proportion of taxes is mitigated by the admission of those citizens who pay the next largest sums, so that the list shall always be kept up to the footing of at least one eligible person for every 6,000 inhabitants. The representatives receive pay at the rate of about $20 per week. Senators receive no pay. Each house may originate laws, but money bills must originate with the representatives. The chambers assemble as of right on the second Tuesday in November. The king may dissolve the chambers, but the act of dissolution must contain a provision for convoking them again within two months. The executive government consisted in 1871 of six departments, namely: foreign affairs, finance, justice, public works, war, and the interior. The minister of foreign affairs is premier. Besides the heads of these departments there are a number of ministers without portfolio, who form a privy council called together on special occasions by the sovereign. Titles of nobility are allowed by the constitution, but without particular privileges, all Belgians being equal in the eye of the law. Trial by jury on criminal and political charges, and offences of the press, are provided for. Taxes and the army contingent must be voted annually. The law is administered by local and provincial tribunals, with courts of appeal at Brussels, Ghent, and Liége. Various pernicious influences have produced a vast amount of pauperism. In 1857 the 908,000 families of the kingdom were, according to an official report made to the legislature, divided into 89,000 which were wealthy, 373,000 living in straitened circumstances, and 446,000 living in a wretched condition. Of the latter class 266,000 received support from the state.-The Roman Catholic religion is largely predominant in Belgium. The number of Protestants is variously estimated at from 10,000 to 25,000. The Jews number about 2,000. The stipends of ministers of all denominations are derived from the state. At the head of the Catholic church are the archbishop of Mechlin and the bishops of Ghent, Bruges, Liége, Namur, and Tournay. Monastic institutions are very numerous. In 1866 there were 2,893 monks in 178 monasteries, and 15,205 nuns in 1,144 convents and communities. The "Protestant Evangelical Church," to which the majority of Belgian Protestants belong, is governed by a synod which sits once a year at Brussels, and is composed of the clergymen of the body and a representative from each of the congregations.-There are government universities at Ghent and Liége, a Roman Catholic university at Louvain, and a free university at Brussels. There are superior public schools in most of the cities, and a great number of schools have been established for instruction in particular branches of industry, agricultural processes, chemistry, and design. The conservatory of music at Brussels is one of the most famous in the world. The number of primary schools in 1864 was 5,664 (against 5,520 in 1851), of which 4,006 were under the control of the state. They were attended by 544,761 pupils; and the expenditure incurred for their support by the state, the provinces, and the communes was 10,942,000 fr. About 30 per cent. of the adult population in 1871 were unable to read and write.-The history of Belgium as an independent state dates from 1830, at which time it was separated from the kingdom of the Netherlands. Under the Romans the country formed a part of Gallia Belgica, a name derived from its original inhabitants. (See GAUL, and BELGE.) After the fall of the West Roman empire a number of feudal lords achieved power in the Belgic territories, under the Frankish and German monarchs, among whom the counts of Flanders rose to historical distinction. From failure of male heirs their possessions devolved to the house of Burgundy in 1384, which gradually extended its influence, by conquest or treaty, over the greater part of the Netherlands. (See BRABANT, BURGUNDY, and FLANDERS.) On the death of Charles the Bold, his daughter Mary, the greatest heiress of Europe, married Maximilian of Austria, afterward emperor of Germany; and under his successor Charles V. the rule of the Low Countries was joined to the crown of Spain. Both Maximilian and Charles respected in some degree the freedom and rights of their Batavian and Belgic subjects. But Philip II. drove them into that revolt which ended in the independence of the United Provinces, and the confirmation of the yoke of Spain on the necks of the Belgians. (See NETHERLANDS.) From this period Belgium followed the fortunes of Spain. In 1598 Philip bestowed the Flemish provinces on his daughter Isabella and her husband Albert, during which period something was effected toward the settlement of the internal affairs of the province. On the death of Isabella without issue, Spain again assumed the government, and the Spanish Low Countries were for the next century the battlefield of Eu: rope. The cities were taken and retaken, the territory cut up, and passed from one power to another by the treaties of Aix-la-Chapelle (1668), Nimeguen (1678), and Ryswick (1697), until the peace of Utrecht (1713) gave the country to Austria; and, as though these influences had not been sufficiently injurious to the country, the so-called barrier treaty of 1715 delivered over several of the fortresses to Holland, in order to create a barrier against French ambition. Holland closed the Scheldt, and so diverted the trade of Antwerp, and in 1722 the rising commerce of Ostend was sacrificed to the Dutch. The empress Maria Theresa