John Kinnamos

For the Greek achievements in history ^A were given over to writing, and one man undertook to relate the upbringing of Cyrus from childhood and the deeds performed by him as a man, and where there was a danger that those things which had happened long before might again be destroyed by oblivion, he entrusted them to posterity by having them engraved in books as if upon imperishable columns. Such, indeed, is the intention of historians. But I consider that one who wishes to engage in this pursuit with any degree of success must be equipped with a knowledge of the individual matters pertaining to it, and be free from the cares and business that perpetually adhere to this life; yet we possess neither of these in the measure that is required. Nor, for that reason, does it seem that the things which have happened in our own age should be passed over in silence; rather, we must take care to use the opportunity afforded to us in whatever way we can. This, however, can be fully accomplished if, for the most part omitting the narration of other events which happen more frequently in this common life of mortals, we describe instead the deeds of the two emperors, one of whom had passed away before we were born, while the other flourished in our own age and departed from life, leaving the empire to his son, who was still a child. These men were John and Manuel, of the Comnenian family. ^B Indeed, I think that what he did from whom both were descended—the one tracing the imperial succession to his father, the other to his grandfather—and how he administered the Roman state, has been sufficiently and more than sufficiently narrated by those who have consigned to writing the history of his deeds, so that it is superfluous to recall their memory; just as I think it unnecessary to recount again how he revolted against Nicephorus, who was reigning at that time, a man who had reached an advanced age and was at the very sunset of his life. For as I have already stated, all these things have been accurately treated by those who were free from all hatred and rivalry in their writing. As for John, I shall touch upon his deeds briefly and in summary, since I did not live in his time, as I noted above. But for Manuel, who succeeded John, I know not if anyone is able to treat his history with a more truthful style, since, while I was still nearly a youth, I took part in most of the ^C expeditions he undertook on both continents. It was, therefore, worth the effort to make these prefatory remarks; but the subject now demands that I should proceed to the proposed narration.

2. Once Alexius had ended his life, John ^D

^A received the empire from his father. Having arranged urban affairs as much as he was able, he crossed over into Asia. Near the rivers of Phrygia, the Lycus and the Caprus, there is a city named Laodicea, which the emperor, determining to restore to the Roman empire having been captured previously by the Persians, sent a suitable army against. And when he was not far from Philadelphia, he pitched camp there and surrounded the city with a palisade. Then, having sent one of his intimates, a Persian by nation, with troops to commence the siege, he himself soon followed with his entire army and took the city at the first assault. ^B Here a not insignificant multitude of barbarians was found, among whom were at least eight hundred of those more illustrious, and among these was Picharas, a man distinguished in the military arts. And so, having left a strong garrison to hold the city and having provided for necessary matters as was fitting, he returned to Byzantium. Then, having turned his army toward Sozopolis, he subjected that city to the Romans with no effort. But it must be explained by us how this was done. Sozopolis, itself also once among the foremost cities of Asia, is situated on a high and precipitous place, and is blocked off and impassable from all other sides; it affords but one single entrance, and that very narrow, through which neither can a siege engine be drawn, nor can anything that pertains to the assault of walls be prepared, since it scarcely opens even for men walking in small groups. Such was the site of the city. ^C And at first, John abandoned the hope of taking it. Soon, however, a thought came to him which both asserted the city to the Romans with no trouble and earned him no small glory among all men. I shall briefly describe how this happened. Having summoned two of his guards, one of whom was named Pactiarius and the other Decanus, he ordered them, together with the troops they had with them, to go straight to the gates of the city and provoke those who were standing on the walls with a light skirmish; and if they should come out, to turn their backs without any shame, until the enemy, having poured out too far in pursuing them, had gone past the narrow places of the terrain; then, suddenly having turned their horses, they were to take the place at the gate. ^D Accordingly, they set out as if to assault the city; and as soon as the barbarians saw them approaching, they threw open the gates and rushed out at them with as much speed as they could. As the Romans gave their backs to them, the pursuit happened to extend quite far. Consequently, one of the two men mentioned

^A fled immediately to the rear, and very many of the Romans followed him. When they arrived at the gates, they dismounted from their horses and stood there. Then the rest of the Roman army also, becoming aware of what was happening, advanced at a run, and the enemy, now surrounded on all sides, ran here and there across the plain lying before them, and the city was captured.

3. Following that, the emperor departed and captured the fortress called Hieracoryphites and very many others situated in that region near Attalia, and after this he returned to Byzantium. ^B After a short time had passed, he moved into Macedonia. For the Scythians, having crossed the Ister with huge forces, had invaded the Roman borders. But as it was then winter, he quartered his soldiers in winter quarters around the city of Beroea; while everything was being prepared for war in the meantime, he was especially eager to win over some of their phylarchs to himself, so that by dividing the others from them, he might subdue them all the more easily. Towards spring, when he had drawn many of them to his own side through repeated embassies, he set out against the rest, desiring to decide the matter by war. When the two battle lines had joined, the fighting remained well-matched for some time, until the emperor himself was struck in the leg by a javelin. ^C But as the Romans fought fiercely, the Scythians were overcome, and some of them were killed in the battle itself, while others were taken alive. A certain part, no less noble, returned to the camp and would by no means consent to flee: rather, they resolved to endure whatever danger remained together with their wives and children; and having arranged and appropriately connected the wagons, which they had covered from above with ox-hides, and having placed their wives and children inside them, they joined battle. Once again, therefore, a fierce struggle was joined and much slaughter occurred on both sides. For the Scythians, using the wagons as a kind of fortification, inflicted no small damage upon the Romans. The emperor, perceiving this, wished to dismount from his horse himself and fight the battle on foot with the soldiers. ^D When his men would by no means approve of this, he ordered the axe-bearers who stood by him (this is a British people that has served the Romans for many centuries past) to charge and cut the wagons with their axes. They immediately carried out the command, and the emperor became master of the camp of the Scythians. Then most of those who had sought to save themselves by flight, led by a desire for their kin, voluntarily flocked to him, and being brought into the Roman settlements and enrolled in the military lists, they persevered in loyalty for a very long time.

4. And in this way the transition of the Scythian nations to the Romans came about. But the affairs of Asia held the emperor's attention again. For, coming upon the barbarians there unexpectedly, at the very height of winter, he enslaved some and converted many to the Christian faith.

^A Thus, having been accustomed to neighborhood labors, they would discard milk and live on meat, after the manner of the Scythians; and being always scattered and encamped throughout the plain, they became most easy to attack for those who wished to take them in hand. This was the way of life previously for the Persians. But between the Romans and the Huns ^B, who dwell in the region beyond the Ister, a war broke out from the following cause. Vladislaus, king of Pannonia, had two sons, Almus and Stephanus. But Stephanus, since his father was dead, assumed the rule himself, being the elder; the other, however, fled and came to the emperor. For it is the custom ^C among the Huns that, when the ruler among them has died leaving children, as long as the one who has received the leadership from them does not have a male child, the brothers continue together and obtain mutual goodwill from one another; but as soon as a male child is born to him, he no longer allows their stay in the land in any other way than by having their eyes put out. Almus had come to the emperor for this very reason. And he, seeing the man, looked upon him and received him with friendliness. For it happened that the emperor, John, had already taken to wife Irene, the daughter of Vladislaus, a woman most temperate and one who concerned herself with virtue as much as any other ^D. Therefore, whatever she had acquired from the Augustus, her husband, and from her imperial station, she neither set aside as an inheritance for her children, nor did she glorify herself with superfluous finery and luxury. Instead, throughout her entire life, she was ever mindful of all those who were in need of anything from her. She also established a monastery

[in honor] of the Pantokrator

^A rest and greatness, being among the most noteworthy of occurrences. Such, then, was the Augusta. But the king ^B of the Huns, when he heard about the affairs concerning his brother, sent ambassadors to the emperor and demanded that this man be driven from the Roman lands. As he was unable to persuade him, he crossed the Ister river and, having besieged and captured the city of Belgrade which lay beside it, he razed it to the ground and transported the stones from there by ships; by means of these he built up the city of Zeugmen in Sirmium, which lasted for many years thereafter, but in the reign of the Emperor Manuel, having been cast down from its foundations, it served, as if by some turn of events, entirely for the rebuilding of the walls of the city of Belgrade. But these things shall be related by me later, when the narrative in its progression reaches those times. When the emperor heard this, he moved with his entire army toward the Ister, taking with him auxiliary forces from the Ligurians ^C (whom people commonly call Lombards) and Persians. And he himself encamped there on the banks, preparing things for the battle. Now it happened that Stephen, although invalid in body, was confined by sickness in the interior parts of his country; yet, without any delay, he gathered the greatest strength he could, by which he might prevent the emperor from advancing further, giving orders to his men to remain in the region across the Ister—and the Hungarians obeyed his orders. But the emperor, so that he might carry out what seemed impossible to do without force, devised the following: he ordered all his allied auxiliaries to move back from the river, as if toward a place called Tempum, where a certain hill growing from the land ^D of the Huns reaches as far as the river, and to cross from there. He himself, standing with the rest of the Roman army opposite the fortress of Chramon, gave the impression that he was about to cross there immediately. Once this had happened, the Romans crossed without difficulty; the Huns, not standing their ground even for the first attack, began to flee at full speed, and the pursuit continued as far as the river, where, as the Huns, in their confusion, had fallen upon the bridge which joined the Ister, it happened that the bridge was torn apart. Many were cast into the river and perished, while the greatest number were swept away by the river—there they gave up their lives—and many were captured by Roman hands, among whom were Acuses and Celapes, men of the greatest renown among the Huns. Having successfully achieved these things and having captured the fortress of Chramon at the first assault, the emperor immediately flew back again into the Roman region, and having secured the city of Branizova with a military garrison, to which he appointed Curticius, he returned to Constantinople. But not long after, the Hungarians besieged and captured Branizova; some of the Romans found therein were slaughtered, others were captured, and some escaped by flight. The emperor, taking this development heavily, condemned Curticius on an appointed day for the charge of treason and ordered him to be whipped on his back, although he had not—before the enemy with their entire army [reached] the city...

and were burning the buildings with fire—previously retreated from the walls.

