Why did the Renaissance end the Dark Ages?
While it’s true that such innovations as Roman concrete were lost, and the literacy rate was not as high in the Early Middle ages as in ancient Rome, the idea of the so-called “Dark Ages” came from Renaissance scholars like Petrarch, who viewed ancient Greece and Rome as the pinnacle of human achievement. Accordingly, they dismissed the era that followed as a dark and chaotic time in which no great leaders emerged, no scientific accomplishments were made and no great art was produced.
What are 5 facts about the Renaissance?
What are 5 facts about the Renaissance?
- Renaissance was marked by renewed interest in ancient Greco-Roman culture.
- Renaissance flourished in Italy due to its abundant riches.
- It was fuelled by the Fall of Constantinople and the Printing Revolution.
- It was intellectually based on its own version of humanism.
What era comes after Renaissance?
Significant Periods of the Middle Ages
- Early Middle Ages (A.D. 476 to A.D. 1000) - also known as Late Antiquity; this period shows most powers rebuilding after the collapse of the Roman Empire and the beginning ...
- High Middle Ages (A.D. 1000 to A.D. 1250) - 250-year period that saw the height of the Catholic church’s power in the Crusades
- Late Middle Ages (A.D. 1250 to A.D. ...
What happened before the Renaissance?
What happened before the Renaissance? The period of time that came before the Renaissance in Europe is called the Middle Ages or Medieval Period. It lasted for approximately 1000 years from the 5th century to the 15th century. The Byzantine Empire remained until the 15th century when it was overthrown by the Ottoman Empire.
What are the 6 major time periods of world history?
The College Board has broken down the History of the World into six distinct periods (FOUNDATIONS, CLASSICAL, POST-CLASSICAL, EARLY-MODERN, MODERN, CONTEMPORARY.
What are the 4 periods of history?
The four periods of history are as follows:Ancient Times (600 B.C. to 476 A.D.)The Middle Ages (476 A.D. to 1450 A.D.)Early Modern Era (1450-A.D. to 1750 A.D.)Modern Era (1750 A.D to Present)
What followed the Renaissance?
Middle AgesMiddle Ages (Europe, 4CE–1500CE) Also known as the post-classical era. The Middle Ages stretches from the end of the Roman Empire and classical period and the Renaissance of the 15th Century.
What is the time period?
Definition of Time period: The time taken by a particle of medium to complete its one vibration is called the time period of the wave. or. time period is the time taken by a vibrating body to complete one oscillation.
What does “Renaissance” mean?
Renaissance is a French word meaning “rebirth.” It refers to a period in European civilization that was marked by a revival of Classical learning a...
When did the Renaissance happen?
There is some debate over the actual start of the Renaissance. However, it is generally believed to have begun in Italy during the 14th century, af...
Who are some important people of the Renaissance?
Prominent figures of the Renaissance included philosopher and statesman Niccolò Machiavelli, known for the political treatise The Prince; Francis B...
What is Renaissance art?
One of the fields that embodied the Renaissance was fine art, especially painting and sculpture. Works from this period were inspired by Classical...
What does “Renaissance man” mean?
The idea of a Renaissance man developed in Italy and derived from Leon Battista Alberti’s notion that “a man can do all things if he will.” The ide...
Where did the Renaissance start?
The Renaissance started in Florence, Italy, a place with a rich cultural history where wealthy citizens could afford to support budding artists. Members of the powerful Medici family, which ruled Florence for more than 60 years, were famous backers of the movement.
What was the Renaissance?
The Renaissance was a fervent period of European cultural, artistic, political and economic “rebirth” following the Middle Ages. Generally described as taking place from the 14th century to the 17th century, the Renaissance promoted the rediscovery of classical philosophy, literature and art. Some of the greatest thinkers, authors, statesmen, ...
What was the Renaissance credited with?
The Renaissance is credited with bridging the gap between the Middle Ages and modern-day civilization.
What were the most important works of the Renaissance?
Some of the most famous artistic works that were produced during the Renaissance include: 1 The Mona Lisa (Da Vinci) 2 The Last Supper (Da Vinci) 3 Statue of David (Michelangelo) 4 The Birth of Venus (Botticelli) 5 The Creation of Adam (Michelangelo)
What was the dark era?
