PACHYMERES, GEORGE. — Byzantine historian and philosopher, b. at Nicaea in 1242, d. at Constantinople c. 1310. He wrote a history of the Byzantine emperors Michael VIII Palaeologus and his son Andronicus. Precisely during the reign of these sovereigns the preparation and conclusion of the Union under Michael VIII took place, and its destruction under Andronicus, who had first embraced it; thus, in that work one finds interesting information on the matter, written with moderation, although P. did not adhere to the Union. He also admired the qualities of the patriarch Bekkos, who remained steadfast in the profession of the Catholic faith.
Besides this historical work, P. composed several theological writings, among which a treatise on the Procession of the Holy Spirit, commentaries on Aristotle and on Pseudo-Dionysius the Areopagite. Recently, the Quadrivium of P., i.e., treatises on mathematics, music, geometry, and astronomy, has been edited by P. Tannery and E. Stephanou, with a preface by P. V. Laurent.