Chapter 13
Euro Society in the Age of the Renaissance 1350
- 1550

New literary and artistic culture first
emerged in Italy
◦ spread gradually
◦ at different time
◦ in different ways throughout western and
central Europe
The rebirth of ancient Greek and Roman artistic and literary
styles, languages, and values was at the heart of the Italian
(Ital) Ren.
 Humanism
◦ revival of classical texts
◦ educational curriculum based on them

The Ren rested on new political and social structures
◦ forged in communes -quasi-independent city-states in Italy,
dominated by wealthy merchants who became the patrons of
artists and scholars

Individualism and secularism
◦ developed as new society values
◦ city-states competed and went to war with each other
 their disunity left them vulnerable to unified nation-states like France
(Fr) and Spain.

The most influential writers

In northern Eur. Christian humanism developed with a
special focus on ethics and religion.
◦ Castiglione
◦ Machiavelli
◦ Two major northern humanists were
 Thomas More
 Desiderius Erasmus

Ren artists adopted many elements from antiquity

Important patrons
◦ Roman arches
◦ motifs and themes in painting.
◦ Perspective and realism allowed them to imitate nature.
◦ Communal bodies
◦ wealthy merchants
◦ the church

Thomas More
◦ Chancellor of the Tutor king Henry VIII
◦ Utopia – a revolutionary text
 An ideal egalitarian socialistic community
 Everyone works & receives a classical education
 Avoids war
 Distains gold & silver
 Greed & private property ruins society

Desiderius Erasmus
◦
◦
◦
◦
Friend of More’s
1st international scholar
Known for his knowledge of Greek
In Praise of Folly – satirized worldly wisdom
 Stressed education as the key to reform
 Advocate of inner Christianity
◦ New edition of the Greek New Testament
 Argued for the translation of scripture into vernacular languages
First published in 1516, Thomas
More's Utopia is one of the most
important works of European
humanism. Through the voice of
the mysterious traveller Raphael
Hythloday, More describes a
pagan, communist city-state
governed by reason. Addressing
such issues as religious pluralism,
women's rights, state-sponsored
education, colonialism, and
justified warfare, Utopia seems
remarkably contemporary nearly
five centuries after it was written,
and it remains a foundational text
in philosophy and political theory.
The invention of movable type and the printing
press in the mid 15thC
◦ quick and relatively inexpensive dissemination of
new ideas
◦ fostered literacy
◦ made the Ren an international movement

Johann Gutenberg
(& several other Ger. craftsmen)
◦ Invented movable type that could be used time after
time
 Adopted principles of wood stamp and Chinese block
printing
 Met the growing demand for books ever growing
literate population
◦ Paper technology developed – replaced expensive
vellum and parchment
◦ Technology spread fast – 110 cities w/n 3 decades
◦ 1st printed books were religious
 Followed by romances, pornography, manual to
scholarly, medical & legal texts
 Gap between literate and illiterate narrowed as the 1st
read to the other


Keep in mind the cultural movement of the
Renaissance and the new values it spawned
intersected with changes in political, social and
religious ideas in the next centuries and the way
it changed as it moved from country to country.
Many FRQs (Free Response Questions)on the AP
exam have asked students to answer questions
using their knowledge of the Ren as a starting
point – for example, its influence on later
developments or comparison of it with other
artistic movements.

Northern Italy
◦ Emerging econ powerhouses
 Foreign trade & advance shipbuilding
 Venice, Milan & Genoa
◦ Birth of the Ren
 Florence
 Wealthy city-state
 Bankers
 For the papacy
 Extensive networks throughout Eur
 Invested profits Florentine manufacturing

Wool

Silk

Selling high quality merchandise

Commune
◦ An association of free men who over time won
independence from nobles

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


managed their cities
Built city walls
Levied taxes
Regulated trade/business
Oligarchies
(power rests with a small
number of people)
◦ Nobles & merchants families
 Interwoven by marriage
 Wrote constitutions
 Called communes republics

Popolo
◦ Ordinary people
◦ Excluded from citizenship & disenfranchised
 Even after successful revolts
 Condottieri – military leaders (control revolts)
 Signor – man responsible for running the gov.

Republican Constitution & Signori
◦ Both had small number of men with power
◦ Both has luxurious courts – the centers of cultural
life
 Became the models for later monarchs outside of Italy

The 5 strong states
◦
◦
◦
◦
◦

Florence - republic
Venice - republic
Milan - republic
The Papal States – ruled by the Pope
Naples – Kingdom: The House of Aragon
Competitive
◦ Sought to dominate smaller states
◦ Diplomacy created
 Permanent resident ambassadors
 Concept of balance of power (to prevent control of any
one state)
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
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City-state – a city that governs itself and
controls the surrounding countryside in order to
guarantee the food supply to the city.
Ital. city-states took advantage of the longstanding conflict between the Holy Roman
Empire and the papacy to assert their
independence.
The men who created the republics were aware
that they were doing something unusual and
articulated new ideas about government.

