part 2, chapter 5.

{659}

DEMOCRATIC OR DEMOCRATIC REPUBLICAN PARTY OF THE UNITED STATES.

See UNITED STATES OF AMERICA: A. D. 1789-1792; 1825-1828; 1845-1846.

DEMOSTHENES, the general at Sphacteria and at Syracuse.

See GREECE: B. C. 425, and SYRACUSE: B. C. 415-413; and ATHENS: B. C. 415-413.

Demosthenes the orator, The Phillipics, and the Death of.

See GREECE: B. C. 357-336, 351-348, and 323--322; and ATHENS: B. C. 359-338, and 336-322.

DEMOTIC WRITING.

See HIEROGLYPHICS.

DEMUCHUS.

See DEMIURGI.

DENAIN. Battle of (1712).

See NETHERLANDS: A. D. 1710-1712.

DENARIUS, The.

See AS.

DENDERMONDE. Surrender to the Spaniards (1584).

See NETHERLANDS: A. D. 1584-1585.

DENIS, King of Portugal, A. D. 1279-1323.

DENMARK.

See SCANDINAVIAN STATES.

DENNEWITZ, OR JÜTERBOGK, Battle of.

See GERMANY: A. D. 1813 (SEPTEMBER-OCTOBER).

DENNIKON, Peace of (1531).

See SWITZERLAND: A. D. 1531-1648.

DENVER, The founding of.

See COLORADO: A. D. 1806-1876.

DEORHAM, Battle of.

Fought A. D. 577, near Bath, England, between the invading West Saxons and the Britons. The victory of the former gave them possession of the lower valley of the Severn and practically completed the Saxon conquest of England.

_J. R. Green, The Making of England, pages 125-131._

DERBEND, Pass of.

See JUROIPACH.

DERBY-DISRAELI MINISTRIES The.

See ENGLAND: A. D. 1851-1852; 1858-1859; and 1868-1870.

DERRY.

See LONDONDERRY.

DE RUSSY, Fort, Capture of.

See UNITED STATES OF AMERICA: A. D. 1864 (MARCH-MAY: LOUISIANA).

DESERET, The proposed state of.

See UTAH: A. D. 1849-1850.

DESMONDS, The.

See GERALDINES.

DESMOULINS, Camille, and the French Revolution.

See FRANCE: A. D. 1789 (JULY); 1790; 1792 (AUGUST), to 1793-1794 (NOVEMBER-JUNE).

DESPOT OF EPIRUS.

"The title of despot, by which they [the mediæval princes of Epirus] are generally distinguished, was a Byzantine honorary distinction, never borne by the earlier members of the family until it had been conferred on them by the Greek Emperor."

_G. Finlay, History of Greece from its conquest by the Crusaders, chapter 6, section I._

See EPIRUS: A. D. 1204-1350.

DESPOTS, Greek.

See TYRANTS.

Italian.

See ITALY: A. D. 1250-1520.

DESSAU, Battle of (1626).

See GERMANY: A. D. 1624-1626.

DESTRIERS.--PALFREYS.

"A cavaliere or man-at-arms was accompanied by one 'Destriero' or strong war-horse, and one or two, sometimes three, mounted squires who led the animal fully caparisoned; or carried the helmet; lance and shield of their master: these 'Destrieri' ('rich and great horses' as Villani calls them), were so named because they were led on the right hand without any rider, and all ready for mounting: the squire's horses were of an inferior kind called 'Ronzini,' and on the 'Palafreni' or palfreys the knight rode when not in battle."

_H. E. Napier, Florentine History, volume 1, page 633._

DESTROYING ANGELS, OR DANITES.

See MORMONISM: A. D. 1830-1846.

DETROIT: First occupied by the Coureurs de Bois.

See COUREURS DE BOIS.

DETROIT: A. D. 1686-1701. The first French forts. Cadillac's founding of the city.

At the beginning of the war called "Queen Anne's War" (1702) "Detroit had already been established. In June, 1701, la Mothe Cadillac, with a Jesuit father and 100 men, was sent to construct a fort and occupy the country; hence he is spoken of as the founder of the city. In 1686, a fort [called Fort St. Joseph] had been constructed to the south of the present city, where Fort Gratiot now stands, but it soon fell into decay and was abandoned. It was not the site selected by Cadillac."

