Short History Of... - The Renaissance

Episode Date: June 4, 2023

The Renaissance of the 15th and 16th centuries was a time of rediscovery. With Florence as its epicentre, it saw a revival of the art, culture and philosophy of ancient Greek and Rome, triggering huge shifts in creativity and thought. But what prompted such a hugely influential movement? Who drove its development, and how did its ideas spread with such unprecedented speed? And, if it weren’t for the great thinkers, artists and inventors of the Renaissance, would we still be living in the Dark Ages?  This is a Short History of the Renaissance. Written by Emma Christie. With thanks to Catherine Fletcher, Professor of History at Manchester Metropolitan University and author of The Beauty and the Terror: an Alternative History of the Italian Renaissance.  For ad-free listening, exclusive content and early access to new episodes, join Noiser+. Now available for Apple and Android users. Click the Noiser+ banner on Apple or go to noiser.com/subscriptions to get started with a 7-day free trial. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

It's April 26th, 1478. In the heart of Florence, thousands of well-dressed worshippers are making their way towards the white and pink marble walls of the cathedral. Their eyes are drawn upwards to its monumental red-tiled dome. Inside the bell tower, strong men tug the ropes in practiced unison, calling the faithful to mass. Two well-respected noblemen join the bustling crowd moving inside, each holding one hand inside their velvet cloaks. They're breathing heavily and sweating, despite the morning chill. Inside, the vast space of the cathedral is dimly lit by flickering candles. It's Easter Sunday, so within a few minutes the pews are packed. But the two noblemen hang back and stay standing,

biding their time. The crowd quietens, and now all eyes are on the priest. He begins his sermon, speaking about hope, resurrection, and new beginnings. His booming voice echoes off the stone walls as the noblemen make their way forward. In front of him, two brothers of the famous Medici family stand side by side, heads piously bowed. Staying in the shadows, the two robed noblemen creep closer, their hearts thundering. One nods to the other, then they leap into action. There's a flash of metal as they pull daggers from their cloaks. They run towards the altar, footsteps pounding on the stone floor. The priest sees them coming, but the Medici brothers do not.

Within seconds, one has a knife lodged in his back. Giuliano de' Medici roars in pain as his attacker frenziedly stabs him again and again. As the priest begs for mercy, the worshippers scream, rushing from their pews in terror. Some stampede for the exit, others push forward to help. In the melee, Giuliano slumps to the floor, blood seeping through his finely embroidered clothes. But though he lies dying, now the attackers realize that their true target has somehow disappeared.

More than anything, it is Giuliano's brother, Lorenzo the Magnificent, that they came for. The wealthiest and most powerful banker in Florence. Perhaps in all of Italy. The killers dodge the horrified congregation, scouring the cathedral for Lorenzo. Both men are successful bankers too, and have convinced the papacy to trust them with their business affairs instead of the Medici family. The way they see it, that dynasty have been in control for too long. For that to change, Lorenzo must die. Except there's no sign of him. They shout and brandish their blades as churchgoers and guards grab their weapons and try to wrestle

them to the ground. The killers break free from the chaos, race to the huge, arched entrance, and flee the cathedral. Lorenzo, though, if he even came this way, is long gone. Now their only thought is of escape. Sprinting through shaded side streets and alleyways, they don't stop running until they're sure they're alone. Gasping for breath, they stop and stare at each other. Though their elegant clothes are saturated with the blood of Giuliano de' Medici, they've failed in their mission. Lorenzo de' Medici is still alive, and now it's their lives that are at risk.

Translating from the French as rebirth, the Renaissance of the 15th and 16th century was a time of rediscovery and revival. The art, culture, and philosophy of ancient Greek and Rome were enthusiastically brought back into the public consciousness, triggering huge shifts in creativity and thought. Strongly associated with Italy, the Renaissance saw the creation of the iconic red-tiled domes of Florence and the towering statue of David, sculpted with incredible precision from a single piece of white marble. The names of the era's stars, like Michelangelo, Botticelli, and Leonardo da Vinci, are as familiar to us today as those of modern celebrities. Their diverse creations continue to inspire artists, writers, architects, and politicians across the planet. But what prompted such a hugely influential movement? If the Renaissance affected much of Europe,

