5.1 The Renaissance TEACH

• History
• Middelbare school
• vwo
• Leerjaar 2

5. The Time of Discoverers and Reformers

Lesson 1. The Renaissance 

Main Questions

• What is the Renaissance?
• Why did the Renaissance start in Italy?
• Why did the fall of Constantinople fuel the Renaissance?
• How did peoples' worldview change during the Renaissance?
• How did art change during the Renaissance?
• How did Renaissance ideas spread across Europe?

One of the most brilliant men that ever lived was born in 1452, near the small village of Vinci, close to the Italian city of Florence. He is known to be a perfect example of a Homo Universalis, a person that is an expert in many different fields. This man was a sculptor, a painter, an architect, an anatomist, a poet, a writer, an engineer and much more. Even during his lifetime he was a legend, although many of his works remain a mystery. His name was Leonardo da Vinci

One of the most brilliant men that ever lived was born in 1452, near the small village of Vinci, close to the Italian city of Florence. He is known to be a perfect example of a Homo Universalis, a person that is an expert in many different fields. This man was a sculptor, a painter, an architect, an anatomist, a poet, a writer, an engineer and much more. Even during his lifetime he was a legend, although many of his works remain a mystery. His name was Leonardo da Vinci

Leonardo da Vinci

The rebirth of antiquity 

Leonardo da Vinci was the father of many inventions, like a parachute, a tank, a mechanical knight and musical instruments. 

But he was also a very skilled artist. His most famous paintings, the Mona Lisa and the Last Supper, still draw millions of art lovers to museums. Da Vinci lived in a period that is now called the Renaissance, which lasted from the fourteenth to the seventeenth century. 

Renaissance is a French word which means 'rebirth' in English. During this period it was people like da Vinci who started to rediscover the knowledge and art of classical antiquity. 

This 'rebirth' of the culture of the Greeks and Romans started in Italy, but eventually spread across Europe. 

How did this cultural shift take place and 

why did it start in Italy?

Powerful Italian city-states 

To find out why the Renaissance started in Italy we have to start in the late Middle Ages. Last year you learned that new cities started to develop all over Europe between the eleventh and fifteenth century. Italian cities like Florence, Genoa and Venice flourished and became rich and powerful city-states. Most of their wealth was gained through trade. Because of this, the merchants, bankers and other civilians became the ones with power and money. These rich inhabitants were not only interested in trade and war, but also in the remains of the Roman ancestors that lived in Italy during antiquity. They wanted to know more about them, and it just so happens this knowledge was about to arrive from the east.

Lorenzo de Medici, lord of Florence, belonged to the most powerful and wealthy Italian merchant family.

Knowledge from the east 

Thousands of soldiers poured into the streets of Constantinople in the year 1453. 

The armies of the Turkish sultan Mehmed II had broken through the gate, and by conquering the city they destroyed the last part of the Eastern Roman empire. 

Thousands of refugees fled from Constantinople to the Northern Italian city-states. Among them were scholars, architects, poets, astronomers, scientists and artists who brought their money, books and skills. Most knowledge of antiquity had been lost in Europe, but the people of Constantinople had been able to copy and preserve it. Now they brought the knowledge to the Italian city-states. The money of rich merchants and bankers, the remains of ancient buildings and the knowledge of the refugees fuelled the interest in antiquity.

A changing worldview 

During the Middle Ages, people mainly saw life as a test. Their motto was memento mori ('remember that you will die'). They believed that God would decide if they would earn a place in heaven or not. Because of this they feared death, for if they did not live their life according to the words of the priests, they would be sent to hell. 

During the Renaissance, people in the Italian city-states developed new views on religion, humans, and the world. Scholars started to study ancient texts, which made them change their worldview. No longer did they focus on the mystical power of God or the fear of going to hell, but on the ability of humans to think for themselves. 

The people in the Italian city-states started to discuss and philosophise, becoming less influenced by the church. They also started to enjoy life: carpe diem ('seize the day') became their new motto. This meant that people should enjoy life by having elaborate parties, buying fancy clothing and hiring skilled artists and architects to make beautiful paintings, sculptures and buildings. 

