the nuttall encyclopaedia

722 Pages·2012·38.68 MB·English

THE NUTTALL
ENCYCLOPAEDIA
THE NUTTALL
ENCYCLOPAEDIA
DEALING WITH
BIOGRAPHY· GEOGRAPHY· HISTORY· MYTHOLOGY
LITERATURE . SCIENCE AND INVENTION
RELIGIONS OF THE WORLD . POLITICS . ART
MUSIC· THE STA~E . BUSINESS· LAW· ETC.
Edited by
C. M.
COPYRIGHT IN ALL
COUNTRIES SIGNATORY TO
THE BERNE CONVENTION
FREDERICK WARNE & CO. LTD.
LONDON
1956
N err edition (Reset) 1930
Revised edition 1938
Reprinted 1946
Reprinted 1949
Reprinted 1950
New· edition (Relet) 1956
Printed in Great Britain
PREFACE
"THE NUTTALL ENCYCLOPAEDIA" provides in a concise form an
epitome of the information given in larger encyclopaedias, so that
this single volume of reference should prove sufficient for all ordinary
requirements.
In modern life an encyclopaedia is as indispensable a book of reference
as a dictionary; the latter explains and defines a train of thought, but the
former defines the subject matter.
The expansion in the vocabulary of a nation, which makes the possession
of an up-to-date dictionary one of the necessities of life, is due to the rapid
increase in the number of facts and events which the language is required
to describe. It is difficult to keep pace with the growth of a language and
the eonstant introduction of new words, but how much more difficult it is
to absorb even a working knowledg~ of the fresh events and facts which
crowd into our daily lives.
It is impossible even to lllq.d\ a d~il.Y .p~p!lr/without realising that the
details of some important question 'or'e vent need amplification, and often
it is hard to grasp the full meaning behind a news article, because of lack
of knowledge or explanation of some particular point. In short, it is
becoming essential, in these times, to know something of everything, or to
have the wherewithal ,to seek further knowledge. A little knowledge is not
a dangerous thing to those who recognise its limitations; in fact, it may be
sufficient to enable those who possess it'to understand and appreciate what
might otlrerwise re,main a reflection upon their ignorance. In this age of
specialisation, d~ailed knowledge of any subject can be acquired only by
the serious study of works devoted to it. What is wanted for everyday
use is a popular and concise encycl.(;!paedia-the more concise the better,
provided it gives the required information-and one that leaves it to the
individual to approach the appropriate authority, should he desire to pursue
a particular subject in further detail.
The value of an encyclopaedia of such scope must depend, therefore,
upon the careful selection of material, and in this respect it is hoped that
" The Nuttall Encyclopaedia" will be found adequate for any reasonable
demands made upon it. Within the obvious and necessary limits of a
v
vi PREFACE
single volume, the Publishers feel that they have succeeded in including
a wide range of subjects, and they trust that the information given will
meet the needs of those for whom the book has been compiled. It is firmly
believed that this book will prove to be invaluable to the careful newspaper
reader, to parents with children whose persistent questions have often to
remain unanswered, to the schoolteacher and youth leader, to the student, ,
to the businessman or career girl and to everyone of us to whom the pass-
ing of events-and time-is of any concern at all.
"The Nuttall Encyclopaedia:" is offered as a companion volume to
" Nuttall's Standard Dictionary"; like the dictionary it can lie on the desk
ready to hand, and its .size and arrangement make rapid reference easy.
In this new and revised edition which has been entirely reset, all the
information contained in the previous editions by James Wood and Lawrence
Dawson, has been carefully checked and brought up to date, while a large
number of new articles have been added. In Science and Invention the
amazing progress of the last few years makes large additions necessary.
In Geography the second world war caused widespread changes in all parts
of the globe. Biography, History, Literature and Art are all subjects that
call for continual expansion. By careful selection and arrangement it is
believed that the revisions fulfil all these new claims without unduly cur
tailing the space given to the older subjects, such as Mythology, Classics,
Religion and Philosophy, or sacrificing any of the features that have won
so much appreciation for the encyclopaedia in the past.. If any discerning
reader objects that the new edition is less classical and more scientific than
the old one, he will surely admit that this is in accordance with the general
trend of our modern life, and therefore unavoidable.
It may be of assistance to the reader if a synopsis is given of the general
scheme upon which the encyclopaedia is ~ased. The subjects dealt with
could Be roughly classified under the following headings, which are ranked
in the order of importance attached to them:
1. Biographies.-The dates, nationalities, and achievements of noted
people in all ages.
