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====The Impact of the Plague of Italy====To Black Death spread to Italy from modern-day Russia. Genoese merchants spread the plague while fleeing a Mongol attack on their trading post in Crimea. The plague was carried and spread by the fleas that lived on the Black Rat and brought to Italy on the Genoese ships.<ref>Pullan, Brian S. ''[[Filehttps://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00CMHGO4K/ref=as_li_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=9325&creativeASIN=B00CMHGO4K&linkCode=as2&tag=dailyh0c-20&linkId=15e48ba82dfc5f5eeee14a1e5eca5898 History of early Renaissance Italy: From the mid-thirteenth to the mid-fifteenth century]'' (London:BlackdeathAllen Lane, 1973),_tourmaip.jpg|thumbnail|Contemporary Image 76 </ref> The population of Black Death]]Italy was ill prepared for the spread of the disease. There had been a series of famine and food shortages in the region, and the population was weak and vulnerable to disease, and furthermore, the population did not have any natural resistance to the disease. Italy was the most urbanized society in Europe, Milan, Rome, Florence, and other Italian centers among the largest on the continent.<ref> Pullan, 1973, p. 89</ref>
==Socio-Economic ==Religious Consequences====Initially, in Italy, the plague led to a revival in religion among many. The middle ages was a time when people believed that events are a result of God’s will. Many viewed the plague as punishment for God for the wickedness and immorality of the people. There was an upsurge in religious observance, and many sections of the public became swept by religious fervor, as many sincerely believed that the Black Death was a sign that the end of the world was coming.<ref>Benedictow, 2004, p. 234</ref> Religious fanaticism spread throughout the peninsula and many men and women performed in extreme religious practices, such as the flagellants. The flagellants whipped themselves into a frenzy to atone for their sins. The Church suffered greatly during the plague, many priests and especially monks died. The monasteries proved ideal breeding grounds for the plague while many priests contracted the sickness as they gave the last rites to the dying. <ref>Benedictow, 2004, p. 234</ref>
The social consequences result was a shortage of trained monks and priests. To deal with this, the plague on society came Church hastily trained new monks and priests to be profound. The high mortality rate resulted in a drastic decline in serve the spiritual needs of the labour force.<ref> Haycommunity, Denys. ''The Italian Renaissance in Its Historical Background''. (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press,1997) p. 19</ref>. Wages rose for both agricultural and urban workers. The survivors still coming to terms with the trauma of the Black Death generally had a higher standard of living than before the plague <ref> Hays, 1997, p. 78 </ref> This was a phenomenon meant that occurred in both urban many unsuitable individuals became clerics and rural areas. The crisis caused by the Black Death this led to many changes a drop in the economystandards among parish priests, in response to the fall in the population. Because of the labour shortages there was a move from labour intensive farming such as cereal to livestock and increasingly both in industry and agriculture more labour saving devices employedparticular.<ref> PullanHays, 1997, p 145 . 178 </ref> The impact Church became corrupt and gradually over time lost the respect of many believers. In the short term the Black Death was contrary on feudalism strengthened the Catholic Church in Italy. Feudalism was a system whereby peasants and farm labourers bound, as serfs, to serve a local lord. In but in the north of Italylong run, good farmland was plentiful and wages increased and the last vestiges of feudalism disappeared as serfs an increasingly could purchase corrupt institution meant that many people lost their freedomfaith. In This led to the south increasing secularisation of Italy Italian society as many increasingly turned away from the opposite occurred, here, since church in disgust as the Norman kings, the aristocracy had been consolidating feudalism. After the Black Death, the elite responded to the labour shortages by strengthening the restrictions on the peasants worldliness of prelates and thereby strengthened feudalism in southern Italypriests. The consequences of the plague resulted contempt that many felt is evident in a growing divide between the North stories of Boccaccio of venal and South of Italy that persists to this daydepraved priests, monks and nuns.<ref>BenedictowBoccaccio, Ole Jørgen ''Black Death 1346–1353: The Complete History'' (Cambridge1987, Cambridge University Pressp 67,2004) p. 234113</ref> In generalThe church had traditionally monopolized education, but after a period of recoverythe Black Death, much of Italy became very wealthy as a there was more sophisticated economy emergedsecular education, especially in the North of Italycities. This was crucial, as decisive in the increased wealth emergence of Italy allowed the eliteRenaissance, such as the De Medici’s in Florence to become the patrons of great artists such as Michelangelo with its emphasis on human values and Leonardo da Vinciexperiences rather than religion.<ref> Frederick HarttBenedictow, and David G. Wilkins, ''History of Italian Art: Painting, Sculpture, Architecture'' (Oxford University Press, Oxford, 2003)2004, p 67. 134 </ref>
====Cultural Change====[[File:Botticelli-primavera.jpg|thumbnail|left| Primevera by Botticelli]]Initially, the Black Death led to a fascination with death among many Italians. The loss of life and the suffering led many to become obsessed with death.<ref> Herlihy, D., ''[https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0674076133/ref=as_li_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=9325&creativeASIN=0674076133&linkCode=as2&tag=dailyh0c-20&linkId=ed19d965a5f4e3c1389be15f87195a5d The Black Death and the Transformation of the West]'' (Cambridge, Massachusetts: Harvard University Press, 1997) p. 116</ref> The Dance of Death was a popular motif in art and architecture at this time. The general mood was one of pessimism , and indeed many expected that sooner or later that the world would end. Alongside this fear of death and the general mood of pessimism, there was a desire to experience the pleasures of life and to seize any happiness that was on offer. This contradictory impact of the Black Death on the culture of the time can be seen in the writings of two of the greatest figures in European literature, Petrarch and Boccaccio.<ref>Benedictow, 2004, p. 173 </ref> These two writers at times wrote in despair about the human condition yet they also wrote about the joys of life and the beauties of nature.
