Columbia Encyclopedia

(Encyclopedia) Bruce, Scottish royal family descended from an 11th-century Norman duke, Robert de Brus. He aided William I in his conquest of England (1066) and was given lands in England. His son was granted fiefs ...

(Encyclopedia) Jasper, William, c.1750–79, American Revolutionary soldier, b. South Carolina (possibly near Georgetown). He joined William Moultrie's regiment early in the Revolution (1775), was made sergeant, and...

(Encyclopedia) Wotton, William, 1666–1727, English scholar. He is best known for his Reflections upon Ancient and Modern Learning (1694), a defense of contemporary learning written in response to an essay by Sir W...

(Encyclopedia) Evans-Pritchard, Edward Evan, 1902–73, English social anthropologist. He made several expeditions to Africa. His major contributions lie in the fields of social anthropology and comparative religion...

(Encyclopedia) Frere, Sir Henry Bartle Edward frēr [key], 1815–84, British colonial administrator; nephew of John Hookham Frere. He served (1850–59) as chief commissioner of Sind, distinguishing himself during ...

(Encyclopedia) Ledyard, William lĕdˈyərd [key], 1738–81, American Revolutionary officer, b. Groton, Conn. In 1781, as commander of Fort Griswold (near Groton), he refused to surrender, despite threats of massac...

(Encyclopedia) Savery, William sāˈvərē [key], 1721–87, American cabinetmaker. He is believed to have lived in Philadelphia from c.1740. Savery is noted for his artistic and original interpretation of 18th-cent...

(Encyclopedia) Holt, Harold Edward, 1908–67, Australian political leader. After studying law, he entered politics and became associated with Robert Gordon Menzies. He held a number of cabinet offices in Menzies's ...

(Encyclopedia) Ross, Edward Alsworth, 1866–1951, American sociologist, b. Virden, Ill., Ph.D. Johns Hopkins, 1891. He taught economics (1893–1900) at Stanford Univ., from which he was ousted in a controversy ove...

(Encyclopedia) William the Silent or William of Orange (William I, prince of Orange), 1533–84, Dutch statesman, principal founder of Dutch independence. William married four times. His first wife was Anne of Egm...