How Did Italy Influence The Renaissance

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Any study of Europe in the era between 1450-1750 would be incomplete without considering the influence of the Renaissance and its vast political and intellectual changes. Trade stimulated several of the countries’ economies, making them wealthy and altered distribution of power, especially in ones so close to the highly industrious Ottoman Empire. What would come to be known as Italy was one such country and its cities such as Venice, Genoa, and Florence were the most to benefit. Wealthy merchant families, such as the Medici in Florence, came to power through the wealth they gained, and also in part because they became patrons of the arts. Meaning they supported artists like Leonardo da Vinci and Michelangelo, and paid them to do some of their …show more content…
Although most of the major Renaissance figures did not actively defy the church, they put the emphasis in their lives elsewhere. An important philosophical influence brought back during this time was humanism, which focused on the deeds, characteristics, and abilities of humans, not of God. Humanism is reflected in Renaissance art, were with new technology the artists went from being focuses on biblical scenes to modern humans. Often painting the people they knew into their works to show the importance of individuals, expressed in a subcategory of humanism called individualism. These Renaissance ideas spread from north Italy, and by the 16th century had made it to the Netherlands and Germany, as well as people in England like William Shakespeare and inspired them to step away from classical themes of the medieval era. This revival of interest in Greek and Roman influences also stimulated developments in science. Things such as Botany, zoology, alchemy, and astrology/astronomy were developed during the Renaissance as a result of the study of ancient texts. Scientific thinkers such as Leonardo da Vinci, Nicolaus Copernicus, Galileo, Tycho Brahe, and Johannes Kepler attempted to refine earlier thoughts on general science as well. In summation, this time period lead to the revival of Greek and Roman ideas and caused new discoveries in science, art, and