Italian Renaissance

Renaissance- Concept
Renaissance: This word, meaning "rebirth:' is commonly applied to the movement
or period which marks the transition from the medieval to the modern world in
Western Europe. Special students of the movement are inclined to trace the
impulse back to the earlier Renaissance of the Twelfth and Thirteenth centuries
and to date the full realization or effects of Renaissance forces as late as the
eighteenth century. In the usual sense of the word, however, Renaissance suggests
especially the fourteenth, fifteenth, sixteenth, and early seventeenth centuries, the
dates differing for different countries (the English Renaissance, for example, being
a full century behind the Italian Renaissance in its flowering). The break from
medievalism was gradual, some Renaissance attitudes going back into the heart of
the medieval period and some medieval traits persisting well into or even through
the Renaissance. Yet the fact that a break was effected is the essential thing about
the Renaissance, and the change when completed was so radical that "medieval"
on the one hand and Renaissance or "modern" on the other imply a sharp contrast.

It is best to regard the Renaissance as the result of a new emphasis upon and a new
combination of tendencies and attitudes already existing, stimulated by a series of
historical events. It resulted from new forces arising within the old order, with
attempts to effect some kind of adjustment between traditional allegiances and
modern demands. So it was an age of compromise, a chief aspect of which was a
noble but difficult and confusing endeavor to harmonize a newly interpreted
Christian tradition with an ardently admired and in part a newly discovered
tradition of pagan classical culture.

The new humanistic learning which resulted from the rediscovery of classical
literature is frequently taken as the beginning of the Renaissance on its conscious,
intellectual side, since it was to the treasures of classical culture and to the
authority of classical writers that the people of the Renaissance turned for
inspiration. Here the break with medievalism was inescapable. In medieval society,
people's interests as individuals were subordinated to their function as elements
in a social unit; medieval theology people's relationships to the world about them
were largely reduced to a problem of adapting or avoiding the circumstances of
earthly life in an effort to prepare their souls for a future life. But Renaissance
people had caught from their glimpses of classical culture a vision of human life
quite at odds with these attitudes. The Hellenistic spirit had taught them that
human beings, far from being groveling worms, were glorious creatures capable of

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individual development in the direction of perfection, and set in a world it was
theirs not to despise but to interrogate, explore, and enjoy.

The individualism implied in this view of life exerted a strong influence upon
English Renaissance life and literature, as did many other facts and forces; such as:
the Protestant Reformation, itself in part an aspect of the Renaissance in Germany;
the introduction of printing, leading to a commercial market for literature; the
great economic and political changes leading to the rise of democracy, the spirit of
nationalism, an ambitious commercialism, and opportunities for individuals to rise
above their birth economically and politically; the revitalized university life; the
courtly encouragement of literature; the new geography (discovery of America);
the new astronomy (Copernicus, Galileo); and the growing "new science" which
made human beings and nature the results of natural and demonstrable law rather
than a mysterious group of entities subject to occult powers.

The Italian Renaissance was the earliest manifestation of the general European
Renaissance, a period of great cultural change and achievement that began in Italy
during the 14th century and lasted until the 16th century, marking the transition
between Medieval and Early Modern Europe.

The term Renaissance is in essence a modern one that came into currency in the
19th century, in the work of historians such asJules Michelet and Jacob Burckhardt.
Although the origins of a movement that was confined largely to the literate
culture of intellectual endeavor and patronage can be traced to the earlier part of
the 14th century, many aspects of Italian culture and society remained largely
Medieval; the Renaissance did not come into full swing until the end of the century.
The French word renaissance (Rinascimento in Italian) means "Rebirth", and the
era is best known for the renewed interest in the culture of classical antiquity after
the period that Renaissance humanists labeled the Dark Ages.

Origins & Background

The European Renaissance began in Tuscany (Central Italy), and centered in the
cities of Florence and Siena. It later spread to Venice, where the remains of ancient
Greek culture were brought together, providing humanist scholars with new texts.
The Renaissance later had a significant effect on Rome, which was ornamented
with some structures in the new all'antico mode, then was largely rebuilt by
humanist sixteenth-century popes. The Italian Renaissance peaked in the mid-16th
century as foreign invasions plunged the region into the turmoil of the Italian
Wars. However, the ideas and ideals of the Renaissance endured and even spread
into the rest of Europe, setting off the Northern Renaissance, and the English
Renaissance.

