Lollards A derogatory name for the English followers of
John WYCLIF; first recorded in 1382, it is thought to derive
from a word meaning “chanter” or “mumbler” (of
prayers).
Initially, Lollardy was an elite movement among a
small group of Oxford scholars who shared Wyclif’s radi-
cal religious ideas. However, the Oxford Lollards were
suppressed in 1381–82, when Wyclif’s views were publicly
condemned and his followers either fled or recanted. Al-
though this deprived Lollardy of intellectual leadership, a
simplified, populist version of Wyclif’s teaching soon
found a wider audience, mainly through the activities of
unlicenced preachers. Henceforth, Lollardy would be
chiefly associated with semiliterate traders and artisans,
although it also found adherents among the gentry and
the lower clergy.
At the heart of Lollard teaching was the insistence on
the Bible as sole authority in matters of faith. From this it
followed that everyone should have the right to read the
Scriptures in his own language, and to interpret and ex-
pound them by the light of conscience. The first English
translation of the Bible as a whole (the so-called Lollard
Bible) was begun under Wyclif’s aegis in the 1380s and
completed by about 1396 (see BIBLE, TRANSLATIONS OF).
On the basis of their reading of the Scriptures, Lollards at-
tacked both the great wealth of the Church and many
accepted teachings, notably those concerning papal au-
thority, monasticism, clerical celibacy, pilgrimages, and
TRANSUBSTANTIATION.
These points all appear in the most comprehensive
statement of Lollard teaching, the so-called “Twelve Con-
clusions” delivered to Parliament in 1395. By this time,
however, official attitudes to heresy were hardening. In
1401 William Sawtrey, a Norfolk priest, became the first
Lollard martyr when he was burned at the stake; legisla-
tion making this the standard punishment for heresy was
enacted later in the year. At this point, many Lollards ei-
ther recanted or fell silent. The movement was finally dri-
ven underground when a Lollard uprising led by the
accused heretic Sir John Oldcastle (c. 1378–1417) was
crushed, with great severity, in 1414. After a further
abortive uprising in 1431, Lollardy effectively vanished
from public life, although there is evidence of its survival
among the poorer classes. The question of the Lollards’
wider influence on English religious history is much de-
bated. While some historians argue that the Lollard tradi-
tion made England more receptive to the ideas of the
Continental reformers after 1530, others regard any such
link with skepticism.
Further reading: Margaret Aston, Lollards and Re-
formers (London: Hambledon, 1985; repr. 2003); Arthur
G. Dickens, Lollards and Protestants in the Diocese of York,
1509–1558 (London: University of Hull, 1959; repr. Ham-
bledon, 1982); Fiona Somerset (ed.), The Lollards and
Their Influence in Late Medieval England (Woodbridge,
U.K.: Boydell & Brewer, 2003).Lomazzo, Giovanni Paolo (1538–1600) Italian painter
and art theoretician
Lomazzo was born in Milan and trained as a painter under
Gaudenzio FERRARI, but at the age of 33 he went blind. He
therefore turned to writing on the theory of art. His first
major work was Trattato dell’arte de la pittura (1584),
which was widely used as a handbook for over 200 years
after his death. The work is in seven parts, dealing with
proportion, movement, color, light, perspective, tech-
nique, and history. In 1587 his Rime was published,
together with an autobiography and in 1590 the Neopla-
tonic Idea del tempio della pittura. His writings can be con-
sidered to represent the outlook and ideas of the later
mannerists (see MANNERISM), particularly the renunciation
of the belief in nature as the source of all beauty.Lombard, Lambert (1506–1566) Netherlands painter,
architect, and art theorist
A pupil of Jean Demeuse at his birthplace, Liège, Lombard
subsequently studied under Arnold de Beer at Antwerp
and Jan GOSSAERTat Middelburg. In 1537–38/39 he visited
Italy, principally Rome, and he is also reputed to have vis-
ited Germany and France. Only a very small number of
paintings can be attributed to him with certainty, and
many have been lost, but he executed a considerable num-
ber of drawings, nearly 70 of which were engraved by
Hieronymus Cock. The latter reveal his figural style to
have been conditioned largely by a study of classical and
contemporary Italian sculpture.
Lombard’s chief significance was as an educator. In
1565 he sent VASARIdetails about northern artists and re-
quested in return sketches of Italian Trecento paintings for
comparison with northern stained glass. His students in-
cluded Frans FLORISand the Antwerp painter Willem Key
(1515–68). Long after his death, Lombard was praised by
Carel van MANDERas “a father of our art of drawing and
painting.”Lombardo family A family of sculptors and architects,
originally from Lombardy, who established a major
workshop in Venice during the 15th and 16th centuries.
Pietro (c. 1435–1515), born at Carona the son of the
architect Martino, was the most important member of the
family. He executed monuments in Padua, for example
that of GATTAMELATA’s son Giannantonio (died 1455) in
Il Santo, before moving to Venice in about 1467. His
Venetian sculptures included the monuments of Doge
Pasquale Malipiero (died 1462), of Doge Pietro Mocenigo
(died 1476), and of Doge Niccolò Marcello (died 1474) in
the church of SS. Giovanni e Paolo, as well as the church
of Sta. Maria dei Miracoli (1481–89), on which he worked
as both architect and sculptor. Other works by PietroLLoommbbaarrddoo ffaammiillyy 2 28855