European Renaissance ?

Question

What new social class develped in twelfth century Italy? How did the social class affect the movement toward republican government?

Answer 1

A. This would be the merchant class.  in the towns there was a seeking of order. Merchants sought a charter for their town - a guarantee of sorts - from great landowners or from monarchs. The monarchs offered towns protection from the jurisdiction of a nearby lord, and the towns offered monarchs a source of wealth, through taxation, that freed them from reliance on nobles - with whom there were in competition for power. Charters offered merchants guarantees of personal freedom and freedom from arbitrary seizure of property. Runaways from serfdom to a town might be considered free if they could elude capture while living in the town for a year, while fraternal and political clubs called guilds in a town helped create local regulations and government that suited the interests of its members. Some clubs built their own chapels and created their own schools. The craft guilds buried members who had died, and they cared for the widows and orphans of those who had been their members. And some towns hired military men for the sake of order.

Answer 2

I think it was the aristocrats, and they gained more power in society than the church over time, which eventually led to a strong central government

It could also be the merchants class because Italy gained control of more trade routes duiring this period.