[1] G. Patroni, in _Atti del Congresso Internazionale di Scienze
Storiche_ (Rome, 1904), v. 217, is inclined to place it considerably
earlier.
[2] Livy iv. 37, "Vulturnum Etruscorum urbem quae nunc Capua est, ab
Samnitibus captam (425 B.C.) Capuamque ab duce eorum Capye, vel, quod
propius vero est, a campestri agro appellatam."
[3] For these drawings see T. Ashby, "Dessins inedits de Carlo
Labruzzi," in _Melanges de l'Ecole francaise_, 1903, 414.
[4] The name comes from the aqueduct (_forma_) erected by Augustus
for the supply of Capua, remains of which still exist.
CAPUCHIN MONKEY, the English name of a tropical American monkey
scientifically known as _Cebus capucinus_; the plural, capuchins, is
extended to embrace all the numerous species of the same genus, whose
range extends from Nicaragua to Paraguay. These monkeys, whose native
name is sapajou, are the typical representatives of the family
_Cebidae_, and belong to a sub-family in which the tail is generally
prehensile. From the other genera of that group (_Cebinae_) with
prehensile tails capuchins are distinguished by the comparative
shortness of that appendage, and the absence of a naked area on the
under surface of its extremity. The hair is not woolly, the general
build is rather stout, and the limbs are of moderate length and
slenderness. The name capuchin is derived from the somewhat cowl-like
form assumed by the thick hair on the crown of the head of the sapajous.
In their native haunts these monkeys go about in troops of considerable
size, frequenting the summits of the tall forest-trees, from which they
seldom, if ever, descend. In addition to fruits of various kinds, they
consume tender shoots and buds, insects, eggs and young birds. Many of
the species are difficult to distinguish, and very little is known of
their habits in a wild state, although several members of the group are
common in captivity (see PRIMATES). (R. L.*)
CAPUCHINS, an order of friars in the Roman Catholic Church, the chief
and only permanent offshoot from the Franciscans. It arose about the
year 1520, when Matteo di Bassi, an "Observant" Franciscan, became
possessed of the idea that the habit worn by the Franciscans was not the
one that St Francis had worn; accordingly he made himself a pointed or
pyramidal hood and also allowed his beard to grow and went about
bare-footed. His superiors tried to suppress these innovations, but in
1528 he obtained the sanction of Clement VII. and also the permission to
live as a hermit and to go about everywhere preaching to the poor; and
these permissions were not only for himself, but for all such as might
join him in the attempt to restore the most literal observance possible
of St Francis's rule. Matteo was soon joined by others. The Observants
opposed the movement, but the Conventuals supported it, and so Matteo
and his companions were formed into a congregation, called the Hermit
Friars Minor, as a branch of the Conventual Franciscans, but with a
vicar of their own, subject to the jurisdiction of the general of the
Conventuals. From their hood (_capuche_) they received the popular name
of Capuchins. In 1529 they had four houses and held their first general
chapter, at which their special rules were drawn up. The eremitical idea
was abandoned, but the life was to be one of extreme austerity,
simplicity and poverty--in all things as near an approach to St
Francis's idea as was practicable. Neither the monasteries nor the
congregation should possess anything, nor were any devices to be
resorted to for evading this law; no large provision against temporal
wants should be made, and the supplies in the house should never exceed
what was necessary for a few days. Everything was to be obtained by
begging, and the friars were not allowed even to touch money. The
communities were to be small, eight being fixed as the normal number and
twelve as the limit. In furniture and clothing extreme simplicity was
enjoined and the friars were to go bare-footed without even sandals.
