Florence During The Italian Renaissance

Florence is arguably the starting place of the renaissance. With many different artists there, the Medici Family in control and a very strong trading system, it was a very powerful city-state during the renaissance. During this time, the feudal system was no more. The people in

In the crucible of the fourteenth-century, the turbulent politics contributed to the growth of a different way of doing art, finances, literature, religion, and technology. It led the growth of new ideas. Continuous warfare among the states brought skilled leaders. In fourteenth-century Italy constituted the Renaissance. This period was characterized by a return to the sources of knowledge and standards of beauty that had created the great civilizations of classical Greece and Rome. It was an age that spread new ideas more fast than ever before. Painters, writers, and politicians focused on ambitious individualism, realism, and activism. They insisted on optimistic faith in the human potential. Florence was a birthplace of the Renaissance.

The Italian Renaissance was a period in history unlike most others; this was an era of ingenuity, expansion, and enlightenment that would revolutionize both society as the people of the Renaissance knew it to be, and as the future generations of individuals across the globe understand it today. Florence held itself out to be the birthplace of the Italian Renaissance, yet the people of this renaissance era never lost sight of the Greek and Roman heritage. The following essay will discuss the varying ways in which Florence was the birthplace of the Italian Renaissance, and will provide the reader with examples that demonstrate Greco-Roman ideas and practices in the Italian Renaissance.

The Italian and Northern Europe Renaissances were both an important mark in history by changing the ideals of life, thought, culture, and art of the people’s of this time. In this paper I will explain the motive for change in these cultures, including the similarities and differences of the two cultures.

Florence was a very important city during the Renaissance. The renaissance was a time of humanism, which was the belief that humans are greater than deity and supernatural. With this change came increase in the arts such as writers, painters, sculptures, architects, and more. A place that exhibits the change due to the renaissance is Brunelleschi’s Dome in Florence.

Although the origins of the Italian Renaissance can be traced to many different locations, it is important to note that different aspects of Italian culture and society remained largely medieval during the time of the Renaissance; the Renaissance did not come into full swing until the end of the century. The word Renaissance means “rebirth”, and the era is best known for the renewed interest in the culture of classical antiquity (Greece and Rome) after the period that Renaissance humanists labeled the Dark Ages. These changes, while significant, were concentrated in the elite, and for the vast majority of the population life was little changed from the Middle Ages.

In the thirteenth and fourteenth century, the trade between cities in Europe grew to new heights, which created enormous wealth. The Renaissance occurred through the fourteenth century until the seventeenth century and said to be “a burst of individualism”(3). The most distinct symbols of the Renaissance occurred in Florence where trade and banking are directly linked to the success of the arts during the time period. Many families grew extremely rich and powerful through the trade and banking. The most well know family was the Medici’s, who developed to be the most powerful and most crucial influences of the Renaissance.

The navy commander and statesman became a dictator, and during his time in power, the city-state finally experienced the Renaissance to its full extent, which was long overdue. It was shown how Genoa’s belief of equality in social structure won them back what they had lost by how all the clans, families, citizens, and Andrea Doria threw their invaders

There are many factors that come into play that make Italy the birth place for The Renaissance. Italy at

While both authors recognize the political and social changes that occurred during the Renaissance, their views on the outcome of these changes differ. Burckhardt thinks that the changes caused Florence to become, “the first modern State in the world,” unlike Kelly-Gadol (Burckhardt, 1). Joan Kelly-Gadol believes that these changes were not for the better because as a result women, “were increasingly removed from public concerns” (Kelly-Gadol, 197). Burckhardt believes that, “the most varied forms of human development,” were a result of the Renaissance (Burckhardt, 1). Joan Kelly-Gadol’s disagrees with Burckhardt because she believes that, “there was no renaissance for women,” and therefore humanity did not completely develop (Kelly-Gadol, 176).

Before its unification in 1870, the country now known as Italy was comprised of cities. These cities were controlled and protected by the Holy Roman Empire until they won the right to govern themselves in the 12th century. The foreign emperor’s lack of attention allowed the cities to slowly transform into city-states and begin to build their own culture. The 1200’s became a time of many changes for Italy. The promotion of the arts and education flourished throughout the city-states.

As “Italy was the cultural leader of Europe” (The Intellectual Renaissance in Italy), the Renaissance served as the needed change for the Medieval World to become the modern world. In politics, Machiavelli introduced a secularized political theory that would guide future rulers without dependence on God. In the economy, merchants became bankers by giving money to the wealthy and receiving interest back. Northern Christian Humanists used the Renaissance to enhance the Church through the encouragement of new education and ideals. The “Renaissance Man” became the example to strive towards in society to perfect one’s self in daily life. Education improved through the integration of classical works from authors, such as Cicero. Painters made Renaissance art distinct from Medieval art through the new technique of perspective. Geographically, Italy stands next to the Mediterranean Sea, allowing abundant trade. The technological creation of the printing press allowed news and writings to spread easily to people. The Renaissance was a bridge from the Medieval to modern world because of Machiavelli’s political theory which modeled a great ruler without God’s help, the combination of Christianity with the Renaissance to encourage religious feeling, society using the “Renaissance Man” to set an example of a perfect man, and the improvement of education by including liberal arts.

What was the Renaissance and why did it happen? Italian life in the 14th and 15th centuries was lived among the vast ruins of the ancient Roman Empire. The cruelty and barbarism of Rome

The renaissance is defined as the “rebirth” of civilization in Europe from the 14th to 17th centuries (General Characteristics of the Renaissance). A renewed interest of classical world spread from its beginning in Italy, north to Germany and

Beginning around the 14th century, the Italian Renaissance marked a transition between the social and intellectual parameters medieval people lived by, versus the more independent lives of those in the 16th century (1-3). Many Italian city-states, Florence for instance, were freed from direct rulership and benefitted politically, economically, and intellectually from having their own self autonomy (3-4). Civic pride in one’s city led to the formation of unique, self-identifying, prosperous, settlements (4). (Najemy)