“Ionian Patriotism”: A New Publication by the Corfu Reading Society.
The Corfu Reading Society has released a new publication entitled “Ionian Patriotism (18th–19th Centuries) – People, Ideas, Institutions and Actions”, a 560-page volume exploring the formation of Ionian identity and the contribution of the Ionian Islands to the development of modern Hellenism.
On 16 October 2026, the first copy of the publication was presented to the Regional Governor of the Ionian Islands, Giannis Trepeklis, by the President of the Corfu Reading Society, Thanasis Makris, and its Director, Dimitris Zymaris.
The publication was made possible with the financial support of the Regional Development Fund of the Region of the Ionian Islands and brings together the proceedings of the commemorative academic conference organised by the Corfu Reading Society in 2021, marking the 200th anniversary of the beginning of the Greek Revolution.
At the heart of the conference was the contribution of the Ionian intellectual tradition and the concept of “Ionian Patriotism” to the formation of modern Greece, the struggle for independence and the development of a collective identity across the Ionian Islands.
The volume includes 26 original academic papers, shedding light on both familiar and lesser-known aspects of Ionian history, together with more than 50 photographs and historical documents, many drawn from the collections of the Corfu Reading Society.
The publication is structured around four main themes — People, Ideas, Institutions and Actions — through which Ionian Patriotism was expressed, with particular emphasis on the period 1797–1864, when a collective Ionian identity gradually acquired a more clearly defined political and institutional character.
Its subjects range from the development of patriotic ideas in the Ionian world and the preparation for the Greek Revolution to the efforts that ultimately led to the Union of the Ionian Islands with Greece, as well as the ways in which Ionian identity found expression through the arts and intellectual life.
The studies also highlight both prominent historical figures and lesser-known personalities who contributed to the political, social and intellectual developments of their time.
General Editor: Dimitris Zymaris
Literary and Typographic Editor: Sokratis Poulis
The new volume continues the long-standing research and publishing activity of the Corfu Reading Society, contributing to the study of the history of the Ionian Islands and placing it within the broader context of Greek and European historiography.
At the same time, it brings the idea of a shared Ionian identity back into focus — not only as a subject of historical study, but also as a living element of the cultural character of the Ionian region.
More information about the academic conference:
https://anagnostiki-etairia-kerkyras.eu/deltio-typou-epeteiako-synedrio/