(c. 1492–94). There he met Thomas LINACRE(who taught
him Greek) and William GROCYN. On returning to London
to study law, he continued his scholarly interests and be-
came friends with William LILY, John COLET, and ERASMUS.
After four years (1499–1503) during which he seriously
contemplated entering holy orders, More entered parlia-
ment instead (1504) and commenced a highly succesful
legal career, which led to his becoming under-sheriff of
London (1510–19). His house was a center for humanists,
and he also made two journeys to France and Flanders
(1508, 1515), during the second of which he sketched out
his UTOPIA.
More’s talents, learning, and personal charm recom-
mended him to Cardinal WOLSEY, and from 1518 he held
official posts that brought him into constant contact with
HENRY VIII, with whom he was a personal favorite. Accom-
panying Henry to the FIELD OF THE CLOTH OF GOLD
(1520), he met Guillaume BUDÉ, and later HOLBEINcame
to England (1526) under More’s patronage. He also used
his position at court to promote the new learning in Eng-
land. In 1529 he was made lord chancellor, but relations
with Henry cooled on account of More’s continued sup-
port for Queen Catherine during the king’s attempt to
have their marriage annulled. In 1532 More resigned and
went into retirement, but Henry insisted on his taking the
oaths recognizing the new Act of Succession in favor of
Anne Boleyn’s children (1534) and denying the authority
of the pope. More was willing to agree to the former, but
would not compromise his religious convictions by swear-
ing to the second. He was arrested and imprisoned in the
Tower of London. There he wrote A Dialogue of Comfort
against Tribulation (not published until 1553) and other
religious treatises and astounded everyone by his calm
and even humorous demeanor. He was found guilty on
perjured evidence of high treason and executed. He was
hailed as a martyr in Catholic Europe and canonized in
1935.
More’s private life is mainly known from the biogra-
phy by William Roper, husband of More’s favorite daugh-
ter (see ROPER, MARGARET); it was first published in 1626.
He himself published an English version of the Latin bi-
ography of PICO DELLA MIRANDOLA(1510), but most of his
works, apart from Utopia, were not published until long
after his death. These include his biography of Richard III,
Latin epigrams, Latin translations of dialogues of Lucian,
and controversial pamphlets in both Latin and English.
In 1957 Loyola University, Los Angeles, issued a fac-
simile, edited by Frank Sullivan, of the Complete Works of
- Between 1963 and 1997 the St. Thomas More Pro-
ject of Yale University published a modern edition of
More’s works in Latin and English, The Complete Works of
St. Thomas More (15 vols).
Further reading: Peter Ackroyd, The Life of Thomas
More (New York: Doubleday, 1998); Anthony Kenny,
Thomas More (Oxford, U.K.: Oxford University Press,
1983); Richard C. Marius, Thomas More: A Biography
(London: Collins, 1985).Moreelse, Paulus Jansz. (1571–1638) Dutch painter and
architect
A founder-member of the St. Lucas guild (1611), Moreelse
was born and worked in Utrecht and was known chiefly as
a portraitist. His portraits of children are particularly at-
tractive. Influenced by Michiel van Mierevelt, whose pupil
he was, he also produced a number of pastoral portraits of
shepherds and shepherdesses. His architectural works in-
clude the Catherine gate and the facade of the Utrecht
meat market.Moretto, Alessandro Bonvicino; (c. 1498–1554)
Italian painter
Moretto was a pupil of Fioravante Ferramola, with whom
he decorated the choir of the cathedral in his native Bres-
cia (1518). He worked mainly in the Brescia and Bergamo
districts before visiting Milan and Verona in the 1540s. His
paintings, mainly of religious subjects, are notable for
their silvery colors, strength of composition, and the
homely flavor which Moretto often imparted to elevated
subjects. The influence of RAPHAELcan be seen in his
treatment of form. He was also an outstanding portrait
painter, influenced by Lorenzo LOTTOand TITIAN, and he
is said to have introduced the full-length portrait into Italy
(The Nobleman, 1526; National Gallery, London).moriscos Spanish Muslims who, after the fall of Granada
(1492), accepted the option of Christian baptism rather
than go into exile. Despite being nominally Christian they
were regarded with suspicion and, along with Jewish con-
verts, became one of the targets of the SPANISH INQUISI-
TION.Morley, Thomas (1557–1602) English composer
Morley was born in Norwich, and in 1583 was appointed
organist and master of the choristers at the cathedral
there. He was a pupil of William BYRD, though it is not
known when. In 1588 he gained the Oxford BMus. and a
year later became organist at St. Paul’s Cathedral, London.
He was appointed a gentleman of the Chapel Royal in
1592, and in 1598 obtained the monopoly for music print-
ing that had belonged to Byrd. His treatise, A Plaine and
Easie Introduction to Practicall Musicke (1597), criticizes
some English compositional styles and promotes Italian
methods.
Morley’s contribution to the madrigal in England,
through the publication of Italian music and his arrange-
ments of Italian pieces, is unrivaled. The most famous col-
lection for which Morley was responsible is The Triumphs
of Oriana (1601). This contains madrigals by Morley and
22 English contemporaries; one of Morley’s two contribu-
tions shows the influence of CROCE, on whose Il trionfo di33224 4 MMoorreeeellssee,, PPaauulluuss JJaannsszz..