Unit 1-1450-1648
1.2 Heimler notes- Italian Renaisance
The Renaissance- Rebirth
A European movement that grew ot of the rediscovery of the classical texts of ancient greece and Rome
Teaching of the classical age had fallen out of european memory due to lack of access and mass death numbers from the black plaque
Renaissance constituted major change in the political, economic, and cultural aspect of europe
Continuity in the middle ages also persisted
Began in Italy
Petrarch- lived before 1450, considered “The father of the renaissance”
Humanism- focuses on unlimited potential of human beings as an end in themselves
first major figure to look around classical texts and he found the ancient writing of the ancient roman Cicero
found model for eloquence in latin that would define the intellectul output of other renecainse thinkers
Led to a new discipline called philology
Philology- The studdy of the history and devolopment of languages, especially latin
Lorenzo Valla- face of philologicl studies
Identified several different stages in the devolopment of the latin language
Due to hs ability of discerning latin written in the 4th century vs 12th century, he was able to demostrate various documents that were held as authoratitative for the church due to their ancient times were actually written closer to the present age therefore their authority coud be questioned
Questioning of documents was a big deal especially those of the church
Renessaince thinkers self-conciously understood themselves as humanists in the vein of petra
Giovanni pico della mirandola wrote a famous huanistic book known called oration on the dinity of man
spoke of the unlimited potential in the human being
Rivaval of classical texts and humanism
Some humanists kept believing in god and other championed Secularism
Secularism- the decoupling of the religious belief from society
Individiualism-emphasizes the triumph of the individual as opposed to the community
Ideas used to only be accessible to the elite but in 1440 with the invention of the printing press, ideas spread widely and with great speed
Ideas challenged the institutional power of universities and other power centers
education underwent significant change during this period
Humanism was the focus of the age , therefore education became even more important because education was crucial to reach your full potential
emphasis on liberal studes such as rhetoric, grammar, logic, history and moral philosphy
lead you to become a virteous thinker and rhetoric made you ble to express those idea eloquently
Humanism in the public shpere
Humanstic manner led to changes in how people understand their interactions in the public sphere
Started amongst the italian city states- handful of regional kingdoms at the time unified under the italian stte we know today
Became known as Civic Humanism
all the work thata person does to shape their minds into virteous thinking out to be applied to the political and economical realities of the state in which they live
Baldessari castillion- wrotethe courtier which served as a guide for how an educated young man should behave in courtly society
Argued that an educated man should be skilled in all the humanistic discipline, write and speak in eloquence, be physically strong, and mentally awake
Leonardo Bruni- Wrote the new cicero where he argued that the intellectual man was duty-bound todeploy his education in service of the state
Niccolo Maciavelli- preoccupation with the proper method of weilding power was laid out in “The prince” book
Main points
A ruler is to perserve power at all costs
a ruler is to ensure order and stability
Human beings re intensely selfish
A ruler may need to be brutal
A prince may need to be kind
In other words= maintain power at ALL costs
Departure from older writings in what it took to be a good ruler= used to claim that a ruler’s behavior was measuredagainst the virtues established in the bible
Renaissance Art- followed classical revivaland humanism inspiration
in the middle ages, artistsportryed almost exclussively religious themes that were rich with symbolism
Renaissance artists also portrayed religious themes but also included personal, political, and classical themes
Renaissance artists emphasized naturalism- a style that portrayed the world as it was, not inthe mysteries of symbolic figures, andthe flatness that usually carecterized art in the middle ages
focused on realistic depiction of nature as primary goal explaining nudism in their art
Geometric perspective - portrayed realistic depth in a scene
Leonardo da vinci’s painting “The last supper”
Michelangelo- sculpture of biblical david which was an example of a religius theme
humanist influence the guy is influenced te guy is sculpted like a greek god which is to say in the image of perfected humanity
Raphael- paintaingtheschool of athens puts all of these theme on display as well
classical themes and geometric perspective
Architecture
Fillippo brunelleschi- rebuilt the chruch of san lorenzo in florence
tossed out gothic conventions of medival cathedrals and designed them inroman collumns and arches
Most of the artists were patrionized by wealthy individuals or those in power + most significant of these patrons was Medici family
1.3 Heimler notes- The northern Renaissance
Spread of renaissance from italy to te rest of europe
Printing press- allowed for the spread of humanism and revival of classicalliterature to spread north of the italian alps into the european continent
