the metropolitan county of England, the smallest in size, with the exception of Rutland, and the greatest in density of population, wealth, and importance. London, the capital of England is situated in its S.E. corner. The county is bounded on the N. by Hertfordshire, on the E. by Essex, on the S.E. by Kent, on the S. by Surrey, and on the W. by Buckinghamshire. The eastern boundary is formed by the River Lea, the southern by the Thames, and Middlesex, the western by the Colne. The shape of the county is very irregular: in the N.E. a spur of Herts penetrates deeply within its boundaries, and on the S.W. a large portion of the county projects into Surrey. The greatest length of the county is from near Waltham Abbey in the N.E. to Chertsey in the S.W., 28 miles; and its greatest breadth from near Rickmansworth in the N.W. to the Isle of Dogs in the S.E., 17 miles. The area of the county is 180,168 statute acres, or about 282 square miles.

The surface of the county is a sloping plain, bounded by a range of hills about 400 feet high; these hills partly form its northern boundary. There are some gentle undulations of the ground, of which Hampstead is one; but the general aspect of the county is flat, and would be monotonous if it were not diversified by buildings, gardens, and the rich verdure which high cultivation imparts to vegetation. Neither is the landscape picturesque, as seen from the hills; but the most pleasing view is obtained at Harrow, an insulated hill overlooking the whole county, and the seat of the famous seminary.

The county is entirely situated within the basin of the Thames. The substratum consists of the blue clay known as London clay, lying in the great chalk basin extending from Berkshire to the east coast, and it varies in thickness from 40 to 240 feet. The only exceptions to this formation are at Uxbridge, on the western boundary, and at Enfield, in the N.E. corner of the county, where the plastic clay crops out. The hills consist of sand and gravel, and have been formed by the sea. The soil in the northern part of the county is a clayey loam, difficult to plough, and indeed altogether unfit for cultivation until chalk, lime, and ashes have been incorporated with it; and in the southern part it is formed by gravel, which is naturally very sterile, but which, being enriched by the vast quantities of manure afforded by London, is converted into a garden mould of prodigious fertility. The soil is generally dry; and the temperature being raised by the chimneys of London, the climate is remarkably healthy.

The rivers of the county are—the Cray, the Colne, the Brent, the Lea, and the Thames. The Cray rises within the county, near Harrow, and, after a very eccentric course of twenty miles, falls into the Thames at Isleworth. The Colne enters the county from Herts, near Rickmansworth, and flows by Watford, Harefield, Uxbridge, and Colnbrook, throwing off several branches; but the main stream falls into the Thames at Staines. The length of its course within the county is 18 miles. This river, though small and devoid of beauty, is sacred to the admirers of genius; for on its banks Milton lived and composed some of his great poems. The Lea enters the county from Essex at Walthamstow, and flows by Stamford Hill, Tottenham, Bow, and Bromley, into the Thames at Limehouse, after a course of about 18 miles within the county. The first stone bridge built in England stood on the river at Stratford-le-Bow, and its curved form gave the village its familiar name of Bow. The Brent rises on the northern boundary of the county, near Monken-Hadley, and flows through its centre, by Finchley, Hendon, Kingsbury, Twyford, and Hanwell, to Brentford in the W., and after a course of 20 miles falls into the Thames. The Cray and the Colne are not navigable. The lower part of the Brent forms a portion of the Grand Junction Canal; and the Lea is rendered navigable by a series of artificial cuts. The Thames, "great father of the British floods," enters Middlesex a sylvan river. It reaches the county at Staines, and flows by Shepperton, Kew, and Kingston, in many a maze fold to London, and here it joins the sea. The length of its course within the county is about 15 miles. The Thames is rendered navigable for barges within a short distance of its sources in Gloucestershire by a series of locks and weirs, the lowest of which is Middlesex, at Teddington, within the county, where the tide is felt at high water. The Thames is crossed by 13 bridges below this point, viz., Richmond, Kew, Hammersmith, Putney, Battersea, Chelsea, Vauxhall, Westminster, Hungerford, Waterloo, Blackfriars, Southwark, and London bridges; and there is also a communication between the opposite banks by a tunnel carried under the bed of the river, 2 miles below London Bridge, and in the centre of the shipping. The port of London, consisting of the upper, middle, and lower port, lies between London Bridge and Limehouse; but for legal purposes it is extended for 63 miles below the bridge to a point beyond Blackwall called Bugbys Hole. Other articles in this work render it unnecessary to describe here the vast population, the features, and operations of the great and wonderful city which lies stretched along the banks of the Thames for 7 miles, the lines of wharfs, the capacious docks, the gigantic warehouses, the cellars, measured in acres, the dockyards, the defences, the public establishments, and all the other wonders of what, to use the words of M. Say, "is no longer a city, but a province covered with houses." (See London.)

