Wilkinson, John (b. 1728, Clif¬ ton, Cumberland, Eng.—d. July 14,
1808, Bradley, Staffordshire) British industrialist. Known as “the great Staffordshire ironmaster,” he found many new applications for iron, devel¬
oped a boring machine whose precision enabled James Watt to perfect his steam engine, and used Watt’s first steam engine to drive a huge air pump in his factory for the large-scale manufacture of wrought iron.
will In law, a formal declaration, usually in the form of an executed document, of a person’s wishes regarding the disposal of his or her prop¬ erty after death. It is valid if it meets the formalities of the law, which usually requires that it be witnessed. It may be considered invalid if, among other instances, the testator was mentally incapable of disposing of his or her property, if it imposes unreasonable or cruel demands as a condition of inheritance, or if the testator did not have clear title to the bequeathed assets. Any party who contests a will must bring the claim within a time specified by statute and must bear the burden of proof in demonstrating that the will is faulty. See also probate.
Willamette River River, northwestern Oregon, U.S. It flows north for 300 mi (485 km) into the Columbia River near Portland. Oregon’s most populous cities are in its valley. The Fremont Bridge, a steel arch with a main span of 1,225 ft (373 m), crosses the river at Portland.
Willemstad \'vi-bm-,stat\ City (pop., 1999 est.: 123,000), capital of the Netherlands Antilles, West Indies. Located on the southern coast of Curacao, it was founded in 1634. Willemstad contains many Dutch colo¬ nial buildings and is the site of the oldest (1732) synagogue in continu¬ ous use in the Western Hemisphere. It is a centre of trade, petroleum storage and refining, banking, and tourism.
William I known as William the Conqueror (b. c. 1028, Falaise, Normandy—d. Sept. 9, 1087. Rouen) Duke of Normandy (1035-87) and king of England (1066-87). Though bom out of wedlock, he succeeded his father as duke of Normandy, subduing rebellions and becoming the mightiest noble in France. In 1051 Edward the Confessor promised to make him heir to the English throne, but on Edward’s death in 1066, Harold Godwineson, earl of Wessex (Harold II), was accepted as king. Determined to assert his right to the throne, William sailed from Nor¬ mandy with an invasion force, defeated Harold at the Battle of Hastings, and was crowned king. The Norman Conquest was thus completed, though English rebellions continued until 1071. To secure England’s fron¬ tiers, William invaded Scotland (1072) and Wales (1081). In 1086 he ordered the survey summarized in the Domesday Book. He divided his lands between his sons, giving Normandy and Maine to Robert II and England to William II.
William I German Wilhelm Friedrich Ludwig (b. March 22, 1797, Berlin—d. March 9, 1888, Berlin) King of Prussia (1861-88) and Ger¬ man emperor (1871-88). Son of Frederick William III of Prussia, he fought in the war against Napoleon (1814) and thereafter devoted himself to the Prussian army and military affairs. He advocated the use of force against the rebels in 1848. The military governor of Rhineland province from 1849, he succeeded his brother on the Prussian throne in 1861. A conser¬ vative and a supporter of military reform, William insisted on a three-year term of military conscription, which the liberal lower chamber rejected in 1862. William was ready to abdicate but was dissuaded by Otto von Bismarck, whom he had installed as prime minister (1862). He cautiously supported Bismarck’s policies in the Seven Weeks' War and the Franco- Prussian War. Proclaimed German emperor in 1871, he oversaw the con¬ tinued rise of Germany as a European power.
William I Dutch Willem known as William the Silent (b. April 24, 1533, Dillenburg, Nassau—d. July 10, 1584, Delft, Holland) First stadtholder of the United Provinces of the Netherlands (1572-84). Son of William, count of Nassau-Dillenburg, he inherited the principality of Orange and other vast estates from his cousin in 1544. He was educated at the Habsburg imperial court in Brussels, then appointed by Philip II to the council of state (1555). He helped negotiate the Treaty of Cateau- Cambresis, earning his byname for keeping silent about secret policy deci¬ sions, and was named stadtholder (governor) in Holland, Zeeland, and Utrecht in 1559. Increasingly opposed to Philip’s strict ordinances against Protestants, he led a revolt in 1568 that proved unsuccessful, but in 1572 he succeeded in uniting the northern provinces. He was proclaimed their stadtholder, and his position was solidified by the Pacification of Ghent (1576). He sought help from France in the revolt against Spain, and in 1579 he was outlawed by Philip. A reward was offered for his assassina¬ tion, and in 1584 he was shot by a fanatical Catholic.
