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Pembroke, William Marshal, 1st earl of

(Encyclopedia)Pembroke, William Marshal, 1st earl of, d. 1219, English nobleman. He became (1170) a guardian of Prince Henry, eldest son of Henry II, and supported him in his abortive rebellion (1173–74) against ...

Gosse, Sir Edmund William

(Encyclopedia)Gosse, Sir Edmund William gŏs [key], 1849–1928, English biographer and critic. He was lecturer in English literature at Trinity College, Cambridge (1884–90) and librarian of the House of Lords (1...

Constance, Holy Roman empress

(Encyclopedia)Constance, 1154–98, Holy Roman empress, wife of Holy Roman Emperor Henry VI; daughter of King Roger II of Sicily. She was named heiress of Sicily by her nephew King William II. On his death, however...

Thackeray, William Makepeace

(Encyclopedia)Thackeray, William Makepeace thăkˈərē [key], 1811–63, English novelist, b. Calcutta (now Kolkata), India. He is important not only as a great novelist but also as a brilliant satirist. In 1830, ...

Hartley, Marsden

(Encyclopedia)Hartley, Marsden, 1877–1943, American painter widely considered the first great American modernist of the 20th cent., b. Lewiston, Maine. He was educated in Cleveland, but early in his career (1899)...

Walton, Sir William Turner

(Encyclopedia)Walton, Sir William Turner, 1902–83, English composer, b. Oldham. Walton studied at Oxford. One of his earliest works was a piano quartet (1918–19). In 1923, Façade, satirical poems by Edith Sitw...

William II, king of Sicily

(Encyclopedia)William II (William the Good), c.1153–1189, king of Sicily (1166–89), son and successor of William I. He married (1177) Joan, daughter of Henry II of England. As an ally of Pope Alexander III and ...

William II, prince of Orange

(Encyclopedia)William II, 1626–50, prince of Orange, stadtholder of the United Provinces of the Netherlands (1647–50), son and successor of Frederick Henry. He married (1641) Mary, eldest daughter of Charles I ...

Tancred, king of Sicily

(Encyclopedia)Tancred (Tancred of Lecce) tăngˈkrĭd;, lĕˈchā [key], b. 1130 or 1134, d. 1194, king of Sicily (1190–94), illegitimate son of Roger of Apulia and grandson of Roger II of Sicily. On the death of...

Melville, Henry Dundas, 1st Viscount

(Encyclopedia)Melville, Henry Dundas, 1st Viscount, 1742–1811, British lawyer and politician. He was solicitor general for Scotland (1766–75), entered Parliament in 1774, and became lord advocate in 1775. Durin...