Agoraphobia
extreme or irrational fear of open or public places.
Asceticism
characterized by abstinence from worldly pleasures, often for the purpose of pursuing spiritual goals.
Artifice
clever or cunning devices or expedients, especially as used to trick or deceive others.
Blazonry
brilliant decoration or display.
Burden
that which is carried; load; that which is borne with difficulty; obligation; onus.
Captor
a person who has captured a person or thing.
Conduit
a pipe that carries water.
Corsair
a swift ship that is often used for piracy.
Deceitful
intended to deceive; misleading; fraudulent: a deceitful action.
Detachment
a group of troops, aircraft, or ships sent away on a separate mission.
Entropy
lack of order or predictability; gradual decline into disorder.
Essen
the city in Germany near which the town of Zollverein is located.
Establishment
something established; a constituted order or system.
Extirpate
to fully destroy something.
Flak
anti-aircraft fire.
Galvanized
to stimulate or excite as if by an electric shock.
Gefreiter
a German, Swiss, and Austrian military rank that has existed since the 16th century. It is usually the second rank or grade to which an enlisted soldier, airman, or sailor could be promoted.
Included / Slightly Included
terms used to qualify diamonds. Because they are formed deep within the earth, under extreme heat and pressure, virtually all diamonds contain "birthmarks": small imperfections inside the diamond called inclusions.
Jules Verne’s Around the World in Eighty Days and Twenty Thousand Leagues Under the Sea
Jules Verne was a writer who lived 1828-1905. Around the World in Eighty Days was published in 1873; in the story, Phileas Fogg of London and his French valet attempt to circumnavigate the world in 80 days. The other book Marie-Laure reads is the two volume set of Twenty Thousand Leagues Under the Sea, originally published in 1870, telling the story of Professor Pierre Aronnax, a French marine biologist and the narrator of the story, Canadian whaler and master harpoonist Ned Land and Aronnax's faithful servant Conseil, who are sent on a mission to find and destroy a sea monster. However, when they find the monster, it is actually the submarine, the Nautilus, of Captain Nemo, who captures them and takes them aboard. From there they go on a series of adventures. ("Jules Verne")
Lapidary
a person who cuts, polishes, or engraves gems.
Loftiness
exalted in rank, dignity, or character; eminent.
Loupe-Clean
diamonds that have no inclusions visible to the naked eye are of excellent quality. The very best—and rarest—clarity is called 'loupe clean'.
Molders
slowly decay or disintegrate, especially because of neglect.
Malouins
people who live in Saint Malo.
Operation Typhoon
the German offensive carried out as part of the Battle of Moscow that occurred between October 1941 and January 1942. (“Battle of Moscow”)
Occuper
"to occupy" in French.
Parapet
a low protective wall along the edge of a roof, bridge, or balcony.
Partisan
(in a country that has been defeated) a member of a secret armed force whose aim is to fight against an enemy that is controlling the country.
Passion
any powerful or compelling emotion or feeling, like love or hate.
Phrenology
the study of the conformation of the skull based on the belief that it is indicative of mental faculties and character.
preternaturally
very unusual in a way that does not seem natural.
Prussia
a kingdom that contained parts of Germany, and dissolved in 1914. The Kingdom of Prussia is now divided among the countries of Germany, Poland, and Switzerland, among others. The region of Prussia in Germany is where Volkheimer grew up.
Ruhr
a river in Germany.
Raciological
the study of race as a scholarly discipline, the study sometimes called "racial anthropology" or "scientific racism."
Ramparts
a defensive wall of a castle or walled city, having a broad top with a walkway and typically a stone parapet.
Remnant
a fragment or scrap.
Schulpforta
the National Political Institute of Education at Schulpforta. These institutes were founded to educate next generation of elite leaders in Germany, both political or military, to continue the work started by Hitler. (Trueman)
Stentorian
a loud and powerful sound, often used to describe voices.
Sublimity
when something is sublime, it transcends greatness or beauty for the observer — like a deeply moving film or a transcendent piece of music. So when something is truly wonderful, or someone acts in a truly noble way, it's an example of sublimity.
Sycophantic
(of a person or of behavior) praising people of authority in a way that is not sincere, usually in order to get some advantage from them.
Walloon
people from Wallonia, the French-speaking region of southern Belgium.
Untermensch (german)
a person considered racially or socially inferior.
Vicious
addicted to or characterized by vice; grossly immoral; depraved.
Wehrmacht
the unified armed forces of Nazi Germany from 1935 to 1946.
Zephyr
a soft gentle breeze.