5. At about this same time the Serbs, a Dalmatian tribe, seeing that they were in revolt, razed the fortress of Ras. For this reason, the emperor ^B took action against Critoplos, to whom the keeping of this guard-post had been entrusted, and had him led through the marketplace dressed in a woman’s stola and riding on a donkey. He then set out again on an expedition toward Branizova, taking pains to have it rebuilt as quickly as possible. Since several days were spent on this work, it happened that the army suffered severely because of the winter and the shortage of necessities. When the king of the Hungarians learned of this, he decided ^C to cross the Ister as quickly as possible and attack them while they were unsuspecting and fearing nothing of the sort. Now there was in the land of the Huns a woman of Latin descent, who stood out from the rest in wealth and other forms of prominence. She sent intelligence to the emperor revealing what was being planned. But as he had no way to engage the enemy with an opposing force, since, as has been said, his army had been weakened by sickness and a lack of supplies, he fortified the city as best he could and retreated. ^D However, wishing to prevent the Hungarian army from catching up with him, he set his course through certain rugged and precipitous regions; indeed, the place is locally called "Bad Staircase." There, the soldiers of the Huns suddenly rushed upon the rearguard, but they did nothing else to the Romans, and having snatched...

Of the notes of Du Cange

(21) *Curticius.* There was a family of this name in the Constantinopolitan court, which, as Anna relates (Book V), passed into the city from Adrianople, where its origin first lay.

(22) *Critoplos.* Some other person, distinct from him, is called Joannacius Critoples in Cinnamus.

(23) *Dressed in a woman's stola.* The law of majesty prescribes that he is held liable who has harmed the public majesty, such as he who has retreated in war, or has not held a fortress, or has surrendered a camp (Digest, Ad Legem Juliam Majestatis; confirmed by Valerius Maximus, Book I, ch. 1). Rutilius, while consul in the war he conducted in Sicily against the fugitives, ordered his son-in-law Q. Fabius to depart from the province because, through negligence, he had lost the fortress of Tauromenium. In the Life of Louis the Pious: when it was objected to the duke Baldric of Friuli, and it had been proven, that through his sloth and negligence our region had been laid waste by the Bulgarians, he was expelled from the dukedom. For sloth is equated with guilt, and he who does not defend the province or fortress committed to him deserves a penalty no less than he who hands it over to the power of the enemy through treachery. Leo in *Tactics*, ch. 8, § 16: "If anyone, having been entrusted with a city or a castle for protection, shall betray it, or shall retreat without necessity while life still holds, being able to defend it, let him be subjected to capital punishment." These things are fitting for you; for we have judged you to be better suited to spinning [thread] than to defending, directing, and fighting for the Romans with weapons. So he [the enemy] treated him with bitter insults; he bestowed upon him the rewards of dishonor by dressing him in feminine garments, by dishonoring him with feminine stolas, [he made him] from the face... [alt-version omitted]

Of the notes of Cornelius Tollius

Constantine Copronymus, son of Leo the Isaurian, after the rival to his empire, Artavasdus, had been killed, punished the patriarch of Constantinople with the same type of ignominy and penalty; afterward, he restored him to his former dignity.

^A Only fragments of the hangings, which are usually used to line the imperial tent, remained because of a shortage of pack animals, and they were left behind and neglected; thus, the Roman army departed from there without any danger. Not long after, the emperor set out for Asia, intending to conquer the city of Kastamon, which was adjacent to the Paphlagonians. For the Persians who dwelt there were constantly making incursions into the neighboring regions that were subject to the emperor, and were afflicting the Romans there with no small amount of trouble. ^B Therefore, having terrified them with the magnitude of his preparations for war, he compelled them to surrender both themselves and the city to the Romans; and so, returning to Byzantium, he celebrated a magnificent triumph. He had ordered a chariot to be constructed, tightly fitted with silver and covered on all sides with gold, as if he were to sit in it. He did not ascend it, however, perhaps for fear of incurring the charge of pride; but having placed the image of the Mother of God upon it, he himself went before it carrying the sign of the cross in his hands. Thus the chariot proceeded, and it was a sight of such wonder to the Byzantines, as I believe had not been seen since the time when the Heraclians and the Justiniani held the rule of the Romans. ^C 6. While these things were being done among the Romans, Tanisman, who at that time governed Cappadocia, encircled Kastamon with a siege and attacked it. But a bitter misfortune befell the emperor while he was already occupied with plans for war: for Irene Augusta had departed from the living, and he himself, seized by a severe illness, had been carried back to Byzantium. Therefore, Tanisman, having first worn out the city with famine, then captured it by force and storm. This event weighed heavily upon the prince’s soul. Meanwhile, by some chance, Tanisman having ended his life, when a rivalry arose between Machumet, who had obtained the power, and the phylarch of the city of Iconium ^D—whom the Persians, preferring him to other princes, call Sultan—the emperor sent envoys to Iconium and persuaded him to enter into friendship and alliance with him against Machumet, since he had already become friendly toward him. And so, not long after, a certain one of his nobles came, sent by him with an army, to act both as a hostage and as an ally in the war. Therefore, the emperor, having set out for Gangra with these forces, pitched his camp before the walls of the city and arranged himself in such a way as if he were going to undertake the siege the following year. But Machumet, since he saw himself unequal to the Roman prince, deemed it necessary...

^A to win over the Sultan, to whom he was also related by birth. Accordingly, having set aside their differences against the Romans, the two conspired together; and the Persian auxiliary forces, having been summoned by the Sultan, departed by night in flight. Upon discovering this stratagem, ^B the Emperor was struck with no small anxiety of spirit and had decided to move his camp immediately, had not some monks, who happened to be present there at that time, dissuaded him from this plan and persuaded him to persist in what he had begun and to undertake the siege of the city of Gangra with confidence. Complying with them, he attacked the walls on the following day; but being repulsed from there, he withdrew to the Rhyndacus and quartered his army for the winter. ^C The Romans, having lingered there for a long time, and being without supplies—since the transport of grain was by no means easy on account of the winter—suffered not a little, to such a degree that famine carried off many. Having therefore departed from there and retaken Castamon by specified terms, he led the army back to Gangra. The Persians who held the city, when they learned that the military forces had gathered again at the Rhyndacus, at first refused to surrender the city to the Emperor, thinking that aid would be sent to them from [the Rhyndacus]. However, since these forces, before they could assemble in one place, were scattered again (for, as I have recorded above, they considered it impossible to wage war in the winter season), they were compelled by necessity and surrendered the city to him on the condition that both they themselves and all those who had been captured by the Romans in war while Tanesman was still alive should be released safely from their hands and power. But the Persians, preferring the voluntary servitude they had chosen to the freedom granted to them, obtained the favor of the Emperor, and they made no ignoble accession to the Roman forces.

^D 7. Thereafter, the affairs of Isauria gave rise to war for the Romans. For Livo, an Armenian man, [captured] several towns from the Eastern families, and for the princes of Armenia, whose mention occurs frequently enough in the Comnenian history, a fuller notice [is provided]:

Du Cange’s Notes

(28) Thenceforth. (29) Livo. Known also as Leo, [as seen in] William of Tyre, book xiv, ch. 3, whose genealogy, which seems necessary to be cited in this place, [is omitted] from our work *De familiis...*

[index: entries preserved]

^A of those who were subject to the Romans, and had set his mind on besieging Seleucia itself. After these things were discovered by the Emperor, he promptly gathered his forces and set out to oppose him. For this reason, then, as well as for another cause which I shall now mention, the Emperor marched into Cilicia. When Bohemond, who ruled over the Antiochenes, had passed away, the leading men of the country sent to the Emperor and declared that if he would allow Bohemond’s daughter to be married to Manuel, his youngest son, the affairs of the Antiochenes would immediately be under his authority. But he had not yet arrived in Cilicia when the Antiochenes, changing their counsel, became most hostile enemies to Manuel instead of allies and friends. Seeing, however, that they were inferior in strength to the Roman army, they decided that it was necessary to win over the Livonian ^B to their side. Having therefore released the man from prison—whom they had held in chains after taking him in war—they granted him his freedom, with the condition and pledge interposed that he would be their friend and ally in the future, and would fight on their side against the Romans. The Emperor, having entered Cilicia and taken possession of Mopsuestia, Tarsus, and Adana, pitched his camp before Anazarbus. Meanwhile, while these things were being done, something of this sort occurred. For the Count of Poitou, ^C whose territory is situated by the Ionian Gulf, two sons were born. One of them, upon his father’s death, came into his ancestral principality, but the other, in the guise of a beggar, arrived at the temple in Jerusalem. As soon as the verger caught sight of him, struck by the man’s beauty and stature, he approached him and inquired who he might be. He first gave answers by which he thought he would least be recognized. But when he perceived that it was impossible to persuade the verger, he finally told him everything about himself. Upon learning this, the verger went immediately to the King and revealed the man. The King, having sent for Raymond (for this was his name), urged him to take as his wife the daughter of Bohemond, who had not yet reached the years of puberty. And while he began his journey toward Antioch, he happened upon some Roman scouts, and he was very near to being taken. For as he was approaching, a certain soldier faced him and struck at his helmet, so that, if he had not grasped the neck of his horse with both hands to guard himself [against the blow], he would have been struck down.

He, having thus escaped the danger, reached Antioch, while the Emperor was completely occupied besieging Anazarbus. The townsmen, attempting to make the attacks of the enemy futile, threw iron tools glowing with fire onto the siege engines which hurl stones, and these at once set their forward wooden columns on fire. This occurring repeatedly stung the Emperor's mind severely. Anxious and concerned at last, Isaac his son approached him and said, "Why, father, do you not order the wooden parts to be covered with shields made of mud?" When this was done, the townsmen were no longer able to repel the frequent onslaughts, and, having opened the gates, they received the Roman general.

