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Theodore I , Byzantine emperor of Nicaea

(Encyclopedia)Theodore I (Theodore Lascaris), d. 1222, Byzantine emperor of Nicaea (1204–22), son-in-law of the Byzantine emperor Alexius III. He escaped from Constantinople after it was captured (1204) by the La...

Leo IV, Byzantine emperor

(Encyclopedia)Leo IV (Leo the Khazar), d. 780, Byzantine emperor (775–80), son and successor of Constantine V. He owed his nickname to his mother, a Khazar princess. Leo tempered the iconoclastic excesses of his ...

Joanna II

(Encyclopedia)Joanna II, 1371–1435, queen of Naples (1414–35), sister and successor of Lancelot. The intrigues of her favorites kept her court in turmoil. Her second husband, James of Bourbon, tried to seize po...

Roman, town, Romania

(Encyclopedia)Roman, town (1990 pop. 78,749), NE Romania, in Moldavia, at the confluence of the Prut and Siretul rivers. Sugar refining and the manufacture of building materials are the chief industries. The town w...

Feodor II

(Encyclopedia)Feodor II, 1589–1605, czar of Russia (1605). He succeeded his father, Boris Godunov, but was assassinated when the first false Dmitri was proclaimed czar. ...

Lusitania, Roman province

(Encyclopedia)Lusitania lo͞osĭtānˈēə [key], Roman province in the Iberian Peninsula. As constituted (c.a.d. 5) by Augustus it included all of modern central Portugal as well as much of W Spain. The province t...

Humbert II

(Encyclopedia)Humbert II, 1904–83, last king of Italy (1946), son and successor of Victor Emmanuel III. On the abdication (May, 1946) of his father, who was tainted by his long acquiescence (1922–43) to Fascist...

Robert II, king of France

(Encyclopedia)Robert II (Robert the Pious), 970–1031, king of France (996–1031); son of Hugh Capet, with whom he was joint king after 987. Distinguished for his piety and learning, he also sought to strengthen ...

John III, king of Poland

(Encyclopedia)John III (John Sobieski) sôbyĕˈskē [key], 1624–96, king of Poland (1674–96), champion of Christian Europe against the Ottomans. Born to an ancient noble family, he was appointed (1668) command...

Visconti

(Encyclopedia)Visconti vēskônˈtē [key], Italian family that ruled Milan from the 13th cent. until 1447. In the 12th cent. members of the family received the title of viscount, from which the name is derived. Ot...