TOLE DO, a famous city of Spain, capital of the province of the same name, and long the capital of the whole country, stands on the n. bank of the Tagus, by which it is encompassed on three sides, 55 in. s.s. w. of Madrid by railway. It is situated on a num ber of hills at the height of about 2,400 feet above sea-level; and the climate, excessively hot in summer, is bitterly cold iu winter. The Tagus is the great fortress of the town. Rushing round it, on the e., s., and w., between high and rocky banks, it leaves only one approach on the land-side, which is defended by an inner and an outer wall, the former built by the Gothic king Wamba, in the 7th c.; the latter by Alfonso VI. in 1109, and both remarkable for the number and beauty of their towers and gates. Seen from a distance, the city has a most imposing appearance; within, it is gloomy, silent, inert, and its narrow streets are irregular, ill-paved, and steep. In the middle of the city rises the lofty, massive cathedral, surrounded by numerous churches and convents, mostly deserted, for here the churches are without congregations, and the streets and walks are al most destitute of people. The cathedral, completed in 1492, and built on the site of a former mosque, is a large edifice, in simple, pointed Gothic. It was ransacked and plundered in 1521 and 1808, but previous to these events, its interior was of the most magnificent description. The stained glass that remains is superb; the choir is a perfect museum of high-class sculpture; and there are two pulpits of metal, gilt, the workmanship of which is as fine as that of the richest plate. The cathedral is 404 ft. long, and 204 ft. wide;
and has 5 naves, supported on 84 piers. Connected with the cathedral are an extra ordinary number of chapels, of great interest, alike from their architectural beauty, their decorations, and their historical associations. The Zocodover, "square market," thoroughly Moorish in its architectural character, is a fashionable promenade, and was for years the site on which heretics were burned, and bull-fights took place. The Fabrira de ..-trinas, or manufactory of Toledan swords, a huge, rectangular, unsightly building, standing on the right bank of the Tagus, was erected in 1788, though long before that time the Toledan blades had become famous, and the fondness of the Iberians for their weapons, as well as the weapons themselves, were written about both by Livy and Polybitis. The temper of the best Toledan blades is such, 'that they are sometimes packed up in boxes, curled up like the mainspring of a watch." The buildings of the town also include a theological seminary, military school, female college, hospitals, and manufactories of coarse woolens, paper, guitar-strings, and leather. Pop. '45, 13,431; '65, 25,000.
Toledo, the Toletum of the Romans, is of very early origin, and was taken by Marius Fulvins in 193 B.C. It was the capital of the Goths during their dominion; in 714 it fell into the possession of the Moors, who retained it till 1085, when it was permanently an nexed to the crown of Castile. In the days of its highest prosperity, it is said to have contained 200,000 inhabitants.