_W. Kingsford, History of Canada, volume 2, page 408._

"Fort St. Joseph was abandoned in the year 1688. The establishment of Cadillac was destined to a better fate and soon rose to distinguished importance among the western outposts of Canada."

_F. Parkman, The Conspiracy of Pontiac, volume 1, page 218._

DETROIT: A. D. 1701-1755. Importance to the French.

See CANADA: A. D. 1700-1735.

DETROIT: A. D. 1712. Siege by the Foxes and Massacre of that tribe.

See CANADA: A. D. 1711-1713.

DETROIT: A. D. 1760. The French settlement when surrendered to the English.

"The French inhabitants here are settled on both sides of the river for about eight miles. When I took possession of the country soon after the surrender of Canada [see CANADA: A. D. 1760], they were about 2,500 in number, there being near 500 that bore arms (to whom I administered oaths of allegiance) and near 300 dwelling houses. Our fort here is built of stockadoes, is about 25 feet high, and 1,200 yards in circumference. ... The inhabitants raise wheat and other grain in abundance, and have plenty of cattle, but they enrich themselves chiefly by their trade with the Indians, which is here very large and lucrative."

_Major R. Rogers, Concise Account of North America, page 168._

DETROIT: A. D. 1763. Pontiac's Siege.

See PONTIAC'S WAR.

DETROIT: A. D. 1775-1783. Held by the British throughout the War of Independence.

See UNITED STATES OF AMERICA: A. D. 1778-1779, CLARK'S CONQUEST.

DETROIT: A. D. 1805. Made the seat of government of the Territory of Michigan.

See INDIANA: A. D. 1800-1818.

DETROIT: A. D. 1812. The surrender of General Hull.

See UNITED STATES OF AMERICA: A. D. 1812 (JUNE-OCTOBER).

DETROIT: A. D 1813. American recovery.

See UNITED STATES OF AMERICA: A. D. 1812-1813.

{660}

DETTINGEN, Battle of (1743).

See AUSTRIA: A. D. 1743.

DEUSDEDIT, Pope, A. D. 615-618.

DEUTSCH. Origin of the name.

See GERMANY: THE NATIONAL NAME.

DEUTSCHBROD, Battle of (1422).

See BOHEMIA: A. D. 1419-1434.

DEVA.

One of the Roman garrison towns in Britain, on the site of which is modern Chester, taking its name from the castra or fortified station of the legions. It was the station of the 20th legion.

T. Mommsen, History of Rome, book 8, chapter 5.

DEVE-BOYUN, Battle of (1878).

See TURKS: A. D. 1877-1878.

DEVIL'S CAUSEWAY, The. The popular name of an old Roman road in England which runs from Silchester to London.

DEVIL'S HOLE, The ambuscade and massacre at.

On the 13th of September, 1763, during the progress of Pontiac's War, a train of wagons and packhorses, traversing the Niagara portage between Lewiston and Fort Schlosser, guarded by an escort of 24 soldiers, was ambuscaded by a party of Seneca warriors at the place called the Devil's Hole, three miles below the Niagara cataract. Seventy of the whites were slain, and only three escaped.

_F. Parkman, The Conspiracy of Pontiac, chapter 21 (volume 2)._

DEVON COMMISSION, The.

See IRELAND: A. D. 1843-1848.

DEVONSHIRE, in the British age.

See DUMNONII.

DE WITT, John, The administration and the murder of.

See NETHERLANDS: A. D. 1651-1660, to 1672-1674.

DHIHAD.

See DAR-UL-ISLAM.

DIACRII, The.

See ATHENS: B. C. 594.

DIADOCHI, The.

The immediate successors of Alexander the Great, who divided his empire, are sometimes so-called. "The word diadochi means 'successors,' and is used to include Antigonus, Ptolemy, Seleucus, Lysimachus, etc.--the actual companions of Alexander."

_J. P. Mahaffy, Story of Alexander's Empire, chapter 5._

See MACEDONIA: B. C. 323-316.

DIAMOND, Battle of the (1795).

See IRELAND: A. D. 1795-1796.

