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Emancipation, Edict of

(Encyclopedia)Emancipation, Edict of, 1861, the mechanism by which Czar Alexander II freed all Russian serfs (one third of the total population). All personal serfdom was abolished, and the peasants were to receive...

Sabin, Joseph

(Encyclopedia)Sabin, Joseph săbˈĭn [key], 1821–81, American bibliophile, b. England. Sabin came to the United States in 1848 and established himself as a dealer in rare books in New York City and Philadelphia....

Wellesley, Richard Colley Wellesley, 1st Marquess

(Encyclopedia)Wellesley, Richard Colley Wellesley, 1st Marquess, 1760–1842, British colonial administrator; brother of Arthur Wellesley, 1st duke of Wellington. He became earl of Mornington on his father's death ...

Independence Hall

(Encyclopedia)Independence Hall, historic building on Independence Square, downtown Philadelphia, in Independence National Historical Park. Originally constructed as the Pennsylvania colony's statehouse in 1732, th...

Fitzwilliam, William Wentworth Fitzwilliam, 2d Earl

(Encyclopedia)Fitzwilliam, William Wentworth Fitzwilliam, 2d Earl, 1748–1833, British administrator. Sent to Ireland as lord lieutenant in 1795, he expressed sympathy for the cause of Catholic Emancipation and wa...

Francis, David Rowland

(Encyclopedia)Francis, David Rowland, 1850–1927, U.S. Secretary of the Interior (1896–97), b. Richmond, Ky. He established a large grain business in St. Louis, entered politics, and served (1885–89) as mayor ...

Bahadur Shah II

(Encyclopedia)Bahadur Shah II bähäˈdo͝or shä [key], 1775–1862, last Mughal emperor of India (1837–57). A political figurehead, he was completely controlled by the British East India Company, who found it c...

Clare, John Fitzgibbon, 1st earl of

(Encyclopedia)Clare, John Fitzgibbon, 1st earl of, 1749–1802, Irish statesman. He was (1783–89) attorney general of Ireland and in 1789 became lord chancellor. A resolute upholder of the Protestant ascendancy i...

Barbour, John

(Encyclopedia)Barbour, John bärˈbər [key], c.1316?–1395, Scottish poet. He was archdeacon of Aberdeen from 1355 until his death. His romance, The Bruce (1375), celebrating Scotland's emancipation from England,...

Grenville, William Wyndham Grenville, Baron

(Encyclopedia)Grenville, William Wyndham Grenville, Baron, 1759–1834, British statesman; youngest son of George Grenville. He was foreign secretary in the ministry of his cousin William Pitt from 1791 to 1801. Du...
 

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