Columbia Encyclopedia

Search results

500 results found

Peel, Sir Robert

(Encyclopedia)Peel, Sir Robert, 1788–1850, British statesman. The son of a rich cotton manufacturer, whose baronetcy he inherited in 1830, Peel entered Parliament as a Tory in 1809. He served (1812–18) as chief...

Ayton, Sir Robert

(Encyclopedia)Ayton or Aytoun, Sir Robert both: āˈtən [key], 1570–1638, English poet and courtier. He was private secretary to the queens of James I and Charles I, besides holding other posts of honor. He wrot...

Baldwin, Robert

(Encyclopedia)Baldwin, Robert, 1804–58, Canadian statesman, leader of the movement for representative government in Canada, b. York (now Toronto), Ont. His father, William Warren Baldwin (1775–1844), was a lead...

Edwards, Sir Robert Geoffrey

(Encyclopedia)Edwards, Sir Robert Geoffrey, 1925–2013, British physiologist, Ph.D. Edinburgh Univ., 1955. In 1963 he became a research fellow at Cambridge. He was associated with the university until his death, a...

Cotton, Sir Robert Bruce

(Encyclopedia)Cotton, Sir Robert Bruce, 1571–1631, English antiquarian. The Cottonian collection of books, manuscripts, coins, and antiquities became a part of the British Museum when it was founded in 1753. Cott...

Muldoon, Sir Robert David

(Encyclopedia)Muldoon, Sir Robert David, 1921–92, New Zealand political leader, prime minister (1975–84). Originally a public accountant, he entered parliament in 1960 as a member of the conservative National p...

Markham, Sir Clements Robert

(Encyclopedia)Markham, Sir Clements Robert märˈkəm [key], 1830–1916, English geographer and writer. While in the navy he served on a British expedition (1850–51) to the Arctic to search for the explorer Sir ...

Menzies, Sir Robert Gordon

(Encyclopedia)Menzies, Sir Robert Gordon mĕnˈzēz [key], 1894–1978, Australian statesman. A barrister, Menzies was elected to the Australian House of Representatives in 1934 and was attorney general (1935–39)...

Robertson, Sir William Robert

(Encyclopedia)Robertson, Sir William Robert, 1860–1933, British field marshal. He enlisted in the army in 1877 and became an officer in 1888. He was in the intelligence department in India (1892–96) and served ...

Borden, Sir Robert Laird

(Encyclopedia)Borden, Sir Robert Laird, 1854–1937, Canadian political leader, prime minister during World War I, b. Grand-Pré, N.S. Called to the bar in 1878, he won a reputation as a constitutional lawyer. He w...