chapter 2

• Geography: understood how geography could help or hinder trade - locations, landforms and climate (Italy’s ability to trade)
• Time: faster pace - high demand and wanting goods now
• Beliefs: relying on Church less (less focus on religion), learn about Muslim faith and culture - scientific beleifs - astronomy, math, philosophy  -  what you know impacts what you think to be true - Crusades - religious wars that had the side effect of introducing trade and new ideas
• Values: more materialistic - high demand for luxury goods (all they cared about) - goods - spices, silks, gold, pepper (food tasted better) conceptual values like status and power
• Knowledge: INCREASED - big time! Muslim more advanced - math, philosphy, literature, astronomy….knowledge about world 
• Economy: move away from strictly agricultural to a trade-based economy - Silk Road, currency
• Society: no feudal hierarchy - sumptuary laws fail, upper, middle, lower with complete social mobility and new roles like merchants and bankers
• The 3 major city-states in Italy were Genoa, Florence and venice. 

  1: Genoa - port city, great for sea trade (maritime), constant competition with Venice

  2. Florence - hinterland - farming (produced goods for trade), river, Medici’s 

  3: Venice - constant competition with Genoa, Doge (ruler of Venice), system of canals
• The silk road was the name given to routes that connected civilizations from the mediterranean  in the west to the pacific ocean in the east.
• More than trade goods were passed along these routes - intercultural contact led to exchanges of ideas and knowlege as well.
• The most sought after trade goods were spices. pepper was so valuable that sellers counted it out peppercorn by peppercorn and it was worth more than its weight in gold.
• The series of religious wars between Christian and Muslim forces was known as the crusades.
• Marco Polo was one of the first European travellers to adventure down the silk road.
• Italy’s location on the Silk Road has been described as the gateway to the east. Explain why this is: Its advantageous location on the Mediterranean Sea's coasts, enabled the city to become a western commerce hub, receiving products from the east by sea and distributing them into the expanding European market. Venetian merchants grew wealthy and powerful through nautical commerce, as their geographical location allowed them to be the major middleman between the Middle East and destinations throughout Europe.
• The medici family was the most famous and rich family in Italy.
• The most important body of water that was the key to Renaissance trade was the mediterranean sea 
• • Explain 2 reasons why members of the Medici family met violent deaths:

  1. They made many enemies

  2. They took control of Florence in a manipulative way.
• The Medici family was the most famous and powerful family in Italy.
• • During the Renaissance, the church considered usury sinful.
• Usury, the practice of charging interest when Loaning money to someone, played an important part in creating wealth.
• The bankers as well as the merchants of the city-state brought wealth to their cities. Florentine bankers established banking houses across Europe. Florence’s golden florin became the most important currency in Europe during the course of the Renaissance.
• Merchants made money by purchasing goods in one place and then selling them for a higher price in another place.
• city-states all wanted to expand their trade and business, there was rivalry among them. For example, Genoa and Venice competed for control of the sea routes in the Mediterranean.
• • Identify 2 geographical features about Italy that made its city-states successful centers for trade and explain why.

  1. Being next to the Mediterranean

  2. Having a spot next to many countries and being the gateway to the east.
• At this time, Italy was a collection of City-States. A City-State consists of a city that is Politically Independent.
• When ships loaded with luxury goods returned to seaports like Genoa and Venice, merchants from Italy and across northern Europe flocked to buy the valuable cargoes.
• • Italy’s location on the Silk Road has been described as the gateway to the east. Explain why this is: It was located next to many seas, most notably the Mediterranean which was the easiest way to access the east because of this it was known to Europe as the gateway to the east.
• • The Silk Road was the name given to trade routes that connected civilizations from the Pacific Ocean in the East, to the Mediterranean in the West
  • Mode of transportation – camel caravans travelled long distances moving goods from one region to another, and there was also extensive trade by sea
• • The Muslim world at this time was more advanced than Europe. By travelling there, Europeans were exposed to new ideas about medicine, astronomy, philosophy, mathematics, and ancient literature
• • During the time of the Crusades, the Muslim world was more advanced than Europe
  • Europeans were therefore exposed to new ideas and knowledge which they brought back to Europe
  • The Crusaders also brought back to Europe many new goods including : oil, spices and new varieties of fruit from the Muslim world
  • Europeans wanted more of these goods (and the new wealthy middle class could now afford these goods) , which led to increased trade between Europe and the East