The European Renaissance was a turning point in how people viewed art, literature, and architecture. These new views soon led to the Reformation, or reformation of the Catholic Church. These changes brought Europe out of the Middle Ages and into modern times. The Renaissance began after Europe began to recover from the Black Death. Anyone who survived was simply happy to be alive and began to focus more on material things, rather than religious ones. Another reason why attention shifted from religious thoughts was the Great Schism. People began to doubt their rulers and religious leaders and became more secular. An important city involved in the Renaissance was Florence, which would become known as the cultural center of the Renaissance. Florence was located in Tuscany and was originally ruled by merchants, but was later taken over by a wealthy family known as the Medici. Subsequently, however, the economy began to decline, so much so that people turned to a man known as Savonarola. Savonarola, however, was an extremely strict ruler and did not allow such things as gambling or painting. Then he criticized the Pope and was sentenced to death for heresy. The Medici family then regained control. These power struggles within Italy would lead to better trade which would help lead people to have a new and better lifestyle. During the Middle Ages, society was divided into three social classes: the clergy, the nobles and the peasants. However, as people entered the Renaissance, these classes changed. Nobles in these periods began to lose much income, however, members of the older nobility retained their lands and titles. In the Renaissance, the nobles returned to dominate society and, in the middle of paper, founded Parliament to finalize the break between the Catholic Church and England. The Act of Supremacy of 1534, passed by Parliament, explained that the king was the sovereign of the Church of England. Overall, the Reformation was a time of religious confusion that ultimately led to new, more organized branches of Christianity. Between the Renaissance and the Reformation, many important changes occurred in society. One of the most important was the new idea of ​​humanism which led to magnificent advances in art, architecture and literature. Another important change occurred with religion. An example of this would be the creation of Protestantism when people began to disagree with the decisions of the Catholic Church. All of these changes were important in helping people still affected by the Black Death, as well as building the foundation for today's society..