[1] After his election to the Greek presidency in 1827, Capo
d'Istria, whose baptismal names were Giovanni Antonio, signed himself
Joannes Capodistrias, the form by which he is very commonly known.
[2] The letter was written by Michael Stourdza and _copied_ by Louis.
CAPODISTRIA, a town and seaport of Austria, in Istria, 15 m. S.W. of
Trieste by rail. Pop. (1900) 10,711, mostly Italians. It is situated on
a small island, which occupies the end of a large bay in the Gulf of
Trieste, and which is connected with the mainland by a causeway half a
mile in length. Capodistria is an old town with small streets, and has
preserved remarkably well its Italian, almost its Venetian character.
The most noteworthy buildings are the cathedral, the town-hall and the
_Loggia_ or the old law-court, all situated in the principal square. In
addition to the extraction of salt from the sea in the extensive salt
works near the town, fishing and shipbuilding are the other principal
occupations of the population. Trade is chiefly in sea-salt, wine and
oil. Capodistria is usually identified with the town of Aegida,
mentioned by Pliny, which appears by an inscription to have afterwards
received (in the 6th century) the name of Justinopolis from Justin II.
When at the beginning of the 13th century Istria fell into the hands of
the patriarchs of Aquileia, they made this town the capital of the whole
province. Thence it acquired its actual name, which means the capital of
Istria. It was captured by the Venetians in 1279, and passed into
Austrian possession in 1797.
CAPONIER (from the Fr. _caponniere_, properly a capon-cote or house), in
fortification, a work constructed in the ditch of a fort. Its fire
(musketry, machine-guns, case shot, &c.) sweeps the bottom of the ditch
and prevents an enemy from establishing himself in it. The term is used
in a military sense as early as in the late 17th century. In various
bastioned systems of fortification a caponier served merely as a covered
means of access to outworks, the bastion trace providing for the defence
of the ditch by fire from the main parapet.
CAPPADOCIA, in ancient geography, an extensive inland district of Asia
Minor. In the time of Herodotus the Cappadocians occupied the whole
region from Mount Taurus to the Euxine. That author tells us that the
name of the Cappadocians (Katpatouka) was applied to them by the
Persians, while they were termed by the Greeks "Syrians," or "White
Syrians" (_Leucosyri_). Under the later kings of the Persian empire the
were divided into two satrapies or governments, the one comprising the
central and inland portion, to which the name of Cappadocia continued to
be applied by Greek geographers, while the other was called Cappadocia
[Greek: kata Poutou], or simply Pontus (q.v.). This division had already
come about before the time of Xenophon. As after the fall of the Persian
government the two provinces continued to be separate, the distinction
was perpetuated, and the name Cappadocia came to be restricted to the
inland province (sometimes called Great Cappadocia), which alone will be
considered in the present article.
Cappadocia, in this sense, was bounded S. by the chain of Mount Taurus,
E. by the Euphrates, N. by Pontus, and W. vaguely by the great central
salt "Desert" (_Axylon_). But it is impossible to define its limits with
accuracy. Strabo, the only ancient author who gives any circumstantial
account of the country, greatly exaggerated its dimensions; it was in
reality about 250 m. in length by less than 150 in breadth. With the
exception of a narrow strip of the district called Melitene, on the
east, which forms part of the valley of the Euphrates, the whole of this
region is a high upland tract, attaining to more than 3000 ft., and
constituting the most elevated portion of the great tableland of Asia
Minor (q.v.). The western parts of the province, where it adjoins
Lycaonia, extending thence to the foot of Mount Taurus, are open
treeless plains, affording pasture in modern as in ancient times to
numerous flocks of sheep, but almost wholly desolate. But out of the
midst of this great upland level rise detached groups or masses of
mountains, mostly of volcanic origin, of which the loftiest are Mount
Argaeus (still called by the Turks Erjish Dagh), (13,100 ft.), and
Hassan Dagh to the south-west (8000 ft.).
The eastern portion of the province is of a more varied and broken
character, being traversed by the mountain system called by the Greeks
Anti-Taurus. Between these mountains and the southern chain of Taurus,
properly so called, lies the region called in ancient times Cataonia,
occupying an upland plain surrounded by mountains. This district in the
time of Strabo formed a portion of Cappadocia and was completely
assimilated; but earlier writers and the Persian military system
regarded the Cataonians as a distinct people.
Cappadocia contained the sources of the Sarus and Pyramus rivers with
their higher affluents, and also the middle course of the Halys (see
ASIA MINOR), and the whole course of the tributary of Euphrates now
called Tokhma Su. But as no one of these rivers was navigable or served
to fertilize the lands along its torrential course, none has much
importance in the history of the province.
The kingdom of Cappadocia, which was still in existence in the time of
Strabo, as a nominally independent state, was divided, according to that
geographer, into ten districts. Of these _Cataonia_ has been described;
the adjoining district of _Melitene_, which did not originally form part
of Cappadocia at all, but was annexed to it by Ariarathes I., was a
fertile tract adjoining the Euphrates; its chief town retains the name
of Malatia. _Cilicia_ was the name given to the district in which
Caesarea, the capital of the whole country was situated, and in which
rose the conspicuous Mount Argaeus. _Tyanitis_, the region of which
Tyana was the capital, was a level tract in the extreme south, extending
to the foot of Mount Taurus. _Garsauritis_ appears to have comprised the
western or south-western districts adjoining Lycaonia; its chief town
was Archelais. _Laviansene_ or _Laviniane_ was the country south and
south-east of Sivas, through which ran the road from Sebastea to
Caesarea: _Sargarausene_ lay south of the above, and included Uzun Yaila
and the upper basin of the Tokhma Su; _Saravene_ lay west of Laviansene
and included the modern district of Ak Dagh; _Chamanene_ lay west again
of the above along the middle course of the Halys: _Morimene_ was the
north-western district extending along the edge of the central desert as
far south as Melegob.
The only two cities of Cappadocia considered by Strabo to deserve that
appellation were Mazaca, the capital of the kingdom under its native
monarchs (see CAESAREA-MAZACA); and Tyana, not far from the foot of the
Taurus, the site of which is marked by a great mound at a place called
Kiz (or Ekuz) Hissar, about 12 m. south-west of Nigdeh. Archelais,
founded by Archelaus, the last king of the country, subsequently became
a Roman colony, and a place of some importance. It is now Akserai.
Several localities in the Cappadocian country were the sites of famous
temples. Among these the most celebrated were those of Comana (q.v.) and
Venasa in Morimene, where a male god was served by over 3000
_hieroduli_. The local sanctity of Venasa has been perpetuated by the
Moslem veneration for Haji Bektash, the founder of the order of
dervishes to which the Janissaries used in great part to belong.
Cappadocia was remarkable for the number of its slaves, which
constituted the principal wealth of its monarchs. Large numbers were
sent to Rome but did not enjoy a good reputation. The Cappadocian
peasants are still in the habit of taking service in the West of the
peninsula and only returning to their homes after long absences; their
labour is now much valued by employers, as they are a strong sober folk.
The province was celebrated for its horses, as well as for its vast
flocks of sheep; but from its elevation above the sea, and the coldness
of its climate, it could never have been rich and fertile.
_History_.--Nothing is known of the history of Cappadocia before it
became subject to the Persian empire, except that the country was the
home of a great "Hittite" power centred at Boghaz-Keui (see PTERIA),
which has left monuments at many places, e.g. Nevsheher, Fraktin, Gorun,
Malatia, various points about Albistan and Derendeh, Bulgur Maden,
Andaval and Tyana. Possibly the princes of the last named city were
independent. With the decline of the Syro-Cappadocians after their
defeat by Croesus, Cappadocia was left in the power of a sort of feudal
aristocracy, dwelling in strong castles and keeping the peasants in a
servile condition, which later made them apt for foreign slavery. It was
included in the third Persian satrapy in the division established by
Darius, but long continued to be governed by rulers of its own, none
apparently supreme over the whole country and all more or less tributary
to the Great King. Thoroughly subdued at last by the satrap Datames,
Cappadocia recovered independence under a single ruler, Ariarathes
(hence called Ariarathes I.), who was a contemporary of Alexander the
Great, and maintained himself on the throne of Cappadocia after the fall
of the Persian monarchy.
