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Encyclopedia > Italian Renaissance
"The School of Athens" by Raphael
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Warfare Image File history File links Download high resolution version (966x720, 186 KB) The School of Athens - fresco by Raffaello Sanzio (w) From the web gallery of art wga. ... This article is about the European Renaissance of the 14th-17th centuries. ... Tempietto di San Pietro in Montorio, Rome, 1502, by Bramante. ... By Region: Italian Renaissance Northern Renaissance -French Renaissance -German Renaissance -English Renaissance Renaissance dances belong to the broad group of historical dances. ... Renaissance literature refers to European literature that began in Italy and spread throughout Europe during the seventeenth century. ... Renaissance music is European music written during the Renaissance, approximately 1400 to 1600. ... Portrait of Giovanni Arnolfini and Wife by Jan van Eyck (1434). ... Renaissance philosophy is the period of the history of philosophy in Europe that falls roughly during the between the Middle Ages and the Enlightenment. ... Leonardo da Vincis Vitruvian Man, an example of the blend of art and science during the Renaissance. ... For the hedge fund management company, see Renaissance Technologies. ... Gunpowder warfare is associated with the start of the widespread use of gunpowder and the development of suitable weapons to use the explosive. ...

Regions

England
France
Germany
Italy
Netherlands
Northern Europe
Poland
Spain The English Renaissance was a cultural and artistic movement in England dating from the early 16th century to the early 17th century. ... The Renaissance in the Netherlands coincides with a very turbulent period in the region. ... The Northern Renaissance is the term used to describe the Renaissance in northern Europe, or more broadly in Europe outside Italy. ...

The Italian Renaissance began the opening phase of the Renaissance, a period of great cultural change and achievement in Europe that spanned the period from the end of the 14th century to about 1600, marking the transition between Medieval and Early Modern Europe. The term renaissance is in essence a modern one that came into currency in the nineteenth century, in the work of historians such as Jacob Burckhardt. Although the origins of a movement that was confined largely to the literate culture of intellectual endeavor and patronage can be traced to the earlier part of the 14th century, many aspects of Italian culture and society remained largely Medieval; the Renaissance did not come into full swing until the end of the century. The word renaissance (Rinascimento in Italian) means “rebirth”, and the era is best known for the renewed interest in the culture of classical antiquity after the period that Renaissance humanists labelled 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. This article is about the European Renaissance of the 14th-17th centuries. ... The Middle Ages formed the middle period in a traditional schematic division of European history into three ages: the classical civilization of Antiquity, the Middle Ages, and modern times. ... The early modern period is a term used by historians to refer to the period in Western Europe and its first colonies which spans the two centuries between the Middle Ages and the Industrial Revolution. ... Jacob Burckhardt in 1892 Jacob Burckhardt (May 25, 1818, Basel, Switzerland – August 8, 1897, Basel) was a Swiss historian of art and culture, fields which he helped found. ... The Middle Ages formed the middle period in a traditional schematic division of European history into three ages: the classical civilization of Antiquity, the Middle Ages, and modern times. ... Classical antiquity is a broad term for a long period of cultural history centered on the Mediterranean Sea, which begins roughly with the earliest-recorded Greek poetry of Homer (7th century BC), and continues through the rise of Christianity and the fall of the Western Roman Empire (5th century AD... Renaissance humanism (often designated simply as humanism) was a European intellectual movement beginning in Florence in the last decades of the 14th century. ... Petrarch, who conceived the idea of a European Dark Age. From Cycle of Famous Men and Women, Andrea di Bartolo di Bargillac, c. ...


The Italian Renaissance began in Tuscany, and centered in the cities of Florence and Siena. It later had a significant impact in Venice, where the remains of ancient Greek culture were brought together, providing humanist scholars with new texts. The Renaissance later had a significant effect on Rome, which was ornamented with some structures in the new all'antico mode, then was largely rebuilt by sixteenth-century popes. The Italian Renaissance peaked in the late 15th century as foreign invasions plunged the region into the turmoil of the Italian Wars. However, the ideas and ideals of the Renaissance spread into the rest of Europe, setting off the Northern Renaissance, and the English Renaissance. For other uses, see Tuscany (disambiguation). ... Florence (or Firenze, Florentia and Fiorenza) is the capital city of the Italian region of Tuscany, and of the province of Florence. ... Piazza del Campo Siena is a city in Tuscany, Italy. ... For other uses, see Venice (disambiguation). ... The term ancient Greece refers to the periods of Greek history in Classical Antiquity, lasting ca. ... Renaissance humanism (often designated simply as humanism) was a European intellectual movement beginning in Florence in the last decades of the 14th century. ... For other uses, see Rome (disambiguation). ... For other uses, see Pope (disambiguation). ... Combatants France, the Holy Roman Empire, the states of Italy (notably the Republic of Venice, the Duchy of Milan, the Kingdom of Naples, the Papal States, Florence, and the Duchy of Ferrara), England, Scotland, Spain, the Ottoman Empire, the Swiss, Saxony, and others The Italian Wars, often referred to as... The Northern Renaissance is the term used to describe the Renaissance in northern Europe, or more broadly in Europe outside Italy. ... The English Renaissance was a cultural and artistic movement in England dating from the early 16th century to the early 17th century. ...


The Italian Renaissance is best known for its cultural achievements. Italian Renaissance literature includes such figures as Petrarch, Castiglione, and Machiavelli. Italian Renaissance painting exercised a dominant influence on Western painting for centuries afterwards, with artists such as Michelangelo, Raphael and Leonardo da Vinci, and the same is true for architecture, with works such as Florence Cathedral and St. Peter's Basilica in Rome: see Renaissance architecture. At the same time, some present-day historians also see the era as one of economic regression and of little progress in science, which made its great leaps forward among Protestant culture in the seventeenth century. Renaissance literature refers to European literature that began in Italy and spread throughout Europe during the seventeenth century. ... From the c. ... i love orange pekoe tea!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! ... Machiavelli redirects here. ... Raphael, The Betrothal of the Virgin. ... See also Western art, History of painting, History of art, Art history, Painting, Outline of painting history Jan Vermeer, Girl with a Pearl Earring, known as the Mona Lisa of the North 1665-1667 Édouard Manet, The Balcony 1868 The history of Western painting represents a continuous, though disrupted, tradition... For other uses, see Michelangelo (disambiguation). ... This article is about the Renaissance artist. ... “Da Vinci” redirects here. ... Tempietto di San Pietro in Montorio, Rome, 1502, by Bramante. ... View of the façade with Giottos Bell Tower. ... The Basilica of Saint Peter (Latin: ), officially known in Italian as the Basilica di San Pietro in Vaticano and commonly known as St. ... Tempietto di San Pietro in Montorio, Rome, 1502, by Bramante. ... A magnet levitating above a high-temperature superconductor demonstrates the Meissner effect. ...

Contents

Origins

History of Italy
By time period

Prehistoric Italy
(Terramare · Villanovan · Etruscan)
Magna Graecia (8th–7th c. BC)
Ancient Rome (8th c. BC – 6th c. AD)
(Kingdom · Republic · Empire)
Middle Ages (6th–14th c.)
Italian Renaissance (14th–16th c.)
Italian Wars (1494–1559)
Foreign domination (1559 –1814)
Risorgimento (1814 –1861)
Monarchy and Fascism (1861 –1945)
Italian Republic (1945 – present) Image File history File linksMetadata Download high-resolution version (1600x1200, 1632 KB) Description: Angled shot of the Colosseum in Rome with a very small moon in frame Medium: Color photograph Location: Rome, Italy Date: August 18, 2002 Author: Jimmy Walker [1] Source: jaymce Flickr gallery [2] Camera: Canon PowerShot S110... United in 1861, Italy has significantly contributed to the cultural and social development of the entire Mediterranean area, deeply influencing European culture as well. ... A simplified map showing the Terramare culture c 1200 BC (blue area). ... Villanovan Culture in 900BC The Villanovan culture was the earliest Iron Age culture of central and northern Italy, abruptly following the Bronze Age Terramare culture and giving way in the 7th century BC to an increasingly orientalizing culture influenced by Greek traders, which was followed without a severe break by... Extent of Etruscan civilization and the twelve Etruscan League cities. ... Magna Graecia around 280 b. ... This is an overview of the history of Italy during Roman times. ... The ancient quarters of Rome. ... This article is about the state which existed from the 6th century BC to the 1st century BC. For the state which existed in the 18th century, see Roman Republic (18th century). ... For other uses, see Roman Empire (disambiguation). ... This is the history of Italy during the Middle Ages. ... Combatants France, the Holy Roman Empire, the states of Italy (notably the Republic of Venice, the Duchy of Milan, the Kingdom of Naples, the Papal States, Florence, and the Duchy of Ferrara), England, Scotland, Spain, the Ottoman Empire, the Swiss, Saxony, and others The Italian Wars, often referred to as... This is the history of Italy during foreign domination and the unification. ... Italian Unification (Italian: il Risorgimento, or The Resurgence) was the political and social movement that unified different states of the Italian peninsula into the single nation of Italy. ... This is the history of Italy as a monarchy and in the World Wars. ...

By topic

Military history
historical states
The military history of Italy chronicles a vast time period, lasting from the overthrow of Tarquinius Superbus in 509 BC, through the Roman Empire, Italian unification, and into the modern day. ... To meet Wikipedias quality standards and make it more accessible to a general audience, this article may require cleanup. ...

Northern Italy in the Late Middle Ages

By the late Middle Ages, central and southern Italy, the heartland of the Roman Empire, was far poorer than the north. Rome was a city dominated by ancient ruins, and the Papal States were a loosely administered region with little law and order, due to the pope having relocated to Avignon under pressure from King Philip the Fair of France. In the South, Naples, Sicily, and Sardinia had for some time been under foreign domination. Southern Italy, often referred to in Italian as the Mezzogiorno (a term first used in 19th century in comparison with French Midi ) encompasses six of the countrys 20 regions: Basilicata Campania Calabria Puglia Sicilia Sardinia Sicilia although it is geographically and administratively included in Insular Italy, it has a... For other uses, see Roman Empire (disambiguation). ... For other uses, see Rome (disambiguation). ... Coat of arms Map of the Papal States; the reddish area was annexed to the Kingdom of Italy in 1860, the rest (grey) in 1870. ... The Papal palace in Avignon In the history of the Roman Catholic Church, the Avignon Papacy was the period from 1309 to 1377 during which seven popes, all French, resided in Avignon: Pope Clement V: 1305–1314 Pope John XXII: 1316–1334 Pope Benedict XII: 1334–1342 Pope Clement VI... For the Municipality in Quebec, see Avignon Regional County Municipality, Quebec. ... “Philip the Fair” redirects here. ...