^B 8. Now Anazarbus fell to the Romans in this way; but Raymond and Baldwin, who at that time was governor of Marash, since the danger was not yet standing at his own doors, having gathered a sufficient army, were hastening into Palestine in order to rescue the king who was in danger there. For the Saracens who border on the Palestinians, having become superior in battle, were besieging him in the fortress of Montferrand, where he had retreated in flight. But when the Emperor, having now gained Anazarbus, was marching toward the fortress of Baqa—the soldiers garrisoning which, fearing Antioch, had retreated there—the Roman army in the meantime, having abandoned the siege of Baqa, pitched its camp by the river that flows past the city. The Antiochenes at first appeared dauntless, trusting in the strength of their walls and their other fortifications; ^C whence, as the siege dragged on for a long time, while certain members of the military ranks, as is wont to happen in a large army, were sallying forth into the nearby orchards adjacent to the city and plucking the fruit, the enemy suddenly attacked them and killed many. But when the realization of this occurred and other Roman soldiers had rushed to assist in haste, they fell upon the gates, losing many of their own in the flight. But when the Romans were already beginning the assault on the walls, they fell into a great trepidation. ^D Whence also Raymond, frequently going out to the Emperor, importunately begged him to accept the city on the condition that the Emperor should be—and be named—its master, but that he himself should govern it by the right of a vicar on his behalf. Yet obtaining none of these things, he returned to his own people with his business unfinished. But a few days later, the matter having been reported to the Roman council, Raymond at last obtained what he had sought. And from then on, the remaining forces of the Latins passed over to the party of the Emperor, and thus those who are called "Brothers" by them, and those who [occupy] these regions...

… ^A Thus matters turned out. Since Emperor John by no means wished to let such an opportune turn of events slip by, he invaded Northern Syria with the aforementioned forces. He took the fortress of Piza by the law and right of war, and, having enriched himself with a great amount of spoils from there, he sent forward to Antioch the multitude of people who had been taken prisoner, entrusting them to Thomas, a man who was indeed of obscure birth, but who, I believe, had been enrolled among the imperial secretaries from his boyhood. He himself, meanwhile, proceeded toward Berrhoea, an ancient and celebrated city. But Thomas, having suddenly been attacked by enemies at the very outset of his journey, and having lost both the spoils he was conducting and the crowd of captives, barely escaped the danger himself. When the Emperor approached Berrhoea and observed that the surrounding region suffered from a total lack of water, he passed by it. But having taken the fortresses of Chama and Chabarda by storm, he moved on to Seser, a city flourishing in both goods and population. He took this city by siege, but once he had reached the acropolis, he was repelled. As he was preparing to make a second attempt against it, envoys arrived, promising that they would provide funds immediately, and that in the future they would pay to the Romans an annual tribute as fixed and settled. ^B Such was the sum total of the embassy; but the Emperor rejected their offer, hoping that he might eventually take them, too, by storm. Yet, when he had attempted the city with various types of assaults

Du Cange’s Notes

(58) "In what has been said." Pacts between the Emperor John and the Prince of Antioch are mentioned likewise by Tyrius, l. XIV, c. 30, as also by Ordericus Vitalis, l. XIII, p. 914 and 915, where he treats of the Antiochene war at greater length. Furthermore, it is most noteworthy that, after a treaty was entered into between Manuel and Raymond, the Emperor established in the Antiochene territory a vicar or prefect, who, in his name, might execute all things that pertained to the ultimate right of the Empire: which prefect indeed enjoyed the title and dignity of Duke of Antioch, just as did the prefects of the same province before Antioch was ^C taken by the Turks. Truly, Leo Maiopolus is read to have been invested with this dignity in the Diploma of Raymond, Prince of Antioch, and Constance his wife, April A.D. 1140, which he subscribes, and which exists in the Archives of the Holy Sepulcher at Jerusalem, and in another of Raynald, Prince of Antioch, and Constance his wife, A.D. 1154, which is referenced by Ughellus in his work on the Pisan archbishops, p. 464, in which diploma Leo Maiopolus is merely called Duke. (39) "Brothers." No one, however, fails to see that "Frères" (Brothers) should be read. Thus, moreover, Nicetas in Andron. l. I, c. 6; Choniates, l. V; Cantacuzenus, l. II, c. 12, and the Emperor Manuel Palaeologus in his Oration on Theodore Despot, call them soldiers of the militia of the Temple, or of the Hospital of Jerusalem, from the French "Frères," by which name we commonly call those who are bound by monastic vows. Emmanuel Georgillas in his MS. Monodia on the plague which invaded the island of Rhodes in the month of September, A.D. 1498. The Jerusalem Statutes, part II, c. 26: "And received the oath of the Brothers, and of all others who owed him oath, and he held the kingdom of Jerusalem quiet and in peace." c. 31: "He exacted the oaths of the Hospitaller and Templar knights." c. 21: "Fratries, the militia itself are so named." Brothers of the Holy Sepulcher, in the decrees of Nuno, Count of Roussillon, and Peter, King of Aragon, concerning peace and truce, which are contained in vol. VIII of the Spicilegium Acherianum, p. 381. Thus, moreover, the knights of these orders were called, ^D because they were truly monks, and, as we commonly say, religious, bound by vow, who at that time were termed "brothers,"—by the later Greeks *phrerioi*, as they are called by Michael Anchialus the Patriarch in his *Dialogue*; whence "friars minor," among Georgius the Metropolitan of Corfu, and among the anonymous author on the dissension of the Greeks and Latins, are called *phratominoi* and *phremenourioi*. The very congregation of monks is also called a "fraternity"; "monastic fraternity," in Paulinus, epist. 3, to Severus. The same, poem 25: "The fraternity receives Martinianus, and covers and feeds him." Jerome to Theophilus, epist. 51: "The whole fraternity humbly salutes you." Liberatus Diaconus, c. 11: "To whom, while going to him, Eutyches gave such a response, that this was decreed among them, that he should never go out from his fraternity, but, as if in a tomb, dwell in the monastery." Thus the Greeks use it. The Council of Constantinople under Mennas, Act 5: the same notion occurs in Palladius in the *Historia Lausiaca*, c. 9 and 14 and elsewhere passim. This indeed flowed from the early Christians, who called each other brothers, as Tertullian indicates in *Apol.* c. 39; Lactantius, Prudentius, and others; whence the Church itself is called a fraternity in the same Tertullian, Cyprian, Ambrose, etc. (40) "Seser." Nicetas narrates the siege of Caesarea, no. 8; and William of Tyre, l. XV, c. 1 and 2. Regarding the city of Caesarea, see the notes to the Alexiad, p. 412.

^A to receive a fixed tribute from the Romans. Such was the mind of the embassy towards them. [P 11] The emperor, however, dismissed them at that time, having hope that he would prevail over them through war. But when he had attacked them many times in vain, he decided to turn his hand to other methods; having accepted the embassy, he moved towards terms. Great wealth was therefore brought to him, and a cross was also brought forward, an extraordinary object and a gift worthy of emperors. It was a lychnites stone, ^B sufficient in size, and having been carved into the shape of a cross, it had lost a little of its natural color in the process of chiseling. This, the one whom they call the apostle among kings, Constantine, had worked on—by what means, however, it came into the hands of the Saracens is unknown. Having accepted these things, and having received promises also regarding the subsequent tributes, he moved again towards Cilicia. ^C Having taken the strong fortresses of Baza and Capniscerti, he remained in that region himself, while he dispatched a portion of the army to raid the rest. But to record these things with precision, I believe, exceeds our promise. For it was my intention to speak of the current events in summary, as I neither saw these things with my own eyes nor derived reliable information from them. Yet, nevertheless, as much as he accomplished in the two years, as I believe, that fortune looked kindly upon him ^D is what has been done.

9. Thus, it happened that Emperor John was successful in the battles in Asia, except that things concerning New Caesarea did not turn out according to his plan. For it was already about the winter solstice, yet he, having encamped not far from it, thought he would take the city by siege. But when the Persians who held the city resisted him most forcefully, and an extraordinary winter occurred that pressed hard upon the army, he withdrew from the city, and to the adjacent...

Du Cange’s notes

(42) *By what means.* A hiatus must be filled in from Nicetas.

(45) *In two years.* Triennium had passed in the East.

Tollius’s notes

^A Having then invaded the Persian land, he drove off a great quantity of spoil and delivered to the Romans a multitude of men who had long served under the Persian yoke. In that expedition, specifically at the time when he was still encamped near Neocaesarea, an event occurred worth both telling and hearing. For when a struggle took place between the Romans and the Persians, in which the Persians happened to gain the upper hand, Manuel—who, as I have often mentioned, was the youngest of the children born to the emperor John—observing what was happening, and without the knowledge of his father, threw himself into the midst of the enemy with those who were then with him; having pushed them back with great force, he greatly restored the spirits of the Romans, which had previously been low. His father took this action ill and did not approve of his son’s audacity, although in his heart he reckoned the deed to be like a miracle, that a youth who had scarcely reached his eighteenth year should dare to expose himself to such dangers and openly proclaim himself the savior of the army. Thus, virtue is not always circumscribed by age. From that battle, hardly anything happened to the Roman cavalry as he returned.

