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rammed earth

(Encyclopedia)rammed earth, material consisting chiefly of soil of sufficiently stiff consistency that has been placed in forms and pounded down. It has been used for buildings and walls since ancient times and was...

Downs, North, and South Downs

(Encyclopedia)Downs, North, and South Downs, parallel ranges of chalk hills, SE England. They rise to 965 ft (294 m) at Leith Hill, Surrey. The North Downs range, extending c.100 mi (160 km) from near Farnham, Surr...

Amherst College

(Encyclopedia)Amherst College, at Amherst, Mass.; founded 1821 as a college for men, coeducational since 1975. A liberal arts institution, Amherst maintains a cooperative program with Smith College, Mount Holyoke C...

Oxford sheep

(Encyclopedia)Oxford sheep, relatively large-bodied, hornless breed developed in England using crosses between Hampshire and Cotswold sheep. The breed was selected for size and productivity. It has not had widespre...

Cowper, William

(Encyclopedia)Cowper, William ko͞oˈpər, kouˈ– [key], 1731–1800, English poet. Physically and emotionally unfit for the professional life, he was admitted to the bar but never practiced. After a battle with ...

Bute, John Stuart, 3d earl of

(Encyclopedia)Bute, John Stuart, 3d earl of byo͞ot [key], 1713–92, British politician. He was prominent as a friend of Frederick Louis, prince of Wales, as early as 1747 and became the tutor of Frederick's impre...

dyne

(Encyclopedia)dyne dīn [key], unit of force in the cgs system of units, which is based on the metric system; an acceleration of 1 centimeter per second per second is produced when a force of 1 dyne is exerted on a...

Pilgrims' Way

(Encyclopedia)Pilgrims' Way, ancient English road that ran from Hampshire to Kent, over the Sussex Downs. It is so called because it may have been used during the Middle Ages by pilgrims who came to Canterbury to t...

Havant

(Encyclopedia)Havant hăˈvănt [key], city and district, Hampshire, S England. The city's manufactures inc...

Spithead

(Encyclopedia)Spithead, eastern part of the channel between Hampshire, England, and the Isle of Wight. In 1797 a celebrated wartime mutiny occurred in the fleet stationed at Spithead: the crews sent the officers as...