Monthly Archives: August 2024

The arrival of the Mongols in Anatolia would eventually lead to the expulsion of the Romans. Mongol dominance of the plateau sent waves of tribes into Byzantine territory. It was a crisis which the Emperor Andronikos was not equal to.

Period: 1281-1303

Pic: 19th-century depiction of Osman (the founder of the Ottoman dynasty) by Konstantin Kapıdağlı

Stream: The Fall of Anatolia

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The Union of Lyons had unleashed bitter division within Byzantium. We follow Michael and his son Andronikos as they try to make peace with the various factions that had opposed them.

Period: 1281-1310

Pic: Andronikos II Palaiologos from the manuscript of George Pachymeres’ ‘Historia‘

Stream: Healing the Divisions

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Left Pic: Michael VIII Palaiologos from ‘Rulers of the Byzantine Empire’ by Kibea. Right pic: Statue of Charles of Anjou by Arnolfo di Cambio c. 1277

The Pope responds with despair to the news of Constantinople’s fall. He calls for a Crusade to restore the Latin position. The man who answers is the brother of the King of France, Charles of Anjou. Michael Palaiologos is willing to do whatever it takes to stop them. This means he must agree to church union.

Period: 1261-82

Stream: Church Union

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Pic: The Deesis mosaic from the gallery of the Hagia Sophia. Created after the return to Constantinople in 1261.

Michael VIII Palaiologos enters the city of Constantine for the first time. He has a lot of work to do to rebuild the city and restore its prestige. He must also navigate a complex diplomatic position which sees his forces in action on five fronts simultaneously.

Period: 1261-5

Stream: The Return from Exile

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