1300 - 1600

The Italian communes employ powerful leaders

1300

The Italian communes employ powerful leaders, or signori, in a trend which leads away from oligarchy and towards princely rule

Florence becomes a centre of international finance

1320

Florence becomes a centre of international finance, with the Bardi and Peruzzi families acting as bankers to Europe's rulers

Francesco Petrarch Is Crowned Poet Laureate

1341

Many historians cite this date as the beginning of the Renaissance.

The Black Death

1347

The Black Death began ravaging Europe. Ironically, by killing a large percentage of the population, the plague improved the economy, allowing wealthy people to invest in art and display, and engage in secular scholarly study.

The death of Francesco Petrarch

1347

Francesco Petrarch, the Italian humanist and poet called the father of the Renaissance, died

Giovanni De Medici Moves To Florence

1397

Giovanni de Medici, the papal banker, headquarters his business in Florence and becomes involved in Florentine public life and patronage of the arts, laying the groundwork for the rise of his son Cosimo de Medici to power.

The Medici Bank was Founded

1397

Italian banker Giovanni de Medici founded the Medici Bank in Florence, establishing the wealth of his art-loving family for centuries to come.

The papacy returns to rome

1420

The Papacy, having been located in Avignon since 1305, returns to Rome, bringing with it the prestige and wealth necessary to rebuild the city.

Cosimo de Medici inherits the Medici bank

1429

Cosimo de Medici becomes head of the bank after his father dies, using his economic power to consolidate political power. Within five years he runs the city without question.

Lorenzo Valla exposes the donation of contastine

1440

Lorenzo Valla used textual criticism to expose the Donation of Constantine, a document which had given huge swaths of land to the Catholic church in Rome, as a forgery, one of the classic moments in European intellectual history

Lorenzo de Medici is born

1449

Lorenzo de’ Medici, Florentine statesman and patron of arts and letters. The grandson of Cosimo de’ Medici, he was the most brilliant of the Medici family.

Leonardo da Vinci is born

1452

the artist, humanist, scientist, and naturalist Leonardo da Vinci was born.

Constantinople Falls

1453

The center of the Byzantine Empire, Constantinople falls to the Ottoman Turks, provoking an exodus of Greek people and works of art and literature into the Italian city-states.

the Hundred Years War ended

1453

bringing stability to northwestern Europe. Arguably one of the key events in the Renaissance

Johannes Gutenberg published the Gutenberg Bible

1455

Johannes Gutenberg published the Gutenberg Bible, using a new printing press technology that would revolutionize European literacy.

Lorenzo De Medici Ascends To Power In Florence

1464

After Cosimo's death in 1464, his son Piero rules until his death in 1469, when power falls into the hands of Lorenzo, who rules until 1491, raising Florence to its greatest heights of the Renaissance.

Botticelli's "Primavera"

1480

Primavera is a large panel painting in tempera paint by the Italian Renaissance painter Sandro Botticelli

The Medici Are Ousted From Florence

1494

Savonarola, preaching a return to simple faith, leads a popular uprising against the Medici, who are forced to flee. Savonarola's rule is short-lived, and he is burned as a heretic in 1495.

Leonardo da Vinci's "Last Supper"

1498

Last Supper, one of the most famous artworks in the world, painted by Leonardo da Vinci

Leonardo da Vinci paints the mona lisa

1505

Mona Lisa, oil painting on a poplar wood panel by Leonardo da Vinci, probably the world’s most famous painting.

The Reformation Movement Begins

1517

Martin Luther posts his 95 Theses on the door of a church in Wittenburg, Germany, igniting a movement which provokes an enormous split in the Roman Catholic Church.

Leonardo da Vinci dies

1519

Leonardo, perhaps the most remarkable individual of the Renaissance, dies in France, having established himself as a painter, sculptor, engineer, and scientist.

Pope Clement VII Ascends To The Throne

1523

Pope Clement VII comes to power in difficult times, following Pope Leo X. He soon proves himself an incompetent politician, and his poor decisions lead to the sack of Rome.

King Henry VIII begins Protestant Anglican Church

1536

Anglicanism is a worldwide body of Christians responding to God's revelation through Jesus Christ. Anglicanism brings together the authority of the Bible

Elizabeth I was crowned

1558

Elizabeth was the daughter of King Henry VIII and his second wife, Anne Boleyn.

William Shakespeare is born

1564

William Shakespeare was an English poet, playwright, and actor, widely regarded as the greatest writer in the English language and the world's pre-eminent dramatist. He is often called England's national poet and the “Bard of Avon”.

Pope Gregory XIII established the Gregorian calendar

1582

which remains in use, with some modifications, to this day.

the first oratorio

1600

A performance in the Oratory in Rome, with music by Emilio de' Cavalieri, is in effect the first oratorio