John VI Kantakouzenos, byzantine emperor

- http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/John_VI_Kantakouzenos

John VI Kantakouzenos or Cantacuzene (Greek: Ἰωάννης ΣΤʹ Καντακουζηνός, Iōannēs VI Kantakouzēnos) (c. 1292 – June 15, 1383), Byzantine emperor from 1347 to 1354, was born at Constantinople.

John Kantakouzenos was the son of a Michael Kantakouzenos, governor of the Morea. By his mother Theodora Palaiologina Angelina, he was also a descendant of the reigning house of the Palaiologos. He was also related to the imperial dynasty through his wife Eirene Asanina, a second cousin of Emperor Andronikos III Palaiologos. Kantakouzenos became a close friend to Andronikos III and was one of his principal supporters in Andronikos' struggle against his grandfather, Andronikos II Palaiologos. On the accession of Andronikos III in 1328, he was entrusted with the supreme administration of affairs. On the death of the emperor in 1341, John Kantakouzenos was left as the designated regent, and guardian of his son John V Palaiologos, who was nine years old.

John had no imperial ambitions of his own, and refused to be crowned co-emperor despite being offered the opportunity by Andronikos III Palaiologos several times during the reign of latter. After the death of the emperor, John again refused to take the throne, and insisted that the rightful heir was John V, and that he would assume administrative control of the Empire until he was of age. Despite his stalwart devotion to the young emperor and his mother the empress Anna of Savoy, his friendship with the late emperor had aroused both the jealousy of the Patriarch of Constantinople and his former protege Alexios Apokaukos, and the paranoia of the empress who suspected him to be an usurper. When John Kantakouzenos left Constantinople for Morea, his enemies seized the opportunity to declare John V emperor and order the disbandment of Kantakouzenos's army. When news reached the army at Didymoteichon in Thrace, they declared Kantakouzenos emperor, and this marked the start of the civil war between John Kantakouzenos and the regency in Constantinople headed by Anna of Savoy, Apokaukos and the Patriarch.

The civil war which ensued lasted six years, during which the rival parties called in the aid of the Serbians, Bulgarians, and the Ottoman Turks, and engaged mercenaries of every description. It was only by the aid of the Ottoman Turks, with whom he made a bargain, that John VI Kantakouzenos brought the war to an end favourable to himself.

In 1347, he entered Constantinople in triumph with an army of 1,000 men, and forced his opponents to an arrangement by which he became joint emperor with John V Palaiologos and sole administrator during the minority of his colleague.

He made his own son Matthew Kantakouzenos a co-emperor in 1353.

During this period, the empire, already broken up and reduced to narrow limits, was assailed on every side. There were wars with the Genoese, who had a colony at Galata and had money transactions with the court; and with the Serbians, who were at that time establishing an extensive empire on the north-western frontiers; and there was a hazardous alliance with the Turks, who made their first permanent settlement in Europe, at Gallipoli in Thrace, towards the end of his reign. In 1349, he sent a newly-built fleet of 9 fair-sized ships and about 100 smaller ones against the Genoese, but it was completely captured by the Genoese. Then in 1351, he sent 12 ships to help Venice against Genoa, but the fleet was defeated.

Kantakouzenos was far too ready to invoke the aid of foreigners in his European quarrels; and as he had no money to pay them, this gave them a ready pretext for seizing upon a European town. The financial burdens imposed by him had long been displeasing to his subjects, and a strong party had always favoured John V Palaiologos. Hence, when the latter entered Constantinople at the end of 1354, his success was easy.

Kantakouzenos retired to a monastery (where he assumed the name of Joasaph Christodoulos) and occupied himself in literary labours.

He died in the Peloponnese and was buried by his sons at Mistra in Laconia.

In 1367 Joasaph (as he was now known) was appointed the representative of the Eastern Orthodox Church to negotiate with Paul of Smyrna then the Latin Patriarch of Constantinople to attempt a reconciliation of the Eastern Orthodox and Roman Catholic Churches. They agreed to call a grand ecumenical council to be attended by the Pope, all the Patriarchs and bishops and archbishops of both the eastern and western churches.[1] This plan was subsequently refused by Pope Urban V and so nothing came of it.

