-
1395
Johannes Gutenburg
Johannes Gutenburg was a German inventor and craftsman. He eventually came up with the invention of a printer with movable type. He is most important for this accomplishment that led to the printing of the Bible. -
1400
Humanism
Humanism is a system of thought that after the medieval era and in the Renaissance. It consisted of moving away from spiritual and divine thinking of the Medieval Era and into the revival of ancient Greek and Roman thought. It spanned from 1400-1650. It was important because it was the building block for thought during the Renaissance. -
1400
Perspective
Perspective is the idea of using geometric lines and vanish points to create depth in a painting. A famous example is the "School of Athens." It was used more and more by Renaissance artists as art blossomed during the Renaissance. It created a new feel to art as it had much more depth and wonder. It was important in paintings. -
Jan 1, 1449
Lorenzo de' Medici
Lorenzo de' Medici was a Florentine statesman, ruler, and patron of arts. He was known for his contributions towards artists like Michelangelo. He alone was responsible for half of the contributions for the flowering of Renaissance art and genius. He was important because without his contributions many artists and their ideas may not have been shared. -
1450
Printing Revolution
The printing revolution started with a man named Johannes Gutenburg. He created the printing press with movable type which allowed for many new things to be printed, red, and interpreted by people. One of those things being the Bible. Which is why it was so important because now people could read and understand it. -
Apr 15, 1452
Leonardo da Vinci
Leonardo da Vinci was a painter, sculptor, inventor, and many more things. He was known as the ideal "Renaissance man" because he was very well rounded. He created paintings like the "Mona Lisa" and "The Last Supper." He was very important because his inventions and studies of anatomy were used later on to build things like helicopters and further advance the medical field. -
May 3, 1469
Machiavelli
Niccolo Machiavelli was an Italian statesman and writer. He was the secretary of the Florentine republic. His most famous work, "The Prince" brought him a lot of judgement and a reputation of a cynic. Although he is important because this work is read today and is used to better understand Government subjects as well as past Governments. -
Oct 27, 1469
Erasmus
Desiderius Erasmus was a humanist and great scholar of the Renaissance. He was also an important figure in patristics and classical literature. He is most well known for pioneering humanist ideas and spreading them and is most important for this reason. Humanist ideas would continue to grow because of people like him. -
Feb 19, 1473
Copernicus
Nicolaus Copernicus was an astronomer, mathematician, and scientist. He studied the solar system and founded the heliocentric model of the solar system. This is where the sun, rather than the earth, is the center of the solar system. Although the Catholic Church hated his ideas because they taught that the earth was the center of the solar system. He's important because his studies were used later on to study and make better models. -
Mar 6, 1475
Michelangelo
Michelangelo was a painter, sculptor, poet, and architect. He painted wonders like Rome's Sistine Chapel. He sculpted works like "David" and "Pieta." Michelangelo was important because his works are still studied today and he painted things that leave people in awe still today. -
Apr 6, 1483
Raphael
Raphael was a high Renaissance painter and architect. He was most famous for his "Madonnas" and his painting called the "School of Athens." Raphael was important because he changed the way people see art like da Vinci and Michelangelo. -
Nov 10, 1483
Martin Luther
Luther was a German Monk who began the Protestant Reformation. He fought against the Catholic Church and spoke out against indulgences and things like that. I would say he's most important for starting the Reformation and also translating the Bible so more people could read and understand it. -
Jul 2, 1489
Thomas Cranmer
Thomas Cranmer was most importantly the archbishop of Canterbury and advisor to Henry VIII and Edward VI. He made the Book of Common Prayer and was interested in reformation. Although he was executed by Queen Mary for heresy. -
Jun 28, 1491
Henry VIII
Henry VIII was an English king who had six wives. His first wife could not bare him a son so he decided to get a divorce and marry another. Although the Catholic Church would not allow him to do so. So, he broke off from the Catholic Church and founded the Church of England and made it the official church so he could get divorced. This was a very important step in the reformation. -
1500
Sale of Indulgences
In the early 1500's Pope Leo X and the Catholic Church offered people indulgences. These indulgences allowed people to "remove" their past sins with money. Of course none of it was true and because of this Martin Luther made the 95 theses. -
1500
Inquisition
The Inquisition was a group of institutions within the Catholic Church. The Inquisition was used to combat heresy. It significantly expanded in response to the Protestant Reformation to counter reform. -
Jul 10, 1509
John Calvin
John Calvin was a journalist, theologian, and a protestant reformer. He also saw defects in Catholicism much like Luther, but he started his own religion called Calvinism. Calvinists are better known as pilgrims that fled to America because of a lack of respect and religious freedom. Creating Calvinism is probably why he's most important. -
Sep 7, 1533
Elizabeth I
Elizabeth I took the throne as Queen of England after Mary Tudor. She took the throne with a lot of problems like a war with France and a lot of religious turmoil. Mary executed many protestants for heresy. Elizabeth got the country out of war and kept the country stable for a long while. This is why she was so important and they called it the Elizabethan era. -
1543
Heliocentric Theory
This theory was first presented by Copernicus. His theory stated that the sun was the center of the solar system rather than the Earth. All the planets would orbit around the sun. This was in contrast to the teachings of the Catholic Church. -
1545
Council of Trent
In 1545, the Council of Trent was a council of the Roman Catholic Church. They were prompted by the Protestant Reformation to try and self-reform Catholicism. It is sometimes seen as the embodiment of the Counter-Reformation. -
Jan 22, 1561
Francis Bacon
Francis Bacon was an English statesman and philosopher. He served as an attorney general and Lord Chancellor of England. Although he resigned because of charges of corruption. His most important work was philosophical in his promotion of the scientific method. -
1564
William Shakespeare
William Shakespeare was an English playwright, actor, and poet. He created famous plays like "Romeo and Juliet" and "Hamlet." He also created hundreds of sonnets. He is most important for spreading the vernacular through his plays and creating many words in the English language. -
Feb 15, 1564
Galileo
Galileo Galilei was an Italian astronomer, physicist, engineer, philosopher, and mathematician. He constructed a telescope and supported the Copernican theory of the heliocentric model. He is most important because of his findings and the way he found them using the telescope and mathematics. -
Scientific Method
Scientific theory was used and promoted by many scientists including Isaac Newton and Francis Bacon. It was used with mathematics after rediscovering Plato and his ideas. Scientists used scientific theory to thoroughly check hypotheses. -
Isaac Newton
Isaac Newton was a physicist and mathematician who paved the way for modern physics. He studied the laws of motion. He also created a reflecting telescope and discovered gravity. He is very important because his works were used for modern physics and math.
