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naval conferences

(Encyclopedia)naval conferences, series of international assemblies, meeting to consider limitation of naval armaments, settlement of the rules of naval war, and allied issues. The London Naval Conference (1908–9...

Balkan Wars

(Encyclopedia)Balkan Wars, 1912–13, two short wars, fought for the possession of the European territories of the Ottoman Empire. The outbreak of the Italo-Turkish War for the possession of Tripoli (1911) encourag...

Nzinga

(Encyclopedia)Nzinga or Njinga, c.1583–1663, queen of the Mbundu people in what is now Angola. In 1622, she represented her brother, King Mbande of Ndongo, in talks with the Portuguese, who had established a fort...

Trist, Nicholas Philip

(Encyclopedia)Trist, Nicholas Philip, 1800–1874, American diplomat, b. Charlottesville, Va. He attended West Point, studied law under Thomas Jefferson, whose granddaughter he married, and was private secretary to...

Prado, Mariano Ignacio

(Encyclopedia)Prado, Mariano Ignacio märyäˈnō ēgnäˈsyō präˈᵺō [key], 1826–1901, president of Peru (1865–67, 1878–79). He aided Ramón Castilla in the revolution of 1854. Indignant at the treaty t...

Mary of Burgundy

(Encyclopedia)Mary of Burgundy, 1457–82, wife of Maximilian of Austria (later Holy Roman Emperor Maximilian I), daughter and heiress of Charles the Bold of Burgundy. The marriage of Mary was a major event in Euro...

Austro-Prussian War

(Encyclopedia)Austro-Prussian War or Seven Weeks War, June 15–Aug. 23, 1866, between Prussia, allied with Italy, and Austria, seconded by Bavaria, Württemberg, Saxony, Hanover, Baden, and several smaller German ...

Black Hawk War

(Encyclopedia)Black Hawk War, conflict between the Sac and Fox and the United States in 1832. After the War of 1812, whites settling the Illinois country exerted pressure on the Native Americans. A treaty of 1804, ...

cluster munitions

(Encyclopedia)cluster munitions or cluster bombs, air-dropped or ground-launched weapons that open in mid-air and scatter dozens, hundreds, or thousands of smaller submunitions (or bomblets) over a wide area. Such ...

Bosse, Abraham

(Encyclopedia)Bosse, Abraham äbrä-ämˈ bôs [key], 1602–76, French engraver and painter. He studied art in Paris and became a teacher of perspective in the Académie royale. A prolific and skillful worker, he ...