Manuel Palaiologos

Manuel Palaiologos (Greek: Μανουήλ Παλαιολόγος, romanized: Manouēl Palaiologos; 2 January 1455 – before 1513) was the youngest son of Thomas Palaiologos, a brother of Constantine XI Palaiologos, the final Byzantine emperor. Thomas took Manuel and the rest of his family to Corfu after the Fall of Constantinople in 1453 and the subsequent Ottoman invasion of the Morea in 1460. After Thomas's death in 1465, the children moved to Rome, where they were initially taken care of by Cardinal Bessarion and were provided with money and housing by the papacy.

The money provided by the papacy was gradually cut back and Manuel eventually left Rome in 1474 in order to seek his fortune by offering military service to various nobles and rulers in Europe, including Galeazzo Maria Sforza of Milan and Charles the Bold of Burgundy. Disappointed with the offers he received, and with the papacy cutting the money back further, Manuel surprised the establishment in Rome by travelling to Constantinople in 1476 and throwing himself on the mercy of the Sultan Mehmed II, who had conquered the city 23 years earlier. The sultan generously received Manuel, who stayed in Constantinople for the rest of his life. The Ottomans called him "el Ghazi" ("holy warrior").

Though Manuel maintained his Christian faith, it is possible that he served in the Ottoman navy. He fathered at least two sons; John, who died young, and Andreas, who converted to Islam.