Europe in Transition: From Feudalism to Industrialization (2010) PDF

E U R O P E IN T R A N S IT IO N EUROPE IN TRANSITION From Feudalism to Industrialization ARVI ND SINHA jvianohar 2016  r J-O f: ' ^ J n...

E U R O P E IN T R A N S IT IO N EUROPE IN TRANSITION From Feudalism to Industrialization ARVI ND SINHA jvianohar 2016  r J-O f: ' ^ J n V% First published 2010 R eprinted 2011,2013. 2014, 2015, 2016 (twice) © Arvind Sinha, 2010 All rights reserved. N o part o f this publication may be reproduced or transmitted, in any form or by any means, w ithout prior permission o f the author and the publisher. ISDN 978-81-7304-843-2 (Hb) ISBN 978-81-7304-853-1 (Pb) Published by Ajay Kumar Jain /or M anohar Publishers &; Distributors 4753/23 Ansari Road, Daryaganj N ew Delhi 110 002 Printed at Salasar Imaging Systems Delhi 110 035  To my motJjer L ate C handra P r a b h a S in h a  Contents List o f Illustrations 11 List o f Tables 12 A ck n0XVled gem en ts 13 Introduction 15 1. T hk F alt. o k E urokf. in thf LATF-Fiin FKNTn C entury 27 Geographical Frontiers 27 Feudal Structure in Europe 34 Impact o f Black Death on Agrarian Economy 39 Crafts and Industry 43 Trading and Commercial Activities 48 The Christian Church 53 The Political Map o f Europe 56 Italian City States 63 2. T he R enaissance AND Society 74 Meaning 75 Social Basis 80 The Italian Humanism 88 Revival o f Antiquity 96 Christian Humanism in the North 105 Humanism and Women 116 The Visual Art 120 High Renaissance 123 Renaissance Art Outside Italy 130 Music 134 3. E xplorations, D iscovery and C olonial E mpires 140 Motives Behind the Early Voyages 142 Improvement in Geographical Knowledge and Navigational Technology 148  Content > The Re naissance and Sea Voyages lU The Early Sea Voyages ls 2 Ri se of Colonial Empires 160 The Spanish Empire 166 I ’he Age of the Conquistadors 168 The Impact of the Colonial Empires 174 4. T he R ei'(;rmaj io.\ 198 Prelude 198 Origins o f the Reformation 199 Growth o f Popular Religion 201 Millenarianism 208 Social Context of the Reformation 209 The German Reformation 212 Martin Euther and the Protestant Reformation 214 Huldreych or Ulrich Zwingli 221 223 John Calvin 236 The Radical Reformation The Catholic Reformation 239 The Impact o f the Reformation 245 5. T he Rise of A bsolutist States 269 270 Origins o f Absolutism The Nature o f Absolutist States 272 Contribution o f Culture to the Ideas o f Absolutism 280 France 282 Spain 295 England 306 Eastern Europe 318 6. E uropean E conomy in the Sixpeenth C en fury 336 Rural Economy 337 Urban Economy 342 The Rise and Decline of Antwerp 347 The Rise of England 353 The Dutch Ascendancy 364 The Commercial Revolution 378 The Price Revolution 388  CoTitcnti 9 C risis c,e riiE Seventeenth C enitirv 411 Decline of the Mediterranean Economy 412 Decline of Spain 413 Decline of Italy 425 Nature and the Extent of the Crisis 432 d'he 'Thirty Years War 456 'The R ise of M odern Science 475 Origins 476 Social Context of Modern Science 481 Major Developments 486 The Formulation of Scientific Method 496 Science and Religion 503 9. T iik E nglish R evolution, Social C hange and C onstitutional D evelopments 513 Causes 519 Fermentation of Ideas 532 Commonwealth and Protectorate 538 Restoration of 1660 544 Socio-Economic Changes 549 The Revolution of 1688 551 Consequences 556 Intellectual and Cultural Trends 561 10. I deas and P ractice of M ercantilism 565 Origins 567 The C hief Ideas of Mercantilism 569 Mercantilism in the European States 572 Rejection o f Mercantilism 590 11. O verseas E xpansion and the C olonial Rivalry between B ritain and F rance 597 Extent o f the Colonies and Trade Pattern 603 Impact o f Empires on the Colonists 613 Impact on Europe 619 10 Contenti 12. E.nlightkn.mk.nt and E ni.igh tknkd Dr.si’(n is.\i 630 Chief Ideas 631 The Philosophi’s 638 Relationship between P^nlightenmcnt and Enlightened Despotism 632 Prussia 635 Russia 662 Austria 670 13. E conomy and Soch;ty in thi-: Pjoiitf.f.n'i ii C fn i ury 690 Demographic Growth Agriculture Spread of Proto-Industrialization Urban Industries Causes o f the Industrial Revolution 14. T ran.sition from F fudalism to C apitalism - 745 A D ebate 748 Inner-contradiction Model 751 The Market-centric Explanation 758 Demographic Explanation 762 T he Class-relations Model 771 Index  Illustrations M APS 1.1 European States in about 1500 29 1.2 The Italian City States in the Late-Fifteenth Centurv'^ 65 3.1 Overseas Explorations in the Fifteenth and Sixteenth Centuries 155 3.2 New World and Asian Colonies and Major Trade Centres 165 3.3 Spanish and Portuguese Empires in the Sixteenth Century 167 4.1 European Reformation 237 5.1 The Spanish States in the Late-Fifteenth Centur)' 299 5.2 The Empire of Charles V of Spain after he was Elected as the Emperor of the Holy Roman Empire in 1519 302 5.3 The Growth of the Russian Empire 320 6.1 The Dutch Republic in the Seventeenth Century 367 7.1 Central Europe after the Treaty of Westphalia, 1648 463 11.1 Colonial Empires in 1763 601 G R A PH S 6.1 Price and wage movements in some parts of Europe from 1501-1600 391 6.2 Import of Silver from the New World into Spain 1503-1600 395 6.3 Price level in England 1500-1600 405 7.1 Cloth production in Venice1520—1700 428 7.2 Price o f wheat in different parts of Europe 1500-1700 441 13.1 Price o f wheat in different parts of Europe 1701-1800 729  Tables 6.1 Price Rise in Italy 1552-60 to 1600-17 397 6.2 Country-wise Population in Europe 1500-1700 401 6.3 Urban Population as a Percentage of'Iotal Population (1500-1750) 401 7.1 Europe’s Population, 1600—1700 437 7.2 Military Strength of the European States 1470—1710 447 11.1 English Export o f Slaves from Africa 621 11.2 Import o f Slave Trade 622 11.3 Official Sugar Imports to the European Countries 625 13.1 Population o f the British Isles 691 13.2 W heat Exports 697 13.3 Average Yearly Value of the French External Trade 1715-88 720  Acknowledgements leaching lias given me much pleasure and satisfaction for many years and I owe a great deal to all my students and colleagues, past and present, in the writing of this book. I e.xpress my sincere thanks to the entire team of my publishers, especially Ramesh Jain, Ajay Jain, B.N. Varma and Siddharth Chowdhurv' for convincing a lazy person like myself to write a textbook on early modern Europe, and for enduring the delay; and to Suresh Prasad for going through the manuscript and making suggestions. Anupam Anand of Geography Department, University of Delhi and Shweta, made their contributions in this book by preparing maps and graphs. Finally, I take this opportunity to thank my family for their care, patience and encouragement. A r VIND SlNHA  Introduction I his volume is an attempt to help the students to understand the process o f change leading to the creation o f modern Europe in the fight perspective. It covers a wide range of topics analysing developments over almost three centuries. This period represented a cnicial phase in the transition from the mediaeval to the modern world. Capitalist society in Europe was formed following the dev­ elopments through the sixteenth, seventeenth and eighteenth centuries, transforming the feudal order into a merchant and trionetary society and then into industrial capitalism. It tvitnessed changes in the economic organization, socid classes and in the forms o f government. The expansion of the European economy into new regions leading to the creation of colonial empires and the expansion of mental horizons were accompanied by new social attitudes, cultural patterns and a scientific outlook. Scholars usually describe this period as ‘pre-modern’ or ‘early modern’ for many reasons. Crises in centuries-old traditional values developed and created an atmosphere for change. One can observe the seeds of modernity germinating at different levels in these three centuries, which paved the way for rapid and fundamental changes in the European pattern of life. A blind faith in religion was gradually replaced by a rational approach. Explorations in the unknown territories resulted in physical and geographical expansion of the World. The discovery of gunpowder completely changed the nature o f warfare. It equipped the Europeans with powerful arms and weapons with which they successfully subjugated the New as well as the Old World. The successftil discoveries of new sea trade routes by Columbus towards the west and by Vasco da Gama towards the east marked the beginning of the European colonial empires in the far-flung territories of the globe. Astronomical studies brought about inventions of new instruments. It led to better understanding o f the natural world. Centuries-old explanations o f natural 16 Introduction phenom enon were replaced by modern scientific attitude Speculative studies gave way to experimentation and formulation o f scientific laws based on mathematics and physics/fhe jiublication o f Copernicus’s De Revolutionihus Orbiu?n Codestium in 1S43 marked the beginning of the modern scientific age. All these changes helped in the dawn of the industrial age in which tech­ nology progressed from windmills to the stage of steam-driven machines for mass production.The economic progress caused vast social and cultural changes. Some ugh different wavs. As the territorial rules were weak, and the nobles enjoyed greater power through their representative assemblies, they could easily subject the peasants to their own iiile and enlarge their estates by controlling judicial authority as well as by receiving ecclesiastical patronage. In the two important states of eastern Europe - Poland and Lithuania, the feudal crisis resulted in the introduction and strengthening ot serfdom. The legal and political powers of the nobility in relation to the peasant and townsman increased immensely through the laws of the Polish Diets. The feudal mag­ nates totally controlled the S>eg7n (Parliament) and thus imposed their will on the peasants. They succeeded in not only controlling but also profiting from the grain trade. In the other eastern territories such as Bohemia, Moravia, Hungary, Romania and Russia, the process of feudalization hastened and the peasants became more like personal properties of the feudal lords. Many scholars, like Robert Brenner and others, provide an explanation for the existence of two types of agrarian systems in early modern eastern and western Europe. They focus on the different patterns of the historical evolutions. In the states of western Europe, like England and France, the rulers had succeeded in establishing their predominance over the nobility by the sixteenth century, while in the countries of eastern Europe with the exception o f Russia, politics was dominated not by the kings but by the 42 Europe in 'fransition noblemen.The eastern rulers needed the support of the nobilit\' to remain in power and were forced to grant concessions tf> the feudal lords to subjugate the rural population.'The Polish ruler in I^IH gave a pledge to the representative assembly of the nobles that he would not accept appeals from the peasants against their masters. The weak urban centres and the virtual absence of an urban bourgeoisie gave the nobility much greater powers than that cnjoyetl in western Europe. Western Europe also started moving towards the conversion of feudal dues into