This course material is designed and developed by Indira Gandhi National

Open University (IGNOU), New Delhi and Krishna Kanta Handiqui State
Open University (KKHSOU), Guwahati.
BACHELOR OF ARTS (HONOURS) IN
HISTORY (BAHI)

BHI-06
Rise of The Modern West-I

BLOCK – 3

RENAISSANCE AND REFORMATION

UNIT-7 ITS SOCIAL ROOTS SPREAD OF HUMANISM IN
EUROPE

UNIT-8 THE RENAISSANCE: ART, ARCHITECTURE,

SCULPTURE, PAINTING AND LITERATURE

UNIT-9 ORIGINS AND SPREAD OF REFORMATION

MOVEMENTS

UNIT-10 EMERGENCE OF EUROPEAN STATE SYSTEM:

SPAIN, FRANCE, ENGLAND, RUSSIA
UNIT 7 : ITS SOCIAL ROOTS SPREAD OF HUMANISM
IN EUROPE

Structure
7.0 Objectives
7.1 Introduction
7.2 Origin of Renaissance
7.2.1 Latin and Greek Phases of Renaissance Humanism
7.2.2 Social and Political Structures in Italy
7.2.3 Black Death
7.2.4 Cultural Conditions in Florence
7.3 Renaissance Humanism
7.4 Spread of Renaissance Humanism in Europe
7.5 Let Us Sum Up
7.6 Key Words
7.7 Answers to Check Your Exercises

7.0 OBJECTIVES

After reading this unit you will be able to understand,

 causes for the origin of renaissance,

 its various developmental stages, and
 spread of renaissance humanism in different parts of Europe.

7.1 INTRODUCTION

The word "Renaissance" is borrowed from the French language, where it means "re-
birth". It was first used in the eighteenth century and was later popularized by French
historian Jules Michelet (1798–1874 CE) in his 1855 work, Histoire de France
(History of France). The Renaissance was a period in European history marking the
transition from the middle Ages to Modernity and covering the 15th and 16th
centuries. It was a cultural movement that profoundly affected European intellectual
life in the early modern period. Beginning in Italy, and spreading to the rest of
Europe, its influence was felt in art, architecture, philosophy, literature, music,
science and technology, politics, religion, and other aspects of intellectual inquiry.
Renaissance scholars employed the humanist method in study, and searched for
realism and human emotion in art. Renaissance humanists such as Poggio
Bracciolini sought out in Europe's monastic libraries the Latin literary, historical, and

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oratorical texts of Antiquity, while the Fall of Constantinople (1453 CE) generated a
wave of émigré Greek scholars bringing precious manuscripts in ancient Greek,
many of which had fallen into obscurity in the West. It is in their new focus on
literary and historical texts that Renaissance scholars differed so markedly from the
medieval scholars of the Renaissance of the 12th century, who had focused on
studying Greek and Arabic works of natural sciences, philosophy and mathematics,
rather than on such cultural texts.

In the revival of neo-Platonism Renaissance humanists did not reject Christianity;

quite the contrary, many of the greatest works of the Renaissance were devoted to it,
and the Church patronized many works of Renaissance art. However, a subtle shift
took place in the way that intellectuals approached religion that was reflected in
many other areas of cultural life. In addition, many Greek Christian works, including
the Greek New Testament, were brought back from Byzantium to Western Europe
and engaged Western scholars for the first time since late antiquity. This new
engagement with Greek Christian works, and particularly the return to the original
Greek of the New Testament promoted by humanists Lorenzo Valla and Erasmus,
would help pave the way for the Protestant Reformation. Well after the first artistic
return to classicism had been exemplified in the sculpture of Nicola Pisano,
Florentine painters led by Masaccio strove to portray the human form realistically,
developing techniques to render perspective and light more naturally. Political
philosophers, most famously Niccolò Machiavelli, sought to describe political life as
it really was, that is to understand it rationally. A critical contribution to Italian
Renaissance humanism, Giovanni Pico della Mirandola wrote the famous text De
hominis dignitate (Oration on the Dignity of Man, 1486), which consists of a series
of theses on philosophy, natural thought, faith and magic defended against any
opponent on the grounds of reason. In addition to studying classical Latin and Greek,
Renaissance authors also began increasingly to use vernacular languages; combined
with the introduction of printing press, this would allow many more people access to
books, especially the Bible.

7.2 ORIGIN OF RENAISSANCE

Many argue that the ideas characterizing the Renaissance had their origin in late
13th-century Florence, in particular with the writings of Dante Alighieri (1265–1321
CE) and Petrarch (1304–1374 CE), as well as the paintings of Giotto di Bondone
(1267–1337 CE). Some writers date the Renaissance quite precisely, one proposed
starting point is 1401, when the rival geniuses Lorenzo Ghiberti and Filippo
Brunelleschi competed for the contract to build the bronze doors for the Baptistery of
the Florence Cathedral (Ghiberti won). Others see more general competition between
artists and polymaths such as Brunelleschi, Ghiberti, Donatello, and Masaccio for
artistic commissions as sparking the creativity of the Renaissance. Yet it remains
much debated why the Renaissance began in Italy, and why it began when it did.
Accordingly, several theories have been put forward to explain its origins.

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During the Renaissance, money and art went hand in hand. Artists depended entirely
on patrons while the patrons needed money to foster artistic talent. Wealth was
brought to Italy in the 14th, 15th, and 16th centuries by expanding trade into Asia and
Europe. Silver mining in Tyrol increased the flow of money. Luxuries from the
Eastern world, brought home during the Crusades, increased the prosperity of Genoa
and Venice. Jules Michelet defined the 16th century Renaissance in France as a
period in Europe's cultural history that represented a break from the middle Ages,
creating a modern understanding of humanity and its place in the world.

7.2.1 Latin and Greek Phases of Renaissance Humanism

In stark contrast to the High Middle Ages, when Latin scholars focused almost
entirely on studying Greek and Arabic works of natural science, philosophy and
mathematics. Renaissance scholars were most interested in recovering and studying
Latin and Greek literary, historical, and oratorical texts. Broadly speaking, this began
in the 14th century with a Latin phase, when Renaissance scholars such as Petrarch,
Coluccio Salutati (1331–1406 CE), Niccolò de' Niccoli (1364–1437 CE) and Poggio
Bracciolini (1380–1459 CE) scoured the libraries of Europe in search of works by
such Latin authors as Cicero, Lucretius, Livy and Seneca. By the early 15 th century,
the bulk of the surviving such Latin literature had been recovered; the Greek phase
of Renaissance humanism was under way, as Western European scholars turned to
recovering ancient Greek literary, historical, oratorical and theological texts.

Unlike with Latin texts, which had been preserved and studied in Western Europe
since late antiquity, the study of ancient Greek texts was very limited in medieval
Western Europe. Ancient Greek works on science, maths and philosophy had been
studied since the High Middle Ages in Western Europe and in the medieval Islamic
world (normally in translation), but Greek literary, oratorical and historical works
(such as Homer, the Greek dramatists, Demosthenes and Thucydides) were not
studied in either the Latin or medieval Islamic worlds; in the Middle Ages these sorts
of texts were only studied by Byzantine scholars. One of the greatest achievements
of Renaissance scholars was to bring this entire class of Greek cultural works back
into Western Europe for the first time since late antiquity. Arab logicians had
inherited Greek ideas after they had invaded and conquered Egypt and the Levant.
Their translations and commentaries on these ideas worked their way through the
Arab West into Iberia and Sicily, which became important centres for this
transmission of ideas. From the 11th to the 13th century, many schools dedicated to
the translation of philosophical and scientific works from Classical Arabic to
Medieval Latin were established in Iberia.

Most notably the Toledo School of Translators. This work of translation from
Islamic culture, though largely unplanned and disorganized, constituted one of the
greatest transmissions of ideas in history. The movement to reintegrate the regular
study of Greek literary, historical, oratorical and theological texts back into the
Western European curriculum is usually dated to the 1396 invitation from Coluccio

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Salutati to the Byzantine diplomat and scholar Manuel Chrysoloras (1355–1415 CE)
to teach Greek in Florence. This legacy was continued by a number of expatriate
Greek scholars, from Basilios Bessarion to Leo Allatius.

7.2.2 Social and Political Structures in Italy

The unique political structures of late middle Ages Italy have led some to theorize
that its unusual social climate allowed the emergence of a rare cultural efflorescence.
Italy did not exist as a political entity in the early modern period. Instead, it was
divided into smaller city states and territories: the Kingdom of Naples controlled the
south, the Republic of Florence and the Papal States at the centre, the Milanese and
the Genoese to the north and west respectively, and the Venetians to the east.
Fifteenth century Italy was one of the most urbanised areas in Europe. Many of its
cities stood among the ruins of ancient Roman buildings; it seems likely that the
classical nature of the Renaissance was linked to its origin in the Roman Empire's
heartland.

Historian and political philosopher Quentin Skinner points out that Otto of Freising
(1114–1158 CE), a German bishop visiting north Italy during the 12th century,
noticed a widespread new form of political and social organization, observing that
Italy appeared to have exited from Feudalism so that its society was based on
merchants and commerce. Linked to this was antimonarchical thinking, represented
in the famous early Renaissance fresco cycle The Allegory of Good and Bad
Government by Ambrogio Lorenzetti (painted 1338–1340 CE), whose strong
message is about the virtues of fairness, justice, republicanism and good
administration. Holding both Church and Empire at bay, these city republics were
devoted to notions of liberty. Skinner reports that there were many defences of
liberty such as the Matteo Palmieri (1406–1475 CE) celebration of Florentine genius
not only in art, sculpture and architecture, but "the remarkable efflorescence of
moral, social and political philosophy that occurred in Florence at the same time".
Even cities and states beyond central Italy, such as the Republic of Florence at this
time were also notable for their merchant Republics, especially the Republic of
Venice.

Although in practice these were oligarchical, and bore little resemblance to a modern
democracy, they did have democratic features and were responsive states, with forms
of participation in governance and belief in liberty. The relative political freedom
they afforded was conducive to academic and artistic advancement. Likewise, the
position of Italian cities such as Venice as great trading centres made them
intellectual crossroads. Merchants brought with them ideas from far corners of the
globe, particularly the Levant. Venice was Europe's gateway to trade with the East,
and a producer of fine glass, while Florence was a capital of textiles. The wealth
such business brought to Italy meant large public and private artistic projects could
be commissioned and individuals had more leisure time for study

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7.2.3 Black Death
One theory that has been advanced is that the devastation in Florence caused by the
Black Death, which hit Europe between 1348 and 1350 CE, resulted in a shift in the
world view of people in 14th century Italy. Italy was particularly badly hit by the
plague, and it has been speculated that the resulting familiarity with death caused
thinkers to dwell more on their lives on Earth, rather than on spirituality and the
afterlife. It has also been argued that the Black Death prompted a new wave of piety,
manifested in the sponsorship of religious works of art. However, this does not fully
explain why the Renaissance occurred specifically in Italy in the 14 th century. The
Black Death was a pandemic that affected all of Europe in the ways described, not
only Italy. The Renaissance's emergence in Italy was most likely the result of the
complex interaction of the above factors. The plague was carried by fleas on sailing
vessels returning from the ports of Asia, spreading quickly due to lack of proper
sanitation: the population of England, then about 4.2 million, lost 1.4 million people
to the bubonic plague. Florence's population was nearly halved in the year 1347 CE.
As a result of the decimation in the populace the value of the working class
increased, and commoners came to enjoy more freedom. To answer the increased
need for labour, workers travelled in search of the most favourable position
economically.

