Manuel I Comnenus: Encyclopedia II - Manuel I Comnenus - Character

Manuel I Comnenus - Character

Manuel was a brave general and an even more skillful diplomat and statesman. Famous for his charisma and his love of the West, he became a personal friend of the Western Emperor Conrad III, and even treated his injuries after the failure of the Second Crusade. Indoctrinated with the idea of a universal Empire, and with a passion for theological debate, he was also perhaps the only chivalrous Emperor-Knight of Byzantium. He is a representative of a new kind of Byzantine ruler who was influenced by the contact with the western crusaders. The customs kept in his court were not inspired by the traditional Byzantine opulence. He loved western customs and arranged jousting matches, even participating in them, an unusual and discomforting sight for the Byzantines.

Less intensely pious than his father, John I Comnenus, he was an energetic and bright Emperor who saw possibilities everywhere, and whose optimistic outlook shaped his approach to foreign policy. Some commentators have criticized some of his aims as unrealistic, in particular citing his involvement in Egypt as proof of dreams of grandeur on an unattainable scale. However, to Manuel, such initiatives were merely ambitious attempts to take advantage of the circumstances that presented themselves to him.

Endowed with a fine physique and great personal courage, Manuel had devoted himself whole-heartedly to a military career. He was determined to restore by force of arms the predominance of the Byzantine Empire in the Mediterranean countries, and this had involved conflict with his neighbours on all sides.

Adapted from the Wikipedia article "Character", under the G.N U Free Docmentation License. Please also see http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki