Montevideo V.man-to-vi-'da-oX Port city (pop., 2004: 1,383,416), capi¬ tal of Uruguay. Situated on the northern shore of the Rfo de la Plata estu¬ ary, it was founded by the Spanish in 1726 to stem the Portuguese advance into the area from Brazil. From 1807 to 1830 it was alternately occupied by British, Spanish, Argentine, Portuguese, and Brazilian forces. It became the capital of newly independent Uruguay in 1830. A major sea¬ port of South America, it is the commercial, political, and cultural centre of Uruguay. It is the site of Uruguay’s only institutions of higher educa¬ tion, which include the Universidad de la Republica and the Universidad del Trabajo del Uruguay.
Montez \'man- l tez\ / Lola orig. Marie Dolores Eliza Rosanna Gilbert (b. 1818, Limerick, Ire.—d. Jan. 17, 1861, New York, N.Y., U.S.) Irish adventuress and dancer who achieved notoriety as the mistress of King Louis I of Bavaria. After a few dance lessons in Spain, she toured Europe, billing herself as a Spanish dancer. While in Munich in 1846, she became Louis’s mistress and influenced him toward supporting liberal and anti-Jesuit policies. Her power over the king provoked angry reactions in the government in 1848, forcing her to flee and causing his abdication. After further tours, she settled in New York City.
Montezuma II or Moctezuma II (b. 1466—d. c. June 30, 1520, Tenochtitlan, near modem Mexico City) Ninth emperor of the Aztecs. In 1502 he inherited from his uncle an empire of five to six million people that stretched from present-day Mexico to Nicaragua. Aztec belief in the prophesied return of the god Quetzalcoatl, whose description the con¬ quistador Hernan Cortes resembled, contributed to his downfall. Cortes, who had made alliances with tribes eager to be rid of Aztec domination, held Montezuma prisoner in Tenochtitlan, and he died in custody.
Montezuma Castle National Monument National monument, central Arizona, U.S. Situated in the Verde River valley, it occupies an area of 2.6 sq mi (6.7 sq km). Declared a national monument in 1906, it is the site of the country’s best-preserved pre-Columbian Pueblo Indian cliff dwellings. The “castle” is a five-story, 20-room adobe brick struc¬ ture, dating from c. ad 1100, built into the cliff face about 80 ft (24 m) above the valley floor. To the northeast is Montezuma Well, a large sink¬ hole rimmed with communal dwellings.
Montfort \m6 n -'f6r\, Simon de (b. 1165?—d. June 25, 1218, Tou¬ louse, France) French leader of the Albigensian Crusade. From 1209 he led a Crusade against the Cathari heretics, and he became governor of the lands he conquered in southern France. The fourth Lateran Council gave him Toulouse (1215), but Raymond VI, count of Toulouse, refused to accept defeat, and Montfort was killed while besieging the city. His eldest son ceded the Montfort lands in southern France to King Louis VIII.
Montfort, Simon de later Earl of Leicester (b. c. 1208, Montfort, Ile-de-France, France—d. Aug. 4, 1265, Evesham, Worcestershire, Eng.) The second son of Simon de Montfort, he gave up Montfort lands in France but revived the family claim to the English earldom of Leicester. His mar¬ riage to Henry Ill’s sister (1238) offended the barons and led to his tem¬ porary exile. Simon distinguished himself on a Crusade to the Holy Land (1240-42) and joined Henry’s failed invasion of France (1242). Sent to pacify Gascony (1248), he was censured for his harsh methods there and recalled. He joined the other leading barons in forcing Henry to accept the Provisions of Oxford. When Louis IX annulled the Provisions, Simon defeated and captured Henry (1264) and summoned (1265) what became the beginning of the modern Parliament. He governed England for less than a year before being defeated and killed by Henry’s son Edward.
