I.
Economic
Causes
A.
Crusades
motivate East—West trade; Italy enjoyed the being in the crossroads
B.
Advances
in ships
1.
could
travel year-round
2.
carried
larger loads
3.
faster
C.
Ie. Florence and the English wool
trade – buy in England, sell in N. Africa
II.
Florence
A.
First
flowering of arts happened here
B.
Why?
Despite being landlocked, they had these things going for them…
1.
boost
from the wool trade
2.
control of papal banking
a.
tax
collectors for the pope
b.
profits
from loans, investments, money exchanges
3.
Medici
family (Lorenzo and Cosimo Medici)
4.
Florence’s
economy was strong enough to withstand crises
a.
Edward
III of England scratches his huge debt to Florence
b.
Labor
revolts (by the “ciompri”)
c.
Black
Death
III.
Political
See-Saw
A.
Phase
1 of Italian city-state government à communes
1.
commune
= associations of free men seeking political and economic independence from
local nobles
2.
communes gain power in
various cities (Milan, Florence, Genoa, etc.)
3.
Leaders
of communes were usually merchants
4.
Bottom line: it became more MORE
or LESS democratic
(circle one)
B.
Phase
2 – “urban nobility”
1.
marriage
of urban merchants with rural nobles
2.
Citizenship
in the commune now meant…
a.
Property
qualification
b.
Years
of residence in the city
c.
Social
connections
d.
Bottom line: it became more MORE
or LESS democratic
C.
Phase
3 – rise of the popolo
1.
the
people revolt violently
2.
republics set up in various
cities (Florence, Genoa, etc.)
3.
popolo control was
temporary and they failed b/c…
a.
popolo excluded classes below them
b.
they
could not maintain order
4.
Bottom line: it became more MORE
or LESS democratic
D.
Phase
4 – signori and oligarchies
1.
signori = one person despots; oligarchy = rule by
a handful of men
2.
often
held a republican constitution or government on paper
3.
1422,
Venice population was 84,000 with 200 men in power
4.
courts
– held by despots and oligarchs; the courts flaunted wealth
5.
Bottom line: it became more MORE
or LESS democratic
IV.
Disunity
of Italy
A.
The
Big Five City-States
1.
Venice—trade
center
2.
Milan—despotism
(rule by an autocrat, one person)
3.
Florence—Medici
family controlled it
4.
Papal
States—Roman families controlled during the Babylonian Captivity; Pope later
reasserts his power thanks to Cesare Borgia, Machiavelli’s hero in The
Prince
5.
Naples—old-fashioned
6.
balance-of-power
was purposely maintained between city-states; this gave rise to modern day
embassies
7.
Girolamo Savonarola—friar who attacked (1) immorality, (2)
Medici rule, (3) Pope’s corruption; Savonarola is popular then later detested
and executed
8.
City-state
squabbling invited foreign meddling…here comes France
a.
Charles
VIII invades Italy and takes Florence, Rome, Naples
b.
France/Germany
team up against Venice
c.
Charles
V named Holy Roman Emperor—meaning the pope depends on him for defense
d.
Series
of French—German wars occur, usually in Italy
9.
Bottom line: Disunity makes Italy vulnerable and home
to years of war