NEUWIED, the chief town of a circle in the district of Coblentz, Rhenish Prussia, and the capital of the mediatized countship of Wied, is pleasantly situated on the right bank of the Rhine, 8 miles below Coblentz. The principal edifice in the well-built town is the handsome chateau of the princes of Wied, containing a collection of Roman antiquities, most of which were found in the neighbourhood. The inhabitants—including Lutherans, Roman Catholics, Moravian Brethren, Baptists, and Jews—are noted for their industry. The chief products are starch and sugar made from potatoes, tobacco and cigars, chicory, and enamelled-tin wares. A brisk trade is carried on both by rail and river. In the vicinity are several large iron-foundries. Population in 1880, 9656. The schools of Neuwied enjoy a high reputation, and attract numerous pupils from England.

Neuwied was founded by Count Frederick of Wied in 1683, on the site of a village destroyed during the Thirty Years’ War, and rapidly increased owing to the toleration accorded to all religious sects without distinction. Among those who sought refuge here was a colony of Moravian Brethren (g ’.u), who now number 500 to 600 souls, and occupy a separate quarter of the town, where they carry on manufactures of porcelain stoves and deerskin gloves. Near Neuwied one of the largest Roman castles on the Rhine has been excavated, yielding numerous interesting antiquities. In 1797 the French, under General Hoche, defeated the Austrians near Neuwied,—their first decisive success in the revolutionary wars.