The demographic decline due to the plague had economic consequences: the prices
of food dropped and land values declined by 30–40% in most parts of Europe
between 1350 and 1400 CE. Landholders faced a great loss, but for ordinary men
and women it was a windfall. The survivors of the plague found not only that the
prices of food were cheaper but also that lands were more abundant, and many of
them inherited property from their dead relatives. The spread of disease was
significantly more rampant in areas of poverty. Epidemics ravaged cities, particularly
children. Plagues were easily spread by lice, unsanitary drinking water, armies, or by
poor sanitation. Children were hit the hardest because many diseases, such as typhus
and syphilis, target the immune system, leaving young children without a fighting
chance. Children in city dwellings were more affected by the spread of disease than
the children of the wealthy. The Black Death caused greater upheaval to Florence's
social and political structure than later epidemics. Despite a significant number of
deaths among members of the ruling classes, the government of Florence continued
to function during this period. Formal meetings of elected representatives were
suspended during the height of the epidemic due to the chaotic conditions in the city,
but a small group of officials was appointed to conduct the affairs of the city, which
ensured continuity of government.

7.2.4 Cultural Conditions in Florence

It has long been a matter of debate why the Renaissance began in Florence, and not
elsewhere in Italy. Scholars have noted several features unique to Florentine cultural
life that may have caused such a cultural movement. Many have emphasized the role

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played by the Medici, a banking family and later ducal ruling house, in patronizing
and stimulating the arts. Lorenzo de' Medici (1449–1492 CE) was the catalyst for an
enormous amount of arts patronage, encouraging his countrymen to commission
works from the leading artists of Florence, including Leonardo da Vinci, Sandro
Botticelli, and Michelangelo Buonarroti. Works by Neri di Bicci, Botticelli, da Vinci
and Filippino Lippi had been commissioned additionally by the Convent of San
Donato in Scopeto in Florence. The Renaissance was certainly underway before
Lorenzo de' Medici came to power – indeed, before the Medici family itself achieved
hegemony in Florentine society. Some historians have postulated that Florence was
the birthplace of the Renaissance as a result of luck, i.e., because "Great Men" were
born there by chance, Leonardo da Vinci, Botticelli and Michelangelo were all born
in Tuscany. Arguing that such chance seems improbable, other historians have
contended that these "Great Men" were only able to rise to prominence because of
the prevailing cultural conditions at the time.

7.3 RENAISSANCE HUMANISM

In some ways, Renaissance humanism was not a philosophy but a method of

learning. In contrast to the medieval scholastic mode, which focused on resolving
contradictions between authors, Renaissance humanists would study ancient texts in
the original and appraise them through a combination of reasoning and empirical
evidence. Humanist education was based on the programme of 'Studia Humanitatis',
the study of five humanities: poetry, grammar, history, moral philosophy and
rhetoric. Although historians have sometimes struggled to define humanism
precisely, most have settled on "a middle of the road definition... the movement to
recover, interpret, and assimilate the language, literature, learning and values of
ancient Greece and Rome". Above all, humanists asserted "the genius of man ... the
unique and extraordinary ability of the human mind".

Humanist scholars shaped the intellectual landscape throughout the early modern
period. Political philosophers such as Niccolò Machiavelli and Thomas More
revived the ideas of Greek and Roman thinkers and applied them in critiques of
contemporary government. Pico della Mirandola wrote the "manifesto" of the
Renaissance, the Oration on the Dignity of Man, a vibrant defence of thinking.
Matteo Palmieri (1406–1475 CE), another humanist, is most known for his work
Della vita civile ("On Civic Life"; printed 1528 CE), which advocated civic
humanism, and for his influence in refining the Tuscan vernacular to the same level
as Latin. Palmieri drew on Roman philosophers and theorists, especially Cicero,
who, like Palmieri, lived an active public life as a citizen and official, as well as a
theorist and philosopher and also Quintilian. Perhaps the most succinct expression of
his perspective on humanism is in a 1465 CE poetic work La città di vita, but an
earlier work, Della vita civile, is more wide-ranging. Composed as a series of
dialogues set in a country house in the Mugello countryside outside Florence during
the plague of 1430 CE, Palmieri expounds on the qualities of the ideal citizen. The

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dialogues include ideas about how children develop mentally and physically, how
citizens can conduct themselves morally, how citizens and states can ensure probity
in public life, and an important debate on the difference between that which is
pragmatically useful and that which is honest. The humanists believed that it is
important to transcend to the afterlife with a perfect mind and body, which could be
attained with education. The purpose of humanism was to create a universal man
whose person combined intellectual and physical excellence and who was capable of
functioning honourably in virtually any situation. This ideology was referred to as
the uomo universale, an ancient Greco-Roman ideal. Education during the
Renaissance was mainly composed of ancient literature and history as it was thought
that the classics provided moral instruction and an intensive understanding of human
behaviour.

7.4 SPREAD OF RENAISSANCE HUMANISM IN EUROPE

In the 15th century, the Renaissance spread rapidly from its birthplace in Florence to
the rest of Italy and soon to the rest of Europe. The invention of the printing press by
German printer Johannes Gutenberg allowed the rapid transmission of these new
ideas. As it spread, its ideas diversified and changed, being adapted to local culture.

After Italy, Hungary was the first European country where the Renaissance
appeared.[84] The Renaissance style came directly from Italy during the
Quattrocento to Hungary first in the Central European region, thanks to the
development of early Hungarian-Italian relationships—not only in dynastic
connections, but also in cultural, humanistic and commercial relations—growing in
strength from the 14th century. The relationship between Hungarian and Italian
Gothic styles was a second reason—exaggerated breakthrough of walls is avoided,
preferring clean and light structures. Large-scale building schemes provided ample
and long term work for the artists, for example, the building of the Friss (New)
Castle in Buda, the castles of Visegrád, Tata and Várpalota. The new Italian trend
combined with existing national traditions to create a particular local Renaissance
art. Acceptance of Renaissance art was furthered by the continuous arrival of
humanist thought in the country. Many young Hungarians studying at Italian
universities came closer to the Florentine humanist centre, so a direct connection
with Florence evolved. The growing number of Italian traders moving to Hungary,
especially to Buda, helped this process. New thoughts were carried by the humanist
prelates, among them Vitéz János, archbishop of Esztergom, one of the founders of
Hungarian humanism. Some important figures of Hungarian Renaissance were
Bálint Balassi (poet), Sebestyén Tinódi Lantos (poet), Bálint Bakfark (composer and
lutenist), and Master MS (fresco painter).

In England, the sixteenth century marked the beginning of the English Renaissance
with the work of writers William Shakespeare, Christopher Marlowe, Edmund
Spenser, Sir Thomas More, Francis Bacon, Sir Philip Sidney, as well as great artists,

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architects (such as Inigo Jones who introduced Italianate architecture to England),
and composers such as Thomas Tallis, John Taverner, and William Byrd.

In 1495 CE the Italian Renaissance arrived in France, imported by King Charles VIII
after his invasion of Italy. A factor that promoted the spread of secularism was the
inability of the Church to offer assistance against the Black Death. Francis-I
imported Italian art and artists, including Leonardo da Vinci, and built ornate palaces
at great expense. Writers such as François Rabelais, Pierre de Ronsard, Joachim du
Bellay and Michel de Montaigne, painters such as Jean Clouet, and musicians such
as Jean Mouton also borrowed from the spirit of the Renaissance. In 1533 CE, a
fourteen-year-old Caterina de' Medici (1519–1589 CE), born in Florence to Lorenzo
de' Medici, Duke of Urbino and Madeleine de la Tour d'Auvergne, married Henry-II
of France, second son of King Francis-I and Queen Claude. Though she became
famous and infamous for her role in France's religious wars, she made a direct
contribution in bringing arts, sciences and music (including the origins of ballet) to
the French court from her native Florence.

In the second half of the 15th century, the Renaissance spirit spread to Germany and
the Low Countries, where the development of the printing press (1450 CE) and
Renaissance artists such as Albrecht Dürer (1471–1528 CE) predated the influence
from Italy. In the early Protestant areas of the country humanism became closely
linked to the turmoil of the Protestant Reformation, and the art and writing of the
German Renaissance frequently reflected this dispute. However, the Gothic style and
medieval scholastic philosophy remained exclusively until the turn of the 16th
century. Emperor Maximilian-I of Habsburg (ruling 1493–1519 CE) was the first
truly Renaissance monarch of the Holy Roman Empire.

Culture in the Netherlands at the end of the 15th century was influenced by the Italian
Renaissance through trade via Bruges, which made Flanders wealthy. Its nobles
commissioned artists who became known across Europe. In science, the anatomist
Andreas Vesalius led the way; in cartography, Gerardus Mercator's map assisted
explorers and navigators. In art, Dutch and Flemish Renaissance painting ranged
from the strange work of Hieronymus Bosch to the everyday life depictions of Pieter
Brueghel the Elder.

The Renaissance in Northern Europe has been termed the "Northern Renaissance".
While Renaissance ideas were moving north from Italy, there was a simultaneous
southward spread of some areas of innovation, particularly in music. The music of
the 15th century Burgundian School defined the beginning of the Renaissance in
music, and the polyphony of the Netherlanders, as it moved with the musicians
themselves into Italy, formed the core of the first true international style in music
since the standardization of Gregorian Chant in the 9th century. The culmination of
the Netherlandish school was in the music of the Italian composer Palestrina. At the
end of the 16th century Italy again became a center of musical innovation, with the

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development of the polychoral style of the Venetian School, which spread northward
into Germany around 1600 CE.

The paintings of the Italian Renaissance differed from those of the Northern
Renaissance. Italian Renaissance artists were among the first to paint secular scenes,
breaking away from the purely religious art of medieval painters. Northern
Renaissance artists initially remained focused on religious subjects, such as the
contemporary religious upheaval portrayed by Albrecht Dürer. Later, the works of
Pieter Bruegel influenced artists to paint scenes of daily life rather than religious or
classical themes. It was also during the Northern Renaissance that Flemish brothers
Hubert and Jan van Eyck perfected the oil painting technique, which enabled artists
to produce strong colours on a hard surface that could survive for centuries. A
feature of the Northern Renaissance was its use of the vernacular in place of Latin or
Greek, which allowed greater freedom of expression. This movement had started in
Italy with the decisive influence of Dante Alighieri on the development of vernacular
languages; in fact the focus on writing in Italian has neglected a major source of
Florentine ideas expressed in Latin. The spread of the printing press technology
boosted the Renaissance in Northern Europe as elsewhere, with Venice becoming a
world centre of printing.

An early Italian humanist who came to Poland in the mid-15th century was Filippo
Buonaccorsi. Many Italian artists came to Poland with Bona Sforza of Milan, when
she married King Sigismund-I the Old in 1518 CE. This was supported by
temporarily strengthened monarchies in both areas, as well as by newly established
universities. The Polish Renaissance lasted from the late 15 th to the late 16th century
and was the Golden Age of Polish culture. Ruled by the Jagiellon dynasty, the
Kingdom of Poland (from 1569 known as the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth)
actively participated in the broad European Renaissance. The multi-national Polish
state experienced a substantial period of cultural growth thanks in part to a century
without major wars – aside from conflicts in the sparsely populated eastern and
southern borderlands. The Reformation spread peacefully throughout the country
(giving rise to the Polish Brethren), while living conditions improved, cities grew,
and exports of agricultural products enriched the population, especially the nobility
(szlachta) who gained dominance in the new political system of Golden Liberty. The
Polish Renaissance architecture has three periods of development. The greatest
monument of this style in the territory of the former Duchy of Pomerania is the
Ducal Castle in Szczecin.

