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Witowt

(Encyclopedia)Witowt or Witold vĭtˈôft, –ôlt [key], Lithuanian Vytautas, 1350–1430, grand duke of Lithuania (1401–30). In 1382, Witowt, as well as his father, was imprisoned by Ladislaus Jagiello (see Lad...

constructivism

(Encyclopedia)constructivism, Russian art movement founded c.1913 by Vladimir Tatlin, related to the movement known as suprematism. After 1916 the brothers Naum Gabo and Antoine Pevsner gave new impetus to Tatlin's...

Alexander III, pope

(Encyclopedia)Alexander III, d. 1181, pope (1159–81), a Sienese named Rolandus [Bandinelli?], successor of Adrian IV. He was a canonist who had studied law under Gratian and had taught at Bologna. He came to Rome...

Charles Albert

(Encyclopedia)Charles Albert, 1798–1849, king of Sardinia (1831–49, see Savoy, house of). Because he had not been entirely unsympathetic to the revolutionary movement of 1821 in Sardinia, Charles Albert develop...

Urban II

(Encyclopedia)Urban II, c.1042–1099, pope (1088–99), a Frenchman named Odo (or Eudes) of Lagery; successor of Victor III. He studied at Reims and became a monk at Cluny. He went to Rome, as prior of Cluny, earl...

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...

Zog

(Encyclopedia)Zog zŭk [key], 1895–1961, king of Albania. Originally Ahmet Muhtar Bej Zogolliu (later Albanianized to Zogu), he came from a Muslim family and served in the Austrian army in World War I. He became ...

Bonaventure, Saint

(Encyclopedia)Bonaventure or Bonaventura, Saint bŏnˌəvĕnˈchər, bōˌnävānto͞oˈrä [key], 1221–74, Italian scholastic theologian, cardinal, Doctor of the Church, called the Seraphic Doctor, b. near Viter...

Medici, Alessandro de'

(Encyclopedia)Medici, Alessandro de' mĕˈdĭchē, Ital. māˈdēchē [key], 1510?–37, duke of Florence (1532–37); probably an illegitimate son of Lorenzo de' Medici, duke of Urbino. His prominence began when ...

Lee, Henry

(Encyclopedia)Lee, Henry, 1756–1818, American Revolutionary soldier, known as Light-Horse Harry Lee, b. Prince William co., Va. He was a cousin of Arthur Lee, Francis L. Lee, Richard H. Lee, and William Lee and w...