feudal rent. The expansion of trade and the growing monetary transactions began to break the old structure of feudalism, leading to a division of labour between the town and the country. The growth of cities created greater demand for foodstuff This transformation was particularly visible in the case of demesne lands, which were the chief centres of sert'ile labour.The feudal lords replaced compulsor)' serv'ices such as corvee (compulsory labour rendered to the master in return for the use of land), boon work (to be performed in certain seasons, assigned in the form of task rather than fixed number of days) with monetary dues. The status of the peasants improved in some parts of western Europe but every peasant community did not equally profit from these developments. The most significant change observed in the late-fiftecnth century was the rise of absolute monarchies. In western Europe, the feudal structure was preserved under the absolute monarchs but the state’s control was established over the peasants without altering their traditional status. Absolute rulers started assuming powers that were exercised earlier by the feudal lords. The states began to appropriate surplus from the peasants. However, the gradual decline of the manorial system and the institutions of serfdom led to the rise of hired labour, as the feudal lords showed greater interest in receiving money instead of service. Demesne land was farmed out to peasants in exchange o f money rent rather than corvee. Many of these men climbed the social scale and became wealthy peasants or yeomen and some achieving the status of gentlemen. Gradually the landholding relationship started changing and farmers became me'tayers or sharecroppers (those who  The Face o f Europe in the Late-Eifteenth Century 43 received land on rent from the feudal lords and paid them not with their labour or money but with fixed share of their crops). ddius by 1500, the rigid rural life within the feudal structure started breaking down in certain parts of western Europe while at the same time the feudal organization in eastern Europe ami in most of central Europe was strengtliened by the efforts of the feudal nobility. The expansion of trade along the Atlantic coast promoted commercialization of agriculture and a growth towards capitalism while the rest of Europe took another two to three centuries to break the feudal structure. The different levels of agrarian devel­ opment caused an uneven economic development in Europe. C rafi s AND I ndustry After a long period of demographic decline, there were signs of recovery from the 1460s. Although the growth of population varied regionwise, the biggest increase could be noticed in the towns and cities. Antwerp, which emerged as the chief commercial town of Europe during the sixteenth century, experienced a population growth from 20,000 in 1440 to about 50,000 in 1500. Similarly, the population of Sicily and Naples almost doubled between 1460 and 1600, and that of Rome increased to 1,00,000 from 50,000 in roughly the same period.This population increase in towns created significant demand for not only foodstuff but also tor manufactured commodities. More significantly, this increase helped in the creation and expansion of craft and industry - the sector that experienced the fastest growth in the sixteenth century. An important urban organization that controlled the manufacturing activities was the urban guild. In the medieval towns and cities the guilds were the most distinctive forms o f economic and social organizations. T h ey were professional associations whose main function was to protect and promote the manufacturing and trade interests o f their members. T h e guild played a positive role in the world o f artisans as it provided unity and rendered help to its members and their families in times o f sickness and distress.There were merchant guilds and craft guilds.  44 l\uropc in 'fransUio?! 1 he merchant guilds primarily maintained a inonopol)' of the loc al market for its members. T hey imposed strict conditions such as restricting foreigners from trading in the city, thus jtrotectm g its members’ interests. T hey also controlled the prices o f proilucts. Similarly, the crafts guilds controlled the production sitle anti supervised the entire process o f production, ivach guihl ^vas controlled by a master-craftsman who was an expert in his spe­ cialized field. Another category o f members o f the crafts guikls were the journeymen who had learned their trade but still worked under the masters and the apprentices. Each apprentice had to spend a fixed number o f years to learn the art from the master and could only become the master o f a guild by producing a ‘masterpiece’, which had to be approved by all the master craftsmen. T h ese guilds retained monopolies over their products and prevented com petit­ ion by not allowing outsiders to enter the trade. T h ey fought for minimum wages and determined the market price o f their protluct and also controlled each stage o f production and the (juality of material used. They were extremely powerful in most o f the urban centres o f Europe. T ill the end o f the fifteenth century the guilds continued to dominate production o f manufactured products. ITom the end o f the fifteenth century it was the textile sector that expe­ rienced the most dramatic change in its organization and total production, thereby contributing to the expansion o f the European economy. In some parts such as Flanders, England and Netherlands, textile-manufacturing activities had starting moving out o f urban workshops towards the countryside. T h is was done to escape the strict regimental control o f the guilds in order to produce on a larger scale and at lower prices. O n the other hand the urban workshops and the urban cloth markets in the Italian cities were controlled and dominated by the guilds. T h e guilds m aintained the quality o f their textiles but they also controlled the market. T his meant they could command high prices for their products and maintain huge profit margins. To avoid being controlled by the guilds many craftsmen moved to rural areas where they could produce light and cheap woollen textiles. T h is shift away from the guilds made the textile industry dynamic and prosperous. T h e econom ic prosperity o f England and N etherlands du ring the  The Filer ofFuropr in the Latr-Fiftrrnth Century 45 sixteenth century \v;is greatly promoted by the rural textile manufacturing. I he textiles sector constituted the most important economic area tor cmplo)'ment and production. Textiles constituted the biggest industr}' but its organization was complex.Throughout the fifteenth centur\', the Italian stares enjoyed a pre-eminent position in textile production. How'cver, by the end of the fifteenth centurv^ the old centres were beginning to decline while some new' centres were emerging. Florence was one of the most important textile- manufiicturing centres. It produced 1,00,000 bolts of woollen cloth annually in the fourteenth century but by the carly-sixteenth centur)' it had declined to 30,000 bolts. This did not imply an industrial decline for Florence because the decline of w'oollens w^as offset by silk production. The old woollen textile industr\^ of Netherlands at Ypres, Ghent and Bruges had started declining but within Netherlands production of new types of woollen fabrics had begun. They were lighter, cheaper and catered to the demand of the population outside the nobility. In the fourteenth-centur}' England was essentially an exporter of raw wool. During the fifteenth centur)' she began to export woollen products of good quality and by the middle of the sixteenth century England became one of the chief producers. The economic transformation in England was in fact bound with the production of woollen textiles. The export of wool continued to decline while the export of cloth showed constant growth. Between 1503 and 1509, England exported 81,835 bolts of cloth and 5,000 sacks of wool. Between 1540 and 1548, the annual exports of cloth had gone up to 1,22,254 bolts. A crucial factor in the growth o f the English cloth industry was the availability o f water power, which enabled the manufacturers to use the new mechanical fulling mills. It enabled the artisans to manufacture more cloth than they could by the traditional method. Rural manufacturing was not only less expensive but it also provided part-time employment to the farmers and their family members during slack periods. An important feature of textile production was that the cloth manufacturing activity in many places such as England, the Netherlands and Germany gravitated towards the countryside away from the towns. It led to the rise of rural cottage 46 F.urope in Transition industry that was relatively free from guild control on cju.ility and technique. Consequently the cost of productiem was much lo'-'^'^’' than in other European towns. Another industrial activity was mining and metallurgy. Usuall} small enterprises of four or five workers cooperatively jiroilnced iron, copper, silver and coal. However, as the demand for such metah increased, more machinery was needed to exploit deeper seams in the mines and new processes were developed. Primitive forms of capitalist organizations came into being to manage larger units employing greater number of workers. Cities located in central Europe, particularly in the German states, began exploiting iron, silver and copper mines on a large scale. C^re was mined at a depth of about 300 metres that required more developed forms of organ­ ization and equipment. Ore was becoming expensive to mine ami needed huge investments and some big merchants started investing in this field. The reorganization of mining started in the fifteenth century when the merchant capitalists took control of production. So long as mining was carried out to extract minerals lying closer to the surface, it did not require advanced technology or heavy finances. Deeper mining needed the installation and maintenance of expensive equipment. This change was evident in the silver mines of the Harz Mountains in Bohemia, copper mines of d yrol in the Alps and the gold and silver mines of I lungary. Free workers were converted into wage labourers and their number multiplied as the drilling operations went deeper. New technology was adopted to pipe out water in the form of pumping machines driven by horse power. The nobility and the rulers in that region gained from the prosperity of the inhabitants. The heavy investments prevented individual merchants from carrying out the operations alone. A form of joint stock operation came into existence in which the stock o f the mine was divided into shares called kuxen in the multiples o f 64 or 128. In 1580, Augustus I ol Sicxony owned 2,822 kuxen (Braudel, The Wheels o f Commerce., p. 323). However, during the sixteenth century, the heavy cost of mining activity, the declining returns, labour problems (as it developed in Hungary in 1525-6) and the growing competition from America resulted in the withdrawal o f capital from several mines. The exception was of  I'he Face o f Europe in (he Late-Fifteenth Century 47 Schwaz in '1 yron, where the Fuggers eontrolled copper and silver mining, with over 12,000 workers under them and another 500 to 600 