Christopher Columbus lands on San Salvador island in the modern-day Bahamas.
1504 1436
Filippo Brunelleschi completes the dome of the cathedral in Florence.
1400 1420 1440 1453
The Ottoman (Turkish) capture of the city of Constantinople (modern-day Istanbul) causes many Greek scholars to leave the city and move further west.
1455
The Gutenberg Bible becomes the first printed book.
Michelangelo sculpts David; Dürer paints The Adoration of the Magi.
1460 1480 1500
The Last Supper is painted by Leonardo da Vinci.
Vasco de Gama, the Portuguese explorer, successfully finds his way to India by sea.
1505
Da Vinci paints Mona Lisa.
1509 Henry VIII
succeeds to the throne of England.
1
Michelangelo’s sculpture, David,
weighs 5,660 kg which is the same as approximately 80 adult males
2
Da Vinci only slept for 20 minutes every four hours
3
Shakespeare introduced almost 3,000 words into the English language
As you work through this chapter, you will: 1. Understand the causes of the Renaissance and the reasons for its beginnings in Italy. 2. Explore the significant changes that occurred in the way people understood art, literature and science compared to the Middle Ages.
3. Identify key personalities associated with those changes and their most noteworthy achievements.
4. Consider the cultural impact of the Renaissance on other countries around Europe in the areas of the arts and science.
5. Evaluate how the legacy of the Renaissance caused changes in the wider society.