why is Florence so often singled out as the powerhouse? And if it weren't for the great thinkers, artists, and inventors of the Renaissance, would we still be living as the Dark Ages? I'm John Hopkins, and this is a short history of the Renaissance. It's 1345 in Verona, a small city nestled close to the Licini Mountains in northern Italy. A 41-year-old man walks over the stone bridge built hundreds of years ago, when the Roman Empire still ruled this land. The river Adige

flows under the five wide arches of the bridge and curves around the center of the city. But while the crossing still stands, the empire does not. When Roman power collapsed in 467 AD, the idea of a unified Europe collapsed with it. The Middle Ages that followed were a time of extensive warfare. Territories that were once united under the single flag of the Roman Empire battled to establish new borders. Powerful families still fight over the right to lead these new countries. But in Italy, history is taking a slightly different path. Here, control hasn't fallen to one powerful monarch, but to numerous independent city-states. The north and central lands are dominated by Florence, Venice, Milan, and Rome.

Southern lands are controlled by the Kingdom of Naples. Competition between them is fierce. But right now, the greatest foe of all is disease. A great plague, commonly known as the Black Death, is sweeping across Europe. Millions will die from what many believe is a punishment from God. Others blame the alignment of the planets, or claim immigrants are deliberately poisoning water supplies. Whatever the source, the result is widespread suffering. The man on Verona's bridge is the poet and scholar Francesco Petrarch.

A seasoned traveler, he has seen with his own eyes the devastating impacts of the plague. But today, he's here to find something else. He tugs up the hood of his thick, brown robe and steps off the bridge into a narrow street that separates rows of tall, tightly packed houses. Soon, he has wound his way through to the white stone walls of the cathedral. Arriving at the chapter house, he pushes open the heavy wooden doors and steps inside. Tall shelves line the walls. They are packed with manuscripts written on parchment and bound together, every one of them written by hand, usually by monks or scribes.

Copies are usually commissioned by the wealthy. As for the poor, they can't read, and even if they could, they'd struggle to get access to these elaborate manuscripts. Petrarch has visited many libraries across Italy, Germany, and France, actively searching for ancient texts that have been lost or forgotten. But now, as he scours these packed bookcases in Verona, something catches his eye. He reaches up and pulls out a collection of letters. eye. He reaches up and pulls out a collection of letters. Written almost 1400 years ago, they are the works of the Roman politician Cicero. In them, Petrarch finds first-hand information about the period leading up to the fall of the Roman Republic. Stunned, he utters thanks to God as he reads. Because in these ancient letters, he has found something he didn't expect.

The future. Catherine Fletcher is Professor of History at Manchester Metropolitan University and the author of The Beauty and the Terror, an alternative history of the Italian Renaissance. For Petrarch, this was important because it seemed to him to show up some of the differences between the ancient world and the present day world that he was living in. And he also comes out of his encounter with these letters thinking that in some ways the ancient world is actually better, more admirable than the world he's living

in, in the present. And from there, you get this idea that what you need is a rebirth of some of that ancient culture. There's quite a lot of general knowledge out there amongst the literate classes about the reach of the Roman Empire. People know that it achieved this kind of degree of greatness. Coming back to the Cicero letters, if you think about what Italy is at this point, it's divided up into a lot of small states and some of them are republics. So there's a particular interest in places like Florence, but also Venice, also Genoa, also some of the small Tuscan republics like Siena and Lucca in how to run a republic, how to make sure your republic doesn't get taken over by tyrants.

People are very actively applying these lessons from the ancient world into their present-day political being. Scholars across Italy begin to pore over the literature, history, poetry, and philosophy of the classical period. They go back and forward in debate about the meaning of these texts and consider the assumptions of the day regarding the role of religion and the church. Petrarch's discovery also triggers a revived interest in the significance of humanity itself, a philosophy known as humanism. Humanism perhaps places a little more emphasis on the importance

of human action in the world than Christianity had tended to. So humanism starts to say, well, what human beings do is important. Everything is not simply God's will. People can make a difference in the world. And that starts to open up a set of different possibilities for how you think about society in the very long term that will feed into reformation, to Protestantism in the following centuries. This isn't the first time in history that scholars have looked to the past for inspiration. The key difference now is that the humanist movement unleashed by Petrarch's discoveries emerges alongside wider developments in society, technology, trade and finance. wider developments in society, technology, trade, and finance.

