Elizabeth Stuart, Queen of Bohemia, daughter of James I of England and VI of Scotland, born in Falkland Palace, Fifeshire, 1596, died on 13th Feb., 1662. Her marriage with the Palatine Frederick was celebrated at Whitehall in 1613. Her husband, then at the head of the Protestant interest in Germany, accepted in 1619 the Crown of Bohemia offered to him by the revolted Protestants of that country. After his defeat, however, by the imperalists at the battle of Prague in 1620, he and his wife were obliged to flee, first to Breslau and Berlin, and then to the Hague. Elizabeth returned to England at the Restoration with her nephew Charles II, but mingled very little in society. Elizabeth had thirteen children, of whom Charles Louis, the eldest surviving, was reinstated in the Palatinate by the Treaty of Westphalia in 1648. By her daughters, Elizabeth Charlotte and Sophia, she was the ancestress of Louis Philippe and of George I, and her sons, Rupert and Maurice, became famous Cavalier leaders.
Elk, Moose, or Moose Deer (Alces Machlis), the largest of the deer family, a native of Northern Europe, Asia, and America. The American form (to which the name moose is usually given) is sometimes separated from the European as Alces americānus, but most naturalists find no specific difference between them. The elk or moose has a short compact body, standing about 6 feet in height at the shoulders, a thick neck, large clumsy head, and horns which flatten out almost from the base into a broad palmate form with numerous snags. In colour the elk is greyish brown, the limbs, sides of head, and coarse mane being, however, of a lighter hue. Its flesh resembles beef rather than venison. For the most part elks are inoffensive, and so exceedingly wary that they are approached only with difficulty. In America the Indians and half-breeds are the most skilful moose-hunters. By trampling down a restricted area of ground (moose-yard) and browsing on the edge of this, the moose is able to protect itself efficiently against the attacks of wolves. The moose has a wide range in Canada, extending from the Arctic Ocean and British Columbia to New Brunswick and Nova Scotia; and it is found also in Maine. It feeds largely on the shoots of trees or shrubs, such as the willow and maple, and on bark, &c. In Sweden its destruction is illegal, and in Norway there are many restrictions upon the hunting of it.
Elk, Irish (Megacĕros hibernĭcus, or Cervus giganteus), a large deer found in the Pleistocene strata, and distinguished by its enormous antlers, the tips of which are sometimes 11 feet apart. Though a true deer, its antlers differ from those of living species in that the beam is flattened into a palm. To sustain the great weight, unusually large and strong limbs and neck vertebræ were required. Its remains are found not only in Ireland but in Scotland and England, and on the Continent, where they occur in bogs, lacustrine deposits, brick-clay, and ossiferous caves.
El Khargeh. See Khargeh.
Elk´hart, a town of Indiana, United States, on Elkhart River, with railroad works and paper-mills. Pop. 19,282.
Ell (Lat. ulna, Gr. ōlenē, forearm), an old measure whereby cloths, stuffs, &c., are sometimes measured. The ell English is 5 quarters (45 inches), the ell Flemish 3 quarters (27 inches). In Scotland an ell contained 37.2 inches English.
Ell´and, a town of England, W. Riding of Yorkshire, between Halifax and Huddersfield, with an old church and town-hall, manufactures of cottons and woollens, and quarries. It gives its name to a parliamentary division. Pop. 10,676.