The Sixteenth Century – Revision
What influenced the decisions to undertake large‑scale sea expeditions;
Who were the great discoverers;
What was the Reformation;
What religions came into being as a result of the Reformation;
What characteristics distinguished the RenaissanceRenaissance.
The great geographical discoveries led to the expansion of knowledge about the world and other cultures. The most important states to take part in the discoveries were Spain and Portugal. The faraway sea expeditions were facilitated by the invention of the caravelcaravel, the compass, and the astrolabeastrolabe. Some of the famous discoverers were: Bartolomeu Dias (Cape of Good Hope), Vasco da Gama (the way to India), Christopher Columbus (discovery of America), Ferdinand Magellan (cruise around the globe). The geographical discoveries bore many consequences, both positive and negative. Owing to their faraway voyages, the Europeans learned of and brought to Europe many new plants, such as beans, potatoes, peppers, pineapples and corn. Owing to the faraway expeditions, cartographycartography developed. New, more precise maps were created. Unfortunately, the geographical discoveries entailed the destruction of the rich Maya, Aztec and Inca civilizations. After the discoverers’, the conquistadors followed, bringing about the collapse of the indigenous cultures.
The sixteenth century brought the RenaissanceRenaissance (“rebirth”) era upon Europe. It was born in Italy and marked the beginning of the modern era. The rulers and rich magnates, wishing to demonstrate their identities, would build palaces, adorned with paintings and sculptures commissioned to artists. PatronagePatronage was a very important institution of the era. Some of the most excellent artists of the RenaissanceRenaissance hailed from Italy: Leonardo da Vinci, Rafael Santi, Michelangelo. One should also mention an important Polish scientist, Nicholas Copernicus. He created the heliocentricheliocentric theory, stating that Earth orbited the Sun. The artists of the RenaissanceRenaissance took their models from the Antiquity. The ideal Renaissance man was one of wide‑ranging education, sought to learn about the world, and drawing joy from the surrounding nature. A new philosophical current – HumanismHumanism – was born, with Terence’s words, “I am a man: and I deem nothing pertaining to man is foreign to me”, became its credo.
Another important event of the sixteenth century was the reformation. It was started by the German monk Martin Luther, who sought to thoroughly reform the Church. Another reformist, John Calvin, preached the doctrine of predestinationpredestination, or the view that man has no influence on whether he would be saved or condemned, as his fate was predetermined by God. As a result of the Reformation, new protestant denominations were born: Lutheranism, Calvinism, and Anglicanism, the latter of which were introduced in England by King Henry VIII.
Study the important events of the sixteenth century. Think about the impact these breakthroughs have on people's lives in the 21st century.
Match the terms with their definitions.
the care extended over artists by rulers or rich magnates., the settlement of new places outside of a state’s borders., (Italian: “rinascità” – rebirth, awakening, bloom) the era in European culture that lasted from the fifteenth until the sixteenth century., the human being as the center of interest of art and culture., the science of maps and their creation., the main philosophical current of the Renaissance, ascribing the central place and the highest value in the world to humanity., the doctrine stating that a human’s fate and whether they will be saved or condemned are predetermined, and therefore humanity does not possess free will.
| Patronage | |
| Renaissance | |
| Humanism | |
| Antropocentrism | |
| Carthography | |
| Colonization | |
| Predestination |
Keywords
discoveries, Reformation, Renaissance
Glossary
Karawela – rodzaj trzymasztowego statku, którego ruchome żagle umożliwiały żeglowanie pod wiatr.
Log – przyrząd, który służył do mierzenia szybkości statku.
Mecenat – opieka nad artystami i twórczością artystyczną sprawowana przez osoby majętne i wpływowe. .
Renesans – (wł. rinascita; odrodzenie, obudzenie się, rozkwit) epoka trwająca w Europie w XV i XVI w.
Humanizm – główny prąd umysłowy epoki odrodzenia, przypisujący człowiekowi centralne miejsce w świecie i najwyższą wartość.
Antropocentryzm – pogląd, według którego człowiek jest ośrodkiem i celem wszechświata.
Astrolabium – przyrząd, dzięki któremu żeglarze określali położenie geograficzne statku na morzu według położenia gwiazd.
Kartografia – nauka o mapach i sposobach ich tworzenia.
Kolonizacja – zasiedlanie nowych miejsc poza granicami państwa.
Heliocentryzm – teoria budowy Układu Słonecznego, której twórcą jest Mikołaj Kopernik, głosząca, że w centrum tego układu znajduje się Słońce, wokół którego krąży Ziemia wraz z innymi planetami.
Predestynacja – pogląd głoszący, że człowiek z góry skazany jest przez Boga na zbawienie lub potępienie.