CAGLIARI, the capital of the island of Sardinia, and chief town of its southern province, is situated in the recess of the bay to which it gives its name, not far from the mouth of the River Mulargia, in 39° 33' 14" N. lat. and 9° 7' 48" E. long. It has a splendid appearance from the sea, occupying as it does the slope and summit of a hill, which is crowned by a noble castle. This building gives the name of Castello, or, in Sardinian, Casteddu, to the district containing the vice-regal palace, the cathedral, the university, the theatre, the chief mansions of the nobility, and the public seminaries. To the west of the Castello lies the district of Stampace, with the Corso, and to the east that of Villanuova with its pleasant promenades,—both consisting for the most part of narrow, irregular, and ill-paved streets, but the former inhabited by the wealthier citizens. The slope between the castle and the bay is occupied by the Marina, a well-built quarter, containing the residences of the merchants and consuls, the bonded warehouses, and the lazaretto; while to the west of the town is the spacious suburb of St Avandrace, nearly a mile in length. The university, which possesses the four faculties of theology, law, medicine, and arts, was founded in 1596 by Philip of Spain, was restored in 1720, and was remodelled in 1764. It has a library of upwards of 22,000 volumes, and numbers from 100 to 200 students. Besides the cathedral, which was built by the Pisans during the 14th century (though the present front only dates from 1703), Cagliari contains about thirty churches and twenty convents, of which the Capuchin monastery is interesting for remains of Roman reservoirs. There is a considerable museum both of antiquities and natural history, as well as a recently erected ...observatory; and the benevolent institutions comprise an orphanage, and a large civil hospital, under the superintendence of a medical board and the sisters of mercy, with a separate wing set apart for the accommodation of lunatic patients. There are also in the town a mint, an extensive custom-house, and barracks. Cagliari is the see of an archbishop, and the seat of the Sardinian Cortes, and of the judicial court for the southern division of the island. The bay, formed by the projection of Cape Carbonara and Cape Pula, and stretching inland for a distance of 12 miles, with an extreme width of 24 miles, contributes greatly to the commercial importance of the city; and the harbour, situated at the south angle of the wall of the Marina quarter, is one of the safest in the Mediterranean, being well sheltered from every wind except the south. Frequent proposals have been made to extend the area by the construction of a breakwater, but this has not as yet been effected. Cagliari is the chief port of Sardinia, and possesses by far the greatest part of the export trade, which principally consists of corn, fruits, oil, wine, cork, lead, and a few native manufactures. Most important of the last class is salt, procured, at the rate of 683,000 quintals per annum, from the salt-pans to the west of the town. In 1873 the total value of exports from the province, most of which pass through the port, was <£519,234; while the imports of the same year were of the value of £368,028. There is regular steam communication with Naples, Leghorn, and Genoa, as well as less frequently with other ports. The railway from Cagliari to Iglesias, a distance of 33½ miles, opens up the most important lead mines at present in operation, and a line of 58⅛ miles leads to Oristano. There is a submarine telegraph to Malta and another to Bone in Algeria. The climate of the town, in spite of the proximity of the salt swamp already mentioned, is excellent; and water, the want of which was formerly severely felt, is now supplied by an English company. Population in 1871, 33,039.
The modern city occupies the site of the ancient Curdles or Cαrαlis, which was founded by the Carthaginians, and passed into the hands of the Romans after the first Punic war. Of the buildings erected by the latter people there are several extensive remains,—those of an amphitheatre cut out in great part from the rock, a large aqueduct, a circular temple, &c.; while in the suburb of St Avandrace are numerous Roman sepulchres, of which the most interesting is that of Atilia Pomptilla. In the civil war between Caesar and Pompey, and during the empire, Cagliari was an important naval station; and, though it never obtained the status of a Boman colony, its inhabitants received the right of citizenship. Under Tiberius its population was augmented by the introduction of 4000 Jews, whose descendants were only expelled by the Spaniards in 1492. After the fall of the Western empire the city continued under the Vandals to be the capital of the island, and retained its importance during the Middle Ages. In 1353 the Genoese were disastrously beaten in the neighbouring sea by the Aragonese and the Venetians. In 1708 the town was bombarded by the English under Admiral I ake; in 1717 it was captured by the Spaniards; in 1779 it suffered from a great famine; and in 1793 it was bombarded by the French. From 1799 to 1815, while Savoy was in the hands of the French, Cagliari afforded a residence to the king of Sardinia.
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