a town of France, capital of the department of the Haute Garonne, on the right bank of the Garonne, 132 miles S.E. of Bordeaux, and 200 N.W. of Marseilles. It stands on a sort of peninsula; for the river, which here curves slightly to the west, washes it on the west side, while the Canal du Midi passes it on the east, and joins the Garonne a short distance north of Toulouse. On the south side of the town rise the heights of Pech David; and on the east, beyond the canal and the little river Lers, those of Mont Rave. The shape of the town is an irregular oval; part of it occupies a small island in the Garonne; and on the other side, reached by a freestone bridge of seven arches, lies the suburb of St Cyprian. Though in a beautiful situation, Toulouse is far from being a fine town. Narrow, crooked, and dirty streets, are lined with mean houses, built of brick and cemented with bad mortar; while many of the older houses are in a very dilapidated condition. But in recent years much has been done for the improvement of the town, and many parts of it are acquiring a more regular and handsome appearance. The walls and gates, which were almost entire in 1814, are fast disappearing; as the town is spreading in all directions, and several new suburbs, in addition to St Cyprian, have risen. The principal public place is a large quadrangle, in which the markets are held. It has fountains in each corner, and the east side is occupied by the town-hall, a large building, having a portico of red marble columns, and containing, besides various halls for municipal purposes, a theatre in one of the wings, and a gallery of busts of illustrious men connected with Toulouse. The cathedral has a very irregular appearance. The nave and portal belonged to a building of the thirteenth century; but in the sixteenth a new building was designed to replace the old, and the choir actually built, but the design was never carried further, and the new choir, though one of the finest in France, accords ill with the old nave, with which it is not even in a line. The church of St Servin is the most ancient in the town, and is said to occupy the site of a temple of Apollo: it is in the Romanesque style, and has a lofty octagonal tower. Probably some parts of it are as old as the ninth century, but much is far more recent. Among the other ornaments, the architect has given vent to his sectarian feelings, by inserting a caricature of Calvin as a hog in a pulpit, with the inscription below, "Calvin le porc prêchant." The town had at one time a very large number of churches, but many of these have been turned to other uses. The church and cloisters of the Grands Augustins now serve to contain a picture gallery and museum, and that of the Jacobins is used for barracks. Of the modern buildings in the town, the best, next to the town-hall, is the prefect's residence, formerly the archbishop's palace. Toulouse also contains the convent in which the Inquisition held its sittings; two large hospitals; a Calvinistic chapel; Jewish synagogue; and court-house, the hall of the ancient parliament of Toulouse. Before the first revolution, there was here one of the most celebrated French universities; but there is now only a university-academy, with faculties of law, science, literature, and theology; a Protestant theological college; various schools and scientific societies; a public library of 60,000 volumes; an observatory; and a botanic garden, the largest and best in the kingdom next to that of Paris. On the island in the Garonne stand the ruins of the castle of Narbonnais, formerly the residence of the Counts of Toulouse. The manufactures and trade of the town are both very important. It has bell-foundries, copper-mills, a large manufactory of sickles and other cutlery, and several iron-works; leather, both common and morocco; woollen and cotton cloth, paper, starch, wax candles, tobacco, pottery, and porcelain are made; and there are, besides, breweries, distilleries, dye-works, oil and flour-mills, &c. The duck-liver pies of Toulouse enjoy a high reputation, and are sent to all parts of France. The situation of the town is very favourable to trade; since, by railway, river, and canal, it communicates with all the chief towns of France. Wheat and flour are the chief exports, and are conveyed to Spain, to Bordeaux, to Marseilles, and to various parts of France. Wine, brandy, colonial produce, and hardware are also important articles of commerce. There are two great annual markets for flowers and salt pork, besides numerous fairs, some lasting for eight days. Toulouse is the seat of a high court for four departments, an assize court, and inferior tribunal; it is the head-quarters of the 12th military division, and contains government offices, an imperial cannon-foundry, a mint, and an arsenal. It was anciently called Tolosa, and belonged to the Volcae Tectosages; and when it fell into the hands of the Romans, 106 B.C., it was found to contain immense treasures in gold and silver. Many fine edifices were built here by the Romans; but the course of time, and the ravages of the Visigoths and the Franks, who successively overran and possessed the country, have left very few traces of them. In the middle ages, Toulouse was subject to counts of its own, who rose to great power and importance; but in 1271 their lands were annexed to the French crown. The only important historical event connected with it is the battle fought here in 1814, between Wellington and Soult, in which the latter was defeated, and obliged to evacuate the town. Cujas, the celebrated French jurist, was a native of Toulouse. Pop. (1856) 92,223.