Childhood

Young people were important in the Renaissance primarily because there were so many of them. During that period, more than half the population of Europe was under age 25. Children were dependent on adults, who controlled their behavior and taught them the skills they would need in later life.

The Meaning of Childhood. Renaissance life before adulthood had three stages—infancy, childhood, and youth. Infants—children under seven years old—were the responsibility of women. After age seven, children were ready to begin learning from instruction. People generally saw age 14 as the end of childhood, but this age limit was not clear-cut. Some laws considered young people under age 14 to be capable of committing adult crimes. Many children started to work before age 14, and boys of 9 or even younger could be required to bear arms. Therefore, the line between childhood and youth was blurry. Youth ended with an event that changed a person's legal status, such as marriage.

Bringing Up Children. Renaissance children were powerless, completely under the control of adults. Adults believed that such control was necessary to tame children's natural wildness. To them, dealing with children was a battle of wills, and the only good outcome was for a child to submit to authority.

Renaissance adults also believed that children needed protection from the forces of evil, which usually meant sexuality. Except for the home, most institutions kept boys and girls apart. Yet children were often exposed to other undesirable behavior—such as coarse language, gambling, and excessive drinking—in their towns, villages, and homes.

Some historians see the strict control of children as a sign that their lives lacked warmth and affection. Others argue that most Renaissance parents loved and cared for their children. Many children had only one living parent. Others were orphans and lived under the care of sometimes reluctant relatives. Guardians sometimes took advantage of rich orphans. Children without relatives went to foundling homes, or orphanages.

Play was a common part of children's lives during the Renaissance. Toys from this period included balls, sticks, hoops, dolls, and marbles. Children also played games and engaged in horseplay. Most children played in groups rather than alone. Children from poor families, who lived in small houses, probably did most of their playing outdoors.

Education. Boys and girls started learning about religion in the household at a very early age, often from women. In peasant families, children under seven might also learn to help around the house or look after younger children. In wealthy households, children usually had governesses* or tutors who saw to their early training and education. As in peasant households, a child's gender determined what he or she would learn. Girls studied needlework and household management, while boys learned horsemanship and hunting.

Between the ages of five and seven, fortunate children began formal schooling either inside or outside the home. The type and amount of education varied according to the family's economic and social status, the child's gender, the parents' expectations, and the availability of schooling. Children of the lower classes often became apprentices* to learn a trade. Parents made all the necessary arrangements with apprentice masters regarding their children's training.

In Italy, most children continued to live with their parents during their education. Even apprentices usually worked for their own fathers or for artisans* in their hometowns. In northwestern Europe, by contrast, children of both town and country commonly left home for training or an education. The age at which children left home and the length of time they stayed away varied. Peasant children might leave for a year or two, spend some time working at home, and then leave again. Apprenticeships usually lasted for several years and permanently separated children from their homes. Those who took in children assumed the educational and disciplinary role of parents.

Apprenticeships could take several forms. Peasant children went to other peasant households or, less frequently, to wealthy households. Many children of higher social rank trained with merchants or with professionals such as physicians or lawyers. At the highest levels of society, children served in nobles' homes. These children had to master elaborate codes of social behavior. Serving in a noble household provided valuable contacts for these children and for their families.

Youth. Youth was, in many ways, an extension of childhood. There was no clear transition between the two, although the signs of physical development made a significant difference. These signs—such as voice change and menstruation—seem to have appeared fairly late, after age 14.

Like children, young people had little freedom, and they often behaved irresponsibly. Sports and games might become wild, especially when combined with drinking and gambling. Some old village traditions were open to youth without adult supervision. Groups of young people organized seasonal celebrations and supervised courtship behavior.

Many youths, both boys and girls, spent time as SERVANTS. Their period of service began around age 14 and could last for many years, especially in the countryside. Servants moved frequently from place to place, serving many different masters. Such wandering was not a sign of independence—servants moved from depending on one master to depending on another. Some highborn youths served in noble houses until they were in their 20s. Apprenticeships could also last that long.

The end of youth came only with a change in legal status. Youth was the time for courtship, and marriage usually marked the start of adulthood. Most people married around the same time their apprenticeships or periods of service ended. Marriage brought more independence to young men than it did to young women, who became legally dependent on their husbands. Males could also end their youth by joining monasteries. Some young men who did not marry became responsible for themselves as adults when their fathers chose to "emancipate" them (legally set them free).