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The Renaissance
Beginning of the Modern World
The World Before 1500 AD
Major Trade Routes
• Silk Road
– (China’s Pacific coast to Mediterranean Sea)
• Arabs controlled most overland routes
– (ex. Saharan Routes)
• Hanseatic League
– controlled Northern Europe’s coast and Black Sea
• Italians (Genoans and Venetians)
– controlled the Mediterranean Sea Routes
• Sea routes to Asia and India
– were made around African coast
Silk Road
China => Northern India => Middle East =>
Constantinople => into Europe (Italy)
What Trade Helped to Accomplish
• Why is it important to study trade?
– Exchange of products, ideas, technology, and
scientific advancements
• India (Sea Route around Africa)
– Medicines, textiles
• Middle East (Arab-Saharan Route)
– Numerical system, astronomy, mathematics
• China (Silk Road)
– Paper, compass, silk, and porcelain
Start of Renaissance
• In Italy, writers and artists began to express
this new spirit and to experiment with
different styles, greatly changing how
Europeans saw themselves and their world.
• This movement that started in Italy caused an
explosion of creativity in art, writing, and
thought that lasted approximately from 1300
to 1600. Historians call this period the
Renaissance (REHN-ih-SAHNS).
The Renaissance (Revival of Curiosity
about the world)
What was it?
• Renaissance means “REBIRTH” in French
• Considered the birth of the modern world
• Revival of Classical knowledge, culture and art
– Greek and Roman culture and art
– Seen in artwork, literature, and philosophy of
Europeans
When was it?
– Lasted from 1300–1600 AD
Starts in Italian City-States
Where did it start?
• Started in northern Italy
(Important cities – Genoa,
Florence, and Venice)
– Italy was not a united
country (group of
independent city-states)
– Most cities had experienced
a stimulation in trade
• Due to the Crusades
– Eventually will move north into
the rest of Europe
How and why did it start??
• Why Italy?
– Central location on the Mediterranean Sea
– Access to trade routes from Middle East and
Byzantine Empire
• Helped Italian City-States accumulate wealth
• Italian City-States are located between Northern Europe
and the Middle East
– Crusades help to stimulate trade
• New products brought in from the Middle East
– Stimulates trade between Middle East and Europe
Italy’s Advantages
• Merchants and the Medici
– A wealthy merchant class develops
– More emphasis on individual achievement
– Banking family, the Medici, controls Florence
• Looking to Greece and Rome
– Artists and scholars study ruins of Rome, and
study Latin and Greek manuscripts
– Scholars move to Rome after the fall of
Constantinople in 1453.
More Reasons the Renaissance Began
• New Banking Practices established
– Most major Italian City-States are republics
– Increase in trade creates the need for new business
practices
• Credit is established
• Banks start to charge interest on money they had loaned
(Usury)
– Church has rules against it
– Italian bankers ignore it and it increases secularism
» Secularism = Moving away from church influencing life
• Introduction Arabic numerals (Makes it easier to keep
records of money)
Who supported it? (Who paid these
artists?)
• Wealthy Italians
support new artistic
movement that was
going on
– Called “Patrons”
• Ex – Lorenzo de Medici
and his family (the
Medici family)
– Pay for new pieces of
artwork to be created
– Supported the arts
(much like charity)
• Why? Help to improve
society and their legacy
Classical and Worldly Values
• Patrons of the Arts
– Patron—a financial supporter
of artists
– Church leaders spend money
on artworks to beautify cities
– Wealthy merchants also
patrons of the arts
• The Renaissance Man
– Excels in many fields: the
classics, art, politics, and
combat
– Baldassare Castiglione’s
(pictured right)The Courtier
(1528) teaches how to
become a “universal” person
Classical and Worldly Values
• The Renaissance
Woman
– Upper-class, educated in
classics, charming
– Expected to inspire art
but not create it
– Isabella d’Este, patron of
the artists, wields power
in Mantua
Movements born out the Renaissance
Humanism: (Seen in the writing and literature)
• Most important movement during the Renaissance
– Focused on the classics (Greek and Roman) literature and
culture
• Believed that by studying the classics one could live a moral and
fulfilling life
– Celebrated the individual and one’s ability to determine
right over wrong
– Humanist scholars and writers started raiding any work
they could find in Latin that was from the Ancient Roman
Empire
• Conflict for many Italian Humanist who were still Catholics
– many still committed to religious beliefs
– Created personal conflict and tension with church
Classical and Worldly Values
• Classics Lead to Humanism
– Humanism—intellectual movement focused on
human achievements
– Humanists studied classical texts, history,
literature, and philosophy
• Worldly Pleasures
– Renaissance society was secular—worldly (moving
away from church influence)
– Wealthy enjoyed fine food, homes, and clothes
Who and What spread these writings?
