B R I 



0'!er, ami formerl)- one of the laigeft and moft coiifuleralile 

 cities of Silefia ; the calUe, coUcgt, and arfenal being great 

 ornaments to it, and moll of the hoiifcs well built. It has 

 alfo a nianufaftiire of good cloth. But in 1618 it fiifTcfcd 

 much from a fire, and Hill more from the ficge of the 

 Prufiians in 1741, to whom it was ctded by the peace, 

 and who increafcd the fortifications, and built a new fubnrb. 

 North of Brieg, at a fmall dill.iuce, is a large forell of oak, 

 beech, and pines, partly bclongin^ to the city ; and between 

 ibem is a fpacious meadow, intcrfecled by a broad dike 

 paved with Hones, where is held on St. James's day a 

 yearly fair for cattle and horfes. N. lat. 50^ 40'. E. long. 



Brieg, or Brio, a town of SwifFtrlan.!, and cnpital of 

 one of the levcn iniepciident dixains or commonweakhs of 

 the Valii-. hearing the fimc name; feaicd near tiie conflux 

 of the river Saltini with the Rhone. The furroundin^ 



country abounds with palUire ; and in tlie vicinity of the 

 town are warm baths; r6 miles E. of Sion. N. lat. 46^ 

 jS'. 1^.. long. 7° 49'. 



DRIEL, or Br[ll, a maritime town of Holland, fitua- 

 «cd on the north iide of the ifland of Vuorn, near the mouth 

 of the Meufe, with which it communicates by means of a 

 fpacfous and convenient harbour. In 1572 the confederates 

 of the United Provi:;res laid in this place the foundation of 

 their republic ; for being expelled the Low Countries by the 

 duke of Alva, they retired to England, and having equipped 

 a fm.-Il fleet of 40 fail under the conjma;!d of count Lumay, 

 they failed towards this coait, being called in derifion 

 " gucux," or beggars of the fea, and geefe of the fea. 

 Upon the duke's complaining to queen Elizabeth that they 

 were pirates, ihe obliged them to leave England ; and ac- 

 cordingly they let fail for Enekluiyfcn ; but the wind being 

 unfavourable, they accidentally fleered towards the ifle of 

 Voorn, and. attacking the town of Briel, which was inca- 

 pable of ciTedual refillance, they took pofftflion of it, for- 

 tified it, and made it the firft ai'ylum of their liberty. In 

 15S5, a treaty \vas concluded between the States of Hol- 

 land and queen Elizabeth ; and Btiel was one of the caution- 

 ■ary towns delivered into her hands for fecuring the ful- 

 filment of their engagements. Accordingly it was garri- 

 foned by the Eiwlilh during her reign, and part of the 

 Jiext ; but reftored to the States in 1616. N. lat. a° Ci' 

 E. long. 4°-;'. ^ ^ ' 



BRIENNE-LeChateau, a town of France, in the 

 department of the Aube, and chief phce of a canton, in 

 the dilh-iCt of Bar-fur-Aube, 4 leagues N.W. of Bar-fur- 

 Aubc. The place contains ;j [9;, and the canton 14,692 

 inhabitants ; the territory comprehends 277A kiliomctrts, 

 and 28 communes. 



BRIENNOIS, a name given before the revolution to a 

 fniall ddlnci of Fiance, in Burgundy, near the Loire, of 

 which Semnr en Briennois was the capital. 



BRIENON, or Briesnon, a town of France, in the de- 

 partment of the Yonne, and diltnft of Auxerre ; 2 lea-rues 

 W . of St. Florentin. " 



BRIENTZ, a lake of Swiflerland, in the canton of Bern, 

 ijout 8 miles long and 2 wide ; fiiuated nearly at rioht a,,' 

 gles With the lake of Thun.—Alfo, a town of Swiireiland in 

 the fjme canton, adjacent to the lake, and N.E. of it ; fa- 

 mous for the checfc made in its vicinity ; 22 miles S.E. of 



S^?' Ti'* ""*'■ ^^'^ """"^ through the centre of this lake. 

