Decretals, False.
A collection of Decretals, or Papal Edicts, purporting to have been issued by very early Popes, which was produced in the ninth century. These Decretals were designed to support the claim of the Bishops of Rome to supreme authority in the Church.
Defender of the Faith.
The title granted to Henry VIII by Leo X in 1521, in recognition of his book “The Assertion of the Seven Sacraments,” written in opposition to the Lutheran doctrine. This title has been borne by all the English Sovereigns since Henry VIII.
Defenders.
The name assumed by the agrarian bands formed by the Catholic farmers of Ulster for defence against the Peep o’ Day Boys, in 1782.
Defensionale.
A joint military scheme for the defence of the country, drawn up by the Federated States of Switzerland, in 1647.
Deficit, Madame.
A name given by the Parisians to Marie Antoinette, circ. 1786, the constant deficits in the French Budget being attributed to her extravagance.