Between 16 and 18 January 2026, the Vestigia Research Group, in cooperation with the Institute of Historical Studies of Eszterházy Károly Catholic University (EKKE), organised a workshop in Eger, hosted in the university’s headquarter. Among the speakers were Viktor Kanász, Research Fellow of the Fraknói Research Group, and its demonstrator Olivér Kőhalmi.
In his presentation, Viktor Kanász examined the little-known activities of papal troops in Hungary in 1542, drawing on previously unexplored sources from the Parma State Archives. Of particular importance are the letters written from Komárom and Vienna by Giovanni Angelo de’ Medici, the future Pope Pius IV, which provide valuable insight into the movements, supply conditions, and reception of the papal forces, as well as into King Ferdinand I’s further plans concerning their deployment. In addition, the lecture incorporated other source groups, including letters sent to Rome from Ragusa, which illustrate the more distant reverberations of military events and shed light on the specific nature of information arriving from the Ottoman capital.
Olivér Kőhalmi, together with Barnabás Guitman, Assistant Professor at the Institute of History of Pázmány Péter Catholic University (PPKE), delivered a joint paper entitled The Last Counsel of an Old Soldier. Their presentation analysed Giorgio Basta’s letter of 1606 addressed to Emperor Rudolf, in which the author argued against the Peace of Vienna, discussing its historical and political-theoretical line of reasoning. The speakers also identified the scribe responsible for drafting the letter and enriching it with historical and mythological exempla, as well as the works that served as its intellectual sources. A methodological peculiarity of the research lies in the fact that the Hungarian translation of the originally Italian text, as well as the resolution of the identity of a previously unidentified military officer, were achieved with the assistance of solution proposals generated by multiple artificial intelligence platforms.
The three-day workshop provided an opportunity for fruitful scholarly exchange among the participants, while also offering insight into the Italian connections, history, book culture, and built heritage of the archiepiscopal city of Eger.