2. Geography.-Concise articles on countries, location of towns, rivers,
mountains, etc., distinguishing characteristics.
3. History.-All important epochs, movements, and events, with dates
and historical significance.
4. Olassical and Mythological References.
5. Literature.-Summaries of the principal authors and poets, past and
present.
6. Science and Invention.-Short articles on general subjects, especially
modern invention, with definition of terms.
7. Religions of the World.-Their respective beliefs and objects of worship,
together with ancient and modern schools of philosophy.
PREFACE vii
8. Politics.-General movements and aims of political parties at home
and abroad.
9. Art, Music, and the Stage.
10. Business.
11. Law.-Definition of terms and short articles on procedure, courts, etc.
12. General.-A large number of miscellaneous subjects which cannot be
classified under the above headings.
The figures in parentheses at the end of the biographies give the years
of birth and death.
Where it has been thought necessary, and found practicable, the syllable
accented in pronunciation has been shown by the mark '-as Abruz'zi.

THE
NUTTALL ENCYCLOP .!EDIA
A
AACHEN ABDICATIONS
are those at Westminster, Canterbury, Durham,
]'ountains, and Holyrood. The first English abbey
was that founded at Bangor in 5()().
ABBEY, Edwin Austin, an American painter in
water·colour, oil, and fresco; lived long and ex
hibited much in England; R.A., 19()8 (1852-1911).
ABBOT, head of an abbey. There were two classes
of abbots: Abbots Regular, as being such in fact,
and Abbots Commendatory, as guardians and
drawing the revenues.
ABBOT, Geor~e, archbishop of Canterbury in the
reigns of James 1. and Charle3 I., and one of the
translators of King James's Bible; an enemy of
Laud's, who succeeded him (1562-1633).
ABBOTSFORD, the residence of Sir Walter Scott,
on the Tweed, near Melrose, built by him in 1811
on the site of a farm called Cartleyhole.
ABDAL'LAH, the father of Mohammed, famed for
his beauty (545-570); also a caliph of Mecca
(622-692).
ABDALRAH'MAN, the Moorish governor of Spain,
defeated by Charles Martel at Tours in 732.
ABDALS (lit. servants of Allah), superior members
ot a Sufi (Moslem) order of saints.
ABD-EL-KA'DIR, an Arab emir, who for fifteen
years waged war against the French in N. Africa,
but at length surrendered prisoner to them in 1847.
On his release in 1852 he became a faithful friend
of France (1807-1883).
ABD-EL-KRIM, leader of the Riffrebeis in Morocco
against the :"'rench and Spanish. A son of
Mohammed Abd·el·Krim, President of the Re
public of the Riff, he fought to re·establish his
country's freedom, using great ability to organise
the tribesmen into the semblance of a modern
army. Before he was forty he had retaken much
Spanish territory and he then turned his attention
to France. From 1920 to 1925 he met with
several successes, but in 1926 he surrendered to the
French at Fez and was exiled to the Mascerene
Islands. In 1947 was given permission to live in
France, but he went to Cairo instead, and made
many anti-French declarations.
ABDE'RA, a town in ancient Thrace, proverbial for
the stnpidity of its inhabitants.
ABDICATIONS: the most celebrated are those of
the Homan Dictator Sylla in iO B.C.; Diocletian in
A.D. 3()5; Charles V. in 1556; Christina of Sweden
in 1654; Napoleon in 1814 and 1815; Charles X.
in 1830; Louis Philippe in 1848; Ferdinand of
Austria in 1848; Isabella II. of Spain in 187();
Amadeus 1. of Spain in 1873; Milan of Servia in
1889; Pedro II. of Brazil in 1889; Hamid II. of
Turkey in 1909; Manoel of Portugal in 191(); Pnyi
of China in 1912; Nicholas II. of Rnssia in 1917;
]j'j)rdinand of Bulgaria in 1918; Wilhelm II. of
G'ermany in 1918; Karl of Austria in 1918; Con
stantine of Greece in 1917; George II. of Greece in
N.E.-B
ABDUL 2 ABUL-FEDA
1924; Muhammad VI. of Turkey in 1922; Amanul from careful measurements we Can calculate the
lah of Afghanistan in 1929; Alphonso XlII. of speed of the earth in its orbit, and hence its dis
Spain in 1931; Edward VIII. of England in tance from the SUD.
1936' Carol II. of Rumania, in 1940; Victor ABERYST'WYTH, a town and seaport in Car
Em";"nuel III. of Italy in 1946; Umberto II. digansbire, Wales, with the University College of
of Italy in 1946; Michael of Rumania in 1947; Wales.
