The Renaissance and the Humanists: Revival of Classics

The Darkness of 1300s was a time of famine, plague, continuous wars, and ignorance. There were very few achievements in science and art due to the crisis. The Renaissance (1350-1550s) is an epoch of the world significance in the history of European culture, which replaced the Middle Ages and precedes the Enlightenment and the Modern Age. The main prerequisites for the emergence of philosophy and culture of the Renaissance were the fall of feudalism, the improvement of tools and production relations, and the development of crafts and trade. The Renaissance revolutionized Europe by scientific, technical, and geographical discoveries, the emergence of humanism and languages, and the rise of nationalism, which led to the closely examination of the Bible and, therefore, led to the revolution in Religion. The Renaissance in Europe was largely based on the idea of the foundations of Western Civilization such as antiquity in Athens, Rome, and Christianity, and later influenced the modern world.

Renaissance was crucial in the deepest turning point in consciousness, views on the world and man, which belongs to the era of communal revolutions of the second half of the 13th century. During this time, it was a rise of new intellectual and artistic movements that was critical of the present and admiring of a past that had disappeared with the western Roman Empire and the end of Italy’s greatness. Renaissance emerged in Florence, Italy around 1450s. Florence was the first place where plague developed and the first to recover, also, it had no war threat from Mongols and Hundred Years’ War, and it had trade with Middle East due to Crusades: these made Florence the perfect place for “rebirth” out of all the other cities. Moreover, Florence was a place with a rich cultural history where wealthy citizens could afford to support artists. One of the supporters were Medici family which ruled Florence for over than 60 years. They were a patron to major figures like Leonardo de Vinci and Michelangelo. In the formation of the Renaissance, the fall of the Byzantine Empire played a tremendous role. Byzantines moved to Europe and brought with them their libraries and works of art not known to medieval Europe. It influenced the rebirth of ancient culture in Italy and later in other places. Many ancient texts were lost during Rome’s fragmentation and now finally became accessible. The Hundred Years’ War, famine, and plague brought a time of crisis in the fourteen centuries; however, these events became an extraordinary opportunity. The plague undoubtedly played a prominent role in the liberation of the peasants. In Middle Ages, the plague killed over nearly half of the population of Europe and drastically altered the world of those who survived it. A lot of free land was formed that was left over from those who simply did not survive the Black Death. These fields and pastures allowed to improve the situation with food in Europe. In this new world, workers were valuable and could stand up to those who paid them poorly or treated them like slaves. In cities, urban artisans demanded higher pay and an end to high taxes. It was a shift of growing power of people and the decline of feudalism in Europe. People no longer fought for ethical reasons or for God’s glory, but for career reasons. Numerous deaths during the plague and wars, and the decline of church during Great Schism turned people to be less focused in thinking about God and afterlife, and more interested in thinking about themselves, their natural world, and here and now. The Church was helpless to help in devastation during the bubonic plague, and it caused people to seek other explanations beyond the spiritual for human suffering and loss.

The growth of cities during Renaissance led to an increase in the influence of estates that did not participate in feudal relations: artisans, craftsmen, merchants, and bankers. All of them were alien to the hierarchical system of values created by the medieval, largely churchly culture, and its ascetic and humble spirit. This led to the emergence of humanism, a social and philosophical movement that considered a person with his personality, his freedom, his creative activity as the highest value and criterion for evaluating social institutions. In cities, secular centers of science and art began to emerge, whose activities were outside the control of the church. Technical inventions and scientific discoveries enriched labor with new, more effective methods of action. The use of gunpowder and the creation of firearms made a revolution in military affairs, which negated the importance of chivalry as an army and as a feudal estate. The first mechanical clocks were invented in Italy in the middle of 1350s and were the standard timekeeping device until Galileo Galilei studies the pendulum, and Christiaan Huygens makes the first pendulum clock more accurate in 1656. The use of the compass significantly increased the possibility of navigation. The network of water trade communications was rapidly expanding, and it was especially intense in the Mediterranean. This was a reason why Italian cities had the first manufactories that emerged as a stage in the transition from craft to the capitalist mode of production.

In the middle of the fifteen century, printing press was invented, which played an important role in spreading new views throughout Europe. “New reading methods pioneered by Petrarch and others fostered an awareness of the conceptual gap that separated the contemporary world from antiquity” (Joshua Cole, 294). The artistic and intellectual experiments of the Italian Renaissance were rapidly exported to other parts of Europe. The widespread availability of reading materials helped to standardize national languages by enabling governments to promote one official printed dialect over others.

Intensive study of languages such as Greek and Hebrew, the discovery, publication and commenting on many texts lead to the emergence of philology in the proper sense of the word. All these factors stimulated an increase in theoretical interest in language problems, creating the basis for the formation of linguistic concepts. The gradual replacement of Latin with the national languages of the peoples of Europe begins to find a theoretical expression in the era under consideration. In the homeland of the Renaissance, Italy, the representatives of science, in addition to representatives of fiction such as Boccaccio and Petrarch switch to the national language. Dante and Chaucer wrote in their native language, Italian and English, instead of common Latin. Galileo Galilei believed that it was pointless to have texts written in Latin if an ordinary person could not read them.

