Renaissance and the Age of Discovery 1500
By 1500, printing presses had been running across Europe for half a century, and eight years had passed since Columbus crossed the Atlantic. In Florence and Venice, painters and bankers were remaking their cities, while in the east the Ottoman Empire was swallowing the Balkans.
The shape of the age
The feudal lords of the Middle Ages were steadily becoming servants of ever more powerful kings. Kingdoms such as France, Spain and England began to build standing armies and bureaucracies, and gunpowder and cannon changed what a castle wall was worth. The Italian peninsula became a battleground as France and the Habsburgs fought to possess it.
As trade and finance grew, money opened new roads to advancement. That is why events such as investments, patronage and an alchemist's proposals become more common in the game.
Great events in the game
- The Reformation After Luther's Ninety-five Theses in 1517, Europe split into Catholic and Protestant. In the game, too, conversion and charges of heresy become political matters.
- The Battle of Mohács and the Siege of Vienna In 1526 the Kingdom of Hungary fell to the Ottomans, and in 1529 an Ottoman army stood before the walls of Vienna.
- The Battle of Lepanto In 1571 the fleet of the Holy League shattered the Ottoman fleet.
- The Dutch Revolt and the Spanish Armada The Eighty Years' War the Dutch waged against Spain, and the Spanish fleet that failed in its invasion of England in 1588.
- The Thirty Years' War Beginning in Bohemia in 1618, this war of religion left the Holy Roman Empire in ruins.
How to enjoy this era
The Ottoman Empire is the largest power on the map in this era. Born in the Balkans, your first question will be whether to live as the sultan's vassal or to resist.
Major powers
| Power | In the game |
|---|---|
| Ottoman Empire | The fastest-growing state on the map. The Balkans and Anatolia, and soon Hungary. |
| Spain and the Habsburgs | A house that bound half of Europe together through marriage. Silver flows in from the New World. |
| France | A great power with designs on Italy, standing against the Habsburgs. |
| Poland-Lithuania | A vast union of kingdoms in Eastern Europe. The nobles are stronger than the king. |
| Venice · Genoa | Merchant republics that live by the sea and by money. |
Life in the age
Printing drove down the price of books dramatically. As Bibles, classics and pamphlets poured off the presses, more people learned to read, and a new idea could circle Europe in a matter of weeks. The Reformation spread so quickly thanks to the printing press. Painters and architects sought out patrons such as the Medici, and in the game, too, patronising artists is a way to raise your renown.
The voyages of discovery transformed Europe's economy. Portugal rounded Africa to reach the Indian Ocean, and Spain shipped home the silver of the Americas. Prices rose, and merchants and bankers grew powerful by lending money to kings. Yet this was also the height of the witch hunts and the Inquisition, so reading forbidden books or conducting strange experiments meant staking your life.