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Almoravids

(Encyclopedia)Almoravids ălmôrˈəvĭdz [key], Berber Muslim dynasty that ruled Morocco and Muslim Spain in the 11th and 12th cent. The Almoravids may have originated in what is now Mauritania. The real founder w...

bey

(Encyclopedia)bey bā [key], general title of respect used by Turkish peoples since ancient times. Originally given to tribal leaders, it was later used by the Ottomans to denote a provincial ruler. At first the Ot...

piquet

(Encyclopedia)piquet or picquet both: pēkāˈ [key], card game played by two persons with a deck of 32 cards—7 (low) up to ace (high) in each suit. Each player receives 12 cards, and eight cards are left on the ...

hermandad

(Encyclopedia)hermandad ārmändäᵺˈ [key] [Span.,=brotherhood], a peacekeeping association of armed individuals, a characteristic of municipal life in medieval Spain, especially in Castile. Hermandades are know...

Holy Alliance

(Encyclopedia)Holy Alliance, 1815, agreement among the emperors of Russia and Austria and the king of Prussia, signed on Sept. 26. It was quite distinct from the Quadruple Alliance (Quintuple, after the admission o...

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