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Anonymous-ess

1/9/13

AP Euro

Pope Leo X Paper

Time Period Introduction The Renaissance started around the 14th Century and went until about the 17th Century, and is often argued to be a bridge between the middle ages and the modern era. Beginning in Italy, the Renaissance was a cultural movement that later spread to the rest of Europe. The influence of the Renaissance was felt in almost all aspects including literature, philosophy, art, music, politics, science, and religion. In a political aspect, the urban city-states of the Italian Renaissance were the first nations to see the importance of diplomacy. Scholars of the time period studied diplomacy, with Lorenzo de' Medici being a master of it. Furthermore, the citystates of the Italian Renaissance were among the first nations to abolish the feudal structures that were so widespread throughout Europe (22). In an economical aspect, the Renaissance saw the foreshadowing of some of many modern institutions. In addition, in the case of the Italy, it was an urban, capitalist society where a part of social status was determined by wealth. This rapidly growing and advancing society led other nations to model certain aspects of their own economies on the models of the Italian city-states (22). In a social aspect, the Renaissance in more cases than not led to the increase of wealth to the general public. This was in part due to the Bubonic Plague, serving the roll as a massive layoff, and in part to the printing press which allowed a larger production of books. In an intellectual aspect, the Renaissance allowed for the mass public easier access to books, encouraging academia. In addition the emergence of enlightened thinkers and artists such as Leonardo da Vinci, Michelangelo, and Raphael gave rise to massive cultural expansion. In an Artistic aspect, the Renaissance saw the change in the style of paintings, and artists' portrayal of people. Masaccio for example, with his painting, "Expulsion from the Garden of Eden", depicted a naked and distraught Adam and Eve (24). This painting had a powerful and

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very expressive image of the human form, while using the relatively new, but rapidly being adopted method, of adding dimension to the painting by the use of shade and light. This would later be further developed by Leonardo da Vinci in his own works of art. These aspects were largely influenced by humanists who sought to create a citizenry able to speak and write with clarity. Humanism was the scholarly study of the Latin and Greek classics and of the ancient Church Fathers both for its own sake and in the hope of a rebirth of ancient norms and values (16). Humanists advocated a liberal arts program of study that embraced grammar, poetry, history, politics, and moral philosophy. The first humanists were orators and poets. They wrote original literature in both the classical and the vernacular languages, inspired by and modeled on the newly discovered works of the ancients (26). The unique thinking of the humanists was one of the many key factors in the change of many of the aspects of human life. The other main factor lay in the Church. More specifically in the growing corruption of the church brought about by many factors. The biggest of which is the corruption of the Pope, and in his actions. Pope Julius II was born in 1443 and was Pope from 1503-1513, putting him right around the same time that the Renaissance started to accelerate. Pope Julius II was aptly nicknamed both the "The Fearsome Pope" and "The Warrior Pope", for his Machiavellian tactics. He was also nicknamed "The Renaissance Pope" for his support of the artists of that time. Artists such as Michelangelo, Raphael, and Bramante were at the height of their careers during this time, and all contributed to projects in the Vatican under Julius II's patronage (8). The Renaissance was a time of learning. Whether it be to learn a new artistic method or to learn how to write. During the time of the Renaissance, the ideal man would attempt to know as much as is possible about every subject. This would make the ideal well-rounded man or, "Renaissance Man".

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Timeline of Critical Renaissance Events 1348- 1350: The Black Death One of the most devastating pandemics in human history, killing between 75 million and 200 million people. The Black Death didn't cause the Renaissance, but contributed to the start of it. While it may not seem like it, the deaths of millions could be viewed as a benefit. Most of the people before the Black Death were only serfs, but after the plague the survivors found that the skills and labor they could provide were in greater demand. This led to the negotiation of better wages, and opened up skilled laboring to new classes of people (2). 1378 - 1417: The Western Schism The Western Schism was a split within the Catholic Church, between two men who claimed to be pope simultaneously. The resolution came from the Council of Constance in 1414 whom secured the resignations of antipope John XXIII and the successor in Rome of Innocent VII, Pope Gregory XII. Furthermore, the council excommunicated the claimant who refused to step down, Avignon Pope Benedict XIII (23). 1450- Invention of the Printing Press The printing press was a very early device for printing ink onto a print medium such as paper or cloth. It applies pressure to the chosen medium that rests on an inked surface, transferring the ink to the medium (10). The

