Mahmud II of the Ottoman Empire: the Just: " . . . In spite of his intensive reformatory activity, Mahmud was inherently dedicated to traditional values. He did not attempt to alter the basic fabric of Ottoman society, but rather to strengthen it through modern means. He generally succeeded in integrating the old elites into the new institutions. This was in keeping with his strong attachment to the ideal of justice in the traditional Ottoman sense. The sobriquet he selected for himself, 'Adli, 'the Just,' is an indication of the cast of his mind. It may be said, therefore, that the principles which guided him throughout his reign were Islam, autocracy and justice. Nevertheless, though he may not have intended it, the reforms which Mahmud introduced were to produce basic change and to launch Ottoman society on the course of modernisation in a final and irrevocable manner." (Singh: 536)
the Old Mastiff of Verucchio: " . . . He was 'the old mastiff', and his son Malatestino ‘the young mastiff’, noted for their ferocious cruelty. . . ." (poetryintranslation.com - Dante Index)
Malcolm Canmore
Big-head
Long-Neck
the Great Chief (Gae. Ceann Mor): "Malcolm III, who reigned for thirty-five years (1058-93), has come down in history with a mixed reputation. Commentators have made much mock of his Gaelic nickname: 'Canmore' is from the Gaelic ceann mor, meaning 'Great Chief', but it is frequently translated as 'Big-head'. Nigel Tranter, in The Story of Scotland, called him 'something of a boor, bloodthirsty and without statesmanlike qualities. His one delight was in raiding,pillaging, slaughter.' The historical records, however, are too scanty to justify such a sweeping judgment." (Scotland: The Story of a Nation: 61)
the Maiden:
--"David I was succeeded by his grandson Malcolm IV (1153), a youth of twelve years. His education was such as to find him for the cowl rather than the throne. He is better known as Malcolm the Maiden, a name which he owed to his girlish features and effeminate disposition. . . ." (Reformation Online)
----"Malcolm . . . son of the brave and generous prince Henry . . . was so kind and gentle in is disposition that he was usually called Malcolm the Maiden.---Sir Walter Scott, Tales of a Grandfather (lv.)." (Frey: 205)
----" . . . King Malcolm IV was David's grandson and successor. Known to contemporaries as 'Malcolm the Maiden', apparently on account of his virginity, he was only 12 on his accession and 23 when he died. . . ." (Holy Trinity, Stirling)
----" . . . Malcolm IV died in 1165, at the early age of twenty-four years. Though brave in battle, he seems from his intercourse with Henry to have been flexible and yielding in council, to which, with some effeminacy of exterior and shyness of manners, must be attributed to his historical epithet of Malcolm the maiden. It could not be owing, as alleged by monkish writers, to his strict continence, since it is now certain that he had at least one natural son." (Scott: 36)
the Fortunate: "Manuel was called the Fortunate when he " . . . became heir to the Portuguese throne when the son and heir of his first cousin Joao II, the king, died in 1491 at the age of 16 years old. Joao II failed to secure support to name his illegitimate son, Jorge de Lancastre, Duke of Coimbra, as his successor. His elder brothers Joao, Duke of Beja and Viseu (d.1483) and Diego (d.1484) had predeceased Joao II and Manoel. Thus when Joao II died in 1495, Manoel was the next-in-line to the throne."
the Grocer King: "King Francois I of France had . . . somewhat unkindly termed Dom Manuel I, 'Le Rois Épicier,' the 'Grocer King'. A hundred and fifty years later this epithet was no longer quite so applicable to the reigning Portuguese monarch, D. Joao IV, who might, however, have been called the 'Sugar King'. . . ." (Boxer: 70)
the Most Fortunate: "Manuel's reign, unlike his brother's was to prove far more significant. When Manuel acceded, Trebizond was little more than a vassal of the Sultan, but by the end of his reign, Trebizond was ready to prosper, as it never had before. Moreover, as we shall see, Manuel was himself to enjoy quite of stroke of good luck and fortune. He was called the 'Great Captain' and the 'most fortunate' by his people for these qualities and degree of military skill and daring. Manuel's reign also witnessed the second wave of Trapezuntine expansion. . . ."
the Imbecile Charles IV.the Peacemaker
the Sausage-maker (Sp. el Choricero)
Maranne the Great.
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