generate questions: Despite these crises, the 14th century was also a time of great progress in the arts and sciences. Following a renewed interest in ancient Greek and Roman texts that took root in the High Middle Ages, the Italian Renaissance began. The absorption of Latin texts had started before the Renaissance of the 12th century through contact with Arabs during the Crusades, but the availability of important Greek texts accelerated with the capture of Constantinople by the Ottoman Turks, when many Byzantine scholars had to seek refuge in the West, particularly Italy.
An interest in texts from which two ancient civilizations sparked the Italian Renaissance? {sep_token} Which conflicts brought Europeans into contact with Arabs prior to the 12th century? {sep_token} Which city was captured by the Ottoman Turks, resulting in the fleeing of scholars to Western Europe? {sep_token} Who captured Constantinople? {sep_token} What kind of texts did Byzantine scholars take with them when they fled Constantinople?