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Sigismund II

(Encyclopedia)Sigismund II or Sigismund Augustus, 1520–72, king of Poland (1548–72). Crowned in 1530 to assure his succession, he assumed the royal functions at the death of his father, Sigismund I. By the Unio...

Rhine Province

(Encyclopedia)Rhine Province, Ger. Rheinprovinz, former province of Prussia, W Germany. The province was also known as Rhenish Prussia and as the Rhineland. The northern section of the former province (which contai...

Dzierżoniów

(Encyclopedia)Dzierżoniów jēĕrzhôˈnyo͞of [key], Ger. Reichenbach, town, Dolnośląskie prov., SW Pol...

Constantine Nikolayevich

(Encyclopedia)Constantine Nikolayevich kənˌstəntyēnˈ nēkôläyāˈvĭch [key], 1827–92, grand duke of Russia; brother of Czar Alexander II. Constantine supported all the reforms instituted by his brother, w...

Kołobrzeg

(Encyclopedia)Kołobrzeg kôlôbˈzhĕk [key] or Kolberg, town (1994 est. pop. 46,300), Zachodniopomorskie prov., NW Poland, on the Baltic Sea at the mouth of the Prośnica River. It is a seaport, seaside resort, a...

Vistula Lagoon

(Encyclopedia)Vistula Lagoon, Pol. Zalew Wiślany, shallow inlet of the Baltic Sea, 322 sq mi (834 sq km), c.60 mi (100 km) long and from 6 to 11 mi (9.7–18 km) wide, N Poland and W Russia, separated from the Gul...

Beltsville swine

(Encyclopedia)Beltsville swine, two breeds of swine developed at the agricultural research center of the U.S. Department of Agriculture in Beltsville, Md. The breeds are designated Beltsville No. 1 and Beltsville N...

Casimir I

(Encyclopedia)Casimir I kăsˈəmēr [key], c.1015–1058, duke of Poland (c.1040–1058), son of Mieszko II. He succeeded in reuniting the central Polish lands under the hegemony of the Holy Roman Empire, but he w...

Velikiye Luki

(Encyclopedia)Velikiye Luki vyĭlyēˈkēə lo͞oˈkē [key], city (1989 pop. 114,000), W central European Russia, on the Lovat River. A railroad junction, it has industries producing rolling stock and foodstuffs. ...

Frederick William, elector of Brandenburg

(Encyclopedia)Frederick William, known as the Great Elector, 1620–88, elector of Brandenburg (1640–88), son and successor of George William. At his accession the scattered lands of the Hohenzollern were devasta...