Manuel II Palaiologos

Born 27 June 1350, Manuel II Palaiologos inherited a throne hemmed in by Ottoman power, his territory under constant threat of absorption. He followed his father's playbook: solicit the West, plead the cause, hope someone would care enough to send armies. The foreign visits yielded sympathy, not soldiers. What bought him time was luck—an Ottoman civil war, a few wins against Latin rivals—enough for his government to hold on and even nudge its borders outward. His wife Helena Dragaš ensured the succession: their sons John VIII and Constantine XI both took the throne after him. Shortly before hi…