askhistorians

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You are laborer in the wool manufacturing trade in 1400s Florence - what are you having for lunch? How is that different from the lunch of a successful bank manager during that same time?	328
How long has Italy been referred to as "Italy" - it was broken up into city states in the middle ages, and was not unified into the Kingdom of Italy until the 19th-century unification. So, how long before that point did people refer to the land, collectively, as Italy?	116
I have read that Niccolo Machiavelli attended a 2-year Mercado course before working in a Florentine bank. What specifically would he have learned in such a course?	92
What was the cause of the feud between the Medici family and the Pazzi family?	40
A child in Renaissance Florence is frightened that something terrible will happen to him. Who does he believe will come to save him? (In other words, who were the 'superheroes' of the middle ages?)	35
Leonardo Da Vinci created designs for flying machines, diving equipment, and self-propelled vehicles. Were there other ahead-of-their time inventors alive during the Renaissance? If so, what did they create or design?	22
You live in Florence in the year ~1475. How many times do you hear the bells at the cathedral (the Santa Maria del Fiore) ring throughout the day? Did each occurrence have a different meaning or purpose?	16
I am interested in learning more about the contracts of condottiere (captains in command of mercenary companies) during the Italian wars. What made each side honor the contract? What would happen if the city did not pay the mercenary company the money it owed?	15
What was life like for ordinary citizens in Florence (e.g., craftsmen & guild members) after Piero de' Medici was exiled in 1494? How were their lives changed by the shift away from Medici leadership?	11
How were people trained to work in the Medici bank? Were there junior clerks or apprentices?	11

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