Monasteries, a quintessential institution of the medieval period that persisted into modern times and continues to survive to this day, represent a significant field of research for social history: having preserved, in many cases, important records and material remains, monasteries can be studied both as institutions or buildings themselves and concerning their economic background and their relationships with the respective political power.

In this collective volume, the historiographical goal is to highlight the economic and political profile of monastic institutions, through a comparative approach from the medieval to the modern era, over a geographical range extending from medieval Western Europe to Byzantium, the Latin East, and the early modern Ottoman Empire, up to the modern Greek state in the Balkans.

The volume gathers the presentations from the scientific meeting organized by the Department of History and Archaeology at the University of Crete between December 17-19, 2009, in Rethymno.

Contents:

• Ilías Kolovós, Introduction
• Eléni Sakelláriou, "Monasteries in Medieval Western Europe: their relationship with politics and the economy (8th-11th century)"
• Aglaía Kástdagli, "Nihil sub sole novum - there is nothing new under the sun. Thoughts on historiography considering the Cistercian monks during the central medieval period"
• Kostís Smirlís, "Monasteries in the Late Byzantine Period: economic role and relationships with the state (13th-15th century)"
• Marína Koumanoudi, "Aspects of Western Monasticism in the Greek-Latin East during the Middle Ages"
• Olga Grátsiou, "All faithful, come forward... Pilgrimages for both doctrines in monasteries of Crete during the Venetian period"
• Níkos Karapidákis, "From piety to financial management: churches, monasteries, and charitable institutions in Corfu (16th-18th century)"
• Elisávet Zachariádou, "The safety of seafarers in the Aegean and the monasteries"
• Fokión Kotzageórgis, "Monasteries as Ottoman local elites"
• Dimitris Dimitropoulos, "Christian monasteries and regional Ottoman authorities: aspects of local protective relationships"
• Sofía Laíou, "Relationships between monks and Christian laypeople during the Ottoman period"
• Ioannis H. Alexandropoulos, "Christian conversions and Islamic dedications: the gray areas of Orthodox monastic land ownership"
• Ilías Kolovós, "Orthodox monasteries and dervish lodges: towards a comparative approach of their economic and political role in Ottoman society"
• Tásos Anastasíadis, "(Un)holy land: the moral and political economy of Orthodox monasteries in the modern Greek state."