• Nanwu Cheng (historical town, China)

    Guangzhou: Early period: …a walled town known as Nanwu Cheng, in the northern section of the present-day city, was built during the Spring and Autumn (Chunqiu) period (770–476 bce). Between 339 and 329 bce the town was rebuilt and expanded and was known as Wuyang Cheng (“City of Five Goats”)—named for the legend…

  • nanxi (Chinese drama)

    nanxi, one of the first fully developed forms of Chinese drama. Nanxi emerged in the area around Wenzhou in southern China during the Song dynasty (960–1279). Originally the creation of folk authors, the earliest nanxi combined Song plays with local folk songs and ballads. They were characterized

  • Nanyang (China)

    Nanyang, city, southwestern Henan sheng (province), China. Nanyang is situated on the Bai River, which is a tributary of the Han River. It was from early times an important centre, commanding a major route between Xi’an in Shaanxi province and Xiangfan in Hubei province and the Yangtze River (Chang

  • Nanyangzhuang (ancient site, China)

    China: 6th millennium bce: …at a 6th-millennium-bce site at Nanyangzhuang (southern Hebei) suggests the early production of silk, the characteristic Chinese textile.

  • Nanye’hi (Native American leader)

    Nancy Ward was a Native American leader who was an important intermediary in relations between early American settlers and her own Cherokee people. Born in a Cherokee village on the Little Tennessee River, Nanye’hi was the daughter of a Cherokee mother of the Wolf clan and a Delaware father. In

  • nanyin dongxiao (musical instrument)

    xiao: …variant of the xiao, the nanyin dongxiao (“southern sound notched flute”), or chiba (literally “one foot, eight inches”) found mainly in Fujian and Taiwan, varies in length from roughly 13 to 16 inches (34 to 43 cm) and uses the bamboo root as its bottom. The number and arrangement of…

  • Nanyuki (Kenya)

    Mount Kenya: The town of Nanyuki, which is about 120 miles (190 km) north of Nairobi by rail, lies at the northwestern foot of the mountain; both Nanyuki and Naro Moru (to the west) are chief bases for ascents.

  • Nanzhao (historical kingdom, China)

    Nanzhao, Tai kingdom that arose in the 8th century in what is now western Yunnan province in southern China, a region to which the Tai peoples trace their origin. Many fragmented Tai kingdoms had occupied this region, centred at Lake Er between the Mekong, the Yangtze, and the sources of the Red

  • Nanzhou (China)

    Zhangzhou, city, southeastern Fujian sheng (province), China. The city is situated on the north bank of the Xi River, some 25 mi (40 km) upstream from Xiamen (Amoy) in the small alluvial plain formed by the Xi and Jiulong rivers. Zhangzhou was first established as a county in 502–515 ce and became

  • Nanzi (folklore character)

    Ananse, name given to an Akan character who has become famous throughout Africa, the countries in the Caribbean region, and beyond because of his insight, intelligence, and wisdom. He is one of the most-important figures in the pantheon of cultural icons among West Africans. Along with his wife,

  • nao (Chinese bell)

    zhong: …of zhong is also called nao in order to differentiate it from the suspended type.

  • NAO (climatology)

    North Atlantic Oscillation (NAO), an irregular fluctuation of atmospheric pressure over the North Atlantic Ocean that has a strong effect on winter weather in Europe, Greenland, northeastern North America, North Africa, and northern Asia. The NAO can occur on a yearly basis, or the fluctuations can

  • Não! (work by Kac)

    Eduardo Kac: …debuted a digital poem, “Não!” (“No!”), which comprised a block of text that scrolled across an LED display. Kac created a number of other holopoems and digital poems, some of them more elaborate. He also made his first forays into art transmitted via Minitel, a videotext precursor to the…

  • Naoero (island country, Pacific Ocean)

    Nauru, island country in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. It consists of a raised coral island located in southeastern Micronesia, 25 miles (40 km) south of the Equator. The island is about 800 miles (1,300 km) northeast of the Solomon Islands; its closest neighbour is the island of Banaba, in