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The Middle Ages, which lasted from the fall of Rome in the late fifth century until
the fourteenth century, are (somewhat exaggeratedly and incorrectly) often
referred to as the "Dark Ages," due to the relative lack of intellectual and economic
progress made during this long period. The Middle Ages were presided over by the
Catholic Church, which preached the denial of worldly pleasures and the
subjugation of self-expression. During the Middle Ages, European society was
defined by the system of feudalism, under which societal classes were
hierarchically divided based on their position in the prevailing agrarian economy.
This system produced a large number of scattered, self-sufficient feudal units
throughout Europe, made up of a lord and his subservient vassals. These feudal
lords were constantly in battle during the early middle ages, their armies of
peasants facing off to win land for their lords.

However, during the later Middle Ages, this situation changed greatly. The power
of the Church declined as monarchies rose up to consolidate feudal manors into
powerful city-states and nation-states that often opposed the Church in matters of
tax collection and legal jurisdiction. Along with the rise of monarchies came the
rise of the money economy. As monarchs brought peace to feudal society, feudal
lords concentrated less upon defending their lands and more upon accruing large
quantities of cash, with which they improved their style of living and dabbled in
the growing market economy. The practice of serfdom declined and former serfs
soon became tenant farmers and even landowners rather than subservient slave-
like laborers. As the trade of agricultural and manufactured goods grew in
importance, cities also became more important. Strategically located and wealthy
cities became populous and modern, and some cities even boasted factories.

Largely because of the simultaneous and related decline of the singular importance
of traditional values and the rise of the market economy, the cities of Italy gave
birth to the Renaissance. The famous Renaissance historian Jacob Burkhardt
argues in his essay, Civilization of the Renaissance in Italy, that the Renaissance
was, as an historical event, the transition from medieval times, during which the
focus of all life had been religion, to modern times, in which that focus expanded to
include learning, rationality, and realism. Whereas in the Middle Ages, religious
salvation had occupied the position of utmost importance, during the Renaissance,
humanism, stressing the need for individuals to reach their potential in this world,
rose up to accompany and rival the goal of salvation. During the Renaissance,
changes also occurred in the political and economic structure of Italy that
foreshadowed larger transformations for all of Europe. The Renaissance saw the
rise of strong central governments and an increasingly urban economy, based on
commerce rather than agriculture.

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The results of the Italian Renaissance were far reaching both in temporal and
geographical terms. Though the spirit of the Renaissance in Italy was crushed in
the mid-sixteenth century, the ideas and ideals of Renaissance thinkers maintained
their vibrancy, traveling over the alps to northern Europe where, following Italy's
lead, learning, writing, and the arts experienced a great revival in support and
importance. The works of art and literature produced in Italy between 1350 and
1550 had a profound impact on the development of Europe during the next
centuries, and continue to be considered some of the greatest contributions to
society ever produced. The sheer volume of work produced ensures the period a
prominent place in history books and museums, but the volume is far surpassed by
the talent and splendor with which the artists and writers, funded by generous
leaders, created their masterpieces.

Italy’s Advantages
Prosperous cities
A wealthy merchant class
The classical heritage of Greece and Rome

The Renaissance eventually spread from northern Italy to the rest of Europe. Italy
had three advantages that made it the birthplace of the Renaissance: thriving cities,
a wealthy merchant class, and the classical heritage of Greece and Rome.

City-States Overseas trade, spurred by the Crusades, had led to the growth of large
city-states in northern Italy. The region also had many sizable towns. Thus,
northern Italy was urban while the rest of Europe was still mostly rural. Since
cities are often places where people exchange ideas, they were an ideal breeding
ground for an intellectual revolution. In the 1300s, the bubonic plague struck these
cities hard, killing up to 60 percent of the population. This brought economic
changes. Because there were fewer laborers, survivors could demand higher
wages. With few opportunities to expand business, merchants began to pursue
other interests, such as art.

