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Pole, English noble family

(Encyclopedia)Pole, English noble family. The first member of importance was William de la Pole, d. 1366, a rich merchant who became the first mayor of Hull (1332) and a baron of the exchequer (1339). His oldest so...

Sakkara

(Encyclopedia)Sakkara or Saqqara säkäˈrä [key], necropolis (burial place) of ancient Memphis, Egypt, 3 mi (5 km) from the Nile and on the border of the Libyan desert. Djoser (Zoser) had his famous step-pyramid,...

Henry VII, king of England

(Encyclopedia)Henry VII, 1457–1509, king of England (1485–1509) and founder of the Tudor dynasty. Henry was an astute political leader. He established the Tudor tradition of strong rule tempered by a sense ...

Eleanor of Castile

(Encyclopedia)Eleanor of Castile kăstēlˈ [key], d.1290, queen consort of Edward I of England and daughter of Ferdinand III of Castile. At her marriage (1254) she brought to Prince Edward the territories of Ponth...

Henry of Burgundy

(Encyclopedia)Henry of Burgundy, d. 1112, count of Portugal. One of a group of French nobles called by Alfonso VI of León to assist in the fight against the Moors, he arrived in Spain c.1095. He was assigned a por...

Mortimer's Cross

(Encyclopedia)Mortimer's Cross, battlefield, Herefordshire, W England, near Leominster. It was the scene of a battle (Feb. 2, 1461) in the Wars of the Roses (see Roses, Wars of the), which ended with a decisive vic...

Richard III

(Encyclopedia)Richard III, 1452–85, king of England (1483–85), younger brother of Edward IV. Created duke of Gloucester at Edward's coronation (1461), he served his brother faithfully during Edward's lifetimeâ€...

Elizabeth, queen consort of George VI of Great Britain

(Encyclopedia)Elizabeth, 1900–2002, queen consort of George VI of Great Britain, mother of Elizabeth II and Princess Margaret, b. London. She was Lady Elizabeth Bowes-Lyon until her marriage (1923). During the Bl...

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