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dauphin, French title

(Encyclopedia)dauphin dôˈfĭn, Fr. dōfăNˈ [key] [Fr.,=dolphin], French title, borne first by the counts of Vienne (also called Viennois) and later by the eldest son of the king of France, or, if the dauphin ca...

Vosges, department, France

(Encyclopedia)Vosges vōzh [key], department (1990 pop. 38,2100), E France, largely in Lorraine. Épinal is the capital. ...

Maximilian I, 1756–1825, king and elector of Bavaria

(Encyclopedia)Maximilian I, 1756–1825, king (1806–25) and elector (1799–1806) of Bavaria as Maximilian IV Joseph. His alliance with French Emperor Napoleon I earned him the royal title and vast territorial in...

William II, king of Sicily

(Encyclopedia)William II (William the Good), c.1153–1189, king of Sicily (1166–89), son and successor of William I. He married (1177) Joan, daughter of Henry II of England. As an ally of Pope Alexander III and ...

Wenceslaus I, king of Bohemia

(Encyclopedia)Wenceslaus I, d. 1253, king of Bohemia (1230–53), son and successor of Ottocar I. He invited large numbers of Germans to settle in the villages and towns of Bohemia and Moravia. In some villages pea...

Montmorency, Henri, duc de, the younger, 1595–1632, admiral and marshal of France

(Encyclopedia)Montmorency, Henri, duc de, the younger, 1595–1632, admiral and marshal of France; son of the elder Henri de Montmorency. He became governor of Languedoc in 1613 and fought in the religious and fore...

Landes, department, France

(Encyclopedia)Landes, department (1990 pop. 313,100), SW France, in Gascony, on the Atlantic coast. Mont-de-Marsan is the capital. ...

Jura, department, France

(Encyclopedia)Jura zhüräˈ [key], department (1990 pop. 249,600), E France, in Franche-Comté, bordering on Switzerland. Lons-le-Saunier is the capital. The area is a major producer of Gruyère cheese and a cente...

Marne, river, France

(Encyclopedia)Marne, river, c.325 mi (520 km) long, rising in the Langres plateau, NE France, and flowing in an arc generally NW to the Seine River near Paris. It passes through Chaumont and Châlons-en-Champagne. ...

Philip II, king of Spain, Naples, and Sicily

(Encyclopedia)Philip II, 1527–98, king of Spain (1556–98), king of Naples and Sicily (1554–98), and, as Philip I, king of Portugal (1580–98). Philip was not the bloodthirsty tyrant portrayed by his enemi...