10. When the emperor heard that Sozopolis was being besieged again by the Persians, he marched thither with a swift army. But since no enemy was present (for they had already learned of the Romans' arrival and had departed), he led his forces across the lake called Pasgusa, ^B which extends to an indescribable length and breadth; it contains islands rising above the water at fairly even intervals toward the middle, on which strong fortresses were built in ancient times. The men who inhabit them use the waters in place of fortifications, and they can easily go to Iconium and return home the same day. For this reason, the emperor deemed it most necessary to subdue the lake. Since the Romans who were in it would not surrender it to him (for they had long since mingled with the Persians and had for the most part adopted their customs), he eventually devised the following plan: having collected as many skiffs and light boats as possible, he joined them together with timber placed on top, and having set his siege engines upon these, he proceeded straight toward the aforementioned fortresses. ^C When it happened that the lake was stirred up by particularly violent winds, not a few of the Roman soldiers perished; yet, with great difficulty and much force, he captured them nonetheless. And when he learned that Raymond, the prince of the Antiochenes, was fomenting rebellion, he returned immediately to Cilicia, with the intention of bestowing not only Cilicia, but also Antioch, Attalia, and Cyprus, upon his son Manuel as an inheritance. ^D I shall now briefly explain how this idea came into his mind. He had long before decided to hand over the Roman empire to Alexius, his firstborn; but when Manuel, the last of his children, was born, predictions regarding him immediately spread among the public.

of which it seemed to me not out of place to mention one or two. ^A Once, when Manuel was asleep, a woman appeared to him, severe of countenance, dressed in black, holding in her hands footwear of the kind it is the custom for emperors to wear. She offered them to Manuel, and commanded him to put them on, having cast aside those he was accustomed to use, which the woman pointed out, which were blue. Awakened in great agitation, and finding nothing of what he had seen, he wept like a child, and believed that one of his household had stolen them. Such was the omen, to which the following is not inferior. There was a certain monk; his fatherland was Galilee, and his life was monastic and spent in the mountains. This man, once when he was in conversation with the Emperor John, seeing his children approach, regarded the others as private individuals, but receiving Manuel kindly, he bestowed a blessing upon him. When asked by the prince why he had done this, the monk replied, "Because," said he, "among them all, Manuel alone appears to me as emperor." ^B From these and other similar things, the emperor fell into endless reflections; but having no way to undo what he had decided from the beginning, he looked toward the aforementioned end. But it seems that the outcome of all events depends not at all on human foresight. For he had not yet reached Cilicia, when he was bereaved of two of his older sons; the other who remained, who himself was not very strong in body, was sent to Byzantium to bring back the corpses of his brothers. The emperor ended his life in Cilicia, and Manuel subsequently ascended the imperial throne. It is worth while also to relate the manner of his death. As he went out to hunt, a boar met him, a great beast, such as the Cilician land and the Taurus mountains nurture in abundance. He, as the story goes, having readied a javelin, stood to face the approaching beast; but it, with the point of the javelin driven into its chest, furious at the wound, pressed on with even greater force, so that the emperor's hand, while struggling the more violently, was deflected from its straight course and struck against the quiver full of arrows which he wore suspended from his shoulder, by the points of which the part of the hand near the wrist was wounded and grazed. ^C From that wound, bloody ichor flowed; a thin membrane, which the common people call "ivy," was applied, intended to pull the divided flesh together and knit a scar, so that it might not become inflamed and stir up pain; but this later became the cause of the inflammation: for the poison with which the dart was smeared was, by the very binding, pressed more tightly into the flesh and transfused into the rest of the body. Thus, as no pain was yet present, a table was prepared for him, and he sat down to it as if to dine. During the meal, some of the doctors who were standing around, as they observed the applied plaster, inquired into the cause of the scar and, learning of it, judged that it should be removed from the hand and that he should abstain from the table. But he, on the contrary, said that this medication had closed the wound and that he feared nothing of ill consequence from any swelling or inflammation. ^D After the meal, he gave himself to sleep, and immediately the most acute pains arose, and his whole hand swelled. A crowd of doctors gathered at once, and they disputed among themselves with various opinions as to what was necessary to be done. For some of them were of the opinion that the tumor should be lanced, while others did not yet...

venture to proceed, and urged that it should be softened in some other way. But, as it seems, since things were destined to turn out poorly, the vote to operate prevailed. Once it was lanced, however, the tumor grew ^A larger, and the hand swelled up. The emperor, fearing that death was now imminent, began to be troubled in his soul, especially as he had not fulfilled the purpose he had long agonized over regarding his pilgrimage to Palestine. For this reason, he had happened to have a lamp of twenty talents of gold crafted, which he intended to dedicate to the temple there. Since he was now in such desperate straits, he summoned a certain monk from Pamphylia, a man famous for the holiness of his life, and requested that he appease the Divine through constant prayer. It is said that [the monk], while engaged in prayer, heard the voices of those ^B singing. The lamp was seen to be lifted up, and a divine youth appeared, stilling the tumult of their souls. This, then, happened in that way. But the emperor, perceiving that he was now in a critical state, summoned those in authority—as many as were conspicuous among the magnates and generals—and spoke thus: "Men of Rome, all you who have gathered here to hear me: although it seemed to many other emperors before our time that they should pass on the empire to their children like some ancestral inheritance, and I myself know that I received this authority transferred to me from my father, the emperor, and no one imagines that I will do otherwise—perhaps you think that I, too, being now set in the extreme danger of life, will grant the empire to the elder of my two surviving sons, as is the custom among other men. But my concern for you is so great that, ^C even if it were not owed to either of them by merit of virtue, I would willingly choose another who would be approved as suitable for such a dignity by both my judgment and your own. For I do not consider it glorious, for either the giver or the receiver, if one, through ignorance, should sink a ship which he has received from another to be steered, and thus perish himself along with the gift, and hold no gratitude for the giver of such a wretched favor. For it is not the act of a prudent man to entrust anything to the unskilled; indeed, it is mere madness. That I am disposed toward you with such affection will be evident to you even from this, that if need be, I would consult your utility even by setting aside the order of nature. I have two sons, both of good character, of whom one is older in age. But my ^D mind rejects the prerogative of time.

to bestow ignorance and, in sum, anything at all healthy. Such is the opinion I myself hold regarding you. And it is a proof—for even for your own benefit, though I may perhaps be acting against nature, see, I am here. ^A I have two fine sons, and one of them surpasses the other in age. But the judgment, casting off the privilege of primogeniture, searches for the better one and persuades

Virtue comparing itself with virtue.

Notes of Du Cange.

Note of Cornelius Tollius.

^A which glows with a love for a parent beyond that of others, reverencing the laws of nature, with downcast eyes and head bowed toward his chest, watered the floor with copious tears. Nevertheless, having put on the chlamys and received the diadem, he was proclaimed emperor by the whole army. But John, a few days later, dies, after having reigned over the Romans for twenty-five full years and seven months, on the eighth day of the month which the Greeks call Xanthicus and the Romans April.

Du Cange's notes. (48) The chlamys. Add William of Tyre, b. XV, c. 23. (49) He passed away. Tyrius says that John died under Anazarbus, the metropolis of the second Cilicia, in that place which is called Pratum Palliorum. To this refers the prophecy of the Emperor Leo concerning his passing, “thou shalt fall in the marshes and beyond hope.”

BOOK II

1. ^B Thus let the achievements under the Emperor John be brought to an end by me. But Manuel, having now obtained the scepter, although a youth scarcely speckled with his first down, was by no means terrified by such a burden of empire, and did nothing unworthy of royal majesty. For with Isaac staying at Constantinople, since a suspicion had seized most people that he would never hold back from revolution—being both naturally quarrelsome and accustomed to carrying out all things with a certain impulse of a more vehement spirit, and especially because the present occasion prompted such a thing—the emperor nevertheless neglected these matters. For thirty ^C days after his father’s death, he remained there and did not depart before he had performed the funeral rites for him according to custom (for among other acts, he also founded a monastery on that spot where he had happened to release his soul), and had set the affairs of Cilicia on a secure footing. The Antiochians, however, who even while John was yet alive had prepared for defection, now sent legates to Manuel and demanded that he withdraw from the borders of their land, which they contended belonged to the city, and was possessed by the Romans not by any law, but only by force. This was the sum of their embassy. To whom, in reply, the emperor responded to this effect: “That the Antiochians have suffered no evil from us is known to all, O legates; but if it is just that those things which have been taken from anyone should be restored to their previous owners, why did you not also yourselves freely return Antioch to the Romans, instead of forcing me to bring my father there so that it had to be reclaimed by force and arms? For what then? did not the Persians, when it was subject to us, take it by assault? And do you believe that those territories which you demand from us are under his power—namely, of Antioch

when it too is already subject to our rule? If you feel no shame in violating the treaties you yourselves have signed, ^C what right have you to reproach us with disregarding justice, seeing that we would have a far more equitable claim to exact penalties from you? But perhaps a more opportune time for this awaits our rule. Meanwhile, I command you to keep away from what is not yours; for my intention is to increase what has been passed down to me from my father, not to diminish it."

Thus he replied to the envoys. Afterwards, he journeyed to the ships that were anchored at the Pyramus river, which flows through Mopsuestia and empties into the sea; there, with a great procession of those who were following, he himself carried the funeral remains, both he and his kinsmen placing their shoulders under the bier. When from there the swift ships had set out to sea, he himself also broke camp and led his army through the midst of the land of the Persians, marching it forward without a truce. The Persians, amazed at such audacity, though they marveled at it, dared not in turn attempt anything against the Romans. Thus they crossed through the enemies' territory no less securely than through their own.

Not long after, Manuel himself reached the borders of the empire. The triremes having arrived at Byzantium disembarked the ashes of the prince, which the Roman senate received magnificently and brought into the monastery that the empress Irene, as I have noted above, had built and dedicated to God Almighty. But when the emperor was planning his return, and not yet having heard anything regarding the sebastocrator, and how certain men, to whom the care of public affairs had been entrusted, had moved against him with a ruse and shut him up for safekeeping in the temple of the Pantocrator, supposing him to be contemplating a usurpation, the thought occurred to him—lest the sebastocrator, in his anger against those who were with him and especially those holding the haughty ^D offices, should do something unpleasant to their households in Byzantium. He was indeed pondering how he might turn him back from this undertaking without difficulty. It seemed best to him, therefore, to send scrolls to Byzantium, supposedly to honor the men, but in reality [imposing penalties] upon them through the forfeiture of their money and property. For thus, he said, the sebastocrator, thinking that the men had plotted against the emperor on his account, would guard their domestic affairs more diligently, and he might thereby more easily draw them to his own side.

ẞ. But the things once determined by Providence are altogether immutable and difficult to frustrate by the reasonings of men. For while he was devising these things, and was already revealing his plan to those around him, Isaac 18—but both were held in chains, the one indeed...

the one, I say, who was the emperor’s uncle on his father’s side—was kept in iron fetters at Heraclea in Pontus. There he lived, not without dishonor, having previously been banished by his brother while the emperor was still alive, because of the conspiracies he never ceased to plot through an insatiable desire for the throne. But then he too came to this turn of fortune by the judgment of those who were in power in Byzantium at that time, since they learned that he was again attempting and stirring up new troubles. But the entry into the empire was being made easy for the emperor by Providence, which, as I have already said, was forestalling the outcome. When he heard what had happened concerning the sebastocrators, he reached Byzantium and immediately summoned his brother, embraced him, and clung to him with brotherly affection. He also recalled his uncle from his exile, and, having wiped away the memory of the crime for which his father had originally banished him, he granted him pardon. He then gave money to the military and sent them home, and he bestowed two gold coins upon each of the houses throughout Byzantium. And since the patriarchal see of Constantinople was vacant, he raised to the throne Michael ^B who had previously been the head of the monastery on an island which they call Oxeia—or "Sharp"—from its location. He was a man who had been only slightly initiated into the liberal arts and secular learning, having tasted of them, as they say, only with the tip of his finger, but in the elegance of his character and in his study of the divine oracles, he was inferior to none of those who were most conspicuous for their virtue at that time. By his hands, the emperor was later invested with the imperial diadem in the church. At that time, after placing an auri centenarium, or hundred-pound weight of gold, on the holy table, he departed, leaving his generosity and magnificence on everyone's lips. Afterwards, he also assigned to the clergy an annual grant of two centenaria from the palace; the common people call this currency the "second" ^C.

