CONTENTS 1
1．The Background of the Renaissance 1
The Problem of the Renaissance 1
The Conservative Elements in Medieval Civilization：Feudalism 9
The Conservative Elements in Medieval Civilization：The Church 14
The Dynamic Elements in Medieval Society：Com-merce，Money Economy and the Towns 20
The Rise of Centralized Territorial States 27
The Decline of the Feudal Nobility 32
Decline of the Medieval Church 38
2．The Renaissance in Italy 52
The Economic Evolution of the Italian Cities 52
The Political Evolution of the Italian States 58
The Evolution of Urban Society and Culture in Italy 68
The Growth of Secular Elements in Italian Culture 76
The Literature of the Italian Renaissance：The Four-teenth Century 81
The Literature of the Italian Renaissance：The Fif- 88
teenth and Sixteenth Centuries 88
The Art of the Italian Renaissance 95
3．The Renaissance in the North 112
The Economic Evolution of the North in the Four-teenth and Fifteenth Centuries 112
The Age of Discovery and the Changing Fortunes of the European States 119
The Evolution of Northern Society and Culture 127
The Growth of Secular Culture and Lay Piety in the North 134
Humanism in the North 139
The Vernacular Literatures in the North 148
The Art of the Northern Renaissance 154
Conclusion 158