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

comedy of manners
Dramatic genre that is generally a satire upon social attitudes, most often attacking superficiality and materialism. The genre has its roots in Restoration comedy, although there have been changes...

Comet
British cruiser tank, equipped with the Christie large wheel suspension and carried a 77 mm gun. It was first used March 1945 after the British had crossed the Rhine and remained in service for many...

Comgall, St
(515-602) Irish abbot. Born in Ulster, he founded the great Abbey of Bangor, in County Down, in around 558. St Comgall is reputed to have lived on the Hebridean island of Tiree for a time, and accompanied St...

comic book
Publication in strip-cartoon form. Comic books are usually aimed at children, although in Japan, Latin America, and Europe millions of adults read them. Artistically sophisticated adult comics and...

comic relief
In literature and the media, a common device employed in serious texts to relieve tension, and sometimes to provide antithesis or irony as a comment on more serious action. One that provides all...

comic strip
Sequence of several frames of drawings in cartoon style. Strips, which may work independently or form instalments of a serial, are usually humorous or satirical in content. Longer stories in...

Comines, Philippe de
(c. 1445-1511) French diplomat in the service of Charles the Bold, Louis XI, and Charles VIII; author of Mémoires (1489-98). ...

Cominform
Organization 1947-56 established by Soviet politician Andrei Zhdanov (1896-1948) to exchange information between European communist parties. The Cominform was a revival of the Communist...

Comintern
Acronym for Communist International. The Comintern is a coordinating body established by labour and socialist organizations, including:First International or International Working Men's Association...

comitia
In ancient Rome, any of various assemblies of the people, which could meet only when summoned by a magistrate. The earliest citizen assembly was the comitia curiata, which later survived only for...

Commagene
Hellenistic kingdom in northern Syria. It was created 162 BC when Ptolemy broke away from the Seleucid kingdom. In spite of Roman presence in the region, it remained an independent kingdom until AD...

Commager, Henry Steele
(1902-1998) US historian. His Documents of American History (1934) marked the beginning of the editing and publishing of anthologies of source materials of the Americ ...

commando
Member of a specially trained, highly mobile military unit. The term originated in South Africa in the 19th century, where it referred to Boer military reprisal raids against Africans and, in the...

commedia
Tale or romance with a happy ending; the term is used in Italian literature. Unlike the term `comedy` in English literature, it applies not only to drama (see commedia dell'arte) but also to...

commedia dell'arte
Popular form of Italian improvised comic drama in the 16th and 17th centuries, performed by trained troupes of actors and involving stock characters and situati ...

commemoration
In the Free Church, the belief that the Eucharist (Holy Communion) is purely a memorial to the Last Supper, which Jesus ate with his disciples, rather than a re-offering or re-enactment of...

commentary
Description or evaluation of an event or piece of work. In literary terms, a commentary can range from being a series of explanatory notes on a whole work (sometimes as notes alongside the text, but...

commercial bank
Bank that offers services to personal and corporate customers, such as current and deposit accounts as well as loans and overdrafts (unlike savings banks or merchant banks). They offer a range of...

commissary
Representative of another. An ecclesiastical commissary is the deputy of a bishop, by whom the jurisdiction of the latter is exercised in distant parts of the diocese. A military commissary is an...

commissioner for oaths
In English law, a person appointed by the Lord Chancellor with power to administer oaths or take affidavits. All practising solicitors have these powers but must not use them in proceedings in which...

committal proceedings
In the UK, a preliminary hearing in a magistrate's court to decide whether there is a case to answer before a higher court. The media may only report limited facts about committal proceedings, such...

Committee of Imperial Defence
Informal group established 1902 to coordinate planning of the British Empire's defence forces. Initially meeting on a temporary basis, it was established permanently 1904. Members were usually...

Committee of Public Safety
In the French Revolution, a body appointed by the members of the National Convention in 1793 to supervise the actions of the executive, but which usurped all the powers of that body and assumed...

commodity
Something produced for sale. Commodities may be consumer goods, such as radios, or producer goods, such as copper bars. Commodity markets deal in raw or semi-raw materials that are amenable to...

