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The History Channel - Encyclopedia Category: History and Culture > History Date & country: 02/12/2007, UK Words: 25833

Uganda
Landlocked country in East Africa, bounded north by Sudan, east by Kenya, south by Tanzania and Rwanda, and west by the Democratic Republic of Congo (formerly Zaire). Government Uganda has a...

Uganda Martyrs
22 Africans, of whom 12 were boy pages, put to death 1885-87 by King Mwanga of Uganda for refusing to renounce Christianity. They were canonized as the first African saints of the Roman Catholic...

Ugarit
Ancient trading-city kingdom (modern Ras Shamra) on the Syrian coast. It was excavated by the French archaeologist Claude Schaeffer (1898-1982) from 1929, with finds dating from...

Ugolino di Nerio
(died 1327) Italian painter, active in Siena. A signed work by him is the high altarpiece of Sta Croce, Florence, a polyptych, his only authenticated painting (fragments are in the National Gallery, London; in...

Uigur
Member of a Turkic people living in northwestern China, Uzbekistan, Kazakhstan, and Kyrgyzstan; they form about 80% of the population of the Chinese province of Xinjiang Uygur. There are about 5...

uitlander
In South African history, term applied by the Boer inhabitants of the Transvaal to immigrants of non-Dutch origin (mostly British) in the late 19th century. The uitlanders' inferior political...

UK
Abbreviation for the United Kingdom. ...

ukiyo-e
Japanese picture or print depicting the pleasures of everyday life; mainly produced by the technique of woodcut, or woodblock. Beg ...

Ukraine
Country in eastern central Europe, bounded to the east by Russia, north by Belarus, south by Moldova, Romania, and the Black Sea, and west by Poland, the Slovak Republic, and Hungary. Government...

Ukrainian
The majority ethnic group living in Ukraine; there are minorities in Siberian Russia, Kazakhstan, Poland, Slovakia, and Romania. There are 40-45 million speakers of Ukrainian, a member of the East...

Ukrainian literature
Like Russian and Belorussian writing, Ukrainian literature has its origins in books written in Kievan Russ from the 11th to the 13th century. After the disruption of Mongol invasion, Ukrainian...

Ulam, Adam (Bruno)
(1922-2000) Polish-born US specialist on Russia. Although many of his books focused on the Russian political system of the Cold War era, he also wrote The Fall of the American University (1972) and...

ulama
The bodies of scholars in Islamic law that form the theocratic element of the government in Muslim countries. The ulama may issue fatwas - injunctions on questions that affect both public and...

Ulbricht, Walter
(1893-1973) East German communist politician, in power 1960-71. He lived in exile in the USSR during Hitler's rule 1933-45. A Stalinist, he became first secretary of the Socialist Unity Party in East...

Ulfilas
(c.311-385) Christian missionary to the Goths, and father of Teutonic literature. He was one of the main exponents of Arianism, but is best remembered for his Gothic translation of the Bible, a work that helped...

Ullman, Edward (Louis)
(1912-1976) US geographer. Professor of geography at the University of Washington (1951-76), he was a specialist in cities and transportation networks, serving as director for the Center for Urban and...

Ullmann, Walter
(1910-1983) Austrian-born English medieval historian, an acknowledged expert in the history of medieval Europe and particularly of the medieval papacy. Ullmann was educated at the universities of Vienna,...

Ulm, Battle of
Series of actions September 1805 during the Napoleonic Wars, generally known as the Campaign of Ulm, in which the French defeated the Austrians in the area of Ulm on the Danube, in southwest...

Ulmanis, Gauntis
(1939) Latvian politician, president 1993-99. He worked principally as an economist and as a municipal employee of Riga 1963-92 and became a member of the Board of the General Bank of Latvia in 1992....

Ulrich, Edward Oscar
(1857-1944) US geologist and palaeontologist. He was curator of the Cincinnati Society of Natural History (1877-81), palaeontologist for geological surveys of the...

Ulster Defence Association
Northern Ireland Protestant paramilitary organization responsible for a number of sectarian killings. Fanatically loyalist, it established a paramilitary wing ( ...

Ulster Freedom Fighters
Paramilitary wing of the Ulster Defence Association. ...

