The Renaissance, Part I

I'm just starting to figure out how the Renaissance really got started. It seems that Italian literati such as Petrarch and Boccaccio developed and promoted a new love for the ancient classic writers... think Cicero, Plutarch, Seneca, Homer, Herodotus, etc. This initial spur, coupled with other conditions, launched a renewed interest in the arts and literature that took on a life of its own.

Other conditions that lent impetus to the Renaissance:

1. Italian wealth, developed in shipping, manufacture and trade from leading cities such as Florence, Venice, Milan and Genoa. Wealth leads to leisure and the ability to pursue non-essential activities such as culture, learning and art. Pre-Medici families began to patronize artists, poets and others to beautify their cities and homes (albeit sometimes with the ulterior motive of creating a permanent memory for themselves).
2. Relative stability among Italian city-states led to a weakening of the dependence on religion. Compared to the middle ages, when people lived in constant fear of their entire city being wiped out without warning, people came to question the need for religion, at least in relative terms. This naturally led to a loosening of moral principles, helping to get the party started.
3. The democratization of ideas and learning led to a rise of the middle class. No longer were the liberal ideas of philosophy held ransom by the church and the wealthy. Books, slowly rediscovered after the barbarian invasions and medieval decay, began to spread more widely. The average man began to realize that he had some choices in life. The rise of universities, and learning in general, signaled a time for change that led to an increase in wealth and the desire to beautify the world around him.

These conditions fed off of one another and generally allowed society to shift from survival mode to party time. I doubt Petrarch knew what he was unleashing; I'm sure he would have been as surprised as anyone to see how Italy, and the rest of Europe, would change over the next few centuries.