The north was far more prosperous, with the states of northern Italy among the wealthiest in Europe. The Crusades had built lasting trade links to the Levant, and the Fourth Crusade had done much to destroy the Byzantine Empire as a commercial rival to the Venetians and Genoese. The main trade routes from the east passed through the Byzantine Empire or the Arab lands and onwards to the ports of Genoa, Pisa, and Venice. Luxury goods bought in the Levant, such as spices, dyes, and silks were imported to Italy and then resold throughout Europe. Moreover, the inland city-states profited from the rich agricultural land of the Po valley. From France, Germany, and the Low Countries, through the medium of the Champagne fairs, land and river trade routes brought goods such as wool, wheat, and precious metals into the region. The extensive trade that stretched from Egypt to the Baltic generated substantial surpluses that allowed significant investment in mining and agriculture. Thus, while northern Italy was not richer in resources than many other parts of Europe, the level of development, stimulated by trade, allowed it to prosper. Florence became one of the wealthiest cities of Northern Italy, due mainly to its woolen textile production, under the supervision of its dominant trade guild, the Arte della Lana. Wool was imported from Northern Europe (and in the sixteenth century from Spain)[1] and dyes from the east were used to make high quality textiles. For other uses, see Europe (disambiguation). ... This article is about the medieval crusades. ... The Levant The Levant (IPA: ) is an imprecise geographical term historically referring to a large area in the Middle East south of the Taurus Mountains, bounded by the Mediterranean Sea on the west, and by the northern Arabian Desert and Upper Mesopotamia to the east. ... Belligerents Crusaders Holy Roman Empire Republic of Venice Montferret Champagne Blois Amiens ÃŽle-de-France Saint-Pol Burgundy Flanders Balkans Byzantine Empire Kingdom of Hungary Croatia Dalmatia Commanders Otto IV Boniface I Theobald I Lois I Alexios V Doukas Isaac II Angelos Alexios III Angelos Emeric I The Fourth Crusade... Byzantine redirects here. ... The Republic of Genoa, in full the Most Serene Republic of Genoa (known as the Ligurian Republic from 1798 to 1805) was an independent state in Liguria on the northwestern Italian coast from ca. ... For other uses, see Venice (disambiguation). ... A city-state is a region controlled exclusively by a city. ... The Po (Latin: Padus, Italian: Po) is a river that flows 652 kilometers (405 miles) eastward across northern Italy, from Monviso (in the Cottian Alps) to the Adriatic Sea near Venice. ... For other uses, see Wool (disambiguation). ... Species T. aestivum T. boeoticum T. dicoccoides T. dicoccon T. durum T. monococcum T. spelta T. sphaerococcum T. timopheevii References:   ITIS 42236 2002-09-22 Wheat Wheat For the indie rock group, see Wheat (band). ... For the CSI episode of the same name, see Precious Metal (CSI episode). ... Population density in the wider Baltic region. ... A guild is an association of craftspeople in a particular trade. ... The Arte della Lana was the wool guild of Florence during the Late Middle Ages and in the Renaissance. ... Look up dye in Wiktionary, the free dictionary. ...


The Italian trade routes that covered the Mediterranean and beyond were also major conduits of culture and knowledge. In medieval times works that embodied the classical learning of the Greeks had trickled into Western Europe, through Arab translations and treatises, from Toledo and from Palermo, especially in the so-called Renaissance of the 12th century. After the Spanish Reconquista of the fifteenth century and the resulting translations of Arabic-language works by the Arabists of the School of Salamanca, the scientific, philosophical, and mathematical thinking of the Arabs became accessible to Northern Italy. After the Fall of Constantinople in 1453, a flood of refugee Greek scholars was important in sparking the new linguistic studies of the Renaissance, in revived academies in Florence and Venice. Humanist scholars searched monastic libraries for ancient manuscripts and recovered Tacitus and other Latin authors; with the rediscovery of Vitruvius the architectural principles of Antiquity could be observed once more, and Renaissance artists were encouraged, in the atmosphere of humanist optimism, to excel the achievements of the Ancients, like Apelles, of whom they read. For other uses, see Toledo (disambiguation). ... Location of the city of Palermo (red dot) within Italy. ... New technological discoveries allowed the development of the gothic style. ... For other uses, see Reconquista (disambiguation). ... Arabic redirects here. ... The examples and perspective in this article or section may not represent a worldwide view. ... The School of Salamanca is the renaissance of thought in diverse intellectual areas by Spanish theologians, rooted in the intellectual and pedagogical work of Francisco de Vitoria. ... Combatants  Byzantine Empire Ottoman Sultanate Commanders Constantine XI †, Loukas Notaras, Giovanni Giustiniani †[1] Mehmed II, ZaÄŸanos Pasha Strength 80,000[2] 80,000[1]-200,000[1][3] Casualties 4,000 dead[4] [5][6] unknown The Fall of Constantinople refers to the capture of the Byzantine Empires... For other uses, see Academy (disambiguation). ... For other uses, see Tacitus (disambiguation). ... Marcus Vitruvius Pollio (born c. ... Another Apelles was the founder of a Gnostic sect in the 2nd century; Apelles (gnostic). ...


Thirteenth-century prosperity

In the thirteenth century, much of Europe experienced strong economic growth. The trade routes of the Italian states linked with those of established Mediterranean ports and eventually the Hanseatic League of the Baltic and northern regions of Europe to create a network economy in Europe for the first time since the third century. The city-states of Italy expanded greatly during this period and grew in power to become de facto fully independent of the Holy Roman Empire; apart from the Kingdom of Naples, outside powers kept their armies out of Italy. During this period, the modern commercial infrastructure developed, with double-entry book-keeping, joint stock companies, an international banking system, a systematized foreign exchange market, insurance, and government debt.[2] Florence became the centre of this financial industry and the gold florin became the main currency of international trade. Carta marina of the Baltic Sea region (1539). ... This article or section does not cite any references or sources. ... This article is about the medieval empire. ... Capital Naples Government Monarchy King  - 1285-1309 Charles II  - 1815-1816 Ferdinand I History  - Established 1285  - Union with Sicily 1816 The Kingdom of Naples was an informal name of the polity officially known as the Kingdom of Sicily which existed on the mainland of southern Italy after of the secession... Double-entry book-keeping is the standard practice for recording financial transactions. ... A joint stock company is a special kind of partnership. ... For other uses, see Bank (disambiguation). ... The foreign exchange (currency or forex or FX) market exists wherever one currency is traded for another. ... Insurance, in law and economics, is a form of risk management primarily used to hedge against the risk of a contingent loss. ... Tax rates around the world Tax revenue as % of GDP Economic policy Monetary policy Central bank   Money supply Fiscal policy Spending   Deficit   Debt Trade policy Tariff   Trade agreement Finance Financial market Financial market participants Corporate   Personal Public   Banking   Regulation        Government debt (also known as public debt or national debt) is... The back of an Italian florin coin The front of an Italian florin coin The florin was struck from 1252 to 1523 with no significant change in its design or metal content standard. ...


The new mercantile governing class, who gained their position through financial skill, adapted to their purposes the feudal aristocratic model that had dominated Europe in the Middle Ages. A feature of the High Middle Ages in Northern Italy was the rise of the urban communes which had broken from the control by bishops and local counts. In much of the region, the landed nobility was poorer than the urban patriarchs in the High Medieval money economy whose inflationary rise left land-holding aristocrats impoverished. The increase in trade during the early Renaissance enhanced these characteristics. The decline of feudalism and the rise of cities influenced each other; for example, the demand for luxury goods led to an increase in trade, which led to greater numbers of tradesmen becoming wealthy, who, in turn, demanded more luxury goods. This change also gave the merchants almost complete control of the governments of the Italian city-states, again enhancing trade. One of the most important effects of this political control was security. Those that grew extremely wealthy in a feudal state ran constant risk of running afoul of the monarchy and having their lands confiscated, as famously occurred to Jacques Coeur in France. The northern states also kept many medieval laws that severely hampered commerce, such as those against usury, and prohibitions on trading with non-Christians. In the city-states of Italy, these laws were repealed or rewritten.[3] Feudalism comes from the Late Latin word feudum, itself borrowed from a Germanic root *fehu, a commonly used term in the Middle Ages which means fief, or land held under certain obligations by feodati. ... Defensive towers at San Gimignano, Tuscany, bear witness to the factional strife within communes. ... Landed nobility is a category of nobility in various countries over the history, for which landownership was part of their noble privileges. ... Jacques Cœur Jacques Cœur (c. ... Of Usury, from Brants Stultifera Navis (the Ship of Fools); woodcut attributed to Albrecht Dürer Usury (//,comes from the Medieval Latin usuria, interest or excessive interest, from the Latin usura interest) originally meant the charging of interest on loans. ...


Fourteenth-century collapse

The fourteenth century saw a series of catastrophes that caused the European economy to go into recession. The Medieval Warm Period was ending as the transition to the Little Ice Age began.[4] This change in climate saw agricultural output decline significantly, leading to repeated famines, exacerbated by the rapid population growth of the earlier era. The Hundred Years' War between England and France disrupted trade throughout northwest Europe, most notably when, in 1345, King Edward III of England repudiated his debts, contributing to the collapse of the two largest Florentine banks, those of the Bardi and Peruzzi. In the east, war was also disrupting trade routes, as the Ottoman Empire began to expand throughout the region. Most devastating, though, was the Black Death that decimated the populations of the densely populated cities of Northern Italy and returned at intervals thereafter. Florence, for instance, which had a pre-plague population of 45,000 decreased over the next 47 years by 25–50%.[5] Widespread disorder followed, including a revolt of Florentine textile workers, the ciompi, in 1378. The Medieval Warm Period (MWP) or Medieval Climate Optimum theorizes that there was a time of unusually warm climate in the North Atlantic region, lasting from about the tenth century to about the fourteenth century. ... The Little Ice Age (LIA) was a period of cooling occurring after a warmer era known as the Medieval climate optimum. ... <nowiki>Insert non-formatted text hereBold text</nowiki>A famine is a social and economic crisis that is commonly accompanied by widespread malnutrition, starvation, epidemic and increased mortality. ... Belligerents House of Valois Castile Scotland Genoa Majorca Bohemia Crown of Aragon Brittany House of Plantagenet Burgundy Brittany Portugal Navarre Flanders Hainaut Aquitaine Luxembourg Holy Roman Empire The Hundred Years War (French: Guerre de Cent Ans) was a prolonged conflict between two royal houses for the French throne, vacant with... This article is about the King of England. ... Bardi can refer to: Bardi people, an Australian Aboriginal tribe. ... The Peruzzi were bankers of Florence, among the leading families of the city in the 14th century, before the rise to prominence of the Medici. ... Motto دولت ابد مدت Devlet-i Ebed-müddet (The Eternal State) Anthem Ottoman imperial anthem Borders in 1683, see: list of territories Capital Söğüt (1299–1326) Bursa (1326–1365) Edirne (1365–1453) İstanbul (1453–1922) Government Monarchy Sultans  - 1281–1326 (first) Osman I  - 1918–22 (last) Mehmed VI Grand Viziers  - 1320... This article concerns the mid fourteenth century pandemic. ... In late medieval Florence, the disenfranchised ciompi (wool carders) were a class of labourers in the textile industry who were not represented by any guild. ...


