BRESCIA (anc. Brixia), episcopal see, Lombardy, Italy, cap ital of the province of Brescia, at the foot of the Alps, 52m. E. of Milan and 4om. W. of Verona by rail. Pop. (1921) 66,667 (town), oo,168 (commune). The plan is rectangular, with streets at right angles, a Roman peculiarity, though the Roman town occupied only the eastern portion of the later one. The Piazza del Museo marks the site of the forum, and the museum on its north side is in a Corinthian temple with three cellae, probably the Capitolium of the city, erected by Vespasian in A.D. 73. It contains a famous bronze statue of Victory, found in 1826. Near it are the remains of the ancient theatre. The castle, at the north-east angle, commands a fine view. The old cathedral (I Ith—I 2th century) is a round domed building over a 9th cen tury church, and the Broletto, adjoining the new cathedral (a building of 1604) on the north, is a massive building of the 12th and 13th centuries (the original town hall, now the prefecture and law courts), with a lofty tower. The convent of S. Salvatore, founded by Desiderius, king of Lombardy, has three churches, two of which now contain the fine mediaeval museum. The church of S. Francesco has a Gothic façade and cloisters. The Palazzo del Commune, begun in 1492 and completed by Jacopo Sansovino in 1554-1574, is a magnificent structure, with fine ornamentation. The church of S. Maria dei Miracoli (1488 15 23) has rich details, especially of the reliefs on the facade. Many other churches, and the picture gallery (Gallerio Martinen go), contain fine works of the painters of the Brescian school, Alessandro Bonvicino (generally known as Moretto), Girolamo Romanino and Moretto's pupil, Giovanni Battista Moroni. The city has no less than 72 public fountains. Brescia makes iron ware, particularly fire-arms and weapons (one of the govern ment small-arms factories is here), also machinery, woollens, linens and silks, matches, candles, etc. It is the chief centre of the stocking factories of Italy. Mazzano, 8m. E. of Brescia, has stone quarries. Brescia is on the main railway line between Milan and Verona, and has several branch railways and steam tramways.
The ancient Celtic Brixia of the Cenomani submitted to Rome in 225 B.C. Augustus founded a civil colony here in 27 B.C. In it was plundered by Attila, but was the seat of a duchy in the Lombard period. From 1167 it was one of the most active mem bers of the Lombard League. In 1258 it fell into the hands of Eccelino of Verona, and belonged to the Scaligers (della Scala) until 1421, when it came under the Visconti of Milan, and in 1426 under Venice. Early in the 16th century it was one of the wealthiest cities of Lombardy, but has never recovered from its sack by the French under Gaston de Foix in 1512. It belonged to Venice until 1797, then to Austria; it revolted in 1848, and in 1849 was the only Lombard town to rally to Charles Albert, but it was taken after ten days' obstinate street fighting by the Aus trians, to be lost in 1859.
See A. Agoletti, Brescia (Bergamo, Arti Grafiche, 19o9), well illus trated.