The Renaissance Unit II - Origins

After the darkness has been dispelled, our grandsons will be able to walk back into the pure radiance of the past The hope of winning public honours is the same for all He who despises painting loves neither philosophy nor nature We can surely say that he was sent by heaven to renew the art of architecture If any prince bases his state upon mercenaries, he will never succeed in making it stable or secure The principal and true profession of the courtier ought to be that of arms Petrarch MachiavelliLeonardo Castiglione Vasari Salutati

Renaissance Italy urban culture strong merchant class city-states center of trade educated elite

City-States/Economies Italy - contact between East and West Florence - center of textile industry banking - facilitated international commerce Venice and Genoa - trade, shipbuilding,insurance growth of merchant capitalism

Florence center of cultural revival many schools, university high literacy rate population equal to london Government by Signoria and Councils

Medici Cosimo de’ Medici ( ) Lorenzo the Magnificent ( )

Social Classes Elites (popolo grasso) - nobles, merchants - patricians mass of urban population (popolo minuto) - artisans, laborers; in countryside, peasants

Humanism rediscovery of classical learning Petrarch - father of italian humanism Tuscan poet classical world - ideal

Humanism vs Scholasticism Focus on liberal arts (humanitas) - grammar, logic, music, math, astronomy, rhetoric humanists - new education served to teach the “art of living”

Pico della Mirandola ( ) Baldassare Castiglione ( ) Niccolo Machiavelli ( )

Leonardo da vinci ( ) Expressed humanist spirit

Lorenzo Valla ( ) Donation of Constantine

Erasmus ( ) - greatest of the northern humanists Critic of scholasticism, monastic life called for reform Christian humanism

Sir Thomas more ( ) Leading English humanist Author of Utopia promoter of New Learning