Columbia Encyclopedia

Search results

500 results found

Alexander Severus

(Encyclopedia)Alexander Severus (Marcus Aurelius Alexander Severus) sĭvērˈəs [key], d. 235, Roman emperor (222–35), b. Syria. His name was changed (221) from Alexius Bassianus when he was adopted as the succe...

Chandos, Sir John

(Encyclopedia)Chandos, Sir John shănˈdŏs, chănˈ– [key], d. 1370, English soldier and administrator of English territories in France. A friend of Edward the Black Prince, he won distinction in the Hundred Yea...

Graves, Thomas Graves, Baron

(Encyclopedia)Graves, Thomas Graves, Baron, 1725?–1802, British admiral. During the American Revolution his fleet was routed (1781) by the comte de Grasse at the mouth of Chesapeake Bay, a defeat that led directl...

Auchinleck, Sir Claude John Eyre

(Encyclopedia)Auchinleck, Sir Claude John Eyre âr ôˌkĭnlĕkˈ, ôˌkhĭn– [key], 1884–1981, British field marshal. In World War II he commanded briefly (1940) at Narvik, Norway, then in building defenses in...

Miers, Harriet Ellan

(Encyclopedia)Miers, Harriet Ellan mīˈərz [key], 1945–, American lawyer and government official, b. Dallas, Tex., grad. Southern Methodist Univ. (B.S., 1967; J.D., 1970). A prominent female lawyer in private p...

Lothair, French king

(Encyclopedia)Lothair, 941–86, French king (954–86), son and successor of King Louis IV. During the early part of his reign he was dominated by Hugh the Great. Even after Hugh's death he was involved in conflic...

Averescu, Alexander

(Encyclopedia)Averescu, Alexander ävĕrĕsˈko͞o [key], 1859–1938, Romanian general and political leader. He served as a volunteer in the 1877–78 war against the Ottoman Empire and rose to become minister of ...

Kota Baru

(Encyclopedia)Kota Baru bəhärˈo͞o [key], city (1990 est. pop. 215,000), capital of Kelantan state, Malaysia, central Malay Peninsula, on the South China Sea at the mouth of the Kelantan River. It has an importa...

Magruder, John Bankhead

(Encyclopedia)Magruder, John Bankhead məgro͞oˈdər [key], 1810–71, Confederate general in the American Civil War, b. Winchester, Va. His reckless daring in the Mexican War won him quick promotion in the army. ...

Prescott, William

(Encyclopedia)Prescott, William, 1726–95, American Revolutionary officer, b. Groton, Mass. He saw service in the French and Indian Wars. In the American Revolution, he fortified (1775) Breed's Hill for the coloni...