The Renaissance in Italy — Winter

In the last years of the 15th century, the power and the drive of the Florentine Renaissance began to wane. Within the city politics, the Medici lost power and were driven out of the city. The next years under the opressive leadership of Fra Savonarola brought at end, temporarily, to the creative energy of the city and people like the young Michelangelo got out of Florence and went first to Bologna and then to Rome. And although there was a brief moment of great artistic creation for a decade in a real republic, finally the international powers of Pope and Emperor snuffed out the republic and Florence settled into a mild dictatorship that lasted all the way to modern times. While this Florentine decline unfolded, power and money moved to Rome. And the great Florentine Medici family regained great power in Rome in the persons of two Medici popes. So now as we approach the year 1500 in our class studies, we will turn out attention to Rome.

REQUIRED READING: This week, Chapter VI, "Rome"

J. H. Plumb,

The Italian Renaissance,

Mariner Books; Revised edition (June 19, 2001),

ISBN 0618127380

Amazon: Spanning an age that witnessed great achievements in the arts and sciences, this definitive overview of the Italian Renaissance will both captivate ordinary readers and challenge specialists. Dr. Plumb’s impressive and provocative narrative is accompanied by contributions from leading historians, including Morris Bishop, J. Bronowski, Maria Bellonci, and many more, who have further illuminated the lives of some of the era’s most unforgettable personalities, from Petrarch to Pope Pius II, Michelangelo to Isabella d'Este, Machiavelli to Leonardo. A highly readable and engaging volume, THE ITALIAN RENAISSANCE is a perfect introduction to the movement that shaped the Western world.

RECOMMENDED READING:

J. R. Hale, The Civilization of Europe in the Renaissance.  This study of the whole Renaissance period in all of Europe was the final masterpiece of one of the greatest historians of the Early Modern period.  John Hale was working on this book when he suffered a debilitating stroke.  But his wife, Sheila Hale, and other scholars finished the book for publication and we are all enriched by its availability.  It is in print, but you might also look at used copies of the original quality paperback.  This book will serve us for the whole year-long course.  It is especially useful for Winter and Spring Quarters.

John Hale,

The Civilization of Europe in the Renaissance,

Scribner, Reprint edition (June 1, 1995),

ISBN 0684803526

Great historical fiction from one of the greatest writers of historical fiction of our time.

Hella S. Haasse,

The Scarlet City: A Novel of 16th Century Italy,

Chicago Review Press (August 30, 2005),

ISBN 0897333721

John F. D'Amico,

Renaissance Humanism in Papal Rome: Humanists and Churchmen on the Eve of the Reformation,

The Johns Hopkins University Press,

ISBN 978-0801842245

The Borgia family acquired great power in Rome due to the previous papacy of Callixtus III. This uncle was able to appoint his nephew Rodrigo to many powerful church offices. With a very long career in these many ecclesiastical positions, Rodrigo was able to rise to the very top of Roman Papal politics. It was the papacy of Rodrigo as Alexander VI that the Borgia family members all achieved great power both in Rome and in other courts of Europe. His famous daughter Lucrecia married the Duke of Ferrara and became one of the most beloved monarchs in the whole history of this important city-state in the Po valley.

Wikipedia: Rodrigo Borgia was born (1431–1503) in the Kingdom of Valencia. He studied law at Bologna and was appointed as cardinal by his uncle, Alfons Borgia, Pope Callixtus III. He was elected Pope in 1492, taking the regnal name Alexander VI. While a cardinal, he maintained a long-term illicit relationship with Vannozza dei Cattanei, with whom he had four children: Giovanni; Cesare; Lucrezia; and Gioffre. Rodrigo also had children by other women, including one daughter with his mistress, Giulia Farnese. As Alexander VI, Rodrigo was recognized as a skilled politician and diplomat. However, he was widely criticized during his reign for his over-spending, sale of Church offices, and nepotism. As Pope, he sought to acquire more personal and papal power and wealth, often ennobling and enriching the Borgia family directly. He appointed his son, Giovanni, as captain-general of the papal army, his foremost military representative, and established another son, Cesare, as a cardinal. Alexander used the marriages of his children to build alliances with powerful families in Italy and Spain. At the time, the Sforza family, which comprised the Milanese faction, was one of the most powerful in Europe, so Alexander united the two families by marrying Lucrezia to Giovanni Sforza. He also married Gioffre, his youngest son from Vannozza, to Sancha of Aragon of the Crown of Aragon and Naples. He established a second familial link to the Spanish royal house through Giovanni's marriage during what was a period of on-again/off-again conflict between France and Spain over the Kingdom of Naples. Pope Alexander VI died in Rome in 1503 after contracting a disease, generally believed to have been malaria. Two of Alexander's successors, Sixtus V and Urban VIII, described him as one of the most outstanding popes since St. Peter.

