Britannica Concise 2005

Marcus Vipsanius Agrippa, marble portrait bust, early 1 st century bc; in the Louvre, Paris.

CLICHE MUSEES NATIONAUX, PARIS

© 2006 Encyclopaedia Britannica, Inc.

30 I agrochemical ► Ahmad Sirhindi

as his heir instead of his own son. She poisoned her son’s rivals, and when Claudius died in 54 she was suspected of having poisoned him. She became regent when Nero took the throne at age 16, but she gradually lost power. He tried to murder her when she opposed one of his affairs, and he finally had her put to death at her country house.

agrochemical Any chemical used in agriculture, including chemical fertilizers, herbicides, and INSECTICIDES. Most are mixtures of two or more chemicals; active ingredients provide the desired effects, and inert ingre¬ dients stabilize or preserve the active ingredients or aid in application. Together with other technological advances, including tractors, mechani¬ cal harvesters, and irrigation pumps, agrochemicals have increased the per-acre productivity of regions such as the Great Plains by 200-300% since the 1930s. Their long-term effects on the environment and the sta¬ bility of agricultural systems that use them are hotly debated.

agronomy Branch of agriculture that deals with field crop production and soil management. Agronomists generally work with crops that are grown on a large scale (e.g., small grains) and that require relatively little management. Agronomic experiments focus on a variety of factors relat¬ ing to crop plants, including yield, diseases, cultivation, and sensitivity to factors such as climate and soil.

Aguan \a-'gwan\ River River, northern Honduras. It rises in the cen¬ tral highlands west of Yoro, descends northeast to the coastal lowlands for a distance of 150 mi (240 km), and empties into the Caribbean Sea near Santa Rosa de Aguan. The lands along the river are used primarily for agriculture but are susceptible to floods and hurricanes.

Aguascalientes \,a-gwas-kal-'yen-tas\ State (pop., 2000: 944,285), central Mexico. With an area of 2,112 sq mi (5,471 sq km), it is one of the country’s smallest states. It occupies part of the central plateau. It was explored by Spaniards in the 16th century and became a colonial mining centre. During the revolution of 1910-20 it was the scene of bitter fight¬ ing. Today it is a fertile agricultural area and is noted for its mineral pro¬ duction. Its capital is the city of Aguascalientes.

Aguascalientes City (pop., 2000: 594,056), capital of Aguascalientes state, Mexico. Located on the Aguascalientes River, it was founded as a mining settlement in 1575 and became the state capital in the 1850s. It is sometimes called La Ciudad Perforada (“The Perforated City”) because of an underground labyrinth of tunnels built by an unknown pre-Columbian people. It is an agricultural centre, with several industries. Several notable churches possess outstanding examples of colonial religious art.

March 23, 1869, near Cavite,

Aguinaldo \,a-ge-'nal-do\, Emilio (b Luzon, Phil.—d. Feb. 6, 1964,

Manila) Philippine independence leader. He was born of Chinese and Tagalog parentage and was educated at the University of Santo Tomas,

Manila. He became a leader of the Katipunan, a revolutionary society that fought the Spanish. Philippine independence was declared in 1898, and Aguinaldo became president, but within months Spain signed a treaty ceding the islands to the U.S. Agui¬ naldo fought U.S. forces until he was captured in 1901. After taking an oath of allegiance to the U.S., he was induced to retire from public life. He collaborated with the Japanese dur¬ ing World War II. After the war he was briefly imprisoned; released by presidential amnesty, he was vindicated by his appointment to the Council of State in 1950. In his later years he promoted nationalism, democracy, and improvement of relations between the U.S. and the Philippines.

Emilio Aguinaldo.

BROWN BROTHERS

Agulhas \3-'g3l-9s\, Cape Cape, southernmost point of the African continent. Its name, Portuguese for “needles,” refers to the rocks and reefs that have wrecked many ships. The cape’s meridian of 20°E is the offi¬ cial boundary between the Indian and Atlantic oceans.

Agusan River \3-'gu-,san\ River, Mindanao, Philippines. Rising in the southeast and flowing north 240 mi (390 km) to enter Butuan Bay of the Bohol Sea, it forms a fertile valley 40-50 mi (65-80 km) wide between the Central Mindanao Highlands and the Pacific Cordillera. It is navigable

for 160 mi (260 km). Despite early Spanish contacts in the 17th century, most of the valley has remained sparsely settled by native peoples.