Notes of Du Cange

(52) *At Heraclea.* See Nicetas in *John*, n. 9 and 10 and the *Comnenian Stemmata*.

(53) *Michael.* After the death of Leo Styppas, patriarch of Constantinople, Michael Oxitas was appointed by the Emperor Manuel, as Nicetas writes, Book 1, n. 2. *Catalogue of the Patriarchs of Constantinople* in *Jus Graeco-Romanum*. Under this patriarch a council was convened in Constantinople (in the year 1143), as Theodore Balsamon writes in the *Nomocanon* of Photius, in which the heresy of the Bogomils was condemned, and the Bogomils themselves were committed to the punishment of fire. Balsamon disapproves of this as the final resort, because no canon is read hitherto that has decreed any capital or corporal punishment, especially since this pertains to the authority of civil laws. To this relate those words of Hildebert, Bishop of Cenomanensis, Epistle 30: "To subject the accused to torments or to elicit a confession through punishments is the censure of the court, not of ecclesiastical discipline." See Allatius, *De Ecclesia Occidentali et Orientali*, *perp. consil.* 11, ch. p. 671.

(54) *Of the monastery of Oxeia.* See Pachymeres, Bk. IV, ch. 8. It was situated on a mountain of the same name, close to Chalcedon, which later took the name of Auxentius, as the *Menaea* of Basil Porphyrogenitus for the Kalends of March teach.

(55) *Auri centenarium.* A "centenarium" of gold: see Theophanes, p. 99, 147, 148, 355, etc.; Procopius, Bk. I, *On the Persian War* and in the *Secret History*; Nicetas in *Manuel*, Bk. II, n. 7; Bk. V, n. ult.; St. Gregory, Bk. I, Indiction, epistle; Gruter, *Inscriptions*, and others who are cited here and there by Scaliger, *De re nummaria*, Meursius, and Fabrot in their glossaries. Alamannus interprets it as a weight of gold. Isidorus writes that a centenarium was one hundred pounds, and from this it was named; evidence of this, besides Procopius, is found in the *Glossae Basilicae*. Paulus Warnefridus, Bk. I, *De gestis Langobardorum*, ch. 12: "They find a great treasure containing 1000 centenaria of gold." *Chronicon Reicherspergense*: "If the emperor and the army were to give him centenaria of gold." Arnoldus Lubecensis, XIII, ch. 37: "Cyprus is a region surrounded by the sea, subject to the king of Constantinople, paying him annually seven weights of gold, which are called centenaria." In a chart of the year 1208, in Ughellus, vol. VII, *Italia Sacra*, p. 274: "Fifty Turenos, Amalphia, and two centenaria of wax," etc. See Georgius Agricola, Bk. *De ponderibus Romanis*, p. 95, Casaubon and Salmasius on the *Historia Augusta*, and the notes to the *Alexiad*, p. 414.

(56) *Second.* That he might win over the clergy for Manuel, and draw them into his own party, he granted them an annual— [Note: this seems to be a note on the text, but the Latin text ends above.]

injury inflicted upon his father, John, by Raymond, prince of Antioch (for death had prevented John from exacting the penalty due for his deeds), and he sent both land and naval forces against him. Demetrius, surnamed Branas, was placed in command of the latter, while John and Andronicus of the Contostephanus family, along with Prosuch—a man distinguished in the art of war—were placed in command of the former. Prosuch and both of the Contostephani, after they reached the borders of Cilicia, quickly recovered the fortresses that had been snatched from the Romans by the Antiochenes; then, engaging with Raymond, they put him to flight and slaughtered many of his army. Having captured these fortresses with no one resisting, they pushed on as far as the city of Antioch, making a—as they say—"Mysian prey" of whatever they encountered. Raymond, meanwhile, seeing the Romans approaching, remained quiet within the walls of the city. But, when they had gathered their plunder and were preparing to return—since not a single man had come out against them—Raymond followed them secretly from the rear. The Romans, having found a suitable place where they could stand their ground, pitched their camp there. Raymond, for his part, took the opportunity to set up his own camp with his men, and set out with a few others to scout the enemy. His arrival did not escape the notice of the Romans; for some of them, who had gone out for fodder, encountered him not far from the trenches and immediately reported it to the commanders. ^B Those men, since night was already falling, stationed guards and rested. But when day had not yet dawned, they drew up their lines and marched backwards, intending to fall upon the camp of Raymond’s men while they were still asleep. Raymond, however, was not negligent; rather, he too, having given instructions to those with him at the break of dawn, left them there while he himself went out to scout ^C the second, he granted a red-sealed document to the clergy of the Great Church, authorizing the minting of annual silver coins for them, capped at two hundred minas. For the tin, refined and transformed into the highest-grade silver, was termed "the five-sealed"; but lead, being of lower quality though still genuine, was nevertheless converted into "secondary silver." To the patriarch fifty pounds of gold, and to the clergy twenty-five.

^D (57) Concerning Raymond: Nicetas, book 1, n. 2. (58) Prosuch: This was Prosuch of Turkish origin, as Cinnamus writes below, and, in my opinion, the son of another Prosuch, the principal Pargiaruch or Belciaruch, who was the commander of the Turkish sultan’s armies, as Anna mentions in book 1, ch. 6. (59) "Mysian prey": A proverb. See Diogenianus, Zenobius, and other paremiographers.

Cornelius Tollius's notes.

^A and pursued them, chasing the fugitives as far as the gates of Antioch. Raymond himself, having with difficulty slipped away from the hands of the enemy, arrived at the city by night. With Raymond afflicted by this disaster, the soldiers of Prosuch returned to Cilicia. Meanwhile, Demetrius, arriving with the fleet, raided the coastal regions, plundering the entire seaboard, carrying off many captives, and burning a great number of the ships of the inhabitants that were hauled up on the shore. During this time, the collector of the public tax for them also fell into the power of the Romans. When these events were reported to Raymond, he marched against the hostile fleet with great ardor, but when he learned that it had already departed from its station, he returned without having achieved his purpose. The Romans, however, after ten days of sailing through that region against a headwind, because they were suffering from a shortage of water, suddenly made for the shore again, put the enemy to flight, and sacked two coastal fortresses. After filling their ships with as much wine and river water as possible and obtaining a favorable wind, they set sail for the island of Cyprus. These events occurring as they did forced Raymond to set out for Byzantium. However, upon his arrival, the Emperor refused to admit him to an audience before he had gone to the tomb of the Emperor’s father, obtained forgiveness, and pledged himself to future loyalty and clienthood.

^C 4. About this same time, the Emperor took as his wife Irene, whom he had betrothed to himself while he was still a private citizen. She was a woman born of royal lineage and inferior to none of her age in character and qualities of mind. Shortly before she arrived in Byzantium, they say, women of noble birth went out to meet her, especially the one who had wed the Emperor Alexius. She was dressed in a garment of fine linen, interwoven with gold and purple; but because of the azure color of the linen, since the lady appeared in mourning, she seemed like a woman in widow's weeds. Seeing her, the one who had married the Emperor asked those standing around who this magnificent woman in mourning might be. This omen did not seem favorable to those who heard it, and the outcome, which followed not long after, confirmed this. Manuel had crossed the strait ^D and was moving about the borders of Asia and Bithynia, taking care that that stretch of territory should no longer be open to the incursions of the Persians. For since in earlier centuries the incursions of the Barbarians had been repelled by ramparts constructed from time to time...

the Persians found everything accessible. But this was later, through the great generosity of the Emperor, very handsomely made up for by his resettling many cities. At that time, therefore, he decided to erect a small town in the region they call Melangeia ^A. But while this work was underway, a report came to him that the eldest of the daughters of the Emperor John, whom the Caesar Roger had taken as his wife [(65)], had fallen into a fatal disease and that the danger was pressing. He therefore remained in that place for some time, in order to complete what he had begun, and then set off for Byzantium. But in the meantime, fate fulfilled its claim upon her, a lady of great spirit, and one who possessed a truly manly courage. Now, as I arrive at this point in the narrative, I have recalled a memory of that lady, which is worthy of later admiration. ^B They say that the Caesar Roger, having looked with covetous eyes upon the empire while it was still the case that, after the death of the Emperor John and while the new Emperor Constantine had not yet established his hold, he had gathered together many others as fellow conspirators for himself, and had indeed associated with himself those of the Italian race who were his fellow-patriots by birth, collecting them to the number of about four hundred. Now this Italian was a man of high standing and reputation by birth, and the ruler of the Italian city of Capua, which was very populous and prosperous. The reason for his sojourn in Byzantium was this: at that time, Roger, the tyrant of Sicily, ^C about whom we shall speak at length later on, when we reach the Italian wars, was aspiring to the Capuan principate and attacked the man in a fierce war; and since he could not resist him, he betook himself to Byzantium. ^D

^A Since Mary saw that her husband, after many admonitions, was becoming more obstinate and was grasping more strongly at imperial power—such that, unless provision were made, he could by no means be turned from his purpose—she summoned those who were then in charge of affairs, and, disclosing what was happening, said, "Either deliver the man to me, or else let it be your concern to preserve the emperor’s daughter for my brother." They addressed Caesar in every way possible, and led him to a suburb near Byzantium, on the pretext that some business needed to be transacted there. But when they arrived there, they left him and returned to the city.

