Manuel Palaiologos

Manuel Palaiologos (Greek: Μανουήλ Παλαιολόγος; 1455 – 1512) was a Byzantine nobleman, born as an heir to the throne of the Byzantine Empire. In his youth, Manuel became associated with and joined the Templar Order, fueling his hopes of restoring his family's lost empire.
Posing as a wealthy Ottoman citizen, Manuel schemed the revival of the Empire and the reclamation of Constantinople, which was at the time ruled by the Ottoman Empire. Together with Shahkulu, Manuel expanded his army of Byzantine Templars, secretly hidden in Derinkuyu, Cappadocia to make his childhood hopes a reality under the Templar banner.
==Biography==
===Early life===
Manuel was born circa 1455, two years after the Fall of Constantinople, as an heir to the Byzantine throne and son to one of the two . He lived with his family in , but in 1460 the Ottomans invaded, leading them to flee to Corfu. The family later fled to Rome, where Manuel's father, , converted to Catholicism and was recognized as the Byzantine Emperor.Assassin's Creed: Revelations – Database: Manuel Palaiologos
During their time in Rome, Manuel and his brother Andreas fostered hopes of refounding the Byzantine Empire. Through Andreas, Manuel became acquainted with Cardinal Rodrigo Borgia, Grand Master of the Italian Templars, and Cem, the exiled brother of the Ottoman Sultan Bayezid II. The brothers became members of the Templar Order, and with Rodrigo's support, they schemed to conquer Constantinople and restore the Byzantine Empire. While his brother wanted to take back the Byzantine throne militarily, Manuel preferred subtler means.
===Reviving the Byzantines===
Manuel moved to Constantinople at some time after 1485, where he offered his rights to the Byzantine throne to Sultan Bayezid II for a sizeable pension. Andreas, who remained in Rome, saw this as a betrayal. Manuel converted to Islam, and became the very model of an Ottoman citizen. By the 1490s, when Rodrigo Borgia became Pope Alexander VI, he lost interest in the Palaiologoi's ambitions for Constantinople and the two brothers had to continue their plans without his support. Andreas, who had been dependent on the Pope's generosity for survival, died in poverty in Rome in 1502, leaving Manuel the only male claimant to the Byzantine throne.
In 1509, an earthquake struck Constantinople and Sultan Bayezid moved his court to Edirne. Seeing an opportunity, Manuel began raising an army of Byzantine Templars in Constantinople, who in the Sultan's absence operated increasingly openly, and began to attack the Assassins in Constantinople, stirring them from decades of relative peace. A secret war erupted between the Byzantines and Ottomans throughout the empire.Assassin's Creed: Revelations – Operating from the underground city of Derinkuyu in Cappadocia,Assassin's Creed: Revelations novel Manuel kept his involvement a secret while the Ottoman Sultan remained unaware of the Byzantines' presence, as he fought with his son Selim over the succession of the Ottoman throne.
Prince Ahmet, son of Sultan Bayezid II and his favored heir, developed an interest in the Templars' ideology and quickly joined their ranks, working his way up through the hierarchy. Younger and more charismatic than Manuel, Ahmet silently took the leadership of the Byzantine Templars from him.
===Later life and death===
Manuel was eventually assigned to the Templars' Masyaf expedition to retrieve the Masyaf Keys needed to open the underground library in Masyaf, built by the legendary Mentor of the Levantine Assassins, Altaïr Ibn-La'Ahad. With the help of the journal The Secret Crusade by Niccolò Polo, the Templars were able to retrieve a Masyaf Key from underneath Topkapı Palace in Constantinople, which was brought into Manuel's possession.
In late 1511, Manuel made a deal with Tarik Barleti, captain of the Ottoman Janissaries, to buy Ottoman guns for his secret army in Cappadocia. Together with his fellow Templar, the Turkmen renegade Shahkulu, Manuel met with Tarik in Constantinople and checked on the weapons in the city's arsenal. They left the city again and set sail for Cappadocia, but were later followed there by Ezio Auditore da Firenze, Mentor of the Italian Assassins, with help from his compatriot Piri Reis.
After Ezio's arrival in Derinkuyu, the Byzantine Templars hidden in the city quickly saw their ranks diminished and eventually Shahkulu was assassinated by the lone Assassin. After Ezio caused the Templars' munitions supplies to explode, Manuel came into the public to calm and rally the citizens. As soon as he caught sight of Ezio, Manuel fled deeper into the caverns.
He rapidly came to a halt at an underground river, where he was left with no choice but to confront the Assassin. Drawing his sword, Manuel engaged Ezio in a duel, but was swiftly outmatched and was dealt a fatal blow. With his dying breath, Manuel gave Ezio his Masyaf Key and dared him to see if he could reach Altaïr's library alive, after which he expired.
==Trivia==
*Manuel is a name derived from Hebrew 'Immanu'el, meaning 'God is with us'. Palaiologos is a combination of Greek words palaios, 'old, ancient' and logos, 'word, speech, discourse'.
*Some heralds in multiplayer mode refer to him as "Emperor Manuel". If he had indeed assumed the title of Byzantine Emperor, this would make him Manuel III Palaiologos.
*While Manuel served as leader of the Byzantine Templars until losing the position to Ahmet, it is unknown if he held the title of Grand Master.
==Gallery==
ACR Manuel Art HD.png|Artwork
Arsenal Infiltration 3.png|Manuel and Shakulu in the Arsenal
Arsenal Infiltration 5.png|Manuel inspecting Tarik's rifles
ACR Manuel Shahkulu conversation.png|Manuel speaking with Shahkulu
Last Palaiologi 1.png|Manuel attempting to calm Derinkuyu's citizens
ACR Manuel Assassination.png|Ezio killing Manuel
Last Palaiologi 5.png|Manuel's final moments
==Appearances==
*Assassin's Creed: Revelations 
*Assassin's Creed: Revelations novel
*Assassin's Creed: Recollection
==References==
Category:1455 births
Category:1512 deaths
Category:Individuals
Category:Byzantines
Category:Ethnic Greeks
Manuel Palaiologos
Category:Templars
Category:Byzantine Templars
Category:Templar leaders
Category:Individuals who held Pieces of Eden
Category:Constantinopolitans