Du Risorgimento à la Gender History: transformations et permanences de la figure historique de Catherine de Sienne

Since the nineteenth century, Catherine of Siena has cyclically been the subject of innovative studies and debates among historians, ranging from nationalist political interpretations to feminist-inspired debates on ideas. As an exceptionally well-documented saint, her 'case' has been the source of major historiographical innovations on the interpretation of sources, the status of authorship and the historical value of hagiographic texts. The questioning of the distance between Catherine's historical personality and her constructed 'stature' as a saint is also one of the driving forces behind the ongoing historiographical innovation that continues to characterize Catherinian studies. Reviewing the main historical interpretations of the figure and work of Catherine, from Niccolò Tommaseo to Caroline Bynum, via Robert Fawtier, this article attempts to put into perspective the historiographical debates on the subject, highlighting the changes in historians' view of the history of women and sanctity.