Studies in Renaissance Humanism and Politics: Florence and Arezzo

by Robert Black

Overview

The fifteen articles republished here exemplify the many directions Robert Black's research in Renaissance studies has taken. The first five studies look at Renaissance humanism, in particular at its origins, and the concept of the Renaissance as well as the theory and practice of historical writing. Black also updates his monograph on the Florentine chancellor, Benedetto Accolti. Machiavelli is the subject of three articles, focusing on his education and career in the Florentine chancery. Next come Black's seminal studies of Arezzo under Florentine rule, revealing the triangular relationship between centre, periphery and the Medici family. Finally, two articles on political thought examine the relative merits of monarchical and republican government for political thinkers on both sides of the Alps.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781138375772
Publisher:	Taylor & Francis
Publication date:	06/10/2019
Series:	Variorum Collected Studies
Pages:	354
Product dimensions:	5.88(w) x 8.81(h) x 0.00(d)

About the Author

Robert Black is Professor of Renaissance History at the University of Leeds, UK

Table of Contents

Contents: Preface; Part I Humanism: The new laws of history; The Donation of Constantine: a new source for the concept of the Renaissance?; Boccaccio, reader of the Appendix Vergiliana: the Miscellanea Laurenziana and 14th-century schoolbooks; Benedetto Accolti: a portrait; The origins of humanism. Part II Machiavelli: Florentine political traditions and Machiavelli's election to the chancery; Machiavelli, servant of the Florentine Republic; New light on Machiavelli's education. Part III Arezzo: The uses and abuses of iconology: Piero della Francesca and Carlo Ginzburg; Cosimo de' Medici and Arezzo; Piero de' Medici and Arezzo; Lorenzo and Arezzo; Arezzo, the Medici and the Florentine regime. Part IV Political Thought: The political thought of the Florentine chancellors; Republicanism; Indexes.

Editorial Reviews

'As a whole this collection brings together numerous important contributions by one of the leading scholars of Tuscany, humanism, and Renaissance education over the last forty years... readers of this book will be rewarded with over a dozen articles of quality scholarship from a top historian who is at his best when showing the strong continuities between the politics and thought of medieval and Renaissance Italy.' Renaissance Quarterly 'Black’s great contribution to the field of Italian intellectual and political history is unquestionable, and here he is concerned with the fundamental political ideas and skills that through the twentieth century structured the study of Italian humanism... There is no question that the work within these covers is worthy of publication...' Sixteenth Century Studies

"(...) the essays collected in this volume show an impressive breadth of research on Quattrocento Tuscany; the essays also demonstrate an equally impressive range of methodological approaches. The former aspect of this volume will make it useful for students and scholars of the Italian Renaissance, particularly Florentine Humanism, while the latter aspect of the volume offers an excellent model of scholarly writing. The admirable variation on methodologies that Black employs throughout these articles should encourage students to develop a wide range of skills to hone their craft as historians." — Jason Houston, University of Oklahoma, USA

From the Publisher