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Ahmad

(Encyclopedia)Ahmad. For Ottoman sultans thus named, use Ahmed.

Sulayman II

(Encyclopedia)Sulayman II, 1642–91, Ottoman sultan (1687–91), brother and successor of Muhammad IV to the throne of the Ottoman Empire (Turkey). His grand vizier (chief executive officer), Mustafa Köprülü, w...

Brancovan, Constantine

(Encyclopedia)Brancovan, Constantine brän-kōvänˈ [key], 1654–1714, prince of Walachia (1688–1714). A skillful politician who secured domestic peace, he furthered Walachia's economic and cultural development...

Bocskay, Stephen

(Encyclopedia)Bocskay, Stephen bôchˈkī [key], 1557–1606, Hungarian noble, voivode [governor] (1604–6) and prince (1605–6) of Transylvania. Seeking to secure the independence of Transylvania, he supported h...

Köprülü

(Encyclopedia)Köprülü köprülüˈ [key], family of humble Albanian origin, several members of which served as grand vizier (chief executive officer) in the Ottoman Empire. The name is also spelled Kiuprili, Kop...

epitaph

(Encyclopedia)epitaph, strictly, an inscription on a tomb; by extension, a statement, usually in verse, commemorating the dead. The earliest such inscriptions are those found on Egyptian sarcophagi. In England epit...

Mahmud I

(Encyclopedia)Mahmud I mämo͞odˈ, mäˈmo͞od [key], 1696–1754, Ottoman sultan (1730–54), son of Mustafa II, nephew and successor of Ahmed III. A revolt of the Janissaries put him on the throne of the Ottoman...

Maggiore, Lago

(Encyclopedia)Maggiore, Lago vārbäˈnō [key], second largest lake in Italy, 82 sq mi (212 sq km), in the Alpine foothills of Piedmont and Lombardy. The lake is c.40 mi (65 km) long and has a maximum depth of c.1...

Day, Benjamin

(Encyclopedia)Day, Benjamin, 1838–1916, American printer; son of Benjamin Henry Day. While working in New York City, Day invented a process, utilizing celluloid sheets, for shading plates in the color printing of...

Randolph, Thomas, English poet and dramatist

(Encyclopedia)Randolph, Thomas, 1605–35, English poet and dramatist. After graduating from Cambridge in 1632, he went to London where he became a disciple of Ben Jonson. His best-known poems are “A Gratulatory ...