Transcript The Renaissance

1485-1660
As a young man, Joris Hoofnagel, the son of
a Belgian diamond merchant, traveled
through Europe drawing. On their way
home, he and his family lost everything to
Spanish plunderers and fled to Bavaria.
Hoofnagel was then hired to illustrate
four books on natural history. An
engraver as well as a painter, he made
maps, some for a book on world history.
The term Renaissance was first used in
19th century to characterize the
changes that began in the time of
Charlemagne and continued through
the 15th or 16th century. Historians
now discuss the period as marked by
series of renaissances, not just one
single, massive transformation.
The “books” mentioned on page 193 were actually
handwritten manuscripts, preserved by
Byzantine and Islamic scholars. With the
invention of the printing press in the 15th
century, however, what we know as the book
became a reality and a working tool for
scholars. By 1500, printers—particularly
Italian printers—had published in book form
the works of most of the important Greek/Latin
authors (Homer, Virgil, etc.).
This version of creation differs a great deal from
the story of creation told in the Bible. This
passage represents the new thinking of the
Renaissance and emphasizes people’s freedom
to choose. It does not dwell on sin, and it
appears to make men and women equal in their
capacity to rise and fall.
The author, Pico della Mirandola, died of
mysterious causes. In 2007, his body was
exhumed, and a documentary is being made
about the investigation.
Leonardo da Vinci was probably the
ultimate Renaissance man. The painter
of the Mona Lisa, The Last Supper, and
other important works, he pioneered new
artistic techniques. In addition, he was a
scientist who explored everything from
the movement of water to human
anatomy, was well as an engineer who
designed various flying and military
machines.
True to the definition of a Renaissance
man, Michelangelo excelled in many
areas. Not only did he execute the
masterwork of the Sistine Chapel, but he
created sculptures of monumental
proportions that convey the beauty and
majesty of the human physique.
Michelangelo also became chief architect
of St. Peter’s Basilica in Rome, one of the
most important projects of his time.
The humanists not only studied the
subjects related to a classical
education—history, literature,
philosophy, and more—but they
made these subjects popular again.
Hence, the collective term for these
subjects became the humanities.
Spain, Hungary, and Poland also
had their first printing presses
between 1474 and 1476;
Denmark and Sweden were
equipped by 1482-1483. By
1500, forty thousand titles had
been printed, totaling about six
million books.
Hans Holbein the Younger was a German artist.
Because of his reputation as a master
portraitist, he was often asked to produce
likenesses of royalty. Henry VIII and most of
his wives sat for Holbein. The king admired
him and pardoned him for pushing down his
stairs an Earl who insisted on visiting Holbein’s
studio.
Holbein died in London during a plague. No one
knows where he is buried.
This was a time of internal reform in the Catholic
Church, as well as a time of criticism from those
who chose to break from it.
Pope Paul III convened the Council of Trent in 1545 to
investigate the selling of religious pardons and
other abuses.
Luther began the Lutheran church; soon others,
including the Anglican, Calvinist, and Anabaptist
faiths, sprang up. All of these faiths, and the
denominations developed from them, such as
Methodist, Episcopal, and Presbyterian, have come
to be called Protestant.
Old St. Paul’s cathedral was under construction
from shortly after the Norman conquest until
around 1300. The church was the center of
activity.
The Great Fire of 1666 destroyed most of London,
including the cathedral. It was rebuilt, but the
style was different. Instead of rebuilding the
old towers, it was modeled after Roman
architecture with a great dome inspired by the
Pantheon.
The Wars of the Roses began in 1455 and
were fought by the rival families of York
and Lancaster. By the time the struggle
ended in 1485, so many baronial families
were extinguished that the hierarchy of
succession to the throne in England was
permanently altered, allowing Henry VII
to become king.
The seated monarch is Henry VIII. Henry
hands a sword to the boy king, Edward
VI. From the left comes the hated Mary,
linked to the Spanish King Philip II—the
English always depicted the Spanish in
melancholic black. At the far left is the
god of war, Mars. At the right is
Elizabeth I, who renounces Mary’s sword
and ushers in Peace and Plenty, at the far
right.
Then, many people couldn’t understand why she
resisted marriage. Consider this:
 dangers of child-bearing at the time—her
mother’s troubles with still-born babies
 fearful examples of her sister (Mary) and her
mother (Anne Boleyn)—marriage probably had
a negative connotation for her.
Basically, she never wanted to give herself a
master—as any 16th century woman did by
marrying.
What does the quotation mean?
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Sir Walter Raleigh had a love interest in
Elizabeth I. He is saying he’d like to approach
her; yet he fears doing so, probably because she
is the QUEEN.
She replies, with her typical sharp wit, that if
Raleigh has to wonder about whether he has
sufficient courage to woo her, then he shouldn’t
even bother trying.

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Elizabeth I’s yearly wardrobe expenses for the
last four years of her reign were only 9,535
pounds per year.
James I spent an astonishing 36,377 per year
on his wardrobe for the five years of his reign.
Mary Stuart, Queen of Scots, was Elizabeth I’s cousin.
She should not be confused with Mary Tudor,
Elizabeth’s half-sister.
Mary Stuart claimed the throne of Scotland after her
husband’s death. Her ties with France and Spain
made her a threat to Elizabeth’s England.
Elizabeth had her cousin beheaded on February 8,
1587.
To be fair, there were rumors of Mary trying to have
Elizabeth killed, too. Also, it broke Elizabeth’s
heart knowing she had to have her killed.
James VI was the only son of Mary Stuart,
Queen of Scots, and her second husband,
an English nobleman named Lord
Darnley. When James succeeded
Elizabeth as sovereign of England and of
Scotland, he was called James I because
he was the first James to rule the newly
formed Great Britain.
Imagine taking over for the woman who
had your mother executed.