appointed Charles, duke of Lorraine, her viceroy, and under his equitable rule the people enjoyed an interval of peace. Joseph II. shook off the bonds of the barrier treaty with the Dutch, and compelled Holland to withdraw her army of occupation, but could not succeed in reopening the navigation of the Scheldt. He also addressed himself to the reform of existing abuses; but here, as in other parts of his empire, his precipitation placed a lever in the hands of those who opposed his plans, which they used successfully to excite popular discontent. On Dec. 11, 1789, the opposition, which had manifested itself in a serious revolt, culminated in a movement in Brussels against the garrison, which was forced to capitulate. Joseph and his successor Leopold II. made liberal offers for an adjustment of the differences and for the reestablishment of the constitution; but the liberal leaders stood out for an independent Belgian republic. Internal dissensions soon threw them into the power of the Austrians again, when Pichegru crossed the frontier, under instructions from the French convention, to assist the Belgians. The Austrians were rapidly driven back, and the Belgians found themselves incorporated into the French republic, and eventually they became a part of the empire. On Napoleon's abdication in 1814, the country was put under the control of an Austrian governor, but at the final peace it was united with Holland under Prince William Frederick of Orange-Nassau as king of the new kingdom, called Netherlands, being destined to form a strong bulwark against France. The inclinations and habits of the Belgians, which led them to a French alliance, were not consulted in this settlement, and their dissatisfaction was aggravated by the unwise policy of the Hollanders, and by the marked differences in national character, language, religion, and pursuits. In the states general Holland with about 2,500,000 was to have a number of representatives equal to Belgium with nearly 4,000,000 of people. Belgium had only a debt of 4,000,000 florins, Holland a debt of 1,200,000,000; this was imposed on Belgian industry. The constitution which contained all these objectionable provisions was passed by an assembly in which the dissentient Belgian nobility were an actual majority, but the absent Belgians were reckoned as assenting. The use of the French language in judicial and government proceedings was to be abolished. In May, 1830, disregarding 640 petitions, the government carried a new law of the press. Officials holding Belgian opinions were dismissed. M. de Potter, the head of the Belgian party, opened a subscription for all those who thus suffered for their principles. De Potter and his confidential friends, Tielemans, Bartels, and De Nève, were arraigned for sedition; the charge was proved by their private correspondence with each other, and they were banished. The public mind was in a state of excitement, which was raised to its highest pitch of intensity by the revolution of July in Paris. At length, on Aug. 25, 1830, during a performance of Auber's "Masaniello" at the grand opera of Brussels, the insurrectionary spirit was aroused into action by the music. The theatre was rapidly emptied, the office of the National newspaper, the government organ, was sacked, the armorers' shops were broken open, and barricades were erected. The civic guard restored order the next day; but the revolution had spread, and in all the principal cities the same scene was reenacted. On Aug. 28 a congress of citizens assembled in the hôtel de ville of Brussels; they adopted an address to the king, asking for reform of the system of government, dismissal of the unpopular ministers, and trial by jury in criminal prosecutions and proceedings affecting the press. The king received the deputies at the Hague, and refused to pledge himself to anything while under menaces of force, but promised an early consideration of the matter. This answer gave great dissatisfaction. Subsequently the crown prince was induced to visit Brussels. He held a conference with the leading men of the city, and appointed a committee for redress of grievances. The Liége deputation, however, boldly told the prince that nothing short of total separation from Holland would now pacify the people. The king summoned a states general extraordinary on Sept. 13, formed a new ministry under De Potter and De Stassart, and then sent troops to Brussels, and called on the rebels to submit. On Sept. 20 the streets of Brussels were rendered completely impassable. Prince Frederick advanced with 14,000 men, and on Sept. 23 attacked the porte de Saarbrück. After a battle of six hours the troops fought their way through the streets to the palace, and for three days there was an incessant engagement, during which the Dutch made themselves masters of the principal part of the city. But the insurgents, receiving reënforcements from Liége and other towns, recovered strength, and Prince Frederick's position soon became hopeless. He ordered a retreat; Brussels was free; Mons, Ghent, Ypres, and all the other leading towns, at once declared in favor of total separation, and on Oct. 6 the Dutch garrison of Liége capitulated. Antwerp was now the only important place which remained in the hands of the Dutch, and even in that city their authority was rapidly crumbling away. Gen. Chassé had thrown himself into the citadel, and the authorities agreed on an armistice. But the insurgent forces repudiated the right of the magistrates to negotiate with