s had
made the town a seat of learning. The bishopric was suppressed in 1790.

The countship of Auxerre was granted by King Robert I. to his son-in-law
Renaud, count of Nevers. It remained in the house of Nevers until 1184,
when it passed by marriage to that of Courtenay. Other alliances
transferred it successively to the families of Donzy, Chatillon, Bourbon
and Burgundy. Alice of Burgundy, countess of Auxerre, married John of
Chalons (d. 1309), and several counts of Auxerre belonging to the house of
Chalons distinguished themselves in the wars against the English during the
14th century. John II., count of Auxerre, was killed at the battle of Crecy
(1346), and his grandson, John IV., sold his countship to King Charles V.
in 1370.

AUXILIARY (from Lat. _auxilium_, help), that which gives aid or support;
the term is used in grammar of a verb which completes the tense, mood or
voice of another verb; in engineering, _e.g._ of the low steam power used
to supplement the sail-power in sailing ships, still occasionally used in
yachts, sealers or whalers; and in military use, of foreign or allied
troops, more properly of any troops not permanently maintained under arms.
In the British army the term "Auxiliary Forces" was employed formerly to
include the Militia, the Imperial Yeomanry and the Volunteers.

AUXIMUM (mod. _Osimo_), an ancient town in Picenum, situated on an isolated
hill 8 m. from the Adriatic, on the road from Ancona to Nuceria. It was
selected by the Romans as a fortress to protect their settlements in
northern Picenum, and strongly fortified in 174 B.C. The walls erected at
that period, of large rectangular blocks of stone, still exist in great
part. Auximum became a colony at latest in 157 B.C. It often appears in the
history of the civil wars, owing to its strong position. Pompey was its
patron, and intended that Caesar should find resistance here in 49 B.C. It
appears to have been a place of some importance in imperial times, as
inscriptions and the monuments of its forum (the present piazza) show. In
the 6th century it is called by Procopius the chief town of Picenum, Ancona
being spoken of as its harbour.

(T. AS.)

AUXONNE, a town of eastern France, in the department of Cote d'Or, 19 m.
E.S.E. of Dijon on the Paris-Lyon railway to Belfort. Pop. (1906) 2766
(town); 6307 (commune). Auxonne is a quiet town situated in a wide plain on
the left bank of the Saone. It preserves remains of ramparts, a strongh