Ulster plantation
In Irish history, the confiscation and resettlement, in 1609, of the Ulster counties of Armagh, Cavan, Donegal, Derry, Fermanagh, and Tyrone by the English government after the Flight of the Earls....

Ulster revival
Protestant revival that began in 1859 in Northern Ireland, inspired by the `Second Great Awakening` in the USA. It transformed the nature of Ulster Protestantism in general and Ulster...

Ulster Television
Television station that holds the licence for independent television (ITV) in Northern Ireland. UTV first went on air on Halloween night 1959 and, although run on a very tight budget, was gaining a...

Ulster Unionist Party
The largest political party in Northern Ireland. Right-of-centre in orientation, its aim is equality for Northern Ireland within the UK, and it opposes union with the Republic of Ireland. The...

Ulster Volunteer Force
In Northern Ireland, most recently a loyalist (pro-Union) paramilitary group, especially active in the 1970s, 1980s, and early 1990s. Originally a paramilitary wing of the Ulster Unionists, the...

Ultra
Abbreviation of Ultra Secret, term used by the British in World War II from spring 1940 to denote intelligence gained by deciphering German signals from the Enigma code-making machine. Ultra...

ultra vires
Any act by a public authority, company, or other agency that goes beyond the limits of its powers. In Ultramontanism
In the Roman Catholic Church, the tenets of an Italian movement that stresses papal authority rather than nationalism in the church. ...

ultrasound scanning
In medicine, the use of ultrasonic pressure waves to create a diagnostic image. It is a safe, noninvasive technique that often eliminates the need for exploratory surgery. The sound waves...

Ulufa'alu, Bartholomew
(1950-2007) Solomon Islands centre-right politician, prime minister 1997-2000. He was elected to the national parliament in 1976. He became leader of the National Democratic Party (Nadepa), which he...

Ulugh Beg
(1394-1449) Mongol mathematician and astronomer, ruler of Samarkand from 1409 and of the Mongol Empire from 1447. He built an observatory from which he made very accurate observations of the Sun and planets. He...

Ulundi
Joint capital of KwaZulu-Natal Province in the Republic of South Africa; population (1991 est) 11,100. It was the capital of the Zulu kingdom and site of the battle that ended the Anglo-Zulu War...

Ulysses
Novel by James Joyce, published 1922. Using the basic plot of the Odyssey, Joyce matches equivalent episodes to a day in the life of characters in Dublin in 1904. Using stream of consciousness...

Ulysses
Roman name for Odysseus, the Greek mythological hero. ...

Umar
(c. 581-644) Muslim caliph (civic and religious leader of Islam) in 634-44, succeeding Abu Bakr. He laid the foundations of a regular, organized Muslim army, employing the brilliant Khalid ibn al-Walid to...

Umayyad dynasty
Arabian dynasty of the Islamic Empire who reigned as caliphs (civic and religious leaders of Islam) from 661 to 750, when they were overthrown by Abbasids. A member of the family, Abd al-Rahmam,...

Umberto I
(1844-1900) King of Italy from 1878, who joined the Triple Alliance 1882 with Germany and Austria-Hungary; his colonial ventures included the defeat at Adwa, Abyssinia, 1896. He was...

Umberto II
(1904-1983) King of Italy May-June 1946. When his father Victor Emmanuel III abdicated in May 1946, he was proclaimed king, and ruled 9 May-13 June 1946. He was forced to abdicate as the monarchy's...

umbrella
Portable protection against the rain (when used in the sun it is usually called a parasol or sunshade). In use in China for more than a thousand years, umbrellas were also held over the rulers of...

Umkhonto we Sizwe
Former military wing of the African National Congress. ...

ummah
In Islam, the belief that all human beings are part of a worldwide community, with responsibility to care for each other as equals under God. ...

UN
Abbreviation for United Nations. ...

Unabomber
Popular name of US terrorist Theodore Kaczynski. ...

Unamuno, Miguel de
(1864-1936) Spanish writer of Basque origin. He was exiled 1924-30 for criticism of the military directorate of Primo de Rivera. His works include mystic poems and the study Del sentimiento trágico de la...

Unangas
Alternative name for a member of the American Indian Aleut people. ...

Unanimism
Movement in French literature based on the psychological concept of collective consciousness. Founded in 1908 by Jules Romains, it influenced the writings of le groupe de l'Abbaye, a group of young...

