Why was Italy an ideal place for the Renaissance to begin?

Italy had three advantages that made it the birthplace of the Renaissance: thriving cities, a wealthy merchant class, and the classical heritage of Greece and Rome. Overseas trade, spurred by the Crusades, had led to the growth of large city-states in northern Italy. The region also had many sizable towns.

countries such as spain, france and portugal colonized the region. although most of latin america was colonized by spain, the countries of portugal and france also had major influences on the region. due to war and disease, native populations were decimated.

answer; i believe its called ; checks   and balances;