MUR 
tions, which are feparated in fome parts by dried parched- 
up valleys, and elfewhere by others of more than common 
beauty and fertility. It contains a bifhopric, a cathedral 
chapter, a collegiate chapter, fix commanderies of military 
orders, ninety-one convents, twelve hofpitals, two afy- 
lums, three colleges for the education of youth, two mili¬ 
tary governments, one of the three grand departments of 
the royal navy, an intendant of the province, an intend- 
ant, of the navy, fix cities, fixty-four towns, feven vil¬ 
lages, and fome hamlets. It has two ports in the Medi¬ 
terranean ; the fmallefl being that of Las Agailas, and the 
other the iargeft and moll important in the whole of Spain, 
which is Carthagena. Its principal towns, befides Murcia, 
the capital and epifcopal fee, are Carthagena, a fortified 
town and formerly an epifcopal fee, Lorca, Chinchilla, Al- 
bacete, Villena, and Almanza. This province is watered 
by two ftreams, the Benamor and the Guardavar, and by 
two rivers, the Segura and the Guadalentin. The moll re¬ 
markable of its mountains, which are branches of Montes 
Orofpedani, are, the Sierra of Penas, Pinofa, Lofillas to 
the weft, that of Chinchilla to the north-weft, thofe of 
Montes Agudo, Covatellos, and Orihuela, to the nortli- 
eaft, the Sierra of Almanza to the north, that of El Cano 
to the fouth, of Efpana to the fouth-weft, and of Carafcoy 
to the fouth-eaft. 
The kingdom of Murcia -was the firft part of Spain that 
was occupied by the Carthaginians, who formed in it their 
firft colony, and built a town, the foundation of which is 
afcribed to Afdrubal, A.U. C. 562; and it is now called 
Carthagena, which lee. This country was afterwards 
wrefted from the Carthaginians by the Romans, of whofe 
pofieflion there remains the evidence of a military road, 
called by the people of the country the Road of Hercules. 
Being afterwards taken from the Romans by the Goths, 
this country formed part of the monarchy which the latter 
eftablilhed in Spain ; but it was laid wafte by the Vandals, 
who completely deftroyed Carthagena, which was after¬ 
wards rebuilt on account of its harbour. By the revolu¬ 
tion which happened in 552, the maritime part of the 
kingdom of Murcia fell under the empire of the Greeks, 
who retained pofieflion of it until the year 624, when it re¬ 
verted to the Goths. The Arabs in their turn feized this 
province, and became mafters of it by a treaty of peace 
figned in 715. In 1144, Murcia was annexed to the king¬ 
dom eftablilhed by the Moors, the capital of which was 
Grenada ; but in 1221, it became fubjeft to the kings of 
Cordova, and fcrmed a feparate ftate. In procefs of time, 
Alphonfo X. reftored it to the king of Caftile, having 
dilpofleffed Aben Hudiel, to whofe fovereignty it was 
fubjefted by the difl'olution of the kingdom of Cordova 
in 1236. Alphonfo transferred the title and honour of 
king to Mahomet, the Moor, who was the laft that held 
that appellation in Murcia. Since that time this country 
has belonged to the crown of Caftile, and has been under 
the fame government and laws with the other provinces 
of this crown. This province has never been thoroughly 
re-peopled fince the expulllon of the Moors. According 
to the enumeration in 1787 and 1788, its population con- 
lilted of 337,686 inhabitants; a number very inadequate 
to the extent of the province, which is about 1100 fquar-e 
leagues. 
The kingdom of Murcia produces a great quantity of 
filk. The Moors, when they conquered Spain, are faid to 
have brought thither the mulberry-tree, and to have 
taught the Spaniards the manner of cultivating it; as alio 
how to prepare and weave the filk. The loil of Murcia 
js fo favourable to this tree, that it more eafily grows 
there than in any other part of Spain. Murcia is laid to 
contain 355,500 mulberry-trees, and to produce annually 
40,000 ounces of the grain of the fiik-worm ; the refult of 
which is 250,000 pounds of filk. Every kind of fruit 
produced in Spain is found in Murcia, it furnilhes Call- 
tile, England, and France, with oranges, lemons, figs, 
See. The mountains are covered with Ihrubs, reeds, and 
■odoriferous medicinal plants, 
Vo h. XVI. No. 1105. 
CIA. 213 
Murcia prefents an extenfive field for natural hiftory. 
