Suez Canal: Construction: J.M. Le Père, his chief lines-of-communication engineer, erroneously calculated that the level of the Red Sea was 10 meters (33 feet) above that of the Mediterranean and, therefore, that locks would be needed. Considering the adverse conditions under which the French surveyors worked and the…

Père-Lachaise Cemetery, cemetery and park located on the northeast side of Paris, France. Situated on some 110 acres (44.5 hectares), amid more than 5,000 trees, it is both the largest park and the largest cemetery in Paris. Estimates concerning the number of people buried there vary widely, from

Jean Perréal was a painter, architect, and sculptor, and the most important portrait painter in France at the beginning of the 16th century. Perréal was a court painter to the Bourbons and later worked for Charles VIII, Louis XII, and Francis I of France. He traveled to Italy several times between

Georges Perec was a French writer, often called the greatest innovator of form of his generation. Perec was orphaned at an early age: his father was killed in action in World War II, and his mother died in a concentration camp. He was reared by an aunt and uncle and eventually attended the Sorbonne

Marie-José Pérec is a French athlete who was the first sprinter to win consecutive Olympic gold medals in the 400-metre dash. Pérec grew up on the West Indian island of Basse-Terre in Guadeloupe, an overseas administrative district of France. In 1984 she was recruited by a visiting French coach who

José María de Pereda was a Spanish writer, the acknowledged leader of the modern Spanish regional novelists. Born of a family noted for its fervent Catholicism and its traditionalism, Pereda looked an authentic hidalgo. An older brother provided him with an income that allowed him to become a

Celtic literature: The Middle Ages: …“Geraint and Enid,” and “Peredur Son of Efrawg,” represented a transition from purely native tales to those composed under Norman influence. These romances correspond to the Yvain, Erec, and Perceval of Chrétien de Troyes, and the exact relationship between the Welsh and French texts has long been debated. Although…

Peredvizhniki, group of Russian painters who in the second half of the 19th century rejected the restrictive and foreign-inspired classicism of the Russian Academy to form a new realist and nationalist art that would serve the common man. Believing that art should be useful, a vehicle for

Peredvizhniki, group of Russian painters who in the second half of the 19th century rejected the restrictive and foreign-inspired classicism of the Russian Academy to form a new realist and nationalist art that would serve the common man. Believing that art should be useful, a vehicle for

jatropha: The peregrina (J. integerrima) from Cuba, about 5 m tall with spadelike leaves sharply lobed at the base, bears crimson flower clusters the year round. J. berlandieri, a perennial 30 cm (12 inches) tall distributed from Texas to Central America, is characterized by long-stalked, purple flowers.

Gertrudis Gómez de Avellaneda was a Cuban Spanish playwright and poet who is considered one of the foremost Romantic writers of the 19th century and one of the greatest women poets. In 1836 Gómez went to Spain, where, except for a short period from 1859 to 1863, she lived for the rest of her life.

Fernão Mendes Pinto: The Travels of Mendes Pinto), a literary masterpiece depicting the impression made on a European by Asian civilization, notably that of China, in the 16th century.

Peregrinatio Etheriae, an anonymous and incomplete account of a western European nun’s travels in the Middle East, written for her colleagues at home, near the end of the 4th century. It gives important information about religious life and the observances of the church year in the localities

Peregrinatio Etheriae, an anonymous and incomplete account of a western European nun’s travels in the Middle East, written for her colleagues at home, near the end of the 4th century. It gives important information about religious life and the observances of the church year in the localities

peregrine falcon, (Falco peregrinus), the most widely distributed species of bird of prey, with breeding populations on every continent except Antarctica and many oceanic islands. Sixteen subspecies are recognized. The peregrine falcon is best known for its diving speed during flight—which can

Peregrine Pickle, picaresque novel by Tobias Smollett, published in four volumes in 1751 and modified for a second edition in 1758. This very long work concerning the adventures of the egotistical scoundrel Peregrine Pickle is a comic and savage portrayal of 18th-century society. Peregrine’s

Roman law: Development of the jus civile and jus gentium: …could administer justice to the peregrini (foreigners). This word came to mean not so much persons living under another government (of which, with the expansion of Roman power, there came to be fewer and fewer) as Roman subjects who were not citizens. In general, disputes between members of the same…

Saint Vincent of Lérins ; feast day May 24) was a Gallo-Roman saint, the chief theologian of the Abbey of Lérins, known especially for his heresiography Commonitoria (“Memoranda”). Supposedly the brother of Lupus of Troyes, Vincent may possibly have been a soldier before joining, before about 425,

