(Encyclopedia) Rivers, Richard Woodville, 1st Earl, d. 1469, English nobleman. He was knighted (1426) by Henry VI and acquired wealth and power by marrying (c.1436) Jacquetta of Luxemburg, widow of…
(Encyclopedia) Vladimir IVladimir Ivlădˈəmĭrˌ, Rus. vlədyēˈmĭr [key], Volodymyr IVladimir Ivŭlˌədyēˈmyĭr [key], or Saint Vladimir, d. 1015, first Christian grand duke of Kiev (c.980–1015); son of…
(Encyclopedia) GuelphsGuelphsgwĕlfs [key], European dynasty tracing its descent from the Swabian count Guelph or Welf (9th cent.), whose daughter Judith married the Frankish emperor Louis I. Guelph…
(Encyclopedia) SforzaSforzasfôrˈtsä [key], Italian family that ruled the duchy of Milan from 1450 to 1535. Rising from peasant origins, the Sforzas became condottieri and used this military position…
(Encyclopedia) WittelsbachWittelsbachvĭˈtəlsbäkh [key], German dynasty that ruled Bavaria from 1180 until 1918.
The family takes its name from the ancestral castle of Wittelsbach in Upper Bavaria. In…
(Encyclopedia) EsteEsteĕsˈtā [key], Italian noble family, rulers of Ferrara (1240–1597) and of Modena (1288–1796) and celebrated patrons of the arts during the Renaissance. Probably of Lombard origin…
(Encyclopedia) JemappesJemappeszhəmäpˈ [key], town, Hainaut prov., S Belgium. It is a coal-mining center of the Borinage region. Manufactures include iron and steel. At Jemappes in 1792 the French…
(Encyclopedia) Lannes, JeanLannes, JeanzhäN län [key], 1769–1809, marshal of France. He fought under Napoleon Bonaparte (later Napoleon I) in the Italian and Egyptian campaigns, supported his coup of…
(Encyclopedia) Ladislaus I, 1260–1333, duke (1306–20) and later king (1320–33) of Poland; called Ladislaus the Short. He restored the Polish kingdom, which had been partitioned since 1138 (see Piast…