Also known as the “Dark Ages,” the era is often branded as a time of war, ignorance, famine and pandemics such as the Black Death.
Why did Europeans travel to the sea?
While many artists and thinkers used their talents to express new ideas, some Europeans took to the seas to learn more about the world around them. In a period known as the Age of Discovery, several important explorations were made. Voyagers launched expeditions to travel the entire globe.
Who was the most famous Renaissance artist?
Renaissance Geniuses. Some of the most famous and groundbreaking Renaissance intellectuals, artists, scientists and writers include the likes of: Leonardo da Vinci (1452–1519): Italian painter, architect, inventor, and “Renaissance man” responsible for painting “The Mona Lisa” and “The Last Supper.
Where did the Renaissance start?
Many argue that the ideas characterizing the Renaissance had their origin in late 13th-century Florence, in particular with the writings of Dante Alighieri (1265–1321) and Petrarch (1304–1374), as well as the paintings of Giotto di Bondone (1267–1337). Some writers date the Renaissance quite precisely; one proposed starting point is 1401, when the rival geniuses Lorenzo Ghiberti and Filippo Brunelleschi competed for the contract to build the bronze doors for the Baptistery of the Florence Cathedral (Ghiberti then won). Others see more general competition between artists and polymaths such as Brunelleschi, Ghiberti, Donatello, and Masaccio for artistic commissions as sparking the creativity of the Renaissance. Yet it remains much debated why the Renaissance began in Italy, and why it began when it did. Accordingly, several theories have been put forward to explain its origins.
Where did the Renaissance take place?
In the second half of the 15th century, the Renaissance spirit spread to Germany and the Low Countries, where the development of the printing press (ca. 1450) and Renaissance artists such as Albrecht Dürer (1471–1528) predated the influence from Italy. In the early Protestant areas of the country humanism became closely linked to the turmoil of the Protestant Reformation, and the art and writing of the German Renaissance frequently reflected this dispute. However, the Gothic style and medieval scholastic philosophy remained exclusively until the turn of the 16th century. Emperor Maximilian I of Habsburg (ruling 1493–1519) was the first truly Renaissance monarch of the Holy Roman Empire .
How did the Italian Renaissance differ from the Northern Renaissance?
The paintings of the Italian Renaissance differed from those of the Northern Renaissance. Italian Renaissance artists were among the first to paint secular scenes, breaking away from the purely religious art of medieval painters. Northern Renaissance artists initially remained focused on religious subjects, such as the contemporary religious upheaval portrayed by Albrecht Dürer. Later, the works of Pieter Bruegel influenced artists to paint scenes of daily life rather than religious or classical themes. It was also during the Northern Renaissance that Flemish brothers Hubert and Jan van Eyck perfected the oil painting technique, which enabled artists to produce strong colors on a hard surface that could survive for centuries. A feature of the Northern Renaissance was its use of the vernacular in place of Latin or Greek, which allowed greater freedom of expression. This movement had started in Italy with the decisive influence of Dante Alighieri on the development of vernacular languages; in fact the focus on writing in Italian has neglected a major source of Florentine ideas expressed in Latin. The spread of the printing press technology boosted the Renaissance in Northern Europe as elsewhere, with Venice becoming a world center of printing.
Why did the Renaissance start in Florence?
It has long been a matter of debate why the Renaissance began in Florence, and not elsewhere in Italy. Scholars have noted several features unique to Florentine cultural life that may have caused such a cultural movement. Many have emphasized the role played by the Medici, a banking family and later ducal ruling house, in patronizing and stimulating the arts. Lorenzo de' Medici (1449–1492) was the catalyst for an enormous amount of arts patronage, encouraging his countrymen to commission works from the leading artists of Florence, including Leonardo da Vinci, Sandro Botticelli, and Michelangelo Buonarroti. Works by Neri di Bicci, Botticelli, da Vinci, and Filippino Lippi had been commissioned additionally by the Convent of San Donato in Scopeto in Florence.
How did the Renaissance affect theology?
However, the Renaissance had a profound effect on contemporary theology, particularly in the way people perceived the relationship between man and God. Many of the period's foremost theologians were followers of the humanist method, including Erasmus, Zwingli, Thomas More, Martin Luther, and John Calvin .
What did Renaissance scholars study?