5. Such was the character of Mary. Now the emperor, having learned of the decease, returned to Byzantium. And not much time having elapsed, with his camp pitched upon the plains of the Rhyndacus, where the Emperor John had recently built a fortress—which the common people call Lopadium—he gathered his forces and decided to make an attack upon Persia. For the Persians, having disregarded their treaties with the Romans, had sacked Pracana, a city of Isauria, and had brought further losses upon the Romans as well. When things were prepared for war as was proper, he moved his camp from there and advanced into the interior, intending to attack them suddenly and unexpectedly while they were off-guard, and to destroy all the males by slaughter. Nor did he miss his mark entirely, even though it did not come to a battle. For when he had crossed the Mysian Olympus and had reached Pitheca, where he had himself built a strong fortress, he withdrew at night into those mountains, which are rugged and precipitous and overgrown with thicket. However, it happened that as he ascended, frequent vapors arising from the mountain thickets so overcame his head that he suddenly collapsed and had no power to rise, and until midnight he remained almost devoid of all sense. ^C Then, having recovered a little and regained his health the following day, he himself remained, but he sent away a portion of his army, along with leaders suited for the task. They immediately confronted the enemies, and having routed them, they led back the victorious army with much plunder, rejoicing.

While these things were being done by the emperor, the Persians, having made preparations for war, invaded the land of the Thracesians with a great multitude of soldiers, and with no one resisting them—for Theodore, surnamed Contostephanus, who had been sent thither by the emperor for this purpose, had not yet arrived with his army collected—they entered a certain fortress not far from the sea, which they call Celbianum, and after ravaging it and taking no small plunder, they retreated. When the emperor learned of this, he immediately, in control of himself, hastened with all his forces at a rapid pace toward Iconium, having first written letters to the sultan in which he announced his purpose. The purport of these was: "We wish you to know that the cause of this our expedition against you is your own—

for you have taken and kept Prae- ^A -cauam, a city which is yours by no right, and recently you have also made incursions into Roman territory. Moreover, you do not cease to harass in war Iagonpesanes, our ally, and many other phylarchs in those regions. Yet you, as a man of understanding, ought to have considered that the Romans would never endure such insults, and that there remains for you, with God’s help, a manifold retribution to be paid for such deeds. Either, therefore, abstain from such transgressions, or prepare yourself immediately to withstand the Romans." ^B Such was the content of the letter. When the sultan received it and had read it through, he replied as follows: "We have received your letters, greatest Emperor, and we have indeed prepared ourselves even as you ordered. It remains for you to hasten your arrival, for it is not convenient for us to linger here with frequent and repeated embassies; the rest will be the concern of God and myself. Let the place for our meeting be Philomelion, where we have just now pitched our camp." Having sent this most arrogant reply to the Emperor, the sultan remained at Philomelion, where he had earlier pitched his camp, with the greater part of the Persian forces, but sent the rest to intercept the approaching Romans. ^C Not long after, they encountered the Emperor, who was near Acrounos, in a region where the place called Calograea hill is situated. Engaged in battle, they were utterly crushed and defeated, and fled with all speed to the sultan. Many others, including Chaires, a man of great reputation among the Persians, perished by Roman swords. Shaken in mind by this disaster, the sultan did not even care to reorganize his battle line or provide for the necessities of the place, but himself took to flight. When the Emperor learned of this, he desired to reproach him for both faults—that he had exceeded the bounds of audacity first, and then of fear—and sent him a letter to this effect: "It did not befit you, noble prince, who knew well that fear is in itself base, and becomes all the more base when ^D preceded by braggadocio, to conduct a war so sluggishly. Since, therefore, you are oblivious of your former resolve, and have neglected the things you wrote to our Majesty a short while ago—fleeing I know not whither—lo, we bring these things to your remembrance. Unless, therefore, you await our arrival at Philomelion as you have already promised us, the conclusion must surely be that your vaunted nobility and magnanimity have languished into very cowardly and ignoble behavior." Such was the essence of the letter. The Emperor, happening upon Philomelion, took it by storm and burned it entirely. Manuel restored to their original liberty some of the Romans who had long been held captive there. For the Persians, indeed, relying at first on their own strength, and thinking the Emperor was departing to another land, had given no thought to transferring these people. But when fear seized them, they neglected not only their captives, but their own possessions as well. When the letter was brought to the sultan, whether he was suffused with shame at the prince’s rebuke, or for some other reason unknown to me, he retreated and made for the region which the Persians call Andrachma, performing long marches, and there he pitched his camp. When the Emperor learned of this, having prepared his army in haste, he moved past the city of Adrianopolis—this

^A name extends even into Lycaonia—and in a certain region called Gaita, he pitched his camp. On the following day, since the two armies were not far apart, he drew up his battle line and proceeded forward; when he came to grips with the Persians, he engaged them. The Persians, initially unable to withstand the Roman onset, prepared to retreat. The Romans, pressing from behind, slew some and captured others alive. The Sultan, however, did not cease his flight until, struck with fear, he had thrown himself within the walls of Iconium. But even there, not yet feeling secure, he pondered these things in his mind: for he feared that if he allowed himself to be shut within the walls while the Romans besieged the city, there would be no means of escape left for him. Furthermore, weighing the uncertain outcomes of war and unsure which way fortune might incline, he thought it unwise to be confined in such a narrow space. And so, leaving a suitable number of soldiers for the defense of the city, he divided the rest into two parts. One part he ordered to stand behind the city on high ground; the other, which he commanded himself, he placed to the right, relying greatly on the position of the mountain that lies between Iconium and the fort of Caballa.

6. While these things were being done among the Persians, the Emperor reached Caballa, and there, moved by some strange impulse, he decided to attack the Sultan; but since he could not immediately discover in what position he was stationed, he checked his momentum for a short while. Then, instructed by the military experience in which he was most proficient, he realized that he ought to lead the column of soldiers to the right of the city, and he seized the standard-bearer by the bridle and immediately pulled him along. The Roman army was astonished at such an action, considering it a great marvel that he should wish to attack such great forces—which far exceeded his own in number—unexpectedly, and thus enter into the fray. For they were struck with terror because that enemy force was nowhere to be seen, and they supposed that those they did see were but the vanguard of the enemy troops, which ^{C D} [note: Du Cange's notes omitted as they repeat or index content].

^A *as is likely* were hidden by the woods, the Emperor, ^A observing them wondering, gently relaxed his expression: "Men," he said, "Romans, do not let this barbarian artifice disturb our shrewdness. Nor, because the standards happen to be absent from the army we see before us, should you suppose they are present elsewhere with another force. The Persians, I suspect, have no other detachment of their army left, and those signals of theirs are somewhere here in the thicket, hidden, that by the appearance of a multitude they might terrify us. Do not, therefore, stand in awe of the barbarian multitude, but rather despise their weakness; for truth is not accustomed to accompany imposture. But I shall go forth with the foremost of the ranks to engage them, while you must follow with the rest of the army in battle order, lest it happen that we fall into enemy ambushes."

Having said this, the Emperor charged against the enemy, claiming for himself the place on the left, as it was directly opposite the middle of the enemy’s line, where the greatest and best of the Persians happened to be. The Persians, I suppose, having had their spirit broken by the previous battles, as soon as they saw the Roman sword, abandoned their ranks and scattered in total disorder, each one having a great hurry to be the first to escape from there. And it was around this time that report brought word that the sultan was present. Romans, therefore, spent no small amount of time intent on the pursuit of the fugitives. And such was the state of affairs there.

Meanwhile, ^B the other part of the Roman army which, as has been said, was following in orderly ranks, at first, having unexpectedly fallen upon certain ambushes, began to give way. Then, as others attacked them from behind—as many as were holding the garrison inside [P 25] Iconium (for they having gained confidence by the fact that the Emperor was far from Iconium conducting the pursuit, had already sallied forth), as well as those who had stationed themselves behind the city, as has been mentioned—the army began to waver.

As soon as the Emperor heard this, he sent the forces with him at top speed against them; these were led by Pyrrogeorgius, a man of the greatest energy, who was later adorned with the dignity of primicerius of the court, and Churupus, ^C who was chosen from among the Emperor's ministers who serve the purple. Although they brought reinforcements, the battle line nonetheless continued to falter, as the military had already suffered. But the Emperor, who was extremely sharp at discovering and conjecturing what needed to be done, ^D observed that the matter should be handled by counsel rather than arms. He therefore summoned one of the soldiers, by the name of Bempitziola, who was a native of Adrianople, and ordered him to take the helmet from his head, carry it aloft in his hands everywhere, and proclaim in a loud voice throughout the army that the sultan had been captured. This stratagem immediately lifted the spirits of the Romans and blunted the force of the enemy, who had been pressing more fiercely. Thus, often with numerous...

^A troops, a prudent design has been more beneficial than, and the excellence of one man has proved more powerful than, many shields. But on that occasion, when night fell, they camped where they were; at dawn, he departed from there and pitched his camp near Iconium. When he had circled it and perceived that it was not easy to approach, and as the reports were increasing daily that the nations of the West were rising from their ancestral homes and moving in great numbers toward the Roman borders, he decided that a longer time and greater preparation than what was at hand would be necessary. He therefore refrained from the siege, and after burning and utterly destroying everything in his path, he marched away. It is said that when many of the Roman soldiers had insulted the Persian tombs before the city and had exposed a great number of corpses, the Emperor, even at such a critical juncture, not unmindful of his own greatness of soul, ordered that the ashes of the Sultan’s mother be kept inviolate, saying that to wise men a noble status—even an unfortunate one—should be revered. Accordingly, he sent a very courteous letter to the Sultan’s wife to the following effect: “Know that the servant of our majesty, the Sultan, is alive and still survives, having escaped the dangers of war.” She had in readiness about two thousand sheep, a great quantity of oxen, and many other foodstuffs with which to receive the Emperor; but when the Romans burned the suburban buildings, as we have mentioned, she was no longer able to carry out her plan. With these matters thus arranged, as the Emperor was preparing for his return, he wrote again to the Sultan to this effect: ^B “We have often sought you out, but have not yet found you. For you are always fleeing, and you slip away from us like a shadow. So that we may not seem to be fighting with a shadow, we are returning home, but in the coming spring we shall return to you with greater preparation. You should take care that even then you do not again adopt an ignoble flight.”

