About the Presentation
One of the main features of the Renaissance is the recuperation of Greek culture as a specific tradition within Western civilization. While the subject, one of the most significant cultural events in early modern history, has been studied accordingly, the reputation of the medieval Greek civilization during that period has received less attention. Furthermore, the focus has been reasonably put on the Italian landscape, central destination of Greek émigrés before the social and political collapse of their birth land during the fifteenth century.
Regarding France, it is known that during the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries, the monarchy somehow revived old Byzantine symbolism of power in order to consolidate Bourbon absolutism. This paper focuses on three specific topics which evidence, through the influence of Byzantium, an original phase of Western Hellenism: the myths about the historical origins of France, which prepared the cultural setting for the enthusiastic reception of Greek from the fifteenth century; the particular interest put on the ways in which Eastern Christians dealt with heresy, one of the most urgent issues of sixteenth-century France; and—directly tied to this problem—a particular Byzantine demonological tradition, in some aspects very suitable for the problems raised by the agonistic atmosphere which characterized the second half of the century.
About the Speaker
Santiago Francisco Peña is currently an Adjunct Researcher at CONICET and Assistant Professor of Early Modern History at Universidad Pedagógica (UNIPE). He obtained his doctorate in history from Paris IV–Sorbonne and the University of Buenos Aires in 2017. His research focuses on French humanism and religious violence in the late Middle Ages and early modern period, and his PhD dissertation (L'humanisme français face à la violence religieuse (1472–1604). De la querelle à l'agonie) was published by Classiques Garnier in 2025. He
About the Early Modern Hellenism Colloquia
The colloquium, organized by Natasha Constantinidou (University of Cyprus) and Han Lamers (University of Oslo), aims to foster a growing community of international scholars across various disciplines working on the reception of the ancient Greek heritage in the early modern period. Each session will include a 20-minute presentation followed by a 30-minute informal discussion. Presenters are encouraged to concentrate on the primary sources central to their research and to reflect on how their academic background shapes their approach to early modern Hellenism.
Interested in Attending?
Those who wish to attend are kindly asked to register in advance using the online form that will be made available here after the preceding seminar. A link will be sent in good time before the event.