GALICIA, a crown land belonging to the Austrian monarchy, including the former kingdoms of Galicia and Lodomcria, the duchies of Auschwitz and Zator, and the grand duchy of Cracow. Ai•ea, 30,200 sq.M.; -pop. '69, 5;444,689. With the exception of 114,000 Germans, and near 500,000 Jews, the inhabitants are of the Slavonic race, the western part of G. being occupied mainly by Poles, the east by Ruthenians. In faith the people of G. are mostly Catholics. The country is a high terrace, situated at the northern base of the Carpathians. The northern portion forms an extensive plain, broken only by low ranges of hills. There are many large rivers—those in the w. being feeders of the Vistula, those in the e., of the Danube and Dniester. The climate of G. is colder than that of any other portion of the Austrian empire; the soil, with the exception of some sandy and marshy districts, is fertile, and produces corn, which is exported in considerable quantities. Flax, hemp, tobacco, hops, etc., are likewise cul tivated. Horses, cattle, and sheep are raised in considerable numbers. Wolves and
bears are still found in the mountainous districts. Salt is the most important mineral. Industry has lately made marked progress. Commerce is on the increase. The roads are good.; the railway from Cracow to Lemberg has developed the resources of the country greatly. For administrative purposes, G. has been divided into Lemberg, Cracow, and Stanislawow. G. takes its name from the old fortress and town of Halicz, on the Dniester. The original Slavonic inhabitants, the Ruthenes, were, in the 9th c., con quered by the Russians of Kew. The western portion of the country had already become dependent on Poland, and afterwards on Hungary. In 1382 it was restored to Poland, and continued to belong to that country till the partition of 1772, when G. became one of the crown-lands of Austria. In 1846, Cracow, with the territory belong ing to it, was, by a treaty of the three powers (Austria, Russia, and Prussia), given up to the emperor of Austria, and by him annexed to the crown-land of Galicia.