the enemy, and summoned Chassé to surrender. In reply he opened his guns on the quarter of the town in which the revolutionary troops lay, and did much harm to the city, besides destroying a vast quantity of valuable merchandise. A provisional government had been already formed in Brussels, consisting of Baron van Hoogvorst, Charles Rogier, Jolly, Count Félix de Merode, Gendebien, Van de Weyer, Potter, and some others. They appointed the various ministers, summoned a national congress, and settled the basis of a constitution which recognized the monarchical principle. Secretaries Nothomb and Paul Devaux were directed to prepare a draft of a constitution in accordance with this basis. Prince Frederick went so far as to consent and Luxemburg against the strong places in question, and accordingly the French army retired. On Aug. 9, 1832, Leopold married the princess Louise, daughter of Louis Philippe. The new king soon found himself obliged to dissolve the chamber which had elected him, and to summon a second. The final peace was concluded between Belgium and Holland April 19, 1839, at the dictation of the European powers, by which Luxemburg and Limburg were divided between the contending parties, Holland receiving the eastern divisions with the fortresses of Maestricht, Venloo, and Luxemburg. The only effect upon Belgium of the revolutionary agi to the independence of Belgium on condition | declared himself satisfied to hold Limburg that he should be made its king, but this was of no avail. On Oct. 25 he quitted Antwerp, and on the 27th Gen. Chassé commenced a two days' bombardment of the town, by which wanton act the Dutch party crushed out all chance of a friendly settlement. On Nov. 10 the national congress was opened and the independence of Belgium proclaimed. The form of monarchical government was adhered to, but the exclusion of the house of Orange for ever from the crown of Belgium was carried by an overwhelming majority. King William now turned to the great powers who had given him Belgium and guaranteed his quiet enjoyment of his new dominion. At his request a conference of the Euro-tation pean powers was held in London, which ordered an armistice, and the retirement of the troops of both parties within their respective frontiers. On Jan. 20, 1831, the independence of Belgium was acknowledged by the conference, binding Belgium to the assumption of a part of the state debt, which entailed upon her the payment of 14,000,000 florins annually. The crown was offered to the duke de Nemours, Louis Philippe's son, and declined, as the European powers would not countenance that project. The national congress now determined by a majority to appoint a regent in place of the provisional government, and Baron Surlet de Choquier was elected. He took the reins of government and named a ministry, which, being composed of incongruous materials, soon resigned, and another was appointed. The choice of the ministry and national congress now fell on Leopold of Saxe-Coburg, who accepted the crown. His relationship to the royal family of England as widower of the princess Charlotte_naturally procured him the sympathy of the British government, and he was soon considered as a kind of mediator between England and France. Not long after his coronation (July 21, 1831) Holland, in defiance of the armistice, sent an army across the frontier, and the new king thus found himself engaged in war, with a kingdom disorganized, an army hastily levied, and an unformed administration. Leopold asked aid from France, which was promptly afforded, and Marshal Gérard, accompanied by the duke of Orleans, marched an army to Brussels, which compelled the Dutch forces to retreat across their frontier. William of Holland had not, however, given his consent to the new order of things in Belgium, seeing that as yet the question of the public debt was not satisfactorily disposed of. Accordingly, the conference determined on compelling Holland to evacuate the Belgian territory, and an AngloFrench fleet was to cooperate with the army under Gérard in reducing the citadel of Antwerp and Forts Lillo and Liefkenshoek. The siege of Antwerp began Nov. 29, 1832, and on Dec. 23 Gen. Chassé capitulated. The other forts were not evacuated, but Leopold of Europe in 1848 was the establishment of an electoral reform and the abolition of the newspaper duty. King Leopold expressed his willingness to resign the crown, but the suggestion was not entertained. The coup d'état of Napoleon in 1851 caused fresh embarrassment to Belgium by the influx of French refugees. The government felt obliged to suppress the most obnoxious journals, expel a few refugees, and pass a law punishing attempts against the lives of foreign sovereigns. The conflict between the two political parties, the Catholic and the liberal, turned chiefly on home questions, especially relative to the influence of the clergy in public instruction; but by the year 1857 the liberals had gained the upper hand, ruling the country till 1870. The principal reforms effected during this period were the abolition of the octrois communaux, or city gate tolls, and the tax on salt; the substitution of the educational qualification for officeholders instead of the tax-paying qualification; laws against election frauds; and reforms in the penal code. The different copyright treaties concluded with France and other powers, though strongly opposed, proved beneficial to Belgian literature. Commercial treaties were also concluded with France, England, and the