Renaissance and Italian City-States: Key Concepts and Figures

Renaissance

A cultural and intellectual movement that began in Italy in the 14th century, emphasizing the revival of classical learning, art, and human-centered subjects, marking the transition from the medieval to the modern world.

Oligarchy

A small group of elites or powerful families that ruled Italian city-states, often controlling political and economic life.

Signori

Rulers or lords of Italian city-states who held power through heredity or force, often establishing dynastic rule.

Communes

Associations of free men in Italian cities who sought political and economic independence from nobles.

Popolo

Disenfranchised common people in Italian cities who were excluded from power but sometimes staged uprisings.

Reconquista

The centuries-long Christian campaign to drive Muslims out of the Iberian Peninsula, completed in 1492 with the fall of Granada.

Humanism

An intellectual movement of the Renaissance focused on the study of classical texts, human potential, and secular concerns.

Secularism

A focus on worldly, non-religious themes and concerns, especially in Renaissance art, politics, and culture.

Conversos

Jews and Muslims in Spain who converted to Christianity, often under pressure, sometimes called 'New Christians.'

Individualism

Renaissance emphasis on personal achievement, uniqueness, and individual potential.

Materialism

A focus on worldly goods, wealth, and possessions, often criticized by moralists during the Renaissance.

Hermandades

Spanish local police forces or brotherhoods organized by Ferdinand and Isabella to enforce law and royal authority.

Machiavellian

Referring to the political ideas of Niccolò Machiavelli, advocating pragmatic, cunning, and sometimes ruthless power politics.

Court of the Star Chamber

English royal court under Henry VII that used secret trials and harsh punishments to control nobles.

Habsburg-Valois Wars

A series of conflicts between France and the Holy Roman Empire (led by the Habsburgs) over territory in Italy and Europe.

Vernacular

The everyday spoken language of a region, used increasingly in literature instead of Latin during the Renaissance.

Vanishing Point

The point in a painting where parallel lines converge, a key element of Renaissance perspective.

Perspective

Artistic technique of creating the illusion of depth and three-dimensionality on a flat surface.

Urban Nobility

The merging of wealthy merchant families with old nobility in Italian city-states, forming a ruling elite.

Patron

A wealthy individual or institution who financially supported artists, writers, and scholars during the Renaissance.

Proletariat

The working class, often poor laborers, who were largely excluded from Renaissance cultural life.

Princely Courts

Residences and political centers of Renaissance rulers that displayed wealth and power through art and culture.

Pragmatic Sanction of Bourges

A 1438 French decree giving the monarchy control over the appointment of bishops and limiting papal authority in France.

Concordat of Bologna

A 1516 agreement giving the French king the power to appoint bishops while recognizing the pope's spiritual authority.

New Christians

Term used in Spain for Jews and Muslims who converted to Christianity, often facing suspicion and discrimination.

City-State

Independent political entities in Italy, like Florence or Venice, where much of the Renaissance developed.

The Courtier

A book by Castiglione describing the ideal Renaissance gentleman and court life.

The Prince

A political treatise by Machiavelli emphasizing realpolitik, pragmatism, and the pursuit of power.

Decameron

A collection of tales by Boccaccio that reflected human behavior and secular themes during the plague.

Utopia

A book by Thomas More describing an ideal society based on reason, equality, and communal living.

Spanish Inquisition

A church court established in Spain to root out heresy, especially targeting conversos and heretics.

Gargantua

A satirical work by Rabelais that used humor and exaggeration to critique education, society, and religion.

Pantagruel

Companion work to Gargantua by Rabelais, satirizing Renaissance learning and authority while celebrating human potential.

Petrarch

Early Renaissance humanist and poet, often called the "Father of Humanism," who revived interest in classical texts.

de Medicis

Powerful banking family of Florence who were major patrons of Renaissance art and culture.

Michelangelo

Renaissance artist, sculptor, and painter known for the Sistine Chapel ceiling and the statue of David.

da Vinci

Renaissance polymath, scientist, and artist known for the Mona Lisa and The Last Supper.

Dante

Italian poet whose Divine Comedy bridged medieval and Renaissance thought.

Erasmus

Dutch Christian humanist who criticized church corruption and emphasized inner piety and education.

New Monarchs

European rulers (e.g., Ferdinand & Isabella, Henry VII, Louis XI) who centralized power and built strong states.

Justices of the Peace

Local officials in England who maintained order and enforced laws on behalf of the crown.

Royal Council

Advisory body to the monarch in England and France, increasingly staffed by middle-class professionals.

Christian Humanism

Northern Renaissance movement combining classical learning with Christian values of reform and piety.

Savonarola

A Dominican friar in Florence who denounced secular art and corruption, leading to the "Bonfire of the Vanities."

Printing Press

Invented by Gutenberg around 1450, it spread knowledge, literacy, and humanist ideas rapidly across Europe.

Cesare Borgia

Ruthless Italian nobleman and inspiration for Machiavelli's The Prince, admired for his political skill.

Mannerism

Artistic style following the High Renaissance, marked by elongated forms, tension, and emotional expression.

Giorgio Vasari

Renaissance artist and historian who wrote Lives of the Artists, helping establish art history as a discipline.

Virtù

Renaissance concept of excellence, skill, and the ability to shape the world around oneself.

Alberti

Renaissance humanist and architect who wrote about family life and designed buildings that embodied classical harmony.

Giotto

Early Renaissance painter who pioneered more naturalistic styles and perspective in art.

Marsilio Ficino

Florentine philosopher who translated Plato and developed Neoplatonism.

Pico della Mirandola

Author of Oration on the Dignity of Man, which celebrated human potential and free will.

Leonardo Bruni

Humanist historian who promoted civic humanism and active participation in politics.

Donatello

Renaissance sculptor known for his David, the first free-standing nude statue since antiquity.

Raphael

Renaissance painter celebrated for his Madonnas and the fresco School of Athens.

Brunelleschi

Architect who designed the dome of Florence's cathedral and advanced perspective in architecture.

Van Eyck

Northern Renaissance painter known for detailed oil paintings like the Arnolfini Portrait.

Brueghel

Northern painter who depicted peasant life and landscapes with realism and detail.

Titian

Venetian painter celebrated for his use of color and sensuous subjects.

Querelle des Femmes

A literary and intellectual debate about women's nature, roles, and rights in Renaissance society.

Christine de Pizan

French writer who defended women's education and achievements, author of The Book of the City of Ladies.

Misogynist

A person who harbors prejudice or hatred toward women, common in much Renaissance writing and debate.