Humanism
◦ Studia humanitates – liberal studies
 Refers to the study of Latin and eventually Greek classics
 Broader – emphasis on the abilities and achievements of
humans
 During the medieval period Latin classics were studied,
largely religious in orientation
 Humanists revived classical Latin v medieval church Latin
 Art of rhetoric
 Elegant written/oral communication
 Emulate the lively dialogues of the ancient Platonic Academy

Petrarch – 14thC poet led the way

On the Dignity of Man – Pico della Mirandola
◦ Man’s inherent & unlimited potential for greatness
 Reflected Greek thought – particularly Plato
 In 1484 Pico became a member of Florence's Platonic
Academy.
 studied and tried to reconcile the teachings of Judaism,
Christianity, and Islam.
 In 1486, he published a collection of 900 philosophical
treatises
 in which his conclusions often differed from those of the
Roman Catholic Church.
 "Oration on the Dignity of Man," describes his belief,
contrary to church dogma, that people have free will and
are able to make decisions affecting their destinies.
 Not surprisingly, the Church declared Pico a heretic;
 he was only saved from demise by the intervention of
Lorenzo de Medici.

Individualism (individual ambition) hallmark
of humanism
◦ Italy – ambitious men became wealthy, powerful

Renaissance Men – uomo universale
◦ multitalented & highly creative
 Leon Battista Alberti – architect & humanist
 Leonardo da Vinci
 Benvenuto Cellini
 Goldsmith/sculptor
 Self proclaimed genius and beautiful
 Autobiography

Ren individualism is easily seen in the genre
of autobiography and portraits (useful point in an essay)
◦ Portraits – put a face on Ren leaders, something that was
not handed down from the medieval period
 Medicis
 Raphael
The Madonna of the Pinks
('La Madonna dei Garofani') 1506-7, Raphael
The Girl with the Pearl Earring,
originally called Girl Wearing a Turban –
thought to be Vermeer’s eldest daughter.
Self portrait by Raphael (1483 - 1520

New educational curricula & values were the
heart of the Ren
◦ Validity of the secular world
 Prepare students for success
 Training in “highest gifts” & firm moral foundation
◦ Not for private benefit alone
 City-states needed people trained to speak & write well
 Argue persuasively
 Paul Vergerio
 Opened schools teaching Latin & Greek grammar
 Historical, ethical, philosophical texts
◦ Advanced education for middle/upper classes

Women
◦ Excluded
 No schools for girls created
◦ Humanists
 Rhetoric is the proper study for men
 Morals & religion for women
 On the Family – Leon Battista Alberti
 Women should be strictly limited to household
responsibilities
Portrait of a lady, tempera painting
on panel by Sandro Botticelli,
about 1470
◦ Some upper class women did acquire a humanist
education & wrote humanist texts.
 ? Was there a Ren for women ?
• Christine de Pizan is seen as the first female to
really display feminist ideals with her book, “The
Book of the City of Ladies”.
•
•
de Pizan wrote of different females and their
contributions to society.
also showed women alternate ways to use their
abilities in order to counteract the high degree of
misogyny that existed (Christine de Pizan: An
Illuminated Voice).
• Humanists also began to believe that women who
were aristocratic deserved to have at least a
minimal education.
•
•
very limited educational rights
not really welcome to participate in intellectual
activities such as debate and lecture.
• The main purpose of women during the
Renaissance
•
•
marriage
child-bearing
• The Renaissance represented the beginning of a
slow change in thought

The Courtier – Baldassare Castiglione
◦ Most influential educational text (1528)
 Ideal - aristocratic men & women
 Gentlemen
 should have a broad academic background
 Physically skilled
 Be able to recite Latin poetry
 Compose a sonnet
 Wrestle
 Solve a mathematical problem
 Dance
 Ladies
 Develop artistic talents
 Be modest
 Be beautiful
◦ Contrast with medieval period
 Ren – all spheres of human endeavor – universal competence
 Med – religiosity - conformity

Niccolo Machiavelli
◦ Excellent scholar of history
◦ Intimately involved in the politics of Florence
 Diplomat
 Local official
◦ The Prince – 1513
 Written for signori (princes)
 How to achieve and hold power
 Amoral & ruthless manipulation of people
 People = selfish & inconstant
 Rulers should be clever as a fox & fierce as a lion
 Considered the 1st work of modern political science
 Sought to analyze what people did rather than what they ought to do
 Identified politics as a distinct discipline with its own laws

The Prince
◦ Embodies the Ren value of secularism
 Held this world, rather than the next, in highest regard

Values changed
◦ Basic tenets of Christianity/religion remained strong
◦ Secularism adopted by new wealthy elite who patronized
the arts and sought more pleasurable lives

Lorenzo Valla
◦ Father of modern historical criticism
 Used his knowledge of Latin to unmask an 8thC papal forgery
known as the Donation of Constantine
 Justified the authority of the popes
◦ On Pleasure –
 Exalted sensual pleasures

Boccaccio
◦ Decameron
 Portrayed the rascality, wit, and sensuality of ordinary people

The Popes
◦ Appreciated worldly pleasure
 Decorated the Vatican with works of art
 Spent huge sums on commissioning the best artists of the
day
 Michelangelo
 Built the dome of St. Peter’s
 Painted the ceiling and altar wall of the Sistine Chapel

Northern Renaissance – 15thC
◦ Ideas transferred north by students studying in Italy
 Northern humanists sought to reconcile classical and
Christian virtues
 Stressed the value of reason and human intellect
)
Albrecht Durer Praying Hands, (c. 1508