The civic dimension you focus on here is very interesting. I never gave much thought to that side of things, though it was the era of Macchiavelli so evidently some people were thinking about that kind of thing. It would certainly explain the era of thought leading up to Westphalia, and how that would be the beginning of the concept of the nation-state which in and of itself depends upon active citizens.
However, people in the Middle Ages did bathe. In the book I read about the Northern Crusades, the Teutonic Knights commonly report attacking Lithuanian bathhouses. I suspect that the idea of medieval people not bathing was the consequence of two things: 1) Queen Isabella bragging that she only took a bath once a year (poor Ferdinand); and 2) a part of the Protestant quest to discredit Rome by arguing that the Middle Ages were totally barbaric, and it was all because of Rome.
In God's Philosophers, the author does agree that rediscovering Cicero made a very big difference in the Renaissance. His work must have stood out since Cicero, though a politician, was neither bishop nor king, neither vizier nor majordomo.
I was really pleased to see a woman mentioned in this post, Mike. You must have worked hard to find her! I'm looking forward to the one on the Renaissance as I've just finished reading Christopher Hibbert's book on the Medici so I'm in the mood. Another lovely article. Thanks.
Thank you so much, Jules. Yes, almost all men doing the world-historical stuff back then. I've dedicated much of my career to advancing elected women leaders in the U.S. and am a strong feminist, so it's painful to go back to those Ages where women were not empowered.
It is what it is, Mike. I'm so glad I was born when I was. It must have been absolutely stifling for women before they had the right to engage in intellectual and artistic pursuits, or any pursuits not to do with domestic concerns! It is interesting that there is the odd example of a woman rising above her destiny though.
Excellent read that reflects in and off itself expansive thinking of a humanist, Mike. Thank you. Love the distinction between secularists and civic Christians, thank you. Incidentally, I purchased “In Praise of Folly” by Erasmus--intriguing read so far and way ahead of his time. Wherein Cicero and Romans are concerned, I spent the summer helping my son prep for his history Olympiad in Rome, and I was appalled at reading in great depth, the brash and lewd life of the Roman emperors and feel bad for staunch historians of the time. Of course, there were some exceptions and they had gems in engineering and were brilliant strategists themselves, but morals were far from their mind!
Yes, I think Cicero and Quintilian were the exception, not the norm. I think they executed Cicero. I love Desiderius Erasmus. One of my favorite people of all time. Thanks, Anu.
The Renaissance is almost universally portrayed as wholly good, but I have different perspective. IMO the Jews conspiring with the Medicis in Florence to undermine the prohibition on usury is what allowed the financing of imperialism, and it also undermined the craft guilds that provided meaningful work and a path to business ownership for ordinary people. I may work up a longer essay on why the all the positive views of the Renaissance are just propaganda written by the rentier financier class (((capitalists.)))
The civic dimension you focus on here is very interesting. I never gave much thought to that side of things, though it was the era of Macchiavelli so evidently some people were thinking about that kind of thing. It would certainly explain the era of thought leading up to Westphalia, and how that would be the beginning of the concept of the nation-state which in and of itself depends upon active citizens.
However, people in the Middle Ages did bathe. In the book I read about the Northern Crusades, the Teutonic Knights commonly report attacking Lithuanian bathhouses. I suspect that the idea of medieval people not bathing was the consequence of two things: 1) Queen Isabella bragging that she only took a bath once a year (poor Ferdinand); and 2) a part of the Protestant quest to discredit Rome by arguing that the Middle Ages were totally barbaric, and it was all because of Rome.
In God's Philosophers, the author does agree that rediscovering Cicero made a very big difference in the Renaissance. His work must have stood out since Cicero, though a politician, was neither bishop nor king, neither vizier nor majordomo.
Haha. Good to know about the bathing. Cicero is impressive and important.
I was really pleased to see a woman mentioned in this post, Mike. You must have worked hard to find her! I'm looking forward to the one on the Renaissance as I've just finished reading Christopher Hibbert's book on the Medici so I'm in the mood. Another lovely article. Thanks.
Thank you so much, Jules. Yes, almost all men doing the world-historical stuff back then. I've dedicated much of my career to advancing elected women leaders in the U.S. and am a strong feminist, so it's painful to go back to those Ages where women were not empowered.
It is what it is, Mike. I'm so glad I was born when I was. It must have been absolutely stifling for women before they had the right to engage in intellectual and artistic pursuits, or any pursuits not to do with domestic concerns! It is interesting that there is the odd example of a woman rising above her destiny though.
Yes, Fedele is special.
Thanks for the history review Mike! I really enjoyed this essay.
Thanks, Kathy!
Excellent read that reflects in and off itself expansive thinking of a humanist, Mike. Thank you. Love the distinction between secularists and civic Christians, thank you. Incidentally, I purchased “In Praise of Folly” by Erasmus--intriguing read so far and way ahead of his time. Wherein Cicero and Romans are concerned, I spent the summer helping my son prep for his history Olympiad in Rome, and I was appalled at reading in great depth, the brash and lewd life of the Roman emperors and feel bad for staunch historians of the time. Of course, there were some exceptions and they had gems in engineering and were brilliant strategists themselves, but morals were far from their mind!
Yes, I think Cicero and Quintilian were the exception, not the norm. I think they executed Cicero. I love Desiderius Erasmus. One of my favorite people of all time. Thanks, Anu.
The Renaissance is almost universally portrayed as wholly good, but I have different perspective. IMO the Jews conspiring with the Medicis in Florence to undermine the prohibition on usury is what allowed the financing of imperialism, and it also undermined the craft guilds that provided meaningful work and a path to business ownership for ordinary people. I may work up a longer essay on why the all the positive views of the Renaissance are just propaganda written by the rentier financier class (((capitalists.)))