Brenz
JOHANN, the Reformer of Württemberg, born in Weil, Suabia, June 24, 1499, and went in his 13th year to study at Heidelberg. From Luther's study at Heidelberg. visit to Heidelberg in 1518 he became his zealous adherent. He was at the Mar- From Luther's burg Disputation in 1529, and the Diet Augsburg 1530, in 1536 was summoned by Duke Ulrich to Württemberg to lead the Reformation there. For his energetic opposition to the interim of Charles V. he was forced to flee to Stuttgart, where, in 1553, he became "propst" (or superintendent). Brenz was coauthor of the "Württemberg Confession of Faith," and his "Catechism" (1551) has held the next place to that of Luther in Protestant Germany. He died in Stuttgart, Sept. 11, 1570. BRESCIA (bresh'che-a), a city of north Italy, capital of the province of the same name, is beautifully situated at the foot of the Alps, and is of a quadrilateral form, about 4 miles in circuit.
Among its chief edifices are the new cathedral, a handsome structure of white marble, begun in 1604, the Rotunda, or old cathedral, the town hall (La Loggia), and the Broletto, or courts. The city contains a museum of antiquities, picture gallery, botanic garden, etc. Near the town are large iron works, and its firearms are esteemed the best that are made in Italy. It has also silk, linen, and paper factories, tan yards, and oil mills, and is an important mart for raw silk. Brescia was the seat of a school of painting of great merit, including Ales- BRESLAU sandro Bonvicino, commonly called Il Moretto, who flourished in the 16th century. The city was originally the chief town of the Cenomanni, and became the seat of a Roman colony under Augustus about 15 B. C. It was burned by the Goths in 412, was again destroyed by Attila, was taken by Charlemagne in 774, and was declared a free city by Otho I. of Saxony in 936. In 1426 it put itself under the protection of Venice. In 1796 it was taken by the French, and was assigned to Austria by the Vienna Treaty of 1815. In 1849 its streets were barricaded by insurgents, but were carried by the Austrians under General Haynau. It was ceded to Sardinia by the Treaty of Zürich, 1859. Pop. about 88,400. The province has an area of 1,845 square miles; pop. about 540,000.
BRESLAU (bres'lou), a city of Prussia, capital of the province of Silesia, at the confluence of the Ohlau with the Oder, 190 miles S. E. of Berlin, comprising various suburbs, some of them built on islands of the Oder, and united to the body of the town by numerous bridges. It is the center of a very extensive commerce. The fair held here in June for the sale of wool is the greatest of its kind in Germany. Breslau prior to the World War was one of the most animated and prosperous cities in Prussia. Breslau was taken from Austria by Frederick the Great. Pop. about 514,000.