It was during this period of instability that the first Renaissance figures, such as Dante and Petrarch lived, and the first stirrings of Renaissance art were to be seen in the opening half of the fourteenth century, notably in the realism of Giotto. Paradoxically, some of these disasters would help establish the Renaissance. The Black Death wiped out a third of Europe's population, producing a labour shortage, so that the reduced population was much wealthier, better fed, and, significantly, had more surplus money to spend on luxury goods like art and architecture. As incidences of the plague began to decline in the early fifteenth century, Europe's devastated population once again began to grow. This new demand for products and services, and the reduced number of people able to provide them, put the lower classes in a more favourable position. Furthermore, this demand also helped create a growing class of bankers, merchants, and skilled artisans. The horrors of the Black Death and the seeming inability of the Church to provide relief would contribute to a decline of church influence, another significant contributing factor to the Renaissance. Additionally, the collapse of the Bardi and Peruzzi banks would open the way for the Medici to rise to prominence in Florence. Robert Sabatino Lopez argues that the economic collapse was a crucial cause of the Renaissance.[6] According to this view, in a more prosperous era, businessmen would have quickly reinvested their earnings in order to make more money in a climate favourable to investment. However, in the leaner years of the fourteenth century, the wealthy found few promising investment opportunities for their earnings and instead chose to spend more on culture and art. Dante redirects here. ... From the c. ... There are several things that have been named Giotto: Giotto di Bondone an Italian painter. ... This article concerns the mid fourteenth century pandemic. ... Bubonic plague is the best-known manifestation of the bacterial disease plague, caused by the bacterium Yersinia pestis. ... For other uses, see Bank (disambiguation). ... An artisan, also called a craftsman,[1] is a skilled manual worker who uses tools and machinery in a particular craft. ... Catholic Church redirects here. ... Bardi can refer to: Bardi people, an Australian Aboriginal tribe. ... The Peruzzi were bankers of Florence, among the leading families of the city in the 14th century, before the rise to prominence of the Medici. ... For the board game, see Medici (board game). ...


Another popular explanation for the Italian Renaissance is the thesis, first advanced by historian Hans Baron,[7] that states that the primary impetus of the early Renaissance was the long-running series of wars between Florence and Milan. By the late fourteenth century, Milan had become a centralized monarchy under the control of the Visconti family. Giangaleazzo Visconti, who ruled the city from 1378 to 1402, was renowned both for his cruelty and for his abilities, and set about building an empire in Northern Italy. He launched a long series of wars, with Milan steadily conquering neighbouring states and defeating the various coalitions led by Florence that sought in vain to halt the advance. This culminated in the 1402 siege of Florence, when it looked as though the city was doomed to fall, before Giangaleazzo suddenly died and his empire collapsed. Hans Baron (1900-1988) was a German historian of thought on the Italian peninsula in the 15th century. ... Combatants France, the Holy Roman Empire, the states of Italy (notably the Republic of Venice, the Duchy of Milan, the Kingdom of Naples, the Papal States, Florence, and the Duchy of Ferrara), England, Scotland, Spain, the Ottoman Empire, the Swiss, Saxony, and others The Italian Wars, often referred to as... Visconti was a noble family that ruled Milan during the Middle Ages and Early Renaissance period. ... Giangaleazzo Visconti (1351-1406) was the first Duke of Milan and he ruled the city for much of the early Renaissance. ...


Baron's thesis suggests that during these long wars, the leading figures of Florence rallied the people by presenting the war as one between the free republic and the despotic monarchy, between the ideals of the Greek and Roman Republics and those of the Roman Empire and Medieval kingdoms. For Baron, the most important figure in crafting this ideology was Leonardo Bruni. This time of crisis in Florence was the period when most of the major early Renaissance figures were coming of age, such as Ghiberti, Donatello, Masolino, and Brunelleschi, and that they were inculcated with this republican ideology. These and other figures later went on to advocate republican ideas that were to have an enormous impact on the Renaissance. Leonardo Bruni Leonardo Bruni (c. ... Lorenzo Ghiberti (1378 - December 1, 1455) was an important Renaissance artist, specializing in sculpture and metalworking. ... Statue of Habacuc (popularly known as Zuccone) for the Giottos Bell Tower. ... The Annunciation (1425-30) Tempera on panel 148 x 115 cm National Gallery of Art, Washington Masolino da Panicale (also known as Tommaso di Cristoforo Fini) (Panicale, Umbria c. ... Filippo Brunelleschi, 1377 - 1446, was the first great Florentine architect of the Italian Renaissance. ...


Development

International relations

Main article: Italian Wars
Sigismondo Pandolfo Malatesta (1417–1468), lord of Rimini, by Piero della Francesca. Malatesta was a capable condottiere, following the tradition of his family. He was hired by the Venetians to fight against the Turks (unsuccessfully) in 1465, and was patron of Leone Battista Alberti, whose Tempio Malatestiano at Rimini is one of the first entirely classical buildings of the Renaissance.
Sigismondo Pandolfo Malatesta (1417–1468), lord of Rimini, by Piero della Francesca. Malatesta was a capable condottiere, following the tradition of his family. He was hired by the Venetians to fight against the Turks (unsuccessfully) in 1465, and was patron of Leone Battista Alberti, whose Tempio Malatestiano at Rimini is one of the first entirely classical buildings of the Renaissance.

Northern Italy was divided into a number of warring city-states, the most powerful being Milan, Florence, Pisa, Siena, Genoa, Ferrara, and Venice. High Medieval Northern Italy was further divided by the long running battle for supremacy between the forces of the Papacy and of the Holy Roman Empire: each city aligned itself with one faction or the other, yet was divided internally between the two warring parties, Guelfs and Ghibellines. Warfare between the states was common, invasion from outside Italy confined to intermittent sorties of Holy Roman Emperors. Renaissance politics developed from this background. Since the thirteenth century, as armies became primarily composed of mercenaries, prosperous city-states could field considerable forces, despite their low populations. In the course of the fifteenth century, the most powerful city-states annexed their smaller neighbors. Florence took Pisa in 1406, Venice captured Padua and Verona, while the Duchy of Milan annexed a number of nearby areas including Pavia and Parma. Combatants France, the Holy Roman Empire, the states of Italy (notably the Republic of Venice, the Duchy of Milan, the Kingdom of Naples, the Papal States, Florence, and the Duchy of Ferrara), England, Scotland, Spain, the Ottoman Empire, the Swiss, Saxony, and others The Italian Wars, often referred to as... Sigismondo Malatesta, lord of Rimini, by Piero della Francesca (Louvre) Source: http://www. ... Sigismondo Malatesta, lord of Rimini, by Piero della Francesca (Louvre) Source: http://www. ... Portrait of Sigismondo Malatesta in a portrait by Piero della Francesca Sigismondo Pandolfo Malatesta (1417 – 1468) (the wolf of Rimini) was lord of Rimini, Fano, and Cesena from 1432. ... Rimini is a city in the Emilia-Romagna region of Italy and capital city of the Province of Rimini. ... The Baptism of Christ, 1450 (National Gallery, London). ... Condottieri were mercenary leaders employed by Italian city-states from the late Middle Ages until the mid-fifteenth century. ... For other uses, see Venice (disambiguation). ... Late statue of Leon Battista Alberti. ... Façade. ... This article or section does not cite any references or sources. ... For other uses, see Milan (disambiguation). ... Florence (or Firenze, Florentia and Fiorenza) is the capital city of the Italian region of Tuscany, and of the province of Florence. ... For other uses, see Pisa (disambiguation). ... Piazza del Campo Siena is a city in Tuscany, Italy. ... For other uses, see Genoa (disambiguation). ... Ferrara is a city in Emilia-Romagna, Italy, capital city of the province of Ferrara. ... For other uses, see Venice (disambiguation). ... This article is about the medieval empire. ... The Guelphs and Ghibellines were factions supporting, respectively, the Papacy and the Holy Roman Empire in Italy during the 12th century and 13th century. ... The Guelphs and Ghibellines were factions supporting, respectively, the Papacy and the Holy Roman Empire in Italy during the 12th century and 13th century. ... The following list of German Kings and Emperors is one of several Wikipedia lists of incumbents. ... Mercenary (disambiguation). ... For other uses, see Pisa (disambiguation). ... Padua, Italy, (Italian: IPA: , Latin: Patavium, Venetian: ) is a city in the Veneto, northern Italy, the economic and communications hub of the region. ... This article is about the city in Italy. ... The Duchy of Milan was a state in northern Italy from 1395 to 1797. ... For the municipality in the Philippines, see Pavia, Iloilo. ... This article is about the Italian city. ...


The first part of the Renaissance saw almost constant warfare on land and sea as the city-states vied for preeminence. On land, these wars were primarily fought by armies of mercenaries known as condottieri, bands of soldiers drawn from around Europe, but especially Germany and Switzerland, led largely by Italian captains. The mercenaries were not willing to risk their lives unduly, and war became one largely of sieges and maneuvering, occasioning few pitched battles. It was also in the interest of mercenaries on both sides to prolong any conflict, to continue their employment. Mercenaries were also a constant threat to their employers; if not paid, they often turned on their patron. If it became obvious that a state was entirely dependent on mercenaries, the temptation was great for the mercenaries to take over the running of it themselves—this occurred on a number of occasions.[8] Condottieri were mercenary leaders employed by Italian city-states from the late Middle Ages until the mid-fifteenth century. ...


At sea, Italian city-states sent many fleets out to do battle. The main contenders were Pisa, Genoa, and Venice, but after a long conflict the Genoese succeeded in reducing Pisa. Venice proved to be a more powerful adversary, and while at first relatively equal, the Genoese fleet was eliminated in the battle of Chioggia at the mouth of the Venetian lagoon, 1380; henceforth Venice was pre-eminent on the seas. As Venetian territories in the Aegean were lost one by one to the Turks, and the Black Sea trade was closed to them, Venetian interests turned towards the terrafirma as the Venetian Renaissance opened. The Battle of Chioggia was naval battle fought in the lagoon off of Chioggia, Italy, in June 1380 between the Venetian and the Genoese fleets, who had captured the little fishing port in August the preceding year. ...