Montgolfier \mo n -gol-'fya\, Joseph-Michel; and Montgolfier, Jacques-Etienne (respectively b. Aug. 26, 1740, Annonay, France—d. June 26, 1810, Balaruc-les-Bains; b. Jan. 6, 1745, Annonay, France—d. Aug. 2, 1799, en route from Lyon to Annonay) French designers of the hot-air balloon. The brothers discovered that heated air collected in a lightweight bag would cause the bag to rise. In 1783 they demonstrated their discovery with a balloon that rose 3,000 ft (1,000 m) and remained
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Montgomery ► Montreux Convention I 1289
aloft 10 minutes. Later that year they sent a sheep, a duck, and a rooster up as passengers, and they followed that experiment with the first manned untethered balloon flight.
Montgomery City (pop., 2000: 201,568), capital of Alabama, U.S. The site was inhabited by Indian mound builders in prehistoric times. About 1717 the French built Fort Toulouse on the river above the present site of Montgomery. The city was founded in 1819 and named for Gen. Richard Montgomery; it became the state capital in 1846. In 1861, during the American Civil War, it served briefly as the capital of the Confederacy; it was captured by Union troops in 1865. It was a centre of the civil rights movement, notably the protests organized by Martin Luther King, Jr. Located southeast of Birmingham, it serves as the commercial centre of an agricul¬ tural region, trading in cotton and livestock and producing fertilizer. It is the seat of Alabama State University and several other institutions of higher education.
Montgomery (of Alamein), Bernard Law Montgomery, 1 st Viscount (b. Nov. 17, 1887, London, Eng.—d. March 24, 1976, near Alton, Hampshire) British general in World War II. Educated at Sandhurst, he distinguished himself in World War I and remained in the army, becoming known as a tough and efficient leader. In World War II he commanded the British army in the North Africa Campaign and forced the German retreat from Egypt after the Battle of El Alamein (1942). He commanded troops in the Allied invasion of Sicily and Italy (1943) and in the Normandy Campaign, leading the British-Canadian army group across northern France and into northern Germany. Promoted to field marshal, he became chief of the imperial staff (1946-48) and later deputy commander of NATO (1951-58). A cautious, thorough strategist, “Monty” often exasperated fellow Allied commanders, including Dwight D. Eisenhower, but his insistence on complete readiness ensured his popu¬ larity with his troops.
Montgomery, L(ucy) M(aud) (b. Nov. 30, 1874, Clifton, P.E.I., Can.—d. April 24, 1942, Toronto, Ont.) Canadian novelist. She worked as a teacher and journalist before achieving worldwide success with Anne of Green Gables (1908). The sentimental story of a spirited orphan girl, it drew on her childhood experiences and the rural life of her native Prince Edward Island. Six sequels, following Anne through motherhood, were less successful. Montgomery also produced another series of juvenile books, several collections of stories, and two books for adults.
Montgomery, Wes orig. John Leslie Montgomery (b. March 6, 1923/25, Indianapolis, Ind., U.S.—d. June 15, 1968, Indianapolis) U.S. jazz guitarist. He began playing guitar in his teens, and his principal early inspiration was the late-swing guitarist Charlie Christian. Montgomery was a member of Lionel Hampton’s band (1948-50) before forming a small group with his brothers. His finest recordings are small-group efforts made after 1959, although he achieved commercial success using accompany¬ ing orchestras in the 1960s. His unconventional technique, using his thumb rather than a plectrum, made possible his frequent use of octaves and chords in solos. He was probably the most influential guitar impro¬ viser in modem jazz.
Montgomery Ward & Co, Former U.S. retail merchandising com¬ pany. It was founded in Chicago in 1872 by Aaron Montgomery Ward (1844-1913), who bought merchandise wholesale and sold it directly to farmers. He distributed the world’s first mail-order catalog and offered a money-back guarantee. The company opened its first retail stores in 1926, and by 1930 retail sales exceeded catalog sales. It ended its mail-order business in 1985, and in 1997 it scaled back operations after filing for bankruptcy protection. Another bankruptcy in December 2000 caused the company to close its 250 stores and go out of business the following year. See also direct-mail marketing; Sears, Roebuck and Company.