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Purbeck, Isle of

(Encyclopedia)Purbeck, Isle of, peninsula, c.12 mi (20 km) long and c.8 mi (13 km) wide, Dorset, S England, between Poole Harbour and the English Channel. St. Albans Head is the most southerly point of the rocky sh...

Eden, Garden of

(Encyclopedia)Eden, Garden of, in the Bible, first home to humankind. In it were the trees of life and of the knowledge of good and evil. Having eaten the forbidden fruit of the latter tree, Adam and Eve were banis...

Strathclyde, University of

(Encyclopedia)Strathclyde, University of, at Glasgow, Scotland; founded 1796 as Anderson's Institution. In 1886 its name was changed to Glasgow and West of Scotland Technical College, and in 1956 it became known as...

Brunanburh, battle of

(Encyclopedia)Brunanburh, battle of bro͞oˈnənbûrg [key], a.d. 937, a victory won by Athelstan, king of the English, over a coalition of Irish, Scots, and Britons (or Welsh) of Strathclyde. The site of the battl...

right of way

(Encyclopedia)right of way, in land and air traffic and in sea navigation, rules that determine precedence in the use of traffic lanes. The rules are framed in the simplest possible terms and with nearly absolute u...

Tropic of Capricorn

(Encyclopedia)Tropic of Capricorn, parallel of latitude at 23°30′ south of the equator; it is the southern boundary of the tropics. This parallel marks the farthest point south at which the sun can be seen direc...

Aden, Gulf of

(Encyclopedia)Aden, Gulf of äˈdən, āˈ– [key], western arm of the Arabian Sea, 550 mi (885 km) long, lying between Yemen and Somalia; connected with the Red Sea by the Bab el Mandeb. The gulf is on the great ...

Jerome of Prague

(Encyclopedia)Jerome of Prague, c.1370–1416, Bohemian religious reformer. During his studies at Prague and at Oxford, Jerome was influenced by the doctrinal views of John Wyclif. He continued to study and travel ...

Longchamp, William of

(Encyclopedia)Longchamp, William of lôngˈshămp, lôNshäNˈ [key], d. 1197, chancellor and justiciar of England, bishop of Ely. After service with Geoffrey, duke of Brittany, he joined Richard (later Richard I) ...

Genoa, Conference of

(Encyclopedia)Genoa, Conference of, 1922, at Genoa, Italy. Representatives of 34 nations convened on Apr. 10 to attempt the reconstruction of European finance and commerce. It was the first conference after World W...