An epitaph is a short composition in verse or prose, nominally for the tomb of a deceased person or monument in honour or memory of the dead, and generally setting forth his or her virtues and the survivors' regrets. Epitaphs were in use both among the Greeks and Romans. The Greeks distinguished by epitaphs only their illustrious men. Among the Romans they became a family institution, and private names were regularly recorded upon tombstones. The same practice has generally prevailed in Christian countries. On Christian tombstones epitaphs usually give brief facts of the deceased's life, sometimes also the pious hopes of survivors in reference to the resurrection or other doctrines of the Christian faith, etc. Many so-called epitaphs are mere witty jeux d'esprit, which might be described as epigrams, and which were never intended seriously for monumental inscriptions. The literature of the subject is very large. Research Epitaph
Alfred or Aelfred the Great was a King of England. He was born in 849 at Wantage, Berkshire and died in 901. He was one of the most illustrious rulers on record. His father was Ethelwolf, son of Egbert, king of the West Saxons. He succeeded his brother Ethelred in 872, at a time when the Danes, or Nosemen, had extended their conquests widely over the country, and they had completely overrun the kingdom of the West Saxons by 878. Alfred was obliged to flee in disguise, and stayed for some time with one of his own neat-herds.
At length he gathered a small force, and having fortified himself on the Isle of Athelney, formed by the confluence of the rivers Parret and Tone, amid the marshes of Somerset, he was able to make frequent sallies against the enemy. It was during his abode here that he went, if the story is true, disguised as a harper into the camp of King Guthrum (or Guthorm), and, having ascertained that the Danes felt themselves secure, hastened back to his troops, led them against the enemy, and gained such a decided victory that fourteen days afterwards the Danes begged for peace. This battle took place in May, 878, near Edington, in Wiltshire. Alfred allowed the Danes who were already in the country to remain, on condition that they gave hostages, took a solemn oath to quit Wessex, and embraced Christianity. Their king, Guthrum, was baptized, with thirty of his followers, and ever afterward remained faithful to Alfred. They received that portion of the east of England now occupied by the counties of Norfolk, Suffolk, and Cambridge, as a place of residence.
The few years of tranquillity (886-893) which followed were employed by Alfred in rebuilding the towns that had suffered most during the war, particularly London; in training his people in arms and no less in agriculture; in improving the navy; in systematizing the laws and internal administration; and in literary labours and the advancement of learning. He caused many manuscripts to be translated from Latin, and himself translated several works into Anglo-Saxon, such as the Psalms, AEsop's Fables, Boethius on the Consolation of Philosophy, the History of Orosius, Bede's Ecclesiastical History, etc. He also drew up several original works in Anglo-Saxon. These peaceful labours were interrupted, about 894, by an invasion of the Norsemen, who, after a struggle of three years, were finally driven out.
Alfred married, in 868, Alswith or Ealhswith, the daughter of a Mercian nobleman, and left two sons: Edward, who succeeded him, and Ethelwerd, who died in 922. Alfred presents us with one of the most perfect examples of the able and patriotic monarch united with the virtuous man. Research Alfred
Andrea Dandolo was Doge of Venice. He was born about 1310 of an illustrious Venetian family and died in 1354. He was and made doge in 1343 and carried on a war against the Turks with various success, and greatly extended Venetian commerce by opening a trading connection with Egypt. He wrote a chronicle of Venice, comprising the history of the republic from its commencement to 1342, which was published in Muratori's collection. Research Andrea Dandolo
Claude Alexandre Bonneval (Count Bonneval) was a French adventurer. He was born in 1675 of an illustrious French family and died in 1747. In the war of the Spanish Succession he obtained a regiment, and distinguished himself by his valour as well as by his excesses. On his return to France he was obliged to fly in consequence of some expressions against the minister and Madame de Maintenon. Received into the service of Prince Eugene he now fought against his native country, and, after performing many signal services, he was raised in 1716 to the rank of lieutenantfield-marshal in the Austrian service, and distinguished himself against the Turks at Peterwardein. But his reckless and impatient spirit brought him into conflict with the superior authorities, and he finally took refuge in Constantinople (Istanbul), where he was well received. He was now converted to Islam, submitted to circumcision, received the name of Achmet, was made a pasha of three tails, and as general of a division of the army achieved some considerable successes against Russians and Austrians. The memoirs of his life published under his name are not genuine. Research Claude Bonneval
Edgar the Peaceful) was King of England from 959 to 975. He was born in 944 and died in 975. Edgar was a son of Edmund I, and was elected king by the northern insurgents against his brother Eadwig and on his brother's death in 959 became also king of the West Saxons.
