Karl von Holtei: … (1825; “The Old Baron”) and Lenore (1829), a dramatization of Gottfried August Bürger’s poem, achieved great popularity. Also successful were his Schlesische Gedichte (1830; “Silesian Poems”), written in his native dialect. He also wrote novels, including Die Vagabunden (1851; “The Vagabonds”) and Der letzte Komödiant (1863; “The Last Comedian”), that…

Henri-René Lenormand was a French dramatist, the most important of those playwrights concerned with subconscious motivation who flourished between World Wars I and II. The son of a composer, Lenormand was educated at the University of Paris and spent much of his adult life writing for the Parisian

Louis-Sebastien Lenormand was a French aeronaut, generally recognized as the first person to make a parachute descent. He was not the inventor of the parachute; the ancient Chinese may have devised one, and it was known to medieval Europe in the form of a toy. Information about Lenormand’s life is

François Lenormant was a French Assyriologist and numismatist who recognized, from cuneiform inscriptions, a language now known as Akkadian that proved valuable to the understanding of Mesopotamian civilization 3,000 years before the Christian era. He published his first archaeological paper at 14

IBM: …personal computer division to the Lenovo Group, a major Chinese manufacturer. In addition to cash, securities, and debt restructuring, IBM acquired an 18.9 percent stake in Lenovo, which acquired the right to market its personal computers under the IBM label through 2010. With these divestitures, IBM shifted away from manufacturing…

Lenox, town (township), Berkshire county, western Massachusetts, U.S. It lies in the Berkshire Hills, just south of Pittsfield. Settled about 1750 and originally called Yokuntown, it was set off from Richmond in 1767 and was probably named for Charles Lennox, 3rd duke of Richmond and a defender of

James Lenox: In 1895 the Lenox Library (containing about 85,000 volumes), the Astor Library, and the Tilden Foundation were consolidated to become the New York Public Library.

James Lenox was an American philanthropist and pioneer book collector. Lenox’s father was a wealthy Scottish merchant from whom Lenox inherited several million dollars as well as valuable properties in New York City. A graduate of Columbia College (1818) and a member of the bar, Lenox devoted the

Trenton: …in the late 19th century Walter Scott Lenox developed an international reputation with the fine china his firm made in Trenton. The railroad, trucking, rubber, plastics, metalworking, electrical, automobile parts, glass, and textile industries are now among the city’s foremost enterprises.

climate: The Gulf Stream: …this process forms a deep lens of warm, saline North Atlantic Central Water. The shape of the lens of water is distorted by other dynamic effects, the principal one being the change in the vertical component of the Coriolis force with latitude known as the beta effect. This effect involves…

Lens, industrial town, Pas-de-Calais département, Hauts-de-France région, northern France, southwest of Lille. It was the chief urban centre of the Pas-de-Calais coal basin. Since the demise of coal mining in the 1980s, a wide range of new industries and services has been developed in Lens. These

lens, in optics, piece of glass or other transparent substance that is used to form an image of an object by focusing rays of light from the object. A lens is a piece of transparent material, usually circular in shape, with two polished surfaces, either or both of which is curved and may be either

lens, in anatomy, a nearly transparent biconvex structure suspended behind the iris of the eye, the sole function of which is to focus light rays onto the retina. The lens is made up of unusual elongated cells that have no blood supply but obtain nutrients from the surrounding fluids, mainly the

motion-picture technology: Principal parts: …the glass-to-air surface of a lens component could greatly diminish reflections from this surface without affecting other properties of the lens. The use of such coatings improved image contrast by reducing the stray rays that were produced by reflections in a multiple-component lens. Coatings also reduce loss of light by…

lentil, (Lens culinaris), small annual legume of the pea family (Fabaceae) and its edible seed. Lentils are widely cultivated throughout Europe, Asia, and North Africa but are little grown in the Western Hemisphere. The seeds are used chiefly in soups and stews, and the herbage is used as fodder in

photoreception: Image formation: …a structure known as a lens cylinder. Similar to fish lenses, lens cylinders bend light, using an internal gradient of refractive index, highest on the axis and falling parabolically to the cylinder wall. In the 1890s Austrian physiologist Sigmund Exner was the first to show that lens cylinders can be…

lens dislocation, abnormal position of the crystalline lens of the eye. The dislocation, which may be congenital, developmental, or acquired (typically via trauma), is usually caused by abnormalities of or injury to a portion of the suspensory ligaments (called zonular fibres) that anchor the lens

