soldier in this battle, and had his left hand shot oil' 

 by an arquebuse. The Turkish fleet consisted of 210 

 galleys, 23 transports, and 6 galeasses, with heavy 

 artillery. The Spanish fleet was increased by an 

 auxiliary flotilla, sent by the Venetians, and by some 

 papal galleys. Both the fleets sought to come to 

 close quarters. The battle was fought with bows, 

 javelins, grapnels, and with cannon, muskets, pikes, 

 and the sword. John of Austria, the commander-in- 

 chief, and Veniero, the commander of the Venetian 

 squadron, attacked the Turkish admiral Ali, took his 

 vessel, and made him prisoner. His head was im- 

 mediately struck off, and placed above the top of his 

 own flag. The Christians were victorious. The 

 Turks lost 150 vessels ; more than 15,000 men were 

 killed, and 5000 Christian slaves liberated. The 

 Christians also lost 5000 men slain and wounded. 

 Nothing prevented their sailing to Constantinople, 

 except a dispute in regard to the division of the booty. 

 This battle put a stop at once to the progress of the 

 Turkish power, which had attained a fearful magni- 

 tude in the Mediterranean. (See Barbarossa.) The 

 Christia-ns had almost lost the hope of effectually re- 

 sisting it ; and, for this victory, don John of Austria 

 (q. v.) deserves the gratitude of the whole European 

 world. 



LEPER. See Leprosy. 



LEPIDUS, M. ^EMILIUS, the- Roman triumvir, 

 having served the interests of Caesar, was made by 

 him his colleague in the consulship. After the as- 

 sassination ot Cassar, although the republican party 

 endeavoured to win him to their ranks, he joined 

 Antony, and afterwards made the infamous partition 

 of the empire with him and Octavius Caesar. (See 

 Augustus.) After the victory of Philippi, his two 

 colleagues made a new division, leaving him, however, 

 the command of Africa. Augustus having called 

 him to render assistance against Sextus, Lepidus at- 

 tempted to render himself master of Sicily, but was 

 obliged to submit to the former, and to take his seat 

 again in the senate. Montesquieu says that he was 

 the worst citizen in the republic. Without firmness 

 or talents, he seems to have been elevated by fortune 

 to render his fall the more striking. 



LEPROSY (Greek Xivrga) ; a name given to several 



* It is n-lated of Prince Leopold, that he used to pray, 

 before battle, to the following effect : " O God I assist our 

 side ; at least, avoid assisting the enemy, and leave the re- 

 sult to nit 1 ." 'I his, if not true, shows, at least, the opinion 

 entertained of his simplicity and straight -forwardness, and 

 must be allowed to agree entirely with his character. 



