the third seaport of Spain, and capital of the province of the same name in Granada, is situated on the Mediterranean, in 36° 43' N. Lat., 4° 26' W. Long., 65 miles E.N.E. of Gibraltar, and 253 S. by W. of Madrid, at the extremity of a fine large bay, and on a plain bounded by lofty hills on the N.E. and N.W. In the clearness of its sky, which a cloud rarely obscures, and the beauty of its bay, it resembles Naples, to which it has sometimes been compared. The scanty river Guadalmedina flows here into the sea after receiving the Guadalhorce; and the town lies principally on the left bank of the former; the districts of La Trinidad and Percheil, on the latter, being little more than a suburb. Sheltered on the E. and W., the climate is very salubrious. There are no endemic diseases, although, like other Mediterranean seaports, it has suffered much at various times from yellow fever, &c. The streets near the sea are spacious and comparatively modern, giving the town a fine appearance from the bay; the other streets are narrow and ancient, still remaining almost as they were when the town was taken from the Moors in 1487. There are various plazas and paseos. In the Plaza de Riego was erected, in 1842, a monument to the unfortunate Torrijos. The edifices most worthy of note are,—the cathedral, the custom-house, and the bishop's palace. The cathedral was commenced by Diego de Siloe, architect of that of Granada, in 1526, in the Greco-Roman style, which he introduced, and was continued by various architects till its completion in 1782 by Jose Bada. It exhibits, in consequence, a singular mixture of styles; but the general effect of the interior is pleasing, and the exterior would be imposing were it not marred by the crowd of shabby houses about it. The custom-house is a stately and spacious edifice, built partly on the site of the Moorish fortress Alcazaba, to the N.E. of the town. It was begun in 1791, but the work being interrupted by the war, was not finished till 1829. The bishop's palace, which contains also the offices, archives, and library of the see, was erected in 1772, at the expense of the then prelate, Don José Franquis. Of more ancient buildings, the two Moorish fortresses, Gibralfaro and Alcazaba, on a hill to the N.E., deserve mention. The former, which is extensive, and still in good preservation, was built A.D. 787, by Abdelrahman I., King of Cordova, on the site of a more ancient tower, and offered an obstinate resistance to the Catholic kings. Of Alcazaba the remains are trifling. On the whole, Malaga, though not a handsome town, has a more modern aspect than most Spanish towns. An object of special attraction to visitors is the English burying-ground, situate about a mile from the city, to the E. of the Alcazaba, beautifully laid out, and at much expense; the soil being terraced, irrigated, and planted with cypresses. To complete the description of the port, it must be added, that though there is no regular harbour, vessels receive shelter from a mole about 884 yards in length, at the extremity of which is a lighthouse with a rotatory light, standing about 130 feet above the sea-level. To prevent the silting up of the harbour so formed, two smaller lateral breakwaters were subsequently formed. The commencement of the former work dates from 1588; but it did not reach its present length before the end of last century. The harbour is capable of containing several hundred merchant vessels; and ships of the largest burden can approach the quays.

The commerce of Malaga consists chiefly in the productions of the province; the staple being wine and raisins. The latter are made from the June harvest; and largely exported. The quality has of late years much improved, and they boast that their raisins quite equal those of Valencia. There is a second and third harvest, producing wines exported chiefly to the United States and South America. "Formerly vast quantities of very inferior quality were manufactured, but were found unsaleable even to the Americans; they have therefore been obliged to change the system, and the whole class is much improved in consequence." (Widdrington.) The Muscatel, Lachryma Christi, and Vino de Guindas (so called from its being flavoured with cherries), are the best wines. The Ingrimas is made from the droppings of the large white Muscatel grapes unpressed. The vineyards around Malaga are estimated to produce annually, of all sorts—sweet, dry, and luscious—between 30,000 and 40,000 butts, of which nearly 27,000 are exported. Olive oil, saffron, soap, and some other articles, are also exported. The most active period in the port is from the 15th of August to the end of October, the exportation of the new fruits going on. This period is called the Beneda. The harbour is then filled with vessels of all sizes and flags, and the streets choked with cars and waggons bringing in the produce of the fields. Besides the vines and cereals, the province boasts many tropical products; the sugar-cane, called indigenous, is grown along the E. coast from Torrox to Velez Malaga; the Malaga yam or batata, oranges, lemons, figs, &c., are cultivated. Silk is reared, and cochineal to some extent, though the exposure to the N.W. winds is not favourable to the necessary plantation of cactus. Were the land not so heavily burdened, and were a better system of agriculture adopted, this province would be rendered infinitely more productive. Sheep, hogs, and goats, are reared in the mountainous ranges. The horses are not so good as those of Lower Andalusia. Formerly, in the oak woods around Malaga, a vast quantity of hogs were reared, and bacon exported; but these woods have given place to the vine, olive, &c., which clothe the hills to their summits. There is abundance of small game, hares, rabbits, partridges, and quails, in their season.

There are in the town, manufactories of soap, leather, and linen cloths; but by far the most important and remarkable are the iron foundries, particularly that called La Constancia, which took its rise, in 1826, from the discovery of the abundant mines of Sierra Blanca, near Marbella. A company was formed, and workmen brought from Biscay, Piedmont, Belgium, and France; but after numerous and costly endeavours, it was found that the result did not cover the outlay, and the works were on the point of being abandoned, when one of the directors, Don Manuel Heredia, took the whole management and burden upon himself, introduced the English method of smelting the iron with coal, and brought over a number of English workmen. The iron is made at Marbella, and brought to Malaga to be refined. There are two foundries in Malaga for this purpose: the tall chimney of one is a conspicuous object from the bay. Including the Marbella works, there are about 3000 operatives employed in this manufacture. The mines are very productive, and might supply all Spain with iron. There are, besides, in the province eighteen mines of lead and some of graphite. In Las Chapas, district of Ogen, argilliferous lead ore has been discovered, but in too small quantities. Copper and nickel are also found. There are quarries of marble and various other stones, among which the famous stone of Mijas, a kind of opaque agate. There is an annual fair in Malaga, commencing on the 8th of September, and lasting eight days, held in the Alameda (shaded walk) de Olletas. It is not much frequented.

Malaga is the Malaka of Strabo, a word which has been variously derived. By some, through the Phoenician, it is referred to the quantities of salted fish for which it was celebrated. Wilh. Humboldt says it is of Basque origin, meaning the slope of a hill. At all events, the foundation of the town is universally attributed to the Phoenicians. From the Carthaginians, in whose hands its commerce flourished, it was wrested by the Romans, who conferred on it the title of Civitas Federata. The Roman remains found in the city Malagrida and environs are innumerable. (Ponz. Viage.) It was taken possession of by the Arabs, without opposition, after the disastrous battle of Guadalete, and is mentioned as one of the most important cities of Andalusia in the division made of Spain by Jusuf, in 747. It was attached to the caliphate of Cordoba; but on the fall of this caliphate with the dynasty of Omia, in 1015, it became the seat of an independent kingdom, with various fortune. In 1487 it was wrested from the Moors by Ferdinand and Isabella, after undergoing all the horrors of a protracted siege. In 1810 the city suffered much from the French general Sebastiani having offered an ineffectual resistance. In 1834 it was the theatre of a melancholy tragedy. General Torrijos and forty-nine Liberals suffered military execution on the 11th of December in that year. A monument has since been erected to their memory. The population of Malaga in 1847 amounted to 68,577.