A Printing Press from 1811

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machine is fairly simple, but served as one of the biggest "bridges" connecting the Renaissance to the Modern Era. Before the invention of the printing press, printed materials were in short supply, including bibles. Luther's 95 Theses were posted after the invention of the Printing Press, making their distribution easier. This ability to mass produce books on a previously unheard of scale allowed the culture of the Renaissance to skyrocket. 1452- 1519 Leonardo da Vinci Leonardo da Vinci was an enlightened thinker of the Italian Renaissance. He was exceptional in seemingly every field, but is most well known for his paintings and inventions. This broad area of study combined with his genius, made him into something of an embodiment of the human ideal of the Renaissance. At the time of Leonardo's youth, Florence was the center of Christian Humanistic thought. As a result, Leonardo's paintings reflected the rapid change in the style of paintings and the change in the painting techniques (18).

Leonardo da Vinci
1503- Julius II becomes Pope (8) 1513- Leo X becomes Pope (9)

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October 31, 1517- Martin Luther Posts his 95 Theses By one account, it is believed that Luther nailed his 95 Theses to the door of the All Saints' Church in Wittenberg. In Luther's 95 Theses, Luther made three main points. The first main point that Luther made was that the selling of indulgences to finance the building of St. Peter's was wrong. Luther begged the question, "Why doesn't the Pope build the basilica of St. Peter's out of his own money?" He made the claim that Luther would do better to sell St. Peter's and use it to give more money to the poor folk. That would be an improvement over selling indulgences to afford its construction. The second main point that Luther made was that the Pope has no power over Purgatory. He made the point that if the Pope does have power to release anyone from Purgatory, then why doesn't he abolish Purgatory by letting everyone out? The third main point that Luther made was that buying indulgences gives people a false sense of security and endangers their salvation. 1521- Excommunication of Luther Pope Leo X was born on December 11, 1475 and was Pope from 1513 until his death in 1521. Leo X is most well known for granting indulgences to those who donated to reconstruct St. Peter's Basilica, the challenging of Luther's 95 Theses, and the excommunication of Luther. Pope Leo X's predecessor, Julius II, commissioned the destruction and rebuilding of St. Peter's Basilica, but didn't see its completion. In 1505, Julius made a decision to demolish the ancient basilica

Pope Leo X

and replace it with a monumental structure to house his

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enormous tomb, thus making himself seem more important in the popular imagination. When Pope Leo X became Pope in 1513 he needed money to continue work on St. Peter's Basilica. So, he issued out indulgences to donors to the reconstruction of St. Peter's Basilica. The combined efforts of Pope Leo X and other Popes and architects over the next 120 years resulted in the present building. Luther saw the "selling" of indulgences as corruption within the papacy. The result of which was Luther's writing of the 95 Theses, posted on October 31, 1517, in which Luther protests against the clerical abuses, but especially against the sale of indulgences. Pope Leo X was accustomed to reformers and heretics, and over the next three years deployed a series of papal theologians and envoys against Luther, which served only to harden the reformer's antipapal theology (5). To start, Dominican theologian Sylvester Mazzolini made a draft of a heresy case against Luther, whom Leo then summoned to Rome. After the fact, Elector Frederick persuaded the Pope to have Luther examined at Augsburg, where the Imperial Diet was held. There, in October of 1518, Luther informed the papal legate Cardinal Cajetan that he did not consider the papacy part of the biblical Church. The hearings eventually dissolved into a shouting match. Luther's confrontation of the Church, combined with his writing of the 95 Theses, cast him out as an enemy of the pope. Cajetan's instructions originally were to have Luther arrested if he failed to recant, but lacked the ability to once the Elector guaranteed Luther's security. Luther was able to slip out of the city, without the consent from Cajetan. This ended up being too much and on January 3, 1521, Pope Leo X issued the papal bull Decet Romanum Pontificem, which excommunicated Martin Luther from the Catholic Church. Three months later, Luther was called to defend his beliefs before Holy Roman Emperor Charles V at the Diet of Worms, where he is famously known for being defiant. For his defiance and refusal to recant his writings, the emperor declared him an outlaw and a heretic. Luther however was

