The Project Gutenberg EBook of The City of the Sun, by Tommaso Campanella

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Title: The City of the Sun

Author: Tommaso Campanella

Posting Date: January 4, 2009 [EBook #2816]
Release Date: September, 2001

Language: English

Character set encoding: ASCII

*** START OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK THE CITY OF THE SUN ***

THE CITY OF THE SUN

By Tommaso Campanella

A Poetical Dialogue between a Grandmaster of the Knights Hospitallers
and a Genoese Sea-Captain, his guest.

G.M. Prithee, now, tell me what happened to you during that voyage?

Capt. I have already told you how I wandered over the whole earth. In
the course of my journeying I came to Taprobane, and was compelled to go
ashore at a place, where through fear of the inhabitants I remained in
a wood. When I stepped out of this I found myself on a large plain
immediately under the equator.

G.M. And what befell you here?

Capt. I came upon a large crowd of men and armed women, many of whom did
not understand our language, and they conducted me forthwith to the City
of the Sun.

G.M. Tell me after what plan this city is built and how it is governed.

Capt. The greater part of the city is built upon a high hill, which
rises from an extensive plain, but several of its circles extend for
some distance beyond the base of the hill, which is of such a size
that the diameter of the city is upward of two miles, so that its
circumference becomes about seven. On account of the humped shape of the
mountain, however, the diameter of the city is really more than if it
were built on a plain.

It is divided into seven rings or huge circles named from the seven
planets, and the way from one to the other of these is by four streets
and through four gates, that look toward the four points of the compass.
Furthermore, it is so built that if the first circle were stormed, it
would of necessity entail a double amount of energy to storm the second;
still more to storm the third; and in each succeeding case the strength
and energy would have to be doubled; so that he who wishes to capture
that city must, as it were, storm it seven times. For my own part,
however, I think that not even