-
00 MSS. The
d to have been
umerous public
place. One of
ing Réné, exe-
ld clock-tower,
clock strikes,
1 motion. The
town consists
lve, in cotton-
> in oil, wine,
lightly sulphu-
o 100° F., clear
-water, almost
v bitter taste.
ing the beauty
especially fre-
1 which Marius
in between A.
r the Counts of
literary capital
n of the muni-
), a small town
ul valley near
om Chambery.
ce in the times
its numerous
of Pomponius,
orarium. The
'he hot springs,
ality, and of a
> used both for
nnually above
wchen) is the
It is situated
- heights, and
t7, E. long. 6°
wre Protestants
1erous thriving
s and pins—
vad-cloths and
ren even the
market. As a
nish railways,
russian trade.
ociations. It
1t the time of
ts world-wide
lace of Charle-
his grave 814
d the already
Palace, to be
pel, in which
(65 A.D.: - Fhe
onnade, which
the emperor’s
n earthquake.
t on the ruins
destroyed by
cient plan by
ucleus of the
>dral is in the
ous additions
sixteen-sided
a stone, with
s the grave of
vault in the
emperor was
vation, seated
es, his sceptre
a piece of the
serip attached
50 be built up
the arch. In
ATX-LA-CHAPELLE.
1165 A.D., when the emperor Frederick I. caused the
vault to be re-opened, the bones of the great emperor
were enshrined in a casket of gold and silver, and a
large and beautifully wrought chandelier was hung
up over the tomb as a memorial. In 1215 A.Dp.,
Frederick II. caused the remains of the emperor to
be enclosed in a costly chest, in which they are yet
kept in the sacristy. The marble chair was, in later
times, overlaid with gold plates, and used till 1558
A.D. at the imperial coronations, as a throne for the
newly crowned emperor. The imperial insignia were
removed to Vienna in 1795.—In the 14th c., a choir
in the Gothic style was added to the east side of the
octagon, which had been built in the Byzantine
style; while on the west side, a square belfry was
joined to it, as well as two small round towers, with
winding stairs leading to the treasury. Here are
kept the so-called ¢great relics,’ which, once in
seven years, are still shewn to the people, in the
month of July, from the gallery of the tower. This
spectacle attracts many thousands of strangers to A.
Much has of late years been done to restore this
venerable pile. The columns brought by Charle-
magne from the palace of the Exarch at Ravenna,
to decorate the interior of the octagon, had been
carried off by the French; and although part of
them had been restored at the peace of Paris, they
were not replaced in the building till recently.
The town-house—which encloses the remains of
the Imperial Palace—adorns the market-place, having
the Bell or Market Tower on the left, and on the
right the Granus Tower, a memorial of old Roman
times. The coronation-hall, 162 feet long, by 60
feet wide, in the interior of the town-house, was, in
the last century, divided in the middle by a wooden
partition. This noble hall, in which thirty-seven
German emperors and eleven empresses have been
crowned, has been restored to 1its original form,
and the walls are in process of being decorated
with large fresco-paintings of scenes from the life of
Charlemagne, by Rethel. Before the town-house
stands a beautiful fountain, with a bronze statue of
Charlemagne. In the church of the Franciscans,
are to be seen a fine picture of the Taking Down of
Christ from the Cross, by Vandyck, and two other
pictures representing the Crucifixion, by A. Diepen-
beeck. At a short distance from A., and surrounded
by the river, stands Frankenburg, once the favourite
abode of Charlemagne and of Fastrada, and still
rich in legends. It has lately been rebuilt from its
romantic ruins. As a town, A. has recently been
much improved. It now possesses many fine build-
ings, among which are several large and splendid
hotels. From being a quiet old city of historical
interest, it has become a busy centre of manufactur-
ing industry. At one time, it was noted for its
public gambling-tables; but these, to the credit of
the Prussian government, are now disallowed.
The name of Aix or Aachen is evidently derived
from the springs, for which the place has been
always famous. (See AA.) The name Aquis Granum,
which it received about the 3d c., may possibly be
derived from Granus, one of the names of Apollo,
who was worshipped by the Romans near springs.