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protected by powerful German Princes, and by his death in 1546, Western civilization and its future had been significantly altered (4). Pope Leo X Pope Leo X was known as the "Pleasure-Loving Pope", for his intention to enjoy the papacy, while he was still Pope. It is reported that Leo X said to his brother Giuliano: "Since God has given us the Papacy, let us enjoy it", and enjoy it he did. When Pope Leo X travelled he did so with a lavish parade featuring panthers, jesters, and Hanno, a white elephant. However, Leo X didn't just travel lavishly, he was also lavish in charity. Leo X distributed more than 6,000 ducats annually into alms. Pope Leo X raised the Church to a high rank as the friend of anything that extends knowledge or refines and embellishes life. He made the capital of Christendom, Rome, the center of European culture. In addition, he restored the church of Santa Maria in Domnica after Raphael's designs, and pressed forward the work on St. Peter's Basilica and the Vatican. Leo's constitution of November, 5, 1513, reformed the Roman university, which was neglected by Julius II. Leo X restored all its faculties, gave larger salaries to the professors, and summoned distinguished teachers from afar (9). Pope Leo X's interest in art and literature, his political ambitions and necessities, and his immoderate personal luxury, exhausted within two years the hard savings of Julius II. Thus, precipitating, a financial crisis from which he never emerged. He sold Cardinals' hats, memberships in the "Knights of Peter", and borrowed large sums of money from bankers, curials, princes and Jews (9). The sums that Leo X received, along with the amounts accruing from indulgences, jubilees, and special fees, were gone as quickly as they were received. The Pope had to resort to pawning palace furniture, jewels, even statues of the apostles. As a result of

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his rapid spending, several banking firms and many individual creditors were ruined by the death of Leo. It is said that the extent of Pope Leo X's spending was the entire sum of Julius II's treasury, Leo X's complete earnings, and the earnings of his successor.

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Cited Sources: 1. http://europeanhistory.boisestate.edu/latemiddleages/renaissance/historyren.shtml 2. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Black_Death 3. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Indulgence 4. http://www.history.com/this-day-in-history/martin-luther-excommunicated 5. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Martin_Luther 6. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Ninety-Five_Theses 7.http://www.paradoxplace.com/Perspectives/Chronologies/Part%202%20%20World%20of%20 Middle%20Ages.htm 8. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pope_Julius_II 9. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pope_Leo_X 10. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Printing_press 11. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/St._Peter's_Basilica 12. http://wiki.answers.com/Q/What_are_some_interesting_facts_about_Pope_Leo_X 13. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Renaissance 14. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Art_patronage_of_Julius_II 15. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Niccol%C3%B2_Machiavelli 16. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Humanism

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17. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Middle_Ages 18. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Leonardo_da_Vinci 19. http://www.all-about-renaissance faires.com/renaissance_info/economic_social_and_religious_change_in_the_renaissance.htm 20. http://www.rhetcomp.gsu.edu/~jlawrence/2110_Renaissance_Dates.htm 21. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Spanish_Armada 22. http://answers.yahoo.com/question/index?qid=20070826175121AA5XihV 23. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Western_Schism 24. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Expulsion_from_the_Garden_of_Eden 25. Chris, Feller. "AP Achiever (Advanced Placement* Exam Preparation Guide) for European History (College Test Prep) [Paperback]." McGraw-Hill, n.d. Web. 10 Jan. 2013. 26. "The Western Heritage, Eighth Edition." The Western Heritage, Eighth Edition. N.p., n.d. Web. 10 Jan. 2013.