Renaissance

This history of the Renaissance surveys the extraordinary impact of this culture which dramatically affected Europe in the 15th and 16th centuries. It examines the social, commercial and political background which enabled the arts to flourish at this time, stressing the importance of the great commercial cities, Florence, Bruges and Venice.

Beginning with the Florentine Renaissance, the book traces the development of humanism in art, politics, science and philosophy, then discusses the impact of the High Renaissance in Italy on the rest of Europe.

Includes the following chapters: The City as an Agent of Cultural Innovation / The Humanist Revolution / Flemish Painting / Laurentian Florence / VEnice and the Italian Despotisms / The High Renaissance in Florence and Rome / The New Europe of the Sixteenth Century / Renaissance Ideas Spread to the North / Venice in the Sixteenth Century / The Renaissance in 1600.