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Alexius III

(Encyclopedia)Alexius III (Alexius Angelus) ănˈjələs [key], d. after 1210, Byzantine emperor (1195–1203). He acceded to power by deposing and blinding his brother Isaac II. This act served as pretext for the ...

excess profits tax

(Encyclopedia)excess profits tax, levy on any profit above a standard level. Chiefly a wartime phenomenon, it is intended to increase revenue during periods of distress and to prevent businessmen from taking unfair...

Patkul, Johann Reinhold von

(Encyclopedia)Patkul, Johann Reinhold von yōˈhän rīnˈhôlt fən pätˈko͝ol [key], 1660–1707, Livonian nobleman. He incurred the wrath of Charles XI of Sweden by championing the rights of the Livonian gentr...

Gaeta

(Encyclopedia)Gaeta gäĕˈtä [key], town, in Latium, central Italy, a seaport on a high promontory in the...

Halsey, William Frederick, Jr.

(Encyclopedia)Halsey, William Frederick, Jr. (Bull Halsey) hôlˈsē [key], 1882–1959, American admiral, b. Elizabeth, N.J., grad. Annapolis, 1904. In World War II he led (Jan., 1942) a spectacular carrier raid a...

Arcimboldo, Giuseppe

(Encyclopedia)Arcimboldo, Giuseppe jo͞ozĕpˈpā ärchēmbôlˈdō [key], 1527–93, Italian painter. The son of an artist, he began as a traditional portrait painter. Later, as court painter to Hapsburg kings Max...

Berkhamstead

(Encyclopedia)Berkhamstead, formerly also Great Berkhampstead both: bûrkˈəmstĕd, bärkˈ– ...

Wenceslaus I, king of Bohemia

(Encyclopedia)Wenceslaus I, d. 1253, king of Bohemia (1230–53), son and successor of Ottocar I. He invited large numbers of Germans to settle in the villages and towns of Bohemia and Moravia. In some villages pea...

Wharton, Thomas Wharton, 1st marquess of

(Encyclopedia)Wharton, Thomas Wharton, 1st marquess of, 1648–1715, English politician. Before his entry into Parliament (1673) he had acquired the reputation as a rake and gambler that he retained for life. After...

Catherine of Braganza

(Encyclopedia)Catherine of Braganza brəgănˈzə [key], 1638–1705, queen consort of Charles II of England, daughter of John IV of Portugal. She was married to Charles in 1662. As part of her dowry England secure...