Byzantine Civil War Prelude (Eve of the 1341 Civil War)

Timeline

1. 1340Constantinople palace · ByzantineAndronikos III, long ill, still personally received a delegation of Latin lords of the Peloponnese, but delayed the customary co-crowning of his eldest son John V, creating a legal succession vacuum.
2. 1340Thrace and the capital · ThraceGrand Domestic Kantakouzenos had long ruled in practice and commanded armies in Thrace, while the capital's civil officials and citizen classes—led by Empress Mother Anna, Patriarch John XIV, and logothete Alexios Apokaukos—grew increasingly suspicious of his military-aristocratic background; both sides disputed who should hold the regency.
3. 1340Epirus and the Thracian frontier · EpirusThe empire still conducted military operations in Epirus and elsewhere, Ottoman and Serbian pressures continued, and finances and military strength were stretched thin, making capital factions less willing to compromise on the regency and setting the stage for rapid escalation into armed civil war after the emperor's death the following year.