RENAISSANCE AND ITS CAUSES

 RENAISSANCE

Renaissance is the cultural movement that started in Italy (with Florence identified as the initial home of the Renaissance) in 15th Century. It then spread to United Kingdom, France, Germany etc. It is one of the most important events in history because it affected every aspect of human Life.

The renaissance originated in Italy and spread to other parts of Europe. The movement did not begin overnight. The causes of it lay in the middle ages. Many believe that it started in 1453, when Turks captured Constantinople. The Greek scholars of the city ran away, carrying their texts. They went to Italy and enlightened the people with a sense of inquiry. This was the immediate cause of the renaissance, but ideas were already gaining root. The event hastened the movement.

The literary meaning of the term renaissance is rebirth. The period brought about the revival of interest in Greek and Roman literature and art. The people of the times wanted to revive the culture by adding their own ideas. They felt that ancient Greek and Roman traditions were rich in cultural heritage. The medieval ideas which dominated the society were considered backward and were rejected by the leaders of renaissance e.g. church which controlled the society. Man was a slave in the hands of religion. The renaissance put in a sense of inquiry. Thus there arose dogmatism. rationalism. 

The main theme of the movement was the ideal of Humanism. It development of human means the personality, regarding man as the centre of activity. Earlier God was the centre of all activities and man was just a creature waiting for salvation. Artists turned attention to draw and sketch human beings.

The movement produced a spirit of curiosity. Man was told not to accept philosophy and theology simply because he was told to. He was told to be curious about all things. He was encouraged to study more about himself and his surroundings. The period encouraged original thinking and study of texts including the Bible. However the emphasis was on revival of secular literature.

It was known that many ancient classics of Greece and Rome were lost in the dark period. The leaders set themselves the task to rediscover, decipher and translate the texts. Thus literature and art was wanted for the sake of art and not for religion.

There is no doubt that the movement was an urban phenomenon. It was the movement of classes and not masses. The leaders were intellectuals. Most of them were from the bourgeoisie class, who had some time to spend on literature and art. Though it's a fact that the renaissance brought in a new era and changed the entire culture, the changes were not sudden. It was a gradual process. In the height of the movement too, few accepted the changes. However, gradually as the ideas spread to newer lands, they engulfed the entire human kind.

The Renaissance has been described as ending the medieval era and heralding the start of the modern age.

Causes of Renaissance-

1- Decline of Feudalism:

The one major factor which played a dominant role in the decline of feudalism was the rise of the middle class comprising of traders and businessmen. These middle classes provided the kings necessary money for the maintenance of armies and thereby enabled them to reduce their dependence on the feudal lords.

Further, due to development of trade and commerce during this period, there was great increase in prices which greatly benefited the craftsmen, merchants and cultivators. As the feudal lords could not in­crease their rents they were forced to borrow to maintain themselves. As the feudal lords were not able to repay the debts they were often obliged to sell off their lands. This gave a serious set back to feudalism and manorial life. All this paved the way for the Renaissance.

2. Impact of the Crusades:

The Crusades or the wars between the Christians and Muslims which were fought between 11th and 14th century and which ultimately resulted in the victory of the Muslims also provided an impetus to Renaissance.As a result of the Crusades the Western scholars came in contact with the East which was more civilized and polished than the Christians. A number of Western scholars went to the universities of Cairo, Kufa and Cardona etc and learnt many new ideas, which they subsequently spread in Europe.

3. Decline in the influence of Church:

The Church which dominated the medieval society suffered a set back in the thirteenth and fourteenth centuries. The temporal power of the Church was challenged by a number of strong monarchs. In 1296 A.D. King Philip IV of France got the Pope arrested and made him a prisoner.

This gave a serious blow to the power and prestige of the Pope. Even the common people lost faith in Church due to rise of numerous rituals. They preferred to pay greater attention to the present life rather than the life after death. No wonder they did not find the medieval ideals of other worldliness and asceticism satisfactory.

4. Wealth and Prosperity:

The Crusades provided an impetus to trade and commerce in the 12th and 13th centuries and the trade between eastern and western countries greatly increased. This greatly contributed to the wealth and prosperity of the people in Italy and a wealthy class of traders, bankers and manufacturers emerged. This class tried to display its wealth and bolster its social importance by patronizing artists and scholars.

