# Renaissance
Confidence: high
Last verified: 2026-05-22
Generation: ai_assisted


## TL;DR

The Renaissance (14th-17th centuries) was a cultural rebirth bridging the Middle Ages and modern era, beginning in Florence, Italy. Emphasis on humanism (human potential and achievement), rediscovery of classical Greek/Roman learning, and extraordinary artistic/scientific innovation. Patronage by wealthy families (Medici) funded artists.

## Core Explanation

Key figures: Leonardo da Vinci (Mona Lisa, inventor, anatomist — Renaissance Man), Michelangelo (David, Sistine Chapel), Raphael, Donatello. Gutenberg printing press (1440) democratized knowledge. Copernicus (1543, heliocentric theory), Galileo (telescope, physics). Machiavelli's The Prince (1513, political realism). Shakespeare (1564-1616, peak of English Renaissance).

## Further Reading

- [The Civilization of the Renaissance in Italy (Jacob Burckhardt, 1860)](https://www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/2074)