During the medieval period, religion and social hierarchies were strict, and to question them was dangerous and unthinkable to most. At the top were kings and queens, ruling by divine right, the authority and power granted by God. Beneath them, the feudal system divided the population into three clear sections, those who prayed, those who fought, and those who worked the land. There was little opportunity for social advancement. But by the time Petrarch dies in 1374, a new class is emerging. Merchants and traders are growing increasingly wealthy, and money brings power. In 1397, the Medici Bank is established in Florence, and soon becomes one of the most important financial institutions in Europe.

Florence is one of five independent city-states that make up what is now Italy. While most European countries are still controlled by monarchs, the rival city-states of Florence, Naples, Rome, Venice, and Milan buck the trend. In fact, Florence has ruled itself as a republic since the 12th century, when it rebelled and broke away from the Tuscany region. And it's here that Petrarch's humanist ideas, highlighting the value of human achievement, combine with new money to create a transformational movement. Though the Renaissance will change the face of Italy, Europe and the world, it all starts in Florence. By the early 1400s, Florence is one of the most powerful and heavily populated cities

in Europe. The wool industry in particular brings massive wealth and an influx of immigrants. It's heavily urbanized, with traders sending goods down the city river to the seaport of Pisa, connecting Florence with merchants across the world. The city's riches and reputation grow steadily, but so does its rivalry with the other Italian city-states. The leaders of Florence put their heads together. What can they do to prove that Florence is the greatest of them all? To understand the Renaissance, you really have to get what's going on with

power, political power, and what's going on with money. In 1418, Florence's leaders announce a competition. A committee of architects sketches out plans for a huge eight-sided dome that will crown the city's cathedral. At 80 meters high, it'll be five times taller than the Parthenon in Athens, the biggest building in Europe. And, vitally, it'll be more impressive than anything their rival Italian city-states have achieved. Nothing of this scale has been built since antiquity. They hope to revive the glory of classical architecture right here in Florence. Everyone will know about this Renaissance, a rebirth of the greatest culture. Now all they need is someone with the skills to build it.

The competition's winner will face many practical challenges. The sheer size of the planned dome, combined with a lack of timber, means it'll need to be built without scaffolding. The city's leaders also forbid the use of supporting walls and buttresses. Many fear a dome of this scale will simply collapse under its own weight. Only time will tell. The competition is won by Filippo Brunelleschi, a goldsmith with no formal architectural training. It takes him 16 years, not to mention groundbreaking design and innovative engineering.

Crucially, though, he incorporates the classic architecture of Rome, while looking to the future, he also has one eye on the past. The enormous red-tiled dome, rising up from the city skyline, immediately becomes a symbol of Florence's ever-growing wealth and power. The source of much of the city's affluence is the Medici family. For forty years their name has been synonymous with trade, commerce, and banking. And not just in Florence, either. The Medici bank has branches across Europe.

They even manage the Vatican's finances, and as their wealth grows, so does their reputation. Except, that is, in the eyes of the Church. For in 14th century Italy, money lending is considered to be a sin. And so the Medici family devise a plan. Using his wealth as a political bargaining chip, Cosimo de' Medici becomes the first member of his family to become de facto leader of Florence. As Brunelleschi adds the final touches to his magnificent dome, Cosimo watches with great interest. He's inspired, not just to make money, but to spend it.

He'll commission the greatest architects of the age to build churches, monasteries, and grand palaces. Together they'll transform his gold into stone. He'll also support the very best artists to create awe-inspiring paintings and sculptures. Yes, Florence is wealthy, but that's not enough. Cosimo's ambition is to make Florence the most beautiful city in the world, not just financially abundant, but rich in its art, culture, and learning. Perhaps then, the church might be willing to let his business dealings slide. A lot of Christian bankers commission a lot of religious art for churches.