Commodus, Lucius Aelius Aurelius
(AD 161-192) Roman emperor from 177 (jointly with his father), sole emperor from 180, son of Marcus Aurelius. He was a tyrant, spending lavishly on gladiatorial combats, confiscating the property of the wealthy,...

Common Agricultural Policy
System of financial support for farmers in European Union (EU) countries, a central aspect of which is the guarantee of minimum prices for part of what they produce. The objectives of the CAP were...

common land
Unenclosed wasteland, forest, and pasture used in common by the community at large. Poor people have throughout history gathered fruit, nuts, wood, reeds, roots, game, and so on from common land; in...

common law
That part of the English law not embodied in legislation. It consists of rules of law based on common custom and usage and on judicial (court) decisions. English common law became the basis of law...

common market
Organization of autonomous countries formed to promote trade; see customs union. ...

Common Market
Popular name for the European Economic Community; see European Union. ...

common pleas, court of
One of the courts into which the Curia Regis (King's Court) was divided. It was originally the only superior court having jurisdiction in civil actions between subjects. It consisted of the Lord...

common sense
In philosophy, the doctrine that we perceive the external world directly, that what we perceive is what there is and how things are. Common-sense realism has been held by Scottish mathematician...

Commons, House of
Lower chamber of the UK Parliament. It consists of 659 elected members of Parliament, each of whom represents a constituency. Its functions are to debate, legislate (pass laws), and to oversee the...

Commons, John Rogers
(1882-1945) US economist. He was both an economic theorist and a renowned labour historian. An active policymaker, he drafted early employment and union legisl ...

commonwealth
Body politic founded on law for the common `weal` or good. Political philosophers of the 17th century, such as Thomas Hobbes and John Locke, used the term to mean an organized political...

Commonwealth conference
Any consultation between the prime ministers (or defence, finance, foreign, or other ministers) of the sovereign independent members of the British Commonwealth. These are informal discussion...

Commonwealth Day
Public holiday celebrated on the second Monday in March in many parts of the Commonwealth. It was called Empire Day until 1958 and celebrated on 24 May (Queen Victoria's birthday) until 1966. ...

Commonwealth Immigration Acts
Successive acts to regulate the entry into the UK of British subjects from the Commonwealth. The Commonwealth Immigration Act, passed by the Conservative government in 1962, ruled that Commonwealth...

Commonwealth Institute
Organization that promotes awareness of Commonwealth countries through exhibitions, educational and cultural activities. Situated in London, it was founded 1887 as the Imperial Institute to...

Commonwealth of Independent States
Successor body to the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics, initially formed as a new commonwealth of Slav republics on 8 December 1991 by the presidents of the Russian Federation, Belarus, and...

Commonwealth, the British
Voluntary association of 54 sovereign (self-ruling) countries and their dependencies, the majority of which once formed part of the commune
Group of people or families living together, sharing resources and responsibilities. There have been various kinds of commune through the ages, including a body of burghers or burgesses in medieval...

Commune, Paris
Two separate periods in the history of Paris (between 1789 and 1794 and from March to May 1871); see Paris Commune. ...

Communications Decency Act
1996 rider (supplement) to the US Telecommunications Bill seeking to prevent the transmission of indecent material to minors via the Internet. It was struck down by a federal court in the same year,...

communion of saints
Another term for the Christian church community, favoured in particular by Roman Catholic, Orthodox, and Anglican Christians. It includes...

communion wafer
Round wafer used during the celebration of the Eucharist (Holy Communion, Mass) to represent the body of Jesus. They replace the real bread traditionally used in churches for Communion. The wafers...

Communion, Holy
In the Christian church, another name for the Eucharist. ...

communism
Revolutionary socialism based on the theories of the political philosophers Karl Marx and Friedrich Engels, emphasizing common ownership of the means of production and a planned, or command economy....

communism, German
Revolutionary socialism that emerged in Germany between 1918 and 1933. Inspired by the Russian Bolshevik revolution of 1917, it sought to replace the democratic system of the Weimar Republic with a...

