Columbia Encyclopedia

Search results

236 results found

Aepinus, Franz Ulrich Theodosius

(Encyclopedia)Aepinus, Franz Ulrich Theodosius fränts o͝olˈrĭkh tāˌōdōˈzēo͝os âpēˈno͝os [key], 1724–1802, German physicist. He studied at Jena and Rostock and taught mathematics at Rostock from 174...

Troyes, Treaty of

(Encyclopedia)Troyes, Treaty of, 1420, agreement between Henry V of England, Charles VI of France, and Philip the Good of Burgundy. Its purpose, ultimately unsuccessful, was to settle the issues of the Hundred Year...

Ouachita

(Encyclopedia)Ouachita wôˈshĭtôˌ [key], river, c.600 mi (970 km) long, rising in the Ouachita Mts., W Ark. It flows east, southeast, and south through a cotton-producing region of S Arkansas and NE Louisiana a...

despotism

(Encyclopedia)despotism, government by an absolute ruler unchecked by effective constitutional limits to his power. In Greek usage, a despot was ruler of a household and master of its slaves. The title was applied ...

Anna Leopoldovna

(Encyclopedia)Anna Leopoldovna kärˈləvnə [key], 1718–46, duchess of Brunswick-Wolfenbüttel, regent of Russia (1740–41); daughter of Charles Leopold, duke of Mecklenburg-Schwerin, and of Catherine, sister o...

Hertford, William Seymour, 1st marquess and 2d earl of

(Encyclopedia)Hertford, William Seymour, 1st marquess and 2d earl of härˈfərd, härtˈ– [key], 1588–1660, English nobleman; great-grandson of Edward Seymour, duke of Somerset, and grandson of Lady Catherine ...

Anhalt

(Encyclopedia)Anhalt änˈhält [key], former state, c.900 sq mi (2,330 sq km), central Germany, surrounded by the former Prussian provinces of Saxony and Brandenburg. Dessau, the capital, and Köthen were the chie...

Goodman, Nelson

(Encyclopedia)Goodman, Nelson (Henry Nelson Goodman), 1906–98, American philosopher, b. Somerville, Mass., grad. Harvard (Ph.D. 1941). He taught at Tufts (1945–46), the Univ. of Pennsylvania (1946–64), and Br...

John IV, king of Portugal

(Encyclopedia)John IV, 1604–56, king of Portugal (1640–56). He succeeded as duke of Braganza in 1630. Descended from Manuel I and in illegitimate line from John I, he had the strongest claim to the Portuguese t...

Ligne, Charles Joseph, prince de

(Encyclopedia)Ligne, Charles Joseph, prince de shärl zhôzĕfˈ prăNs də lēˈnyə [key], 1735–1814, Austrian field marshal. He belonged to an ancient princely family of Hainaut, in the Austrian Netherlands (n...