  • Naoetsu (Japan)

    Jōetsu: Naoetsu was an important port on the Sea of Japan during the Kamakura period (1192–1333). It experienced a decline in the early 1600s and was known merely as an outport for the more-prosperous Takada. The arrival of two railway lines in 1898 and 1914 revived…

  • NaOH (chemical compound)

    sodium hydroxide (NaOH), a corrosive white crystalline solid that contains the Na+ (sodium) cation and the OH− (hydroxide) anion. It readily absorbs moisture until it dissolves. Sodium hydroxide is the most widely used industrial alkali and is often used in drain and oven cleaners. It is highly

  • Naohideales (order of fungi)

    fungus: Annotated classification: Order Naohideales Mycoparasitic; auricularoid basidia may contain mitospores; example genus is Naohidea. Class Agaricostilbomycetes Parasitic or saprotrophic; simple-septate basidiomycetes; contains 2 orders. Order Agaricostilbales Mostly saprotrophic;

  • Naomi (biblical figure)

    Ruth: …two sons of Elimelech and Naomi, Judeans who had settled in Moab to escape a famine in Judah. The husbands of all three women die; Naomi plans to return to her native Bethlehem and urges her daughters-in-law to return to their families. Orpah does so, but Ruth refuses to leave…

  • Naomi (American television series)

    Ava DuVernay: …addition, she cocreated and cowrote Naomi (2022), a series about an African American teenage superhero. In 2023 she returned to directing feature films with Origin, a dramatization of journalist Isabel Wilkerson’s personal and professional experiences as she researched and wrote her best-selling book Caste: The Origin of Our Discontents (2020).…

  • Naomi and Wynonna Judd (American country music duo)

    the Judds, American country music duo, consisting of Naomi Judd (originally Diana Ellen Judd; b. January 11, 1946, Ashland, Kentucky, U.S.—d. April 30, 2022, outside Nashville, Tennessee) and her daughter Wynonna Judd (originally Christina Claire Ciminella; b. May 30, 1964, Ashland, Kentucky),

  • naorai (Shintō)

    matsuri: …usually include a feast (naorai) in which the consecrated offerings of food and drink are consumed by priests and laymen, dancing, theatrical performances, divination, and athletic contests, such as sumo wrestling, archery, either on foot or on horseback, and boat races. The kami is frequently taken out in a…

  • Naoroji, Dadabhai (Indian nationalist leader)

    Dadabhai Naoroji was an Indian nationalist and critic of British imperialism and economic policy in India. He was one of the founders of the Indian National Congress (Congress Party), which led the nationalist movement in India, and the first Asian to be elected to the British Parliament. Known as

  • naos (architecture)

    cella, in Classical architecture, the body of a temple (as distinct from the portico) in which the image of the deity is housed. In early Greek and Roman architecture it was a simple room, usually rectangular, with the entrance at one end and with the side walls often being extended to form a

  • Naosari (India)

    Navsari, city, southeastern Gujarat state, west-central India. It is situated in the coastal lowland along the Purna River. Navsari is the home of the Parsis, descendants of Zoroastrians who immigrated from Persia, and contains their most-venerated fire temples. The city is a market for cotton,

  • NAOWS (American organization)

    National Association Opposed to Woman Suffrage (NAOWS), organization formed in New York City in 1911 during a convention of state antisuffrage groups. Led by Josephine Dodge, the founder and first president, the NAOWS believed that woman suffrage would decrease women’s work in communities and their

  • Naozhou (island, China)

    Leizhou Peninsula: …islands on the east coast, Naozhou and Donghai, it forms two bays, Leizhou to the south of the islands and Zhanjiang to the north. The largest city on the peninsula is Zhanjiang, which faces the bay of the same name. Administratively, the peninsula forms part of Zhanjiang municipality. The peninsula…

  • NAP (political party, Turkey)