So that's part of the story about this big kind of flurry of art commissioning. But it's also about the competition between all these different rulers in different Italian states. They're all doing very well financially. This is one of the wealthiest parts of Europe. And they've got to spend that surplus wealth on something. And part of what they spend it on is competing to attract the best artists, to build the most outstanding new modern architecture. Cosimo commissions a sculptor named Donatello to create a statue of David,

the biblical hero who symbolizes triumph against the odds. It's a nod to rival families who try but fail to remove him from power. For centuries, artists have been depicting the battle between David and Goliath. But Donatello takes a different approach. Born in Florence, he is great friends with fellow artist Filippo Brunelleschi. Together they study and celebrate the art, architecture, and sculpture of ancient Greece and Rome. Just like Brunelleschi and the Cathedral Dome, Donatello pushes for a return to classical aesthetics. His three-dimensional sculpture shows realistic human anatomy and

perspective. Prior to the Renaissance period, sculptures were primarily made to decorate the exteriors of cathedrals and other religious buildings. Figures of saints and the Holy Family adorn doorways, windows, and roofs. But with his statue of David, Donatello creates a free-standing sculpture. At 158 centimeters tall, it's the first life-size nude to be cast in bronze since classical times. When it's completed, around 1440, Cosimo places it in the central courtyard of his palace. Part of what's going on is you've got this competition between different princes to commission the best artists. It's not just about art. It's also about literature.

It's about poetry. It's about music. It's about theatre. And there are important theorists from all over Italy and indeed kind of later on we go beyond Italy. If you only look at Florence, you're only getting half the story. But I don't think it's a coincidence that the two parts of Europe where you get this massive flourishing of art, on the one hand Italy and on the other hand the low countries, so now the

Netherlands and Belgium which has its own quite distinctive stylistic northern Renaissance in the art world, these are the two wealthiest parts of Europe. These are the two places where a lot of very wealthy merchants making money from trade with money to invest in art that attracts people to come and work in the art workshops of those cities. They know if they go to those places, they are going to get access to patrons, access to networks, the best available training. works the best available training. The works of Brunelleschi and Donatello inspire a new generation of artists, many of whom are supported by Cosimo de' Medici.

But significant changes are happening outside of the art world, and far beyond the Florence city walls. It is February the 23rd, 1455. A bitterly cold wind ripples the surface of the Rhine River that borders the city of Mainz in southwest Germany. Johannes Gutenberg, with his thick beard and a fur-cuffed coat, hurries through the rainy streets. Soon, he's pushing open the heavy door of his busy workshop. In the center of the room stands a tall wooden structure. His greatest

invention yet. It is as tall and wide as a doorframe. At head height, there is a long wooden handle attached to a box that covers a screwing mechanism. Beneath it is a workbench, sloping away at one end like a church lectern that holds a Bible. His machine holds a single piece of paper, one of 50,000 he's ordered for this project. They'll also use vellum, a special parchment made from the 450 calfskins he's bought. But with one blank page, he hopes to change the world. His assistants are already working. One man is leaning over a wooden box containing 300 small metal blocks, each embossed with a letter of the alphabet. One by one, he places them in a wooden frame to make words. Using the revolutionary movable type method,

when all the blocks are in place, he moves the frame to the flat surface of the workbench. Now, another assistant comes over wearing an apron and holding tools that look like oversized mushrooms. Their rounded tops are covered with smooth leather and smeared with oily black ink. After rubbing them together, he beats the inky surface against the metal letters over and over. The sound is mesmerizing, like a drum roll for the grand finale. They're about to make magic. Now Gutenberg gives the order. A sheet of paper is laid over the inky letters,

and the workbench slides into position under the screwing mechanism. Then the strongest man in his team operates the long handle of the press to turn the thick wooden screw. Little by little, the heavy block of wood is pressed onto the sheet of paper below. Gutenberg watches, then signals the operator to stop and reverse the process. Then the inventor carefully peels the page from the machine. When he smiles, the team break into applause, clapping each other on the back. They've done it. The final page of the very first Gutenberg Bible is complete. It's the first time a full book has been published in the West.

And the first time anything has been mass-produced in Europe using the movable type method. They'll make 180 copies of the Bible in total. And in doing so, they make history. Gutenberg's printing press is considered by many to be the most important technological innovation in history and completely revolutionizes the spread of knowledge. New ideas can be shared more quickly, easily, and cheaply than ever before. Scientists can record and widely disseminate their research and discoveries. Humanist scholars and philosophers studying ancient texts, like those discovered by Petrarch, can be sure they're working from identical copies.

