George William

George William 1597-1640, elector of Brandenburg (1619-40). Mild and irresolute, he was a Calvinist, yet he ruled a Lutheran people. He failed to turn the strategic position of Brandenburg to advantage in the Thirty Years War , and his possessions were devastated by the armies of both sides. After a long neutrality, he was in 1631 forced into a Swedish alliance by his brother-in-law, Gustavus Adolphus. After the Swedish defeat at Nördlingen (1634), he changed sides and, influenced by his powerful Catholic minister, Adam von Schwarzenberg, allied himself with the Holy Roman emperor (Treaty of Prague, 1635). The Swedes ravaged N Brandenburg. Discouraged by the invasions and misfortunes of his realm, George William retired to Königsberg (1638), leaving the state to Schwarzenberg's management. He was succeeded by his son, Frederick William (the Great Elector).

Hill, GeorgeWilliam (1838–1914)Americanmathematician and astronomer. Inspired by the work of L.Euler, he developed advanced mathematical methods for tackling problems in dynamical astronomy. His first major work was an application of the three-body problem: the orbits of Jupiter and Saturn and the perturbations exerted by these planets on the Moon. In his study of the Moon's motion he introduced a differential equation now known as Hill's equation.

Bagby, George William (1828–83), Virginia journalist, lecturer, and author of humorous local‐color sketches. He edited the Southern Literary Messenger (1860–64), but is best remembered for his sketches of antebellum Virginia, with their sentimental picture of a past era, enlivened by a realistic homely humor. The Old Virginia Gentleman (1877) and Jud Browning's Account of Rubenstein's Playing are among his best sketches. T.N. Page published a selected edition (1910).