    Turkey: The ascendancy of the right, 1961–71: …the most prominent was the National Action Party (NAP), created in 1963 from the former Republican Peasants’ Nation Party and led by an ex-officer, Alparslan Türkeş. The NAP’s agenda combined Islam and Turkish nationalism and stressed education. As part of its organization, the NAP developed a paramilitary section, known as…

  • nap (sleep)

    sleep: Developmental patterns of sleep and wakefulness: …and of morning and afternoon naps in childhood, there is an increasing tendency toward the concentration of sleep in one long nocturnal period. The trend toward monophasic sleep probably reflects some blend of the effects of maturing and of pressures from a culture geared to daytime activity and nocturnal rest.…

  • nap (card game)

    nap, gambling card game played throughout northern Europe under various names and guises. It reached England in the 1880s. Its title may commemorate the deposed Napoleon III. Three or more players—ideally five—use a standard 52-card deck from which an agreed number of lower numerals may be stripped

  • Napa (California, United States)

    Napa, city, seat (1850) of Napa county, west-central California, U.S. Founded in 1847 and lying on the Napa River, the city was the head of river navigation, and it became a port for the shipment of cattle, lumber, gold, and quicksilver to San Francisco, 50 miles (80 km) to the south. Napa also

  • napa cabbage (plant)

    napa cabbage, (Brassica rapa, variety pekinensis), form of Chinese cabbage, belonging to the mustard family (Brassicaceae), cultivated for its edible leaves. Napa cabbage is widely grown in eastern Asia and is commonly used to make kimchi, a traditional Korean dish made of spicy fermented

  • Napa River (river, California, United States)

    Napa: …1847 and lying on the Napa River, the city was the head of river navigation, and it became a port for the shipment of cattle, lumber, gold, and quicksilver to San Francisco, 50 miles (80 km) to the south. Napa also developed as an outlet for farm produce, especially grapes,…

  • Napaea (Greek mythology)

    nymph: …of mountains and grottoes; the Napaeae (nape, “dell”) and the Alseids (alsos, “grove”) were nymphs of glens and groves; the Dryads or Hamadryads presided over forests and trees.

  • Napaeozapus insignis (rodent)

    jumping mouse: The woodland jumping mouse (Napaeozapus insignis) lives in moist forests of eastern North America. The meadow, Pacific, and western jumping mice (Zapus hudsonius, Z. trinotatus, and Z. princeps, respectively) range over much of North America, in grasslands as well as riverine and wet meadow habitats of…

  • napalm (chemical compound)

    napalm, the aluminum salt or soap of a mixture of naphthenic and aliphatic carboxylic acids (organic acids of which the molecular structures contain rings and chains, respectively, of carbon atoms), used to thicken gasoline for use as an incendiary in flamethrowers and fire bombs. The thickened

  • Napalm (film by Lanzmann [2017])

    Claude Lanzmann: In Napalm (2017) he shifted his subject to North Korea, visiting the reclusive country and recounting a prior stay there during the late 1950s after the Korean War; he had previously described some of the story in his 2012 memoir, The Patagonian Hare. The documentary, like…

  • Napata (capital of ancient Kush kingdom)

    Napata, the capital in about 750–590 bce of the ancient kingdom of Cush (Kush), situated downstream from the Fourth Cataract of the Nile, near Kuraymah in the northern part of what is now Sudan. An area rather than a single town, Napata extended to the east and south of Kuraymah, from Nuri to

  • Napata dynasty (ancient Egyptian history)

    Kassala: …control of the 25th, or Kushite, Egyptian dynasty. The Kushites were later conquered by the kingdom of Aksum (Axum), and the people were largely Christianized. There were Muslim raids into the region during the Mamlūk dynasty of Egypt (reigned 1250–1517). The people were converted to Islam in the early 16th…

  • Naperville (Illinois, United States)

    Naperville, city, DuPage and Will counties, northeastern Illinois, U.S. It lies on the West Branch Du Page River, about 30 miles (50 km) west of Chicago. The oldest city in DuPage county, it was founded in 1831 by Captain Joseph Naper. Naper and his brother (John) built mills, a school, and a

