Columbia Encyclopedia

(Encyclopedia) Hiero II, d. c.215 b.c., Greek Sicilian ruler, tyrant of Syracuse (c.270–c.215 b.c.). He showed such ability and distinction after Pyrrhus left Sicily (275 b.c.) that he was made commander in chief ...

(Encyclopedia) Christian II, 1481–1559, king of Denmark and Norway (1513–23) and Sweden (1520–23), son and successor of King John. After several unsuccessful attempts, he asserted claim to Sweden by force. How...

(Encyclopedia) Beyazid II, 1447–1513, Ottoman sultan (1481–1512), son and successor of Muhammad II to the throne of the Ottoman Empire (Turkey). With the help of the corps of Janissaries he put down the revolt o...

(Encyclopedia) Artaxerxes II, d. 358 b.c., king of ancient Persia (404–358 b.c.), son and successor of Darius II. He is sometimes called in Greek Artaxerxes Mnemon [the thoughtful]. Early in his reign Cyrus the Yo...

(Encyclopedia) Gustavus III, 1746–92, king of Sweden (1771–92), son and successor of Adolphus Frederick. When Gustavus ascended the throne, he found his kingdom torn by civil strife. To the conflicting interests...

(Encyclopedia) Russo-Turkish Wars. The great eastward expansion of Russia in the 16th and 17th cent., during the decline of the Ottoman Empire, nevertheless left the shores of the Black Sea in the hands of the Ottom...

(Encyclopedia) Ivan VI, 1740–64, czar of Russia (1740–41), great-grandson of Ivan V. He was the son of Prince Anthony Ulric of Brunswick-Wolfenbüttel and of Anna Leopoldovna. An infant, he succeeded his great-a...

(Encyclopedia) Radom räˈdôm [key], city (1993 est. pop. 230,500), Mazowieckie prov., SE Poland. It is a railway junction and an industrial center. The main products are textiles, glassware, chemicals, and process...

(Encyclopedia) Joanna II, 1371–1435, queen of Naples (1414–35), sister and successor of Lancelot. The intrigues of her favorites kept her court in turmoil. Her second husband, James of Bourbon, tried to seize po...

(Encyclopedia) Montmorency, Anne, duc de mŏntˌmərĕnˈsē, Fr. än dük də môNmôräNsēˈ [key], 1493?–1567, constable of France. He was made a marshal (1522) by Francis I, was captured with Francis at Pavia...