762 



NASSAU. — WALDECK. — ANHALT. 



Cassel, the capital, situated upon the Fulda, has 26,000 inhabitants. It has several hand- 

 some squares, and a great number of important pubhc institutions, learned and charitable. The 

 palace is one of the most magnificent in Germany. Cassel was the capital of the kingdom of 

 Westphalia, erected by Napoleon, in 1807, and dissolved on his overthrow, in 1814. In the 

 neighborhood is the castle of Wilhelmshohe, one of the most beautiful and splendid princely 

 residences in Europe. 



Hanau, an active manufacturing town, with 10,000 inhabitants ; Fulda, 9,000, with its lit- 

 erary institutions ; and Marburg, 7,000, with its university, to which belongs a library of above 

 100,000 volumes, are places of some note. Smalkalden, with 5,000 inhabitants, is interesting 

 in history, as the place in which the Protestant princes of Germany united, in 1531, in a 

 league to defend their faith against the emperor and the Catholic princes. 



3. Hesse- Darmstadt. Grand-Ducal Hesse or Hesse-Darmstadt is divided into 2 detached 

 parts by Hesse-Cassel. Area, 3,200 square miles ; population, 765,000. 



Darmstadt, the ducal residence, has 20,000 inhabitants. Its library of 90,000 volumes, the 

 museum, the vast arsenal, the palace, &c., are the objects of most interest. To the south lies 

 Worms, with 7,000 inhabitants, one of the oldest cities in Germany, and long conspicuous in 

 the history of the empire. At the diet held here in 1521, Luther vindicated his conduct and 

 defended his faith before the emperor, princes, and prelates of Germany, by whom he was put 

 under the ban of the empire. 



JWayence, JMaintz, or Mentz, is an ancient city, situated at the confluence of the Maine with 

 the Rhine ; its dark and narrow streets, and its old buildings, give it a gloomy appearance, but 

 it is a place of historical interest, and its environs are remarkable for their beauty. Its cit- 

 adel and vast fortifications, belonging to the system of military works erected by the German 

 confederation, render it the strongest town in Germany. Long the capital of a sovereign arch- 

 bishopric, Mentz still contains numerous ecclesiastical buildings. Here is still shown the house 

 in which Faust and Gutternberg, natives of Mentz, made their first essays in the art of printing. 

 Population, 26,600. At Giessen, with 7,000 inhabitants, there is a university. 



4. Hesse,- Hamburg. The landgraviate of Hesse-Homburg, consists of 2 distinct parts, the 

 one situated in Hesse-Darmstadt, and the other between the Bavarian circle of the Rhine, and 

 the Prussian government of Coblentz. Area, 166- square miles ; population, 22,800. The 

 capital is Hamburg, with 3,500 inhabitants. 



CHAPTER CVIL DUCHY OF NASSAU. 



t Nassau lies between the Prussian province of the Lower Rhine and Hesse-Darmstadt. The 

 government is a limited monarchy ; rather more than half of the inhabitants are Protestants. 

 Area, 1,720 square miles ; population, 373,600. 



Wisbaden, the capital, is a prettily built city, in a delightful situation. Its 16 hot springs, 

 which all the year round have a temperature of 140°, attract from 10.000 to 12,000 visiters 

 annually. Population, 7,000. Jfiederselters is noted for its mineral spring, the famous Selter 

 water, of which about 2,000,000 bottles are sold annually ; Hochheim, Johannisberg, and 

 Rudesheim for their wines, and Langenschicalbach for its mineral waters. 



CHAPTER CVIII. PRINCIPALITY OF WALDECK. 



This little State, with an area of 460 square miles, and 56,600 inhabitants, is surrounded by 

 the Prussian and Hessian Territories. The country of Pyrmont is a detached part, bordering 

 on Hanover and Lippe-Detmold. The religion is Lutheran ; the government constitutional. 

 Arolsen, the capital, has 1,700 inhabitants. Pyrmont, the principal town, is much visited for 

 its thermal saline waters. Population, 2,400. 



CHAPTER CIX. THE ANHALT DUCHIES. 



1. Boundaries. These States are surrounded by the Prussian province of Saxony. The 

 inhabitants are Protestants ; the governments constitutional. 



2. Anhalt- Dessau. The duchy of Anhalt-Dessau has an area of 358 square miles, and a 



