Portrait of Erasmus
Title
Portrait of Erasmus
Description
After 1450, humanism began to spread from its roots in Florence -- long regarded as a hub for scholars -- to Vienna, Heidelberg, and the royal seats of England, France, and Spain (Wiesner-Hanks, 140). Scholars traveled all over Europe, carrying their ideas with them, but more permanent humanist academies and social groups were also established. Desiderius Erasmus, a prominent humanist with an appreciation for Plato and the classics, saw his works circulate throughout Europe in this fashion. Though Erasmus hailed from the Netherlands, his works were an important influence on English thinking during the Renaissance. One of these traceable links involves English humanist Thomas More, with whom Erasmus regularly corresponded.
Wiesner-Hanks asserts that at the height of the humanist movement, travel to Italy was unnecessary because up-and-coming scholars such as More could learn about the classics in their home countries. This lends some sense of scope to the humanist movement during More’s lifetime, which spanned from 1478 to 1535 (Wiesner-Hanks, 141). Due in part to the invention of the printing press and the machination of humanist writers themselves, the basic tenets of humanism (the emphasis on revisiting the classics, revising political theory, and propagating the liberal arts in education) were able to cross country borders.
More learned Latin without leaving his home country but saw his works circulated outside of it, as Erasmus did (Wiesner-Hanks, 141). Now regarded as one of the most well-known English humanists, his 1516 novel Utopia speaks to this very philosophy in its questioning of political theory and satiric undertones. More’s position relative to the “center” of humanist action at the time is a testament to the spread of ideas.
Wiesner-Hanks asserts that at the height of the humanist movement, travel to Italy was unnecessary because up-and-coming scholars such as More could learn about the classics in their home countries. This lends some sense of scope to the humanist movement during More’s lifetime, which spanned from 1478 to 1535 (Wiesner-Hanks, 141). Due in part to the invention of the printing press and the machination of humanist writers themselves, the basic tenets of humanism (the emphasis on revisiting the classics, revising political theory, and propagating the liberal arts in education) were able to cross country borders.
More learned Latin without leaving his home country but saw his works circulated outside of it, as Erasmus did (Wiesner-Hanks, 141). Now regarded as one of the most well-known English humanists, his 1516 novel Utopia speaks to this very philosophy in its questioning of political theory and satiric undertones. More’s position relative to the “center” of humanist action at the time is a testament to the spread of ideas.
Source
Photo: Rijksmuseum (https://www.rijksmuseum.nl/nl/collectie/SK-A-166)
Wiesner-Hanks, Merry. Early Modern Europe: 1450-1789. Cambridge University Press, 2013. Print.
Wiesner-Hanks, Merry. Early Modern Europe: 1450-1789. Cambridge University Press, 2013. Print.
Date
1535
Contributor
Cassidy Bins
Rights
Public domain.
Citation
“Portrait of Erasmus,” HIST 139 - Early Modern Europe, accessed July 20, 2025, https://earlymoderneurope.hist.sites.carleton.edu/items/show/57.