Peter Peregrinus of Maricourt was a French crusader and scholar who wrote the first extant treatise describing the properties of magnets. Almost nothing is known about Peregrinus’ life, except that he wrote his famous treatise while serving as an engineer in the army of Charles I of Anjou that was

Pellegrino Tibaldi was an Italian painter, sculptor, and architect who spread the style of Italian Mannerist painting in Spain during the late 16th century. Tibaldi grew up in Bologna in a family of Lombard stonemasons. He was trained as a painter under minor Emilian artists who imitated the style

Peter Peregrinus of Maricourt was a French crusader and scholar who wrote the first extant treatise describing the properties of magnets. Almost nothing is known about Peregrinus’ life, except that he wrote his famous treatise while serving as an engineer in the army of Charles I of Anjou that was

Peregrinus Proteus was a Greek Cynic philosopher remembered for his spectacular act of self-cremation on the flames of the Olympic Games. Suspected of murdering his father, Peregrinus was forced to flee to Palestine, but his influence in the Christian community there led to his arrest. On his

Pereyaslav-Khmelnytskyy, city, north-central Ukraine. Pereyaslav-Khmelnytskyy has existed since the 10th century, when it was known as Pereyaslavl. It was a border stronghold of the Kievan Rus state but was overrun by Tatars in 1239. The town began to recover in the 16th century and emerged as a

Pereira, city, capital of Risaralda departamento (department), west-central Colombia. It is situated in the western foothills of the Cordillera Central above the Cauca River valley. The city was founded in 1863 on the former site of Cartago by Remigio Antonio Cañarte in honour of Francisco Pereira

Harold Peary was an American actor. He created the colourful, arrogant character Throckmorton P. Gildersleeve on the hit radio comedy series Fibber McGee and Molly in 1937. He starred in his own popular serial, The Great Gildersleeve (1941–50), considered the first spin-off created from another

Teixeira de Pascoaes was a Portuguese poet-philosopher who attempted to create a cult of nationalistic mystique based on saudade (“yearning”; an overtone in Portuguese and Brazilian lyric poetry that fuses hope and nostalgia). His work, together with that of António Nobre, was at the core of the

Cabo Verde: Independence: Aristides Pereira, the PAIGC secretary-general, and Pedro Pires, a military commander, became the first president and prime minister, respectively. A military coup in Guinea-Bissau in 1980, deeply resented in Cabo Verde, broke the political unity between the two countries. The PAIGC subsequently split, with the…

Guinea-Bissau: Independence of Guinea-Bissau: Former prime ministers Domingos Simões Pereira, representing the PAIGC, and Umaro Sissoco Embaló, representing the Movement for Democratic Alternation Group of 15 (Madem G-15) opposition party founded by former PAIGC members, were the two top vote-getters, taking about 40 percent and 28 percent respectively. Vaz, who ran as…

Irene Rice Pereira was an American painter who explored abstraction and metaphysics in her work. Irene Rice moved a number of times with her family before they settled in Brooklyn, New York. After exploring other careers, from 1927 to 1930 she studied at the Art Students League in New York. In 1929

Western sculpture: Spain: …but in the figures of Manuel Pereira there is a clear-cut monumentality and intense concentration comparable to that of painter Francisco de Zurbarán. Both were active in Castile, though the main centre of sculptural activity was Seville and Granada, with Juan Martínez Montañés as the dominant personality. The intense realism…

Guinea-Bissau: Independence of Guinea-Bissau: …of the constitution, parliamentary leader Raimundo Perreira was sworn in to serve as interim president until elections could be held; they were eventually scheduled for June 28. On June 5, military authorities killed presidential candidate Baciro Dabo, former defense minister Helder Proenca, former prime minister Faustino Embali, and others, alleging…

St. Nuno Álvares Pereira ; canonized April 26, 2009; feast day November 6) was an outstanding Portuguese military leader, known also as the Holy Constable, whose victory over Castilian forces in the historic Battle of Aljubarrota (August 14, 1385) ensured his nation’s independence. Pereira

Pereyaslav Agreement, (Jan. 18 [Jan. 8, Old Style], 1654), act undertaken by the rada (council) of the Cossack army in Ukraine to submit Ukraine to Russian rule, and the acceptance of this act by emissaries of the Russian tsar Alexis; the agreement precipitated a war between Poland and Russia

