Columbia Encyclopedia

Search results

500 results found

Fréchette, Louis Honoré

(Encyclopedia)Fréchette, Louis Honoré lwē ônôrāˈ frāshĕtˈ [key], 1839–1908, French Canadian poet and politician, b. Lévis, Que. He worked (1865–71) as a journalist in Chicago and while there wrote a ...

Ems dispatch

(Encyclopedia)Ems dispatch, 1870, communication between King William of Prussia (later German Emperor William I) and his premier, Otto von Bismarck. In June, 1870, the throne of Spain was offered to Prince Leopold ...

Basse-Terre

(Encyclopedia)Basse-Terre bäs-tĕrˈ [key], town, on Basse-Terre Island, capital of Guadeloupe, a French overseas ...

Mendès-France, Pierre

(Encyclopedia)Mendès-France, Pierre pyĕr măNdĕsˈ-fräNs [key], 1907–82, French statesman. A lawyer and economist, he entered (1932) the chamber of deputies as a Radical Socialist. In World War II he was a pi...

Tone, Theobald Wolfe

(Encyclopedia)Tone, Theobald Wolfe, 1763–98, Irish revolutionary. He was called to the bar in 1789 but soon turned his attention to politics. Inspired by the example of the French Revolution, he helped found (179...

Charles IV, duke of Lorraine

(Encyclopedia)Charles IV, 1604–75, duke of Lorraine. He succeeded to the duchy in 1624 but was to lose it several times because of his anti-French policy. In 1633, French troops invaded Lorraine in retaliation fo...

Delors, Jacques

(Encyclopedia)Delors, Jacques (Jacques Lucien Jean Delors) zhäk lo͞osyăNˈ zhäN dəlôrˈ [key] 1925–, French economist and politician and European statesman, president (1985–95) of the European Commission....

Trichet, Jean-Claude

(Encyclopedia)Trichet, Jean-Claude zhäN-klōd trēˈshĕ [key], 1942–, French banker and government official, b. Lyons. During the 1970s Trichet held a number of French finance and treasury positions and in 1978...

Dumas, Thomas-Alexandre

(Encyclopedia)Dumas, Thomas-Alexandre or Alexandre dümäˈ, älĕksäNˈ– [key] 1762–1806, French revolutionary general, b. Saint-Domingue (now Haiti) as Thomas-Alexandre Davy de la Pailleterie, father of Ale...

Wolfe, James

(Encyclopedia)Wolfe, James, 1727–59, British soldier. After a distinguished record in European campaigns, he was made (1758) second in command to Jeffery Amherst in the last of the French and Indian Wars. Through...

Browse by Subject