  • Naphtali (Hebrew tribe)

    Naphtali, in biblical times, one of the 12 tribes that, under the leadership of Joshua, took possession of Canaan, the Promised Land, after the death of Moses. The tribe was named after the younger of two sons born to Jacob and Bilhah, a maidservant of Jacob’s second wife, Rachel. After Joshua led

  • Naphtali, Testament of

    biblical literature: Testaments of the Twelve Patriarchs: …fragment of the “Testaments of Naphtali.” A Hebrew “Testament of Judah,” which was used both by the Book of Jubilees and the Testaments of the Twelve Patriarchs in their description of the wars of the sons of Jacob, also probably existed.

  • naphtha (chemical compound)

    naphtha, any of various volatile, highly flammable liquid hydrocarbon mixtures used chiefly as solvents and diluents and as raw materials for conversion to gasoline. Naphtha was the name originally applied to the more volatile kinds of petroleum issuing from the ground in the Baku district of

  • naphtha reforming

    petroleum refining: Naphtha reforming: The most widespread process for rearranging hydrocarbon molecules is naphtha reforming. The initial process, thermal reforming, was developed in the late 1920s. Thermal reforming employed temperatures of 510–565 °C (950–1,050 °F) at moderate pressures—about 40 bars (4 MPa), or 600 psi—to obtain gasolines…

  • naphthalene (chemical compound)

    naphthalene, the simplest of the fused or condensed ring hydrocarbon compounds composed of two benzene rings sharing two adjacent carbon atoms; chemical formula, C10H8. It is an important hydrocarbon raw material that gives rise to a host of substitution products used in the manufacture of

  • naphthene (petroleum)

    crude oil: Chemical and physical properties: …most prevalent in them: paraffins, naphthenes, and aromatics. Paraffins are the most common hydrocarbons in crude oil; certain liquid paraffins are the major constituents of gasoline (petrol) and are therefore highly valued. Naphthenes are an important part of all liquid refinery products, but they also form some of the heavy…

  • naphthene series (petroleum)

    crude oil: Chemical and physical properties: …most prevalent in them: paraffins, naphthenes, and aromatics. Paraffins are the most common hydrocarbons in crude oil; certain liquid paraffins are the major constituents of gasoline (petrol) and are therefore highly valued. Naphthenes are an important part of all liquid refinery products, but they also form some of the heavy…

  • naphthol (chemical compound)

    naphthol, either of two colourless, crystalline organic compounds derived from naphthalene and belonging to the phenol family; each has the molecular formula C10H7OH. Both compounds have long been identified with the manufacture of dyes and dye intermediates; they also have important uses in other

  • naphthoquinone (chemical compound)

    coloration: Naphthoquinones: Naphthoquinones are encountered in some bacteria and in the leaves, seeds, and woody parts of higher plants. They can be recovered as yellow, orange, red, or purple crystals. They are soluble in organic solvents and have been used extensively as dyes for fabrics. Among…

  • naphthyl (radical)

    organometallic compound: Alkylidene ligands: For example, naphthyl compounds (i.e., those derived from the fused ring system C10H8) can be synthesized by the reaction of methoxy phenyl Fischer carbenes with an alkyne.

  • naphthylamine (chemical compound)

    chemical industry: Nitric acid: …to naphthalene (C10H8) results in naphthylamine. Both aniline and naphthylamine are the parents of a large number of dyes, but today synthetic dyes are usually petrochemical in origin (see the article dye). Aniline, naphthylamine, and the other dye intermediates lead also to pharmaceuticals, photographic chemicals, and chemicals used in rubber…

  • Naphtol AS (chemical compound)

    dye: Azo dyes: …was found that 2-hydroxy-3-naphthanilide (Naphtol AS, from the German Naphtol Anilid Säure) forms a water-soluble anion with affinity for cotton, a major step in the development of the ingrain dyes. Its reaction with unsulfonated azoic diazo components on the fabric gives insoluble dyes with good wetfastness; with Diazo Component…

