The White Ship, in which Prince William, son of Henry I, was returning to England, after the close of Henry’s second French war. The vessel struck coming out of Barfleur harbour, and only one of the crew escaped. Blancs d’Espagne. The name given to the ultra-royalist party in France who support the claim of the Spanish Bourbons, represented by General de Bourbon, to the throne of France. Bland Act. An Act of Congress passed in 1878, at the instance of Mr. Bland, providing for the coinage of silver dollars of 412½ grains Troy, which should be legal tender in payment of all debts and dues. The State was bound to purchase not more than four or less than two million dollars worth of silver per annum, to be so coined, and the profit in the operation was to belong to the State. Blanketeers. The name given to a party of Lancashire operatives, who, in the famine year of 1817, started to march to London, to demand assistance from Parliament. Each man carried provisions and a blanket, hence the name. Blanquillos. The supporters of Oribe in Uruguay, in 1835. Their opponents, who followed Rivera, were called Colorados. Bloc, Le. The name given to the general body of Republicans, of various shades of opinion, in the French Chamber, who supported the Ministry of M. Combes in 1902-3. Bloemfontein Conference. A conference of delegates from Cape Colony, Natal, and the Orange Free State, which met in 1895 to discuss the question of a Customs Union. Natal could not come to terms, and withdrew, but an arrangement was arrived at by the other two parties, and a convention tariff, with five per cent. ad valorem duties, was accepted by both Governments. Bloemfontein Convention. A convention signed in 1854, by which the British Government abolished the Orange River Sovereignty, and recognized the independence of the Orange Free State. Among the provisions of the treaty were clauses binding the British Government to make no treaties with native chiefs likely to be detrimental to the interests of the Republic, forbidding slavery, and providing for extradition. Blood and Iron, The Man of. A nickname of Prince Bismarck, taken from a phrase in a speech delivered by him in 1862. Blood Bath of Stockholm. The execution, by Christian II, the last king of United Scandinavia, of many of the leaders of the Swedish National party, in 1520, after the capture of Stockholm. In the same year Gustavus Vasa raised the standard of revolt, and the war which followed led to the final expulsion of the Danes, and the crowning of Gustavus as King of Sweden. Blood Council. A tribunal established in 1567 by Alva in the Netherlands, to deal with the crime of treason. It had no charter, or official authority of any kind, but it practically usurped the functions of the Council of State, and exercised jurisdiction over all municipal bodies and provincial parliaments. It was abolished in 1576. It was also known as the Council of Troubles. Blood, Man of.