In stark contrast to the High Middle Ages, when Latin scholars focused almost entirely on studying Greek and Arabic works of natural science, philosophy and mathematics, Renaissance scholars were most interested in recovering and studying Latin and Greek literary, historical, and oratorical texts.
What were the political structures of Italy in the late Middle Ages?
Instead, it was divided into smaller city states and territories: the Kingdom of Naples controlled the south, the Republic of Florence and the Papal States at the center, the Milanese and the Genoese to the north and west respectively, and the Venetians to the east. Fifteenth-century Italy was one of the most urbanised areas in Europe. Many of its cities stood among the ruins of ancient Roman buildings; it seems likely that the classical nature of the Renaissance was linked to its origin in the Roman Empire's heartland.
When did the Renaissance start?
There is some debate over the actual start of the Renaissance. However, it is generally believed to have begun in Italy during the 14th century, after the end of the Middle Ages, and reached its height in the 15th century. The Renaissance spread to the rest of Europe in the 16th and 17th centuries.
What is the Renaissance?
Renaissance is a French word meaning “rebirth.”. It refers to a period in European civilization that was marked by a revival of Classical learning and wisdom. The Renaissance saw many contributions to different fields, including new scientific laws, new forms of art and architecture, and new religious and political ideas.
What was the Middle Ages?
The term Middle Ages was coined by scholars in the 15th century to designate the interval between the downfall of the Classical world of Greece and Rome and its rediscovery at the beginning of their own century, a revival in which they felt they were participating. Indeed, the notion of a long period of cultural darkness had been expressed by Petrarch even earlier. Events at the end of the Middle Ages, particularly beginning in the 12th century, set in motion a series of social, political, and intellectual transformations that culminated in the Renaissance. These included the increasing failure of the Roman Catholic Church and the Holy Roman Empire to provide a stable and unifying framework for the organization of spiritual and material life, the rise in importance of city-states and national monarchies, the development of national languages, and the breakup of the old feudal structures.
What are some examples of Renaissance man?
Leonardo da Vinci is a leading example of a Renaissance man, noted for his achievements in art, science, music, invention, and writing. Humanism. Learn more about humanism. A brief treatment of the Renaissance follows. For full treatment, see Europe, history of: The Renaissance.
What were the works of the Renaissance known for?
Works from this period were inspired by Classical Greek and Roman art and were known for their grace, harmony, and beauty. Artists worked from the living model and perfected techniques such as the use of perspective. In addition, the Renaissance saw the refinement of mediums, notably oils.
What was the birthplace of the Renaissance?
Overview of Florence, widely regarded as the birthplace of the Renaissance. Renaissance, (French: “Rebirth”) period in European civilization immediately following the Middle Ages and conventionally held to have been characterized by a surge of interest in Classical scholarship and values. The Renaissance also witnessed the discovery ...
Who were the most important artists of the Renaissance?
In addition, the Renaissance saw the refinement of mediums, notably oils. Leonardo da Vinci, Michelangelo, and Raphael are widely considered the leading artists of the period. Read more below: Renaissance. Leonardo da Vinci. Learn more about Leonardo da Vinci, a well-known Renaissance artist.
The Italian Renaissance Timeline, 1300 to 1600: Overview
The Italian Renaissance Timeline & Renaissance Era Years: 1300 to 1600
The Renaissance Timeline: Contributing Events
The dividing line between the Late Middle Ages and the Renaissance is a blurry one. In other words, the Renaissance did not just suddenly appear out of nowhere. Its arrival depended on a confluence of events that took place over a period of centuries.
Renaissance Dates and Subperiods
Renaissance Dates: The Renaissance occurred at the same time as a number of other historical periods. These included: the Elizabethan Era, the Age of Exploration, and the Protestant Reformation. The first of these corresponds to the reign of Elizabeth I in England (1558-1603).
When was the Renaissance?
The Renaissance Period is ranked among the most influential periods in the history of Europe, and it took place between 1300 and 1700. It is considered as the cultural link from the middle Ages to modern history.
Where Did the Renaissance Begin?
