April 22nd
Today in History:
• 1509 - Henry VIII ascends to the throne of
•
•
England upon the death of his father
1861 - Robert E. Lee is named commander of
Virginia forces
1955 - Congress orders all U.S. coins to bear the
motto “In God We Trust.”
Objectives
Students will be able to…
 Explain the economic and cultural
foundations of the Renaissance.
 Describe the artistic, political, and
philosophical developments of the
Renaissance.
Agenda
Announcements
 Warm-up (Kahoot SOL Review)
 Power-point – Renaissance in Italy
 Trade in Renaissance Europe Worksheet

European Renaissance
and Reformation
Chapter 17
Italy: Birthplace of the
Renaissance
Renaissance

The years 1300 to
1600 saw a rebirth of
learning and culture
in Europe called the
Renaissance
(rebirth).
Vitruvian Man

Europe emerged from the economic stagnation of the
Middle Ages and experienced a time of financial growth.

The Renaissance was an age in which artistic, social,
scientific, and political thought turned in new
directions.
Renaissance
When?
– 14th – 17th century
 What was it?
– Rebirth (Of what?.... of Europe)
– Rediscovery of Greco-Roman Civilization
– A period of creativity and change in many
areas (political, social, cultural, and
economic)
– Education, art, literature…

Emphasis
Emphasized reason, a questioning
attitude, experimentation, and free inquiry
 Glorified individual and approved worldly
pleasures
 Focused attention on worldly matters

Where?
 Italy
 Northern Europe
Middle Ages
Faith, authority, and tradition
 Feudalism & Manor Systems
 Focus on Roman Catholic Church and
religious affairs
 The Plague
 The Crusades


As incidence of the plague decreased in the late
fifteenth century, populations swelled, creating a
new demand for goods and services.

Lives of merchants, bankers, and trades people improved,
they had more than enough money to meet their basic needs
for food, clothing, and shelter. They traded with Muslim
merchants who controlled the flow of goods through much
of the Middle East.
How did it start?

The effect of the Crusades
– Re-learning of Greco-Roman ideas from
interaction with the Muslims
– Increased demand for Middle Eastern
products
– Stimulated production of stuff to sell in the
Middle East
Trade
 Banking

Banking and Credit

For long-distance trade
– Barter is inefficient
– So is carrying gold and silver

Instead, carry a letter of credit
– Bank promise that you have the money
– Banks work out the details later
Other Economic Ideas

Interest: the price you pay to borrow
money
– Church calls this a sin (usury)
– Traders become more secular

Bookkeeping
– Hard to do with Roman numerals
– Arabic numerals introduced (though invented
in India)
Italian Renaissance

Starts in Italy. Why?
– Competitive city-states, governed as republics
– Dominated trade routes between Middle East
and northern Europe
– Lived on top of Roman culture, stole Greek
culture from Constantinople
Genoa
Florence
Venice
City-State Politics

Initially republics, but wealthy families
came to dominate
– Control trade, then control government
– Liked to spend their money on art to show off
– patrons
Florence and the Medicis
Florance was an outstanding city
of the Italian Renaissance
 Unlike several other important cities of Italy that
had noble families as their most prominent
citizens (Mantua and Ferrara, for example), the
Medici family, made their wealth as business
people and used that wealth to become the
leading citizens of Florence.

– (merchant family that expanded into banking) 
patrons of the arts
The Beginning
of Trade



The Crusades had started a
renewal of interest in trade
from Africa and Asia.
The effects of the Mongol
Empire & Re-establishment
of the “Silk Road” of trade.
Although navigation was
still an imprecise science,
sailors were able to go
farther than they had
before.
Tools developed in the Middle Ages for exploration
continued to be used and improved during the
Renaissance.

Astrolabe, a portable device
used by sailors to help them
find their way. By measuring
the distance of the sun and
stars above the horizon, the
astrolabe helped determine
latitude.

Magnetic compass, which had
been invented in the twelfth
century, was improved upon
during the Renaissance

Maps, too, became
more reliable as
Portuguese map
makers, called
cartographers,
incorporated
information provided
by travelers and
explorers into their
work.

Shipbuilding also improved during the Renaissance,
as large ships called galleons became common.
These ships were powered by sail rather than by
men using oars.
For traders, sailing proved to be a better option than
traveling by land, as the network of roads that crisscrossed
Europe was poor, and the few good roads that did exist were
frequented by thieves.


Also from the East came precious gems and fine silk, a
fabric especially sought after for women's clothing. These
trading voyages were often paid for by investors.
Renaissance Explorers

Some men were drawn to the
seas out of a curiosity to
discover more about the world.
One such man was Prince Henry
of Portugal, known as Prince
Henry the Navigator.

With the help of mathematicians, astronomers,
cartographers, and other navigators, Prince Henry
started a navigational school and sent expeditions
to explore the west coast of Africa. These
explorations led to trade for gold and ivory and,
soon after, slaves.
• Later, Portuguese sailors discovered the route around the southern tip
of Africa that would take them to India entirely by sea.
Renaissance Spirit

Humanism
– Study of classics, focus on human potential
and achievements
 Shift of values from Christianity
– Petrarch (humanist poet)

Secular
– Worldly focus, even for church leaders
– Have pretty, expensive stuff on earth
Humanism
Concerned with themselves, not with
religious matters, but with every day
human problems
 Drew inspiration from classical civilizations
(Greece and Rome)
 Revived interest in literature and writing

Petrarch
Considered the “Father or Humanism”
 Art Form – poet/humanist
– Responsible for the recovery of manuscripts
and works of Greek and Roman writers such
as Cicero, Virgil, and others that had been lost
in monastery libraries.
 He wrote romantic poetry and gave up the
Priesthood when he fell in love
with a woman – Laura
(mysterious woman)

“Rarely do great beauty and great virtue dwell together.”
Leonardo da Vinci
1452-1519
 Art Form – painter, sculptor, architect,
inventor, mathematician, etc…
 Example – Mona Lisa & Last Supper

Mona Lisa
Last Supper
Michelangelo
1475 – 1564
 Art Form – painter, sculptor, poet,
architect, etc…
 Example – Statues of David and Moses +
Sistine Chapel

Statue of David
Sistine Chapel
Sistine Chapel
Raphael
1483 – 1520
 Art Form – painter & architect
 Example – School of Athens

Raphael
Renaissance Writers
Change
Literature
How did literature change during
the Renaissance?

Renaissance writers also achieved greatness.
Several wrote in the vernacular. This means they
wrote in their native languages. It was a change
from the Middle Ages, when most writing was
done in Latin.
Writers also changed their subject matter. They
began to express their own thoughts and feelings.
Sometimes they gave a detailed look at an
individual. Dante and others wrote poetry, letters,
and stories that were more realistic.

Niccolo Machiavelli took
a new approach to
understanding
government. He focused
on telling rulers how to
expand their power. He
believed rulers should
do what was politically
effective, even if it was
not morally right.
Machiavelli’s
The Prince
• An early modern treatise
on government
• Supported absolute power
of the ruler
• Maintains that the end
justifies the means
• Advises that one should do
good if possible, but do
evil when necessary
Renaissance Man

A man who is talented in many areas
– (ex. Leonardo Da Vinci, Michelangelo, Raphael )
– Others in History?
 Benjamin Franklin, Thomas Jefferson, Galileo…
– Modern Examples?
 Steve Martin, Clint Eastwood, Seth McFarlane,
Pharrell Williams, Hugh Jackman…