Download European Renaissance and Reformation, 1300-1600

European Renaissance and
Reformation, 1300-1600
TWO MOVEMENTS, THE
RENAISSANCE AND THE
REFORMATION, USHER IN
DRAMATIC SOCIAL AND
CULTURAL CHANGES IN EUROPE
Italy: Birthplace of the
Renaissance
What was the Renaissance?
 Period following the
middle ages (14501550)
 “Rebirth” of classical
Greece and Rome
 Began in Italy
 Moved to northern
Europe
Objectives
 During the middle ages
 Find God
 Prove pre-conceived ideas
 During the Renaissance
 Find man
 Promote learning
"The Renaissance gave birth to the modern
era, in that it was in this era that human
beings first began to think of themselves as
individuals. In the early Middle Ages, people
had been happy to see themselves simply as
parts of a greater whole – for example, as
members of a great family, trade guild,
nation, or Church. This communal
consciousness of the Middle Ages gradually
gave way to the individual consciousness of
the Renaissance."
– McGrath, Alister, In the Beginning, Anchor Books (2001), p.38
.
What was Europe like during the late Middle Ages?
 Europe suffered from war
and the plague
 People began to question
the Church
 People wanted to
celebrate life and the
human spirit
 What was society based on in the Middle Ages?
 Piety
 Church
 Fear
 Simplicity
 Etc.
The world shifts back to Classical Knowledge
 Classics Lead to
Humanism
 Humanism--intellectual
movement focused on
human achievements
 Humanists studied
classical texts, history,
literature, philosophy

More portraits were being
painted
Causes of the Renaissance
 Lessening of feudalism
 Church disrespected
 Nobility in chaos
 Growth of Middle Class through trade
 Fall of Constantinople
 Greek scholars fled to Italy

Bring with them Ancient Greek Classics
 Education
 Guilds and merchants encouraged to be better
trained and educated
 Nostalgia among the Italians to recapture
the glory of the Roman empire
The Renaissance
 Renaissance (rebirth)-an
explosion of creativity in
art, writing, and thought.
 1300-1600
 Why Italy?
 1. Thriving cities
 2. A wealthy
Merchant Class
 3. Classical heritage
of Greece and Rome
Italian Background
 Major city centers
 Venice: Republic
ruled by oligarchy,
Byzantine origins
 Milan: Visconti and
Sforza families
 Florence (Tuscany):
Republic ruled by the
Medici
 Papal States: Ruled
by the Pope
 Kingdom of Naples:
King of Aragon
1. City-States
 Crusades spur trade
 Growth of large city-states
in northern Italy
 Cities=places where
people exchange ideas
 With few opportunities to
expand business,
merchants began to
pursue other interests,
such as art
 How did the cities of Italy help create the
Renaissance?


City life included wealth, leisure time, and exchange of ideas
No nobles to control the wealth




Merchants believed success was personal, not a birthright
Trade brought new ideas
Educated Greeks fled to Italy when Muslims conquered
Byzantine Empire
Cities began to compete with each other to see who could
attract the most artists
2. A Wealthy Merchant Class
 Merchants
More emphasis on
individual achievement
 Desired leisure activities
and pursued the arts
(they could afford it)
 Dominated politics

3. Inspiration from Greece and Rome
 Middle Ages art and
architecture = boring
 Artists, scholars study the
classics - Greeks and
Romans (monasteries kept
documents intact)
 Christian scholars move to
Rome after fall of
Constantinople in 1453 and
brought Greek manuscripts
with them
 How did study of the classics influence branches of
learning such as history, literature, and philosophy?

Study of classical texts led to a different outlook on life

one emphasizing human potential and achievements.
The Good Stuff
 Renaissance society was
secular—worldly (less
focused on church ideas)
 Wealthy enjoyed fine
food, homes, clothes, and
entertainment
 Belief that you can enjoy
life without offending God
Patrons help spread the arts
 Patron (a financial supporter of artists) would employ
artists, giving them the financial ability to keep producing
art
 Church leaders and wealthy merchants would spend money
on artworks to beautify cities and cathedrals
Revolution in Art
 Artists use realistic
style copied from
classical art

Portraits of
Individuals
 Painters use
perspective-a way to
show three
dimensions on a
canvas
Realistic Painting and Sculpture
 Realistic portraits of prominent citizens
 Sculpture shows natural postures and expressions
 The Biblical David is a favorite subject among sculptors
Artists Strive to be Renaissance Men
 Baldassre Castiglione’s
The Courtier (1528)
(Should be charming,
witty, well educated in the
classics; should dance,
sing, play music, and
write poetry; should be a
skilled rider, wrestler, and
swordsman)
 The book teaches how to
become a “universal”
person

Excels in many fields: the
classics, art, politics, combat
Donatello’s (1386-1466) David
East Door of the Baptistery in Florence
 Created by Lorenzo
Ghiberti’s
 Michelangelo called it the
“Gate of Paradise”
 Ghiberti worked on it for
27 years from 1425-1452
 10 panels in bronze
showing stories from
the Old Testament
East Door of the Baptistery in Florence
Leonardo Da Vinci
 1452-1519
 Painter, sculptor,
inventor, scientist
 Read his writings by
looking at them in a
mirror
Mona Lisa in the Louvre in Paris
 It is thought to be a portrait of
Lisa Gherardini, who at 16
married Francesco del
Giocondo, a wealthy merchant
of Florence who commissioned
the portrait.
 Notice the smile, the shadows,
and the hands
 Why is it famous??
Leonardo
Leonardo--sketches
The Last Supper (Milan)
Michelangelo Buonarroti
 1475-1564
 Renaissance man also
 Painter, sculptor,
architect, and poet
Statue of David in Florence, Italy
 Sculpted from 1501-1504
 18 feet tall
Michelangelo’s Pieta
Michelangelo’s Moses
Michelangelo’s Dome of St. Peter’s in Rome
The Sistine Chapel
Michelangelo’s Last Judgment in Sistine Chapel
Raphael
 1483 - 1520
 Younger than
Leonardo and
Michelangelo
 Learned by studying
their works
 Self portrait at right
Raphael
 One of Raphael’s
favorite subjects was
the Madonna and
child.
Sandro Botticelli
 Self portrait and The Birth of Venus
Anguuissola and Gentileschi
 Sofonisba Anguissola:
first woman artist to gain
world renown (self
portrait at right)
 Artemisia Gentileschi
paints strong, heroic
women (self portrait
below)
Changes in Literature
 New Trends in Writing


Writers use vernacularlocal language
Self-expression or to
portray individuality of
their subjects
Niccolo Machiavelli
 The Prince – political
guidebook
 Examines how rulers can
gain and keep power
 To succeed a prince must
be strong as a lion and
shrewd as a fox.
 The word Machiavellian
describes any crafty or
deceitful action used for
one’s own advantage.