  • Napier (New Zealand)

    Napier, city and port, eastern North Island, New Zealand, on the southwestern shore of Hawke Bay. Laid out in 1856, the town was named for Sir Charles Napier, a 19th-century British military commander in India. It was made a borough in 1874 and a city in 1950. Napier, on a small headland known as

  • Napier Complex (geological region, Antarctica)

    Precambrian: Structure and occurrence of granulite-gneiss belts: …belts in Zimbabwe, and the Napier Complex in Enderby Land in Antarctica. Granulite-gneiss belts are commonly surrounded by younger, mostly Proterozoic belts that contain remobilized relicts of the Archean rocks, and the granulites and gneisses must underlie many Archean greenstone-granite belts and blankets of Phanerozoic sediment.

  • napier grass (plant)

    Africa: Lowland rainforest: Elephant grass (Pennisetum purpureum) can grow abundantly in areas where the vegetation has been disturbed, providing good fodder for grazing animals when young but quickly becoming rank, coarse, and a refuge for insects. Cogon grass (Imperata cylindrica) is a troublesome grass on depleted and fire-seared…

  • Napier of Magdala, Robert Cornelis Napier, 1st Baron (British field marshal)

    Robert Napier, 1st Baron Napier was a British field marshal who had a distinguished military and civil engineering career in India and commanded military expeditions to Ethiopia and China. The son of Major Charles Frederick Napier, a British artillery officer stationed in Ceylon (now Sri Lanka), he

  • Napier’s bones (mathematics)

    John Napier: Contribution to mathematics: …of small rods known as Napier’s bones, a device that was the forerunner of the slide rule. He made important contributions to spherical trigonometry, particularly by reducing the number of equations used to express trigonometrical relationships from 10 to 2 general statements. He is also credited with certain other spherical…

  • Napier’s number (mathematical constant)

    e, mathematical constant that is the base of the natural logarithm function f(x) = ln x and of its related inverse, the exponential function y = ex. To five decimal places, the value used for the constant is 2.71828. The number e is an irrational number; that is, it cannot be expressed as the ratio

  • Napier, John (Scottish mathematician)

    John Napier was a Scottish mathematician and theological writer who originated the concept of logarithms as a mathematical device to aid in calculations. At the age of 13, Napier entered the University of St. Andrews, but his stay appears to have been short, and he left without taking a degree.

  • Napier, John Russell (British anthropologist)

    Homo habilis: Leakey, Phillip Tobias, and John Napier. As justification for designating their new creature Homo rather than Australopithecus, they described the increased cranial capacity and comparatively smaller molar and premolar teeth of the fossils, a humanlike foot, and hand bones that suggested an ability to manipulate objects with precision—hence the…

  • Napier, MacVey (Scottish lawyer and editor)

    MacVey Napier was a Scottish lawyer, first professor of conveyancing at the University of Edinburgh, who was an innovative editor of the Supplement to the 4th, 5th, and 6th editions of Encyclopædia Britannica and editor of the 7th edition. Napier studied at Glasgow and Edinburgh universities.

  • Napier, Robert Napier, 1st Baron (British field marshal)

    Robert Napier, 1st Baron Napier was a British field marshal who had a distinguished military and civil engineering career in India and commanded military expeditions to Ethiopia and China. The son of Major Charles Frederick Napier, a British artillery officer stationed in Ceylon (now Sri Lanka), he

  • Napier, Sir Charles James (British general and colonial governor)

    Sir Charles James Napier was a British general, who conquered (1843) Sind (now in Pakistan) and served as its governor (1843–47). Napier, a relative of the statesman Charles James Fox, was a veteran of the (Iberian) Peninsular War against Napoleonic France and of the War of 1812 against the United

  • Napier, Sir Charles, Count Napier de São Vicente (British admiral)

    Sir Charles Napier, Count Napier de São Vicente was an admiral in the Portuguese and British navies, the controversial commander of the British Baltic Fleet during the Crimean War of 1853–56. Created Conde Napier de São Vicente in the Portuguese peerage, he was less elegantly known in Great Britain