United States, on the basis of free trade, similar in spirit to the treaty made between France and England. Leopold died Dec. 9, 1865, and was succeeded by his eldest son, Leopold II. The question of the fortification of Antwerp, which formed for years a bone of contention between the political parties, was finally settled in favor of Belgium in 1870. During the Franco-Prussian war of 1870 Belgium observed a bona fide neutrality, forbidding even the exportation of arms and other war material; yet her position might have been endangered had it not been for England, which hastened to conclude a triple treaty with Prussia and France (Aug. 9, 1870), which guaranteed the independence and neutrality of Belgium according to the terms of the treaty of 1839. This triple treaty was to remain in force for only one year after the cessation of the war.-See Les fondateurs de la monarchie belge, by Théodore Juste (Brussels, 1865 et seq.). BELGOROD, or Bielgorod (Russ., white city), a town of Great Russia, on the Donetz, in the government and 80 m. S. of the city of Kursk; pop. in 1867, 15,200. The town was originally built by the Tartars in the reign of Fedor Ivanovitch, 1597, on a chalk hill, whence its name. It was afterward removed a mile lower down. It is divided into the old and new town, and has three suburbs. The old town is surrounded by rampart and ditch, the new town by palisades only. Belgorod has several factories for refining wax, and for spinning and weaving; it also carries on a considerable trade in hemp, bristles, honey, wax, leather, and soap. Three fairs are held during the year, to which merchants from the south of Russia resort. The environs are very fruitful. Belgorod is the seat of an archbishop, and has 18 churches, 2 convents, and 3 charitable asylums. BELGRADE (Serv. Belgrad, white city; anc. Singidunum), the capital of Servia, with a Belgrade. idly decaying.-Belgrade was long an object of contention between the Christians and the Turks. It was unsuccessfully besieged by the latter in 1456, when John Hunyady defended it against Mohammed II., but was taken by Solyman the Magnificent in 1521, and held till 1688, when it was taken by the elector of Bavaria. Two years later it was retaken by the Turks. In 1717 it was besieged by Prince Eugene, who was in his turn surrounded by a vastly superior Turkish army. After a prodigious defeat of the latter, the city surrendered. In 1739 the Turks came into possession of it by treaty, retaining it till 1789, when it was again taken by the Austrians under Laudon, who, however, relinquished it to the Turks in 1791. It was partly ruined during the Servian insurrection in 1813. In 1862 a difficulty between the Turks and Servians caused the commander of the citadel to open fire upon the city. In 1863 all the Turkish inhabitants of the city were forced to emigrate. In 1867 the sultan was prevailed upon to withdraw the garrison, and, though reserving the right of sovereignty, to transfer the citadel to Servia. Since then Belgrade has been making rapid progress in every respect. BELIAL, a compound Hebrew word, which the Vulgate and the English version of the Bible frequently but improperly render as a proper name. The etymology of the word, and consequently its precise signification, is not certain. The first part is undoubtedly the Hebrew beli, "without;" " the second part is by some connected with the Hebrew 'ol, "yoke," when the meaning would be "unbridled;" by others with 'alah, "to ascend," and the signification would be "ignoble condition; " by others with ya'al, usefulness, the signification being "worthlessness." The last derivation has the greater number of supporters. It is usually preceded by "man of" or "son of." The phrase "man of belial," or "son of belial," is thus equivalent to "a very worthless fellow." In the best manuscripts of the New Testament the word appears as Beliar, the final 7, as is not unfrequently the case, being changed to r. 66 convenient port on the right bank of the Danube, at its junction with the Save, 44 m. S. E. of Peterwardein; pop. in 1866, 25,089. The citadel, formerly occupied by a Turkish garrison, is on a small strip of land between the two rivers, behind which is the city. Its parts are: the Turkish quarter, which slopes to the Danube, and, though no longer inhabited by Moslems, and partly in ruins, still presents an oriental appearance; and the Servian quarter, which borders the Saye, with a quay and fine houses in modern style. Belgrade is gradually becoming modernized, churches are superseding mosques, and new buildings are constructed, chiefly in the German fashion. It produces arms, carpets, silk goods, cutlery, and BELIDOR, Bernard Forest de, a French military saddles. It is the entrepot of commerce be- engineer and author, born in Catalonia in 1693, tween Turkey and the Austro-Hungarian em- died in Paris, Sept. 8, 1761. He was employed pire, and the seat of the highest authorities of by Cassini and La Hire in their measurements the principality. Its situation gives it military of an arc of the meridian; and they recomimportance, but the fortifications are now rap-mended him to the duke of Orleans, regent of France, who appointed him professor of the newly established artillery school of La Fère, which institution acquired great celebrity under his management. About 1740, however, he lost the position through the jealousy of superior officers, and became aide-de-camp of Gen. de Ségur in Bavaria and Bohemia, and was captured at Linz, but exchanged after two