• Johannes Gutenberg invents the Printing Press – in 1440 (could make
books quickly)
• Remember that in the middle ages Monks in monasteries had to
copy books by hand 
– Now books could not be burned or destroyed if the church or kings did not like
them or want them around!!!
– We will examine this more closely near the end of the unit
Artwork during the Renaissance
• New Artwork in Italy
– Different from Medieval Art
• Medieval Art: (Looks bland)
– Flat (did not look like real)
» Disproportionate sizes on people and figures
– All religious topics (mostly salvation)
• New Renaissance Art: (Vibrant and bright colors – looks
exciting)
–
–
–
–
–
Focused more on individuals
More secular topics/more worldly subject matters
Use of perspective (adds depth to paintings)
More realistic portrayal of human body
Still has a focus on Christianity (just the not only focus)
The Renaissance Revolutionizes Art
Renaissance Revolutionizes Art
• Leonardo Da Vinci
(1452-1519)
• True Renaissance Man
• Scientist, inventor,
engineer and naturalist
• Dissected Corpses
• Short attention span
• The Vitruvian Man
Studies of a fetus from Leonardo's
journals
Leonardo’s Work: Science & Medicine
Investigating the motion of the
arm
Organs of a Woman’s Body
The Renaissance Revolutionizes Art
• Leonardo, Renaissance
Man
– Leonardo da Vinci—
painter, sculptor,
inventor, scientist
– Paints one of the bestknown portraits in the
world: the Mona Lisa
– Famous religious
painting: The Last
Supper
Writers and Painters
• Examples of Renaissance Art Work
• Leonardo da Vinci’s – “Last Supper”
(Fresco = painted on wall)
Mona Lisa =>Oil on Canvas
Michelangelo
• Michelangelo
• Neo-Platonist
• Ceiling of the Sistine
Chapel
• Conflict with Pope Julius
II
• Incredible energy and
endurance
• “Mannerism”
Another Example (Michelangelo)
“DAVID” – biblical figure
• Marble Sculpture
“Sistine Chapel” – In the Vatican
• Pope commissioned
Michelangelo to paint a
giant fresco on the walls of
this chapel in the Vatican
(head church in Rome)
The Creation of Adam by Michelangelo,
found of the ceiling of the Sistine Chapel
Michelangelo’s
The Last
Judgment in
the Sistine
Chapel
The Renaissance Revolutionizes Art
• Raphael Advances
Realism
– Raphael Sanzio, famous
for his use of perspective
– Favorite subject: the
Madonna and child
– Famous painting: School
of Athens
School of Athens by Raphael
Renaissance Revolutionizes Art
• How did the methods and subjects in art
change?
• Painting became more realistic as a result of
the use of perspective; its subject changed to
go beyond only the religious.
Renaissance Writers Change Literature
• Renaissance writers also achieved greatness.
Several wrote in the vernacular. This means
they wrote in their native languages. It was a
change from the Middle Ages, when most
writing was done in Latin.
• Writers also changed their subject matter.
They began to express their own thought and
feelings. Sometimes they gave a detailed look
at an individual.
Renaissance Writers
• Dante and others wrote poetry, letters, and
stories that were more realistic.
• Niccoló Machiavelli took a new approach to
understanding government. He focused on
telling rulers how to expand their power. He
believed rulers should do what was politically
effective, even it if was not morally right.
• Renaissance writers wrote about their own
thoughts and feelings; they also took a more
detailed look at the individual.
Three Geniuses of The Italian
Renaissance
Leonardo
Michelangelo
Masterpieces include
Mona Lisa and The
Last Supper
Talented sculptor,
engineer, painter,
architect, and poet
Studied botany,
anatomy, optics,
music architecture,
and engineering
Made sketches for
flying machines and
undersea boats
Sculpted the Pieta
and statue of David
Painted huge mural
to decorate the
ceiling of the Sistine
Chapel in Rome
Petrarch
Humanist and poet
Wrote sonnets in
Italian and Latin –
14-line poems
Contributions of the Renaissance
• Accomplishments in the visual arts:
Michelangelo, Leonardo da Vinci.
