van Ostade, Adriaen See Adriaen van Ostade
vanadium \v9-'na-de-3m\ Metallic chemical element, one of the transi¬ tion elements, chemical symbol V, atomic number 23. A silvery white, soft metal found (always combined) in various minerals, coal, and petroleum, it is used in alloys with steel and iron for high-speed tool steel, high-strength low-alloy steel, and wear-resistant cast iron. Unalloyed, it is used in high- temperature applications, as a target in X-ray applications, and as a cata¬ lyst. Its compounds, in which it has various valences, have many beautiful colours in solution and are used as catalysts and mordants (see dye).
Vanbrugh Vvan-.briik, van-'bru. Sir John (baptized Jan. 24, 1664, London, Eng.—d. March 26, 1726, London) English dramatist and archi¬ tect. He began writing while serving as a soldier. He specialized in the comedy of manners; his successful plays include The Relapse (1696) and The Provok’d Wife (1697). He also wrote lively adaptations from the French, more farce than comedy, including The Country House (per¬ formed 1703) and The Confederacy (1705). In 1702 he designed Castle Howard, Yorkshire, with Nicholas Hawksmoor (1661-1736). His master¬ piece, again with Hawksmoor, was Blenheim Palace (1705-16), Oxford¬ shire, which brought the English baroque style to its culmination.
Vance, Cyrus (Roberts) (b. March 27, 1917, Clarksburg, W.Va., U.S.—d. Jan. 12, 2002, New York, N.Y.) U.S. public official. After receiv¬ ing his law degree from Yale University in 1942, he enlisted in the navy and served until 1946, when he joined a law firm in New York City. He was appointed general counsel for the U.S. Department of Defense in 1960. In 1962 he became secretary of the army, and in 1963 Pres. Lyn¬ don B. Johnson named him deputy secretary of defense. Initially a vig¬ orous supporter of U.S. involvement in the Vietnam War, his viewed changed after his resignation in 1967, and by 1968 he was urging Johnson to stop the bombing of North Vietnam. In that year he was sent to Paris with W. Averell Harriman to negotiate peace with the North Vietnamese. As secretary of state (1977-80) under Pres. Jimmy Carter, he worked to obtain the Strategic Arms Limitation Talks II (SALT II) arms-control treaty and was instrumental in the Camp David accords. He resigned in 1980 in protest of Carter’s plan to send a secret military mission to rescue Ameri¬ can hostages held in Tehran, Iran (see Iran hostage crisis).
Vancouver City (pop., 2001: metro, area, 1,986,965), southwestern British Columbia, Canada. Located on a fine natural harbour, it originated as a lumber-processing settlement in the 1870s. It recovered from a disas-
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1986 I Vancouver ► Vanuatu
trous fire (1886) to become Canada’s principal seaport. Its development was aided by completion of the transcontinental railroad in 1887 and the opening of the Panama Canal in 1914, which made it economically fea¬ sible to export grain and lumber from Vancouver to the North American east coast and Europe. Economic activities include producing lumber and plywood, oil refining, fishing, and shipbuilding.
Vancouver, George (b. June 22, 1757, King’s Lynn, Norfolk, Eng.—d. May 10, 1798, Richmond, Surrey) English navigator. He entered the Royal Navy at age 13 and sailed with James Cook on his second and third voyages (1772-75, 1776-79) to the Pacific. In 1791 he commanded an expedition that explored the coasts of Australia, New Zealand, Tahiti, and Hawaii before reaching the Pacific coast of North America in 1792; over the next two years he meticulously mapped a major portion of the coast. His maps and a lengthy account of his voyages were published in
Vancouver Vvan-'ku-varX Island Island (pop., 2001: 705,000) off southwestern British Columbia, Canada. It is the largest island (12,079 sq mi [31,285 sq km]) on the Pacific coast of North America. It has several peaks of more than 7,000 ft (2,100 m), as well as several fine harbours. The chief city is Victoria. It was inhabited by coastal Indians for several millennia before it was visited by early Spanish and English explorers, including Capt. James Cook in 1778. It was surveyed in 1792 by George Vancouver and was held by the Hudson's Bay Co. until it was made a Brit¬ ish crown colony in 1849. It united with British Columbia in 1866. The island’s main industries include lumbering, fishing, agriculture, and tour¬ ism.
Vandal Any member of a Germanic people who ruled a kingdom in North Africa from 429 to 534 and who sacked Rome in 455. Fleeing westward from the Huns, they invaded Gaul before settling in Spain (409). Under King Gaiseric (r. 428^477) they migrated to North Africa and became federates of Rome (435). Four years later Gaiseric threw off Roman overlordship and captured Carthage. The Vandals later annexed Sardinia, Corsica, and Sicily, and their pirate fleets controlled much of the western Mediterranean. When they invaded Italy and captured Rome (455), they plundered the city and its artworks, and their name has remained a synonym for willful desecration and destruction. The Vandals were Arian Christians (see Arianism) who persecuted Roman Catholics in Africa. They were conquered when the Byzantines invaded North Africa
(533-534).
Vandenberg, Arthur H(endrick) (b. March 22, 1884, Grand Rap¬ ids, Mich., U.S.—d. April 18, 1951, Grand Rapids) U.S. politician. Edi¬ tor of the Grand Rapids Herald (1906-28), he was elected as a Republican to the U.S. Senate (1928-51). He was a critic of Pres. Franklin D. Roosevelt’s foreign policy but revised his isolationist position after the attack on Pearl Harbor. In a 1945 Senate speech he advocated U.S. par¬ ticipation in international alliances, and he was a delegate to the UN orga¬ nizing conference. He led Republican congressional support for legislative measures introduced by Pres. Harry Truman, including the Mar¬ shall Plan, the Truman Doctrine, and NATO.
Vanderbilt, Cornelius (b. May 27, 1794, Port Richmond, Staten Island, N.Y., U.S.—d. Jan. 4,1877, New York, N.Y.) U.S. shipping and rail¬ road magnate. He began a passenger ferry business in New York harbour in 1810 with one boat; he added several others during the War of 1812 in order to supply government outposts. He sold his boats to work as a steamship captain (1818-29), then started his own steamship company on the Hudson River. By cutting fares and offering luxurious accommodations, he soon controlled the river traffic. He then provided transportation along the east¬ ern seacoast. By 1846 he was a millionaire. He formed the Accessory Tran¬ sit Co. to transport passengers and freight from New York to the California gold fields via Nicaragua. He again undercut his competitors, and they bought him out at a high price (1858). Turning to railroads, he acquired controlling stock in the New York and Harlem Railroad. After losing a battle for control of the Erie Railroad (1868), he bought and consolidated the Hudson River and the New York Central railroads (1869). After buying the Lake Shore and Michigan Southern Railroad (1873), he provided the first rail service between New York and Chicago. At his death, he had a fortune of more than $100 million, the largest sum accumulated in the U.S. to that date. He gave $1 million to Central University (later Vanderbilt Uni¬ versity). He left almost all the rest to his son William H. Vanderbilt (1821— 85), who greatly expanded the New York Central network, acquired other railroads, and doubled the family fortune.
Vanderbilt University Private university in Nashville, Tennessee, U.S. It was founded in 1873 and named for benefactor Cornelius Vander¬ bilt. Baccalaureate degrees are awarded through its college of arts and sci¬ ences, school of engineering, and school of music. Master’s, doctoral, and professional degree programs are offered through these and other schools, such as Vanderbilt’s graduate school, divinity school, and schools of law, management, medicine, and nursing. Research institutes include centres for the study of education and human development, public policy, and the humanities.