Information is no longer controlled exclusively by the church, the state, and the wealthy. This is the thing about why this renaissance takes off in a way that previous renaissances didn't. I mean, there was a renaissance in the 8th century around the Emperor Charlemagne. There was another revival of interest in the ancient Rome in the 12th century. I think the reason this one really goes big is because of this new technology. And it is a little bit of a paradox because we always think about the Renaissance as being the rebirth of classical culture, but it couldn't have happened without this really, really modern piece of technology that was never heard of in ancient

Rome. So it is to some extent about bringing together the ancient with something that's very, very new. It was an information revolution which is comparative to the development of the internet. It really changed society that much in terms of the potential for circulation of knowledge. As the printing revolution takes hold, Cosimo de' Medici's grandson Lorenzo leads Florence into its golden age. He's only 21 when he takes charge, alongside his brother Giuliano in 1469. And, in truth, neither sibling officially holds public office or titles, and in fact, Lorenzo is better known as a poet than a politician. But following the model of his

forefathers, Lorenzo rules from behind the scenes, using the family's vast wealth to influence those in power. He further secures his position by marrying into one of the most powerful families in Rome. But in addition to wealth, Lorenzo inherits his family's enemies. In 1478, his brother Giuliano is murdered in front of him during mass at Florence Cathedral. Lorenzo is injured in the failed assassination attempt, but survives and vows to hunt down his brother's murderers. They are identified as Francesco de Pazzi and Bernardo Baroncelli,

members of a rival banking family who are desperate to snatch power from the Medici. Investigations reveal Pope Sixtus IV supports the failed plot, known as the Pazzi Conspiracy. The Pope's nephew, the Archbishop of Pisa, is also involved. Within an hour of the attack, the Archbishop is killed by a lynch mob and hanged from a window of Florence Town Hall. The other conspirators are soon hunted down and killed by supporters of the Medici family. Francesco de Pazzi is dragged through the streets of Florence before being strung up and hanged from a palace window.

His co-conspirator, Barancelli's hanging, is famously sketched by an emerging artist in Florence by the name of Leonardo da Vinci. The conspirators had hoped to weaken support for the Medici family, but their plan has backfired spectacularly. Following the failed plot and subsequent executions, Pope Sixtus IV excommunicates Lorenzo and places all of Florence under interdict, meaning mass and communion are forbidden. But still the people of Florence rally behind Lorenzo.

Finally, after a two-year war with the Papal States, a wide territory under the control of the Pope which includes Rome, Florence gains the upper hand, and Lorenzo's position is stronger than ever. Once again he's proven his magnificence. In the years that follow, Lorenzo leads Florence into a period known as the High Renaissance. He invests heavily in the arts and supports emerging artists who will be remembered as the greatest masters who ever lived. During Lorenzo's unofficial reign of Florence, Sandro Botticelli paints the birth of Venus, now considered to be one of the most important paintings in the world.

After centuries of primarily religious paintings, Botticelli is inspired by ancient Greek and Roman myths. Instead of saints and other biblical figures, he paints the goddess Venus standing on an enormous scallop shell. His masterpiece depicts the moment Venus arrives to shore after she's born, fully grown, at sea. Even more groundbreaking is the fact that she's completely naked, something rarely seen in Western art, at least not since classical times. Once again, the masters of the Renaissance are creating something new by looking to the past for inspiration. Alongside that set of religious commissions, which has always been part of what kings and princes do, we get this growth of art that is about ruling families. It's much more about these classical subjects. We get spaces that combine the

two where you have both pagan figures and you have the Christian figures considered alongside each other in artworks. So I think that's also a key change that we get this ancient art, which had previously been regarded as somewhat pagan, somewhat dubious, starts to be much more accepted. Lorenzo de' Medici also supports the teenage Leonardo da Vinci. Born close to the town of Vinci, which gives him his name, Leonardo is the child of unmarried parents, a lawyer and a peasant woman. Though he's had no formal education beyond basic reading, writing and maths, his natural

