Theophano Foundation

When people think of Europe – and the European Union in particular – they think of how the tragic events of the 20th century drove the six founding EU member states to form the European Community and its sister organisations designed to bind together the continent’s coal, steel and nuclear energy industries. But this is a reductive account of Europe which focuses almost exclusively on the role of the West in rebuilding after the two world wars. Many centuries ago, at the fringes of our continent, another Europe was at work, highly sophisticated and prosperous. Historical narratives have largely understated its influence on Europe as a whole, speaking only about Emperor Charlemagne and his lineage. But what we today refer to as European values are deeply rooted in pre-Charlemagne times, in the Eastern Roman Empire. Statecraft, education, religious tolerance, civic rights, the status of women and the vulnerable, scientific progress, artistic and sporting endeavour, openness – all are aspects of human development embedded in the unsung Europe of the East and which came to influence the West, not least the Renaissance. Still today, this skewed narrative risks distorting what Europe was, is, and can become, both to its own people and to the outside world. In our troubled times, with Europe under threat from both outside and within, it is all the more vital and urgent to draw upon our shared heritage in bringing our peoples together – especially the young – in order to craft the Europe of tomorrow. The purpose of the Theophano Foundation is to celebrate exceptional people who live by our values. But its purpose is also to underline and build upon the powerful historical resonance of Eastern European culture in shaping and living these values. The purpose of Theophano is no less than to reimagine Europe.