Italian Renaissance - Russell

(Originally written August 17, 2006 in Book 7)

Well, I haven't delved into Russell's book in about two and a half weeks. It's time to get back to the basics.

Stress. What a common feeling these days.

"The Italian Renaissance"

Florence was the most cultured city in the civilized world at the time.

Florence was divided into three conflicting classes:
1) The Nobles (mainly Ghibellines)
2) The rich merchants (Guelf)
3) The small men (Guelf)

The Guelf defeated the Ghibellines in 1266.

In the 14th century the small men over powered the rich merchants.

The conflict resulted in Democracy, but the Medici family ultimately took control of Florence.

Cosimo de Medici (1389-1464) was the first of the family to dominate Florence uncontestedly.

Lorenzo the Magnificent (Cosimo's grandson) reigned from 1469-1492.

Lorenzo's son, Pietro was expelled in 1494 and a puritan sort of revival lasted in Florence until the Medici were restored in 1512.

Pope Leo X was elected in 1513. He was one of Lorenzo's sons.

The Medici family governed Florence until 1737 under the title of Grand Dukes of Tuscany.

The temporal power of the Pope increased dramatically during the Renaissance. The increase of temporal power robbed the Papacy of its spiritual authority.

Italy was dedicated to culture, but not to morality during the Renaissance.

Pope Nicholas V (1447-1455) was the first humanist Pope.

Humanism began to replace piety and orthodoxy until the sack of Rome in 1527.

Pope Leo X (1513-1521) marked a return to spiritual reformation in the Papacy. It was needed after the world popes of the Renaissance.

Naples and Milan were constantly subject to invasion by the French but were defeated by Spanish troops. Spain was closely allied with the Pope.

The Reformation, Counter-Reformation and the sack of Rome by a Protestant army in 1527 put the Italian Renaissance to an end.

The Renaissance was not a time of great philosophical growth.

The Renaissance did set up the great philosophical advance of the 17th century with two things:
1) A real interest in Plato
2) A choice between Aristotelian Scholasticism and Platonism. It broke down the rigid scholastic system.

The humanist movement was too focused on rediscovering ancient wisdom to produce any original philosophy.

The humanists disliked the way the world popes of the renaissance defiled the Church, but were too involved in the same pope's courts to initiate reform.

"The evils of papal corruption were obvious, but nothing was done about them" (Russell, 503).

Morals were low in this time, but architecture, painting and poetry prospered. Leonardo, Michelangelo and Machiavelli were produced in this time.

Machiavelli

(Originally written July 28, 2006 in Book 7)

The History of Western Philosophy
Bertrand Russell

Chapter 3 - Machiavelli

The Renaissance didn't produce any important theoretical philosophers.

Niccolò Machiavelli was an important and preeminent political philosopher of the Renaissance.  His political philosophy is empirical and scientific aimed at assigning the means to the ends. He was unconcerned as to if the ends were good or bad.

Machiavelli (1476 - 1527) was a middle class Florentine.

He opposed the Medici family and had a post in the government until they acquired power in 1512.

The Prince is his most famous work and was written in 1513. It deals with how principalities are won, governed and lost.

Machiavelli advocates that religion should play a prominent role in the State because of its cement-type quality in society, not because of its truthfulness.

He blasts the Church for two reasons:
1) The corruption undermines religious beliefs
2) It prevents the unification of Italy

He held that rulers must be cunning but must appear to be virtuous and religious.

The Discourses is a book that runs contra to The Prince and was written to please the Medici. The Discourses was written from Machiavelli's own interest.

He advocated for a political system of checks and balance.