The Renaissance
The Renaissance was a period of renewed interest in art, science, and classical learning that began in Italy in the 14th century and spread across Europe, bridging the medieval and modern eras.
Emerging first in Florence, the Renaissance was fueled by renewed interest in ancient Greek and Roman texts, wealthy patronage from families like the Medici, and growing trade wealth across Italian city-states.
The period produced some of history's greatest artists and thinkers, including Leonardo da Vinci, Michelangelo, and Raphael, alongside scientific advances from figures like Galileo, and the invention of the printing press by Johannes Gutenberg around 1440.
The Renaissance gradually gave way to the Age of Exploration and the Protestant Reformation, fundamentally transforming European society, religion, and intellectual life by the 17th century.