The Renaissance

• Renaissance means “rebirth“ in french
• The Renaissance is a cultural and intellectual movement from around the late 14th century to the early 17th century
• The Italian Peninsula was regarded as the birthplace of the Renaissance
• Features of the Renaissance:

  • Revival of the ancient Greco-Roman civilisation
  • The rise of humanism (secularism)
  • Challenging tradition
• Revival of the ancient Greco‐Roman civilisation

  ● Renewed interest in the culture of Ancient Greece and Rome
• The rise of humanism

  ● Europe became more secular

  ● Greater emphasis on rationality, independent thinking, scientific method
• Challenging tradition

  ● As a result of the rise of humanism, traditional ideas that had been taught and held by the Church for centuries, were challenged

  ● New ideas and inventions
• Causes of the Renaissance

  • The Black Death and the decline of feudalism in Western Europe
  • Increased interaction between the East and the West
  • Growth of cities
  • Rise of Universities and intellectuals
  • Declining influence of the Church
• Increased interaction between the East and the West

  During the Islamic Golden Age of the 9th–14th centuries, the Arab civilisation was leading the world in areas such as science, mathematics, and philosophy.
• Crusades

  Between the 11th and 13th centuries ,the Church waged a series of campaigns, known as the

  Crusades, against the Muslim Arabs in the East in order to recapture Jerusalem.
• Trade and communications between the West and the East increased
• many of the learnings of the Arabs, both new and old, were brought back to

  Europe.
• After the fall of Constantinople in 1453, many Greek scholars of the east escaped to Italy.

  This helped the Italians greatly for reviving their interests and knowledge of the ancient classics.
• Growth of cities

  ● Thanks to Italy’s superior geographical location, many Italian cities profited hugely from the flourishing trade between Europe and the East
• Many of the wealthy merchants became sponsors of the arts. For example, the Medici family of Florence.
• Rise of Universities and intellectuals

  ● Universities and Intellectuals

  o During the late Middle Ages, many universities were. built

  ● Printing Technology

  o Gutenberg invented a movable type printing press

  o The invention dramatically improved the spread of ideas as books are now easier to circulate and harder to ban.
• Declining influence of the Church
• Paintings

  • More diverse themes than medieval paintings
  • More realistic and three‐dimensional
  • New techniques such as shadowing and perspective were widely used
• Sculptures

  • The Bible remains the main source of inspiration for Renaissance sculptors. However, they were more realistic.
  • Facial expression and body movements were important aspects of Renaissance sculptures,

  more life‐like
• ⮚ The Renaissance was the revival of Classical Antiquity. Therefore, many of the architectural styles

  were heavily influenced by Greco‐Roman architecture.

  ⮚ Examples: Tall columns and large, round domes.

  ⮚ Very different from medieval architecture (Gothic, Norman, Romanesque)
• Medieval architecture hints:

  flying buttresses

  Pointed arches

  Stained glass window

  Tall pointed towers
• Renaissance architecture hints:

  Roman semi‐circular arches / rounded arches

  Domes

  Pediments

  Tall pillars / columns / colonnades