On land, decades of fighting saw Florence and Milan emerge as the dominant players, and these two powers finally set aside their differences and agreed to the Peace of Lodi in 1454, which saw relative calm brought to the region for the first time in centuries. This peace would hold for the next forty years, and Venice's unquestioned hegemony over the sea also led to unprecedented peace for much of the rest of the fifteenth century. In the beginning of the fifteenth century, adventurer and traders such as Niccolò Da Conti (1395–1469) traveled as far as Southeast Asia and back, bringing fresh knowledge on the state of the world, presaging further European voyages of exploration in the years to come. Peace of Lodi - A peace agreement signed at Lodi, Italy between Milan and Venice on April 9, 1454. ... Niccolò Da Conti (also Nicolò de Conti) (1395–1469) was a Venetian merchant and explorer, born in Chioggia, who traveled to India and Southeast Asia during the early 15th century. ... Location of Southeast Asia Southeast Asia is a subregion of Asia. ...


Florence under the Medici

Main article: Medici

Until the late fourteenth century, Florence's leading family were the House of Albizzi. Their main challengers were the Medicis, first under Giovanni de' Medici, later under his son Cosimo. The Medici controlled the Medici bank—then Europe's largest bank—and an array of other enterprises in Florence and elsewhere. In 1433, the Albizzi managed to have Cosimo exiled.[9] The next year, however, saw a pro-Medici Signoria elected and Cosimo returned. The Medici became the town's leading family, a position they would hold for the next three centuries. Florence remained a republic until 1537, traditionally marking the end of the High Renaissance in Florence, but the instruments of republican government were firmly under the control of the Medici and their allies, save during the intervals after 1494 and 1527. Cosimo and Lorenzo only rarely held official posts, but were the unquestioned leaders. For the board game, see Medici (board game). ... For the board game, see Medici (board game). ... There were four Medici known as Giovanni de Medici: Giovanni di Bicci de Medici (1360-1429) (founder of the Medici dynasty) Giovanni di Cosimo de Medici (1421-1463) (second son of Cosimo the Elder) Giovanni di Lorenzo de Medici (1475-1521) (Pope Leo X) Giovanni dalle Bande Nere, son of... Jacopo Pontormo: posthumous portrait of Cosimo de Medici, 1518-1519: the laurel branch, il Broncone, was an impresa used also by his heirs. ... The Medici Bank (1397 – 1494) was the largest and most respected bank in Europe during the 15th century. ... The Signoria was the government of medieval and renaissance Florence. ...


Cosimo de' Medici was highly popular among the citizenry, mainly for bringing an era of stability and prosperity to the town. One of his most important accomplishments was negotiating the Peace of Lodi with Francesco Sforza ending the decades of war with Milan and bringing stability to much of Northern Italy. Cosimo was also an important patron of the arts, directly and indirectly, by the example he set. Peace of Lodi - A peace agreement signed at Lodi, Italy between Milan and Venice on April 9, 1454. ... Portrait of Francesco Sforza, ca 1460, by Bonifazio Bembo: Sforza insisted on being shown in his worn dirty old campaigning hat. ...


Cosimo was succeeded by his sickly son Piero de' Medici, who died after five years in charge of the city. In 1469 the reins of power passed to Cosimo's twenty-one-year-old grandson Lorenzo, who would become known as "Lorenzo the Magnificent." Lorenzo was the first of the family to be educated from an early age in the humanist tradition and is best known as one of the Renaissance's most important patrons of the arts. Under Lorenzo, the Medici rule was formalized with the creation of a new Council of Seventy, which Lorenzo headed. The republican institutions continued, but they lost all power. Lorenzo was less successful than his illustrious forebears in business, and the Medici commercial empire was slowly eroded. Lorenzo continued the alliance with Milan, but relations with the papacy soured, and in 1478, Papal agents allied with the Pazzi family in an attempt to assassinate Lorenzo. Although the plot failed, Lorenzo's young brother, Giuliano, was killed, and the failed assassination led to a war with the Papacy and was used as justification to further centralize power in Lorenzo's hands.[10] Piero de Medici (the Gouty), Italian Piero il Gottoso (1416 – December 2, 1469), was the de facto ruler of Florence from 1464 to 1469, during the Italian Renaissance. ... For other uses, see Lorenzo de Medici (disambiguation). ... The Pazzi family were Tuscan nobles who had become bankers in Florence in the 14th century. ... Portrait by Sandro Botticelli. ...


Spread of the Renaissance

Renaissance ideals first spread from Florence to the neighbouring states of Tuscany such as Siena and Lucca. The Tuscan culture soon became the model for all the states of Northern Italy, and the Tuscan variety of Italian came to predominate throughout the region, especially in literature. In 1447 Francesco Sforza came to power in Milan and rapidly transformed that still medieval city into a major centre of art and learning that drew Leone Battista Alberti. Venice, one of the wealthiest cities due to its control of the Mediterranean Sea, also became a centre for Renaissance culture, especially architecture. Smaller courts brought Renaissance patronage to lesser cities, which developed their characteristic arts: Ferrara, Mantua under the Gonzaga, Urbino under Federico da Montefeltro. In Naples, the Renaissance was ushered in under the patronage of Alfonso I who conquered Naples in 1443 and encouraged artists like Francesco Laurana and Antonello da Messina and writers like the poet Jacopo Sannazaro and the humanist scholar Angelo Poliziano. Image File history File links Size of this preview: 382 × 599 pixelsFull resolution (420 × 659 pixel, file size: 67 KB, MIME type: image/jpeg)Leonardo da Vinci was a genius from the Renaissance period. ... Image File history File links Size of this preview: 382 × 599 pixelsFull resolution (420 × 659 pixel, file size: 67 KB, MIME type: image/jpeg)Leonardo da Vinci was a genius from the Renaissance period. ... “Da Vinci” redirects here. ... For other uses, see Renaissance Man (disambiguation). ... For other uses, see Tuscany (disambiguation). ... Piazza del Campo Siena is a city in Tuscany, Italy. ... For the Chrono Trigger character, see Lucca (Chrono Trigger). ... Portrait of Francesco Sforza, ca 1460, by Bonifazio Bembo: Sforza insisted on being shown in his worn dirty old campaigning hat. ... For other uses, see Milan (disambiguation). ... Late statue of Leon Battista Alberti. ... For other uses, see Venice (disambiguation). ... Ferrara is a city in Emilia-Romagna, Italy, capital city of the province of Ferrara. ... For other uses, see Mantua (disambiguation). ... The Gonzaga family ruled Mantua in Northern Italy from 1328 to 1708. ... Urbino is a walled city in the Marche region in Italy, south-west of Pesaro, a World Heritage Site notable for a remarkable historical legacy of independent Renaissance culture, especially under the patronage of Federico da Montefeltro, duke of Urbino from 1444 to 1482. ... Fedrico da Montefeltro painted by Piero della Francesca Federico da Montefeltro (1422–1482) was one of the most successful condottieri of the Italian Renaissance, a fighter for hire who created one of the great libraries, perhaps the largest of Italy after the Vatican, with his own team of scribes in... Location of the city of Naples (red dot) within Italy. ... Alfonso V of Aragon (also Alfonso I of Naples) (1396 – June 27, 1458), surnamed the Magnanimous, was the King of Aragon and Naples and count of Barcelona from 1416 to 1458. ... Francesco Laurana [de la Vrana], (born in Vrana, near Zara [now Zadar, Croatia]; died Marseille, before 12 March 1502), was an Italian sculptor and medallist. ... Portrait, called the Condottiero, dated 1475 (Louvre). ... Jacopo Sannazaro (1458 - April 27, 1530), Italian poet of the Renaissance, was born in 1458 at Naples of a noble family, said to have been of Spanish origin, which had its seat at San Nazaro near Pavia. ... Politian (also known as Angelo Poliziano or Angelo Ambrogini) (1454 - 1494) was an Italian classical scholar and poet. ...


In 1417 the Papacy returned to Rome, but that once imperial city remained poor and largely in ruins through the first years of the Renaissance.[11] The great transformation began under Pope Nicholas V, who became pontiff in 1447. He launched a dramatic rebuilding effort that would eventually see much of the city renewed. The humanist scholar Aeneas Silvius Piccolomini became pope as Pius II in 1458. As the papacy fell under the control of the wealthy families from the north, such as the Medici and the Borgias the spirit of Renaissance art and philosophy came to dominate the Vatican. Pope Sixtus IV continued Nicholas' work, most famously ordering the construction of the Sistine Chapel. The popes also became increasingly secular rulers as the Papal States were forged into a centralized power by a series of "warrior popes". Nicholas V, né Tomaso Parentucelli (November 15, 1397 – March 24, 1455) was Pope from March 6, 1447, to his death. ... Pope Pius II, born Enea Silvio Piccolomini (Latin Aeneas Sylvius), (October 18, 1405 – August 14, 1464) was Pope from 1458 until his death. ... For the board game, see Medici (board game). ... Borja (better known by the Italian spelling of the name, Borgia) was an influential Spanish family during the Renaissance. ... Sixtus IV (July 21, 1414 – August 12, 1484), born Francesco della Rovere, was Pope from 1471 to 1484. ... -1... Coat of arms Map of the Papal States; the reddish area was annexed to the Kingdom of Italy in 1860, the rest (grey) in 1870. ...


The nature of the Renaissance also changed in the late fifteenth century. The Renaissance ideal was fully adopted by the ruling classes and the aristocracy. In the early Renaissance artists were seen as craftsmen with little prestige or recognition. By the later Renaissance the top figures wielded great influence and could charge great fees. A flourishing trade in Renaissance art developed. While in the early Renaissance many of the leading artists were of lower- or middle-class origins, increasingly they became aristocrats.[12]


Wider population

As a cultural movement, the Italian Renaissance affected only a small part of the population. Northern Italy was the most urbanized region of Europe, but three quarters of the people were still rural peasants.[13] For this section of the population, life was essentially unchanged from the Middle Ages.[14] Classic feudalism had never been prominent in Northern Italy, and most peasants worked on private farms or as sharecroppers. Some scholars see a trend towards refeudalization in the later Renaissance as the urban elites turned themselves into landed aristocrats.[15] Roland pledges his fealty to Charlemagne; from a manuscript of a chanson de geste Feudalism, a term first used in the late modern period (17th century), in its most classic sense refers to a Medieval European political system comprised of a set of reciprocal legal and military obligations among the... Sharecropping is a system of farming in which employee farmers work a parcel of land in return for a fraction of the parcels crops. ...