Communist Information Bureau
See Cominform. ...

communist parties
Political parties, based on cells under the leadership of centrally directed officials, devoted to the implementation of one or other versions of communism. The communist parties which dominated...

Communist Party of Great Britain
British Marxist party founded in 1920, largely inspired by the Russian Revolution of 1917. Its affiliation with the Labour Party (it had originally been int ...

community architecture
Movement enabling people to work directly with architects in the design and building of their own homes and neighbourhoods. Projects include housing at Byker, Newcastle, UK, by Ralph ...

community charge
In the UK, a charge (commonly known as the poll tax) levied by local authorities from 1989 in Scotland and 1990 in England and Wales; it was replaced in 1993 by a council tax. ...

community council
In Wales, name for a parish council. ...

Community law
Law of the member states of the European Union, as adopted by the Council of Ministers. The European Court of Justice interprets and applies EU law. Community law forms part of the law of states and...

community punishment
In the UK penal system, unpaid work in the service of the community (aiding children, the elderly, or the disabled), performed by a convicted person by order of the court as an alternative to...

community service
In the US penal system, unpaid work in the service of the community (aiding children, the elderly, or the disabled), performed by a convicted person by order of the court as...

community service
In the UK penal system, former term for a community punishment order, still employed in the USA. ...

Comoros
Country in the Indian Ocean between Madagascar and the east coast of Africa, comprising three islands - Njazidja (Grande Comore), Nzwani (Anjouan), and Mwali (Moheli). A fourth island in the...

compadrazgo
Ritual kinship common in Spanish-speaking societies, especially in Latin America, established at baptism, confirmation, and marriage, between a person, his or...

Companies Act 1985
Act of Parliament which governs modern company law in the UK. The act outlines the way companies are set up, run, and wound up. In particular, it defines the difference between a Companion of Honour
British order of knighthood (see knighthood, order of) founded in 1917 by George V. It is of one class only, and carries no title, but Companions append CH to their names, next to and after the...

company
In the army, a subunit of a battalion. It consists of about 120 soldiers, and is commanded by a major in the...

company
In economics, a number of people grouped together as a business enterprise. Types of company include public limited companies, partnerships, joint ventures, sole proprietorships, and branches of...

Compaoré, Blaise
(1952) Burkinabè politician; president of Burkina Faso from 1987, and chair of the Popular Front of Burkina Faso. An army officer, Compaoré was second-in-command to President Thomas Sankara, under...

comparative advantage
Law of international trade first elaborated by English economist David Ricardo showing that trade becomes worthwhile if the cost of production of particular items differs between...

comparative religion
Critical examination of all religious phenomena with the dispassion of scientific analysis but often with the hope of finding common ground, to solve the practical problems of competing claims of...

compensation
In law, money paid to a person who has suffered injury, loss, or damage. If a crime has been committed, compensation can be claimed from various official bodies and through...

competition
In economics, rivalry in the marketplace between different business organizations, usually competition for custom between those who have the same commodities to dispose of. Firms can make their...

competition policy
Government policy on competition in markets. Competition policy is usually aimed at increasing the level of competition in the market, for example by breaking up monopolies and making competition, perfect
In commerce, see perfect competition. ...

competitiveness
The extent to which a producer is able to sell products in a market where other producers are selling similar products. For example, it can be argued that the UK manufacturing industry has lost...

compliance
In economics in the UK, abiding by the terms of the Financial Services Act 1986. Companies undertaking any form of investment business are regulated by the act and must fulfil their obligations to...

Complutensian Polyglot
Monumental multilingual edition of the Bible published in Spain in 1520. Begun in 1502, under the patronage of Cardinal Francisco Ximénes de Cisneros, it made the Bible text available for the first...

Composite
In classical architecture, one of the five types of column. See order. ...

composition
In Irish history, a key Elizabethan reform policy first instituted by Lord Deputy Henry Sidney (1529-1586) in the mid-1570s, which commuted the feudal practice of coyne and livery (military...

composition
In art, the arrangement of elements within an artwork to give a desired effect, often described as pleasing (unified and appealing to the eye) or expressive (intended to evoke a particular mood,...

