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Juan de Fuca Strait

(Encyclopedia)Juan de Fuca Strait wän də fyo͞oˈkə [key], inlet of the Pacific Ocean, 100 mi (161 km) long and 11 to 17 mi (18–27 km) wide, between Vancouver Island, British Columbia, and Washington state, li...

Grotius, Hugo

(Encyclopedia)Grotius, Hugo grōˈshəs [key], 1583–1645, Dutch jurist and humanist, whose Dutch name appears as Huigh de Groot. He studied at the Univ. of Leiden and became a lawyer when 15 years old. In Dutch p...

Sainte-Beuve, Charles Augustin

(Encyclopedia)Sainte-Beuve, Charles Augustin shärl ōgüstăNˈ săNt-böv [key], 1804–69, French literary historian and critic. The first major professional literary critic, he developed the art of appreciating...

Morny, Charles Auguste Louis Joseph, duc de

(Encyclopedia)Morny, Charles Auguste Louis Joseph, duc de shärl ōgüstˈ lwē zhôzĕfˈ dük də môrnēˈ [key], 1811–65, French statesman; illegitimate son of Hortense de Beauharnais and the comte de Flahaut...

Bourdonnais, Louis de la

(Encyclopedia)Bourdonnais, Louis de la (Louis-Charles Mahé de la Bourdonnais), 1795–1840, French chess player, b. La Réunion. A pupil of Alexandre Deschappelles, he defeated his mentor in 1821 and from then unt...

Marie de' Medici

(Encyclopedia)Marie de' Medici mĕdˈĭchē [key], 1573–1642, queen of France, second wife of King Henry IV and daughter of Francesco de' Medici, grand duke of Tuscany. She was married to Henry in 1600. After his...

Velde, van de

(Encyclopedia)Velde, van de vän də vĕlˈdə [key], 17th-century Dutch family of artists. Jan van de Velde, 1593–1641, was a draftsman and engraver as well as a painter. His cousin Esaias van de Velde, c.1591...

Floridablanca, José Moñino, conde de

(Encyclopedia)Floridablanca or Florida Blanca, José Moñino, conde de hōsāˈ mōnyēˈnō kōnˈdā dā flōrēˈᵺä blängˈkä [key], 1728–1808, Spanish statesman. After the expulsion of the Jesuits from S...

Dibdin, Charles

(Encyclopedia)Dibdin, Charles, 1745–1814, English songwriter and theatrical entrepreneur. His best-known songs are from his ballad operas, such as The Bells of Aberdovey from Liberty Hall (1785) and To Bachelors'...

Dickens, Charles

(Encyclopedia)Dickens, Charles, 1812–70, English author, b. Portsmouth, one of the world's most popular, prolific, and skilled novelists. Charles Dickens is one of the giants of English literature. He wrote fro...

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