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Louis, titular duke of Burgundy

(Encyclopedia)Louis, 1682–1712, titular duke of Burgundy; grandson of King Louis XIV of France. He became heir to the throne on the death (1711) of his father, Louis the Great Dauphin. François de Fénelon was h...

Bouguer, Pierre

(Encyclopedia)Bouguer, Pierre pyĕr bo͞ogĕrˈ [key], 1698–1758, French mathematician and hydrographer. He made some of the first photometric measurements, calculating the intensity of the light of the sun as co...

Staël, Germaine de

(Encyclopedia)Staël, Germaine de zhĕrmĕnˈ də stäl [key], 1766–1817, French-Swiss woman of letters, whose full name was Anne Louise Germaine Necker, baronne de Staël-Holstein. Born in Paris, the daughter of...

Gerson, John

(Encyclopedia)Gerson, John (Jean Charlier de Gerson) gûrˈsən; zhäN shärlyāˈ də zhârsôNˈ [key], 1363–1429, French ecclesiastical statesman and writer. He studied (1377–94) under Pierre d'Ailly at the ...

Solís y Rivadeneyra, Antonio de

(Encyclopedia)Solís y Rivadeneyra, Antonio de äntōˈnyō ᵺā sōlēsˈ ē rēˌväᵺānāˈrä [key], 1610–86, Spanish historian and dramatic poet. His intricate comic dramas were popular at court and the b...

Ronsard, Pierre de

(Encyclopedia)Ronsard, Pierre de pyĕr də rôNsärˈ [key], 1524–1585, French poet. As page, then squire, Ronsard seemed destined for a career at court both in France and abroad. However, deafness turned him to ...

De la Warr, Thomas West, 12th Baron

(Encyclopedia)De la Warr, Thomas West, 12th Baron dĕlˈəwər [key], 1577–1618, English colonial governor of Virginia. He saw fighting in the Netherlands and was knighted when serving in Ireland. He succeeded to...

Villèle, Jean Baptiste Séraphin Joseph, comte de

(Encyclopedia)Villèle, Jean Baptiste Séraphin Joseph, comte de zhäN bätēstˈ sāräfăNˈ zhôzĕfˈ kôNt də vēlĕlˈ [key], 1773–1854, French statesman and premier (1822–28). Elected (1815) a deputy af...

Blois

(Encyclopedia)Blois blwä [key], town, capital of Loir-et-Cher dept., central France, in Orléanais, on the...

Mary of Guise

(Encyclopedia)Mary of Guise gēz [key], 1515–60, queen consort of James V of Scotland and regent for her daughter, Mary Queen of Scots. The daughter of Claude de Lorraine, duc de Guise, she was also known as Mary...

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