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Chapter 4:The Exchange of Ideas
Galileo
During this era it was always believed that what the church said was true, few people dared to challenge the church
The church said that the earth was the centre of the universe
One man, Galileo, challenged the church by saying that the sun was the centre of the universe, not the earth
Heresy The church was not pleased with Galileo’s
observation and charged him with heresy Heresy is when someone opposes the
churches teachings Galileo was now faced with two options
Galileo had to give up his views and make a statement where he explained that he was wrong or he might be tortured or burned alive
Galileo issued a statement saying that he was wrong and was placed under house arrest
“Eppur si muove”
After making his statement it is believed that Galileo whispered the words “eppur si muove” which means “but it [the Earth] still moves
Science Attitudes towards science changed
during the Renaissance Thinkers expanded the text they read Because of importance placed on
humanism people were encouraged to question and experiment
The concept of a Scientific Method emerged This is the process of making observations,
experimenting, and drawing conclusions based on evidence
Science
In order to study science you would have to read books written by scholars from Classical or Islamic civilizations
People were not to ask any questions about science that went against he church belief Example: Galileo stated that the sun was
the centre of the earth and was accused of heresy
Astronomy
Turn to page 81 in your book to see how Galileo built on the astronomical beliefs of earlier scholars.
Medicine
During this time doctors didn’t know much about the human anatomy (the bodily structure), or the causes of diseases
Common treatments were based on astrology, superstition, bloodletting, and applying leaches
Midwives and others with knowledge of traditional and herbal remedies played an important role in treating the sick.
During the Renaissance medical knowledge grew – especially in anatomy and surgery
Anatomy
Before the Renaissance it was illegal to dissect the human body
During the Renaissance the laws were changed and it was made legal in many Italian cities
A professor at the University of Padua, Andreas Vesalius, dissected bodies in the lecture hall while his students watched in an attempt to teach his students about the human body
From the dissection of human bodies knew knowledge was found and medical discoveries were being made
Mathematics During the Renaissance the mathematical works
of ancient mathematical scientists were studied Euclid theories on geometry were studied, and
late al-Khwarizmi’s theories on algebra were also studied
People like Leonardo da Vinci believed that math was the basic tool for understanding the universe
Math also played a role in Europe’s changing economy As trade and commerce grew, knowledge of
mathematics became essential for members of the merchant class why?
Filippo Brunelleschi
What is perspective? Perspective had been known in
ancient times, yet there was no record of it
Filippo Brunelleschi rediscovered the mathematical theory of perspective
He used this theory to show how the buildings he was planning would look when they were finished
Brunelleschi’s Techniques
Brunelleschi developed his technique through experimentation and by applying mathematical principles by:1. Painting over a reflection of a building called the
Baptistery on the surface of a mirror2. Then, in order to prove that his painting was identical
to the Baptistery, he drilled a small peephole in the painted mirror and stood in front of the Baptistery
3. He looked through the peephole in the back of the painted mirror and held up a blank mirror to block his view of the Baptistery. The blank mirror reflected his painted image
4. By moving the blank mirror in and out of the way, he could see that his painted image was identical to the actual building.
Political and Religious Leadership Isabella D’Este was known as “the
first lady of the world” She was one of the few women who
received a fine classical education She married the Duke of Mantua and
their court became a centre of learning, music, and the visual arts
Because the Duke was often away on military campaigns she ruled the city-states while he was away
The Scientific Ruler
Niccolò Machiavelli used his observations to learn about the natural world
He spent his time observing people and governments
These observations led him to new ways of thinking about leadership and power
He wrote a book called The Prince where he explained his conclusions about the best way to govern
He wrote “It is a good general rule about men, that they are ungrateful, fickle, liars and deceivers, fearful of danger and greedy for gain” He had the courage to write exactly what he thought
about the civilizations, and even to this day scholars continue to argue about his theories
Niccolò Machiavelli
Machiavelli’s ideas concerning how leaders must sometimes act in order to protect their power and state (pg. 89):
“It needs to be understood that a prince, and especially a prince recently installed [place in power], cannot observe all those qualities which make men good, and it is often necessary in order to preserve the state to act contrary to faith, contrary to mercy, contrary to humaneness, and contrary to religion”
“In actions of all men, especially princes, where there is no recourse to justice, the end is all that counts. A prince should only be concerned with conquering or maintaining a state…”
Class Discussion
What do you think about Machiavelli’s ideas about what people are like?
