1. Italy occupies a special geographical position.
In the long history before the opening of the new air route, the Mediterranean Sea has always been a link between East and West. Italy is located in the center of the Mediterranean sea route, and such a favorable geographical position plays a very important role in Italy's development of overseas trade. The economic development of capitalism needs not only the domestic market, but also the expansion of overseas markets. The seeds of capitalism were born around Italy. Although it has not yet formed a world market, its favorable conditions provide convenience for northern cities to develop overseas trade. /kloc-in the 0/4th century, handicrafts, commerce and banking in northern cities such as Genoa, Venice and Florence developed. Second, the influence of historical tradition.
Italy is the birthplace of ancient Roman civilization, so it directly inherited it. In Europe, the first two countries to make gold coins were Florence and Genoa. The reason why these two city-states made gold coins is not only related to their developed economy and trade, but also related to their mastery of the traditional coin-making technology in ancient Rome. Therefore, the traditional influence has promoted the development of Italy.
Third, the city is developed in industry and commerce.
Since the Germanic invasion, the Italian peninsula has been in a state of separatism for a long time. This chaotic state promoted the rise of the city republic. The rise of some Italian cities was earlier than that of medieval cities in western Europe, as early as the eighth century. By 12 century, many cities in northern Italy, such as Milan, Dova, Genoa, Venice, etc. , has appeared. Judging from the earlier Renaissance cities in northern Italy, these cities are all developed in industry and commerce. At the beginning of the 9th century, Venice had established trade relations with Egypt, Greece and Sicily, and had a strong fleet. Its merchants often sell fur and silk from the East, as well as pavia and cremona. A century later, Venice's commercial relations expanded to many coastal and inland areas, such as pavia, Vicenza, Chezena, Lavaine and other cities. From the end of 1 1, Venice actually monopolized the traffic rights of the Eurasian provinces still under the control of the rulers of Constantinople, and Venetian merchants ruled the Mediterranean for 30 years in the late Middle Ages. Florence is the largest handicraft city in northern Italy, and its prosperity depends on three economic activities, namely commerce, industry and banking. In 1306- 1308, there were 300 workshops in Florence, which produced more than 10 pieces of wool products every year. By the 1970s of 15, Florence had become the center of European wool production, and the early capitalist production relations had been formed in wool production. The three major monetary capitalists in Western Europe-the Baldi family, the Peruz family and the Aziuri family-are all in Florence.
Fourth, the rise of the civil class.
With the rapid prosperity of urban industry and commerce, the Italian citizen class is growing day by day and has become a social force that independently dominates Italian cities and countries. 1266, Florence was divided into nobles and civilians, and the "citizens' meeting" composed of 100 emerging industrial and commercial citizens had legislative power and supervisory administrative power. 1293, the Florence Chamber of Commerce and Industry overthrew the feudal aristocracy and gained the political power of the city republic. 13-14th century, Italy formed such a basic political pattern: the northern part retained the remnants of the German emperor, and the central and southern parts were within the sphere of influence of the Pope, but most of the real power of the city was in the hands of elected judges, and the political power of the city was not in the hands of imperial agents, governors, representatives of the Pope or officials appointed by the King of Naples. Especially in the northern Italian city Republic, which has gained full autonomy, the citizen class has basically mastered the state power of the city. Therefore, although citizens are the product of the emergence and development of the city, it was not until the end of 13 that the Florence city-state Republic excluded the nobles from the city Council by law, and the citizen class was formally formed as a relatively independent political force. 14th century, "Florence, Lucca, Siena? Our government is an aristocrat of the people and is excluded from power. "(2). While the strength of the civil class is growing and the political status is constantly improving, the civic consciousness is awakening. a sense of citizenship
A prominent manifestation of awakening is the frequent rise of folk heresy. Since 12 century, Florence has become the center of pagan activities. There are many signs that it is time to refine and sublimate the ideology of the citizen class and build a new culture. V. Cultural needs of the citizen class
As an independent political force, the emerging citizen class has stepped onto the historical stage, and urgently needs a cultural and ideological system different from the feudal tradition to serve its political status and economic activities. According to the needs of the times and classes, they absorb reasonable elements from traditional culture and strive to build a new culture. 1. Establish secular schools and develop secular education.
