John VI Kantakouzenos

   Emperor from 1347-1354 and historian. His name is synonymous with two civil wars. The first (1321-1328) was against Andronikos II (q.v.) and put Andronikos III (q.v.) on the throne. John and his fellow conspirators, including the unscrupulous Syrgiannes Palaiologos, were amply rewarded, and John became the real power behind the throne. The second civil war (1341-1347) made John emperor, along with nominal emperor John V (q.v.). In 1349 John used Ottoman (q.v.) troops to force his way into Thessalonike (q.v.) to end the revolt of the Zealots (q.v.). Further use of the Ottomans introduced Orhan (q.v.) and his son Suleyman Pasha to Europe, where they established (1352) a base at Gallipoli (q.v.). Defeated in 1354 by John V, Kantakouzenos entered a monastery where he composed a history of his times in the form of a personal memoir (the Histories), covering the years 13201356. Despite his attempt in this work to justify his actions, it is hard to disassociate his name from the civil wars that weakened Byzantium (q.v.), opening it to further Ottoman expansion.