Printed over 40 thousands different titles many of which were religious and others that were reproductions of classical literature
Northern Renessaince- As renassaince spread to different parts of Europe, main ideas remained the same but emphases began to change
Italy- Indivualismand secularism were championed
Northern renaissance retained more religious/ christian framework for their thought
Their arts was naturalistic but was more human centered
Considered ordinary objects nd people as appropriate subjects for art
Peter Bruegel the elder- painted the netherlandish proverb depicting peasants and animals who are the subjects of netherlandish proverbs
depicted mainley peasants
Rembrandt- Dutch renassaince artist
Painted “The Slaughtered Ox”
not elitist
focused on ordinary life
Northern painters also took up religious themes
Rembrandt most famous painting is the depictionof the prodigal son’s return
Bruegel painting “ The procession to calvary” - depicts christ carrying his cross to the place of his execution
In other words, northern renessaince artists also depicted biblical scenes like the italian renaissance artists but there was more ephasis on the ordinary people in their depiction
Christian humanism- mixing of Christianity and humanism
in northern renaissance there was still a preoccupation with greek and roman classics, but once humanism reached te Low countries and france and germany and england, people took pains to synthesize humanistic thought with christian traditions as well
In addition to seeking out Greek and Roman classics, northern renaissance thinkers also sough out old Christian writings as well
especially from saint Augustine and Jerome
Discovered a Christianity that seemed simpler and more pure than the complex hierarchy of the church of their own days, and sought to return to that simplicity
Christian humanism taught that human beings were more capable that previously believed and with the addition of Christianity, it could reform society from a Christian posture
led to an impulse for reform in the Northern Renaissance
Erasomas- his book “in praise of folly”
undermined political and social institutions
Emphasize corrupt aspects of religious hierchies
due to Christian humanist wanting to recover an ancient or simpler version of Christianity
Believed that education in the classics and bible was the first step in lasting societal reform and these renewals must be based off of philosophy of Christ
philosophy of Christ- emphasized individual morality and spirituality
1.4 Heimler Notes-Printing Press
Erasmus (16th century) acquired a bigger reach than Petrarch (14th century) due to the printing press
Printing press ( 1450-1648)
Johannesburg Gutenberg was the creator
Prior= books were printed by hand= slower reproduction
Now= Moveable typed techniques stamped the letters onto the paper= faster production
Borrowed paper making techniques from china led to paper in books, pamphlets had great abundance
European Literacy rates increased significantly mainly among urban populations and therefore the demand for books was also increasing
Gutenberg printed the “Gutenberg Bible” with his press 1456
10-20 millions books published throughout Europe thanks to this press and other printers that popped up overnight
Effects of the printing press
Printing was easier and cheaper= faster and wider spread of ideals
Ideas spread rapidly because of printing
Without the printing press, the ideas of the renaissance of Italy would not have spread as quickly to the rest of Europe
By 1550, all major classical authors were in print and spreading rapidly
Allowed for EXACT copies of each books unlike hand printing which allowed them to be more capable of discussing ideas contained in the writing
Increase in literacy was both a cause and effect of the printing press
the printer satisfied the increasing public demands
Vernacular literature- language of the people
earlier Printed books were published in Latin or Greek, this proliferation of reading created a demand for books in English, german, Italian, French, etc
Effect of growing and solidifying national culture
allowing people in different countries to see how different they were from each other through the use of language
1.5 Heimler- The rise of a new Monarch
Middle ages- King sares the power with the noble and church, but the nobility was the most power
This began to change in the 1500
In 1500, there was a Rise of new monarchs consolidating power
New monarchs took measures to take poweraway from other entities like the church and the nobles and consolidated that power for themelves
Methods of control
Top Down Religious reform
Henry VIII of england
reigned during the outbreak of the protestant reformation and was an opposer of it as well
As a result was named defender of the faith
Was married to catheron aregon who failed to provide him with proper heirs and therefore he wanted a divorce
Catherine was the daughter of the catholic monarchs of spain so they made the pope deny this anullment aka divorce
His mistress Anne Boleyn became pregnant and henry married her, the pope declares this illegal
Henry constructs his own church where he is declared the “Head of the state Church”
Consolidated power under the Treason Act
Made it a capital crim to refuse to recognize the church of england as the official state church
