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Hopkins, Johns

(Encyclopedia)Hopkins, Johns, 1795–1873, American financier and philanthropist, founder of Johns Hopkins Univ., b. Anne Arundel co., Md. In 1819 he founded his own commission firm, later known as Hopkins Brothers...

Loches

(Encyclopedia)Loches lôsh [key], town (1990 pop. 7,133), Indre-et-Loire dept., W central France, in Touraine, on the Indre River. Products include processed food and electronics. It is famous for its medieval buil...

Kit-Cat Club

(Encyclopedia)Kit-Cat Club, London political and literary club, active c.1700–1720. The membership of some four dozen included leading Whig politicians and London's best young writers. Among them were Charles Sey...

Agostini, Pierre

(Encyclopedia)Pierre Agostini,1941– , b. Tunis, Tunisia, French physicist, studied at Prytanée Militaire La Flèche (B.A.) and Université Aix-Marseille (Ph.D., 1968). He is an emeritus professor at ...

Aquitaine

(Encyclopedia)Aquitaine ăkˈwĭtān, äkētĕnˈ [key], Lat. Aquitania, former duchy and kingdom in SW France. Julius Caesar conquered the Aquitani, an Iberian people of SW Gaul, in 56 b.c. The province that he cr...

Alderney

(Encyclopedia)Alderney ōrēnyēˈ [key], anc. Riduna, island, c. 3 sq mi (7.7 sq km), in the English Channel, northernmost of the larger Channel Islands. It is separated from the Frenc...

Dahl, Michael

(Encyclopedia)Dahl, Michael däl [key], 1656–1743, Swedish portrait painter. In 1688, after traveling on the Continent, he settled in England. After the death of Kneller in 1723, Dahl enjoyed an enormous populari...

Harrison, Rex

(Encyclopedia)Harrison, Rex, 1908–90, English actor. Born Reginald Carey, he entered repertory theater at 16 as an apprentice. Harrison, noted for his suave, insouciant style, has appeared in many plays, includin...

Sacheverell, Henry

(Encyclopedia)Sacheverell, Henry səshĕˈvərəl [key], 1674?–1724, English clergyman, the center of a religio-political incident in the reign of Queen Anne. In two sermons (1709) Dr. Sacheverell attacked the Wh...

Woolson, Constance Fenimore

(Encyclopedia)Woolson, Constance Fenimore, 1840–94, American novelist, b. Claremont, N.H.; grandniece of James Fenimore Cooper, and author of a number of well-written and popular works, including the novels Anne ...