Renaissance Italy
The Renaissance
• The renaissance was a period of major cultural change.
• It occurred in Europe from the fourteenth to the
sixteenth centuries A.D.
• The word ‘Renaissance’ means rebirth and it was used
for the first time 1860 by Swiss historian Jakob
Burkhardt to describe the renewed interest in Ancient
Greece and Rome.
• According to Burkhardt, the renaissance was a new era
that left behind an era of backwardness of the
medieval ages.
Renaissance Italy
• The renaissance had its beginnings in the
1300s in Italy,it consisted of city states.
• Scholars turned back to the texts and culture
of Ancient Greece and Rome.
• A key theme that emerged in this Renaissance
thinking was ‘humanism’ it focused on an
individual’s capacity understand the world in a
better way and improve it.
Contd..
• During the fifteenth and sixteenth
centuries,Italy’s city states became wealthy
and expanded in size as they were located on
trade routes.
• The rulers of those city states competed with
each other for power and prestige.
• People like bankers and merchants rose in
political and economic power.
Impact of renaissance on religion,arts and
the society
• Catholic church still had an influence over
people in their religious and social life. So the
church people had both power and wealth.
• The wealthy people from society would
provide money to scholars and artists so they
could explore and flourish.
• As printing press got invented,the spread of
ideas and knowledge got accelerated.
• All such developments resulted in overall
flourishing of Italy as a country in
arts,painting,sculpture and architecture.
• Existing thoughts and beliefs in religion were
challenged.
• This is how Michalangelo,Leonardo,Galileo
and Machiavelli came known to the world.
