mon Praier Noted (1550). The first book of its kind, it used
adaptations of plainsong as well as similar melodies com-
posed by Merbecke himself, with syllabic underlay of the
text. Merbecke’s other surviving compositions comprise a
large-scale Mass, two motets, and an anthem.
Mercator, Gerardus (Gerhard Kremer) (1512–1594)
Flemish geographer and cartographer
Mercator was born in Rupelmonde, East Flanders. He
studied at Louvain before being employed by his mentor
GEMMA FRISIUSas his assistant. In 1537 Mercator made a
map of Palestine, followed by one of the world a year later,
and a survey of Flanders (1537–40). He also published a
terrestrial globe for use on board ship (1541). In 1551
Mercator presented Charles V with a celestial globe and
other accessories, along with written instructions on their
use.
The following year, prompted by religious persecu-
tion on account of his newly adopted Protestantism, Mer-
cator moved to Duisburg where he established a workshop
and lectured. Over the next 20 years his key works ap-
peared. His maps of Europe in 1554 (15 sheets) and
Britain in 1564 (eight sheets) set new standards in preci-
sion, presentation, and detail and broke free from the
shackles of Ptolemy’s geography that had hampered earlier
cartographers. His masterpiece was his 1569 world chart,
drawn on the “Mercator projection,” which has the paral-
lels of latitude and meridians of longitude at right angles.
The sophisticated mathematics of the projection, however,
militated against its immediate acceptance by mariners.
Mercator spent his later years consolidating his maps into
a series of publications, notably his Atlas, the first part of
which appeared in 1585 and which was completed by his
son Rumold (died 1602) in 1595.
Further reading: Nicholas Crane, Mercator: The Man
Who Mapped the Planet (London: Orion, 2002).
mercenaries Paid professional soldiers who replaced ill-
trained feudal levies in many armies of Renaissance Eu-
rope. As technological innovations made WARFAREmore
complex and expensive, the new princes created new
armies which were heavily dependent on mercenaries.
This was often seen by rulers as a better option than al-
lowing their own subjects to bear arms, though in France
Charles VII founded compagnies d’ordonnance (1439),
French soldiers paid by the king. Monarchs however usu-
ally preferred foreign mercenaries as being less likely to
become embroiled in the domestic politics of their em-
ployer’s country. Highly trained and disciplined Swiss
mercenaries served French kings well in the 15th and 16th
centuries and the SWISS GUARDhas served the papacy from
the early 16th century. The German landsknechts, mod-
eled on the Swiss, often served abroad. In Italian warfare
CONDOTTIERIplayed a dominant part, and Venice relied on
her STRADIOTTIfor numerous policing and garrison duties.
The system had serious drawbacks, as noted by one
contemporary critic, Machiavelli. Mercenaries were ex-
pensive and, lacking patriotic motivation, could be un-
trustworthy. On the eve of battle mercenary captains
might demand handsome bonuses for their continued loy-
alty, and in peacetime mercenaries could threaten law and
order by using their redundant military skills to prey on
civilians.Mercury See HERMESMerulo, Claudio (1533–1604) Italian composer and
organist
Born at Correggio, Merulo was appointed cathedral or-
ganist at Brescia (1556), and a year later as one of the or-
ganists at St. Mark’s, Venice. While in Venice he composed
for many official occasions, including the state visit of
Henry III of France (1574). In 1586 he became organist to
the duke of Parma, then organist also at Parma cathedral
(1587), and in 1591 organist to the company of La Stec-
cata, a post he held until his death. A renowned player,
Merulo was also a publisher of his own and other com-
posers’ music. He wrote madrigals and church music in a
style similar to that of Andrea GABRIELI, but is best re-
membered for his keyboard music. He developed the
ricercar and canzona, but his finest works are his toccatas.
Merulo moved away from the practice of basing instru-
mental music on vocal models; contrapuntal sections are
joined by improvisatory, virtuoso passages, without the
ensemble textures normally encountered in contemporary
keyboard music.metallurgy The craftsmen of antiquity had developed
techniques for the extraction and working of gold, silver,
copper, tin, and lead. They had also, since about 1500 BCE,
begun to work with iron, but as they were able to attain
temperatures no higher than 1200°C, well below the
1528 °C melting point of iron, production was restricted to
wrought iron. A major metallurgical advance, however,
took place in the 15th century CEwith the emergence of
the blast furnace. The molten iron thus attainable could be
cast into a variety of forms, using techniques learnt by
working in bronze. Chief among these objects were the
CANNONand cannonballs increasingly being demanded by
warring Renaissance princes. Gunners at the two-month
siege of Magdeburg (1631), for example, expended as
many as 18,000 cannonballs daily.
Demand also increased for precious metals. While
world gold production almost doubled between 1500 and
1700, silver production increased nine-fold in the 16th
century alone. Much of this was made possible by im-
proved extraction processes. Methods for separating silver
from copper became established in the early 15th century,
while the Mexican process for extracting silver by amalga-
mation was well understood by the mid-16th century.33114 4 MMeerrccaattoorr,, GGeerraarrdduuss