REQUIRED READING: This week, Chapter VI, "Rome"

J. H. Plumb,

The Italian Renaissance,

Mariner Books; Revised edition (June 19, 2001),

ISBN 0618127380

Amazon: Spanning an age that witnessed great achievements in the arts and sciences, this definitive overview of the Italian Renaissance will both captivate ordinary readers and challenge specialists. Dr. Plumb’s impressive and provocative narrative is accompanied by contributions from leading historians, including Morris Bishop, J. Bronowski, Maria Bellonci, and many more, who have further illuminated the lives of some of the era’s most unforgettable personalities, from Petrarch to Pope Pius II, Michelangelo to Isabella d'Este, Machiavelli to Leonardo. A highly readable and engaging volume, THE ITALIAN RENAISSANCE is a perfect introduction to the movement that shaped the Western world.

RECOMMENDED READING:

J. R. Hale, The Civilization of Europe in the Renaissance.  This study of the whole Renaissance period in all of Europe was the final masterpiece of one of the greatest historians of the Early Modern period.  John Hale was working on this book when he suffered a debilitating stroke.  But his wife, Sheila Hale, and other scholars finished the book for publication and we are all enriched by its availability.  It is in print, but you might also look at used copies of the original quality paperback.  This book will serve us for the whole year-long course.  It is especially useful for Winter and Spring Quarters.

John Hale,

The Civilization of Europe in the Renaissance,

Scribner, Reprint edition (June 1, 1995),

ISBN 0684803526

Great historical fiction from one of the greatest writers of historical fiction of our time.

Hella S. Haasse,

The Scarlet City: A Novel of 16th Century Italy,

Chicago Review Press (August 30, 2005),

ISBN 0897333721

Christopher Hibbert,

The Borgias and Their Enemies: 1431-1519,

Mariner Books; 1st edition (September 16, 2009),

ISBN 0547247818

The Medici were Florentines. And in the fourteenth and fifteenth centuries they became the most important family in Florence. Then in the disastrous year of 1494, they were run out of Florence and spent years in exile as guests of their various Italian aristocratic friends. In 1513, Giovanni de'Medici was elected Pope Leo X, and with this sudden elevation to power, the Medici now became one of the great families of Italy again.

REQUIRED READING: This week, Chapter XIV, "Lorenzo de' Medici"

J. H. Plumb,

The Italian Renaissance,

Mariner Books; Revised edition (June 19, 2001),

ISBN 0618127380

RECOMMENDED READING:

J. R. Hale, The Civilization of Europe in the Renaissance.  This study of the whole Renaissance period in all of Europe was the final masterpiece of one of the greatest historians of the Early Modern period.  John Hale was working on this book when he suffered a debilitating stroke.  But his wife, Sheila Hale, and other scholars finished the book for publication and we are all enriched by its availability.  It is in print, but you might also look at used copies of the original quality paperback.  This book will serve us for the whole year-long course.  It is especially useful for Winter and Spring Quarters.

John Hale,

The Civilization of Europe in the Renaissance,

Scribner, Reprint edition (June 1, 1995),

ISBN 0684803526

Christopher Hibbert,

The House of Medici: Its Rise and Fall,

William Morrow Paperbacks (May 19, 1999),

ISBN 0688053394

The Visconti family of Milan became the most powerful family in all of northern Italy during the fourteenth century. By 1400, Giangaleazzo Visconti was challenging the independence of the little Republic of Florence. Giangaleazza came very close to unifying all of northern Italy in 1402. And then he died. In order to understand the power of Milan, we need to study the Visconti. (The name means Vice Count.) As many of you know, the Visconti are alive and well in Milan still to this day. (Luchino Visconti, 1906-1976, was one of the greatest Italian film directors.)

REQUIRED READING: This week, Chapter V, "Milan"

J. H. Plumb,

The Italian Renaissance,

Mariner Books; Revised edition (June 19, 2001),

ISBN 0618127380

RECOMMENDED READING:

J. R. Hale, The Civilization of Europe in the Renaissance.  This study of the whole Renaissance period in all of Europe was the final masterpiece of one of the greatest historians of the Early Modern period.  John Hale was working on this book when he suffered a debilitating stroke.  But his wife, Sheila Hale, and other scholars finished the book for publication and we are all enriched by its availability.  It is in print, but you might also look at used copies of the original quality paperback.  This book will serve us for the whole year-long course.  It is especially useful for Winter and Spring Quarters.

John Hale,

The Civilization of Europe in the Renaissance,

Scribner, Reprint edition (June 1, 1995),

ISBN 0684803526

Mantova (Mantua) in the 15th Century was the most sophisticated court in all of northern Italy. It was the home of the Gonzaga family. And the most illustrious member of that family was Isabella d'Este married to the Duke of Mantova, Francesco Gonzaga. Isabella and Francesco created a brilliant court with the most celebrated artists and musicians and poets entertaining the constantly changing list of famous visitors: kings, popes, princes. Below you see the Gonzaga family as painted by Andrea Mantegna, one of the greatest Renaissance masters. There they all are on the walls of their magnificent family palazzo in Mantua.

