Abstract
The main goal of the paper is to bring out novel late-16th-century information on monks and monasteries from the Romanian Principalities, as it appears in Istanbul’s state archive official codices. We present Turkish documentary sources on the relationship of the Romanian Principalities with Mount Athos’ monastic community and with the Patriarchate of Constantinople.
The study also includes various information on the monks’ life: some had diplomatic or political activity, other were taken prisoners by the Crimean Tartars, some were sent into forced exile to Anatolia along with pretenders of the throne, other were imprisoned on Rhodes Island. The paper also includes scant data on the monasteries’ daily life.
Keywords
monasteries, monks, Mount Athos, Patriarchate, Romanian Principalities
