Charente River \sha-'raiit\ River, western France. Rising in the depart¬ ment of Haute-Vienne, it flows generally westward 226 mi (360 km) to
the Bay of Biscay. It receives its chief tributary, the Boutonne, from the plain of Poitou to the north. It is navigable for small craft as far as Angouleme.
charge-coupled device See CCD
Chargoggagoggmanchauggauggagoggchaubunagun- gamaugg Vchar-.go-go-.gog-man-.cho-.go-go-.gog-cho-.bo-no-'goq-go- ,m6g\, La ice or Lake Webster Lake, central Massachusetts, U.S. Located in southern Worcester county, near the town of Webster, the lake’s Indian name is reportedly Nipmuc (Algonquian) for “You fish on your side; I fish on my side; nobody fishes in the middle.” Not surprisingly, the lake is commonly called Lake Webster.
Chari \'sha-re\ River or Shari River River, north-central Africa. It flows about 590 mi (949 km) from the Central African Republic north¬ west into Lake Chad; it has many tributaries in the Central African Repub¬ lic. N’Djamena is at the head of the river’s delta.
chariot Open two- or four-wheeled vehicle of ancient origin. The chariot probably originated in Mesopotamia about 3000 bc; early monuments show heavy vehicles with solid wheels. Chariots were probably first used in royal funeral processions. Two-wheeled horse-drawn versions evolved for speed in battle c. 2000 bc, appearing first in Greece and later in Egypt and the eastern Mediterranean. Chariot racing was popular in Greece at the Olympic Games; in Rome it was the main event in the circus games, where two to four horses drew each lightweight chariot in a competition of four or six vehicles; and in Byzantium such races became the domi¬ nant events of civic life.
charismatic movement See Pentecostalism
Charlemagne Vshar-h-.manX or Carolus Magnus ("Charles the Great") (b. April 2, c. 742—d. Jan. 28, 814, Aachen, Austrasia) King of the Franks (768-814) and emperor (800-14). The elder son of the Frankish king Pippin III (the Short), he ruled the Frankish kingdom jointly with his brother Carloman until the latter’s death in 771. He then became sole king of the Franks and began a series of campaigns to conquer and Christianize neighbouring kingdoms. He defeated and became king of the Lombards in northern Italy (774). His expedition against the Muslims in Spain failed (778), but he successfully annexed Bavaria (788). Charle¬ magne fought against the Saxons for many years, finally defeating and Christianizing them in 804. He subdued the Avars of the Danube and gained control of many of the Slav states. With the exception of the Brit¬ ish Isles, southern Italy, and part of Spain, he united in one vast state almost all the Christian lands of western Europe. His coronation as emperor at Rome on Christmas Day, 800, after restoring Leo III to the papacy, marks the revival of the empire in Latin Europe and was the fore¬ runner of the Holy Roman Empire. Charlemagne established his capital at Aachen (Aix-la-Chapelle), where he built a magnificent palace. He invited many scholars and poets to assist him in the promotion of the religious and cultural revival known as the Carolingian renaissance. He also cod- ifed the laws and increased the use of writing in government and society. He was succeeded on his death by his son Louis the Pious, whom Char¬ lemagne had crowned coemperor in 813. See also Carolingian dynasty.
Charleroi \shar-b-'rwa\ City (pop., 2000 est.: 200,800), southwestern Belgium. Following the Treaty of the Pyrenees (1659), in which Spain was ceded French territory, Spain in 1666 decreed that a new fortress, named for Charles II of Spain, be built there, at the site of a medieval village. It was strategically important in the 17th—19th centuries and was held vari¬ ously by France, Spain, Austria, and Holland. Though the fortress was dis¬ mantled in the late 19th century, the area retained its strategic importance; it was the scene of one of the first battles of World War I.
Charles (Philip Arthur George), prince of Wales (b. Nov. 14, 1948, Buckingham Palace, London, Eng.) Heir apparent to the British throne, son of Elizabeth II and Philip, duke of Edinburgh. In 1971 he studied at the University of Cambridge, becoming the first heir to the throne to obtain a university degree, and he later attended the Royal Air Force Col¬ lege and the Royal Naval College, Dartmouth. He took a tour of duty with the Royal Navy (1971-76). In 1981 he married Lady Diana Spen¬ cer (see Diana, princess of Wales), and they had two sons, William and Henry. Their marriage grew strained amid intense scrutiny from the press and rumours of infidelity; they divorced in 1996. He subsequently began publicly keeping company with Camilla Parker Bowles (b. 1947), and they married in 2005. He has been known for his advocacy of excellence in architecture and other causes.
Chard (Beta vulgaris variety cicla).
W.H. HODGE
© 2006 Encyclopaedia Britannica, Inc.
Charles ► Charles III I 375
Charles, Ray orig. Ray Charles Robinson (b. Sept. 23, 1930, Albany, Ga., U.S.—d. June 10, 2004, Beverly Hills, Calif.) U.S. pianist, singer, and songwriter. His family moved to Greenville, Fla., where he began his musical career at age 5 in a neighbourhood cafe. By age 7 he had completely lost his sight. He learned to write scores in Braille. Orphaned at 15, he left school to play professionally. He recorded “Mess Around” and “It Should’ve Been Me” in 1952-53, and his arrangement for Guitar Slim’s “The Things That I Used to Do” became a million-seller. Combining blues and gospel music influences, a distinctive raspy voice, and liquid phrasing, Charles later had hits with “What’d I Say,” “Georgia on My Mind,” and “Hit the Road, Jack.” His Modern Sounds in Country and Western Music (1962), marking unusual territory for a black performer, sold more than a million copies. He received 13 Grammy Awards, includ¬ ing a lifetime achievement award in 1987. Charles was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1986.
Charles I German Karl Franz Josef (b. Aug. 17, 1887, Persenbeug Castle, Austria—d. April 1, 1922, Quinta do Monte, Madeira) Emperor of Austria (1916-18) and king of Hungary (as Charles IV), last ruler of the Austro-Hungarian monarchy. He became heir presumptive to the Hab- sburg throne on the assassination of his uncle, Francis Ferdinand. After he succeeded Francis Joseph in 1916, he made several abortive attempts to take Austria-Hungary out of World War I. He renounced participation in affairs of state in 1918 and was deposed in 1919. After two failed attempts to regain his Hungarian throne in 1921, he was sent into exile in Madeira, where he died.
Charles I (b. Nov. 19, 1600, Dunfermline Palace, Fife, Scot.—d. Jan. 30, 1649, London, Eng.) King of Great Britain and Ireland (1625^-9). Son of James I, he acquired from his father a belief in the divine right of kings, and his earliest surviving letters reveal a distrust of the House of Commons. He became king in 1625 and soon after married Henrietta Maria. He came into conflict with his first Parliament because of religious issues, his war against Spain, and the general distrust of his adviser the 1st duke of Buckingham. After dissolving several successive Parliaments, Charles ruled his kingdom for 11 years without calling a Parliament. Among the measures he took to be independent of parliamentary grants was the levying of ship money. In 1639 he went to war against Scotland, and the need to raise money prompted him to summon what came to be known as the Short Parliament and the Long Parliament. Eventually his authoritarian rule and quarrels with Parliament provoked the English Civil Wars. After his forces were defeated in the second of these wars, the army demanded that he stand trial for treason as “the grand author of our troubles.” In 1649 he was convicted and executed, and Oliver Cromwell proclaimed the Commonwealth.