The Diplomatic Embassy of the Bulgarian Empress Maria to the Jerusalem Patriarch Gregory and to the Egyptian Sultan Baybars I around 1276

Authors:

Pages: 244-257
DOI: https://doi.org/10.54664/QFIQ7745

Abstract:

Around 1276, the Bulgarian empress Maria (1268/9–1279), the third wife of Emperor Constantine Tih Asen (1257–1277), sent envoys to the Mamluk Sultanate to negotiate with both the Jerusalem Patriarch Gregory (before 1274–1281, † before 1291) and Sultan Al-Malik az-Zahir Rukn ad-Din Baybars al-Bunduqdari (1260–1277). The delegation, which was headed by the cleric Joseph Katharos, aimed at the creation of an ecclesiastical and political alliance against the Byzantine Empire. This diplomatic move was carried out in response to the Union of Lyons concluded in 1274 between the Patriarchate of Constantinople and the Roman Church. The Eastern Patriarch supported the anti-Uniate policy of the Bulgarian Empire, but the attempt to build a military coalition with the Mamluks failed.

Keywords:

Empress Maria; diplomatic mission; Mamluk Sultanate; Palestine; Patriarch Gregory; Sultan Baybars I.

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