The situation was very different in the cities. These were dominated by a commercial elite; as exclusive as the aristocracy of any Medieval kingdom. It was this group that was the main patron of and audience for Renaissance culture. Below them there was a large class of artisans and guild members who lived comfortable lives and had significant power in the republican governments. This was in sharp contrast to the rest of Europe where artisans were firmly in the lower class. Literate and educated, this group did participate in the Renaissance culture.[16] The largest section of the urban population was the urban poor of semi-skilled workers and the unemployed. Like the peasants the Renaissance had little effect on them. Historians debate how easy it was to move between these groups during the Italian Renaissance. Examples of individuals who rose from humble beginnings can be instanced, but Burke notes two major studies in this area that have found that the data do not clearly demonstrate an increase in social mobility. Most historians feel that early in the Renaissance social mobility was quite high, but that it faded over the course of the fifteenth century.[17] Inequality in society was very high. An upper-class figure would control hundreds of times more income than a servant or labourer. Some historians feel that this unequal distribution of wealth was important to the Renaissance, as art patronage relies on the very wealthy.[18] Social mobility is the degree to which, in a given society, an individuals social status can change throughout the course of their life (known as intragenerational mobility), or the degree to which that individuals offspring and subsequent generations move up and down the class system (intergenerational mobility). ...


The Renaissance was not a period of great social or economic change, only of cultural and ideological development. It only touched a small fraction of the population, and in modern times this has led many historians, such as any that follow historical materialism, to reduce the importance of the Renaissance in human history. These historians tend to think in terms of "Early Modern Europe" instead. Historical materialism is the methodological approach to the study of society, economics, and history which was first articulated by Karl Marx (1818-1883), although Marx himself never used the term (he referred it as philosophical materialism, a term he used to distinguish it from what he called popular materialism). Historical... The early modern period is a term used by historians to refer to the period in Western Europe and its first colonies which spans the two centuries between the Middle Ages and the Industrial Revolution. ...


End of the Italian Renaissance

For more details on this topic, see Northern Renaissance.

The end of the Renaissance is as imprecisely marked as its starting point. For many, the rise to power in Florence of the austere monk Girolamo Savonarola in 1494-1498 marks the end of the city's flourishing; for others, the triumphant return of the Medici marks the beginning of the late phase in the arts called Mannerism. Savonarola rode to power on a widespread backlash over the secularism and indulgence of the Renaissance –[19] his brief rule saw many works of art destroyed in the "Bonfire of the Vanities" in the centre of Florence. With the Medici returned to power, now as Grand Dukes of Tuscany, the counter movement in the church continued. In 1542 the Sacred Congregation of the Inquisition was formed and a few years later the Index Librorum Prohibitorum banned a wide array of Renaissance works of literature. The Northern Renaissance is the term used to describe the Renaissance in northern Europe, or more broadly in Europe outside Italy. ... Girolamo Savonarola by Fra Bartolomeo, c. ... In Parmigianinos Madonna with the Long Neck (1534-40), Mannerism makes itself known by elongated proportions, affected poses, and unclear perspective. ... Bonfire of the Vanities refers to an event on 7 February 1497 when followers of the priest Girolamo Savonarola collected and publicly burned thousands of objects in Florence, Italy, on the Shrove Tuesday festival. ... Unofficial Medici Rulers of Florence, 1434_1531 Cosimo de Medici 1434_1464 Piero I de Medici 1464-1469 (The Gouty) Lorenzo I de Medici 1469-1492 (The Magnificent) Giuliano de Medici 1469-1478 Piero II de Medici 1492-1494 Republic restored 1494-1512 Cardinal Giovanni de Medici 1512_1513 Lorenzo II de Medici... The Inquisition was an office of the Roman Catholic Church charged with suppressing heresy. ... Title page of Index Librorum Prohibitorum (Venice 1564). ...


Just as important was the end of stability with a series of foreign invasions of Italy known as the Italian Wars that would continue for several decades. These began with the 1494 invasion by France that wreaked widespread devastation on Northern Italy and ended the independence of many of the city-states. Most damaging was the May 6, 1527, Spanish and German troops' sacking Rome that for two decades all but ended the role of the Papacy as the largest patron of Renaissance art and architecture.[11] Combatants France, the Holy Roman Empire, the states of Italy (notably the Republic of Venice, the Duchy of Milan, the Kingdom of Naples, the Papal States, Florence, and the Duchy of Ferrara), England, Scotland, Spain, the Ottoman Empire, the Swiss, Saxony, and others The Italian Wars, often referred to as... is the 126th day of the year (127th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... January 5 - Felix Manz, co-founder of the Swiss Anabaptists, was drowned in the Limmat in Zürich by the Zürich Reformed state church. ... The city of Rome has been sacked on several occasions. ...


While the Italian Renaissance was fading, the Northern Renaissance adopted many of its ideals and transformed its styles. A number of Italy's greatest artists chose to emigrate. The most notable example was Leonardo da Vinci who left for France in 1516, but teams of lesser artists invited to transform the Château de Fontainebleau created the school of Fontainebleau that infused the style of the Italian Renaissance in France. From Fontainebleau, the new styles, transformed by Mannerism, brought the Renaissance to Antwerp and thence throughout Northern Europe. “Da Vinci” redirects here. ... The Royal Château of Fontainebleau (in the Seine-et-Marne département) is one of the largest French royal châteaux. ... The Ecole de Fontainebleau refers to two periods of artistic production in France during the late Renaissance centered around the royal Château of Fontainebleau. ... In Parmigianinos Madonna with the Long Neck (1534-40), Mannerism makes itself known by elongated proportions, affected poses, and unclear perspective. ... For other uses, see Antwerp (disambiguation). ...


This spread north was also representative of a larger trend. No longer was the Mediterranean Europe's most important trade route. In 1498, Vasco da Gama reached India, and from that date the primary route of goods from the Orient was through the Atlantic ports of Lisbon, Seville, Nantes, Bristol, and London. These areas quickly surpassed Italy in wealth and power. For other uses, see Vasco da Gama (disambiguation). ...


Culture

Literature and poetry

Main article: Italian Renaissance literature

The thirteenth-century Italian literary revolution helped set the stage for the Renaissance. Prior to the Renaissance, the Italian language was not the literary language in Italy. It was only in the 13th century that Italian authors began writing in their native language rather than Latin, French, or Provençal. The 1250s saw a major change in Italian poetry as the Dolce Stil Novo (Sweet New Style, which emphasized Platonic rather than courtly love) came into its own, pioneered by poets like Guittone d'Arezzo and Guido Guinizelli. Especially in poetry, major changes in Italian literature had been taking place decades before the Renaissance truly began. Italian ( , or lingua italiana) is a Romance language spoken by about 63 million people,[4] primarily in Italy. ... A literary language is a register of a language that is used in writing, and which often differs in lexicon and syntax from the language used in speech. ... For other uses, see Latins and Latin (disambiguation). ... Provençal (Provençau) is one of several dialects of Occitan spoken by a minority of people in southern France and other areas of France and Italy. ... Dolce Stil Novo (Italian for The Sweet New Style) is the name given to the most important literary movement of 13th century Italy. ... Platonic love in its modern popular sense is an affectionate relationship into which the sexual element does not enter, especially in cases where one might easily assume otherwise. ... Court of Love in Provence in the 14th Century (after a manuscript in the Bibliothèque Nationale, Paris). ... Guittone dArezzo (Arezzo, c. ... Guido Guinizzelli (c. ... This article is about the art form. ... Italian literature is literature written in the Italian language, particularly by citizens of Italy. ...

Niccolò Machiavelli (1469–1527), the author of The Prince and prototypical Renaissance man. Detail from a portrait by Santi di Tito.
Niccolò Machiavelli (1469–1527), the author of The Prince and prototypical Renaissance man. Detail from a portrait by Santi di Tito.

With the printing of books initiated in Venice by Aldus Manutius, an increasing number of works began to be published in the Italian language in addition to the flood of Latin and Greek texts that constituted the mainstream of the Italian Renaissance. The source for these works expanded beyond works of theology and towards the pre-Christian eras of Imperial Rome and Ancient Greece. This is not to say that no religious works were published in this period: Dante Alighieri's The Divine Comedy reflects a distinctly medieval world view. Christianity remained a major influence for artists and authors, with the classics coming into their own as a second primary influence. Image File history File links Machiavelli. ... Image File history File links Machiavelli. ... Machiavelli redirects here. ... This article is about the book by Niccolò Machiavelli. ... For other uses, see Renaissance Man (disambiguation). ... Categories: Stub ... Aldus Manutius (1449/50 - February 6, 1515), the Latin form of Aldo Manuzio (born Teobaldo Mannucci) was the founder of the Aldine Press. ... Theology finds its scholars pursuing the understanding of and providing reasoned discourse of religion, spirituality and God or the gods. ... For other uses, see Roman Empire (disambiguation). ... The term ancient Greece refers to the periods of Greek history in Classical Antiquity, lasting ca. ... Dante redirects here. ... For other uses see The Divine Comedy (disambiguation), Dantes Inferno (disambiguation), and The Inferno (disambiguation) Dante shown holding a copy of The Divine Comedy, next to the entrance to Hell, the seven terraces of Mount Purgatory and the city of Florence, with the spheres of Heaven above, in Michelino... Topics in Christianity Movements · Denominations Ecumenism · Relation to other religions Preaching · Prayer Music · Liturgy · Calendar Symbols · Art · Criticism Christianity Portal This box:      Christianity is a monotheistic[1] religion centered on the life and teachings of Jesus of Nazareth as presented in the New Testament. ... For other uses, see Classics (disambiguation). ...


In the early Italian Renaissance, much of the focus was on translating and studying classic works from Latin and Greek. Renaissance authors were not content to rest on the laurels of ancient authors, however. Many authors attempted to integrate the methods and styles of the ancient greats into their own works. Among the most emulated Romans are Cicero, Horace, Sallust, and Virgil. Among the Greeks, Aristotle, Homer, and Plato were now being read in the original for the first time since the fourth century, though Greek compositions were few. For other uses, see Cicero (disambiguation). ... For other people named Horace, see Horace (disambiguation). ... Gaius Sallustius Crispus, simply known as Sallust, (86-34 BC). ... For other uses, see Virgil (disambiguation). ... For other uses, see Aristotle (disambiguation). ... This article is about the Greek poet Homer and the works attributed to him. ... For other uses, see Plato (disambiguation). ...