They provided security and protection to the artists and encour­aged them to produce outstanding works. With a view to attain refine­ment in every aspect of their culture, these wealthy classes tried to learn the rules of correct social behavior by reading etiquette books. The open­ing of the new lands for travel to the Europeans also greatly contributed to the broadening of the outlook and liberalization of ideas.

5. Invention of Printing Press and Paper:The discovery of the printing press in 1454 by Gutenberg of Mainz also greatly assisted in the revival of the learning. Soon thereafter a number of printers appeared in Italy. The printing press was introduced in England by Caxton in 1477.

The inven­tion of the printing press and availability of the paper in abundance at reasonable price greatly contributed to the popularity of the books and gave a fillip to renaissance. Prof. Edith Sichel highlights the role of the printing in Renaissance thus, “Printing remained the source of irrigation which fertilized the world of intelligence.”

Without printing press knowledge could not have spread for and wide. Earlier, the books were produced by monastic copyist or printed by presses set up in cloisters and only those books reached the general public which were approved by the Church. Under changed conditions the print­ing of books passed beyond ecclesiastical control and it became possible disseminate knowledge and opinions which were not acceptable to the , Church.

6. Fall of Constantinople:

The Fall of Constantinople, in the hands of the Turks in 1453 A.D. provided an indirect impetus to Renaissance. A large number of Greek and Roman scholars who were working in the libraries at Constantinople, fled to different parts of Europe with valuable literature. They began teaching Greek and Latin in various European countries.

As passionate admirers of classical writers they searched for lost manuscripts of Greek and Latin literature and discovered many works which had been hitherto ignored and neglected. They collected the writ­ings of classical writers studied and edited them and later on printed their original editions.

One prominent scholar who studied works of ancient writers and edited them was Erasmus. He asserted that the priests and theologians had distorted the simple teachings of Jesus. He published a fresh edition of New Testament in Greek to clarify the basic teachings of Christianity. Erasmus was against intolerance and persecution and advo­cated principles of intelligence, open-mindedness and goodwill towards all men.

7. Role of Progressive Rulers and Nobles:

Finally, a host of progressive rulers, Popes and nobles also played an important role in the ushering of the renaissance. Rulers like Francis I of France, Henry VIII of England, Charles V of Spain, Christian II of Denmark etc. extended patronage to scholars and men of learning and greatly contributed to the revival of Greeco-Roman classics.

Likewise Popes like Nicholas V, and Leo X greatly contributed to renaissance by encouraging study of ancient Greek and Roman classical and patronizing classical art, sculpture, music etc. Apart from the Kings and Popes certain nobles also patronized literary men, artists and scientists and contributed towards renaissance.

For ex­ample, Medici family of Florence set up an academy in Florence which was devoted to the study and research of Platonic philosophy. This family patronized painters, artists and sculptors like Michelangelo, Leonardo da Vinci and Bertoldo.

8. Geographical Voyages:

The discovery of mariner’s compass lead to large number of people taking long voyages because it was possible for them to know the exact direction in which they were sailing. The people were also able to explore the distant seas. As a result the notions about the shape and size of the world in vogue were challenged.

A little later with the discovery of telescope people were able to scan the sky and made a new beginning in the study of astronomy. They came to know about the real position of the earth in the solar system. All this knowledge went against the teachings of Church and no wonder contributed to the weaken­ing of the authority of the ecclesiastical system.

9-BLACK DEATH:

The final cause of the Renaissance was the impact of the Black Death. The Black Death is one of the most important events in Western history and is the most famous pandemic in all of human history. A pandemic is the term used to describe the spread of an infectious disease over a wide area including the entire planet. The Black Death occurred during the 14th century and ravaged human populations throughout Asia and Europe as it spread along trade routes and through trading ports. Throughout history it has also been referred to as the ‘Great Mortality’ and ‘Great Pestilence’. The death toll of the Black Death is a debated topic and different historians have offered different views on the issue. Regardless, the reported death tolls are massive with some suggesting that it resulted in the deaths of between 75 and 200 million people in Europe and Asia. These high numbers suggest that between 30% and 60% of people died due to the infectious disease. Some regions suffered more than others, but in general it is widely accepted that approximately half of Europeans died as a result of the disease. For example, it has been recorded that both Paris, France and London, England saw half of their populations succumb to the pandemic.  

In conclusion, historians have identified several causes of the Renaissance in Europe, including: increased interaction between different cultures, the rediscovery of ancient Greek and Roman texts, the emergence of humanism, different artistic and technological innovations, and the impacts of conflict and death.