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workers,paidsignificantlymoretaxesthanMuslims.Critobuluspointsoutthat
Mehmedtreatedthe“Romanprisoners”wellinordertokeeptheminthecity.
Giventhemassacresthatoccurredduringthesackingafterthecaptureofthecityand
thedistrustthattheMuslims,judgingfromAşıkpaşazade’saccount,clearlyfelttoward
Christians,Mehmedmighthavethoughtthatsome“confidence-buildingmeasures”
wouldbehelpful.Accordingtosomehistorians,therestorationofthePatriarchatewas
suchameasure.10
Critobuluscontinues:
Duringthatperiodhe[Mehmed]calledbackGennadius,averywiseandremarkableman.Hehad
alreadyheardmuchthroughcommonreportaboutthewisdomandprudenceandvirtueofthisman.
Therefore,immediatelyafterthecapturehesoughtforhim,beinganxioustoseehimandtohearsome
ofhiswisdom.AndafterapainstakingsearchhefoundhimatAdrianopleinavillage,keptunderguard
inthehomeofoneofthenotables,butenjoyinggreathonors.Forhiscaptorknewofhisvirtue,even
thoughhehimselfwasamilitaryman.
WhentheSultansawhim,andhadinashorttimehadproofsofhiswisdomandprudenceand
virtueandalsoofhispowerasaspeakerandofhisreligiouscharacter,hewasgreatlyimpressedwith
him,andheldhimingreathonorandrespect,andgavehimtherighttocometohimatanytime,and
honoredhimwithlibertyandconversation.Heenjoyedhisvarioustalkswithhimandhisreplies,and
heloadedhimwithnobleandcostlygifts.
Intheend,hemadehimPatriarchandHighPriestoftheChristians,andgavehimamongmany
otherrightsandprivilegestheruleofthechurchandallitspowerandauthority,nolessthanthat
enjoyedpreviouslyundertheemperors.Healsograntedhimtheprivilegeofdeliveringbeforehim
fearlesslyandfreelymanygooddisquisitionsconcerningtheChristianfaithanddoctrine.Andhe
himselfwenttohisresidence,takingwithhimthedignitariesandwisemenofhiscourt,andthuspaid
himgreathonor.Andinmanyotherwayshedelightedtheman.
ThustheSultanshowedthatheknewhowtorespectthetrueworthofanyman,notonlyofmil-
itarymenbutofeveryclass,kings,andtyrants,andemperors.FurthermoretheSultangavebackthe
churchtotheChristians,bythewillofGod,togetherwithalargeportionofitsproperties.11
Havingdecidedtore-establishthePatriarchate,MehmedIIevidentlychoseGen-
nadiosScholariosasthenewpatriarch.Gennadios“theSchooled,”bornGeorgiosKo-
urtesios(c.1400-c.1473),wasanextraordinarypersonality.12Althougheducatedin
thePalamistandAristoteliantradition,hehadacquiredaformidableknowledgeof
Roman(Catholic)theology,morespecificallyofAquinas,whomhesincerelyadmired.
Inadditiontohisscholarlypursuits,heworkedasateacherandservedasasenator
andamemberoftheByzantinesupremecourt.Afterthe1437-1438CouncilofFer-
rara-Florence,inwhichheparticipatedasapro-Unionist,hegraduallymovedtoward
radicalOrthodoxpositionsand,in1445,becametheleaderoftheanti-Unionistparty,
10Giese,“DiegeschichtlichenGrundlagen,”264-77.
11Kritovoulos,History,93-4;CritobuliImbriotaeHistoriae,90-1.
12C.J.G.Turner,“TheCareerofGeorge-GennadiusScholarius,”Byzantion39(1969),420-55;
Marie-HélèneBlanchet,Georges-GennadiosScholarios(vers1400-vers1472).Unintellectuelortho-
doxefaceàladisparitiondel’Empirebyzantin,Paris:Institutfrançaisd’étudesbyzantines,2008.
