Renaissance and Reformation 1350-1600

Chapter 12

“rebirth”1350-1550 considered the Italian

RenaissanceImportant characteristics

Large urban societyAge of recovery from the disasters of 14th

centuryHigh regards of human worth and what

individuals could achieve

The Renaissance

Italy had no central monarch stateSeveral small city-states

Milan, Venice, and FlorenceProspered from trade

Power of city states would cause trouble among Italian states

30 yrs French and Spanish would battle to dominate the Italy country

The Renaissance

3 social classesNobility

3 characteristics of perfect nobleBorn, not madeHad to be warriorFollow certain

standard of conductAim of perfect noble

was to serve his prince in an effective and honest ways

The Renaissance

Peasants50-90% of populationSerfdom continued to decreaseBy 1500 more peasants were becoming free

TownspeopleMade up rest of populationPatricians burghers workers

unemployed

The Renaissance

The Renaissance

Family and Marriage Family bond – great

security Parents arranged

marriages – dowry Father was center of

family made all decisions – authority over children

Mother supervised the household

Intellectual movement of Renaissance was humanism

Father of humanism – Petrarch

Humanist emphasis on classical Latin

Writers wrote in the vernacularDante and Chaucer would

make vernacular literature more popular

Ideas and Art of Renaissance

EducationHumanists believed education could

dramatically change human beingsThey wrote books and opened schools based on

their ideasCore – liberal studies

Study liberal education to produce individuals who follow a path of virtue and wisdom

Humanist education was a practical preparation for life

Ideas and Art of Renaissance

Artists wanted viewers to see the reality in their subjects

Techniques in paintingsFresco – painting done on fresh, wet plaster

with water-based paintsFamous artist – Masaccio

He created the illusion of three dimensionsRealistic style

Italian Renaissance Art

2 developments1. Technical side of painting2. Investigation of movement and human

anatomyChief aim of this era was human madeFlourished between 1490 and 1520 – High

RenaissanceLeonardo da Vinci, Raphael, and Michelangelo

Italian Renaissance Art

Protestant ReformationName given to the religious reform movement

that divided the Western Church into Catholic and Protestant groups

Corruption was a call for reformSeries of popes failed to meet the church’s

spiritual needs

The Protestant Reformation

Martin LutherHe thought different about achieving

salvationInstead of doing good work you are to have

more faith in God – justificationHe would lead a religious movement95 Theses

Lutheranism be new religious serviceGerman rulers began taking control of the

churchesLuther would be dependent on German

states to help his church grow

The Protestant Reformation

German states accepted division between Christianity and Lutheranism

Each give the same rights

The Protestant Reformation