The city states in Italy and their architectural and artistic creation from 1400 to the 16th century. Historical and cultural perspective. Trade and the rise of the bourgeoisie. The new socio-economic conditions, the turn to antiquity and the Neoplatonic philosophy. The evolution of cities, public space and monumental, ecclesiastical and secular, architecture and the arts. Urban interventions in the medieval urban fabric and prestige architecture. The towers, the loggia, the town hall and the mansion. The promotion of architectural creation and the arts by the scholarly ruler, the papal church, the monastic orders and the guilds as a framework for the new role of the architect and the artist.