Pre-Owned The Reluctant Emperor: A Biography of John Cantacuzene, Byzantine Emperor and Monk, C.1295-1383 (Hardcover) 0521552567 9780521552561

John Cantacuzene reigned as Byzantine emperor in Constantinople from 1347 to 1354. A man of varied talents, as a scholar, soldier, statesman, theologian and monk, he was unique in being the only emperor to narrate the events of his own career. His memoirs form one of the most interesting and literate of all Byzantine histories. Following his abdication in 1354, he lived the last thirty years of his life as a monk, a writer and a grey eminence behind the throne. This book is not a social or political history of the Byzantine Empire in the fourteenth century. It is a biography of a much maligned man who had a hope, however naive, of coming to terms with the emerging Muslim world of Asia and of winning the co-operation of western Christendom without compromising the Orthodox faith of the Byzantine tradition.

Title: The Reluctant Emperor: A Biography of John Cantacuzene, Byzantine Emperor and Monk, C.1295-1383 Book Format: Hardcover ISBN10: 0521552567 EAN: 9780521552561 Genre: BIOGRAPHY & AUTOBIOGRAPHY / Historical Author: Nicol, Donald M. CONDITION - GOOD - Pre-Owned - Pages can include limited notes and highlighting, and the copy can include 'From the library of' labels or previous owner inscriptions. Accessories such as CD, codes, toys, may not be included.