This book investigates how Europe has evolved from a theocratic culture to a contemporary nation-state structure. It examines how the Renaissance affected European society, as well as its economy, political system, and culture, resulting in new nation-states and ideologies and culminating in the French Revolution. Beginning in Italy around 1300, the Renaissance evolved into a time of literary, artistic, and intellectual blossoming that challenged the medieval worldview. Martin Luther’s protests against the Catholic Church in 1517 marked the beginning of the Reformation. The Scientific...