Euphrosyne Palaiologina (daughter of Michael VIII)
Euphrosyne Palaiologina was the illegitimate daughter of Byzantine Emperor Michael VIII Palaiologos and his mistress Diplovatatzina. In 1266 she married Nogai Khan of the Golden Horde to seal a Byzantine–Mongol alliance. She was also known as Irene and named after the goddess Euphrosyne.
During the Ivaylo uprising in Bulgaria, Euphrosyne told Constantinople that Ivaylo had arrived at Nogai’s camp. Nogai then backed Ivan Asen III (Euphrosyne’s half-sister Irene Palaiologina was married to Ivan Asen III) for the Bulgarian throne, while Ivaylo pressed his claim. Euphrosyne urged Nogai to spare Ivan Asen III, allowing him to flee to Asia Minor.
She helped arrange marriages to advance Byzantine interests, including a match involving Pandoleon’s daughter, Euphrosyne of Bulgaria, with Theodore Svetoslav, who was living as a hostage in Nogai’s court; Pandoleon was a friend of Nogai. She supported Constantinople interests and Andronikos II Palaiologos, and opposed Smiltsena Palaiologina’s alliance with Serbia’s Stefan Milutin.
Nogai Khan was killed around 1299–1300 near the Dnieper. Euphrosyne’s fate afterward is unknown; she may have died before him or been sent back to Constantinople. She and Nogai did not have known children. Her sister Maria Palaiologina married Abaqa Khan of the Ilkhanate and became the stepmother of Chaka.
This page was last edited on 3 February 2026, at 11:53 (CET).