Wilhelmina of the Netherlands in 1948; Leo ABHORRERS, the Royalist and High Church party
pold Ill. of the Belgians in 1951; Farouk of in England under Charles II., so called from their
Egypt in 1952. abhorrence of the principles of their opponents.
ABDUL AZIZ, sultan of Turkey from 1861, in suc ABleH, Wilhelm Hermann, a German miner~
cession to Abdul-Medjid (1830-1876). alogist and traveller; conducted explorations in\
ABDUL-HAMID II., deposed sultan of Turkey, Persia and Daghestan (1806-1886).
brother to Abdul-Aziz, and his successor; under him ABIGAIL, the "idolV of Nabal, espoused by David.
Turkey suffered serious dismemberment, and the ABINGDON, a borough in Berks, 6 m. S. of Oxford..
Christian subjects in Armenia. and Crete were ABIPONES, a once powerful warlike race in Para-
cruelly massacred. He was deposed in 1909 guay and Argentina, now extinct
(1842-1918). ABNER, a Hebrew general under Saul; assassinated
ABDUL-MED'JID, sultan of Turkey, in whose by Joab.
defence against Russia England and France under ABOLITIONISTS, a society formed in the
took the Crimean War (1823-1861). Northern States of America in 1832 advocating
A'BECKETT, Gilbert, an English humorist, who the abolition of slavery. The society grew in
contributed to Punch and other organs; wrote the numbers and influence and was the moving force in
.. Comic Blackstone" and comic histories of Eng the war of 1861-1864, which resulted in Victory for
land and Rome (1811-1856). the anti-slave States under Abraham Lincoln (q.v.).
ABEL, the second SOn of Adam and Eve; slain by his ABO'MEY, capital of former kingdom of Dahomey,
brother. The death of Abel is the subject of a W. Africa.
poem by Gessner and a tragedy by Legouve. ABOU'KlR, village near Alexandria, in Egypt, on
ABEL, Sir Frederick Augustus, joint-inventor of the bay near which Nelson destroyed the French
cordite; a famous authority on explosives. Presi fleet in 1799; where Napoleon beat the Turks,
dent of British Association in 1890 (1827-1902). 1799; and where Abercromby fell, 1801.
AB'ELARD, Peter, a theologian and scholastic ABRAHAM, the Hebrew patriarch, ancestor of the
philosopher of French birth, renowned for his Jews, the very type of an Eastern pastoral chief
dialectic ability J his learning, his passion for at once by his dignified character and simple
HeloIse, and his misfortunes; made conceivability faith.
the test of credibility, and was a great teacher in ABRAHAM, The Plains of, a plateau nr. Quebec,
his day (107!)-1142). the scene of the battle in which the English under
ABENCERRA'GES, a powerful Moorish tribe in Wolfe defeated the French under Montcalm,
Granada, whose fate in the 15th century has been 1759.
the subject of interesting romance. ABRAHAM-MEN, a class oflunatics allowed out of
ABEN-EZ'RA. a learned Spanish Jew and com restraint, at bue time, to roam about and beg; a
mentator on the Hebrew scriptures (1090-1168). set of vagrant impostors affecting lunacy.
ABERA'VON, a town and seaport in Glamorgan ABRAN'TES, a town in Portugal, on the Tagus;
shire, with copper and iron works, for some years taken by Marshal Junot, 1807, aud giving the title
the Parliamentary seat of Ramsay MacDonald. of Duke to him.
ABERCROMBIE, Lascelles, English poet; edu ABRAXAS STONES, stones with cabalistic figures
cated at Malvern and Manchester University, he on them used as talismans.
published several volumes of poetry and some ABRUZ'ZI, a highland district in the Apennines.
critical essays, the first work appearing in 1908 ABRUZ'ZI, Duke of the, Italian geographer and
(1881-1938). explorer; ascended Mt. Ruwenzori, Central Africa,
ABERCROMBY, Sir Ralph, a distinguished 1906 (1873-1933). .
British general of Scottish birth, who fell in Egypt ABSALOM, a son of David, who rebelled against his
after defeating the French at Aboukir Bay (1734- father, and at whose death David gave vent to a
1801). bitter wail of grief. A name given by Dryden to
ABERDEEN, city in Scotland, on the E. coast, the Duke of Monmouth, son of Charles II.
between the mouths of the Dce and Don; built of ABSOLUTE, The, the philosophical name for the
grey granite,' with many fine public edifices, a uncreated Creator, or creating cause of all things,
flourishing university, a large trade, and thriving dependent on notbing external to itself.
manufactures. Old Aberdeen, on the Don, now ABSYRTUS, a brother of Medea, whom she cut in
incorporated in the municipality, is the seat of a pieces as she aed with Jason, pursued by her father,
cathedral church, and of King's College, founded throwing his bones behind her to detain her father
in 1404, united witll the university in the new who, in his pursuit of her, stopped to pick them
town. up.
