Sam Piedad
AP Euro
7/15/22
A. Chapter 2
THE RENAISSANCE
1330-1530, Italian city-states became Europe’s intellectual & artistic centers → Shaped
the modern world
- Celebrated the beauty of nature & the dignity of mankind
Still had political turmoil from foreign invaders
- Couldn’t resist the French & Spanish → Renaissance’s end
THE CITY-STATES OF THE ITALIAN PENINSULA
City-states were fundamental political units
- Smaller city-states joined bigger ones, reducing the number
Thriving Economies
Commerce expansion = Independent & prosperous city-states
Roman law was basic to political life
- Roman Empire (RE) depended on autonomous cities linking to Rome
North still prospered despite disease & economic recession
- Florence’s textile industry employed 30,000 workers
- Agriculture thrived
Mediterranean trade routes boasted international trade & small-scale manufacturing =
Wealthy merchants
14th-century banking financed internal trade & international commerce
- Florence’s gold florin became standard currency in European trading centers
Merchants experienced w/ deposits & bills of chance provided credit
- Various risks such as threats (King of England)
Venice & Genoas were major tradings, banking, shipbuilding, & insurance centers
- Venice linked sea routes to Constantinople through the Balkans
Merchant capitalism eroded from nobles expanding ranks & influence → Dominated
oligarchies
- Prosperity increased w/ pride
Social Structure
Resembled in trade & manufacturing centers
Popolo Grasso “fat people” - Elite nobles, merchants, & manufacturers (5%)
- Owned the richest land worked by various laborers & purchased titles
Mediocri - Middle bunch w/ smaller merchants & master artisans
- Burdened w/ high taxes
Popolo minuto “little people” - Bulk of urban population
Despite sharp social differences, commerce made wealth possible through social
mobility in Florence
Wealthy families became richer despite the recession (Illustrissima - Illustrious one)
Urban patriarchs dominated cities w/ power & patronage
, - Dispensed titles, privileges, & cash
- Ruled through intimidation
- Went to the poor for support
Renaissance Political Life
Had constitutional republic linked to the Renaissance’s achievements
- Were constitutional oligarchies dominated by powerful families filling political
offices
- Only 12% of citizens voted
Venice & Florence were notable republics as Genoa & Bologna switched b/n republic &
despotic governments
Other city-states became hereditary dispositions run by a single family
- Condottieri, Francesco Sforza married Bianca Maria Visconti → Overthrew
republic w/ family rule & Milanese noble support
- Central political & military situation in Italy
Constitution offered a balance of political interests
- Doge, elected for life by the Senate, was an executive power
- The Great Council had 2,500 Senate-elected patricians representing nobles
- No one represented the poor, over 50% of the population
Bureaucracies improved state administration’s effectiveness
- Florence & Venice had special committees responsible for foreign affairs &
commerce filled by leading families among other offices
- Personal relations b/n powerful families facilitated diplomacy (Medici)
Florence, Milan, Venice, Naples, & the Papal States were as very aggressive
- Dominated by force, intimidation, & alliances
- When not battling, Florence & Venice combined to limit Milanese control to
Lombardy & to establish authority
- Genoa struggled to maintain autonomy as it became exposed to Milan & France
In the Papal States, popes were life-long temporal & spiritual princes elected by
cardinals
City-states were increasingly freed from the papacy's authority & interference
- Started Babylonian Captivity (C. 1310-1380), where popes lived under the direct
influence of France’s King
- Decline helped Florence, Milan, & Venice rise
Florence: Anatomy of a Renaissance City
C. 1405, Florence conquered textile center Pisa → Maritime power & helped commerce
Roman law & Latin were basic to the education of ecclesiastical lawyers, & notaries
Palazzo Vecchio oversaw international banking, commerce, cloth, & silk manufacturing
Grandi “wealthy merchants” - Governed Florence w/ merchants’, lawyers’, & craftsmen’s
support
- Organized into seven major & 14 minor guilds
Guilds elected the Signoria, nine members of government, who administered the city
- Proposed laws & conduct foreign affairs
Council of the People & Commune served as a legislature elected by taxpayers
1400, the elite feared the poor would revolt