REQUIRED READING: This week, Chapter XIX. "Beatrice and Isabella d'Este"

J. H. Plumb,

The Italian Renaissance,

Mariner Books; Revised edition (June 19, 2001),

ISBN 0618127380

RECOMMENDED READING:

J. R. Hale, The Civilization of Europe in the Renaissance.  This study of the whole Renaissance period in all of Europe was the final masterpiece of one of the greatest historians of the Early Modern period.  John Hale was working on this book when he suffered a debilitating stroke.  But his wife, Sheila Hale, and other scholars finished the book for publication and we are all enriched by its availability.  It is in print, but you might also look at used copies of the original quality paperback.  This book will serve us for the whole year-long course.  It is especially useful for Winter and Spring Quarters.

John Hale,

The Civilization of Europe in the Renaissance,

Scribner, Reprint edition (June 1, 1995),

ISBN 0684803526

Alfonso I (1476 to 1534) was the Duke of Ferrara from 1505, a noted Renaissance prince of the House of Este, an engineer and patron of the arts. Alfonso succeeded to the duchy at the death of his father, Ercole I. He employed the poet Ludovico Ariosto and the painters Titian and Giovanni Bellini, and made Ferrara’s artillery the best in Italy. In the political sphere, Alfonso maintained Ferrara against the expanding power of the papacy by allying himself with France. Lucrezia Borgia, whom he married in 1501, bore him seven children. The Duchess Lucrezia was one of the most popular members of the ruling family in the whole history of Ferrara. Her charitable works reached all over the Po valley. Whatever scandal was attached to her early years in Rome in her father's Vatican court, she totally overshadowed those years with her life-long dedication to the people of Ferrara.

REQUIRED READING:

J. H. Plumb,

The Italian Renaissance,

Mariner Books; Revised edition (June 19, 2001),

ISBN 0618127380

RECOMMENDED READING:

J. R. Hale, The Civilization of Europe in the Renaissance.  This study of the whole Renaissance period in all of Europe was the final masterpiece of one of the greatest historians of the Early Modern period.  John Hale was working on this book when he suffered a debilitating stroke.  But his wife, Sheila Hale, and other scholars finished the book for publication and we are all enriched by its availability.  It is in print, but you might also look at used copies of the original quality paperback.  This book will serve us for the whole year-long course.  It is especially useful for Winter and Spring Quarters.

John Hale,

The Civilization of Europe in the Renaissance,

Scribner, Reprint edition (June 1, 1995),

ISBN 0684803526

In 1401, Giovanni I Bentivoglio took power in a coup with the support of Milan, but, having turned his back on them and allied with Florence, the Milanese marched on Bologna and had Giovanni killed the following year. In 1442, Hannibal I Bentivoglio, Giovanni's nephew, recovered Bologna from the Milanese, only to be assassinated in a conspiracy plotted by Pope Eugene IV three years later. But the signoria of the Bentivoglio family was then firmly established, and the power passed to his cousin Sante Bentivoglio, who ruled until 1462, followed by Giovanni II. Giovanni II managed to resist the expansionist designs of Cesare Borgia for some time, but on 7 October 1506, Pope Julius II issued a bull deposing and excommunicating Bentivoglio and placing the city under interdict. When the papal troops, along with a contingent sent by Louis XII of France, marched against Bologna, Bentivoglio and his family fled. Julius II entered the city triumphantly on 10 November.The period of Papal rule over Bologna (1506–1796) has been generally evaluated by historians as one of severe decline. However, this was not evident in the 1500s, which were marked by some major developments in Bologna. In 1530, Emperor Charles V was crowned in Bologna, the last of the Holy Roman Emperors to be crowned by the pope. In 1564, the Piazza del Nettuno and the Palazzo dei Banchi were built, along with the Archiginnasio, the main building of the university. The period of Papal rule saw also the construction of many churches and other religious establishments, and the restoration of older ones. At this time, Bologna had ninety-six convents, more than any other Italian city. Painters working in Bologna during this period established the Bolognese School which includes Annibale Carracci, Domenichino, Guercino, and others of European fame.

REQUIRED READING:

J. H. Plumb,

The Italian Renaissance,

Mariner Books; Revised edition (June 19, 2001),

ISBN 0618127380

RECOMMENDED READING:

J. R. Hale, The Civilization of Europe in the Renaissance.  This study of the whole Renaissance period in all of Europe was the final masterpiece of one of the greatest historians of the Early Modern period.  John Hale was working on this book when he suffered a debilitating stroke.  But his wife, Sheila Hale, and other scholars finished the book for publication and we are all enriched by its availability.  It is in print, but you might also look at used copies of the original quality paperback.  This book will serve us for the whole year-long course.  It is especially useful for Winter and Spring Quarters.

