Columbia Encyclopedia

(Encyclopedia) Bracton, Henry de, d. 1268, English writer on law. He was the author of De legibus et consuetudinibus Angliae [on the laws and customs of England], a broad, philosophic treatise that is often called t...

(Encyclopedia) Caslon, William kăzˈlən [key], 1692–1766, English type designer, b. Worcestershire. He worked first in London as an engraver of gunlocks, then set up his own foundry in 1716. The merits of Caslon...

(Encyclopedia) George William, 1597–1640, elector of Brandenburg (1619–40). Mild and irresolute, he was a Calvinist, yet he ruled a Lutheran people. He failed to turn the strategic position of Brandenburg to adv...

(Encyclopedia) Denham, Sir John dĕnˈəm [key], 1615–69, English poet and dramatist. His fame rests largely on two works: Cooper's Hill (1642), a topographical poem, combining descriptions of scenery with moral r...

(Encyclopedia) Colvin, Sir Sidney kōlˈvĭn [key], 1845–1927, English man of letters. Slade professor of fine arts at Cambridge and keeper of prints at the British Museum, he was a friend of Robert Louis Stevenso...

(Encyclopedia) Boult, Sir Adrian bōlt [key], 1889–1983, English conductor. Boult studied conducting in Leipzig with Arthur Nikisch (1912–13). In 1930 he became conductor of the newly formed BBC Symphony Orchest...

(Encyclopedia) Bose, Sir Jagadis Chandra, or Sir Jagadis Chunder Bose jəgäˈdēs chŭnˈdrə bōs, chŭnˈdər [key], 1858–1937, Indian physicist and plant physiologist, educated in Calcutta (now Kolkata) and at...

(Encyclopedia) Chamberlain, Sir Austen (Joseph Austen Chamberlain) chāmˈbərlĭn [key], 1863–1937, British statesman; son of Joseph Chamberlain and half-brother of Neville Chamberlain. He entered Parliament as a...

(Encyclopedia) Coke, Sir Edward ko͝ok [key], 1552–1634, English jurist, one of the most eminent in the history of English law. He entered Parliament in 1589 and rose rapidly, becoming solicitor general and speake...

(Encyclopedia) Lescaze, William lĕskäzˈ [key], 1896–1969, American architect, born and trained in Switzerland. Emigrating to the United States in 1920, Lescaze became influential in introducing the new European...