From plotting out my Vinlandic timeline, I was confronted by the fact that I can't just have the Renaissance begin at an arbitrary date in the Late Middle Ages without explaining why the timeline acquired the prerequisites for the Renaissance to occur at all earlier than in OTL. Similarly, if I want to have the Renaissance occur later than in OTL, I need to explain why the timeline did not acquire the necessary prerequisites for the Renaissance to occur than until a later date than in OTL.
For this reason, I was interested in trying to assemble a list of events/inventions/discoveries/rediscoveries that was needed for the Renaissance to occur, which other ATL writers may also have use of if they're dealing with the Renaissance (or something similar to it). Consider it something of a game. You can bring up whatever event/invention/discovery/rediscovery that you think is necessary for the Renaissance, add a justification for why you think this played a role in bringing about the Renaissance, and it is added to the list. Multiple entries are more than welcomed.
I'll begin the list with the following entry:
Johannes Gutenberg's invention of the movable type:
The movable type print enabled modern book printing, and it was as such crucial for the explosion of publication of books and the spread of knowledge.