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Eugenios Voulgaris

Enlightenment
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Portrait of Eugenios Voulgaris, signed by I. M. Stock, Leipzig 1766.

Engravings Collection, ΕΒΕ 252

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The last page from the autograph notebook that belonged to young Eleftherios (later Eugenios) Voulgaris, dating from 1731. It comprises the work of Georgios Sougdouris Προδιοίκησις εἰς ἅπασαν τὴν λογικὴν μέθοδον τοῦ Ἀριστοτέλους [Commentary on Aristotle’s Organon or Ars Logica]. His handwritten note says: “This method of Logic was written with much pain and toil and sweat, studied by me Eleftherios Voulgaris”.

20 x 15 cm., ff. 64

Manuscripts Collection, ΕΒΕ 1178 (Codex Atheniensis 1178)

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An Essay Concerning Human Understanding, by John Locke, which was first published in London in 1690, here the 12th edition of 1741; the title page and the frontispiece with a portrait of the author.  

General Collection, ΦΛΣ-1379

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The first page from the manuscript of the work by Eugenios Voulgaris titled «Ὑποτύπωσις ἢ ὑπόμνημα φιλοσοφικὸν περὶ τοῦ κατὰ ἄνθρωπον νοῦ ἐκ τοῦ Ἄγγλου Λωκίου» [Philosophical memoire on the human understanding based on Englishman Locke] which probably dates from the late 18th or early 19th century.

25 x 20 cm., ff. 152

Manuscripts Collection, ΕΒΕ 1333 (Codex Atheniensis 1333)

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Ἐγχειρίδιον μεταφυσικο-διαλεκτικὸν ἢ Ἐπιτομὴ ἀκριβεστάτη τοῦ δείγματος τοῦ κυρίου Λοκκίου περιβoήτου φιλοσόφου περὶ τῆς ἀνθρωπίνης διανοίας [Metaphysical-dialectical handbook, or An exact epitome of the work of master Locke, famous philosopher of the human understanding], translated by Ioannis Litinos and printed in Venice in 1796 by Nikolaos Glykis; the title page.

Rare and Valuable Books Collection, ΦΛΣ-1394

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Ἡ Λογικὴ ἐκ παλαιῶν τε καὶ νεωτέρων συνερανισθεῖσα [An anthology of Logic, past and present works], by Eugenios Voulgaris, published in Leipzig in 1766 by Breitkopf; the title of the first chapter is “What is after all the First Notion. And how it becomes imprinted upon the soul”; pages 144-145.

Rare and Valuable Books Collection, ΦΛΣ-213α

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Voltaire’s work Essai historique et critique sur les dissensions des églises de Pologne [Historical and critical essay concerning disunity in the Church of Poland], published in 1767, here from the edition titled Collection Complète des Oeuvres de M. De Voltaire, septième partie: Nouveaux mélanges philosophiques, historiques, critiques [Complete Collection of Works by M. De Voltaire, seventh part: New philosophical, historical, critical anthologies] of 1768; page 5.

General Collection, ΝΦ-3062

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Σχεδίασμα περὶ τῆς ἀνεξιθρησκείας, ἤτοι Περὶ τῆς ἀνοχῆς τῶν ἑτεροθρήσκων [Design for religious tolerance or The tolerance of heteroreligious people], work by Eugenios Voulgaris printed in Leipzig in 1768 and included in the edition Περὶ τῶν διχονοιῶν τῶν ἐν ταῖς Ἐκκλησίαις τῆς Πολονίας δοκίμιον ἱστορικὸν καὶ κριτικόν [Historical and critical essay concerning disunity in the Church of Poland]; page 217.

Rare and Valuable Books Collection, Library of Dimitrios Postolakas, ΘΕΟΛ-3791

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The first page from the manuscript by Eugenios Voulgaris titled «Σχεδίασμα περὶ τῆς ἀνεξιθρησκείας ἤτοι Περὶ τῆς εὐλόγου ἀνοχῆς τῶν ἑτεροθρήσκων» [Design for religious tolerance or The fair tolerance of heteroreligious people] which probably dates from the late 18th or early 19th century.