The facilities of inland navigation which the Thames and the Lea afford are increased by two canals, which conjointly traverse the county from end to end. The chief is the Grand Junction Canal, opening out of the Thames at Brentford, and passing by Crayford, Hanwell, West Drayton, and Uxbridge, from whence it enters Herts, and ultimately communicates with the Irish Sea. At Crayford this canal throws off a branch which passes by Twyford to Paddington, and there it joins the Regent's Park Canal, which traverses Camden Town, Islington, Hackney, Mile-end, and communicates with the Thames at Limehouse. The most remarkable artificial water-course in the county is the New River, constructed by Sir Hugh Myddleton to convey pure water into the city of London. He chose for the fountain-head some springs of water, very copious and beautifully clear, at Ware in Herts; and from thence carried to London, through hills and deep cuttings, over valleys in wooden troughs, and by a serpentine channel 37 miles long, a stream of pure water on the average 24 feet wide, 4 deep, and flowing with a fall of 3 feet per mile. The New River was completed five and a half years after its commencement, and was put in operation with much ceremony, on the 29th of September 1613. The stream has since been enlarged by adding to it some of the water of the River Lea, which runs parallel to its course, and close to its banks at some points, and two large purifying reservoirs have been constructed at Stoke-Newington.

The county is completely intersected by railways issuing out of the metropolis. The London and North-Western Railway traverses it from the Isle of Dogs, passing by Camden Town, Kilburn, Willesden, Sudbury, Harrow, and Pinner, into Hertfordshire near Watford; the Great Northern Railway, from King's Cross, by Holloway, Hornsey, and Barnet, passing into Herts near Hatfield; the Eastern Counties Railway, from Shoreditch, by Stratford-le-Bow, Leabridge, Tottenham, and Enfield, and also passing into Herts near Waltham Cross; the Great Western Railway, from Paddington, passing by Ealing, Hanwell, Southall, West Drayton, and Uxbridge, into Buckinghamshire; and the London and South-Western Railway, which crosses the Thames from the Surrey side of the metropolis at Barnes, and passes by Kew, Brentford, Isleworth, Hounslow, and Staines, also into Bucks. These lines are linked together by branches; and it may be added that several other railways connect the Surrey side of the metropolis with the eastern and southern coasts.

Middlesex possesses no agricultural importance, its cultivated land being the mere fringe of a great metropolis. That part of it which is not encumbered with buildings and ornamental grounds is mainly converted into gardens and Middlesex grass lands. Spade husbandry and an abundant application of manure compensate for the natural sterility of the soil; the ground is converted into a hotbed, and crop after crop is obtained without intermission, yet without exhausting the soil. Two, and sometimes even three crops are grown at once: an upper crop, as it is called, consisting of apples, cherries, pears, plums, and walnuts; an under crop, consisting of currants, gooseberries, raspberries, strawberries, and other fruit which will thrive in the shade uninjured by the dripping of trees; and a third crop, consisting of esculent vegetables, placed between the other two. The garden walls are also clothed with fruit trees adapted to the aspect they present, such as apricots, nectarines, peaches, and plums. The ground is also sometimes raised in banks sloping to the sun, in order to give it increased warmth and shelter in autumn, and thereby augment its productivity. In short, by continual manuring, stirring, and moving the soil, sterility is replaced by fertility, crops succeed each other without a moment's respite, and a garden of 10 acres is rendered as profitable as a farm ten times that size.