Besides the choral canonical office, a portion of which was recited at
midnight, there were two hours of private prayer daily. The fasts and
disciplines were rigorous and frequent. The great external work was
preaching and spiritual ministrations among the poor. In theology the
Capuchins abandoned the later Franciscan school of Scotus, and returned
to the earlier school of Bonaventura (q.v.). The new congregation at the
outset of its history underwent a series of severe blows. The two
founders left it, Matteo di Bassi to return to the Observants, while his
first companion, on being superseded in the office of vicar, became so
insubordinate that he had to be expelled. The case of the third vicar,
Bernardino Ochino (q.v.), who became a Calvinist, 1543, and married, was
even more disastrous. This mishap brought the whole congregation under
the suspicion of heretical tendencies and the pope resolved to suppress
it; he was with difficulty induced to allow it to continue, but the
Capuchins were forbidden to preach. In a couple of years the authorities
were satisfied as to the soundness of the general body of Capuchin
friars, and the permission to preach was restored. The congregation at
once began to multiply with extraordinary rapidity, and by the end of
the 16th century the Capuchins had spread all over the Catholic parts of
Europe, so that in 1619 they were freed from their dependence on the
Conventual Franciscans and became an independent order, with a general
of their own. They are said to have had at that time 1500 houses divided
into fifty provinces. They were one of the chief factors in the Catholic
Counter-reformation, working assiduously among the poor, preaching,
catechizing, confessing in all parts, and impressing the minds of the
common people by the great poverty and austerity of their life. By these
means they were also extraordinarily successful in making converts from
Protestantism to Catholicism. Nor were the activities of the Capuchins
confined to Europe. From an early date they undertook missions to the
heathen in America, Asia and Africa, and at the middle of the 17th
century a Capuchin missionary college was founded in Rome for the
purpose of preparing their subjects for foreign missions. A large number
of Capuchins have suffered martyrdom for the Gospel. This activity in
Europe and elsewhere continued until the close of the 18th century, when
the number of Capuchin friars was estimated at 31,000.
Like all other orders, the Capuchins suffered severely from the
secularizations and revolutions of the end of the 18th century and the
first half of the 19th; but they survived the strain, and during the
latter part of the 19th century rapidly recovered ground. At the
beginning of the present century there were fifty provinces with some
500 monasteries and 300 hospices or lesser houses; and the number of
Capuchin friars, including lay-brothers, was reckoned at 9500. In
England there are ten or twelve Capuchin monasteries, and in Ireland
three. The Capuchins now possess the church of the Portiuncula at
Assisi. The Capuchins still keep up their missionary work and have some
200 missionary stations in all parts of the world--notably India,
Abyssinia and the Turkish empire. Though "the poorest of all orders," it
has attracted into its ranks an extraordinary number of the highest
nobility and even of royalty. The celebrated Father Mathew, the apostle
of Temperance in Ireland, was a Capuchin friar. Like the Franciscans the
Capuchins wear a brown habit.
The Capuchines are Capuchin nuns. They were founded in 1538 in Naples.
They lived according to the rules and regulations of the Capuchin
friars, and so austere was the life that they were called "Sisters of
Suffering." The order spread to France and Spain, and a few convents
still exist.
In order fully to grasp the meaning of the Capuchin reform, it is
necessary to know the outlines of Franciscan history (see
FRANCISCANS). There does not appear to be any modern general history
of the Capuchin order as a whole, though there are histories of
various provinces and of the foreign missions. The references to all
this literature will be found in the article "Kapuzinerorden" in
Wetzer und Welte, _Kirchenlexicon_ (2nd ed.), which is the best
general sketch on the subject. Shorter sketches, with the needful
references, are given in Max Heimbucher, _Orden und Kongregationen_
(1896), i. S 44, and in Herzog-Hauck, _Realencyklopadie_ (3rd ed.),
art. "Kapuziner." Helyot's _Hist. des ordres religieux_ (1792), vii.
c. 24 and c. 27, gives an account of the Capuchins up to the end of
the 17th century. (E. C. B.)
CAPUS, ALFRED (1858- ), French author, was born at Aix, in Provence,
on the 25th of November 1858. In 1878 he published, in collaboration
with L. Vonoven, a volume of short stories, and in the next year the two
produced a one-act piece, _Le Mari malgre lui_, at the Theatre Cluny. He
had been educated as an engineer, but became a journalist, and joined
the staff of the _Figaro_ in 1894. His novels, _Qui perd gagne_ (1890),
_Faux Depart_ (1891), _Annees d'aventures_ (1895), which belong to this
period, describe the struggles of three young men at the beginning of
their career. From the first of these he took his first comedy, _Brignol
et sa file_ (Vaudeville, 23rd November 1894). Among his later plays are
_Innocent_ (1896), written with Alphonse Allais; _Petites folles_
(1897); _Rosine_ (1897); _Mariage bourgeois_ (1898); _Les Maris de
Leontine_ (1900); _La Bourse ou la vie_ (1900), _La Veine_ (1901); _La
Petite Fonctionnaire_ (1901); _Les Deux Ecoles_ (1902); _La Chatelaine
(1902); L' Adversaire_ (1903), with Emmanuel Arene, which was produced
in London by Mr George Alexander as _The Man of the Moment_, and _Notre
Jeunesse_ (1904), the first of his plays to be represented at the
Theatre Francais; _Monsieur Piegois_ (1905); and, in collaboration with
Lucien Descaves, _L' Attentat_ (1906).