Writings

His History in four books deals with the years 1320 – 1356. An apologia for his own actions, it needs to be read with caution; fortunately it can be supplemented and corrected by the work of a contemporary, Nikephoros Gregoras. It possesses the merit of being well arranged and homogenous, the incidents being grouped round the chief actor in the person of the author, but the information is defective on matters with which he is not directly concerned. Kantakouzenos also wrote a defence of Hesychasm, a Greek mystical doctrine.

Family

By his wife Irene Asanina, a daughter of Andronikos Asan (son of Emperor Ivan Asen III of Bulgaria by Eirene Palaiologina, herself daughter of Emperor Michael VIII Palaiologos), John VI Kantakouzenos had several children, including:

1. Matthew Kantakouzenos, co-emperor 1353–1357, later despotēs in Morea
2. Manuel Kantakouzenos, despotēs in Morea
3. Andronikos Kantakouzenos
4. Maria Kantakouzene, who married Nikephoros II Orsini of Epirus
5. Theodora Kantakouzene, who married Sultan Orhan of the Ottoman Empire
6. Helena Kantakouzene, who married Emperor John V Palaiologos

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-http://fmg.ac/Projects/MedLands/BYZANTIUM%2012611453.htm#IoannesVId...

IOANNES Palaiologos Angelos Komnenos Kantakouzenos, son of --- Kantakouzenos & his wife Theodora Angelina Palaiologina ([1294/95]-Mistra 15 Jun 1383). His parentage is confirmed by his own History which names "Theodora Palaeologina…magni…domestici matre", stating that she was "cognata" of Emperor Andronikos II[526]. Parakoimomenos (grand chamberlain). He was one of the followers of the young co-emperor Andronikos and supported the latter's rebellion against his grandfather Emperor Andronikos II in [1321][527]. He was appointed megas domestikos in [1325] by co-emperor Andronikos. After Emperor Andronikos III's accession in 1328, Ioannes Kantakouzenos acquired a position of considerable influence and became de facto ruler of the state[528]. He was appointed panhypersébastos in Nov 1340. He established himself as regent for Emperor Ioannes V in Jun 1341 on the death of Andronikos III, but was actively opposed by Alexios Apokavkos and Patriarch Ioannes Kalekas. As leader of the army, Kantakouzenos was obliged to leave for northern Thrace following a Serbian invasion. During his absence, Apokavkos engineered his own appointment as prefect of Constantinople by convincing Empress Anna that Kantakouzenos was her enemy[529]. In reaction, he had himself declared Emperor IOANNES VI at Didymoteichon 26 Oct 1341, although only naming himself as co-emperor after Emperor Ioannes V and Dowager Empress Anna. During the subsequent civil war, the Zealots succeeded in evicting the nobles from Thessaloniki and instituted their programme of expropriation with extreme violence. As leader of the aristocrats, Ioannes Kantakouzenos found his power broken. He sought refuge firstly in Serbia in Jul 1342 with Dušan, later with Umur Beg Emir of Aydin[530]. With Turkish military help, he succeeded in taking control in Thrace by end-1343. Although the regime of the Zealots was maintained in Thessaloniki, Kantakouzenos was able to impose himself against the Dowager Empress's party, hastened by the assassination of Apokavkos and supported by Sultan Orkhan with whom he concluded an alliance in the winter of 1344/45, sealed by the Sultan's marriage with Kantakouzenos's daughter. He was crowned emperor at Adrianople 21 May 1346 by the Patriarch of Jerusalem, entered Constantinople 3 Feb 1347, and agreed to share power with Emperor Ioannes V, although the latter was to hold the junior position for ten years. They were crowned jointly at Constantinople 21 May 1347 by the Patriarch, and Ioannes V married Ioannes VI's daughter Helene[531]. Although this marked the end of the civil war, it was not until 1350 that the Zealots were finally expelled from Thessaloniki and Ioannes VI and Ioannes V made their solemn entry into the town. His reign was marked by the territorial expansion of Stefan Dušan Tsar of Serbia, who conquered Macedonia (except Thessaloniki), Albania, Epirus and Thessaly without being challenged in a major battle, reducing Byzantium's remaining territory by half. Chios was lost to the Genoese in 1346, becoming the main base of the commercial company of the Giustiniani. The territory of the empire was thereby reduced to Thrace, the islands in the north of the Aegean, Thessaloniki and the Peloponnesos, as well as Constantinople itself. The empire's territorial losses were accompanied by financial ruin, with Byzantine commerce languishing after the neglect of years of civil war. The empire's government ceased regular budgeting, relying exclusively on the generosity of wealthy citizens and foreign loans[532]. The position was worsened by the Black Death of 1348 which, according to western chronicles[533], resulted in the death of 8/9 of the population. In an attempt to maintain control in this worsening situation, Emperor Ioannes created autonomous regions in Thrace and Morea, ruled by his two older sons. He also reduced customs tariffs in Constantinople to tempt commerce from the Genoese at Galata, but was forced to capitulate to the superior Genoese maritime force which destroyed the newly created Byzantine navy in 1349. Meanwhile Emperor Ioannes V gradually reasserted himself, invaded the Thracian territory of Matthaios Kantakouzenos in Autumn 1352, and allied himself with Bulgaria and Serbia in return for military aid, sending his brother Mikhael as a hostage to the latter to seal the alliance. Ioannes VI obtained military help from the Ottomans, but the latter seized Gallipoli. The conflict between the two emperors was brought to a head by the proclamation of Matthaios Kantakouzenos as co-emperor and heir to the throne in 1353. However, opposition to the Kantakouzenos family was growing, and Ioannes VI announced his abdication 3 Dec 1354[534]. Ioannes Kantakouzenos records that he became a monk as IOASAPH at the monastery of St George of the Mangana in Constantinople[535]. During his retirement he wrote his celebrated History and various theological treatises. He was taken to Galata in 1379 by Emperor Andronikos IV as a hostage, was released in 1381 and spent his last years in Morea[536].

