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George Berkeley
George Berkeley (1685-1753) was an Anglo-Irish bishop and an empiricist and idealist philosopher. He infamously claimed that no matter exists outside of God and that things only exist outside of our minds and perceptions because God perceives...
Definition
Bacon's Rebellion
Bacon’s Rebellion (1676) was the first full-scale armed insurrection in Colonial America pitting the landowner Nathaniel Bacon (l. 1647-1676) and his supporters of black and white indentured servants and African slaves against his cousin-by-marriage...
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Gertrude Bell
Gertrude Bell (l. 1868-1926) was an archaeologist, travel writer, explorer, and political administrator responsible for creating the borders of the countries of the Near East after World War I and, especially, for the foundation of the modern...
Definition
RMS Empress of Ireland
The RMS Empress of Ireland was a transatlantic passenger ship that sank early in the morning of 29 May 1914 on the St. Lawrence River killing 1,012 of the 1,477 people on board. It is considered Canada’s worst maritime disaster and one of...
Definition
Arachne
Arachne, from the Greek arákhnē (meaning spider), is a figure in Greek mythology whose talent for weaving was renowned and who famously challenged the goddess Minerva to a weaving competition. As told in Ovid’s (43 BCE-17 CE) Metamorphoses...
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George IV by Lawrence
An 1816 painting by Thomas Lawrence of George IV of Great Britain (r. 1820-30) when he was Prince Regent. He is here shown wearing the robes of the Order of the Garter. (Vatican Museums)
Definition
Edward II of England
Edward II of England reigned as king from 1307 to 1327 CE. Succeeding his father Edward I of England (r. 1272-1307 CE), his reign saw a disastrous defeat to the Scots at Bannockburn in June 1314 CE, and the king's lack of political and military...
Definition
Vinland
Vinland (Old Norse Vínland, 'Wine Land') is the name given to the lands explored and briefly settled by Norse Vikings in North America around 1000 CE, particularly referring to Newfoundland, where a Viking site known as L'Anse aux Meadows...
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George Berkeley by Smibert
A 1720s oil-on-canvas portrait by John Smibert of the Anglo-Irish philosopher George Berkeley (1685-1753). (National Portrait Gallery, London)
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Jaques Cartier
A portrait of Jaques Cartier (1491-1557 CE) a French-Breton maritime explorer. He was the first European who mapped the Gulf of Saint Lawrence and the shores of the Saint Lawrence River. He was also the one who named these lands "The Country...