Columbia Encyclopedia

Search results

500 results found

Vitry-le-François

(Encyclopedia)Vitry-le-François vētrēˈ-lə-fräNswäˈ [key], town (1990 pop. 17,483), Marne dept., NE France, on the Marne River. Textiles and earthenware are the chief manufactures. The town was founded by Fr...

Ferdinand II, king of the Two Sicilies

(Encyclopedia)Ferdinand II, 1810–59, king of the Two Sicilies (1830–59), son and successor of Francis I. Although initially he sought to improve the wretched conditions of his kingdom, he soon relapsed into the...

zaibatsu

(Encyclopedia)zaibatsu zīˈbätso͞o [key] [Jap.,=money clique], the great family-controlled banking and industrial combines of modern Japan. The leading zaibatsu (called keiretsu after World War II) are Mitsui, M...

George VI, king of Great Britain and Ireland

(Encyclopedia)George VI (Albert Frederick Arthur George), 1895–1952, king of Great Britain and Northern Ireland (1936–52), second son of George V; successor of his elder brother, Edward VIII. He attended the ro...

cruiser

(Encyclopedia)cruiser, large, fast, moderately armed warship, intermediate in type between the aircraft carrier and the destroyer. During World War II, battle cruisers operated as small battleships, combining in on...

gremlin

(Encyclopedia)gremlin, in American folklore, malicious, airborne supernatural being. Gremlins were first heard of during World War II as creatures responsible for unexplainable mechanical failures and disruptions i...

Baldwin II, Latin king of Jerusalem

(Encyclopedia)Baldwin II (Baldwin of Le Bourg), d. 1131, Latin king of Jerusalem (1118–31), count of Edessa (1100–1131); cousin and successor of Baldwin I. He accompanied Godfrey of Bouillon on the First Crusad...

rationing

(Encyclopedia)rationing, allotment of scarce supplies, usually by governmental decree, to provide equitable distribution. It may be employed also to conserve economic resources and to reinforce price and production...

Sherwood, Robert Emmet

(Encyclopedia)Sherwood, Robert Emmet, 1896–1955, American dramatist, b. New Rochelle, N.Y., grad. Harvard, 1918. After serving in World War I, he wrote for Vanity Fair and Life, serving as editor of the latter fr...

Carlton Club

(Encyclopedia)Carlton Club, British political and social club (founded 1832). Located in London, it was long the center of the Conservative party organization. Since World War II the club has been primarily social....