[Monmouth, Geoffrey], a Welsh priest of the 12th century, compiler of what he called a "History of the Early Kings of Britain," from that of Brut, through the story of King Arthur and others, such as King Lear, down to that of Cadwallo, a Welsh king, who died in 689.
[Monmouth, James, Duke of], illegitimate son of Charles II., born at Rotterdam; was admitted to Court after the Restoration, and received his title in 1663; his manners and his Protestantism brought him popular favour in spite of his morals, and by-and-by plots were formed to secure the succession for him; forced to fly to Holland in 1683, he waited till his father's death, then planned a rebellion with Argyll; Argyll failed in Scotland; Monmouth, landing in Dorsetshire 1685, was soon overthrown at Sedgemoor, taken prisoner, and executed (1649-1685).
[Monmouthshire] (252), a west of England county lying N. of the Severn estuary, between Glamorgan and Gloucestershire; is low and flat in the S., but otherwise hilly, and is traversed by the Usk River; more than half the surface is under permanent pasture; the wealth of Monmouthshire consists of coal and iron-stone; Monmouth (5), the county town, is the centre of beautiful scenery, and has some fine buildings.
[Monophysites], a body of heretics who arose in the 5th century and maintained that the divine and human natures in Christ were united in one divine-human nature, so that He was neither wholly divine nor wholly human, but in part both.
[Monotheism], belief in the existence of one God, or the divine unity, or that the Divine Being, whether twofold, as in dualism, threefold, as in Trinitarianism, is in essence and in manifestation one.
[Monothelism], a heresy which arose in the 7th century, in which it was maintained that, though in Christ there were two natures, there was but One Will, viz., the Divine.
[Monro, Alexander], founder of Edinburgh Medical School, born of Scotch parentage in London; studied there, and at Paris and Leyden, and was appointed lecturer on Anatomy by the Surgeons' Company at Edinburgh in 1719; two years later he became professor, and in 1725 was admitted to the University; he was a principal promoter and early clinical lecturer in the Royal Infirmary, and continued his clinical work after resigning his chair to his son Alexander; he wrote several medical works, and was a Fellow of the Royal Society; he was called primus, to distinguish him from his son and grandson, who were called respectively secundus and tertius, and were professors of Anatomy in Edinburgh like himself (1697-1767).
[Monroe, James], American President, born in Virginia, of Scottish descent; left college to join Washington's army; was wounded in the war, and studying law, entered Congress in 1783; he assisted in framing the Constitution, and sat in the Senate 1790-1794; his diplomatic career in France was marked by the purchase of Louisiana from that country in 1803; he was governor of Virginia thrice over, and Secretary of State till 1817; then followed two terms of the Presidency, during which Florida was acquired from Spain 1819, the delimitation of the slave limit by the Missouri compromise, the recognition of the South American Republics, and the statement of the "[Monroe doctrine]" (q. v.); in his later years his generosity led him into debt, and he spent his closing days with relations in New York (1758-1831).
[Monroe Doctrine], the doctrine of James Monroe, twice over President of the United States, that the United States should hold aloof from all interference with the affairs of the Old World, and should not suffer the Powers of the Old World to interfere with theirs.
[Monson, Sir Edward], English diplomatist; entered the diplomatic service in 1856, and after service at various courts, became ambassador at Paris in 1896; b. 1834.