Perelandra, second novel in a science-fiction trilogy by C.S. Lewis, published in 1943; some later editions were titled Voyage to Venus. It is a sequel to Lewis’s Out of the Silent Planet (1938) and was followed in the trilogy by That Hideous Strength (1945). In a reworking of the biblical story of

Grigori Perelman is a Russian mathematician who was awarded—and declined—the Fields Medal in 2006 for his work on the Poincaré conjecture and Fields medalist William Thurston’s geometrization conjecture. In 2003, Perelman had left academia and apparently had abandoned mathematics. He was the first

S.J. Perelman was an American humorist who was a master of wordplay in books, movies, plays, and essays. Perelman’s parents moved the family from Brooklyn to Providence, R.I., during his childhood. He attended but did not graduate from Brown University, where he edited the school humour magazine.

S.J. Perelman was an American humorist who was a master of wordplay in books, movies, plays, and essays. Perelman’s parents moved the family from Brooklyn to Providence, R.I., during his childhood. He attended but did not graduate from Brown University, where he edited the school humour magazine.

perennial, any plant that persists for several years, usually with new herbaceous growth from a part that survives from growing season to growing season. Trees and shrubs, including all gymnosperms (cone-bearing plants), are perennials, as are some herbaceous (nonwoody) flowering plants and

perennial agriculture, the cultivation of crop species that live longer than two years without the need for replanting each year. Perennial agriculture differs from mainstream agriculture in that it involves relatively less tilling and in some cases requires less labour and fewer pesticides,

honesty: …annual honesty (Lunaria annua) and perennial honesty (L. rediviva), are widely grown for their fragrant flowers and papery seedpod partitions, which are used in dried-flower arrangements.

phlox: Major species: Perennial phlox (P. pilosa), about the same height, bears red-purple flowers on hairy plants in summer in upland woods and prairies of central North America.

quaking grass: …or rattlesnake grass (Briza maxima), perennial quaking grass (B. media), and little quaking grass, or shivery grass (B. minor).

ryegrass: …Eurasia and Africa, and both perennial ryegrass (Lolium perenne) and annual ryegrass (L. multiflorum) are important constituents of pasture and lawn-seed mixtures used around the world. The plants are unrelated to cereal rye (Secale cereale).

scabious: Major species: Perennial scabious (S. caucasica), of southeastern Europe, grows to 75 cm (29.5 inches). It has narrow smooth-margined basal leaves and cut stem leaves and produces light blue flowers up to 8 cm (3 inches) across.

Karl Jaspers: Postwar development of thought: …Der philosophische Glaube (1948; The Perennial Scope of Philosophy, 1949) and Der philosophische Glaube angesichts der Offenbarung (1962; Philosophical Faith and Revelation, 1967). Since all thought in its essence rests on beliefs, he reasoned, the task confronting man is to free philosophical thinking from all attachments to the transient objects…

Nile River: Irrigation: …the basin method of irrigation, perennial irrigation—in which the water is controlled so that it can be made to run into the land at regular intervals throughout the year—has largely replaced it. Perennial irrigation was made possible by the completion of several barrages and waterworks before the end of the…

antihistamine: H1 receptor antagonists: …in low concentration, but in perennial vasomotor rhinitis (nonseasonal, nonallergic inflammation of the mucous membranes of the nose brought on by environmental or emotional stimuli) they are only of limited value. They are not usually effective in treating asthma, indicating that in this condition histamine is not the main agent…

monitor: 7 metres (9 feet); the perentie (V. giganteus) of central Australia, which grows to 2.4 metres (8 feet); and V. bitatawa of the island of Luzon in the Philippines, which grows to 2.0 metres (about 7 feet). Partial fossils of Megalania prisca, an extinct Australian monitor that lived during the…

malacostracan: Size range and diversity of structure: …or ventrolateral, biramous limbs called pereopods, or pleopods, which are primarily used in swimming. In the males of all eucaridans, hoplocarids, isopods, some hemicarids and syncarids, and rarely some amphipods, the anterior one or two pairs may be specially modified for sperm transfer. In males of most mysidaceans, the fourth…

Vyacheslav Ivanovich Ivanov: …Perepiska iz dvukh uglov (1921; Correspondence Across a Room), a dialogue with the philosopher Mikhail Gershenzon about the fate of culture and civilization after war and revolution. In 1944 Ivanov wrote a series of poems that were published posthumously in Svet vecherny (1962; “Evening Light”). His Povest o Tsareviche-Svetomire (“Tale…