Historians agree that the Renaissance originated in Italy, but they disagree on the particular time it began. Several theories have been put forward to explain why the period commenced in Italy and why it began at the time it did. The wealth of Italy was greatly expanded in the 14th to the 16th centuries by extending trade into Europe and Asia. Tyrol prospered from silver mining while Venice and Genoa had an abundance of luxuries from the Eastern world. Artists relied on patrons to fund their artistic ventures, and the prosperity of Italy put money in the patrons' hands. In the late middle Ages, Italy was constituted of city states and territories which had a degree of political freedom that enabled artistic and academic advancement. The existence of such Merchant Republics such as Venice and Florence ensured there was a constant flow of money. The Black Death has also been suggested as one of the factors which triggered the Renaissance. Italy registered a lot of deaths during the plague, and the subsequent familiarity with death led scholars to dwell more on their existence on Earth rather than on the afterlife and spirituality. The Renaissance began in Florence in particular, and historians have suggested that this was because of the presence of wealth and generous patrons or it was due to luck.
What Were the Contributions of the Renaissance?
Painters such as Leonardo da Vinci depicted the human anatomy and contributed to the understanding of the human form. Painters such as Jan van Eyck as well as Hugo van der Goes adopted the use of oil paint and canvas and also popularized the technique of naturalism. The Renaissance style of architecture revived some elements of ancient Roman and Greek architecture. Renaissance literature, unlike earlier literature, focused on human behaviors and characteristics. Significant science and engineering breakthroughs also took place during the Renaissance period including the invention of telescopes, spectacles, printing, gunpowder, the mariner's compass, paper, and clocks. New musical instruments such as the violin and the harpsichord gave birth to the opera and composers sought to make music with an emotional effect. Other Renaissance developments include the rise of Protestantism, the growth of a capitalist market economy in place of feudalism, and the discovery of the New World attributed to Columbus.
How did the Renaissance influence Europe?
The scholars achieved this by interpreting, expanding, and improving classical values and philosophies, creating their styles of art, and triggering a scientific and philosophical inquiry. The influence of the Renaissance was evident in religion, music, literature, politics, philosophy, science, and art . Renaissance scholars adopted humanism in their studies.
How did the Renaissance impact civilization?
The Renaissance Period had an enduring impact on civilization. The developments in geography and science enabled people to understand the Earth and the Universe better. The printing press is among the most notable inventions, and it enabled the ideas of scholars to become accessible to the public and promoted education.
What was the Renaissance style?
The Renaissance style of architecture revived some elements of ancient Roman and Greek architecture. Renaissance literature, unlike earlier literature, focused on human behaviors and characteristics. Significant science and engineering breakthroughs also took place during the Renaissance period including the invention of telescopes, spectacles, ...
What were the major developments in the Renaissance?
Other Renaissance developments include the rise of Protestantism, the growth of a capitalist market economy in place of feudalism, and the discovery of the New World attributed to Columbus.
What was the Renaissance in Italy?
Renaissance Italy. During the 15th century, at the height of the Renaissance in Italy, the peninsula was divided among several independent city-states and other political units. Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc. Architect Filippo Brunelleschi and sculptor Donatello travel to Rome, where they immerse themselves in the study of ancient architecture ...
What is the Renaissance movement?
Francis of Assisi that emphasizes the spiritual value of nature’s beauty and focuses on serving the poor. These values inspire such figures as the artist Giotto, the poet Dante, and the writers Petrarch and Giovanni Boccaccio. During the 13th and 14th centuries the movement known as humanism also arises. Humanism is based on three main principles: human nature is the primary subject of study; all philosophies and theologies have an underlying unity; and individual human beings possess innate dignity.
What was the style of mannerism in the 1500s?
1527. The Holy Roman emperor, Charles V, conquers Rome, ending the Renaissance as a unified period in Italy. In the latter part of the 1500s, the clash between Classical humanism and Christian theology produces the style of Mannerism. This style is characterized by exaggerated human proportions, postures, and expressions.
What was Florence Italy known for?
Florence,Italy, was a hub of Renaissance art and culture during the 15th century.
What is the Proto Renaissance?
A “proto-renaissance” precedes the Renaissance in Italy. This movement is inspired by the work of St. Francis of Assisi that emphasizes the spiritual value of nature’s beauty and focuses on serving the poor. These values inspire such figures as the artist Giotto, the poet Dante, and the writers Petrarch and Giovanni Boccaccio.
Who is the founder of Renaissance painting?
They return to Florence and begin to put their knowledge into practice. Masaccio, founder of Renaissance painting, uses rational elements in his highly naturalistic compositions. Succeeding artists continue to research anatomy and aerial perspective.
