Chalkokondyles or Chalcocondyles , also seen as Chalkokandeles (Χαλκοκαντήλης) or Charchandeles (Χαρχαντήλης), was a Byzantine Greek

Byzantine Greeks

Byzantine Greeks or Byzantines is a conventional term used by modern historians to refer to the medieval Greek or Hellenised citizens of the Byzantine Empire, centered mainly in Constantinople, the southern Balkans, the Greek islands, Asia Minor , Cyprus and the large urban centres of the Near East...

 noble family of Athens

Athens

Athens , is the capital and largest city of Greece. Athens dominates the Attica region and is one of the world's oldest cities, as its recorded history spans around 3,400 years. Classical Athens was a powerful city-state...

 which was elected during the Florentine

Florence

Florence is the capital city of the Italian region of Tuscany and of the province of Florence. It is the most populous city in Tuscany, with approximately 370,000 inhabitants, expanding to over 1.5 million in the metropolitan area....

 possession of the city. The family can be traced back to the 11th century. The most important members of this family are:

• George (possibly 1390 - 1466). In 1435 he visited Sultan Murad II
  Murad II
  Murad II Kodja was the Sultan of the Ottoman Empire from 1421 to 1451 ....
  
   as an emissary of Maria Melissene, the widow of Antonio I Acciaioli
  Antonio I Acciaioli
  Antonio I Acciaioli , called the Bastard, was the illegitimate son of Nerio I of Athens and his longtime mistress Maria Rendi. He became Duke of Athens on the death of his father , but was expelled within the year by the Republic of Venice, the executor of Nerio's will...
  
  , for his consent for the understanding, from himself and Maria, of his noble power in Athens. While he was away, however, their oppositions sent Maria and his family away from Athens and, when he returned, he was arrested and sent to the Sultan, who imprisoned him. The same fate had another mission to the Sultan himself, which was assigned by the Despot of the Morea, Constantine Palaiologos
  Constantine XI
  Constantine XI Palaiologos, latinized as Palaeologus , Kōnstantinos XI Dragasēs Palaiologos; February 8, 1404 – May 29, 1453) was the last reigning Byzantine Emperor from 1449 to his death as member of the Palaiologos dynasty...
  
  .
  • Demetrios
    Demetrius Chalcondyles
    Demetrios Chalkokondyles, latinized as Demetrius Chalcocondyles and found variously as Demetricocondyles, Chalcocondylas or Chalcondyles , was a Greek humanist, scholar and Professor who taught the Greek language in Italy for over forty years; at Padua, Perugia, Milan and Florence...
    
      (Athens, 1423 - Milan
    Milan
    Milan is the second-largest city in Italy and the capital city of the region of Lombardy and of the province of Milan. The city proper has a population of about 1.3 million, while its urban area, roughly coinciding with its administrative province and the bordering Province of Monza and Brianza ,...
    
    , 1511), scholar.
    • Theophilos (Florence
      Florence
      Florence is the capital city of the Italian region of Tuscany and of the province of Florence. It is the most populous city in Tuscany, with approximately 370,000 inhabitants, expanding to over 1.5 million in the metropolitan area....
      
      , 1486–1510). Demetrios' son. He taught Greek Literature at the University of Pavia
      University of Pavia
      The University of Pavia is a university located in Pavia, Lombardy, Italy. It was founded in 1361 and is organized in 9 Faculties.-History:...
      
       (see Pavia
      Pavia
      Pavia , the ancient Ticinum, is a town and comune of south-western Lombardy, northern Italy, 35 km south of Milan on the lower Ticino river near its confluence with the Po. It is the capital of the province of Pavia. It has a population of c. 71,000...
      
      ) when he was very young and he translated some works of Cicero
      Cicero
      Marcus Tullius Cicero , was a Roman philosopher, statesman, lawyer, political theorist, and Roman constitutionalist. He came from a wealthy municipal family of the equestrian order, and is widely considered one of Rome's greatest orators and prose stylists.He introduced the Romans to the chief...
      
      . He was murdered by some of his rivals.
  • Laonikos (Athens, before 1430 - possibly Italy
    Italy
    Italy , officially the Italian Republic languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Italy's official name is as follows:;;;;;;;;), is a unitary parliamentary republic in South-Central Europe. To the north it borders France, Switzerland, Austria and...
    
    , 1490), historian.

Much has been written about this family, especially about Laonikos, one of the most important historians of his time. See for example K. Kambouroglou's 'The Chalcocondylis and W. Miller's "The last Athenian historian, Laonikos Chalkokondyles".