lens formula, in optics, a formula relating the distance (u) of an object from a lens, the distance (v) of the object’s image from the lens, and the focal length (f) of the lens. The formula is 1 u + 1 f = 1 v .The formula follows the thin lens approximation in which the thickness of the lens is

lentil, (Lens culinaris), small annual legume of the pea family (Fabaceae) and its edible seed. Lentils are widely cultivated throughout Europe, Asia, and North Africa but are little grown in the Western Hemisphere. The seeds are used chiefly in soups and stews, and the herbage is used as fodder in

photoreception: Lens eyes: Relative to pinhole eyes, lens eyes have greatly improved resolution and image brightness. Lenses were formed by increasing the refractive index of material in the chamber by adding denser material, such as mucus or protein. This converged incoming rays of light, thereby reducing…

lens formula, in optics, a formula relating the distance (u) of an object from a lens, the distance (v) of the object’s image from the lens, and the focal length (f) of the lens. The formula is 1 u + 1 f = 1 v .The formula follows the thin lens approximation in which the thickness of the lens is

Jack Russell Terrier: Care and upkeep: As with many terriers, lens luxation, in which the eye lens becomes displaced, occurs in a greater percentage of the breed than in the dog population as a whole. Even so, however, the affliction is uncommon. Nonetheless, caretakers should be aware of its signs as emergency treatment may be…

Friedrich Hebbel: …and materially, by a seamstress, Elise Lensing, with whom he lived. At this time he started his Tagebücher (published 1885–87; “Diaries”), which became an important and revealing literary confession. Provided with a small income from his patrons, he went to Heidelberg to study law but soon left for Munich to…

social structure: Later trends in social structure theory: Gerhard Lenski in Power and Privilege (1966) classified societies on the basis of their main tools of subsistence and, unlike Marx, demonstrated statistically that variations in the primary tools used in a given society systematically accounted for different types of social stratification systems.

E.E. Smith: …as four separate books, the Lensman series, in Astounding Stories (after 1938, Astounding Science-Fiction): Galactic Patrol (1937–38), Gray Lensman (1939–40), Second Stage Lensmen (1941–42), and Children of the Lens (1947–48). The first three books present the adventures of Kimball Kinnison, who graduates first in his class at the Galactic Patrol…

Lent, in the Christian church, a 40-day period of penitential preparation for Easter. For many Christians, Lent is a season for fasting and abstinence in imitation of Jesus Christ’s fasting in the wilderness before he began his public ministry. Almsgiving, the practice of giving money or food to

peppergrass: Major species: Lentejilla, or little lentil (L. armoracia), is native to Europe but has naturalized in Mexico, where it is used as a folk medicine. Pepperwort, or field pepper (L. campestre), is a widespread weed originally native to Europe. It has hairy arrowlike stem leaves and once…

crab: Distribution and variety: …crab of southern Europe (the Lenten crab, Potamon fluviatile) is an example of the freshwater crabs abundant in most of the warmer regions of the world. As a rule, crabs breathe by gills, which are lodged in a pair of cavities beneath the sides of the carapace, but in the…

Christmas rose: Lenten rose (Helleborus orientalis), blooming later, with cream to purplish flowers in clusters of two to six, is popular in Europe.

William Lenthall was an English Parliamentarian who, as speaker of the House of Commons, was at the centre of repeated struggles between the Parliamentarians and Royalists during the English Civil Wars. Trained in law, Lenthall was chosen speaker of the House at the beginning of the Long Parliament

Karl August von Hardenberg: Early years: …after his divorce he married Sophie von Lenthe, who had been divorced from her husband on Hardenberg’s account.

bladderwort: …carnivorous plants in the family Lentibulariaceae. The bladderwort genus contains 220 widely distributed species of plants characterized by small hollow sacs that actively capture and digest tiny animals such as insect larvae, aquatic worms, and water fleas. Bladderworts can be found in lakes, streams, and waterlogged soils around the world,…

lacustrine ecosystem, any pond or lake viewed as an ecosystem. A riverine, or lotic, ecosystem, by contrast, has flowing water—e.g., a river or a stream. Ponds are relatively shallow, with considerable light penetration. They support a variety of rooted aquatic plants. Water is mixed well top to

Myrtales: Characteristic morphological features: They have small openings called lenticels in their bark so that air can reach the rest of the plant’s root system. Another feature of most mangroves is aerial prop roots, which form a tangled jungle, even after the main roots and stem bases of the trees have decayed.