Merchants and the Medici A wealthy merchant class developed in each Italian city-
state. Because city-states like Milan and Florence were relatively small, a high
percentage of citizens could be intensely involved in political life. Merchants
dominated politics. Unlike nobles, merchants did not inherit social rank. To
succeed in business, they used their wits. As a result, many successful merchants
believed they deserved power and wealth because of their individual merit. This
belief in individual achievement became important during the Renaissance. Since
the late 1200s, the city-state of Florence had a republican form of government. But
during the Renaissance, Florence came under the rule of one powerful banking
family, the Medici (MEHD•ih•chee). The Medici family bank had branch offices

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throughout Italy and in the major cities of Europe. Cosimo de Medici was the
wealthiest European of his time. In 1434, he won control of Florence’s government.
He did not seek political office for himself, but influenced members of the ruling
council by giving them loans. For 30 years, he was dictator of Florence. Cosimo de
Medici died in 1464, but his family continued to control Florence. His grandson,
Lorenzo de Medici, came to power in 1469. Known as Lorenzo the Magnificent, he
ruled as a dictator yet kept up the appearance of having an elected government.

Looking to Greece and Rome Renaissance scholars looked down on the art and
literature of the Middle Ages. Instead, they wanted to return to the learning of the
Greeks and Romans. They achieved this in several ways. First, the artists and
scholars of Italy drew inspiration from the ruins of Rome that surrounded them.
Second, Western scholars studied ancient Latin manuscripts that had been
preserved in monasteries. Third, Christian scholars in Constantinople fled to Rome
with Greek manuscripts when the Turks conquered Constantinople in 1453.

City States- The importance of Trade and commerce

The Renaissance began in northern and central Italy. Part of it was because
of the prosperity of Italian city-states. In Italy, growing towns demanded
self-rule and developed into city-states. Each city consisted of a powerful
city and the surrounding towns and countryside. Italian city-states
conducted their own trade, collected their own taxes, and made their own
laws. Some city-states, such as Florence, were governed by an elected
council. During the Renaissance groups of guild members, called
boards, often ruled Italian city-states. Some wealthy families gained long-
term control; city-states were ruled by a single family, such as the Medicis.
Trade made the Italian city-states wealthy. Italy's location on the central
Mediterranean placed its cities in the middle of the trade routes. People
from all over Europe came to northern Italy to buy, sell, and do their
banking. Many city-states developed specializations. For example, Milan
produced metal goods and armor. Genoa was a trading center for ivory and
gold. Venice had hundreds of ships that controlled the trade routes in the
Mediterranean sea, and silk, spices, and perfume flowed into Venice.
The wealth of many city-states encouraged art and learning. Rich families
paid for statues, paintings, beautiful buildings, and avenues to be
created. They built centers of learning and hospitals. Renaissance ideas
spread to the rest of Europe from the city-states of Italy.
Trade brought many new ideas and goods to Europe. A bustling economy
created prosperous cities and new classes of people who had enough
money to support art and learning. Italian city-states like Venice and Genoa
were located on the trade routes that linked the rest of western Europe

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 with the East. Both these city-states became bustling trading
centers. Trading ships brought goods to England, Scandinavia, and present-
day Russia. Towns along trading routes provided inns and other services
for traveling merchants.
The increase of trade led to a new kind of economy. During the middle ages
people traded goods for other goods. During the Renaissance people began
using coins to buy goods which created a money economy. Moneychangers
were needed to covert one type of currency into another. Therefore, many
craftspeople, merchants, and bankers became more important in
society. Crafts people produced goods that merchants traded all over
Europe. Bankers exchanged currency, loaned money, and financed their
own business.
Some merchants and bankers grew very rich. They could afford to help
make their cities more beautiful. Many became patrons and provided new
buildings and art; they helped found universities. This led many city-states
to become a flourishing educational and cultural center.

Society, Politics and Religion/ Outstanding Figures

Society and politics

Northern Italy was urban and commercial while Southern Italy mostly was
not
Very family-oriented society
Marriages were frequently arranged to strengthen business ties
Father’s authority over his family
Some wealthy women played an important role in Italian city-states
Concentration of wealth among great families
Extreme social stratification divided into factions around the wealthiest
families

Religion
The basic spirit of Renaissance society was secular.
Humanists suggested that a person might enjoy life without offending God.
Papacy :
Loss of influence over European nation-states
Decline in moral prestige and leadership
Popes as patrons of Renaissance art