DIAMOND DISCOVERY IN SOUTH AFRICA (1867).

See GRIQUAS.

DIAMOND NECKLACE, The affair of the.

See FRANCE: A. D. 1784-1785.

DIASPORA, The.

A name applied to the Jews scattered throughout the Roman world.

DIAZ, Porfirio, The Mexican presidency of.

See MEXICO: A. D. 1867-1888.

DICASTERIA.

The great popular court, or jury, in ancient Athens, called the Heliæa, or Heliastæ consisting at one time of six thousand chosen citizens, was divided into ten sections, called Dicasteria. Their places of meeting also bore the same name.

_G. F. Schömann, Antiquity of Greece: The State, part 3, chapter 3._

See ATHENS: B. C.445-431.

DICKINSON, John, in the American Revolution.

See UNITED STATES OF AMERICA: A. D. 1767-1768; 1774 (SEPTEMBER); 1776 (JULY).

DICTATOR, Roman.

See CONSULS, ROMAN.

DIDIAN LAW, The.

See ORCHIAN, FANNIAN, DIDIAN LAWS.

DIDIER, OR DESIDERIUS, King of the Lombards, A. D. 759-774.

DIDYMÆUM, The oracle of.

See ORACLES OF THE GREEKS.

DIEDENHOFEN, Battle of (1639).

See GERMANY: A. D. 1634-1639.

DIEPPE. Bombardment and destruction by an English fleet.

See FRANCE: A. D. 1694.

DIES ATRI.

The days on which the Romans thought it unlucky to undertake business of importance--for example, the day after the Calends, Nones and Ides of each month--were called Dies Atri.

_W. Ramsay, Manual of Roman Antiquity, chapter 11._

DIES FASTI. Dies Nefasti. Dies Festi.

See FASTI, and LUDI.

DIET.

"An assembly, council, ... Parliament. ... The peculiar sense of the word undoubtedly arose from a popular etymology that connected it with the Latin 'dies,' a day, especially a set day, a day appointed for public business; whence, by extension, a meeting for business, an assembly."

_W. W. Skeat, Etymological Dictionary_

DIET: The Germanic.