The province was not visited by Alexander, who contented himself with
the tributary acknowledgment of his sovereignty made by Ariarathes
before the conqueror's departure from Asia Minor; and the continuity of
the native dynasty was only interrupted for a short time after
Alexander's death, when the kingdom fell, in the general partition of
the empire, to Eumenes. His claims were made good in 322 by the regent
Perdiccas, who crucified Ariarathes; but in the dissensions following
Eumenes's death, the son of Ariarathes recovered his inheritance and
left it to a line of successors, who mostly bore the name of the founder
of the dynasty, Under the fourth of the name Cappadocia came into
relations with Rome, first as a foe espousing the cause of Antiochus the
Great, then as an ally against Perseus of Macedon. The kings
henceforward threw in their lot with the Republic as against the
Seleucids, to whom they had been from time to time tributary. Ariarathes
V. marched with the Roman proconsul Crassus against Aristonicus, a
claimant to the throne of Pergammum, and their forces were annihilated
(130 B.C.). The imbroglio which followed his death ultimately led to
interference by the rising power of Pontus and the intrigues and wars
which ended in the failure of the dynasty. The Cappadocians, supported
by Rome against Mithradates, elected a native lord, Ariobarzanes, to
succeed (93 B.C.); but it was not till Rome had disposed at once of the
Pontic and Armenian kings that his rule was established (63 B.C.). In
the civil wars Cappadocia was now for Pompey, now for Caesar, now for
Antony, now against him. The Ariobarzanes dynasty came to an end and a
certain Archelaus reigned in its stead, by favour first of Antony, then
of Octavian, and maintained tributary independence till A.D. 17, when
the emperor Tiberius, on Archelaus's death in disgrace, reduced
Cappadocia at last to a province. Vespasian in A.D. 70 joined Armenia
Minor to it and made the combined province a frontier bulwark. It
remained, under various provincial redistributions, part of the Eastern
Empire till late in the 11th century, though often ravaged both by
Persians and Arabs. But before it passed into Seljuk hands (1074), and
from them ultimately to the Osmanlis, it had already become largely
Armenian in religion and speech; and thus we find the southern part
referred to as "Hermeniorum terra" by crusading chroniclers. At this day
the north-east and east parts of the province are largely inhabited by
Armenians. The native kings had done much to Hellenize Cappadocia, which
had previously received a strong Iranian colour; but it was left to
Christianity to complete their work. Though pre-Hellenic usages long
survived in the local cults and habits, a part of the people has
remained more or less Hellenic to this day, in spite of its envelopment
by Moslem conquerors and converts. The tradition of its early church,
illuminated by the names of the two Gregories and Basil of Caesarea, has
been perpetuated by the survival of a native Orthodox element throughout
the west and north-west of the province; and in the remoter valleys
Greek speech has never wholly died out. Its use has once more become
general under Greek propagandist influence, and the Cappadocian "Greeks"
are now a flourishing community.
BIBLIOGRAPHY.--W. Wright, _Empire of the Hittites_ (1884); G. Perrot
and C. Chipiez, _Hist. de l'art dans l'antiquite_, vol. iv. (1886);
A.H. Sayce, _Hittites_ (1892) (see also PTERIA); J.G. Droysen, _Gesch.
des Hellenismus_ (3rd ed., 1878); A. Holm, _Gesch. Griech._ (Eng.
trans., 1886); Th. Reinach, _Mithridate Eupator_ (1890); E.R. Bevan,
_House of Seleucus_ (1902); Th. Mommsen, _Provinces of the Roman
Empire_ (Eng. trans., 1886); J. Marquardt, _Rom. Staatsverwaltung_, i.
(1874); W.M. Ramsey, _Hist. Geog. of Asia Minor_ (1890); C. Ritter,
_Erdkunde_, xviii. xix. (1858-1859); D.G. Hogarth and J.A.R. Munro,
_Mod. and Anc. Roads in E. Asia Minor_ (R.G.S. Supp. Papers, iii.
1893); G. Perrot, _Souvenirs d'un voyage dans l'A. Mineure_ (1864);
H.J. v. Lennep, _Travels in Asia Minor_ (1870); E. Chantre, _Mission
en Cappadocie_ (1898); H.F. Tozer, _Turkish Armenia_ (1881); H.C.
Barkley, _Ride Through A.M. and Armenia_ (1891); Lord Warkworth,
_Notes of a Diary in As. Turkey_ (1898); M. Sykes, _Dar ul-Islam_
(1904). (E. H. B.; D. G. H.)
CAPPEL, a French family which produced some distinguished jurists and
theologians in the 15th and 16th centuries. In 1491, Guillaume Cappel,
as rector of the university of Paris, protested against a tithe which
Innocent VIII. claimed from that body. His nephew, Jacques Cappel (d.
1541), the real founder of the family, was himself advocate-general at
the parlement of Paris, and in a celebrated address delivered before the
court in 1537, against the emperor Charles V., claimed for Francis I.
the counties of Artois, Flanders and Charolais. He left nine children,
of whom three became Protestants. The eldest, Jacques (1529-1586), sieur
du Tilloy, wrote several treatises on jurisprudence. Louis (1534-1586),
sieur de Moriambert, the fifth son, was a most ardent Protestant. In
1570 he presented a confession of faith to Charles IX. in the name of
his co-religionists. He disputed at Sedan before the duc de Bouillon
with the Jesuit, Jean Maldouat (1534-1583), and wrote in defence of
Protestantism. The seventh son, Ange (1537-1623), seigneur du Luat, was
secretary to Henry IV., and enjoyed the esteem of Sully. Among those who
remained Catholic should be mentioned Guillaume, the translator of
Machiavelli. The eldest son Jacques also left two sons, famous in the
history of Protestantism:--Jacques (1570-1624), pastor of the church
founded by himself on his fief of le Tilloy and afterwards at Sedan,
where he became professor of Hebrew, distinguished as historian,
philologist and exegetical scholar; and Louis (see below).
On the protest of Guillaume Cappel, see Du Bellay, _Historia
Universitatis Parisiensis_, vol. v. On the family, see the sketch by
another Jacques Cappel, "De Capellorum gente," in the _Commentarii et
notae criticae in Vetus Testamentum_ of Louis Cappel, his father
(Amsterdam, 1689). Consult Eugene and Emile Haag, _La France
protestante_, vol. iii. (new edition, 1881).
CAPPEL, LOUIS (1585-1658), French Protestant divine and scholar, a
Huguenot whose descent is traced above, was born at St Elier, near
Sedan, in 1585. He studied theology at Sedan and Saumur; and Arabic at
Oxford, where he spent two years. At the age of twenty-eight he accepted
the chair of Hebrew at Saumur, and twenty years afterwards was
appointed professor of theology. Amongst his fellow lecturers were Moses
Amyraut and Josue de la Place. As a Hebrew scholar he made a special
study of the history of the Hebrew text, which led him to the conclusion
that the vowel points and accents are not an original part of the Hebrew
language, but were inserted by the Massorete Jews of Tiberias, not
earlier than the 5th century A.D., and that the primitive Hebrew
characters are those now known as the Samaritan, while the square
characters are Aramaic and were substituted for the more ancient at the
time of the captivity. These conclusions were hotly contested by
Johannes Buxtorf, being in conflict with the views of his father,
Johannes Buxtorf senior, notwithstanding the fact that Elias Levita had
already disputed the antiquity of the vowel points and that neither
Jerome nor the Talmud shows any acquaintance with them. His second
important work, _Critica Sacra_, was distasteful from a theological
point of view. He had completed it in 1634; but owing to the fierce
opposition with which he had to contend, he was only able to print it at
Paris in 1650, by aid of a son, who had turned Catholic. The various
readings in the Old Testament text and the differences between the
ancient versions and the Massoretic text convinced him that the idea of
the integrity of the Hebrew text, as commonly held by Protestants, was
untenable. This amounted to an attack on the verbal inspiration of
Scripture. Bitter, however, as was the opposition to his views, it was
not long before his results were accepted by scholars.
Cappel was also the author of _Annotationes et Commentarii in Vetus
Testamentum_, _Chronologia Sacra_, and other biblical works, as well
as of several other treatises on Hebrew, among which are the _Arcanum
Punctuationis revelatum_ (1624) and the _Diatriba de veris et antiquis
Ebraeorum literis_ (1645). His _Commentarius de Capellorum gente_,
giving an account of the family to which he belonged, was published by
his nephew James Cappel (1639-1722), who, at the age of eighteen,
became professor of Hebrew at Saumur, but, on the revocation of the
edict of Nantes, fled to England, where he died in 1722. See
Herzog-Hauck, _Realencyklopadie_.
