Because Venice was the only major non-Muslim power in the Eastern Mediterranean, it represented an appealing destination for Byzantine refugees as the empire fell. Numerous people with the last name Paleologus are recorded in Venice in the 15th and 16th centuries, many serving as "stratioti" (mercenary light-armed cavalrymen of Greek or Albanian origin). Venetian documents frequently refer to their "strenuous" prowess in service to the Venetian Republic. Venice had first become interested in hiring "stratioti" after witnessing the prowess of Greek and Albanian soldiers in the First Ottoman–Venetian War of 1463–1479.