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Jan 1, 1398
Johan Gutenberg
Johan Gutenberg was a German blacksmith, printer, and publisher. He invented the printing press, which was the evolution of the people realizing the church was lying about the rights of the church. They were now able to produce a mass production of Bible's , which led to that. He was important to the Renaissance, because he invented the printing press, which was the start of the protestant reformation. -
Jan 1, 1400
Humanism
Humanist beliefs stress the potential value and goodness of human beings, emphasize common human needs, and seek solely rational ways of solving human problems. Humanism was also the study of Greek and Latin classics and the ancient church fathers, in hopes of reviving ancient values. -
Jan 1, 1405
Perspective
Renaissance artists found a new skill of painting called perspective. Perspective is how you would view or see a painting, and with depth. Renaissance artists had to use the rules of perspective such as the vanishing point. This is the point in a painting where the linear lines seem to converge. -
Jan 1, 1440
Printing Revolution
The printing revolution was a period of time when a Renaissance man by the name of Johan Gutenberg created the printing press. The revolution began when Johan started using the printing press to print many Bibles in a shorter amount of time. This allowed people to have easier access to Bibles, which also allowed people to read the wrong teachings of the Church. -
Apr 15, 1452
Leonardo da Vinci
Leonardo da Vinci was known as a true Renaissance man, because of his skills in many different trades. Some of these trades were invention, painting, anatomy, and architecture. He is important, because he has created many famous paintings such as the Mona Lisa, and The Last Supper. -
Oct 1, 1466
Erasmus
Erasmus was a Dutch Renaissance humanist, Catholic priest, and teacher. As a theology teacher, Erasmus was able to write the book "The Praise of Folly," which examined the abuses of the church. Soon the Protestant Reformation erupted and the people wanted help from Erasmus, but he was against it. Erasmus was important to the Renaissance, because he was one of the most influential scholars. -
May 3, 1469
Machiavelli
Machiavelli was a Florentine statesman, who believed that people of power shouldn't trust others, because they would end up taking advantage of you. He was also a political philosopher whose most famous work was "The Prince." Machiavelli was important to the Renaissance, because of his methods of reign described in his book. -
May 21, 1471
Albrecht Durer
Albrecht Durer was a German Renaissance painter, and printmaker. He applied Renaissance painting technology to engraving. Durer's engravings and paintings often portrayed religious upheaval or were quite realistic. -
Feb 19, 1473
Copernicus
Copernicus was a Reformation era mathematician who formulated the model of the universe that placed the sun in the middle, instead of the earth. No one paid attention to his model though, because then everything would be called into question. -
Mar 6, 1475
Michelangelo
Michelangelo was a famous Renaissance painter, sculptor, and architect. Many of his works include the Sistine Chapel, and the Statue of David. Michelangelo is an important Renaissance figure, because his work represented the rebirth of the pursuit of art and culture in the Western World. -
Nov 10, 1483
Martin Luther
Martin Luther was a German man who started to realize the Church was lying about the Bible. He wrote the 95 Theses and posted them onto the doors of the Catholic Church. Martin Luther was also a Theology professor and a monk, until he realized that you didn't need god to go to heaven. He banned indulgences and stated to the people that as long as you believe in god and follow him, you will go to heaven. -
Jun 28, 1491
Henry VIII
Henry VIII was the King of England until his death. King Henry had 6 wives and 3 children. King Henry had many health problems including obesity, leg ulcers, and possibly diabetes. King Henry wanted everyone to convert from Catholic to Protestant, and he killed whoever didn't convert. -
Aug 10, 1509
John Calvin
John Calvin was a French pastor, and reformer during the Protestant Reformation. He accepted most Lutheran beliefs, but added in his own on predestination. He preached that god chose whether or not you were going to heaven or hell before you were born. People never knew if they were saints or sinners, so they mostly acted like saints so they could go to heaven. He created a Christian society based off of hard work, discipline, faith and honesty. -
Sep 7, 1533
Elizabeth I
Queen Elizabeth I was the daughter of Anne Boleyn and King Henry VIII. She was third in line to reign England. She was a Catholic, so she wanted everyone to convert from Protestant to Catholic, and she killed anyone who didn't. It's ironic, because her father did the exact opposite, and people were just getting used to being Protestant. -
Jan 1, 1543
Heliocentric Theory
The heliocentric theory was a theory created by Nicolaus Copernicus, which had the sun as the center of the universe. He thought that all the planets circled around the sun, and not the earth. No one really paid attention to his theory, until Galileo used a telescope to watch the orbits. -
Jan 1, 1564
William Shakespeare
William Shakespeare was an English poet, playwright, and actor. He wrote many plays that are still used today, such as "Romeo and Juliet." He also wrote in the vernacular, so many people were able to read his plays. He also added 1,700 words to the English language. -
Feb 15, 1564
Galileo
Galileo was an Italian polymath who built a telescope and observed several moons in orbit around Jupiter. He concluded that those movements were the same as those of the planets around the sun. This conclusion went against the church doctrine, so Galileo was forced to recant his theories before the Inquisition. -
Scientific Method
Francis Bacon and Rene Descartes were scientists who rediscovered plato, the Greek philosopher. Plato saw mathematics as the key to learning about the universe. With this the scientific method was created. -
Isaac Newton
Newton was an English polymath who is widely known as the most influential scientist of all time. He created a reflecting telescope, and came up with 3 laws of motion still found to be true today. They are the First: Law of Inertia (An object at rest will remain at rest unless acted on by an unbalanced force), Second: An object in motion tends to stay in motion, Third: For every action there is an equal and opposite re-action.
