Kyparissiotes Ioannes

Although the soldier is named only as Kyparissiotes, he is with all likelihood identical with the anti-palamite writer Ioannes Kyparissiotes. Mentioned in the sources between 1357 and 1378/1379. He was οἰκέτης (member of the retinue) of Mathaios Kantakuzenos. He was employed as Soldier. He was writer, theologian, philosopher. He was a bad soldier, but well educated. He helped Mathaios Kantakuzenos and offered him his own horse, when Mathaios lost his horse during the campaign against the Byzantine Emperor Ioannes V Palaiologos. He was captured short before 1357 by the Serbian allies of the Byzantine Emperor Ioannes V Palaiologos and arrested temporarily (Κυπαρισσιώτης, εἷς τῶν οἰκετῶν περὶ στρατείας μὲν καὶ μάχας οὐ μάλιστα ἠσχολημένος, λόγοις δὲ ἐσχολακὼς, διέσωζε τό γε ἧκον εἰς αὐτόν. ἀποβὰς γὰρ αὐτὸς τοῦ ἵππου, παρείχετο τῷ βασιλεῖ, εἰς προὖπτον κίνδυνον ἑαυτὸν ἑκοντὶ καταπροέμενος. αὐτίκα γὰρ ὑπὸ τῶν ἐπιόντων Τριβαλῶν συνελαμβάνετο· καὶ δεσμωτήριον οἰκήσας ἐπὶ χρόνον). He had to leave Constantinople probably in 1368. He stayed in Cyprus in the summer 1371. Between November 1376 and December 1377 he was in the entourage of the Pope Gregory XI on his journey from Avignon to Rome and received financial support from him. In 1378/1379 he probably came back to Constantinople. It seems that he converted to Catholicism. He belonged to circle of scholars, who had contact with Nikephoras Gregoras. He is an author of the systematical exposition of theological texts (Τῶν θεολογικῶν ῥήσεων στοιχειώδης ἔκθεσις). He wrote 5 books against the heresy of Palamites. Nine hyms to the word of God are attributed to him. He composed a short treatise about the question if the personal properties in Trinity differ from the divine essence.