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Byzantine civil war of 1373-1379
The Byzantine Civil war of 1373-1397 was a military conflict in the Byzantine Empire between Byzantine Emperor John V Palaiologos and his son, Andronikos IV Palaiologos. It ended with John V Palaiologos regaining control of the Byzantine Empire. During this period The Byzantine Empire was on its death bed and had experienced two previous civil wars in the 14th century. The first phase of the conflict which began and ended in 1373, was first intertwined with the revolt of the Ottoman sultan's son Savci Bey. However the Ottomon Sultan Murad I benefited and exploited the second conflict, in which Andronikos IV Palaiologos returned. The second conflict lasted from 1376 and ended in 1379.

Background
When John V assumed the Byzantine throne in 1341 he carried out a widely pro western foreign policy in which he gave Lesbos and his sisters hand in marriage to a Genoan, sold Pontic Heraclea Byzantiums last Anatolian port to the Venetians and converted to Roman Catholicism an action that alienated him from his subjects and gained little in return. In 1369 the Byzantine Empire was facing military pressure from the Turks in the east, in which took Adrianople instead of fighting them he visited the Pope that summer and following that he sailed to Venice, where he nerogated a treaty in which the Venetians would cancel the emperors debt in return for the island of Tenedos. However in leaving Byzantine soil he left his two sons, Andronicus and Manuel to manage Constantinople and Thessalonica respectfully. However when The Venetians canceled his debts his oldest son Andronicus refused to hand over Tenedos to the Venetians. In fact the Emperor was detained by the Venetians for two years until his son Manuel intervened on his behalf.

First Conflict
Andronikos IV did not like his fathers tribute and vassalage to the Ottoman Empire and In 1373 he joined Savci Bey, a son of the Ottoman Sultan, Murad I in an open rebellion against their fathers. Although Byzantine military power was feeble the with the help of the more powerfull turkish state, both fathers were able to defeat their sons. Murad blinded Savci and demanded that John V blind both Andronikos IV and his son, John VII Palaiologos. John V did so only partially, leaving Andronikos IV with one eye and John VII only partially blinded. However Andronikos IV was imprisoned. John VII greatly resented his grandfathers action and rebelled in 1390 for five months, otherwise he was amiable to the Ottomans whom supported him.

Second Conflict
Shortly after Andronikos IV was imprisoned the Byzantine Emperor sold Tenedos to the Venetians on similiar terms to previous failed agreement. However later the Genoese did not take kindly to the island of Tenedos being in the hands of the Venetians whom they were embroiled in a war with. The Genoese with the help of their colony in Galata helped free Andronikos IV and helped him procure Ottoman troops for Andronikos IV in 1376. Andronikos in charge of Constantanople imprisoned Manuel II and the Emperor. Andronikos IV in return for Ottoman and Genoese help, gave Tenedos to the Genoans and Callipolis to Murad I. Hence shortly after his ascension to the throne he was brought in to war with Venice. Andronikos IV also recieved the support of his son who was seething because of his grandfather. However during this period there was for a time, four claimants to the throne who were more or less elements of Turkish or Italian foreign policy. Andronikos IV ruled until 1397 when John V and Manuel escaped and fled to the court of Murad I. after apparently agreeing to cede the virtually independent Byzantine enclave of Philadelphia to the Ottomans, John V was reestablished on the throne with the help of Venetian ships and the Ottoman army.

Aftermath
After John V Palaiologos entered the capital Constantinople, Andronikos IV Palaiologos fled to Genoese Galata and stayed there two years, however he held hostage for a time his Mother Helena Kantakouzene and her father John VI Kantakouzenos. However in 1381 a treaty was signed in which allowed him to return. Later on the Venetians and Genoese ended their war and agreed to depopulate Tenedos and raze its fortifications hence belonging to no one. This conflict further weakened the Byzantine Empire nevertheless it was surrounded by the massive expanding Ottoman Empire.

Ancient History
When the Seleucid Empire was defeated by the Romans in 189 at the Battle of Magnesia it began to fall apart and new kingdoms were established from its ruins by local authorities. Commagene being one of the Seleucid successor states occupied a land in between the Taurus mountains and the Euphrates. The state of Commagene had a wide range of cultures which left its leader from 62 BCE-38 BCE Antiochus I Theos of Commagene to carry on a peculiar dynastic religious program, in which it included not only Greek and Persian deities but Antiochus and his family as well. This religious program was very possibly an attempt of Antiochus to unify his multiethnic kingdom and secure his dynasty's authority. Antiochus supported the cult as a propagator of happiness and salvation. a Many of the monuments on Mount Nemrud are ruins of the imperial cult of Commagene. The most important area to the cult was the tomb of Antiochus I, in which was decorated with colossal statues made of limestone. Although the Imperial cult did not last long after Antiochus, several of his successors had their own tombs built on Mount Nemrud. For about a half a year Mount Nemrud lays covered in snow which in effect has increased its weathering in which has in part caused its statues to lay in ruin.