"The annual general councils and special councils of Charles the Great did not long survive him, and neither his descendants nor their successors revived them. They were compelled, to be sure, both by custom and by policy to advise with the chief men of the kingdom before taking any important step or doing anything that depended for success on their consent and cooperation, but they varied the number of their counsellors and the time, place, and manner of consulting them to suit their own convenience. Great formal assemblies of counsellors summoned from all parts of the realm were termed Imperial Diets (Reichstage); small, or local, or informal assemblies of a similar kind were known as Court Diets (Hoftage). Princes and other royal vassals, margraves, palsgraves, Graves, barons, and even royal Dienstmannen were indiscriminately summoned, but the Diets were in no sense representative bodies until the Great Interregnum [see GERMANY: A. D. 1250-1272] when certain cities acquired such influence in public affairs that they were invited to send delegates. The first Diet in which they participated was held at Worms in February, 1255, by King William of Holland. Most of the cities of the Rhenish League were there represented, and they constituted an important factor of the assembly. The affairs of the church shared attention with temporal affairs in the Diets until the Popes succeeded in making good their claims to supremacy in spiritual matters. Thereafter they were altogether left to synods and church councils. ... Imperial Diets and Court Diets continued to be held at irregular intervals, whenever and wherever it pleased the king to convene them, but Imperial Diets were usually held in Imperial cities. These were not such heterogenous assemblies as formerly, for few royal vassals, except princes, and no royal Dienstmannen whatever were now invited to attend. Graves and barons, and prelates who were not princes, continued to be summoned, but the number and influence of the Graves and barons in the Diets steadily waned. Imperial cities were for many years only occasionally asked to participate, that is to say, only when the king had especial need of their good offices, but in the latter half of the 14th century they began to be regularly summoned. {661} Imperial Diets were so frequently held during the Hussite War and thereafter, that it became pretty well settled what persons and what cities should take part in them, and only those persons and those cities that were entitled to take part in them were regarded as Estates of the realm. In the 15th century they developed into three chambers or colleges, viz., the College of Electors [see GERMANY: A. D. 1125-1152], the College of Princes, Graves, and Barons, usually called the Council of Princes of the Empire (Reichsfürstenrath), and the College of Imperial Cities. The Archbishop of Mentz presided in the College of Electors, and the Archbishop of Salzburg and the Duke of Austria presided alternately in the Council of Princes of the Empire. The office of presiding in the College of Imperial Cities devolved upon the Imperial city in which the Diet sat. The king and members of both the upper Colleges sometimes sent deputies to represent them, instead of attending in person. In 1474 the cities adopted a method of voting which resulted in a division of their College into two Benches, called the Rhenish Bench and the Swabian Bench, because the Rhenish cities were conspicuous members of the one, and the Swabian cities conspicuous members of the other. In the Council of Princes, at least, no regard was had to the number of votes cast, but only to the power and influence of the voters, whence a measure might pass the Diet by less than a majority of the votes present. Having passed, it was proclaimed as the law of the realm, upon receiving the king's assent, but was only effective law in so far as the members of the Diet, present or absent, assented to it. ... Not a single Imperial Diet was summoned between 1613 and 1640. The king held a few Court Diets during that long interval, consisting either of the Electors alone, or of the Electors and such other Princes of the Empire as he chose to summon. The conditions of membership, and the manner of voting in the College of Electors and the College of Imperial Cities remained unchanged. ... The cities long strove in vain to have their votes recognized as of equal weight with the others, but the two upper Colleges insisted on regarding them as summoned for consultation only, until the Peace of Westphalia settled the matter by declaring that 'a decisive vote (votum decisivum) shall belong to the Free Imperial Cities not less than to the rest of the Estates of the Empire.' Generally, but not always, the sense of each College was expressed by the majority of votes cast. The Peace of Westphalia provided that 'in religious matters and all other business, when the Estates cannot be considered one body (corpus), as also when the Catholic Estates and those of the Augsburg Confession go into two parts (in duas partes euntibus), a mere amicable agreement shall settle the differences without regard to majority of votes.' When the 'going into parts,' (itio in partes) took place each College deliberated in two bodies, the Corpus Catholicorum and the Corpus Evangelicorum. The king no longer attended the Imperial Diets in person, but sent commissioners instead, and it was now the common practice of members of both the upper Colleges to send deputies to represent them."

_S. E. . Turner, Sketch of the Germanic Constitution, chapter 4, 5, and 6._

"The establishment of a permanent diet, attended, not by the electors in person, but by their representatives, is one of the most striking peculiarities of Leopold's reign" (Leopold I., 1657-1705). This came about rather accidentally than with intention, as a consequence of the unusual prolongation of the session of a general diet which Rudolph convoked at Ratisbon, soon after his accession to the throne. "'So many new and important objects ... occurred in the course of the deliberations that the diet was unusually prolonged, and at last rendered perpetual, as it exists at present, and distinguishes the Germanic constitution as the only one of its kind--not only for a certain length of time, as was formerly, and as diets are generally held in other countries, where there are national states; but the diet of the Germanic empire was established by this event for ever. The diet acquired by this circumstance an entirely different form. So long as it was only of short duration, it was always expected that the emperor, as well as the electors, princes, counts and prelates, if not all, yet the greatest part of them, should attend in person. ... It is true, it had long been customary at the diets of Germany, for the states to deliver their votes occasionally by means of plenipotentiaries; but it was then considered only as an exception, whereas it was now established as a general rule, that all the states should send their plenipotentiaries, and never appear themselves. ... The whole diet, therefore, imperceptibly acquired the form of a congress, consisting solely of ministers, similar in a great degree to a congress where several powers send their envoys to treat of peace. In other respects, it may be compared to a congress held in the name of several states in perpetual alliance with each other, as in Switzerland, the United Provinces, and as somewhat of a similar nature exists at present in North America; but with this difference,--that in Germany the assembly is held under the authority of one common supreme head, and that the members do not appear merely as deputies, or representatives invested with full power by their principals, which is only the case with the imperial cities; but so that every member of the two superior colleges of the empire is himself an actual sovereign of a state, who permits his minister to deliver his vote in his name and only according to his prescription.'"

S. A. Dunham, History of the Germanic Empire,