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Vendôme, Louis Joseph, duc de

(Encyclopedia)Vendôme, Louis Joseph, duc de dük də väNdōmˈ [key], 1654–1712, marshal of France; grandson of César de Vendôme and son of Laura Mancini. He fought in the War of the Grand Alliance. In the W...

Braille, Louis

(Encyclopedia)Braille, Louis brāl, Fr. lwē brīˈyə [key], 1809?–1852, French inventor of the Braille system of printing and writing for the blind. Having become blind from an accident at the age of 3, he was ...

Charles III, king of Spain, and of Naples and Sicily

(Encyclopedia)Charles III, 1716–88, king of Spain (1759–88) and of Naples and Sicily (1735–59), son of Philip V and Elizabeth Farnese. Recognized as duke of Parma and Piacenza in 1731, he relinquished the duc...

Alexius III

(Encyclopedia)Alexius III (Alexius Angelus) ănˈjələs [key], d. after 1210, Byzantine emperor (1195–1203). He acceded to power by deposing and blinding his brother Isaac II. This act served as pretext for the ...

Alfonso VIII, Spanish king of Castile

(Encyclopedia)Alfonso VIII (Alfonso the Noble), 1155–1214, Spanish king of Castile (1158–1214), son and successor of Sancho III. Chaos prevailed during his minority, but he quickly restored order after assuming...

Leo III, Byzantine emperor

(Encyclopedia)Leo III (Leo the Isaurian or Leo the Syrian), c.680–741, Byzantine emperor (717–41). He was probably born in N Syria (rather than in Isauria, as once thought). He held diplomatic and military post...

Riel, Louis

(Encyclopedia)Riel, Louis lwē rēĕlˈ [key], 1844–85, Canadian insurgent, leader of two rebellions, b. Manitoba, of French and Métis parentage. In 1869–70 he led the rebels of the Red River settlements, main...

Khama III

(Encyclopedia)Khama III käˈmä [key], d. 1923?, chief of the Ngwato people of Bechuanaland (now Botswana) from 1875 until his death; grandfather of Sir Seretse Khama. To counter threats from neighboring Africans ...

King Horn

(Encyclopedia)King Horn, probably the earliest English-language romance, written c.1250 and containing about 1,500 lines. It is by an anonymous author and is based on an earlier work in French. Emphasizing action a...

Trochu, Louis Jules

(Encyclopedia)Trochu, Louis Jules lwē zhül trôshüˈ [key], 1815–96, French general. He fought in Algeria, in the Crimean War, and in the Italian war of 1859. In L'Armée française en 1867 (1867), he criticiz...