This sense that life was fleeting and that every happiness should be seized, led many Italians to seek solace in art and literature and this was one of the factors in the development of the Renaissance. Many of the elite were eager to enjoy the pleasures of life , and this led them to patronize artists. It also resulted in a shift in the themes of artists.<ref> Pullan, 1973, p. 173 </ref>. Religious topics remained popular, however, there was also a fascination with secular themes, especially from the classical world. The new interest in secular subjects can be seen in a comparison between Giotto and Botticelli. Giotto painted almost exclusively religious paintings. While Giotto, painted both secular and religious themes, indeed he is best known for his secular works as in masterpieces such as Primavera .<ref> Hayden B. J. Maginnis, ''[https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0271020911/ref=as_li_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=9325&creativeASIN=0271020911&linkCode=as2&tag=dailyh0c-20&linkId=390ba05b8bf7168c013a8c5bf3d77d84 Painting in the Age of Giotto: A Historical RevaluationReevaluation]''(Princeton, Princeton University Press, 1997), p. 78 </ref>.
====Social Mobility====The plague disrupted society to an unprecedented state. It overturned the existing social structure. Previous, to the outbreak of the plague, Italy was a rigid and stratified society. The Black Death changed everything. Increasingly, because of the demographic disaster caused by the plague were able to take advantage of the opportunities caused by the high death rate. In the period after the Black Death, an unprecedented amount of social mobility took place. Labourers Laborers became merchants and merchants become members of the nobility. No longer was a person’s destiny to be fixed by their birth. Previously, people assumed that one’s station was fixed at one’s birth and that one had to remain a member of the class you were born into.<ref> Benedictow, 2004, p. 73 </ref> People believed that a peasant would always be a peasant, an aristocrat, and aristocrat. Italians, like other peoples, in Europe, believed that one’s birth determined one’s future and that this was determined by God.<ref>Pullan, 1973, p. 123 </ref> However, as social mobility became more widespread because of the Black Death, many people, came to believe that a person’s merits or abilities were what mattered and not one’s birth.<ref>Benedictow, 2004, p. 174 </ref> This led to a growing individualism in Italian society. This, in turn, encouraged people to strive and to develop their talents and achieve excellence or virtue.<ref>Burkhardt, 1878, p. 78</ref> The belief in the individual was central to the Renaissance and it inspired many of the greatest artists, architects, sculptures and writers, the world have ever seen to create peerless works.
==Conclusion==Related DailyHistory.org Articles====*[[Top 10 Books on the origins of the Italian Renaissance]]*[[Did the Sack of Rome in 1527 end the Renaissance in Italy?]]*[[What were the social factors that led to the Renaissance in Italy?]]*[[Why did the Italian Renaissance End?]]*[[What was the impact of Charles VIIIs invasion of Italy (1494) on the Renaissance?]]*[[How did the de Medici contribute to the Renaissance?]]</div>====Decline of the Nobility====One group that was adversely impacted by the Black Death was the nobility. This was also the case in many other European regions and kingdoms. The nobility suffered as much as many others classes as a result of the plague and many families died out during the period. In the aftermath of the epidemic, they found themselves in serious financial difficulties. The loss of population meant that there was no longer a high demand for their land and rents fell.<ref>Pullan, 1973, p. 123 </ref>
Many of their laborers simply left the land, and they were not replaced. Many of the nobility found themselves obliged to sell their serfs their freedom or to sell land to merchants from the cities. At this time, many wealthy merchants purchased new estates. The demise of the traditional elite meant that a new elite came to the fore, composed of merchants and self-made men. This new elite often keen to patronize arts. They were very conscious of their lack of birth and humble origins.<ref>Pullan, 1973, p. 23 </ref> They were keen to use art and to patronize men of letters to compensate for lack of traditional authority. In order to appear the equal of the old aristocracy, they sought to sponsor artists who would win the esteem of the public.<ref> Burkhardt, 1878, p. 78</ref> This was one of the reasons for the lavish patronage of the de Medici’s in Florence. They were keen patrons of the arts, to justify their status in society and to impress the general population. This meant that the great artists had many patrons, who often competed for their talents and this allowed them to concentrate on their art and to produce some of the greatest art, ever known.<ref>Hayden B. J. Maginnis, 1997, p. 167 </ref> ====Conclusion====The Black Death devastated Italian society in the middle of the 14th century. It led to great socio-economic, cultural and religious changes. After the initial horrors of the plague, Italian society, staged a spectacular recovery. It Italy became richer, than before. The impact of the plague reduced the influence of the Catholic Church was weakened as diminished, and the culture became more secular. The new social mobility made possible by the loss of life meant that individualism came to be respected. The Black Death was to unleash unleashed the forces in Italian society that made the Renaissance possible.{{MediaWiki:AmNative}}====References====
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Updated January 12, 2019
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