John Hale,

The Civilization of Europe in the Renaissance,

Scribner, Reprint edition (June 1, 1995),

ISBN 0684803526

The Venetian Renaissance had a distinct character compared to the general Italian Renaissance elsewhere. The Republic of Venice was topographically distinct from the rest of the city-states of Renaissance Italy as a result of their geographic location, which isolated the city politically, economically and culturally, allowing the city the leisure to pursue the pleasures of art. The influence of Venetian art did not cease at the end of the Renaissance period. Its practices persisted through the works of art critics and artists proliferating its prominence around Europe to the 19th century. Though a long decline in the political and economic power of the Republic began after 1500, Venice at that date remained "the richest, most powerful, and most populous Italian city" and controlled significant territories on the mainland, known as the terraferma, which included several small cities who contributed artists to the Venetian school, in particular Padua, Brescia and Verona. The Republic's territories also included Istria, Dalmatia and the islands now off the Croatian coast, who also contributed. Indeed, "the major Venetian painters of the sixteenth century were rarely natives of the city" itself, and some mostly worked in the Republic's other territories, or further afield.[4] Much the same is true of the Venetian architects. Venice was the undoubted centre of book publishing in Italy, and very important in that respect; Venetian editions were distributed across Europe. Aldus Manutius was the most important printer/publisher in all of Italy.
REQUIRED READING:

J. H. Plumb,

The Italian Renaissance,

Mariner Books; Revised edition (June 19, 2001),

ISBN 0618127380

RECOMMENDED READING:

J. R. Hale, The Civilization of Europe in the Renaissance.  This study of the whole Renaissance period in all of Europe was the final masterpiece of one of the greatest historians of the Early Modern period.  John Hale was working on this book when he suffered a debilitating stroke.  But his wife, Sheila Hale, and other scholars finished the book for publication and we are all enriched by its availability.  It is in print, but you might also look at used copies of the original quality paperback.  This book will serve us for the whole year-long course.  It is especially useful for Winter and Spring Quarters.

John Hale,

The Civilization of Europe in the Renaissance,

Scribner, Reprint edition (June 1, 1995),

ISBN 0684803526

Elizabeth L. Eisenstein,

The Printing Revolution in Early Modern Europe,

Cambridge University Press; 2 edition (March 30, 2012),

ISBN 1107632757

In 1500 Venice was the center of the most sophisticated book publishing company anywhere in Europe. The head of this publishing miracle was Aldus Manutius, his Latin version name: he was Aldo Manuzio. Aldus Manutius (c. 1449–1515) was an Italian printer and humanist who founded the Aldine Press. Manutius devoted the later part of his life to publishing and disseminating rare texts. His interest in and preservation of Greek manuscripts mark him as an innovative publisher of his age dedicated to the editions he produced. Aldus Manutius introduced the small portable book format which revolutionized personal reading and are the predecessor of the modern paperback book. He also helped to standardize use of punctuation including the comma and the semicolon. Manutius wanted to produce Greek texts for his readers because he believed that works by Aristotle or Aristophanes in their original Greek form were pure and unadulterated by translation. Before Manutius, publishers rarely printed volumes in Greek, mainly due to the complexity of providing a standardized Greek typeface. Manutius published rare manuscripts in their original Greek and Latin forms. He commissioned the creation of typefaces in Greek and Latin resembling the humanist handwriting of his time; typefaces that are the first known precursor of italic type. As the Aldine Press grew in popularity, Manutius's innovations were quickly copied across Italy despite his efforts to prevent the piracy of Aldine editions. Because of the Aldine Press's growing reputation for meticulous, accurate publications, Dutch philosopher Erasmus sought out Manutius to publish his translations of Iphigenia in Aulis. In his youth, Manutius studied in Rome to become a humanist scholar. He was friends with Giovanni Pico and tutored Pico's nephews, the lords of Carpi, Alberto and Leonello Pio. While a tutor, Manutius published two works for his pupils and their mother. In his late thirties or early forties, Manutius settled in Venice to become a print publisher. He met Andrea Torresano in Venice and the two co-founded the Aldine Press.

REQUIRED READING:

J. H. Plumb,

The Italian Renaissance,

Mariner Books; Revised edition (June 19, 2001),

ISBN 0618127380

RECOMMENDED READING:

J. R. Hale, The Civilization of Europe in the Renaissance.  This study of the whole Renaissance period in all of Europe was the final masterpiece of one of the greatest historians of the Early Modern period.  John Hale was working on this book when he suffered a debilitating stroke.  But his wife, Sheila Hale, and other scholars finished the book for publication and we are all enriched by its availability.  It is in print, but you might also look at used copies of the original quality paperback.  This book will serve us for the whole year-long course.  It is especially useful for Winter and Spring Quarters.

John Hale,

The Civilization of Europe in the Renaissance,

Scribner, Reprint edition (June 1, 1995),

ISBN 0684803526

Elizabeth L. Eisenstein,

The Printing Revolution in Early Modern Europe,

Cambridge University Press; 2 edition (March 30, 2012),

ISBN 1107632757

Tiziano Vecelli or Tiziano Vecellio (c. 1488/1490 – 1576), known in English as Titian, was an Italian painter, the most important member of the 16th-century Venetian school. He was born in Pieve di Cadore, near Belluno (in Veneto, Republic of Venice). Recognized by his contemporaries as "The Sun Amidst Small Stars" (recalling the famous final line of Dante's Paradiso), Titian was one of the most versatile of Italian painters, equally adept with portraits, landscape backgrounds, and mythological and religious subjects. His painting methods, particularly in the application and use of color, would exercise a profound influence not only on painters of the Italian Renaissance, but on future generations of Western art. (Wikipedia)

REQUIRED READING:

J. H. Plumb,

The Italian Renaissance,

Mariner Books; Revised edition (June 19, 2001),

ISBN 0618127380

In the last years of the 15th century, the power and the drive of the Florentine Renaissance began to wane. Within the city politics, the Medici lost power and were driven out of the city. The next years under the opressive leadership of Fra Savonarola brought at end, temporarily, to the creative energy of the city and people like the young Michelangelo got out of Florence and went first to Bologna and then to Rome. And although there was a brief moment of great artistic creation for a decade in a real republic, finally the international powers of Pope and Emperor snuffed out the republic and Florence settled into a mild dictatorship that lasted all the way to modern times. While this Florentine decline unfolded, power and money moved to Rome. And the great Florentine Medici family regained great power in Rome in the persons of two Medici popes. So now as we approach the year 1500 in our class studies, we will turn out attention to Rome.