Ahab Ya- ,hab\ (fl. 9th century bc) Seventh king of the northern kingdom of Israel (r. c. 874-853 bc). He inherited a realm that included territory east of the Jordan River, in Gilead and probably Bashan, and also the tributary kingdom of Moab. His marriage to Jezebel revived an alliance with the Phoenicians, but her efforts to establish Baal worship provoked bitter opposition from Elijah. Ahab’s reign was dominated by a fierce bor¬ der war with Syria; he died in an attempt to recover Ramoth-Gilead from the Syrians.

Ahaggar Vo-'ha-gor, ,a-h9-'gar\ or Hoggar Vhag-or, o-'gar\ Moun¬ tains High plateau region, southern Algeria. Located in the central Sahara, it extends about 970 mi (1,550 km) from north to south and 1,300 mi (2,100 km) from east to west. Its mean elevation is above 3,000 ft (900 m); its highest peak is Mount Tahat (9,573 ft [2,918 m]). The main caravan route to Kano (Nigeria) passes along its western margin.

Ahidjo Xa-'hi-joV, Ahmadou (b. August 1924, Garoua, Cameroon—d. Nov. 30, 1989, Dakar, Senegal) First president of Cameroon, 1960-82. He presided over one of the few successful attempts at African unity: the joining of the southern half of the former British Cameroons with the larger French-speaking Cameroun. In 1982, after managing to build up a stable, relatively prosperous nation (through single-party rule), he went into exile after being implicated in a plot against his successor, Paul Biya.

ahimsa \o-'him-sa\ (Sanskrit: “noninjury”) Fundamental ethical virtue of Jainism, also respected in Buddhism and Hinduism. In Jainism ahimsa is the standard by which all actions are judged. It requires a householder observ¬ ing the small vows ( anuvrata ) to refrain from killing any animal life. An ascetic observing the great vows ( mahavrata ) is expected to take the great¬ est care not to injure any living substance, even unknowingly. To do so interrupts that being’s spiritual progress and increases one’s own karma, delaying liberation from the cycle of rebirth. In the 20th century Mohan¬ das K. Gandhi extended ahimsa into the political sphere as satyagraha.

Ahmad, MTrza Ghulam See Mirza Ghulam Ahmad

Ahmad ibn Hanbal Vak-mod-.ib-sn-'kan-bolV (b. 780, Baghdad, Iraq—d. 855, Baghdad) Muslim theologian and jurist. He began to study the Had]th (Traditions) at age 15. He traveled widely to study with the great masters and made five pilgrimages to Mecca. In 833-835 he bravely endured floggings and imprisonment rather than subscribe to the Mu'tazilI doctrine of a created (rather than eternal) Qur’an, and he is remembered as a staunch upholder of Muslim traditionalism. He compiled the Tradi¬ tions of Muhammad and is the eponym of the Hanbal! school, the most traditional of the four orthodox Islamic schools of law. Opposing codi¬ fication of the law, he believed jurists needed the freedom to derive legal solutions from the Qur’an and the sunna. He is revered as one of the fathers of Islam.

Ahmad Khan Vam-ad-'kanV, Sir Sayyid (b. Oct. 17, 1817, Delhi—d. March 27, 1898, Aligarh, India) Indian educator and jurist. Born into a family of officials in the Mughal dynasty, he worked for the British East India Co. and held various judicial posts. He supported the British in the 1857 Indian Mutiny but criticized their errors in his influential pamphlet Causes of the Indian Revolt. His other works include Essays on the Life of Mohammed (1870) and commentaries on the Bible and Qur’an. He founded schools at Muradabad and Ghazipur, established the Scientific Society, sought to strengthen the Muslim community through the reform journal Tahdhib al-Akhlaq, and was active in founding a Muslim college, the Anglo-Mohammedan Oriental College, in 1877 at Aligarh.

Ahmad Shah Durrani Vak-mod-'sha-dur-'a-neN (b. c. 1722, Multan, Punjab—d. Oct. 16?, 1772, Toba Ma'ruf, Afg.) Founder of modem Afghanistan. The son of an Afghan chief, he became shah in 1747 on the death of the Persian conqueror Nadir Shah, in whose army he had served. He proceeded to invade India nine times over the next 22 years in an attempt to control the trade routes between northern India and central and western Asia and became ruler of an empire that extended from the Amu Darya to the Indian Ocean and from Khorasan to present-day northern India. His hold on the Punjab, governed by his son Timur Shah, was weakened by rebellions at home, and he ultimately lost control of it to the Sikhs. Much of his empire disintegrated after his death.

