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Ladislaus I, king of Poland

(Encyclopedia)Ladislaus I, 1260–1333, duke (1306–20) and later king (1320–33) of Poland; called Ladislaus the Short. He restored the Polish kingdom, which had been partitioned since 1138 (see Piast). In his c...

Olsztyn

(Encyclopedia)Olsztyn ôlˈshtĭn [key], Ger. Allenstein, city (1993 est. pop. 165,600), capital of Warmińsko-Mazurskie prov., N Poland. It is a trade, manufacturing, and railroad center, as well as a popular heal...

interlude

(Encyclopedia)interlude, development in the late 15th cent. of the English medieval morality play. Played between the acts of a long play, the interlude, treating intellectual rather than moral topics, often contai...

Cloisters, the

(Encyclopedia)Cloisters, the, museum of medieval European art, in Fort Tryon Park, New York City, overlooking the Hudson River. A branch of the Metropolitan Museum of Art, it was opened to the public in May, 1938. ...

Hawes, Stephen

(Encyclopedia)Hawes, Stephen, c.1475–1530, English poet. His best-known works, the two allegories Example of Virtue (1504?) and Pastime of Pleasure (1505?), use typically medieval conventions, but they differ fro...

Alcántara

(Encyclopedia)Alcántara älkänˈtärä [key], town, Cáceres prov., W Spain, in Extremadura, near the Tagus River. A fine Roman bridge (Arabic al-kantara) built (a.d. 105–106) in ...

Ermeland

(Encyclopedia)Ermeland wôrˈmēə [key], historic region of East Prussia, extending far inland from the Baltic Sea. It was ceded to Poland in 1466 by the Teutonic Knights, passed to Prussia in 1772, and reverted t...

Frere, John Hookham

(Encyclopedia)Frere, John Hookham, 1769–1846, British writer and diplomat. He was a member of Parliament (1796–1802) and with his friend George Canning wrote effective parodies and satires for the political new...

Brantôme, Pierre de Bourdeille, seigneur de

(Encyclopedia)Brantôme, Pierre de Bourdeille, seigneur de pyĕr də bo͞ordāˈyə sānyörˈ də bräNtōmˈ [key], 1540?–1614, French courtier, soldier, and author of memoirs. He accompanied Mary Stuart to Sco...

fraternal orders

(Encyclopedia)fraternal orders, organizations whose members are usually bound by oath and who make extensive use of secret ritual in the conduct of their meetings. Most fraternal orders are limited to members of on...