Although Italian Renaissance had a modest impact on Portuguese arts, Portugal was
influential in broadening the European worldview, stimulating humanist inquiry.
Renaissance arrived through the influence of wealthy Italian and Flemish merchants
who invested in the profitable commerce overseas. As the pioneer headquarters of
European exploration, Lisbon flourished in the late 15 th century, attracting experts
who made several breakthroughs in mathematics, astronomy and naval technology,

9
including Pedro Nunes, João de Castro, Abraham Zacuto and Martin Behaim.
Cartographers Pedro Reinel, Lopo Homem, Estêvão Gomes and Diogo Ribeiro made
crucial advances in mapping the world. Apothecary Tomé Pires and physicians
Garcia de Orta and Cristóvão da Costa collected and published works on plants and
medicines, soon translated by Flemish pioneer botanist Carolus Clusius.

In architecture, the huge profits of the spice trade financed a sumptuous composite
style in the first decades of the 16th century, the Manueline, incorporating maritime
elements. The primary painters were Nuno Gonçalves, Gregório Lopes and Vasco
Fernandes. In music, Pedro de Escobar and Duarte Lobo produced four songbooks,
including the Cancioneiro de Elvas. In literature, Sá de Miranda introduced Italian
forms of verse. Bernardim Ribeiro developed pastoral romance, plays by Gil Vicente
fused it with popular culture, reporting the changing times, and Luís de Camões
inscribed the Portuguese feats overseas in the epic poem Os Lusíadas. Travel
literature especially flourished: João de Barros, Castanheda, António Galvão, Gaspar
Correia, Duarte Barbosa, and Fernão Mendes Pinto, among others, described new
lands and were translated and spread with the new printing press. After joining the
Portuguese exploration of Brazil in 1500, Amerigo Vespucci coined the term New
World, in his letters to Lorenzo di Pierfrancesco de' Medici.

Renaissance trends from Italy and Central Europe influenced Russia in many ways.
Their influence was rather limited, however, due to the large distances between
Russia and the main European cultural centers and the strong adherence of Russians
to their Orthodox traditions and Byzantine legacy. Prince Ivan III introduced
Renaissance architecture to Russia by inviting a number of architects from Italy, who
brought new construction techniques and some Renaissance style elements with
them. Between the early 16th and the late 17th centuries, an original tradition of
stone tented roof architecture developed in Russia. It was quite unique and different
from the contemporary Renaissance architecture elsewhere in Europe. In the mid 16th
century Russians adopted printing from Central Europe, with Ivan Fyodorov being
the first known Russian printer. By the 17th century the influence of Renaissance
painting resulted in Russian icons becoming slightly more realistic, while still
following most of the old icon painting canons, as seen in the works of Bogdan
Saltanov, Simon Ushakov, Gury Nikitin, Karp Zolotaryov and other Russian artists
of the era. Gradually the new type of secular portrait painting appeared, called
parsúna (from "persona" – person), which was transitional style between abstract
iconographics and real paintings. A number of technologies from the European
Renaissance period were adopted by Russia rather early and subsequently perfected
to become a part of a strong domestic tradition. Mostly these were military
technologies, such as cannon casting adopted by at least the 15 th century.

The Renaissance arrived in the Iberian peninsula through the Mediterranean

possessions of the Aragonese Crown and the city of Valencia. Many early Spanish
Renaissance writers come from the Kingdom of Aragon, including Ausiàs March

10
and Joanot Martorell. In the Kingdom of Castile, the early Renaissance was heavily
influenced by the Italian humanism, starting with writers and poets such as the
Marquis of Santillana, who introduced the new Italian poetry to Spain in the early
15th century. Other writers, such as Jorge Manrique, Fernando de Rojas, Juan del
Encina, Juan Boscán Almogáver and Garcilaso de la Vega, kept a close resemblance
to the Italian canon. Miguel de Cervantes's masterpiece Don Quixote is credited as
the first Western novel. Renaissance humanism flourished in the early 16th century,
with influential writers such as philosopher Juan Luis Vives, grammarian Antonio de
Nebrija and natural historian Pedro de Mexía.

Later Spanish Renaissance tended towards religious themes and mysticism, with
poets such as fray Luis de León, Teresa of Ávila and John of the Cross, and treated
issues related to the exploration of the New World, with chroniclers and writers such
as Inca Garcilaso de la Vega and Bartolomé de las Casas, giving rise to a body of
work, now known as Spanish Renaissance literature. The late Renaissance in Spain
produced artists such as El Greco and composers such as Tomás Luis de Victoria and
Antonio de Cabezón.

Check Your Progress

1) Discuss the causes for the origin of Renaissance in Italy.

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2) Write a note on Renaissance humanism.

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3) Give an account on the spread of Renaissance humanism in Europe.

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7.5 LET US SUM UP

This unit has tried to explain to you the different ways in which the Renaissance
created the condition for the making of a new world. It starts by explaining that
significant developments in Europe during the 13th-15th centuries came to be viewed
and conceptualized as Renaissance only in the 19th century. The Renaissance was
marked by the emergence of a new culture with roots in Italian humanism. This
culture was the product of a set of unique social, political and economic conditions
prevalent in parts of Europe from the late 11th century onwards. These conditions
were most conspicuous in the northern part of present-day Italy with the growth of
commerce and cities. These crucial developments along with the emergence of new
social groups, new ideologies and new technologies cumulatively transformed the
socio-cultural and political landscape of Europe. These developments also created
new forces which, in the centuries to follow, worked towards a greater cohesion and
integration of the world.

7.6 KEY WORDS

Castle : Citadel or Fortress.

Oligarchical : A form of government runs by a small number of powerful people.

Pandemic : A disease prevalent over a whole country.

Platonism : Philosophy of Plato or his followers.

Renaissance : A revival of or renewed interest in somthing.

7.7 ANSWERS TO CHECK YOUR EXERCISES

Check Your Progress

1) See Section 7.2

2) See Section 7.3

3) See Section 7.4

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UNIT 8 : THE RENAISSANCE: ART, ARCHITECTURE,
SCULPTURE, PAINTING AND LITERATURE

Structure
8.0 Objectives
8.1 Introduction
8.2 Renaissance Architecture
8.2.1 Characteristic Features
8.2.2 Important Architects
8.3 Renaissance Sculpture
8.4 Renaissance Paintings
8.5 Renaissance Literature
8.6 Let Us Sum Up
8.7 Key Words
8.8 Answers to Check Your Progress Exercises

8.0 OBJECTIVES

After reading this unit you will be able to know about,

 distinct style of art, architecture and sculpture during renaissance period,

 development in painting technique and emergence of great artists, and
 introduction of new literatures and growth of humanism.

8.1 INTRODUCTION

Renaissance art is the painting, sculpture and decorative arts of the period of
European history, emerging as a distinct style in Italy in about 1400 CE, in parallel
with developments which occurred in philosophy, literature, music, science and
technology. Renaissance art, perceived as the noblest of ancient traditions, took as its
foundation the art of Classical antiquity, but transformed that tradition by absorbing
recent developments in the art of Northern Europe and by applying contemporary
scientific knowledge. Renaissance art, with Renaissance humanist philosophy,
spread throughout Europe, affecting both artists and their patrons with the
development of new techniques and new artistic sensibilities. Renaissance art marks
the transition of Europe from the medieval period to the Early Modern age.

In many parts of Europe, Early Renaissance art was created in parallel with Late
Medieval art. Renaissance art, painting, sculpture, architecture, music, and literature
produced during the 14th, 15th, and 16th centuries in Europe under the combined

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influences of an increased awareness of nature, a revival of classical learning, and a
more individualistic view of man. Scholars no longer believe that the Renaissance
marked an abrupt break with medieval values, as is suggested by the French word
renaissance, literally "rebirth". Rather, historical sources suggest that interest in
nature, humanistic learning, and individualism were already present in the late
medieval period and became dominant in 15th and 16th century Italy, concurrently
with social and economic changes such as the secularization of daily life, the rise of
a rational money-credit economy, and greatly increased social mobility. The
influences upon the development of Renaissance men and women in the early 15 th
century are those that also affected philosophy, literature, architecture, theology,
science, government, and other aspects of society.

8.2 RENAISSANCE ARCHITECTURE

Renaissance architecture is the European architecture of the period between the early
14th and early 16th centuries in different regions, demonstrating a conscious revival
and development of certain elements of ancient Greek and Roman thought and
material culture. Stylistically, Renaissance architecture followed Gothic architecture
and was succeeded by Baroque architecture. Developed first in Florence, with
Filippo Brunelleschi as one of its innovators, the Renaissance style quickly spread to
other Italian cities. The style was carried to France, Germany, England, Russia and
other parts of Europe at different dates and with varying degrees of impact.

Renaissance style places emphasis on symmetry, proportion, geometry and the

regularity of parts, as they are demonstrated in the architecture of classical antiquity
and in particular ancient Roman architecture, of which many examples remained.
Orderly arrangements of columns, pilasters and lintels, as well as the use of
semicircular arches, hemispherical domes, niches and aedicule replaced the more
complex proportional systems and irregular profiles of medieval buildings.

8.2.1 Characteristic Features

The obvious distinguishing features of Classical Roman architecture were adopted
by Renaissance architects. However, the forms and purposes of buildings had
changed over time, as had the structure of cities. Among the earliest buildings of the
reborn Classicism were churches of a type that the Romans had never constructed.
Neither were there models for the type of large city dwellings required by wealthy
merchants of the 15th century. Conversely, there was no call for enormous sporting
fixtures and public bath houses such as the Romans had built. The ancient orders
were analysed and reconstructed to serve new purposes.

Plan

The plans of Renaissance buildings have a square, symmetrical appearance in which

proportions are usually based on a module. Within a church, the module is often the
width of an aisle. The need to integrate the design of the plan with the façade was
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introduced as an issue in the work of Filippo Brunelleschi, but he was never able to
carry this aspect of his work into fruition. The first building to demonstrate this was
St. Andrea in Mantua by Alberti. The development of the plan in secular architecture
was to take place in the 16th century and culminated with the work of Palladio.

Raphael's unused plan for Facade of Sant'Agostino, Rome, built in

St. Peter's Basilica 1483 by Giacomo di Pietrasanta

Facade

Facades are symmetrical around their vertical axis. Church façades are generally
surmounted by a pediment and organised by a system of pilasters, arches and
entablatures. The columns and windows show a progression towards the centre. One
of the first true Renaissance façades was the Cathedral of Pienza (1459–62 CE),
which has been attributed to the Florentine architect Bernardo Gambarelli (known as
Rossellino) with Alberti perhaps having some responsibility in its design as well.

Domestic buildings are often surmounted by a cornice. There is a regular repetition

of openings on each floor, and the centrally placed door is marked by a feature such
as a balcony, or rusticated surround. An early and much copied prototype was the
façade for the Palazzo Rucellai (1446 and 1451 CE) in Florence with its three
registers of pilasters

Columns and Pilasters

Roman and Greek orders of columns are used: Tuscan, Doric, Ionic, Corinthian and
Composite. The orders can either be structural, supporting an arcade or architrave, or
purely decorative, set against a wall in the form of pilasters. During the Renaissance,
architects aimed to use columns, pilasters, and entablatures as an integrated system.

15
One of the first buildings to use pilasters as an integrated system was in the Old
Sacristy (1421–1440 CE) by Brunelleschi.

Classical Orders, engraving from The Dome of St Peter's Basilica, Rome

the Encyclopédie vol. 18. 18th century

Arches

Arches are semi-circular or (in the Mannerist style) segmental. Arches are often used
in arcades, supported on piers or columns with capitals. There may be a section of
entablature between the capital and the springing of the arch. Alberti was one of the
first to use the arch on a monumental scale at the St. Andrea in Mantua.

Vaults

Vaults do not have ribs. They are semi-circular or segmental and on a square plan,
unlike the Gothic vault which is frequently rectangular. The barrel vault is returned
to architectural vocabulary as at the St. Andrea in Mantua.

