Session 1: Renaissance and Religious Turmoil

The Italian and Northern Renaissance

Lesson Objectives• Define Renaissance and the location of its origins

• Debate why the Renaissance began in Italy

• Define Humanism and its effects on education, literature, society and government.

• Compare the Italian city-states of Rome, Florence and Venice

• Analyze the works of Da Vinci, Michelangelo and other Renaissance artists.

• Contrast the Northern Renaissance with the Italian Renaissance

• Explain Christian Humanism and its effects on thought and culture.

• Identify the important figures of the English Renaissance.

The Beginning of the Modern Age

• The collapse of the Roman Empire had pushed the European continent into a turbulent period known as the Middle Ages…i.e. Medieval Age.

• During this era from roughly 455 AD to 1350 AD, Europe existed in a state dominated by the Catholic Church and continual warfare.

• However, beginning in 1350 AD, a “rebirth” or renaissance began in Italy reviving the culture of the Greeks and Romans.

Humanism• Humanism- A cultural and intellectual

movement of the Renaissance that emphasized secular concerns as a result of the rediscovery and study of the literature, art, and civilization of ancient Greece and Rome.

• Effects on Society:– Education: Religion replaced by a classical

education…philosophy, economics, history, Latin and Greek.

– Literature: Sonnets (short poems), political writings (Machiavelli’s The Prince), and autobiographies. Writers began using their own language instead of Latin.

– Scholarship: independent thinking, questioning the powers of the church, creation of secret societies.

The Italian Renaissance• The Renaissance caused educated

Europeans to develop new attitudes and ideas about themselves and the world around them.

• Why did the Renaissance begin in Italy?– 1. Wealth: Italian City-States had largely

avoided the economic crises of the rest of Europe and had a strong merchant class.

– 2. Geography: Located on the Mediterranean allowed Italian merchants to have greater access for trade and exchange of ideas.

– 3. Heritage: Italians were surrounded with reminders of the grandeur of Rome, and remained in close contact with the Byzantines whose scholars kept records of ancient civilizations.

• Outcome: For nearly 100 years, Italy held a cultural advantage over the rest of Europe still bogged down in the feudal Middle Ages.

Activity: Cities of the Renaissance

• The class will be broken into 3 groups and will research one of three major Italian renaissance cities.

• Students will have 10 minutes to read their passage and fill out the following information on their graphic organizers:– Where in Italy was the city located– Who controlled the city – What was their economy based on– Interesting Fact…this can be a historic event,

structure built, etc.

• Students will report out to the rest of the class

Check for Understanding

• What was the Renaissance? What does it mean, about when did it begin, what did it replace?

• What is Humanism? What parts of society did it change? What are some examples?

• Why did the Renaissance begin in Italy…what advantages did it have over the rest of Europe.

• What were the major Renaissance cities in Italy? Who controlled the cities? What made the cities powerful?

Architecture of the Renaissance

• Churches, palaces, and villas changed from the arches and spires of the medieval gothic style to one dominated by the classical style of domes and columns.

Medieval Gothic Classical Renaissance

Sculpture of the Renaissance

• Medieval sculpture tended to be portrayed in a stiff stylized manner. Renaissance sculptors (the most famous being Michelangelo Buonarroti and Donatello) created masterpieces of marble and bronze using the nude human form as the object of most of their works.

Medieval Gothic Classical Renaissance

Painting of the Renaissance

• The Italian Renaissance left the flat symbolic medieval painting for a more realistic theme.

• Artists such as Da Vinci, Raphael, Michelangelo and others maintained religious overtones, but added new perspective and dimension into their works as well.

Northern Renaissance• France’s invasion of Italy in

1494 led to the Renaissance spreading into the rest of the continent.

• Monarchs and nobility outside of Italy began to lure scholars and artists to their countries

• Overtime nations such as France, German states, and the Low Countries (BeNeLux) began producing their own great Renaissance achievements…

Christian Humanism• The Northern Renaissance had a

more religious tone that wanted to reform the Catholic Church.

• Northern Humanists such as Erasmus, were critical of the corruption of the Catholic Church and attacked the luxurious lives of popes, bishops and other clergy.

• Humanism in Northern Europe would eventually spark the Reformation that would lead to centuries of religious turmoil in Europe.

The English Renaissance• The Renaissance would not hit

England until nearly the 16th century when the Tudor family came to power.

• Henry VII and later heirs including Henry VIII and Elizabeth I, became major supporters of humanist ideas and brought scholars from across Europe.

• England also produced great Renaissance and Humanist thinkers such as Thomas More and authors and play-writes such as William Shakespeare who set many of his plays in the classical period.

Check for Understanding• How did Renaissance architecture differ from medieval

architecture?

• How did Renaissance art differ from medieval art? Who were some of the most famous sculptors and artists of the time…what were their works?

• What caused the beginning of the Northern Renaissance? What countries were most effected?

• How did Christian Humanism differ from Humanism? Who was the most famous Christian Humanist? What did Christian Humanism eventually lead to?

• What royal family in England brought the Renaissance to Britain? Who were some of the most noteworthy English Renaissance figures?

Next Class

• Session 2: Renaissance and Religious Turmoil- The Reformation

• Due: Note Check from Session 1

• Quiz: Next Wednesday 9/7/11 Sessions 1&2