K A V 



U A V 



of three years, ;a the termination of which he was taken 

 and flain by Theodoric. ThLodoric fixed the feat of his 

 empire in this place, and adorned it with magnificent churclies 

 and palaces, and re-conjlructed the aqueduft of Trajan. 

 His daughttr Amalafontha, and his grandfon Athalaric, con- 

 tributed towards the improvement of this city. When the 

 Goths were driven from Italy by Narfes, general of the em- 

 peror Juftmian, he was made governor of Ravenna ; and 

 having continued in this llation for 1 6 years, he was recalled 

 by Juftin II., fuceeffor to JilUnian ; and in the year 567 lie 

 was fucceeded by Longinus, who took, up iiis refidence at 

 Ravenna, under the title of exarch. (See ExARCii.) The 

 famous battle of Ravenna was fought near this town between 

 Gafton de Foix, duke of Nemmes, and nephew of Louis XII. 

 and the army of pope Julius II., Ferdinand, king of Spain, 

 and the Venetians, in which the former young general, being 

 only 24 years of age, having killed between 16 and 18,000 

 of the enemy, proved viftorious, though he liimfelf was 

 killed by too ardently following the purfuit. This happened 

 on Eafter-day 15 iz. The French, enraged by the lofs of 

 their brave general, took Ravenna by ilorm, and pillaged 

 the city with fuch feverity that it has never recovered. On 

 the road to Forli, by the banks of the little river Ronco, 

 three miles from the city, a crofs Ihews the fpot where Gaf- 

 ton dc Foix was killed. Frefh water has always been fo 

 fcarce at Ravenna, that it has occafioned a pleafant epigram 

 by Martial. This city was of late the capital of Romagna, 

 with the title of an archbifhopric. It has produced feveral 

 perfons of eminence, as Fauftinus, often mentioned by Mar- 

 tial ; the fophifl Afpafuis, who lived under the reign of Alex- 

 ander Sevenis ; Caffiodorus, chancellor to Ti-.eodoric, king 

 of the Goths in Italy ; pope John XVII. ; Peter Damien, 

 cardinal of Offa, and feveral others. Ravenna was aifo 

 the feat of many councils at fucceflive periods. The three 

 laft councils, in 131 1, 1314, and 1317, were fummoned for 

 ifce purpofe of reforming the corrupted manners of the ec- 

 clefiaftics, which were, in tliofe days, very debauched. It 

 is now a mean and mconfiderable town ; tiic houles are old 

 and in a ruined Itatc, and the number of inhabitants fcarccly 

 amounts to 14 or 15,000. In the time of the Romans, it 

 was feated on a kind of bay formed by the Adriatic, and 

 its harbour was celebrated ; but it is now three miles from 

 the fea. The mud thrown up by the tide having formed a 

 traft of land, which is cultivated, and en which the city it- 

 felf has been enlarged towards the fea. Tlie air is infalu- 

 brious ; but has been fomewhat amended by conveying along 

 the fides of the city the rivers Mentone and Ronco, whicli 

 carry off the foetid water from the rnarfliy gi-ounds. It 

 contains feveral churches, and 24 convents ; 42 miles E. oi' 

 Bologna. N. lat.44° 27'. E. long. 1 1° 5'. 



RAVENPOINT, a headland of the county of Wex- 

 ford, Ireland, at the N. fide of the entrance into Wexford 

 haven. N. lat. 52° 23'. W. long. 6" iS'. 



RAVENSARA, in Botany, a barbarous appeDs.tion, 

 altered by Sonncrat from the Aladagalcar name of the plant, 

 Raven-tfara, or Voaravendjarn, meaning, it feems, a good 

 leaf, and applying to the aromatic qualities, and economical 

 ufes, of the leaves. Hence Juffieu was induced to contrive 

 the apt generic name Agcdhophyllum, from a'/aoo,-, good or 

 profitable, and ^uXKw, a Uaf ; under whicti this genus ought 

 to have been defcribcd in its proper place, in our iiril volume. 

 But one of our predeceliors has, by miifake, referred the 

 reader to Raveitfara, as a genuine Linnaean name, attri- 

 buting AgathopHYLLUM to profeffor Martyn ; fee that 

 article. To correft this error, and fupply the confequent 

 deficiency, we fubjoin an account of the tree in^queftion, un- 

 der its proper and received denomination. 



