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Prester John
(2,322 words)

1. Legend

Prester John (Latin Presbyter Iohannes) is the legendary figure of a Christian king believed to be variously in Asia or Africa in the late Middle Ages and early modern period, chiefly in Ethiopia. A number of European powers made efforts to find him in order to ally with him against the Islamic empires of the Near East. He was regarded as the ideal Christian king, and was enlis…

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Bley, Helmut, “Prester John”, in: Encyclopedia of Early Modern History Online, Editors of the English edition: Graeme Dunphy, Andrew Gow. Original German Edition: Enzyklopädie der Neuzeit. Im Auftrag des Kulturwissenschaftlichen Instituts (Essen) und in Verbindung mit den Fachherausgebern herausgegeben von Friedrich Jaeger. Copyright © J.B. Metzlersche Verlagsbuchhandlung und Carl Ernst Poeschel Verlag GmbH 2005–2012. Consulted online on 02 June 2023 <http://dx.doi.org/10.1163/2352-0272_emho_COM_025856>
First published online: 2015
First print edition: 20210107



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