Who was the most famous artist of the High Renaissance?
The High Renaissance art in Italy revolves around Leonardo da Vinci (1452–1519), Michelangelo (1475–1564), and Raphael (1483–1520). During this time Donato Bramante (1444–1514) creates High Renaissance architecture, which recalls ancient Classical temple architecture with its columns and domes.
What is the period between prehistory and history?
Protohistory – Period between prehistory and history, during which a culture or civilization has not yet developed writing but other cultures have already noted its existence in their own writings; the absolute time scale of "protohistory " varies widely depending on the region, from the late 4th millennium BCE in the Ancient Near East to the present in the case of uncontacted peoples.
When did the Middle Ages end?
It began with the collapse of the Western Roman Empire in 476 and is variously demarcated by historians as ending with the Fall of Constantinople in 1453, merging into the Renaissance and the Age of Discovery . Early Middle Ages (also called Dark Ages) High Middle Ages. Late Middle Ages.
What is geologic time scale?
The geologic time scale covers the extent of the existence of Earth, from about 4600 million years ago to the present day. It is marked by Global Boundary Stratotype Sections and Points. Geologic time units are (in order of descending specificity) eons, eras, periods, epochs, and ages; and the corresponding chronostratigraphic units, which measure "rock-time", are eonothems, erathems, systems, series, and stages.
What is the Greek and Roman world called?
Classical Antiquity – Broad term for a long period of cultural history centered on the Mediterranean Sea, comprising the interlocking civilizations of ancient Greece and ancient Rome, collectively known as the Greco-Roman world. It is the period in which Greek and Roman society flourished and wielded great influence throughout Europe, North Africa and the Middle East.
How many lines are there in a logarithmic timeline?
Logarithmic timeline shows all history on one page in ten lines.
What was the Victorian era?
Victorian era (the United Kingdom, 1837–1901); British hegemony (1815-1914) much of world, around the same time period.
What is contemporary history?
Contemporary History – History within living memory. It shifts forward with the generations, and today is the span of historic events from approximately 1945 that are immediately relevant to the present time.
What Was the Italian Renaissance?
The Renaissance was the period in European history that followed the Late Middle Ages. It was a period of cultural and artistic renewal.
When Was the Italian Renaissance?
When was the Italian Renaissance? Scholars disagree about the exact dates in which the Renaissance began and ended, however, most agree that it began sometime after the end of the Black Plague in 1351. Others push the date back to 1300 or forwards to 1400.
What Caused the Renaissance?
Why did the Renaissance happen? There were many different factors that lead to the Renaissance. Here are a few of the more important ones:

Summary
The Renaissance is a period in European history marking the transition from the Middle Ages to modernity and covering the 15th and 16th centuries, characterized by an effort to revive and surpass ideas and achievements of classical antiquity. It occurred after the Crisis of the Late Middle Ages and was associated with great social change. In addition to the standard periodization, …
Overview
The Renaissance was a cultural movement that profoundly affected European intellectual life in the early modern period. Beginning in Italy, and spreading to the rest of Europe by the 16th century, its influence was felt in art, architecture, philosophy, literature, music, science, technology, politics, religion, and other aspects of intellectual inquiry. Renaissance scholars employed the humanist …
Origins
Many argue that the ideas characterizing the Renaissance had their origin in Florence at the turn of the 13th and 14th centuries, in particular with the writings of Dante Alighieri (1265–1321) and Petrarch (1304–1374), as well as the paintings of Giotto di Bondone (1267–1337). Some writers date the Renaissance quite precisely; one proposed starting point is 1401, when the rival geniuses Lo…
Characteristics
In some ways, Renaissance humanism was not a philosophy but a method of learning. In contrast to the medieval scholastic mode, which focused on resolving contradictions between authors, Renaissance humanists would study ancient texts in the original and appraise them through a combination of reasoning and empirical evidence. Humanist education was based on the prog…
Spread
In the 15th century, the Renaissance spread rapidly from its birthplace in Florence to the rest of Italy and soon to the rest of Europe. The invention of the printing press by German printer Johannes Gutenberg allowed the rapid transmission of these new ideas. As it spread, its ideas diversified and changed, being adapted to local culture. In the 20th century, scholars began to break th…
Historiography
The Italian artist and critic Giorgio Vasari (1511–1574) first used the term rinascita in his book The Lives of the Artists (published 1550). In the book Vasari attempted to define what he described as a break with the barbarities of Gothic art: the arts (he held) had fallen into decay with the collapse of the Roman Empire and only the Tuscan artists, beginning with Cimabue (1240–1301) and G…
Other Renaissances
The term Renaissance has also been used to define periods outside of the 15th and 16th centuries. Charles H. Haskins (1870–1937), for example, made a case for a Renaissance of the 12th century. Other historians have argued for a Carolingian Renaissance in the 8th and 9th centuries, Ottonian Renaissance in the 10th century and for the Timurid Renaissance of the 14th century. The Islamic Golden Age has been also sometimes termed with the Islamic Renaissance.
