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ItEOKRAlt. 



itSDlA. 



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direrseat rays. Thb town ii the rMidenee of the grandtlucal court 

 The moit remarkable edifice is the ducal palace, which containii a 

 library of 50,000 volumes and n curious collection of German antiqui- 

 tiea. The Inhabitant* chii Hj dciiciid for tluir Bupport on the expendi- 

 ture of the court The «nitt\l population of the two town* ia 0500. 



RalrrbHrg, a atuall principality belonging to Mecklcnburg-Strelita, 

 and itituated between Schwcrin, Liibeck, and I^ucnburg, liaa an area 

 of 137 square miles, and a population in 1831 of 10,352. It is 

 traTened bv the river Trave, and ia bounded W. by the Lake of 

 Rataeburg, by means of which timber, com, pulse, flax, and cattle are 

 sent to Lubeck for exportation. The inhabitants also carry ou con- 

 siderable fisheries. Rabxbutp, the chief town, mostly belongs to 

 Lauenburg, with the exception of the cathe<lral and the hospital, 

 which belong to Strelitz. [Holstew.] It is the Seat of the govern- 

 ment of the principality, and has a population of SOOO. 



UECKRAN. [Bei-oochistak.] 



MKDELl.IN. riCsTREMADiRA, Spanish.] 



MF.ni'.I.l'.VD. [AXilERMANSLASD.l 



MEDKMBLIK. [Hoi.lasd.1 



MKDETAH. [Ai>ofeBiE.] 



HB'DIA, a country of ancient Asia, tn the time of Strabo it was 

 divided into two divisions, Great Media and Media Atropatcnc Great 

 Media, which is a higli table-land, is said by all ancient writers to 

 have had a good climate and a fertile soil ; an account which ia fully 

 confirmed by modem travellers. It was separated on the west and 

 south-west from the low country 'Watered by the Tigris and Euphrateij, 

 by a range of mountains known to the ancients under the name of 

 Zagroa and Parachoatras. It was bounded E. by a desert and the 

 Caipian Mountains (the modem Elburz Mountains), N. and N.W. by 

 the Cadnsii, Atropatene, and the Matieni, thus answering for the most 

 part to the modem Irak AjemL Atropatene, which corresponds to 

 the modem Azerbijan, extended as far north as the Araxes (Aras) ; 

 it was much less fertile than Great Media, and docs not appear to 

 hare been included in the Media of Herodotus. It derived its name 

 from Atropates, who successfully opposed the Macedonians, and 

 established an independent monarchy, which continued till the time 

 of Strabo. 



The principal town of Great Media was Agbatana, or Ecbatma, the 

 Btthimcr residence of the Perslin kings. [Ecbatana.] South-west of 

 Ecbutana was Baptana, or Bagistana, now called Baghiitan, or BehUlun, 

 and sometimes Betittin, where Semiramia on her march from Babylon 

 to Ecbatana is said to have formed a Paradise or great park. On 

 the perpendicular face of the rock that skirts the plain is a group of 

 figures in low-relief, with long inscriptions in the cuneiform character, 

 which relate to Darius, son of Hystaspes, and his victories. These 

 inscriptions have been interpreted by Colonel Rnwlinson, and copies 

 with translations are given in the 'Journal of the Asiatic Society,' 

 vol. X, It is situated on the great commercial road whicli, beginning 

 at Ctesiphon, passed through the Median gates of the mountain range 

 ealled Zagros, and tei-miuated at Ecbatana. In the north-east of 

 Otcat Media, near the Caspian Gates, was the town of Rhagto, after- 

 warils called Europus by the Macedonians, and Arsacia by the 

 Partbian^ which was founded, or rather colonised by the Macedo- 

 nians under Scleucus Nicator. This tow^n, of which the ruins are 

 •till viaible at Uai, ia frequently mentioned in the apocryphal book 

 of Tobit, as the place where many of the Jews resided, who had been 

 carried away captive by Shalmaneser. Near Rhagge was the Nisteau 

 plain, oelebratM for its breed of horses, whidi were considered in 

 ancient times the best in Asia. (Herod., iiL 106, viL 40 ; Arrian, vii. 13 ; 

 Strabo, p. 525 ; Ammian., xxiil 0). 



