Columbia Encyclopedia

Search results

500 results found

Carlotta

(Encyclopedia)Carlotta, Span. Carlota kärlōˈtä [key], 1840–1927, empress of Mexico, daughter of Leopold I of Belgium, christened Marie Charlotte Amélie. She married (1857) Maximilian, archduke of Austria and...

Texas Rangers

(Encyclopedia)Texas Rangers, mounted fighting force organized (1835) during the Texas Revolution. During the republic they became established as the guardians of the Texas frontier, particularly against Native Amer...

Wallace, Lew

(Encyclopedia)Wallace, Lew (Lewis Wallace), 1827–1905, American novelist and diplomat, b. Brookville, Ind. He served in both the Mexican and Civil wars. After returning to his law practice in Indiana, he became g...

Buena Vista, battle of

(Encyclopedia)Buena Vista, battle of, military engagement in the Mexican War, fought Feb. 22–23, 1847. The battle site was just S of Saltillo, Coahuila, in Mexico. Gen. Zachary Taylor, disobeying orders from the ...

Fromm, Erich

(Encyclopedia)Fromm, Erich ĕrˈĭkh frōm, frŏm [key], 1900–1980, psychoanalyst and author, b. Frankfurt, Germany, Ph.D. Univ. of Heidelberg, 1922. From 1929 to 1932 he lectured at the Psychoanalytic Institute,...

Intracoastal Waterway

(Encyclopedia)Intracoastal Waterway, c.3,000 mi (4,827 km) long, partly natural, partly artificial, providing sheltered passage for commercial and leisure boats along the U.S. Atlantic coast from Boston, Mass. to K...

X Prize Foundation

(Encyclopedia)X Prize Foundation, private, nonprofit prize institute est. 1995 by commercial space entrepreneur Peter Diamandis. Based in Santa Monica, Calif., and funded by foundations and private individuals and ...

Narváez, Pánfilo de

(Encyclopedia)Narváez, Pánfilo de pänˈfēlō ᵺā närväˈĕth [key], c.1470–1528, Spanish conquistador. After service in Jamaica, he aided Diego de Velázquez in conquering Cuba and was sent (1520) to Mexi...

Imperial Valley

(Encyclopedia)Imperial Valley, fertile region in the Colorado Desert, SE Calif., extending S into NW Mexico. Once part of the Gulf of California, most of the region is below sea level; its lowest point is −232 ft...

nationalization

(Encyclopedia)nationalization, acquisition and operation by a country of business enterprises formerly owned and operated by private individuals or corporations. State or local authorities have traditionally taken ...