HIST-308 Lecture Notes - Lecture 21: Middle Ages, Matteo Palmieri, Lorenzo Valla
16 Nov 2020
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He was not attacking the early middle ages. He saw the late medieval scholastic thought of duns scotus and ockham as dark subtleties and confusion. Wanted to move past the old scholastics and into a new paradigm. Fields of thought from philosophy to politics opened anew. Traditional authorities in either field felt threatened by humanist ideals. Used his skills to shift the balance of european politics. Argued that the ancient donation of constantine was an early medieval forgery. Severe blow to the pope"s claim to temporal-political power. Valla was supported in his work by generous funding from the crown of aragon. Had a vested interest in legitimating aragon"s own power: valla the cardinal. His tomb is in rome"s st. john lateran basilica. Wrote a philosophical dialogue in favour of predestination: marsilio ficino. Attached himself to the medici: the medici. Cosimo il vecchio brought the medici to political power in the city. Ficino created a new platonic academy in florence.