REQUIRED READING: This week, Chapter VI, "Rome"

J. H. Plumb,

The Italian Renaissance,

Mariner Books; Revised edition (June 19, 2001),

ISBN 0618127380

Amazon: Spanning an age that witnessed great achievements in the arts and sciences, this definitive overview of the Italian Renaissance will both captivate ordinary readers and challenge specialists. Dr. Plumb’s impressive and provocative narrative is accompanied by contributions from leading historians, including Morris Bishop, J. Bronowski, Maria Bellonci, and many more, who have further illuminated the lives of some of the era’s most unforgettable personalities, from Petrarch to Pope Pius II, Michelangelo to Isabella d'Este, Machiavelli to Leonardo. A highly readable and engaging volume, THE ITALIAN RENAISSANCE is a perfect introduction to the movement that shaped the Western world.

RECOMMENDED READING:

J. R. Hale, The Civilization of Europe in the Renaissance.  This study of the whole Renaissance period in all of Europe was the final masterpiece of one of the greatest historians of the Early Modern period.  John Hale was working on this book when he suffered a debilitating stroke.  But his wife, Sheila Hale, and other scholars finished the book for publication and we are all enriched by its availability.  It is in print, but you might also look at used copies of the original quality paperback.  This book will serve us for the whole year-long course.  It is especially useful for Winter and Spring Quarters.

John Hale,

The Civilization of Europe in the Renaissance,

Scribner, Reprint edition (June 1, 1995),

ISBN 0684803526

Great historical fiction from one of the greatest writers of historical fiction of our time.

Hella S. Haasse,

The Scarlet City: A Novel of 16th Century Italy,

Chicago Review Press (August 30, 2005),

ISBN 0897333721

John F. D'Amico,

Renaissance Humanism in Papal Rome: Humanists and Churchmen on the Eve of the Reformation,

The Johns Hopkins University Press,

ISBN 978-0801842245

The Borgia family acquired great power in Rome due to the previous papacy of Callixtus III. This uncle was able to appoint his nephew Rodrigo to many powerful church offices. With a very long career in these many ecclesiastical positions, Rodrigo was able to rise to the very top of Roman Papal politics. It was the papacy of Rodrigo as Alexander VI that the Borgia family members all achieved great power both in Rome and in other courts of Europe. His famous daughter Lucrecia married the Duke of Ferrara and became one of the most beloved monarchs in the whole history of this important city-state in the Po valley.

Wikipedia: Rodrigo Borgia was born (1431–1503) in the Kingdom of Valencia. He studied law at Bologna and was appointed as cardinal by his uncle, Alfons Borgia, Pope Callixtus III. He was elected Pope in 1492, taking the regnal name Alexander VI. While a cardinal, he maintained a long-term illicit relationship with Vannozza dei Cattanei, with whom he had four children: Giovanni; Cesare; Lucrezia; and Gioffre. Rodrigo also had children by other women, including one daughter with his mistress, Giulia Farnese. As Alexander VI, Rodrigo was recognized as a skilled politician and diplomat. However, he was widely criticized during his reign for his over-spending, sale of Church offices, and nepotism. As Pope, he sought to acquire more personal and papal power and wealth, often ennobling and enriching the Borgia family directly. He appointed his son, Giovanni, as captain-general of the papal army, his foremost military representative, and established another son, Cesare, as a cardinal. Alexander used the marriages of his children to build alliances with powerful families in Italy and Spain. At the time, the Sforza family, which comprised the Milanese faction, was one of the most powerful in Europe, so Alexander united the two families by marrying Lucrezia to Giovanni Sforza. He also married Gioffre, his youngest son from Vannozza, to Sancha of Aragon of the Crown of Aragon and Naples. He established a second familial link to the Spanish royal house through Giovanni's marriage during what was a period of on-again/off-again conflict between France and Spain over the Kingdom of Naples. Pope Alexander VI died in Rome in 1503 after contracting a disease, generally believed to have been malaria. Two of Alexander's successors, Sixtus V and Urban VIII, described him as one of the most outstanding popes since St. Peter.