Domes

The dome is used frequently, both as a very large structural feature that is visible
from the exterior, and also as a means of roofing smaller spaces where they are only
visible internally. After the success of the dome in Brunelleschi's design for the
Basilica di Santa Maria del Fiore and its use in Bramante's plan for St. Peter's
Basilica (1506) in Rome, the dome became an indispensable element in church
architecture and later even for secular architecture, such as Palladio's Villa Rotonda.

16
Ceilings

Roofs are fitted with flat or coffered ceilings. They are not left open as in Medieval
architecture. They are frequently painted or decorated.

Doors

Doors usually have square lintels. They may be set with in an arch or surmounted by
a triangular or segmental pediment. Openings that do not have doors are usually
arched and frequently have a large or decorative keystone.

Windows

Windows may be paired and set within a semi-circular arch. They may have square
lintels and triangular or segmental pediments, which are often used alternately.
Emblematic in this respect is the Palazzo Farnese in Rome, begun in 1517 CE.

In the Mannerist period the Palladian arch was employed, using a motif of a high
semi-circular topped opening flanked with two lower square-topped openings.
Windows are used to bring light into the building and in domestic architecture, to
give views. Stained glass, although sometimes present, is not a feature.

Walls

External walls are generally constructed of brick, rendered, or faced with stone in
highly finished ashlar masonry, laid in straight courses. The corners of buildings are
often emphasized by rusticated quoins. Basements and ground floors were often
rusticated, as at the Palazzo Medici Riccardi (1444–1460 CE) in Florence. Internal
walls are smoothly plastered and surfaced with lime wash. For more formal spaces,
internal surfaces are decorated with frescoes.

Details

Courses, mouldings and all decorative details are carved with great precision.
Studying and mastering the details of the ancient Romans was one of the important
aspects of Renaissance theory. The different orders each required different sets of
details. Some architects were stricter in their use of classical details than others, but
there was also a good deal of innovation in solving problems, especially at corners.
Mouldings stand out around doors and windows rather than being recessed, as in
Gothic architecture. Sculptured figures may be set in niches or placed on plinths.
They are not integral to the building as in medieval architecture.

8.2.2 Important Architects

The leading architects of the Renaissance were Brunelleschi, Michelozzo, Alberti,

Bramante, Raphel and Michelangelo.

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Filippo Brunelleschi: The person generally credited with bringing about the
Renaissance view of architecture is Filippo Brunelleschi, (1377–1446 CE). The
underlying feature of the work of Brunelleschi was "order". Brunelleschi's first major
architectural commission was for the enormous brick dome which covers the central
space of Florence's cathedral, designed by Arnolfo di Cambio in the 14th century but
left unroofed. While often described as the first building of the Renaissance,
Brunelleschi's daring design utilises the pointed Gothic arch and Gothic ribs that
were apparently planned by Arnolfio. The new architectural philosophy of the
Renaissance is best demonstrated in the churches of San Lorenzo, and Santo Spirito
in Florence. Designed by Brunelleschi in about 1425 and 1428 CE respectively, both
have the shape of the Latin cross. In 1434 CE Brunelleschi designed the first
Renaissance centrally planned building, Santa Maria degli Angeli of Florence. It is
composed of a central octagon surrounded by a circuit of eight smaller chapels.

Michelozzo Michelozzi: Michelozzo Michelozzi (1396–1472 CE), was another

architect under patronage of the Medici family, his most famous work being the
Palazzo Medici Riccardi, which he was commissioned to design for Cosimo de'
Medici in 1444. A decade later he built the Villa Medici at Fiesole. Among his other
works for Cosimo are the library at the Convent of San Marco, Florence.

Leon Battista Alberti: Leon Battista Alberti born in Genoa (1402–1472 CE), was
an important Humanist theoretician and designer whose book on architecture De re
Aedificatoria was to have lasting effect. He designed a number of buildings, but
unlike Brunelleschi, he did not see himself as a builder in a practical sense and so
left the supervision of the work to others. Miraculously, one of his greatest designs,
that of the Basilica of Sant'Andrea in Mantua, was brought to completion with its
character essentially intact.

Donato Bramante: Donato Bramante (1444–1514 CE), was born in Urbino and
turned from painting to architecture. Bramante’s finest architectural achievement in
Milan is his addition of crossing and choir to the abbey church of Santa Maria delle
Grazie (Milan). After the fall of Milan to the French in 1499 CE, Bramante travelled
to Rome where he achieved great success under papal patronage. In Rome Bramante
created what has been described as "a perfect architectural gem", the Tempietto, this
small circular temple marks the spot where St Peter was martyred and is thus the
most sacred site in Rome.

Raphel: Raphael (1483–1520 CE), born in Urbino, trained under Perugino in

Perugia before moving to Florence, was for a time the chief architect for St. Peter’s,
working in conjunction with Antonio Sangallo. He also designed a number of
buildings, most of which were finished by others. His single most influential work is
the Palazzo Pandolfini in Florence with its two stories of strongly articulated
windows of a "tabernacle" type, each set around with ordered pilasters, cornice and
alternate arched and triangular pediments

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Michelangelo Buonarroti: Michelangelo Buonarroti (1475–1564 CE) was one of
the creative giants whose achievements mark the Renaissance. He excelled in each
of the fields of painting, sculpture and architecture and his achievements brought
about significant changes in each area. His architectural fame lies chiefly in two
buildings: the interiors of the Laurentian Library and its lobby at the monastery of
San Lorenzo in Florence, and St Peter's Basilica in Rome.

8.3 RENAISSANCE SCULPTURE

Renaissance sculpture proper is often taken to begin with the famous competition for
the doors of the Florence Baptistry in 1403 CE, from which the trial models
submitted by the winner, Lorenzo Ghiberti, and Filippo Brunelleschi survive.
Ghiberti's doors are still in place, but were undoubtedly eclipsed by his second pair
for the other entrance, the so-called Gates of Paradise, which took him from 1425 to
1452 CE, and are dazzlingly confident classicizing compositions with varied depths
of relief allowing extensive backgrounds. The intervening years had seen Ghiberti's
early assistant Donatello develop with seminal statues including his Davids in
marble (1408–09 CE) and bronze (1440s), and his Equestrian statue of Gattamelata,
as well as reliefs. A leading figure in the later period was Andrea del Verrocchio,
best known for his equestrian statue of Bartolomeo Colleoni in Venice, his pupil
Leonardo da Vinci designed an equine sculpture in 1482 CE The Horse for Milan-
but only succeeded in making a 24-foot (7.3 m) clay model which was destroyed by
French archers in 1499, and his other ambitious sculptural plans were never
completed. The period was marked by a great increase in patronage of sculpture by
the state for public art and by the wealthy for their homes; especially in Italy, public
sculpture remains a crucial element in the appearance of historic city centres. Church
sculpture mostly moved inside just as outside public monuments became common.
Portrait sculpture, usually in busts, became popular in Italy around 1450, with the
Neapolitan Francesco Laurana specializing in young women in meditative poses,
while Antonio Rossellino and others more often depicted knobbly-faced men of
affairs, but also young children. The portrait medal invented by Pisanello also often
depicted women; relief plaquettes were another new small form of sculpture in cast
metal.

Michelangelo was an active sculptor from about 1500 to 1520 CE, and his great
masterpieces including his David, Pietà, Moses, and pieces for the Tomb of Pope
Julius-II and Medici Chapel could not be ignored by subsequent sculptors. His iconic
David (1504 CE) has a contrapposto pose, borrowed from classical sculpture. It
differs from previous representations of the subject in that David is depicted before
his battle with Goliath and not after the giant's defeat. Instead of being shown
victorious, as Donatello and Verocchio had done, David looks tense and battle ready.
As in painting, early Italian Mannerist sculpture was very largely an attempt to find
an original style that would top the achievement of the Renaissance, which in
sculpture essentially meant Michelangelo, and much of the struggle to achieve this

19
was played out in commissions to fill other places in the Piazza della Signoria in
Florence, next to Michelangelo's David. Baccio Bandinelli took over the project of
Hercules and Cacus from the master himself, but it was little more popular than it is
now and maliciously compared by Benvenuto Cellini to "a sack of melons", though
it had a long-lasting effect in apparently introducing relief panels on the pedestal of
statues. Like other works of his and other Mannerists it removes far more of the
original block than Michelangelo would have done. Cellini's bronze Perseus with the
head of Medusa is certainly a masterpiece, designed with eight angles of view,
another Mannerist characteristic, but is indeed mannered compared to the Davids of
Michelangelo and Donatello. Originally a goldsmith, his famous gold and enamel
Salt Cellar (1543) was his first sculpture, and shows his talent at its best. As these
examples show, the period extended the range of secular subjects for large works
beyond portraits, with mythological figures especially favoured; previously these had
mostly been found in small works.

Michelangelo's David

Michelangelo's Pieta Michelangelo's Moses

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Small bronze figures for collector's cabinets, often mythological subjects with nudes,
were a popular Renaissance form at which Giambologna, originally Flemish but
based in Florence, excelled in the later part of the century, also creating life-size
sculptures, of which two joined the collection in the Piazza della Signoria. He and
his followers devised elegant elongated examples of the figura serpentinata, often of
two intertwined figures, that were interesting from all angles.

8.4 RENAISSANCE PAINTINGS

Renaissance painting bloomed most profusely in Italy. Here it received its original
impetus and became most representative of the spirit of the Renaissance. A number
of painters hold a prominent place in the pre-Renaissance period, but they are
overshadowed by the brilliance of Raphael and Leonardo da Vinci. Fra Angelico
(1387-1455 CE) was an inspirational painter whose aim was to express "the
beautitude of God's elect who pass through temptation and persecution to that utter
peace of Heaven which the world can neither give nor take away." His theme was
limited and he had little power of characterization. Masaccio (1405-1428 CE) added
much to the perfecting of the technique of painting. He recognized that it was
primarily an imitation of natural objects, which through careful study he could
reproduce with naturalness, vivacity, and reality. He introduced naturalism into
painting in the same way that Donatello introduced it into sculpture. Michelangelo,
Raphael, and Leonardo da Vinci (1542-1519) are the dominant figures among the
Renaissance painters. The subject matter of these masters was religious, primarily
because the church was one of the greatest patrons of art. Art, it must be
remembered, was no longer the submissive handmaid of theology. The Madonna, for
example, was not merely a female figure "with no limbs beneath the robe," but a real
woman.

Raphael chose the most beautiful women he could find as models, with the aim of
portraying the beauty of a mother and the loveliness of a child. While the spirit of his
work was secularized, he achieved a rare blending of devotional feeling with a sense
of beauty. Although Raphael died at the age of thirty-seven, he produced a great
number of paintings, of which the most familiar, perhaps, is the "Sistine Madonna".
Its beauty of composition and its lifelike charm have made it one of the most famous
paintings in the world. Michelangelo was a supreme individualist. He adored beauty
and maintained an ideal of purity. His works overstep the bounds of conventional
restraint. He admired strength and studied human anatomy minutely in order to
portray it powerfully in his works. The magnificent frescoes on the ceiling of the
Sistine Chapel represent his most brilliant achievement in painting. This work
contains 145 pictures with 394 figures, some of which are as much as 10 feet high-
Largeness of conception and of execution characterizes all his work. Grandeur of
design, tragic driving force, and deep religious emotion make Michelangelo unique
as an artist. He used the strong nude male figure as the bearer of certain ideas that he
intended to convey. Leonardo, one of the most versatile men of his own or of any

21
other time, was artist, poet, musician, and engineer. Of the few finished paintings
that he left, four are recognized as masterpieces of the highest rank. His "Mona
Lisa", whose unfathomable, brooding smile has become a symbol of mysterious
charm, is considered by many to stand without a rival among portraits, in its beauty
of posture, grace of fine raiment, and strangely interesting background of pools,
streams, and crags. "The Last Supper" is one of the most notable studies of character
in all painting and, even in its present wrecked condition, has impelling beauty.
Christ, surrounded by his disciples, has just announced that one of them will betray
him. The Master's face is serene, but the psychologic1 effect of the charge is plainly
written on the face of each disciple, according to his, individual nature. The scene is
living drama. The other two outstanding paintings that represent this great
Florentine— "The Virgin of the Rocks" and "The Virgin and Child with Saint
Anne"—create an impression of lovely mystery and rare inward beauty.