See Edouard Quet, _Alfred Capus_ (1904), with appreciations by various
authors, in the series of _Celebrites d' aujourd'hui_.
CAPYBARA, or CARPINCHO (_Hydrochaerus capybara_), the largest living
rodent mammal, characterized by its moderately long limbs,
partially-webbed toes, of which there are four in front and three
behind, hoof-like nails, sparse hair, short ears, cleft upper lip and
the absence of a tail. The dentition is peculiar on account of the great
size and complexity of the last upper molar, which is composed of about
twelve plates, and exceeds in length the three teeth in front. The front
surface of the incisors has a broad, shallow groove. Capybaras are
aquatic rodents, frequenting the banks of lakes and rivers, and being
sometimes found where the water is brackish. They generally associate in
herds, and spend most of the day in covert on the banks, feeding in the
evening and morning. When disturbed they make for the water, in which
they swim and dive with expertness, often remaining below the surface
for several minutes. Their usual food consists of water-plants and bark,
but in cultivated districts they do much harm to crops. Their cry is a
low, abrupt grunt. From five to eight is the usual number in a litter,
of which there appears to be only one in the year; and the young are
carried on their parent's back when in the water. Extinct species of
capybara occur in the tertiary deposits of Argentina, some of which were
considerably larger than the living form. Capybaras belong to the family
_Caviidae_, the leading characteristics of which are given in RODENTIA.
When full-grown the entire length of the animal is about 4 ft., and the
girth 3 ft. Their geographical range extends from Guiana to the river
Plate. Capybaras can be easily tamed; numbers are killed on land by
jaguars and in the water by caimans--the alligators of South America.
CAR (Late Lat. _carra_), a term originally applied to a small
two-wheeled vehicle for transport (see CARRIAGE), but also to almost
anything in the nature of a carriage, chariot, &c., and to the
carrying-part of a balloon. With some specific qualification (tram-car,
street-car, railway-car, sleeping-car, motor-car, &c.) it is combined to
serve as a general word instead of carriage or vehicle. From Ireland
comes the "jaunting-car," which is in general use, both in the towns,
where it is the commonest public carriage for hire, and in the country
districts, where it is employed to carry the mails and for the use of
tourists. The gentry and more well-to-do farmers also use it as a
private carriage in all parts of Ireland. The genuine Irish jaunting-car
is a two-wheeled vehicle constructed to carry four persons besides the
driver. In the centre, at right angles to the axle, is a "well" about 18
in. deep, used for carrying parcels or small luggage, and covered with a
lid which is usually furnished with a cushion. The "well" provides a low
back to each of the two seats, which are in the form of wings placed
over each wheel, with foot boards hanging outside the wheel on hinges,
so that when not in use they can be turned up over the seats, thus
reducing the width of the car (sometimes very necessary in the narrow
country roads) and protecting the seats from the weather. The passengers
on each side sit with their backs to each other, with the "well" between
them. The driver sits on a movable box-seat, or "dicky," a few inches
high, placed across the head of the "well," with a footboard to which
there is usually no splash-board attached. A more modern form of
jaunting-car, known as a "long car," chiefly used for tourists, is a
four-wheeled vehicle constructed on the same plan, which accommodates as
many as eight or ten passengers on each side, and two in addition on a
high box-seat beside the driver. In the city of Cork a carriage known as
an "inside car" is in common use. It is a two-wheeled covered carriage
in which the passengers sit face to face as in a wagonette. In remote
country districts the poorer peasants still sometimes use a primitive
form of vehicle, called a "low-backed car," a simple square shallow box
or shelf of wood fastened to an axle without springs. The two wheels are
solid wooden disks of the rudest construction, generally without the
protection of metal tires, and so small in diameter that the body of the
car is raised only a few inches from the ground.