The already corrupt Papacy reached perhaps its ultimate depths during the reign
of Rodrigo Borgia, who was elected to the papacy in 1492 after the death of the
generally unnoteworthy Innocent VIII, and who assumed the name Pope Alexander

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VI. Borgia, a Spaniard, had been at the center of Vatican affairs for 30 years as a
Cardinal. When he became pope, myth and legend quickly rose up around his
family. Alexander VI had four acknowledged children, three males and one female.
Alexander VI was himself known as a corrupt pope bent on his family's political
and material success, to an even greater extent than Sixtus IV had been. It was no
secret that Alexander VI's oldest son Cesare, was a murderer, and had killed many
of his political opponents. Lucrezia Borgia, Alexander VI's daughter, was married
three times in the pope's efforts to create beneficial alliances. Under Alexander VI,
the Papacy continued to grow politically and economically strong, but the means
by which it grew were much questioned throughout Italy.

Alexander VI died in 1503, and was succeeded by Pope Julius II. Under Julius II,
both the city of Rome and the Papacy entered a Golden Age. Julius II continued the
consolidation of power in the Papal States, encouraged the devotion to learning
and writing in Rome begun by Pope Nicholas V, and, foremost, continued the
process of rebuilding Rome physically. The most prominent project among many
was the rebuilding of St. Peter's basilica, one of the most sacred buildings in
Christianity. The creation of a new St. Peter's, and indeed a new Rome, taxed the
city. Ancient structures were demolished to make room and building materials for
the new buildings of the city.

Artists flocked to Rome during the fifteenth and sixteenth centuries to study the
ruins and contribute to the new structures of Rome, striving to connect the new
with the style of the ancient. Many took architectural ideas gleaned from the study
of ancient Rome to the cities of the North, and Florence, Milan, and Venice soon
showed the signs of Roman influence.

Rome received its final push to renaissance glory from Pope Leo X, second son of
Lorenzo de Medici. He came to the papal throne in 1513, following Julius II. He was
at ease in social situations, a skilled diplomat, demonstrated great skill as an
administrator, and was an intelligent and beneficent patron of the arts. He
encouraged scholarly learning, and supported the theatre, an art form considered
to be of ambiguous morality until that time. Most prominently, he supported the
visual arts of painting and sculpture. He is well known for his patronage of
Raphael, whose paintings played a large role in the redecoration of the Vatican.
Under Leo X, the ruins of Rome began to be more effectively preserved, and
metaphorically, so did the morality of the Papacy. When he died in 1521, Rome's
Golden Age effectively ended, and the Renaissance as a whole began to fade.

The Arts in the Renaissance

Art became the way to advertise economic success

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 Supported by patrons of the arts, many artists worked in northern Italy. As
the Renaissance developed, artistic styles changed.

Church leaders, merchants and wealthy families spent huge amounts of

money for art  patron of the arts.

To Glorify God

To Exalt the City

To Exalt the Family

Literature, Philosophy and Education

Renaissance writers produced works that reflected their time, but they also used
techniques that writers rely on today. Some followed the example of the medieval
writer Dante. He wrote in the vernacular, his native language, instead of Latin.
Dante’s native language was Italian. In addition, Renaissance writers wrote either
for self-expression or to portray the individuality of their subjects. In these ways,
writers of the Renaissance began trends that modern writers still follow. Petrarch
and Boccaccio Francesco Petrarch (PEE•trahrk) was one of the earliest and most
influential humanists. Some have called him the father of Renaissance humanism.
He was also a great poet. Petrarch wrote both in Italian and in Latin. In Italian, he
wrote sonnets—14-line poems. They were about a mysterious woman named
Laura, who was his ideal. (Little is known of Laura except that she died of the
plague in 1348.) In classical Latin, he wrote letters to many important friends. The
Italian writer Boccaccio (boh•KAH•chee•oh) is best known for the Decameron, a
series of realistic, sometimes off-color stories. The stories are supposedly told by a
group of worldly young people waiting in a rural villa to avoid the plague sweeping
through Florence.

