few, but the mighty walls allowed them to withstand the siege for some time. Finally however, on May 29, the Ottomans achieved a breach, and the city fell. Constantine XI charged at the oncoming Ottoman army; the last Roman Emperor died fighting, and since his body was never recognized, is assumed to have been buried in a mass grave. Conclusion Constantine's rule is hard to assess due to the shortness of his reign. As a Despot, he had shown ability, but the fall of the Empire to the Turks was by his time inevitable, no matter how able and energetic an Emperor sat on the throne. What is most remembered of him is the stubborn defence of his city against the odds, and his death in battle, through which he entered popular legend. Despite his Catholic confession, he is viewed as a saint by many Orthodox, and many legends were created about the ultimate fate of the last Constantine. Learning under the Palaiologoi Second Byzantine/Palaiologan Renaissance Despite much chaos in the Empire, the Byzantines experienced a revival in culture and art within their domain. Towards the 14th century, as the Empire entered into a phase of terminal crisis, such achievements became less valued. All was not lost for these seemingly rejected scholars — many in Italy who had been opened up to Byzantium by the maritime expansions of Genoa and Venice came to appreciate their achievements, facilitating the Renaissance. As such these scholars found themselves in Italian institutions, expressing their Greco-Roman culture for pay. Immigration to Italy was made less attractive by the idea of abandoning the Orthodox faith to practice Catholicism. Nonetheless, a significant and increasing number of Greeks began travelling to Italy, first temporarily to Italian colonies such as Crete or Cyprus before returning to Byzantium, then as the Empire began to fail horribly, in more permanent manner. The Fall of Constantinople was marked by large numbers of Greek refugees escaping Turkic rule into Europe via Italy and thus accelerating the Renaissance. Restoration of the Classics The Fourth Crusade saw the destruction of many homes in Constantinople and much of the city on fire. It is difficult to determine what books were burned in the libraries of Constantinople, though one can only imagine that few would be available today were it not for the works of Demetrius Triclinius, Manuel Moschopoulos, Thomas Magister and Maximos Planudes. New editions of