The literature and poetry of the Renaissance was largely influenced by the developing science and philosophy. The humanist Francesco Petrarch, a key figure in the renewed sense of scholarship, was also an accomplished poet, publishing several important works of poetry. He wrote poetry in Latin, notably the Punic War epic Africa, but is today remembered for his works in the Italian vernacular, especially the Canzoniere, a collection of love sonnets dedicated to his unrequited love Laura. He was the foremost writer of sonnets in Italian, and translations of his work into English by Thomas Wyatt established the sonnet form in that country, where it was employed by William Shakespeare and countless other poets. From the c. ... For other uses, see Latins and Latin (disambiguation). ... History -- Military History -- War The Punic Wars were a series of three wars fought between Rome and the Phoenician city of Carthage. ... Africa is a historical epic poem written by Francesco Petrarch. ... Look up Vernacular in Wiktionary, the free dictionary. ... After printing, early versions of the Canzoniere were illuminated with pictures. ... The term sonnet derives from the Provençal word sonet and the Italian word sonetto, both meaning little song. ... The term sonnet derives from the Provençal word sonet and the Italian word sonetto, both meaning little song. ... Two Tudor noblemen, a father and son, were named Thomas Wyatt: Thomas Wyatt (poet) Thomas Wyatt the younger This is a disambiguation page: a list of articles associated with the same title. ... Wikipedia does not yet have an article with this exact name. ...


Petrarch's disciple, Giovanni Boccaccio, became a major author in his own right. His major work was the Decameron, a collection of 100 stories told by ten storytellers who have fled to the outskirts of Florence to escape the black plague over ten nights. The Decameron in particular and Boccaccio's work in general were a major source of inspiration and plots for many English authors in the Renaissance, including Geoffrey Chaucer and William Shakespeare. Giovanni Boccaccio (June 16, 1313 – December 21, 1375) was an Italian author and poet, a friend and correspondent of Petrarch, an important Renaissance humanist in his own right and author of a number of notable works including On Famous Women, the Decameron and his poetry in the vernacular. ... The Decameron is a collection of novellas that was finished by Giovanni Boccaccio in 1353. ... This article concerns the epidemic of the mid-14th century. ... The Decameron is a collection of novellas that was finished by Giovanni Boccaccio in 1353. ... Chaucer redirects here. ... Wikipedia does not yet have an article with this exact name. ...


Aside from Christianity, classical antiquity, and scholarship, a fourth influence on Renaissance literature was politics. The political philosopher Niccolò Machiavelli's most famous works are Discourses on Livy, Florentine Histories and finally The Prince, which has become so well-known in Western society that the term "Machiavellian" has come to refer to the realpolitik advocated by the book. However, what is ordinarily called "Machiavellianism" is a simplified textbook view of this single work rather than an accurate term for his philosophy. Further, it is not at all clear that Machiavelli himself was the apologist for immorality as whom he is often portrayed: the basic problem is the apparent contradiction between the monarchism of the Prince and the republicanism of the Discourses. Regardless, along with many other Renaissance works, The Prince remains a relevant and influential work of literature today. Classical antiquity is a broad term for a long period of cultural history centered on the Mediterranean Sea, which begins roughly with the earliest-recorded Greek poetry of Homer (7th century BC), and continues through the rise of Christianity and the fall of the Western Roman Empire (5th century AD... Machiavelli redirects here. ... Niccolò Machiavelli is primarily known as the author of The Prince. ... This article is about the book by Niccolò Machiavelli. ... Politik redirects here. ...


Philosophy

Petrarch, from the Cycle of Famous Men and Women. ca. 1450. Detached fresco. 247 x 153 cm. Galleria degli Uffizi, Florence, Italy. Artist: Andrea di Bartolo di Bargilla (ca. 1423–1457)
Petrarch, from the Cycle of Famous Men and Women. ca. 1450. Detached fresco. 247 x 153 cm. Galleria degli Uffizi, Florence, Italy. Artist: Andrea di Bartolo di Bargilla (ca. 1423–1457)
Main article: Renaissance humanism

One role of Petrarch is as the founder of a new method of scholarship, Renaissance Humanism. Humanism was an optimistic philosophy that saw man as a rational and sentient being, with the ability to decide and think for himself. This was an implicit rejection of the Roman Catholic Church's vision of souls as the only absolute reality, which was then seen as mystical and imaginary. Humanism saw man as inherently good by nature, which was in tension with the Christian view of man as the original sinner needing redemption. It provoked fresh insight into the nature of reality, questioning beyond God and spirituality, and provided for knowledge about history beyond Christian history. Download high resolution version (773x1200, 135 KB)From the Cycle of Famous Men and Women. ... Download high resolution version (773x1200, 135 KB)From the Cycle of Famous Men and Women. ... From the c. ... The narrow courtyard between the Uffizis two wings creates the effect of a short, idealized street. ... Florence (or Firenze, Florentia and Fiorenza) is the capital city of the Italian region of Tuscany, and of the province of Florence. ... Renaissance humanism (often designated simply as humanism) was a European intellectual movement beginning in Florence in the last decades of the 14th century. ... From the c. ... Catholic Church redirects here. ... Original Sin redirects here. ...


Petrarch encouraged the study of the Latin classics and carried his copy of Homer about, at a loss to find someone to teach him to read Greek. An essential step in the humanist education being propounded by scholars like Pico della Mirandola was the hunting down of lost or forgotten manuscripts that were known only by reputation. These endeavors were greatly aided by the wealth of Italian patricians, merchant-princes and despots, who would spend substantial sums building libraries. Discovering the past had become fashionable and it was a passionate affair pervading the upper reaches of society. I go, said Cyriac of Ancona, I go to awake the dead. As the Greek works were acquired, manuscripts found, libraries and museums formed, the age of the printing press was dawning. The works of Antiquity were translated from Greek and Latin into the contemporary modern languages throughout Europe, finding a receptive middle-class audience, which might be, like Shakespeare, "with little Latin and less Greek". For other uses, see Latins and Latin (disambiguation). ... Giovanni Pico della Mirandola (February 24, 1463 – November 17, 1494) was an Italian Renaissance humanist philosopher and scholar. ... Alternative meanings: Library (computer science), Library (biology) Modern-style library In its traditional sense, a library is a collection of books and periodicals. ... Ciriaco de Pizzicoli (c. ... For other uses, see Museum (disambiguation). ... The printing press is a mechanical device for printing many copies of a text on rectangular sheets of paper. ...


While concern for philosophy, art and literature all increased greatly in the Renaissance the period is usually seen as one of scientific backwardness. The reverence for classical sources further enshrined the Aristotelian and Ptolemaic views of the universe. Humanism stressed that nature came to be viewed as an animate spiritual creation that was not governed by laws or mathematics. At the same time philosophy lost much of its rigour as the rules of logic and deduction were seen as secondary to intuition and emotion. For other uses, see Philosophy (disambiguation). ... For other uses, see Aristotle (disambiguation). ... This article is about the geographer, mathematician and astronomer Ptolemy. ... Logic (from Classical Greek λόγος logos; meaning word, thought, idea, argument, account, reason, or principle) is the study of the principles and criteria of valid inference and demonstration. ...


Science

It would not be until the Renaissance moved to Northern Europe that science would be revived, with such figures as Copernicus, Francis Bacon, and Descartes. Leonardo da Vincis Vitruvian Man, an example of the blend of art and science during the Renaissance. ... Nicolaus Copernicus (in Latin; Polish Mikołaj Kopernik, German Nikolaus Kopernikus - February 19, 1473 – May 24, 1543) was a Polish astronomer, mathematician and economist who developed a heliocentric (Sun-centered) theory of the solar system in a form detailed enough to make it scientifically useful. ... For other persons named Francis Bacon, see Francis Bacon (disambiguation). ... René Descartes René Descartes (IPA: , March 31, 1596 – February 11, 1650), also known as Cartesius, worked as a philosopher and mathematician. ...


Sculpture and painting

In painting, the false dawn of Giotto's Trecento realism, his fully three-dimensional figures occupying a rational space, and his humanist interest in expressing the individual personality rather than the iconic images, was followed by a retreat into conservative late Gothic conventions. The Italian Renaissance in painting began anew, in Florence and Tuscany, with the frescos of Masaccio, then the panel paintings and frescos of Piero della Francesca and Paolo Uccello which began to enhance the realism of their work by using new techniques in perspective, thus representing three dimensions in two-dimensional art more authentically. Piero della Francesca wrote treatises on scientific perspective. The creation of credible space allowed artists to also focus on the accurate representation of the human body and on naturalistic landscapes. Masaccio's figures have a plasticity unknown up to that point in time. Compared to the flatness of Gothic painting, his pictures were revolutionary. At the turn of the 16th century, especially in Northern Italy, artists also began to use new techniques in the manipulation of light and darkness, such as the tone contrast evident in many of Titian's portraits and the development of sfumato and chiaroscuro by Leonardo da Vinci and Giorgione. The period also saw the first secular (non- religious) themes. There has been much debate as to the degree of secularism in the Renaissance, which had been emphasized by early 20th-century writers like Jacob Burckhardt, based on, among other things, the presence of a relatively small number of mythological paintings. Those of Botticelli, notably the The Birth of Venus and Primavera, are now among the best known, although he was deeply religious (becoming a follower of Savonarola) and the great majority of his output was of traditional religious paintings or portraits. Image File history File linksMetadata Download high resolution version (1000x1375, 205 KB)Detail of Michelangelos The Last Judgement (Sistine Chapel), executed 1535-1541. ... Image File history File linksMetadata Download high resolution version (1000x1375, 205 KB)Detail of Michelangelos The Last Judgement (Sistine Chapel), executed 1535-1541. ... This article or section should be merged with End times and Last judgment The Last Judgement - Tympanum sculpture at the Abbey Church of Ste-Foy, Conques-en-Rouergue, France In Christian eschatology, the Last Judgement is the ethical-judicial trial, judgement, and punishment/reward of individual humans (assignment to heaven... For other uses, see Michelangelo (disambiguation). ... Portrait of Giovanni Arnolfini and Wife by Jan van Eyck (1434). ... There are several things that have been named Giotto: Giotto di Bondone an Italian painter. ... From mille trecento, Italian for 1300. ... The Western (Royal) Portal at Chartres Cathedral ( 1145). ... Masaccio (born Tommaso Cassai or in some accounts Tommaso di Ser Giovanni di Mone; December 21, 1401 – autumn 1428), was the first great painter of the Quattrocento period of the Italian Renaissance. ... The Ghent Altarpiece: The Adoration of the Mystic Lamb, interior view, 1432. ... For other uses, see Fresco (disambiguation). ... The Baptism of Christ, 1450 (National Gallery, London). ... Paolo Uccello (born Paolo di Dono, 1397 – December 10, 1475) was an Italian painter who was notable for his pioneering work on visual perspective in art. ... A cube in two-point perspective. ... 2-dimensional renderings (ie. ... Masaccio (born Tommaso Cassai or in some accounts Tommaso di Ser Giovanni di Mone; December 21, 1401 – autumn 1428), was the first great painter of the Quattrocento period of the Italian Renaissance. ... Also see: Titian (disambiguation). ... Detail of the face of Mona Lisa showing the use of sfumato, particularly in the shading around the eyes. ... For other use of the term, see Chiaroscuro (disambiguation). ... “Da Vinci” redirects here. ... A purported self-portrait of Giorgione, represented in the guise of David. ... Various Religious symbols, including (first row) Christian, Jewish, Hindu, Bahai, (second row) Islamic, tribal, Taoist, Shinto (third row) Buddhist, Sikh, Hindu, Jain, (fourth row) Ayyavazhi, Triple Goddess, Maltese cross, pre-Christian Slavonic Religion is the adherence to codified beliefs and rituals that generally involve a faith in a spiritual... This article is about secularism. ... Alessandro di Mariano Filipepi, better known as Sandro Botticelli (Florence March 1, 1445 - May 17, 1510) was an Italian painter of the Florentine school during the Early Renaissance (Quattrocento). ... The Birth of Venus is a painting by Sandro Botticelli. ... The Primavera is a painting by the Italian Renaissance painter Sandro Botticelli, c. ...