CAPPELLO, BIANCA (1548-1587), grand duchess of Tuscany, was the daughter
of Bartolommeo Cappello, a member of one of the richest and noblest
Venetian families, and was famed for her great beauty. At the age of
fifteen she fell in love with Pietro Bonaventuri, a young Florentine
clerk in the firm of Salviati, and on the 28th of November 1563 escaped
with him to Florence, where they were married and she had a daughter
named Pellegrina. The Venetian government made every effort to have
Bianca arrested and brought back, but the grand duke Cosimo de' Medici
intervened in her favour and she was left unmolested. However she did
not get on well with her husband's family, who were very poor and made
her do menial work, until at last her beauty attracted Francesco, the
grand duke's son, a vicious and unprincipled rake. Although already
married to the virtuous and charming Archduchess Giovanna of Austria, he
seduced the fair Venetian and loaded her with jewels, money and other
presents. Bianca's accommodating husband was given court employment, and
consoled himself with other ladies; in 1572 he was murdered in the
streets of Florence in consequence of some amorous intrigue, though
possibly Bianca and Francesco were privy to the deed. On the death of
Cosimo in 1574 Francesco succeeded to the grand duchy; he now installed
Bianca in a fine palace close to his own and outraged his wife by
flaunting his mistress before her. As Giovanna had borne Francesco no
sons, Bianca was very anxious to present him with an heir, for otherwise
her position would remain very insecure. But although she resorted to
all sorts of expedients, even to that of trying to pass off a changeling
as the grand duke's child, she was not successful. In 1578 Giovanna
died; a few days later Francesco secretly married Bianca, and on the
10th of June, 1579, the marriage was publicly announced. The Venetian
government now put aside its resentment and was officially represented
at the magnificent wedding festivities, for it saw in Bianca Cappello an
instrument for cementing good relations with Tuscany. But the long
expected heir failed to come, and Bianca realized that if her husband
were to die before her she was lost, for his family, especially his
brother Cardinal Ferdinand, hated her bitterly, as an adventuress and
interloper. In October 1587 both the grand duke and his wife died of
colic within a couple of days of each other. At the time poison was
suspected, but documentary evidence has proved the suspicion to be
unfounded.
See S. Romanin, _Lezioni di storia Veneta_, vol. ii. (Florence, 1875);
G.E. Saltini, _Tragedie Medicee domestiche_ (Florence, 1898).
(L. V.*)
CAPPERONNIER, CLAUDE (1671-1744), French classical scholar, the son of a
tanner, was born at Montdidier on the 1st of May 1671. He studied at
Amiens and Paris, and took orders in the Church of Rome, but devoted
himself almost entirely to classical studies. He declined a
professorship in the university of Bale, and was afterwards appointed
(1722) to the Greek chair in the College de France. He published an
edition of Quintilian (1725) and left behind him at his death an edition
of the ancient Latin Rhetoricians, which was published in 1756. He
furnished much material for Robert Estienne's _Thesaurus Linguae
Latinae_. His nephew, Jean Capperonnier (1716-1775), his successor in
the chair of Greek at the College de France, was also a distinguished
scholar, and published valuable editions of classical authors--Caesar,
Anacreon, Plautus, Sophocles.
CAPPONI, GINO, MARQUIS (1792-1876), Italian statesman and historian, was
born on the 13th of September 1792. The Capponi family is one of the
most illustrious Florentine houses, and is mentioned as early as 1250;
it acquired great wealth as a mercantile and banking firm, and many of
its members distinguished themselves in the service of the republic and
the Medicis (see CAPPONI, PIERO), and later in that of the house of
Lorraine. Gino was the son of the Marquis Pier Roberto Capponi, a
nobleman greatly attached to the reigning grand duke of Tuscany,
Ferdinand III. When that prince was deposed by the French in 1799 the
Capponi family followed him into exile at Vienna, where they remained
until he exchanged his rights to the grand duchy for a German
principality (1803). The Capponi then returned to Florence, and in 1811
Gino married the marchesina Giulia Riccardi. Although the family were
very anti-French Gino was chosen with other notables to pay homage to
Napoleon in Paris in 1813. On the fall of Napoleon Ferdinand returned to
Tuscany (September 1814), but the restoration proved less reactionary
there than in any other part of Italy. Young Capponi was well received
at court, but not being satisfied with the life of a mere man of
fashion, he devoted himself to serious study and foreign travel. After
sundry journeys in Italy he again visited Paris in 1818, and then went
to England. He became deeply interested in English institutions, and
carefully studied the constitution, the electoral system, university
life, industrial organization, &c. At Edinburgh he met Francis Jeffrey,
the editor of the _Edinburgh Review_, and conceived a desire to found a
similar review in Italy. Besides knowing Jeffrey he made the
acquaintance of many prominent statesmen and men of letters, including
Lord John Russell, the duke of Bedford, Dugald Stewart, Ugo Foscolo, &c.
This visit had a great effect in forming his character, and while it
made him an ardent Anglophil, he realized more and more the distressing
conditions of his own country. He returned to Italy in 1820, and on
reaching Florence he set to work to found a review on the lines of the
_Edinburgh_, which should attract the best literary talent. This he
achieved with the help of the Swiss G.P. Vieusseux, and the result was
the _Antologia_. He contributed largely to its columns, as well as to
those of the _Archivio Storico_, another of Vieusseux's ventures.
Capponi began to take a more active interest in politics, and entered
into communication with the Liberals of all parts of Italy. He had
discussed the possibility of liberating Italy with Prince Charles Albert
of Savoy-Carignano, to whom he had introduced the Milanese revolutionist
Count Confalonieri (q.v.). But the collapse of the rising of 1821 and
the imprisonment of Confalonieri made Capponi despair of achieving
anything by revolution, and he devoted himself to the economic
development of Tuscany and to study. At his beautiful villa of
Varramista he collected materials for a history of the Church; his work
was interrupted by family troubles and by increasing blindness, but
although by 1844 he had completely lost his sight he continued to work
by means of amanuenses. In 1847 he again plunged into politics and
discussed plans for an Italian alliance against Austria. When the grand
duke Leopold II. decided in 1848 to grant his people a constitution,
Capponi was made a member of the commission to draw it up, and he
eventually became prime minister. During his short tenure of office he
conducted foreign affairs with great skill, and made every effort to
save the Italian situation after the defeat of Charles Albert on the
Mincio. In October 1848 he resigned; soon afterwards the grand duke
fled, anarchy followed, and then in 1849 he returned, but with an escort
of Austrian soldiery. The blind statesman thanked God that he could not
see the hated white uniforms in Florence. He returned to his studies and
commenced his great _Storia della Repubblica di Firenze_; but he
followed political affairs with great interest, and helped to convince
Lord John Russell, who stayed with him in 1859, of the hopelessness of
the grand duke's position. On Leopold's second flight (27th of April
1859) a Tuscan assembly was summoned, and Capponi elected member of it.
He voted for the grand duke's deposition and for the union of Tuscany
with Piedmont. King Victor Emmanuel made him senator in 1860. His last
years were devoted almost exclusively to his Florentine history, which
was published in 1875 and achieved an immediate success. This was
Capponi's swan song, for on the 3rd of February 1876 he died at the age
of eighty-four.
Capponi was one of the best specimens of the Tuscan landlord class. "He
represents," wrote his biographer Tabarrini, "one of the most striking
personalities of a generation, now wholly passed away, which did not
resign itself to the beatitudes of 1815, but wished to raise Italy from
the humble state to which the European peace of that year had condemned
her; and he succeeded by first raising the character of the Italians in
the opinion of foreigners, so as to deserve their esteem and respect."
He knew nearly all the most interesting people in Italy, besides many
distinguished foreigners: Giuseppe Giusti, the poet, A. Manzoni, the
novelist, Niccolo Tommaseo, Richard Cobden, A. von Reumont, the
historian, were among those whom he entertained at his palace or his
villas, and many were the struggling students and revolutionists to whom
he gave assistance. As a historian his reputation rests on his _Storia
della Repubblica di Firenze_ (Florence, 1875); it was the first
comprehensive Italian book on the subject based on documents and written
in a modern critical spirit, and if the chapters on the early history of
the city are now obsolete in view of recent discoveries, yet, as a
whole, it remains a standard work. Besides his history a large number of
essays and pamphlets have been published in his _Scritti Inediti_.