Ahmad Sirhindi \sir-'hin-de\ (b. 1564?, Sirhind, Patiala, India—d. 1624, Sirhind) Indian mystic and theologian who is responsible for the

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Ahmadiyyah ► Alley I 31

revival of Sunnite Islam in India. He traced his descent from ‘Umar ibn al-Khattab. After a traditional Muslim education, he joined an important Sufi order and devoted himself to preaching against the tendencies of Akbar and his successor, Jahangir, toward pantheism and ShT'ite Islam. His views are outlined in his most famous work, Maktubat, a compilation of his letters. His burial place at Sirhind is a site of pilgrimage.

Ahmadiyyah X.ah-mo-'de-oX Islamic sect, founded in India in 1889 by MIrza Ghulam Ahmad. It holds that Jesus feigned death and resurrection and escaped to India and that jihad is a peaceful battle against nonbeliev¬ ers. Following the death of Ghulam Ahmad’s successor (1914), the Ahmadiyyah split. The Qadiani, based in Rabwah, Pak., recognize Ghu¬ lam Ahmad as a prophet; they are zealous missionaries, preaching Ahmadi beliefs as the one true Islam. A Lahore-based sect regards Ghulam Ahmad merely as a reformer and seeks to make converts to Islam generally. The term Ahmadiyyah is also used to describe various Sufi orders (see Sufism), particularly that founded by Ahmad al-Badaw! (d. 1276). One of the most popular orders in Egypt, it has branches throughout the Islamic world.

Ahmadu Seku Xa-'mad-ii-'sa-kuX (d. 1898, Sokoto, Northern Nigeria) Second and last ruler of the Tukulor empire in West Africa. Succeeding his father, al-Hajj ‘Umar, in 1864, Ahmadu ruled over a great empire cen¬ tred on the ancient Bambara kingdom of Segu, in present Mali. In 1887 he was forced to abandon Segu and accept French protectorate status. By 1891 most of his strongholds had been seized.

Ahmed Yesevi Xak-'met-.ye-se-'veX or Ahmad Yasawi

Xak-'med-.ya-sa-'veX (b. 11th century, Sayram—d. 1166, YasI, Turkistan) Turkish poet and Sufi mystic. When he was young his family moved to YasI, where he began his teaching. The Book of Wisdom, a collection of mystical poetry, is traditionally attributed to him. He established a mys¬ tical order whose rituals preserved Islamic and ancient Turco-Mongol customs, and promoted the spread of mysticism throughout the Turkish¬ speaking world. His poetry influenced Turkish literature and led to the development of mystical folk literature. He was revered as a saint, and Timur erected a magnificent mausoleum over his grave in 1397/98.

Ahmedabad Va-mo-do-.badX or Ahmadabad City (pop., 2001: metro, area, 4,525,013), Gujarat state, west-central India. It is located on the Sabarmati River 275 mi (440 km) north of Mumbai (Bombay). Founded in 1411 by Sultan Ahmad Shah, Ahmedabad reached its height later that century but subsequently declined. It was revived under Mughal emper¬ ors in the 17th century and came under British rule in 1818. With the opening of cotton mills in the mid-19th century, it became India’s largest inland industrial centre. The city is associated with Indian nationalism; Mohandas K. Gandhi’s political agitation began there in 1930. In 2001 the city was struck by a violent earthquake that took many lives.

Alisa*? \ak-'sa-e\, Ahmad al- in full Shaykh Ahmad ibn Zayn al-DTn Ibrahim al-Ahsa’I (b. 1753, Al-Hasa, Arabia—d. 1826, near Medina) Founder of the heterodox ShTite Muslim ShaykhI sect of Iran. He traveled widely in Persia and the Middle East. In 1808 he settled in Yazd, Persia, where he attracted followers with his interpretation of Shfism. He claimed knowledge from visions of Muhammad and the imams and contended that the imams were originally beings of divine light who participated in the creation of the world. Orthodox ShTite theologians declared him an apostate in 1824; he died two years later on pilgrimage to Mecca, but the ShaykhI sect survived him.