CARABINIERS, originally mounted troops of the French army, armed with
the carabine (carbine). In 1690 one company of carabiniers was
maintained in each regiment of cavalry. Their duties were analogous to
those of grenadiers in infantry regiments--scouting, detached work, and,
in general, all duties requiring special activity and address. They
fought mounted and dismounted alike, and even took part in siege warfare
in the trenches. At the battle of Neerwinden in 1693 all the carabinier
companies present were united in one body, and after the action Louis
XIV. consolidated them into a permanent regiment with the name Royal
Carabiniers. This was one of the old regiments which survived the French
Revolution, at which time the title was changed to "horse grenadiers";
it is represented in the French army of to-day by the 11th Cuirassiers.
The carabiniers (6th Dragoon Guards) of the British army date from 1685,
and received the title from being armed with the carabine in 1692.
Regimentally therefore they were one year senior to the French regiment
of Royal Carabiniers, and as a matter of fact they took part as a
regiment in the battle of Neerwinden. Up to 1745 their title was "The
King's Carabiniers"; from 1745 to 1788 they were called the 3rd Irish
Horse, and from 1788 they have borne their present title. In the German
army, one carabinier regiment alone (2nd Saxon Reiter regiment) remains
of the cavalry corps which formerly in various states bore the title. In
Italy the gendarmerie are called _carabinieri_.
CARABOBO, the smallest of the thirteen states of Venezuela, bounded N.
by the Caribbean Sea, E. by the state of Aragua, S. by Zamora and W. by
Lara. Its area is 2985 sq. m., and its population, according to an
official estimate of 1905, is 221,891. The greater part of its surface
is mountainous with moderately elevated valleys of great fertility and
productiveness, but south of the Cordillera there are extensive grassy
plains conterminous with those of Guarico and Zamora, on which large
herds of cattle are pastured. The principal products of the state are
cattle, hides and cheese from the southern plains, coffee and cereals
from the higher valleys, sugar and aguardiente from the lower valleys
about Lake Valencia, and cacao, coco-nuts and coco-nut fibre from the
coast. Various minerals are also found in its south-west districts,
about Nirgua. The capital is Valencia, and its principal towns are
Puerto Cabello, Montalban (estimated pop. in 1904 7500), 30 m. W.S.W. of
Valencia; Nirgua (pop. in 1891 8394), an important commercial and mining
town 36-1/2 m. S.W. of Valencia, 2500 ft. above sea level; and Ocumare
(pop. in 1891 7493), near the coast 18-1/2 m. E. of Puerto Cabello,
celebrated for the fine quality of its cacao. Carabobo is best known for
the battle fought on the 24th of June 1821 on a plain at the southern
exit from the passes through the Cordillera in this state, between the
revolutionists under Bolivar and the Spanish forces under La Torre. It
was one of the four decisive battles of the war, though the forces
engaged were only a part of the two armies and numbered 2400
revolutionists (composed of 1500 mounted _llaneros_ known as the "Apure
legion," and 900 British), and 3000 Spaniards. The day was won by the
British, who drove the Spaniards from the field at the point of the
bayonet, although at a terrible loss of life. The British legion was
afterwards acclaimed by Bolivar as "Salvadores de mi Patria." The
Spanish forces continued the war until near the end of 1823, but their
operations were restricted to the districts on the coast.
CARACAL, the capital of the department of Romanatzi, Rumania; situated
in the plains between the lower reaches of the Jiu and Olt rivers, and
on the railway from Corabia, beside the Danube, to Hermannstadt in
Transylvania. Pop. (1900) 12,055. Caracal has little trade, except in
grain. Its chief buildings are the prefecture, school of arts and crafts
and several churches. There are some ruins of a tower, built in A.D. 217
by the Roman emperor Caracalla, after whom the place is named. In 1596
Michael the Brave of Walachia defeated the Turks near Caracal.