The Decameron presents both tragic and comic views of life. In its stories, the
author uses cutting humor to illustrate the human condition. Boccaccio presents
his characters in all their individuality and all their folly. Machiavelli Advises
Rulers The Prince (1513), by Niccolò Machiavelli (MAK•ee• uh•VEHL•ee), also
examines the imperfect conduct of human beings. It does so by taking the form of a
political guidebook. In The Prince, Machiavelli examines how a ruler can gain
power and keep it in spite of his enemies. In answering this question, he began
with the idea that most people are selfish, fickle, and corrupt. To succeed in such a
wicked world, Machiavelli said, a prince must be strong as a lion and shrewd as a
fox. He might have to trick his enemies and even his own people for the good of the
state. In The Prince, Machiavelli was not concerned with what was morally right,
but with what was politically effective. He pointed out that most people think it is
praiseworthy in a prince to keep his word and live with integrity. Nevertheless,

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Machiavelli argued that in the real world of power and politics a prince must
sometimes mislead the people and lie to his opponents. As a historian and political
thinker, Machiavelli suggested that in order for a prince to accomplish great things,
he must be crafty enough to not only overcome the suspicions but also gain the
trust of others.

Vittoria Colonna The women writers who gained fame during the Renaissance
usually wrote about personal subjects, not politics. Yet, some of them had great
influence. Vittoria Colonna (1492–1547) was born of a noble family. In 1509, she
married the Marquis of Pescara. He spent most of his life away from home on
military campaigns. Vittoria Colonna exchanged sonnets with Michelangelo and
helped Castiglione publish The Courtier. Her own poems express personal
emotions. When her husband was away at the Battle of Ravenna in 1512, she wrote
to him.

The humanist emphasis on classical Latin led to its widespread use in the
Renaissance. However, some writers used the vernacular (language used in
their own regions) to write their works.
In the 14th century the works of Dante and Geoffrey Chaucer helped make
vernacular languages more popular.
Petrarch
Boccaccio  the Decameron
Dante  the Divine Comedy
Chaucer  The Canterbury Tales
Rabelais  Pantagruel and Gargantua
Machiavelli  The Prince

Education produces moral uplift

Liberal education

Humanist education for women

Love for the study of history

Focus on the individual and his dignity

Renaissance education

Classical political ideals were cultivated

Knowledge needed to be useful

Music

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 Music was an essential part of civic, religious, and courtly life in the
Renaissance. The rich interchange of ideas in Europe, as well as political,
economic, and religious events in the period 1400–1600 led to major
changes in styles of composing, methods of disseminating music, new
musical genres, and the development of musical instruments. The most
important music of the early Renaissance was composed for use by the
church—polyphonic (made up of several simultaneous melodies) masses
and motets in Latin for important churches and court chapels. By the end of
the sixteenth century, however, patronage was split among many areas: the
Catholic Church, Protestant churches and courts, wealthy amateurs, and
music printing—all were sources of income for composers.

There are two main types of Renaissance music: church music, or ‘sacred’
music, and non-church or secular music. (There was folk music too, but that
was for ‘common’ people, so no one wrote it down.)

Architecture, Sculpture and painting

The proliferation of portraiture and its significance
The depiction of nudes
Realistic paintings and sculptures
Pagan scenes and myths were popular subjects
Renaissance art stressed proportion, balance and harmony
Mathematical side of painting: Perspective
Use of oil-based paintings instead of
Romanesque and Greek architecture was revived

Science
According to some recent scholarship, the 'father of modern science'
is Leonardo da Vinci whose experiments and clear scientific method earn him
this title, Italian universities such as Padua, Bologna and Pisa were scientific
centres of renown and with many northern European students, the science of
the Renaissance moved to Northern Europe and flourished there, with such
figures as Copernicus, Francis Bacon, and Descartes. Galileo, a contemporary of
Bacon and Descartes, made an immense contribution to scientific thought and
experimentation, paving the way for the scientific revolution that later
flourished in Northern Europe. Bodies were also stolen from gallows and
examined by many like Vesalius, a professor of anatomy. This allowed them to
create accurate skeleton models and correct previously believed theories. For
example many thought that the human jawbone was made up of two bones, as
they had seen this on animals. However through examining human corpses
they were able to understand that humans actually only have one.

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http://www.soundjunction.org/renaissancemusic.aspa

http://theitalianrenaissance-byhelenlo.weebly.com/italian-city-states.html

http://www.metmuseum.org/toah/hd/renm/hd_renm.htm

http://jmcentarfer.tripod.com/ch17_1.pdf

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