Cities and Urban Life

Cities in western Europe experienced significant growth and change during the Renaissance. About a quarter of the population lived in urban areas, and the percentage was even higher in northern Italy, southern Germany, and the Netherlands. By 1600 Venice had 190,000 inhabitants and Paris had 220,000. This urban growth led to changes in the nature of city life and the challenges of city government.

Characteristics of Urban Life. Renaissance cities varied a great deal. While some cities were surrounded by walls or FORTIFICATIONS, others no longer had walls or had developed suburbs beyond them. Cities served mainly as centers for the exchange and production of goods, but agriculture often remained an important element. Farmers made up a large part of the population of many towns and sometimes raised crops inside city walls. People from different backgrounds and social classes mixed in the shops and marketplaces, and women moved about with considerable freedom. Urban areas also attracted a wide variety of visitors.

Cities enjoyed a lively, often hectic, street life. Religious and other processions featuring music, dancing, and elaborate costumes were common. Pedestrians frequently had to share the streets with pigs and geese. Crowding and traffic became serious problems in some urban areas, especially as the use of carriages increased among the wealthy. During one traffic jam in Paris in 1610, HENRY IV of France was assassinated in his coach. Some cities made attempts to control the traffic problem. Amsterdam developed a system of one-way streets, and London licensed carriages for hire. In both cases, the situation became more complex as the use of carriages grew.

A significant development in urban society during the Renaissance was the popularity of indoor entertainment. Wealthy residents began to take part in invitation-only dances, private gambling, and new forms of diversion such as OPERA, theater, and poetry readings. These urban elites* sought entertainment that excluded the ordinary people and reinforced their own sense of social superiority.

Religion and Education in Cities. Religion was a major force in urban life throughout the Renaissance. In most cities religious buildings dominated the skyline, and parish churches served as cultural and social centers. Churches also had their own laws and courts separate from those of civil authorities.

The role of city churches changed after the Protestant Reformation*. In northern Europe the church lost its separate legal status, and many Catholic religious buildings were destroyed or converted to other uses. Education and relief for the poor, once largely provided by the church, fell to other groups and institutions. In southern Europe, the Catholic Counter-Reformation* strengthened the church's role. New churches were built to emphasize the importance of faith in daily life. Urban authorities worked with church leaders to impose accepted political and religious beliefs.

Towns and cities were the educational centers of the Renaissance. Instruction aimed at different levels of achievement. Dame schools (small classes conducted by women in their homes) provided only enough learning to allow their pupils to attend to business and understand religious principles. Vocational schools and trade apprenticeships* prepared young people for various crafts and professions. Latin grammar schools and universities offered more advanced education. Schooling and training were available for both boys and girls, but the education of girls usually ended at a much earlier age.

City Government. The organization of city government remained largely unchanged from the Middle Ages to the Renaissance. However, traditional government structures were unable to deal with the growing complexity of city life. Issues such as immigration, public health, fire prevention, defense, and maintaining order required more specialized expertise than most town councils possessed. Civic officials set up committees to deal with these types of issues. These committees created new opportunities for corruption, but bribery and gifts often helped urban services function more smoothly.

Although many residents of cities were counted as citizens, the term had little practical political significance. Most cities contained too many citizens to call together at one time to make decisions or choose local leaders. In any event, only those who were financially independent had any voice in local government. Women and the poor had little political influence. This led many urban dwellers to identify as strongly with neighborhoods, parishes, guilds*, or other associations as with the city.

During the Renaissance most cities lost their political independence to rulers of larger territories and states. These rulers often enforced their policies by maintaining their own courts, troops, and tax collectors in cities. In some cases, rulers used their power to appoint city officials who would follow their policies.

The Urban Economy. Guilds and market authorities regulated economic activity in cities. However, many merchants and peddlers conducted business in places outside official control, such as inns and taverns. Homes and shops often shared the same buildings, and business typically spilled out into the sidewalk and streets. But long-standing city regulations limited the size of most manufacturing enterprises. Urban craft production thus remained small in scale.

The level of economic activity and prosperity varied considerably in Renaissance cities. The number of residents changed unpredictably as rapid increases in population were interrupted by outbreaks of disease that caused sharp declines. Nevertheless, most city economies continued to expand until the late 1500s. At that time Mediterranean cities experienced a slowdown as trade and shipping shifted from Italy to England and the Netherlands.

City economies were based on production, trade, and services that supported these activities, such as innkeeping, domestic work, and transporting goods. Professionals such as lawyers and doctors also formed an important part of the urban economy. However, the prosperity of a town more often depended on other sources of income. Rents from houses and income from properties outside the city were as important to urban dwellers as the money they made in the marketplace. Increases in the size of government accounted for much of the growth in many cities.

Urban Design and Planning. The rediscovery of ancient Greek and Roman writings on the arts and ARCHITECTURE brought a new sense of urban design to Renaissance Europe. Reports from ancient Rome explained how rulers could express ideas of power and authority through monumental architecture and city design. Renaissance architects and urban planners embraced these ideas, studying classical* design principles such as the use of ideal geometric figures (the circle and square) and building proportions based on the measurements of the human body. They attempted to find a balance between firmness, beauty, and utility in construction.

Yet few cities were built or restructured according to classical principles because it was difficult to make major changes in existing urban centers. However, the design of one new town of the 1400s, Pienza, did follow the principles of Renaissance urban planning. Pope Pius II made this village in Tuscany into an urban monument to himself and his family. Exposure to classical influences led to a more refined architectural style and planned town additions and improvements in northern Europe. Classical models of urban planning were eventually adopted to appeal to local tastes and needs.

Cities and Urban Life

New Glory for Old Rome