CARACAL (_Lynx caracal_), sometimes called Persian lynx, an animal
widely distributed throughout south-western Asia, and over a large
portion of Africa. It is somewhat larger than a fox, of a uniform
reddish brown colour above, and whitish beneath, with two white spots
above each of the eyes, and a tuft of long black hair at the tip of the
ears; to these it owes its name, which is derived from Turkish words
signifying "black-ear." There is little information as to the habits of
this animal in a wild state. Dr W.T. Blanford considers that it dwells
among grass and bushes rather than in forests. Its prey is said to
consist largely of gazelles, small deer, hares and peafowl and other
birds. The caracal is easily tamed, and in some parts of India is
trained to capture the smaller antelopes and deer and such birds as the
crane and pelican. According to Blyth, it is a favourite amusement among
the natives to let loose a couple of tame caracals among a flock of
pigeons feeding on the ground, when each will strike down a number of
birds before the flock can escape. Frequent reference is made in Greek
and Roman literature to the lynx, and from such descriptions as are
given of it there is little doubt that the caracal, and not the European
lynx, was referred to. In South Africa, where the caracal abounds, its
hide is made by the Zulus into skin-cloaks, known as karosses. According
to W.L. Sclater, these when used as blankets are said to be beneficial
in cases of rheumatism; an ointment prepared from the fat of the animal
being employed for the same purpose. The North African caracal has been
separated as _Lynx_, or _Caracal, berberorum_, but it is best regarded
as a local race.
CARACALLA (or CARACALLUS), MARCUS AURELIUS ANTONINUS (186-217), Roman
emperor, eldest son of the emperor Septimius Severus, was born at
Lugdunum (Lyons) on the 4th of April 186. His original name was
Bassianus; his nickname Caracalla was derived from the long Gallic tunic
which he wore and introduced into the army. He further received the
imperial title of Marcus Aurelius Antoninus at the time when his father
declared himself the adopted son of M. Aurelius. After the death of
Severus (211) at Eboracum (York) in Britain, Caracalla and his brother
Geta, who had accompanied their father, returned to Rome as colleagues
in the supreme power. In order to secure the sole authority, Caracalla
barbarously murdered his brother in his mother's arms, and at the same
time put to death some 20,000 persons, who were suspected of favouring
him, amongst them the jurist Papinianus. An important act of his reign
(212) was the bestowal of the rights of Roman citizenship upon all free
inhabitants of the empire, although the main object of Caracalla was
doubtless to increase the amount of revenue derived from the tax on
inheritances or legacies to which only Roman citizens were liable. His
own extravagances and the demands of the soldiery were a perpetual drain
upon his resources, to meet which he resorted to taxes and extortion of
every description. He spent the remainder of his reign wandering from
place to place, a mode of life to which he was said to have been driven
by the pangs of remorse. Handing over the reins of government to his
mother, he set out in 213 for Raetia, where he carried on war against
the Alamanni; in 214 he attacked the Goths in Dacia, whence he proceeded
by way of Thrace to Asia Minor, and in 215 crossed to Alexandria. Here
he took vengeance for the bitter sarcasms of the inhabitants against
himself and his mother by ordering a general massacre of the youths
capable of bearing arms. In 216 he ravaged Mesopotamia because
Artabanus, the Parthian king, refused to give him his daughter in
marriage. He spent the winter at Edessa, and in 217, when he recommenced
his campaign, he was murdered between Edessa and Carrhae on the 8th of
April at the instigation of Opellius (Opilius) Macrinus, praefect of the
praetorian guard, who succeeded him. Amongst the numerous buildings with
which Caracalla adorned the city, the most famous are the _thermae_, and
the triumphal arch of Septimius Severus in the forum.
AUTHORITIES.--Dio Cassius lxxvii., lxxviii.; Herodian iii. 10, iv. 14;
lives of Caracalla, Severus and Geta, in _Scriptores Historiae
Augustae_; Eutropius viii. 19-22; Aurelius Victor, _De Caesaribus_,
20-23; _Epit._ 20-23; Zosimus i. 9-10; H. Schiller, _Geschichte der
romischen Kaiserzeit_ (1883), 738 ff.; Pauly-Wissowa,
_Realencyclopadie_, ii. 2434 ff. (von Rohden).