See M. Tabarrini, _Gino Capponi_ (Florence, 1879); and A. von Reumont,
_Gino Capponi_ (Gotha, 1880). (L. V.*)
CAPPONI, PIERO (1447-1496), Florentine statesman and warrior. He was at
first intended for a business career, but Lorenzo de' Medici,
appreciating his ability, sent him as ambassador to various courts,
where he acquitted himself with distinction. On the death of Lorenzo
(1492), who was succeeded by his son, the weak and incapable Piero,
Capponi became one of the leaders of the anti-Medicean faction which two
years later expelled him from Florence. Capponi was then made chief of
the republic and conducted public affairs with great skill, notably in
the difficult negotiations with Charles VIII. of France, who had invaded
Italy in 1494 and in whose camp the exiled Medici had taken refuge. In
November Charles, on his way to Naples, entered Florence with his army,
and immediately began to behave as though he were the conqueror of the
city, because he had entered it lance in rest. The signory was anxious
to be on good terms with him, but when he spoke in favour of the Medici
their temper changed at once, and the citizens were ordered to arm and
be prepared for all emergencies. Tumults broke out between French
soldiers and Florentine citizens, barricades were erected and stones
began to fly from the windows. This alarmed Charles, who lowered his
tone and said nothing more about conquered cities or the Medici. The
Florentines were willing to pay him a large sum of money, but in
settling the amount further disagreements arose. Charles, who was full
of the Medici's promises, made exorbitant demands, and finally presented
an ultimatum to the signory, who rejected it. "Then we shall sound our
trumpets," said the king, to which Capponi replied "And we shall toll
our bells," and tore up the ultimatum in the king's face. Charles, who
did not relish the idea of house-to-house fighting, was forced to
moderate his claims, and concluded a more equitable treaty with the
republic. On the 28th of November he departed, and Capponi was appointed
to reform the government of Florence. But being more at home in the camp
than in the council chamber, he was glad of the opportunity of leading
the armies of the republic against the Pisan rebels. He proved a most
capable general, but while besieging the castle of Soiana, he was killed
on the 25th of September 1496. His death was greatly regretted, for the
Florentines recognized in him their ablest statesman and warrior.
See under SAVONAROLA, FLORENCE, MEDICI, CHARLES VIII. The "Vita di
Piero di Gino Capponi," by V. Acciaiuoli (published in the _Archivio
Storico Italiano_, series 1, vol. iv. part 2^a, 1853), is the chief
contemporary authority; see also P. Villari, _Savonarola_, vol. i.
(Florence, 1887), and Gino Capponi, _Storia delta Repubblica di
Firenze_, vol. ii. (Florence, 1875). (L. V.*)
CAPRAIA (anc. _Capraria_, from Lat. _capra_, wild-goat), an island of
Italy, off the N.W. coast (the highest point 1466 ft. above sea-level),
belonging to the province of Genoa, 42 m. S.S.E. of Leghorn by sea. Pop.
(1901) 547. It is of volcanic origin, and is partly occupied by a penal
agricultural colony. It produces wine, and is a centre of the anchovy
fishery. It became Genoese in 1527 and was strongly fortified. In 1796
it was occupied for a short time by Nelson. About 20 m. to the north is
the island of Gorgona (highest point 836 ft.), also famous for its
anchovies.
CAPRERA, an island off the N.E. coast of Sardinia, about 1 m. in length.
It is connected by a bridge with La Maddalena. Its chief interest lies
in its connexion with Garibaldi, who first established himself there in
1854, and died there on the 2nd of June 1882. His tomb is visited on
this anniversary by Italians from all parts. Roman remains, including a
bust of Maximian, have been found upon the island.
CAPRI (anc. _Capreae_), an island on the S. side of the Bay of Naples,
of which it commands a fine view; it forms part of the province of
Naples, and is distant about 20 m. S. of the town of Naples. Pop. (1901)
of the commune of Capri, 3890, of Anacapri, 2316. It divides the exits
from the bay into two, the Bocca Grande, about 16 m. wide, between Capri
and Ischia, and the Bocca Piccola, 3 m. wide between Capri and the
extreme south-west point of the peninsula of Sorrento. It is 4 m. in
length and the greatest width is 1-1/2 m., the total area being 5-1/2
sq. m. The highest point is the Monte Solaro (1920 ft.) on the west,
while at the east end the cliffs rise to a height of 900 ft. sheer from
the sea. The only safe landing-place is on the north side. There are two
small towns, Capri (450 ft.) and Anacapri (980 ft.), which until the
construction of a carriage road in 1874 were connected only by a flight
of 784 steps (the substructures of which at least are ancient). The
island lacks water, and is dusty during drought, but is fertile,
producing fruit, wine and olive oil; the indigenous flora comprises 800
species. The fishing industry also is important. But the prosperity of
the island depends mainly upon foreign visitors (some 30,000 annually),
who are attracted by the remarkable beauty of the scenery (that of the
coast being especially fine), the views of the sea and of the Bay of
Naples, and the purity of the air. The famous Blue Grotto, the most
celebrated of the many caves in the rocky shores of the island, was
known in Roman times, but lost until 1826, when it was rediscovered.
Another beautiful grotto has green instead of blue refractions; the
effect in both cases is due to the light entering by a small entrance.
The high land in the west of the island and the somewhat less elevated
region in the east are formed of Upper Tithonian and Lower Cretaceous
limestones, the latter containing Rudistes. The intervening depression,
which seems to be bounded on the west by a fault, is filled to a large
extent by sandstones and marls of Eocene age. A superficial layer of
recent volcanic tuffs occurs in several parts of the island. The Blue
Grotto is in the Tithonian limestones; it shows indications of recent
changes of level.
The earliest mythical inhabitants (though some have localized the Sirens
here) are the Teleboi from Acarnania under their king Telon. Neolithic
remains were found in 1882 in the Grotta delle Felci, a cave on the
south coast. In historical times we find the island occupied by Greeks.
It subsequently fell into the hands of Neapolis, and remained so until
the time of Augustus, who took it in exchange for Aenaria (Ischia) and
often resided there. Tiberius, who spent the last ten years of his life
at Capri, built no fewer than twelve villas there; to these the great
majority of the numerous and considerable ancient remains on the island
belong. All these villas can be identified with more or less certainty,
the best preserved being those on the east extremity, consisting of a
large number of vaulted substructures and the foundations perhaps of a
_pharos_ (lighthouse). One was known as Villa Jovis, and the other
eleven were probably named after other deities. The existence of
numerous ancient cisterns shows that in Roman as in modern times
rain-water was largely used for lack of springs. After Tiberius's death
the island seems to have been little visited by the emperors, and we
hear of it only as a place of banishment for the wife and sister of
Commodus. The island, having been at first the property of Neapolis, and
later of the emperors, never had upon it any community with civic
rights. Even in imperial times Greek was largely spoken there, for about
as many Greek as Latin inscriptions have been found. The medieval town
was on the north side at the chief landing-place (Marina Grande), and to
it belonged the church of S. Costanzo, an early Christian building. It
was abandoned in the 15th century on account of the inroads of pirates,
and the inhabitants took refuge higher up at the two towns of Capri and
Anacapri.
In 1806 the island was taken by the English fleet under Sir Sidney
Smith, and strongly fortified, but in 1808 it was retaken by the French
under Lamarque. In 1813 it was restored to Ferdinand I. of the Two
Sicilies.
See J. Beloch, _Campanien_ (Breslau, 1890), 278 seq.; G. Feola,
_Rapporto sullo stato dei ruderi Augusto-Tiberiani_--MS. inedito,
publicato dal Dott. Ignazio Cerio (Naples, 1894); F. Furchheim,
_Bibliografia dell' Isola di Capri e della provincia Sorrentina_
(Naples, 1899); C. Weichhardt, _Das Schloss des Tiberius und andere
Romerbauten auf Capri_ (Leipzig, 1900). (T. As.)
CAPRICCIO, or CAPRICE (Ital. for a sudden motion or fancy), a musical
term for a lively composition of an original and fantastic nature, not
following a set musical form, although the first known, written for the
harpsichord, partook of the nature of a fugue. The word is also used for
pieces of a fanciful type, in the nature of transcriptions and
variations.
CAPRICORNUS ("THE GOAT"), in astronomy, the tenth sign of the zodiac
(q.v.), represented by the symbol [symbol] intended to denote the
crooked horns of this animal. The word is derived from Lat. _caper_, a
goat, and _cornu_, a horn. It is also a constellation of the southern
hemisphere, mentioned by Eudoxus (4th century B.C.) and Aratus (3rd
century B.C.); Ptolemy and Tycho Brahe catalogued 28 stars, Hevelius
gave 29. It was represented by the ancients as a creature having the
forepart a goat, and the hindpart a fish, or sometimes simply as a goat.
An interesting member of this constellation is [alpha]-_Capricorni_, a
pair of stars of 3rd and 4th magnitudes, each of which has a companion
of the 9th magnitude.
