Renaissance, Reformation, and Early Modern Europe - Vocabulary Flashcards

Vocabulary flashcards covering key terms from Renaissance, Reformation, and early modern science.

Mary Tudor

Queen of England; also known as Bloody Mary; attempted to restore Catholicism by persecuting Protestants.

Bloody Mary

Nickname for Mary I of England, remembered for persecuting Protestants while restoring Catholicism.

Thomas Cranmer

Archbishop of Canterbury who helped lead the English Reformation and establish the Church of England.

Elizabeth I

Queen who solidified Protestantism in England and presided over the Elizabethan Age.

Canonize

To officially declare someone a saint in the Catholic Church.

Council of Trent

Catholic Church council (1545–1563) that defined doctrine and addressed corruption in response to the Reformation.

Teresa of Avila

Spanish mystic and reformer of the Carmelite order; known for reforms and spiritual writings.

Ghetto

Section of a city where a group is segregated; historically used for Jewish neighborhoods.

Index of Forbidden Books

List of books prohibited by the Catholic Church during the Counter‑Reformation.

Reformation

16th‑century religious movement leading to Protestant churches and a break from the Catholic Church.

Martyr

A person who suffers or dies for their beliefs, often regarded as a hero.

Indulgences

Payments or acts of penance that reduced punishment for sins; a key Reformation issue.

Martin Luther

German monk and theologian whose 95 Theses challenged the Catholic Church and sparked the Reformation.

Diet

Formal assembly; Diet of Worms (1521) where Luther defended his teachings.

John Calvin

French Protestant reformer who developed Calvinism, emphasizing predestination and God’s sovereignty.

Predestination

Belief that God has already determined who will be saved or damned.

Theocracy

A form of government in which religious leaders or law govern the state.

John Wycliffe

English theologian who criticized the Catholic Church and translated the Bible into English.

Henry VIII

King of England who broke with the Catholic Church and established the Church of England.

Michelangelo

Renowned Italian Renaissance artist known for the Sistine Chapel ceiling and David.

Raphael

Renowned Italian Renaissance painter known for the School of Athens and Madonnas.

Machiavelli

Italian diplomat/philosopher famous for The Prince and political realism.

Baldassare Castiglione

Italian diplomat and writer of The Book of the Courtier, describing an ideal nobleman.

Patron

A wealthy individual or institution that supports the arts through funding or commissions.

The Medici Family

Powerful Italian banking family; major patrons of Renaissance art.

Leonardo da Vinci

Italian polymath known for the Mona Lisa and his wide-ranging studies.

Francesco Petrarch

Italian scholar and poet called the father of humanism for reviving classical texts.

Sir Thomas More

English lawyer and author of Utopia, promoting rational humanist thought.

Albrecht Dürer

German Renaissance artist known for woodcuts, engravings, and Northern‑Italian synthesis.

Humanities

Academic disciplines studying human culture: literature, philosophy, history, and the arts.

Pico della Mirandola

Italian philosopher who wrote On the Dignity of Man, stressing human potential.

Johann Gutenberg

German inventor of movable-type printing, enabling widespread knowledge.

Vernacular

Language or dialect spoken by ordinary people; opposed to Latin.

Desiderius Erasmus

Dutch humanist who criticized the Catholic Church and urged reform.

Renaissance

Cultural movement emphasizing human potential and study of classical texts.

Heliocentric

Sun-centered model of the solar system, opposed to geocentric view.

Galileo

Italian scientist who used a telescope to support heliocentrism and advance science.

Francis Bacon

English philosopher who developed empirical methods for inquiry and the scientific method.

Rene Descartes

French philosopher and mathematician; 'I think, therefore I am' and father of modern philosophy.

Scientific Method

Systematic approach to knowledge via observation, experimentation, and hypothesis testing.

Hypothesis

Proposed explanation or educated guess that can be tested.

Robert Boyle

Anglo‑Irish scientist known for Boyle’s law relating pressure and volume of gas.