Universities of Padua and Bologna
Topic: Renaissance, Reformation and the Scientific Revolution · NCERT: Class 11, Ch 5 "Changing Cultural Traditions"
Meaning
Padua and Bologna, both in Italian towns, had some of the earliest universities in Europe. From the eleventh century they were centres of legal studies, meaning the study of law. Large-scale trade needed many lawyers and notaries (officials who write and certify documents). Later, law began to be studied alongside the culture of ancient Rome, which helped humanism grow.
Example
Humanism was taught at Padua from 1300. In the sixteenth century, Andreas Vesalius, a professor of medicine at Padua, was the first to dissect (cut open and study) the human body. The Venetian scholar Cassandra Fedele was invited to give speeches at the University of Padua.
Don't confuse with
- Theology centres: universities devoted to religious studies. Padua and Bologna began as centres of law, not theology.