Composition in Red, Yellow and Blue
Oil painting by Piet Mondrian 1920 (Stedelijk, Amsterdam) in which primary colours and grey and black are composed in squares and rectangles banded by black borders. Representing Mondrian's search...

compound interest
Interest calculated by computing the rate against the original capital plus reinvested interest each time the interest becomes due. When simple interest is calculated, only the interest on the...

comprehensive school
Secondary school that admits pupils of all abilities, and therefore without any academic selection procedure. In England 86.8% of all pupils attend a comprehensive school. Other state secondary...

Compromise of 1850
In US history, legislative proposals designed to resolve the conflict between North and South over the issue of slavery in the new territories. The Compromise was triggered by the request of...

Compton Wynyates
Tudor mansion, once moated, 20 km/12 mi southeast of Stratford-upon-Avon, Warwickshire, England. Begun in 1480, it is built round a courtyard, with the arms of Henry VIII and Catherine of Aragon...

Compton-Burnett, Ivy
(1884-1969) English novelist. She used dialogue to show reactions of small groups of characters dominated by the tyranny of family relationships. Her novels, set at the turn of the century, include Pastors and...

Compton, John George Melvin
(1926) St Lucian centrist politician, prime minister 1964-79 and 1982-96. He left the St Lucia Labour Party (SLP) to form the breakaway United Workers' Party (UWP) in 1961, becoming chief minister in...

Compton, Spencer
(1673-1743) British Whig politician, prime minister and First Lord of the Treasury from 1742. He became Speaker of the House of Commons 1715 and a privy councillor 1716. In office he was regarded as weak and a...

comptroller
Official title for a person who keeps or audits accounts, used mainly for government offices, or in connection with the royal household, when it refers to a kind of steward or treasurer. Thus the...

compulsory purchase
In the UK, the right of the state and authorized bodies to buy land required for public purposes even against the wishes of the owner. Under the Land Compensation Act 1973,...

compulsory tendering
Policy introduced by the UK Conservative government requiring local authorities and other public bodies to put out to tender work which might normally be done `in house`. This approach stemmed...

computer art
Art produced with the help of a computer. From the 1950s the aesthetic use of computers became increasingly evident in most artistic disciplines, including film...

computer-aided design
Use of computers to create and modify design drawings; see CAD. ...

computerized axial tomography
Medical technique, usually known as CAT scan, for noninvasive investigation of disease or injury. ...

Comstock, Anthony
(1844-1915) US reformer. A zealous campaigner against activities he considered immoral or indecent, his targets included writers and publishers, abortionists, dispensers of contraceptives, and art galleries; he...

Comstock, Henry (Tompkins Paige)
(1820-1870) Canadian-born prospector. He went to Nevada in 1856 and claimed the ground where was found the silver lode that was given his name in 1859. He sold his right for a small sum and turned to...

Comuneros, Revolt of the
A rebellion of the Spanish nobility and commoners against their Flemish-born king, Charles I (Emperor Charles V) in 1520-21. On his first visit to Spain in 1517, the new king enraged the nobles...

Comus
In late Greek mythology, the god of festive mirth. He is depicted as a sleeping winged youth, crowned with flowers and holding a hunting spear and an inverted torch. The English poet John Milton in...

Comyn
Branch of a Norman family that came to England with William the Conqueror in the 11th century. Robert Comyn was made earl of Northumberland by William the Conqueror and his son, William Comyn,...

Conant, Kenneth (John)
(1894-1984) US architectural historian. Although his object-oriented, technical historiography fell out of fashion after the 1940s, he taught generations of architectural historians at Harvard 1920-55, and...

conceit
In literature, an elaborate and, sometimes, far-fetched image, which extends a metaphor into as many layers of meaning as it will bear. Conceits thrive on relating apparently impossible objects...

concentration camp
Prison camp for civilians in wartime or under totalitarian rule. Concentration camps called reconcentrados were used by the Spanish in Cuba in 1896, to `reconcentrate` Cubans...