Theodore II Palaiologos [SEP] mother
Theodore II Palaiologos
Theodore II Palaiologos or Palaeologus (Greek: Θεόδωρος Β΄ Παλαιολόγος, "Theodōros II Palaiologos") (c. 1396 – 21 June 1448) was Despot in the Morea from 1407 to 1443 and in Selymbria from then until his death.
Life.
Theodore II Palaiologos was a son of the Byzantine Emperor Manuel II Palaiologos and his wife Helena Dragaš. His maternal grandfather was the Serb prince Constantine Dragaš. His brothers included emperors John VIII Palaiologos and Constantine XI Palaiologos, as well as Demetrios Palaiologos and Thomas
, welcome and assist many Byzantine refugees in Cyprus after the Fall of Constantinople in 1453.
Early life.
Helena was born in the castle of Mistras, Morea, Greece on 3 February 1428, the only child of Theodore II Palaiologos, Despot of Morea, and Cleofa Malatesta. Her paternal grandfather was Byzantine emperor Manuel II Palaiologos, and her uncles included emperors John VIII Palaiologos and Constantine XI Palaiologos. When she was five years old, her mother died. Her father never remarried as he was occupied in the war