A contemporary drawing of Petrarch
The Italian Renaissance produced many outstanding artists, writers, and thinkers and one of the greatest figures of this era was Francesco Petrarch (1304-1374). He was a great poet, philosopher, and writer. The Italian was to have a profound impact on the poetry of the Renaissance not only in Italy but throughout Europe.
He was also one of the pioneers in the ‘humanist’ movement which radically transformed the worldview of Europeans and their culture and society. Moreover, the Italian can be said to have invented the concept of the Renaissance, which he defined as a return to classical values after the ‘Dark Ages’ of the Medieval World.
Europe in the 14th century