What do you think about how rulers sometimes need to behave?
Changing Leadership in the Church During the Middle Ages and the
Renaissance, the Catholic Church was the most powerful institution in Europe
Church leaders believed that they were responsible for more than the religious well being of the people
Some people considered the Church to be the natural leader in all areas of society—political and business aspects included
Members of the church started to abuse their power for their own well being
Savonarola
Girolamo Savonarola was a monk who belonged to the Dominican order
He dedicated his life to fighting against the corruption in the Church and in society
He was considered the unofficial leader in Florence
He even went as far as accusing pope Alexander VI of corruption
Under his direction, in 1497, the citizens of Florence built a huge “bonfire of vanities” in town square where they burnt all their wigs, make-up, fancy clothing, art, and books.
He believed that these things kept peoples attention away from God
Savonarola
Because of his actions against the pope, Savonarola was excommunicated (officially excluded from the Church)
By this time the people of Florence were growing tired of his sermons and turned against him
In 1498, Savonarola was tried for heresy, found guilty, and executed
Class Activity
Read Savonarola’s Views on page 93 of the text book
What are Savonarola’s criticisms of the Church?
Why did some Church officials want to silence Savonarola?
Martin Luther
Martin Luther was a German monk He was influenced by humanist
actions Concerned with the way things were,
he started to study the bible himself He came to the conclusion that the
Bible, not the Church, should be a Christian’s true spiritual guide
Martin Luther
Luther was also upset by the wealth of the Church, but more importantly, he was upset about how they obtained the money
The Church was selling indulgences (certificates that reduced the time people would be punished for their sins after they died).
In 1517, Luther wrote his Ninety-Five Theses, which criticized the selling of indulgences, on the door of a Church in Wittenberg
His Ninety-Five Theses were printed and passed out throughout Germany
Martin Luther
Pope Leo X was not happy with Luther’s Ninety-Five These and issued a “bull” (official order) condemning Luther and banned his work
Luther took this “bull” and burnt it in public Luther was then called before the emperor at
an Imperial Diet (assembly) in 1521 in the city of Worms
He was asked to give up his ideas, but Luther refused to back down
Because of his refusal, Emperor Charles V declared Luther an outlaw who could be killed
Luther then went into hiding
The Protestant Reformation Martin Luther translated the Bible into the
vernacular This allowed regular citizens access to read
the Bible in their own home When Luther broke off from the church many
German citizens followed him This was known as the Protestant
Reformation A new Church was started in Northern
Europe known as the Lutheran Church It didn’t take long for Luther’s ideas to
spread across Europe Luther’s followers were known as Protestants
The Catholic Counter-Reformation
The Protestant Reformation caused the Catholic Church to lose a lot of its authority and membership
Pope Paul III called a series of meetings known as the Council of Trent
At this council the Church examined its policies – this was known as the “Catholic Counter-Reformation”
Because of these meetings the corruption among the higher clergy was cleaned up and priests were given a better education
The Catholic Counter-Reformation
Religious orders were established that focused mainly on converting people to Catholicism
Ignatius Loyola founded an order known as the Society of Jesus His followers were known as Jesuits
Jesuit missionaries were very active among the Wendat (Huron) during the early days of European settlement in Canada
The Printing Press
At the beginning of the Renaissance most people were illiterate (couldn’t read)
Only the most educated people could read an write
In order to be literate you would have to know Latin or Greek This is because most of the writings being studied
were written in these languages In 1450 a German man named Johannes
Gutenberg developed a printing press that allowed books to be produced quickly and at a low cost
This allowed for ideas to be spread quickly throughout Europe, and made it more affordable to purchase books
Spread of Knowledge
By the early 1500’s there were over 6 million books in print in Europe
Books allowed the exchange of knowledge in Europe that had never been seen before
Middle class people were now able to afford these books so they began to read, discuss, and eventually write about the exciting ideas of their times
Books were now being printed in the vernacular rather than in Latin and Greek
Writers started making money from the books they wrote which allowed them the freedom to travel to universities where they spread their ideas