This chapter discusses the economic, political, intellectual, and social developments in Europe during the Renaissance period from 1350-1550 CE. Key points include: the rise of trade and banking in Italian city-states which enriched merchants and allowed them to patronize the arts; the development of republican governments; the influence of humanism which emphasized classical learning and secular ideas; changes in artistic styles and subjects; and the evolution of more powerful centralized states under rulers like Louis XI in France and the joint rule of Isabella and Ferdinand in Spain. Social hierarchies regarding class, gender, and emerging ideas about race were also in flux during this time of cultural and intellectual transformation in Europe.

1. A P E U R O P E A N H I S T O R Y
M A G I S T E R R I C A R D
Chapter 13: European Society in
the Age of the Renaissance
(1350-1550)

2. Objectives
 Be able to identify the key economic and political
developments that set up Renaissance
 Be able to discuss the key ideas of the Renaissance
 Identify how the experiences of men and women
were different
 Differentiate between the characteristics of Italian
and Northern Renaissance developments
 Describe the basic structure of Renaissance society
 How do medieval kingdoms evolve into early
versions of modern European states?

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Economic and Political
Developments of Renaissance

4. Overview
 Economic growth in Italy provides the means for the
rise of the merchant class
 Merchant class now can vie for political power
 Prestige of position also allows merchants to hire
artists
 Paves the way for the Renaissance

5. Commercial Developments
 The northern cities of Italy forge their economic
strength on trade
 Florence gains financial wealth not through trade,
but through banking
 Gained control of papal banking institution
 The Medici gained considerable political, cultural,
and financial influence

6. Communes and Republics
 Northern cities begin as communes but through
trade gain independence and turn into oligarchies
 Pressure from il populo lead to the formation of
republican forms of government
 Republics are often controlled by signori or
merchant guilds/oligarchies
 Wealth leads to elaborate lifestyle and patronizing of
the arts

7. Balance of Power Among Italian City-States
 People are fiercely loyal to their city-states
 No political unification among Italians
 Venice, Milan, Florence, the Papal States, and Naples
dominate the peninsula
 Modern diplomacy is developed as these states seek
a balance of power
 Lack of unity makes Italy easy to invade
 France and Holy Roman Empire take advantage

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Intellectual Change

9. Humanism
 A revival in antiquity
 Archaeology
 Recovery of ancient manuscripts
 Study of Latin and the classics
 Known as “new learning” or humanism
 Humanists studied Latin classics to learn what is
revealed about human nature
 Alternative to the Bible

10. Humanism
 Emphasized being human, human achievements,
interests, and capabilities
 How does this impact how Europeans begin to see
themselves?
 Leads to the development of individualism, the importance of
the individual
 Humanists viewed Latin of the church as a debased
form of the language and ideas

11. Education
 Humanists placed heavy emphasis on education and
moral behavior, character development
 Their models were taken from the ancient world
 Schools and academies were opened throughout
Italy
 Somewhat ambivalent about the education of women
 Baldassare Castiglione’s The Courtier was very
influential

12. Political Thought
 Niccolo Machiavelli’s The Prince becomes very
influential
 Lays the foundation for “modern” politics
 Starts with assumptions about human nature and the effects of
power
 Creates a realistic examination of politics at work

13. Secular Spirit
 Secular thought focuses on the world rather than on
the eternal/spiritual
 Concepts about life begin to change
 Renaissance thinkers see life as an opportunity and not a
painful payment on a voyage towards God
 Lorenzo Valla argued that sensory pleasures were the highest
good (Epicureanism…)
 Giovanni Boccacio stressed the material, sensual in society
 Popes spend resources on new buildings (St. Peter’s) and
patronizing the arts
 The artist takes a more prominent role in society

14. Christian Humanism
 Found mostly in northern Europe
 Incorporated Italian ideas within the context of their
own traditions
 Interested in an ethical way of life
 Thomas More’s Utopia describes the idealistic
society
 Erasmus was the leading Christian humanist of his
day

15. Christian Humanism
 Desiderius Erasmus
 Dutch (1466-1536)
 Edited Greek New Testament
 Called for reforms in the Church; broke away from
Protestantism eventually
 Education is the key to moral and intellectual
improvement
 Adhered to the “philosophy of Christ”