Shimon Peres was a Polish-born Israeli statesman, who served as both prime minister (1984–86 and 1995–96) and president (2007–14) of Israel and as leader of the Israel Labour Party (1977–92, 1995–97, and 2003–05). In 1993, in his role as Israeli foreign minister, Peres helped negotiate a peace

Paris Codex, one of the very few texts of the pre-Conquest Maya known to have survived the book burnings by the Spanish clergy during the 16th century (others include the Madrid, Dresden, and Grolier codices). Its Latin name comes from the name Perez, which was written on the torn wrappings of the

Pereskia, genus of 17 species of trees, shrubs, and vines of the cactus family (Cactaceae), native to the West Indies and southeastern South America, especially coastal areas. Unlike most other members of the cactus family, Pereskia species have true leaves. Several species are cultivated as

Pereskia: Leafy cactus (P. aculeata), also known as Barbados gooseberry, is cultivated extensively for hedges and for its orange edible fruit. Both P. bleo and P. grandifolia have been used in traditional medicine and show some anticancer potential, though additional studies are needed.

Pereskia: Both P. bleo and P. grandifolia have been used in traditional medicine and show some anticancer potential, though additional studies are needed.

Pereskia: bleo and P. grandifolia have been used in traditional medicine and show some anticancer potential, though additional studies are needed.

perestroika, program instituted in the Soviet Union by Mikhail Gorbachev in the mid-1980s to restructure Soviet economic and political policy. Seeking to bring the Soviet Union up to economic par with capitalist countries such as Germany, Japan, and the United States, Gorbachev decentralized

Jane Smiley: …2020 Smiley published the lighthearted Perestroika in Paris, about a racehorse that wanders the French city, making a number of animal friends. A Dangerous Business (2022) is set during the California Gold Rush and follows two prostitutes who, inspired by Edgar Allan Poe’s “The Murders in the Rue Morgue,” hunt…

Ivan Semenovich Peresvetov was an early Russian progressive social critic. Peresvetov was born to a family of the lower nobility in the Grand Duchy of Lithuania and served in the Polish Lithuanian army during the 1520s and 1530s. He arrived in Russia in 1538 or 1539. In 1549 he presented his Two

Egypt: Agriculture and fishing: …the river: akhet, the “inundation”; peret, the season when the land emerged from the flood; and shomu, the time when water was short. When the Nile behaved as expected, which most commonly was the case, life went on as normal; when the flood failed or was excessive, disaster followed.

I.L. Peretz was a prolific writer of poems, short stories, drama, humorous sketches, and satire who was instrumental in raising the standard of Yiddish literature to a high level. Peretz began writing in Hebrew but soon turned to Yiddish. For his tales, he drew material from the lives of

Sixtus V was the pope from 1585 to 1590, who reformed the Roman Curia. He entered the Franciscan order in 1533 and was ordained at Siena in 1547. He served twice (1557–60) as inquisitor general in Venice, his severity there causing his recall. Pope Pius V made him vicar general of the Franciscans

HuffPost: …of Technology Media Lab graduate Jonah Peretti. Headquarters are in New York City.

I.L. Peretz was a prolific writer of poems, short stories, drama, humorous sketches, and satire who was instrumental in raising the standard of Yiddish literature to a high level. Peretz began writing in Hebrew but soon turned to Yiddish. For his tales, he drew material from the lives of

I.L. Peretz was a prolific writer of poems, short stories, drama, humorous sketches, and satire who was instrumental in raising the standard of Yiddish literature to a high level. Peretz began writing in Hebrew but soon turned to Yiddish. For his tales, he drew material from the lives of

I.L. Peretz was a prolific writer of poems, short stories, drama, humorous sketches, and satire who was instrumental in raising the standard of Yiddish literature to a high level. Peretz began writing in Hebrew but soon turned to Yiddish. For his tales, he drew material from the lives of

Jim Cramer: …New Republic editor and owner Martin Peretz—gave him $500,000 to invest. Cramer’s success with Peretz’s account led to a job with investment bank Goldman Sachs in 1984, shortly after he had earned a law degree from Harvard. Cramer left Goldman in 1987 to open a hedge fund, Cramer Levy Partners.

