Changes

In the south of Italy the opposite occurred, here, since the Norman kings, the aristocracy had been consolidating feudalism. After the Black Death, the elite responded to the labor shortages by strengthening the restrictions on the peasants and thereby strengthened feudalism in southern Italy. The consequences of the plague resulted in a growing divide between the North and South of Italy that persists to this day.<ref>Benedictow, Ole Jørgen ''[https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/1843832143/ref=as_li_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=9325&creativeASIN=1843832143&linkCode=as2&tag=dailyh0c-20&linkId=449097edacea911d1f7384a876564988 Black Death 1346–1353: The Complete History]'' (Cambridge, Cambridge University Press,2004) p. 234</ref> In general, after a period of recovery, much of Italy became very wealthy as a more sophisticated economy emerged, especially in the North of Italy. This was crucial, as the increased wealth of Italy allowed the elite, such as the De Medici’s in Florence to become the patrons of great artists such as Michelangelo and Leonardo da Vinci.<ref> Frederick Hartt, and David G. Wilkins, ''[https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0131882473/ref=as_li_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=9325&creativeASIN=0131882473&linkCode=as2&tag=dailyh0c-20&linkId=6cfea7bdf46c76a3b637cf054ebc4f63 History of Italian Art: Painting, Sculpture, Architecture]'' (Oxford University Press, Oxford, 2003), p 67</ref>

====Religious Consequences====

The Black Death devastated Italian society in the middle of the 14th century. It led to great socio-economic, cultural and religious changes. After the initial horrors of the plague, Italian society, staged a spectacular recovery. Italy became richer than before. The impact of the plague reduced the influence of the Catholic Church as diminished, and the culture became more secular. The new social mobility meant that individualism came to be respected. The Black Death unleashed the forces in Italian society that made the Renaissance possible.

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====References====

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