Renaissance Essay

The Renaissance was an era of change in human thought. It was characterized by a new philosophy, which included the rise of humanism, individualism, and secularism. Writers and artists began to focus on the individual man and his potential. The Renaissance movement began in the Italian city-states, especially Florence, and spread northward toward the rest of Europe. The Renaissance was the rebirth of new ideas in all aspects of life such as: science, technology, classical art, and education.

A variety of factors led contributed to the beginnings of the Renaissance. One main factor which led to the start of the Renaissance was the Crusades. The Crusades was a series of wars by Western European Christians to recapture the Holy Land from the Muslims. Furthermore, after the crusades ended, returning crusaders brought back ancient Greek and Latin texts, which sparked a revived interest in classical works.

Also another factor which contributed to the beginning of the Renaissance was due to the opening of Mediterranean trade routes in Italian city-states, which led to the growth of a new and influential merchant class. They used their wealth to sponsor great works of art. The most famous dynasty of these merchants was the Medici family of Florence. Giovanni De'Medici is considered the founder of the great Medici line.

Furthermore, another cause of the Renaissance was that because there was ongoing rivalry between the independent Italian city-states and as a result they attempted to glorify their towns by financially supporting the creation of great architectural masterpieces. In addition to this, there were numerous causes of the Italian Renaissance; however these are some of the most important ones. (www.msn.encarta.com/reformation)

The Renaissance left many long-lasting effects on all of Europe in all various aspects of life such as: science, education, the arts, and religion. Perhaps one of the greatest changes that took place during the Renaissance was under the category of religion. As a result of the Renaissance, a great religious revolution took place in the 16th in the Catholic Church known as the Protestant Reformation. This reformation changed the corrupt practices of the Catholic Church and formed many other religious sects in addition to Catholicism.

The Renaissance also had a great effect on literature and education. After Johannes Gutenberg invented the printing press there was a greater thirst for reading books all over Europe. Because Gutenberg's press could produce books quickly and with relatively little effort, bookmaking became much less expensive, allowing more people to buy reading material. In the Middle Ages, books had been costly and educational books were rare; only the wealthy had been regular readers and owners of books. However due to the Renaissance, the educated middle classes, could now afford books and they demanded works in their own languages. Furthermore, readers wanted a greater variety of books. Therefore, all kinds of books such as almanacs, textbooks, romances, poetry and especially Bibles were all published at this time. As the demand for books grew, the book trade began to thrive throughout Europe, and industries related to it, such as papermaking, increased as well. The result of all of this was a more literate nation and a stronger economy.

The Arts also flourished