many english folk remained catholic but had to keep it a secret
Mary Tudor becomes queen and attempts to bring England back to cathlocism
Elizabeth 1st ended the persecution of anglican bishops occuring during her predecessor’s reign and steered england back to anglicanism aka protestanism
Anglican=anglican church= church of england
Consolidated power through top down religious reform
Act of uniformity- English subjects had to attend anglica church services once a week or pay a fine
Taxation and extention of bureaucratic power
Monarc has the power to tax his or her citizens but needed people to collect the money but traveling was hard so they created a system of bureaucracy
Bureaucracy- group of offiials whose job is to make sure people are following the laws
In charge of executing laws and not just tax collections
In spain, Ferdinand and Isabel assumed the throne and began consolidating power by establishing national taxes on the sale or exchage of propertyand creating a massive bureaucracy which was responsible for collecting taxes and deciding question of justice
In france similar metods were used
Concodat of bologna- An agreenment between francisthe first and poplio the 10th concerning
Pope got the right to collect income from the frenchcatholic church while francis got the right to appoint church officials, which restricted their right to communicatewith pope directly
Determing te religion of their subjects was another method consolidating power
The only choices were protestant and catholic
Peace of Augsburg- gave individual rulers in oly empire the right to decide whether their subjects would be catholic or lutheran (Protestan)
Other groups gaining power
Rise in power of commercial and professional groups
Play a greater role in political affairs
Merchants and bankers especially in italy and germany
Italy, Florence- Medici familly
established the banking industry
Augusburg, Germany- Fooger family
established banking system there
Able to gain power due the rise of the money economy through their hands because Banking fostered a closealliance between those groups and the monarchswhich allowed these bankers to excersise increased political power
New concepts of a secular state
A secular state is a state in which the church has a little to no political influence
Began in fragmented italian states and soon the debate would be taken up by french, british, and dutch authors
Machiavelli (republicanism) from Italy- Discourses on the 10 books of titus living
republicanism is a government structure in which elected representatives make laws and wield power by the conset of the governed
Jean-bodin of france- Opposed Machiavelli and thought the best structure for a secular state was one wherethe monarch ruled absolutely and the kings would rule through divine right
Divine right meant that the king ruled under god and defying the king was defying god’s will and that only god was able to judge them
1.6 Heimler notes- European exploration and empire building
Europeans established colonies and built empires around the world during 1450-1648
Motivation for european expansion- Gold, God, and Glory
Gold
Mercantlism- the dominant economic system of europe during this period
The world’s wealth was like a pie meaning that there was a limited amount of it and in order for me to obtain more someone will have to consume less
Wealth was measured in terms of gold and silver which were limited resources
The goal of a mercantilist economy was to obtainas much gold and silver into the national coffers as possible
Favorable balance of trade- when a state has more exports than imports
During this period, European states began to recognize that establishing colonies was a means of getting more gold
Colonies also obtained raw materials which could be shipped back to the imperial state made into goods and sold back to the colonial peoples stimulating wealth
Mercantilism was a major motivational factor of European exploration
Jean Baptiste colbert- France’s controller general
aimed to createpolocies infrance that enabled french industry to create everything the people needed so that they didn’t have to import those goods from elsewhere
Abolished domestic tariffs and enacted steep tariffs on imported goods
Tariffs- tax onimported good
Raised taxes on imported goods to a significant extent leading the french people to buy french- made goods since they were cheaper
Due to him,france claimed a lotof territory innorth america, most importantly Quebec and louisiana territory
European demand for Luxurious goods from asia
Porcelain, spice, and tea
Their issue was that the ottoman empire controlled the land trading routes which served as motivation for european states to find sea routes to asia to trade the market on their own terms
God
Europeans wanted to spread christianity to distant lands
Spain- 1492
Completed the reconquista- able to drive jews and muslims from their land
By the time of the protestantreformation, therewas a desire to see catholicism inthe ascendant positionover protestanism, and that provided a motivation for exploration via the sea
Jesuit used to convert indigenous peoples and many though of those people as lesser humans thus suitable for forced labor
Christianity became an instrument of control and subjugation in the lands of imperial states
Jesuit Priest Bartolome de las casas- contradicted previous belief and mounted elaborate defenses on behalf of the american indians and worked to make their ife underthe imperial regime less harsh