Pereval, group of post-Revolutionary Russian writers opposed to the suppression of nonconformist literature and to the concept of enforced writing for the proletariat, ideas that were championed by the Octobrists. The group was led by the critic Aleksandr

francium: French chemist Marguerite Perey discovered francium (1939) while studying actinium-227, which decays by negative beta decay (electron emission) to an isotope of thorium (thorium-227) and by alpha emission (about 1 percent) into an isotope of francium (francium-223) that was formerly called actinium K (AcK) and is a…

Pereyaslav-Khmelnytskyy, city, north-central Ukraine. Pereyaslav-Khmelnytskyy has existed since the 10th century, when it was known as Pereyaslavl. It was a border stronghold of the Kievan Rus state but was overrun by Tatars in 1239. The town began to recover in the 16th century and emerged as a

Pereyaslav Agreement, (Jan. 18 [Jan. 8, Old Style], 1654), act undertaken by the rada (council) of the Cossack army in Ukraine to submit Ukraine to Russian rule, and the acceptance of this act by emissaries of the Russian tsar Alexis; the agreement precipitated a war between Poland and Russia

Pereyaslav-Khmelnytskyy, city, north-central Ukraine. Pereyaslav-Khmelnytskyy has existed since the 10th century, when it was known as Pereyaslavl. It was a border stronghold of the Kievan Rus state but was overrun by Tatars in 1239. The town began to recover in the 16th century and emerged as a

Pereyaslav-Khmelnytskyy, city, north-central Ukraine. Pereyaslav-Khmelnytskyy has existed since the 10th century, when it was known as Pereyaslavl. It was a border stronghold of the Kievan Rus state but was overrun by Tatars in 1239. The town began to recover in the 16th century and emerged as a

Ryazan, city and administrative centre of Ryazan oblast (region), western Russia. It lies along the Oka River on the site of the ancient town of Pereyaslavl-Ryazansky, about 120 miles (193 km) southeast of Moscow. The original Ryazan, first recorded in 1095, lay downstream at the Pronya confluence.

Simón Pereyns was a Flemish-born painter, one of the first European painters to produce significant work in New Spain (Mexico). Simón Pereyns learned to paint in the Flemish Mannerist style in his native Antwerp. In 1558 he left Antwerp for Portugal and spent nine months in Lisbon working in the

Panama: Transitions to democracy and sovereignty: Led by Ernesto Pérez Balladares, a former cabinet member, the PRD distanced itself from Noriega, and Pérez Balladares won by a plurality. In the assembly the Christian Democrats, who had been the largest bloc, were reduced to a single seat.

Ramón Pérez de Ayala was a Spanish novelist, poet, and critic who excelled in philosophical satire and the novel of ideas. Pérez de Ayala studied law at Oviedo University and philosophy and literature at the University of Madrid. During World War I he covered France, Italy, England, South America,

Javier Pérez de Cuéllar was a Peruvian diplomat, who served as the fifth secretary-general of the United Nations (1982–91) and as prime minister of Peru (2000–01). After attending the Catholic University in Lima, Pérez de Cuéllar joined the foreign ministry in 1940 and the diplomatic service in

Alonso Pérez de Guzmán, duke de Medina-Sidonia was the duke de Medina-Sidonia and the commander in chief of the Spanish Armada of 1588. A member of the noble and illustrious house of Guzmán, Medina-Sidonia became the seventh bearer of the ducal title in 1555 on the death of his father; he became

Fernán Pérez de Guzmán was a Spanish poet, moralist, and historian, author of the first important work of history and historiography in Spanish. His historical portraits of his contemporaries earned him the title of the “Spanish Plutarch.” A member of a distinguished family, Pérez de Guzmán devoted

Ginés Pérez de Hita was a Spanish writer, author of Historia de los vandos de los Zegríes y Abencerrages (1595–1619; “History of the Zegríes and Abencerrages Factions”), usually referred to as Guerras civiles de Granada (“The Civil Wars of Granada”). The book is considered the first Spanish

Lope de Vega: Works of Lope de Vega: ” Juan Pérez de Montalván, his first biographer, in his Fama póstuma (1636), attributed to Vega a total of 1,800 plays, as well as more than 400 autos sacramentales (short allegorical plays on sacramental subjects). The dramatist’s own first figure of 230 plays in 1603 rises…

Emilio Fermin Mignone: …class-action suits known as the Perez de Smith cases, Mignone persuaded the Argentine Supreme Court to rule that the government was required to admit the fact of the disappearances and to account for the fate of the disappeared persons named in the suits. Mignone himself directed the centre’s public-awareness campaigns…

Catamarca: …was founded by the explorer Juan Pérez de Zurita (1559) in the Valle de Quinmivil. Following various moves because of hostile Indians, Catamarca was established in 1694 on its present site (a sheltered, fertile valley) by the provincial governor, Bartolomé de Castro.

