1450 - 1750 Flashcards
By the end of the period, who were the dominant world powers. At the expense of whom?
Europe countries at the expense of the land-based empires of Asia and the declining empires in the Americas
In just a few hundred years, Europe went from being a backward outpost on the permimeter of the major civilizations to the home of some of the most dominant civilizations in the world
What explains the eventual dominance of the European countries
Competition and rivalty for faster trade routes and new colonial possessions as strove to gain control of key resources
What were the 4 massive cultural movements in Europe during this time
Renaissance
Protestant Reformation
Scientific Revolution
Enlightenment
How did this period begin for Europe?
Describe Europe in the 1300’s
Christian for 1,000 years
Feudal system had dominated political and social structures for several hundred years
Ancient classical civilizations of Greece and Rome had faded into distant past
What were Middle Ages in Europe like?
Dominated by local issues
Concerns with salvation
Limited access to education
Small-scale trade
Disease
Famine
Territorial disputes
What happened in near end of the European Middle Ages to lay the groundwork for the major changes in the way Europeans viewed themselves and the world?
- Countries began to unify under centralized rule
- Crusades exposed Christians to advanced Islamic civilizations
- Increased trade increased contact with other parts of world
- Universities became great centers of learning and Europeans exposed to history
- Byzantine and Islamic Empires had preserved much of the heritage of ancient Greece and Rome and continued to expand upon this inherited knowledge; Europe’s contact with these empires led it to place a greater emphasis on its classical past
What is the Renaissance?
Means Rebirth
Particularly evident in the arts
It began in Italy where powerful families in city-states such as Florence, Venice and Milan had become rich on trade and financed art on a scale not seen since the classical civilizations of Greece and rome
Also involved recapturing and studying the past
What led to the Renaissance?
- Population of Europe began to grow again after Black Death leading to increase in demand for goods and services
- Middle class of bankers, traders, and merchants emerged due to global trade
- Influx of money to go with newfound sense of history
- Money spent on arts and recapturing and studying the past
What is Humanism
Focus on human endeavors
Far-reaching impact because a focus on present-day life over a distance future of salvation leads to a focus on individuals which leads to a reduction in the authority of institutions
What did the shift to Humanism look like?
- In Middle Ages priority was afterlife and salvation and, for many, present day life was just to be suffered through
- In contrast, humanity - personal accomplishments and personal happiness - was at the core of much of the literature and philosophy of the rediscovered classical writers
- As a result, Europeans began to shift focus to life on Earth and to celebrating achievement in the scholarly, artistic and political realms
Medici family
Lived in Florence
Ruled city and turned it into a showcase of architecture and beauty and were patrons to some of the greatest artists of the time such as Michelangelo and Brunelleshi
Difference between medieval painting and Renaissance paintings
- Medieval artists often depicted humans as flat, stiff, and outof proportion with surroundings
- Renaissance artists demonstracted the application of the humanistic ideals of ancients
- Painters and sculptors such as Leonardo da Vinci and Donatello depicted human figure as realistically as possible with careful use of light and shadow to make figures appear real and full
- Many artists viewed and participated in autopsies to fully understand the structure of the human body
Gutenberg
Invented printing press in mid-1400’s
Used moveable type
Note: Printing developed in Song China
Books in Europe before Gutenberg press
Few books made because very laborious
Usually printed in Latin
Because of this and lack of public education, few people owned books or could read
Impact of printing press
- Books became easy to create and more affordable
- Growing middle class fueled demand for books on variety of subjects in own language
- Virtuous circle created of more education people demanding more books which led to better educated people
- Translation of bible into vernacular languages encouraged public debate and personal interpretations of bible which encouraged the Reformation