The development of vernacular languages was one of the reasons to rise nationalism. The use of one’s own spoken language led to the expression of national feeling (World history). For example, contemporary monarchs, Ferdinand and Isabella desired to construct an exclusively Christian identity for its people and promoting a single national language, Castilian Spanish (Joshua Cole, 332). Cultivation of common identity through a shared vernacular language and allegiance to a more centralized state allowed smaller kingdoms like Poland and Scotland to increase their territories. However, France and England got into an epic battle for sovereignty and hegemony. Louis XI of France expressed unique national identity by breaking with Church when his nation’s interest was at stake. Similarly, Henry VII of England broke with the Church in order to divorce his wife Catherine of Aragon and made the King head of the English Church leading to a growth of a national identity of its citizenry.

By the 15th century, sailing ships, reliable enough for ocean navigation, were created, the compass and sea charts were improved, and the experience necessary for long-distance navigation was gained. New trade routes forced the search for Turkish conquests, which blocked the traditional merchant relations with the East through the Mediterranean Sea. In the overseas lands, Europeans hoped to find wealth: precious stones and metals, exotic goods and spices. Portugal began the first systematic expeditions in the Atlantic Ocean. The activity of Portugal at sea was predetermined by its geographical position in the far west of Europe and the historical conditions that developed after the end of the Portuguese Reconquista. Based on the idea of the sphericity of the Earth, the navigator Christopher Columbus suggested trying to reach India by sailing west along the Atlantic Ocean. The Spanish government allocated him three caravels, and in 1492 an expedition led by Columbus reached one of the Bahamas, thereby discovering America.

During the Middle Ages, outside the clergy, almost nobody could read, and everything was considered to come from God, and whatever happened was a matter of God’s will. When the printing press became available and the interest in ancient texts arose, more people began to read Bible and formed their own ideas about religion. It would lead to the Reformation. The Reformation was a movement in sixteen to seventeen centuries as an attempt to revise church ideology and the relationship between people and the church. The Reformation is a socio-cultural phenomenon of Western Europe, a social and religious anti-feudal movement that has taken the form of a struggle against the Catholic Church. It carried out religious transformations in the spirit of Protestantism. By that time, all state and spiritual power was concentrated in the hands of the Catholic Church. Its authority was constrained by any manifestation of lively, non-dogmatic thought. During this period, secular interests and the desire for a full-blooded earthly life were increasingly opposed to the sermons of asceticism and the hope of an afterlife retribution. They advocated the restructuring of the Church, the rejection of lavish services and church decorations; for the return of the Church to the state in which it was at the beginning of the Christian era.

The first major representative of the Reformation movement to win a real victory over the Roman Catholic Church in Germany was Martin Luther (1483 - 1546), professor of theology at Wittenberg University. In 1517, he formulated 95 theses against the vices of Catholicism, showing the difference between repentance as an act of man’s inner world, and papal absolution through indulgences. In 1523 he translated the Bible into German. With the humanists who fought against scholastic Catholicism, Luther was united by a desire for early Christianity, a desire to rely on the Holy Scriptures and the works of the “Fathers of the Church”. But if the humanists mainly sought to give these ideas a rationalistic interpretation, then Luther perceived them as purely mystical. So, he argued that man does not achieve “salvation” because of his deeds, but because of faith alone. Serving God was not proclaimed a function of the clergy, but the main and only concern of every Christian.

Along with Martin Luther, Ulrich Zwingli spoke up (1484 - 1531). The activity of this reformer began in Zwingli, Switzerland in 1516. Opposing the Papal sovereignty, he saw the main support in the ignorance of the parishioners. Therefore, he demanded the closure of monasteries, universal education, and the organization of a network of accessible schools and hospitals.

In France, the Reformation movement is associated with the name of John Calvin (1509 - 1564). He believed that the center of religious attention should not be focused on the Gospel, but on the Old Testament. Calvin most consistently developed the doctrine of 'absolute predestination', which is the basis of all Protestant theology. Even before the creation of the world, God had predetermined some to salvation, others to death; no man’s efforts can change this, but everyone should hope that he is “God's chosen one.” He, the man, is given the opportunity to comprehend God's Creation, the world. And for this, everyone needs to read the Holy Scripture to comprehend the wisdom of the Bible. Thus, the embodiment of Calvin’s teachings implied universal literacy.

Extremely significant impact on European culture of the 16th century was 'Christian humanism' by Erasmus. Desiderius Erasmus of Rotterdam (1469 - 1536) is an outstanding thinker, witty writer, philologist, philosopher, and theologian. He became the undisputed “master of thoughts” of the humanistic minded Europeans. Erasmus contrasts his “philosophy of Christ” with the moral system to the attempts of the scholastics to express the whole diversity of knowledge about God, the world, and man through a set of strict definitions. Ontology and theology are replaced by ethics, philosophy moves 'from heaven to earth.' In his conception, Erasmus refers to the Church Fathers and speaks about a return to the spirit of early apostolic Christianity, although his position is a reworking of Christian ethics in the spirit of Renaissance humanism. He condemns the vices of the Catholic clergy, external ritual religiosity, the pomp of worship, the intolerance of churchmen, their justification of predatory wars, and the burning of heretics. Reformers like Martin Luther, Ulrich Zwingli, John Calvin, and Erasmus challenged papal authority and questioned the Catholic Church’s ability. Their fought for religious and political redistribution of power into the hands of Bible. The new religious and political freedoms came at great cost: it triggered wars, rebellions, and persecutions.

