ESTREES, GABRIELLE D', 1571-99; a beautiful French girl who, at the age of 16, became a favorite of Henry III. and about the same time of cardinal De Guise and the dukes of Bellegarde and Longueville, In 1590 she met Henry 1V soon after his great victory at Ivry. He became desperately enamored, but she did not immediately dis card her old lover, the duke of Bellegarde. Henry gave her a husband in one M. de Liancourt, but soon afterwards divorced them and raised her to the rank of marchion ess, and in 1595 to duchess of Beaufort. Henry lavished riches upon her, and when she died she was the owner of a dozen estates near Paris. The king desired to divorce his lawful wife and marry her, but Sully had sufficient influence to delay the matter until the death of Gabrielle. This event happened suddenly, and not a few persons suspected foul play. She had borne the king three children.
ESTRtNADURA, next to Alemtejo, the largest province of Portugal, has an area of 6.907 sq.m., and, including the capital, Lisbon, contained in 1874, 903,465 inhabitants.
The greater part of the country is hilly, but the hills do not attain any great elevation. To the w. of the estuary of the Tagus are the granite mountains of the Serra da Cintra, varying from 1500 to 1800 ft iu height, and terminating in the Cabo de Roca. To the s. of the Tagus are barren moors, partly broken by morasses, and the limestone chain of Arrahida, rising to a height of 1000 ft. and terminating in the Cabo de Espichel. Many districts are extremely fertile, others are barren and uncultivated. The Tagus, which is only navigable as ?ar as Abrantes, receives the waters of the Zezeres, the Sor raya, and the Canha, and is strewn with islands at its mouth. The chief productions of the country are wine, oil, fruits, corn, and cork; but even the sandy plains are cov ered with cistus, rosemary, myrtles, and other flowering and fragrant plants. The breeding of cattle is not much attended to. The minerals are marble, coal, and sea-salt. This province has been frequently visited by earthquakes.