Columbia Encyclopedia

Search results

500 results found

York, Richard, duke of

(Encyclopedia)York, Richard, duke of, 1411–60, English nobleman, claimant to the throne. He was descended from Edward III through his father, Richard, earl of Cambridge, grandson of that king, and also through hi...

Henson, Josiah

(Encyclopedia)Henson, Josiah, 1789–1883, black slave, reputedly the basis of the character of Uncle Tom in Uncle Tom's Cabin, b. Charles co., Md. In 1825 he faithfully led a party of his master's slaves from Mary...

Kitakyushu

(Encyclopedia)Kitakyushu kētäˈkyo͞osho͞o [key], city (1990 pop. 1,026,455), Fukuoka prefecture, N Kyushu, Japan, on the Shimonoseki Strait between the Inland Sea and the Korea Strait. It was formed in 1963 by ...

orphan

(Encyclopedia)orphan: see adoption; foundling hospital; guardian and ward. ...

Ritsos, Yannis

(Encyclopedia)Ritsos, Yannis, 1909–90, Greek poet. One of modern Greece's most widely translated poets, Ritsos moved from an early concern with classical themes and style to a more deeply personal lyricism. His w...

Oxford movement

(Encyclopedia)Oxford movement, religious movement begun in 1833 by Anglican clergymen at the Univ. of Oxford to renew the Church of England (see England, Church of) by reviving certain Roman Catholic doctrines and ...

incantation

(Encyclopedia)incantation, set formula, spoken or sung, for the purpose of working magic. An incantation is normally an invocation to beneficent supernatural spirits for aid, protection, or inspiration. It may also...

Labouchere, Henry du Pré

(Encyclopedia)Labouchere, Henry du Pré lăˌbo͞oshârˈ [key], 1831–1912, British politician and journalist. Following diplomatic service (1854–64), he sat in the House of Commons (1880–1906) as a Radical. ...

Lawrence, Sir Henry Montgomery

(Encyclopedia)Lawrence, Sir Henry Montgomery, 1806–57, British general and administrator in India; brother of John Laird Mair Lawrence. Commissioned (1822) in the Bengal artillery, he fought in Myanmar (1824–26...

Layard, Sir Austen Henry

(Encyclopedia)Layard, Sir Austen Henry lāˈərd [key], 1817–94, English archaeologist and diplomat. Between 1842 and 1851 he explored and excavated in Mesopotamia, especially at Nineveh. In the period from 1852 ...

Browse by Subject