25 x 20 cm., ff. 109

Manuscripts Collection, ΕΒΕ 1332 (Codex Atheniensis 1332)

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An excerpt from the work titled Ἐπιστολὴ Εὐγενίου τοῦ Βουλγάρεως πρῴην Ἀρχιεπισκόπου Σλαβωνίου καὶ Χερσῶνος, σταλεῖσα εἰς Τριέστι πρὸς ἀναίρεσιν φληνάφου τινὸς καὶ δυσσεβοῦς [Letter written by Eugenios Voulgaris former Archbishop of Slavonia and Cherson, sent to Trieste to refute disrespectful gossip], dated 12 August 1790, where Voltaire is included in “great and famously disrespected names”. The letter is included in the work titled Συλλογὴ Ἀνεκδότων Συγγραμμάτων τοῦ ἀοιδίμου Εὐγενίου τοῦ Βουλγάρεως καί τινων ἄλλων μετατυπωθέντων [Collection of Unpublished Writings by the late Eugenios Voulgaris and other reprints], printed in Athens in 1838 by Georgios Ainian; pages 6-7.

Department of Manuscripts and Facsimiles, ΤΧΟ 2732

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Χριστιανική Ἀπολογία [Christian Apology], by Athanasios Parios, printed in Constantinople in 1798 by the Patriarchal Press; the title page and the page 13 with an excerpt from the foreword: “[…] I have composed this short booklet against the godless or the free, so that it may be in a way like preventative medicine for all those who, by the mercy of God, have not yet drunk of the Voltairean poison”.

Rare and Valuable Books Collection, ΘΕΟΛ-528-X

Tolerance, which the Latin call Tolerantiam, and we might accurately name Anexithriskia, is nothing but the clement and gentle disposition of a pious soul […]

Eugenios Voulgaris

Eugenios Voulgaris was born in 1716 in Corfu, as Eleftherios Voulgaris. From his schooling in Philosophy, we have his autograph student notebook, dating from 1731, which contains the introduction by Georgios Sougdouris to Aristotle’s Logic.

Throughout his teachings in various schools such as the Maroutsaia School in Ioannina, the School of Kozani, the Athonias Academy and the Patriarchal School of Constantinople, Voulgaris attempted to introduce the principles of modern Philosophy to his educational programme.  In 1740-1750, he compiled an epitome of the work An Essay concerning human understanding by John Locke, titled «Ὑποτύπωσις ἢ ὑπόμνημα φιλοσοφικὸν περὶ τοῦ κατὰ ἄνθρωπον νοῦ ἐκ τοῦ Ἄγγλου Λωκίου» [Philosophical memoire on the human understanding based on Englishman Locke]. It was never published and remains a manuscript in the National Library of Greece. An English-language epitome of the work Essay by Locke was translated and published anonymously in Venice in 1796 by friar Ioannis Litinos from Zante, titled Ἐγχειρίδιον μεταφυσικο-διαλεκτικόν [Metaphysical-dialectical handbook]. His Λογικὴ [Logic] was the basic textbook of Philosophy used by Voulgaris. It was printed in 1766 during his stay in Leipzig   and contains references to the works by Locke and Voltaire, among others.

In 1768, Voulgaris published his translation of the work Essai historique et critique sur les dissensions des églises de Pologne  by Voltaire  titled Περὶ τῶν διχονοιῶν τῶν ἐν ταῖς ἐκκλησίαις τῆς Πολονίας δοκίμιον ἱστορικὸν καὶ κριτικόν [Historical and critical essay concerning disunity in the Church of Poland]. The same publication includes the essay Σχεδίασμα περὶ τῆς ἀνεξιθρησκείας, ἤτοι περὶ τῆς ἀνοχῆς τῶν ἑτεροθρήσκων [Design for religious tolerance, or The tolerance of heteroreligious people], where he introduced the neologism “anexithriskia”. This work is also saved in manuscript form, though with a small yet significant difference in the title: «Σχεδίασμα περὶ τῆς ἀνεξιθρησκείας, ἤτοι περὶ τῆς εὐλόγου ἀνοχῆς τῶν ἑτεροθρήσκων» [Design for religious tolerance, or The fair tolerance of heteroreligious people].

Yet, there was also criticism of the ideas of the Enlightenment. Among the later writings by Voulgaris, one of his letters,  dating from 1790, includes the following: “a Voltaire, a Rousseau […] among the great and disrespected names”. Furthermore, the work Χριστιανικὴ Ἀπολογία [Christian Apology] , published anonymously in Constantinople in 1798, attributed to Athanasios Parios, includes an attack against Voltaire, among others, as “despicable, foul, godless, lunatic, reviled, accursed […]”.

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Eugenios Voulgaris
Rigas Velestinlis
Adamantios Korais
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