Editing John VI Kantakouzenos (section)

==Civil war==
{{main|Byzantine civil war of 1341–1347}}
The [[Byzantine civil war of 1341–1347|ensuing civil war]] lasted six years; calling in foreign allies and [[mercenary|mercenaries]] of every description, the two sides completely disrupted and almost ruined the empire.{{sfnp|''EB''|1878}} At first, {{nowrap|John VI}} marched to [[Thessalonica]], which the ruling families planned to hand over to him. Apokaukos anticipated this move and sent a fleet to reinforce the city, obliging John to flee to [[Serbian Empire|Serbia]], where [[Stefan Dušan]] sheltered him and lent him military support. This proved largely ineffectual, and only the intervention of John's old friend and ally [[Umur of Aydin]] broke the regency's siege of his headquarters at [[Didymoteicho]]n.

During another attempt on Thessalonica the following year, the Serbians switched sides to support the regency, leaving John stranded once more before that city. Yet again, Umur came to his rescue, and their combined forces broke out of Macedonia to return to Didymoteichon. The war dragged on another four years as neither side could dislodge the other, although time was on {{nowrap|John VI}}'s side. He struck a bargain with the [[Ottoman Turkey|Ottoman Turks]], giving [[Orchan|Orhan Bey]] his daughter, [[Theodora Kantakouzene, wife of Orhan|Theodora]], for his [[harem]] and permitting him to take [[Greek Orthodoxy|Greek Christians]] as [[Slavery in the Ottoman Empire|slaves]]. The Greco-Turkish force prevailed and {{nowrap|John VI}} entered Constantinople in triumph on 8 February 1347.<ref name=PL />{{sfnp|''EB''|1911|p=439}}{{efn|His entry into the city later formed the subject of [[Constantine Cavafy]]'s poem "John Kantakouzenos Triumphs".}} Empress Anna and John VI agreed that the latter would rule as senior emperor for ten years, after which John V would reach seniority and share power as an equal to Kantakouzenos. The formal coronation of John VI took place on 21 May.<ref name=PL>''[[Prosopographisches Lexikon der Palaiologenzeit|PLP]]'', "[https://archive.org/details/ErichTrappProsopographischesLexikonDerPALAIOLOGENZEIT/page/n2046/mode/1up Kantakauzenos, Ioannes VI.]"</ref><ref name=O>''[[Oxford Dictionary of Byzantium|ODB]]'', p. [https://archive.org/details/odb_20210521/page/1050/mode/2up 1050]</ref>