The extent of the farms averages about 100 acres, the majority of them being below that area; and rents average 40s. an acre. A skilfully managed farm at Willesden, consisting of 100 acres of grass land, is let at 60s. an acre; the tenant paying besides 15s. an acre for tithes and taxes. White and green crops are grown alternately; but the rotation is so irregular that no general description can be given. The arable land, when thoroughly pulverized, produces wheat of good quality. Potatoes are not so much grown as might have been expected, considering the almost insatiable demand of the metropolis; distant counties, in which rent is lower and labour not so highly paid, being enabled by superior cheapness to monopolize the market. Haymaking in this county is not the simple operation which it is in other counties. The grass is constantly shaken, moved, and exposed to the action of sun and wind, by the aid of machines and a large number of labourers; thus, the quality is heightened, and when cut out of the mow, the hay exhibits a bright green colour. The spring crop averages 2 tons per acre, and the aftermath about half that quantity. The farm at Willesden, already noticed, produced no less than 6 tons per acre, there being nine cuttings in the year. The grass lands of the county are generally well manured after the first mowing, and provided with water-furrows when the closeness of the soil renders it impervious. Underdraining is, however, much neglected, and in consequence the clay land is so wet that stock cannot safely be put on it after October. On the whole, Middlesex is backward as regards farming; in common, however, with the adjacent counties, "The state of agriculture which prevails in the surrounding counties," says M. Lavergne, "makes itself felt up to the very gates of the greatest existing centre of consumption." But this may be said in explanation of the apparent anomaly,—that though the distance between the metropolis and the farms is small, the advantage is greatly diminished by the cost of bringing manure along crowded thoroughfares.

The clay soil itself in many parts of the county is turned into produce. Breeze, the technical term for cinders, is mixed with the clay, and the compound is baked into bricks, for which an enormous demand is created by the unceasing growth of the metropolis; and brickmaking is probably the most profitable mode of employing the soil. After the soil has been manufactured into buildings in this way, yielding from L4000 to L20,000 per acre, the excavations are levelled, ploughed, and manured, and the surface is converted into grass land.

Very few cattle are kept for farming purposes, as it is more profitable to buy manure, and in consequence root crops are not much grown. About 15,000 cows are, however, kept Middleton, in London and its environs, for the supply of milk and cream. Though every kind of breed may be met with in the county, the short-horn or Holderness is preferred, because it yields the heaviest carcass to the butcher. The cows being highly fed, increase in weight while they continue to give milk, and when they become dry are fat and fit for market. Grass lands near London of course acquire a high value from the number of milch cows and horses kept to supply the wants of that great city; they are used for grazing as well as haymaking, thousands of over-worked horses being annually turned out to grass during the season.

The manufactures of the county are concentrated in the metropolis, which, however, is rather a great exchange than a seat of industry. The silk manufacture is extensively carried on in Bethnal Green, Spitalfields, and at Mile-end; sugar-refining in Whitechapel; and watch and clock-making in Clerkenwell; and there are large manufactures of shoes, cutlery, plate, printing-type, soap, spirits, vinegar, &c., which have no particular locality. A large number of ships is also built within the port of London. But the greatest manufacture of all, and the distinctive feature of the metropolis, is the brewing of the favourite beverages of the metropolitan population—ale and porter. The consumption of malt by the brewers within the London revenue district annually amounts to upwards of 6,000,000 quarters. It is estimated that 1,200,000 barrels, or 43,200,000 gallons of ale and porter are brewed for London consumption alone; besides a great quantity sent to other parts of the United Kingdom and exported to the Continent, the United States, and the East and West Indies. The principal brewers produce from 200,000 to 270,000 barrels a-year.

The county is divided into 6 hundreds, and 208 parishes, of which 118 are within the cities of London and Westminster. For ecclesiastical purposes, it forms part of the diocese of London, and is divided into the archdeaconries of London and Middlesex. The total number of places of worship in 1851 was 962, with 572,338 sittings. Of these 419, with 344,489 sittings, belonged to the Church of England; 165, with 84,514 sittings, to Independents; 102 to Baptists; 119 to Methodists; 32 to Roman Catholics; 16 to Mormons; and 9 to Jews. There were 3427 day schools; having 200,257 scholars, of whom 110,861 were males, and 89,396 females;—772 of these, with 138,108 scholars, were public day schools; and 2655, with 62,149 scholars, private day schools. Sunday schools 589, with 111,395 scholars. The county returns 2 members to parliament, the city of London 4, of Westminster 2, the three boroughs, 2 each; in all 14.

The population of the county was in 1821, 1,345,067; 1831, 1,358,330; 1841, 1,576,636; 1851, 1,886,576. The population of the cities, boroughs, market-towns, and other places was,—city of London, 127,869; city of Westminster, 241,611; borough of Marylebone, 370,957; borough of Finsbury, 323,772; borough of Tower Hamlets, 539,111; Brentford, 8870; Staines, 2430; Uxbridge, 3593. The number of houses in the county in 1851 was 251,236, of which 11,874 were building. The amount of real property rated to the property tax, was L13,867,829.