ABERDEEN, 4th Earl of, a shrewd English states ABT, Frallz, a German musical composer (1819-
man, Prime :Minister of England during the 1885).
Crimean war (1784-1860). ABU, a mountain (6000 ft.) in Rajputana, 'tith a
ABERDEEN SHIRE, a large county in NE. <;>f Scot footprint of Vishnu on the top, and two marble
land; mountainous in S\V., lowland N. and E.; temples half-way up, held sacred by the Jains.
famed for its granite quarries, its fisheries, and its ABU-ABDALLAH. See BOABDIL.
breed of cattle. AB'UBEKR, was the father of Ayesha, the father-in
ABERNETHY, a small burgh in S. Perthshire, with Jaw of Mohammed, the lIrst of the caliphs and the
a Pictish round tower, and once the capital of the founder of the Sunnites; d. 634.
Pictish kingdom. A'BUL-FARAJ, a learned Armenian Jew, who
ABERNETHY, John, a distinguished surgeon and became bishop of Aleppo, and wrote a history of
authority on stomachic diseases (1764-1831). the world from Adam onwards (1226-1286).
ABERRATION OF LIGHT. In order that a cer ABUL-FA ZEL, the vizier of the great Mogul emperor
tain star may" be observed, the telescope must be Akbar, who wrote an account of his reign and of
pointed in a direction slightly different from that the Mogul empire; he was assassinated in 1602.
in which it would be pointed if the earth were not ABUL-FEDA, a ~IosJem prince of Hamat in Syria,
rotating on its axis. As a consequence the star who in his youth took part against the Crusaders,
appears to describe an ellipse in the heavens, and and wrote historical works in Arabic (1273-1331).
ABYDOS 3 ACONCAGUA
ABYan'Dt OfaSm, o"u tso wasn tohne thhoem Aes oiaft iLce sainddee or,f twhheo H sewllaems- AChHer.o/Eic'A oNr ,S.. .. .t,mhee rcico mpemrioond .n ame of the Greeks In the
fhe Hellespont every night to visit Hero in Sestos, ACHAI' A, anciently the N. district of the Pelopon
and as the Sp?t where Xe,:xes bnilt his bridge of nesus, later the whole of it; (mod.) part of the dept.
boats to croSS IlltO Europe III 480 B,C.; also a place of Achilia and BUs, Greece; cap., Patras.
of note in Upper Egypt. ACHARD, Franz Karl, a Prussian chemist, one of
BYSSINIA. See ETHIOPIA. the first to manufacture sugar from beetroot
ACACIA "large group of trees with astringent and (1753-1821).
A "um-yi~lding properties, natives of tropical Africa ACHA'TES, the attendant of ./Eneas in his wander
:nd Australia. ing after the fall of Troy, remarkable for, and a
CADEMY, a public shady park or place of groves perennial type of, fidelity.
A Dear II.thens, where Plato taught his philosophy and ACHELO'US, a river in Greece, which rises in Mt.
wheu'"ce his school derived its name, of which there Pindus, and falls into the Ionian Sea; also the god
are three branches, the Old, the Middle, and the of the river, the oldest of the sons of Oceanus, and
New represented respectively by Plato himself, the father of the Sirens.
Arcdsilaus, and Carneadesp The French .A. c.ademy, ACH'ERON, a river in the underworld; the name of
of forty members, was founded by Richelieu in several rivers in Greece more or less suggestive
1635 and is charged with the interests of the of it.
Fren'ch language and literature, and in particular ACH'ERY, a learned French Benedictine of St.
witb the duty of compiling an authoritative dic Maur (1609-1685).
tionary of the French language. Besides this, ACHI BABA, height (730 ft.) at tip of GalJipoli
there are in France another four with a like limited peninsula, Turkey; scene of fierce fighting in Dar
membership in the interests of other departments danelles camllaign, June-July> 1915.
of science and art, all now associated in the ACHIEVEMENT, the full representation in
Institute of France, which consists in all of 229 heraldrY of the shield and accessories; also known
members. There are similar institutions in other as Hatchment.
states of Europe, all of greater or less note. ACHILL, a rocky, boggy island, sparsely inhabited,
ACANTHUS, a leaf-like ornament on the capitals of off W. coast ofIreland, co. Mayo, with a bold head
the columns of certain orders of architecture. land 2222 ft. high.