m (before 1320) EIRENE Asanina, daughter of ANDRONIKOS Palaiologos Asanes, despot [Bulgaria] & his wife --- Tarchanaiotissa (-[1369/79]). Nicephoras Gregoras refers to "imperatrice Irene Cantacuzena" and "de duobus illius fratribus", in a later passage naming "eius fratri Manueli Asani" and recording that he was granted "Didymotichi præfecturam"[537]. Ioannes Kantakouzenos names "Andronicum Asanem magni domestici socerum", dated to 1341, and in a later passage “Andronico Asane Cantacuzeni socero”, dated to 1343[538]. Ioannes Kantakouzenos records that Eirene became a nun as EVGENIA in 1354 in the convent of St Martha[539].

Emperor Ioannes VI & his wife had six children:

Йоан Кантакузин е византийски император, управлявал от 1347 до 1354 г. Заемал поста велик доместик във Византия. След смъртта на император Андроник III Палеолог (1328-1341) заедно с императрица Анна Савойска и Алексий Апокавк станал един от регентите на империята. Скоро отношенията между тримата регенти се обтегнали и Кантакузин се провъзгласил за император. През 1347 година той успял да превземе Цариград и тържествено бил коронясан за император, като оженил дъщеря си за Йоан V Палеолог. Кантакузин управлявал Византия от 1347 г. до 1354 г. под името Йоан VI Палеолог. Борбата за престола между него и император Йоан V улеснили османското завоевание на Балканите. През 1354 година Йоан V превзел Цариград и Йоан Кантакузин абдикирал. Замонашил се под името Йоасаф и прекарал остатъка от живота си в манастира Ватопеди на Света гора[1] (1320-1362). Автор е на история обхващаща периода от 1320 до 1362 година, а също на писма и беседи с религиозно-полемичен характер.

Йоан Кантакузин е византийски император, управлявал от 1347 до 1354 година.

Заемал поста велик доместик във Византия. След смъртта на император Андроник III Палеолог (1328-1341) заедно с императрица Ана Савойска и Алексий Апокавк станал един от регентите на империята.

Скоро отношенията между тримата регенти се обтегнали и Кантакузин се провъзгласил за император. През 1347 година той успял да превземе Цариград и тържествено бил коронясан за император, като оженил дъщеря си за Йоан V Палеолог. Кантакузин управлявал Византия от 1347 г. до 1354 г. под името Йоан VІ Палеолог.

Борбата за престола между него и император Йоан V улеснили османското завоевание на Балканите. През 1354 година Йоан V превзел Цариград и Йоан Кантакузин абдикирал. Замонашил се под името Йоасаф и прекарал остатъка от живота си в манастир (1320-1362).

Автор е на история обхващаща периода от 1320 до 1362 година, а също на писма и беседи с религиозно-полемичен характер.