  • Napier, Sir William Francis Patrick (British general and historian)

    Sir William Francis Patrick Napier was a British general and historian who fought in the Napoleonic Wars, particularly in the Peninsular War in Spain and Portugal. He wrote the popular History of the War in the Peninsula…, 6 vol. (1828–40), based partly on his own combat experiences and partly on

  • Napier, William John (British official)

    China: Western challenge, 1839–60: …India Company’s monopoly in 1834, William John Napier was appointed chief superintendent of British trade in China and arrived at Guangzhou. He tried to negotiate with the Guangzhou authorities on equal footing, but the latter took his behavior as contrary to the established Sino-foreign intercourse. His mission failed, and he…

  • Napisany, kako priydosha v Sibir (Russian literary work)

    Siberian Chronicles: …derive from a now-lost work, Napisany, kako priydosha v Sibir (“Description of How to Reach Siberia”), written in 1621 by survivors of the 16th-century expeditions into Siberia led by the Cossack hero Yermak Timofeyevich (q.v.). This work was purportedly copied and interpreted in later works, which in turn became the…

  • napkin rash

    childhood disease and disorder: Skin disorders: Diaper, or napkin, rashes, which affect the areas of skin in contact with a wet diaper, are very common and can become severe when additional infection occurs.

  • Naplanum (king of Larsa)

    Larsa: …inaugurated by a king named Naplanum (c. 2025–c. 2005 bc); he was a contemporary of Ishbi-Erra, who founded a dynasty at the rival city of Isin. Naplanum was succeeded by a line of 13 kings, many of whom exercised great authority in Babylonia and represented the new hegemony of Semitic…

  • Naples (Italy)

    Naples, city, capital of Naples provincia, Campania regione, southern Italy. It lies on the west coast of the Italian peninsula, 120 miles (190 km) southeast of Rome. On its celebrated bay—flanked to the west by the smaller Gulf of Pozzuoli and to the southeast by the more extended indentation of

  • Naples (Florida, United States)

    Naples, resort city, seat (1966) of Collier county, southwestern Florida, U.S. It lies on the Gulf of Mexico at the edge of Big Cypress Swamp, about 35 miles (55 km) south of Fort Myers. The region was originally inhabited by Calusa Indians and later by the Seminoles. Named for the Italian city,

  • Naples, Bay of (bay, Italy)

    Bay of Naples, semicircular inlet of the Tyrrhenian Sea (an arm of the Mediterranean Sea), southwest of the city of Naples, southern Italy. It is 10 miles (16 km) wide and extends southeastward for 20 miles (32 km) from Cape Miseno to Campanella Point. The bay is noted for its scenic beauty, which

  • Naples, Kingdom of (historical state, Italy)

    Kingdom of Naples, state covering the southern portion of the Italian Peninsula from the Middle Ages to 1860. It was often united politically with Sicily. By the early 12th century the Normans had carved out a state in southern Italy and Sicily in areas formerly held by the Byzantines, Lombards,

  • Naples, University of (university, Naples, Italy)

    University of Naples, coeducational state university at Naples founded in 1224 as a studium generale by the Holy Roman emperor Frederick II to offset the dominant influence of the university at Bologna. Although universities were generally chartered after students had chosen to study in a

  • Naples-style pizza (food)

    pizza: The Neapolitan pizza, or Naples-style pizza, is made specifically with buffalo mozzarella (produced from the milk of Italian Mediterranean buffalo) or fior di latte (mozzarella produced from the milk of prized Agerolese cows) and with San Marzano tomatoes or pomodorino vesuviano (a variety of grape tomato…

  • NAPM (Indian organization)

    Medha Patkar: In 1996 Patkar founded the National Alliance of People’s Movements (NAPM), an agglomeration of progressive social bodies opposed to globalization policies. She was a representative to the World Commission on Dams, the first independent global advisory body on dam-related issues of water, power, and alternatives; the commission was set up…

  • Napo River (river, South America)

    Napo River, river in northeastern Ecuador and northeastern Peru. It flows from the eastern slopes of the Andes in Ecuador and descends generally eastward to the Peruvian border. There it turns southeastward and continues through dense tropical rain forests, joining the Amazon River approximately 50

  • Napoca (ancient settlement, Romania)

    Cluj-Napoca: …of an ancient Dacian settlement, Napoca, which the Romans made a municipium.

