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Abd al-Hamid I

(Encyclopedia)Abd al-Hamid I Turk. äbdülˈhämēdˈ [key], 1725–89, Ottoman sultan (1774–89), brother and successor of Mustafa III. His reign, one of decline for the Ottoman Empire (Turkey), saw the end of th...

concordat

(Encyclopedia)concordat kənkôrˈdăt [key], formal agreement, specifically between the pope, in his spiritual capacity, and the temporal authority of a state. Its juridical status is now generally accepted as bei...

Gonzaga

(Encyclopedia)Gonzaga gōntsäˈgä [key], Italian princely house that ruled Mantua (1328–1708), Montferrat (1536–1708), and Guastalla (1539–1746). The family name is derived from the castle of Gonzaga, a vil...

Foreign Ministers, Council of

(Encyclopedia)Foreign Ministers, Council of, organization of the foreign ministers of the World War II Allies—the United States, Great Britain, France, and the USSR—that, in a long series of meetings, attempted...

Masaryk, Thomas Garrigue

(Encyclopedia)Masaryk, Thomas Garrigue gərēgˈ [key], 1850–1937, Czechoslovak political leader and philosopher, first president and chief founder of Czechoslovakia. He is revered by most Czechs and was internat...

Salzburg

(Encyclopedia)Salzburg zältsˈbo͝ork [key], province (1991 pop. 482,365), c.2,760 sq mi (7,150 sq km), W central Austria, bordering Germany in the north and northwest. It is a predominately mountainous region, wi...

Dubrovnik

(Encyclopedia)Dubrovnik do͞oˈbrôvnĭk [key], Ital. Ragusa, city, in extreme S Croatia, on a promontory o...

Dunkirk, town, France

(Encyclopedia)Dunkirk dŭnˈkûrk [key], Fr. Dunkerque, town, Nord dept., N France, on the North Sea. It is...

Farnese, Alessandro

(Encyclopedia)Farnese, Alessandro färnāˈzā [key], 1545–92, duke of Parma and Piacenza (1586–92), general and diplomat in the service of Philip II of Spain. He was the son of Duke Ottavio Farnese and Margar...

Hrabal, Bohumil

(Encyclopedia)Hrabal, Bohumil, 1914–97, one of the most important and popular Czech writers of the 20th cent., b. Brünn, Austria-Hungary (now Brno, Czech Republic). After working at a number of jobs, he became a...