Seeds of the Renaissance

The actual meaning of the word "renaissance" has been debated for centuries. Originating in nacre - to be born - it emerged from the French word as "rebirth", but just what was behind the cultural movement that spanned the 14th to 16th centuries?

Art, literature, science and architecture owe a great debt to this period of rapid Western cultural progress, which arose from the comparative intellectual stillness of mediaeval times.

The pursuit of knowledge began among the people now considered "pagans" - the followers of religions outside the Abrahamic monotheistic faiths of Judaism, Christianity and Islam.

The ancient Greeks and Romans possessed a breadth of knowledge that was all but lost to the common man in the Middle Ages, instead being absorbed by Christianity. The ceremonies born of faith in multiple gods and goddesses were banned, though secretly practised, but most were ultimately transformed into Christian rites.

The Christian Church adopted the main pagan feasts of the agricultural calendar, and replaced the ancient deity cults with devotion to Jesus and the saints.

But there were scholars who still had access to knowledge dating back to the most creative days of antiquity, and from this grew universities, banks and merchant guilds. Acknowledged masters would guide the way in fresh practical studies of law and medicine.

For the well-to-do, the University of Salerno developed from a school of canon law into a school of medicine, and the University of Bologna, which opened around 1098, was devoted to the law, architecture, mathematics, art and engineering.

Studying theology and arts was allowed, but other subjects had to adhere to a strict Christian framework. Medical advances were needed, so the subject couldn't be forbidden. New schools and universities began to open further south, in Florence and Rome, and in the latter city, the full text of "Justinian's Digest" has been rediscovered.

Justinian (527-565) was an Eastern Roman Emperor who formulated new laws based on those of Roman times, while enacting civil law that influenced the Church's canon law.

By 1100 this civil law was widely studied - and often manipulated to the benefit of those in power. Expertise in the legislation was thus greatly coveted. Those gifted in it could count on glittering rewards from the Church.

In the north, beyond the Alps, universities emerged from the cathedral schools. Those that flourished best were in and around Paris and were bilingual - in Latin and the vernacular.

The College of Sorbonne was established in the early 12th century by Robert de Sorbonne, and became the University of Paris in 1257, teaching the arts, medicine and law, along with theology. Oxford was founded in 1170 and Cambridge in 1209.

In Spain, the School of Salamanca was opened by King Alfonso IX of Castile in 1218 and turned into a university by his son Ferdinand III. Valladolid and Seville followed in the 13th century. The University of Prague began in 1347 and that of Krakow in 1397.

Few people were literate and Greek remained banned, so Latin was the chief language for study. It was a pursuit only for the wealthy. The man who would become Pope Adrian IV - the only Englishman ever to lead the Church - travelled to Avignon in France to study, then to Rome when the locals complained he was too strict - something of an asset to the Church.

France's King Louis VII spent much time with Abbot Suger, one of the last "abbot statesmen", at the Abbey of St Denis. Other scholars were friars, more independent of patronage and better able to concentrate on learning, albeit within the Church's rules.

The courses were extremely limited, but the study of reason was a staple, and from there scholars could move on to mathematics, geometry, primitive astronomy and music.

The Crusaders, meanwhile, returned from the Middle East with new notions and the more sophisticated Persian concept of chivalry. Luxurious eastern carpets began lining European floors instead of straw and russet, and Italian dresses took on folds of damask, silk and camel hair.

Meals were enlivened with new spices and cane sugar from Egypt, and new methods in battle were adopted, such as the Asian custom of pounding drums to instil fear in the enemy.

Between battles for Jerusalem, there was more leisure time, and time to consider the nobility of one's forbears. The mystique of knightly honour appeared and, by the late 12th century, a new cult of courtship.

The mock battles of jousting tournaments were formalised in the 13th century, giving every unknown young knight a chance to make his name and fortune.

Read Part 2 on next Friday's Arts & Culture page.