The Renaissance
1485-1660
French word meaning
“re-birth”
Refers to a renewed interest
in classical learning or the
writings of Greece and Rome
Began in Italy
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Previously, during the
Middle Ages
Scholars used Latin instead of
Greek
Most people were illiterate
Most text was church doctrine
Most people in Europe and
Britain were Roman Catholic,
so the church was rich and
powerful, even in political
affairs
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Renaissance Person
Energetic and productive
Interested in science, literature,
history, art, etc…
Personal renewal of the human
spirit
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Humanism
Intellectual movement of
writers and artists
Used old Latin and Greek
classics to answer such questions
as:
What is a human being?
What is a good life?
How do I lead a good life?
Christianity answered these, but
humanists sought to harmonize
the Bible and the classics
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cont.
Humanists recovered copies of
ancient writings in Italian
monasteries
They became teachers so the
young could become wise and
virtuous rulers
Education was not to produce
scholars but to prepare students
to “perform justly, skillfully, and
magnanimously all the offices
both private and public, of peace
and war.”
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Printing Press
Johannes Gutenberg printed the
first book, a Latin Bible, at Mainz,
Germany around 1455
By 1476, printing reached England
By 1500 inexpensive books were
available
William Caxton set up the first
printing press in Westminster
Now commoners had access to
written material
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The Reformation
Reformers rejected authority of pope
English resented financial burdens
imposed by Vatican, the pope, in Italy
Martin Luther (1483-1546) founded new
Christianity, not from what the pope
said, but a personal understanding
Beginning of the Lutheran Church
(Anglican, Calvinist, Anabaptist
faiths) creating Protestants
(Methodist, Episcopal, Presbyterians)
or anyone against the Catholic Church
Caused Pope Paul III to convene the
Council of Trent to investigate selling
of indulgences, religious pardons, &
abuses
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Henry VIII
Pope Clement VII would not divorce Henry
VIII from his Spanish wife, Catherine of
Aragon, even though she had been married
to his deceased brother Arthur, because
Catherine’s nephew, the emperor of Spain,
controlled the pope
She had given him a princess, but not a male
heir
He wished to marry Anne Boleyn, he had
seduced her sister earlier
Declared himself head of the English Church
& appointed a new archbishop of Canterbury
who granted the divorce, but Catherine
wouldn’t accept it
Henry then closed the monasteries and sold
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the buildings to his subjects
Henry VIII’s family
The 5 Tudor (name given to an
architectural style) rulers of
England: Henry VII, Henry VIII and
3 of his children
Catherine of Aragon, Anne Boleyn,
Jane Seymour, Anne of Cleves,
Catherine Howard, and Catherine
Parr
Divorced, beheaded, died,
Divorced, beheaded, survived.
Children: Mary, daughter of the
Spanish princess, Catherine of
Aragon; Elizabeth, daughter of Anne
Boleyn; and Edward, son of Jane
Seymour
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Henry VIII’s Children
Edward VI , son of Jane
Seymour, became king at age 9
Mary, a devout Catholic, who
wanted to avenge her mother’s,
Catherine of Aragon, wrongs –
restored the pope’s power in
England and hunted Protestants,
burning about 300 at the stake,
giving her the name “Bloody
Mary”
Queen Elizabeth, daughter of
Anne Boleyn
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Queen Elizabeth
Brilliant & Successful monarch
Restored law and order
Re-estalished the Church of England
and rejected the pope’s authority (she
was excommunicated by the pope)
Pretended that she might marry her
widowed brother-in-law, King Philip,
to keep Spain appeased
The Virgin Queen
“To be a king and wear a crown is more
glorious to them that see it than it is
pleasure to them that bear it”
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Mary Stuart, Queen of Scots
Queen Elizabeth’s cousin, not “Bloody
Mary”
Had a French mother and Henry
VIII’s nephew, James V, was her
father
Married young to Francis II of
France
She returned to Scotland after her
husband’s death to claim the throne
Elizabeth had her beheaded at
Fotheringay
Caused Spain to invade England with
the Spanish Armada
The Royal Navy defeated Spain
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James VI of Scotland
Became king after Queen Elizabeth
Only son of Mary, Queen of Scots
Became James I of England because he
was the first James to rule England
His reign is called the Jacobean Period
-Jacobus is Latin for James
Favored divine right of kings, was
against tobacco, & patronized
Shakespeare
He sponsored a new translation of the
Bible – The King James Version
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End of the Renaissance
Charles I followed his father’s
rule, but was beheaded
England was ruled by
Parliament and the Puritan
dictator, Oliver Cromwell
Political climate changed
after Queen Elizabeth’s death
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Major People from the Renaissance
Leonardo da Vinci: known for the Mona Lisa;
sfumato, an artistic style; scientific study of
water movement & human anatomy; engineer
who designed planes & military machines; drew
the human figure in circular proportions
Michelangelo: painted the Biblical scenes on the
Sistine Chapel in Rome; architect of St. Peter’s
Basilica in Rome; wrote poetry; sculpted the 17’
tall marble figure of David
Sir Thomas More; inspired the literary genre of
the utopian novel and distopia
Christopher Wren; architect who designed St.
Paul’s Cathedral and others
Menasseh ben Israel: founded the modern Jewish
community
Galileo: developed the Copernican view that the
earth revolved around the sun
Gerardus Mercator: first flat map of the round
earth
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Johannes Kepler: discovers that the orbits of the
planets are elliptical
Fashions of the Renaissance
They displayed their new costumes from 10 to
12 noon, strolling up and down the center aisle of
St. Paul’s Church. They insisted on rich fabrics:
velvet, taffeta, gold brocade, and fur. They wore
the finest silk stocking and cork platform shoes.
They curled their hair, perfumed their gloves, and
(if daring) wore makeup. They showed off favorite
jewels in earrings, bracelets, and designs sewn all
over their clothes. The men in the Renaissance
were peacocks indeed!
Hoop skirts, farthingales, were 4’ at the hips with
“stomachers”, ribbed bones, to pull the women’s
bodies into rigid tightness
Men had peascod bellies, goose bellies, begun in
Spain, to create a big belly by stuffing horsehair
into doublets
Colors & designs had symbolic meaning
Green meant love, white & tawny showed patience
in adversity, a pansy represented sadness, a snake
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flattery, and so on
Historical Connections
Ming Dynasty (1368-1644)
Silk and textile industry flourished in
China, and trade with the far east,
across the Silk Route, brought to
Europe the growing use of elaborate
costumes.
In Elizabethan England, a person’s
costume revealed whether he or she
was wealthy or noble
In China, the decoration or
embroidery on a robe revealed the
wearer’s rank and social status
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