the capital of the kingdom of Saxony, and one of the finest cities of Europe, is situated on both sides of the Elbe, at an altitude of 402 feet above the level of the sea, 72 miles E.S.E. of Leipzig, and 100 S.S.E. of Berlin. Lat. 51. 2. 54. N., Long. 13. 44. 47. E. It occupies the most beautiful and highly cultivated portion of the valley of the Elbe, and is approached on almost every side through avenues of trees, while the distance is bounded by gentle eminences covered with plantations and vineyards. Its delightful situation, and the numerous objects of interest which it contains, have not undeservedly acquired for it the designation of the "German Florence." The city itself, however, when examined in detail, will in some measure disappoint the anticipations formed of it when seen from a distance, there being a want of fine streets and imposing public buildings. On the left bank of the Elbe stand the Altstadt or old town, Friedrichstadt, and several suburbs which constitute the larger portion of the city, while on the opposite bank is the Neustadt or new town. The Weißeritz, a small affluent of the Elbe, separates Friedrichstadt from the Altstadt. The streets of the Altstadt are narrow and the houses lofty, which give to this part of the town a gloomy appearance; in the Neustadt the streets are wide and regular, and the houses well built. The Elbe is here crossed by two bridges, the one an elegant stone bridge of sixteen arches, 1380 feet in length and 42 in breadth; the other, forming a portion of the line of railway leading from Leipzig through Dresden to Prague, is a still finer bridge, 1420 feet in length, 54 feet wide, and 40 feet above the river, having, besides two lines of railway, a carriage way and two foot ways. The Altstadt was formerly surrounded with fortifications, but these were demolished by the French in 1810, and the space occupied by them has been appropriated to gardens and promenades. The Royal Palace is an irregular antique building, having externally the appearance of a fortress rather than of a royal residence; but the interior is richly decorated, and in every way worthy of its destination. It contains the proposition-saal in which the sessions of the legislature are opened, the royal library, the hall of audience with a splendid ceiling painted by Sylvester, the parade chamber with paintings by the same master, the royal audience chamber, the chamber of ceremonies, and the porcelain cabinet, the walls of which are ornamented with porcelain. Opening upon the palace-yard is the celebrated Green Vault (Grüne Gewölbe), so called probably from the colour of the hangings with which the chambers were originally decorated, and containing an immense collection of precious stones, pearls, and works of art in gold, silver, amber, and ivory. These are arranged in eight apartments, each exceeding the previous one in the splendour and richness of its contents, and are estimated at above a million sterling in value. Near the palace, and communicating with it, is the celebrated gallery of paintings, the finest collection north of the Alps, containing numerous specimens of the Italian, French, Flemish, Dutch, German, and modern schools, including Raphael's Madonna di San Sisto, six paintings by Correggio, several by Titian, Paul Veronese, Caracci, Guido, Rubens, Vandyck, Teniers, Holbein the younger, Rembrandt, Claude, &c. Beneath the picture gallery is a fine collection of plaster casts of the most famous antique statues, made under the superintendence of the celebrated artist Raphael Mengs. A new picture gallery has been in progress since 1846, and will be opened in 1854-55. The Zwinger, a fine group of buildings surrounding an inclosure planted with orange trees, was erected in 1711, and originally intended to form the vestibule to a new palace designed by Augustus II. It contains the historical museum, museum of natural history, and cabinet of prints and drawings. The S.E. angle was burned down during the revolt of May 1849, and still remains a ruin. The historical museum, formerly the armory, is undoubtedly one of the finest collections of the kind in Europe. Though less interesting as a historical collection than the Ambras collection at Vienna, it yet surpasses that one in armour of rich and elaborate workmanship. The museum of natural history, though inferior to many of the kind on the Continent, still contains many objects of interest to the scientific. The cabinet of engravings is one of the most complete collections of copperplates in Europe, containing everything interesting in the history of the art, or valuable from practical excellence. It contains in all about 300,000 engravings, arranged in classes. The Palace of the Princes contains a handsome chapel, a gallery of portraits of princes of the Saxon and Bavarian lines, a porcelain cabinet, a library of 10,000 volumes, and a cabinet of engravings. A covered way leads from this palace to the opera-house, which is capable of accommodating 8000 spectators. The new theatre, near the Catholic church, is one of the handsomest in Germany, and is capable of containing 1700 persons. The Brühl Terrace, extending along the left bank of the Elbe, is approached from the foot of the old bridge by a grand flight of broad steps. It commands an extensive view of the surrounding scenery, and is a favourite resort of the inhabitants. Contiguous to it is the Brühl Palace, in which are the academy of fine arts, and a collection of 50 landscapes by Canaletto. The Japanese Palace in the Neustadt, so named from some grotesque oriental figures and ornaments with which it is decorated, was built by Augustus II. for a summer residence, and hence is sometimes called the Augusteum. It is now appropriated to public purposes, and the beautiful pleasure grounds which surround it form a most agreeable promenade for the citizens. It contains the museum of antiquities and modern statuary, occupying ten saloons, and enriched with some of the finest antique statues in Germany, a cabinet of coins, a public library containing about 300,000 volumes, 2800 MSS., and a very large collection of maps, besides the celebrated porcelain cabinet, containing more than 60,000 pieces of china. The Court Roman Catholic church, built in 1739-56, is a large edifice in the Italian style. Externally it is profusely decorated, and by many considered deficient in taste; but internally it is chaste, elegant, and imposing, and altogether is one of the finest in Germany. It contains paintings by Rubens and Mengs, and a fine organ by Silbermann, and is surmounted by a steeple 378 feet in height. The church of Our Lady is also a magnificent building, with a cupola 320 feet in height, resembling that of St Peter's at Rome, and contains a fine organ of 6000 pipes. The Cross Church, Sophia Church, and the synagogue are also elegant buildings. Among the other public edifices may be noticed the mint, arsenal, medical and surgical school, house of assembly, royal guard house, new general post-office, town-hall, trades' hall, Maximilian's Palace, and cavalry and infantry barracks. Dresden has a great number of literary and scientific institutions, including a botanic garden, observatory, schools of medicine, surgery, and veterinary science, academy of arts, two colleges, a high school, &c. There are also numerous charitable institutions, as asylums, hospitals, &c., and excellent public baths. The celebrated Dresden china is not made here, but at Meissen, about 14 miles distant. In 1849 the population of Dresden amounted to 94,092, of whom 83,181 were Lutherans, 553 Reformed, 4411 Roman Catholics, and 672 Jews; 167 were blind, 110 deaf and dumb, and 128 insane. In 1852 the population was 104,500; during that year the deaths were 3340, and the births 3916; of the latter 1446 were illegitimate.

DREUX (the Durocassae, or Durocassium-Castrum, of the Romans), the chef-lieu of an arrondissement in the department of Eure-et-Loir. The town lies at the foot of a hill crowned by the ruins of the old castle of the counts of Dreux. In the middle of these ruins Louis-Philippe erected a chapel with splendid vaults as a burying-place for the members of his family.

The antiquity of Dreux is considerable. In 1188 it was taken and burnt by the English; and at the close of the sixteenth century it formed the scene of a bloody battle between the Catholics and Calvinists. In 1593 the town was taken by Henry IV., after an obstinate siege of eighteen days. The walls were razed, and Dreux thenceforth entirely lost its political importance. Dreux contains tribunals of first instance and of commerce, and a communal college. Pop. (1852) 6250.