16. The Printed Word
 Moveable metal type allows for widespread
transmission of new ideas
 Developed in Germany during the mid 15th century
 Gutenberg’s Bible, printed in 1456
 Effects?
 Increased urban literacy
 Development of primary schools
 New universities open up and also expand market for printed
materials

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Art and the Artist

18. Art and Power
 In early Renaissance, corporate groups (guilds)
sponsor religious art
 By the late 15th century, princes, merchants, bankers
sponsored art to glorify themselves and their families
 Urban palaces become filled with expensive art
 What does this say about society?
 How is the economics of the day shaping things?
 How is this a fundamental change from the mindset
of the medieval world?

19. Subjects and Style
 Classical themes, individual portraits, and the
development of realism characterize Renaissance art
 Artists utilize perspective, observations of nature to portray
the world around them
 The human body is more naturalistic, a clear break from the
styles of the medieval art
 Art produced in northern Europe during 14th and 15th
centuries was more religious than in Italy
 Italy was exploring her classical roots
 Florence dominates art in the 15th century
 Rome and Venice rise to artistic prominence in 16th century

20. Patronage and Creativity
 Medieval masons and artists were mechanical
artisans or laborers
 Renaissance artists were valued for their
individuality and intellectual contributions
 Artists were paid well by their patrons
 Artists relished their achievements; the identity of
the self is confirmed through these achievements
 The concept of the artist as a genius is born
 Economics change society; during the Renaissance
the mercantile class takes prominent role in society

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Social Hierarchies

22. Race
 Ideas about race become closely associated with blood
 Concept of race, as it stands today, was formed in the 18th century
 Renaissance people did not make distinctions based on
skin color
 In the 15th century, many black slaves begin to be
“imported” into Europe
 Slaves served a variety of positions, some of the demand was due to
the loss of life during the Plague
 15th century Europeans knew very little about Africa and
their cultures

23. Class
 The current notion about class was developed during
the 19th century
 Medieval stratification had to do more with function
 Those that can fight, those that can pray, and those that can
work
 During the Renaissance, the inherited social order
becomes more fluid due to increased wealth
 Social status also became tied to honor
 Shame culture or guilt culture?
 Cities contained the most complex and dynamic
social hierarchies

24. Gender
 Gender was something that didn’t surface until the
women’s movement of the 1970’s
 Renaissance thinkers debated the character and
nature of women
 During the 16th century, debate was over acceptance
and role of female rulers
 Concepts about men and women and their
differences begin to shape actions of society
 Proper gender relationships was an illustration of a
well-functioning society

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Politics and the State in the
Renaissance
ca. 1450-1521

26. France
 Charles VII (1422-1461)
 Created 1st permanent royal army
 Set up taxes on salt and land
 Allowed increased influence from middle-class men
 Asserted his right to appoint bishops (Pragmatic
Sanction of Bourges)

27. France
 Louis XI (1461-1483)
 Son of Charles VII
 Fostered industry from artisans and taxed it
 Used the funds to build up his army
 Acquired more new territory and placed under direct
crown rule

28. France
 Louis XII and Anne of Brittany would be married
 Brittany added to French state
 Concordat of Bologna gave French kings control over
church officials within France

29. England
 Edward IV (1461-1483)
 Ended the War of the Roses (civil war between rival baronial
houses)
 Henry VII (1485-1509)
 Ruled largely without Parliament
 Turned to his advisers who were men of lower class origins
 Center of royal authority became the royal council
 Established Court of the Star Chamber
 Tried cases involving aristocracy, torture
 Tudors won support of influential upper middle class

30. Spain
 Spain was a confederation of kingdoms until 1700
 Wedding of Isabella of Castile and Ferdinand of
Aragon centralized things
 Stopped violence among nobles
 Recruited middle class advisers
 Secured right to appoint bishops (in Spain and in New World)

31. Spain
 Anti-Semitism increased during the 14th century
 In 1478, Isabella and Ferdinand invited the
Inquisition
 Search out and punish Jewish converts to Christianity who still
practiced Judaism
 Formed a racial theory
 Conversos were suspect not because of their beliefs but because of
who they were racially
 1492 Jews are expelled from Spain