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Pepi II

(Encyclopedia)Pepi II pāˈpē [key], d. c.2185 b.c., king of ancient Egypt, of the VI dynasty. His reign (c.2275–c.2185 b.c.) is the longest recorded in history. It was successful because the powerful southern l...

Ardashir II

(Encyclopedia)Ardashir II, king of Persia (379–83), of the Sassanid, or Sassanian, dynasty. A provincial governor under Shapur II, he succeeded to the throne. He earned popularity by remitting taxes, but his rule...

Tristram and Isolde

(Encyclopedia)Tristram and Isolde trĭsˈtrəm, ĭsōlˈdə, ĭzōlˈ– [key], medieval romance. The earliest extant version (incomplete) was written (c.1185) by Thomas of Britain in Anglo-Norman French verse. Abo...

Westmorland, Charles Neville, 6th earl of

(Encyclopedia)Westmorland, Charles Neville, 6th earl of nĕvˈĭl, wĕstˈmərlənd [key], 1543–1601, English nobleman. A Roman Catholic by birth and connected with the powerful Howard family by marriage, he join...

Ptolemy II

(Encyclopedia)Ptolemy II (Ptolemy Philadelphus) fĭlədĕlˈfəs [key], c.308–246 b.c., king of ancient Egypt (285–246 b.c.), of the Macedonian dynasty, son of Ptolemy I and Berenice (c.340–281 b.c.). He cont...

Salisbury, Robert Cecil, 1st earl of

(Encyclopedia)Salisbury, Robert Cecil, 1st earl of, 1563–1612, English statesman; son of William Cecil, Baron Burghley. He entered Parliament and came gradually to rank second only to his father as adviser to Que...

Stephen II

(Encyclopedia)Stephen II, d. 757, pope (752–57), successor of Pope St. Zacharias. When Rome was threatened by the Lombard king Aistulf, Stephen went to Gaul and appealed to Pepin the Short for help. He became the...

Tawadros II

(Encyclopedia)Tawadros II, 1963–, pope of the Coptic Orthodox Church (see Copts), 2012–; successor of Shenouda III. Born Wagih Sobhy Baky Soliman, he studied pharmacy at Alexandria Univ. (grad. 1975), then ente...

Louis I, king of Portugal

(Encyclopedia)Louis I, 1838–89, king of Portugal (1861–89), son of Maria II and Ferdinand II. He succeeded to the throne on the death of his brother Peter V. His reign was marked by much political turmoil and b...

Pharnaces II

(Encyclopedia)Pharnaces II färˈnəsēz [key], d. 47 b.c., king of Pontus, son of Mithradates VI. In the Roman civil war he overran Colchis and central Asia Minor. Julius Caesar came from Egypt and defeated (47 b....