Renaissance art 

This change in worldview also led to a change in art. During the early Middle Ages, painters and sculptors were seen as craftsmen and almost all art was commissioned by the church. Their arts had to represent a Christian theme, such as the crucifixion of Jesus or the last supper.

This changed during the Renaissance. The citizens ruled the Italian city-states and they fuelled the change in art. Painters, sculptors and architects were hired by bankers and merchants who wanted to enjoy life. They needed someone to decorate their homes or to make building plans for new palaces. Craftsmen increased their skills, which made their art look more realistic and it dazzled with colour and depth. They felt more connected to their work and started to be seen as artists. 

Another change that occurred during the Renaissance is that the subjects of artworks shifted from biblical themes to scenes from antiquity. Statues and paintings of Greek and Roman gods, philosophers and heroes became popular. The painting 'Primavera' is a good example of this. 

painting: Archangel Michael slaying the dragon, painter unknown

painting: School of Athens, by the painter Rafael

Renaissance architects also looked at the remains of ancient buildings. In their new designs, they included copies of Roman columns, arches and domes. The change in view on humans also made it possible for painters to portray people as individuals. 

Leonardo da Vinci's most famous painting, the Mona Lisa, is of the wife of a silk merchant, and not a picture of a Christian saint. 

The Renaissance artists saw it as their goal to make their artworks as realistic as possible. It is known from some artists that they cut up bodies and studied them. By doing this they could get a good picture of what the body looked like so they could make their art even more natural, just like the Greeks and Romans did. Muscles and arteries made statues lifelike and sometimes they had divinely beautiful bodies, in a Greek style.

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The interest in antiquity did not mean the end of Christian art. Some popes became the biggest buyers of Renaissance art. In Florence, a huge church was built with an amazing dome. The sculptor Michelangelo made a famous statue of David and painted the ceiling of the famous Sistine chapel.

Michelangelo's statue of David and his painting of the ceiling of the Sistine's Chapel.

Nicholas Copernicus

Nicholas Copernicus (1473-1543) was born in Poland and educated in Poland and Italy. He is famous for showing that the Earth rotated around the Sun, not the Sun around the Earth. 

He was qualified as a mathematician, an astronomer and a doctor. He studied classical books on many subjects.

He advised various rulers on government and the economy. 

He worked as a military leader and a government official and trained as a priest. 

His theory that the Earth went round the Sun was built on the theories of earlier Arab and Greek thinkers. For hundreds of years before this everyone in Europe believed the Earth was at the centre of the universe and everything else revolved around it. Copernicus' careful calculations led to him drawing up charts to show how the planets moved around the Sun.

       Copernicus, 3 min. video

The spread of Renaissance 

Around 1450, Johannes Gutenberg invented the printing press. 

Before this invention, all books had to be copied by hand, which was mostly done by monks in monasteries. By using the printing press, texts could be copied more easily, enabling knowledge to be spread faster. 

Because of this, the inhabitants of other European countries also came in contact with the Renaissance from Italy. These new ideals encouraged scholars throughout Europe to study the ancients. It even inspired merchants and adventurers to learn more about the world and to leave their homes in search of unknown lands.

       Gutenberg, 2,5 min. video

people in this lesson

Leonardo da Vinci

Johannes Gutenberg

Michelangelo

Nicolaus Copernicus

Important dates in this lesson:

1450: Johannes Gutenberg invents printing press

1453: Ottomans conquer Constantinople

1503: da Vinci starts painting the Mona Lisa

1543: Copernicus publishes his theory of a sun centered universe

Make your own summary using the main questions:

1. What is the Renaissance?
   
2. Why did the Renaissance start in Italy?
   
3. Why did the fall of Constantinople fuel the Renaissance?
   
4. How did peoples' worldview change during the Renaissance?
   
5. How did art change during the Renaissance?
   
6. How did Renaissance ideas spread across Europe?
   

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