Manuel II Palaiologos

Manuel II Palaiologos (27 June 1350 – 21 July 1425) was Roman Emperor from 1391 to 1423. Under his rule, a considerable amount of religious authority within the Orthodox-Christian Church was ceded to the Catholic Church in hopes of starting a crusade against the Ottoman Turks in Anatolia and Hellas. He also oversaw the expulsion and execution of those associated with the Great Conspiracy, among whom John of Trebizond and his squire Lucius resided. Before his death, he was tonsured as a monk and given the name Matthew, leaving his wife Helena to ensure the ascension of John VIII as Roman Emperor.