The mountainous country in the south-western pcui of Great Med!a 

 was inhabited by the Mardi, bordering on the north-west of Persia ; 

 the Cxii, and Llymsi, east of Susiana ; and the Coaeni, south of 

 Great Media. The King of Persia was obliged to pass through the 

 ootuitry of the latter whenever he vUited £:batana, and could only 

 obtain a free paasace by the payment of a considerable sum of money. 

 The Cosatei were defeated by Alexander, but they never appear to 

 have been completely subdued by the Macedonians. 



The chief town of Atropatene was Gaza, or Gazika, as it is called by 

 rtolenunia, at no great distance from the modern Tauris, or Taubreez. 

 North-wF«t of Gaza was a salt-Uke, called Spauta, or Mnrtianus 

 (Umiah, or Uramiyah). In the north-east of Atropatene, near the 

 Caspian Sea, were the Kadusli, of Gete, whence the modern name of 

 OhiUn is probably derived. 



Aeeording to Herodotus the Medei Were originally divided into six 

 trfb«»— the BuKB, Paratocenl, Slruohates, Arizanti, Budii, and Magi 

 (L 101). They were originally called Arii (Herodot, vii. 62) ; which 

 wort appears to oont^ the same root as Ar-tiei, the ancient name of 

 the Pefslans ^Herodot, vii. 61). 



Media orixmally formed part of the Assyrian empire. Its history 

 as an independaat kingdom ia given differently by Herodotus and 

 Ctaaiaa (wboae account is preKerved in Diodoms). 



Aooording to Herodotus there were four kings of Media : 1, Deloces, 

 who rsicDed aa 710-657 ; 2, Phraortes, b.c. 657-636, greatly extended 

 the Madian •mpirs, mbdued the Persians and many other nations, but 

 fell in an expcditian agahist the Assyrians of Nhius (Nineveh) ; 8, 

 Cyaxares, Kc. 6S5-fi98, completely oiganiaed the mllitery force of the 

 empire, and extended its boundsfie* as tu west as the Ilalys. In on 



expedition against Nineveh, he waa defeated hj the Seythians, who 

 had made an irmption into southern Asia, and was deprived of hi* 

 kingdom for 2S yaara. After the expulsion of the Sovthians, he took 

 Nmeveh, and subdued the Assyrian empire, with the exception of 

 the Babylonian district ; 4, Astyages, b.c 596-560, who was dethnoad 

 by Ilia grandaon Cyras, and Media reduoed to a Persian provibe*. 

 Ctasias makes the Median monarchy commence about ac. 842, and to 

 last 382 yeara. Xenophon makes a fifth Median kin^, Cyaxares IL( 

 succeed Astyages. 



The Modes revolted during the reign of Darius IL, the bther of tht 

 younger Cyrtis, about ao. 408, but were again subdued. (Herodot., i. 

 ISO ; Xenoph., ' Hellen.,' i. 2). They do not appear after this time to 

 have made any further attempt at recovering their independenee. 

 Ou the downfall of the Persian empire they formed a part of the 

 kingdom of the Seleucidee, and were subsequently subject to thri 

 Parthians. 



MKDIXA, the second holy city of the Mohammedans, and the plaoe 

 where their Prophet waa buried, is situated in that part of Arabia 

 which is called El Hedjaz, or Hedj, about 25° 15' N. Ut, 39* 80' 

 E. long., and about 110 miles from the town of Yembo on the Rod 

 Sea, which is the harbour of Medina. 



