During the thirteenth century there grew up in England the
practice of sending to the Great Council of the king a certain
number of knights from each shire to represent the "lesser
baronage." which had formerly possessed the privilege of
attending the council in person, but which had become more
neglectful of attendance as their numbers increased. In
theory, these knights of the shire, as they came to be called,
were representatives of that "lesser baronage" only. "But the
necessity of holding their election in the County Court
rendered any restriction of the electoral body physically
impossible. The court was composed of the whole body of
freeholders, and no sheriff could distinguish the 'aye, aye'
of the yeoman from the 'aye, aye' of the lesser baron. From
the first moment therefore of their attendance we find the
knights regarded not as mere representatives of the baronage,
but as knights of the shire, and by this silent revolution the
whole body of the rural freeholders were admitted to a share
in the government of the realm."
_J. R. Green,
Short History of the English People,
chapter 4._
The history of the knights of the shire is the history of the
origin of county representation in the English Parliament. The
representation of boroughs, or towns, has a history quite
distinct. Of the leading part played by the knights of the
shire in the development and establishment of the English
Constitution Mr. Stubbs remarks ("Constitutional History of
England," chapter 17, section 272): "Both historical evidence
and the nature of the case lead to the conviction that the
victory of the constitution was won by the knights of the
shires; they were the leaders of parliamentary debate; they
were the link between the good peers and the good towns; they
were the indestructible element of the house of commons; they
were the representatives of those local divisions of the realm
which were coeval with the historical existence of the people
of England, and the interests of which were most directly
attacked by the abuses of royal prerogative."
See, also, PARLIAMENT, THE ENGLISH: EARLY
STAGES IN ITS EVOLUTION.
KNOW NOTHING PARTY, The.
See UNITED STATES OF AMERICA: A. D. 1852.
KNOX, General Henry, in the Cabinet of President Washington.
See UNITED STATES OF AMERICA: A. D. 1789-1792.
KNOX, John, and the Reformation in Scotland.
See SCOTLAND: A. D. 1547-1557, to 1558-1560.
----------KNOXVILLE: Start--------
KNOXVILLE: A. D. 1863 (September).
Evacuated by the Confederates and occupied by the Union
forces.
See UNITED STATES OF AMERICA:
A. D. 1863 (AUGUST-SEPTEMBER: TENNESSEE).
KNOXVILLE: A. D. 1863 (November-December).
Longstreet's siege.
See UNITED STATES OF AMERICA:
A. D. 1863 (OCTOBER-DECEMBER; TENNESSEE).
----------KNOXVILLE: End--------
KNUT, OR CANUTE, ERICSSON, King of Sweden, A. D. 1167-1199.
KNYDUS, OR CNYDUS, Battle of (B. C. 394).
See GREECE: B. C. 399-387.
KOASSATI, The.
See AMERICAN ABORIGINES: MUSKHOGEAN FAMILY.
KOLARIANS, The.
See INDIA: THE ABORIGINAL INHABITANTS.
KOLDING, Battle of (1849).
See SCANDINAVIAN STATES (DENMARK): A. D. 1848-1862.
KOLIN, Battle of.
See GERMANY: A. D. 1757 (APRIL-JUNE).
KOLOMAN, King of Hungary, A. D. 1095-1114.
KOLUSCHAN FAMILY, The.
See AMERICAN ABORIGINES: KOLUSCHAN FAMILY.
KOMANS
COMANS
CUMANS, The.
See PATCHINAKS; KIPCHAKS; COSSACKS;
also, HUNGARY: A. D. 1114-1301.
KOMORN, Battle of (1849).
See AUSTRIA: A. D. 1848-1849.
KONDUR, OR CONDORE, Battle of (1758).
See INDIA: A. D. 1758-1761.
KONIEH, Battle of (1832).
See TURKS: A. D. 1831-1840.
KÖNIGGRÄTZ, OR SADOWA, Battle of.
See GERMANY: A. D. 1866.
KONSAARBRUCK, Battle of (1675).
See NETHERLANDS (HOLLAND): A. D. 1674-1678.
KOORDS
KURDS, The.
See CARDUCHI.
KORAN, The.
"The Koran, as Mr. Kingsley quaintly, but truly, says, 'after
all is not a book, but an irregular collection of Mohammed's
meditations and notes for sermons.' It is not a code, it is
not a journal, it is a mere gathering together of irregular
scraps, written on palm-leaves and bones of mutton, which
Abu-Bekr [the bosom friend of Mahomet and the first of the
Caliphs or successors of the Prophet] put together without the
slightest regard to chronological order, only putting the long
fragments at the beginning, and the short fragments at the
end. But so far from having the Koran of Mahomet, we have not
even the Koran of Abu-Bekr. Caliph Othman [the third Caliph],
we know, gave enormous scandal by burning all the existing
copies, which were extremely discordant, and putting forth his
own version as the 'textus ab omnibus receptus.' How much then
of the existing Koran is really Mahomet's; how much has been
lost, added, transposed, or perverted; when, where, and why
each fragment was delivered, it is often impossible even to
conjecture. And yet these baskets of fragments are positively
worshipped."
_E. A. Freeman,
History and Conquests of the Saracens,
lecture 2._
ALSO IN:
_S. Lane-Poole,
Studies in a Mosque,
chapter 4._
_Sir W. Muir,
The Coran._
_T. Nöldeke,
Sketches from Eastern History,
chapter 2._
_The Koran;
translated by G. Sale._
See, also, MAHOMETAN CONQUEST: A. D. 609-632.
KORASMIANS, The.
See KHUAREZM.
{1948}
KOREISH, The.
See MAHOMETAN CONQUEST: A. D. 609-632.
----------KORKYRA: Start--------