See also
• Index of Renaissance articles
• Outline of the Renaissance
• List of Renaissance figures
• List of Renaissance structures
1 – What Initiated The Renaissance Time Period
- Renaissance is a period covering the 14th to 17th centuries characterized by artwork, literature, poetry, and painting. This period was defined after considering material including classical text and manuscripts collected from Islamic Asia and Europe. Even before the Italian Renaissance in the 14th century, Europe had begun to experience a resurgen...
2 – The Black Death Theory
- Some researchers and historians have alleged that nature may have propagated the birth of the Renaissance apart from literary factors. According to these scholars, the Renaissance was also the result of the deadly pandemic that decimated 50% of Europe’s population from 1347-1351 AD, called the Black Death. The scholars believe that the threatening nature and the way it ravaged p…
3 – Florence City – Renaissance’s Focal Point
- Florence city was probably the most famous of all the Italian cities at the time of the Renaissance. It had some key artwork, and many intelligent sculptors, artists, and philosophers lived there. It is regarded as the birthplace of a Renaissance with its works such as the Mona Lisa done by Leonardo da Vinci, David sculptured by Michelangelo. The city had one of the greatest art school…
4 – The Advent of Humanism and The Renaissance Time Period
- Many influential men and women of the renaissance era shifted their focus from abstractness of divinity to human achievements. According to Encyclopedia Britannica, Humanism takes human nature in its different manifestation and accomplishment as its subject. Secondly, Humanism stresses the compatibility and truth that exist in all theological and philosophical systems and s…
5 – Flourishing Art
- The tangible impact of the Renaissance is found more in the diverse specimens of architecture and art completed in those days beyond the education and moral emphasis. Most Renaissance men got their inspiration by observing and studying the ancient Roman and Greek sculptures, classical structures, and decorative arts. For example, Michelangeloinspired sculpturing mind-bl…
6 – The High Renaissance Time Period
- This period started in the 1490s with Leonardo Fresco. It ended with the Sack of Rome orchestrated by the army of Charles V. The term High Renaissance was coined because scholars believe that the goals and aspirations of medieval artistry reached their most admirable stage. This stage in history is characterized by a shift from point perspective to classical art and the ap…
7 – The Printing Revolution
- Another Renaissance man, Johannes Gutenberg, is accredited for revolutionizing this era by the invention of the printing machine in Germany. He would later extend his prowess across Europe, thus indefinitely changing duplication and text preservation. The world’s literacy was also enhanced by the migration of Byzantine scholars, who ran to Italy from Constantinople by carryi…
8 – The Revolution of Science
- During the Renaissance period, science grew as people embraced empirical evidence rather than subjective assumptions. Chemistry and biology took a route in reaching conclusions, replacing Aristotelian natural philosophy. This era experienced growth in the medical fields to advance how to curb diseases at the forefront. Researchers such as Filippo Brunelleschimade notable advanc…
9 – The Polyphonic Music
- Between the period of 1400-1600 AD, Renaissance music evolved. The printing press promoted the spread and printing of music which came with a more personalized humanistic style. This era witnessed the development of various rhythms, ranges, notation, and harmony in music. The music shifted from mono to polyphonic style, including various styles rather than using a single …
10 – Renaissance Effect on Religion
- The Catholic Church was the greatest financier and buyer of the early Renaissance as it commissioned many artistic works. However, with the invention and the promotion of Humanism ideals in the mid-16thcentury, it became evident that it would clash if not rival the powerful Church on its influence on social-cultural spheres. By the late 14th century, the Papacy lost its political i…