Houses of Phanar

Following the Ottoman conquest of the Byzantine Empire in 1453, the noble families of Phanar, known collectively as the Phanariotes, became the preeminent liaisons between the Turkish sultan and his Greek subjects. Originating from the culturally preeminent Fener district of Constantinople, the Phanariotes exploited the inner-workings of the Ottoman establishment to inherit some of its most prominent posts. Many Phanariote families such as the Ghicas and Mavrocordatos sought governorships throughout the relatively autonomous realms of Wallachia and Moldavia, where they collected taxes and expanded their political clout. Highly educated and politically flexible, the Phanariotes were instrumental in the Ottomans' negotiations with European powers and played a key role in establishing contact between Western Europe and the Ottomans' Christian subjects. By the time of the Greek Revolution, they had developed extensive connections with the British, Russians, and French, which came to influence Greek politics following the decline of Ottoman hegemony. The Phanariote major general Alexander Ypsilantis, a key proponent of the Greek Revolution, became one of Russia’s leading officers during the Napoleonic Wars.

From the game's History encyclopedia, AoE3: DE 100.19.18309.