CAPRIFOLIACEAE, a natural order of plants belonging to the sympetalous
or higher division of Dicotyledons, that namely which is characterized
by having the petals of the flower united. The plants are mainly shrubs
and trees; British representatives are _Sambucus_ (elder), _Viburnum_
(guelder-rose and wayfaring tree), _Lonicera_ (honeysuckle) (see fig.);
_Adoxa_ (moschatel), a small herb with a creeping stem and small
yellowish-green flowers, is occasionally found on damp hedge-banks;
_Linnaea_, a slender creeping evergreen with a thread-like stem and pink
bell-shaped flower, a northern plant, occurs in fir-forests and
plantations in the north of England and Scotland. The leaves are
opposite, simple as in honeysuckle, or compound as in elder; they have
usually no stipules. The flowers are regular as in _Viburnum_ and
_Sambucus_, more rarely two-lipped as in _Lonicera_; the sepals and
petals are usually five in number and placed above the ovary, the five
stamens are attached to the corolla-tube, there are three to five
carpels, and the fruit is a berry as in honeysuckle or snowberry
(_Symphoricarpus_), or a stone fruit, with several, usually three,
stones, as in _Sambucus_.
[Illustration: Flowering shoot of _Lonicera Caprifolium_, slightly
reduced. 1, Fruit slightly reduced; 2, horizontal plan of arrangement of
flower.]
In _Sambucus_ and _Viburnum_ the small white flowers are massed in
heads; honey is secreted at the base of the styles and, the tube of the
flower being very short, is exposed to the visits of flies and insects
with short probosces. The flowers of _Lonicera_, which have a long tube,
open in the evening, when they are sweet-scented and are visited by
hawk-moths. The order contains about 250 species, chiefly natives of the
north temperate zone and the mountains of the tropics. Several genera
afford ornamental plants; such are _Lonicera_, erect shrubs or twiners
with long-tubed white, yellow or red flowers; _Symphoricarpus_, a North
American shrub, with small whitish pendulous flowers and white berries;
_Diervilla_ (also known as _Weigelia_), and _Viburnum_, including _V.
Opulus_, guelder rose, in the cultivated forms of which the corolla has
become enlarged at the expense of the essential organs and the flowers
are neuter.
CAPRIVI DE CAPRERA DE MONTECUCCOLI, GEORG LEO VON, COUNT (1831-1899),
German soldier and statesman, was born on the 24th of February 1831 at
Charlottenburg. The family springs from Carniola, and the name was
originally written Kopriva; in the 18th century one branch settled in
Wernigerode, and several members entered the Prussian service; the
father of the chancellor held a high judicial post, and was made a life
member of the Prussian House of Lords. Caprivi was educated in Berlin,
and entered the army in 1849; he took part in the campaign of 1866,
being attached to the staff of the ist army. In 1870 he served as chief
of the staff to the 10th army corps, which formed part of the 2nd army,
and took part in the battles before Metz as well as in those round
Orleans, in which he highly distinguished himself. One of the most
delicate strategical problems of the whole war was the question of
whether to change the direction of the 10th corps on the morning of the
16th of August before Vionville, and in this, as well as in the actual
manoeuvres of the corps on that day, Caprivi, as representative of, and
counsellor to, his chief, General v. Voigts-Rhetz, took a leading part.
At the battle of Beaune-la-Rolande, the turning-point of the Orleans
campaign, the 10th corps bore the brunt of the fighting. After the peace
he held several important military offices, and in 1883 was made chief
of the admiralty, in which post he had to command the fleet and to
organize and represent the department in the Reichstag. He resigned in
1888, when the command was separated from the representation in
parliament, and was appointed commander of the 10th army corps. Bismarck
had already referred to him as a possible successor to himself, for
Caprivi had shown great administrative ability, and was unconnected with
any political party; and in March 1890 he was appointed chancellor,
Prussian minister president and foreign minister. He was quite unknown
to the public, and the choice caused some surprise, but it was fully
justified. The chief events of his administration, which lasted for four
years, are narrated elsewhere, in the article on Germany. He showed
great ability in quickly mastering the business, with which he was
hitherto quite unacquainted, as he himself acknowledged; his speeches in
the Reichstag were admirably clear, dignified and to the point. His
first achievement was the conclusion in July 1890 of a general agreement
with Great Britain regarding the spheres of influence of the two
countries in Africa. Bismarck had supported the colonial parties in
Germany in pretensions to which it was impossible for Great Britain to
give her consent, and the relations between the two powers were in
consequence somewhat strained. Caprivi adopted a conciliatory attitude,
and succeeded in negotiating terms with Lord Salisbury which gave to
Germany all she could reasonably expect. But the abandonment of an
aggressive policy in East Africa and in Nigeria, and in the withdrawal
of German claims to Zanzibar (in exchange for Heligoland) aroused the
hostility of the colonial parties, who bitterly attacked the new
chancellor. Caprivi had, however, by making the frontiers of the Congo
Free State and German East Africa meet, "cut" the Cape to Cairo
connexion of the British, an achievement which caused much dismay in
British colonial circles, regular treaties having been obtained from
native chiefs over large areas which the chancellor secured for Germany.
In Nigeria also Caprivi by the 1890 agreement, and by another concluded
in 1893, made an excellent bargain for his country, while in South-West
Africa he obtained a long but narrow extension eastward to the Zambezi
of the German protectorate (this strip of territory being known as
"Caprivi's Finger"). In his African policy the chancellor proved
far-sighted, and gained for the new protectorates a period for internal
development and consolidation. The Anglo-German agreement of 1890 was
followed by commercial treaties with Austria, Rumania, &c.; by
concluding them he earned the express commendation of the emperor and
the title of count, but he was from this time relentlessly attacked by
the Agrarians, who made it a ground for their distrust that he was not
himself a landed proprietor; and from this time he had to depend much on
the support of the Liberals and other parties who had been formerly in
opposition. The reorganization of the army caused a parliamentary
crisis, but he carried it through successfully, only, however, to earn
the enmity of the more old-fashioned soldiers, who would not forgive him
for shortening the period of service. His position was seriously
compromised by the failure in 1892 to carry an education bill which he
had defended by saying that the question at issue was Christianity or
Atheism, and he resigned the presidency of the Prussian ministry, which
was then given to Count Eulenburg. In 1894, a difference arose between
Eulenburg and Caprivi concerning the bill for an amendment of the
criminal code (the _Umsturz Vorlage_), and in October the emperor
dismissed both. Caprivi's fall was probably the work of the Agrarians,
but it was also due to the fact that, while he showed very high ability
in conducting the business of the country, he made no attempt to secure
his personal position by forming a party either in parliament or at
court. He interpreted his position rather as a soldier; he did his duty,
but did not think of defending himself. He suffered much from the
attacks made on him by the followers of Bismarck, and he was closely
associated with the social ostracism of that statesman; we do not know,
however, in regard either to this or to the other events of his
administration, to what extent Caprivi was really the author of the
policy he carried out, and to what extent he was obeying the orders of
the emperor. With a loyalty which cannot be too highly praised, he
always refused, even after his abrupt dismissal, to justify himself, and
he could not be persuaded even to write memoirs for later publication.
The last years of his life were spent in absolute retirement, for he
could not return even to the military duties which he had left with
great reluctance at the orders of the emperor. He died unmarried on the
6th of February 1899, at the age of sixty-eight.
See R. Arndt, _Die Reden des Grafen v. Caprivi_ (Berlin, 1894), with a
biography. (J. W. He.)
CAPRONNIER, JEAN BAPTISTE (1814-1891), Belgian stained-glass painter,
was born in Brussels in 1814, and died there in 1891. He had much to do
with the modern revival of glass-painting, and first made his reputation
by his study of the old methods of workmanship, and his clever
restorations of old examples, and copies made for the Brussels
archaeological museum. He carried out windows for various churches in
Brussels, Bruges, Amsterdam and elsewhere, and his work was commissioned
also for France, Italy and England. At the Paris Exhibition of 1855 he
won the only medal given for glass-painting.
CAPSICUM, a genus of plants, the fruits of which are used as peppers
(see CAYENNE PEPPER for botany, &c.). As used in medicine, the ripe
fruit of the _capsicum mimum_ (or _frutescans_), containing the active
principle capsaicin (capsacutin), first isolated by Thresh in 1876, has
remarkable physiological properties. Applied locally to the skin or
mucous membrane, it causes redness and later vesication. Internally in
small doses it stimulates gastric secretions and causes dilatation of
the vessels; but if used internally in excess for a long period it will
cause subacute gastritis. In single doses in excess it causes renal
irritation and inflammation and strangury. The administration of
capsicum is valuable in atony of the stomach due to chronic alcoholism,
its hot stimulating effect not only increasing the appetite but to a
certain degree satisfying the craving for alcohol. It is also useful in
the flatulency of the aged, where it prevents the development of gas,
and has a marked effect on anorexia. It has been used in functional
torpidity of the kidney. Externally capsicum plaster placed over the
affected muscles is useful in rheumatism and lumbago. Capsicum wool,
known as calorific wool, made by dissolving the oleoresin of capsicum in
ether and pouring it on to absorbent cotton-wool, is useful in rheumatic
affections.
