Aim: How did the Renaissance spread North? Europe in 1500
I How the Renaissance Spread North France and Germany waged war on the Italian city-states in the late-1400s to the mid-1500s. European monarchs and nobility exposed to the Italian Renaissance. B) Northern rulers such as King Francois of France invited Italian scholars to their courts, and became patrons of the arts. King François I was a humanist, a classical scholar, and a poet. He established a college for the teaching of Latin, Greek, and Hebrew.
II Northern Renaissance Art A) Like the Italian Renaissance, the Northern Renaissance was inspired by classical Greek and Roman art and philosophy, but ALSO from Hebrew texts (like the Old Testament). B) In Flanders (modern day northern Belgium), renaissance artists developed the Flemish School known for its realistic oil paintings.
Jan van Eyck (1390 – 1441) Jan van Eyck A Flemish painter. His most famous painting was The Marriage of Giovanni Arnolfini and Giovanna Cenami, 1434. Jan van Eyck
Details from The Marriage… Arnolfini was a wealthy merchant who lived in Bruges. Look for signs of wealth in this painting. One of the figures in the mirror may be the painter himself. The Latin sign says “Jan van Eyck was here 1434”.
The Garden of Earthly Delights, 1504 Hieronymus Bosch (1415 – 1570) The Garden of Earthly Delights, 1504 Painted on a triptych (3 part altar-piece), shows the Garden of Eden, the descent of man, and finally, hell (a result of the fall of man).
Left Panel Garden of Earthly Delights
Center Panel Garden of Earthly Delights
Central Panel Garden of Earthly Delights
Right Panel Details
Girl with the Pearl Earring, 1665 Johannes Vermeer (1632 – 1675) Girl with the Pearl Earring, 1665
Vermeer The Astronomer, 1668
Pieter Breughel: Peasant Wedding
IV Northern Renaissance Writers A) Desiderius Erasmus (1466 – 1536) was a Dutch humanist and priest. He called for the Bible to be translated into the vernacular. He scorned those who “don’t want the holy scriptures read in translation by the unlearned… as if the chief strength of the Christian religion lay in people’s ignorance of it…”
William Shakespeare (1564 – 1616) English playwright who wrote about Renaissance and humanism themes Wrote 37 plays, 154 sonnets and other poems. Many of his plays were based on classical history (Julius Caesar). 1599 Shakespeare & his acting company built the Globe Theatre. Poet Ben Jonson, a contemporary of Shakespeare said that Shakespeare “… was not of an age, but for all time.” “Two households, both alike in dignity, In fair Verona, where we lay our scene, From ancient grudge break to new mutiny, Where civil blood makes civil hands unclean.” - Romeo & Juliet
The Globe Theatre
V Northern Renaissance Architecture Chambord Castle, Loire Valley, France
Fontainebleau, France While built in the middle ages, King Francois I had his first artworks commissioned here. Catherine de Medici gave birth to six of kids here!
Antwerp City Hall, Belgium
VI Renaissance Society By the late middle ages, feudalism had mostly ended, and society became divided into 3 estates (social classes). Most of the 3rd estate were free peasants, and townspeople who provided goods and services.
HW Questions How and why did the Renaissance spread to northern Europe? Was it more similar or different from the Italian Renaissance? List any 4 details in the Marriage of Giovanni Arnolfini. Explain each detail’s possible symbolic meaning. List at least 1 detail for EACH of the 3 panels of the Gardens of Earthly Delights. Explain each detail’s possible symbolic meaning. *ALSO, what was the painter’s overall message about mankind? How did Erasmus try to change society? Do you agree with him and why? 5. How was Renaissance society different from medieval society?
Key Vocabulary Hieronymus Bosch: The Garden of Earthly Delights Breughel: Peasant Wedding Burghers Chambord Castle Erasmus Flanders Flemish School King Francois I Shakespeare The Globe Theatre Jan van Eyck: The Marriage of Giovanni Arnolfini and Giovanna Cenami Johannes Vermeer: The Girl with the Pearl Earing