labourers employed to pump out water from the tunnels (Braudel, The Wheels o f fi’ow/WtvaO/riic territories along the Rhine Valley and upper reaches of the Danube emerged as the chief production centres of metals. This region also had a developed textile industry' that gradmilly shifted towards the countryside. I'hc other nourishing industries of the late-filteenth century included glass manufacturing and printing. During the 1430s and 1440s, Johann Gutenberg ot Mainz in Germany carried out experiments that resulted in the invention of the printing press by about 1453. Although block printing and paper printing through wooden blocks was known in China for centuries. Gutenberg, who belonged to a family of goldsmiths, had developed a moveable metal type. J\vo other names are also associated with this invention - Johann Fust and Peter Schoffer. The printing press was a major event in the commercial and academic world and it began to spread in different parts of Europe, particularly in the Italian cities. Book production increased manifold by the end of the fifteenth century'. Although most of the European cities had their own printing presses, the most important centre was Venice, where about 150 printing presses existed. Shipping and arsenals (dockyards) were the emerging com­ mercial fields in parts of Europe. Till the fifteenth century ship­ building had developed in the southern parts of Europe, particularly in Venice - the chief commercial centre, before the trading zone shifted towards the Atlantic coast during the sixteenth century. Although construction work of naval dockyard had started much earlier, its extension seriously began in 1476.The Venetian arsenal built, repaired and equipped ships on the capitalist lines. About 1,000 workers were engaged at one place and it was considered the largest industrial establishment before 1560. The site of work and its operations were controlled by the Lords and Commissioners of the arsenal and were placed directly under state control. Many of these officials were paid salaries and given houses by the state. The workers employed there were masters in their own profession and were members of the craft guilds but they also worked for the private  48 Knrope in Transition ship builders. There were ironsmiths, car[ienters, sail-makers ami pulley-makers. However all the ships in Venice did not belong to this state-run arsenal.The bulk of the merchant fleet was actualb constructed and owned privately. The late-fifteenth cen tu i)’ also witnessed the rise o f shipping industry in Portugal ami Spain with the creation o f colonial empires. T radi.nc; a.nd C om.mkrciai. A c i ' ivi i irs T h e late-fifteenth century was a turning point in the Kuropcan economic history, as it marks the beginning o f the long-distance trade and the establishment o f colonies in the far-flung regions o f the world. T his aspect has been taken up in another chapter in greater detail but at this point the focus is on the nature o f trade and the scale o f business organization that existed in the late- fifteenth century. W ithin Europe, important forms o f exchange were growing in scale that included raw materials, food and m anu­ factured products and several luxury products. Though the beginning o f international trade cannot be ascribed to the sea voyages and explorations because Europe was already receiving luxury products from Asia and A frica through the land routes or through the Mediterranean Sea, this period is significant because o f the expansion in international trade, particularly the maritime trade across the oceans. In the fifteenth century, the growing economic strength o f the towns o f southern G erm any and Bohemia challenged the Italian dominated M editerranean trade and the North Sea trade o f the Hanseatic League. T h e H anseatic merchants had acquired monopoly rights o f trade in the northern routes from Lithuania to the Baltic Sea through political and military means but the south German traders adopted the Italian methods o f monopoly trade to establish and expand their influence throughout central Europe. T h e M erchant Adventurers o f England was another state protected m onopolistic in stitu tion th at had extended its influence into Flanders and had successfully challenged the position o f the Hanseatic League. T h e old com m ercial and financial centre was located in Bruges in Belgium. T h e English, the Italian and the Hanseatic merchants frequently visited this town  The Face o f Europe in the Lute-Fifteenth Century 49 c:irrying goods in bulk such as wool, grain, fish and spices. By the end ot the centur)', Antwerp, an important port city of the Spanish Netherlands, was last replacing Bruges as the commercial epicentre of Europe. It was not the international trade, however, but the local ami regional trade ot Europe that provided the initial thrust for market exj^ansion. During the fifteenth centurt'^ most of the towns in Europe had devclopeil their own local markets where products from the neighbouring regions were bought and sold. Some of the larger towns had developed markets to handle and organize trade.These market-towns received or sent products to more distant parts within Europe. A few markets in Europe dealt with the exotic products from the east. Most r)t this trade was local, regional or intra- European. Although a major part ot Europe was still under the impact ot feudal organization and as mentioned earlier, the scale of trade remained limited under feudalism. Yet European regions were coming closer with the expansion ot inter-regional contact. The bulk of the business dealt with common local products that were bought and sold or exchanged by the local people. Cloth, food products and cattle were the chief products and the exchange took place through local fairs such as the fair of Cologne, a purely rural event held three or four times a year. A similar kind of fair was held at Medina del Campo. It was a shepherds’fair under the patronage of the Castilian rulers. As the size of towns grew and populations increased, the demand tor food products like cereals, vegetabk's and wine increased. It had to be met not only from the immediate neighbourhood but also from distant regions. Similarly, the rise of universities, Cathedral cities and administrative centres began to attract large populations. In such places the markets expanded and assumed a permanent form. Here, wholesalers and retailers, merchants and traders grew in number. Many of these markets imported products of daily consumption, which were stored and sold in proper shops. Products of local industry were sold or exchanged with products that were not available in the neigh­ bourhood. Thus Spanish wool was sent to Netherlands and Italy in exchange for the Baltic goods such as cereals and forest products. Hungarian copper was sent to Germany and France, English  50 Europe in 'I ran sit ion woollen was sent to northern Kuropc and the Baltic states iii exchange of agricultural products like salt, wine, fish, vegetables oils, fruits and dyestuff from southern and western Isurope. 1 here was a huge demand for salt which was jmoduced in man)’ parts of the continent but in small quantities. It was at Luneburg, south of Lubcck, where an important salt industry developed. Salt proiluced in this region was marketed to distant jilaces and it became an important source of earning for the kjcal people. With the expansion of the shipping industry, timber became a commercial product, in short, it can be said that in many places the traditional fairs - the chief means of exchange - were being replaced by regular markets in cities. Usually a merchant began to specialize solely in trading activity while retail trade was left to the shopkeepers. In the fifteenth century, land transport remained seriously limited because o f bad roads.The mode o f transport had not changed much for centuries. Under these conditions, the use o f inland waterways, river navigation and convoy o f carts and dom esticated animals facilitated the trade. Inland trade faced many serious problems from bandits, wars among the states or among the feudal lords, un­ favourable weather conditions (floods, intense winter) and heavy tolls as each region was divided into numerous small states. T h is can be seen in the case o f the Rhine Valley where the num ber of tolls had doubled from thirty-five to about seventy within a period o f hundred years. T h e rise o f centralized absolute states greatly facilitated the growth o f trade by providing political stability and greater security to the traders.The late-fifteenth century witnessed a major advance in the art o f shipbuilding. T h e tonnage capacity increased and with it the capability o f undertaking longer journeys. T h e Portuguese led the way in this direction. W ith the construction o f bigger and faster ships, improvement was also made in nav­ igational equipm ents.The freight costs proved lower in the case o f sea journeys compared to land transportation and thereby reducing costs greatly. T h e expansion o f trade enlarged the scale o f business organ­ ization. In the Italian states, there already existed a long tradition o f business enterprise and techniques o f com m ercial organization. However, these organizations were not modern capitalist systems  The I'iuc of Europe in the Lute-Fifteenth Centnr\ 51 hcc.uisc the capital infrastructure had not )'et fully evolved. There was no corporate organization beyond partnership. The Italian merchants, specially the Florentines, possessed a large resen^oir of liquid capital lor investment. These merchants provided capital for real estate, traded in commodities, manufactured cloth and arms, spent money on developing mineral resources and even invested in military campaigns or in the purchase of ecclesiasticLil posts. Great sums of money were accumulated by Italian families in Piacenza, Asti, Sienna, Lucca and in Florence. A striking feature of this banking activity was its organization into companies or case (house). There were many temporar)' trading coq)orations such as cotnmendui or These were a type of partnerships in which the inv'estors provided two-thirds of the capital while the factors or agents provided the rest.The factors managed the market aspect and were responsible for the collection of payments. The profit was divided equally between the investors and the factors. According to Henri Lucas (p. 162), such types of trading corporations could be seen in the twelfth century in Genoa and in many other Italian towns. Another type of business organization was called accommodation in which the investors provided all the capital while the factors merely acted as agents for selling goods and collecting payments. For this they received a quarter of the share of profits. All these were temporary organizations and were formed for a single or for a fixed number of voyages. W ith the expansion of trade in the late-fifteenth century, important forms of credit instruments had already developed in the Italian states to handle the large volume of exchange. These included instruments like letters of credit and exchange, lettres de foire (letters of exchange which were popular in the business circle o f Flanders, Brabant, Artois, Champagne and in the Italian states). The Italian merchant families had perfected