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Frederick I, king of Prussia

(Encyclopedia)Frederick I, 1657–1713, first king of Prussia (1701–13), elector of Brandenburg (1688–1713) as Frederick III. He succeeded his father, Frederick William the Great Elector, in Brandenburg. Throug...

Hubertusburg, Peace of

(Encyclopedia)Hubertusburg, Peace of ho͞obĕrˈto͝osbo͝orkh [key], 1763, treaty signed on Feb. 15 between Austria and Prussia at the end of the Seven Years War. It was signed at Hubertusburg, Saxony (in present-...

Du Bellay, Guillaume

(Encyclopedia)Du Bellay, Guillaume gēyōmˈ dü bĕlāˈ [key], 1491–1543, French diplomat under King Francis I; brother of Jean Du Bellay. He was employed in negotiations regarding the Treaty of Cambrai (1529) ...

Penitentes

(Encyclopedia)Penitentes pĕnĭtĕnˈtēz [key], secret lay order in the U.S. Southwest, particularly New Mexico, noted for flagellating rites during Holy Week. It arose from the third order of the Franciscans and ...

Lothair II

(Encyclopedia)Lothair II, also called Lothair III, 1075–1137, Holy Roman emperor (1133–37) and German king (1125–37); successor of Holy Roman Emperor Henry V. His predecessor invested him with the duchy of Sa...

Rudolf I

(Encyclopedia)Rudolf I or Rudolf of Hapsburg ro͞oˈdŏlf [key], 1218–91, German king (1273–91), first king of the Hapsburg dynasty. Rudolf's election as king ended the interregnum (1250–73), during which tim...

Utrecht, Peace of

(Encyclopedia)Utrecht, Peace of, series of treaties that concluded the War of the Spanish Succession. It put an end to French expansion and signaled the rise of the British Empire. By the treaty between England and...

Ottocar II

(Encyclopedia)Ottocar II or Přemysl Ottocar II, c.1230–1278, king of Bohemia (1253–78), son and successor of Wenceslaus I. Ottocar shrewdly exploited the disorders of the great interregnum in the Holy Roman Em...

Zrinyi

(Encyclopedia)Zrinyi zrĭnˈyē [key], noble Hungarian family of Croatian origin. Nicholas Zrinyi, 1508–66, distinguished himself in the defense of Vienna (1529) against Sultan Sulayman I, took part in the campai...

Sforza

(Encyclopedia)Sforza sfôrˈtsä [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 to become rulers i...