Uncas
(c. 1606-c. 1682) Pequot/Mohegan leader. He led rebellions against his father-in-law, Sassacus, the Pequot leader, eventually taking over part of the Pequot lands and ruling its people under their new tribal...

Uncle Remus
Series of US folk tales by Joel Chandler Harris based on the tales...

Uncle Sam
US meat packer; see Samuel Wilson. ...

Uncle Sam
Nickname for the US government. It was coined during the War of 1812 by opponents of US policy. It was probably derived from the initials `US` placed on government property. The earliest...

Uncle Tom's Cabin
Best-selling US novel by Harriet Beecher Stowe, published 1851-52. A sentimental but powerful portrayal of the cruelties of slave life on Southern plantations, it promoted the call for...

Uncle Vanya
Play by Anton Chekhov, first produced 1897. Serebryakov, a retired professor, realizes the futility of his intellectual ideals when faced with the practical demands of life. ...

UNCTAD
Acronym for United Nations Conference on Trade and Development. ...

unction
In religion, anointing, either in a physical or a metaphorical sense of being appointed for a purpose. In the Hebrew Bible there are references to kings and priests being anointed as a sign of their...

Under the Wave at Kanagawa
Woodblock print by Japanese artist Katsushika Hokusai (British Museum, London), one of the most striking examples of ukiyo-e, a Japanese art form which greatly influenced European painters of the...

underdevelopment
Term generally referring to countries which have not gone through the phase of industrialization (the development of mass production in factories) and have not reached post-industrialization...

Underhill, Evelyn
(1875-1941) English poet and mystic. A friend and disciple of the Austrian-born British Catholic philosopher Baron Friedrich von Hügel, she found her way intellectually from agnosticism to Christianity. She...

Underhill, John
(c. 1597-1672) American soldier, of English origin. He fought in the Pequot War in New England (1637); served as governor of the colony at Dover, New Hampshire (1638-40); and participated in the war against...

underpainting
Layer of colour applied to the ground (painting surface) before the application of the overpainting, or final coat. Underpainting may be a simple tint to colour the ground, or a blocked-out image...

underwater reconnaissance
Surveyal of the seafloor, especially in underwater archaeology, for buried objects. It employs diving apparatus, sonar, and other 20th-century technological developments. Submersibles are also...

Underwood, (George Claude) Leon
(1890-1975) English painter, graphic artist, and sculptor. He travelled to Iceland, the USA, Mexico, and West Africa, devoting several books to masks, wood carvings, and bronzes. His rhythmic figures are...

Underwood, Oscar (Wilder)
(1862-1929) US Democrat representative (1897-1915) and senator (1915-27). A brilliant man, destined for higher office, his fight with William Jennings Bryan over tariff reductions in 1911 cost him the...

Underwood, William
(1787-1864) US food processor. At William Underwood & Co. he expanded his fruit line to include pickles, milk, and sauces (1828), and canned tomatoes (1835). In 1839 he began substituting tin cans for glass...

undine
A water spirit, one of the elemental spirits. ...

undistributed profit
Profit that is not paid out ei ...

Undset, Sigrid
(1882-1949) Norwegian novelist. She was the author of Kristin Lavransdatter (1920-22), a strongly Catholic novel set in the 14th century. She was awarded the Nobel Prize for Literature in 1928. ...

unemployment
Lack of paid employment. The unemployed are usually defined as those out of work who are available for and actively seeking work. Unemployment is measured either as a total or as a percentage of...

unequal treaties
Series of agreements drawn up 1842-58 through which Western powers won diplomatic privileges and territorial concessions in China and Japan (see Edo, Treaty of). Under the threat of coercion, the...

Ungaretti, Giuseppe
(1888-1970) Italian poet. His spare, lyrical poems, employing experimental verse forms and complex imagery, made him the principal figure of the `hermetic` school of...

UNHCR
Abbreviation for United Nations High Commission for Refugees. ...

Uniate Church
Any of the Orthodox Churches that accept the Catholic faith and the supremacy of the pope and are in full communion with the Roman Catholic Church, but retain their own...

unicorn
Mythical animal referred to by classical writers, said to live in India and resembling a horse, but with one spiralled horn growing from the forehead. ...