CAPSTAN (also spelt in other forms, or as "capstock" and "cable stock,"
connected with the O. Fr. _capestan_ or _cabestan_, from Lat.
_capistrum_, a halter, _capere_, to take hold of; the conjecture that it
came from the Span. _cabra_, goat, and _estanto_, standing, is
untenable), an appliance used on board ship and on dock walls, for
heaving-in or veering cables and hawsers, whether of iron, steel or
hemp. It differs from a windlass, which is used for the same purposes,
in having the axis on which the rope is wound vertical instead of
horizontal. The word seems to have come into English (14th century) from
French or Spanish shipmen at the time of the Crusades. The earlier forms
were of a comparatively simple character, made of wood with an iron
spindle and worked by manual labour with wooden capstan bars. As heavier
cables were supplied to ships, difficulty was found, when riding at
anchor, in holding, checking and veering cable. A cable-holder (W.H.
Harfield's) was tested in H.M.S. "Newcastle" (wooden frigate) in 1870
and proved effective; its first development in 1876 was the application
in the form of a windlass secured to the deck, driven by a messenger
chain from the capstan, fitted in H.M.S. "Inflexible" (fig. 1).
[Illustration: FIG. 1.]
The capstans and engine are shown at A, A, A, and the windlass B is
driven by messenger chains C, C. The four cables (dotted line D, D) lead
to their respective cable-holders, fitted with a brake, and by these
means each cable-holder can be connected to the main driving shaft, and
any cable hove-in or veered independently of the other; by using steam
power instead of manual, the previous slow motion was obviated. In
H.M.S. "Collingwood" steam power was used to work the windlass directly
by means of worm gearing; the windlass was divided into two parts, so
that the one on the port side could be worked independently of that on
the starboard, and vice versa. An independent capstan in both ships,
arranged to take either of the cables, could be worked by hand or steam.
In the "Collingwood's" windlass the cables remained on their holders,
and could be hove-in or veered without being touched.
[Illustration: FIG. 2.--Elevation looking aft.]
Napier's patent windlass for merchant ships (1906) resembles an
appliance fitted in the earlier second-class cruisers of the British
navy (1890 to 1900). Two cable wheels or cable-holders are mounted loose
on a horizontal axle, one on each side of a worm wheel which is tightly
keyed on the middle part of the axle. A vertical steam engine with two
cylinders, placed one on each side of the framing, drives a second
horizontal axle which is connected by a set of bevel gears to an upright
worm shaft, which works the worm wheel. This worm wheel can be connected
by means of sliding bolts to one or both of the cable wheels, enabling
one or both cables to be hove-in or veered as necessary. A brake, of
Napier's self-holding differential type, is fitted to each cable wheel,
and is controlled by hand wheels on the aft side of the windlass. For
warping purposes, warping drums are fitted (made portable if required).
A third central capstan, fitted forward of the windlass, is connected to
the upright worm shaft by a horizontal shaft and bevel wheels. It can
also be worked by manual labour with capstan bars. Fig. 2 represents the
arrangement of the capstans on the forecastle of a battleship, fitted by
Napier Brothers. Deep-bodied capstans have been superseded by low
drum-headed ones, over which the guns may be fired. The three capstans
or cable-holders of cast steel, capable of taking 2-11/16 in. cables,
are fitted on vertical spindles, which pass down through the main and
armoured decks to the platform one, where the steam engine and gearing
are placed. The gearing consists of worm and wheel gears, so arranged
that the three capstans can be worked singly or in conjunction, when
heaving-in or veering, and the brakes (of the type previously mentioned)
are controlled by a portable hand wheel fitted on the aft side of each.
The cable-holders can be used for riding at anchor (see CABLE). The
middle line capstan E is keyed to vertical spindles and can be coupled
up to the capstan engine, by clutch and drop bolts in the capstan engine
room; it is fitted with a cable-holder, to take either the port or
starboard cables, and in addition is provided with portable whelps,
enabling it to be used for warping. It can also be worked by manual
labour with capstan bars, a drum-head E', fitted on the spindle on the
main deck, enabling additional capstan bars to be used if required.
[Illustration: FIG. 3.-- Napier Brothers' capstan.]
To avoid carrying steam pipes aft, the after capstan is worked by an
electric motor which is kept below the water-line. Napier Brothers'
capstan (fig. 3) is for warping purposes, for working the stern anchor
with wire hawser and for coaling. It is placed on the upper deck, and is
fitted with a drum-head for capstan bars, with pawls and pawl rim on the
deck plate, the pawls A being lifted and placed on their rests B when
working with the motor. The upper portion of the capstan, together with
its drum-head, is portable, being fixed to the centre boss with keys and
gun-metal screws. The centre boss is keyed to the spindle, which passes
through the deck and carries at its lower end a coupling for connecting
to the worm wheel gear. For working by motor, the additional security of
two drop bolts is provided. The gearing consists of a single worm and
worm wheel, working in an oil-bath, the worm shaft being coupled direct
to the motor spindle. The motor is of the semi-enclosed type, the
working and live parts being protected by a perforated metallic
covering; it is worked off a 100-volt circuit, at a speed under full
load conditions of 300 revolutions per minute. The motor is of a 4-pole
type and compound wound, the shunt winding limiting the speed on light
load to not more than 1000 revolutions per minute. A frictional break is
provided, pulled off by means of a shunt-excited magnet. The controller
is of the reversing drum type, with not less than four steps in either
direction, and is fitted with a magnetic blow-out. The control is
effected by a removable hand wheel on a portable pedestal, fitted on top
with a circular dial plate and indicating pointer; the hand wheel
reverses the current as well as graduates the speed in either direction.
All capstans of the British navy, after being fitted on board ship, are
tested for lifting power and speed; with foremost (steam) capstans, the
steam being at 150 lb. pressure, the anchor is usually let go in 16 to 25
fathoms water, and the speed ascertained by observing the time taken to
heave-in not less than a length of cable, 75 ft.; the length must be
hove-in in three minutes, or at the rate of 25 ft. per minute. With the
after capstan (motor) of first-class battleships and cruisers, a weight
is used instead of an anchor, the test being to lift 9 tons at the rate
of 25 ft. per minute. Capstans on dock walls in British government
dockyards are usually driven by hydraulic or air pressure, conveyed
through pipes to small engines underneath the capstans. (J. W. D.)
CAPSULE (from the Lat. _capsula_, a small box), a term in botany for a
dry seed vessel, as in the poppy, iris, foxglove, &c., containing one or
more cells. When ripe the capsule opens and scatters the seed (see
BOTANY). The word is used also for a small gelatinous case enclosing a
dose of medicine, and for a metal cap or cover on bottles and jars. In
anatomy the term is used to denote a cover or envelope partly or wholly
surrounding a structure. Every diarthrodial joint possesses a fibrous or
ligamentous capsule, lined with synovial membrane, attached to the
adjacent ends of the articulating bones. The term is particularly
applied to the sac which encloses the crystalline lens of the eye; to
Glisson's capsule, a thin areolar coat of fibrous tissue lying inside
the tunica serosa of the liver; to the glomerular capsules in the kidney
substance; to the suprarenal capsules, two small flattened organs in the
epigastric region; and to the internal and external capsules of the
brain (see BRAIN, fig. 14 and explanation).
CAPTAIN (derived from Lat. _caput_, head, through the Low Lat.
_capitanus_), a chief or leader, in various connexions, but particularly
a grade officer in the army or navy.
At sea the name of captain is given to all who command ships whether
they belong to the military navy of their country or not, or whether
they hold the substantive rank or not. Thus a lieutenant when in command
of a vessel is addressed as captain. In France a naval lieutenant is
addressed as _mon capitaine_ because he has that comparative rank in the
army. The master of a merchant ship is known as her captain. But the
name is also used in the strict sense of foreman, or head man, to
describe many of the minor or "petty" officers of a British or American
man-of-war--the captain of a top, of the forecastle, or of a gun. The
title "post captain" in the British navy means simply full captain, and
is the equivalent of the French _capitaine de vaisseau_. It had its
origin in the fact that captains appointed to a ship of twenty guns and
upwards were included in, or "posted" on, the permanent list of captains
from among whom the admirals were chosen. The captain of the fleet is an
officer who acts as chief of the staff to an admiral commanding a large
force. The position is equivalent to flag rank, but is held by a
captain. Staff captain is the highest grade of the officers entrusted
with the nayigation of a ship or fleet.