artistic talent helps him win an apprenticeship with a renowned Florence artist connected to the Medici family. Thanks to Lorenzo, the young artist is then employed by Milan's ruling family. It's there he hones his remarkable skills, seamlessly bringing together art, anatomy, science, maths, and architecture. Leonardo's iconic drawing, The Vitruvian Man, is named after Vitruvius, an architect born into the Roman Republic around 70 BC. By studying his work on the perfect proportions of classical architecture leonardo is inspired to create a perfectly proportioned human being his drawing

depicts a nude male with two pairs of arms and legs stretched out standing inside both a circle and a square in addition to a wealth of anatomically precise drawings, he creates designs for buildings, as well as helicopters, submarines, tanks, and parachutes. His mastering of many arts captures the ideals of Renaissance humanism, which consider man to have limitless capabilities. The fulfillment of this ideal is the Universal Man, a name often associated with da Vinci. While Leonardo is in Milan, the next generation of talent emerges in Florence. Ever with his ear to the ground, Lorenzo de' Medici now discovers a teenager by the name of Michelangelo.

Lorenzo has created a school of sculpture in the garden of his Florence home, and soon Michelangelo isn't just his star pupil, but his house guest. Moving into the palace, the young artist is educated in poetry, science, and philosophy, as well as art. The seeds are sown for the greatest

artworks ever created, and for a lifelong rivalry with Leonardo da Vinci more than twenty years his senior. But money is running short by the time Lorenzo dies in 1492, and major changes are afoot. In 1494, the French invade Italy, claiming they have a right to the throne of Naples. invade Italy, claiming they have a right to the throne of Naples. This triggers a series of battles known as the Italian Wars, partly fuelled by rivalry between France and newly unified Spain. One thing that is definitely a turning point is 1494 and that descent of the French army into Italy. That really changes things. It doesn't necessarily stop the production of art, but it definitely changes the context in which the art is being produced.

We have these princes of Italy competing then not only to attract the best artists, they're also competing on the battlefield. And then they're simultaneously competing in the art world. Both Michelangelo and Leonardo at different times, in fact, engage with the military campaign. So Michelangelo becomes head of fortifications and military engineering for Florence. Leonardo works doing military mapping as chief military engineer. He's involved in whole plans about diverting the Arno River to cause floods. He's involved in whole plans about diverting the Arno River to cause floods. It's not so straightforward as there was this great period of peace and then there was suddenly a period of war. Actually, some of the best known Renaissance art is produced in the period of war.

So the Mona Lisa, the vast majority of Michelangelo's work, things like Machiavelli's The Prince, those big name Renaissance works happen during the unrest, not during the peace. And I think that in itself is quite interesting and challenging the way that we often see the Renaissance. As the 1400s come to an end, it's not only Italian city-states that are under threat from the great European powers. While Leonardo and Michelangelo flourish, the powerful monarchies of Spain and Portugal are sending ships across the Atlantic in search of a trade route to China. Instead, the Spanish reach the Americas, and Vasco da Gama sails a Portuguese ship to India. But while Spain and Portugal lead these voyages, the powerful Italian city-states are never far from the action.

Lots of the Italian merchants who are paying for art commissions, like the Medici, are simultaneously investing in some of these projects. So you've got Florentine merchants in Lisbon, Genoese merchants in Seville, all part of this same economic network that's doing the empire building at the same time as being the people who are doing the Renaissance art commissioning. Mona Lisa's husband was involved with the early Portuguese imperial projects and is known to have brought enslaved people to Florence, either to trade or to work in his own household. So you don't have to go very far to connect even these very famous names of the Italian Renaissance into some of the more problematic elements

of European history that we are debating in the present day. But not everyone in Europe is looking west, and not all Renaissance thinking leads to Rome. While Michelangelo completes work on the Sistine Chapel in Rome, a German university professor by the name of Martin Luther is ordained by the church. But there's a problem. The humanist movement encourages detailed study and questioning of ancient texts. And the more Martin Luther studies the Bible,

the more he sees how far the Church has strayed from the truth. In 1517, he writes a document that calls upon the Church to reform itself, and details 95 suggestions. Top of his list is a call upon the clergy to halt the sale of what are called indulgences. This common practice involves churchgoers paying money to have their sins absolved, which will, they are told, reduce their time in purgatory. However, nowhere in the Bible can this practice be found, and Luther doesn't keep his dissatisfaction to

himself. He pins his document, what becomes known as the 95 Theses, to a church door in Wittenberg. A simple act, but with seismic and unintended consequences for the future. After all, Luther's theses were fundamentally a call to reform from within the Church, not a call to split. With the aid of Gutenberg's printing press, Martin Luther's controversial ideas spread quickly across the continent. However, Church leaders in Rome are furious. Pope Leo X, the second son of Lorenzo de' Medici, is known for lavish spending, and under his rule the church has fallen into debt. The selling of these indulgences helps balance the books. So instead of addressing Luther's criticism of the church, this vested interest leads the Pope to excommunicate him.