Ahura Mazda Va-hur-o-'maz-doX Supreme god of ancient Iranian reli¬ gion, especially Zoroastrianism. Ahura Mazda was worshiped by Darius I and his successors as the greatest god and the protector of the just king. Zoroaster taught that Ahura Mazda created the universe and maintains the cosmic order, and that the history of the world consists of the battle between two spirits he created—the beneficent Spenta Mainyu and the destructive Angra Mainyu. The Avesta identifies Ahura Mazda himself with the beneficent spirit and represents him as bountiful, all-knowing, and the creator of everything good. In late sources (from the 3rd century), Zurvan (“Time”) is the father of the twins Ormazd (Ahura Mazda) and Ahriman (Angra Mainyu), who in orthodox Mazdaism (Zoroastrianism and Parsiism) reign alternately over the world until Ormazd’s ultimate victory.

Ai \'a-,I\ Town, eastern Canaan, ancient Palestine. In the Bible (Joshua 7-8), it was destroyed by the Israelites under Joshua. Biblical references agree in locating Ai just east of Bethel (modern Bay tin) in the West Bank, at the Early Bronze Age site now called Al-Tall. Excavations at Ai in

1933-35 uncovered a temple of the 3rd millennium bc. The biblical events at Ai are assigned to the period c. 1400-1200 bc, when evidence indicates it was not in fact occupied; early tradition may have identified the Canaan- ite town under Bethel with the nearby ruins of Al-Tall.

Aidan \'ad- 3 n\, Saint (b. Ireland—d. Aug. 31, 651, Bamburgh, Northumberland, Eng.; feast day August 31) Apostle of Northumbria and founder of Lindisfarne. He was a monk at Iona in Scotland when King Oswald of Northumbria requested that he be made bishop of the newly converted Northumbrians. He established his church, see, and monastery on the island of Lindisfarne, not far from the royal stronghold of Bam¬ burgh. From there he evangelized northern England, founding churches, monasteries, and a school. Bede praised him for his learning, charity, and simplicity of life.

aide-de-camp \,ad-di-'kamp\ Officer on the personal staff of a gen¬ eral, admiral, or other high-ranking commander who acts as a confiden¬ tial secretary. Today they are usually of junior rank, and their duties are largely social. The term also denotes a high-ranking military officer who acts as an aide to a chief of state.

AIDS in full acquired immunodeficiency syndrome Transmis¬ sible disease of the immune system caused by HIV. AIDS is the last stage of HIV infection, during which time the individual develops frequently fatal infections and cancers, including Pneumocystis carinii pneumonia, cytomegalovirus (C MV), lymphoma, and Kaposi sarcoma. The first AIDS cases were identified in 1981, HIV was isolated in 1983, and blood tests were developed by 1985. According to the UN’s 2004 report on AIDS, some 38 million people are living with HIV, approximately 5 million people become infected annually, and about 3 million people die each year from AIDS. Some 20 million people have died of the disease since 1981. Sub-Saharan Africa accounts for some 70 percent of all HIV infections. Rates of infection are lower in other parts of the world, but the epidemic is spreading rapidly in eastern Europe, India, South and Southeast Asia, Latin America, and the Caribbean.

Aiken Va-konX, Conrad (Potter) (b. Aug. 5, 1889, Savannah, Ga., U.S.—d. Aug. 17, 1973, Savannah) U.S. writer. Aiken was traumatized as a child when his father killed Aiken’s mother and then himself. Educated at Harvard University, Aiken wrote most of his fiction in the 1920s and ’30s. His works are influenced by early psychoanalytic theory. Generally more successful than his novels were his short stories, notably “Strange Moonlight” from Bring! Bring! (1925) and “Silent Snow, Secret Snow” and “Mr. Arcularis” from Among the Lost People (1934). His best poetry, including “Preludes to Definition,” is in his Collected Poems (1953).

Aiken, Howard H(athaway) (b. March 9, 1900, Hoboken, N.J., U.S.—d. March 14, 1973, St. Louis, Mo.) U.S. mathematician and inven¬ tor. He received his Ph.D. from Harvard University. With three other engineers, he began work in 1939 on an automatic calculating machine that could perform any selected sequence of five arithmetical operations (addition, subtraction, multiplication, division, and reference to previous results) without human intervention. The first such machine, the Harvard Mark I (1944), was 51 ft (15 m) long and 8 ft (2.4 m) high, and weighed 35 tons (31,500 kg).