The military rank of captain (Fr. _capitaine_, Ger. _Hauptmann_, or in
the cavalry, _Rittmeister_), which was formerly the title of an officer
of high rank corresponding to the modern general officer or colonel, has
with the gradual subdivision and articulation of armies, come to be
applied to the commanders of companies or squadrons, and in general to
officers of the grade equivalent to this command (see OFFICERS).
The title of "captain-general" was formerly used in the general sense of
a military commander-in-chief, and is still similarly used in Spain. In
the Spanish army there are eight captains-general, each of whom has
command of a "region" corresponding to an army corps district. The same
title was formerly given to the Spanish governors of the colonial
provinces in the New World. The official title of the governor of
Jamaica is "captain-general and governor-in-chief."
CAPTAL (Lat. _capitalis_, "first," "chief"), a medieval feudal title in
Gascony. According to Du Cange the designation captal (_capital, captau,
capitau_) was applied loosely to the more illustrious nobles of
Aquitaine, counts, viscounts, &c., probably as _capitales domini_,
"principal lords," though he quotes more fanciful explanations. As an
actual title the word was used only by the lords of Trene, Puychagut,
Epernon and Buch. It is best known in connexion with the famous soldier,
Jean de Grailly, captal of Bush (d. 1376), the "captal de Buch" _par
excellence_, immortalized by Froissart as the confidant of the Black
Prince and the champion of the English cause against France. His active
part in the war began in 1364, when he ravaged the country between Paris
and Rouen, but was beaten by Bertrand du Guesclin at Cocherel and taken
prisoner. Released next year, he received the seigniory of Nemours and
took the oath of fealty to the French king, Charles V., but soon
resigned his new fief and returned to his allegiance to the English
king. In 1367 he took part in the battle of Navarette, in which Du
Guesclin was taken prisoner, the captal being entrusted with his
safe-keeping. In 1371 Jean de Grailly was appointed constable of
Aquitaine, but was taken prisoner next year and interned in the Temple
at Paris where, resisting all the tempting offers of the French king, he
remained till his death five years later.
CAPTION (Lat. _captio_, a taking or catching), a term still used in law,
especially Scots, for arrest or apprehension. From the obsolete sense of
a catching at any possible plea or objection comes the adjective
"captious," i.e. sophistical or fault-finding. The term also has an old
legal use, to signify the part of an indictment, &c., which shows where,
when and by what authority it is taken, found or executed; so its
opening or heading. From this is derived the modern sense of the heading
of an article in a book or newspaper.
CAPTIVE (from Lat. _capere_, to take), one who is captured in warfare.
As a term of International Law, it has been displaced by that of
"prisoner of war." The position and treatment of captives or prisoners
of war is now dealt with fully in chapter ii. of the regulations annexed
to the Hague Convention respecting the Laws and Customs of War on Land,
of the 18th of October 1907.
See PEACE CONFERENCE and WAR; also Sir T. Barclay, supplement to
_Problems of International Practice and Diplomacy_, for comparison of
texts of 1899 and 1907.
CAPTURE (from Lat. _capere_, to take; Fr. _prise maritime_; Ger.
_Wegnahme_), in international law, the taking possession by a
belligerent vessel of an enemy or neutral merchant or non-fighting ship.
If an enemy ship is captured she becomes forthwith lawful prize (q.v.);
when a neutral ship, the belligerent commander, in case her papers are
not conclusive, has a right to search her. If he finds contraband on
board or the papers or cargo or circumstances excite any serious
suspicion in his mind, which the master of the ship has been unable to
dispel, he places an officer and a few of his crew on board and sends
her to the nearest port where there is a prize court for trial. The word
is also used for the vessel thus captured (see BLOCKADE, CONTRABAND).
(T. Ba.)
CAPUA (anc. _Casilinum_), a town and archiepiscopal see of Campania,
Italy, in the province of Caserta, 7 m. W. by rail from the town of
Caserta. Pop. (1901) 14,285. It was erected in 856 by Bishop Landulf on
the site of Casilinum (q.v.) after the destruction of the ancient Capua
by the Saracens in 840, but it only occupies the site of the original
pre-Roman town on the left (south) bank of the river.
The cathedral of S. Stefano, erected in 856, has a handsome atrium and a
lofty Lombard campanile, and a (modernized) interior with three aisles;
both it and the atrium have ancient granite columns. The Romanesque
crypt, with ancient columns, has also been restored. It has a fine
paschal candlestick, and the fragments of a pulpit with marble mosaic of
the 13th century. There are also preserved in the cathedral a fine
Exultet roll and an _evangelarium_ of the end of the 12th century, bound
in bronze decorated with gold filigree and enamels. The mosaics of the
beginning of the 12th century in the apses of the cathedral and of S.
Benedetto, were destroyed about 1720 and 1620 respectively. The small
church of S. Marcello was also built in 856. In 1232-1240 Frederick II.
erected a castle to guard the Roman bridge over the Volturno, composed
of a triumphal arch with two towers. This was demolished in 1557. The
statues with which it was decorated were contemporary imitations of
classical sculptures. Some of them are still preserved in the Museo
Campano (E. Bertaux, _L'Art dans l'Italie meridionale_, Paris, 1904, i.
707). The Museo Campano also contains a considerable collection of
antiquities from the ancient Capua.
Capua changed hands frequently during the middle ages. One of the most
memorable facts in its history is the terrible attack made on it in 1501
by Caesar Borgia, who had entered the town by treachery, in which 5000
lives were sacrificed. It remained a part of the kingdom of Naples until
the 2nd of November 1860, when, a month after the battle of the
Volturno, it surrendered to the Italian troops. (T. As.)
CAPUA (mod. _S. Maria di Capua Vetere_), the chief ancient city of
Campania, and one of the most important towns of ancient Italy, situated
16 m. N. of Neapolis, on the N.E. edge of the Campanian plain. Its site
in a position not naturally defensible, together with the regularity of
its plan, indicates that it is not a very ancient town, though it very
likely occupies the site of an early Oscan settlement. Its foundation is
attributed by Cato to the Etruscans, and the date given as about 260
years before it was "taken" by Rome (Vell. i. 7). If this be referred,
not to its capture in the second Punic War (211 B.C.) but to its
submission to Rome in 338 B.C., we get about 600 B.C. as the date of its
foundation, a period at which the Etruscan power was at its highest, and
which may perhaps, therefore, be accepted.[1] The origin of the name is
probably _Campus_, a plain,[2] as the adjective _Campanus_ shows,
_Capuanus_ being a later form stigmatized as incorrect by Varro (_De
L.L._ x. 16). The derivation from [Greek: kapys] (a vulture, Latinized
into _Volturnum_ by some authorities who tell us that this was the
original name), and that from _caput_ (as though the name had been given
it as the "head" of the twelve Etruscan cities of Campania), must be
rejected. The Etruscan supremacy in Campania came to an end with the
Samnite invasion in the latter half of the 5th century B.C. (see
CAMPANIA); these conquerors, however, entered into alliance with Rome
for protection against the Samnite mountain tribes, and with Capua came
the dependent communities Casilinum, Calatia, Atella, so that the
greater part of Campania now fell under Roman supremacy. The citizens
received the _civitas sine suffragio_. In the second Samnite War they
proved untrustworthy, so that the Ager Falernus on the right bank of the
Volturnus was taken from them and distributed among citizens of Rome,
the _tribus Falerna_ being thus formed; and in 318 the powers of the
native officials (_meddices_) were limited by the appointment of
officials with the title _praefecti Capuam Cumas_ (taking their name
from the most important towns of Campania); these were at first mere
deputies of the _praetor urbanus_, but after 123 B.C. were elected Roman
magistrates, four in number; they governed the whole of Campania until
the time of Augustus, when they were abolished. In 312 B.C. Capua was
connected with Rome by the construction of the Via Appia, the most
important of the military highways of Italy. The gate by which it left
the Servian walls of Rome bore the name Porta Capena--perhaps the only
case in which a gate in this enceinte bears the name of the place to
which it led. At what time the Via Latina was prolonged to Casilinum is
doubtful (it is quite possible that it was done when Capua fell under
Roman supremacy, i.e. before the construction of the Via Appia); it
afforded a route only 6 m. longer, and the difficulties in connexion
with its construction were much less; it also avoided the troublesome
journey through the Pomptine Marshes (see T. Ashby in _Papers of the
British School at Rome_, i. 217, London, 1902). The importance of Capua
increased steadily during the 3rd century, and at the beginning of the
second Punic War it was considered to be only slightly behind Rome and
Carthage themselves, and was able to furnish 30,000 infantry and 4000
cavalry. Until after the defeat of Cannae it remained faithful to Rome,
but, after a vain demand that one of the consuls should always be
selected from it, it transferred its allegiance to Hannibal, who made it
his winter-quarters, with bad results to the _morale_ of his troops (see
PUNIC WARS). After a long siege it was taken by the Romans in 211 B.C.
and severely punished; its magistrates and communal organization were
abolished, the inhabitants losing their civic rights, and its territory
became Roman state domain. Parts of it were sold in 205 and 199 B.C.,
another part was divided among the citizens of the new colonies of
Volturnum and Liternum established near the coast in 194 B.C., but the
greater portion of it was reserved to be let by the state. Considerable
difficulties occurred in preventing illegal encroachments by private
persons, and it became necessary to buy a number of them out in 162 B.C.
