Columbia Encyclopedia

Search results

323 results found

Overbury, Sir Thomas

(Encyclopedia)Overbury, Sir Thomas, 1581–1613, English author and courtier. He was a friend and adviser to Robert Carr, an Oxford acquaintance. The two quarreled violently when Overbury disapproved of Carr's marr...

Wigan

(Encyclopedia)Wigan wĭgˈən [key], metropolitan borough (1991 pop. 88,725), N England, located in the Manchester metropolitan area on the Douglas River. Wigan has a wide variety of industries, including electrica...

Derg, Lough

(Encyclopedia)Derg, Lough lŏkh dĕrg [key], in Ireland. 1 Expansion of the Shannon River, 23 mi (37 km) long and 1 to 5 mi (1.6–8 km) wide, W central Republic of Ireland. On the lake is the republic's first (192...

Abell, Thomas

(Encyclopedia)Abell or Abel, Thomas both: āˈbəl [key], d. 1540, English priest, chaplain to Katharine of Aragón. In 1528 he served as Katharine's secret envoy to her nephew, Holy Roman Emperor Charles V, in con...

Chieti

(Encyclopedia)Chieti kyĕˈtē [key], city, capital of Chieti prov., Abruzzi region, central Italy, on the ...

Shore, Jane

(Encyclopedia)Shore, Jane, or Elizabeth Shore, d. 1527?, mistress of Edward IV of England. The wife of William Shore, a goldsmith, she became c.1470 mistress to Edward IV and exerted a great influence over the king...

Sacré-Cœur

(Encyclopedia)Sacré-Cœur säkrā-körˈ [key], basilica in Paris, dedicated to the Sacred Heart of Jesus. It is a famous landmark atop the Montmartre, from which it dominates the city. Built (1875–1914) by subs...

Taylor, Francis Henry

(Encyclopedia)Taylor, Francis Henry, 1903–57, American museum director, b. Philadelphia, studied throughout Europe. He began his museum career as assistant curator (1927–28) and then curator of medieval art (19...

windmill

(Encyclopedia)windmill, apparatus that harnesses wind power for a variety of uses, e.g., pumping water, grinding corn, driving small sawmills, and driving electrical generators. Windmills were probably not known in...

Mendelsohn, Erich

(Encyclopedia)Mendelsohn, Erich āˈrĭkh mĕnˈdəlzōn [key], 1887–1953, German architect, pioneer of expressionism. He is best known for his exuberant, sculptural design for the Einstein Tower in Potsdam (1919...