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John IV, king of Portugal

(Encyclopedia)John IV, 1604–56, king of Portugal (1640–56). He succeeded as duke of Braganza in 1630. Descended from Manuel I and in illegitimate line from John I, he had the strongest claim to the Portuguese t...

Medici, Lorenzino de'

(Encyclopedia)Medici, Lorenzino de' dā mĕˈdĭchē, Ital. māˈdēchē [key], 1515–47, member of the cadet branch of the Medici family. A boon companion of Alessandro de' Medici, he secretly plotted the duke's...

Montagu, Lady Mary Wortley

(Encyclopedia)Montagu, Lady Mary Wortley, 1689–1762, English author, noted primarily for her highly descriptive letters. She was the daughter of the first duke of Kingston. In 1712 she married Edward Wortley Mont...

Montefeltro

(Encyclopedia)Montefeltro mōntāfĕlˈtrō [key], Italian noble family. Its members were noted patrons of art and traditionally opposed the papacy in the struggle between Guelphs and Ghibellines. The county of Mon...

Livorno

(Encyclopedia)Livorno lē vôrˈnô [key], Brit. Leghorn, city (1991 pop. 167,512), capital of Livorno prov., Tuscany, central Italy, on the Ligurian Sea and on the Aurelian Way. It is a busy commercial, industrial...

Nördlingen

(Encyclopedia)Nördlingen nörtˈlĭngən [key], city (1994 pop. 19,615), Bavaria, S central Germany. It is a manufacturing center and a rail junction, with industries in paper, clothing, and precision instruments....

Percy

(Encyclopedia)Percy, family name of dukes and earls of Northumberland. See Northumberland, Algernon Percy, 10th earl of; Northumberland, Henry Percy, 1st earl of; Northumberland, Henry Percy, 4th earl of; Northumbe...

Pechenegs

(Encyclopedia)Pechenegs pätsĭnäksˈ [key], nomadic people of the Turkic family. Their original home is not known, but in the 8th and 9th cent. they inhabited the region between the lower Volga and the Urals. Pus...

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...

Leslie, John

(Encyclopedia)Leslie or Lesley, John, 1527–96, Scottish bishop, historian, and statesman. After studying in France, he returned (c.1554) to Scotland, where he opposed the Reformation. He became ecclesiastical adv...