did not hold the same sympathy towards enslaved africans
Glory
European states were incompetition with each other in terms of powerand therefore once establishment empires became themeasurement for these powers, european states wanted to establish as many as possible
How they did it: New technology
Maritime empires- Sea based empires
Advancement in Cartography- Map making
Maps used to be vague and inaccurate, however this changed in this time period
Printing press made those new maps widely accessible
New ships
Spanish and portugese devolopthe caravel
fast and highly navigable
Made only for shipping and trade and NOT for war
Fast due to the lateen sails
Lateen sails- a triangular sail that could take on wind from any side, not just the back like the square sails
Accurate navigational instruments
Magnetic compass/astrolable was adapted from muslim and chinese sailors
Compass helped sailor keep their direction true
Astrolabe told them accurate latitude aka coordinated
1.7 Heimler Notes- Rival empire in the age of exploration
Maritime empires
Portugal-
Due to them being located behind spain, itwas difficult to conduct trade without them interfering
This led to them looking at sea-based trade
Spice trades in the indian ocean
Henry the Navigator allowed for Portugese ships to navigate the african coast
Vasco De Gama made it to the indian ocean and established trade relations
once this was established they returned each year and established trade posts
Established a Trading post empire
Were not interested in taking lands but instead used these posts allowing them to dominate the Indian Ocean trade in the 16th century
Spain
Influenced by portugese success
Commisioned Christorpher Columbus to sail west and gain access into the indian ocean trade
He ends up in the Bahamas in the Americas and Cuba
Claimed most of the caribbean, central america, north america, and the coastline of South America
Conquistadors they send to claim this land such as hernan cortes did not acquire that many men comparedto the huge empires the spanish encountered in the Americas
Smallpox/measles which were European disease assisted them in their conquer as it weakened the natives since they lacked immunity
wiped out an enormous percentage of the population in the Americas
Spain and portugal were major powers in maritime empire and trade
Upon seeing this, france, england, and there netherlands joined these expeditions as well
France
Claimed large parts of north america and canada
Samuel De Chamblan founded France’s first permenant settlement known as Quebec in 1608
Mainly interested in trade so they did not establish many colonies in which people actually went and lived
Instead theyforged alliances with indigenous groups like Huron Confederacy and joined thier fur trade
England
Established Settler Colonies
Colonies where english people actually moved into and settled to find a new life
Mainly established in the caribbean and atalantic coast of north america
Established colonies to compete economically in other european states mentioned
Biggest contribution to economic competition was the tabacco trade
Dutch/Netherlands
established colones in north america
Like the portugese they were mainy interested in trade
Main focus was competing for with portugese in the indian ocean trade
Rivarlies among European states
Some rivarlies would erupt into wars
War of spanish succession + Seven Years War
Occur in the next period
In this period, the most significant tension and its resolution occured between portugal and spain
1481- Pope grants islands south of the canary islands to Portugal but no one sailed west yet so they were unaware if there was anything there but if there was it belonged to portugal
1493- Christopher columus sails back to europe after claiming islands in the carribean for spain but let the portugese ruler know he discovered more islands west of the canaries
Therefore, portugal declares that those islands are for them
Ferdinand and isabella of spain disagreed causing tensons
Portugese try to claim these new territories leading the spanish to appeal to Pope Alexander VI due to not being ble to compete with portugese navy and asked him to decide whose land this should be
Treaty of Tordesillas- Granted spain all of land in the East and portugal the ones on the west in the new islands
Both nations ignore the line as they built their nations
However, it calmed the tension between the two states
1.8 Heimler Notes- The columbian exchange and colonial expansion
The columbian exchange- the global transfer of goods, flora, fauna, cultural practicesand disease between the Old World and the New World as a result of European imperialism
Great exchange occured which changed societies of everyone involved
Items that were exchanged
Diseases- Europeans to the Americas = small pox
Hernan Cortes- took up empires in the Americas with few men but were able to succeed due to disease
Indigenous people lacked immunity due to lack of exposure to te disease which led to the Great Dying
Indigenous population plummeted by 90 %
When spanish landed on the Island of Hispaniola, both the Arawak and Taino populations lost 300,000 of their men, women, and children by small pox
In 1530, the Incas had a population of 9 million- one hundred years later they only had a population of 500,000
Food-
