Terror, murder and bloodshed: the culture of Italy during the Renaissance, c.1400-1503

The Italian Renaissance, the last cultural flowering of the Middle Ages — this sounds like a deep paradox, as we have been brought up in the belief that the 15th century (‘the Quattrocento’) saw a decisive divide between medieval and early modern. That is a construction born of 19th-century historiography, defined in particular by the Swiss historian Jacob Burckhardt. It has proved remarkably durable: even if it is rejected by academics, it still has high purchase in popular culture.

This course will consider how this construction became so accepted and will allow you to interrogate it. It will provide perspective on the Quattrocento by investigating the cultural inheritance and geographical diversity on which the Italian Renaissance was based. We will also investigate how far the various artistic and intellectual innovations of the 15th century formed one coherent programme. Moreover, as will become clear, we have to look beyond Italy to understand what was happening there.

For each class, short primary texts (in translation) and visual sources will be provided to focus our discussion. In addition, this course will include a trip to Cambridge’s main museum, the Fitzwilliam, to consider their Renaissance treasures.