Supervisors info:
Τριανταφυλλίτσα Μανιάτη-Κοκκίνη, Επίκουρη καθηγήτρια Βυζαντινής Ιστορίας, Τμήμα Ιστορίας και Αρχαιολογίας, Εθνικό και Καποδιστριακό Πανεπιστήμιο Αθηνών
Σοφία Μεργιαλή-Σαχά, Αναπληρώτρια καθηγήτρια Βυζαντινής Ιστορίας,Τμήμα Ιστορίας και Αρχαιολογίας, Εθνικό και Καποδιστριακό Πανεπιστήμιο Αθηνών
Μαρίνα Κουμανούδη, Κύρια Ερευνήτρια, Ινστιτούτο Ιστορικών Ερευνών, Εθνικό Ίδρυμα Ερευνών
Summary:
When Manuel II Palaeologos (1391-1425) ascended the byzantine throne in 1391, the Byzantine Empire was a weak, shrunk in extent state that struggled anguishly in the East and the West and pressured from the ottoman expansionism and the Latin powers. Moreover, the constant decentralization of the central authority, the economic collapse as well as the military inadequacy of the Byzantine State that had been observed from the beginning of the fourteenth century were distinctive. Alongside, the already heavy imperial duty of the byzantine emperor was aggravated by the obligation of vassalage to the ottoman sultan which –from 1374 onwards– not only did it strike decisively the financial and the military power of Byzantium, but also the prestige of the central authority in the international political scene. Manuel II, being fully aware of this situation –especially after the invitation of the christian leaders of the Balkans, subjugated to the ottoman sultan, in Serres in 1393/94 from Bayezid I (1389-1403)– decided to abandon «the policy of appeasement» against the Ottomans, which he had inherited from his father John V Palaeologos (1341-1391), and adopt a policy of resistance to the Turks. As a result, Bayezid I attacked Constantinople subjecting the city to a long-standing blockade from land and sea that lasted approximately eight years (1394-1402). Under the burden of the siege Manuel II with the encouragement of Venice, will follow a new policy, the base of which became the constant appeal towards the West for financial and military aid. In this frame, the byzantine emperor, after the failure of the crusade of Nicopolis in 1396, will dispatch delegates in 1397/98 to the rulers of France and England and to the pope Boniface IX (1389-1404) ; similarly, with the support of the patriarch Antonios IV (1389-1390, 1391-1397) he will send delegates to the metropolitan of Russia Kyprianos. But as his appeals fail to have the expected response, the crucial condition of the beleaguered byzantine capital and of Byzantium in general, has led Manuel II to the selection of the personal diplomacy practice, even though according to the principles of the byzantine political ideology, personal diplomacy was considered unbecoming and degrading for the byzantine emperor. Thus, Manuel II will lead a diplomatic journey (1399-1402) in Italy (1399-1400), France (1400, 1401-1402) and England (1400-1401), in order to strengthen his efforts for a considerable financial and military securing of aid in the centers of western Europe. Unfortunately, his expectations remained unfulfilled and his personal journey unsuccessful, as the emperor managed to secure only vague promises and little financial aid for the rescue of Constantinople, which will ensue due to the unexpected defeat of Bayezid I from Tamerlane in the battle of Ancyra (28 July 1402).
Keywords:
Manuel II, Palaeologos, diplomacy, journey, West
