\ O R 



Y O R 



pools : the cantons to the S. and E. are planted with vine- 

 yards ; and the northern diftriA is tolerably cultivated. 

 The department, in general, is fertile, producing grain in 

 abundance, with wine, fruits, and excellent paftures. 



YOOL Islands, a clufter of fmall iflands in the Pacific 

 ocean, fo called by captain Forreft, in the year 1774. In 

 1788 thev wrre by Mr. Meers called Tattee iflanda. 



YOO-MIOU, a large town of the Birman empire, 

 fituated on a tmall river, which enters the Irawaddy at a 

 place called Yoo-wa. An extenfive traft of country is inha- 

 bited by a people called Yoo, who are faid to be exceedingly 

 «>gly> having protuberant bellies, and white teeth. Thefe 

 Yoos are fubjeftsof the Birman ilate, and obferve the fame 

 religious worfhip. They fpeak the language of Tavay, 

 which is merely a provincial dialeft of the Birman tongue. 

 Symes's Embafly to Ava, vol. ii. 



YOPA, a town of Mexico, in the province of Culiacan ; 

 100 miles E.N.E. of Culiacan. 



YOPAS, Las, or Tope%, a river of Mexico, which 

 rifes in TIafcala, and runs into the Pacific ocean, N. lat. 

 17° 10'. 



YO-PING, a town of Corea ; 33 miles S.W. of King- 

 ki-tao. — Alfo, a town of Corea ; 28 miles S.S.E. of 

 Tfin. 



YORK, the Eboracum of the Romans, is the capital of 

 the great county to which it gives name, the fee of an arch- 

 bifhop, who is primate and metropolitan of England, and the 

 fecond city in rank in the kingdom. It is of unqueftionable 

 antiquity, and eminently diftinguifhed in Englifh hiftory by 

 the important political, ecclefiaftica!, and military tranfac- 

 tions which have occurred within its walls, or with which it 

 has been in other ways intimately connefted. Seated in the 

 midft of a va!t plain, by the fide of a river which was navi- 

 gable for the largeft Ihips of ancient times, and too remote 

 from the open fea to be immediately expofed to predatory in- 

 vafion, York muft have early attrafted the attention and 

 become the favourite abode of the chiefs of the northern 

 ftates, and of their fuccefsful invaders from foreign lands. 

 Eboracum was accordingly felefted by Roman emperors 

 and commanders as a principal refidence during their pro- 

 trafted contefts with the ungovernable inhabitants of the 

 northern parts of Britain. The metropolis of a (hire un- 

 paralleled in the kingdom for extent, population, and pro- 

 ductions, York is placed at the point of junftion, although 

 independent of them all, of the three ridings or diftrifts into 

 which the {hire is fubdivided. The cathedral is fituated in 

 N. lat. 53° 58', and in W. long, from Greenwich 1° 7'. 

 The city is diftant, by the fhorteft roads, from London, N. 

 bv W. 198 miles; from Edinburgh, S.S.E. 201 miles; 

 from Durham, S. by E. 67 miles ; from Hull, V/.N.W. 

