Salado \sa-Ta-tho\ River River, eastern Argentina. It flows through the Pampas, generally southeast for about 400 mi (640 km) to the Atlantic Ocean, where it empties southeast of Buenos Aires. Before 1800 it marked the frontier between areas colonized by Spain to the northeast and regions inhabited by indigenous Indians to the southwest.
Salah al-DTn Yusuf ibn Ayyub See Saladin
Salamanca ancient Salmantica or Helmantica City (pop., 2001: 156,368), western Spain. An important Iberian settlement, it was sacked by Hannibal in 217 bc. It later became a Roman station. Captured by Moors in the 8th century, it was reconquered by Christians from 1087 to 1102. It was occupied by the French in the Peninsular War (1808-14). It is a cultural centre as well as the commercial centre of an agricultural district. Its many landmarks include the 12th-century Romanesque cathe¬ dral, the Gothic-style cathedral (begun 1513), and the University of Sala¬ manca (founded 1218).
salamander Any member of about 400 species in 10 amphibian fami¬ lies (order Caudata), commonly found in fresh water and damp woodlands, principally in temperate regions of the Northern Hemisphere.
Salamanders are generally nocturnal, short-bodied, 4-6 in. (10-15 cm) long, and brightly coloured. They have a tail, two pairs of limbs of roughly the same size, moist, smooth skin, teeth on the jaws and roof of the mouth, and, usually, internal fertili¬ zation. The largest species, the Chi¬ nese giant salamander ( Andrias davidianus), is 5 ft (1.5 m) long. Salamanders eat insects, worms, snails, and other small animals, includ¬ ing members of their own species. See also hellbender; newt.
Salamis \'sa-l3-m9s\ Ancient city, Cyprus. Located on Cyprus’s east¬ ern coast, it had an active trade with Phoenicia, Egypt, and Cilicia. Accord¬ ing to tradition, it was founded by Teucer, a hero of the Trojan War. A
major Hellenic centre during the struggles between Greece and Persia, it was the scene of a Greek naval victory in 449 bc; in 306 bc the Mace¬ donian king Demetrius I (Poliorcetes) defeated Ptolemy I (Soter) of Egypt near there. The city was visited later by SS Paul and Barnabas. It was known as Constantia after the Byzantine emperor Constantius II rebuilt it (ad 337-61). It was abandoned after its destruction by the Arabs in 647^18.
Salamis, Battle of (480 bc) Significant naval battle of the Persian Wars, the first ever recorded. (Aeschylus served in the battle and wrote The Persians , which is the earliest of his works to survive.) The Greek fleet of some 370 triremes, under the command of Themistocles, lured the Persian fleet of about 800 galleys into the narrow strait between the island of Salamis and the Athenian port of Piraeus. There the highly maneuver- able triremes sank about 300 Persian vessels while losing only about 40 of their own. As a result of this battle, Xerxes had to postpone his planned land offensive, giving the Greek city-states time to unite against him.
Salan \sa-'la n \, Raoul (-Albin-Louis) (b. June 10, 1899, Roque- courbe, France—d. July 3, 1984, Paris) French military officer who sought to prevent Algerian independence. During a military career in which he became the French army’s most decorated soldier, he served in France during World War I (1914-18), French West Africa (1941-44), French Indochina (1945-53), and Algeria (1956-62). Rebelling against Charles de Gaulle’s decision to free Algeria, in 1961 he formed a right-wing extremist group, the Secret Army Organization, which terrorized France and Algeria. He was captured in 1962 and tried for treason.
Salazar V.sa-lo-'ziuA, Antonio de Oliveira (b. April 28, 1889, Vim- ierio, Port.—d. July 27, 1970, Lisbon) Portuguese prime minister (1932— 68). A professor of economics, he was appointed by Pres. Antonio Oscar de Fragoso Carmona as finance minister (1928) and later prime minister (1932). His new constitution established the authoritarian New State, cur¬ tailing political freedom and concentrating on economic recovery, and he thenceforth ruled as a virtual dictator. Sympathetic to Francisco Franco and the Axis Powers, he maintained Portugal’s neutrality in World War II, and after the war he led Portugal into NATO. He greatly improved the country’s transportation, utilities, and education systems. He fought to preserve Portugal’s African colonies after the general decolonization. Incapacitated by a stroke in 1968 after 36 years in power, he was not told when he was replaced as prime minister.
Sale \sa-'la\ Arabic Sla \'sla\ City (pop., 1994: city, 504,420; Rabat- Sale metro, area, 1,385,872), northwestern Morocco. Located at the mouth of the Bou Regreg River, opposite Rabat, it was founded in the 10th cen¬ tury and reached its peak as a merchant port. After 1627 Sale, with Rabat as its vassal, became the corsair republic of Bou Regreg and the base for the Sallee Corsairs, the most dreaded of the Barbary Coast pirates. The two cities grew together until the Bou Regreg silted up and Sale port was closed. It has many mosques and mausoleums; its greatest shrine is the tomb of Sid! c Abd Allah ibn Hasan, the city’s patron saint.
Salem City (pop., 2000: 136,924), capital of Oregon, U.S. It lies along the Willamette River, southwest of Portland. Founded in 1840, the town prospered as migration increased over the Oregon Trail. It became the state capital in 1859. It was an early river port whose growth was stimulated by rail connections in the 1870s. It is a food-processing centre for a fruit¬ growing and dairy area and has wood and light manufacturing industries.
Salem witch trials (May-October 1692) American colonial persecu¬ tions for witchcraft. In the town of Salem, Massachusetts Bay Colony, several young girls, stimulated by supernatural tales told by a West Indian slave, claimed to be possessed by the devil and accused three women of witchcraft. Under pressure, the accused women named others in false confessions. Encouraged by the clergy, a special civil court was convened with three judges, including Samuel Sewall, to conduct the trials. They resulted in the conviction and hanging of 19 “witches” and the imprison¬ ment of nearly 150 others. As public zeal abated, the trials were stopped and then condemned. The colonial legislature later annulled the convic¬ tions.
Salerno City (pop., 2001 prelim.: 144,078), southern Italy. Located on the Gulf of Salerno, it was founded by the Romans in 197 bc on the site of an earlier town. Part of a Lombard duchy from ad 646, it was the capital of an independent Lombard principality from 839 to c. 1076. It was then con¬ quered by the Norman Robert Guiscard and became his capital. It was later incorporated into the Kingdom of Naples. During World War II, Salerno’s
Salamander (Salamandra terrestris)
JACQUES SIX
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1672 I sales tax ► Saljuq dynasty
coast was the scene of a major battle (September 1943) between Allied landing forces and German troops. It is an active seaport in an industrial area; its landmarks include a medical school (the earliest in Europe, prob¬ ably founded in the 9th century) and the cathedral (845, rebuilt 1076-85) that contains the tombs of St. Matthew and Pope Gregory VII.