Unification Church
Church founded in Korea 1954 by the Reverend Sun Myung Moon. The number of members (often called `moonies`) is about 200,000 worldwide. The theology unites Christian and Taoist ideas and is...

Uniformity, Acts of
Two acts of Parliament in England. The first in 1559 imposed the Prayer Book on the whole English kingdom; the second in 1662 required the Prayer Book to be used in all churches, and some 2,000...

unilateralism
In politics, support for unilateral nuclear disarmament: scrapping a country's nuclear weapons without waiting for other countries to agree to do so at the same time. In the UK this principle was...

union
Association of workers, see trade union. ...

union flag
British national flag. It is popularly called the Union Jack, although, strictly speaking, this applies only when it is flown on the jackstaff of a warship. ...

Union Movement
British political group. Founded as the New Party by Oswald Mosley and a number of Labour members of Parliament in 1931, it developed into the British Union of Fascists in 1932. In 1940 the...

Union of Soviet Socialist Republics
Former country in northern Asia and Eastern Europe that reverted to independent states in 1991; see Armenia, Azerbaijan, Belarus, Estonia, Georgia, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Latvia, Lithuania,...

Union, Acts of
Act of Parliament of 1707 that brought about the union of England and Scotland; that of 1801 united England and Ireland. See also England: history 1485-1714, Act of...

Union, the
The USA as a united national entity, especially during the American Civil War. When the Confederate states (see ...

unionism
Belief in the retention of the link between Britain and Ireland; the opposite of Irish nationalism, which supports separation from the British government and the unification of Ireland. Unionists,...

UNISON
Britain's largest trade union with 1,368,796 members (1998): 966,370 female, and 402,426 male. It was formed on 1 July 1993 by the merging of the National Union of Public Employees (NUPE), the...

unit
In warfare, another name for a battalion. ...

unit cost
Average cost of production per item. Unit cost is calculated by dividing the total cost by the number of units produced. For example, if a car manufacturer produced 1 million cars at a total cost of...

unit trust
Company that invests its clients' funds in other companies. The units it issues represent holdings of shares, which means unit shareholders have a wider spread of capital than if they bought shares...

UNITA
Acronym for Uniao Nacional para a Independencia Total de Angola (National Union for the Total Independence of Angola), Angolan nationalist movement founded by Jonas Savimbi in 1966. Backed by South...

Unitarianism
A Christian denomination that rejects the orthodox doctrine of the Trinity, asserts the fatherhood of God and the brotherhood of humanity, and gives a pre-eminent position to Jesus as a religious...

unitary authority
Administrative unit of Great Britain. Since 1996 the two-tier structure of local government has ceased to exist in Scotland and Wales, and in some parts of England, and has been replaced by...

United Arab Emirates
Federation in southwest Asia, on the Gulf, bounded northwest by Qatar, southwest by Saudi Arabia, and southeast by Oman. Government A provisional constitution has been in effect since December 1971....

United Arab Republic
Union formed in 1958, broken in 1961, between Egypt and Syria. Egypt continued to use the name after the break-up until 1971. ...

United Australia Party
Australian political party formed by Joseph Lyons 1931 from the right-wing Nationalist Party. It was led by Robert Menzies after the death of Lyons. Considered to have become too dominated by...

United Democratic Front
Moderate multiracial political organization in South Africa, founded 1983. It was an important focus of anti-apartheid action in South Africa until 1989, when the African National Congress and...

United Irishmen
Society formed in 1791 by Wolfe Tone to campaign for parliamentary reform in Ireland. It later became a secret revolutionary group. Inspired by the republican ideals of the French Revolution, the...

United Kingdom
Country in northwest Europe off the coast of France, consisting of England, Scotland, Wales, and Northern Ireland. Government The UK is a constitutional monarchy with a parliamentary system of...

United Kingdom history 1815-1914
For earlier periods of the history of the British Isles see Britain, ancient, United Kingdom history 1914-45
For earlier periods of the history of the British Isles see Britain, ancient, Roman Britain, England: history to 1485, England: history 1485-1714, United Kingdom history 1714-1815, United...

United Provinces
Federation of states in the northern Netherlands 1579-1795, comprising Holland, Zeeland, Friesland, Gelderland, Utrecht, Overijssel, and Groningen. Established by the Union of Previous

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