Raphael’s Sistine Madonna Leonardo’s Mona Lisa

Leonardo’s The Last Supper

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8.5 RENAISSANCE LITERATURE

For the writers of the Renaissance, Greco-Roman inspiration was shown both in the
themes of their writing and in the literary forms they used. The world was considered
from an anthropocentric perspective. Platonic ideas were revived and put to the
service of Christianity. The search for pleasures of the senses and a critical and
rational spirit completed the ideological panorama of the period. New literary genres
such as the essay (Montaigne) and new metrical forms such as the Spenserian
stanza made their appearance.
The impact of the Renaissance varied across the continent; countries that were
predominantly Catholic or Protestant experienced the Renaissance differently. Areas
where the Eastern Orthodox Church was culturally dominant, as well as those areas
of Europe under Islamic rule, were more or less outside its influence. The period
focused on self-actualization and one's ability to accept what is going on in one's life.
The development of the printing press (using movable type) by Johannes
Gutenberg in the 1440 CE encouraged authors to write in their
local vernacular instead of Greek or Latin classical languages, thus widening the
reading audience and promoting the spread of Renaissance ideas.
The earliest Renaissance literature appeared in Italy in the 14 th century. The first
notable creation in this direction was Dante’s ‘Divine Comedy’. This book was
written in Italian language and it was meant for the common people. In the book he
describes about the heaven, hell and the other world. It introduced new themes like
love of one’s country, love of nature as well as the role of individual. Another
pioneer of Renaissance thought was Francesco Petrarch. The medieval thought was
monastic, ascetic and other worldly. In contrast, Petrarch glorified the secular or
worldly interests of life and humanism through his ‘Sonnets to Laura’, a form of
poetry. His notable works were ‘Familiar Letters’ and ‘Lovers of Illustrious Man’.
Another great writer of Italy during that period was Boccaccio. In his world famous
book ‘De cameron’ (Ten Days), he denounced God which brought a revolutionary
change in the Christian World. The famous philosopher of Italy was Niccolo
Machiavelli who in his famous book ‘The Prince’ described the principle of the
‘Lion and the Fox’. Aristo’s ‘Orlandofuriso’ and Tasso’s ‘Jerusalem Delivered’
were two other great works for the Italian literature.
In other countries of Europe different kind of humanism spread in Renaissance
period. In England Thomas Moore’s ‘Utopia’, Milton’s ‘Paradise Lost’ and
‘Paradise Regained’ were very famous which were created during this period.
William Shake speare, the great playwright of England became famous for his plays
like ‘Julius Caesar’, ‘Othello’, ‘Macbeth’, ‘As you Like it’, ‘Romeo and Juliet’,
‘Hamlet’, ‘Merchants of Venice’, ‘King Lear’, ‘Mid-summer Night’s Dream’, ‘The
Tempest’ etc. Christopher Mario of England wrote his famous drama ‘Doctor
Frastress’.

23
During this period, the Spanish writer Cerventis ‘Don Ruixote’ the works of Lope de
Vaga and Calderon were very famous. By this time Martin Luther of Germany
translated the ‘Bible’ into German language. The writings of famous Dutchman
Desiderious Erasmus like ‘In Praise of Folly’, ‘Handbook of a Christian Soldier’
and ‘Familiar Colloquies’ gave new dimension to the literature. Robelai’s
‘Ganganchua’ and the writings of Racine, Sevigne and La Fontain created ‘Golden
Age’ in the French literature. The Portuguese writer Camoen’s ‘Lusaid’ was admired
by the people to a great extent.

Check Your Progress

1) Discuss the main architectural features of Renaissance Architecture.

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2) Write a note on Renaissance Sculptures.

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3) Discuss the main Renaissance Painters and their paintings?

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4) Explain the importance of Renaissance writer and their works.

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8.6 LET US SUM UP

Renaissance art marks a cultural rebirth at the close of the middle Ages and rise of
the Modern world. One of the distinguishing features of Renaissance art was its

24
development of highly realistic linear perspective. The development of perspective
was part of a wider trend towards realism in the arts. Painters developed other
techniques, studying light, shadow, and, famously in the case of Leonardo da Vinci,
human anatomy. Architects aimed to use columns, pilasters, and entablatures as an
integrated system. Literary works introduced new themes like love of one’s country,
love of nature as well as the role of individual. The Roman orders types of columns
are used: Tuscan and Composite. Renaissance artists were not pagans, although they
admired antiquity and kept some ideas and symbols of the medieval past.

8.7 KEY WORDS

Arch : A curved symmetrical structure spanning an opening and typically

supporting the weight of a bridge, roof, or wall above it.

Ceiling : The upper interior surface of a room or other similar compartment.

Keystone : A central stone at the summit of an arch, locking the whole together.

Lintel : A horizontal support across the top of a door or windows.

Masonry : Stonework

8.8 ANSWERS TO CHECK YOUR PROGRESS EXERCISES

Check Your Progress

1) See Section 8.2
2) See Section 8.3
3) See Section 8.4
4) See Section 8.5

25
UNIT 9 : ORIGINS AND SPREAD OF REFORMATION
MOVEMENTS

Structure
9.0 Objectives
9.1 Introduction
9.2 Origin of Reformation Movement
9.3 Spread of the Reformation Movement
9.4 Let Us Sum Up
9.5 Key Words
9.6 Answers to Check your Question Exercises

9.0 OBJECTIVES

After reading this unit you will be able to know about,

 the origin of reformation movement, and

 spread and consequences of the reformation movement.

9.1 INTRODUCTION

The Reformation was a movement within Western Christianity in 16 th century

Europe that posed a religious and political challenge to the Roman Catholic Church
and papal authority in particular. Although the Reformation is usually considered to
have started with the publication of the Ninety-five Theses by Martin Luther in 1517
CE, there was no schism between the Catholic Church and the nascent Luther until
the 1521 Edict of Worms. The edict condemned Luther and officially banned
citizens of the Holy Roman Empire from defending or propagating his ideas. The
end of the Reformation era is disputed, it could be considered to end with the
enactment of the confessions of faith which began the Age of Orthodoxy. Other
suggested ending years relate to the Counter Reformation or the Peace of
Westphalia. From a Catholic perspective, the Second Vatican Council called for an
end to the Counter-Reformation.

9.2 ORIGIN OF REFORMATION MOVEMENT

A number of theologians in the Holy Roman Empire preached reformation ideas in

the 1510s, shortly before or simultaneously with Luther, including Christoph
Schappeler in Memmingen. However, Reformation is usually dated to 31st October
1517 in Wittenberg, Saxony, when Luther sent his Ninety-Five Theses on the power
and efficacy of indulgences to the Archbishop of Mainz. The theses debated and

26
criticized the Church and the papacy, but concentrated upon the selling of
indulgences and doctrinal policies about purgatory, particular judgment, and the
authority of the pope. He would later in the period 1517–1521 CE write works on
devotion to Virgin Mary, the intercession and devotion to the saints, the sacraments,
mandatory clerical celibacy, and later on the authority of the pope, the ecclesiastical
law, censure and excommunication, the role of secular rulers in religious matters, the
relationship between Christianity and the law, good works, and monasticism. Some
nuns left the monastic life when they accepted the Reformation, such as Katharina
von Bora and Ursula of Munsterberg, but other orders adopted the Reformation, as
Lutherans continue to have monasteries today. In contrast, Reformed areas typically
secularized monastic property.

Reformers and their opponents made heavy use of inexpensive pamphlets as well as
vernacular Bibles using the relatively new printing press, so there was swift
movement of both ideas and documents. Magdalena Heymair printed pedagogical
writings for teaching children Bible stories. Parallel to events in Germany, a
movement began in Switzerland under the leadership of Huldrych Zwingli. These
two movements quickly agreed on most issues, but some unresolved differences kept
them separate. Some followers of Zwingli believed that the Reformation was too
conservative, and moved independently toward more radical positions, some of
which survive among modern day Anabaptists. After this first stage of the
Reformation, following the excommunication of Luther in Decet Romanum
Pontificem and the condemnation of his followers by the edicts of the 1521 CE Diet
of Worms, the work and writings of John Calvin were influential in establishing a
loose consensus among various churches in Switzerland, Scotland, Hungary,
Germany and elsewhere.

Although the German Peasants' War of 1524–1525 CE began as a tax and anti-
corruption protest as reflected in the Twelve Articles, its leader Thomas Müntzer
gave it a radical Reformation character. It swept through the Bavarian, Thuringian
and Swabian principalities, including the Black Company of Florian Geier, a knight
from Giebelstadt who joined the peasants in the general outrage against the Catholic
hierarchy. In response to reports about the destruction and violence, Luther
condemned the revolt in writings such as Against the Murderous, Thieving Hordes of
Peasants, Zwingli and Luther's ally Philipp Melanchthon also did not condone the
uprising. Some 100,000 peasants were killed by the end of the war.

The Radical Reformation was the response to what was believed to be the corruption
in both the Roman Catholic Church and the Magisterial Reformation. Beginning in
Germany and Switzerland in the 16th century, the Radical Reformation developed
radical Protestant churches throughout Europe. The term includes Thomas Müntzer,
Andreas Karlstadt, the Zwickau prophets, and Anabaptists like the Hutterites and
Mennonites. In parts of Germany, Switzerland and Austria, a majority sympathized
with the Radical Reformation despite intense persecution. Although the surviving
proportion of the European population that rebelled against Catholic, Lutheran and

27
Zwinglian churches was small, Radical Reformers wrote profusely and the literature
on the Radical Reformation is disproportionately large, partly as a result of the
proliferation of the Radical Reformation teachings in the United States. Despite
significant diversity among the early Radical Reformers, some "repeating patterns,"
emerged among many Anabaptist groups. Many of these patterns were enshrined in
the Schleitheim Confession (1527 CE), and include believers' baptism, memorial
view of the Lord's Supper, belief that Scripture is the final authority on matters of
faith and practice, emphasis on the New Testament and the Sermon on the Mount,
interpretation of Scripture in community, separation from the world and a two-
kingdom theology, pacifism and non-resistance, communalism and economic
sharing, belief in the freedom of the will, non-swearing of oaths, "yieldedness"
(Gelassenheit) to one's community and to God, the ban, salvation through
divinization (Vergöttung) and ethical living, and discipleship (Nachfolge Christi).

The Reformation was a triumph of literacy and the new printing press. Luther's
translation of the Bible into German was a decisive moment in the spread of literacy,
and stimulated as well the printing and distribution of religious books and pamphlets.
From 1517 CE onward, religious pamphlets flooded Germany and much of Europe.
By 1530, over 10,000 publications are known, with a total of ten million copies. The
Reformation was thus a media revolution. Luther strengthened his attacks on Rome
by depicting a "good" against "bad" church. From there, it became clear that print
could be used for propaganda in the Reformation for particular agendas, although the
term propaganda derives from the Catholic Congregatio de Propaganda Fide
(Congregation for Propagating the Faith) from the Counter-Reformation. Reform
writers used existing styles, clichés and stereotypes which they adapted as needed.
Especially effective were writings in German, including Luther's translation of the
Bible, his Smaller Catechism for parents teaching their children, and his Larger
Catechism, for pastors.

