Part 344 (1/2)
PENDA, a Mercian king of the 7th century, who headed a reactionary movement of heathenism against the domination of Christianity in England, and for a time seemed to carry all before him, but Christianity, under the preaching of the monks, had gained too deep a hold, particularly in Northumbria, and he was overpowered in 665 in one final struggle and slain.
PENDENNIS, the name of a novel by Thackeray, from the name of the hero, and published in 1849-50 in succession to ”Vanity Fair.”
PENDLETON, a NW. suburb of Manchester, in the direction of Bolton, with extensive manufactures and collieries.
PENDRAGON, a t.i.tle bestowed on kings by the ancient Britons, and especially on the chiefs among them chosen by election, so called from their wearing a dragon on their s.h.i.+elds or as a crest in sign of sovereignty.
PENELOPE, the wife of Ulysses, celebrated for her conjugal fidelity during his twenty years' absence, in the later half of which an army of suitors pled for her hand, pleading that her husband would never return; but she put them all off by a promise of marriage as soon as she finished a web (called after Penelope's web) she was weaving, which she wove by day and undid at night, till their importunities took a violent form, when her husband arrived and delivered her.
PENINSULAR STATE, the State of Florida, from its shape.
PENINSULAR WAR, a war carried on in Spain and Portugal during the years 1808 and 1814, between the French on the one hand and the Spanish, Portuguese, and British, chiefly under Wellington, on the other, and which was ended by the victory of the latter over the former at Toulouse just after Napoleon's abdication.
PENITENTIAL PSALMS or PSALMS OF CONFESSION, is a name given from very early times to Psalms vi., x.x.xii., x.x.xviii., li., cii., cx.x.x., which are specially expressive of sorrow for sin. The name belonged originally to the fifty-first Psalm, which was recited at the close of daily morning service in the primitive Church.
PENITENTS, ORDER OF, a religious order established in 1272 for the reception to the Church of reformed courtesans.
PENN, WILLIAM, founder of Pennsylvania, the son of an admiral, born in London; was converted to Quakerism while a student at Oxford, and for a fanatical attack on certain fellow-students expelled the University; his father sent him to travel in France, and afterwards placed him in charge of his Irish estates; his religious views occasioned several disputes with his father, and ultimately brought him into conflict with the Government; he spent several periods of imprisonment writing books in defence of religious liberty, among them ”The Great Cause of Liberty of Conscience” (1671); then travelled in Holland and Germany propagating his views; his father's death brought him a fortune and a claim upon the crown which he commuted for a grant of land in North America, where he founded (1682) the colony of Pennsylvania--the prefix Penn, by command of Charles II. in honour of the admiral; here he established a refuge for all persecuted religionists, and laying out Philadelphia as the capital, governed his colony wisely and generously for two years; he returned to England, where his friends.h.i.+p with James II. brought many advantages to the Quakers, but laid him under hara.s.sing and undeserved prosecutions for treason in the succeeding reign; a second visit to his colony (1699-1701) gave it much useful legislation; on his return his agent practically ruined him, and he was a prisoner in the Fleet in 1708; the closing years of his life were clouded by mental decay (1644-1718).
PENNANT, THOMAS, traveller and naturalist, born near Holywell, Flints.h.i.+re; studied at Oxford, but took no degree; in 1746 he made a tour of Cornwall; among his subsequent journeys, of which he published accounts, were tours in Ireland (1754), the Continent (1764), Scotland (1769 and 1772), and Wales; he wrote several works on zoological subjects, and published an amusing ”Literary Life of the late Thomas Pennant, Esq., by Himself,” 1793 (1726-1798).
PENNSYLVANIA (5,258), most populous but one of the American States, lies N. of Mason and Dixon's Line, separated by New Jersey, on the E. by the Delaware River, with Ohio on the W., New York on the N., and Lake Erie at the NW. corner. The country is hilly, being traversed by the Blue Mountains and the Alleghany ranges, with many fertile valleys between the chains, extensive forests, and much picturesque scenery. The c.u.mberland Valley in the W. is one of the best farming lands in New England. The Alleghany River in the W. and the two branches of the Susquehanna in the centre water the State. Pennsylvania is the greatest mining State in the Union; its iron-mines and petroleum-wells supply half the iron and most of the oil used in the country; its bituminous coal-beds in the W. are extremely rich, and the anthracite deposits of the E. are unrivalled; in manufactures, too, it ranks second among the States; these are very varied, the most valuable being iron, steel, and s.h.i.+pbuilding. Founded by Swedes, it pa.s.sed to English settlers in 1664; the first charter was granted to William Penn in 1681. In the Revolution it took a prominent part, and was among the first States of the Union. Education is well advanced; there are 20 State colleges. The mining population includes many Irish, Hungarian, and Italian immigrants, among whom riots are frequent. Of the agriculturists many are of Dutch descent, and about two millions still speak a Low German _patois_ known as Pennsylvanian Dutch.
HARRISBURG (39) is the capital; the metropolis is PHILADELPHIA (1,047), the second largest city in the country; while PITTSBURG (239), ALLEGHANY (105), SCRANTON (75), and READING (59) are among the many large towns.
PENNY, originally a silver coin, weighed in the 7th century 1/240-th of a Saxon pound, but decreased in weight till in Elizabeth's time it was 1/63 of an ounce troy. It was at first indented with a cross so as to be broken for halfpennies and farthings, but silver coins of these denominations were coined by Edward I. Edward VI. stopped the farthings, and the halfpence were stopped in the Commonwealth. Copper coinage was established in 1672. The present coins were issued first in 1860. They are half the size of their predecessors, and intrinsically worth one-seventh of their nominal value.
PENNY WEDDING, a wedding at which the guests pay part of the charges of the festival.
PENRITH (9), a market town of c.u.mberland, and tourist centre for the English lakes; contains a very old church and school, and ruins of a picturesque castle. Brewing, iron-founding, and timber-sawing are its industries.
PENRYN (3), a Cornish market town at the head of Falmouth harbour; has manufactures of paper, woollen cloth, and gunpowder. It has considerable fis.h.i.+ng industry, and s.h.i.+ps the Penryn granite quarried near.
PENSEROSO, II, a famous Italian poem by Milton, written in 1633.