the art of business and company finance by developing the system of bookkeeping, first the single-entry system and subsequently the double-entry system, which is used even today. Luca Pacioli made double-entry bookkeeping popular in his book Si/imma o f Arithmetic Techniques in 1494. It was a basic work on commercial arithmetic. In this, the transactions were entered twice under assets and liabilities. However, 52 Europe in Tramition the origin of the double-entry book is a subject of debate. Man)’ scholars have rejected the old view that it perhaps originated in Genoa around 1340 and it is now believed that it developed almost simultaneously in several Italian centres. According to R. I)e Roover (M.J. Kitch, Capitalism and Reformation, 1968, p. 75), the three factors that contributed to the progress of accounting were partnership, credit and agency. This jieriod also witnessed the emergence o f the concept of insurance. It first started in the field of marine activities and was later introduced in other trading spheres. In Italy a body of insurance laws grew, which was later controlled by magistrates and consuls. The structure of business, particularly in Italy and German)) revealed certain pre-capitalist features. Florence had a large number of merchant banks. These were not like mfidern banks hut were essentially local financial institutions that accepted deposits and extended loans.Their chief business was to handle foreign exchange such as transfer o f credit and exchange operations. They also functioned as moneychangers and established branches in different cities o f Europe. These were usually family organizations. There were several merchant-banker families such as the M edicis, Frescabaldi, Filippo Strozzi, Bardi, Peruri (all from Florence), Capponi in Lyons (France) and Fuggers in Augsburg (Germany). The house o f Medici in Florence was the most well known among the merchant-bankers. We come to know of their scale of operations from a record book of tax declarations called Catasto. The house of Medici was one of the greatest banking families in Europe with branches in cities like Geneva, Avignon, Bruges and London. The Medici family became wealthy by lending money to the Popes and the Cardinals at exorbitant rates of interest (which could be as high as 50 per cent).They also lent to the rulers in order to become their tax collectors. They had commercial dealings with the rulers o f Burgundy, England and Milan. The Medicis also bought and sold bills o f exchange, the most common method o f handling commercial credit. This family had a long experience o f handling international commerce and through their wealth they were able to establish their political domination. The Medici family also managed theTolfa alum mines from 1466—76. Alum was used as a raw material in the expanding textile industry. Cosimo de Medici  The I'iicc o f Em opt- in the Latc-Fiftcenth Century 53 (1389-1464) developed ;i series ot bilateral partnerships benveen firms in other parts ot Murope.This solved the problem ofunlimited liability, whieh had eaused huge losses earlier.The commercial and political connections with the Pope and other inllucntial political tamilics helped the Medicis retain their position till the early part o t tlie sixteenth century. Jacques Coeurwas another banking fltmil)- that existed in France. It maintained close connections with the merchants in other cities, including those in Barcelona, Bruges, Paris and in cities in the eastern Mediterranean.Through his wealth he became the financial adviser of King Charles NHll and made a fortune by managing the French royal mint. Me restored the dwindling financial conditions of the French ruler. In Germany Fugger was the most important merchant-banker family.The first Fugger known to historians was Hans, who was a weaver and came to settle in Augsburg in southern Germany around 1380. He importeil cotton from Venice and was involved in the manufacture and sale of fustians, a fabric made of flax. His son Jacob I expanded the family business after 1469 and began to deal in silks, woollens, linen, fustians, brocades and in spices, jewels and textiles. They established business connections with the chief merchants of Italy, the Netherlands, Silesia, Poland and Hungary and assumed the role o f official bankers of the Pope by handling all forms of money transfers between Germany and Rome. Their wealth increased fourfold between 1470 and 1500. The climax of glory came when their loans enabled Charles V of Spain to become the Holy Roman Emperor in 1519.They also exercised some control over the copper and silver mines in Germany and were the leaders of the Tyrolean silver mining industry.Thus these banking houses and the business families created a commercial structure which gave way to the more developed forms of business and commercial organizations and paved the way for the modern banking system. This is studied in greater detail under Commercial Revolution. T he C h r ist ia n C h u r c h W ith the decline o f the Roman Empire and the formation and extension o f the feudal system the European church had split into two branches - the Papal church w'as in Rome while the Greek  54 Europe in Trayisition Orthodox church was cstahlislicd in the eastern region ot I'uirojK’ under the Byzantine empire. The church under the l\)pe bec ame an important bond for European society and strengthened the feudal structure in western Europe.The demarcation bet'ween the ecclesiastical and lay society was not very rigid. In theor)', the clergy was not a hereditary class and was recruited from all levels of society, although the upper sections of society had greater representation in it. During the High Middle Ages, the position of the clergy altered gradually from pressures created by money economy and rising prices. The expansion of trade and growing expenditure on luxury items demanded more income. The higher clergy holding superior posts in the church adopted new devices to supplement their income. The feudal crisis had adversely affected the fiscal resources o f the church as most of its income came from tithe (a tax imposed by the church on land income that constituted ] 0 per cent o f the total income), which had been showing diminishing returns because of the economic and demographic crises mentioned earlier. The gap between the higher and the lower clergy increased as the position o f the latter deteriorated.The higher church officials held powerful positions in the state administration, while simul­ taneously retaining their ecclesiastical posts. Cardinal Wolsey in England and Cardinal Ximenes in Spain are a few examples of persons holding the highest temporal and spiritual positions together. The priests of country parishes were often poorly educated and badly paid and led a life which differed little from that o f their flocks.The growing evils of plurality of posts held by a single priest resulting in absenteeism, nepotism and financial exactions reached the highest level under Pope Innocent VIII. The institutional crisis in the Papal church started from the fourteenth century and passed through three significant phases. The first was the Babylonian captivity of the Papacy (1305-78) when the Papacy was located in Avignon in France instead o f Rome and remained subservient to the interest of the French crown. The second phase witnessed the Great Schism (1378-1417) that resulted in rival states competing with the opponents for the post o f Pope — one led by the French group comprising the states o f Scotland, Castile and Aragon recognizing the claims o f Clement, while the  I'hc I'tier of Europe in the 1.ute-Fifteenth Century 55 resr ot Kuropc pushed the claims of Urban \T. Uven the European monastic orders were divided into Roman and Avignon camps. The crisis was resolved in 1417 by the Council of Constant. The third crisis was related to the nature of church government (1417- 1517), in which the Conciliar movement played an important role in determining the relationship between the papacy and the European rulers. Although the Pope had won the spiritual position by the late-fifteenth centur\' through the support of the European rul ers, there was a growing tendency among the European states towards the establishment ot national churches. The Pragmatic Sanction (1438) of the French ruler had resulted in the creation of Gallican church largely independent of Papal influence. It was followed by the grant of Inquisition to the Spanish rulers and the English Crown’s breach with Rome. The Pope was compelled to accept these compromises. All these events demonstrate the signs of Papal decline. These cracks were symptomatic of the coming peril. The most important trait of the Christian church in the late- fifteenth century manifested itself in the form of Renaissance Papacy. The Papal authority had to re-establish itself against the centrifugal forces of the Conciliar movement. There was popular resentment against the church policies and a growing demand for reforms. The Pope was able to rehabilitate himself in Rome by 1450 after much hostility. Once secured, subsequent popes began rebuilding the church and the city of Rome. The first step in this direction was taken by Pope Nicholas V (1446-55). A Renaissance Pope, he was keen to restore the former glory of Rome. He and his successors began patronizing art, established lavish courts, spent huge sums o f money on new buildings and projects. Following the Renaissance humanists they acquired ancient manuscripts to demonstrate the intellectual and religious superiority of Rome over other cities. The church employed the famous Florentine archi­ tect, Alberti, who wrote a masterpiece on architecture titled On Architecture (1452). Several urban projects were undertaken such as the construction of beautiful public squares, bridges and roads reflecting the revival of classical antiquity. Attempts were made to restore the great buildings. Pope Sixtus IV undertook the  56 Europe in Transition construction of the Sistinc Chapel in the Vatican Palace in 1475. The great artist of that period, jVlichelangelo jvainted its ceiling. Sixtus employed some of the best artists of Renaissance, hut he was unpopular for his violent and extortionist policy and for his territorial ambition. Many others, including the cardinals and secular families also patronized Renaissance artists ainl architects. One of the well-known patrons was Chigi. I le did not belong to a noble family and was ennobled by Pope Julius II for his construction of Villa Farnesina. Rome by the end of the fifteenth century had become a grand city. Its population grew rapidly from only 17,000 in 1400 to about 85,000 by 1517 It had become one of the major European cities and this strengthened the church’s standing in the Christian world. However, the temporary glory and artistic splendour had pushed spiritual matters into the background and the growing resentment against the church was not noticed by papal officials till the coming of Luther’s revolt. T h e P o lit ic a l M ap o f E u ro pe European political structure in the late-fifteen th century was essentially feudal in character. It presented a very com plex picture because it varied from one region to another and even w ithin the same region it assumed numerous forms. T h e political map o f the