But it's already too late. When Pope Clement VII is elected six years later, Europe is in crisis. The Christian population, for centuries united and controlled by the Catholic Church, is now divided. On one side of the divide are those who remain loyal to the Pope. is now divided. On one side of the divide are those who remain loyal to the Pope. On the other side are those who agree with Martin Luther and believe the Church needs to be urgently reformed. It is this protest movement for change that will become the Protestant Reformation, dividing Catholic Christians and Protestant Christians, a division which remains to this day. Protestant Christians, a division which remains to this day.

But Luther is not the only threat to the status quo in Rome. The Italian wars continue as the power struggle between the mighty monarchies of France and Spain escalates. Spain is now ruled by the immensely powerful Charles V. Along with his home nation, he controls Spanish lands in the Americas and the Holy Roman Empire, a vast territory centered around Germany, Austria, and the Netherlands. But both France and Spain covet the wealthy Italian lands, which would further increase their power and influence in Europe. Worried, the Pope creates an alliance with France, England, and several of the Italian city-states Together, they hoped to maintain control of key Italian territories

and to ensure they remain Catholic But it doesn't go entirely to plan In 1527, the mighty defensive walls are breached by a mutinous army of 12,000 German soldiers Many of them Protestants The other 6,000 are from Spain. The rebellious troops are united under the flag of the Holy Roman Empire, but the emperor isn't with them. He didn't even order the attack. His soldiers are here because they're angry and hungry. They haven't been paid, and if the emperor won't give them what they're due,

they'll steal it from elsewhere. It is May the 6th, 1527. As the sun rises over Rome, birds sing and bells ring out from the city's many churches. Statues cut from white marble sparkle when they catch the morning light. In the private palace of a prominent merchant, a woman wakes and throws back the fine sheets. Already the heat is stifling. She gets up and opens the window, letting in the birdsong and a cooling breeze. But there's another sound, too. A rumble that's getting louder and louder. At first, she thinks it's a storm in the distance.

But then she realizes her mistake. It's the sound of an army on the march. And it's thousands strong. The woman hurriedly dresses and steps onto a balcony that overlooks the street. Purple bougainvillea flowers tumbling from the walls opposite. But below, the street is filled with soldiers. Their footsteps thundering, some of the men sing war songs as they approach, weapons slung over their shoulders.

Reaching the church on the corner, dozens of them pause to charge at the heavy wooden door. It splinters and bursts open and they rush inside, cheering. Moments later, the priest is dragged onto the street, crying out for help. But nobody comes. The woman stifles a scream as ragged soldiers set upon him like rabid dogs. The woman stifles a scream as ragged soldiers set upon him like rabid dogs. Others barge inside the church, only to reappear a few moments later with jewels, golden artifacts, and paintings ripped from the walls. Before they move on, a few men go back inside holding flaming torches.

Soon, smoke starts billowing from the door. The men rush back outside, laughing, as the church starts burning behind them. The woman turns to go back inside and hide, but hears her neighbor's door opening below the balcony. He's one of the city's wealthiest merchants, and his palace is a treasure trove. The woman calls out to him to go inside, but already she's too late. A few soldiers pounce on the merchant. When he falls to the ground, he's trampled by the mob rushing into his home. His wife and children scream from inside, the sound followed by thuds and groans of pain.

When the looters rejoin the throng in the street, they're carrying stolen goods in their bloody hands. Golden jewelry, bronze statues, silver dinner plates. Anything that shines is taken. The woman rushes back into her home and closes the shutters. She finds her husband downstairs, ashen-faced, packing away their valuables out of sight. The city is under attack, he tells her, over and over. And soon, it will burn. As they swarm across the poorly defended city, the invaders are ruthless.