America to Europe- Maze, tomatoes, potatoes, and cacao
Europe to america- Rice and Wheat
Led to a better diet which increased living conditions and life expectancy and life spands
Minerals
From America to europe
Gold and silver
Incas and Aztecs were the main resources
Made spain wealthy beyond belief
Without gold and silver, the europeans would not have kept up their exploration
Transformed Americas by increasingly attracting european colonizers
Wealth from minerals flowing to europe acquire a great effect as well
Feudalism- A system where peasants lived andworked on the land of a noble in exchage for armed protection from nobles
Influx of the new world, parts of Europe experienced economic growth leading to the end of the feudal system
Replaced by capitalism
Capitalism- an economic system based on private ownership and a free and open exchange of goods between property owners
Beginning of capitalist influence and these states still operated mostly on mercantilism
Enslaved people
From the old world to the new world
Effects of the columbian exchange
Economic power
Focused in states around the meditteranean sea and the trade ports that risen over the centuries of trade
In this period, economic power in Europe shifted from mediterranean states toward the atlantic states busy building empires across the sea
During the globalization of the economy and exploration, one of the primary trade ports in europe became Antwerp ( a place in the netherlands)- grew excceedingly prosperous due to its central location to spanish, portugese, french, and english trade routes
Later Amsterdam would replace it as the major tradng portof europe and other atlantic trading cities prospered as well as london and bristol
Subjagation of power (in the americas)
Spanish imposed an entirely new societal structure on the Americas called the Casta System
Casta system- organized american societies into a hierchy based on race and origin of birth
Spanish establihed a system of coerced labor known as encomienda
An economic and social system in which spaniard could by law exact tribute and albor from indigenous americas
By law, they were also required to provide protection to their coerced laborers but since spain was so far away, making it harder for them to check on the spanish in America, the encomienda system resembled slavery
1.9 Heimler Notes- The african slave trade
Causes of the African slave trade
Plantation economy- In the new world
It became apparet that due to the climate, growing crops on plantations for export would be more profitable way to go
Areas had year round growing seasons
Plantation economy was ordered around cash crops
Region focused on growing only one or two crops and purpose of these crops was to be exported for profit
Sugarcane and coffee were major crops
Made a lot of money for parent economy
Spain
Instead ofmaking spaniards who have neve farmed do the work, they first used the native population to do it
Backfired bacuses natives knew geography better than them, meaning that they were able to escape
Natives also died on massivescales due to european diseases
This led to the purchase and kidnapping of african people to useas slaves
Effects of the african sllave trade
Demand for enslaved people from africa began to grow
Enslaved africans solved the labor problems
Since africans had been in contact with european for milennia, they already had a decent amount of immunityto european diseases
Africans shipped to the new world didn’t know the land and thus were less likely to escape the plantations
African slavery in the new world was a brutal system of coerced labor
Africans were sold to europeans who began showing up on the west coast of africa more frequently
Made to endue brutal Middle passage across atlantic
Depending on weather, this could take between 2 and 6 weeks to cross + inhumane conditions
More people they could fit into the cargo, the more money a captain will make in the other side of the atlanticsothe goal was to make them packed
People has to lay on their sides + diseases were so rampant and due to close proximity, they spread quickly, killing many before the end of the journey
Africans were malnourished, treated badly, and if they made it alive to thenew world, they were met with a brutal plantation slavery
Plantation economy became more profitable, leading to an even greater demand for slaves
1.10 Heimler notes- The commercial revolution
Commercial Revolution- Money becoming the most desirable commodityin Europe instead of land
The rise of Banks
Bank of Amsterdam- A very big deal during the 16th century becaue there were nearly no banks on the scale of today- facilitated a massively growing and changing economy
Causes
Europe was undergoing a massive economic shift into a money economy
An economy in which goods and service and wages for work were paid with money
Before this, if you were a blaksmith who wanted a new goat, you had to trade your services for the goat
As the economy became more globalized as a result of european imperialism, the system of exchanging your skills for material became inconvenient
Instead of trading services for goods or goods for other goods, a money economy arose in which people could now exchange money for what they wanted
Due to money economy, banks became a necessity
Effects
Backs were necessary to facilitate europe’s growing economy
A lot of money flew in and out of the bank of Amsterdam + other banks in Genoa and London, they devoloped Double entry Bookkeeping
