POSEN, po'zen, Germany, (1) a fortified town in Prussia, capital of the province and government of the same name, on the river Warthe, 149 miles east of Berlin and 103 north of Breslau. Fort Winiary, adjoining the town, serves as the citadel. It is a railway centre, en joying an active trade also by water. Of its public edifices the chief are the Roman Catholic cathedral and the parish church, the former having the splendid "golden chapel° attached; the archiepiscopal palace; the town-hall, a Re naissance building mostly of the 16th century; the Raczynski Library; the Mielzynski Museum, the archaeological museum and library, the real gymnasium and two other gymnasia (one Prot estant and one Roman Catholic), an academy, normal and other schools, hospital, a theatre and some elegant private mansions. The manu factures consist chiefly of agriculture and other machines, carriages, artificial manures, etc. There are also large breweries and distilleries. Posen is the see of an archbishop, the residence of a provincial governor and the seat of im portant courts and numerous public offices. It was one of the oldest and most important towns of Poland, and its inhabitants still largely con sist of Poles. It was at one time allied with the Hanseatic League. It is one of 10 fortified cities of the first class in Germany and has underground and wire connections with the nearby fort of Geogau. It was a Russian ob jective in their advance in 1914-15. Pop. about 156,691. (2) An eastern grand duchy and prov ince of Prussia, bounded north by West Prus sia, east by Russian Poland, south by Silesia and west by Brandenburg; area, 11,186 square miles. The surface is generally flat and extensively occupied by lakes and marshes. A small por tion belongs to the basin of the Vistula, which touches it on the northeast; the rest belongs to the basin of the Oder, which receives its drain age through the Warthe in the south and centre and the Netze in the north. The soil is for the
most part light and sandy, and considerable tracts are covered with heath; many parts are covered with a rich alluvium or vegetable mold, yielding all the ordinary species of grain, millet, flax, hemp, tobacco and hops. The pastures are extensive and feed numerous herds of cat tle, horses and swine; considerable attention is paid to the rearing of poultry, particularly geese, and also to the rearing of bees. The minerals, comparatively unimportant, include bog iron-ore, saltpetre, limestone and building stone. The manufactures consist chiefly of spirituous liquors, woolen stuffs, linen and leather. The trade in these articles and in horses and swine is considerable; other exports are corn, cattle, tallow, leather, honey, wax, goose-feathers and hogs'-lard. There are 1,200 miles of railway in the province. The inhab itants include a considerable mixture of Ger mans and Jews, but the great majority are Poles, Posen being one of the acquisitions which Prussia made by the dismemberment of Poland. It is divided into the two governments of Posen and Bromberg and has been subjected to a representative rule to overcome disaffec tion. It is represented in the Imperial Reich stag by 15 members and in the Prussian Land tag by 29 delegates in the lower and 19 in the upper chamber. As part of Poland, Posen was divided into the palatinates of Poznania, Gnesen and Inowraclaw. At the first partition of Poland in 1772 the district of the Netze fell to Prussia, and the remainder in the second parti tion of 1793. Between 1807 and 1815 Posen formed part of the grand duchy of Warsaw, but in the latter year reverted to Prussia. Pop. 2,099,831.