lee wave: They may produce clouds, called wave clouds, when the air becomes saturated with water vapour at the top of the wave.

human nervous system: Basal ganglia: …are referred to as the lentiform nucleus, while the caudate nucleus, putamen, and globus pallidus form the corpus striatum.

projection screen: …the glass bead, and the lenticular. Mat white is a nonglossy white surface, which may be produced by a flat white paint coating, that provides uniform brightness of a projected image over a wide viewing angle. It is therefore well adapted for projection in a large theatre or auditorium. The…

technology of photography: Stereoscopic and three-dimensional photography: On superimposing a carefully aligned lenticular grid on the composite picture, an observer directly sees all the strips belonging to the left-eye picture with the left eye and all the strips belonging to the right-eye picture with the right eye. Such parallax stereograms are seen in display advertising in shop…

human nervous system: Basal ganglia: …are referred to as the lentiform nucleus, while the caudate nucleus, putamen, and globus pallidus form the corpus striatum.

lentil, (Lens culinaris), small annual legume of the pea family (Fabaceae) and its edible seed. Lentils are widely cultivated throughout Europe, Asia, and North Africa but are little grown in the Western Hemisphere. The seeds are used chiefly in soups and stews, and the herbage is used as fodder in

shiitake mushroom: …chemicals, such as the polysaccharide lentinan, that some studies suggest may prove beneficial against cancer and other diseases.

Giacomo Da Lentini was a senior poet of the Sicilian school and notary at the court of the Holy Roman emperor Frederick II. Celebrated during his life, he was acclaimed as a master by the poets of the following generation, including Dante, who memorialized him in the Purgatorio (XXIV, 55–57).

Lentinula, a genus of at least six species of wood-dwelling fungi, best known for the edible and medicinal shiitake mushroom, Lentinula edodes (formerly Lentinus edodes). Found primarily in the tropical and subtropical regions of North and South America, Asia, and Australia, Lentinula fungi feed

shiitake mushroom, (Lentinula edodes), edible and medicinal wood-dwelling fungus, native to East Asia. The shiitake mushroom is among the most commonly cultivated fungi in the world. Important in a number of Asian and vegetarian dishes, shiitake mushrooms are high in dietary fiber, B vitamins

shiitake mushroom, (Lentinula edodes), edible and medicinal wood-dwelling fungus, native to East Asia. The shiitake mushroom is among the most commonly cultivated fungi in the world. Important in a number of Asian and vegetarian dishes, shiitake mushrooms are high in dietary fiber, B vitamins

chewing gum: …the sweet resin of the mastic tree (so named after the custom) as a tooth cleanser and breath freshener. New England colonists borrowed from the Indians the custom of chewing aromatic and astringent spruce resin for the same purposes. Similarly, for centuries inhabitants of the Yucatán Peninsula have chewed the…

Libby Trickett is an Australian swimmer who set several world records in the 100-metre freestyle. She also won seven Olympic medals, four of which were gold. Trickett came to prominence in both Australian and world swimming in 2003, winning her first national title in the 50-metre freestyle and

Aristarkh Vasilyevich Lentulov was a Russian painter who was one of the foremost representatives of the Moscow School of Art. Lentulov studied at the art institutes in Penza (1898–1900) and Kiev (now Kyiv, Ukr.; 1903–05) and in St. Petersburg at the studio of Dmitry Kardovsky from 1906 to 1907. In

Lucius Cornelius Lentulus Crus was a Roman politician, a leading member of the senatorial party that vigorously opposed Julius Caesar. In 61 bc Lentulus was the chief accuser of Publius Clodius on a charge of sacrilege at a festival. (Clodius had entered the residence of the pontifex maximus, his

Publius Cornelius Lentulus Spinther was a leading supporter of the Roman general Pompey the Great during the Civil War (49–45 bc) between Pompey and Julius Caesar; he was a brother of Lentulus Crus. As curule aedile, Lentulus in 63 helped Cicero suppress Catiline’s conspiracy to overthrow the

Publius Cornelius Lentulus was a leading figure in Catiline’s conspiracy (63 bc) to seize control of the Roman government. In 81 Lentulus was quaestor to Lucius Cornelius Sulla. When Sulla later accused him of having squandered public funds, Lentulus scornfully held out the calf of his leg, a

megachurch: Controversies: …York and New Jersey branches, Carl Lentz, became well known for his tattoos, rejection of “religious jargon,” and relationships with celebrities, including a well-documented friendship with Justin Beiber. Lentz, who once claimed that he could distinguish “a real Christian from a churchgoing nominal Christian better than most,” was fired from…

