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William, count of Holland

(Encyclopedia)William, count of Holland, 1227?–1256, German king (1254–56), previously rival king (1247–54) to Conrad IV. William was chosen by Pope Innocent IV to succeed Henry Raspe (d. 1247) as antiking to...

Spontini, Gaspare

(Encyclopedia)Spontini, Gaspare gäsˈpärā spōntēˈnē [key], 1774–1851, Italian opera composer. Spontini studied music in Naples. He went to Paris in 1803, was soon backed by the Empress Josephine, won a pri...

Spee, Maximilian, Graf von

(Encyclopedia)Spee, Maximilian, Graf von mäkˌsēmēˈlyän gräf fən shpā [key], 1861–1914, German admiral. At the start of World War I he commanded a squadron in East Asia. In Nov., 1914, he met and defeated...

Boccherini, Luigi

(Encyclopedia)Boccherini, Luigi lo͞oēˈjē bôk-kĕrēˈnē [key], 1743–1805, Italian composer and cellist. Together with the violinist Filippo Manfredi he made a highly successful concert tour of Italy and Fra...

Wenceslaus I, king of Bohemia

(Encyclopedia)Wenceslaus I, d. 1253, king of Bohemia (1230–53), son and successor of Ottocar I. He invited large numbers of Germans to settle in the villages and towns of Bohemia and Moravia. In some villages pea...

Jerusalem, Latin Kingdom of

(Encyclopedia)Jerusalem, Latin Kingdom of, feudal state created by leaders of the First Crusade (see Crusades) in the areas they had wrested from the Muslims in Syria and Palestine. In 1099, after their capture of ...

East Prussia

(Encyclopedia)East Prussia, Ger. Ostpreussen, former province of Prussia, extreme NE Germany. The region of East Prussia has low rolling hills that are heavily wooded, and it is dotted by many lakes (especially in ...

Lerner, Alan Jay

(Encyclopedia)Lerner, Alan Jay, 1918–86, American lyricist and librettist, b. New York City. After two years as a radio scriptwriter, Lerner began an association with the composer Frederick Loewe that resulted in...

John III, Byzantine emperor of Nicaea

(Encyclopedia)John III (John Ducas Vatatzes) do͝oˈkəs vətătˈzēz [key], d. 1254, Byzantine emperor of Nicaea (1222–54), successor and son-in-law of Theodore I. He extended his territory in Asia Minor and th...

Flor, Roger de

(Encyclopedia)Flor, Roger de, d. c.1306, German commander of Spanish mercenaries, b. Italy. He entered the order of the Knights Templars and fought (1291) at Acre (see Akko, but he was obliged to leave the order wh...