Renaissance

Examples of Renaissance in the following topics:

• Introduction to the Renaissance

  • The Renaissance has a long and complex historiography, and in line with general skepticism of discrete periodizations, there has been much debate among historians reacting to the 19th-century glorification of the "Renaissance" and individual culture heroes as "Renaissance men," questioning the usefulness of Renaissance as a term and as a historical delineation.
  • The word Renaissance has also been extended to other historical and cultural movements, such as the Carolingian Renaissance and the Renaissance of the 12th century.
  • The Renaissance: Was it a Thing?
  • It was in Italy, specifically Northern Italy, where the Renaissance movement took shape.
  • Describe the influences of the Renaissance and historical perspectives by modern-day writers

• The Rise of the Vernacular

  • Renaissance literature refers to European literature which was influenced by the intellectual and cultural tendencies of the Renaissance.
  • The earliest Renaissance literature appeared in 14th century Italy; Dante, Petrarch and Machiavelli are notable examples of Italian Renaissance writers.
  • The English Renaissance and the Renaissance in Scotland date from the late 15th century to the early 17th century.
  • The impact of the Renaissance varied across the continent; countries that were predominantly Catholic or Protestant experienced the Renaissance differently.
  • Quick overview of some of the prominent men of the Renaissance.

• The Church During the Italian Renaissance

  • The new humanist ideals of the Renaissance, although more secular in many aspects, developed against a Christian backdrop, and the Church patronized many works of Renaissance art.
  • The Renaissance began in times of religious turmoil.
  • The City of Rome, the Papacy, and the Papal States were all affected by the Renaissance.
  • In the revival of neo-Platonism and other ancient philosophies, Renaissance humanists did not reject Christianity; quite the contrary, many of the Renaissance's greatest works were devoted to it, and the Church patronized many works of Renaissance art.
  • Analyze the Church's role in Italy at the time of the Renaissance

• Education and Humanism

  • Humanism played a major role in education during the Renaissance with the goal to cultivate the moral and intellectual character of citizens.
  • During the Renaissance, humanism played a major role in education.
  • The Humanists of the Renaissance created schools to teach their ideas and wrote books all about education.
  • Some important females that were educated during the Renaissance were Isotta Nogarola, Cassandra Fedele of Venice, and Laura Cereta.
  • Laura Cereta (1469–1499) was a Renaissance humanist and feminist.

• Petrarch

  • Francesco Petrarca (July 20, 1304 – July 19, 1374), commonly anglicized as Petrarch, was an Italian scholar and poet in Renaissance Italy, and one of the earliest humanists.
  • Petrarch's rediscovery of Cicero's letters is often credited for initiating the 14th-century Renaissance.
  • Petrarch's sonnets were admired and imitated throughout Europe during the Renaissance and became a model for lyrical poetry.
  • Petrarch is traditionally called the "Father of Humanism" and considered by many to more generally be the "Father of the Renaissance."
  • He inspired humanist philosophy which led to the intellectual flowering of the Renaissance.

• Intellectual Life

  • During the 11th century, developments in philosophy and theology led to increased intellectual activity, sometimes called the renaissance of 12th century.
  • A second "renaissance" occurred during the reign of Otto I, King of the Saxons from 936–973 and Holy Roman Emperor from 952.
  • Thus, Otto's reign has also been called a "renaissance."
  • The renaissance of the twelfth century has been identified as the third and final of the medieval renaissances.
  • Yet the renaissance of the 12th century was far more thoroughgoing than those renaissances that preceded in the Carolingian and Ottonian periods.

• Italian Politics

  • The increase in trade during the early Renaissance enhanced these characteristics.
  • It was during this period of instability that the Renaissance authors such as Dante and Petrarch lived, and the first stirrings of Renaissance art were to be seen, notably in the realism of Giotto.
  • Paradoxically, some of these disasters would help establish the Renaissance.
  • Renaissance politics developed from this background.
  • A popular explanation for the Italian Renaissance is the thesis, first advanced by historian Hans Baron, that states that the primary impetus of the early Renaissance was the long-running series of wars between Florence and Milan.

• The Medical Renaissance

  • The Renaissance period witnessed groundbreaking developments in medical sciences, including advancements in human anatomy, physiology, surgery, dentistry, and microbiology.  
  • The Renaissance brought an intense focus on varied scholarship to Christian Europe.
  • During the later centuries of the Renaissance, which overlapped with the Scientific Revolution, experimental investigation, particularly in the field of dissection and body examination, advanced the knowledge of human anatomy.
  • Other developments of the period also contributed to the modernization of medical research, including printed books that allowed for a wider distribution of medical ideas and anatomical diagrams, more open attitudes of Renaissance humanism, and the Church's diminishing impact on the teachings of the medical profession and universities.

• The Macedonian Dynasty

  • The Macedonian Dynasty saw expansion and the Byzantine Renaissance but also instability due to competition among nobles in the theme system.
  • Despite his humble origins, he showed great ability in running the affairs of state, leading to a revival of Imperial power and a renaissance of Byzantine art.
  • The time of the Macedonian Dynasty's rule over the Byzantine Empire is sometimes called the Byzantine Renaissance or the Macedonian Renaissance.
  • Byzantine painting from this period would have a strong influence on the later painters of the Italian Renaissance.

• The Last Byzantine Dynasty

  • During the Palaiologan Dynasty, the empire experienced a short but vibrant renaissance, known as the Palaiologan Renaissance.
  • Although the Palaiologan Renaissance came too late to save the struggling Byzantine civilization, it would be a major catalyst for the Italian Renaissance, especially as Byzantine artists and scholars traveled to Italy to seek shelter from the new threats that besieged the empire.
  • All was not lost for these seemingly rejected scholars — many in Italy who had been opened up to Byzantium by the maritime expansions of Genoa and Venice came to appreciate their achievements, facilitating the Renaissance.
  • The Fall of Constantinople was marked by large amounts of Greek refugees escaping Turkic rule into Europe via Italy and thus accelerating the Renaissance.