Using the German vernacular they expressed the Apostles' Creed in simpler, more
personal, Trinitarian language. Illustrations in the German Bible and in many tracts
popularized Luther's ideas. Lucas Cranach the Elder (1472–1553 CE), the great
painter patronized by the electors of Wittenberg, was a close friend of Luther, and he
illustrated Luther's theology for a popular audience. He dramatized Luther's views on
the relationship between the Old and New Testaments, while remaining mindful of
Luther's careful distinctions about proper and improper uses of visual imagery.

9.3 SPREAD OF THE REFORMATION MOVEMENT

Germany was home to the greatest number of Protestant reformers. Each state which
turned Protestant had their own reformers who contributed towards the Evangelical
faith. The Reformation also spread widely throughout Europe over the next few
decades.

28
Austria

Austria followed the same pattern as the German-speaking states within the Holy
Roman Empire, and Lutheranism became the main Protestant confession among its
population. Lutheranism gained a significant following in the eastern half of present-
day Austria, while Calvinism was less successful. Eventually the expulsions of the
Counter-Reformation reversed the trend.

Switzerland

In Switzerland, the teachings of the reformers and especially those of Zwingli and
Calvin had a profound effect, despite frequent quarrels between the different
branches of the Reformation. Parallel to events in Germany, a movement began in
the Swiss Confederation under the leadership of Huldrych Zwingli. Zwingli was a
scholar and preacher who moved to Zurich, the then leading city state in 1518 CE, a
year after Martin Luther began the Reformation in Germany with his Ninety-five
Theses. Although the two movements agreed on many issues of theology, as the
recently introduced printing press spread ideas rapidly from place to place, some
unresolved differences kept them separate. Long-standing resentment between the
German states and the Swiss Confederation led to heated debate over how much
Zwingli owed his ideas to Lutheranism. Although Zwinglianism does hold uncanny
resemblance to Lutheranism (it even had its own equivalent of the Ninety-five
Theses, called the 67 Conclusions), historians have been unable to prove that
Zwingli had any contact with Luther's publications before 1520 CE, and Zwingli
himself maintained that he had prevented himself from reading them.

The German Prince Philip of Hesse saw potential in creating an alliance between
Zwingli and Luther, seeing strength in a united Protestant front. A meeting was held
in his castle in 1529, now known as the Colloquy of Marburg, which has become
infamous for its complete failure. The two men could not come to any agreement due
to their disputation over one key doctrine. Although Luther preached
consubstantiation in the Eucharist over transubstantiation, he believed in the real
presence of Christ in the Communion bread. Zwingli, inspired by Dutch theologian
Cornelius Hoen, believed that the Communion bread was only representative and
memorial—Christ was not present. Luther became so angry that he famously carved
into the meeting table in chalk Hoc Est Corpus Meum—a Biblical quotation from the
Last Supper meaning "This is my body". Zwingli countered this saying that est in
that context was the equivalent of the word significat (signifies).

Following the excommunication of Luther and condemnation of the Reformation by

the Pope, the work and writings of John Calvin were influential in establishing a
loose consensus among various churches in Switzerland, Scotland, Hungary,
Germany and elsewhere. After the expulsion of its Bishop in 1526 CE, and the
unsuccessful attempts of the Berne reformer Guillaume (William) Farel, Calvin was
asked to use the organisational skill he had gathered as a student of law to discipline

29
the "fallen city" of Geneva. His "Ordinances" of 1541 CE involved a collaboration of
Church affairs with the City council and consistory to bring morality to all areas of
life. After the establishment of the Geneva academy in 1559 CE, Geneva became the
unofficial capital of the Protestant movement, providing refuge for Protestant exiles
from all over Europe and educating them as Calvinist missionaries. These
missionaries dispersed Calvinism widely, and formed the French Huguenots in
Calvin's own lifetime and spread to Scotland under the leadership of the
cantankerous John Knox in 1560 CE.

Sweden

In Sweden, the Reformation was spearheaded by Gustav Vasa, elected king in 1523
CE. Friction with the pope over the latter's interference in Swedish ecclesiastical
affairs led to the discontinuance of any official connection between Sweden and the
papacy from 1523 CE. Four years later, at the Diet of Västerås, the king succeeded in
forcing the diet to accept his dominion over the national church. The king was given
possession of all church property, church appointments required royal approval, the
clergy were subject to the civil law, and the "pure Word of God" was to be preached
in the churches and taught in the schools effectively granting official sanction to
Lutheran ideas. The apostolic succession was retained in Sweden during the
Reformation. The adoption of Lutheranism was also one of the main reasons for the
eruption of the Dacke War, a peasants uprising in Smaland.

Denmark

Under the reign of Frederick-I (1523–33 CE), Denmark remained officially Catholic.
Frederick initially pledged to persecute Lutherans, yet he quickly adopted a policy of
protecting Lutheran preachers and reformers, of whom the most famous was Hans
Tausen. During his reign, Lutheranism made significant inroads among the Danish
population. In 1526 CE, Frederick forbid papal investiture of bishops in Denmark
and in 1527 CE ordered fees from new bishops be paid to the crown, making
Frederick the head of the church of Denmark. Frederick's son, Christian, was openly
Lutheran, which prevented his election to the throne upon his father's death. In 1536
CE, following his victory in the Count's War, he became king as Christian-III and
continued the Reformation of the state church with assistance from Johannes
Bugenhagen. By the Copenhagen recess of October 1536 CE, the authority of the
Catholic bishops was terminated.

England

The English Reformation followed a different course from the Reformation in

continental Europe. There had long been a strong strain of anti-clericalism. The
different character of the English Reformation came rather from the fact that it was
driven initially by the political necessities of Henry-VIII, who had once been a
sincere Catholic and had even authored a book strongly criticizing Luther. Henry-
VIII’s wife, Catherine of Aragon, bore him only a single child that survived infancy,

30
Mary. Henry strongly wanted a male heir but Catherine refused to divorce. King
Henry decided to remove the Church of England from the authority of Rome. In
1534, the Act of Supremacy recognized Henry as "the only Supreme Head on earth
of the Church of England". Between 1535 and 1540 CE, under Thomas Cromwell,
the policy known as the Dissolution of the Monasteries was put into effect. When
Henry died he was succeeded by his Protestant son Edward-VI, who, through his
empowered councillors the Duke of Somerset and the Duke of Northumberland,
ordered the destruction of images in churches, and the closing of the chantries.
Under Edward-VI the Church of England moved closer to continental Protestantism.
The success of the Counter-Reformation on the Continent and the growth of a
Puritan party dedicated to further Protestant reform polarized the Elizabethan Age,
although it was not until the 1640s that England underwent religious strife
comparable to what its neighbors had suffered some generations before.

Scotland

The Reformation in Scotland's case culminated ecclesiastically in the establishment

of a church along reformed lines, and politically in the triumph of English influence
over that of France. John Knox is regarded as the leader of the Scottish reformation.

France

Though not personally interested in religious reform, Francis-I (reigned 1515–1547

CE) initially maintained an attitude of tolerance, in accordance with his interest in
the humanist movement. This changed in 1534 with the Affair of the Placards. In
this act, Protestants denounced the Catholic Mass in placards that appeared across
France, even reaching the royal apartments. During this time as the issue of religious
faith entered into the arena of politics, Francis came to view the movement as a
threat to the kingdom's stability. Following the Affair of the Placards, culprits were
rounded up, at least a dozen heretics were put to death, and the persecution of
Protestants increased. When Henry II took the throne in 1547, the persecution of
Protestants grew and special courts for the trial of heretics were also established in
the Parlement de Paris. These courts came to known as "La Chambre Ardente" ("the
fiery chamber") because of their reputation of meting out death penalties on burning
gallows.

French Protestantism, though its appeal increased under persecution, came to acquire
a distinctly political character, made all the more obvious by the conversions of
nobles during the 1550s. This established the preconditions for a series of destructive
and intermittent conflicts, known as the Wars of Religion. The wars only concluded
when Henry IV, himself a former Huguenot, issued the Edict of Nantes (1598),
promising official toleration of the Protestant minority, but under highly restricted
conditions. Catholicism remained the official state religion, and the fortunes of
French Protestants gradually declined over the next century, culminating in Louis
XIV's Edict of Fontainebleau (1685), which revoked the Edict of Nantes and made

31
Catholicism the sole legal religion of France, leading some Huguenots to live as
Nicodemites. A significant community in France remained in the Cévennes region.
A separate Protestant community, of the Lutheran faith, existed in the newly
conquered province of Alsace and its status not affected by the Edict of
Fontainebleau.

Spain

Between 1530 and 1540 CE, Protestantism in Spain was still able to gain followers
clandestinely, and in cities such as Seville and Valladolid adherents would secretly
meet at private houses to pray and study the Bible. Protestants in Spain were
estimated at between 1000 and 3000, mainly among intellectuals who had seen
writings such as those of Erasmus. Notable reformers included Dr. Juan Gil and Juan
Pérez de Pineda who subsequently fled and worked alongside others such as
Francisco de Enzinas to translate the Greek New Testament into the Spanish
language, a task completed by 1556 CE. Protestant teachings were smuggled into
Spain by Spaniards such as Julián Hernández, who in 1557 CE was condemned by
the Inquisition and burnt at the stake. Under Philip-II, conservatives in the Spanish
church tightened their grip, and those who refused to recant such as Rodrigo de
Valer were condemned to life imprisonment. In May 1559 CE, sixteen Spanish
Lutherans were burnt at the stake: fourteen were strangled before being burnt, while
two were burnt alive. In October another thirty were executed. Spanish Protestants
who were able to flee the country were to be found in at least a dozen cities in
Europe, such as Geneva, where some of them embraced Calvinist teachings. Those
who fled to England were given support by the Church of England.

Hungary

Much of the population of the Kingdom of Hungary adopted Protestantism during

the 16th century. After the 1526 CE Battle of Mohács, the Hungarian people were
disillusioned by the inability of the government to protect them and turned to the
faith they felt would infuse them with the strength necessary to resist the invader.
They found this in the teaching of Protestant reformers such as Martin Luther. The
spread of Protestantism in the country was assisted by its large ethnic German
minority, which could understand and translate the writings of Martin Luther. While
Lutheranism gained a foothold among the German and Slovak-speaking populations,
Calvinism became widely accepted among ethnic Hungarians.

Romania

Transylvania in what is today's Romania was a "dumping ground for undesirables"

by the Habsburg monarchy. People who did not conform to the will of the Habsburgs
and the leaders of the Catholic Church were forcibly sent there. Centuries of this
practice allowed diverse Protestant traditions to emerge in Romania, including
Lutheranism, Calvinism and Unitarianism.

32
Ireland

The Reformation in Ireland was a movement for the reform of religious life and
institutions that was introduced into Ireland by the English administration at the
behest of King Henry-VIII of England. His desire for an annulment of his marriage
was known as the King's Great Matter. Ultimately Pope Clement-VII refused the
petition; consequently it became necessary for the King to assert his lordship over
the church in his realm to give legal effect to his wishes. The English Parliament
confirmed the King's supremacy over the Church in the Kingdom of England. This
challenge to Papal supremacy resulted in a breach with the Roman Catholic Church.
By 1541 CE, the Irish Parliament had agreed to the change in status of the country
from that of a Lordship to that of Kingdom of Ireland.

Italy

Word of the Protestant reformers reached Italy in the 1520s but never caught on. Its
development was stopped by the Counter-Reformation, the Inquisition and also
popular disinterest. Not only was the Church highly aggressive in seeking out and
suppressing heresy, but there was a shortage of Protestant leadership. No one
translated the Bible into Italian; few tracts were written. No core of Protestantism
emerged. The few preachers, who did take an interest in "Lutheranism", as it was
called in Italy, were suppressed or went into exile to northern countries where their
message was well received. As a result, the Reformation exerted almost no lasting
influence in Italy, except for strengthening the Catholic Church and pushing for an
end to ongoing abuses during the Counter-Reformation.