They torture and murder anyone who gets in their way. Plundering churches and monasteries, they strip riches from the walls, trample relics, even hold churchmen to ransom, demanding huge sums for their release. One priest is executed for refusing to administer the sacraments to a mule dressed by soldiers in clergyman's clothes. The troops then make their way towards Castel Sant'Angelo, the Pope's place of refuge. Now it's his prison. He eventually pays a ransom of 400,000 ducats, millions of dollars in today's money, and agrees to give up some Italian land to the Holy Roman

Empire. But land and money isn't all that's lost in what history will remember as the Sack of Rome. The invaders stay for a month, and by the time they leave, a tenth of the population is dead. To make matters worse, thousands of survivors flee the city. Merchants leave with their families, relocating their business and wealth to France. Scholars, scientists, and philosophers escape, taking with them their knowledge and innovations. Many artists leave, hoping to find wealthy patrons in other cities. Those who stay face hunger, then disease. The Black Death rips through the city, a final insult. Rome is in ruins. a final insult. Rome is in ruins. Though this event marks the end of the glory days of the Renaissance, its influence will endure for rather longer. Time and again, politicians and artists

refer to the achievements of the Renaissance and the ancient texts which inspired it. In the late 1700s, the founding fathers of the United States studied documents about the formation of republics as they prepared to break away from the British monarchy. Florence stands out as an example of how successful and powerful a republic can become under the guidance and vision of skilled leaders. Precisely the sort of thing that Petrarch was digging up in the cathedral library are the sort of texts when people in America

are thinking about how do we break away from British rule and set up our own republic, they go back to the previous examples of republics. So one of those is very obviously

Renaissance Florence and before that is the Roman Republic. So these things become models for later Republican thinkers. You have a lot of American interest in looking back on the Florentine Republic as a model, and that tends to build up Florence for their own modern reasons in a way that perhaps isn't quite authentic to what was actually happening in the 15th and 16th century. In addition to politics, the art of the Renaissance period is strongly associated with Florence,

despite the flourishing movements across Europe. But that, perhaps, was precisely the intention of the Medici family. Anna Maria Luisa de' Medici is the last in the family line. When she dies without an heir in 1743, she leaves the city a gift that will mark its place in history forever. The family's extensive art collection is bequeathed to Florence under one strict condition. It can never leave. The city becomes a living museum.

Today, Florence receives around 15 million tourists every year. But its impact can be felt far beyond the city limits. Even centuries later, iconic Renaissance images such as Leonardo's Mona Lisa and Botticelli's Venus are endlessly reproduced. They are printed on posters, bags, and mobile phone covers across the planet, used for advertising and reinterpreted by today's artists. Da Vinci's masterpiece itself, now housed in the Louvre Museum in Paris, attracts around 10 million visitors every year. The Renaissance signaled the beginning of the mass dissemination of ideas and the end of unquestioning obedience to the church. The great masters of this age

were inspired not only by the glory of God, but also by the greatness of the human race. And by looking to the past, it created a very different future. You've got these kind of rising European empires, you've got this expansion of trade, you've got this spare money flowing about in Italy, we've got this competition between the states, all these different factors that sort of come together to favour this cultural flourishing,

this mix of an ancient world that's still very present in terms of the physical text being available, the material world existing, and then these new technologies that come along with it. So it's just a real kind of perfect set of circumstances, if you like, to have this very, very dynamic period of art development, political development, political thought, ideas about government and so on, all sort of coalescing together in one place at one time.

And I think if we only think of the Renaissance as a looking back at a rebirth of ancient culture, we actually miss half the story, which is that this is really a beginning of modernity. Next time on Short History Of, we'll bring you a short history of the female spies of World War II. They could expect to be caught, arrested, interrogated, probably quite brutally, and executed within six weeks. SOE actually felt that 50% of the agents they sent out would not survive the war. And yet they all volunteered. So I think if there is something

they all had in common, it is absolute determination. Because even at the last moment, the women were given the option, you don't have to go in, you're not conscripted, but they all went out. So of course, yes, they were scared. They were scared for themselves. They were anxious for their families. But above all, they were determined to play their part. That's next time.