AiiATnOPllVLI.UM. Juli. 431. Schreb. 806. Wifld, 

 Sp. PI. V. 2. 842. Mart. Mil). Ui<S. v. i. Lamarck 11- 

 lullr. t. 825. (Ravenfara; Sonnerat Ind. Occ. v.- 2. 22C. 

 Euodia; Grertn. t. 103. Lamarck lUultr. t. 404.; — 

 Clals and order, DodecanJria Mono^yma. Nat. Ord. un- 

 certain, perhaps akin to the Lauri, Ju!l'. 



Gen. Ch. Gal. Perianth inferior, very fmall, abrupt, en- 

 tire, permanent. Cor. Petals fix, ovate, inferted into the 

 calyx, fomewhat villous on the infide. Stam. Filaments 

 twelve, broadifli, very fliort, alternately inferted into the 

 bafe of the petals and the infide of the calyx ; anthers 

 roundifh. P'ljl. Germen fupcrior, very fmall ; ilyle very 

 fliorl ; ftigtna downy. Peric. Drupa nearly globofe, umbi- 

 licated. Seed. Nut the fhape of the drupa, tipped with a 

 fmall abrupt point, divided internally half way, into fix 

 coriaceous cells ; kernel convex above, fix-lobed below, one 

 lobe being received into each cell. 



EfT. Cli. Calyx abrupt, entire. Petals fix, inferted into 

 the calyx. Drupa fuperior, nearly globofe. Nut with fix 

 incomplete cells. Kernel fohtary, with fix lobes. 



Obf. Schreber, by a cafual overfight, dcfcribes the fruit 

 as crowned with tlie calyx, though he judly terms the ger- 

 men fuperior. 



I. A., aromnt'iciim. Willd. n, I. ( Ravenfara aromatica ; 

 Sonnerat Ind. Or. v. 2. 226. t. 127. Euodia Ravenfara ; 

 Gasrtn. v. 2. loi.) — Native of Madagafcar. A large and 

 tufted, fomewhat pvramidal tree, with a reddifh aromatic 

 bark, and heavy, hard, inodorous, white luood, intermixed 

 with red fibres. Leaves alternate, ftalked, fimple, obovate, 

 entire, generally obtufe ; fmooth on both fides ; pale and 

 rather glaucous beneath ; fingle-ribbed, of a firm or coria- 

 ceous texture. Flowers very minute, numerous, in axillary 

 panicles about the ends of the branches, fhorter than the 

 leaves. Fruit an inch in diameter, folitary at the end of 

 each branch, fo that, as Sonnerat remarks, one would think 

 the Jlo'wers had grown on a different tree ; the panicles beino; 

 obhterated, probably, in confequence of one flower alone, 

 in each, bearing fruit. Tlie tree produces fruit at the age 

 of five or fix years, which is ten months in coming to per- 

 fcftion. The inhabitants of Madagafcar gather it at the 

 age of fix or feven months, as being, in that Hate of growth, 

 more fit for ufe as a fpice. The kernel, when frefh, has a 

 fine aromatic odour, but its tafte is bitter, and fo highly 

 acrid as to burn the 'throat very difagreeably. The leaves 

 are alio very aromatic, and being made into a fort of gar- 

 lands, are left for a month iu the open air to dry ; after 

 which they are plunged, for four or five minutes, into boil- 

 ing water, and then dried, either in the lun, or by a fire. 

 The fruits are treated in the fame manne*-. The^o'zuers ap- 

 pear in January or February. The di-ied leaves, as well as 

 the fruit, of this tree, are faid to partake of the flavours of 

 the four moft etteemcd fpices. They have not, however, 

 come into ufe as an article of commerce, though fome of the 

 French, refident in Madagafcar, have endeavoured to call 

 the attention of their countrymen to this object. Gxrtner 

 found the odour of the fruit, though agreeable, too weak 

 to promife much utility. 



RAVENSBERG, in Geography, a county of Germany, 

 lying between the bifhoprics of Muniler, Ofnaburgh, and 

 Paderborn, the principality of Minden, and the counties of 

 Schauenberg and Lippe.' The loil is in fome parts fandy, 

 but in others, efpecially towards the principality of Minden, 

 it produces corn, flax, and hemp ; coal is found in fome of 

 the mountains, and good ilone for building. Its name is 

 derived from that of an ancient caftle, and it had formerly 

 its ov/n counts. It lately belonged to the king of PrufTia ; 

 but by the peace of Tilfit was transferred to the kingdom of 



Weltphalia. 



