to construct a tunnel beneath the Thames, Brunei, confident in his own powers, persevered, and in 1824, under the auspices of the duke of Wellington, who always entertained a favourable view of the practicability of the scheme, a company was formed for its execution ; and after numerous accidents and suspensions of the works, this great and novel undertaking was successfully accomplished, and the
tunnel opened to the public in the year 1843.In the prosecution of the work he received great assist ance from his son, Isambard Kingdom Brunei, and in a scientific point of view the construction of the tunnel will be regarded as displaying, at the same time, the highest professional ability, an amount of energy and skill rarely exceeded, and a fertility of invention and resources, under what were deemed insurmountable difficulties, which will secure to the memory of Sir Isambard Brunei a high posi tion among the engineers of England.
He received the order of the Le gion d Honneur in 1829, and the honour of knighthood in 1841. He was a cor responding member of the French Institute, and a fellow of the Royal Society. He joined the Institution of Civil Engineers in the year 1823, and constantly attended the meetings, took part in the discussions, and promoted the society s interests by every means in his power.
He was unaffected and simple in his habits, and possessed indomitable courage, perseverance, and industry ; whilst his benevolence constantly prompted him to kindly and considerate actions. His labours had so seriously impaired his health, that for some years after the completion of the tunnel he was unable to mix in active life. He died on the 12th of December 1849, in his 81st year. (See Richard Beamish, Memoirs of Sir Marc Isambard Brunei, 1862.)
BRUNELLESCHI, Filippo, (1377-1446), one of the greatest Italian architects, the reviver in Italy of the Roman or Classic style, was born at Florence in 1377. His father, a notary, had destined him for his own profession, but observing the boy s talent for all sorts of mechanism, placed him in the guild of goldsmiths. Filippo quickly became a skilled workman, and, eagerly desirous to excel, perfected himself in the knowledge of sculpture, perspec tive, and geometry, whatever, in short, was useful for the architectural art, to which he found himself attracted. He designed some portions of houses in Florence, and in 1401 he was one of the competitors for the design of the gates of the baptistery of San Giovanni. He was unsuc cessful, though his work obtained praise, and he soon after wards set out for Rome. He studied hard, and resolved to do what he could to revive the older classical style, which had died out in Italy. In 1407 he returned to Florence, just at the time when it was resolved to attempt the completion of the cathedral church of Santa Maria del Fiorc. Brunelleschi s plan for effecting this by a cupola was approved, but it was not till 1419, and after innumer able disputes, that the work was finally entrusted to him. At first he was hampered by his colleague Ghiberti, of whom he skilfully got rid. He did not live to see the com pletion of his great work, and the lantern on the summit was put up not altogether in accordance with the instruc tions and plans left by him. The great cupola, one of the triumphs of architecture, exceeds in some measurements that of St Peter s at Rome, and has a more massive and striking appearance. Besides the masterpiece Brunelleschi executed numerous other works, among the most remarkable of which are the Pitti Palace at Florence, and the churches of San Lorenzo and Spirito Santo, and the still more elegant Capella dei Pazza. He died in 1446, and was buried in the great church of Santa Maria. See Architecture, vol. ii. p. 436.
BRUNET, Jacques Charles, the eminent bibliographer, was born at Paris in 1780, and died in 1867. He was the sou of a bookseller, and at an early age began the study which occupied the whole of his after life. In 1802 he printed a supplement to the Dictionnaire Biblioyraphique of Duclos and Cailleau, and in 1810 there appeared the first edition of his chef-d oeuvre, the Manuel du Libraire. With the exception of a few pamphlets and minor disserta tions, Brunet published nothing beyond successive editions of his great bibliographical dictionary, which had come to be recognized as the first book of its class in European literature. The last (fifth) edition in six volumes was completed in 1865.
BRUNI, Leonardo (1369-1444), author of the History of Florence, was an eminent scholar of the 15th century. He was born at Arezzo, and is generally known as L. Aretino. He was secretary to the papal chancery under Innocent VII. and John XXII. From 1427 to his death in 1444 he was chancellor to the republic of Florence. He was buried at the expense of the state in Sta. Croce, where his laurelled statue is still to be seen. His History of Florence comes down to 1404.
Moravia, is situated for the most part between two hills at the confluence of the Schwarzawa and the Zwittawa, 69 miles N. of Vienna and 115 W.S.W. of Prague, with both of which it is connected by railway. Lat. 49 11 39" N., long. 16 39 35" E. On one of the hills known as the Spielberg stands the castle of the same name, which has long been used as a prison, and is famous for its connection with the patriotic Silvio Pellico, who was confined within its walls for about eight years. The old town, which is com paratively small, still retains some of its fortifications, but most of them have given place to promenades. Its streets are narrow and crooked but well-paved, and it contains many of the most important buildings in the city. Exten sive suburbs have grown up around it, and since 1849 form portions of the same commune. There are fine public gardens and a large park known as the Augarten, presented to the town by the Emperor Joseph II. The Rathhaus, which dates from 1511, has a fine Gothic portal, and contains several interesting antiquities. The eccle siastical buildings comprise the cathedral of St Peter s, situated on the lower hill ; the fine Gothic church of St James, built in the 15th century, with its iron tower added in 1845, and a remarkable collection of early typo graphy ; the church of the Augustine friars, dating from the 14th century ; that of the Minorites with its frescoes, its holy stair, and its Loretto-house ; the bishop s palace ; a splendid Jewish synagogue ; and several monastic estab lishments. As the capital of the province Briinn is the seat of the chief legal and military courts, and thus possesses various official edifices, the old Jesuit convent having been turned into barracks. It is also the seat of a Roman Catholic bishop and of a Protestant consistory. Its educational and benevolent institutions comprise a theo logical seminary, a gymnasium, several academies and schools, an agricultural society, a botanic garden, an infirmary, an orphanage, a blind asylum, a deaf-mute institution, a lunatic asylum, and several hospitals, of which the most important is the great hospital of St Anna. The national museum for Moravia and Silesia, though com paratively poor, must also be mentioned. Briinn is one of the chief seats of the woollen manufacture in the Austrian dominions, and the centre of a large miscellaneous trade. Considerable quantities of silk and cotton goods are manu factured, as also leather, paper, tobacco, oil, and sugar. There are also steam-flour-mills, engineering works, and breweries. There is a remarkable viaduct in the immediate neighbourhood of the town. Briinn probably dates from the 9th century. In the llth it was bestowed by Duke
Wratislas II. on his son Otto. Briinn is a place of great