Further reading: Clare Harraway, Re-Citing Marlowe:
Approaches to the Drama (Aldershot, U.K.: Ashgate, 2000);
Charles Nicholl, The Reckoning: The Murder of Christopher
Marlowe (Chicago, Ill: University of Chicago Press, 1995).
Marnix, Philipp van, Lord of Ste.-Aldegonde
(1538–1598) Netherlands Calvinist theologian and
statesman
Born a member of the lesser Netherlands nobility in Brus-
sels, Marnix studied in Geneva as a young man and be-
came a personal disciple of CALVINand BEZA. He took part
in the insurrection against Spain in 1566 and was conse-
quently forced to go into exile in Germany, where he
helped organize the important Synod of Emden (1571).
After returning to Holland in 1572 he became a close po-
litical and religious adviser to WILLIAM(I) THE SILENTand
played a prominent part in drafting the Pacification of
Ghent (1576). An author of some skill, Marnix wrote a
number of influential polemical works, including the fa-
mous De biënkorf der heilige roomsche kerche (The Beehive
of the Holy Roman Church; 1569), a satirical attack on the
old Church in the style of Rabelais, which was translated
into English in 1579.
Marot, Clément (c. 1496–1544) French poet
Clément Marot was born at Cahors, the son of Jean Marot,
court poet to Anne of Brittany. He entered the service of
the future MARGUERITE DE NAVARREin 1518 or 1519 and,
after the death of his father in 1526, became valet de cham-
bre to Francis I. His first collection of poetry, Adolescence
Clémentine, appeared in 1532. Twice arrested for eating
meat during the Lenten period, Marot was suspected of
Lutheran sympathies and found himself obliged to leave
Paris in 1534. He took refuge first with Marguerite de
Navarre, then with RENÉE DE FRANCEin Ferrara.
On his return to France in 1536 Marot was reinstated
as court poet and continued his metrical translation of the
Psalms, a task he had undertaken before his exile. The
first part of this work, Trente Psaumes (1541), was con-
demned on publication by the Sorbonne; Marot was
forced to flee once again, this time to Geneva, where he
published a second edition of his Psalms (1543), and
thence to Turin. Marot’s contribution to French poetry was
influenced by his periods of residence in Italy: he intro-
duced several new forms, such as the epigram and the
eclogue, and composed some of the earliest French son-
nets. His other works include numerous rondeaux, bal-
lades, and chansons; L’Enfer (“The Inferno”; 1542), an
allegorical poem inspired by his first term of imprison-
ment; and editions of Le Roman de la rose (1527) and the
works of François Villon (1533).
Marprelate controversy An English theological contro-
versy initiated in 1588 by attacks on the episcopal system
of Church government by an unidentified writer calling
himself “Martin Marprelate.” Seven Marprelate pamphlets,
printed (1588–89) on a secret press, are known; they are
important not so much for their content as for their vivid
satirical prose style. John LYLYand Thomas NASHEwere
among the writers who joined in the controversy on the
bishops’ side. Of the two puritans arrested on suspicion of
being “Martin Marprelate,” John Penry (1559–93) was ex-
ecuted and John Udall (or Uvedale; ?1560–92) died in
prison.
Further reading: Elizabeth Appleton, An Anatomy of
the Marprelate Controversy 1588–1596 (Lewiston, N.Y.:
Edwin Mellen Press, 2001).marranos See CONVERSOSMars In Roman mythology, the god of war, often equated
with the Greek god Ares. The fable about him that most
appealed to Renaissance artists was his affair with the god-
dess of love, VENUS.Martini, Francesco di Giorgio See FRANCESCO DI GIOR-
GIO MARTINIMartini, Simone (c. 1285–1344) Italian painter
Born in Siena, Martini was the pupil of DUCCIO DI BUONIN-
SEGNA, from whom he inherited a liking for sumptuous
color. His earliest documented work was the Maestà
(1315), an enormous fresco painted on the end wall of the
Sala del Mappamondo of the Palazzo Pubblico in Siena.
Retouched by Martini in 1321, this work imitates a simi-
lar piece by Duccio, although with an added Gothic el-
ement. In 1317 Martini painted a notable altarpiece Louis
of Toulouse Crowning his Brother, King Robert of Anjou
(1317; Museo di Capodimonte, Naples) and subsequently
executed a number of elegant court paintings, such as the
influential Madonna polyptych (1319; Museo Nazionale,
Pisa), which reflected French Gothic art. Equally impor-
tant was his Guidoriccio da Fogliano (1328; Palazzo Pub-
blico, Siena), a portrait of a Sienese general, in which the
central equestrian figure is placed in a panoramic land-
scape—an innovation in that this was probably the first
Sienese painting not serving a religious purpose. His best-
known work was the Annunciation (1333: Uffizi, Flo-
rence), painted in collaboration with his brother-in-law,
Lippo Memmi (active 1317–47). Martini spent his last
years in Avignon, where he met Petrarch. Other notable
works include scenes from the life of St. Martin of Tours
(c. 1330; lower church of San Francesco, Assisi) and
Christ returning to his Parents after disputing with the Doc-
tors (1342; Liverpool).Martyr, Peter See PETER MARTYR (Pietro Martire
d’Anghiera)MMaarrttyyrr,, PPeetteerr 3 30033