ACAPUL'CO, a Mexican port in the PacifiC; har ACHILLE'IS, an unfinished poem of Statins.
bour commodious; popular holiday resort. ACHIL'LES, the son of Peleus and Thetis. King of
ACARNA'NIA AND ./ETOLIA, a dept. of Central the Myrmidons, the most famous of the Greek
Greece N. of Gnif of Corinth; cap., Missolonghi. heroes in the Trojan war, whose wrath with the
ACCA'DIANS, a dark, thick-lipped, short-statured consequences of it forms the subject of the Iliad of
Mongol race in Central Asia, displaced by the Homer. He was invulnerable except in the heel, at
Babylonians and Assyrians, who were Semitic. the point where his mother held him as she dipped
ACCA LAURENTIA, the wife of Faustulus, shep his bodY in the Styx to render him invulnerable.
herd of Numitor, who saved the lives of Romulus ACHILLES OF GERMANY, Albert, third elector
and Remus. of Brandenburg, It man of fiery temper (1414-1486).
ACCIAIOLI, a Florentine family of 15th century, ACHILLES TENDON, the great tendon of the
illustrious in scholarship and war. heel, where Achilles was vulnerable.
ACCOLADE, a gentle blow with a sword on the ACHIT'OPHEL, name given by Dryden to the Earl
shoulder in conferring knighthood. of Shaftesbury of his time.
ACCOL'TI, a Tuscan family, of 15th century, ACHMED PASHA, a French adventurer, served in
famous for their learning. French army, condemned to death, fled, and
ACCOR'SO, the name of a Florentine family, of served Austria; condemned to death a second time,
12th and 13th centuries, great in jurisprudence. pardoned, -£erved under the sultan, was banished
ACCRA', capital and chief port in British Gold to the shores of the Black Sea (1675-1747).
Coast colony. ACH'MET I., sultan of Turkey from 1603 to 1617;
ACCRINGTON, a manufacturing town in Lancs., A_ II., from 1691 to 1695; A. III., from 1703 to
22 m. N. of Manchester. 1736, who gave asylum to Charles XII. of Sweden
ACCUMULATOR, or secondary battery, a cell con after his defeat by the Czar at Pultowa.
sisting of plates oflead dipping into sulphuric acid; A'CI-REA'L:t, a seaport town in Sicily, at the foot
when an electric current is passed through it the of Mount Etna, in NE. of Catania, with mineral
plates undergo a chemical change; if the plates are waters.
subsequently joined by a wire the change takes A'CIS, a Sicilian shepherd enamoured of Galatea,
place in the opposite direction and a current of whom the Cyclops Polyphemus, out of jealousy,
electricity is produced in the direction opposite to overw}1elmed under a rock, from under which his
that of the charging current, blood bas since flowed as a river.
ACELDAMA, the .. Field of Blood" purchased by ACK'ERMANN, Rudolph, an enterprising pub
Judas Iscariot with the price of his betrayal of lisher of illustrated works in the Strand, a native of
Christ, a~"d the scene of his suicide. Saxony (1764-1834).
ACERRA, an ancient city 9 m. NE. of Naples; is in ACLINIC LINE, the magnetic equator, which corre
a formerly malarial district. sponds roughly with the geographical equator. If
ACETIC ACID, the pure acid of vinegar; the salts a magnetised needle is suspended so that it can
are called aceta~es. turn in a vertical plane, the north pole dips if north
ACETONE, a colourless liquid obtained by the dis of the aclinic line and the south if south of the line
tillation of calcium acetate. It is used in the at an angle which increases as the poles are
manufacture of chloroform, iodoform, and cordite approached; upon the line itself the needle remains
(q.v.). horizontal.
ACETYLENE, a colourless gas with an unpleasant ACNE, " skin disease shOWing hard reddish pimples;
smell which burns with a hot, smoky fiame; it is Acne rosacea, a congestion of the skin of the nose
usually prepared by the action of water on calcium and parts adjoining.
carbide; when burned in oxygen it produces an AC(EMET./E, an order of monks in the 5th century
intensely hot fiame which will melt the hardest who by turns kept up a divine service day and
steel. I' night.
ACHlEAN LEAGUE, a confederation of 12 towns in ACOLYTE, a candidate for the priesthood who has
the Peloponnesus, formed especially against the reached the fourth stage of initiation; originally a
inOuence of the Mac~donians (3rd-2nd centuries youth who assisted in church ritual.
B.C.). ACONCA'GUA, the highest peak of the Andes,