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M

Machiavelli, Niccolo

(1469-1527) Italian historian, statesman, and political philosopher of the Renaissance. His greatest work is The Prince, a book of political advice to rulers in which he describes the methods that a prince should use to acquire and maintain political power. This book was used to defend policies of despotism and tyranny. Machiavelli wrote that a ruler should take any action to remain in power, or that the ends justifies the means.

Magellan, Ferdinand

(1480?-1521) Spanish explorer who was the first to circumnavigate the globe.

Magna Carta

A document granting rights to both the Church in England and the Nobility signed by King John in 1215. This is considered to be the beginnings of British democracy.

Mahabharata

Hindu epic poem that was written in Sanskrit in the 5th century BCE. Its most important part is the Bhagavad-Gita.

Mali

One of the west African Trading Kingdoms. They were rich in gold and established a vast trading network across the Sahara desert. Greatest ruler was Mansa Musa, who converted to Islam and made a famous pilgrimage.

mandate

A territory that was given to a European nation to administer by the League of Nations following the end of World War I.

Mandate of Heaven

Divine right of rule in China.

Mandela, Nelson

(1918 - )A black South African leader who protested the policy of Apartheid and spent over thirty years in prison before becoming the first black president of South Africa.

manorialism

Economic portion of feudalism where all aspects of life were centered on the lord’s manor including peasant villages, a church, farm land, a mill, and the lord's castle or manor house.

Mansa Musa

Emperor of the kingdom of Mali in Africa. He made a famous pilgrimage to Mecca and established trade routes to the Middle East.


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