aikido X.I-ki-'do, I-'ke-doX Japanese art of self-defense. It employs locks and holds and utilizes the principle of nonresistance to cause an oppo¬ nent’s own momentum to work against him or her. Aikido emphasizes the importance of achieving complete mental calm and control of one’s own body to master an opponent’s attack. There are no offensive moves. It traces its origins to Japanese martial (samurai) traditions dating to the 14th century, and it was developed as a modem form in the early 20th century by Ueshiba Morihei. See martial art.

a i la nth us Xa-'lan-thosX Any of the flowering plants that make up the genus Ailanthus, in the quassia family (Simaroubaceae), native to eastern and southern Asia and northern Australia and naturalized in subtropical and temperate regions elsewhere. Ailanthus leaves alternate along the stem and are composed of multiple leaflets arranged along an axis. The most familiar species is the tree of heaven.

Ailey X'a-leX, Alvin, Jr, (b. Jan. 5, 1931, Rogers, Texas, U.S.—d. Dec. 1, 1989, New York, N.Y.) U.S. dancer and choreographer. In 1942 he moved to Los Angeles, where he studied dance and choreography (1949- 54). He then moved to New York, where he performed in various theat¬ rical productions. In 1958 he founded the Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater, composed primarily of blacks. The numerous works he choreo-

© 2006 Encyclopaedia Britannica, Inc.

32 I Ailly ► oir warfare

graphed for the company included its signature Revelations (1960), set to black spirituals. From the 1960s to the 1980s, the company toured worldwide, and Ailey became one of the best-known U.S. choreographers.

Aintab See Gaziantep

air brake Either of two kinds of braking systems. The first, used by trains, trucks, and buses, operates by a piston driven by compressed air from reservoirs connected to brake cylinders (see piston and cylinder). When air pressure in the brake pipe is reduced, air is automatically admit¬ ted into the brake cylinder. The first practical air brake for railroads was invented in the 1860s by George Westinghouse. The second type, used by aircraft and race cars, consists of a flap or surface that can be mechani¬ cally projected into the airstream to increase the resistance of the vehicle to air and lower its speed.

air-conditioning Control of temperature, humidity, purity, and motion of air in an enclosed space, independent of outside conditions. In a self- contained air-conditioning unit, air is heated in a boiler unit or cooled by being blown across a refrigerant-filled coil and then distributed to a con¬ trolled indoor environment. Central air-conditioning in a large building generally consists of a main plant located on the roof or mechanical floor and intermittently spaced air-handling units, or fans that deliver air through ducts to zones within the building. The air then returns to the central air-conditioning machinery through spaces called plenums to be recooled (or reheated) and recirculated. Alternate systems of cooling use chilled water, with water cooled by a refrigerant at a central location and circulated by pumps to units with fans that circulate air locally.

air-cushion vehicle or hovercraft Vehicle supported above the surface of land or water by an air cushion, produced by downwardly directed fans, enclosed within a flexible skirt beneath the hull. The con¬ cept was first proposed by John Thornycroft in the 1870s, but a working model was not produced until 1955, when Christopher Cockerell solved the problem of keeping the air cushion from escaping from under the vehicle, and formed Hovercraft Ltd. to manufacture prototypes. Problems with skirt design and engine maintenance have restricted the vehicle’s commercial application; today hovercraft are used mainly as ferries.

air force Military organization that has the primary responsibility for conducting air warfare. The air force must gain control of the air, support ground forces (e.g., by attacking enemy ground forces), and accomplish strategic-bombing objectives. Its basic weapons platforms are fighters, bombers, attack aircraft, and early warning and control aircraft. Since the mid-20th century, some air forces have also been responsible for land- based nuclear missiles as well as nuclear-armed bombers. The army and naval branches of a state’s armed forces may also operate aircraft.

Air France in full Compagnie Internationale Air France

French passenger and cargo airline with more than 200 destinations in some 80 countries. It introduced supersonic Concorde service in 1976, but financial loss led the company to cease its Concorde operations in 2003. The French government began privatizing the former national air¬ line in July 2002. In 2004 Air France acquired the Dutch airline KLM to create Air France-KLM, one of the largest air carriers in the world. The two airlines, however, continued to operate as separate companies, retain¬ ing their own hubs, flights, and logos.

air mass In meteorology, a large body of air having nearly uniform conditions of temperature and humidity at any given altitude. Such a mass has distinct boundaries and may extend hundreds or thousands of miles horizontally and sometimes as high as the top of the troposphere. An air mass forms whenever the atmosphere remains in contact with a large, relatively uniform land or sea surface long enough to acquire its tempera¬ ture and moisture properties. The Earth’s major air masses all originate in polar or subtropical latitudes. The middle latitudes constitute essen¬ tially a zone of modification, interaction, and mixing of the polar and tropical air masses.

