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Llywelyn ap Gruffydd

(Encyclopedia)Llywelyn or Llewelyn ap Gruffydd hləwĕlˈĭn äp grĭfˈĭᵺ, lo͞oĕlˈĭn [key], d. 1282, Welsh prince, grandson of Llywelyn ap Iorwerth. He succeeded (1246) his uncle, David II, as ruler of Nort...

Essex, Robert Devereux, 3d earl of

(Encyclopedia)Essex, Robert Devereux, 3d earl of, 1591–1646, English parliamentary general; son of Robert Devereux, 2d earl of Essex. James I restored him (1604) to the estates of his father and arranged his marr...

spoils system

(Encyclopedia)spoils system, in U.S. history, the practice of giving appointive offices to loyal members of the party in power. The name supposedly derived from a speech by Senator William Learned Marcy in which he...

Toombs, Robert

(Encyclopedia)Toombs, Robert, 1810–85, American statesman, Confederate leader, b. Wilkes co., Ga. A successful lawyer in Georgia, he entered politics as a Whig, serving in the state legislature and in Congress (1...

Hippocrates

(Encyclopedia)Hippocrates hĭpŏkˈrətēz [key], c.460–c.370 b.c., Greek physician, recognized as the father of medicine. He is believed to have been born on the island of Cos, to have studied under his father, ...

ring, piece of jewelry

(Encyclopedia)ring, small ornamental hoop usually worn on finger or thumb, but it may be attached to the ear or the nose. Finger rings made of bronze, gold, and silver from the period c.2600–1500 b.c. have been f...

Shetland Islands

(Encyclopedia)Shetland Islands zĕtˈ– [key], the archipelago is 70 mi (110 km) long and consists of some 100 islands, of which fewer than one fourth are inhabited. Mainland, Yell, Unst, Fetlar, Whalsey, and Bres...

District of Columbia, University of the

(Encyclopedia)District of Columbia, University of the, at Washington, D.C.; coeducational; land-grant and federally supported; est. 1976 with the merger of three existing colleges; predominantly African American. I...

Field of the Cloth of Gold

(Encyclopedia)Field of the Cloth of Gold, locality between Guines and Ardres, not far from Calais, in France, where in 1520 Henry VIII of England and Francis I of France met for the purpose of arranging an alliance...

Gloucester, Thomas of Woodstock, duke of

(Encyclopedia)Gloucester, Thomas of Woodstock, duke of, 1355–97, English nobleman; youngest son of Edward III. He was betrothed (1374) to Eleanor, heiress of Humphrey de Bohun, earl of Hereford, and became earl o...