William I Dutch Willem Frederik (b. Aug. 24, 1772, The Hague, United Provinces of the Netherlands—d. Dec. 12, 1843, Berlin, Prussia)
James Wilkinson, portrait by J.W. Jarvis; in the Filson Club Collection, Louisville, Ky.
COURTESY OF THE FILSON CLUB, LOUISVILLE, KY.
© 2006 Encyclopaedia Britannica, Inc.
2060 I William I ► William of Auxerre
King of The Netherlands and grand duke of Luxembourg (1815-40). Son of William V, prince of Orange, he married in 1791 and immigrated with his family to England after the French invasion of the Dutch Republic (1795). He sided with Prussia against Napoleon and lived in exile at the Prussian court until 1812. After the Dutch revolt against French rule, he became sovereign prince of the Dutch Republic (1813) and king of the United Netherlands (1815), which included Belgium, Liege, and Luxem¬ bourg. He led an economic recovery program that sparked a commercial revival, but his autocratic methods and imposition of Dutch as the offi¬ cial language provoked a revolt by Belgium (1830) that led to its inde¬ pendence. In 1840 he abdicated in favour of his son, William II.
William I known as William the Lion (b. 1143—d. Dec. 2, 1214, Stirling, Stirlingshire, Scot.) King of Scotland (1165-1214). He succeeded his father as earl of Northumberland (1152) but was forced to relinquish his earldom to England’s Henry II in 1157. He succeeded his brother, Mal¬ colm IV, as king of Scotland and in 1173 joined a revolt of Henry’s sons in an attempt to regain Northumberland. Captured in 1174, he was released after submitting to Henry’s overlordship. He bought his release from subjection in 1189. He continued to agitate for the restoration of Northumberland but was forced to renounce his claim by King John in 1209. William created many of the major burghs of modem Scotland.
William II or William Rufus (b. c. 1056—d. Aug. 2, 1100, near Lyndhurst, Hampshire, Eng.) King of England (1087-1100) and de facto duke of Normandy (1096-1100). He inherited England from his father, William I (the Conqueror), and quelled a rebellion (1088) by barons loyal to his brother Robert II. A tyrannical ruler, he brutally punished the lead¬ ers of a second revolt (1095). He forced St. Anselm, archbishop of Can¬ terbury, to leave England and seized his lands (1097). He reduced the Scottish kings to vassals (1093), subjugated Wales (1097), and waged war on Normandy (1089-96), gaining control when Robert mortgaged the duchy. His death in a hunting accident may have been an assassination ordered by his brother Henry (later Henry I).
William II German Friedrich Wilhelm Viktor Albert known as Kaiser Wilhelm (b. Jan. 27, 1859, Potsdam, near Berlin, Prussia—d. June 4, 1941, Doom, Neth.) German emperor (kaiser) and king of Prus¬ sia (1888-1918). Son of the future Frederick III and grandson of Britain’s Queen Victoria, William succeeded his father to the throne in 1888. Two years later, he forced the resignation of Otto von Bismarck. He was char¬ acterized by his frequently militaristic manner and by his vacillating poli¬ cies that undermined those of his chancellors, including Leo, count von Caprivi, and Bernhard, prince von Bulow. From 1897 he encouraged Adm. Alfred von Tirpitz to strengthen the German fleet and challenged France’s position in Morocco (see Moroccan crises). He sided with Austria- Hungary in the crisis with Serbia (1914), and in World War I he encour¬ aged the grandiose war aims of the generals and politicians. After Germany’s defeat, he fled to The Netherlands, ending the monarchy in Germany, and lived in exile until his death.