How Did Italian City States Influence Western Civilization

The rise of city-states in Italy during the Renaissance impacted western civilization economically through trade, politically through civic participation, and culturally through art. Culturally, city-states in Italy were big traders, and they came up with many new banking ideas. Politically, they started participating in democratic ways of governing. And culturally, Italy’s Renaissance artists made huge impacts on civilization. If not for the great contributions of Italian city-states, Western civilization would not be the same. Italy had multiple economical impacts on western civilization. Genoa, one of Italy’s city-states, was a big place for sea trade and shipbuilding was its major industry (3). The city-state exported oils, silk, cotton
The city-states impacted civilization through trade. For example, Venice and Genoa had big sea ports. Also, Venice was one of the first civilizations to rely solely on trade. The invention of double-entry bookkeeping came from Italian city-states, which greatly improved banking systems by allowing for easier money-keeping. The Florin, a type coin, also impacted civilization. Politically the Italian city-states made an impact on civic participation. Venice had a very similar political setup as the United States does today, showing its impact on Western Civilization. Venice also developed communes and the use spread through the west. Additionally, Genoa’s political set-up was adopted by many others because of its great success. Finally, Italian city-states impacted civilization through their fantastic artists including: Leonardo da Vinci with his lighting techniques, Michelangelo creating the idea of mannerism art, and Filippo Brunelleschi developing his new method called perspective. In conclusion, the rise of city-states in Italy during the Renaissance impacted western civilization economically through trade, politically through civic participation, and culturally through