Columbia Encyclopedia

Search results

500 results found

Anne of Brittany

(Encyclopedia)Anne of Brittany, 1477–1514, queen of France as consort of Charles VIII from 1491 to 1498 and consort of Louis XII from 1499 until her death. The daughter of Duke Francis II of Brittany, she was hei...

Yellow Emperor

(Encyclopedia)Yellow Emperor, Mandarin Huangdi, legendary Chinese ruler and culture hero; tradition holds that he reigned from 2697 b.c. to 2597 b.c. He is one of the mythical prehistoric emperors who supposedly cr...

Lebrun, Charles François

(Encyclopedia)Lebrun, Charles François ləbröNˈ [key], 1739–1824, French statesman. A moderate member of the Constituent Assembly after the start of the French Revolution, he was imprisoned during the Reign o...

Anne of Bohemia

(Encyclopedia)Anne of Bohemia, 1366–94, queen consort of Richard II of England, daughter of Holy Roman Emperor Charles IV. She was married to Richard early in 1382 and quickly gained popularity in England. It was...

Ladislaus I, king of Hungary

(Encyclopedia)Ladislaus I or Saint Ladislaus lädˈĭslousˌ [key], 1040–95, king of Hungary (1077–95). He supported Pope Gregory VII against Holy Roman Emperor Henry IV, but rejected Gregory's suggestion that ...

Este, Italian noble family

(Encyclopedia)Este ĕsˈtā [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, they took ...

Conrad I, ruler of the Holy Roman Empire

(Encyclopedia)Conrad I, d. 918, German king (911–18). As duke of Franconia he distinguished himself by military exploits and in 911 was elected successor to Louis the Child by the Franconian, Saxon, Bavarian, and...

Narcissus, in Roman history

(Encyclopedia)Narcissus, d. a.d. 54, secretary of the Roman Emperor Claudius I. A freedman with great influence, he revealed to Claudius the intrigue of Messalina and expedited her death (a.d. 48). The woman that N...

Frederick II, king of Sicily

(Encyclopedia)Frederick II, 1272–1337, king of Sicily (1296–1337), 3d son of Peter III of Aragón. When his brother, who was king of Sicily, became (1291) king of Aragón as James II, Frederick was his regent i...

Browse by Subject