The foundation cornerstones for the modern world emerge in antiquity from Athens, from Rome, and from Christianity. The first era influenced by antiquity was the Renaissance. The main feature of the Renaissance is the emergence of interest in ancient culture, it happens as its 'revival'. Humanism as a principle of Renaissance culture develops an anthropocentric trend in all forms of art. Writers, artists, sculptors of this era are attracted to the subjects of ancient mythology, history, and literature. Philosophers and scholars honor the examples of the achievement of the scientific thought of Greek antiquity. It revived the study of Plato and, thereby, created the need for independence of thought, at least to the extent necessary to make a choice between him and Aristotle. The close connection of science and art is a characteristic feature of the Renaissance culture nurtured by the ancient heritage. Antiquity as the cultural heritage of Athens had a huge impact on political and religious thinking, literature and art, and on the philosophical views of all peoples. Only three generations of cultural figures of Ancient Greece created the art of high classics, laid the foundations of European civilization and role models for many centuries. During Renaissance, the foundations of a rational view of the world and society that are still relevant till common days.

The contribution of Roman culture was mainly by the development of the state, law, and technology. They created their own system of ideals and values: patriotism, honor, dignity, and loyalty to civic duty. The Romans in every possible way exalted the role and value of the law, the immutability of its observance and respect. In general, the most significant achievements of Ancient Rome are related to civilization and material culture. Here, recognized achievements include such well-known Roman law, great roads, and magnificent buildings. The contribution of Rome to the development of statehood and its forms such as the Republic and Empire is also very significant. The practicality of the Romans found a worthy expression in urban planning, politics, jurisprudence, and military art. The culture of Rome largely determined the culture of subsequent eras in Western Europe. Roman law is still the basis of the legal system in Europe nowadays, and the adoption of Roman law took place in its various parts including Eastern Europe. The existence of the Roman Empire in many ways became a kind of reason for accelerating the development of a number of countries that were part of it, and the political culture of the Romans, the image of the “Empire,” served as models for creating new models of political structure in Europe. European thought, even centuries later, constantly turned to the experience of antiquity; the culture of the Renaissance and the Enlightenment in Europe was largely based on the idea of this appeal.

The church was a great political force. The clergy singled out from their midst royal advisers, chancellors, secretaries of state, officials who were widely represented in medieval assemblies such as general states, parliament, etc. The history of the culture of the Middle Ages is the history of the struggle between the church and the state. Particularly significant was the role of the church in an ideological sense. The church consecrated the medieval feudal system with its authority. It represented a huge spiritual power and had a huge impact on the formation of a religious worldview. Paul, the follower of Jesus, had relied on women to organize and preside over churches and to finance his missionary journeys; he had declared that there should be no distinctions of gender, rank, or ethnicity among Christians (Joshua Cole,142). Some women were prominent among the early martyrs and were often regarded as prophets. Strong female roles had always set Christianity apart from the traditional values of Roman society and had also been one of its main attractions. Unfortunately, the foundations of Christianity, especially, equality and forgiveness soon began to disappear and then completely began to be forgotten with the Crusades. By Renaissance, some people tried to keep Christ's teachings in all its purity and waged a struggle against constantly arising false interpretations of it. Thoughts of equality in Christ and in society came to the fore. Kings’ autocratic freedom was curtailed. Those who had always assumed that they reigned by divine right were now called upon to justify their actions by Scripture. The modern secular society is the heir of Renaissance.

Renaissance is a period in the cultural development of European countries, which replaced the Middle Ages. In the 14th till 16th centuries there was time of renewed interest in a study of the humanities that puts the wisdom of man and its achievements in the spotlight, as the highest good for a rational being. Freed from medieval notions, a man of the Renaissance looks at the world around him and at himself in a new way. Interest in antiquity became decisive for the formation of the Renaissance. Because of technical inventions and success in science, great geographical discoveries became possible. The gradual replacement of Latin with vernacular languages gave a rise to nationalism. Religious illusions were gone with the better understanding of Bible after invention of printing press. The greater availability of books had an impact on practically every area of life, especially intellectual and religious. The world in which we live today has developed largely because of the Reformation initiated by Martin Luther. The reformers like Luther, Zwingli, Calvin, and Erasmus challenged papal authority and rejected the sacred tradition that the Church is a mediator between people and God and declared the Bible the only source of faith, however, the new religious and political freedoms came at great cost. The humanists revived the principles of the Ancient Athens, Roman Republic, and Christianity that became the foundation of modern world we live in.