Edgar was a firm and capable ruler, whose power was acknowledged by other rulers in Britain, as well as Welsh and Scottish kings. Edgar's late coronation in 973 at Bath was the first to be recorded in some detail; his queen Aelfthryth was the first consort to be crowned queen of England. Edgar was the patron of a great monastic revival which owed much to his association with Archbishop Dunstan. New bishoprics were created, Benedictine monasteries were reformed and old monastic sites were re-endowed with royal grants, some of which were of land recovered from the Vikings. In the 970s and in the absence of Viking attacks, Edgar - a stern judge - issued laws which for the first time dealt with Northumbria (parts of which were in the Danelaw) as well as Wessex and Mercia. Edgar's coinage was uniform throughout the kingdom. A more united kingdom based on royal justice and order was emerging; the Monastic Agreement passed around 970 praised Edgar as 'the glorious, by the grace of Christ illustrious king of the English and of the other peoples dwelling within the bounds of the island of Britain'. After his death on 8 July 975, Edgar was buried at GlastonburyAbbey, Somerset. Research Edgar The Peaceful
Este is one of the most ancient and illustrious families of Italy. In the llth century the house of Este became connected by marriage with the German Welfs or Guelphs, and founded the German branch of the house of Este, the dukes of Brunswick and Hanover. The sovereigns of Ferrara and Modena were of this family, several of them being famous as patrons of letters. The lives of Boiardo, Ariosto, and Tasso were closely connected with members of this house. The last male representative of the Estes died in 1798. His daughter married a son of the German emperor Francis I, and her grandson disappeared from the land of his forefathers at the consummation of Italian unity in 1860. Research Este
The Farnese were an illustrious Italian family of Italy, whose descent may be traced from about the middle of the 13th century, and which gave to the church and the Republic of Florence many eminent names. The line became extinct with Antonio Farnese in 1731. The name of the Farnese is associated with several famous buildings and works of art. The Farnese Palace, at Rome, was built for Pope Paul III while he was cardinal, by Sangallo and Michael Angelo. Its sculpturegallery was formerly very celebrated, but the best pieces have been removed to Naples, including the following: The Farnese Bull, a celebrated ancient sculpture representing the punishment of Dirce, discovered in the 16th century in the Baths of Caracalla at Home; Farnese Hercules, a celebrated ancient statue of Hercules by Glycon, found in the Baths of Caracalla in 1540; Farnese Flora, a colossal statue of great merit, found in the Baths of Caracalla; Farnese Cup, an antiqueonyxcup, highly ornamented with figures in relief. Research Farnese
Francois de Salignao de Lamothe Fenelon was one of the most venerable of the French clergy. He was born in 1651 at the Chateau Fenelon, in Perigord and died in 1715. He was born to a family illustrious in church and state. A gentle disposition, united with great vivacity of mind and a feeble and delicate constitution, characterized his youth. He was educated under the eye of his uncle, the Marquis of Fenelon, and afterwards at St Sulpice, Paris.
He took orders at the age of twenty-four, and distinguished himself in the work of converting Protestants. In 1681 his uncle conferred on him the priory of Carennac. Soon after he wrote his first work, Traite de l'Education des Filles, which was the basis of his future reputation. In 1689 Louis XIV, intrusted to him the education of his grandsons, the Dukes of Burgundy, Anjou, and Berri. In 1694 he was created Archbishop of Cambray. A theological dispute with Bossuet, the virtual head of the French Church, terminated in his condemnation by Pope Innocent XII, and his banishment to his diocese by Louis XIV.
Fenelon submitted without the least hesitation, and thenceforward lived contentedly in his diocese, sustaining the venerable character of a Christian philosopher, and scrupulously performing his sacred duties. He left numerous vorks in philosophy, theology, and belles-lettres. The most celebrated is Les Aventures de Telemaque, in which he endeavoured to exhibit a model for the education of a prince. It was commonly taken for a satire on the reign of Louis XIV, though nothing, probably, was further from the mind of Fenelon. Research Francois de Salignao de Lamothe Fenelon
Hadrian (real name Publius Aelius Hadrianus) was the fourteenth in the series of Roman emperors. He was born in 76 at Rome and died in 138. His father, who was cousin to the emperor Trajan, died when he was ten years old, and left him under the charge of his illustriouskinsman. He married Sabina, Trajan's grand-niece, accompanied the emperor on his expeditions, filled the highest offices of state, and, on the death of Trajan, assumed the government as his adopted son in 117. He made peace with the Parthians, renouncing all conquests east of the Euphrates, and bought off a war with the Roxolani by payment of a sum of money.
From the year 121 he spent most of his time in visiting the various provinces of the empire. Hadrian's policy was a peaceful one, because he saw that the further extension of the empire only weakened it. Although avoiding war as much as he could, he kept the armies in excellent condition, fortified the frontiers in Germany, and, crossing over into Britain, constructed the wall known as Hadrian's Wall (or that of Severus), which protected the Roman province from the barbarous tribes of the north. He next travelled into Asia and Africa, and lived in Athens for three years. In 131 he promulgated the Edictum Perpetuum, a fixed code of laws, which forms an important epoch in the development of Roman law. In 132 the Jews revolted, and for four years carried on a bloody war, the only notable one of his long reign. Research Hadrian
Henry I (Henry the Fowler) was King of Germany and founder of the Saxon Dynasty. He was born in 876 and died in 936. His surname The fowler, was according to tradition, given to him because his election to the German empire was announced to him while fowling. He was the son of Otho the Illustrious, duke of Saxony. Henry I, on the death of his father, became Duke of Saxony and Thuringia. He was elected emperor of Germany in 919, and was the true founder of the empire. By his prudence and activity Suabia and Bavaria were forced to tender allegiance, and Lorraine was reunited to the German Empire in 925. He was defeated, however, by the Hungarians, and forced to pay a yearly tribute to obtain a truce for nine years. He spent this period in developing a sound military organization, and turning his arms against various Slavonic tribes in the south, was everywhere victorious. At the end of the truce with the Hungarians he refused the tribute, and completely routed them in 933. Besides his military reforms he diminished the feudal privileges, and granted to the cities of the empire their first municipal charters. Research Henry I of Germany
The Probert Encyclopaedia was designed, edited and programed by
Matt and Leela Probert
Abbreviations
Research Epitaph
