Renaissance/Reformation/Scientific Revolution Timeline Project

  • Scientific Method
    1214

    Scientific Method

    When using the scientific method, findings from an experiment are generalized to a wider world. The steps are as followed: observation, hypothesis, experiment, and verification. This inductive reasoning was first promoted by Roger Bacon.
  • Petrarch
    Jul 20, 1304

    Petrarch

    Petrarch was an Italian poet, scholar, and humanist. He is well known for his poems. His most famous poems are about a woman named Laura who he had fallen in love with in an Avignon church.
  • Johannes Gutenberg
    1395

    Johannes Gutenberg

    Gutenberg was a German inventor who began experimenting with printing in 1438. He later on invented the movable-type printing press. This invention later on helped to create a wider literate reading public.
  • Humanism
    1400

    Humanism

    Humanism was a system that focused on humans and their values. Rather than focusing on the afterlife, people began to focus on present-day life. Creativity and literature were also two of the main focuses during this time.
  • Perspective
    1415

    Perspective

    Perspective is done by using geometric lines and a vanishing point. This was a technique used to make paintings look more realistic and to add three-dimensional depth and space. This technique was invented by the architect and engineer, Brunelleschi, and it led to more naturalistic styles.
  • Lorenzo de' Medici
    Jan 1, 1449

    Lorenzo de' Medici

    Lorenzo was known for being a politician, patron, and ruler. He is most commonly referred to as being the most brilliant of the Medici. Lorenzo also sponsored the famous artists Botticelli and Michelangelo.
  • Printing Revolution
    1450

    Printing Revolution

    One invention that impacted the printing revolution was the printing press. Johannes Gutenberg's invention had a big impact because it allowed people to have easier access to books. By the 1500's, at least half a million books were made.
  • Leonardo da Vinci
    Apr 15, 1452

    Leonardo da Vinci

    Leonardo da Vinci is most commonly known for being an artist, inventor, and a scientist. Two of his famous paintings are the 'Mona Lisa' and 'The Last Supper'. Along with his paintings, he also conceptualized the helicopter.
  • Desiderius Erasmus
    Oct 27, 1466

    Desiderius Erasmus

    Erasmus is remembered for being a dutch humanist, priest, and teacher. He defined the humanist movement in Northern Europe. Erasmus embraced the belief in an individual's capacity for self-improvement.
  • Niccolò Machiavelli
    May 3, 1469

    Niccolò Machiavelli

    Machiavelli was a political philosopher, writer, and statesmen. He is the author of the book, 'The Prince'. In this book he discusses his vision of an ideal leader. One of his most famous quotes is, "Since love and fear can hardly exist together, if we must choose between them, it is far safer to be feared than loved".
  • Albert Durer
    May 21, 1471

    Albert Durer

    Durer was an artist and a printmaker. He is more commonly known for his copper engravings. Durer painted and drew self-portraits which reflected artistic individuality.
  • Nicolaus Copernicus
    Feb 19, 1473

    Nicolaus Copernicus

    Copernicus was a mathematician and an astronomer. He proposed the idea of a heliocentric system. In the system, it was believed that the planets revolve around the sun. Copernicus' theories were considered heretical and they brought forth controversy.
  • Michelangelo
    Mar 6, 1475

    Michelangelo

    Michelangelo was an Italian sculptor, painting, and architect. Two famous pieces of his artwork are the 'David' and 'Pieta' statues. Michelangelo also painted on the Sistine Chapel ceiling. This tedious task led to tremendous physical strain.
  • Thomas More
    Feb 7, 1478

    Thomas More

    More is know for being an author, humanist, and a lawyer. One of his more popular books is 'Utopia'. In this book he shares his ideas of a perfect political system. More refused to refer to King Henry VIII as head of the church. For this reason, he was beheaded.
  • Raphael
    Apr 6, 1483

    Raphael

    Raphael was an Italian painter and architect. He focused on perspective and the disposition of each figure. Rather than having his figures being related to architecture, his figures were more informal and animated. One of his famous pieces of art was 'The School of Athens'.
  • Martin Luther
    Nov 10, 1483

    Martin Luther

    Martin Luther was a priest, monk, and a professor. He rejected many of the teachings of the Roman Catholic Church. Later on he came up with 'The 95 Theses' which consisted of a list of propositions and questions. Martin Luther refused to recant his propositions, and was excommunicated from the Catholic Church
  • Thomas Cranmer
    Jul 2, 1489

    Thomas Cranmer

    Cranmer is known for being the Archbishop of Canterbury. Under the reign of King Henry VIII, he drew up 'The Book of Common Prayer'. This became the only legal form of worship in the land. Cranmer was later on executed for his beliefs in Protestantism.
  • Henry VIII
    Jun 28, 1491

    Henry VIII

    Henry VIII was King of England from 1509 until 1547. Throughout his life, he had many different health problems along with many wives. In total he married 6 women, in hopes that he would have a son. He eventually had a son named Edward VI who died before he was old enough to rule.
  • Sale of Indulgences
    1517

    Sale of Indulgences

    The Roman Catholic Church sold indulgences as a way to make money. Indulgences were said to lessen the time one spent in purgatory before going to heaven. Martin Luther was against the sale of indulgences and said they had no place in the Bible.
  • Elizabeth I
    Sep 7, 1533

    Elizabeth I

    Elizabeth I was Queen of England from 1558 to 1603. During her reign, many Catholics were executed. This caused her to be excommunicated from the Roman Catholic Church.
  • Heliocentric Theory
    1543

    Heliocentric Theory

    Nicolaus Copernicus proposed this idea that the planets revolve around the fixed sun. This theory never gained support because there was never an explanation as to why the relative position of the stars seemed to remain the same despite the Earth's changing viewpoints. This theory later on proved that the Geocentric theory (planets revolving around the Earth) had been false.
  • Galileo
    Feb 15, 1564

    Galileo

    Galileo was an Italian polymath and astronomer. He improved the idea of the telescope and his findings laid the foundation for future scientists. Galileo also discovered that objects travel at the same rate, no matter their weight.
  • William Shakespeare
    Apr 23, 1564

    William Shakespeare

    Shakespeare was an English poet and actor. In total, he wrote a total of 37 plays. Works of William Shakespeare have been performed for more than 400 years. One popular play he wrote was, 'Romeo and Juliet', which was a tragic story between two star-crossed lovers.
  • Rene Descartes

    Rene Descartes

    Descartes was a French mathematician and scientist. He showed that he could solve previously unsolvable problems in geometry by converting them into simpler problems in algebra. His hard work made him known as 'The Father of Modern Philosophy'.
  • Isaac Newton

    Isaac Newton

    Newton was an English mathematician, physicist, and astronomer. He came up with the 'Three Laws of Motion'-- inertia, acceleration, and reaction. Newton also came up with 'The Law of Universal Gravitation'. This law states that all particles in the universe exerted some gravitational force.