Lotte Lenya was an Austrian actress-singer who popularized much of the music of her first husband, the composer Kurt Weill, and appeared frequently in the musical dramas of Weill and his longtime collaborator Bertolt Brecht. Lenya studied ballet and drama in Zurich from 1914 to 1920, was a member

Lenz’s law, in electromagnetism, statement that an induced electric current flows in a direction such that the current opposes the change that induced it. This law was deduced in 1834 by the Russian physicist Heinrich Friedrich Emil Lenz (1804–65). Thrusting a pole of a permanent bar magnet through

Lenz’s law: …1834 by the Russian physicist Heinrich Friedrich Emil Lenz (1804–65).

Jakob Michael Reinhold Lenz was a Russian-born German poet and dramatist of the Sturm und Drang (Storm and Stress) period, who is considered an important forerunner of 19th-century naturalism and of 20th-century theatrical Expressionism. Lenz studied theology at Königsberg University but gave up

Ludwig van Beethoven: Three periods of work: It was his biographer Wilhelm von Lenz who first divided Beethoven’s output into three periods, omitting the years of his apprenticeship in Bonn. The first period begins with the completion of the Three Trios for Piano, Violin, and Cello, Opus 1, in 1794, and ends about 1800, the year…

low Earth orbit (LEO), region of space where satellites orbit closest to Earth’s surface. There is no official definition of this region, but it is usually considered to be between 160 and 1,600 km (about 100 and 1,000 miles) above Earth. Satellites do not orbit below 160 km because they are

Mithraism: Worship, practices, and institutions: Bridegroom; miles, Soldier; leo, Lion; Perses, Persian; heliodromus, Courier of (and to) the Sun; pater, Father. To each rank belonged a particular mask (Raven, Persian, Lion) or dress (Bridegroom). The rising of the Mithraist in grade prefigured the ascent of the soul after death. The series of the…

List of Highest-Grossing Indian Films: …Hooda 607 (about $91 million) Leo 2023 Lokesh Kanagaraj Joseph Vijay, Trisha Krishnan, and Sanjay Dutt 605 (about $73 million) Jailer 2023 Nelson Dilipkumar Rajinikanth, Mohanlal, and Shivarajkumar 604 (about $73 million) Sanju 2018 Rajkumar Hirani Ranbir Kapoor, Paresh Rawal, Sonam Kapoor, and Manisha Koirala 588 (about $86

Leo, in astronomy, zodiacal constellation lying in the northern sky between Cancer and Virgo, at about 10 hours 30 minutes right ascension and 15° north declination. Regulus (Latin for “little king”; also called Alpha Leonis), the brightest star, is of magnitude 1.35. The November meteor shower

feline: The so-called “big cats” (genus Panthera), especially the lion, often roar, growl, or shriek. Usually, however, cats are silent. Many cats use “clawing trees,” upon which they leave the marks of their claws as they stand and drag their front feet downward with the claws extended. Whether such behaviour is…

Leo Africanus was a traveler whose writings remained for some 400 years one of Europe’s principal sources of information about Islam. Educated at Fès, in Morocco, Leo Africanus traveled widely as a young man on commercial and diplomatic missions through North Africa and may also have visited the

Andreas Gryphius: He wrote five tragedies: Leo Armenius (1646), Catharina von Georgien, Carolus Stuardus, and Cardenio und Celinde (all printed 1657), and Papinianus (1659). These plays deal with the themes of stoicism and religious constancy unto martyrdom, of the Christian ruler and the Machiavellian tyrant, and of illusion and reality, a…

Leo Castelli: The Leo Castelli Gallery soon became the place in Manhattan to see the newest and best art.

Levi ben Gershom was a French Jewish mathematician, philosopher, astronomer, and Talmudic scholar. In 1321 Levi wrote his first work, Sefer ha-mispar (“Book of the Number”), dealing with arithmetical operations, including extraction of roots. In De sinibus, chordis et arcubus (1342; “On Sines,

Levi ben Gershom was a French Jewish mathematician, philosopher, astronomer, and Talmudic scholar. In 1321 Levi wrote his first work, Sefer ha-mispar (“Book of the Number”), dealing with arithmetical operations, including extraction of roots. In De sinibus, chordis et arcubus (1342; “On Sines,