In sculpture, Donatello's (1386–1466) study of classical sculpture lead to his development of classicizing positions (such as the contrapposto pose) and subject matter (like the unsupported nude – his second sculpture of David was the first free-standing bronze nude created in Europe since the Roman Empire.) The progress made by Donatello was influential on all who followed; perhaps the greatest of whom is Michelangelo, whose David of 1500 is also a male nude study; more naturalistic than Donatello's and with greater emotional intensity. Both sculptures are standing in contrapposto, their weight shifted to one leg. Statue of Habacuc (popularly known as Zuccone) for the Giottos Bell Tower. ... The Doryphoros of Polyclitus, an early example of classical contrapost. ... Donatellos bronze statue of David (circa 1440s) is notable as the first unsupported standing work in bronze cast since classical times. ... For other uses, see Michelangelo (disambiguation). ... Michelangelos David, finished by Michelangelo Buonarroti in 1504 (started in 1501) is a masterpiece of Renaissance sculpture and one of Michelangelos two greatest works of sculpture, along with the Pietà. David portrays the Biblical David at the moment that he decides to engage Goliath. ...


The period known as the High Renaissance represents the culmination of the goals of the earlier period, namely the accurate representation of figures in space rendered with credible motion and in an appropriately decorous style. The most famous painters from this phase are Leonardo da Vinci, Raphael, and Michelangelo. Their images are among the most widely known works of art in the world. Leonardo's Last Supper, Raphael's The School of Athens and Michelangelo's Sistine Chapel Ceiling are the textbook materpieces of the period. The Creation of Adam, Michelangelos work in the Sistine Chapel. ... This article is about the Renaissance artist. ... The School of Athens or in Italian is one of the most famous paintings by the Italian Renaissance artist Raphael. ... The iconic image of the Hand of God giving life to Adam. ...


High Renaissance painting evolved into Mannerism, especially in Florence. Mannerist artists, who consciously rebelled against the principles of High Renaissance, tend to represent elongated figures in illogical spaces. Modern scholarship has recognized the capacity of Mannerist art to convey strong (often religious) emotion where the High Renaissance failed to do so. Some of the main artists of this period are Pontormo, Bronzino, Rosso Fiorentino, Parmigianino and Raphael's pupil Giulio Romano. In Parmigianinos Madonna with the Long Neck (1534-40), Mannerism makes itself known by elongated proportions, affected poses, and unclear perspective. ... Jacopo Carrucci (Pontormo, near Empoli, May 24, 1494 - January 2, 1557), usually known as Jacopo da Pontormo, or simply Pontormo, was a Florentine Mannerist painter and portraitist. ... Andrea Doria as Neptune Agnolo di Cosimo ( 1503, Firenze – 1572, Firenze) (also known as Agnolo Bronzino and Agnolo Tori). ... Moses Defending the Daughters of Jethro by Rosso Fiorentino (c. ... To meet Wikipedias quality standards, this article or section may require cleanup. ... Fire in the Borgo, Vatican fresco Giulio Romano (ca 1499? – November 1, 1546) was an Italian painter, architect, and decorator. ...


Architecture

St. Peter's Basilica. The dome, completed in 1590, was designed by Michelangelo Buonarroti, architect, painter and poet.
St. Peter's Basilica. The dome, completed in 1590, was designed by Michelangelo Buonarroti, architect, painter and poet.

In Florence, the Renaissance style was introduced with a revolutionary but incomplete monument in Rimini by Leone Battista Alberti. Some of the earliest buildings showing Renaissance characteristics are Filippo Brunelleschi's church of San Lorenzo and the Pazzi Chapel. The interior of Santo Spirito expresses a new sense of light, clarity and spaciousness, which is typical of the early Italian Renaissance. Its architecture reflects the philosophy of Humanism, the enlightenment and clarity of mind as opposed to the darkness and spirituality of the Middle Ages. The revival of classical antiquity can best be illustrated by the Palazzo Rucellai. Here the pilasters follow the superposition of classical orders, with Doric capitals on the ground floor, Ionic capitals on the piano nobile and Corinthian capitals on the uppermost floor. Image File history File links Download high resolution version (1600x1200, 578 KB) Please see the file description page for further information. ... Image File history File links Download high resolution version (1600x1200, 578 KB) Please see the file description page for further information. ... The Basilica of Saint Peter (Latin: ), officially known in Italian as the Basilica di San Pietro in Vaticano and commonly known as St. ... Michelangelo (full name Michelangelo di Lodovico Buonarroti Simoni) (March 6, 1475 - February 18, 1564) was a Renaissance sculptor, architect, painter, and poet. ... Tempietto di San Pietro in Montorio, Rome, 1502, by Bramante. ... Florence (or Firenze, Florentia and Fiorenza) is the capital city of the Italian region of Tuscany, and of the province of Florence. ... Late statue of Leon Battista Alberti. ... Sculpture of Brunelleschi looking at the dome in Florence Filippo Brunelleschi (1377 – April 15, 1446) was one of the foremost architects of the Italian Renaissance. ... Exterior from the Piazza San Lorenzo. ... Cappella Pazzi & First Cloister Pazzi Chapel (Cappella dei Pazzi) at the Basilica di Santa Croce is a typical Renaissance chapel in Florence. ... For the specific belief system, see Humanism (life stance). ... Palazzo Rucellai is a Renaissance palace in Florence, Italy, designed Leon Battista Alberti. ... In architecture, pilasters comprise slightly-projecting pseudo-columns built into or onto a wall, with capitals and bases. ... A refined canonic version of the Orders engraved for the Encyclopédie, vol. ... The Doric order was one of the three orders or organizational systems of Ancient Greek or classical architecture; the other two canonical orders were the Ionic and the Corinthian. ... Not to be confused with capitol. ... Architects first real look at the Greek Ionic order: Julien David LeRoy, Les ruines plus beaux des monuments de la Grèce Paris, 1758 (Plate XX) Ionic order: 1 - entablature, 2 - column, 3 - cornice, 4 - frieze, 5 - architrave or epistyle, 6 - capital (composed of abacus and volutes), 7 - shaft, 8... Kedleston Hall. ... The Corinthian order as used for the portico of the Pantheon, Rome provided a prominent model for Renaissance and later architects, through the medium of engravings. ...


In Mantua, Leone Battista Alberti ushered in the new antique style, though his culminating work, Sant'Andrea, was not begun until 1472, after the architect's death. Late statue of Leon Battista Alberti. ... The Basilica di SantAndrea is a Renaissance church in Mantua, Lombardy (Italy). ...

Bramante's Tempietto in San Pietro in Montorio, Rome, 1502

The High Renaissance, as we call the style today, was introduced to Rome with Donato Bramante's Tempietto at San Pietro in Montorio (1502) and his original centrally-planned St. Peter's Basilica (1506), which was the most notable architectural commission of the era, influenced by almost all notable Renaissance artists, including Michelangelo and Giacomo della Porta. The beginning of the late Renaissance in 1550 was marked by the development of a new column order by Andrea Palladio. Colossal columns that were two or more stories tall decorated the facades. Andrea Palladio, woodcut in Quattro Libri dellArchitettura 1570 of Donato Bramantes Tempietto File history Legend: (cur) = this is the current file, (del) = delete this old version, (rev) = revert to this old version. ... Andrea Palladio, woodcut in Quattro Libri dellArchitettura 1570 of Donato Bramantes Tempietto File history Legend: (cur) = this is the current file, (del) = delete this old version, (rev) = revert to this old version. ... Donato Bramante Donato Bramante (1444 – March 11, 1514) was an Italian architect, who introduced the Early Renaissance style to Milan and the High Renaissance style to Rome, where his most famous design was St. ... For other uses, see Rome (disambiguation). ... Donato Bramante Donato Bramante (1444 – March 11, 1514) was an Italian architect, who introduced the Early Renaissance style to Milan and the High Renaissance style to Rome, where his most famous design was St. ... 200pxTempietto, San Pietro in Montorio, Rome, 1502: the High Renaissance began here. ... The Basilica of Saint Peter (Latin: ), officially known in Italian as the Basilica di San Pietro in Vaticano and commonly known as St. ... For other uses, see Michelangelo (disambiguation). ... Giacomo della Porta (c. ... Andrea Palladio (November 30, 1508 – August 19, 1580), was an Italian architect, widely considered the most influential person in the history of Western architecture. ... For other uses, see facade (disambiguation). ...


Music

Main article: Renaissance music

In Italy in the 14th century there was an explosion of musical activity that corresponded in scope and level of innovation to the activity in the other arts. Although musicologists typically group the music of the Trecento (music of the 1300s) with the late medieval period, it included features which align with the early Renaissance in important ways: an increasing emphasis on secular sources, styles and forms; a spreading of culture away from ecclesiastical institutions to the nobility, and even to the common people; and a quick development of entirely new techniques. The principal forms were the Trecento madrigal, the caccia, and the ballata. Overall, the musical style of the period is sometimes labelled as the "Italian ars nova." Renaissance music is European music written during the Renaissance, approximately 1400 to 1600. ... A musicologist is someone who studies musicology. ... From mille trecento, Italian for 1300. ... This article does not cite any references or sources. ... The Madrigal is an Italian musical form of the 14th century. ... In music, a canon is a contrapuntal composition that employs a melody with one or more imitations of the melody played after a given duration (e. ... The ballata (plural: ballate) is an Italian poetic and musical form which was in use from the late 13th to the 15th century. ... Ars nova was a stylistic period in music of the Late Middle Ages, centered in France, which encompassed the period from the publication of the Roman de Fauvel (1310 and 1314) until the death of Machaut (1377). ...


