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Bracton, Henry de

(Encyclopedia)Bracton, Henry de, d. 1268, English writer on law. He was the author of De legibus et consuetudinibus Angliae [on the laws and customs of England], a broad, philosophic treatise that is often called t...

Dawson, Sir John William

(Encyclopedia)Dawson, Sir John William, 1820–99, Canadian geologist and educator, b. Pictou, N.S., studied at the Univ. of Edinburgh. After serving (1850–55) as superintendent of education in Nova Scotia, he wa...

Northumberland, Henry Percy, 4th earl of

(Encyclopedia)Northumberland, Henry Percy, 4th earl of, 1446–89, English nobleman. When his father, the 3d earl, was killed fighting in the Lancastrian army at Towton (1461), he was imprisoned by Edward IV and th...

Harcourt, Sir William George Granville Venables Vernon

(Encyclopedia)Harcourt, Sir William George Granville Venables Vernon, 1827–1904, English statesman. A brilliant parliamentarian and a supporter of Gladstone, he entered Parliament in 1868 and had a notable career...

Hooker, Sir William Jackson

(Encyclopedia)Hooker, Sir William Jackson, 1785–1865, English botanist. A leading authority of his time on ferns, he formed a famous herbarium and built up the Glasgow Garden and the Royal Botanic Gardens at Kew....

Kao, Sir Charles Kuen

(Encyclopedia)Kao, Sir Charles Kuen, 1933–2018, British-American physicist, b. Shanghai, China, Ph.D. Imperial College London, 1965. Kao was an engineer and researcher at Standard Telecommunications Laboratories ...

Westminster Abbey

(Encyclopedia)Westminster Abbey, originally the abbey church of a Benedictine monastery (closed in 1539) in London. One of England's most important Gothic structures, it is also a national shrine. The first church ...

John of Gaunt

(Encyclopedia)John of Gaunt [Mid. Eng. Gaunt=Ghent, his birthplace], 1340–99, duke of Lancaster; fourth son of Edward III of England. He married (1359) Blanche, heiress of Lancaster, and through her became earl (...

Gloucester, Henry William Frederick Albert, duke of

(Encyclopedia)Gloucester, Henry William Frederick Albert, duke of glŏsˈstər, glôˈstər [key], 1900–1974, British prince; third son of George V, brother of Edward VIII and George VI, and uncle of Elizabeth II...

Thurlow, Edward Thurlow, 1st Baron

(Encyclopedia)Thurlow, Edward Thurlow, 1st Baron, 1731–1806, lord chancellor of England. Called to the bar in 1754, he enjoyed considerable success in legal practice. He was made a king's counsel in 1762 and ente...