Poland and Lithuania

In the first half of the 16th century, the enormous Polish Lithuanian Commonwealth
was a country of many religions and Churches, including: Roman Catholics,
Byzantine Orthodox, Armenian Oriental Orthodox, Ashkenazi Jews, Karaites, and
Sunni Muslims. The various groups had their own juridical systems. On the eve of
the Protestant Reformation, Christianity held the predominate position within the
Kingdom of Poland and the Grand Duchy of Lithuania, and Catholicism received
preferential treatment at the expense of the Eastern and Oriental Orthodox.

Greece

The Protestant teachings of the Western Church were also briefly adopted within the
Eastern Orthodox Church through the Greek Patriarch Cyril Lucaris in 1629 CE with
the publishing of the Confessio (Calvinistic doctrine) in Geneva. Motivating factors
in their decision to adopt aspects of the Reformation included the historical rivalry
and mistrust between the Greek Orthodox and the Roman Catholic Churches along
with their concerns of Jesuit priests entering Greek lands in their attempts to
propagate the teachings of the Counter-Reformation to the Greek populace. He
subsequently sponsored Maximos of Gallipoli's translation of the New Testament

33
into the Modern Greek language and it was published in Geneva in 1638 CE. Upon
Lucaris's death in 1638 CE, the conservative factions within the Eastern Orthodox
Church held two synods- the Synod of Constantinople (1638 CE) and Synod of Jassy
(1642 CE) criticizing the reforms, and in the 1672 CE convocation led by Dositheos,
they officially condemned the Calvinistic doctrines.

Check Your Progress

1) Discuss the origin of Reformation Movement.

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2) Write a note on important of Reformation Movement.

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9.4 LET US SUM UP

During Reformation, Western Christianity adopted different confessions (Catholic,

Lutheran, Reformed, Anglican, Anabaptist, Unitarian, etc.). Radical Reformers,
besides forming communities outside state sanction, sometimes employed more
extreme doctrinal change, such as the rejection of the tenets of the councils of Nicaea
and Chalcedon with the Unitarians of Transylvania. Anabaptist movements were
especially persecuted following the German Peasants' War. Leaders within the
Roman Catholic Church responded with the Counter-Reformation, initiated by the
Confutatio Augustana in 1530 CE, the Council of Trent in 1545 CE, the Jesuits in
1540 CE, the Defensio Tridentinæ fidei in 1578 CE, and also a series of wars and
expulsions of Protestants that continued until the 19th century. Northern Europe, with
the exception of most of Ireland, came under the influence of Protestantism.
Southern Europe remained predominantly Catholic apart from the much-persecuted
Waldensians. Central Europe was the site of much of the Thirty Years' War and there
were continued expulsions of Protestants in Central Europe up to the 19 th century.
Following World War-II, the removal of ethnic Germans to either East Germany or
Siberia reduced Protestantism in the Warsaw Pact countries, although some remain
today. Absence of Protestants however, does not necessarily imply a failure of the
Reformation. Although Protestants were excommunicated and ended up worshiping
in communions separate from Catholics, contrary to the original intention of the
Reformers, they were also suppressed and persecuted in most of Europe at one point.

34
As a result, some of them lived as crypto-Protestants, also called Nicodemites,
contrary to the urging of John Calvin, who wanted them to live their faith openly.

9.5 KEY WORDS

Lutheranism : A Protestant denomination that arose from the teachings of Martin

Luther

Reformation : Reorganisation

9.6 ANSWERS TO CHECK YOUR QUESTION EXERCISES

Check Your Progress

1) See Section 9.2

2) See Section 9.3

35
UNIT 10 : EMERGENCE OF EUROPEAN STATE
SYSTEM: SPAIN, FRANCE, ENGLAND,
RUSSIA

Structure
10.0 Objectives
10.1 Introduction
10.2 Background for the Rise of Monarchy
10.3 Spain
10.4 France
10.5 England
10.6 Russia
10.7 Let us Sum Up
10.8 Key Words
10.9 Answers to Check Your Progress Exercises

10.0 OBJECTIVES

After Reading this unit you will be able to know about,

 causes for the rise of monarchy in Europe, and
 formation of strong central government in Spain, France, England and
Russia.

10.1 INTRODUCTION

With the tendency, characteristic of the Renaissance period, for sovereigns to enlarge
their authority and assume new rights in justice and finance, went larger revenues,
credit, and patronage. Princes fought with as little regard for economic consequences
as their medieval precursors had shown. Ominously, the Italian wars had become
part of a larger conflict, centring on the dynastic ambitions of the houses of
Habsburg and Valois, similarly, the Reformation led to the formation of alliances
whose objectives were not religious. The scale and expertise of diplomacy grew with
the pretensions of sovereignty. The professional diplomat and permanent embassy,
the regular soldier and standing army, served princes still generally free to act in
their traditional spheres. But beyond them, in finance and government, what would
be the balance of powers? From the answer to this question will come definition of
the absolutism that is commonly seen as characteristic of the age. Monarchy (king
and queen as supreme ruler) in Spain, France, England, and Russia responded to the
chaotic situation in Europe by consolidating their power. A significant development

36
in all four of these monarchies was the rise of nationalism, or pride in and loyalty to
one's homeland.

10.2 BACKGROUND FOR THE RISE OF MONARCHY

The Black Death which hit Europe repeatedly from the mid-14th century onwards
seriously weakened the Church and nobility. The Church’s inability to explain the
plague or to protect the population undermined its influence. The Black Death also
ruined the finances of many noble families as millions of rent-paying peasants died.
In the ensuing labour shortage, nobles had to compete to rent land to surviving
peasants who were able to sign long-term leases on favourable terms. Nobles who
weren’t able to rent out land had few ways of earning money, and many went
bankrupt.

The Avignon Papacy and the Great Schism did irreparable damage to the Church. As
we have studied earlier in this unit, between 1309 and 1377 CE the Roman Catholic
Church was based in Avignon, France. Losing control of much of the Papal States in
central Italy eliminated a huge source of Church revenue. As a result, the Papacy
came up with new means of raising money – increasing fees for baptisms, weddings,
funerals, etc., selling church offices and indulgences (indulgences had originally
been granted to crusaders going to the Holy Land but now the Avignon Papacy was
openly selling them). This caused great resentment among the people who came to
see the Papacy as greedy and materialistic. A wave of anti-clericalism arose across
Europe. Between 1377 and 1415 CE the Great Schism occurred when rival popes all
claimed the throne of St. Peter. At one point there were three popes
excommunicating each other.

The Hundred Years’ War and the arrival of new weapons weakened the military
power of the nobility. During the war, the age of the mounted noble knight came to
an end. Newly-invented English longbows, which dispatched arrows capable of
piercing steel armor, cut down thousands of French knights. Another new weapon
was gunpowder. Invented by the Chinese, gunpowder had gradually made its way
across Eurasia through the Muslim world and into Moorish Spain. First used during
the Reconquista on the Iberian Peninsula, its value was seen by the English and
French during their century-long struggle. Monarchs were quick to monopolize this
new technology. Royal gunpowder workshops became the sole source. This was
deliberately done in order to keep the manufacture of gunpowder out of the hands of
the nobility. This gave a distinct advantage to monarchs. Now, rebellious nobles
found it more difficult to barricade themselves inside their castles since the king
could bring up cannons and more easily lay siege.

The Partnership between Monarchs and Towns also weakened the nobility.
Townspeople, especially the burghers (merchants and professionals) had long
resented local noble interference in their affairs. During the crises of the 14 th century,
cash-strapped nobles frequently attempted to get their hands on the wealth in towns

37
by taxing townspeople or by simply plundering property. In response, town councils
reached out to monarchs for protection. In return for paying taxes to the monarchy,
towns received royal charters stating that they could form their own councils and
select their own mayors without interference from the local nobility. Nobles who
attempted to plunder towns would be brought to justice in the royal courts. In
addition to receiving much needed taxes, monarchs could also use educated middle
class lawyers to staff their bureaucracies, thus diluting the influence of the nobility.

While these four major factors explain the rise of monarchy in general terms, let us
now look specifically at the more powerful “New Monarchies” that emerged in
Spain, France, England, and Russia after 1450 CE.

10.3 SPAIN

The New Monarchy in Spain began with the marriage of King Ferdinand of Aragon
and Queen Isabella of Castile in 1469 CE. While Aragon and Castile maintained
separate systems of law and taxation, it was the beginning of a unified Spanish
Kingdom. For centuries, Spanish Christians had been fighting the Reconquista
against the Moors (Spanish Muslims). With their combined strength, Ferdinand and
Isabella completed the struggle by conquering the last Moorish Kingdom of Granada
in January, 1492 CE. The conquest of the small Kingdom of Navarre in 1512 CE
placed the whole Iberian Peninsula, excluding Portugal, under the control of the
Spanish monarchy. Ferdinand and Isabella moved to eliminate the threat powerful
noble families posed to their rule. They allied with the Hermandades, which were
militias established by towns to provide protection against marauding nobles during
the Reconquista. The monarchy skillfully turned the Hermandades into sort of local
police forces loyal to the Crown. To further reduce the influence of major nobles,
Ferdinand and Isabella excluded them from the Royal Council (the monarchy’s
advisors and ministers), instead relying on educated clergy and middle class lawyers.

Ferdinand and Isabella used Catholicism to bring greater unity to their Kingdom.
Spain contained large minorities of Jews and Muslims which were beyond the usual
means of control by the monarchy. Isabella was a devout Catholic and Ferdinand less
so, but both believed that emphasizing a common Spanish Catholicism would bind
the various kingdoms together. Furthermore, during the Reconquista, Spanish
Christians had become quite anti-Semitic and anti-Muslim. The monarchy used this
to gain popularity. In 1492 CE, the King and Queen issued an edict of expulsion that
ordered all Jews to leave Spain. Massive amounts of Jewish-owned property were
confiscated by the Crown. In 1502 CE, the Muslims were expelled. Ferdinand and
Isabella also established the Spanish Inquisition whose task was to investigate
conversos (Jews who had converted to Catholicism) and moriscos (Muslims who had
done the same). Tomás de Torquemada, a Dominican monk who was Isabella’s
personal priest, served as the first Grand Inquisitor. The methods of torture used
against those accused of relapsing into their old beliefs were severe. Between 1480
and 1530 CE, about 2,000 people were burned at the stake. Tens of thousands of
38
others suffered physical and financial punishments but survived. Ferdinand and
Isabella also took advantage of the fact that between 1492 and 1503 CE there was a
Spanish-born Pope, Alexander-VI, on the Throne of St. Peter. Alexander gave the
Spanish monarchy the authority to appoint bishops and abbots (heads of
monasteries) in Spain, and to control the Inquisition. This essentially put the
Catholic Church in Spain under the control of the monarchy.

The discovery of the Americas by Christopher Columbus in 1492 CE, and especially
the conquests of the Aztec Empire in the 1520s by Hernán Cortés, and the Inca
Empire in the 1530s by Francisco Pizarro, brought tremendous wealth and power to
the Spanish monarchy. This is a very important factor in establishing the New
Monarchy in Spain, and we will explore it in greater detail in tomorrow’s reading.

Ferdinand and Isabella recognized the rejuvenated France as its main rival, and so
they used their daughters to secure international alliances. Their eldest daughter,
Joanna of Castile, was married into the Habsburg family who controlled the Holy
Roman Empire. Their younger daughter, Catherine of Aragon, was married into
England’s Tudor family. Ferdinand and Isabella had no male heir, and when they
died, the Kingdom passed to Joanna’s son, who ruled both Spain and the Holy
Roman Empire as Charles-V.

