Cordon

[Fr.; Sp. cordón, from the root of cord.] A band or ribbon worn round the neck as the badge of a knightly order; as, the cordon of the Holy Ghost. (Arch.) The edge of stone on the outside of a building. ( Mil.) A line or series of military posts; as, a cordon of forts. ( Fortif .) The coping of the escarp or inner wall of the ditch. It is usually rounded in front, and projects one foot over the masonry. - Cordon sanitaire , a series of military posts stationed to cut off communication with a district or country where epidemic disease is raging. Cordova. [Sp. Cordoba .] (Anc. Corduba , and Coloni a patricia .) A celebrated city of Spain, cap. of a prov. of same name, in And alus i a, on the Guadalquivir, 73 miles N.E. of Seville, and 185 m. S.S.W. of Madrid. The city occupies a large oblong space of sloping ground, enclosed by walls flanked with towers originally erected by the Romans, and afterwards repaired, strengthened, and extended by the Moors. But a great part of this space is now covered with gardens and ruined buildings, and but little remains of its ancient grandeur. Streets narrow, crooked, and dirty; and a few only, either of the public or private buildings, are conspicuous for their architecture. There is a cathedral, which was anciently a mosque, built by the Moors at the end of the 8th century, upon the ruins of a Gothic church, which is itself believed to have replaced a Roman temple; it is still one of the most remarkable edifices in Spain. Several other churches are worthy of notice, either for their architecture or their paintings. There is a bridge acro the Guadalquivir, which was built by the Moors. It consists of 16 arches, and is commanded by a Saracenic castle. Manf . Paper, hats, barrels, silken fabrics, and a kind of leather, called, from this town, Cordovan , or Cordwain. The manner of preparing it was here invented by the Moors. Its sale has now, however, dwindled into insignificance. Pop . 49,755. C. was, in 711, taken by the Moors, and for several centuries remained in their po e ion. In 1236 it was captured by Ferdinand III., and was constituted capital of one of the four old provinces of And alus i a, with the title of kingdom. In 1808 it was occupied and pillaged by the French. It is the birthplace of the two Senecas, and of Lucan the poet. - The prov. is enclosed by Badajos and Ciudad Real on the N.; by Jaen on the E.; on the S. by Granada, and on the W. by Seville. Area , 6,177 sq. m. This prov. is mountainous in the N., and in the S. comparatively level, with great fertility in the plains and valleys, and is rich in minerals in the highlands. Pop . estimated at 425,000. Lat. between 37° 12′ and 33° 44' N., Lon. between 3° 56' and 5° 32′ W. Cordova, a city of the Argentine Republic, capital of a province of same name, on the River Primero, 387 m. from Buenos Ayres, Lat. 31° 35' S., Lon. 63° 50 W. The city is well built, and contains a fine cathedral. Pop . in 1897, 70,000.-The province (the 2d State in imp or