Of lead, copper, and filver, mines, there are various traces,- 
The province affords fulphnr, nitre, alum, bole, rock- 
cryftal, marble, and various mineral waters. The climate 
of this province is much commended ; the atmofphere is 
feldom cloudy, fogs are unknown, and rain is very rare. 
The arts and fciences are little encouraged in this pro¬ 
vince. The diftinguilhing character of the inhabitants is 
indolence. 
MUR'CIA, a city of Spain, and capital of the above 
province of the fame name. Murcia was only a village 
till the time of the Romans ; who, delighted with its fit na¬ 
tion, dedicated it to Venus Myrtia.. It was in the fields 
of Murcia that Scipio, returned from his conquefts, cele¬ 
brated the obfequies of his father and uncle. Murcia re¬ 
mained 616 years under the dominion of the Romans. It 
was taken, difmantled, and facked, by the Goths, who 
poflefled it 310 years. The Moors, in their turn, came to 
befiege it, after having conquered Cordova, Malaga, Gre¬ 
nada, and Jaen ; and the inhabitants went to meet and 
fight them. The two armies met in a plain, ftill called 
Sang-onem, on account of the bloody battle that followed, 
in which the Murcians behaved fo gallantly, that moft of 
them remained upon the field. In this extremity the go¬ 
vernor of the city ordered all the women to be clad in ar¬ 
mour, and drawn up on the rampart, whilft in the cha¬ 
racter of an ambafiador he went to the Moorilh general to 
capitulate. The Moors, believing the city to be ftill 
ftrong and full of foldiers, granted him very advantageous 
terms 5 but what was their aftoniflunent, when, upon en¬ 
tering the gates, they found only an army of women ! 
The fame circumftance is related of the taking of Orihuela. 
At length, after 527 years’ pofieflion, the Moors loft it, in 
1241, to Don Ferdinand, fon of Alphonfo the Wife ; and 
it has ever fince remained under the dominion of Spain. 
Murcia is fituated in a large and beautiful valley, wa¬ 
tered by the river Segura; its population is computed at 
60,000 perfons, including thofe who inhabit the Huerta, 
or neighbouring country dependent upon it, who are fup- 
pofed to amount to a third part of the whole. It is the 
fee of a bilhop, fuffragan to the archbifhop of Toledo, 
which fee was removed hither from Carthagena in 1291. 
Its diocefe includes almoft the prefent kingdom of Murcia 5 
and the revenue of the bifhop is equal to 22,916k 13s. id. 
fterling. The town has eleven parifhes, ten convents of 
monks, nine convents of nuns, three colleges for the fe= 
cular clergy, two hofpitals, and an afylum or penitentiary- 
houie. It has generally a garrifon of two fquadrons of 
cavalry, and is the chief place of an intendant of the whole 
kingdom or province of Murcia. Its public eftabliftnnents 
are a cuftom-houfe, a board of public economy, two pub¬ 
lic libraries, a curing-boufe for falt-petre, gunpowder- 
mills, fome filk-manufaiSlories, and a confiderable efta- 
blilhment for fpinning and twilling filk. It was formerly 
fortified, but is no longer walled. Its luburbs are pleafant, 
communicating with the town by two bridges. The 
houles, being badly built, exhibit an indifferent appear¬ 
ance ; many of them are ancient, loaded with ornaments 
of architedlure and fculpture in bad tafte. Its lquares are 
numerous; it has many churches, and its cathedral is mag¬ 
nificent. The promenades of Murcia are four; viz. the 
Arlenal, the Botanic Garden, the Alameda, and the Male- 
con ; but they are of little ufe, as the Murcians feldqmt 
walk, but ftay at home, fmoking cigars, and fleeping In 
Murcia there are three colleges for education, and two 
public libraries. Its manufadlures are 1 ’uch as have been 
mentioned in the preceding article and it merely lhares 
in the commerce of the province. Jgnprance and doth, 
fays M. de Laborde, render the manners of this town dis¬ 
agreeable ; prejudices run nigh, and the inhabitants are 
extremely litigious, The Murcian woman, however, are 
mild and affable, and would be fond of fociety, if their 
liberty were not reftraiqed by the authority and difpofi- 
tions of their hulbands. For want of lamps, it is danger- 
pus to walk the ftreets at night. In fummer the heat is 
31 extreme 