European states and principalities displayed a com b in ation o f hereditary, elective or even jo in t monarchies. Besides, there were broad or narrow form o f oligarchies and some sem i-independent or independent confederacies. There was also an emperor, who ruled over large territories o f Europe but without any effective control. H e was called the Holy Roman Emperor. In short, the people o f Europe were governed in a variety o f ways. M ost parts o f Europe had decentralized political systems. T h e feudal nobility enjoyed vast powers in p o litica l, ju d icia l and administrative spheres. There were exclusive sovereignties but at many places overlapping and constantly shifting lordships rest icted these. D ynastic policy played an im portant role particularly in matters o f marriages and hereditary claims in d eterm ining the fortunes o f the rulers. T h e lords were constantly engaged in small  'The I'iicr o f Europe in the Late-Fifteenth Centurv 57 skirmishes but on many occasions succession disputes transformed tliem into large-scale wars. However, in certain parts of Europe the process of centralization was going on. Towards the end of the fifteenth century states like France, England, Spain and the Muscovy (Moscow) e.xperienced the emergence of strong centralized monarchies. France was the richest, the most populous, and territorially the largest of the European kingdoms in the fifteenth centurj^ With a population of nearly twelve million people and its territory stretching from the borders of the Low Countries in the north to the Mediterranean coast in the south, France displayed economic and culuiral diversity. After a long period of war with England under the leadership ofjoan of Arc, the French were able to recover sizeable lands from the English.The process of unification of France continued but was checked by certain smaller but powerful states like Burgundy, Brittany and Anjou. Charles the Bold ruled the Duchy of Burgundy. The kingdom of Burgundy included the richest territories o f the Netherlands and Franche-Comte. Bruges had developed into not only an important trade centre but a strong cultural centre. Its court displayed French culture and art of that period. After the death of Charles in 1477, the heiress of Burgundy married Arch Duke Maximillian, the son of the Holy Roman Emperor, who succeeded the throne in 1493.The northern part of France was ruled by the Valois dynasty but there were many independent principalities or fiefs such as Guienne under the English king, Flanders under a Count and Brittany under a Duke. They all resisted the French efforts of unification. However, under Louis XI (1461-83), Charles V Ill (1483-98) and Louis XII (1498- 1515) France was able to establish her supremacy over Burgundy, Anjou, Maine, Provence and Brittany. All of northern France was unified except Calais, a port town which remained in English hands till the mid-sixteenth century. In France, the rulers provided a reasonable level of political stability as most of them ruled for fairly long periods and the change over, from one ruler to another, vzas relatively free from succession disputes unlike in many other states. The rise of absolutism in France did not alter the position of the peasants. T he personal bondage under serfdom gave way to  58 Europe in Transition economic dependence. The dual control of the state as well as of the feudal lords made them very vailnerahle. Morecner, the peasants were expected to pay to the church a tenth of their income in the form o f tithe.TYic. protection of the legal projK-rty of the [teasants by the state on the one hand and the excessive exploitaticm hy the nobility on the other prolonged the misery of the I'rench peasants. In England the strength of the monarchy was growing for over a century. A prolonged war with France stretching for over hundred years and an internal war called the War f)f the Roses lasting almost thirty years till 1485 paved the way for the Tudor dynasty in England.! he cumulative effect of these wars was the weakening of the feudal nobility. England made rapid strides in the social and constitutional sphere. The knights were among the first of the feudal elements to lose the status of an armed militar)' class. During the fifteenth and early-sixteenth centuries, they merged themselves with the gentry. The landed families in England began to socially intermingle and even enter into matrimonial relations with the leading merchant families. This marked a steady social trans­ formation in England. Richard III and Henry V II laid the foundations o f a de.spotic form of government that was slowly centralized and made effective.The establishment ofTudor dynasty led to a period of a prolonged stability. The "Fudors contributed to the rise o f parliament as a representative institution. 1 his period witnessed significant progress in the socio-economic and political domains in England. Spain was another state that showed signs ofgrowing importance and domination over the European states. The process o f trans­ forming small autonomous states and principalities into a unified whole began with the union of the crowns o f Castile and Aragon. The heiress o f Castile, Isabella and Ferdinand, the prince o f Aragon were married in 1469.The future of Spain was built on this maryiagc- By the Agreement of Segovia in 1475, Isabella handled the internal government o f Castile while Ferdinand looked after foreign affairs. They jointly participated in the administration o f justice. There were many reasons that led to the supremacy o f Castile over other states of Spain. Castile was the largest territorial state in that region. Furthermore, it enjoyed a distinct advantage o f a large population  The Face of Europe in the Lute-Fifteenth CA'ntury 59 and in;itcrial resources over other states. The representative institutions in the form of Cor/c’.f was given an increasingly reduced role in state matters and the powers ol the church were used through the Inquisition (a religious tribunal established to suppress heresy) to strengthen the powers of the Spanish monarch. Although a complete political unification was achieved only in 1716, Spain began to play an increasingly dominant role in European affairs by the end o f the fifteenth century. An important factor in the rise of Spain as an imperial power was her acquisition ot several colonies in the New World. In the process, Spain became the chief supplier of silver and many other products to Europe. The emergence of a strong centralized state could also be seen in eastern Europe. The rise of Russia as a centralized state under a strong and ruthless monarchy began in the period of Ivan III (1440- 1505). From a small principality under the suzerainty of the Mongol rulers, Ivan, began absorbing the neighbouring territories. By refusing to seek permission from the Mongol rulers, he successfully resisted their powerful invasions and thereafter, this ‘grand prince of Moscow’ ceased to be a vassal of the Mongols. He set in motion the Russian expansion and conquered the powerful mercantile republic o f Novgorod, subdued the ruler of Tver, Vyatka and purchased the principality ofYaroslavi and some part of Rostov. He transformed the independent landed aristocrats into service nobles and imposed several conditions on them. The rise of Russia was accompanied by the introduction and strengthening of serf­ dom. Unlike in the western states of Europe, where serfdom as an institution was either weakening or transforming into a new form of tenurial relationship based on money rent, Russian political structure strengthened feudalism. W hile some parts of Europe were developing absolutist forms of political structure, the states in northern Europe were either de­ centralized or were still to be unified. Since 1397, the Scandi­ navian countries comprising Sweden, Norway and Denmark were jointly ruled by a single monarch under the Union of Kalmar. It was a series o f personal unions from 1397 till 1524 under Margareta Valdemarsdotters. Cracks started appearing in it from 1430s. Strong movements had developed against this union in  60 Europe in Transition Sweden, joined by nobles, free peasants and the miners. These reflected the sentiments of aristocratic hostilit)' towards a strt)iig monarchy. The administration of the nilers of Denmark could never become effective within Sweden. The pressure from a strong aristocracy created constant obstacles in the rise of absolutism. However, a strong monarchy within Sweden was emerging through an alliance with the Estates Riksdag-AgAinsi the traditional organ of aristocrats, the Irksrad. Th\s> resulted in a long contest between absolutism and noble oligarchy. The ruler Gustavus adojited a combined policy of ruthlcssness and pragmatism by introducing populist measures and strengthened his financial position by exploiting iron fields and forests. He succeeded in developing an absolutistgovernmentbutonly for a brief time. During this period, Sweden became an important power and actively participated in the European political and economic conflicts. The Netherlands was a part of the Low Countries situated near the North Sea. It consisted of seventeen states and included the present territories of Belgium, Luxembourg and the Netherlands. Each province of the Netherlands had been governed by its own constitution, traditions and customs. This region lacked not only political unity but there was total absence of social and economic homogeneity, rather, it reflected racial and linguistic disunity. It escaped the full impact of feudalism because o f its geographical proximity to the sea and also because o f its autonomous social organization. Central Europe contained numerous small states ruled by kings, dukes or even church officials.The southern German states, despite their individual rivalries, formed the Swabian League in 1488 to contain Swiss inroads and to prevent the expansion o f Bavaria under Duke Wittelsbach. In Germany, the separatist tendencies were so strong that they did not wish to be controlled by any imperial government. Many of the German states were constituents o f the Holy Roman Empire. In the late-fifteenth century Maximillian I (1459-1519) ruled the Holy Roman Empire. The idea o f Holy Roman Empire was medieval in character as it was an attempt to bring the rulers o f smaller kingdoms under one nominal organization. Its chief objective was to defend and promote the  IV.H’ Face o f Europe in the Late-Fiftecnth Ceritury 61 Roman Catholic Church under tlic Pope against the possible threats from outside or from within Europe. However, by the fifteenth ccntiir)', the empire was becoming redundant and losing its purpose of existence. The Holy Roman Empire had existed at two levels. 