Renaissance

Renaissance• Means “rebirth,” specifically the rebirth of
classical knowledge (ancient Greece & Rome)
• “Birth” of the modern world (beginning of
modern European history)
• Begins in northern Italy (Florence) & spreads
to the Italian city-states & then northern
Europe (c.1450)
until the 16th century & lasted until the
early 17th century (the time of
Shakespeare)
• Individual, not the group, was emphasized
during the Renaissance
rural, areas
- feelings & thoughts
• Center of Greco-Roman civilization
– Large urban centers
– Wealth from trade
Rise of the Italian City-States
• Northern Italian cities (centrally located)
developed international trade which was
linked to the Crusades & the Spice Trade
– Cities included Genoa, Venice, Milan
– The Renaissance started in Florence and
followed the success of the Medici family
which built their power on great wealth from
banking & the manufacture & commerce of
textiles
that Italy did not unify politically which
would lead to their downfall in the late 15th
and early 16th centuries when French &
Spanish armies invaded Italy
power pattern emerged
Major city-states & figures
- Dominated by the Medici family
- most powerful: Cosimo de’ Medici
- Lorenzo de’ Medici (the “Magnificent”)
- significant patron of the arts
- son of Cosimo
family after 1450
- Peace of Lodi (1454) creates a 40-yr
period of peace which was, in part, a
response to concerns over the
Ottoman conquest of Constantinople
western Europe
political leaders
4. Venice, Venetian Republic
(did not fall to a foreign power
until Napoleon conquered it in
the early 1800s)
5. Naples, Kingdom of the Two Sicilies
- only Italian city-state to officially have
a king
Spain after 1453
an urban society:
economic, & social life.
which led merchants to become patrons of the arts which
in turn helped promote literature, art, & science
• Above all, the Renaissance was an age of
recuperation from the calamitous 14th
century.
from the Black Death, political disorder, &
economic recession, there was a rebirth of
interest in classical antiquity.
intellectuals became fascinated w/ the
Greco-Roman culture
Renaissance Characteristics
upper class
personal, ie. individualistic
growth
individual ability and that each person had
dignity and worth (ex. Portrait painting and
autobiographies)
hereafter
attitude (contrasts w/ faith, authority, & tradition)
Even More Characteristics
which promoted increased wealth
and used force to take over the cities
• The popolo could not retain power and were
later replaced by despots (signori) or
oligarchies (merchant aristocracies)
the arts – Medici family was an example
• Individual was loyal to their own city-state
(recall ancient Greece)
Venice, Milan, Florence, the Papal States,
and the Kingdom of Naples
• Cesare Borgia (Machiavelli’s hero and son of
Pope Alexander VI) tried to unite the
peninsula
Decline of Italian city-states
Charles VIII
throughout the Italian peninsula
to appease the French
later, Florence was already severely weakened
– Enter Girolamo Savonarola
leader b/t 1494-1498.
decadence & corruption
- Initially people supported him but
later he was burned
power struggles between Spain &
by Niccolo Machiavelli
an effective government
– Permanent social order reflecting God’s will is
impossible
• First modern treatise on government
• Supported absolute power of the monarchy
• Provided guidelines for the acquisition &
maintenance of power:
– “it was better to be feared than to be loved”
– the ruler must act swiftly & decisively
– the “end justifies the means,” ie. right or wrong
does not matter
– build the power of the state
The Sack of Rome
Holy Roman Emperor Charles V (who was
also king of Spain) symbolized the end of
the Renaissance in Italy
self-conscious awareness that Italians were
living in a new era
• One of the founders of this movement was
Petrarch who coined the term “Dark Ages”
• The Renaissance was seen as the light after
the gloom of the Dark Ages
• The Roman Empire was seen as the peak of
human civilization, and the Renaissance
was a type of revival for the classics
• Artists of the Renaissance had contempt
for medieval predecessors
the Renaissance period as the medieval
period
antiquity lifestyle, and a more secular
spirit are associated w/ the Renaissance
• A new individualism now appeared
Individualism stressed:
a) personality
b) uniqueness
human beings came to be associated
with humanism.
philosophy, literature and art
“new learning” or “humanism”
important for anyone who considered
himself civilized
Christian thought
great potential of human beings, their
achievements & capabilities
- idea of excelling in all of one’s
pursuits
should prepare leaders who would be
active in civic affairs
dominated
writings (the classics) w/ Christian thought
2. were skeptical of the authority of the classics because of
the passage of time
4. were very Christian - men and women were made in
God’s image
sought a harmony between paganism, secularism, and
Christianity.
Petrarch
• Encouraged the study of ancient Rome and
its classical literary style
- many of his sonnets expressed his love
for a married woman named Laura
Pico della Mirandola
(1486)
2. Humans were created by God & therefore
given tremendous potential for greatness,
& even union with God if they desired it
(represents the “spark of divinity”)
3. Humans had free will to be great or fall
Baldassare Castiglione
Renaissance education
gentleman
man” ( recall virtu)
pope’s authority.
