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Trent Affair

(Encyclopedia)Trent Affair, incident in the diplomatic relations between the United States and Great Britain, which occurred during the American Civil War. On Nov. 8, 1861, the British mail packet Trent, carrying J...

Cambrian period

(Encyclopedia)Cambrian period [Lat. Cambria=Wales], first period of the Paleozoic geologic era (see Geologic Timescale, tablegeologic timescale, table) extending from approximately 570 to 505 million years ago. It ...

Duane, William John

(Encyclopedia)Duane, William John, 1780–1865, U.S. Secretary of Treasury (June–Sept., 1833), b. Clonmel, Ireland. He emigrated (1796) to Philadelphia with his father, William Duane (1760–1835), and assisted h...

Falkland Islands

(Encyclopedia)Falkland Islands fôkˈlənd [key], Span. Islas Malvinas, group of islands (2015 est. pop. 3,000), 4,618 sq mi (11,961 sq km), S Atlantic, c.300 mi (480 km) E of the Strait of Magellan. The islands ar...

International Labor Organization

(Encyclopedia)International Labor Organization (ILO), specialized agency of the United Nations, with headquarters in Geneva. It was created in 1919 by the Versailles Treaty and affiliated with the League of Nations...

Taft, Robert Alphonso

(Encyclopedia)Taft, Robert Alphonso, 1889–1953, American politician, b. Cincinnati, Ohio; son of William Howard Taft. He practiced law in Ohio and served (1921–26, 1931–32) in the state legislature. Elected t...

county

(Encyclopedia)county [Fr., comté,=domain of a count], division of local government in the United States, Great Britain, and many Commonwealth countries. The county developed in England from the shire, a unit of lo...

Maryland

(Encyclopedia) CE5 Maryland mârˈələnd [key], one of the Middle Atlantic states of the United States. It is bounded by Delaware and the Atlantic Ocean (E), the District of Columbia (S), Virginia and West Virgi...

Forsyth, John

(Encyclopedia)Forsyth, John fôrsīthˈ [key], 1780–1841, American cabinet member, b. Fredericksburg, Va. He began law practice in Augusta, Va., and was in the House of Representatives from 1813 until his electio...

balance of power

(Encyclopedia)balance of power, system of international relations in which nations seek to maintain an approximate equilibrium of power among many rivals, thus preventing the preponderance of any one state. Crucial...
 

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