Skip to main content

The Center for Medieval and Renaissance Studies

There are few institutions of higher learning in America with the wealth of resources and talent devoted to medieval and early modern studies as Saint Louis University.

students in library
 

The Center for Medieval and Renaissance Studies supports, coordinates and promotes the extraordinary array of scholars, students and resources devoted to medieval and early modern research at SLU. One of the largest in the U.S., the center is home to more than 40 full-time faculty members and numerous students, fellows and visiting scholars. By supporting students, conferences, speakers, fellowships, library acquisitions and professorships, the center enriches the intellectual environment for medievalists and early modernists on campus and around the world.

Annual Symposium on Medieval and Renaissance Studies

Each June the center hosts a symposium on the beautiful campus of Saint Louis University. The symposium draws 150 to 200 scholars of all ranks in many disciplines. Societies often choose to host “mini-conferences” under the larger symposium umbrella, taking advantage of the conference infrastructure and services in order to focus solely on the academic organization. Individual proposals and full session proposals are also welcome. Submission deadlines are December 31 for the following year. Anyone interested in organizing a mini-conference should reach out to the director of CMRS by the preceding August. For more information, visit the symposium’s website.

Upcoming Events

  • Annual Gavitt Lecture featuring Jan M. Ziolkowski (Harvard University), "The Long Life of Titivillus, Medieval Devil of Mistakes," Friday, Nov. 6, 2026, 4 p.m., Anheuser-Busch Auditorium in Cook Hall.
  • NEH Visiting Fellow Lecture, Kai Stefan Andreas Knobelsdorff (History, Universität Kassel), “Aging, Life Extension, and Immortality in 13th- and 14th- Century Alchemy,” Friday, Dec. 4, 2026, 3 p.m. Cook Hall, 236.
  • NEH Visiting Fellow Lecture, Jose Orosio (Centre for Medieval Studies, University of Toronto), “Sacred Crime, Profane Punishment: Simony and Jurisprudence in Medieval Canon Law, 1140–1234,” Friday, March 19, 2027, 3 p.m. Adorjan Hall, 142.
  • NEH Visiting Fellow Lecture, Javier Grossutti (Universita degli Studi di Padova), “At the Crossroads of the Byzantine Mosaic Renaissance in America: The Saint Louis Cathedral Basilica and the Ravenna Mosaic Company (1920s-1980s),” Friday, April 30, 2027, 3 p.m. Adorjan Hall, 142.
  • Fourteenth Annual Symposium on Medieval and Renaissance Studies, June 14-16, 2027 with Plenary Speakers Ardis Butterfield (Yale) and Christopher Celenza (Johns Hopkins).

Recent Events

  • Thirteenth Annual Symposium on Medieval and Renaissance Studies, June 8-10, 2026 with Plenary Speakers Kathryn Starkey (Stanford) and Robert Pasnau (Colorado Boulder).