'Ehe Emperor at the top was assisted by a feeble administration within an assembly of estates called Diet, representing the elites of Germany, Bohemia and some provinces of the Netherlands. Within it there was a house of seven ‘electors’ and these chosen princes elected the Hoi)' Roman Emperor. The lower level consisted of the House of Representatives, representing 300 members ofvar)ang ranks and position, consisting of kings, electors, dukes, margraves and even some knights enjoying landed property.The Holy Roman Empire stretched across vast territories of Europe and included Austria, the German states, Bohemia, the Netherlands, the Low Countries and some of the states from northern and central Italy. Despite having such vast stretches of land across Europe under his jurisdiction, the powers of the Holy Roman Emperor remained nominal rather than real.This was because of the policy of dynastic alliances between the ruling families of Europe. Maximillian I was able to acquire the Duchy of Burgundy, the seventeen provinces of the Netherlands, Artois and the Franche-Comte through his marriage with Mary, the princess of Burgundy. He found it rather difficult to control the Netherlands as it had an extremely de­ centralized form of government dominated by the urban nobility and commercial aristocracy. He married his son, Philip to the daughter of Ferdinand and Isabella of Spain. With the addition of Spain and Portugal, the empire became ungovernable and could not have any effective control even over the German states. The Germans always resisted and felt suspicious of the designs of the Habsburg rulers, who came to rule the Holy Roman Empire. The dynastic ambitions and territorial rivalry led to a prolonged war in the Italian territories known as the Habsburg-Valois Struggle, i.e. the war between the emperor and the French rulers. It resulted in the French invasion of Milan causing great embarrassment to Emperor Maximillian, who suffered numerous failures. It was a prolonged war and its participants kept changing with every fresh campaign.  62 Europe in Tramition Unlike Russia, where centralized form of state absolutism was developing, the rest of eastern Europe had a political organization that was rather weak and complex. It included the kingdoms ot Poland-Lithuania, Hungary and Bohemia. These kingdoms were linked together loosely by dynastic tics. The crowns of I lungar)' and Bohemia were united and that of Poland had a close relation­ ship with the Hungarian king. All these rulers belonged to the house ofjagiello of Poland and Lithuania. The farnih' ties of the ruling houses, the elective nature of the kingship in Poland, 1 lungar}' and Bohemia, and the near absence of the class o f professional administrators restricted the possibility of administrative continuity. This region faced insurmountable difficulties in forming strong centralized states as the destinies of these countries were completely decided by the personal interests of the nobles. The constitutional structure of Poland was even more primitive than that of Hungary. Poland was constantly engaged in foreign wars. Szlachia was a class o f lesser nobles that had su.ccessfully risen to the position of eqiudity with the king in the conduct of states affairs. They had also ex­ peditiously increased their powers over the towns and the peasant population. The introduction o f commercial farming by the traditional landlords in order to export cereals via D anzig transformed the free peasants into bonded labour through a series o f laws passed between 1496 and 1511. These laws prevented the peasants from leaving the land without the consent o f the master. This caused a degradation o f the legal status of the peasants. The situation in Hungary was even worse. The power o f the crown had been virtually eliminated and in the absence of an effective political force, the doors were opened for a bitter struggle between the lesser nobility and the big landed magnates. This caused immense deterioration in the status of the Hungarian peasants. Bohemia had become an aristocratic republic for all practical purposes. As was the case in Hungary and Poland, the nobles in Bohemia were left with vast political powers and constitutional freedom while the remaining classes were pushed to servitude, deprived o f all benefits. The position of the Bohemian peasants also underwent a similar decline.The nobles in Bohemia pursued offensive measures against the towns, which were further aggravated by religious and  The Face o f Europe in (he Late-Fifteenth Century 63 national antagonisnis/rhc town’s burglicrs were forbidden to trade in the country districts and merchants were even arrested on the roads. They were also excluded from the Diet by the consfimtion of 1500. A fierce struggle among the magnets pushed the countr}' into almost a civil war. I Iowe\'cr, the burghers were able to recover some of the lost ground and got back the right of representation in 1517 "fhis entire region remained a source of trouble for the neighbouring states. In the initial years it was the Polish-Lithuanian combine which carried out constant raids in the outer regions, including parts of Russia. The political weakness of this region subsequently invited the stronger states to attack the weaker ones and reap benefits.Towards the end of the eighteenth century Poland became one such example. She was partitioned among the three powerful neighbours - Russia, Prussia and Austria. Itai.ian Ci rv States The most important region of Europe for economic activities and cultural advancement was the peninsula located south of the Alps Mountains. It consisted of the Italian states representing a variety of political forms. During the first half of the fifteenth century, this region witnessed prolonged warfitre involving territorial and dynastic ambitions. Italy was never fully developed into a feudal organization and the Italian towns did not decay when feudalism swept across Europe, north of the Alps.The economy of the Italian states continued to survive on commerce, trade and industry while agriculture played a relatively minor role. The rise of the Italian states was primarily linked with the expansion of towns and cities. The period o f High Middle Ages saw the Italian peninsula divided into three major zones, (a) Regnum Italicum consisting parts of northern and central Italy forming an integral part of the Holy Roman Empire, (b) central Italy, including Rome ruled by the Pope, and (c) the southern Italian states and kingdoms mostly ruled by foreign dynasties such as the French, Aragonese, Germans and the Normans. Society north o f the Alps was still organized on a rural and feudal basis, but the Italian city states greatly influenced the evolution 64 Europe in Transition o f urban institutions. The of aristocrats ruled most of the city states and developed new mechanisms for j^overnrnent and administration. Each city had its own podesta (maj'or) and each district was ruled by Captains of the Guard. The prolonged wars among the Italian states resulted in the emergence of five important states displaying roughly equal powers and thereby maintaining a form o f balance of political influence with no single state dominating the others. Interspersed among these five major states were a multitude of smaller territories enjoying reasonable auto­ nomy but subjected to the influence of larger stares. These included Milan, Venice, Florence, the Papal states comprising extensive territories in central Italy and Naples. Everywhere in Italy, these leading cities gained at the expense of lesser ones. The five states remained at peace after the Peace of Lodi in 1454 till the French invasion of 1494. Although these states were very different in terms of size and character, their political influence was well balanced. Mil an, under the control of the Visconti family, was a Duchy and held a strategic position. Mere, the leading citizens formed a council consisting of 900 members. The city was located on an important trade route to France and western Germany, and had flourishing industries in metallurgy and textile. It had put a check, on the territorial expansion of Venice, because it had a strong standing army and a well-trained cavalry. The expansion o f irrigation increased agricultural output and this helped in the growth o f the silk industry. The Visconti dukes developed an efficient central administration, particularly after 1447 when some experiments were made in the direction of republicanism but they failed. Soon after, Francesco Sforza became the Duke of Milan. A good administrative organization contributed to the military strength o f Milan. This was a period o f cultural glory but it also marked the beginning of political troubles. Naples and Sardinia displayed all the characteristics o f a feudal state in the fifteenth century.They retained the traditional organ­ ization imposed on them by the Norman conquerors. Th e nobles o f foreign origins possessed large landed estates and lived almost like kings.They functioned virtually independent o f the monarchy, which was in the hands o f a dynasty from Aragon. These states  mO L ' i^OMAN h M P q t OTTOM h N EMPIRE M a j o r C it y S t a t e s M in o r C it y S t a t e s /'^y State B o u n d a ry / \ / R iv e r s Im p o r t a n t C i t i e s O lt o n ia n ia n E m p ir e Map 1.2: The Italian City States in Late-Fifteenth Century  66 Europe in Tramition had a long historical tradition of parliamcntar)'government based on the English model.The Parliament acted as a court of judgement and promulgated laws and was represented mainly b)' rich nobles and landowners.The rulers tried to develop financial resources by imposing heavy taxes and by using Florentine capital in traile ventures. Alfonso II of Naples was a typical Renaissance prince, a great patron of learning, art and architecture. I lis court patronized many talented artists. However, Naples remained embroiled in internal and expernal problems. Its relations with the Pope remained tense on the question of territorial suzerainty. Naples was also contesting the designs of Venice in the Adriatic Sea. In the domestic sphere, the heavy taxation of the state led to popular rebellions. After the Great Schism, Rome and the Papal states became the ecclesiastical principality. The Pope was interested in bringing all Italian territories under his suzerainty and he encountered various hurdles in this. Rome was essentially a republican city although it had recognized the seat of the Pope because it brought prestige and economic gains to the people of Rome. Papal policies could be resisted by the great Roman families who owned large mansions and landed estates and had representatives in the College o f Cardinals. Papal cities like Perugia and Bologna, and the ruling houses ofother places were almost independent, but they were afraid o f Papal authority for fear of excommunication and also because of the Papal influence over their own subjects. Politically and culturally Rome remained an important city in Italy. O f all the Italian city states Venice and Florence were the two most economically prosperous, although in many ways they were a contrast to each other. The prosperity o f Venice was dependent on its trade monopoly over oriental products coming via land routes through Constantinople. In the words o f Braudel, Venice had become the centre of world economy by the fifteenth century as all-important trade routes merged at this point. The northern route linked Venice to the Netherlands passing through Augsburg, Vienna, Nuremberg, Vasle, Strasbourg, and Hamburg. The western trade route linked Venice with Bruges and London and the eastern route to Levant. From the thirteenth century Venice was involved in a bitter rivalry with Genoa, another Italian city. Venice was an  'The Fact’ oj Europe in the Late-Fiftecnth Century 67 expanding state, full