Crompton, Samuel (b. Dec. 3, 1753, Firwood, Lancashire, Eng.—d. June 26, 1827, Bolton, Lancashire) British inventor. His spinning mule (probably called a mule because it was a cross between inventions of Richard Arkwright and James Hargreaves) permitted large-scale manufac¬ ture of high-quality thread and yarn by simultaneously drawing out and giving the final twisting to the cotton fibres fed into it, reproducing mechanically the actions of hand spinning.
Cromwell, Oliver (b. April 25, 1599, Huntingdon, Huntingdonshire, Eng.—d. Sept. 3, 1658, London) English soldier and statesman, lord pro¬ tector of the republican Commonwealth of England, Scotland, and Ire¬ land (1653-58). He was elected to Parliament in 1628, but Charles I dissolved that Parliament in 1629 and did not call another for 11 years. In 1640 Cromwell was elected to the Short and the Long Parliament. When differences between Charles and Parliament erupted into the English Civil Wars, Cromwell became one of the leading generals on the Parliamen¬ tary side, winning many notable victories, including the Battles of Mar- ston Moor and Naseby. He was among those who brought the king to trial and signed his death warrant. After the British Isles were named the Commonwealth, he served as the first chairman of the Council of State. In the next few years he fought against the Royalists in Ireland and Scot¬ land and suppressed a mutiny inspired by the Levelers. When Charles II advanced into England, Cromwell destroyed his army at Worcester (1651), the battle that ended the civil wars. As lord protector, Cromwell raised his country’s status once more to that of a leading European power and concluded the Anglo-Dutch War. Though a devout Calvinist, he pursued policies of religious tolera¬ tion. He refused the title of king offered to him by Parliament in 1657. After his death he was suc¬ ceeded by his son Richard Cromwell.
Cromwell, Richard (b. Oct. 4,
1626—d. July 12, 1712, Cheshunt,
Hertfordshire, Eng.) Lord protector of England (September 1658-May 1659). He was the eldest surviving son of Oliver Cromwell, who groomed him for high office. He served in the Parliamentary army Richard Cromwell, miniature by an and was a member of Parliament and unknown artist; in the National Portrait the council of state. After his father’s Gallery, London death he was proclaimed lord protec- courtesy of the national portrait gallery, tor, but he soon encountered serious -
difficulties and was forced to abdicate. Having amassed large debts, he fled to Paris in 1660 to escape his creditors; in 1680 he returned and lived in seclusion.
Cromwell, Thomas, earl of Essex (b. c. 1485, Putney, near Lon¬ don, Eng.—d. July 28, 1540, probably London) English politician and principal adviser (1532-40) to Henry VIII. He was a confidential adviser to Thomas, Cardinal Wolsey, before entering Parliament (1529), where his abilities attracted the king’s notice. Entering Henry’s service in 1530, he was chiefly responsible for establishing the Reformation in England, for the dissolution of the monasteries, and for strengthening the royal admin¬ istration. He eventually came into complete control of the government, though he pretended to be acting on the king’s authority. In 1539 he made the mistake of inducing Henry to marry Anne of Cleves, which led to his fall. At his enemies’ instigation he was arrested for heresy and treason, condemned without a hearing, and executed.
Cronenberg Vkro-non-.borgV David (b. May 15, 1943, Toronto, Ont., Can.) Canadian film director, screenwriter, and actor. He began making horror films in the 1970s and acquired a cult following with films such as Scanners (1981) and Videodrome (1982). He found a wider horror-film audience with The Dead Zone (1983), The Fly (1986), and Dead Ringers (1988). Later films included Naked Lunch (1991), Crash (1996), and eXistenZ (1999).
Cronin, A(rchibald) J(oseph) (b. July 19, 1896, Cardross, Dum¬ bartonshire, Scot.—d. Jan. 6, 1981, Montreux, Switz.) Scottish novelist. Trained as a surgeon, he practiced medicine mostly in mining communi¬ ties, but he ceased because of ill health and used his leisure to write. His books combine sentimentality with social criticism. His first novel, Hat¬ ter’s Castle (1931; film, 1941), was an immediate success. His classic The Stars Look Down (1935; film, 1939) chronicles social injustice in a mining community. Other works include The Citadel (1937; film, 1938), The Keys of the Kingdom (1942; film, 1944), The Green Years (1944; film, 1946), The Judas Tree (1961), and A Thing of Beauty (1956).
