Virtual: From Athens to Constantinople and back to Athens again
What was the difference between Romans and Greeks at the time of the fall of Constantinople in 1453? Both terms were used, but they did not denote interchangeable identities and they pointed to different political projects. This presentation will explore fissures of religious identity (pro- and anti-Union) and the crucial role played by foreign conquest, whether by Turks (who maintained Roman identities) or by Latins (who imposed neo-Greek identities). In between these fissures, there also existed a tiny group of “Hellenes,” who nostalgically sought a revival of antiquity. Who were all these different groups and what were their politics? Who won in this struggle for identity?
Statement from the Academy
On the conference Theme
This is an especially timely topic masterfully examined by the two speakers. It concerns the very identity of the contemporary descendents of the Eastern Roman Empire, that is, their self-understanding of their past, present, and future.
From Hellenes to Romioi and Back Again
Dr. Alexander Kitroeff, PHD
the views expressed in the conference are solely those of the speakers, not of the academy nor of the metropolis of atlanta