Charleston City (pop., 2000: 53,421), capital of West Virginia, U.S. Situated in the Allegheny Mountains at the confluence of the Elk and Kanawha rivers, it was settled around Fort Lee shortly after the American Revolution. It was the home for a time of Daniel Boone. Divided in alle¬ giance during the American Civil War, it was occupied by Union troops in 1862. It was named the state capital in 1870; the capital was briefly trans¬ ferred to Wheeling but returned to Charleston in 1885. It is a distribution centre for coal, oil, and gas, and its manufactures include chemicals. Its capitol building (completed 1932) was designed by Cass Gilbert.
Charlotte City (pop., 2000: 540,828), North Carolina, U.S. The Caro- linas’ biggest metropolis, it lies near the Catawba River, 15 mi (24 km) north of South Carolina. It was settled c. 1748 and named for Charlotte Sophia of Mecklenburg-Streliz (later the wife of George III). In the Ameri¬ can Revolution it was occupied by Lord Cornwallis, who dubbed it “the hornet’s nest.” Until the California gold rush that began in 1848, it was
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378 I Charlotte ► Chartism
the centre of U.S. gold production. In the American Civil War it was the site of a Confederate naval yard. Presidents Andrew Jackson and James Polk were born nearby and received their early schooling there. Its indus¬ try includes textiles, machinery, and chemical production, and it is the site of several institutions of higher education.
Charlotte orig. Charlotte Sophia of Mecklenburg-Strelitz (b.
May 19, 1744—d. Nov. 17,1818) Queen consort of George III of England. In 1761 she was selected unseen after the British king asked for a review of all eligible German Protestant princesses. The marriage was a success, and the couple had 15 children, including George IV. After the king was declared insane (1811), Parliament turned to the future George IV, while Charlotte was given custody of her husband.
Charlotte Amalie Vshar-lot-o-'mal-yoV City (pop., 2000: 11,004), capital of the island of Saint Thomas and of the U.S. Virgin Islands. Lying on St. Thomas Harbor, it was established as a Danish colony in 1672 and named for the Danish queen (its name was St. Thomas during 1921-36). The largest city in the Virgin Islands, it is built on three low volcanic spurs. Two castles, attributed to the pirates Blackbeard and Bluebeard, overlook the harbour. Tourism is economically important.
Charlotte Harbor Inlet of the Gulf of Mexico, western coast of Florida, U.S. It is about 25 mi (40 km) long and 5 mi (8 km) wide. It receives the Peace River in the northeast, and a dredged channel serves the port of Punta Gorda. In 1521 Juan Ponce de Leon tried to establish a colony in the area but was driven away by hostile Indians.
Charlottesville City (pop., 2000: 45,049), central Virginia, U.S. Located in the foothills of the Blue Ridge and settled in the 1730s, it grew as a tobacco-trading centre and later was noted as the home of Presidents Thomas Jefferson and James Monroe. In 1781 the British raided Charlot¬ tesville in hopes of capturing Jefferson and other leaders of the American Revolution. Sites of interest include Jefferson’s home, Monticello; Mon¬ roe’s home, Ash Lawn; and the University of Virginia.
Charlottetown City (pop., 2001: 32,245), capital of Prince Edward Island, Canada. Lying on Hillsborough Bay, it originated in the 1720s as the French settlement Port La Joie. Renamed in honour of the wife of George III after the island passed to Britain in 1763, it became the capital in 1765. Its economy centres on tourism and government business, and, with its excellent harbour, it is the province’s commercial centre. It is the site of Province House, where in 1864 Canada’s unification was first dis¬ cussed, and the Confederation Center of the Arts, a national memorial to the Fathers of Confederation.
Charlottetown Conference First in a series of meetings in 1864 that led to the formation of the Dominion of Canada in 1867. The conference, held at Charlottetown, Prince Edward Island, was originally called to dis¬ cuss a union of the three Maritime Provinces. The gathering failed to reach agreement but reconvened in Halifax and later in Quebec, where a con¬ stitution for a federal union was drafted, resulting in the British North America Act.
charm In particle physics, the property or internal quantum number that is conserved in strong and electromagnetic interactions, but not in weak interactions (see strong force, electromagnetic force, weak force). Charmed particles contain at least one charmed quark; the charm number of these quarks is +1. Charmed antiquarks (see antimatter) have a charm number of -1. The first charmed particle was discovered in 1974.
Charolais \,shar-3-'la\ Breed of large, light-coloured cattle, developed in France for draft purposes but now kept for beef production and used for crossbreeding. White cattle had long been characteristic of the Charo¬ lais region, but the breed was first recognized c. 1775. A typical Charo¬ lais is massive, horned, and cream-coloured or slightly darker. The breed was first imported into the U.S. from a Mexican herd in 1936, but, because of problems with disease in the French herds, few were later imported. It is crossbred with beef breeds and dairy cows.
Charon \'kar-3n\ In Greek mythology, the son of Erebus (Darkness) and Nyx (Night), whose duty it was to ferry the souls of the dead across the Rivers Styx and Acheron, his payment being the coin placed in the mouth of the corpse before burial. He continues in modern Greek folklore as Charos, or Charontas, the angel of death.
Charophyceae \,kar-3-'fi-se-e\ Class of algae, certain members of which are commonly known as stoneworts. Stoneworts contain calcium carbonate deposits so extensive that they may form the major part of lake
bottoms. Superficially resembling higher plants, stoneworts have rootlike and stemlike structures, as well as whorls of branches at regular intervals. They grow underwater, attached to the muddy bottoms of fresh or brack¬ ish rivers and lakes. Except for one form that is sometimes destructive in fish hatcheries, they are of little importance to humans.
Charpentier \shar-pa n -'tya\, Marc-Antoine (b. 1634, Paris, France—d. Feb. 24, 1704, Paris) French composer. He was a student of Giacomo Carissimi in Rome in the 1660s. Back in Paris, he succeeded Jean-Baptiste Lully as music director with Moliere’s acting troupe (later the Comedie-Francaise). He became music director at the principal Jesuit church in Paris, and for his last six years he held the prestigious post of maitre de chapelle at the Sainte-Chapelle. Enormously prolific, he was the most important French composer of his generation. He wrote 11 masses, 84 psalm settings, and 207 motets, including some 35 dramatic motets or Latin oratorios, a genre he introduced into France. His works include the oratorio Judicium Salomonis (1702), the mass Assumpta est Maria , and the operas Medee (1693) and David et Jonathas (1688).
Charte Constitutionnelle See Charter of 1814
charter Document granting certain specified rights, powers, privileges, or functions from the sovereign power of a state to a person, corporation, city, or other unit of local organization. In Magna Carta (1215), King John granted certain liberties to the English people. Elsewhere in medieval Europe, monarchs issued charters to towns, guilds, universities, and other institutions, granting the institution certain privileges and sometimes specifying how they should conduct their internal affairs. Later, charters were granted to overseas trading companies (e.g., the British East India Co.), granting them monopolies in certain areas. Britain’s colonies in North America were established by charter. Modern charters may be cor¬ porate or municipal. A corporate charter, issued by a governmental body, grants individuals the power to form a corporation, or limited-liability com¬ pany. A municipal charter is a law that creates a new political subdivision and allows the people within it to organize themselves into a municipal corporation, in effect delegating to the people the powers of local self- government.