territories by the 4th c. Roman emperor Constantine
Boccaccio’s Decameron about a worldly society
- aimed to impart wisdom of human character & behavior
Papal interests actually encouraged worldliness
(goes against the Church vow of poverty)
NORTHERN
RENAISSANCE
• was more religious than in Italy
• promoted the study of Greek & Hebrew texts for a greater understanding of Christianity
• resulted in students from England, Holland, France, and Germany going to Italy for the ‘new learning’
• Led northern humanists to interpret Italian ideas in terms of their own traditions
Northern Humanists:
d) believed Classical & Christian cultures should be combined
e) had a profound faith in the human intellect
f) believed people could be improved through education
Northern Humanists
• In Germany:
- Western and southern Germany were economically advanced
- 14th century - mystics like Thomas a Kempis believed the human soul could communicate with God
- They did not rebel against the Church but wanted a deeper religion
In France
applied humanism to religion
humanist, was secular
perfect himself by using his own mind,
& through natural, joyous living
Deeply interested in the classics
Entered government under Henry VIII
Wrote Utopia ( literally means “no place”) where all children receive a humanist education
- he portrayed an ideal country: free from war, injustice, poverty, & ignorance
- sought a society based on reason rather than wealth
More believed private
property caused vices
and civil disorder
his convictions
Low Countries (Benelux countries)
• Erasmus, a Christian humanist, had a deep appreciation for the classics
- Was a well-respected man in Europe
- Wrote The Education of a Christian Prince and The Praise of Folly in which he criticized superstition, prejudice, upper class privileges, & Church abuses
On Desiderius Erasmus • His criticisms encouraged people to think
about reforms to improve society
• He sought the simple piety of the Church
• Claimed the popes were so corrupt that they
no longer practiced Christianity
humanism
promote true reverence for God and in
living out the Gospel message
Two main themes:
national purpose
boundary
4. Ruthlessly suppressed rebellions &
bourgeoisie
of Lodi
centralizing strategies
centralize power which consisted of:
1. taxation for consistent revenue
2. controlling the aristocracy
- applied uniform law
4. controlling warfare
i) expelled the English
ii) increased the influence of the middle class
iii) strengthened finances through taxes like salt (gabelle) and land (taille)
iv) created first permanent royal army
v) by the Pragmatic Sanction of Bourges (1438) asserted French Church supremacy over the papacy
- crown could appoint bishops
• His son, Louis XI of the Valois dynasty, was a
Renaissance prince, who promoted industry, improved
the army, and signed international treaties
• The Estates General (legislative branch of government)
would meet only once during his reign
• In 1516, Francis I , who followed Louis XI, signed the
Concordat of Bologna which rescinded the Pragmatic
Sanction (confirming the supremacy of a council over
the pope) - conceding the French king’s right to
nominate bishops thereby keeping France Catholic
• The reign of Francis I would be dominated by the
spread of absolute monarchy, humanism and
Protestantism (much to the displeasure of the Catholic
monarchy)
Decimated by the Black Death
The Tudors (1485-1603) won the Wars of the Roses bringing Henry VII to power
They passed laws against nobles having standing armies to better control them
The monarchs did not depend on government for money so they were much more independent in their rule
Royal Council (Star Chamber) was the center of authority
ENGLAND
The Royal Council handled the king’s business including arranging marriages.
Aristocratic threats were dealt with by the Star Chamber
The Star Chamber used Roman Law and methods to enforce the law
a) accused people were not entitled to see the evidence against them
b) sessions were in secret
c) torture was often used
d) there were no juries
The Tudors promoted peace and order.
Henry VII (1485) rebuilt the monarchy.
- ruled through unpaid officials
- built up the merchant fleet
- crushed an invasion from Ireland
- secured peace with Scotland (his daughter Margaret married the Scottish king)
SPAIN Isabella of Castile and Ferdinand of Aragon
married (1469) and united the regions
• They ruled through ‘hermandades,’ a peacekeeping association of armed individuals
• Restructured the royal council - excluded the rich and powerful
The Catholic Church was the linchpin of the reform.
Alliance with the Spanish pope Alexander VI: Spanish monarchs gained great power and a national church
• They established the “reconquista” (1492) which led to the expulsion of the Jews and Moors from Spain; lasted over 100 years
- Conversos- Jews that converted
- Moriscos - Christians of Moorish background
- Marranos - Christians of Jewish background
• Established the Inquisition - the ruthless court that decided if conversos were telling the truth; it would eventually be used against the Protestants
• Ferdinand and Isabella expelling all Jews from Spain had major economic consequences
(revenue, military strength, laborers and consumers)
• Absolute religious orthodoxy and pure blood were the foundation of Spain
• Ferdinand and Isabella’s daughter Joanna married Philip (from the HRE). Their son was Charles V, the Holy Roman Emperor who would support the RCC
• Charles V - the ‘Universal Monarch,’ answers to no other monarch and is seen as supreme
Germany • Part of the Holy Roman Empire
• Local lords recognized the supremacy of the Holy Roman Emperor, who was elected by 7 Electors
- Maximilian I, (b.1459 – d. 1519), archduke of Austria, German king, and Holy Roman emperor (1493– 1519), made his family, the Habsburgs, dominant in 16th-century Europe.
• He (Max. I) married the heiress of the Duke of Burgundy
• Their son, Philip, married Mad Joanna, daughter of Ferdinand and Isabella
• Their son was Charles V who became H.R. Emperor
On Technology:
history with movable type. Printing
made propaganda possible and forced
people into groups i.e. church and state
or Crown and nobility.
people
• The status of upper-class women declined
• Women generally had less power than in the
Middle Ages: Why?
• Women had to choose marriage or education
• Education brought jealousy and envy
Women
dance, paint, and play music - they were
decorative
Literary and art works had no effect on
ordinary women
ORPS!!
• figures seem to interact & show realistic
emotion
Purgatorio, Paradiso)
Renaissance
alive;
human form;
the 1st European sculptor since ancient
times to make a large, free-standing human
figure in the nude
(depth, 3-D)
of both Christian & classical ideas &
themes
which epitomized the ideals embodied not
only by Renaissance art but also by the
Renaissance itself
William Shakespeare
playwright of all time
• skilled at showing human emotions &
probing deeply into the human character
• considered to be the Renaissance writer
who had the most far-reaching influence
• Plays?
society, especially knighthood & chivalry
of literature
Michel Montaigne
form
ranging from cannibalism to bodily
functions to death & dying