The French name, A., refers to the Chapel of the
Palace. Charlemagne granted extraordinary privi-
leges to this city. The citizens were exempted, in
all parts of the empire, from personal and military
service, from imprisonment, and from all taxes.
The city also possessed the right of sanctuary : “the
air of A. made all free, even outlaws.’ In the
middle ages, this free imperial city (then included
in the circle of Westphalia) contained more than
100,000 inhabitants; and held an important place
among the confederated cities of the Rhine. The
emper?rs were crowned in A. from Louis the Pious
to Ferdinand T. (813—1531 A.p.). 17 imperial diets
and 11 - provincial “ councils were held within its
walls. The removal of the coronations to Frankfort,
the religious contests of the 16th and 17th centuries,
a great fire which in 1656 A.D. consumed about 4000
| houses in the city, combined with other causes to
bring into decay this once flourishing community.
In January 1793, and again in 1794, A. was occu-
pied by the French. By the treaties concluded at
Campo Formio and Lunéville, it was formally ceded
to France, and became the capital of the depart-
ment of Roer; at length, in 1815, the city fell to
Prussia. See Quix, Geschichte der Stadt A. (History
of A.), 2 vols., A., 1841.
The MINERAL SPRINGS of A., of which six are hot,
and two cold, were known in the time of Charlemagne,
and were much frequented as early as 1170. The hot
springs are strongly sulphurous, and contain also
hydrochlorates. The temperature varies from 111°—
136° F. They chiefly act on the liver, and on the
mucous surfaces and skin, and are therefore efficaci-
ous in cases of gout, rheumatism, cutaneous diseases,
&c. The most remarkable is the ¢ Emperor’s Spring,’
which rises in the middle of the Hétel Kaiserbad.
The baths themselves are from 4 to 5 feet deep, and
are built quite in the old Roman style. The cold
springs are chalybeate, and not so copious. The
new ‘Eisenquelle’ (iron spring), first discovered in
1829, is provided with an elegant bath-house. The
well-proved medicinal virtues of the mineral springs
of A. bring yearly to the city many thousands of
strangers.
TREATIES OF PEACE, and CONGRESS OF A.— The
first Peace of A. ended the war carried on between
France and Spain for the possession of the Spanish
Netherlands. On the death of Philip IV., Louis
XIV. laid claim to a large portion of those territories
in the name of his wife, Maria Theresa, the daughter
of Philip, urging the law of succession prevailing in
Brabant and Namur respecting private property.
The victorious progress of Louis was checked by
the triple alliance between England, Holland, and
Sweden ; and a treaty of peace was concluded at
A. in 1668, by which France retained possession of
the fortresses of Charleroi, Lille, &c., which she had
already taken.
The second Peace of A. concluded the war respect-
ing the succession of Maria Theresa to the empire.
See SvccEssioN, WARS oF. After the war had been
carried on with various success for eight years,
peace was concluded in 1748. 1In general, the
possessions of the several states remained as
before the war. Austria ceded Parma and Placentia
to the Spanish infanta, Philip; and the posses-
sion of Silesia was guaranteed to Prussia. The
privilege of the Assiento Treaty (q.v.) was anew
confirmed to England for four years, and the pre-
tender was expelled from France. Owing chiefly to
the exertions of her minister, Kaunitz, Austria came
off with but small sacrifice, while England, notwith-
standing her splendid victories, derived little solid
advantage, and was left with a debt raised to 80
millions.
The Congress of A. was held in 1818, for regulating
the affairs of Europe after the war. It began on the
30th September, and ended on the 21st November.
Its principal object was the withdrawal from France
of the army of occupation, 150,000 strong, as well
as the receiving of France again into the alliance of
the great powers. The emperors of Russia and
Austria, and the king of Prussia, were personally
present. The plenipotentiaries were—Metternich,
Castlereagh, and Wellington, Hardenberg and Bern-
storff, Nesselrode and Capo d’Istrias, with Richelieu
on the part of France. France having engaged to
complete the payment of the stipulated sums of
97
e