• Accomplishments in literature (sonnets, plays,
essays): Shakespeare
• Accomplishments in intellectual ideas
(humanism): Erasmus
Northern Writers Try to Reform
Society; The Elizabethan Age
• Writers of the northern Renaissance
combined humanism with a deep Christian
faith.
• They urged reforms in the Church. They tried
to make people more devoted to God. They
also wanted society to be more fair.
• In England, Thomas More wrote a book about
Utopia, an imaginary ideal society where
greed, war, and conflict do not exist.
Spread of Humanism to the Rest of
Europe
• Popular publications in
the early days of the
printing press
• Thomas More
--Utopia
--Executed by Henry VIII
in 1535
• Erasmus—Dutch
Christian Humanist
What did northern writers write?
• William Shakespeare is often called the
greatest playwright of all time.
• His plays showed a brilliant command of the
English language.
• They also show a deep understanding of
people and how they interact with one
another.
Spread of Humanism to the Rest of
Europe (cont)
• William Shakespeare (15641616)
--Globe Theater
• Shakespeare returns to
classical subjects and genres
• His history plays were the
most popular at the time
• Macbeth: ambition
• Hamlet: individualism
• Keen sensitivity to sounds
and meanings of words
Machiavelli’s – The Prince
•
•
•
•
An early modern treatise on government
Supported absolute power of the ruler
Maintains that the end justifies the means
Advises that one should do good if possible,
but do evil when necessary
Machiavelli
• Niccolo Machiavelli (14691527)
-- “The Prince” examines how
rulers can gain and keep power
• The goal of the prince must be
power
• Cynical view of human nature
• Fear is a better motivator than
affection
• Politics as the art of deception
Printing Spreads Renaissance Ideas;
The Legacy of the Renaissance
• One reason that learning spread so rapidly
during the Renaissance was the invention of
movable type. (printing press)
• The Chinese had invented the process of
carving characters onto wooden blocks. They
then arranged them in words, inked the
blocks, and pressed them against paper to
print pages.
Gutenberg
• The significance of Gutenberg’s
printing press
• Explosion of printed materials
--By 1500, 40,000 titles printed
and between 8-10 million
copies
• The impact of movable-type
printing presses: research and
literacy
• Helped spread ideas before
Catholics could stop them
Northern Renaissance
• Growing wealth in Northern Europe Supported
Renaissance ideas
• Thinkers merged humanist ideas with Christianity
• The movable type printing press and the
production and sale of books (Gutenberg Bible)
helped disseminate ideas.
• Northern Renaissance writers – Erasmus – The
Praise of Folly (1511) – Sir Thomas More –
Utopia (1516)
The Printing Revolution
• A printing revolution took place when: In 1456,
Johann Gutenberg printed the Bible using the first
printing press and printing inks.
• Impact:
• Printed books were cheaper and easier to
produce.
• With books more readily available, more people
learned to read. (vernacular)
• Readers gained access to a broad range of
knowledge and ideas.
Printing Spreads Renaissance Ideas
• Printing made it easier to make many copies
of a book. As a result, written works became
available far and wide.
• Books were printed in English, French,
Spanish, Italian, or German. More people
began to read. The Bible was a popular book.
• After reading the Bible, some people formed
new ideas about Christianity. These ideas
were different from the official teachings of
the Church.
Role of the Printing Press
• Growth of literacy was stimulated by the
Gutenberg printing press.
• The Bible was printed in English, French, and
German.
• These factors had a important impact on
spreading the ideas of the Reformation and
the Renaissance.
Printing Spreads Renaissance Ideas
• The Renaissance prompted changes in both
art and society. Artists and writers portrayed
people in more realistic ways and celebrated
individual achievement.
• In a larger sense, the Renaissance opened up a
world of new ideas to people and led them to
examine and question things more closely.
The Legacy of the Renaissance
• What effects did the printing press have on
northern European life?
• People read more (literacy expanded). They
also began to read the Bible on their own
(printed in different languages), which led to
their forming their own ideas about
Christianity. Made the spread of the
Renaissance and Reformation faster and
easier.
Changing cultural values, traditions,
and philosophies
• Growth of secularism
• Growth of individualism
• Eventual growth of religious tolerance