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Mercy (Middle English
Middle English

Middle English is the name given by historical linguistics to the diverse forms of the English language spoken between the Norman conquest of England of 1066 and about 1470, when the #Chancery Standard, a form of London-based English, began to become widespread, a process aided by the introduction of the printing press into England by William...
, from Anglo-French
Anglo-French

Anglo-French is a term that may be used in several contexts:*Nationality, e.g. a person with one English parent and one French parent may be said to be Anglo-French...
 merci, from Medieval Latin
Medieval Latin

Medieval Latin was the form of Latin used in the Middle Ages, primarily as a medium of scholarly exchange and as the liturgical language of the medieval Roman Catholic Church, but also as a language of science, literature, law, and administration....
 merced-, merces, from Latin
Latin

Latin is an Italic language, historically spoken in Latium and Ancient Rome. Through the Military history of the Roman Empire, Latin spread throughout the Mediterranean and a large part of Europe....
, "price paid, wages", from merc-, merx "merchandise") can refer both to compassionate behaviour on the part of those in power (e.g. mercy shown by a judge toward a convict) or on the part of a humanitarian third party (e.g.






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Pierre Montallier 001
Mercy (Middle English
Middle English

Middle English is the name given by historical linguistics to the diverse forms of the English language spoken between the Norman conquest of England of 1066 and about 1470, when the #Chancery Standard, a form of London-based English, began to become widespread, a process aided by the introduction of the printing press into England by William...
, from Anglo-French
Anglo-French

Anglo-French is a term that may be used in several contexts:*Nationality, e.g. a person with one English parent and one French parent may be said to be Anglo-French...
 merci, from Medieval Latin
Medieval Latin

Medieval Latin was the form of Latin used in the Middle Ages, primarily as a medium of scholarly exchange and as the liturgical language of the medieval Roman Catholic Church, but also as a language of science, literature, law, and administration....
 merced-, merces, from Latin
Latin

Latin is an Italic language, historically spoken in Latium and Ancient Rome. Through the Military history of the Roman Empire, Latin spread throughout the Mediterranean and a large part of Europe....
, "price paid, wages", from merc-, merx "merchandise") can refer both to compassionate behaviour on the part of those in power (e.g. mercy shown by a judge toward a convict) or on the part of a humanitarian third party (e.g. a mission of mercy aiming to treat war victims). Mercy is a word used to describe compassion shown by one person to another, or a request from one person to another to be shown such leniency or unwarranted compassion for a crime or wrongdoing. One of the basic virtues of chivalry
Chivalry

Chivalry is a term relating to the medieval institution of knighthood. It is usually associated with ideals of knightly virtues, honor and courtly love....
, Christian
Christian

A Christian is a person who adheres to Christianity, a Monotheism#Christian view religion centered on the life and teachings of Jesus and interpreted by Christians to have been prophesied in the Hebrew Bible/Old Testament....
 ethics
Ethics

Ethics is a word for a philosophy that encompasses proper conduct and good living. It is significantly broader than the common conception of ethics as the analyzing of right and wrong....
, Judaism
Judaism

Judaism is a set of beliefs and practices originating in the Hebrew Bible , as later further explored and explained in the Talmud and other texts....
, and Islam
Islam

Islam is a Monotheism, Abrahamic religion originating with the teachings of the Prophets of Islam Muhammad, a 7th century Arab religious and political figure....
, it is also related to concepts of justice
Justice

Justice is the concept of morality rightness based on ethics, rationality, law, natural law, fairness and equity."...
 and morality
Morality

Morality has three principal meanings.In its first, descriptive usage, morality means a code of conduct which is held to be authoritative in matters of right and wrong....
 in behaviour between people.

In a legal sense, a defendant having been found guilty of a capital crime may ask for clemency from being executed.

To be "mercy", the behavior generally can not be compelled by outside forces. (A famous literary example is from The Merchant of Venice
The Merchant of Venice

The Merchant of Venice is a play by William Shakespeare, believed to have been written between 1596 and 1598. Although classified as a Shakespearean comedies in the First Folio, and while it shares certain aspects with Shakespeare's other romantic comedy, the play is perhaps more remembered for its dramatic scenes, and is best known for...
 when Portia asks Shylock to show mercy. He asks, On what compulsion, must I? She responds The quality of mercy is not strained.)

A number of organizations (e.g. the Mercy Corps
Mercy Corps

Mercy Corps is a non-profit organization engaged in humanitarian aid and development activities. Since 1979, Mercy Corps has provided more than US$1.5 billion in assistance to people in 106 nations....
, the Sisters of Mercy
Sisters of Mercy

The Religious Order of the Sisters of Mercy is an order of Roman Catholic Church women founded by Catherine McAuley in Dublin, Ireland in 1831....
, Mercyful Fate
Mercyful Fate

Mercyful Fate is an influential Denmark Heavy metal music band often cited among the influences in the black metal, thrash metal, power metal, and progressive metal genres....
  and the Temple of Mercy and Charity
Temple of Mercy and Charity

The Temple of Mercy and Charity is a Mariavite Church cathedral in Plock in central Poland. It is near the Vistula River.The Temple is the religious center of the Mariavite Church and contains the tomb of its foundress Feliksa Kozlowska as well as a memorial table commemorating its first leader Jan Maria Michal Kowalski....
) use the word "mercy" in their name to describe their work.