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Bar, Confederation of

(Encyclopedia)Bar, Confederation of, union formed in 1768 at Bar, in Podolia (now in W Ukraine), by a number of Polish nobles to oppose the interference of Catherine II of Russia in Polish affairs. Headed by the Pu...

ejido

(Encyclopedia)ejido āhēˈᵺō [key] [Span.,=common land], in Mexico, agricultural land expropriated from large private holdings and redistributed to communal farms. Communal ownership of land had been widely pra...

McLane, Louis

(Encyclopedia)McLane, Louis, 1786–1857, American statesman, b. Smyrna, Del. He served in the U.S. House of Representatives (1817–27) and in the Senate (1827–29), resigning to become minister to England (1829�...

Saint-Germain-des-Prés

(Encyclopedia)Saint-Germain-des-Prés săN-zhĕrmăNˈ-dā-prā [key], historic abbey and church of Paris, on the left bank of the Seine. It was founded (6th cent.) by Childebert I; several Merovingian kings were b...

Rensselaer

(Encyclopedia)Rensselaer rĕnsəlērˈ, rĕnˈsələr [key], city (1990 pop. 8,255), Rensselaer co., E N.Y., on the east bank of the Hudson River opposite Albany; settled 1630 by Dutch, inc. 1897. Chemicals, textil...

Dillinger, John

(Encyclopedia)Dillinger, John dĭlˈĭnjər [key], 1902–34, American bank robber, probably b. Indianapolis. Paroled after serving a prison term for attempted robbery, Dillinger organized a gang and terrorized the...

Gage, Lyman Judson

(Encyclopedia)Gage, Lyman Judson, 1836–1927, American banker and cabinet member, b. Madison co., N.Y. He moved to Chicago in 1855 and from 1868 was associated with the First National Bank of Chicago, of which he ...

Bramah, Joseph

(Encyclopedia)Bramah, Joseph brămˈə, bräˈ– [key], 1748–1814, English inventor. In 1784 he took out his first patent on a safety lock, and in 1795 he patented his hydraulic press, known as the Bramah press ...

Bangkok

(Encyclopedia)Bangkok băngˈkŏkˌ [key], Thai Krung Thep, city (2021 est. pop. 10,539,000), capital of Th...

Lorelei

(Encyclopedia)Lorelei lôrˈəlī, Ger. lōˈrəlī [key], cliff, 433 ft (132 m) high, on the right bank of the Rhine River, near St. Goarshausen, W Germany, about midway between Koblenz and Bingen. There the Rhine...