Columbia Encyclopedia

Search results

396 results found

Pelée

(Encyclopedia)Pelée pəlāˈ [key], volcano, 4,429 ft (1,350 m) high, on N Martinique, in the West Indies. On May 8, 1902, the day after the eruption of Soufrière on St. Vincent, Pelée also erupted, engulfing Sa...

Suffren de Saint-Tropez, Pierre André de

(Encyclopedia)Suffren de Saint-Tropez, Pierre André de pyĕr äNdrāˈ də süfrĕnˈ də săN-trôpāˈ [key], 1726–88, French admiral. He participated in naval warfare in the War of the Austrian Succession and...

Vérendrye, Pierre Gaultier de Varennes, sieur de la

(Encyclopedia)Vérendrye, Pierre Gaultier de Varennes, sieur de la pyĕr gōtyāˈ də värĕnˈ syör də lä vāräNdrēˈ [key], 1685–1749, explorer in W Canada and the United States, b. Trois Rivières (Three...

Washington Island, United States

(Encyclopedia)Washington Island, c.20 sq mi (50 sq km), NE Wis., in NW Lake Michigan, just off the northern tip of the Door Peninsula. The island was visited by the French explorers Pierre Radisson (1657) and Rober...

Vaudreuil-Cavagnal, Pierre de Rigaud, marquis de

(Encyclopedia)Vaudreuil-Cavagnal, Pierre de Rigaud, marquis de pyĕr də rēgōˈ märkēˈ də vōdröˈyə-kävänyälˈ [key], 1698–1765, last French governor of New France, b. Quebec. He was the son of Philip...

Brazza, Pierre Paul François Camille Savorgnan de

(Encyclopedia)Brazza, Pierre Paul François Camille Savorgnan de pyĕr pōl fräNswäˈ kämēˈyə sävôrnyäNˈ də bräzäˈ [key], 1852–1905, Franco-Italian empire builder. He was born Pietro Paolo Savorgnan...

Fortune Bay

(Encyclopedia)Fortune Bay, arm of the Atlantic Ocean, c.80 mi (130 km) long, S Newfoundland, N.L., Canada. Its shores are lined with many fishing villages. The French islands of St. Pierre and Miquelon are at its m...

Enlightenment

(Encyclopedia)Enlightenment, term applied to the mainstream of thought of 18th-century Europe and America. Centered in Paris, the movement gained international character at cosmopolitan salons. Masonic lodges pla...

Fort Frances

(Encyclopedia)Fort Frances, town, SW Ont., Canada, on Rainy River, opposite International Falls, Minn. It is chiefly a lumbering center with sawmills and a pulp and p...

Chapelain, Jean

(Encyclopedia)Chapelain, Jean zhäN shäplăNˈ [key], 1595–1674, French critic and poet. His works include La Pucelle (1656), an epic poem about Joan of Arc. Chapelain was a founding member of the French Academy...

Browse by Subject