of territorial ambition. By the end of the fourteenth century, it occupied Corfu, considered as the gateway of the Adriatic. A ring of towns, territories and a chain of forts protected it from the rest ot Italy. By the late-filteenth century it almost became an empire dependent on commerciid and strategic interests along the route to Levant. Its frontier stretched from the Alps to the Po and from the Adda to the Isonzo. The political authority of this city state was in the hands of an oligarchy of merchants - a C ouncil o f Ten. Other cities under the jurisdiction of Venice were treated equally. The lower classes also shared the benefits of Venetian long-distance trade and gained from the government policy of light taxation. The nobility realized the advantages of a strong government and although it participated in the monopoly of political power, the wealth was not allowed to be concentrated in the hands of a single family through government regulations. So there was better distribution of wealth and the interest of every class was protected and this contributed to the political stability to a large extent. Before 1560, Venice had the largest arsenal, which was considered to be the biggest industrial establishment of that period on a pre-capitalist pattern. The Venetian economy was thus equipped with institutions like markets, shops, warehouses, the arsenal and the mint. Moneychangers and bankers, carried out transfer of money and transaction of goods. The fiinction of the stock exchange was carried out by the Rialto that fixed commodity prices and fixed interest rates on public loans. It also fixed premiums for maritime insurance. The profits from, trade were accumulated in a variety of places from where the money was invested and reinvested. Oliver Cox commented that Venice provided the first example of capitalism, a view which is not fully shared by Fernand Braudel.The Venetian mint at Zecca was another important economic centre, producing about 2 million ducats of gold and silver coins annually. The merchants of Venice effectively controlled all the major commodities of trade in the Mediterranean such as pepper, spices, Syrian cotton, grain, wine and many others. Foreign merchants were asked to stay in a segregated area, a little away from the city in fo ndu ks (a street of buildings). They were forced to buy goods for an amount equal to what they had brought  68 Europe in Transition from outside. The Venetian Siates adopted a system of trade intervention called Galere da Mercato and also provided state vessels to the export merchants. It was a state policy - a combination of state enterprise and private association. The was a kind of consortium o f export merchants who were interested in reducing their transportation costs to remain competitive against their foreign rivals.The concentration on trade does not imply that \^cnice did not have its own industries. It included printing, woollen, silk, paper, glass and mirror industries. As Miskimin points out, the Venetian industry prospered during Italy’s darkest period, 'fhere were two worlds of labour in Venice - the guild workers constituting two-thirds of the labour force, and the so-called ‘free’or unregulated labour constituting the remainder. The ‘proletariat of the sea’, in the words of Frederick C. Lane, included porters, oarsmen, seamen, stevedores, while the arti or guilds organized different trades. According to Braudel {The Perspective o f the lVor/d,pA33),in 1586, the city had a total population of 1,50,000 inhabitants. O f this 34,000 were workers. Florence unlike Venice was essentially an industrial centre. It became the cradle of the Italian Renaissance. The Arno I^ver flowed through it and was navigable from the Mediterranean port o f Pisa- This port was a centre of textile production but was conquered in 1406 by Florence. This enabled Florence to become a maritime power. The political history of Florence was chaotic and full of interruptions caused by political uprisings, unlike the stable political history o f Venice.The Medici family dominated the politick power and the government revealed its commitment towards republican' ism. Yet the rivah^ between working classes and rich families prevented the government from functioning effectively. The members o f the greater guilds and the merchants involved with textile production formed the dominant classes o f the city and displayed strong commercial interests.They had established control over seven out of nine places in the signoria (chief magistracy). R was a form o f corporate polity in which even the members o f ^ guild o f middling status (like small shopkeepers and artisans) occupied seats in the magistracy and voted in the council, but all the major decisions and policy formulations were left to th^  The T'ace n f Europe in (he Late-Fifteenlh Century 69 merchant oligarch)'. I lowcvcr, their frequent quarrels anci clash of interests made the government weak and inettective and enabled political opponents to e.xploit the siuiation. Although the Medici family provided an element o f continuity to the government and brought certaiti constitutional changes to strengthen their control over the state (the three important leaders - Cosimo, Piero and Lorenzo de Medici remained fairly popular), they couUl not have the last say in every matter. The concentration of wealth in Florence stemmed from its industrid activities.The economy was dominated by a large number of merchant-banker families.The Medici family along with Strozzi, Giovanni, Morelli, Bardi, Peruri, Frescabaldi and many others had their own branches across major European towns. These were considereil to be the most important banking houses of that period and they displayed the pre-capit;ilist spirit existing at a time when a greater portion of Europe was under a state of feudalism. Tuscany in Florence was a centre ot banking and large firms. Important capitalist elements could be located in the commercial practices like the use of cheques, the existence of trading companies, the use of double-entry bookkeeping and simplified procedure for maritime insurance. As Braudel states, it was Florence which developed industry to the maximum and moved unequivocally into what can be described as the manufiicturing phase {The Perspective o f the World, p. 128). Flowever, despite the concentration of wealth and industries the existence of a large urban proletariat with their wage problem created political disturbance and political instability. The city states of Italy played an extremely important role in developing the modern rules of international relations and sophistication in the art of administration and diplomacy. The leading families and social elite developed efficient state bureau­ cracies in their respective states. In the late-fifteenth century all power was concentrated in the hands of rulers. Each prince tried to turn the defacto power into something more legitimate and Italian courts became the centres of politics.The immense powers wielded by these rulers came to be called stato, a model emulated by many European rulers. The Renaissance princes of Italy made a distinct contribution to the idea o f‘resident diplomacy’ This was reflected  70 Europ e in 'Eransition in the regular practice of appointing rc^^iclent ambassado^^ in the courts o f foreign states, forging offensive and defensive alliances, non-aggression pacts and commercial treaties and state declarations o f guarantee and neutrality. It was through these measures that the Italian states perfected modern techniques o f international relations. Similarly, the Italians perfected the technicjues o f business organization. The practice o f stationing permanent representativ'cs abroad was followed by the weak states in order to develop partners in international relations. The Venetian court nursed its interests through such ambassadors. The ruler of Milan, Sforza showed a great deal to the diplomatic skills by appointing permanent ambassadors in France. Sometimes ambassadors were exchanged with foreign states to cement an alliance. Ambassador provided news service to guide governments in their foreign policy. Most ambassadors were expected to send reports of important happenings in the states where they were appointed. The self-interest o f these states and the attitude of watchfulness led to the development of the principle o f standing diplomacy. By the late-fifteenth century all Italian states had representatives as ambassadors at each other’s courts. All major European countries subsequently adopted this practice. Occasionally, this assumed a form of shadow diplomacy with secret agents, spies and informers, and the Italians often used merchants and bankers for this purpose. The practice o f sending secret instructions to the ambassadors also started during this time. The aim o f the diplomat was to outwit and deceive his opponents to succeed in the international sphere. These principles o f inter­ national relations played a significant role in the history o f pre­ modern Europe. Finally, an important contribution o f the Italian city states system was to develop the principle o f balance o f power in internat onal relations.This principle was also adopted within a state as zpohtiqut: formula for managing rival factions. Each Italian state tried to preserve its own territory and defend its own interests by ensuring that no single state became strong enough to enslave the other and to this end, each state paid great attention to even minor political events or changes. The Medicis and the Venetian signoria hired  The Face o f Europe in the Late-Fifteeuth Centura 71 mercenary armies to defend themselves as well as to carry out territorial expansion. Unlike medieval rulers who led their own campaigns, the Indian princes generally hired a professional milinu^' commander who was given a contract called condotta for an assigned campaign. This example was later followed by the larger states of Europe such as France, Spain and England. Thus the political and socio-economic changes by the late- fiftcenth century were transforming the face of Europe leading to the emergence of modern Europe. Geography proUded a stimulus to the maritime nations of Europe.The introduction of gunpowder and its use in firearms was vital to the success of European overseas expansion. The discovery of distant regions, formation of coloniid empires and new trans-oceanic trade routes provided a spur to the coastal economics of western Europe. New trading and commercial organizations were creating conditions for the rise of capitalism. Not only did the pace of sociid and cultural transformation gained momentum, but the rise of centralized monarchies in some parts gave new forms to state structure. These absolutist states provided security to trade and private property. Technological changes in the art o f navigation and shipbuilding, improvement in the manufacture of artillery, armaments and military organization ensured European domination over the rest of the world and marked the first stage of global integration. S u g g e s t e d R ea d in g s A b el, W ilh e lm , in Europe: From the Thirteenth to the Twentieth Centuries (tr. O li v e O rd ish ), L o n d o n ; M e th u e n 6 t C o., 1 9 8 0. T h o r o u g h l y re s e a r c h e d w o r k o n E u r o p e a n a g r ic u lt u r e a n d h a s r i c h s t a t i s t i c s o n t h e su b je ct. B a th , B. H. S lich er van. The Agrarian History of Western Europe, AD 5 0 0 - 1850, L o n d o n ; E d w a r d A r n o l d , 1 9 6 3. D i s c u s s e s t h e p o l i ti c a l a n d e c o n o m i c d im e n s io n o f fe u d a lism an d also in c lu d e s a b r ie f h is t o r i o g r a p h y. B loch , M a rc, The Feudal Society,! vo\s.,London: R o u t l c g e a n d K e g a n P a u l, 1 9 6 5. A c l a s s i c a l w o r k o n f e u d a li s m a n d is a m u s t fo r all s t u d e n t s o f E u r o p e a n tcu d alism. 