7. Such, then, were the letters on these matters. The Persians who inhabited the regions beyond the city of Iconium, where that Tanisman had ruled, had arrived to bring aid to the Sultan. These forces, having now joined him, emboldened him so that he no longer wished to flee as before. Instead, having arrayed his ranks, he pressed on to engage the Romans at a place known by the barbarian name Tzibrelitzeman, to which they had already arrived. This place is, if any ever was, difficult to access, and scarcely passable not only for an army drawn up for battle, but even for a few men marching. While the soldiers were busy fortifying the camp, the Emperor, who was ^C more intensely spurred on by the vigor of his age, and who had a little earlier taken a wife from the Latins...

^A, decided to prove his own strength by some military exploit in accordance with their custom. For to a Latin man who has recently wed a wife, it is no insignificant disgrace if he does not appear to show some proof of his worth. He therefore placed ambushes in two valleys; one he formed from those who were kin and closest to him by blood, among whom were many of his most intimate friends and those who were married to his sisters, while the other was formed from two military cohorts, commanded by Nicholas ^B, nicknamed Angelos, a man of nimble hand and renowned for his bravery. He ordered them all to remain there in silence until they saw him riding against the enemy. With difficulty, heeding the requests of his brother Isaac and John, the Domestic of the East and West 73, he departed with them to a certain place where he had observed some Romans scattered about for the purpose of collecting fodder. Concealing his armor there so that he might not be recognized by the Persians from the contrast, he waited for any Persians who might—as was likely—come to cause mischief to the foragers. When no one appeared from any quarter, he sent for one of his Roman soldiers, a man Persian by race, Pupakes by name 74, a brave man otherwise and possessed of great energy, and ordered him to proceed further and to reconnoiter most carefully, in case he should see any Persians approaching from elsewhere. The man went off, and returning a little later, asserted that he had seen no more than eight Persians. Then the prince, leaving the others in the ambushes, as has been said, hastened with his brother and the Domestic toward them as quickly as he could, with Pupakes pointing out the way. But his kinsmen, because they had been held in no account, were filled with such indignation that they bound themselves and all who were present by the most fearful oaths that, even if he were to order it, they would never again fight alongside the Emperor. The Emperor did not attack the Persians he had seen until they had gathered in the number of eighteen. Since, therefore, he wanted and was eager to attack them immediately, lest they be more lightly equipped and take flight; and since he could not ^C

^A engage them at close quarters while still standing at a distance, he conceived the following plan. He ordered Pupaces, who was in the closest proximity to them, to take flight with all his might as soon as he perceived them approaching, until he should arrive near him. Pupaces carried out the order; and when the Barbarians had already begun to pursue, he began his flight. He did not, however, accelerate his pace entirely, but by always offering them the hope of overtaking him, he thus drew them on until they were near the Emperor; yet the Emperor did not attain his objective. For as soon as they saw him, having turned their horses more quickly than words can describe, they rode off. But when they had joined fifty others who were coming on behind them, they took heart from the multitude and now reckoned that they would withstand this man as he approached.

Although many of those around him did not approve of the undertaking (for they said ^B that they were already far from the army), he nevertheless pursued them with loose reins, sparing no effort. For a time, the Sebastocrator was also with him and followed the fleeing enemy on horseback; but when his horse was already exhausted and he could no longer proceed further, he stopped where he was. Having now despaired of his own safety, he earnestly entreated his brother to take care of his wife and children. But he, becoming angry with his brother and reproaching him for his fear, said: "Brother, most dear, do you imagine that I would leave you in the hands of the enemy while I am still alive? Do not, I beseech you, think or speak so unworthily of me." Then he said: "Wait, therefore, until I engage the Barbarians with you." But the Emperor said: "After the battle has commenced, I will return to you as quickly as God grants. ^C For the moment, other things occupy my mind, and I am gripped by an intense desire to perform some glorious feat." Having spoken these words to his brother, he charged against the enemy.

Such were the events concerning the Emperor. But those who had been stationed in the hills, as has been mentioned, sent one of the magnates, by name Coterzes, with all speed to learn the outcome of the Emperor's attempt. But the Emperor sent him back to them, ordering them to come with the utmost haste. He had just passed a neighboring hill when he encountered an entire Persian army, numbering about five hundred, behind which, not far off, the Sultan was marching with his whole force. ^D As soon as he saw them, he immediately leveled his spear and charged against the enemy, and after striking many, he cast them to the ground. They, as though fallen into a state of speechlessness, stood trembling. While this was happening, the Roman forces, which, as has been stated, were filling the ambush, appeared nearby, having been summoned by the Emperor. The Persians, encountering them, ordered a portion of their army, which had detached itself and arrived behind the Emperor, to stand in the way of the approaching Romans; for they imagined they now had him enclosed within a net. While they were thus arranging their ranks, the Emperor, leaning on his spear which he had fixed into the ground, gave orders to Pupaces, who was then with him, to take diligent care that the Persians should not hinder the Romans from the adjacent hill; for in this way, surely, every path of exit would be cut off against him. But Pupaces, rejecting the Emperor’s counsel, said: "Cease, I say, cease; do you not see,"

into what evils we are rushing? Do you at length remember your own safety?" ^A Since he kept crying out these and many other things of this kind, once he had persuaded him of nothing, he carried out his orders. For, because the Emperor did not think he could abandon the place without disgrace, he refused to give ear to warnings of this sort. Advancing once more against the enemy, he struck terror into the others by killing one of them. With his courage thus increased, he made for a hill, to which others of the Romans also gathered, and before all others, John, the son of his brother, whom he later honored with the dignity of sebastocrator. Thus, liberated from danger, the prince departed from there, as his horse was sweating excessively and panting hard. John, the Domestic, having been left behind the Emperor entangled with the enemy, fearing that he might fall into their power as they kept coming up in squadrons—since no hope of aid was otherwise present—meditated a pretext, though it was not entirely sound, for the sake of his safety in these straits, saying that the place where he then stood was most opportune, and that it was necessary for those wishing to betake themselves to the King to gather especially at that location. Having therefore detained ^B many of those who were proceeding from the camp to the prince, he was saved by their help and came to the Emperor. John and other Romans, however, condemned the Emperor’s audacity, because it approached more closely to rashness. To me, indeed, as I contemplate these things, it comes to mind to wonder in what manner, having been occupied in the midst of dangers, he was neither wounded nor harmed on that day. Or whether it was because, by performing many deeds bravely against the Barbarians, he had given not a few proofs of his nobility until then, he was not at all attacked by them; or whether divine Providence surrounded him and protected him, in ways known to Him alone, I would not dare to define clearly. I, indeed, just as I do not at all praise that deed, so I would not dare to commend the audacity of Alexander, if whatever was done by him is viewed without regard to fortune, and nothing is attributed to youth. For youth is an invincible thing; and when it is supported by strength and ^C courage of spirit, it cannot be overcome at all: but let each person think and write about these things as he pleases. The prince, therefore, having been rebuked by his own men, as has been said, said: "These things are of no help at present: rather, we must see to it above all that more of our men do not perish today, since many are still coming, left behind in the rear." Thus, it was decided to set an ambush there in the nearest valley, to bring aid to those coming behind, while the rest slowly returned to the camp. These things having been arranged, the Emperor proceeded further with a few of his men. Nicolaus, however, whom I mentioned above, remained in the ambush with two cohorts, over which he had been placed by the prince as soon as he moved against the Persians. Nor had he proceeded far, when, upon reaching a certain valley, he caught sight of the approaching Persians. Therefore, taking a few of those who were with him, he occupied a part of the valley; he ordered the rest to climb the hill, and ^D

^A quietly to proceed toward the camp. Such was the state of affairs then. The Emperor, with a few of those around him, moved forward, while Nicholas, whom I have already mentioned, was left behind in ambush with two phalanxes, just as the Emperor had ordered when the first assault of the Persians was launched under his command. But the Emperor had not yet gone very far when, arriving at a defile and seeing the Persians approaching, he acted as follows: he stood on one side of the gorge with a few of his men, and ordered the others to cross over and move directly against the enemy. No sooner did they move against the Barbarians than those in the ambush, sensing this, came to their aid at a run. Nicholas, whom I have already mentioned, struck a Persian with his spear, but was unable to knock him from his saddle, as the blow was somewhat weakened by the steepness of the terrain. So, that he might not push them further away by maneuvering, he ordered those with him for the time being to rein in their horses up to the gorge, but not to cross it. The Persians, realizing this, retreated quietly. Meanwhile, the archers who were with Colertzes—sent by the Emperor, as has been said, to provide support for those of the Romans who had been left behind—had now joined the Emperor, and he thus engaged the enemy in battle once more. But they, suddenly turning their reins, began to flee. The Emperor, seeing this, said to his men, "Take courage, for the force from the camp is coming to us." ^B But some who would not listen to his words said, "The Persians, not being moved by any fear (for we have not yet proven equal to them in strength), are suddenly turning their backs and departing in this way; it is certainly because, being stationed on a height, it is possible for them to see what was hitherto hidden from us, that is, our own movements." And indeed, he had conjectured the truth most accurately. For the Romans who were at the camp, having learned that the Emperor was being surrounded in a narrow place, were hastening with all speed to bring aid. Now it is said that the Sebastokrator Isaac, the Emperor's paternal uncle, who was present in the camp at that time, when he learned of the situation regarding the Emperor and that he was in extreme danger, went into the imperial tent and, having established himself within the chapel fashioned from the furnishings, awaited the outcome of the event, hoping for the empire; for a long-standing desire to seize it had already gripped this man, and it had grown and, as I might say, was nurtured with him, ^C and thereafter was transmitted to his children like a paternal inheritance. But these things will be recounted by us as the narrative proceeds. ^D 8. The Emperor (for I return to where I began this part of the narrative), having been emboldened by the numbers of the troops who had arrived from the camp, as I have said, joined with those who were with him and once again rode against the enemy; and having performed glorious deeds there...

