History is abut people. So it is important to begin the study of any historical period with a background in biography. As much as certain modern scholars like to crow about the debunking of the "great man" theory of history, it remains true that certain men (and their ideas) have had more impact and far-reaching influence than others. One needs to understand the important people in order to understand the times. And then one must achieve a deeper understanding of the times in order to understand the important people. The biographies in this volume show the continuity between the Renaissance and the Reformation. The revival of learning which characterized the Renaissance led directly to the recovery of the tools and texts that the Reformers used to plave the Bible in language (and hands) of the people. It is and old saw, but true, that "Erasmus laid the egg that Luther hatched." This book will give readers a sense of the events that helped to shape the modern world, the modern politcal state, and the church. You will meet men and women of tremendous ability and often unbelievable courage who were at work in the events of the Renaissance and Reformation. We should admire them for their virtues and seek to imitate them, and take caution from their flaws and failures and seek to avoid them. That, after all, is the point of studying history.