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of Things above Reason (1681); High Veneration Man owes to God (1685); A Free Inquiry into the vulgarly received Notion of Nature (1686); and the Christian Virtuoso (1690). Several other works appeared after his death, among them The General History of the Air designed and begun (1692); a “collection of choice remedies,” Medicinal Experiments (1692–1698); and A Free Discourse against Customary Swearing (1695). An incomplete and unauthorized edition of Boyle’s works was published at Geneva in 1677, but the first complete edition was that of Thomas Birch, with a life, published in 1744, in five folio volumes, a second edition appearing in 1772 in six volumes, 4to. Boyle bequeathed his natural history collections to the Royal Society, which also possesses a portrait of him by the German painter, Friedrich Kerseboom (1632–1690).

BOYLE, a market town of Co. Roscommon, Ireland, in the north parliamentary division, on the Sligo line of the Midland Great Western railway, 1061/4 m. N.W. by W. from Dublin and 28 m. S. by E. from Sligo. Pop. (1901) 2477. It is beautifully situated on both banks of the river Boyle, an affluent of the Shannon, between Loughs Gara and Key. Three bridges connect the two parts of the town. There is considerable trade in agricultural produce. To the north of the town stand the extensive ruins of a Cistercian abbey founded in 1161, including remains of a cruciform church, with a fine west front, and Norman and Transitional arcades with carving of very beautiful detail. The offices of the monastery are well preserved, and an interesting feature is seen in the names carved on the door of the lodge, attributed in Cromwell’s soldier, who occupied the buildings. Neighbouring antiquities are Asselyn church near Lough Key, and a large cromlech by the road towards Lough Gara. Boyle was incorporated by James I., and returned two members to the Irish parliament.

BOYNE, a river of Ireland, which, rising in the Bog of Allen, near Carbery in Co. Kildare, and flowing in a north-easterly direction, passes Trim, Navan and Drogheda, and enters the Irish Sea, 4 m. below the town last named. It is navigable for barges to Navan, 19 m. from its mouth. Much of the scenery on its banks is beautiful, though never grand. About 2 m. west of Drogheda, an obelisk, 150 ft. in height, marks the spot where the forces of William III. gained a celebrated victory over those of James II., on the 1st of July^[1] 1690, known as the battle of the Boyne.

BOYS’ BRIGADE, an organization founded in Glasgow by Mr (afterwards Sir) W. A. Smith in 1883 to develop Christian manliness by the use of a semi-military discipline and order, gymnastics, summer camps and religious services and classes. There are about 2200 companies connected with different churches throughout the United Kingdom, the British empire and the United States, with 10,000 officers and 100,000 boys. A similar organization, confined to the Anglican communion, is the Church Lads’ Brigade. Boys’ and girls’ life brigades are a more recent movement; they teach young people how to save life from fire and from water, and hold classes in hygiene, ambulance and elementary nursing.

BOZDAR, a Baluch tribe of Rind (Arab) extraction, usually associated with the mountain districts of the frontier near Dera Ghazi Khan. They are also to be found in Zhob, Thal-Chotiali and Las Bela, whilst the majority of the population are said to live in the Punjab. They are usually graziers, and the name Bozdar is probably derived from Buz, the Persian name for goat. Within the limits of their mountain home on the outer spurs of the Suliman hills they have always been a turbulent race, mustering about 2700 fighting men, and they were formerly constantly at feud with the neighbouring Ustarana and Sherani tribes. In 1857 their raids into the Punjab drew upon them an expedition under Brigadier-General Sir N. B. Chamberlain. The Sangarh pass was captured and the Bozdars submitted. Since Baluchistan has been taken over they have given but little trouble.

