Buck-board. A simple four-wheeled vehicle, consisting of a board resting on the axle-trees, forming a spring seat by its elasticity.
Buckler. A kind of shield or piece of defensive armor, anciently used in war. It was often 4 feet long, and covered the whole body.
Buckshot. A small leaden bullet, weighing about 165 to the pound.
Buda, or Ofen. A free city of the Austrian empire, on the west bank of the Danube, opposite Pesth, and with it the capital of Hungary. It was taken by Charlemagne in 799; and sacked by Solyman II. after the battle of Mohatz, when the Hungarian king, Louis, was killed, and 200,000 of his subjects carried away captives, 1526. Buda was sacked a second time, when the inhabitants were put to the sword, and Hungary was annexed to the Ottoman empire, 1541. Retaken by the Imperialists, under the Duke of Lorraine, and the Mohammedans delivered up to the fury of the soldiers, 1686. It suffered much in 1848, and was entered without resistance by the Austrians, January 5, 1849. Here the emperor Francis Joseph was crowned king of Hungary, June 8, 1867. See [Pesth].
Buderich. A town of Rhenish Prussia, on the left bank of the Rhine, opposite Wesel. Here the Duke of Lorraine was defeated by the emperor Otho I. It was taken by the French in 1672; burned by the French in 1813.
Budge-barrel. A small barrel with only one head; on the other end a piece of leather is nailed, which is drawn together with a string, like a purse. It is used for carrying powder from the magazine to the battery, in siege or coast service.
Buena Vista. A celebrated battle-field of Mexico, situated about 90 miles southwest of Monterey and 7 miles from Saltillo, famous for the victory gained there by an American force not 5000 strong, under Gen. Zachary Taylor, over a Mexican army four times their number under Santa Anna, February 22-23, 1847. Gen. Taylor, on the way from Victoria to Monterey, having learned that Santa Anna was threatening him with an overwhelming force, decided to withdraw his troops from their camp at Agua Nueva to a position more favorable for withstanding a superior force, which had been selected a little south of the small village of Buena Vista, at a point where the road passed through a mountain gorge called Angostura. Accordingly, on the afternoon of February 21, the camp at Agua Nueva was broken up, and Santa Anna, believing the American forces were retreating, eagerly pursued them until he was drawn into their chosen position. After a useless summons to surrender, on the afternoon of the 22d the Mexicans opened the attack on the American left, but they made no impression, while they suffered severe loss. During the night the Mexicans occupied a position on the heights to the east of the American lines with the intention of forcing their left flank, and it was here that the fighting commenced on the 23d, and continued during the day with varying success, finally resulting in the repulse of the enemy. Meanwhile a force of Mexican cavalry had been detached to attack the American camp at Buena Vista, but was gallantly repulsed. The final attack was made against the American centre—where Gen. Taylor commanded in person—by Santa Anna himself, with his entire reserve, but he was met with such a deadly fire from the American batteries that he was obliged to draw off his much-diminished forces, and during the night he fell back to Agua Nueva. The American loss in killed and wounded was about 700; the Mexicans lost about 2000.
Buenos Ayres. A province of the Argentine Republic, with a capital of the same name. A British fleet and army took the city with slight resistance, June 27, 1806; retaken August 12, 1806. Gen. Whitelock and 8000 British entered Buenos Ayres, and were severely repulsed, July 5, 1807; independence of the province declared July 19, 1816; a prey to civil war for many years. It seceded from the Argentine Republic in 1853, and was reunited to it in June, 1860.
Buffalo. See [Pack and Draught Animals].
Buffalora. A town of Italy, on the river Ticino. In its environs in 1636, the French and Spanish armies met in combat, in which the former were victorious. There is a bridge at this place crossing the Ticino, over which a division of the invading army of Austria marched, April 29, 1859. This was the first act of overt hostility in the war between Austria and Sardinia.