Columbia Encyclopedia

Search results

202 results found

Cornbury, Edward Hyde, Viscount

(Encyclopedia)Cornbury, Edward Hyde, Viscount kôrnˈbərē [key], 1661–1723, colonial governor of New York and New Jersey (1702–8). Appointed governor by William III, he became extremely unpopular, and his adm...

Abscam

(Encyclopedia)Abscam, U.S. scandal resulting from an investigation begun in 1978 by the Federal Bureau of Investigation. The FBI created a front (Abdul Enterprises, Ltd., hence, Abscam) for its agents, who, posing ...

Colfax, Schuyler

(Encyclopedia)Colfax, Schuyler skīˈlər kōlˈfăks [key], 1823–85, Vice President of the United States (1869–73), b. New York City. He moved in boyhood to Indiana. First a Whig editor, he later helped to org...

Greenpeace

(Encyclopedia)Greenpeace, international organization that promotes environmental awareness and addresses environmental abuse through direct, nonviolent confrontations with governments and companies. Founded in 1971...

Paterson, David Alexander

(Encyclopedia)Paterson, David Alexander, 1954–, American politician, the first African-American governor of New York (2008–11), b. Brooklyn, N.Y., grad. Columbia (B.A., 1977), Hofstra Law School (J.D., 1982). T...

Diamond Necklace, Affair of the

(Encyclopedia)Diamond Necklace, Affair of the, scandal that took place at the court of King Louis XVI of France just before the French Revolution. An adventuress who called herself the comtesse de La Motte duped Ca...

Dehaene, Jean-Luc

(Encyclopedia)Dehaene, Jean-Luc, 1940–2014, Belgian political leader, b. Montepellier, France. A member of the Flemish Christian People's (after 2001, Christian Democratic) party, he held numerous administrative ...

Eulenburg, Philipp, Fürst zu

(Encyclopedia)Eulenburg, Philipp, Fürst zu fēˈlĭp fürst tso͞o oiˈlən-bo͝orkh [key], 1847–1921, German diplomat, friend and confidential adviser of Emperor William II. He served (1894–1902) as ambassado...

Grévy, Jules

(Encyclopedia)Grévy, Jules zhül grāvēˈ [key], 1807–91, French statesman, president of France (1879–87). As a republican deputy after the February Revolution (1848), he sought to eliminate the danger of a s...

Healy, Timothy Michael

(Encyclopedia)Healy, Timothy Michael, 1855–1931, Irish statesman, first governor-general of the Irish Free State (1922–27). Elected to Parliament in 1880, he worked closely with Charles Stewart Parnell until th...