an ancient city of England, capital of the county of that name, 132 miles N.W. from London. It is situate on the summit and declivity of a considerable and very steep eminence which rises on the N. side of the River Witham at its confluence with the Foss Dyke Canal. Lincoln occupies the site of the Roman Station Lindum, the form of which may still be clearly traced; and one of the most interesting objects in the city is the ancient Roman archway called Newport Gate, which formed the barrier on the north side of the city. The town, as a whole, is not well built; and the streets leading from the lower to the upper town are too steep to be ascended by carriages, which make use of another road round the face of the hill without the city. The chief attraction of Lincoln is its cathedral, which stands on the very summit of the hill, and thus, both from its situation and its stately and towering grandeur, forms a conspicuous and magnificent object. It was founded in 1086, but was rebuilt subsequently to a fire in 1126, by which the greater part of it was destroyed. Its form is that of a very long double cross, with a transverse limb at the west end, like a pedestal made by the unusual breadth of the west front. There are two towers at the western front, each 180 feet high, and one great central tower 800 feet in height. Its interior dimensions are,—entire length, 482 feet; width of choir and nave, 80 feet; height of ditto, 80 feet; width of west front, 174 feet; length of principal transepts, 222 feet; breadth of ditto, 66 feet. The west front, two circular windows, the choir and screen, and the Lady Chapel, are peculiarly beautiful and interesting. The celebrated bell, the Great Tom of Lincoln, cast in 1610, was cracked in 1827, and broken up in 1834 to form, with six others, the present large bell, and two quarter bells, now in the central tower. It is 6 feet 10½ inches in diameter at the mouth, and weighs 5 tons 8 cwt.,—nearly a ton more than the old bell. On the north side of the cathedral are the cloisters, in which is preserved a Roman pavement. The library contains some curious specimens of Roman antiquities. In the cathedral are numerous monuments, including those of Catherine Swinford, wife of John of Gaunt, their daughter Joan, Countess of Westmoreland, and several bishops and deans of the cathedral; but many of the older monuments have been removed, or were totally destroyed during the civil wars. The other buildings worthy of notice are the chapter house, the ruins of the bishop's palace, destroyed during the civil wars, the remains of the castle, with the county jail and court-house, guild-hall, city-jail, assembly rooms, theatre, &c. The city abounds in antiquities, and especially in monastic and other ecclesiastical remains. There are thirteen other churches of the Establishment (only about one-fourth of the number said to be standing at the Reformation), besides various dissenting places of worship. There are also a free grammar school, mechanics' institute, mutual improvement society, libraries, museum, county hospital, dispensary, lunatic asylum, &c. The markets of Lincoln have, within the last few years, been greatly enlarged and improved. It carries on a large trade in flour by means of the Foss Dyke Canal, connecting the Witham and Trent, and the railways which connect it with all parts of the kingdom. There are several large steam flour mills and several breweries in the town. Lincoln at the time of the Norman Conquest was one of the most important places in the kingdom. William the Conqueror caused a strong castle to be erected here in 1086. King Stephen was defeated and taken prisoner here in 1141 by Robert, Earl of Gloucester, natural brother to the Empress Matilda. Lincoln was the scene of important operations during the civil wars in the reign of King John; and here the party of the Dauphin was completely overthrown by the Earl of Pembroke, during the minority of Henry III. During the great civil war, the royalists obtained possession of the city, but it was stormed by the parliamentary army under the Earl of Manchester, 5th May 1644. Lincoln is governed by a mayor, 6 aldermen, and 18 councillors, and returns two members to parliament. Pop. (1851) 17,536.