The New Learning was a phase of a greater movement called the Renaissance, which arose in Italy during the fourteenth century. The Renaissance marked the end of the Middle Ages and the beginning of modern history. It meant rebirth, a new life. People took a new interest in living. The influence of the monk and of the knight was passing, and the man of affairs, with his broader sympathies, his keener vision, his more varied interests, and his love of liberty, was coming into prominence.The Renaissance could be described as