Seville
2 of the 7 encyclopedias on this shelf carry an entry for Seville. Both are reproduced below, so you can see where they agree and where they differ.
Collier's New Encyclopedia (1921)
a famous city of Spain; Spain; capital of the province of the same name; on the left bank of the Guadalquivir, 80 miles from its mouth, and 353% miles S. S. W. of Madrid. The river is crossed by a fine iron bridge connecting Seville with Triana (the gipsy quarter), one of its suburbs. The city proper, which is surrounded by old Moorish walls, 5 miles in circumference, with 66 towers and 15 gates, contains a labyrinth of narrow crooked streets. The houses are mostly built in the Moorish style, and are seldom more than two stories high, with flat roofs, and an inner square court surrounded with colonnades and adorned with flowers and fountains. The windows generally look into this court; to the street there is most frequently only a balcony. The city has many fine promenades, of which the most frequented are the Alameda Vieja, El Passeo de Christina and Las Delicias. Of its 111 squares, the largest are Plaza de San Francisco, Plaza de la Encarnacion, Plaza del Duque, and the Quemadero -the scene of the autos-da-fe; while of its numerous streets, the chief are Calle de la Sierpe and Calle Francos. Most of the more notable public edifices are at the S. extremity near the river, and within a short distance from each other. Here are the Cathedral (Santa Maria de la Sede), the Giralda, the Alcazar, the Lonja, and (outside the wall), the royal Fabrica de Tabacos. The Cathedral (1401-1519), on the site of the grand mosque of the Moors, is one of the most imposing Gothic edifices in Europe. It is 431 feet long, 315 feet wide, 145 feet high under the transept dome, has seven aisles, 93 windows, several of which are beautifully painted, and an organ with 5,400 pipes. It contains the "Biblioteca Columbiana" of 42,000 volumes, bequeathed by Ferdinand Colum- SÈVRE bus, and is rich in paintings by Murillo, Campaña, the Herreras, and other masters of the school of Seville. The Giralda is a square Moorish steeple, consisting of three towers with galleries and balconies, 350 feet high, the ascent of which is by a spiral inclined plane. On the top is a bronze statue of Faith, 14 feet high, and weighing 2,800 pounds, which yet turns like a weathercock. The Alcazar was the ancient Moorish palace. Some parts of its interior are as fine as the Alhambra. The Lonja, or Exchange, is a square building, each side 100 feet long, in which all the American archives are preserved. The Fabrica de Tabacos, or tobacco factory, in which several thousand persons are employed, was erected in 1757. Other buildings are the Torre del Oro, a 12sided tower on the river, so called from its having received the cargoes of the American treasure ships; the palace San Telmo, built by Ferdinand Columbus, afterward owned by the Duke of Montpensier; Casa de Ayuntamiento (town house), a fine Renaissance structure; the Casa de Pilatos, or palace of the Dukes of Alcala; the Museo, rich in paintings by Murillo, Zurbaran, Torrigiano, Roelas, and the elder Herrera; and the great amphitheater, capable of accommodating, as a Plaza de Toros, 18,000 people. One of the greatest monuments of antiquity is the Caños de Carmona, an aqueduct on 410 high arches, which conveys water from Alcala de Guadaira. It was built by the Romans and repaired by the Moors. Seville has a university, founded 1502, with a library of more than 20,000 volumes; 12 picture galleries (including the Musco), two theaters, several upper schools and learned societies. The city is visited by large numbers of strangers during the Santa Semana ("holy week"), which commences about the middle of April. Seville has a great export of oranges, and large manufactures of tobacco, hardware, porcelain, and silk. Pop. (1918) 164,046. Seville was the Hispalis of the Romans, in whose time it was a place of great commercial importance. Under the Vandals and Visigoths it became the capital of southern Spain. Within its walls were held the Concilia Hispalensia, 590 and 619. In the 8th century, it fell into the hands of the Moors, by whom it was called Ischbilia, and made the capital of a caliphate. It now became the most mo prompt and pt g city in the peninsula, having flourishing a population of 400,000. In 1248 it was taken, after a siege of 18 months, by Ferdinand III. of Castile, and has ever since remained in the hands of the Christians. SÈVRE (savr), the name of two rivers in France. The Sèvre Nantaise rises in the department of Deux-Sèvres, and flows into the Loire opposite Nantes after a course of 86 miles. The Sèvres Niortaise rises 31 miles more to the S. E., in the same department, and flows into the Atlantic 10 miles N. of La Rochelle after a course of 89 miles. The department of Deux-Sèvres takes its name from these two rivers. SÈVRES, DEUX ("two Sèvres"), a de partment in France, bounded by Maineet-Loire, Vienne, Charente, Charente-Inférieure, and Vendée; area, 2,337 square miles; pop. about 340,000. A branch of the Cévennes traverses the department from S. E. to N. W. Cereals, leguminous crops, and hops are grown. The vine, though extensively cultivated, yields only an inferior wine. The forests are chiefly of hard wood. The minerals include iron, millstones, pavement, and limestone in abundance. The principal manufactures are linen and cotton goods, serge, flannel, woolen hosiery, and gloves. Capital, Niort.
Aiton's Encyclopedia (1910)
se-vil', a city of Spain. It stands at the head of navigation on the Guadalquiver River. It lies in the fertile province of Seville, a region abounding in wine, oranges, and olives. The mountains near by yield an abundant supply of silver, lead, iron, coal, rock salt , chalk, and marble. The city was an ancient Roman colony. It was the western seat of empire of the Vandals and was an important city of the Goths. In 712 it passed under the control of the Arabs, who fortified the town strongly and adorned it with many magnificent buildings. In 1248 it was retaken by the Christians and 300,000 Moorish inhabitants went into exile. After the discovery of America, Seville was the first Spanish seat of commerce with the New World. It is still the most important commercial city of Spain. It is also an important manufacturing center of tobacco, leather, paper, spirits, chocolate, silk and woolen goods, soap, glass, and earthenware. The population in 1900 was returned at 148,315. Although in a state of more or less decay, Seville is still the most interesting city architecturally in Spain,-one of the most interesting cities in Europe. The Gothic cathedral is nearly as large as that of St. Peter's at Rome. The exterior is homely, but the interior is beautiful. Clustered columns, stained glass, Gothic wood carvings, silver statues, the archbishop's throne, a huge chandelier, and choir stalls make a deep impression. There are good pictures by Murillo and other celebrated painters. The organ is one of the largest and finest in the world. It contains 5,300 pipes. The bell tower, 275 feet in height, is ascended by a series of inclined planes. It is of Moorish origin, and it is considered one of the finest specimens of the kind in Europe. The Alcazar, an old Moorish palace, rivals the Alhambra in delicacy and magnificence. There are many other Moorish palaces. One is mentioned by travelers as having eleven courtyards and nine fountains. The University of Seville, founded in 1502, occupies buildings originally built for a convent. The city exchange contains a mass of documents, known as the Archives, pertaining to colonial days. Only a small portion of them have been read as yet by modern scholars. A public bull rink seats 18,000 spectators. In size it ranks second in Spain. See Spain 2026 Editor's Note: By way of comparison, Seville today has about 680,000 residents, up from the 148,315 this article reports for 1900. (Ed: BR 2026-06-16)