Columbia Encyclopedia

(Encyclopedia) dictator, originally a Roman magistrate appointed to rule the state in times of emergency; in modern usage, an absolutist or autocratic ruler who assumes extraconstitutional powers. From 501 b.c. unti...

(Encyclopedia) Douhet, Giulio jo͞oˈlyō do͞oāˈ [key], 1869–1930, Italian military officer and early advocate of airpower. He was an early supporter of strategic bombing and the military superiority of air for...

(Encyclopedia) Schuschnigg, Kurt von ko͝ort fən sho͝oshˈnĭk [key], 1897–1977, Austrian chancellor. He served (1932–34) as minister of justice and education and helped Engelbert Dollfuss repress the Social D...

(Encyclopedia) Munich Pact, 1938. In the summer of 1938, Chancellor Hitler of Germany began openly to support the demands of Germans living in the Sudetenland (see Sudetes) of Czechoslovakia for an improved status. ...

(Encyclopedia) Arias Montanus, Benedictus bānēˈtō äˈryäs mōntäˈnō [key], 1527–98, Spanish Benedictine monk, editor of the Antwerp Polyglot Bible. He attended the Council of Trent (1562). ...

(Encyclopedia) Victor Emmanuel III, 1869–1947, king of Italy (1900–1946), emperor of Ethiopia (1936–43), king of Albania (1939–43), son and successor of Humbert I. In 1896 he married Princess Helena of Monte...

(Encyclopedia) Matteotti, Giacomo jäˈkōmō mät-tāôtˈtē [key], 1885–1924, Italian Socialist leader; the outstanding opponent of the Fascist regime during its early days. He was a member of parliament, and h...

(Encyclopedia) propaganda, systematic manipulation of public opinion, generally by the use of symbols such as flags, monuments, oratory, and publications. Modern propaganda is distinguished from other forms of commu...

(Encyclopedia) Ciano, Galeazzo gälāätˈtsō chäˈnō [key], 1903–44, Italian foreign minister and Fascist leader; son of Admiral Costanzo Ciano, conte di Cortellazzo. He entered on a diplomatic career, married...

(Encyclopedia) Lateran Treaty, concordat between the Holy See and the kingdom of Italy signed in 1929 in the Lateran Palace, Rome, by Cardinal Gasparri for Pius XI and by Benito Mussolini for Victor Emmanuel III. On...