A meandering mind…

These are the notes of the very first class of the module Enforcing the Renaissance. As the class took the form of a discussion provoked by questions the following notes are put together as coherently as possible with profuse apologies for the fairly disjointed nature of their presentation!

The class began with the question of, “What is the Renaissance”. And we replied with a number of answers: The flourishing of the Arts and their use as a medium for communication, The Papacy: it’s recovery from the Papal Schism and the genuine reforms under the popes of this period that began to take place, a return to classical learning. And most importantly, the idea of order, of structure.

The idea of the Church in all of this was important too and we dealt with that in two ways. The Papacy and the Church of the people. At this time the Papacy was almost a self supporting institution, very much like hereditary monarchies. Many paintings exist of Popes with their offspring and nephews which celebrated the idea of family. These sort of paintings and images celebrating the family were normally confined to the nobility and aristocracy. And here lies an important connection between one and the other. The hierarchy of the papacy of this time were nobles. Important people. The universal dynastic values shared by aristocracies around Europe at this time were the same as those shared by the church at this time. As we mentioned above the idea of Order was important at this time. A hierarchy of thought was promoted. Thomas of Aquinus promoted the idea of Religious Order. And during the Renaissance this re ordering and restructuring of thought and order would be important for the consolidation of state development to whom the idea of order and structure and disseminated from the church.

The Church of the people was next on our discussion list. We isolated the aspect of the church which ordinary people were most likely to notice and would be obvious to them. Baptism, Marriages and Deaths. These would be the main occasions where the local clergy would become directly involved in the lives of the ordinary. From a social point of view the church itself was also the focus of a community. It was central. The church building itself and all around it was a testament to this emphasis on a persons place, especially an ordinary lowly persons place in society. The graves of all those of important were buried or marked on the walls of the church, on the floor itself, often with images of the deceased. A reminder to all concerned as they walked up to the church the growing importance of those who had gone before them. Churches also was a place of community as well as a symbol. It was where people met, things discussed, and wives met.

Then this idea of Order inspired by the church and discovery of classical texts inspired was expanded and discussed further:

This order allowed for the creation of a new geo-political landscape and the emergence of states in what we would more closely identify with as a modern state. Power centralised in the focus of state. The good of all. Prior to this centralisation and consolidation of power many small kingdoms existed on the premise that whoever could raise the most gold and men would be the most powerful. This method of kingship was often bloody and always short. And soon a thing happened which we refer to as a monopoly of violence. Often under ecclesiastical sanction. Whoever had the best weapons, accesses to more money won. And with the advent of gunpowder the way of fighting changed. Fortresses other then the greatest citadels were vulnerable now to canon fire. So the protection of a greater power was necessary, and so the birth of the great states begin. France, Spain, England and the Holy Roman Empire developed most from this. France in particular benefiting hugely from all this. With this ever increasing expansion of state the control of armies became the domain of state. And with this greater area of control came the need to enforce your rule. This coincided with the rediscovery of the classical texts of the Emperor Justinian and the Law codes. The armies of the state kept the peace and the justice. The courts and the law defined the boundaries of this justice. The growth of these modern states also required money. The petty feuds which raised money previously for smaller kingdoms would no longer do. Trade systems and taxation was then put in place to raise revenue for the state and with that the concept of representation and the birth of nominal parliaments to assist the monarch in their rule. With the growing power of state the symbolism and display of state expanded too. Palaces and hunting lodges, the escapes of royals began springing up all over countries. The structuring and growth of the monarchs day and life became an emerging prison. The king of France famously said “Je suis le stat” which has a sinister side and alludes to the increasing constraints and restrictions of being a renaissance king. The growth of the courts too is an example of the growth of the order and structure in the governing of states. With people within these courts, favourites of a monarch, becoming points of contact for those outside of court to have the monarchs ear. The growing importance of the monarch as the head of state, with the obvious connections of the divine right of kings showing the church connection, also had an impact on the law. And the rights of the family. The family unit diminished. With the eldest son becoming the sole benefactor of a mans estate at every level of society. The idea of prima genita. And with this growing emphasis on the first born the roll of the church in the administration of society grows too. As Baptisms are where a child first makes contact with both the church and with state as their birth and baptism is recorded by the church. With this the beginning of record keeping can be traced. This record keeping via Latin also allows the development of libraries, education, administration and the law of contracts to develop and with them capitalism and the ability of a state to make money.

So from all this information we can see the growth of order, structure and states. But it is also important to be aware that there were forces working against the unity of state and this new order.

• Chronic crop failure: Climate change during this period led to wide scale often persistent famine. Which led to social unrest in the population as well as a heavy death toll reducing revenue and the states ability to maintain control through it’s armies and administration.
• Plague/Disease: This devastated Europe during the Renaissance period with 30/40% of the population of Europe being wiped out.
• Invasions: There were a number of invasions during this period too which all led to chaos, destruction and fear. The Mongol Hordes, Ottomans, Moors. The Mediterranean becomes unsafe and a real threat to commerce and social order. It also creates a previous relatively equal balance of power further north to states such as France and England.
• Printing: This led to the widespread dissemination of information. Which undermined the grasp of the state and church. Dissenting ideas causing political collapse across states such as France and the Holy Roman Empire.