REQUIRED READING: This week, Chapter VI, "Rome"

J. H. Plumb,

The Italian Renaissance,

Mariner Books; Revised edition (June 19, 2001),

ISBN 0618127380

Amazon: Spanning an age that witnessed great achievements in the arts and sciences, this definitive overview of the Italian Renaissance will both captivate ordinary readers and challenge specialists. Dr. Plumb’s impressive and provocative narrative is accompanied by contributions from leading historians, including Morris Bishop, J. Bronowski, Maria Bellonci, and many more, who have further illuminated the lives of some of the era’s most unforgettable personalities, from Petrarch to Pope Pius II, Michelangelo to Isabella d'Este, Machiavelli to Leonardo. A highly readable and engaging volume, THE ITALIAN RENAISSANCE is a perfect introduction to the movement that shaped the Western world.

RECOMMENDED READING:

J. R. Hale, The Civilization of Europe in the Renaissance.  This study of the whole Renaissance period in all of Europe was the final masterpiece of one of the greatest historians of the Early Modern period.  John Hale was working on this book when he suffered a debilitating stroke.  But his wife, Sheila Hale, and other scholars finished the book for publication and we are all enriched by its availability.  It is in print, but you might also look at used copies of the original quality paperback.  This book will serve us for the whole year-long course.  It is especially useful for Winter and Spring Quarters.

John Hale,

The Civilization of Europe in the Renaissance,

Scribner, Reprint edition (June 1, 1995),

ISBN 0684803526

Great historical fiction from one of the greatest writers of historical fiction of our time.

Hella S. Haasse,

The Scarlet City: A Novel of 16th Century Italy,

Chicago Review Press (August 30, 2005),

ISBN 0897333721

Christopher Hibbert,

The Borgias and Their Enemies: 1431-1519,

Mariner Books; 1st edition (September 16, 2009),

ISBN 0547247818

The Medici were Florentines. And in the fourteenth and fifteenth centuries they became the most important family in Florence. Then in the disastrous year of 1494, they were run out of Florence and spent years in exile as guests of their various Italian aristocratic friends. In 1513, Giovanni de'Medici was elected Pope Leo X, and with this sudden elevation to power, the Medici now became one of the great families of Italy again.

REQUIRED READING: This week, Chapter XIV, "Lorenzo de' Medici"

J. H. Plumb,

The Italian Renaissance,

Mariner Books; Revised edition (June 19, 2001),

ISBN 0618127380

RECOMMENDED READING:

J. R. Hale, The Civilization of Europe in the Renaissance.  This study of the whole Renaissance period in all of Europe was the final masterpiece of one of the greatest historians of the Early Modern period.  John Hale was working on this book when he suffered a debilitating stroke.  But his wife, Sheila Hale, and other scholars finished the book for publication and we are all enriched by its availability.  It is in print, but you might also look at used copies of the original quality paperback.  This book will serve us for the whole year-long course.  It is especially useful for Winter and Spring Quarters.

John Hale,

The Civilization of Europe in the Renaissance,

Scribner, Reprint edition (June 1, 1995),

ISBN 0684803526

Christopher Hibbert,

The House of Medici: Its Rise and Fall,

William Morrow Paperbacks (May 19, 1999),

ISBN 0688053394

The Visconti family of Milan became the most powerful family in all of northern Italy during the fourteenth century. By 1400, Giangaleazzo Visconti was challenging the independence of the little Republic of Florence. Giangaleazza came very close to unifying all of northern Italy in 1402. And then he died. In order to understand the power of Milan, we need to study the Visconti. (The name means Vice Count.) As many of you know, the Visconti are alive and well in Milan still to this day. (Luchino Visconti, 1906-1976, was one of the greatest Italian film directors.)

REQUIRED READING: This week, Chapter V, "Milan"

J. H. Plumb,

The Italian Renaissance,

Mariner Books; Revised edition (June 19, 2001),

ISBN 0618127380

RECOMMENDED READING:

J. R. Hale, The Civilization of Europe in the Renaissance.  This study of the whole Renaissance period in all of Europe was the final masterpiece of one of the greatest historians of the Early Modern period.  John Hale was working on this book when he suffered a debilitating stroke.  But his wife, Sheila Hale, and other scholars finished the book for publication and we are all enriched by its availability.  It is in print, but you might also look at used copies of the original quality paperback.  This book will serve us for the whole year-long course.  It is especially useful for Winter and Spring Quarters.

John Hale,

The Civilization of Europe in the Renaissance,

Scribner, Reprint edition (June 1, 1995),

ISBN 0684803526

Mantova (Mantua) in the 15th Century was the most sophisticated court in all of northern Italy. It was the home of the Gonzaga family. And the most illustrious member of that family was Isabella d'Este married to the Duke of Mantova, Francesco Gonzaga. Isabella and Francesco created a brilliant court with the most celebrated artists and musicians and poets entertaining the constantly changing list of famous visitors: kings, popes, princes. Below you see the Gonzaga family as painted by Andrea Mantegna, one of the greatest Renaissance masters. There they all are on the walls of their magnificent family palazzo in Mantua.