Levon I was the king of Armenia (reigned 1199–1219), who rallied the Armenians after their dispersion by the Seljuq Turks and consolidated the kingdom in Cilicia, southeastern Asia Minor. Through his friendly relations with the German emperors Frederick I Barbarossa and Henry VI, he was crowned by

Leo I was the Eastern Roman emperor from ad 457 to 474. Leo was a Thracian who, beginning his career in the army, became a protégé of General Aspar. In proclaiming Leo Eastern emperor at Constantinople (Feb. 7, 457), Aspar expected to use him as a puppet ruler. Leo, who had recognized Majorian as

St. Leo I ; Western feast day November 10 ([formerly April 11]), Eastern feast day February 18) was the pope, the leader of the Roman Catholic Church, from 440 to 461 and a master exponent of papal supremacy. His pontificate—which saw the disintegration of the Roman Empire in the West and the

Leo II was a Roman emperor of the East, grandson of Leo I, and son of Zeno. His grandfather, growing ill, felt compelled to name a successor but, deciding that his son-in-law Zeno, an Isaurian, was unpopular, made his grandson co-emperor, as Caesar and then Augustus, at the young age of five (or

Crusades: The Latin East after the Third Crusade: King Leo II of Armenia joined the Crusaders at Cyprus and Acre. Desirous of a royal crown, he approached both pope and emperor, and in 1198, with papal approval, royal insignia were bestowed by Archbishop Conrad of Mainz, in the name of Henry VI. At the…

Saint Leo II ; feast day July 3, formerly June 28) was the pope from 682 to 683. He promoted church music (he was an accomplished singer), opposed heresy, and maintained good relations with Constantinople. According to the Liber Pontificalis (“The Book of the Pontiffs”), Leo was “a man of great

Leo III was a Byzantine emperor (717–741), who founded the Isaurian, or Syrian, dynasty, successfully resisted Arab invasions, and engendered a century of conflict within the empire by banning the use of religious images (icons). Born at Germanicia (Marʿash) in northern Syria (modern Maraş, Tur.),

Saint Leo III ; feast day June 12) was the pope from 795 to 816. Leo was a cardinal when elected to succeed Pope Adrian I on December 26, 795; he was consecrated the next day. Unlike Adrian, who had tried to maintain independence in the growing estrangement between East and West by balancing the

Leo IV was a Byzantine emperor whose reign marked a transition between the period of Iconoclasm and the restoration of the icons. Leo became Byzantine emperor in 775 at the death of his father, Constantine V. The following year, at the request of the army and with the support of the Senate and the

Saint Leo IV ; feast day July 17) was the pope from 847 to 855. A Benedictine monk, Leo served in the Curia under Pope Gregory IV and was later made cardinal priest by Pope Sergius II, whom he was elected to succeed. Leo rebuilt Rome after it had been sacked by the Saracens (Arab enemies) in 846

St. Leo IX ; feast day April 19) was the head of the medieval Latin church (1049–54), during whose reign the papacy became the focal point of western Europe and the great East-West Schism of 1054 became inevitable. Bruno of Egisheim was born into an aristocratic family. He was educated at Toul,

Leo Minor, constellation in the northern sky at about 10 hours right ascension and 35° north in declination. Its brightest star is 46 Leonis Minoris (sometimes called Praecipua, from the Latin for “Chief”), with a magnitude of 3.8. Polish astronomer Johannes Hevelius formed Leo Minor from stars

jaguar, (Panthera onca), largest New World member of the cat family (Felidae), found from northern Mexico southward to northern Argentina. Its preferred habitats are usually swamps and wooded regions, but jaguars also live in scrublands and deserts. The jaguar is virtually extinct in the northern

leopard, (Panthera pardus), large cat closely related to the lion, tiger, and jaguar. The name leopard was originally given to the cat now called cheetah—the so-called hunting leopard—which was once thought to be a cross between the lion and the pard. The term pard was eventually replaced by the

Leo V was a Byzantine emperor responsible for inaugurating the second Iconoclastic period in the Byzantine Empire. When Bardanes Turcus and Nicephorus I were fighting over the Byzantine throne in 803, Leo, son of the patrician Bardas, at first served Bardanes but later sided with Nicephorus. Leo

eclipse: Medieval European: …penned by the contemporary chronicler Leo the Deacon:

St. Leo I ; Western feast day November 10 ([formerly April 11]), Eastern feast day February 18) was the pope, the leader of the Roman Catholic Church, from 440 to 461 and a master exponent of papal supremacy. His pontificate—which saw the disintegration of the Roman Empire in the West and the

