Transcript Italy: Birthplace of the Renaissance

Italy: Birthplace of the Renaissance
The European Renaissance was a rebirth of
learning and the arts that began in Italy in the
1300s.
Italy’s Advantages
Italy had three advantages over
the rest of Europe that
helped lead to the
Renaissance.
1. Thriving trade cities
2. A wealthy merchant class
3. Classical heritage of Greece
and Rome.
Also, the rest of Europe was
embroiled in the Hundreds
Years War.
The Hundreds Years War
The Hundred Years War was a war that
lasted from 1337 to 1453. The war was
fought between England and France in a
struggle for the control of land in France.
Victory passed back and forth between
France and England until the French
drove the English out of France entirely.
Joan of Arch led France to victory but is
captured and executed.
The Hundred Years War gave rise to
nationalism, empowered the French King
and the English Parliament.
Urban Centers
• The trade and transportation that
developed during the Crusades
led to the growth of large citystates in northern Italy.
• The Bubonic Plague struck these
cities hard, killing up to 60% of
the population. The large
population decline led to
economic changes. Because
there were fewer workers, thy
could demand higher wages.
Merchants and the Medici
• Milan, Florence and Venice all
operated independently and
collected their own taxes and
raised their own armies.
• The merchants were the most
powerful and influential class,
but their social rank was
earned, not inherited like the
nobles.
• Individual achievement was a
very important element of the
Renaissance.
Medici Family
• The city of Florence was
controlled by the
powerful Medici family.
• Cosimo de’Medici was
the wealthiest European
of his time.
• He controlled Florence
for nearly 30 years.
Cosimo de’Medici
Classical Heritage
• Renaissance scholars looked down on
the art of the Middle Ages and began to
turn their interest to the classic Greek
and Roman styles.
• In the 1300s, scholars began to study the
ancient Latin manuscripts that had been
preserved in the monasteries.
• With the fall of Constantinople in 1453, the Byzantine scholars fled
the city with the ancient Greek manuscripts of the Byzantine Empire
and ancient Roman Empire which scholars believed had been lost
forever.
Classical Worldly Values
Classics lead to Humanism:
– Humanists focused on human
potential and achievements.
Enjoyment of Worldly Pleasures
– The basic spirit of the Renaissance is
secular; concerned with the here and
now as opposed to a better life after
death.
Patrons of the Arts
– Popes and merchants became
supporters of the arts.
Renaissance Man
– The ideal Renaissance individual
excelled in many fields and all areas
of study.
Renaissance Revolutionizes Art
• Many Renaissance
artists developed new
techniques such as
perspective.
• Leonardo da Vinci
typified the true
Renaissance Man.
• Raphael created realistic
masterpieces.
Leonardo da Vinci
Leonardo
• Leonardo da’ Vinci was deeply interested in
how things work. He studied how muscles
move, how veins are arranged in a leaf.
• Among his most famous works are the
“Mona Lisa”, and the “Last Supper”. Only
17 of his paintings still survive.
Leonardo da Vinci’s Inventions
Michelangelo Buonarroti
• Michelangelo was a true
Renaissance Man, he
excelled at almost every area
of study. He was a painter,
sculpture, poet and architect.
• Among his most famous
works are the design of the
dome at the top of St. Peters
Basilica, his statue “David”.
and his paintings on the
ceiling of the Sistine Chapel.
The Sistine Chapel
• To paint the Sistine Chapel,
Michelangelo lay stretched
on his back on a high
scaffold.
• His working conditions
were very bad. He worked
in scorching heat in the
summer and had to work
by candlelight.
Michelangelo
Raphael
• Raphael learned his trade by
studying the works of
Michelangelo and Leonardo da’
Vinci.
• He enjoyed painting the
Madonna.
• His greatest achievements fill
the library in the Vatican.
• He died on his 37th birthday
after a short illness. All of
Rome went into mourning.
Renaissance Literature
• Renaissance writers began to develop the
techniques still used today.
– They began writing in the vernacular (local
language)
– Wrote for self-expression and portrayed the
individuality of their subjects.
Dante
• Dante began
writing his works
in Italian instead
of classical Latin.
His most famous
work is “Inferno”
which portrays a
man’s journey
through the nine
circles of Hell.
Dante’s “Inferno”
Machiavelli Advises Rulers
• Niccolò Machiavelli wrote a political
guidebook entitled “The Prince”.
• In “The Prince”, Machiavelli
examines how a ruler can gain power
and keep it.
• He believed that for a ruler to succeed
in a wicked world, a leader had to be
as strong as a lion and shrewd as a
fox.
• He was not concerned with moral
correctness, only political
effectiveness.
Women Writers
• Women writers of the
Renaissance wrote about
personal subjects, not
politics.
• Vittoria Colonna wrote
sonnets with Michelangelo
and helped to publish the
Courtier.