Mar Ammo
Mar Ammo or Lord Ammo was a Manichaen and a disciple of Mani. According to Manichaen tradition he brought Manichaenim eastward into Sogdiana during the life of Mani.

Missionary work
According to Manichaen tradition when Mar Ammo came to the river Oxus on the Sogdian frontier the spirit who guarded it denied Mar Ammo entry across it. Mar Ammo fasted and prayed and he either was confronted by Mani or had a vision of him whom told him to read a chapter from his book "The Treasury of Life" which is generally believed to be a component of the Manichaen Cannon. When the spirit returned she asked why he was on a journey he responded that he wished to teach fasting and absentation from wine, flesh and woman. The spirit responded that there were similar men in her lands perhaps referring to Buddhists in Sogdiana, however when Mar Ammo read from one of Mani's books she realized he was a bringer of the "true religion" and allowed him to pass. The spirit can be identified with the goddess Ardvakhsh whom has associations with the river. However Fragmentary Texts from Turfan tell a slightly different story in which Mani himself encounters the frontier spirit.

Further Influences
Following this Manichaenism became established in Sogdiana. Although Manicheanism was a fairly unified religious phenomenon following Mani's death in 276 AD at the command of Bahram I the Emperor of Persia there was a schism between the Manichaen church in Babylonia. Following the death of Mani due in part to the persecutions of Manichaens in Persia impart due to Manichean immigrations a significant Manichaen population became established in Sogdiana. The Sogdian Manichaens viewed Mar Ammo as the founder of their sect and called themselves the "Pure Ones". The capital of the sect by the eighth centaury was centered in Kocho on the northern Silk road and was at least active from Samarkand to Chang'an. The schism between the eastern and western churches was worked out and ended by the eighth century. Manicheanism following this would spread further eastward in to the Tarim basin and China and would last at least for another six hundred years disappearing in the fourteenth centaury.

Manichean Theology
In Mancicheism in the beginning there was the world of light and the world of darkness. The world of light was situated in the north, east and west compiling 3/4's of the Universe. The World of Darkness was in the south composing 1/3 of the Universe. The World of light is composed to the spirit and the World of Darkness is associated with flesh and body. Apart from the spiritual associations of the world of light and the corporal associations of the world of Darkness, both world posses not only primordial beings but elements as well. The world of light is originally composed of the Father of Greatness and his five abodes or Manifestations (Nous, Thinking, Thought, Imagination and Council), the World of light is also composed of five elements Ether, Light Water, Wind, Fire. The Demons through their random movements discover the world of light and are poised to attack the World of Light, In order to protect the World of light the Father of Greatness calls out from himself the Mother of Life, whom calls out the Primal Man and his five sons (variously called his weapons or garments) by the names of Ether, Light, Water, Wind and Air. The Primal man and his five sons go out to fight the forces of darkness however the Primal man and his five sons are wounded and are consumed by the forces of Darkness. although the Primal Man regains consciousness, his five sons loose the knowledge of their origin and remain imprisoned in Matter. When the Primal man regains conciseness, he prays to the Father of Greatness seven times in which causes the Father of Greatness to call out a second Evocation, the first being the Living Spirit, who with his five sons Nous, thinking, Thought, Imagination and Council tear up the Archons of the five Abysees of Darkness and liberate the Primal Man, however they are unable to liberate his five sons. _____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Manichaean theology taught a dualistic view of good and evil. A key belief in Manichaeism is that the powerful, though not omnipotent good power (God) was opposed by the semi-eternal evil power (Satan). This addresses a theoretical part of the problem of evil by denying the omnipotence of God and postulating two opposite powers. Humanity, the world and the soul are seen as the byproduct of the battle between God's proxy, Primal Man, and Satan. The human person is seen as a battleground for these powers: the soul defines the person, but it is under the influence of both light and dark. This contention plays out over the world as well as the human body—neither the Earth nor the flesh were seen as intrinsically evil, but rather possessed portions of both light and dark. Natural phenomena (such as rain) were seen as the physical manifestation of this spiritual contention. Therefore, the Manichaean worldview explained the existence of evil with a flawed creation God took no role in forming and was the result of Satan striking out against God.

Comment
It looks like your description is summarizing the cosmogony, and would belong in the cosmogony section (don't know if the cosmogony section needs work or not). But it doesn't seem it's adding anything to the "theology" section - that's why the theology section seems kind of nebulous to me, and maybe we could delete it. After all, what you are writing could just as well go in the description of the myth (cosmogony) section. That's just my opinion. Don't see why someone put in the theology section in the first place, or how it adds something substantial to the article. But if you think there is something really substantial about manichaean theology that needs to be added, you could always add it.Jimhoward72 (talk) 06:18, 14 June 2010 (UTC)