The Florentine Enlightenment 1400-1450

by George Arthur Holmes

A study of the revolutionary development in art and thought which took place in early fifteenth-century Florence, this book is a new approach to political philosophy, history, art, and architecture that was inspired by the teaching and writings of a group of humanist thinkers who paved the way
for the great achievements of the later Renaissance. Holmes explores the ideas of the humanists and traces their influence on the writing of history, political philosophy, and aesthetics. The new humanist secular thought was paralleled, and even directly applied in some cases, by a number of
brilliant Florentine artists headed by Brunelleschi, Donatello, and Masaccio. In architecture, sculpture, and painting these men produced masterpieces which gave form to the humanist ideal of classical inspiration related to real life. Holmes examines this brief but enlightened phase in the
history of art and ideas within its historical context, setting it against the background of Florence's fluctuating relationship with an enfeebled papacy and the wider Italian political scene.

Genres: History

320 pages, Paperback

First published February 1, 1969

About the author

George Arthur Holmes FBA (born 22 April 1927 in Aberystwth–died 29 January 2009) was Chichele Professor of Medieval History at the University of Oxford, and a Fellow of All Souls College, Oxford, 1989-94.

Reviews

[Chris · Rating 3 out of 5]

The Florentine Enlightenment 1400-1450

By G. Holmes

This is a study of the revolutionary development in art and thought which took place in early fifteenth-century Florence. A new approach to political philosophy, history, art, and architecture was inspired by the teaching and writings of a group of humanists thinkers and paved the way for the great achievements of the later Renaissance.
George Holmes explores the ideas of the humanists, and traces their influence on the writing of history, political philosophy, and aesthetics. The new humanist secular thought was paralleled, and even directly applied in some cases, by several brilliant Florentine artists headed by Brunelleschi, Donatello, and Masaccio. In architecture, sculpture, and painting these men produced masterpieces which gave form to the humanist ideal of classical inspiration related to real life.
Professor Holmes examines this brief but enlightened phase in the history of art and ideas within its historical context, setting it against the background of Florence's fluctuating relationship with an enfeebled papacy and the wider Italian political scene. The Florentine Enlightenment provides a fascinating preview of the greatest movement in the cultural history of Europe: the Renaissance. This book is intended for scholars and students of medieval European history; especially fifteenth-century cultural and art historians; historians of the Renaissance; historians of Florence.

[Bob Williams · Rating 5 out of 5]

I read this book to give myself a context for two things. First and foremost to help understand the Annunciations that were painted during this time and second as preparation for reading The Swerve by Stephen Greenblatt. This book was full of information and very well documented.
It was also very readable. I highly recommend it to anyone interested in the topic.