Despot, absolute ruler, unrestricted by any legal or constitutional process. In modern usage, the word carries connotations of cruel and oppressive policies, but in the original Greek usage it meant the master of a household, therefore the ruler of slaves, and denoted merely the possessor of unlimited power, as in the case of a provincial governor. In the Byzantine Empire, the term despot was used as a title of honour and was applied to the emperor and later to his immediate male relatives. Subsequently it was applied to the governors of Asian provinces and towns. After the Ottoman conquest of the empire the title was retained by the rulers of Serbia and Middle Eastern countries. Bishops and patriarchs of the Greek Orthodox Church were also called despots.