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The Italian Renaissance in Context

Fifteenth-century Italy was unlike any other place in Europe. It was divided into independent city-states, each with a different form of government. Florence, where the Italian Renaissance began, was an independent republic.

It was also a banking and commercial capital and, after London and Constantinople, the third-largest city in Europe.

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Wealthy Florentines flaunted their money and power by becoming patrons, or supporters, of artists and intellectuals. In this way, the city became the cultural center of Europe and of the Renaissance.

Did you know?

When Galileo died in 1642, he was still under house arrest. The Catholic Church did not pardon him until 1992.

The New Humanism: Cornerstone of the Renaissance

Thanks to the patronage of these wealthy elites, Renaissance-era writers and thinkers were able to spend their days doing just that.

Instead of devoting themselves to ordinary jobs or to the asceticism of the monastery, they could enjoy