As a pioneer in the new era, the citizen class must have high quality in order to adapt to its new responsibilities. Frequent industrial and commercial trade needs a variety of intellectual talents and functional institutions, and the production, supply and sale of commodities are issues that must be contacted and dealt with in economic life. Only people with certain culture and technology can better adapt to social and economic life. Driven by this social demand, various schools came into being. /kloc-in the 20th century, the earliest universities in Europe appeared in Italy. 13-14th century. Italy has 18 universities, which is the highest in western Europe. 12- 13 century, because the initially established missionary schools mainly for training monks could not meet the cultural needs of the citizens, guild schools founded by craftsmen's associations and missionary schools founded by merchants' associations appeared in cities, which were collectively called urban schools and managed by municipal authorities. 2. Create new laws and regulations
With the development of urban industry and commerce, the relationship between commodities, money, economy and property is becoming more and more complicated, and the importance of movable property is increasing. Many new political and economic relations arising from this need to be confirmed and adjusted by laws, that is, the citizen class needs new laws, and these laws are used to confirm and protect the ownership of citizens and adjust the relationship between the citizen class and society. Italian City Regulations is the earliest city law in Western Europe, involving market management, civil law, criminal law and procedural law. 10-13rd century, Genoa, Pisa, Milan, Bologna and other cities have their own urban laws. 1 1 Around the century, the first maritime law for maintaining maritime trade in medieval western Europe was concluded in amalfi. Under the influence of its code, Pisa and Venice were incorporated into the Maritime Customary Law and the Navigation Act in 1 100 and 1255 respectively. The Conso du di Meyer Law (namely "maritime customary law"), which later replaced the Amalfi Code, can be described as a combination of Italian commercial law and maritime law. This code is widely popular in European countries and is regarded as modern international law and private international law.
The origin of law. With the changes and development of social and economic life in Italy, city law, commercial law and maritime law all need to be revised, enriched and improved. Therefore, on the basis of city law, commercial law and maritime law, Italy took the lead in "reviving" Roman law in western Europe. Because the principles in Roman law have adapted to the needs of the civil class, "in Roman law, everything that the civil class unconsciously pursued in the late Middle Ages was ready." (3) The citizen class further developed city law, commercial law and maritime law through the principles of Roman law. For example, in the Treaty of Constantinople of 1 183, Article 3 stipulates that rivers belong to public property, and their ownership belongs to the cities in Lombardy, Italy, which just quotes the principle of Roman law that navigable rivers belong to public property, and private rights only apply to the islands on both sides of the river and in the river.
3. Absorb classical culture and oriental culture
The purchase, translation and study of classical manuscripts are outstanding manifestations of the absorption of classical culture by the citizens. 1 185, the normans conquered the Greek port city of Thessaloniki and sold many books to the Italians, the number of which can be counted by ships. Citizen class
The first-class purchase of classical books cannot be simply attributed to the satisfaction of decorating the facade. Living in industrial and commercial cities, having received secular education, and trying to get rid of feudal traditions, the citizens have gained the ability to understand and appreciate classical works more deeply. Moreover, they also hope to find a culture from classical culture that is more in line with their interests and attitude towards life than medieval culture. It is through purchasing, translating and studying classical books and manuscripts that the citizen class absorbs classical culture.
All kinds of cultural factors that are integrated with secular life in this world, even transferred, copied, refined or absorbed, have the characteristics of cultural retro, which puts the Renaissance on the shell of "reviving classical culture". In the Middle Ages, the characteristics of Italy's export-oriented economy decided that it came into contact with foreign cultures earlier, and the Latin translations of Arabic works introduced through various channels brought the knowledge, ideas and thoughts of the Orientals to the Italians. In modern European languages, there are still many words from Arabic. Papermaking invented by China spread from Central Asia to Italy via Egypt and Sicily. /kloc-In the middle of the 0/5th century, several buildings in northern Italy were very large.
Florence, Venice, Milan and other cities. All imported printing techniques invented by China from Germany. Another way to absorb oriental culture is overseas travel by Italians. Tourists write down their travel notes about oriental society, which helps the citizens and even the whole society to understand and absorb oriental culture. Around the13rd century, Italian travelers to the East mainly included Kyle Poirot, John Mondicovino, Edolik and Marignolli. Their trip broadened the horizons of Italy and even westerners.
Sixth, the emergence of humanism.
Although Italy is rich in cultural heritage and resources, the Renaissance will not happen if no one can "understand" and "appreciate" these rich cultures. Only through the cultural consumption of the citizen class can Italy's rich cultural resources be developed and utilized, and the cultural products produced after the transformation provide the necessary nutrients for the Renaissance, making the Renaissance a "living water". On the basis of increasing civic awareness, with the change of the objective situation, civic scholars with secular education further absorb and digest the humanistic factors in classical culture and oriental culture, and rely on the relaxed, harmonious and active cultural market to gradually build an ideological system different from ordinary citizens, and express their social opinions and morals more clearly, comprehensively and systematically, thus cultivating the unique humanism of the civic class and basically breaking away from the Catholic theological ideological system. In Italy in the13-14th century, humanism was born and embodied in many disciplines. In literature, the first batch of secular literary works represented by Divine Comedy, songji and decameron came out. In historiography, Bruni, Guo Bo, Biondo and other first realistic historians began to investigate the role of "man" in social and historical development; In the field of art, Italian sculptor Nicola Bisano created new art based on ancient Greek sculpture. These citizens-born intellectuals have paid unprecedented attention to human values and functions, individual liberation and freedom of will, real life and human emotions. Although humanism was just born at this time, it is still immature, but it shows the rationality and inevitability of the Renaissance, a new cultural movement of the civil class with humanism as the guiding ideology in Italy.