CARACAS, the principal city and the capital of the United States of
Venezuela, situated at the western extremity of an elevated valley of
the Venezuelan Coast Range known as the plain of Chacao, 6-1/2 m. S.S.E.
of La Guaira, its port on the Caribbean coast, in lat. 10 deg. 30' N.,
long. 67 deg. 4' W. The plain is about 11 m. long by 3 m. wide, and is
separated from the coast by a part of the mountain chain which extends
along almost the entire water front of the republic. It is covered with
well-cultivated plantations. The Guaira river, a branch of the Tuy,
traverses the plain from west to east, and flows past the city on the
south. Among its many small tributaries are the Catuche, Caroata and
Anauco, which flow down through the city from the north and give it a
natural surface drainage. The city is built at the narrow end of the
valley and at the foot of the Cerro de Avila, and stands from 2887 to
3442 ft. above sea level, the elevation of the Plaza de Bolivar, its
topographical centre, being 3025 ft. Two miles north-east is the famous
Silla de Caracas, whose twin summits, like a gigantic old-fashioned
saddle (_silla_), rise to an elevation of 8622 ft.; and the Naiguete,
still farther eastward, overlooks the valley from a height of 9186 ft.
The climate of Caracas is often described as that of perpetual spring.
It is subject, however, to extreme and rapid variations in temperature,
to alternations of dry and humid winds (the latter, called _catias_,
being irritating and oppressive), to chilling night mists brought up
from the coast by the westerly winds, and to other influences productive
of malaria, catarrh, fevers, bilious disorders and rheumatism. The
maximum and minimum temperatures range from 84 deg. to 48 deg. F., the
annual mean being about 66 deg., and the daily variation is often as
much as 15 deg. The city is built with its streets running between the
cardinal points of the compass and crossing each other at right angles.
Two intersecting central streets also divide the city into four
sections, in each of which the streets are methodically named and
numbered, as North 3rd, 5th, 7th, &c., or West 2nd, 4th, 6th, &c.,
according to direction and location. This method of numeration dates
from the time of Guzman Blanco, but the common people adhere to the
names bestowed upon the city squares in earlier times. The streets are
narrow, but are clean and well-paved, and are lighted by electricity and
gas. There are several handsome squares and public gardens, adorned with
statues, trees and shrubbery. The principal square is the Plaza de
Bolivar, the conventional centre of the city, in which stands a bronze
equestrian statue of Bolivar, and on which face the cathedral,
archbishop's residence, Casa Amarilla, national library, general post
office and other public offices. The Independencia Park, formerly called
Calvario Park, which occupies a hill on the west side of the city, is
the largest and most attractive of the public gardens. Among the public
edifices are the capitol, which occupies a whole square, the university,
of nearly equal size, the cathedral, pantheon, masonic temple (built by
the state in the spendthrift days of Guzman Blanco), national library,
opera-house, and a number of large churches. The city is generously
provided with all the modern public services, including two street car
lines, local and long distance telephone lines, electric power and
light, and waterworks. The principal water supply is derived from the
Macarao river, 15 m. distant. Railway connexion with the port of La
Guaira was opened in 1883 by means of a line 23 m. long. Another line
(the Gran Ferrocarril de Venezuela) passes through the mountains to
Valencia, 111 m. distant, and two short lines run to neighbouring
villages, one to Petare and Santa Lucia, and the other to El Valle. The
archbishop of Venezuela resides in Caracas and has ecclesiastical
jurisdiction over the dioceses of Ciudad Bolivar, Calabozo,
Barquisimeto, Merida and Maracaibo. There are no manufactures of note.
Caracas was founded in 1567 by Diego de Losada under the pious title of
Santiago de Leon de Caracas, and has been successively capital of the
province of Caracas, of the captaincy-general of Caracas and Venezuela,
and of the republic of Venezuela. It is also one of the two chief
cities, or capitals, of the Federal district. It was the birthplace of
Simon Bolivar, and claims the distinction of being the first colony in
South America to overthrow Spanish colonial authority. The city was
almost totally destroyed by the great earthquake of 1812. In the war of
independence it was repeatedly subjected to pillage and slaughter by
both parties in the strife, and did not recover its losses for many
years. In 1810 its population was estimated at 50,000; seventy-one years
later the census of 1881 gave it only 55,638. In 1891 its urban
population was computed to be 72,429, which in 1904 was estimated to
have increased to about 90,000.
