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Holyrood Palace

(Encyclopedia)Holyrood Palace hŏlˈēro͞od [key] [i.e., holy cross], royal residence, Edinburgh, SE Scotland. In 1128, David I founded Holyrood Abbey on this site, where according to legend he was saved from an i...

Robert II, king of Scotland

(Encyclopedia)Robert II, 1316–90, king of Scotland (1371–90), nephew and successor of David II. He was the first sovereign of the house of Stuart, or Stewart (see Stuart, family), which eventually succeeded to ...

Joab

(Encyclopedia)Joab jōˈăb [key], in the Bible, son of David's sister Zeruiah and commander of his uncle's armies. A trusted and skillful administrator, he was often vindictive and cruel, as in his killing of Abne...

Absalom

(Encyclopedia)Absalom ăbˈsəlŏm [key], in the Bible, son of David. He murdered his half-brother Amnon for the rape of their sister Tamar, and fled. No sooner was he reconciled with his father than he incited a r...

Jeiel

(Encyclopedia)Jeiel jēīˈĕl [key], in the Bible. 1 Levite under David. 2 Musician of David. 3 Ancestor of Jahaziel (2.) 4 Scribe of Uzziah. 5 Levite of Hezekiah. 6 Levite of Josiah. 7 Companion of Ezra. ...

Ahimelech

(Encyclopedia)Ahimelech əhĭmˈəlĕk [key], in the Bible. 1 Priest at Nob, brother of, or perhaps the same as, Ahijah (2.) He befriended David, and Saul had him killed. In some passages his name is reversed with ...

Coney Island

(Encyclopedia)Coney Island kōˈnē [key], beach resort, amusement center, and neighborhood of S Brooklyn borough of New York City, SE N.Y., on the Atlantic Ocean. The tidal creek that once separated the island fro...

Pavese, Cesare

(Encyclopedia)Pavese, Cesare chāˈzärā pävĕˈsā [key], 1908–50, Italian novelist, poet, and translator. A major literary figure in postwar Italy, Pavese brought American influence to Italian literature thro...

Ripley, Robert LeRoy

(Encyclopedia)Ripley, Robert LeRoy, 1890–1949, American cartoonist, b. Santa Rosa, Calif., as Leroy Robert Ripley. The creator of the Believe It or Not! newspaper cartoon, Ripley began his career at 16 as a sport...

Shepard, Alan Bartlett, Jr.

(Encyclopedia)Shepard, Alan Bartlett, Jr., 1923–98, American astronaut, b. East Derry, N.H., grad. Annapolis, 1944. He served on a destroyer during World War II and later had extensive experience as a test pilot....