1. The Renaissance Begins

2. What do I know?
What do you think “Renaissance” means? Where do you think it took place? What do you think happened?

3. Pgs

4. The Renaissance in Italy
Facts
What is it?
When did it happen?
Where did it take place?
What were the most important results of it?

5. The Renaissance in Italy
The Roman and Greek cultures served as models for new Renaissance ideas.
Cities could pay artists to make new works because there were more wealthy citizens who were art customers.
City life helped the development of the Renaissance by creating a new society. There were more people to have discussions, strong economies developed, and there were more customers and money for art.

7. The States of Italy
During the Renaissance, city- states did not unite to form one country because they did not want emperors and kings to rule them and the Catholic Church did not want a united Italy.

8. The States of Italy
The location of Italian city-states made them successful in trade because there were many port cities located on the peninsula’s coasts. The Italian peninsula was the center of the Mediterranean world.
Two events helped the Italian city-states succeed in trade:
Crusades
Mongol Conquests

9. The States of Italy
During the Renaissance, the Medici family controlled Florence, Italy. They became wealthy and powerful because they owned the largest bank in Europe during the 1400s and they also owned branch banks.

10. The States of Italy
Venice’s location affected the types of businesses that developed there because it was built on islands and used canals as streets.
It became an important link between Europe and Asia.
It was also a major shipbuilding center.

11. A New Ruling Class
Merchants and bankers gained control of city-states by __________________. During the Renaissance, the leader of Venice was the duke, or doge. He officially ran the city, but a council of wealthy merchants held the real power. The leader of Florence was the Medici family.

12. A New Ruling Class
Diplomacy helped Italian city-states because _____________________? Diplomacy is the art of making agreements with other countries. Italians worked to be sure that no single state had enough power to threaten the others. Niccolo Miachiavelli, a diplomat in Florence, wrote a book titled The Prince. Stated that rulers should do whatever was necessary to keep power and protect their city, even if they had to lie or kill. Today when we someone was being “Machiavellian” we mean that person is cunning or acting without conscience.