BOZRAH. (1) A capital of Edom (Gen. xxxvi. 33; Amos i. 12; Is. xxxiv. 6, lxiii. 1), doubtfully identified with el-Buseireh, S.E. of the Dead Sea, in the broken country N. of Petra; the ruins here are comparatively unimportant. It is the centre of a pastoral district, and its inhabitants, who number between 100 and 200, are all shepherds. (2) A city in the Mishor or plain country of Moab, denounced by Jeremiah (xlviii. 24). It has been identified (also questionably) with a very extensive collection of ruins of various ages, now called Bosrā (the Roman Bostra), situated in the Hauran, about 80 m. south of Damascus. The area within the walls is about 11/4 m. in length, and nearly 1 m. in breadth, while extensive suburbs lie to the east, north and west. The principal buildings which can still be distinguished are a temple, an aqueduct, a large theatre (enclosed by a castle of much more recent workmanship), several baths, a triumphal and other arches, three mosques, and what are known as the church and convent of the monk Boheira. In A.D. 106 the city was beautified and perhaps restored from ruin by Trajan, who made it the capital of the new province of Arabia. In the reign of Alexander Severus it was made a colony, and in 244, a native of the place, Philippus, ascended the imperial throne. By the time of Constantine the Great it seems to have been Christianized, and not long after it was the seat of an extensive bishopric. It was one of the first cities of Syria to be subjected to the Mahommedans, and it successfully resisted all the attempts of the Crusaders to wrest it from their hands. As late as the 14th century it was a populous city, after which it gradually fell into decay. It is now inhabited by thirty or forty families only. Another suggested identification is with Kusūr el-Besheir, equidistant (2 m.) from Dibon and Aroer. This is perhaps the same as the Bezer mentioned in Deuteronomy and Joshua as a levitical city and a city of refuge.

In 1 Macc. v. 26 there is mention of Bosor and of Bosora. The latter is probably to be identified with Bosra, the former perhaps with the present Busr el-Hariri in the south-east corner of the Lejā.  (R. A. S. M.) 

BRABANT, a duchy which existed from 1190 to 1430, when it was united with the duchy of Burgundy, the name being derived from Brabo, a semi-mythical Frankish chief.

The history of Brabant is connected with that of the duchy of Lower Lorraine (q.v.), which became in the course of the 11th century split up into a number of small feudal states. The counts of Hainaut, Namur, Luxemburg and Limburg asserted their independence, and the territory of Liége passed to the bishops of that city. The remnant of the duchy, united since 1100 with the margraviate of Antwerp, was conferred in 1106 by the emperor Henry V., with the title of duke of Lower Lorraine, upon Godfrey (Godefroid) I., “the Bearded,” count of Louvain and Brussels. His title was disputed by Count Henry of Limburg, and for three generations the representatives of the rival houses contested the possession of the ducal dignity in Lower Lorraine. The issue was decided in favour of the house of Louvain by Duke Godfrey III. in 1159. His son, Henry I., “the Warrior” (1183–1235), abandoned the title of duke of Lower Lorraine and assumed in 1190 that of duke of Brabant. His successors were Henry II., “the Magnanimous” (1235–1248), Henry III., “le Debonnair” (1248–1261), and John I., “the Victorious” (1261–1294). These were all able rulers. Their usual place of residence was Louvain. John I., in 1283 bought the duchy of Limburg from Adolf of Berg, and secured his acquisition by defeating and slaying his competitor, Henry of Luxemburg, at the battle of Woeringen (June 5, 1288). His own son, John II., “the Pacific” (1294–1312), bestowed liberties upon his subjects by the charter of Cortenberg. This charter laid the foundation of Brabantine freedom. By it the imposition of grants (beden) and taxes was strictly limited and regulated, and its execution was entrusted to a council appointed by the duke for life (four nobles, ten burghers) whose duty it was to consider all complaints and to see that the conditions laid down by the charter concerning the administration of justice and finance were not infringed. He was succeeded by his son, John III., “the Triumphant” (1312–1355), who succeeded in maintaining his position in spite of formidable risings in Louvain and Brussels,

1. This was the “old style” date, which in the new style (see Calendar) would be July 11th (not 12th, as Lecky says, Hist, of Ireland, iii. p. 427). The 12th of July is annually celebrated by the Orangemen in the north of Ireland as the anniversary, but this is a confusion between the supposed new style for July 1st and the old style date of the battle of Aughrim, July 12th; the intention being to commemorate both.