It was, after that period, let, not to large but to small proprietors.
Frequent attempts were made by the democratic leaders to divide the land
among new settlers. Brutus in 83 B.C. actually succeeded in establishing
a colony, but it was soon dissolved; and Cicero's speeches _De Lege
Agraria_ were directed against a similar attempt by Servilius Rullus in
63 B.C. In the meantime the necessary organization of the inhabitants of
this thickly-populated district was in a measure supplied by grouping
them round important shrines, especially that of Diana Tifatina, in
connexion with which a _pagus Dianae_ existed, as we learn from many
inscriptions; a _pagus Herculaneus_ is also known. The town of Capua
belonged to none of these organizations, and was entirely dependent on
the _praefecti_. It enjoyed great prosperity, however, owing to its
spelt, which was worked into groats, wine, roses, spices, unguents, &c.,
and also owing to its manufactures, especially of bronze objects, of
which both the elder Cato and the elder Pliny speak in the highest terms
(_De agr._ 135; _Hist. Nat._ xxiv. 95). Its luxury remained proverbial;
and Campania is especially spoken of as the home of gladiatorial
combats. From the gladiatorial schools of Campania came Spartacus and
his followers in 73 B.C. Julius Caesar as consul in 59 B.C. succeeded in
carrying out the establishment of a colony in connexion with his
agrarian law, and 20,000 Roman citizens were settled in this territory.
The number of colonists was increased by Mark Antony, Augustus (who
constructed an aqueduct from the Mons Tifata, and gave the town of Capua
estates in the district of Cnossus in Crete to the value of 12 million
sesterces--L120,000), and Nero. In the war of A.D. 69 it took the side
of Vitellius. Under the later empire it is not often mentioned; but in
the 4th century it was the seat of the _consularis Campaniae_ and its
chief town, though Ausonius puts it behind Mediolanum (Milan) and
Aquileia in his _ordo nobilium urbium_. Under Constantine we hear of the
foundation of a Christian church in Capua. In A.D. 456 it was taken and
destroyed by Genseric, but must have been soon rebuilt: it was, however,
finally destroyed by the Saracens in 840 and the church of S. Maria
Maggiore, founded about 497, alone remained. It contains 52 ancient
marble columns, but was modernized in 1766. The site was only occupied
in the late middle ages by a village which has, however, outgrown the
medieval Capua in modern days.
_Remains_.--No pre-Roman remains have been found within the town of
Capua itself, but important cemeteries have been discovered on all sides
of it, the earliest of which go back to the 7th or 6th century B.C. The
tombs are of various forms, partly chambers with frescoes on the walls,
partly cubical blocks of peperino, hollowed out, with grooved lids. The
objects found within them consist mainly of vases of bronze (many of
them without feet, and with incised designs of Etruscan style) and of
clay, some of Greek, some of local manufacture, and of paintings. On the
east of the town, in the Patturelli property, a temple has been
discovered with Oscan votive inscriptions, some of them inscribed upon
terra-cotta tablets, others on _cippi_, while of a group of 150 tufa
statuettes (representing a matron holding one or more children in her
lap) three bore Latin inscriptions of the early imperial period. The
site of the town being in a perfectly flat plain, without natural
defences, it was possible to lay it out regularly. Its length from east
to west is accurately determined by the fact that the Via Appia, which
runs from north-west to south-east from Casilinum to Calatia, turns due
east very soon after passing the so-called Arco Campano (a triumphal
arch of good brickwork, once faced with marble, with three openings,
erected in honour of some emperor unknown), and continues to run in this
direction for 5413-1/2 English feet (= 6000 ancient Oscan feet). The
west gate was the Porta Romana; remains of the east gate (the name of
which we do not know) have been found. This fact shows that the main
street of the town was perfectly orientated, and that before the Via
Appia was constructed, i.e. in all probability in pre-Roman times. The
width of the town from north to south cannot be so accurately determined
as the line of the north and south walls is not known, though it can be
approximately fixed by the absence of tombs (Beloch fixes it at 4000
Oscan feet = 3609 English feet), nor is it absolutely certain (though it
is in the highest degree probable, for Cicero praises its regular
arrangement and fine streets) that the plan of the town was rectangular.
Within the town are remains of thermae on the north of the Via Appia and
of a theatre opposite, on the south. The former consisted of a large
crypto-porticus round three sides of a court, the south side being open
to the road; it now lies under the prisons. Beloch (see below)
attributes this to the Oscan period; but the construction as shown in
Labruzzi's drawing (v. 17)[3] is partly of brick-work and _opus
reticulatum_, which may, of course, belong to a restoration. The stage
of the theatre had its back to the road; Labruzzi (v. 18) gives an
interesting view of the _cavea_. It appears from inscriptions that it
was erected after the time of Augustus. Other inscriptions, however,
prove the existence of a theatre as early as 94 B.C., so that the
existence of another elsewhere must be assumed. We know that the Roman
colony was divided into regions and possessed a capitolium, with a
temple of Jupiter, within the town, and that the market-place, for
unguents especially, was called Seplasia; we also hear of an _aedes
alba_, probably the original senate house, which stood in an open space
known as _albana_. But the sites of all these are quite uncertain.
Outside the town on the north is the amphitheatre, built in the time of
Augustus, restored by Hadrian and dedicated by Antoninus Pius, as the
inscription over the main entrance recorded. The exterior was formed by
80 Doric arcades of four storeys each, but only two arches now remain.
The keystones were adorned with heads of divinities. The interior is
better preserved; beneath the arena are subterranean passages like those
in the amphitheatre at Puteoli. It is one of the largest in existence;
the longer diameter is 185 yds., the shorter 152, and the arena measures
83 by 49 yds., the corresponding dimensions in the colosseum at Rome
being 205, 170, 93 and 58 yds. To the east are considerable remains of
baths--a large octagonal building, an apse against which the church of
S. Maria delle Grazie is built, and several heaps of debris. On the Via
Appia, to the south-east of the east gate of the town, are two large and
well-preserved tombs of the Roman period, known as _le Carceri vecchie_
and _la Conocchia_. To the east of the amphitheatre an ancient road, the
Via Dianae, leads north to the Pagus Dianae, on the west slopes of the
Mons Tifata, a community which sprang up round the famous and ancient
temple of Diana, and probably received an independent organization after
the abolition of that of Capua in 211 B.C. The place often served as a
base for attacks on the latter, and Sulla, after his defeat of C.
Norbanus, gave the whole of the mountain to the temple. Within the
territory of the _pagus_ were several other temples with their
_magistri_. After the restoration of the community of Capua, we find
_magistri_ of the temple of Diana still existing, but they were probably
officials of Capua itself. The site is occupied by the Benedictine
church of S. Angelo in Formis[4] which dates from 944, and was
reconstructed by the abbot Desiderius (afterwards Pope Victor III.) of
Monte Cassino in 1073, with interesting paintings, dating from the end
of the 11th century to the middle of the 12th, in which five different
styles may be distinguished. They form a complete representation of all
the chief episodes of the New Testament (see F.X. Kraus, _Jahrbuch d. k.
preuss. Kunstsammlungen_, xiv.). Deposits of votive objects
(_favissae_), removed from the ancient temple from time to time as new
ones came in and occupied all the available space, have been found, and
considerable remains of buildings belonging to the Vicus Dianae (among
them a triumphal arch and some baths, also a hall with frescoes,
representing the goddess herself ready for the chase) still exist.
The ancient road from Capua went on beyond the Vicus Dianae to the
Volturnus (remains of the bridge still exist) and then turned east along
the river valley to Caiatia and Telesia. Other roads ran to Puteoli and
Cumae (the so-called Via Campana) and to Neapolis, and as we have seen
the Via Appia passed through Capua, which was thus the most important
road centre of Campania (q.v.).
See Th. Mommsen in _Corpus Inscrip. Lat_. x. (Berlin, 1883), p. 365
seq.; J. Beloch, _Campanien_ (Breslau, 1890), 295 seq.; Ch. Hulsen in
Pauly-Wissowa, _Realencyclopadie_ (Stuttgart, 1899), iii. 1555.
(T. As.)