Renaissance Period in Europe

• The European renaissance began in the 14th century C.E. and reached its zenith in the 15th-16th century C.E. These three centuries proved to be foundational stage of a culture based on rationalism and science.
• This period gave a new direction to human intellect, genius and way of life. People got more interested in unfolding the mysteries of the universe by adopting scientific approach. Many people began to write poetry, drama and fiction, a field that had remained untouched so far. Novel experiments were conducted in the field of science.
• In the pre-renaissance times the thought about the existence of the universe revolved around the concept of ‘God’. Now, humans formed the centre of this thought. This way of thinking is called ‘Humanism’
• The European rulers of the renaissance period encouraged adventurous seafarers to explore distant lands. They brought back information about the plants, fruits, flowers, trees, unknown species of animals, weaponry etc., from the distant lands they visited.
• In 1543 C.E. Nicolaus Copernicus told the world that the centre of our planetary system is the ‘Sun’ and not the ‘Earth’.
• In 1609 Galileo prepared a more sophisticated telescope, which enabled further research in the field of astronomy. The theories propounded by Copernicus and Kepler could be supported by the empirical observations made possible by Galileo’s telescope. This facilitated research in the field of physical sciences.
• The inventions of gunpowder and printing respectively brought about fundamental changes in the techniques of warfare and dissemination of knowledge.
• The first printing press in Germany was started in 1440 by Johannes Gutenberg. The first printing press in Italy started in 1451.
• The invention of printing has been an outstanding gift of the renaissance period. New avenues opened to extend varied information and knowledge to common people. A number of modern universities came into existence in Europe in the 18th century. The syllabi in these universities included subjects like : the Epics - ‘Illiad’ and ‘Odyssey’ written by Homer, Greek drama, speeches ofgreat orators, literature, painting, sculpture, ethics,political science and history, etc. As a result of this people began to think freely.