INTRODUCTION While the Medici family was predominant, Florence became the cultural center of Europe and also became the cradle of new Humanism. BACKGROUND The Medici were possibly the richest family in Italy. In the 13th Century the family began to gain wealth. At the end of the thirteenth century, the family's wealth increased when one of the members of the family served as gonfalero (bearer of a high ceremonial office). In the fourteenth century their wealth increased again.
Italian city-states like Venice and Genoa were located on the trade routes that linked the rest of Western Europe with the East; it is therefore “no coincidence that both these city-states became active trading centres”. Trade enabled many new ideas and goods to spread throughout Europe, which subsequently led to a new kind of economy. During the Middle Ages people traded goods for other goods, but during the Renaissance people began using coins to buy goods which created a money economy. Therefore, many craftsmen, merchants, and bankers became more important in society. Craftsmen produced goods that merchants traded all over Europe.
De’ Medici Family The House of Medici was one of the most significant Florentine political and banking dynasties during the European Renaissance. Later it became a powerful and prominent royal house under Cosimo de’ Medici in the Republic of Florence. Originally from the Mugello region in the Tuscan countryside, the family’s power gradually rose until it was able to found the Medici Bank in 1397. It was the largest and most respected bank during its time, and eventually made the House of Medici the wealthiest family in Europe (Jurdjevig 1). The Medici family also had an impact in the history of the Catholic Church with four Popes from the Medici heritage.
These are wines that represent more than quality, they embody a people, a culture, and a country. Yet, while their tradition has withstood the tests of time thus far, times are changing; climate is changing. Will the impacts of climate change alter the continuation of this tradition, or do the grapevines grown as deeply in the soil as the wine flows in the blood of the people? The cultivation of wine has been known for millennia, first dating back to the Mesopotamians in 6000 B.C. ; but it was the Romans in Italy who truly popularized wine and are responsible for the richly celebrated and vastly diversified beverage that is hailed to date.
The large farms that were taken of by the wealthy had up to thousands of slaves each. Many slaves were out of homes and out on the streets and had no job, while many slaves did wool processing as a form of work. Rome had many imports but very little exports. Their imports range from gold to
The Romans were especially successful in building an economically sound empire. As one would think, production is the first step in the process of making a profit. The Romans had a large variety of items that they produced. Examples include iron, lead, leather, marble, olive oil, perfumes, purple dye, silk, silver, spices, timber, tin and wine. They were able to produce most of these items due to their large range of labor, from slave farmers to wealthy merchants.
Some Medici were Renaissance humanists in their own right. More important, they became patrons supporting some of the greatest art and scholarship of the entire Renaissance. The Medici family became prosperous through banking. They had branches throughout Europe in London, Naples, Cologne, Geneva, Lyons, Basel, Avignon, Bruges, Antwerp, Lubeck, Bolgna, Rome, Pisa, and Venice. Cosimo de’ Medici was the de facto ruler of Florence from 1434 to 1464, and was also an astute banker and a highly cultivated man of letters.
Ancient History Assignment: Archaic Greece Evaluate the development and use of trade in Archaic Greece. During the Archaic Period of Greek history, trade was a primary feature of the Greek world. Succeeding territorial expansion, a swell in the population, and transformation in transportation, supplies could be bought and sold in a division of the Mediterranean which had their basis in an entirely different and far-away region. Following these changes, manufactured goods and other supplies were now available not only to the Greeks, but the export of characteristic goods such as wine and pottery allowed the spread of Greek culture to the outside world. The findings of pottery and valuable goods such as gold and copper found significantly far from their origin of manufacture certifies the trade network which existed between the Greek mainland, Egypt, Asia Minor, and islands such as Crete, Cyprus and the Cyclades.
However, due to the industrial revolution, factory owners and those involved with business had the new wealth of Britain. This new wealthy middle class wanted a say in the running of the country, they argued that because they created a lot of the country’s wealth that they deserved a say in how the country is run. The working class was becoming more politically aware. This ways due to the development of the railways giving them access to political awareness. They thought that as the wealth creators of Britain that they also deserved a say in British politics.
However, peasants were heavily taxed, thus losing much wealth. The peasants were not to engage in trade and luxury as their role was to live and devote themselves to farming. Craftspeople: Craftspeople were commoners that used