Cronkite, Walter (Leland, Jr.) (b. Nov. 4, 1916, St. Joseph, Mo., U.S.) U.S. journalist and television newscaster. He began his career as a reporter with the Houston Post and later worked for United Press (1939— 48) and served as a war correspondent in Europe (1942^45). He joined CBS in 1950 as a news reporter and became managing editor and anchor of the widely watched CBS Evening News (1962-81). He hosted numer¬ ous documentaries and special reports, notably on the assassination of Pres. John F. Kennedy and the 1969 Moon landing. His reassuring, avun¬ cular manner made him one of the most trusted figures in U.S. broad¬ casting.
Cronus or Cronos or Kronos In Greek religion, a male agricultural deity. He was the youngest of the 12 Titans borne by Uranus and Gaea, and his castration of his father separated heaven from earth. With his sis¬ ter and consort Rhea, he fathered Hestia, Demeter, Hera, Hades, and Posei¬ don, all of whom he swallowed because he had been warned that he would be overthrown by his own child. Rhea hid his son Zeus and tricked Cro¬ nus into swallowing a stone; Zeus later forced Cronus to disgorge the oth¬ ers and then vanquished him in war. He was identified with the Roman god Saturn.
Cronyn Vkro-nonV Hume and Jessica Tandy (respectively b. July 18, 1911, London, Ont., Can.—d. June 15, 2003, Fairfield, Conn., U.S.; b. June 7, 1909, London, Eng.—d. Sept. 11, 1994, Easton, Conn., U.S.) U.S. husband-and-wife actors. Cronyn made his Broadway debut in 1934. He was a successful character actor in many plays, including Polonius in Hamlet (1964, Tony Award), and directed plays such as Hilda Crane (1950) and The Egghead (1957). Tandy made her Broadway debut in 1930. She was the original Blanche DuBois in A Streetcar Named Desire (1947, Tony Award). She and Cronyn married in 1942 and acted together in such successful plays as The Fourposter (1951), A Delicate Balance (1966), The Gin Game (1977), and Foxfire (1982), the last two of which earned Tony Awards for Tandy. Cronyn’s many films include Lifeboat (1944) and Sunrise at Campobello (1960), and Tandy’s include The Birds (1963), Driving Miss Daisy (1989, Academy Award), and Fried Green Tomatoes (1991).
crop In agriculture, a plant or plant product that can be grown and har¬ vested extensively for profit or subsistence. By use, crops fall into six categories: food crops, for human consumption (e.g., wheat, potatoes); feed crops, for livestock consumption (e.g., oats, alfalfa); fibre crops, for
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crop duster ► cross-fertilization I 487
cordage and textiles (e.g., cotton, hemp); oil crops, for consumption or industrial uses (e.g., cottonseed, com); ornamental crops, for landscape gardening (e.g., dogwood, azalea); and industrial and secondary crops, for various personal and industrial uses (e.g., rubber, tobacco).
crop duster Usually, an aircraft used for dusting or spraying large acreages with pesticides, though other types of dusters are also employed. Aerial spraying and dusting permit prompt coverage of large areas at the moment when application of pesticide is most effective and avoid the need for wheeled vehicles that might damage crops. The technique was greatly improved in the 1960s with the development of ultra-low-volume appli¬ cators, in which concentrated pesticides are distributed in extremely small amounts. See also spraying and dusting.
crop rotation Successive cultivation of different crops in a specified order on the same fields. Some rotations are designed for high immedi¬ ate returns, with little regard for basic resources. Others are planned for high continuing returns while protecting resources. A typical scheme selects rotation crops from three classifications: cultivated row crops (e.g., com, potatoes), close-growing grains (e.g., oats, wheat), and sod-forming, or rest, crops (e.g., clover, clover-timothy). In general, cropping systems should include deep-rooting legumes. In addition to the many beneficial effects on soils and crops, well-planned crop rotations make the farm a more effective year-round enterprise by providing more efficient handling of labour, power, and equipment, reduction in weather and market risks, and improved ability to meet livestock requirements.