Italian CityThe Renaissance was the period from 1350 to 1600. The Renaissance began first in the city-states of Italy for many reasons. Although much of Europe was hit by a major economic crisis during the late Middle Ages, Italy managed to avoid it all and its cities remained important centers of Mediterranean trade and increased the production of textiles and luxury goods. City life was greater in Italy than in other parts of Europe. Therefore, most Italians could easily abandon feudalism and other medieval institutions. Because Italy was wealthy and successful, they became independent city-states, each comprising a walled urban center and the surrounding countryside. The Italian city-states initiated a new social order. It was that wealth and skill mattered more than aristocratic titles and ownership of land. Rich merchants and bankers replaced the upper-class nobles. Shopkeepers and artisans ranked below wealthy merchants, forming a moderately prosperous middle class that employed many poor workers. Most of these workers came from the countryside. And at the bottom of the social ladder were the farmers who worked on country estates for the wealthy classes. During the Renaissance, Italy was not under a single government, but was divided into city-states. Each of these was ruled by wealthy families whose fortunes came from commercial trade or banking. Many times the workers rebelled against the upper classes. Their demands for equal rights and reduced taxes, however, remained unexpressed. During the 1400s, social conflicts became so severe that many city-states decided to place all political authority in the hands of a single powerful leader to restore peace. These leaders were known as lords. Sometimes, city-states had territorial disputes. Because military service would interfere with the conduct of business and commerce, the lords chose to replace citizen-soldiers with hired soldiers known as leaders. The main city-states were Florence, Venice, Rome and Milan. . A banking family known as the Medici ruled Florence in the 1400s. The Medici rulers helped keep alive the spirit of humanism in the city-state's scholars and artists. With the spirit alive, Florence became known as the cradle of the Italian Renaissance. Lorenzo de' Medici (also known as “the Magnificent” due to the city's prosperity and fame) ruled Florence from 1469 to 1492. He used his wealth to support artists, philosophers and writers and to sponsor public festivals. During the 1490s, Florence's economic prosperity began to decline due to increasing competition with English and Flemish textile manufacturers.