Transcript Chapter 17 Sec. 1 Notes: The Renaissance Begins

Chapter 17 Sec. 1 Notes:
The Renaissance Begins
I.
The Italian Renaissance (pg. 609-610)
A. Renaissance- rebirth. The Renaissance in
Europe- a rebirth of interest in art and learning- occurred
between 1350-1550.
B. During this time Europeans believed that people
could change the world and make it better. Although still
religious, they celebrated human achievements and
became more secular-more interested in the world than
in religion.
C. The Renaissance began in Italy, since it was the
center of the Roman Empire. Italy became very wealthy
and could afford to pay artists to create art. Since Italy
was divided into city-states, individuals wanted works to
be created that would bring fame to its cities.
D. Two important city-states- Florence & Venice.
II. The Rise of Italy’s City
States (pg. 611-613)
A. Much like all of Europe, no one ruler could unite all of
Italy. 1.)This happened because the Catholic Church did
not want a powerful ruler to control the pope and the
Church. 2.) And small city-states were equally powerful and
wealthy.
B. Italy was a perfect location for trade. They often traded
with the French, Spanish, Dutch, English, Turks, Arabs, and
Byzantines.
C. The Mongols helped promote trade in Italy by
protecting the Silk Road. Marco Polo, a merchant from
Venice, published a book about his travels to the East.
D. From Florence, bankers became experts in lending
money. The wealthiest Florentine family, the Medici, were
great bankers.
E. Venice, the wealthiest city-state, was built on swampy
islands. The Venetians navigated their city-state by boat and
would become great sailors and shipbuilders
III. The Urban Noble
A. Nobles moved into cities and mixed with the wealthy
merchants. Wealthy merchants copied the nobles’ manners,
and soon the children of the merchants and nobles were
marrying each other. These families became the urban
upper class.
B. At first, the city-states were republics. Gradually the citystates gave power to one man to run the government. In
Venice, the doge had power and eventually became a group
of nobles. In Florence, the Medici family gained power and
ruled for many years.
C. To deal with other city-states, Italian rulers developed
diplomacy- the art of negotiating or making deals.
D. Niccolo Machiavelli, a diplomat in Florence, thought
people were too greedy and self-centered. He wrote a famous
book called The Prince in 1513. He thought rulers should
not try to be good, but should do whatever is necessary to
keep power and protect a city.