Columbia Encyclopedia

(Encyclopedia) Norsemen, name given to the Scandinavian Vikings who raided and settled on the coasts of the European continent in the 9th and 10th cent. They are also referred to as Northmen or Normans. Recent resea...

(Encyclopedia) Otto I, 1815–67, first king of the Hellenes (1833–62). The second son of King Louis I of Bavaria, he was chosen (1832) by a conference of European powers at London to rule newly independent Greece...

(Encyclopedia) Duarte dwärˈtə [key], 1391–1438, king of Portugal (1433–38), eldest of the five sons of John I. He was a “philosopher-king,” notable for his legal reforms and as the author of O leal consel...

(Encyclopedia) Alfonso X (Alfonso the Wise), 1221–84, Spanish king of Castile and León (1252–84); son and successor of Ferdinand III, whose conquests of the Moors he continued, notably by taking Cádiz (1262). ...

(Encyclopedia) Verschaffelt, Pieter Anton pēˈtər änˈtôn vĕrskhäfˈəlt [key], 1710–93, Flemish rococo sculptor. He spent about 10 years in Rome, where he executed a monument to Pope Benedict XIV. In 1752 h...

(Encyclopedia) Alfonso IV, 1299–1336, king of Aragón and count of Barcelona (1327–36), son and successor of James II. Before his accession he conquered (1323–24) Sardinia, where later a revolt involved him in...

(Encyclopedia) Alexander (Alexander Obrenović) ōbrĕˈnəvĭch [key], 1876–1903, king of Serbia (1889–1903), son of King Milan. He succeeded on his father's abdication. Proclaiming himself of age in 1893, he t...

(Encyclopedia) Elizabeth, 1596–1662, queen of Bohemia, daughter of James I of England. Her beauty attracted most of the royal suitors of Europe (she was nicknamed the “Queen of Hearts”), but she was married (1...

(Encyclopedia) Henry V, 1387–1422, king of England (1413–22), son and successor of Henry IV. Henry abandoned his early recklessness (celebrated and probably exaggerated by Shakespeare) and ruled with justice...

(Encyclopedia) Henry IV, 1425–74, Spanish king of Castile and León (1454–74), son and successor of John II. His weakness opened the way to civil strife and anarchy. The Castilian nobles refused to recognize Hen...