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Martin IV, d. 1285, pope

(Encyclopedia)Martin IV, d. 1285, pope (1281–85), a Frenchman named Simon de Brie; successor of Nicholas III. He was chancellor under Louis IX of France and was created cardinal by Urban IV. He was thus a support...

Murad I

(Encyclopedia)Murad I mo͞orädˈ [key], 1326?–1389, Ottoman sultan (1362?–1389), son and successor of Orkhan to the throne of the Ottoman Empire (Turkey). Murad widened the Ottoman hold on European territory, ...

Stephen II

(Encyclopedia)Stephen II, d. 757, pope (752–57), successor of Pope St. Zacharias. When Rome was threatened by the Lombard king Aistulf, Stephen went to Gaul and appealed to Pepin the Short for help. He became the...

Basiliscus

(Encyclopedia)Basiliscus băˌsĭlĭsˈkəs [key], d. c.477, usurper at Constantinople (475–76). He was responsible for the failure of the expedition sent (468) against the Vandals by his brother-in-law Leo I. He...

Frederick V, king of Denmark and Norway

(Encyclopedia)Frederick V, 1723–66, king of Denmark and Norway (1746–66), son and successor of Christian VI. Frederick's reign was one of commercial expansion and prosperity. Loans, subsidies, and treaties aide...

Alfonso V, king of Aragón and Sicily

(Encyclopedia)Alfonso V (Alfonso the Magnanimous), 1396–1458, king of Aragón and Sicily (1416–58) and of Naples (1443–58), count of Barcelona. He was the son of Ferdinand I, whom he succeeded in Aragón and ...

Cantacuzene

(Encyclopedia)Cantacuzene känˈtäko͞ozēˈnô [key], noble Romanian family of Greek origin, tracing its descent from the Byzantine emperor John VI (John Cantacuzene). Under Ottoman rule members of the family wer...

Frederick II, Holy Roman emperor and German king

(Encyclopedia)Frederick II, 1194–1250, Holy Roman emperor (1220–50) and German king (1212–20), king of Sicily (1197–1250), and king of Jerusalem (1229–50), son of Holy Roman Emperor Henry VI and of Consta...

Sassanid

(Encyclopedia)Sassanid, Sasanid săsāˈnyən [key], last dynasty of native rulers to reign in Persia before the Arab conquest. The period of their dominion extended from c.a.d. 224, when the Parthians were overth...

Mun, Albert, comte de

(Encyclopedia)Mun, Albert, comte de älbĕrˈ kôNt də möN [key], 1841–1914, French Roman Catholic leader and politician. A monarchist at first, he later loyally supported the Third Republic. He was one of the ...