Frobisher, Martin (c. 1535–1594) English navigator
Brought up in London after the death of his father, Fro-
bisher was sent on his first voyage in 1554, to Guinea. His
later activities in the Irish seas brought him to the atten-
tion of Queen Elizabeth and Sir Humfrey GILBERT, and he
was commissioned to pursue Gilbert’s vision of a NORTH-
WEST PASSAGEto China. He reached Frobisher Bay (on Baf-
fin Island) on his first voyage (1576), returning with ore
that he believed to contain gold. Two subsequent voyages
(1577, 1578) having failed to discover either the passage
westward or any gold (his mineral samples all proved
worthless), Frobisher then devoted his attention to naval
action against the Irish and Spaniards, distinguishing him-
self on DRAKE’s 1585–86 expedition to the West Indies. He
was knighted at sea in 1588 for his role in defeating the
SPANISH ARMADA.
Further reading: Thomas H.B. Symons (ed.), Meta
Incognita: A Discourse of Discovery: Martin Frobisher’s Arc-
tic Voyages, 1576 to 1578, 2 vols (Hull, Canada: Canadian
Museum of Civilisation, 1999).
Froment, Nicolas (c. 1430–c. 1484) French artist
Originally from Uzès in Languedoc, Froment was active
chiefly in Avignon where he established an important
school with Enguerrand QUARTONin about 1450. Two
documented works by Froment survive, both altarpieces:
The Resurrection of Lazarus (1461; Uffizi, Florence) and
Mary in the Burning Bush (1475–76; cathedral of St.-
Sauveur, Aix-en-Provence). The former work was painted
for RENÉ OF ANJOUand includes portraits of the king and
his wife, while the latter painting demonstrates the artist’s
control of sculptural form. Despite the lack of polish in
these works, they contributed greatly to the introduction
of both the ideals of the Italian Renaissance and the real-
ism of Flemish art in subsequent French painting.
frottola (plural: frottole) A form of secular Italian song
that flourished at the end of the 15th century and the be-
ginning of the 16th. Although the frottola was a specific
poetic form, alternatively known as the barzelletta, it was
also used as a generic term for Italian secular songs of
other poetic forms, such as the strambotto, oda, or can-
zona. The main center for the frottola was Mantua, where
Isabella d’ESTEemployed two important composers in the
form, Marchetto Cara and Bartolommeo Tromboncino.
The major collection of frottole is in 11 books published
by PETRUCCIin Venice (1504–14). Frottole are simple in
style and were written for varying numbers of voices.
They were given in the theater, sometimes as part of IN-
TERMEDII. The frottola has been viewed as a precursor of
the MADRIGAL, but some would argue that it represents a
distinct strand in musical history.
Frueauf, Rueland, the Elder (c. 1445–1507) Austrian
painter
Active in his native Salzburg from about 1478, Frueauf
worked at first largely for the Benedictine monks there.
His style was influenced by the work of Konrad LAIB, who
had painted in Salzburg a few decades earlier; like Laib,
Frueauf paid much attention to the expressive power of
his figures (as in the Munich Man of Sorrows), which he
set in carefully observed landscapes. He died in Passau, to
which he had moved in 1497. His son, Rueland Frueauf
the Younger (died after 1534), worked in Passau, follow-
ing his father’s style.Fuchs, Leonhart (1501–1566) German physician and
botanist
His De historia stirpium (1542), followed by a German edi-
tion (1543) and many later ones, described about 400 na-
tive plants and 100 foreigners (including North American
maize) with illustrations that were copied in many other
herbals. The descriptions are arranged alphabetically, with
no attempt at classification.Fugger family The foremost of the trading and BANKING
dynasties that arose in southern Germany, and most no-
tably in Augsburg, during the 14th and 15th centuries.
The preeminent position of the Fuggers was largely the re-
sult of their acquisition of mining concessions in copper,
gold, silver, and quicksilver from the Hapsburg emperors,
at a time when European demand for precious metals was
rising rapidly. Under the direction of Jakob Fugger (“the
Rich”; 1459–1525) between 1478 and 1525, the family
fortunes reached their peak, with trading interests extend-
ing from the Far East to the New World, and the family
acting as bankers to the Hapsburgs and the Roman Curia.
His entreprenurial drive was continued by his nephews
Raimund (1489–1535) and Anton (1493– 1560). During
the 16th century the Fuggers were great patrons of the
arts, commissioning artists and sculptors for portraits and
buildings, including a family chapel in Augsburg. The
mannerist sculptor Hubert GERHARDand the painters Hans
von AACHEN, Georg HOEFNAGEL, and Jacopo STRADA, were
among the major artists who enjoyed their patronage, as
did the composer Hans HASSLER. The Fuggerei in Augs-
burg, a purpose-built settlement for the poor, was funded
by the Fugger fortune in the second decade of the 16th
century and is still in use. The house of Fugger established
a network of agents and correspondents all over Europe
whose letters often contained information ranging beyond
immediate business matters, and the Fugger-Zeitungen
(Fugger Newsletters) functioned as a kind of proto-news-
paper. Of Raimund’s sons, the eldest, Sigismund
(1542–1600), became bishop of Regensburg; Johann
Jakob (1516–75) was a writer and patron of art; and Ul-
rich (1526–84), who turned against the strongly Catholic
loyalties of his family and became a Protestant, built up a119966 FFrroobbiisshheerr,, MMaarrttiinn