Debits into one column and credits in another column
Need for this system meant that there were huge amounts of money flowing through these banks
one of the major effects of the rise of banking centers is the shift of economic power in europe to places like amsterdam and genoa and london
Private investors create the Dutheast India company to oversee their trade ventures in the Indian ocean
An innovation in finance
Known as Joint stock company- a private company rather than a state sponsored company in which investors bought shares inthe company,therefore sharing the risks and rewards
Dutch wanted to dominate trade in te Indian ocean and when they reaped the profit for it all, the Bankof Amsterdam handled it all
This bank serves as a monument in the economic shifts toward a money economy in the 16th century
Agricultural devolopments
Mountain Cerro Rico- in Potosi which in the 16t century was part of the spanish empire and the americas
spanish loved these mountains that they created drawings, painting, and created postcards
Inside mountains they founds metric buttloads of silver
This silver wassent back to spain and flooded European economy + had many major effects
Effects
Price revolution- a phenonemon in which prices steadily rose for about a century and a half
Silver in mountains was given back to spain leading to inflation
People have more money so sellers could raise prices
Issue is that wealth was not equally distributed to everyone so those who got their hands on silver, this price raise had no effects but those who could not attain silver suffered greatly
Although it startedin spain, the effects of the price revolution were felt throughout much of europe as well
Prior to revolution, farming was organized under feudalism
King grants land to noble who employed peasants to work for land,andthese peasants lives were shaped around the manor which was agricultural state under the noble’s control and peasants engaged mainly in what’s knownas subsistence farming- growing only what they needed to survive
Soil exhaustion was a constant issue under this system leading to Crop rotation- Otherwise known as the twofield system- Half the land planted in this system would be planted each season while the other half would not be planted in order for it to replenish its nutrients
In Northern Europe, they had the 3- field system- 2 lands used for plantation while one rested
These two systems changed once the mountain in potosi boosted Spanish economy, making parts of the population wealthy
Large landowners and capability investors began to see the open- field system as wasteful and desire to increase available land so that crop yields would increase
England passed legislation to allow investors to purchase public land- land that everyone was able to use to graze their animals= important for peasants who were not able to acquire private land
Enclosure movement- benefited the large landowners tremendously but distrusted the way of life for the peasantry and increased their poverty
Power shifted to banking elites and landowners and with this increasing influence of money, many places in Europe shifted to capitalism instead of mercantilism
Capitalism- an economic system in the means of production are owned by private individuals as opposed to the state
Those who grew rich spent a lot of money on land leading to commercialization of agriculture
The commercialization of agriculture meant that land was now seen not as a way to subsist but as a means to earn more money for the one who owned it
Stuff grown and sheep shaved was for profit and not survival
Created hardship for peasantry in these places
Effects of the commercial revolution
Rise of a new economic elite
In France, there was a Rise of the Nobles of the Robe
Prior to this, Titles of nobility connected to land and the only way to be a noble was to be born into the family
Nobles of the robe - those who didn’t have nobility in their blood but could afford to buy their way into nobility
Freedom of Serfs
peasant who worked the land
In feudal period, serfs were bound to the land and lived at the pleasure of the nobility and
After movement to commercial revolution, many peasants were cut free of the feudal arrangement
This increasing freedom for serfs was mainly a phenomenon in Western Europe, while in east serfdom became more entrenched
In east, Nobles held onto serfdom and restricted the rights of serfs to consolidate power
Led to peasant revolts but they were put down by nobility
Urban migration
peasants cut free from land = many migrated to cities looking for work
Migrants put strain on thé city’s resources
Old buildings were subdivided into small apartments and crammed with people causing deadly diseases like the plague and tuberculosis to spread rapidly
A lot of people= not enough jobs for everyone leading to Urban poverty
Change in family patterns
After the Black Death, Europe needed to repopulate
Rate of marriage was on the rise + younger marriages occur
Little Ice Age- Began around 1300
Malnutrition and disease caused by the scarcity of food caused many of the agriculture class to have smaller families + wait to become financially stable later in life before marriage + decline in multi- generational households
Result of late marriages = women had fewer child- bearing years, more miscarriages, stillbirths, and higher rates of infant mortality