Arágon

Arágon, once a kingdom, now divided into the three provinces of Saragossa, Huesca, and Teruel, in the NE. of Spain. Greatest length from north to south, 190 miles; breadth, 130. Area, 17,980 sq. m. Pop. (1884) 925,920. It is bounded on the north by the Pyrenees, and borders on Navarre, the Castiles, Valencia, and Catalonia. The Ebro flows through Aragon in a south-easterly direction, receiving numerous tributaries both from the lofty regions of the Pyrenees and from the Sierras in the south. The province is naturally divided into the level country along the Ebro, and the northern mountainous district of Upper Aragon. The central plain is sterile, poorly supplied with water, and intersected by deep ravines. The valleys of Upper Aragon are at once the most beautiful and fertile of all the Pyrenean valleys. The Spanish Pyrenees, which attain a height of over 11,000 feet, are rich in grand scenery, and afford good sport for the angler and sportsman. The slopes of the hills are clothed with forests of oak, beech, and pine. The minerals of the province are copper, lead, iron, salt, alum, saltpetre, coal, and amber. The silkworm industry has been introduced. Aragon is peopled by a brave, active, enduring, but obstinate race, high-spirited and patriotic, making good soldiers or audacious robbers. It early became a Roman province; and, on the fall of the empire, passed into the hands of the West Goths, but was conquered by the Moors in the beginning of the 8th century. The rulers of Aragon, after it had been recovered from the Moors and united with Catalonia (1137), became powerful; obtained possession of the Balearic Isles in 1213, of Sicily in 1282, of Sardinia in 1326, and of Naples in 1440. By the marriage of Ferdinand of Aragon with Isabella, heiress of Castile, in 1469, the two states of Aragon and Castile were united, and formed the foundation of the great Spanish monarchy. After Ferdinand's death in 1516, the union of the states was made permanent. The constitutional history of Aragon is peculiarly interesting for the stout defence of popular rights maintained by its cortes; even after the union with Castile, the old privileges were maintained. In the war with the French, 1808-9, Saragossa, the capital of Aragon, was remarkable for its heroic defence under Palafox. The chief towns are Saragossa, Calatayud, Huesca, and Teruel.