72 Europ e in T ram ition B r a u d e l , F e r n a n d , T he M ed iterran ean a n d the M ed iterra n ea n W orld in the A ge o f P h ilip I I {tv.Sian R e y n o l d s ) , L o n d o n ; F o n t a n a , 1 9 7 2. A r lassieal w o rk o n th e M e d ite rra n e a n e c o n o m y and the g e o -p f)litical asp ects r e p r e s e n t i n g t h e A n n a l e s S c h o o l o f h i s t o r i c a l w riti ntt. C ritch ley , J.S., Feudalism, hondon: G e o r g e ^Mlen & U n w i n , 1 9 7 8. D obb, M au rice, Studies in the Development of Capitalism, L o n d o n ; R o u t l e d g e a n d K e g a n P a u l, 1 9 6 3. A s c h o l a r l y w o r k o n t h e d e c l i n e o f f e u d a l i s m t h a t s t a r t e d a l o n g d e b a t e in t h e a c a d e m i c c i r c l e. G o l d t h w a i t e , R i c h a r d A. , ‘T h e M e d i c i B a n k a n d t h e W o r l d o f F l o r e n t i n e C a p i t a l i s m ’, Past and Present, 1 1 4 , 1 9 8 7 , pp. 3 - 3 1. U sefu l a rticle on th e Italian b a n k in g sy ste m. K ula, W., A n Economic Theory of the Feudal System: Towards a M odel of the Polish Economy 1500-1800, L o n d o n : N e w L e f t B o o k s , 1 9 7 6. T h i s is c o n s i d e r e d a p a t h - b r e a k i n g w o r k as it a n a l y s e s t h e s e r f - r u n e s t a t e s o f early m o d e r n P o la n d and c o n ta in s s o m e useful h in ts fo r l o c a tin g s i m i l a r e s t a t e s in m e d i e v a l w e s t e r n E u r o p e. L u c a s , H e n r y S., The Renaissance and the Reformation, N e w Y ork: H a r p e r &. R o w , 2 n d e d n., 1 9 6 0. V ery g o o d d iscu ssio n o n th e Italian state s y s t e m s a n d t h e p r e - c a p i t a l i s t f e a t u r e s in E u r o p e. M isk im in , H a rry J., The Economy of Later Renaissance Europe 1460-1600, C a m b r id g e : C a m b rid g e U n iv ersity Press, 1 9 7 7. P ro v id e s a c o m p r e ­ h e n s i v e a c c o u n t o f t h e E u r o p e a n e c o n o m y. R i c h in s t a t i s t i c a l d e t a i l s. N ajem y , J o h n M. , c d., Italy in the Age of the Renaissance, 1 3 0 0 -1 5 0 0 , O x f o r d : O x fo rd U n iv ersity Press, 2 0 0 4. C o n t a in s tw elve essays by le a d in g sp e cia lists on th e R e n a is s a n c e w ith a co m p reh en siv e in tro d u ctio n. P etteg ree, A ndrew , Europe in the Sixteenth Century, O x fo rd : B lack w ell, 2 0 0 2. A n in terestin g p resen tatio n o f the h is to ry o f E u r o p e c o v e r in g v a r i o u s d i m e n s i o n s lik e t i m e , s p a c e , w i n d s o f c h a n g e , e t c. G o o d f o r th e relig iou s w a rs. R e f o r m a tio n a n d th e D u t c h rev o lts. Pounds, N.J.G., A n Historical Geography of Europe 1500 -1 8 4 0 , C a m b r i d g e : C a m b r id g e U n iv e rsity Press, 1 9 7 9. P resen ts a n arrativ e o f E u r o p e a n e v e n t s a n d r e l a te s it t o t h e r e l i e f f e a t u r e s o f t h e r e g i o n. The Cambridge Modern History of Europe, v o l. P o tte r, G. R. , e d., I, The Renaissance 1493-1520, C a m b r i d g e : C a m b r i d g e U n i v e r s i t y Press, 1981 (1 s t ed n. 1 9 5 7 ). C lassical p re se n ta tio n , p a rtic u la rly o f th e R e n a i s s a n c e. T h e first t h r e e c h a p t e r s a re g o o d. P o s ta n , M. M. , e d.. The Cambridge Economic History of Europe, v o l. I» C a m b r id g e : C a m b r id g e U n iv ersity P ress, 1 9 6 6. A d etailed d icu ssio n  The Face o f Europe in the Late-Fifteenth Century 73 c a n b e t o u iu i o n th e c c o n o n i) - o f t h e E u r o p e a n sta te s in t h e early y e a rs o f th e p r e - m o d e r n p e rio d. R i c e J r. , E u g e n e F. , The F ou ndatiom o f E arly A lodcni Europe, 1 4 6 0 - 1 5 5 9 , L o n d o n : V V c id c n tc ld £ c N i c o l s o n , 1 9 7 1. G o o d b a s ic r e a d i n g fo r th e e a r l ie r p a r t o f p r o - m o d e r n E u r o p e. R osencr, W ern er, Peasantry of Europe, O x f o r d : B l a c k w e l l, 1 9 9 4. C o v e r s a v a st g e o g r a p h i c.i l re g io n and p articu la rly g o o d to r s tu d y in g p e a s a n tri' u n d e r fe u d a li s m. R u i z , I ' e o f d o F., Spanish Society, 1 4 0 0 - 1 6 0 0 , H arlo w : L o n g m a n , 2 0 0 1. T a k e s u p p o p u l a r cu ltu r e , fcstiv.als and carn iv a ls. S tr a y e r, J o s e p h R. , Medieval Statecraft and the Perspective of History, N ew J e r s e y : P r i n c e t o n U n i v e r s it y P re ss, 1 9 7 1. H a s an e la b o ra te d iscu ssio n o n t h e m e a n i n g o f feud;ilism a n d a g o o d.acco u n t o f t h e d e v e l o p m e n t o f fe u d a l i n s t it u ti o n s. W ie s n e r-H a n k s , M e rry E., Early Modern C am b rid g e: C am b ridg e U n i v e r s i t y P r e s s , 2 0 0 6. C o v e r s E u r o p e a n h is t o r y f r o m t h e c o m i n g o f t h e p r i n t i n g p re ss till th e F r e n c h R e v o l u t i o n , p a rtic u la rly s t r o n g o n g e n d e r a n d so cia l r e la tio n s. W o lt, Jo h n B., The Emergence of European Civilization: From the Middle Ages to the Opening of the Nineteenth Century, N e w Y o r k : H a r p e r , 1 9 6 2. U s c l u l i v o r k f o r b e g i n n e r s as it p ro v id e s a w i d e - r a n g i n g stu d y o f p o l i ti c r J i n s t im t i o n s , s o c i o - e c o n o m i c p a tte rn s a n d c h a n g i n g tren d s in i n t e l l e c t u a l a ctiv itie s.  CHAPTER 2 The Renaissance and Society In simple terms,‘Renaissance’, means ‘re-birth’. In historical context, it implies a momentous cultural movement marked by revival of interest in the classical age o f the Romans and the Greeks. It aimed at rediscovering the cultural accomplishments of the classical period and rescuing its arts and literature in order to revive and recreate a new culture, free from medieval bondage. It was not the discovery o f the ancient past but, more significantly, the application o f that classical knowledge of arts, literature, social values and political life in accordance with their own concept o f social order that constituted Renaissance, which they believed was dramatically different from the contemporary world. Thus, roughly between 1300 and 1600 major attempts were made through a scries of movements in many parts of Europe, mainly in the Italian city states, to reshape and recreate social values. It became a period of intense creativity in the field of thought, literature, arts, architecture, politics and practical sciences. This movement was extremely complex and assumed varied forms according to the social climate o f each region. It is difficult to give a universally acceptable meaning to Renaissance. The nature and significance o f this movement has been the subject of changing viewpoints and interpretations. The whole subject of Renaissance has drawn the attention o f a large number o f historians ever since the movement began. The beginning of the Renaissance can be traced to the time of the ‘Black Death’ or even earlier in the fourteenth century, and its end to the early-sixteenth century. This entire period o f nearly two centuries witnessed grave political turmoil, ravages from incessant warfare and natural calamities. Yet, in the history o f the Italian states as well as in some parts of Europe, it was an extremely fertile period for culture.  Tbt Renaissanct' and Society IS M k a n in c ; The concept of Renaissance and its place in histoiy has undergone changes because of a variety of interpretations. The origins of the term‘Renaissance’go back to the writings of Giorgio Vasari (1511- 74), an Italian art theorist, who used the term rinascita to describe the preceding two centuries. About the same time, the French naturalist Pierre Belon (1518-64) used the term ‘renaissance’, implying classical antiquity in a new spirit.The Italians called the movement RinascinierUoAtvjzs seen as an unexplained phenomenon that coincided with the restoration of classical literature. Theodore de Beze ascribed this to the fall of Constantinople in 1453 that caused the flight of the Greeks to Italy. This view took root in later centuries but is no longer accepted because it has been proved beyond doubt that the movement began in the early-fourtecnth century. The idea of rebirth or revival began to gain ground in Italy from the period of Giotto. The achievements of Renaissance artists or poets were often compared to the ancients before they were exalted. The writers of the Renaissance displayed a strong dislike of the culture o f the Middle Ages by describing it as the dark ages or‘barbaric darkness’. Renaissance has been seen as the line dhading modern Europe from medieval Europe. Many Italians knew that in the distant past Rome was the centre of the civilized world but the power and glory of the Roman Empire was destroyed by the invasion o f Germanic tribes, the Goths and the Vandals. The classical age, to which they looked back with pride, was followed by a long period of the so-called Middle Ages. They considered it as a time o f unrelieved darkness, blind faith, economic stagnation and constant fighting. Italians believed that during this time art and literature had fled Europe. It marked the death of the high culture o f the past. It was through Renaissance that they sought to transform all aspects of life - intellectual, social, cultural and political. The intellectuals spoke of the art of the Middle Ages as Gothic, implying a barbaric character. The scholars of the Renaissance were critical of the intellectual movement that preceded the Renaissance, known as scholasticism - a view that influenced subsequent writings. This has led Alister E. Mcgrath to observe that scholasticism was probably one of the most despised intellectual 76 Europe in Transition m o v em en ts in hum an h isto ry. S c h o la s tic is m w as an a ca tle m ic m ovem ent th a t flo u rish ed b e tw e e n 1 2 S 0 -1 5 0 0. It la itl irie a t e m p h a s i'5 o n th e ra tio n a l ju stifica ticm relig io u s b e lie f. The U n i v e r s i t y o f P a r i s b e c a m e i ts m a i n c e n t r e , a l t h o u g h t h e m o v e m e n t h a d s u c c e e d e d in m a n y o t h e r p a rts o f n o r t h e r n F n i r o j K c T h i s le d to t h e e s t a b l i s h m e n t o f a n u m b e r o f t h e o l o g ic a l s c h o o l s aiu 1 t h e o l o g i c a l d e b a t e s. T h i s m o v e m e n t t r i e d t o s y s t e m a t i z e a n d e.xjn in d C h r i s t i a n t h e o l o g y a n d s o u g h t t o p r o v i d e a t h e o r y o r m e t h o d tes r e l i g i o n b y d e v e l o p i n g a p h i l o s o p h i c a l s y s t e m o f its o w n , b a s e d o n A r i s t o t e l i a n p re su p p o sitio n s. T h e sch o la stic w ritin g s w ere u su a lly lo n g and a rg u m e n ta tiv e an d w ere b ased o n lo g ic, p h