 38 miles ; and from Liverpool, EN.E. 100 miles. The 

 neareft point of the fea-coaft on the E. is at Bridlington 

 bay, dillant 33 miles, and on the W. at Lancafter 90 

 miles. The pofition of the city is central, with refpeft to 

 both the limits of the county, and the great body of the 

 population, induftry, and commerce, by which it is diftin- 

 guifhed. The ancient (lation of Eboracum was confined 

 between the river Oufe on the W. and the collateral ftream, 

 the Fofs, on the E., which falls into the Oufe at the 

 fouthern extremity of the old city. In later times, how- 

 ever, the limits were extended confiderably on the oppofite 

 fides of both rivers. Such a pofition, defended on three 

 fides by rivers and marfhes, and acceifible by an enemy on 

 the N. fide alone, although in the midft of a plain, but con- 

 fequently overlooked by no neighbouring eminence, would, 

 even in the modern art of war, be fufceptible of power- 

 ful defence : in ancient times it might have been rendered 

 12 



nearly impvregnable. In conftrufting the walls, and laying 

 down the ftreets, on ground previoufly occupied by their 

 camps, it was the praftice of the Romans to preferve m 

 much as poflible the form and diftribution of the prior io- 

 trenchment. Of this praftice frequent inftances are found 

 in Britain, as well as in Gaul, and other parts of the conti- 

 nent. The fame, notwithftanding the many changes to 

 which the city has been fubjefted, may flill be traced in 

 York, where evident remains of Roman architefture are yet 

 preferved, and where monuments of antiquity of various 

 clafles have often been difcovered. 



In its prefent ftatc, the plan of York forms an irregular 

 pentagon, extending from S. to N. about 1340 yards, and 

 from W. to E. about 1360 yards : the area within the walls 

 is therefore about 300 acres. It is divided into four wards, 

 which take their names from the four gates. Bootham- 

 gate-ward, in the N.W., contains three parifties ; Mickle- 

 gate-ward, on the W. fide of the Oufe, contains fix 

 pariflies ; Monk-ward, in the N.E., five pariflies ; and Walm- 

 gate-ward, on the S.E., feven pariflies. But the clofe of 

 the cathedral is not included in any ward. Some of thefe 

 pariflies extend beyond the walls ; and the two churches of 

 St. Lawrence and St. Maurice, fituated on the outfide of 

 the city, are flill commonly reckoned to belong to it. The 

 number of churches, exclufive of the cathedral, is therefore 

 twenty-three. In former times they amounted to forty-five. 

 Although no regular plan can now be traced in the diftribu- 

 tion of the ftreets, yet fome of them are of refpeftable ap- 

 pearance, having of late years been much improved by 

 widening and paving ; and new and handfome buildings, 

 public and private, have been creeled. The river Fofs, 

 long a piece of ftagnaled water, has again been rendered 

 navigable, and now materially contributes to the ornament 

 of the city as well as to the health of the inhabitants. 



York, ftill inhabited by many genteel families, maintains 

 its importance in no inconfiderable degree; but in point of 

 population and wealth, it has been far excelled by many ma- 

 nufafturing and trading towns in the county, of compara- 

 tively modern foundation. According to the reports of the 

 population of the kingdom in 18 11, the inhabitants of York 

 werethenonly 18,217, and the houfes 2743. 



Ci-vil Hiftory. — York, under its romanized name, Ebo- 

 racum, early appears in Britifli hiftory. In the "year 2c8, the 

 emperor Severus, with his fons Caracalla and Geta, vifited 

 Britain; andreturning froman expedition againft the northern 

 infurgents in the following year, Severus refided at Ebora- 

 cum, while his troops were employed in conilrufting acrofs 

 the idhmus, between the mouths of the Eden and the Tyne, 

 the great wall of defence ftill known by his name. In this 

 enterpnfe, he followed the example and completed the for- 

 tification of his predeceiTor Hadrian, which had been 

 formed in the year 12 1. While Severus's great work was 

 in progrefs, the emperor died at York in 210 ; and his fuc- 

 ceflbr Caracalla, more intent on the deftrndion of his en- 

 vied brother Geta than on the enlargement or the preferva- 

 tion of the Roman dominion in Britain, foon afterwards re- 

 turned to the continent. During his refidence in York, 

 Severus ftruck money, on which he ilyled himfelf Britan- 

 n'lcus ; and alfo ifl'ucd a decree rcfpefting the recovery of 

 flaves, which decree is ftill preferved in the Roman code, 

 dated at Eboracum, on the 3d of the nones of May, in the 

 coafulate of Faufl.nus and Rufuf, correfponding to the 



year A.D. 209. , 1 xi • 



Turning his arms a;;ainft the Caledonians, and other Bri- 

 tons, who ftnigghd for freedom in the north, Conftantius 

 fixed his hcad-quarters in York, and there ended his life m 

 306. York was alfo the fcene of the inaaguration of his 

 •" fon 