From the early 15th century to the middle of the 16th century, the center of innovation in sacred music was in the Low Countries, and a flood of talented composers came to Italy from this region. Many of them sang in either the papal choir in Rome or the choirs at the numerous chapels of the aristocracy, in Rome, Venice, Florence, Milan, Ferrara and elsewhere; and they brought their polyphonic style with them, influencing many native Italian composers during their stay. For information about the confusion between the Low Countries and the Netherlands, see Netherlands (terminology). ... For other uses, see Rome (disambiguation). ... For other uses, see Venice (disambiguation). ... Florence (or Firenze, Florentia and Fiorenza) is the capital city of the Italian region of Tuscany, and of the province of Florence. ... For other uses, see Milan (disambiguation). ... Ferrara is a city in Emilia-Romagna, Italy, capital city of the province of Ferrara. ... Polyphony is a musical texture consisting of two or more independent melodic voices, as opposed to music with just one voice (monophony) or music with one dominant melodic voice accompanied by chords (homophony). ...


The predominant forms of church music during the period were the mass and the motet. By far the most famous composer of church music in 16th century Italy was Palestrina, the most prominent member of the Roman School, whose style of smooth, emotionally cool polyphony was to become the defining sound of the late 16th century, at least for generations of 19th- and 20th century musicologists. Other Italian composers of the late 16th century focused on composing the main secular form of the era, the madrigal: and for almost a hundred years these secular songs for multiple singers were distributed all over Europe. Composers of madrigals included Jacques Arcadelt, at the beginning of the age, Cipriano de Rore, in the middle of the century, and Luca Marenzio, Philippe de Monte, Carlo Gesualdo, and Claudio Monteverdi at the end of the era. This article discusses the Mass as a standard form of classical music composition. ... In Western music, motet is a word that is applied to a number of highly varied choral musical compositions. ... Giovanni Pierluigi da Palestrina (between 3 February 1525 and 2 February 1526[1] - 2 February 1594) was an Italian composer of the Renaissance. ... The Roman school is the education system of the Ancient Rome. ... Alternative meaning: Nineteenth Century (periodical) (18th century — 19th century — 20th century — more centuries) As a means of recording the passage of time, the 19th century was that century which lasted from 1801-1900 in the sense of the Gregorian calendar. ... A madrigal is a setting for two or more voices of a secular text, often in Italian. ... Jacques Arcadelt (also Jacob Arcadelt) (1504 or 1505 – October 14, 1568) was a Franco-Flemish composer of the middle to late Renaissance, principally of madrigals and chansons. ... Cypriano de Rore or Cipriano de Rore (1515 or 1516 – 11 September to 20 September 1565) was a Flemish composer and teacher. ... Luca Marenzio (1553? - August 22, 1599) was an Italian composer of the late Renaissance. ... Philippe de Monte (1521 – July 4, 1603) was a Flemish composer of the late Renaissance. ... Carlo Gesualdo, Prince of Venosa. ... Monteverdi redirects here. ...


Italy was also a centre of innovation in instrumental music. By the early 16th century keyboard improvisation came to be greatly valued, and numerous composers of virtuoso keyboard music appeared. Many familiar instruments were invented and perfected in late Renaissance Italy, such as the violin, the earliest forms of which came into use in the 1550s. For the Anne Rice novel, see Violin (novel). ...


By the late 16th century Italy was the musical centre of Europe. Almost all of the innovations which were to define the transition to the Baroque period originated in northern Italy in the last few decades of the century. In Venice, the polychoral productions of the Venetian School, and associated instrumental music, moved north into Germany; in Florence, the Florentine Camerata developed monody, the important precursor to opera, which itself first appeared around 1600; and the avant-garde, manneristic style of the Ferrara school, which migrated to Naples and elsewhere through the music of Carlo Gesualdo, was to be the final statement of the polyphonic vocal music of the Renaissance. Baroque music describes an era and a set of styles of European classical music which were in widespread use between approximately 1600 and 1750. ... The Venetian polychoral style was a type of music of the late Renaissance and early Baroque eras which involved spatially separate choirs singing in alternation. ... San Marco in the evening. ... The Florentine Camerata was a group of humanists, musicians, poets and intellectuals in late Renaissance Florence who gathered under the patronage of Count Giovanni de Bardi to discuss and guide trends in the arts, especially music and drama. ... Caccini, Le Nuove musiche, 1601, title page In poetry, monody is a poem in which one person laments anothers death. ... For other uses, see Opera (disambiguation). ... In Parmigianinos Madonna with the Long Neck (1534-40), Mannerism makes itself known by elongated proportions, affected poses, and unclear perspective. ... Location of the city of Naples (red dot) within Italy. ... Carlo Gesualdo, Prince of Venosa. ...


Notes

  1. ^ Jensen, De Lamar. Renaissance Europe. p. 95.
  2. ^ Burke, Peter. The Italian Renaissance: Culture and Society in Italy. p. 232.
  3. ^ ibid, p. 93.
  4. ^ ibid, p. 97; see also Andrew B. Appleby's "Epidemics and Famine in the Little Ice Age." Journal of Interdisciplinary History. Vol. 10 No. 4.
  5. ^ Olea, Ricardo A, Christakos, George, "Duration of Urban Mortality for the 14th-Century Black Death Epidemic", Human Biology, Jun 2005. The population level of Florence is controversial see also Ziegler (1969, pp. 51-52), Chandler 1987, pp. 16-18, and Gottfried 1983, p. 46
  6. ^ Lopez, Robert Sabatino. "Hard Times and Investment in Culture."
  7. ^ Baron, Hans. "The Crisis of the Early Italian Renaissance". Princeton University Press, March 01, 1966. ISBN 0-6910-0752-7
  8. ^ Jensen, p. 64.
  9. ^ Crum , Roger J. Severing the Neck of Pride: Donatello's "Judith and Holofernes" and the Recollection of Albizzi Shame in Medicean Florence . Artibus et Historiae, Volume 22, Edit 44, 2001. pp. 23-29.
  10. ^ ibid, p. 80.
  11. ^ a b Burke, p. 271.
  12. ^ Burke, p. 271.
  13. ^ ibid, p. 256.
  14. ^ Jensen, p. 105.
  15. ^ Burke, p. 246.
  16. ^ Jensen, p. 104.
  17. ^ Burke, p. 255.
  18. ^ Pullan, Brian S. "History of Early Renaissance Italy". New York, Allen Lane, 1973.
  19. ^ Cast, David. "Review: Fra Girolamo Savonarola: Florentine Art and Renaissance Historiography by Ronald M. Steinberg". The Art Bulletin, Volume 61, No. 1, March 1979. pp. 134-136.

March 1 is the 60th day of the year in the Gregorian calendar (61st in leap years). ... Year 1966 (MCMLXVI) was a common year starting on Saturday (link will display full calendar) of the 1966 Gregorian calendar. ...

References

  • Baron, Hans. The Crisis of the Early Italian Renaissance: Civic Humanism and Republican Liberty in an Age of Classicism and Tyranny. Princeton: Princeton University Press, 1966.
  • Burckhardt, Jacob (1878), The Civilization of the Renaissance in Italy, trans. S.G.C Middlemore[1]
  • Burke, Peter. The Italian Renaissance: Culture and Society in Italy Princeton: Princeton University Press, 1999.
  • Cronin, Vincent, The Florentine Renaissance (1967) ISBN 0-00-211262-0; The Flowering of the Renaissance (1969) ISBN 0-7126-9884-1; The Renaissance (1992) ISBN 0-00-215411-0
  • Hagopian, Viola L. "Italy", in The New Grove Dictionary of Music and Musicians, ed. Stanley Sadie. 20 vol. London, Macmillan Publishers Ltd., 1980. ISBN
  • Hay, Denys. The Italian Renaissance in Its Historical Background. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1977.
  • Jensen, De Lamar (1992), Renaissance Europe (ISBN)
  • Lopez, Robert Sabatino, The Three Ages of the Italian Renaissance Charlottesville: University Press of Virginia, 1970.
  • Pullan, Brian S. History of Early Renaissance Italy. London: Lane, 1973.
  • Raffini, Christine, Marsilio Ficino, Pietro Bembo, Baldassare Castiglione: Philosophical, Aesthetic, and Political Approaches in Renaissance Platonism. Renaissance and Baroque Studies and Texts, v.21, Peter Lang Publishing, 1998. ISBN 0-8204-3023-4

Jacob Burckhardt in 1892 Jacob Burckhardt (May 25, 1818, Basel, Switzerland – August 8, 1897, Basel) was a Swiss historian of art and culture, fields which he helped found. ... The Civilization of the Renaissance in Italy (Die Cultur der Renaissance in Italien) is a 1860 work on the Italian Renaissance by Swiss historian Jacob Burckhardt. ... Vincent Cronin (born May 24, 1924 in Tredegar, Wales) is a British historical, cultural, and biographical writer whose works have been widely translated into European languages. ...

External links

The Victoria and Albert Museum (often abbreviated as the V&A) in London is the worlds largest and finest museum of decorative arts and design, housing a permanent collection of over 4. ... Year 2007 (MMVII) was a common year starting on Monday of the Gregorian calendar in the 21st century. ... is the 155th day of the year (156th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ...


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Renaissance - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia (3055 words)
The Italian Renaissance of the 15th century represented a reconnection of the west with classical antiquity, the absorption of knowledge (particularly mathematics), a focus on the importance of living well in the present (Renaissance humanism), and an explosion of the dissemination of knowledge brought on by the advent of printing.
The Italian Renaissance was often labeled as the beginning of the "modern" epoch.
The Italian Renaissance was intertwined with the intellectual movement known as Renaissance humanism and with the fiercely independent and combative urban societies of the city-states of central and northern Italy in the 13th to 16th centuries.
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The Italian Renaissance began the opening phase of the Renaissance, a period of great cultural change and achievement in Europe that spanned the period from the end of the 14th century to about 1600, marking the transition between Medieval and Early Modern Europe.
Prior to the Renaissance, the Italian language was not the literary language in Italy.
The Italian Renaissance in painting began anew, in Florence, with the frescos of Masaccio, then the panel paintings and frescos of Piero della Francesca and Paolo Uccello began to enhance the realism of their work by using new techniques in perspective, thus representing three dimensions in two-dimensional art more authentically.
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