There have been many political crises over the centuries where the people of a country have risen against inequality, demanding rights and a fair chance at citizenship. The Roman Republic, the Italian city-states, and the French Revolution all share common themes of equality. In Italy, after the beginning of the 13th century, dual government systems became necessary in many city-states to satisfy the guildsmen, who were tired of a despotic régime under the old aristocratic families.
The 12th century had been a period of control for the aristocrats, who held every title in the government offices of their city, and held power over the rest of the city’s inhabitants. It was the nobility who held the power because holding office required wealth and freedom. Many Italian city-states became wealthy and more independent, and by the 13th century the commoners were acting upon the socio-political injustice that they faced. They, known as the popolo, wanted to participate in the commune, the government formed by the nobility of the city. Had the noble families not agreed to share the governance, the city itself would be plunged into warring factions, each vying for political dominance. Four city-states in particular created oligarchies in the middle of the 14th century to retain their wealth and independence: Florence, Siena, Rome, and Genoa. These city-states, however, were not consistently oligarchic – the nobility did not give up its authority so easily, and there was always a power-play between the two social parties.
In the early 14th century, Florentine government was controlled by the nobility who had slowly been corrupting the city and emptying it of wealth. By 1340, the popolo was in conflict against the nobles, seeking a shared...
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“I’ll be out of here and away from all you knaves for one time anyway, as not a month will pass before you’ll see whether I’m nobody or a somebody.” The story of Bianco Alfani reflected the nature of 14th century Florentine society where, as Alfani remarked, the election to public office could make or destroy a person. In late 14th century and early 15th century Florence, decreased population and expanding commerce provided a favorable environment for ambitious individuals. The real life examples of Buonaccorso Pitti and Gregorio Dati demonstrated the positive role of ambition in Florence. Pitti, a nobleman had an extremely successful career, partaking in military campaigns, holding public office in Florence and being an ambassador to foreign courts. Gregorio Dati, the grandson of purse venders, engaged in commerce, rising in social standing which culminated with his election to public office. Holding office was a definitive sign of success and recognition in Florence. In contrast was the tale Bianco Alfani, a deemed man unworthy of office. As told by Piero Veneziano, Alfani was the chief jailor in Florence who was duped into believing he had been named captain of the town of Norcia. Alfani publicly made a fool of himself, spending all his money and creating a great fanfare over his supposed appointment. Comparing the lives of Pitti and Dati to the story of Bianco Alfani illustrates how economic and social change in 14th century Florence produced a culture centered on reputation and commerce. For men like Pitti and Dati, who flourished within the constraints of Florentine society, their reward was election to office, a public mark of acceptance and social standing. Those who were ambitious but failed to abide by the values o...
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By the time of the 12th century, cities such as Milan had a government loosely based on the old Roman regime. This was a three tier system consisting of Captains - the higher nobility and clergy; the vassals- the lower nobility and an increasing middle class formed of merchants and land leasers; and the common people such as the artisans and peasants. A consul was elected to govern the commune and was re-elected every year. This consul was elected by all three orders not just the elite. This is what existed for self-government in the eleventh and twelfth century.
Through the Middle Ages, society was divided into three social classes: the clergy, the nobles, and the peasants. However, as people entered into the Renaissance, these classes changed. The nobles during these times started to lose a lot of income, however, the members of the older nobility kept their lands and titles. On into the Renaissance, the nobles came back to dominate society and w...
During the late 1800's Italy became one of the most overcrowded countries in Europe. Many Italians began to consider the possibility of leaving Italy to escape the new low wages and high taxes. For centuries the entire Italian peninsula was divided into quarreling states, with foreign powers often controlling several states. In this chaotic situation, the feudal system ruled above the economic system, leaving money only in the hands of a select few (Wikepedia.com, 2007).
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John F. Padgett (Ph.D., Michigan, 1978) is a Professor of Political Science at the University of Chicago. Currently he conducts research in the related areas of organizational invention and of state and market co-evolution, mostly in the context of Renaissance Florence but also through agent-based modeling. In the past, Padgett has published in the topics of organization theory, social network analysis, federal budgeting, plea bargaining, and stochastic processes. He is a specialist in Italian Renaissance humanism, with a particular focus on the humanist contribution to the development of modern historiography.
Florence during Lorenzo de Medici’s time was a city of contradictions: artistic brilliance sprouted from the squalor of the city’s crowed streets and autocrats ruled over republican institutions. Florence fostered both the grandeur of Botticelli’s Primavera and the harsh realism of Machiavelli’s the prince. Lorenzo de Medici, the de facto ruler of the city, best embodied such contradictions. He was both a Machiavelli, using menace, betrayal, cajoles and schemes to exert power, and a Michelangelo, a poet and artist stimulating the onset of the Renaissance.
Baxandall, Michael. “Conditions of Trade.” Painting and Experience in Fifteenth-century Italy. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1988.
During this period of Italian history, Catholicism was the dominant religion, and reigned supreme among others. Advancement in the Catholic faith was used as a means to secure political power in a divided region. With religion and politics being strongly interconnected, the Pope was often seen as the most influential political f...
When the people of Rome freed themselves from the shackles of their tyrannical monarchy in approximately 509 BCE, in its place a republic took hold, supposedly one which would give a better life for the citizens of Rome. The actuality of the early days of the republic, however, was an increase in patrician power, but no equal increase in the plebeian power. This difference in fortunes led to a period of instability in early Rome known as the ‘conflict of the orders’, characterised by a mistrust between the two social classes within Rome, and resulting in a slow-moving concession of power towards the plebeian class. In this short essay I want to look closely at the first of three secessions that the plebeians threatened in order to achieve their aims towards a fairer society. To do this the essay will be split into three sections; the first highlighting the position of the orders within Roman society immediately following the end of the Roman monarchy, the second examining the concession that had been made through that secession and the third briefly looking at what more needed to be done.
The Italian and northern European Renaissance have many similarities since they shared cultural and artistic influence; both locations had differences in social and political structure, as well as contrasting religious beliefs which lead unique concepts in each area. The word Renaissance is derived from the Italian word for rebirth. Italy began to focus on the classical period again after the “1000 years of darkness” during the Middle Ages. They lived around the ruin of what use to be the greatest empire in the world full of culture. The 1000 years of darkness refers to a period when the progression of culture and art reached a halt due to the Black Death as well as a feudalistic Europe. The Italians were able to re-educate themselves because manuscripts of Greek and Roman literature had been kept in the monasteries and church libraries. The Renaissance provided great cultural change, economic incent and modernization from the medieval time. This is mostly relevant within the elite class because of their interest in antiquity. During the 1500’s Northern Europe enters their “rebirth” through Italian guidance. This was possible because of the flow of information and ideas through a well-developed trading system through out all of Europe. Italy’s failure to unite under one ruler, unlike England, France and Spain, lead to many of the city-states to be taken over by other rulers also helped spread the new ideas that were formed through antique ideas. The Italian Renaissance occurred during the 15th century through the 17th century (1400-1600) while the Northern Renaissance began in the 16th century.
If civic humanism was the idea that there would be no monarchy and that the state would be ruled by the people, ultimately there must be some area of concentrated power. Leonardo Bruni attempted to answer this question with his statement that “the people are lord of everything.” He sought for the constitution to depict the whole-body citizen to be the enacting power. Because the citizens elected officials from each region of the city and each socio-economic background and these elected officials were held accountable, then it was the people of the city who were ultimately making the decisions that impacted the entire city-state. It was debated in the renaissance whether the republic should have a wide inclusive government or a restricted civic participation and ultimately the Florentines believed it should be a wide, inclusive government known as the governo