P. Saari – Renaissance and Reformation (6 Volumes)

Автор: P. Saari
Название книги: Renaissance and Reformation (6 Volumes)
Формат: PDF
Жанр: Прочая историческая литература
Качество: Изначально компьютерное, E-book

Renaissance and Reformation: Almanac provides a wide range
of historical information on the period in European history
between the mid-1300s and the early 1600s. The two-volume
set explores both the Italian and Northern Renaissance
as well as the Protestant and Catholic Reformations. Arranged
in fourteen subject chapters, Renaissance and Reformation: Almanac
includes topics such as the rise of European monarchies,
Martin Luther and his role in the Protestant Reformation,
Italian and Northern Renaissance culture, science during
the Renaissance, education and training, women in Renaissance
society, and daily life.
Additional Features
Renaissance and Reformation: Almanac includes numerous
sidebars, some focusing on people associated with the Renaissance
and Reformation era, others taking a closer look at
pivotal events. More than one hundred black-and-white illustrations
enliven the text, while cross-references are made to
people or events discussed in other chapters. Both volumes
contain a timeline, a glossary, research and activity ideas, a
bibliography, and a cumulative index providing access to the
subjects discussed in Renaissance and Reformation: Almanac.

Renaissance and Reformation: Almanac presents an overview
of the most significant revolution in Western history. Beginning
with the Italian Renaissance in the mid-1300s and
lasting until the end of the Protestant and Catholic Reformations
in the early 1600s, this revolution essentially turned the
European world upside down. By the close of the seventeenth
century, unprecedented changes had taken place in politics, religion,
science, economics, education, the arts, and society
throughout Europe. Scholars and teachers are still intrigued by
this historical period, but the twenty-first century student
might wonder, “Why should I want to read about the Renaissance
and Reformation? How could anything that happened
hundreds of years ago possibly be relevant to my life?” The answer
to the first question is that it was a fascinating time, filled
with dramatic events, interesting people, and great achievements.
The answer to the second question is that we can understand
more about the world today by studying this era,
which historians consider the beginning of the modern age.
The Renaissance produced many innovations that are
now ordinary facts of modern life. Among them was the printing press, which facilitated mass communication and became
the first step in advanced information technology. Of
even greater importance was the scientific revolution led by
astronomers who used the newly perfected telescope to make
observations of celestial bodies. Their discoveries paved the
way for present-day knowledge about the universe. Renaissance
scientists pioneered modern medicine, introducing
chemical-based drugs and acquiring new knowledge about
human anatomy. Navigators and explorers led the way for
European settlement of the Americas, expanding the borders
of the Western world to the other side of the globe. The Renaissance
brought the rise of the middle class and the emergence
of feminist thinking, which became hallmarks of Western
society. Economic innovations included capitalism and
global banking, which are now the basis of the world economy.
The Protestant Reformation led to the founding of the
Protestant faiths that still exist today, and the Catholic Reformation
established Catholic Church policies that remained in
place for more than four hundred years. Finally, the humancentered
view of the world promoted by Italian humanists established
individualism and secularism as dominant themes
in modern Western culture.
The Renaissance and Reformation also set in motion
political and social tensions that had a profound impact during
the modern era. European settlement of the Americas ultimately
resulted in the destruction of native cultures. The
first worldwide war took place in Europe in the seventeenth
century, setting the stage for conflicts that involved all the
major world powers in the twentieth century. Anti-Semitism
steadily increased, as did the expansion of the African slave
trade: two developments that had tragic consequences in the
nineteenth and twentieth centuries. And throughout the
three hundred years of the Renaissance and Reformation period,
Europeans in the West and Muslims in the East became
increasingly bitter enemies. The result was a widening gap between
East and West that has continued into the present day.
Renaissance and Reformation: Almanac traces all of
these developments, and more, with the goal of establishing
a direct link between our twenty-first century world and the
not-so-distant past.