Medina is built on the elevated plain of Arabia, not far from the 

 eastern base of the ridge of mountains which divide the table-laud troia 

 the lower country between it and the Red Sea. The town stands on tho 

 lowest part of the plain, where tlio watercourses unite, which produee 

 in the rainy season numerous pools of stagnant water, and render the 

 climate unhealthy. Gardens and date-plantations, interspersed With 

 fields, inclose the town on three sides ; on the side tow.irds Meooa \ki» 

 rocky nature of the soil renders cultivation impossible. 



The city forms an oval about 2800 paces in circuit, ending iii a 

 {>oint The castle is built at the point on a small rocky elevation. The 

 whole is inclosed by a thick wall of stone, between 85 and 40 feet 

 high, flanked by about 30 towers, and surrotmded by a ditch. Three 

 well-built gates lead into the town. The houses are well built of 

 stone, and generally two stories high. As the stone is of a dark eoloui^ 

 the streets have a gloomy aspect, and are for the most part very narrow, 

 often only two or three paces across ; a few of the principal streets are 

 paved with stone. There are only two laiige streets which contain 

 shops. The principal buildings within the city are — the great mosque 

 containing the tomb of Mohammed ; two fine medresses, or colleges ; 

 and the castle, standing at the western extremity of the city, which 

 is surrounded by strong walla and several high and solid towers, and 

 contains a deep well of good water. 



The suburbs extend west and south of the city, and cover moni 

 ground than the city. They are separated ttom it by an open space. 

 Towards this open space the suburbs have no walls, but on the out- 

 side they are inclosed by a wall of inferior size and strength to that of 

 the city. Four gates lend through this wall from the suburlw into 

 the ojien country. The greater part of the suburbs consist of large 

 courtyartls with low houses built round them, and separated fh>m 

 each other by gardens and plantations : they are inhabited by the 

 lower classes of the town, and all those who are engaged in agriculture. 

 The cattle are kept in the midst of the courtyard, where there is li 

 large well, and the only entrance is shut at night lu the western 

 portion of the suburlw are regular and well-built streets with bouses 

 resembUng thoae of the city. There ore two mosques in the suburbs, 

 one of which is called Mesdjed Ali, or the mosque of Ali, the Prophet's 

 cousin. 



The town is well supplied with sweet water by a subterraneous 

 canal which runs from the village of Koba, about three-quarters of a 

 mile distant in a southern direction. In several parts of the town 

 steps are made down to the canal, where the inhabitants supply them- 

 selves with water, which however contains nitre and produces indi- 

 gestion in persons not accustomed to it. There are also many wells 

 scattered over the town ; every garden bos one, by which it is irri- 

 gated ; and when the ground is bored to the depth of twenty-five or 

 thirty feet water is found in plenty. During the rainy season many 

 torrents descend from the higher grounds to the lower depression iu 

 which Medina is built, and part of the city is inundated. This plen- 

 tiful supply of water made this site a considerable settlement of Arabs 

 long before it becume sacred among the Mohnmmodant by the flight, 

 residence, and death of the Prophet, to which it owes its name of 

 Medina, or Medinet el Neby (the City of the Prophet). 



The mosque containing the tomb of Mohammed be:u^, like that of 

 Mecca, the name of Haram, on aecoimt of its inviolability ; but in 

 other Mohammedan countries it goes by the name of Jlo-idjcd el Neby; 

 the ' Mosque of the Prophet,' who was its fu<indor. It is situated 

 towards the eastern extremity of the city, and its dimensions are 

 much smaller than those of the mosque at Mecca, being 1(!0 paces in 

 length, and 130 paces in breadth; but it is built much upon the same 

 plan, forming an open square, with a small building in the centre, 

 an<l surrounded on all sides by colonnades roofed with small domes, 

 which are whitewaahed on the outside. 



Near the south-eastern comer of the Mosque stands the famous 

 tomb, detached from the walls so as to leave between it and the 

 soutliem wall a space of about 25 feet, and 15 feet between it and 

 the eastern wall. The inclosure which protects the tomb ft-nm visitors, 

 forms an irregular square of about 20 paces, in the midst of the 



