CEUTA, or (in the local Moorish form) Sebta, a town and fortress belonging to Spain on the coast of Marocco, on a peninsula opposite Gibraltar, in 35° 54' N. lat., 5° 18' W. long. It derives its name from its seven hills, the most important of which, the Monte del Hacho (the ancient Abylα, one of the pillars of Hercules), has a considerable elevation. The town is well built, and is chiefly important as a military and convict station. It contains a cathedral, the bishop of which is suffragan to the archbishop of Seville, several religious houses, and a hospital. It has a small harbour, and imports provisions and military stores from Spain. Ceuta occupies the site of the Roman colony of Ad Septem Fratres. In 618 the town, which had been refortified by Justinian, fell into the hands of the West Goths; and in the 8th century it was the seat of that Count Julian whose name is inseparably connected with the Saracenic conquest of Spain. Under the Arabic government it was an industrial city, and it is said to have been the first place in Western Europe where a paper manufactory was established. It was taken from the Moors by John I., king of Portugal, in 1415, and passed into the hands of the Spaniards on the subjugation of Portugal by Philip II. in 1580. It has been several times unsuccessfully besieged by the Moors—from 1694 to 1727 byMulai Ismail, and in 1732 by Ripperda. In 1810 it was held by the English under Fraser. In 1860 the Spanish territory around the town was extended by force of arms. Population about 7000.