10.4 FRANCE

We can trace the beginning of the New Monarchy in France to the end of the
Hundred Years’ War in 1453 CE. The Valois Dynasty had been in power since 1328
CE, but its rule had been almost destroyed by the English invasion and occupation.
At the end of the Hundred Years’ War, except for the Channel port of Calais, the
English had been driven out of France. Nonetheless, the long war had left the
Kingdom badly divided, drastically depopulated, commercially ruined, and
agriculturally weak. King Charles-VII, who led France to victory, seemed an
unlikely person to do so. He was frail and indecisive. His legitimacy was questioned
because his father had been considered deranged and his mother was notoriously
promiscuous Charles, however, was made great by those who served him. Joan of
Arc, the Maid of Orleans, had rallied his army to victory over the English, and the
merchant-banker, Jacques Coeur, had financed the war.

While the great nobles of France had suffered terribly from the arrows of English
archers, King Charles reduced their influence still further when he reorganized the
Royal Council and staffed it largely with middle class lawyers. He also strengthened
royal finances through taxes such as the taille (land tax) and the gabelle (salt tax).
These remained the monarchy’s chief sources of revenue until the French Revolution
of 1789 CE. The taille was levied on cultivated and pasture land. Charles had
enough revenue to fund a standing army of cavalry and foot soldiers – the first
permanent army in French history. He also gained control over the Catholic Church
in France. The monarchy claimed the right to appoint French bishops and abbots. It

39
also stipulated that all money collected by the Church (in the form of tithes and fees)
would be used by the Church in France, and would not be sent to the Vatican in
Rome. While the Pope initially objected to these claims, he later accepted them.
These rights of the French monarchy over the Catholic Church in France were called
the “Gallican Liberties” (“Gaul” was the Latin word for France). When Charles-VII
died in 1461 CE he was succeeded by his son, Louis-XI, who continued to
strengthen France by conquering the Duchy of Burgundy and adding it to his
Kingdom.

10.5 ENGLAND

The New Monarchy started in England with the Tudor dynasty, whose first king,
Henry-VII gained the throne in 1485 CE by defeating the House of York in the noble
conflicts known as the Wars of the Roses. In these wars, the great noble families of
England had seriously weakened each other, to the advantage of the new king.
Henry-VII eliminated the high nobility as a threat to his power. He was supported by
the minor nobility and the wealthy merchant-banker class, whose property had often
been destroyed during the Wars of the Roses, and who sought an end to anarchy.
Since these two groups dominated the Parliament, Henry-VII was able to achieve
Parliamentary approval for his policies. He had Parliament pass a law against “livery
and maintenance”, the practice by which great nobles maintained private armies
wearing their own livery or insignia. Parliament also approved Henry’s creation of a
special court to put rebellious nobles on trial. It met in the Palace of Westminster, in
a room called the Star Chamber because its blue ceiling was decorated with golden
stars. Accused people were not entitled to see evidence against them, sessions were
held in secret, torture could be applied to extract confessions, and juries were not
called. Punishment of his “overmighty subjects” through fines Henry-VII pictured
holding the Tudor red rose and confiscations of property raised substantial revenues
for the King. In many ways, Star Chamber violated English common law, but it
effectively reduced noble troublemakers. Parliament also gave Henry-VII the
authority to control tariffs (taxes on foreign imports). These sources of revenue
enabled the King to firmly establish his authority. He reduced his reliance on
Parliament for further revenues by living frugally (he had a reputation of being
miserly), and by keeping England out of wars. He ensured peace with Scotland
through the marriage of his daughter Margaret to the Scottish king. He created an
alliance with Spain through the marriage of his eldest son, Arthur, to Catherine of
Aragon, the daughter of Ferdinand and Isabella. When Arthur died prematurely,
Henry maintained his Spanish alliance by arranging for Catherine to marry his
second son, Henry (the future Henry-VIII). Finally, the King rarely included high
ranking nobles in his Royal Council. Instead, he relied largely on minor nobles,
educated clergy, and middle class lawyers. When Henry-VII died in 1509 CE, he
handed his son, Henry-VIII, a kingdom at peace both domestically and
internationally, and the majesty of the monarchy greatly enhanced.

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10.6 RUSSIA

Successive elective kings of Poland failed to overcome the inherent weaknesses of

the state, and the belated reforms of Stanisław-II served only to provoke the final
dismemberments of 1793 and 1795 CE. Russia was a prime beneficiary, having long
shown that vast size was not incompatible with strong rule. Such an outcome would
not have seemed probable in 1648, when revolt in the Ukraine led to Russian
“protection” and the beginning of that process of expansion which was to create an
empire. The open character of Russia’s boundless lands militated against two
processes characteristic of Western society—the growth of cherished rights in
distinct, rooted communities and that of central authority, adept in the techniques of
government. The validity of the state depended on its ability to make the peasant
cultivate the soil. If the nobility were to serve the state, they must be served on the
land. Serfdom was a logical development in a society that knew nothing of rights.
The feudal concept of fealty, the validity of contract, and the idea of liberty as the
creation of law were unknown. German immigrants found no provincial estates,
municipal corporations, or craft guilds. Merchants were state functionaries.
Absolutism was implicit in the physical conditions and early evolution of Russian
society. It could only become a force for building a state comparable to those of the
West under a ruler strong enough to challenge traditional ways. This was to be the
role of Alexis-I (1645–76 CE) and then, more violently, of Peter-I (1689–1725 CE).

When the Romanov dynasty emerged in 1613 CE with Tsar Michael, the formula for
continued power was similar to that of the Great Elector in Brandenburg: the
common interest of ruler and gentry enabled Alexis to dispense with the zemsky
sobor. The great code of 1649 affirmed the rights of the state over a society that was
to be frozen in its existing shape. The tsars were haunted by the fear that the state
would disintegrate. The acquisition of the Ukraine led directly to the revolt of Stenka
Razin (1670 CE), which flared up because of the discontent of the serfs. The Russian
people had been driven underground; their passivity could not be assumed. There
was also a threatening religious dimension in the shape of the Old Believers.
Rallying in reaction to the minor reforms of the patriarch Nikon, they came to
express a general attachment to old Russia. This was as dangerous to the state when
it inspired passive resistance to change as when it provoked revolt, such as that of the
streltsy, the privileged household troops, whom Peter purged in 1698 CE. Peter’s
reforms of Russian government must be set against the military weakness revealed
by the Swedish victory at Narva (1700 CE), the grotesque disorder of government as
exercised by more than 40 councils, the lack of an educated class of potential
bureaucrats, and a primitive economy untouched by Western technology. His
domestic policies can then be seen as expedients informed by a patchy vision of
Western methods and manners. Catherine-II studied his papers and said, “He did not
know what laws were necessary for the state”. Yet, without Peter’s relentless drive to
create a military power based on compulsory service, Catherine might have been in
no position to carry out any reforms herself. His Table of Ranks (1722 CE) graded

41
society in three categories—court, government, and army. The first eight military
grades, all commissioned officers, automatically became gentry. Obligatory service
was modified by later rulers and abolished by Peter-III (1762 CE). By then the army
had sufficient attraction: the officer caste was secure.

Meanwhile, the bureaucracy exemplified the style of a military police. The

uniformed official, rule book in hand, was typical of St. Petersburg government until
1917 CE. Peter’s new capital, an outrageous defiance of Muscovite tradition,
symbolized the chasm that separated the Westernized elite from the illiterate masses.
It housed the senate, set up in 1711 CE, and the nine colleges that replaced the 40
councils. There also was the oberprokuror, responsible for the Most Holy Synod,
which exercised authority over the church in place of the patriarch. Peter could
control the institution; to touch the souls or change the manners of his people was
another matter. A Russian was reluctant to lose his beard because God had a beard; a
townsman could be executed for leaving his ward; a nobleman could not marry
without producing a certificate to show that he could read. With a punitive tax, Peter
might persuade Russians to shave and adopt Western breeches and jacket, but he
could not trust the free spirit that he admired in England nor expect market, capital,
or skills to grow by themselves. So a stream of edicts commanded and explained.
State action could be effective—iron foundries, utilizing Russia’s greatest natural
resource, timber, contributed to the country’s favourable trade balance—but nearly
all Peter’s schools collapsed after his death, and his navy rotted at its moorings.

After Peter there were six rulers in 37 years. Two of the predecessors of Catherine-II
(1762–95 CE) had been deposed—one of them, her husband Peter-III, with her
connivance. Along with the instability exemplified by the palace coup of 1741 CE,
when the guards regiments brought Elizabeth to the throne, went an aristocratic
reaction against centralist government, particularly loathsome as exercised under
Anna (1730–40 CE). Elizabeth’s tendency to delegate power to favoured grandees
encouraged aristocratic pretension, though it did lead to some enlightened measures.
With the accession of the German-born Catherine, Russians encountered the
Enlightenment as a set of ideas and a program of reforms. Since the latter were
mostly shelved, questions arise about the sincerity of the royal author of the Nakaz,
instructions for the members of the Legislative Commission (1767–68 CE). If
Catherine still hoped that enlightened reforms, even the abolition of serfdom, were
possible after the Commission’s muddle, the revolt of Yemelyan Pugachov (1773–75
CE) brought her back to the fundamental questions of security. His challenge to the
autocracy was countered by military might, but not before 3,000,000 peasants had
become involved and 3,000 officials and gentry had been murdered. The underlying
problem remained. The tired soil of old Russia would not long be able to feed the
growing population. Trapped between the low yield of agriculture and their rising
debts, the gentry wanted to increase dues. The drive for new lands, culminating in
the acquisition of Crimea (1783 CE), increased the difficulties of control. Empirical
and authoritarian, Catherine sought to strengthen government while giving the gentry

42
a share and a voice. The Great Reform of 1775 CE divided the country into 50
guberni. The dvoriane were allowed some high posts, by election, on the boards set
up to manage local schools and hospitals. They were allowed to meet in assembly. It
was more than most French nobles could do: indeed, French demands for assemblies
were a prelude to revolution. But as in the case of towns, by the Municipal Reform
(1785 CE), she gave only the appearance of self-government. Governors were left
with almost unbounded powers. Like Frederick the Great, Catherine disappointed the
philosophers, but the development of Russia took place within a framework of order.
European events in the last years of Catherine’s life and Russian history, before and
since, testify to the magnitude of her achievement.

10.7 LET US SUM UP

Absolute monarchy had evolved out of conflicts within and challenges outside the
state, notably that of war, whose recurring pressures had a self-reinforcing effect.
The absolutist ideal was potent, and the rhetoric voiced genuine feeling. The
sovereign who envisaged himself as God’s Lieutenant or First Servant of the State
was responding to those who had found traditional constitutions wanting and whose
classical education and religious upbringing had schooled them to look for strong
rule within a hierarchical system. The upper classes of continental Europe were
disposed to accept the ethos of absolutism. They would continue to do so only if the
tensions within the system could be resolved and if the state were to prove able to
accommodate the expectations of the rising bourgeoisie and the potentially unsettling
ideas of the Enlightenment.

Check Your Progress

1) Discuss the cause for the emergence of Monarchy in middle age Europe.
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10.8 KEY WORDS

Monarchy : A form of government with a monarch at the head.

Reconquista : The series of military campaigns by which Christian armies

reclaimed control of the Iberian peninsula from the Moors.

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10.9 ANSWERS TO CHECK YOUR PROGRESS EXERCISES

Check Your Progress

1) See Section 10.2

SUGGESTED READING
Durant, W. 1993. The Story of Civilization (vols. I & II). Fine Communications, US.

Phukan, M. 1998. Rise of the Modern West: Social and Economic History of Early
Modern Europe. New Delhi: Macmillan India Ltd.
Swain, J.E. 1986. A History of World Civilization. New Delhi: Erasia Publishing
House (P) Ltd.

Wallbank, T.W. and Bailey, N.M. 1985. Civilization–Past and Present. Scott
Foresman /Addison-Wesley.

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