The northern Italian city-states were ruled by wealthy families, who would often squabble with fellow families and city-states. The peak of the Renaissance in Italy would come after they signed a peace treaty, an action caused by the French and the Ottomans becoming more prevalent threats.

Venice—with its role as a trade hub, was the first power in Europe to rely on formal diplomacy to

maintain peaceful relations with its neighbors. To achieve this formal diplomacy, they sent ambassadors to almost every royal court in Europe and North Africa. Politics within the city was unique as well, as it was governed by a merchant council.

Florence was a city controlled by powerful families, although technically the people were allowed to vote. Among the powerful ruling families the Medici family is notable, for it was under their rule that Florence most prospered.

While not a banking or trade center, the Papal States were certainly a religious center. Thousands of pilgrims would make the journey to visit Rome, seeing it as the capital of Christendom. The popes which ruled these regions were not always just religious and political leaders, but sometimes military ones as well.

The Ottoman Empire reached its zenith of power in the late sixteenth century. During this period they controlled almost all of the Balkans, and constantly fought with the European powers as they attempted to push even further into Europe. The Ottoman Empire was a monarchy, with its leader being the Sultan.

During the Renaissance, France concentrated its power in its monarchy, and grew in wealth through new taxes, and in dominance through territorial expansion—which in turn secured even more funds for their army. At the turn of the sixteenth century they invaded the northern Italian city-states, in a series of wars which lasted all the way until 1559.

Spain during this era was united for the very first time following the marriage of Queen Isabella of Castile and King Ferdinand of Aragon in 1492, which resulted in Spain soon having the largest army in Europe. In the same year the conquest of Grenada, and thus the Reconquista was complete. (also in that same year Columbus, whom the Spanish had funded—landed in the New World). It was also after the Spanish conquest of Grenada that the Inquisition began.

King João II took the throne of Portugal in 1481, and he too would follow the Renaissance trend of increasing the power of the monarchy. He tightened his grants of land, lordships and other privileges to the nobility, and forced them to recognize him as their superior, rather than as their equal (as it had been with kings in the past). Portugal also faced a refugee crisis after the Inquisition had begun, when over 120,000 Jews attempted to flee to Portugal. It was decided that they were allowed to stay awhile if they paid an entry tax, otherwise, they would be enslaved. During the late Renaissance Portugal expanded in both the New World and Asia.

In 1455 England was embroiled in the War of the Roses, a civil war that lasted until 1485 with King Henry VII becoming the new king. It was due to this civil war that England seems to have felt the effects of the Renaissance later than most other European nations.

The Holy Roman Empire was a largely German speaking political entity that wasn’t really unified. The status of “emperor” was shortly an elected position before essentially being taken by the Habsburg dynasty, which lasted until the end of the empire in 1806. The empire had a parliament, but the small states, cities, and other cities paid little heed to its decisions. The Habsburg emperors were constantly warring with the Ottoman Empire in an attempt to stop their advance into Europe, which they achieved successfully in the famous Siege of Vienna in 1529. The height of their power was during the late Renaissance.

MET Museum: https://www.metmuseum.org/TOAH/HD/pape/hd_pape.htm

Christopher Brooks “The Birth of Europe”: https://pressbooks.cuny.edu/thebirthofeurope

Holy Roman Empire Association “Holy Roman Emperor Charles V – 1519-1556”:

Anthony Disney “A History Of Portugal And The Portuguese Empire Vol 1” Cambridge University Press