 N. lat. 4<5° 41'. E. long. 7° ^2'. 



BRIENZA, a town of Naples, in the Principato Crtra • 

 20 miles N. of Policaftro. . ' ' 



BRIES, Brizna, Brezno, or Banya, a royal f,-e 

 town of Hungary, feated on the river Gran, which by fuc- 



B R I 



ctfHi-e fires has been milch reduced ; whofe inhabitants are 

 chiefly employed in the breeding of fiieep. 



BRIETZEN, or Wrietzen, a town of Germany, in 

 the circle of Upper Saxony, and Middle Mark of Branden- 

 burg, near the Oder; 32 miles E. from Berlin. It has 

 frequently fufFcred much from fire. 



BRIEUC, St., a city of Fra::ce, capital of the depart- 

 ment ot the North Coafts, and the fee ofabifliop; fur- 

 rounded by mountains, which intercept the view of the i'ea 

 though at the dillance only of about a mile, on which it has 

 a fmall harbour. The churches, of which St. Michael is 

 tlie hirgell, ftreets, and fquares, are tolerably handfome ; 

 but the town has neither walls nor ditches. 'The convent 

 of the Cordeliers is well built, and has a fpacious garden ; 

 near it is the college maintained by the town for the'inftruc* 

 tion of youth. Brieuc confills of tv.-o parts; the firil con- 

 tains 4000, and the fccond 40^0 inhabitants ; the can- 

 ton of the former contains 14,737, and that of the latter 

 15,108 inhabitants ; and the territory of both comprehends 

 265 kiliometrcs, and that of the firft includes 5, and that 

 of the Iccond 8 communes. N. lat. 48° ^^'. W. long. 



BRIEUL-sur-Bar, a town cf France, in the depart- 

 ment of the Ardennes, and dillriit of Vouziers : 'j leagues 

 N. of Grandpre. ° 



n •■'l^^^'T' V°"'" °^ France, and principal p'ace-ofadi- 

 Itntt, m the department of the Mofelle, 4 leagues N W of 

 Mentz. The place contains 1433, and the canton 06. 6b- 

 habitants; the territory includes 225 kiliometres, and " 

 communes. ''" 



BRIG, m Sea-Langimge. See Brigantine. 

 BRIGA, in Geography, a town of France, in the de- 

 partment of the Maritime Alps, and chief place of a canton, 

 in the diftna of Monaco ; 22 mdcs N.E. of Nice The town 

 contains 2895, and the canton 43S6 inhabitants; the 

 territory comprehends 365 kiliometres, and two com- 

 munes. 



I'^i^^^f^?/' '" 'u' ^^•''""'■y ^'-t, a party or divifion of 

 a body of foldiers, whether horfe, foot, or artillery, under 

 the command of a brigadier. 



The word is French ; fome derive it from the Latin br^a, 

 abjuc, '^M^^'/>'jue Du-Cange derives it from ll 

 garni an ill-difciphned loldier, who fcours the countiT, and 

 plunders It of every thing, w^it'nout waiting for the enemy • 

 as the armies of Arabs, Tartars, &c. The origin of bril 

 gand IS again deduced from bngand„.e, a fort of armour 

 ufed in the army raifed by the Parifian., during the cap- 

 tmty of their king John in England, notorious for their rob- 



fh^i''""' r^'f'^''''^'^ ^P<^^\^mg, three forts of brigades ; viz 

 he bngade of an army, the brigade of a troop of horfe and 

 the brigade of artillery. A brigade of the army conf^fts of 

 either root or dragoons, the exaft number of which no 

 hxed, but genei-ally including th«e regiments, or fix batta 

 ions; a bngade of horfe may conffll of e ght ten o,- 

 twelve fquadrons; and that of artillery of eth or te^ 

 pieces o cannon, wuh all their appurtenances. The eldeft 

 bngade takes the rigln of the firft line, the fecond of the fe- 

 coudline, and the reft in order; the youngelt always occu 

 py.ng the centre: the cavalry and artlUery^bfert tKn e' 

 order The troops of horfe-guards in England are d vfdTd 

 mto feveral bngades, according to their ftitngth! 



Brigade. iJ/^y.r, m the MWtary Art, an ofBrer .h.r 

 from among the moft ingenious and expert captains Rrfc^ai 



gade^. 