Spain: Castile: From a contemporary chronicler, Hernán Pérez del Pulgar, historians know how they proceeded piecemeal but systematically against the magnates, sometimes using a nobleman’s defiance of the law, sometimes a breach of the peace or of a pledge, to take over or destroy his castles and thus his independent military…

Adolfo Pérez Esquivel is an Argentine sculptor and architect, who became a champion of human rights and nonviolent reform in Latin America. His work as secretary-general of Peace and Justice (Paz y Justicia), an ecumenical organization established in 1974 to coordinate human rights activities

Celia Cruz: Later years and honors: …novel by Oscar Hijuelos) and The Perez Family (1995). Her autobiography, Celia: My Life (2004; originally published in Spanish), was written with Ana Cristina Reymundo. Her many honors included three Grammy Awards and four Latin Grammys for recordings such as Ritmo en el corazón (1988; with Ray Barretto) and Siempre…

Benito Pérez Galdós was a writer who was regarded as the greatest Spanish novelist since Miguel de Cervantes. His enormous output of short novels chronicling the history and society of 19th-century Spain earned him comparison with Honoré de Balzac and Charles Dickens. Born into a middle-class

Marcos Pérez Jiménez was a professional soldier and president (1952–58) of Venezuela whose regime was marked by extravagance, corruption, police oppression, and mounting unemployment. A graduate of the Venezuelan Military Academy, Pérez Jiménez began his political career in 1944, participating in

Calle 13: René Pérez Joglar (“Residente”; b. February 23, 1978, San Juan, Puerto Rico) was the master of language, while his stepbrother, Eduardo José Cabra Martínez (“Visitante”; b. September 10, 1978, San Juan, Puerto Rico), masterminded the music. The duo was one of the most popular and…

Guatemala: Guatemala in the 21st century: …elected a retired army general, Otto Pérez Molina, of the Patriotic Party, president in November 2011. Having promised to employ an “iron fist” against Guatemala’s drug-trafficking-related crime problems, Pérez Molina brought the army into the struggle. His government also prosecuted some of those accused of genocide during the civil war…

Tony Pérez is a Cuban-born professional baseball player who played in the United States for 23 years. He played with the Cincinnati Reds, Montreal Expos, and Philadelphia Phillies of the National League (NL) and the Boston Red Sox of the American League (AL). Pérez was signed by Cincinnati in 1960

Carlos Andrés Pérez was the president of Venezuela from 1974 to 1979 and from 1989 to 1993. Pérez began his political life as a member of the liberal political party Democratic Action, led by Rómulo Betancourt. When Betancourt took power as president of the junta that overthrew Pres. Isaías Medina

Rosa Chacel: …and her husband, the painter Timoteo Pérez Rubio, moved to Rome, where Chacel taught at the Spanish Academy and wrote her first novel, Estación, ida y vuelta (1930; “Station, Round Trip”), influenced by James Joyce’s Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man. After returning to Spain in 1927, she…

Nora Astorga: …of Somoza’s National Guard, General Reynaldo Perez Vega, an alleged torturer, to her house. When Perez Vega began to disrobe in her bedroom, three of her accomplices burst out of hiding, supposedly to kidnap, question, and then exchange him for prisoners. However, when he resisted, they killed him. Astorga later…

Antonio Pérez was a Spanish courtier who was secretary to King Philip II of Spain and later became a fugitive from Philip’s court. Pérez was an illegitimate son of Gonzalo Pérez, secretary of Philip’s predecessor, the emperor Charles V. Charming and well-connected, Pérez quickly rose in Philip’s

Carlos Andrés Pérez was the president of Venezuela from 1974 to 1979 and from 1989 to 1993. Pérez began his political life as a member of the liberal political party Democratic Action, led by Rómulo Betancourt. When Betancourt took power as president of the junta that overthrew Pres. Isaías Medina

David Beckham: Club play: …a project under club president Florentino Pérez to assemble a squad of the world’s best-known and most marketable footballers at the time. Beckham joined several global football icons including Zinedine Zidane, Luís Figo, Ronaldo Nazário, Roberto Carlos, and Raúl González at the club. Though Real Madrid struggled with inconsistency and…

Manuel Montt: …by shifting his support to José Joaquín Pérez, who was a moderate. On giving up the presidency in 1861, Montt became president of the Supreme Court, a post he held at the time of his death.

El Cordobés was a Spanish bullfighter, the most highly paid torero in history. The crudity of his technique was offset by his exceptional reflexes, courage (sometimes considered total indifference to his own safety), and crowd appeal. Reared in an orphanage in his native town, Benítez was