Various synods are held before the emperors leave Rome for the south of Italy, in which, sometimes at their request, John XIII takes several German monasteries under his special protection, or decides that in some cases they are to remain forever “under the patronage (mundiburdium) of the kings or emperors.” (Mann, Horace K., The Lives of the Popes in the Early Middle Ages, Vol.

IV: The Popes in the Days of Feudal Anarchy, 891-999 (1910); pgs.

290-291).

With Otto I seeking a marriage alliance with Constantinople through his son and an imperial princess, John XIII lends his support to Otto’s cause.

He writes a letter to the Eastern Emperor, Nikephoros II Phokas, but ends up insulting him by referring to him, not as “Emperor of the Romans”, but as “Emperor of the Greeks”.

As his price for the marriage, Otto demands a dowry from the Eastern Empire, that of the Themes of Longobardia and Calabria.

Nikephoros retorts by instead demanding the restitution of the Exarchate of Ravenna, which includes Rome and the Papal States, as the price for the imperial marriage.

When negotiations break down, Nikephoros refuses to write to John XIII in his own hand, instead sending him a threatening letter written by his brother, Leo Phokas the Younger.