AEschylus
Aeschylus, Greek playwright.

Jean-Jacques Rousseau
(1712-1778) Swiss-French philosopher and political theorist; his most well-known theory is that humans are naturally good and equal but that property, agriculture, science, and commerce have led to corruption--and that the effects of these are balanced by religion and the establishment of governments and educational systems. His views greatly influenced the French Revolution.

initium sapientiae
"The beginning of wisdom" (Lat.).

"the tun of Heidelberg"
The giant wine-cask in the cellar of Heidelberg Castle, Heidelberg, Germany. It can hold 50,000 gallons.

Ecclesiastes
One of the books of the Old Testament, the writing of which is frequently attributed to Solomon. [Previous sentence corrected by Sheyna Watkins] Possibly written 3 B.C.

Caligula
Gaius Julius Caesar Germanicus (12-41 A.D.), youngest son of Germanicus and Agrippina. Vicious emperor of Rome (37-41 A.D.) until his assassination.

Charles II
(1297-1346). King of France.

"a pupil of Gros"

"holes in Diogenes' cloak"
Diogenes of Sinope, Greek philospher, famous for having gone about Athens with a lantern in broad daylight looking in vain for an honest man, and for shunning luxury. Often depicted with the lantern and a torn cloak.

"Caesar or Brutus"

Nero
Nero Claudius Caesar, Emperor of Rome (54-68 A.D.), after Emperor Claudius. The son of Gnaeus Domitius Ahenobarbus and the younger Agrippina (daughter of Germanicus). His power was eventually seized by the army.

"The battle of Marengo copies the battle of Pydna"
Battle of Marengo, June 14, 1800: French victory, orchestrated by Napoleon, over the Austrian army. Battle of Pydna, 168 B.C.: The Roman general L. Aemilius Paullus defeats Perseus, the King of Macedonia.

"the Tolbiac of Clovis and the Austerlitz of Napoleon"
Clovis (466-511 A.D.), lord of the German tribe Franks in Gaul, and established the French monarchy there; turned to Christianity after winning the Battle of Tolbiac. The Battle of Austerlitz was a 1805 victory for Napoleon I (Emperor of France 1804-1815).

"Si volet usus, says Horace"
Quintus Horatius Flaccus, Roman poet, author of Satires. The phrase means, "If usage desires it" (Lat.).

"Phocion, as we might say Coligny"
Phocion (402-317 B.C.), an Athenian soldier, put to death by poison on charges of treason. Gaspard II de Coligny (seigneur de Châtillon), Admiral of France (1552), commander of the Huguenots during the second and third Wars of Religion, killed during the St. Bartholomew's Day massacre (August 22, 1572) in Paris.

Anacephorus/Pisistratus
Pisistratus, son of Hippocrates, tyrant of Athens.

"that grammarian Philetas"

"catalogued by Pliny"
The Elder or the Younger?

Episthates

John Bull/Brother Johnathan
John Bull is the character of the "typical Englishman" in John Arbuthnot's satirical writings. Brother Jonathan is the American counterpart, first used by Washington in reference to Jonathan Trumbull, the elder governor of the State of Connecticut.

Alexis/Peter/Paul/another Paul/Ivan/Nicholas/Basil
Various Tsars of Russia, all assassinated or executed. (More details?)

"the brigandage of the Trabuceros in the gorges of Mont Jaxa"

"the marauding of the Comanche Indians in the Doubtful Pass"

Grand Lama
A.k.a. the Dalai-Lama, the spiritual ruler of Tibet, believed to be an incarnation of an aspect of the Buddha.

Queen Isabella
Which one?

the Dauphin
Under the Valois and Bourbon dynasties, the heir to the French crown was known as le Dauphin ("dolphin," Fr.).

Piraeus
One of the biggest ports in the Mediterranean and the main port of Greece, created in the fifth century B.C.

"Persian carpets to roll naked Cleopatra in"
Cleopatra VII, last Queen of Egypt (51-48 B.C., 47-30 B.C.), reknowned for her allure and ability to use it to strengthen her power. She and Marcus Antonius (Mark Antony) were defeated by Rome at Actium in 31 B.C. by Gaius Julius Caesar Octavianus (Augustus), after which she committed suicide by clasping an asp to her bosom, and Egypt was absorbed into the Roman Empire. Earlier, in order to seduce Julius Caesar (great-uncle and predecessor of Augustus), she had had herself rolled in a carpet and delivered to him.

"Hippocrates refusing Artaxerxes' bric-a-brac"
Hippocrates (c. 460-370 B.C.) restored the practicing of medicine and healing to Greece, placing an emphasis on diet and environment, and on accurate observations of illnesses; the Hippocratic Oath taken by physicians today is named after him. Artaxerxes (I or II?) was King of the Persians. (What is the incident here referred to?)

"Echo, plaintive nymph"
In Roman (Greek?) mythology, Echo was the nymph in love with the beautiful youth Narcissus, who spurned her in favor of self-absorption; in grief, she pined away until nothing but her voice--cursed by Hera to only be able to speak in reply, much as Grantaire is being here asked to do--remained.

Vaud/Gex
Cities in Switzerland and France, respectively.

"a mountain with the profile of a citadel, like the Vignemale"
One of the mountains in the Pyrenees, with a summit of 3,303 m. Also called Pico de Camachinos.

"the headdress of Cybele"
In Greek and Roman mythology, Cybele is known as the mother of the gods.

Pan
In Greek mythology, the god who watches over shepherds and their flocks; his lower half has the form of a goat, and the upper half, of a man. He is also known for playing a set of pipes made from river reeds.

"Io had something to do with the cascade of Pissevache"
Io, in Greek mythology, was the daughter of Inachus. Hera was jealous of Zeus' affection for Io, so Zeus transformed her into a white heifer for protection.

Touquet Charter

Francois I.
(1494-1547). King of France (1515-1547). He and Charles I (Roman Emperor, 1519-1556) were almost constantly at war with each other between 1521 and 1544.

Louis XIV.
(1638-1715). King of France (1643-1715), also called le Roi soleil (the Sun King). He took the throne at the age of five after Louis XIII.

"according to Desmarets"

Louis XVIII.
King of France (1814-1755) after Napoleon's exile to Elba; his taking of the throne was the reinstatement of the Bourbon dynasty. Upon Napoleon's return from Elba in March 1815, Louis XVIII fled to the Netherlands, only to return when Napoleon was defeated at Waterloo in June 1815. He introduced a parliamentary government and a Constitutional Charter.