  • Napoleon (emperor of France)

    Napoleon I was a French general, first consul (1799–1804), and emperor of the French (1804–1814/15), one of the most celebrated personages in the history of the West. He revolutionized military organization and training; sponsored the Napoleonic Code, the prototype of later civil-law codes;

  • Napoleon (card game)

    nap, gambling card game played throughout northern Europe under various names and guises. It reached England in the 1880s. Its title may commemorate the deposed Napoleon III. Three or more players—ideally five—use a standard 52-card deck from which an agreed number of lower numerals may be stripped

  • Napoleon (film by Scott [2023])

    Ridley Scott: In 2023 Scott directed Napoleon, an epic biopic about the legendary French emperor. Joaquin Phoenix appeared in the title role, and Vanessa Kirby portrayed Joséphine. In 2024 Scott returned to ancient Rome with the sequel Gladiator II, starring Paul Mescal as the son of Crowe’s

  • Napoleon (emperor of France)

    Napoleon III was the nephew of Napoleon I, president of the Second Republic of France (1850–52), and then emperor of the French (1852–70). He gave his country two decades of prosperity under a stable, authoritarian government but finally led it to defeat in the Franco-German War (1870–71). He was

  • Napoléon (film by Gance [1927])

    Napoléon, French epic silent film, released in 1927, that recounted the life of the French general Napoléon Bonaparte, tracing his early years through his invasion of Italy in 1796. It was intended to be the first of several films about the French emperor, but no subsequent movies came to fruition.

  • Napoleon as Pop Culture Icon

    As historical figures go, Napoleon is virtually unmatched in prominence. French scholar Jean Tulard, one of the foremost experts on the Little Corporal, claimed that more books have been written about Napoleon than there have been days since his death (that amounts to at least 73,000, for those of

  • Napoleon Crossing the Alps (painting by Jacques-Louis David)

    Napoleon Crossing the Alps, oil equestrian portrait by celebrated French artist Jacques-Louis David that was completed in 1801. This idealized portrait is perhaps the most powerful portrayal of Napoleon. David was the ultimate political artist. He was a fervent advocate of the French Revolution

  • Napoleon Crowning the Empress Josephine (painting by Jacques-Louis David)

    The Coronation of Napoleon, monumental oil painting (20.37 × 32.12 feet [6.21 × 9.79 meters]) by French artist Jacques-Louis David completed in 1806/07. The work depicts the moment during Napoleon I’s coronation as emperor of France when he crowns his wife, Joséphine, as empress. David took up the

  • Napoleon I (emperor of France)

    Napoleon I was a French general, first consul (1799–1804), and emperor of the French (1804–1814/15), one of the most celebrated personages in the history of the West. He revolutionized military organization and training; sponsored the Napoleonic Code, the prototype of later civil-law codes;

  • Napoleon II (Austrian-Italian noble)

    Napoléon-François-Charles-Joseph Bonaparte, duke von Reichstadt , duke von Reichstadt was the only son of Emperor Napoleon I and Empress Marie-Louise; at birth he was styled king of Rome. Three years after his birth, the French empire to which he was heir collapsed, and he was taken by the empress

  • Napoleon III (emperor of France)

    Napoleon III was the nephew of Napoleon I, president of the Second Republic of France (1850–52), and then emperor of the French (1852–70). He gave his country two decades of prosperity under a stable, authoritarian government but finally led it to defeat in the Franco-German War (1870–71). He was