months of confinement, after which he joined the staff of the duke d'Harcourt as lieutenant colonel. In 1744 he served under the prince de Conti in Italy, where his skill in reducing strongholds without risking an engagement with the enemy was conspicuous; and subsequently he distinguished himself at the capture of Charleroi, and was promoted to a colonelcy. In 1758 he became director of the arsenal of Paris, and afterward inspector general of engineering. Among his publications are: Cours de mathématiques, comprising his lectures at La Fère on the application of mathematics to military engineering (1725; enlarged and revised ed. by Mauduit, 1759); La science des ingénieurs dans la conduite des travaux de fortification et d'architecture civile (1729; 2d ed., Paris, 1749, and the Hague, 1753; new illustrated and annotated edition by Navier, Paris, 1837); Le bombardier français, ou nouvelle méthode de jeter les bombes avec précision (1731; Amsterdam, 1734); and Traité des fortifications (2 vols., 1735). The first volume of a new edition of his greatest work, Architecture hydraulique (4 vols., illustrated, 1737-'53), which continues to rank as a great authority, was published in 1819 by Navier, who died in 1836 without finishing the remaining 3 volumes. A German translation appeared at Augsburg (2 vols., 1764-'66). He was among the first to demonstrate the utility of compression globes, two of his memoirs on this subject having been published in the annals of the academy of sciences (1756). BELISARIUS (Slavic Beli-tzar, white prince), a Byzantine general, born at Germania in Illyria about 505, died in Constantinople, March 13, 565. While a youth he served among the private guards of Justinian, and upon the accession of that prince to the throne in 527 was promoted to military command, and in 529 made general-in-chief of the eastern army of the empire, stationed at Dara in Mesopotamia, near the frontier of Armenia. At this town he took into his service, as private secretary, Procopius the historian, whose writings are the principal authority for the events of his life. In 530, near Dara, he gained a decisive victory over an army of Persians nearly twice as large as his own. In the spring of 531 he marched from Dara to protect Syria, which had been invaded from the desert. He baffled the designs of the Persians against Antioch, and although, owing to the rashness of his troops, he was defeated in a battle at Callinicum, April 19, he successfully defended the eastern frontier till the end of the war in 532. Returning to Constantinople, he married Anto nina, a woman of ignoble birth and dissolute character, who sometimes accompanied him in campaigns, and at other times intrigued with the empress for his recall. He suppressed an insurrection of the party of the greens in Constantinople against Justinian, attacking them in the race course at the head of his life guards. In 533 he was made commander of a land and naval force of 600 vessels and 35,000 men, with which he sailed from Constantinople against the Vandals in Africa. He took Carthage, captured the Vandal king Gelimer, and sent detachments which reduced Sardinia, Corsica, and the Balearic isles. For these services he was on his return to Constantinople rewarded with the first triumph granted to a subject since the reign of Tiberius, a medal was struck in his honor, and in 535 he was chosen sole consul and awarded a second triumph. In the same year he commanded an expedition to recover Italy from the Ostrogoths. He regained Sicily, subdued a rebellion which had broken out in Africa, and returned to the island and quelled a mutiny in his army. He then captured Naples after a siege of 20 days, and at the end of 536 was in possession of Rome. Here he was besieged in 537 by an army of 150,000 Goths, under Vitiges, their newly elected king. He maintained his position until early in 538, when the army of the Goths retired to Ravenna, whither, after repelling an inroad of the Franks, Belisarius followed and invested the city. During the siege Vitiges obtained terms from Justinian which Belisarius refused to recognize. Then the Goths offered him their support if he would assume the title of emperor of the West. By pretended compliance he gained possession of Ravenna for the emperor, and afterward of all Italy, when he was recalled by Justinian. In 541, with an unpaid and undisciplined army, he defended the eastern frontier against the Persians under Chosroes Nushirvan. In 542 or 543 he was again recalled by the intrigues of the empress Theodora and his wife Antonina, who accused him of disloyalty to Justinian. His treasures were attached, but he was finally pardoned on condition that he should pay a heavy fine and become reconciled to his wife. In 544 the Goths, under Totila, having attempted the reconquest of Italy, Belisarius was sent against them, and during the year 546 strove to prevent their taking Rome. Though unsuccessful in this, he saved it from total destruction, and after its evacuation by Totila entered and held it against him. But no reënforcements being sent him, he gave up his command in September, 548, and his rival Narses succeeded him. His last victory was gained over the Bulgarians, who in 559 invaded the empire and threatened Constantinople. In 563 he was accused of conspiring against the life of Justinian, his property was sequestered, and "the Africanus of new Rome" passed the greater part of the last year of his life in prison. The popular legend that his eyes were put out and that he |