REQUIRED READING: This week, Chapter XIX. "Beatrice and Isabella d'Este"

J. H. Plumb,

The Italian Renaissance,

Mariner Books; Revised edition (June 19, 2001),

ISBN 0618127380

RECOMMENDED READING:

J. R. Hale, The Civilization of Europe in the Renaissance.  This study of the whole Renaissance period in all of Europe was the final masterpiece of one of the greatest historians of the Early Modern period.  John Hale was working on this book when he suffered a debilitating stroke.  But his wife, Sheila Hale, and other scholars finished the book for publication and we are all enriched by its availability.  It is in print, but you might also look at used copies of the original quality paperback.  This book will serve us for the whole year-long course.  It is especially useful for Winter and Spring Quarters.

John Hale,

The Civilization of Europe in the Renaissance,

Scribner, Reprint edition (June 1, 1995),

ISBN 0684803526

Alfonso I (1476 to 1534) was the Duke of Ferrara from 1505, a noted Renaissance prince of the House of Este, an engineer and patron of the arts. Alfonso succeeded to the duchy at the death of his father, Ercole I. He employed the poet Ludovico Ariosto and the painters Titian and Giovanni Bellini, and made Ferrara’s artillery the best in Italy. In the political sphere, Alfonso maintained Ferrara against the expanding power of the papacy by allying himself with France. Lucrezia Borgia, whom he married in 1501, bore him seven children. The Duchess Lucrezia was one of the most popular members of the ruling family in the whole history of Ferrara. Her charitable works reached all over the Po valley. Whatever scandal was attached to her early years in Rome in her father's Vatican court, she totally overshadowed those years with her life-long dedication to the people of Ferrara.

REQUIRED READING:

J. H. Plumb,

The Italian Renaissance,

Mariner Books; Revised edition (June 19, 2001),

ISBN 0618127380

RECOMMENDED READING:

J. R. Hale, The Civilization of Europe in the Renaissance.  This study of the whole Renaissance period in all of Europe was the final masterpiece of one of the greatest historians of the Early Modern period.  John Hale was working on this book when he suffered a debilitating stroke.  But his wife, Sheila Hale, and other scholars finished the book for publication and we are all enriched by its availability.  It is in print, but you might also look at used copies of the original quality paperback.  This book will serve us for the whole year-long course.  It is especially useful for Winter and Spring Quarters.

John Hale,

The Civilization of Europe in the Renaissance,

Scribner, Reprint edition (June 1, 1995),

ISBN 0684803526

In 1401, Giovanni I Bentivoglio took power in a coup with the support of Milan, but, having turned his back on them and allied with Florence, the Milanese marched on Bologna and had Giovanni killed the following year. In 1442, Hannibal I Bentivoglio, Giovanni's nephew, recovered Bologna from the Milanese, only to be assassinated in a conspiracy plotted by Pope Eugene IV three years later. But the signoria of the Bentivoglio family was then firmly established, and the power passed to his cousin Sante Bentivoglio, who ruled until 1462, followed by Giovanni II. Giovanni II managed to resist the expansionist designs of Cesare Borgia for some time, but on 7 October 1506, Pope Julius II issued a bull deposing and excommunicating Bentivoglio and placing the city under interdict. When the papal troops, along with a contingent sent by Louis XII of France, marched against Bologna, Bentivoglio and his family fled. Julius II entered the city triumphantly on 10 November.The period of Papal rule over Bologna (1506–1796) has been generally evaluated by historians as one of severe decline. However, this was not evident in the 1500s, which were marked by some major developments in Bologna. In 1530, Emperor Charles V was crowned in Bologna, the last of the Holy Roman Emperors to be crowned by the pope. In 1564, the Piazza del Nettuno and the Palazzo dei Banchi were built, along with the Archiginnasio, the main building of the university. The period of Papal rule saw also the construction of many churches and other religious establishments, and the restoration of older ones. At this time, Bologna had ninety-six convents, more than any other Italian city. Painters working in Bologna during this period established the Bolognese School which includes Annibale Carracci, Domenichino, Guercino, and others of European fame.

REQUIRED READING:

J. H. Plumb,

The Italian Renaissance,

Mariner Books; Revised edition (June 19, 2001),

ISBN 0618127380

RECOMMENDED READING:

J. R. Hale, The Civilization of Europe in the Renaissance.  This study of the whole Renaissance period in all of Europe was the final masterpiece of one of the greatest historians of the Early Modern period.  John Hale was working on this book when he suffered a debilitating stroke.  But his wife, Sheila Hale, and other scholars finished the book for publication and we are all enriched by its availability.  It is in print, but you might also look at used copies of the original quality paperback.  This book will serve us for the whole year-long course.  It is especially useful for Winter and Spring Quarters.

