Struggle, To. To make extraordinary exertion in direct contest with an enemy, or against superior forces.
Stuhlweissenburg. A town of Austria, in Hungary, 37 miles southwest from Buda-Pesth. It was besieged and taken from the Turks by the Austrians under the Duke of Mercoeur, in September, 1601; was besieged and captured by the Turks in August, 1602; and was besieged and taken by assault by the Austrians on September 6, 1688.
Stuhm. A town of West Prussia, 13 miles north-northeast of Marienwerder. Here a battle was fought between the Swedes under Gustavus Adolphus and the Poles under Gen. Koniecpolski, June 17, 1629.
Stuttgart, or Stutgard. The capital of Würtemberg, Germany, 38 miles east-southeast from Carlsruhe. During the wars of Louis XIV., Stuttgart was thrice taken; and again in 1796, 1800, and 1801.
Stylet. A small poniard or dagger; a stiletto.
Styra (now Stura). A town in Eubœa, on the southwest coast, nearly opposite Marathon in Attica. The inhabitants took an active part in the Persian war, and fought at Artemisium, Salamis, and Platææ. They afterwards became subject to the Athenians. The town was destroyed in the Lamian war by the Athenian general Phædrus, and its territory was annexed to Eretia.
Suabia, Swabia, or Suevia (Ger. Schwaben). An ancient duchy in the southwest of Germany, so named from a horde of Suevi, who spread over it in the 5th century; was a great duchy of the Frank empire till the 8th century. In 918, it was acknowledged a ducal fief of the empire; and after changing hands several times, it was bestowed upon Count Frederick of Hohenstaufen, the founder of the illustrious house of that name, also known as the house of Suabia. Under the rule of this prince, Suabia became the most rich, civilized, and powerful country of Germany; but the wars of the Guelphs and Ghibellines, and the quarrel with the French respecting Naples, put an end to the dynasty in 1268. The ducal vassals of Suabia rendered themselves almost independent, and professed to acknowledge no lord but the emperor. During these dissensions arose the lordships of Würtemberg and Baden, with numerous lesser states, holding direct of the crown, and opposed to them the cities, which strove also for an equal independence, and obtained, in 1347, great additional privileges. A number of them united to make common cause against the neighboring feudal lords in 1376 (known as the “First Suabian League”); an opposite league was formed between Würtemberg, Baden, and seventeen towns in 1405, called the “League of Marbach”; and both took part in the war of Swiss independence, the former in support of the Swiss, the latter of the Austrians. At last the towns, which had been increasing in power, decided at Ulm, in 1449, to form a standing army, and a permanent military commission, for the forcible preservation, if necessary, of peace and order; and the Count of Würtemberg, the most powerful of the opposite party, having joined them, was appointed military chief of the league, which ultimately grew up into the “Great Suabian League,” which effectively repressed feudal quarrels. In 1512, Suabia became one of the ten circles into which Germany was now divided, received its complete organization in 1563, and retained it almost without change till the dissolution of the empire in 1806. But during this period, the wars of the towns with Würtemberg, the Peasants’ war, of which Suabia was one of the foci, the Thirty Years’ War, and those between France and the empire, destroyed the democratic constitution of the towns, and with it their energy, and then their prosperity disappeared, leaving now no relic which could suggest their former great importance.
Subadar. A native officer in a native East Indian infantry regiment holding a rank corresponding to that of captain.
Subadar-Major. In the East Indies, is the native commandant of a native infantry regiment.
Subaltern. A commissioned officer below the rank of captain. But strictly speaking every officer is a subaltern to the grades above him, as the captain is subaltern to the major, and so upward.