  • Napoléon III (French steamship)

    ship: The Atlantic Ferry: …States) in 1865 launched the Napoléon III, which was the last paddle steamer built for the Atlantic Ferry. Early in the history of steam navigation the Swedish engineer John Ericsson had attempted unsuccessfully to interest the British Admiralty in the screw propeller he had invented. The U.S. Navy did adopt…

  • Napoleon III style (architecture)

    Second Empire style, architectural style that was dominant internationally during the second half of the 19th century. Developing from a tendency of architects of the second quarter of the 19th century to use architectural schemes drawn from the periods of the Italian Renaissance, Louis XIV, and

  • Napoléon inconnu (work by Masson)

    Frédéric Masson: In Napoléon inconnu (1895; “The Unknown Napoleon”), Masson, with Guido Biagi, brought out the unpublished writings (1786–93) of Napoleon before he became emperor: notes; extracts from historical, philosophical, and literary books; and personal reflections. His other works include several books on Josephine; Napoléon et sa famille,…

  • Napoleon IV (French prince)

    Louis Bonaparte was a French prince imperial, the only son of Napoleon III by Empress Eugénie. He was a delicate boy, but when the Franco-German War of 1870 broke out his mother sent him to the army. After the first defeats he had to flee from France with the Empress and settled in England at

  • Napoléon le Petit (work by Hugo)

    Victor Hugo: Exile (1851–70) of Victor Hugo: …to satire and recent history: Napoléon le Petit (1852), an indictment of Napoleon III, and Histoire d’un crime, a day-by-day account of Louis Bonaparte’s coup. Hugo’s return to poetry was an explosion of wrath: Les Châtiments (1853; “The Punishments”). This collection of poems unleashed his anger against the new emperor…

  • Napoleon of Notting Hill (work by Chesterton)

    G.K. Chesterton: The Napoleon of Notting Hill (1904), a romance of civil war in suburban London, was followed by the loosely knit collection of short stories, The Club of Queer Trades (1905), and the popular allegorical novel The Man Who Was Thursday (1908). But the most successful…

  • Napoleon of the Prize Ring (English boxer)

    Tom Sayers was a boxer who participated in the first international heavyweight championship match and was one of England’s best-known 19th-century pugilists. Standing 5 feet 8 12 inches and weighing 155 pounds, Sayers was known as the Little Wonder and the Napoleon of the Prize Ring. He often

  • Napoleon on his Imperial Throne (painting by Ingres)

    Jean-Auguste-Dominique Ingres: Early life and works: …was, however, the monumental portrait Napoleon I on the Imperial Throne (1806) that proved the most controversial. The stiffness and flat frontality of this imposing effigy were derived from medieval and Byzantine prototypes, while its meticulous detailing and unrelenting surface realism recalled 15th-century Flemish masters. Critics were unanimous in their…

  • Napoleon on the Battlefield at Eylau, February 1807 (painting by Gros)

    Antoine-Jean Gros: …Pesthouse at Jaffa (1804) and Napoleon on the Battlefield at Eylau, February 1807 (1808) influenced Théodore Géricault and Eugène Delacroix.

  • Napoleon on the Bridge at Arcole (painting by Gros)

    Antoine-Jean Gros: …in his first major work, Napoleon on the Bridge at Arcole (1796). Napoleon bestowed on him the rank of inspecteur aux revues. He accompanied Napoleon on his campaigns and also helped select works of art from Italy for the Louvre.

  • Napoleon Visiting the Pesthouse at Jaffa (painting by Gros)

    Antoine-Jean Gros: …of such historical paintings as Napoleon Visiting the Pesthouse at Jaffa (1804) and Napoleon on the Battlefield at Eylau, February 1807 (1808) influenced Théodore Géricault and Eugène Delacroix.

  • Napoléon vu par Abel Gance (film by Gance [1927])

    Napoléon, French epic silent film, released in 1927, that recounted the life of the French general Napoléon Bonaparte, tracing his early years through his invasion of Italy in 1796. It was intended to be the first of several films about the French emperor, but no subsequent movies came to fruition.