The Atlantic Medieval and Early Modern Group will be hosting Prof. Nicholas Terpstra at 4pm (Atlantic) on Thursday 7 October who will be presenting a talk via Zoom entitled:

Race, Gender, and the Politics of Enclosure in Early Modern Siena

In spring 1572, Siena’s military governor had two pressing issues on his plate:  getting the Jews of the city and surrounding towns into a ghetto on instructions from Tuscany’s Grand Duke Cosimo I, and enclosing the tertiary nuns of 7 hitherto open convents on instructions from Pope Pius V.  Both Jews and nuns hotly resisted these moves.  Why were authorities pushing for enclosure, how did the resistance play out, and what explains the very different outcomes in the years following?