ARIEL, BRIEL'LE, or THE BRILL, a fortified seaport t., on the n. side of the island of Voorne, s. Holland. It is situated near the mouth of the Maas, about 14 m. w. of Rotterdam, in lat. 51° 54' n., and long. 4° 10' east. B. possesses a good harbor, and is intersected by several canals. It has a pop. of (1876) 4205, the male portion of which are chiefly engaged as pilots and fishermen. B. may be considered as the nucleus of the Dutch republic, having been taken from the Spaniards by William de Is Muck, in 1572. This event was the first act of open hostility to Philip II., and paved the way to the complete liberation of the country from a foreign yoke. In 1585, B. was one of the towns made over to England as security for certain advances made to the. states of Hol land; it was restored to the Dutch in 1610. B. was the first town of Holland, which, without extraneous aid, expelled the French in 1813. The celebrated admirals De Witt and Van Tromp were natives of this place.
or, as it is now called, BRIENNE-NAPOLEON, a small t. in in the dep. of Aube, France, on the right bank of the river Aube, and about 14 in. n.w. of Bar-sur-Aube. It is celebrated as the place where Napoleon I. received his earliest. military education, he having entered the school here in 1779, when he was 10 years old, and remained until 1784. It is also remarkable on account of the battle fought here between the French and the allies in 1814. On the 29th of Jan., Bonaparte, who had
collected his forces in the vicinity of B., with a view to check the advance of the allies on Paris, attacked Blucher, who was stationed in the town, and drove him out with considerable loss. In the struggle, the town, which was chiefly composed of wood, was. almost reduced to ashes. On the 30th, the contest was renewed, and Blucher was forced to retreat to Trannes. On the following day, Napoleon deployed his forces in the plain between La RothMre and Trannes, and on Feb. 1, the corps of the crown-prince of Wiirtenberg and count Giulay, and the Russian reserves of grenadiers, having joined Blucher, prince Schwarzenberg gave orders to renew the combat. After a sanguinary struggle, during which Napoleon, feeling the importance of the contest, exerted all his influence over his troops, led several charges in person. and frequently exposed himself to danger, victory at length declared decisively for the allies at every point. During the night of Feb. 1, and the morning of the following day, the French troops retreated from Brienne-le-Chateau. The loss on both sides was about equal, consisting of nearly 5000 killed and wounded. The allies took 9000 prisoners, and 70 pieces of artillery. This victory at B. opened the way to Paris, and led to the fall of the empire.