What was the Renaissance

1. What was the Renaissance Overview

2. Renaissance Overview • Renaissance thinkers explored the human experience in the here and now. They emphasized individual achievement. • The Renaissance ideal was the person with talent in many fields. • At the heart of the Italian renaissance was an intellectual movement known as humanism. • Humanism was based on the study of classical culture and focused onb worldly subjects rather than on religious issues.

3. Why did the Renaissance Begin in Italy? • Florence, Venice, and Genoa had access to trade routes connecting Europe with Middle Eastern markets • Served as trading centers for the distribution of goods to northern Europe • Were initially independent city-states governed as republics

4. Three Geniuses of The Italian Renaissance Leonardo Michelangelo Petrarch Masterpieces include Mona Lisa and The Last Supper Studied botany, anatomy, optics, music architecture, and engineering Made sketches for flying machines and undersea boats Talented sculptor, engineer, painter, architect, and poet Sculpted the Pieta and statue of David Painted huge mural to decorate the ceiling of the Sistine Chapel in Rome Wrote sonnets in Italian and Latin – 14-line poems

5. Renaissance Artists and Writers Explored New Themes and Techniques Writers Architects Painters Developed realistic Style Learned rules of perspective Used shading to make objects look round and real Studied human anatomy Used live models Wrote self-help books to help ambitious men and women rise in the Renaissance world Rejected Gothic style Adopted columns, domes, and arches that had been favored by the Greeks and Romans

6. 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

7. 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)

8. 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.

9. Conflicts that challenged the authority of the Church in Rome • Merchant wealth challenged the Church’s view of usury • German and English nobility disliked Italian domination of the Church • The Church’s great political power and wealth caused conflict. • Church corruption and the sale of indulgences were widespread and caused conflict.

10. Martin Luther (the Lutheran tradition) • Views: Salvation by faith alone, Bible as the ultimate authority, all humans equal before God • Actions: 95 theses, birth of the Protestant Church • Criticized the selling of indulgences

11. John Calvin (the Calvinist tradition) • Views: Predestination, faith revealed by living a righteous life, work ethic • Actions: Expansion of the Protestant Movement

12. King Henry VIII • Views: Dismissed the authority of the Pope in Rome (was not given an annulment) • Actions: Divorced ; broke with Rome; headed the national church in England; appropriated lands and wealth of the Roman Catholic Church in England

13. Queen Elizabeth I • Anglican Church • Tolerance for dissenters • Expansion and colonialism • Victory over the Spanish Armada (1588)

14. Reformation in Germany • Princes in Northern Germany converted to Protestantism, ending the authority of the Pope in their states. • The Hapsburg family and the authority of the Holy Roman Empire continued to support the Roman Catholic Church • Conflict between Protestants and Catholics resulted in devastating wars (e.g., 30 yrs. War)

15. Reformation in France • Catholic monarchy granted Protestant Huguenots freedom of worship by the Edict of Nantes (later revoked). • Cardinal Richelieu changed the focus of the Thirty Years’ War from a religious to a political conflict.

16. Catholic Reformation • Dissenters prior to Martin Luther: Jan Huss, John Wycliffe • Counter-Reformation: • The Council of Trent reaffirmed most Church doctrine and practices. • The Society of Jesus (The Jesuits) was founded to spread Catholic doctrine around the world. • The Inquisition was used to reinforce Catholic doctrine.

17. Changing cultural values, traditions, and philosophies • Growth of secularism • Growth of individualism • Eventual growth of religious tolerance

18. 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.