Chapter 12 Reading Guide
What was the Fall of Grenada?
There was a war attacking the Muslim kingdom that lasted 11 years until Grenada fell.
What was the "War of the Roses" in England? What became the new dynasty?
A war between the ducal house of Lancaster and the ducal house of York. The Tudor dynasty became the new dynasty.
What were Petarch's major works and significance to the Renaissance?
Petrarch's major work is The Ascent of Mount Ventoux. His significance to the Renaissance is being the first individual to characterize the Middle Ages.
What was the relationship between the Popes and Renaissance art?
The Popes encouraged Renaissance art and some participated in it.
If the Roman Catholic Church had so much power, how did the humanists manage to "secularize" the writing of history?
The humanities managed to secularize the writing of history by reducing or eliminating the role of miracles in history and historical interpretation not because they were anti-Christian but because they took a new approach to sources.
What did Baldassare Castiglione write? What were the three basic attributes he wrote about?
Baldassare Castiglione wrote The Book of the Courtier. The three basic attributes of the perfect courtier he wrote about were possessing fundamental native endowments, pursue certain achievements, and participating in the military.
What is "civic humanism" and where was it most prominent?
Civic humanism is civic spirit and pride and it was most prominent in Florence.
What were Jan Van Eyck's major works and significance to the Northern Renaissance?
Jan's major work is Giovanni and His Bride. His significance to the Northern Renaissance is the invention of oil-glazing.
What were Michelangelo's major works and significance to the Renaissance?
Michelangelo's major work is the Fresco on the ceiling of the Sistine Chapel. His significance to the Renaissance was revealing an ideal type of human being with perfect proportions.
After the Great Schism ended, what new problem was the Roman Catholic Church having difficulty controlling?
The Roman Catholic Church has difficulty controlling the problems of heresy and reform.
What were Albert Durer's major works and significance to the Northern Renaissance?
Albert's major work is the Adoration of Magi. His significance to the Northern Renaissance is bringing woodcuts printed in large editions into the realm of fine art.
What is the Medici family? What important service did they provide across Europe?
The Medici family were bankers and they controlled the industrial enterprises for wool, silk, and the mining of alum and was the greatest bank in Europe.
Who is John Hus? What were his beliefs? Who were his followers?
John Hus is the chancellor of the university in Prague. He believed in the elimination of the worldliness and corruption of the clergy and attacked the excessive power of the papacy within the Catholic church. His followers were native Czechs.
Was the Renaissance a movement for everyone? If not, who was affected by it and where were these people located?
The Renaissance wasn't for everyone since it was primarily for the wealthy upper class. It also affected some ordinary people in the cities.
Who was the biggest threat to Eastern Europe beginning in the 14th century?
The biggest threat to Eastern Europe was the Ottoman Turks.
What were Leonardo da Vinci's major works and significance to the Renaissance?
Leonardo's major work is The Last Supper. His significance to the Renaissance is making contributions to science, engineering, architecture, urban planning, cartography, philosophy, and anatomy.
What were Louis XI of France's major accomplishments? What do historians give him credit for?
Louis XI of France's major accomplishments are suppressed baronial power, made peace with England, and reorganized French royal authority. Historians give him credit for creating a base for the later development of a strong French monarchy.
What is an "oligarchy"? Explain how this concept manifested itself in the Republic of Florence.
An oligarchy is a small group of people having control of a country, organization, or institution. This concept manifested itself in the Republic of Florence because Cosimo de' Medici took control of the oligarchy.
What were Antonio Pollaiulo's major works and significance to the Renaissance?
Antonio's major work is The Martyrdom of Saint Sebastian. His significance to the Renaissance is portraying humans realistically nude which became one of the most prominent preoccupations of Italian Renaissance art.
How did Renaissance art portray humanism?
Renaissance art portrayed humanism by making humans the center and measure of all things. They showed the beauty of what it is to be human and portrayed the best of humanity. Humanism is rooted in the ideas of the Greeks and the Romans.
What is a "Lollard" and who did they follow? What were two fundamental beliefs of their leader?
A "Lollard" is someone who believes that popes should be stripped of their authority because the Bible should be a Christian's sole authority and they follow John Wyclif whose beliefs are what they believe.
The use of diplomacy expanded extensively during this time. What is a diplomat and what kind of duties do they perform?
A diplomat is an official representing a country and they perform duties such as doing, saying, advising, and thinking of whatever may best serve the preservation and aggrandizement of his own state and they can use any methods that were beneficial to the political interests of his own state.
What dynasty controlled the Holy Roman Empire? How did this dynasty manage to become so successful?
The Habsburg dynasty controlled the Holy Roman Empire and it managed to become so successful by marrying people from other dynasties.
What was the most important invention of the 15th century? Who invented it? About half of the items created by this invention were about what?
The most important invention of the 15th century was printing which was invented by Johannes Gutenberg and about half of the items created by this invention were about religion.
Although education was emphasized in this time, what segment of the population was most likely to receive a formal education at this time?
The segment of the population that was most likely to receive a formal education at this time was the elite, ruling classes, and males.
What two movements can be considered the most prominent threats to the Catholic church?
The two movements that can be considered the most prominent threats to the Catholic church are Lollardy and Hussitism.
Generally, peasants don't live in city towns, what kinds of activities did urban members of the Third Estate do?
The urban members of the Third Estate were merchants and artisans.
