... , the flea transferred infected blood to its new host. The rodents died. The humans died. The flea lived a long and happy life. This epidemic, known as the Black Death, spread in two ways. The flea continued biting rodents, people and livestock; at the same time, infected people coughed and sneezed, passing the bacteria to their neighbors. The disease transmitted directly ... third of Europe's population. The losses were heaviest in the cities: in Florence, 45% to 75% of the citizens died in the first year, at Avignon 50%, and in Venice 60% died within 18 months. Anywhere people lived in...

• Word Count: 689
• Approx Pages: 3
• Grade Level: High School

... , and his everlasting love to Laura. Laura died in 1348 falling victim to the black plague. He wrote a series of poems titled "Poems after Laura's death." Petrarch did not approve of Pope Innocent VI and moved to Milan for eight years. After the black death infected Milan, he sought refuge in Venice. In Venice he was given a house, and in return he donated all his books to the ... public. His daughter Francesca moved in with him. His friends such as Boccaccio, who brought him a Latin translation of Homer's poems, frequently visited him. Petrarch's final ... move was from his donated hom...

• Word Count: 675
• Approx Pages: 3
• Grade Level: High School

... religion continued to be a governing factor. But, pre humanists began to question the teachings of the church and the corruption evident in the Papacy. Many pre Renaissance and Renaissance individuals felt torn between the pious teachings of the church and the earthly pleasures which ... , would dominate his writing in which his sonnets, written in vernacular Italian, would help define Italian as an accepted language. At his father's insistence, he studied law at the University of Bologna, but left after his father's death to pursue a life of scholarship. Petrarch was ... the first to u...

• Word Count: 2254
• Approx Pages: 9
• Grade Level: High School

... families controlled the largest and wealthiest city-states of Florence, Milan, and Venice. They fought wars against each other and against smaller neighboring states to increase their power. Leonardo da Vinci was born in the year 1452 in the small hill town of Vinci. His father was a successful notary and ... home. Leonardo was free to explore the woods and streams and to study the insects, animals, and birds which he later sketched in great detail in his notebooks. Leonardo's early fascination with nature clearly inspired the paintings he would create as an adult. The detailed and lifel...

• Word Count: 1626
• Approx Pages: 7
• Has Bibliography
• Grade Level: High School