CARACCI, LODOVICO, AGOSTINO, and ANNIBALE, three celebrated Italian
painters, were born at Bologna in 1555, 1557, and 1560 respectively.
Lodovico, the eldest, son of a butcher, was uncle to the two younger,
Agostino and Annibale, sons of a tailor, and had nearly finished his
professional studies before the others had begun their education. From
being a reputed dunce, while studying under Tintoretto in Venice, he
gradually rose, by an attentive observation of nature and a careful
examination of the works of the great masters preserved at Bologna,
Venice, Florence and Parma, to measure himself with the teachers of his
day, and ultimately projected the opening of a rival school in his
native place. Finding himself unable to accomplish his design without
assistance, he sent for his two nephews, and induced them to abandon
their handicrafts (Agostino being a goldsmith, and Annibale a tailor)
for the profession of painting. Agostino he first placed under the care
of Fontana, retaining Annibale in his own studio; but he afterwards sent
both to Venice and Parma to copy the works of Titian, Tintoretto and
Correggio, on which his own taste had been formed. On their return, the
three relatives, assisted by an eminent anatomist, Anthony de la Tour,
opened, in 1589, an academy of painting under the name of the
Incamminati (or, as we might paraphrase it, the Right Road), provided
with numerous casts, books and bassi-rilievi, which Lodovico had
collected in his travels. From the affability and kindness of the
Caracci, and their zeal for the scientific education of the students,
their academy rose rapidly in popular estimation, and soon every other
school of art in Bologna was deserted and closed. They continued
together till, at the invitation of Cardinal Farnese, Annibale and
Agostino went to Rome in 1600 to paint the gallery of the cardinal's
palace. The superior praises awarded to Agostino inflamed the jealousy
of Annibale, already kindled by the brilliant reception given by the
pupils of the Incamminati to Agostino's still highly celebrated picture
of the "Communion of St Jerome," and the latter was dismissed to Parma
to paint the great saloon of the Casino. Here he died in 1602, when on
the eve of finishing his renowned painting of "Celestial, Terrestrial
and Venal Love." Annibale continued to work alone at the Farnese gallery
till the designs were completed; but, disappointed at the miserable
remuneration offered by the cardinal, he retired to Naples, where an
unsuccessful contest for a great work in the church of the Jesuits threw
him into a fever, of which he died in 1609. Lodovico always remained at
his academy in Bologna (excepting for a short visit to his cousin at
Rome), though invited to execute paintings in all parts of the country.
He died in 1619, and was interred in the church of Santa Maria
Maddalena. The works of Lodovico are numerous in the chapels of Bologna.
The most famous are--The "Madonna standing on the moon, with St Francis
and St Jerome beside her, attended by a retinue of angels"; "John the
Baptist," "St Jerome," "St Benedict" and "St Cecilia"; and the "Limbo of
the Fathers." He was by far the most amiable of the three painters,
rising superior to all feelings of jealousy towards his rivals, and
though he received large sums for his productions, yet, from his almost
unparalleled liberality to the students of the academy, he died poor.
With skill in painting Agostino combined the greatest proficiency in
engraving (which he had studied under Cornelius de Cort) and high
accomplishments as a scholar. He died not untroubled by remorse for the
indecencies which, in accordance with the corruption of the time, he had
introduced into some of his engravings. The works of Annibale are more
diversified in style than those of the others, and comprise specimens of
painting after the manner of Correggio, Titian, Paolo Veronese, Raphael
and Michelangelo. The most distinguished are the "Dead Christ in the lap
of the Madonna"; the "Infant and St John"; "St Catherine"; "St Roch
distributing alms" (now in the Dresden gallery); and the "Saviour wailed
over by the Maries," at present in possession of the earl of Carlisle.
He frequently gave great importance to the landscape in his
compositions. The reputation of Annibale is tarnished by his jealousy
and vindictiveness towards his brother, and the licentiousness of his
disposition, which contributed to bring him to a comparatively early
grave.
The three Caracci were the founders of the so-called Eclectic school of
painting,--the principle of which was to study in the works of the great
masters the several excellences for which they had been respectively
pre-eminent, and to combine these in the productions of the school
itself; for instance, there was to be the design of Raphael, the power
of Michelangelo, the colour of Titian, and so on.