air pollution Release into the atmosphere of gases, finely divided sol¬ ids, or finely dispersed liquid aerosols at rates that exceed the capacity of the atmosphere to dissipate them or to dispose of them through incorpo¬ ration into the biosphere. Dust storms in desert areas and smoke from for¬ est and grass fires contribute to particulate and chemical air pollution. Volcanic activity is the major natural source of air pollution, pouring huge amounts of ash and toxic fumes into the atmosphere. Air pollution may affect humans directly, causing irritation of the eyes or coughing. More indirectly, its effects can be measured far from the source, as, for example, the fallout of tetraethyl lead from automobile exhausts, which has been observed in the oceans and on the Greenland ice sheet. Still less direct are possible effects on global climates. See also smog.

air warfare Military operations conducted by airplanes, helicopters, or other aircraft against aircraft or targets on the ground and in the water. Air warfare did not become important until World War I (1914-18). The British, French, German, Russian, and Italian armed forces had flying units, including biplanes armed with machine guns for “dogfights” with enemy fighter aircraft. Zeppelins and larger airplanes carried out bombing raids. The 1920s and ’30s saw the development of the monoplane, the all-metal fuselage, and the aircraft carrier. During World War II (1939— 45), the Battle of Britain was the first fought exclusively in the air, the Battle of the Coral Sea was the first between carrier-based aircraft, and the atomic bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki were the first use of

Ainu \'I-nii\ Indigenous people of what is now Japan. Pushed north by the Japanese people over the last 2,000 years, the few remaining pure Ainu today live principally in northern Hokkaido, Sakhalin, and the Kuril Islands. Once physically and cultur¬ ally distinct from the Japanese, their origins and their role in Japanese his¬ tory and prehistory have been the subject of scholarly debate. Many contemporary Ainu claim some con¬ nection to the prehistoric Jomon cul¬ ture. The Ainu language, which has no known relationship to any other language, is virtually extinct, being supplanted by Japanese. The Ainu were traditionally hunters, fisher¬ men, and trappers; their religion cen¬ tred on spirits believed to be present in animals and the natural world.

air Mixture of gases constituting the earth’s atmosphere. Some gases occur in steady concentrations. The most important are molecular nitro¬ gen (N 2 ), 78% by volume, and molecular oxygen (0 2 ), 21%. Small amounts of argon (Ar; 1.9%), neon (Ne), helium (He), methane (CH 4 ), krypton (Kr), hydrogen (H 2 ), nitrous oxide (N 2 0), and xenon (Xe) are also present in almost constant propor¬ tions. Other gases occur in variable concentrations: water vapour (H 2 0), ozone (0 3 ), carbon dioxide (C0 2 ), sulfur dioxide (S0 2 ), and nitrogen dioxide (N0 2 ). Air also contains trace amounts of ammonia and hydro¬ gen sulfide. The variable constituents are important for maintaining life. Water vapour is the source for all forms of precipitation and is an impor¬ tant absorber and emitter of infrared radiation. Carbon dioxide is neces¬ sary for photosynthesis and is also an important absorber and emitter of infrared radiation. Ozone in the stratosphere (see ozone layer) is an effec¬ tive absorber of ultraviolet radiation from the Sun but at ground-level is a corrosive pollutant and a major constituent of smog.

Ainu couple in ceremonial dress, Hok¬ kaido, Japan.

COURTESY OF THE CONSULATE GENERAL OF JAPAN, NEW YORK CITY

Ailly \a-'ye\, Pierre d' (b. 1350,

Compiegne, Fr.—d. Aug. 9, 1420,

Avignon) French theologian and car¬ dinal. D’Ailly worked to end the Western Schism. He advocated the doctrine of conciliarism (see Con¬ ciliar Movement), which maintained that supreme authority in the church was held by a general council. He was active at the Council of Pisa (1409), which deposed both pope and antipope in favour of the new conciliar pope, Alexander V, but failed to end the schism. He was also involved in the Council of Constance (1414-18), which called for the abdication of the antipope John XXIII (r. 1410-15) and the election of another pope (Martin V) and ended the schism. His writings included a geographical treatise. Image of the World , used by Christopher Columbus.