The Renaissance

What was the Renaissance?• Literally a rebirth.• A rebellion against the Middle Ages.• A cultural and intellectual movement

Some historians have said the Renaissance is the beginning of “Modern Civilization.” While the exact time period of the Renaissance and its impact is debated among historians (like most things), it is generally seen as ranging from the 1300-1600’s. As we learn about the Renaissance be sure to think about how the themes of Religion, Humanism, Ideology, Individualism, Secularism and Skepticism were a part of the Renaissance.

The term Renaissance literally means rebirth. For our class the Renaissance can be seen as a broad intellectual and cultural movement that rebelled against certain aspects of the middle ages. The Renaissance began in Italy and slowly spread to the rest of Europe.

WHY DID THE RENAISSANCE BEGIN?

There are a few different areas we need to look at in order to understand why the Renaissance began.

A. Crusades: Remember the short video we watched on the crusades. What were the ultimate results of the crusades and how would these have led to the Renaissance? Take a few minutes to look at your notes and write a short paragraph .________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

ITALY

Italian City States Urban Societies Major trading centers Secular

Moved away from life in the Church Focuses more on material objects and enjoying life

• Italy had a series of city-states which had a healthy middle-class• Feudalism never developed as fully because the Italian economy was not based on

agriculture• Central European position led to expanding trade contacts• Italy was constantly reminded of past glories• Influx of scholars as the Ottoman Empire takes over Constantinople• Italy failed to become united during the Ages.• Many independent city-states emerged in northern and central Italy that played an

important role in Italian politics and art.

Major Italian Cities

Milan One of the richest cities, it

controls trade through the AlpsVenice Sitting on the Adriatic, it attracts

trade from all over the world. Florence• Controlled by the De Medici

Family, who became great patrons of the arts.

Genoa Had Access to Trade Routes

All of these cities: Had access to trade routes

connecting Europe with Middle Eastern markets

Served as trading centers for the distribution of goods to northern Europe

Were initially independent city-states governed as republics

Why Italy? Complete the compare and contrast chart to help understand how Italy was different than the rest of Europe during the middle ages and why the Renaissance might have begun there.

In Italy Rest of Europe How this helped start the Renaissance

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WHAT HAPPENED DURING THE RENAISSANCE?

As said at the beginning, the Renaissance was a broad cultural and intellectual movement. We will spend some time looking at art and intellectual life to understand the impact of the Renaissance.

The Renaissance produced new ideas that were reflected in the arts, philosophy, and literature

Medieval art was primarily interested in _________________________________________ while Renaissance art slowly became more and more interested with ___________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

How To Read a Historical Image SIGHTScan for important details• What is being shown? What is the focus of the image?

Identify the conflict or tension (if one)

Guess the creator’s message or intent• What point of view is being displayed?

Hear the voices• If they could speak, what would they say?• Whose voices are absent or ignored? Why?

Talk about your observations

ART

What are key components of Renaissance Art?

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Michelangelo (1475-1564)

Born in 1475 in a small town near Florence, is considered to be one of the most inspired men who ever lived

Sistine Chapelo About a year after creating David, Pope Julius II summoned Michelangelo to

Rome to work on his most famous project, the ceiling of the Sistine Chapel

Leonardo Da Vinci (1452-1519) Painter, Sculptor, Architect, Engineer, Genius

The Mona Lisa

The Last Supper

Notebooks

Raphael, Painter (1483-1520)

Jan Van Eyck, Northern Renaissance (1395-1441

INTELLECTUAL LIFE

A fundamental shift occurred in thinking that is reflected in the art we have looked at.

Middle Ages mentality was that life was about preparation for the afterlife.

Renaissance mentality was that life could be enjoyed now.

They believed that, “As people of God we can enjoy God’s creation”

Renaissance thinking was primarily Humanist

Humanist: it focused increasingly on humanity Secular: it focused more on this world, rather than the divine. This does not mean

that it was anti-religious!!!

RENAISSANCE THINKERS

Petrarch:

Erasmus:

“I disagree very much with those who are unwilling that Holy Scripture, translated into the vernacular, be read by the uneducated . . . As if the strength of the Christian religion consisted in the ignorance of it”

The Praise of FollyUsed humour to show the immoral and ignorant behaviour of people, including the clergy. He felt people should be open minded and be kind to others. To be a Christian is to act like Christ

Thomas More

Machiavelli:

The PrinceMachiavelli observed city-state rulers and produced guidelines for the acquisition and maintenance of power by absolute rule.

1) Explain how Renaissance art and learning differed from medieval art and learning.______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________2) What is secular humanism?______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________3) Describe some of the notable characteristics associated with paintings in the medieval period.______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

4) What influence did humanism have on painting and art of the Renaissance era?______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

5) What new techniques did Renaissance artists employ to make their artwork seem more ‘lifelike and realistic’ in appearance?_______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

_______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________6) One of the most significant artistic developments to appear in Northern Europe during the Renaissance was the creation of _____________________________________________________7) Describe the advantage that using oil-based paints offered the Renaissance artists compared to the medieval tempura-based paints? ______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

POLITICS

The weakening of the Catholic Church and the development of territorial churches, coupled with the decline of feudalism and the rise of an active, effective middle class, all favoured the monarchy. The increase of royal powers in Western Europe allowed feudal rulers to develop the New Monarchies.

New Monarchies: _______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

This Gives Rise to: ___________________________________________