How was there a double standard for men and women in Renaissance Italy when it came to marriage and sexual norms?
There was a double standard for men and women in the Renaissance because the wife's family always had to present a dowry, a wife doesn't share her husband's wealth, the father had authority over his kids until he died or freed them, and a guy could have an affair but a woman can't.
What were Mirandola's major works and significance to the Renaissance?
Mirandola's major work is Oration on the Dignity of Man. His significance to the Renaissance is encouraging that there is unlimited human potential.
Name the five major powers that dominated the Italian peninsula.
The five major powers that dominated the Italian peninsula were the Duchy of Milan, the Republic of Venice, the Republic of Florence, the Papal States, and the Kingdom of Naples.
What were Raphael's major works and significance to the Renaissance?
Raphael's major work is the School of Athens. His significance to the Renaissance was his numerous madonnas which achieved an ideal of beauty far surpassing human standards.
The social system of the Middle Ages lingered into the renaissance. It was made of 3 estates. What were they?
The 3 estates were the clergy, the nobility, and the peasants and townspeople.
What percent of the population constituted the aristocracy? What kinds of roles did they play in society?
2-3% of the population constituted of the aristocracy. They dominated society serving as military officers and important political posts.
What were Boticelli's major works and significance to the Renaissance?
Boticelli's major work is Primavera. His significance to the Renaissance is many people admired the craftsmanship and creativity of his paintings.
What were Donatello's major works and significance to the Renaissance?
Donatello's major work is the David statue. He is significant to the Renaissance because his sculpted figures were some of the first since antiquity to represent anatomy correctly.
How did Spain become one large Kingdom?
Ferdinand of Aragon and Isabella of Castile married and worked together to unite Spain.
What city was considered the center of ITALIAN art? What city was considered the center of Northern art?
Florence was considered the center of Italian art. Nijmegen was considered the center of Northern art.
What were some cunning political moves that Henry VII of England he used to legitimize his reign and keep power?
Henry VII ended private wars of nobility, used nobles to raise troops, and established the Court of Star Chamber.
What is humanism? Who is often called the father of humanism?
Humanism was the intellectual movement based on the study of classical literary works of Greece and Rome. Petrarch has often been called the father of humanism.
Who was Jacob Burckhardt, and what was his argument about the Renaissance? Do modern scholars agree with Burckhardt? Why or why not?
Jacob Burckhardt was a Swiss historian and art critic who argued that there was much continuity in economic, political, social life, individuality, and secularism during the Renaissance. Modern scholars don't agree with Burckhardt because they don't believe that the Renaissance represents a sudden or dramatic cultural break with the Middle Ages.
Define the terms individualism and secularism. What areas were these two characteristics most noticeable in Renaissance Italy?
Individualism is a habit or principle of being independent and self-reliant. Secularism is the principle of separation of the state from religious institutions. These two characteristics were most noticeable in the Italian culture during Renaissance Italy.
What were Leonardo Bruni's major works and significance to the Renaissance?
Leonardo Bruni's major work is The New Cicero. His significance to the Renaissance is being the Inspiration for the Renaissance idea that intellectuals have a duty to live an active life for their state.
What were Lorenzo Valla's major works and significance to the Renaissance?
Lorenzo Valla's major work is The Elegances of the Latin Language. His significance to the Renaissance is that he identified different stages of development of the Latin language.
What was nepotism and how did it hurt the Catholic Church?
Nepotism was the appointment of family members to important political positions and it hurt the Catholic Church because people disapproved of it.
How did Northern Renaissance art differ from Italian art?
Northern Renaissance art differed from Italian art because it imitated nature while Italian art showed the standard of ideal beauty by a careful examination of the human form.
What are the "Low Countries," where are they located geographically in Europe?
The "Low Countries" were one of the major contributors to the Northern Renaissance and they are located in the coastal region of northwestern Europe. In the Netherlands, Belgium, and Luxemburg.
What are the "New Monarchies" or "Renaissance States" and when did they develop?
The "New Monarchies" are the reestablishment of the centralized power or monarchical governments that developed in the late 15th century.
What was the Spanish Inquisition?
The Spanish Inquisition guaranteed the orthodoxy of the converts but had no authority over Jews.
What was the birthplace of the Renaissance? Why there?
The birthplace of the Renaissance was Italy because it was a largely urban society.
How were central and Eastern European kingdoms fundamentally different from those in the West?
The central and eastern European kingdoms were different from those in the west because the people in Central and Eastern Europe were less accepting of Muslims and Jews.
How was the concept of a "family" during the Renaissance different than most people probably think of a "family" today?
The concept of a "family" during the Renaissance is different than how most people think of a "family" today because during the Renaissance some people who were considered family weren't actually related by blood.
What happened to the economy as Europe entered the 15th century? What were some new industries that came along at that time?
The economy started to recover in the 15th century. Printing, mining, and metallurgy were some of the new industries that came along at that time.
Where did artists rank among society? How did their social position change over time?
They were just viewed as artisans and over time they were considered geniuses and heroes.
Explain at least 2 features of Renaissance art
Two features of Renaissance art are the imitation of nature and humans being the focus of attention.
How did women generally fit into the concept of a humanist education? How would you summarize the effect of the Renaissance on women of Italy?
Women didn't generally fit into the concept of a humanist education. The Renaissance affected the women of Italy by giving them less freedom, they became even more subject to male authority, and some women developed a new sense of themselves as women.