John Hale,

The Civilization of Europe in the Renaissance,

Scribner, Reprint edition (June 1, 1995),

ISBN 0684803526

The Venetian Renaissance had a distinct character compared to the general Italian Renaissance elsewhere. The Republic of Venice was topographically distinct from the rest of the city-states of Renaissance Italy as a result of their geographic location, which isolated the city politically, economically and culturally, allowing the city the leisure to pursue the pleasures of art. The influence of Venetian art did not cease at the end of the Renaissance period. Its practices persisted through the works of art critics and artists proliferating its prominence around Europe to the 19th century. Though a long decline in the political and economic power of the Republic began after 1500, Venice at that date remained "the richest, most powerful, and most populous Italian city" and controlled significant territories on the mainland, known as the terraferma, which included several small cities who contributed artists to the Venetian school, in particular Padua, Brescia and Verona. The Republic's territories also included Istria, Dalmatia and the islands now off the Croatian coast, who also contributed. Indeed, "the major Venetian painters of the sixteenth century were rarely natives of the city" itself, and some mostly worked in the Republic's other territories, or further afield.[4] Much the same is true of the Venetian architects. Venice was the undoubted centre of book publishing in Italy, and very important in that respect; Venetian editions were distributed across Europe. Aldus Manutius was the most important printer/publisher in all of Italy.
REQUIRED READING:

J. H. Plumb,

The Italian Renaissance,

Mariner Books; Revised edition (June 19, 2001),

ISBN 0618127380

RECOMMENDED READING:

J. R. Hale, The Civilization of Europe in the Renaissance.  This study of the whole Renaissance period in all of Europe was the final masterpiece of one of the greatest historians of the Early Modern period.  John Hale was working on this book when he suffered a debilitating stroke.  But his wife, Sheila Hale, and other scholars finished the book for publication and we are all enriched by its availability.  It is in print, but you might also look at used copies of the original quality paperback.  This book will serve us for the whole year-long course.  It is especially useful for Winter and Spring Quarters.

John Hale,

The Civilization of Europe in the Renaissance,

Scribner, Reprint edition (June 1, 1995),

ISBN 0684803526

Elizabeth L. Eisenstein,

The Printing Revolution in Early Modern Europe,

Cambridge University Press; 2 edition (March 30, 2012),

ISBN 1107632757

In 1500 Venice was the center of the most sophisticated book publishing company anywhere in Europe. The head of this publishing miracle was Aldus Manutius, his Latin version name: he was Aldo Manuzio. Aldus Manutius (c. 1449–1515) was an Italian printer and humanist who founded the Aldine Press. Manutius devoted the later part of his life to publishing and disseminating rare texts. His interest in and preservation of Greek manuscripts mark him as an innovative publisher of his age dedicated to the editions he produced. Aldus Manutius introduced the small portable book format which revolutionized personal reading and are the predecessor of the modern paperback book. He also helped to standardize use of punctuation including the comma and the semicolon. Manutius wanted to produce Greek texts for his readers because he believed that works by Aristotle or Aristophanes in their original Greek form were pure and unadulterated by translation. Before Manutius, publishers rarely printed volumes in Greek, mainly due to the complexity of providing a standardized Greek typeface. Manutius published rare manuscripts in their original Greek and Latin forms. He commissioned the creation of typefaces in Greek and Latin resembling the humanist handwriting of his time; typefaces that are the first known precursor of italic type. As the Aldine Press grew in popularity, Manutius's innovations were quickly copied across Italy despite his efforts to prevent the piracy of Aldine editions. Because of the Aldine Press's growing reputation for meticulous, accurate publications, Dutch philosopher Erasmus sought out Manutius to publish his translations of Iphigenia in Aulis. In his youth, Manutius studied in Rome to become a humanist scholar. He was friends with Giovanni Pico and tutored Pico's nephews, the lords of Carpi, Alberto and Leonello Pio. While a tutor, Manutius published two works for his pupils and their mother. In his late thirties or early forties, Manutius settled in Venice to become a print publisher. He met Andrea Torresano in Venice and the two co-founded the Aldine Press.

REQUIRED READING:

J. H. Plumb,

The Italian Renaissance,

Mariner Books; Revised edition (June 19, 2001),

ISBN 0618127380

RECOMMENDED READING:

J. R. Hale, The Civilization of Europe in the Renaissance.  This study of the whole Renaissance period in all of Europe was the final masterpiece of one of the greatest historians of the Early Modern period.  John Hale was working on this book when he suffered a debilitating stroke.  But his wife, Sheila Hale, and other scholars finished the book for publication and we are all enriched by its availability.  It is in print, but you might also look at used copies of the original quality paperback.  This book will serve us for the whole year-long course.  It is especially useful for Winter and Spring Quarters.

John Hale,

The Civilization of Europe in the Renaissance,

Scribner, Reprint edition (June 1, 1995),

ISBN 0684803526

Elizabeth L. Eisenstein,

The Printing Revolution in Early Modern Europe,

Cambridge University Press; 2 edition (March 30, 2012),

ISBN 1107632757

Tiziano Vecelli or Tiziano Vecellio (c. 1488/1490 – 1576), known in English as Titian, was an Italian painter, the most important member of the 16th-century Venetian school. He was born in Pieve di Cadore, near Belluno (in Veneto, Republic of Venice). Recognized by his contemporaries as "The Sun Amidst Small Stars" (recalling the famous final line of Dante's Paradiso), Titian was one of the most versatile of Italian painters, equally adept with portraits, landscape backgrounds, and mythological and religious subjects. His painting methods, particularly in the application and use of color, would exercise a profound influence not only on painters of the Italian Renaissance, but on future generations of Western art. (Wikipedia)

REQUIRED READING:

J. H. Plumb,

The Italian Renaissance,

Mariner Books; Revised edition (June 19, 2001),

ISBN 0618127380