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Russo-Turkish Wars

(Encyclopedia)Russo-Turkish Wars. The great eastward expansion of Russia in the 16th and 17th cent., during the decline of the Ottoman Empire, nevertheless left the shores of the Black Sea in the hands of the Ottom...

Doherty, Charles Joseph

(Encyclopedia)Doherty, Charles Joseph dōˈərtē [key], 1855–1931, Canadian jurist and statesman. After serving (1891–1906) as judge of the superior court of Quebec prov., he retired (1906) from the bench and ...

Utrecht, Peace of

(Encyclopedia)Utrecht, Peace of, series of treaties that concluded the War of the Spanish Succession. It put an end to French expansion and signaled the rise of the British Empire. By the treaty between England and...

Hay-Pauncefote Treaties

(Encyclopedia)Hay-Pauncefote Treaties hā-pônsˈfo͝ot [key], negotiated in 1899 and 1901 by Secretary of State John Hay, for the United States, and Lord Pauncefote of Preston, British ambassador to the United Sta...

Declaration of the Rights of Man and Citizen

(Encyclopedia)Declaration of the Rights of Man and Citizen, a fundamental document of French constitutional history, drafted by Emmanuel Sieyès, adopted by the Constituent Assembly on Aug. 26, 1789, and embodied i...

Wolcott, Oliver, signer of the Declaration of Independence

(Encyclopedia)Wolcott, Oliver, 1726–97, political leader in the American Revolution, signer of the Declaration of Independence, b. South Windsor (then in Windsor), Conn.; son of Roger Wolcott. He fought in King G...

Regents of the University of California v. Bakke

(Encyclopedia)Regents of the University of California v. Bakke, case decided in 1978 by the U.S. Supreme Court. The Court held in a closely divided decision that race could be one of the factors considered in choos...

Sonnino, Sidney, Barone

(Encyclopedia)Sonnino, Sidney, Barone bärôˈnā sōn-nēˈnō [key], 1847–1922, Italian foreign minister instrumental in Italy's entry into World War I. A member of the diplomatic corps (1867–73), he later be...

Diamond Necklace, Affair of the

(Encyclopedia)Diamond Necklace, Affair of the, scandal that took place at the court of King Louis XVI of France just before the French Revolution. An adventuress who called herself the comtesse de La Motte duped Ca...

E, letter of the alphabet

(Encyclopedia)E, fifth letter of the alphabet. It is a usual symbol for a mid-front vowel, such as ĕ in the English step. A mid-front vowel was represented by Greek epsilon [Gr.,=e without the aspirate], to which ...