The Three Crowns

I was just introduced to Francesco Petrarch in my Digital Civilization class. Petrarch is attributed as being the "Father of Humanism,"  but he wasn't alone. That is what I found so intriguing when I dug deeper to learn more about Petrarch. Petrarch ) was one of a group of three influential men that are given the name, "The Three Crowns" in Italy. One you will probably recognize, Dante Alighieri,
and one you might not recognize, Giovanni Boccaccio. I was amazed to find that these three men were all contemporaries with each other and often wrote letters back and forth. 

For me, history comes alive when I can put a person in the historical context of the time and when I learn about their personalities, so here is a quick run down of what I learned. 

Francesco Petrarch-(July 20, 1304 – July 19, 1374) I nicknamed him 'the priest' because he is a devout Catholic that praises the virtues of a solitary life and introspection.  The "Father of Humanism," he believed that human achievement could coincide with devout faith in God. He can be called the 'first tourist' because he would travel all over Italy just for the sake of learning more about himself. He could also be called one of the first mountaineers because he was one of the first people to hike a mountain (Mont Ventoux) for the sake of human accomplishment and not out of necessity. Petrarch never married but writes a considerable amount about a woman named Laura.

Dante Alighieri - (May/June c.1265 – September 14, 1321)  I gave Dante the nickname, 'The troublemaker.' Dante is known as 'The Father of the Italian language.' He was in the cavalry, he was lead a very active political life, he was Florence's delegate to the Pope. While he was at the Vatican a rival army invaded Florence, and because Dante wasn't there to defend the city he was labeled as a deserter and exiled from ever returning. Like Petrarch, Dante's muse was named Beatrice. Dante is most popularly known for writing Commedia which was given the nickname Divina by Boccaccio.

Giovanni Boccaccio -(1313 – 21 December 1375) 'The Diplomat.' When he wasn't being a famous poet, Boccaccio worked for the government of Florence, and was actually part of the delegate to welcome Petrarch into the city. Boccaccio was appointed to have Petrarch stay at his house and a lifelong friendship between the two men was formed. The two were also two of the most experienced archeologists of the Renaissance. I couldn't find a specific muse for Boccaccio but at some point in his life he went from writing praises of women (one book was the biographies of 106 famous women) to a bitter and disdainful tone until his death.