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Riom

(Encyclopedia)Riom rēôNˈ [key], town (1990 pop. 19,302), Puy-de-Dôme dept., S central France, in Auvergne. It has distilleries, tobacco plants, and factories making pharmaceuticals. Of Gallic origin, the Roman ...

Péronne

(Encyclopedia)Péronne pārônˈ [key], town (1993 est. pop. 9,200), Somme dept., N France, in Picardy, on the Somme River. It is a farm trade center, and its manufactures include wool, bricks, furniture, and plast...

Embargo Act of 1807

(Encyclopedia)Embargo Act of 1807, passed Dec. 22, 1807, by the U.S. Congress in answer to the British orders in council restricting neutral shipping and to Napoleon's restrictive Continental System. The U.S. merch...

naval conferences

(Encyclopedia)naval conferences, series of international assemblies, meeting to consider limitation of naval armaments, settlement of the rules of naval war, and allied issues. The London Naval Conference (1908–9...

Laval, Pierre

(Encyclopedia)Laval, Pierre lävälˈ [key], 1883–1945, French politician. Elected (1914) to the chamber of deputies as a Socialist, he held various cabinet posts and in 1926 became a senator as an Independent, ...

Capetians

(Encyclopedia)Capetians kəpēˈshənz [key], royal house of France that ruled continuously from 987 to 1328; it takes its name from Hugh Capet. Related branches of the family (see Valois; Bourbon) ruled France unt...

Dumas, Thomas-Alexandre

(Encyclopedia)Dumas, Thomas-Alexandre or Alexandre dümäˈ, älĕksäNˈ– [key] 1762–1806, French revolutionary general, b. Saint-Domingue (now Haiti) as Thomas-Alexandre Davy de la Pailleterie, father of Ale...

Dauphiné

(Encyclopedia)Dauphiné dōfēnāˈ [key], region and former province, SE France, bordering on Italy. It is now divided into three departments, Haute-Alpes, Isère, and Drôme. In the east the Alps culminate in the...

Izvolsky, Aleksandr Petrovich

(Encyclopedia)Izvolsky, Aleksandr Petrovich əlyĭksänˈdər pētrôˈvĭch ēzvôlˈskē [key], 1856–1919, Russian diplomat instrumental in fostering the Triple Entente with France and Great Britain. He rose in...

Genet, Edmond Charles Édouard

(Encyclopedia)Genet, Edmond Charles Édouard ĕdmôNˈ shärl ādwärˈ zhənāˈ [key], 1763–1834, French diplomat, known as Citizen Genet. He had served as a French representative in Berlin, Vienna, and St. Pet...