AP Euro
7/15/22
A. Chapter 2
THE RENAISSANCE
1330-1530, Italian city-states became Europe’s intellectual & artistic centers → Shaped
the modern world
- Celebrated the beauty of nature & the dignity of mankind
Still had political turmoil from foreign invaders
- Couldn’t resist the French & Spanish → Renaissance’s end
THE CITY-STATES OF THE ITALIAN PENINSULA
City-states were fundamental political units
- Smaller city-states joined bigger ones, reducing the number
Thriving Economies
Commerce expansion = Independent & prosperous city-states
Roman law was basic to political life
- Roman Empire (RE) depended on autonomous cities linking to Rome
North still prospered despite disease & economic recession
- Florence’s textile industry employed 30,000 workers
- Agriculture thrived
Mediterranean trade routes boasted international trade & small-scale manufacturing =
Wealthy merchants
14th-century banking financed internal trade & international commerce
- Florence’s gold florin became standard currency in European trading centers
Merchants experienced w/ deposits & bills of chance provided credit
- Various risks such as threats (King of England)
Venice & Genoas were major tradings, banking, shipbuilding, & insurance centers
- Venice linked sea routes to Constantinople through the Balkans
Merchant capitalism eroded from nobles expanding ranks & influence → Dominated
oligarchies
- Prosperity increased w/ pride
Social Structure
Resembled in trade & manufacturing centers
Popolo Grasso “fat people” - Elite nobles, merchants, & manufacturers (5%)
- Owned the richest land worked by various laborers & purchased titles
Mediocri - Middle bunch w/ smaller merchants & master artisans
- Burdened w/ high taxes
Popolo minuto “little people” - Bulk of urban population
Despite sharp social differences, commerce made wealth possible through social
mobility in Florence
Wealthy families became richer despite the recession (Illustrissima - Illustrious one)
Urban patriarchs dominated cities w/ power & patronage
, - Dispensed titles, privileges, & cash
- Ruled through intimidation
- Went to the poor for support
Renaissance Political Life
Had constitutional republic linked to the Renaissance’s achievements
- Were constitutional oligarchies dominated by powerful families filling political
offices
- Only 12% of citizens voted
Venice & Florence were notable republics as Genoa & Bologna switched b/n republic &
despotic governments
Other city-states became hereditary dispositions run by a single family
- Condottieri, Francesco Sforza married Bianca Maria Visconti → Overthrew
republic w/ family rule & Milanese noble support
- Central political & military situation in Italy
Constitution offered a balance of political interests
- Doge, elected for life by the Senate, was an executive power
- The Great Council had 2,500 Senate-elected patricians representing nobles
- No one represented the poor, over 50% of the population
Bureaucracies improved state administration’s effectiveness
- Florence & Venice had special committees responsible for foreign affairs &
commerce filled by leading families among other offices
- Personal relations b/n powerful families facilitated diplomacy (Medici)
Florence, Milan, Venice, Naples, & the Papal States were as very aggressive
- Dominated by force, intimidation, & alliances
- When not battling, Florence & Venice combined to limit Milanese control to
Lombardy & to establish authority
- Genoa struggled to maintain autonomy as it became exposed to Milan & France
In the Papal States, popes were life-long temporal & spiritual princes elected by
cardinals
City-states were increasingly freed from the papacy's authority & interference
- Started Babylonian Captivity (C. 1310-1380), where popes lived under the direct
influence of France’s King
- Decline helped Florence, Milan, & Venice rise
Florence: Anatomy of a Renaissance City
C. 1405, Florence conquered textile center Pisa → Maritime power & helped commerce
Roman law & Latin were basic to the education of ecclesiastical lawyers, & notaries
Palazzo Vecchio oversaw international banking, commerce, cloth, & silk manufacturing
Grandi “wealthy merchants” - Governed Florence w/ merchants’, lawyers’, & craftsmen’s
support
- Organized into seven major & 14 minor guilds
Guilds elected the Signoria, nine members of government, who administered the city
- Proposed laws & conduct foreign affairs
Council of the People & Commune served as a legislature elected by taxpayers
1400, the elite feared the poor would revolt
