Andronikos Palaiologos Kantakouzenos (died 4 June 1453) was the last

Grand Domestic The title of grand domestic ( grc-gre, μέγας δομέστικος, ''mégas doméstikos'') was given in the 11th–15th centuries to the commander-in-chief of the Byzantine army, directly below the Byzantine Emperor. It evolved from the earl ...

of the

Byzantine Empire The Byzantine Empire, also referred to as the Eastern Roman Empire or Byzantium, was the continuation of the Roman Empire primarily in its eastern provinces during Late Antiquity and the Middle Ages, when its capital city was Constantinopl ...

. Present in the city at the

Fall of Constantinople The Fall of Constantinople, also known as the Conquest of Constantinople, was the capture of the capital of the Byzantine Empire by the Ottoman Empire. The city fell on 29 May 1453 as part of the culmination of a 53-day siege which had begun o ...

in 1453, he was one of the group of high Imperial officials executed by Ottoman Sultan

Mehmet II Mehmed II ( ota, محمد ثانى, translit=Meḥmed-i s̱ānī; tr, II. Mehmed, ; 30 March 14323 May 1481), commonly known as Mehmed the Conqueror ( ota, ابو الفتح, Ebū'l-fetḥ, lit=the Father of Conquest, links=no; tr, Fâtih Su ...

five days after the city was taken. Andronikos was amongst those who advised Emperor

Constantine XI Palaiologos Constantine XI Dragases Palaiologos or Dragaš Palaeologus ( el, Κωνσταντῖνος Δραγάσης Παλαιολόγος, ''Kōnstantînos Dragásēs Palaiológos''; 8 February 1405 – 29 May 1453) was the last List of Byzantine em ...

to take for his third wife Anna, the daughter of Emperor

David of Trebizond David Megas Komnenos ( gr, Δαυίδ Μέγας Κομνηνός, David Megas Komnēnos; – 1 November 1463) was the last Emperor of Trebizond from 1460 to 1461. He was the third son of Emperor Alexios IV of Trebizond and Theodora Kantakouzen ...

, instead of Mara, the daughter of

Đurađ Branković Đurađ Branković (; sr-cyr, Ђурађ Бранковић; hu, Brankovics György; 1377 – 24 December 1456) was the Serbian Despot from 1427 to 1456. He was one of the last Serbian medieval rulers. He was a participant in the battle of Anka ...

, despot of Serbia. His name appears on the treaty between Byzantium and Venice concluded in April 1448, in place of

Demetrios Palaiologos Kantakouzenos Demetrios Palaiologos Kantakouzenos ( el, Δημήτριος Παλαιολόγος Καντακουζηνός; ) was the '' mesazon'' (chief minister) of the Emperors John VIII Palaiologos and his brother, Constantine XI. His colleague in the offi ...

, who was indisposed at the time.Nicol, ''Byzantine Family'', p. 180 He is likely the Grand Domestic Kantakouzenos whom Emperor

John VIII Palaiologos John VIII Palaiologos or Palaeologus ( gr, Ἰωάννης Παλαιολόγος, Iōánnēs Palaiológos; 18 December 1392 – 31 October 1448) was the penultimate Byzantine emperor, ruling from 1425 to 1448. Biography John VIII was ...

sent in the fall of 1436 to persuade the Serbians to send a delegation to the

Council of Ferrara-Florence The Council of Florence is the seventeenth ecumenical council recognized by the Catholic Church, held between 1431 and 1449. It was convoked as the Council of Basel by Pope Martin V shortly before his death in February 1431 and took place in ...

concerning the Union of Churches. The historian

Sylvester Syropoulos Sylvester (or Silvestros) Syropoulos ( el, Σίλβεστρος Συρόπουλος; c. 1400 – aft. 1464) was a Byzantine official, the grand ecclesiarch (''megas ekklesiarches'') of the Hagia Sophia and the ''dikaiophylax'' of the Patriarchate ...

describes this man as the "brother-in-law of the Despot of Serbia"; Andronikos Palaiologos Kantakouzenos was the brother of

Irene Kantakouzene Irene Kantakouzene ( el, Ειρήνη Καντακουζηνή, ''Eiréne Kantakouzené'', modern pronunciation ''Eiríni Kantakouziní'' , sr, Ирина Кантакузин / ''Irina Kantakuzin''; 1400 – May 3, 1457), known simply as Desp ...

, wife of Đurađ Branković. The Serbian church refused to participate in this council, and if the identification is correct, it could explain Andronikos' motivation for opposing marriage between Emperor Constantine and Mara Branković.

Family

According to the genealogy of his wife Hugues Busac compiled, he was the brother of

George Palaiologos Kantakouzenos George Palaiologos Kantakouzenos ( el, Γεώργιος Παλαιολόγος Καντακουζηνός; ca. 1390 – 1456/59.) was a Byzantine aristocrat, a member of the Kantakouzenos family, and adventurer. He is also known by the Turkish nickn ...

, and with George possibly son of

Demetrios I Kantakouzenos Demetrios I Kantakouzenos ( el, Δημήτριος Καντακουζηνός; 1343 – 1384) was a governor of the Morea and the grandson of Emperor John VI Kantakouzenos. Demetrios was the son of Matthew Kantakouzenos, governor of Morea, and Ire ...

or his brother

Theodore Kantakouzenos Theodore Palaiologos Kantakouzenos ( el, Θεόδωρος Παλαιολόγος Καντακουζηνός, Theodoros Palaiologos Kantakouzenos; after 1361 – 1410) was a Byzantine Empire, Byzantine nobleman and probable close relation to the Empe ...

. He was married and had at least one son who married the daughter of the '' megas doux''

Loukas Notaras Loukas Notaras ( el, Λουκᾶς Νοταρᾶς; 5 April 1402 – 3 June 1453) was a Byzantine statesman who served as the last '' megas doux'' or grand Duke (commander-in-chief of the Byzantine navy) and the last '' mesazon'' (chief minister) ...

Doukas The House of Doukas, Latinized as Ducas ( el, Δούκας; feminine: Doukaina/Ducaena, Δούκαινα; plural: Doukai/Ducae, Δοῦκαι), from the Latin title ''dux'' ("leader", "general", Hellenized as 'ðouks'', is the name of a Byzant ...

tells how the younger Kantakouzenos was accompanied by his father-in-law to their execution.Nicol, ''Byzantine Family'', pp. 180f. However, Nicol had backed away from the identification of Demetrios as Andronikos' and George's father; see hi
"The Byzantine Family of Kantakouzenos: Some Addenda and Corrigenda"
''Dumbarton Oaks Papers'', 27 (1973), pp. 312f

Sources

{{Reflist Kantakouzenos family 1453 deaths Executed Byzantine people Byzantine officials 15th-century Byzantine people 15th-century executions by the Ottoman Empire Byzantine people of the Byzantine–Ottoman wars Year of birth unknown People executed by the Ottoman Empire by decapitation Andronikos Kantakouzenos Grand Domestics