Leo III was a Byzantine emperor (717–741), who founded the Isaurian, or Syrian, dynasty, successfully resisted Arab invasions, and engendered a century of conflict within the empire by banning the use of religious images (icons). Born at Germanicia (Marʿash) in northern Syria (modern Maraş, Tur.),

Leo IV was a Byzantine emperor whose reign marked a transition between the period of Iconoclasm and the restoration of the icons. Leo became Byzantine emperor in 775 at the death of his father, Constantine V. The following year, at the request of the army and with the support of the Senate and the

John Boorman: Early documentaries, first feature film, and Point Blank: Leo the Last (1970) was a quirky philosophical tale about an exiled monarch (Marcello Mastroianni) who returns to his family’s London home and finds the surrounding area has become impoverished. Although initially self-absorbed, he slowly becomes involved in the lives of his neighbors. The dramedy…

Leo VI was the Byzantine coemperor from 870 and emperor from 886 to 912, whose imperial laws, written in Greek, became the legal code of the Byzantine Empire. Leo was the son of Basil I the Macedonian, who had begun the codification, and his second wife, Eudocia Ingerina. Made coemperor in 870, Leo

Leo VI was the Byzantine coemperor from 870 and emperor from 886 to 912, whose imperial laws, written in Greek, became the legal code of the Byzantine Empire. Leo was the son of Basil I the Macedonian, who had begun the codification, and his second wife, Eudocia Ingerina. Made coemperor in 870, Leo

Leo I was the Eastern Roman emperor from ad 457 to 474. Leo was a Thracian who, beginning his career in the army, became a protégé of General Aspar. In proclaiming Leo Eastern emperor at Constantinople (Feb. 7, 457), Aspar expected to use him as a puppet ruler. Leo, who had recognized Majorian as

museum: History museums: …Chinese province of Sichuan; the Leo Tolstoy Museum in Moscow; Mount Vernon, George Washington’s home in Virginia; and Paul Gauguin’s residence in Tahiti, now the Paul Gauguin Museum.

snow leopard, large long-haired Asian cat, classified as either Panthera uncia or Uncia uncia in the family Felidae. The snow leopard inhabits the mountains of central Asia and the Indian subcontinent, ranging from an elevation of about 1,800 metres (about 6,000 feet) in the winter to about 5,500

Leo V was a pope from August to September 903. Elected while a priest to succeed Pope Benedict IV, Leo assumed the pontificate in a dark period of papal history. He was deposed and imprisoned by the antipope Christopher. Leo was perhaps murdered, either by Christopher or his successor, Pope Sergius

Leo V was a Byzantine emperor responsible for inaugurating the second Iconoclastic period in the Byzantine Empire. When Bardanes Turcus and Nicephorus I were fighting over the Byzantine throne in 803, Leo, son of the patrician Bardas, at first served Bardanes but later sided with Nicephorus. Leo

Leo VI was pope from May to December 928. He was Pope John VIII’s prime minister and later a cardinal priest when elected by the senatrix Marozia, then head of the powerful Roman Crescentii family, who deposed and imprisoned Leo’s predecessor, Pope John X. His principal act was the regulation of

Leo VI was the Byzantine coemperor from 870 and emperor from 886 to 912, whose imperial laws, written in Greek, became the legal code of the Byzantine Empire. Leo was the son of Basil I the Macedonian, who had begun the codification, and his second wife, Eudocia Ingerina. Made coemperor in 870, Leo

Leo VII was the pope from 936 to 939. He was probably a Benedictine monk when he succeeded John XI, who had been imprisoned by Duke Alberic II of Spoleto. In 936 he invited Abbot St. Odo of Cluny (then one of the most influential abbeys in western Europe) to help him settle the struggle between

Leo VIII was a pope, or antipope, from 963 to 965. The legitimacy of his election has long been debated. A Roman synod in December 963 deposed and expelled Pope John XII for dishonourable conduct and for instigating an armed conspiracy against the Holy Roman emperor Otto I the Great. Otto, who had

Leo X was one of the leading Renaissance popes (reigned 1513–21). He made Rome a cultural center and a political power, but he depleted the papal treasury, and, by failing to take the developing Protestant Reformation seriously, he contributed to the dissolution of the Western church. Leo

Leo XI was the pope from April 1–27, 1605. Pope Gregory XIII made him bishop of Pistoia, Italy, in 1573, archbishop of Florence in 1574, and cardinal in 1583. He was elected to succeed Clement VIII on April 1,