[May 29] Constantine XI, emperor of Constantinople

True Name: Kōnstantinos XI Dragasēs Palaiologo (Κωνσταντῖνος ΙΑ' Δραγάσης Παλαιολόγος)

Parents: Manuel II, emperor of Constantinople, and Helena Dragas

Date of Birth: 8 February 1404

House: Palaiologos
Spouse: (1) Theodora, daughter of Leonard II, lord of Zante, then (2) Caterina, daughter of Dorino, lord of Lesbos, and Orietta Doria

Predecessor: John VIII

Reign: 1448 – 1453

Summary: Despite being born as the second son of the large family of Manuel II, Constantine was truly set to rule an empire. Most of his childhood was spent playing in the palaces of Constantinople and during his older brother, John VIII's, campaigns in Italy, Constantine ruled as his regent in the Imperial capital. In 1443, Constantine became the despot of Morea, a state created in the aftermath of the Latin conquest of Constantinople two centuries earlier. Mistra, its capital, was a center of arts and culture that rivaled Constantinople. With the threat of the Ottoman Empire ever present, Constantine built up the city walls and conquered the surrounding Duchy of Athens that had been tributary to the Ottomans previously. In 1446, Sultan Murad II invaded Morea, destroyed the wall, and sacked the city. Constantine fled back home and stopped any future plans of expanding Morea at the Ottoman's expense. John VIII died childless in 1448 and Constantine was next in line, but his younger brother, Demetrios, sought the throne as well. The two rival claimants sought the advice of Murad II, who favored Constantine.


Constantine was crowned in Mistra rather than Constantinople and never had a chance to be formally crowned by the patriarch in Constantinople. In 1451, Murad II died and his son, Mehmed II, took over and immediately began plans to invade Constantinople and the surviving territory of the Byzantine Empire. Constantine tried his utmost to rebuild his defenses but the economy was against him and the clergy was indifferent. A few troops from the West came in to help, but in 1452, Mehmed blockaded the city, thereby stopping future reinforcements. The army of the enemy was many times larger than Constantinople's and better equipped. Mehmed offered Constantine Morea in exchange for surrendering the Empire, but the emperor would not admit defeat. Constantine XI died the day the city fell and tradition states that he fell while leading a last charge against the Ottoman army. His body was never found and it is likely he was buried in a mass grave with his soldiers. Constantine was the last emperor of Constantinople in a line that stretched almost unbroken to Augustus, emperor of Rome. The Ottoman Empire renamed the city Istanbul soon after its conquest and relocated their capital to the city. Mehmed took the title "sultan of Rûm" as one of his subsidiary titles.

Date of Death: 29 May 1459

Successor: Mehmed II

Other Monarch Deaths:

Christopher I, king of Denmark (1259)

Henry II, king of Castile (1379)

Hongxi, emperor of China (1425)

Anaukpetlun, king of Burma (1628)

Michael III, prince of Serbia (1868)