Cornelius Tollius's Notes

having become the author of brave deeds, he arrived at the camp in good order. At dawn, he arose and set out on his journey. ^A Now the Persians (who happened to have encamped not far away) attacked the Roman army again, as it was in a difficult place, from both sides and pressed it hard; at which time, many of the infantry fell, and for the following reason. There was in the Roman army a man accomplished in the arts of war named Critoples. This man was in command of some infantry units at the time. Having broken out of his formation and engaged the Persians as they followed closely behind, he was at length surrounded by their numbers, openly fled, and with difficulty escaped with the loss of many of his own men. When the emperor learned of this, he entrusted the phalanx around him to his brother and several other kinsmen, and himself hastened with a few others to bring aid to those struggling. Therefore, throwing himself into their midst, he compelled them to stand their ground firmly and led them back against the Persians. Upon noticing this, they refused to continue fighting the Romans at close quarters. ^B The emperor began to be concerned about how he might restore the spirits of the Romans. For that infantry defeat had already begun to diminish their innate virtue; for nothing is so effective at shaking the spirit as the sight of the blood of one’s own people being shed at close range. Finally, he drew from his bosom a chart containing the names of all the regiments, and in such a crisis of affairs, he sent instructions to each individual regarding what they were to do. For a large portion of the soldiers, who did not wish to engage in continuous battles with the enemy, had already abandoned their ranks and retreated to the baggage train of the army, disregarding the emperor’s commands to such a degree ^C that, although some had previously been punished for this, the rest had almost no regard for what was happening. For an excessive love of life brings about the complete oblivion of virtue. Therefore, as those who were bringing up the rear were constantly joining those in front, the entire weight of the war fell upon the emperor and pressed upon him severely. But by military skill, while attacking the enemy in turn, he was able to pass through safely. At that time, it seemed best to the others to pitch camp where he was and to proceed no further; but this in no way pleased the emperor, for he thought that if they were to be overcome while in a state of confusion and disorder, it would turn out worse for the Romans, either immediately or certainly for those making preparations for their own difficulty in the year to come; but that it was better to ^D press the attack. With these words, although he perceived that not all agreed with him, he appointed Tzicandyles, Sinopites, Critoples, and several other commanders over the camp. He himself, seizing the imperial standard, rushed with his men with full force against the enemy, and after wearing them out with frequent charges, he finally put them to flight.

^A Since the pursuit was drawn out, the Romans, pressing from the rear, killed many and captured some alive. Among these was Pharcusas, a man of great name among the Persians, who used to serve the cup to the sultan while he reclined. The Romans call him the cupbearer. There was also a certain man in the barbarian army who was of Roman descent but had been raised and nurtured among the Persians; by chance, he had recently received from them a certain province to govern during these times, and his name was Gabras. After the Romans killed him on that day, they brought his severed head with them into the camp. The Emperor, since it was already deep night, did not pursue the fugitives any further but returned from there with the trophies. Finding the Romans in a state of great confusion and devoid of any order (for they had not yet even taken the burdens from the backs of their pack animals), he rode around the camp immediately and assigned to each unit its proper place. But not a few of the soldiers passed the night on horseback, because they were so crowded and pressed together that they were unable to dismount. Thus, then, that night was passed. ^B With the sun just now beginning to bring its face back to the earth, the Emperor rode into the middle of the army and, as is the custom for those who command military units, spoke in this manner: "Brave men, it is not because I have detected any cowardice in your spirits or any other sort of sloth that I come to exhort you to virtue and boldness—far be it that Romans should be degenerate and tarnish the glory acquired by their ancestors—but that I might uphold the custom familiar to commanders and make you the more resolute against future dangers. For misfortune that comes unexpectedly can sometimes disturb even the strongest mind. Know, therefore, fellow soldiers, that a war awaits us today far greater than those that have preceded it, and this is as it were the final and ultimate contest, which it is fitting to prepare for as well as possible, both on account of the earlier wars we have waged up to now, and so that our virtue, proven by so many distinguished deeds, might not be cheapened, and that we might provide ourselves with great advantages. For just as a more auspicious fortune subsequently amends a prior unhappiness, so a calamity that follows subverts a prior happiness. Therefore, lest anything of this kind befall us, most excellent men, we must endeavor above all that each one holds his own line and introduces this into his mind: that if these lines are kept properly and are not dissolved by us at all, and if, finally, each one contributes his own effort, we will certainly obtain victory and acquire glory that will be transmitted to our descendants. ^C Conversely, if it should happen that the lines are even in the slightest degree loosened and we are separated from one another, consider it certain that we will easily fall into the power of the enemy. For just as the breached sides of a besieged city provide an easy entryway for those storming it, so the matter stands in the camp and in an army deployed for battle. For by no other reason did the leaders of old devise ambushes, the arrangement of the battle line, the first or last rank, the right or left wings, the equal rows of ranks, and the structure of a line to be deployed. For an army is like a city: it has need of both gates, towers, and wide ^D thoroughfares, and there is a necessity that those matters of tactics remain entirely unbroken for us, and that each one brings his own contribution to the others, and that victory for us...

may be preserved, which will certainly abide for all men hereafter. But if, on the contrary, it should happen that we are divided from one another, know at once that we shall be easily overcome by the enemy. For just as the side of a besieged city being breached makes it easily accessible to the enemy, so too is it with armies. Indeed, for this reason, discourses and battle formations, rear and front phalanxes, the right and left wings, ^A files and battle shapes, have been devised by men of old. For an army is itself a kind of city. And it requires gates, and it requires sides, and it requires trenches, and all other order that corresponds to cities. We, therefore, must also prepare ourselves in this way. For we are still somewhere in the midst of the enemy’s territory and wandering far from the borders of the Roman Empire.” Having said these things and ordered the army in good array straight towards the lake, which formerly they called Sclerus’s, but in these present times they call Pungusa’s, he continued on his way. And when he was already in the plains and the army was established in ^B spacious ground after the previous narrowness, he commands someone from the soldiers to call out some Persian with a loud and far-reaching shout. He then did as he was commanded. And to the Persian who approached, the emperor [p. 33] said: “Report these things to the sultan: ‘The great emperor sends you this through me: We have come even as far as Iconium itself; we have traversed your country, most eager to avenge the offences committed against our Empire. But you, like a fugitive, were always slipping away into other lands after other lands, nor did you dare to await our sight. Since, therefore, we are now departing to our own lands, it is fitting for you to prepare yourself for war as well as possible, and to know that as soon as spring appears, we shall come against you again with a greater ^C force.’” Having enjoined these things upon the Persian and gifted him with an officer’s cloak of some renown, so that it might be clear he had been sent by the emperor, he sent him away. The sultan, when he heard these things, a little later sent envoys to inquire about peace. But the emperor, weighing the matter as one of great moment and by no means to be slighted, while he passed over various things, kept delaying from day to day to give answers to the envoys: until, I suppose, he should have heard something certain regarding those things from the West, which, as has been said above, were reported daily.

9. When he arrived at a certain place where the Maeander (75) makes its outlet, ^D deeming himself now to be outside the range of the enemy, and seeing the place to be well-watered and otherwise providing much delight to the eyes of men, he wished to soothe the toils from the battle with the relaxation of hunting. Sensing, therefore, some movement about the thicket from afar, and because he could not, on account of the great distance, discern what was appearing, he sent some of those about him to scout. He heard that many tents had been gathered there, and that the things disturbing the horses in the grove were the horses of those in the tents.

Du Cange’s notes. (75) Maeander. Tyrins, book XVI, ch. 24: “He encamped above its banks in pleasantly green pastures.” Add *Gesta Ludov.* VII, ch. 11.

Cornelius Tollius’s note. (r) Files and battle shapes. What is *to stoichein* in an army, is known. Aelian in his *Tactics*, ch. 25: It is said to be "to wheel/to be in file," when individual men in their own decuria stand in a straight line, keeping equal distances from one another, from the *lochagos* (file-leader) and the *ouragos* (file-closer).

^A They found them grazing upon the grass with voracious mouths. The Emperor recognized immediately that the people present were Persians; having named the tribe, he identified a certain Raman as their leader, stating that, according to their custom, they had come after having pillaged the neighboring Romans and filled themselves with booty. He immediately ordered a picked detachment of soldiers to set out and pursue them, while he himself, with a few men, ascended a higher vantage point to observe what was happening. Meanwhile, the Persians, having gathered their baggage, prepared to return. But as soon as they perceived that they were about to be caught by the Romans and saw them rushing toward them with great impetus, they turned and stood their ground ^B face-to-face. But when the Romans pressed them, they retreated again; and as this trick was repeated many times, it caused many of the Romans to grow weary, whence, giving up the pursuit, they thought of turning back. When the Emperor noticed this (for he was standing at a height, as I have related, observing the outcome of the action), he spurred his horse as fast as he could and, without his breastplate, rushed toward them. In the meantime, when the Persians saw that many of the Romans, discouraged by the pursuit (as I said) and separated from each other, were few in number, they circled them on all sides, and already it wanted little but that they would have destroyed them completely had not the prince unexpectedly appeared and saved them from the danger. ^C He spent a great deal of time in the pursuit of the fleeing Persians; which is why, when he realized his horse was failing, he stopped for a little while until another of the swifter horses could be brought to him, which, to signify its speed, they called *Agrimen*. He commanded the Romans who were following behind, one by one and scattered, to press on more keenly and not to relax their ardor. Some, indeed, after a long pursuit having accomplished nothing, and seeing that the region they had reached was deserted and difficult to traverse, turned back. But the prince, encountering his cousin Andronicus, of whom we have said much in the preceding pages, who was pressing toward the enemy, forced him to give up his horse, which he himself was riding, and told him ^D to wait there until that *Agrimen*, which was just about to be brought, could be obtained, and so to accompany him into battle; meanwhile, he himself set out against the enemy. The Persians had divided their forces in two. The first part consisted of that portion of their horses—which usually follows them in herds without trappings—which preceded them. The rest of the army marched in the rear, to receive the attacking Romans. But when no Roman appeared, they became bolder, gathered all together, and drew up that herd of horses, which, as I said, roams more freely, into one place; but as soon as they saw the Emperor alone, and not wearing his breastplate, advancing against them, they all rushed upon him in a body and attacked him with arrows, inciting one another in turn to bravery. But he, with a heroic and generous spirit more than renewed, after he realized that he could with difficulty be surrounded by the enemy (the location... [index: entries preserved]

lying along the other side from the feet had been settled for them), he accepted the engagement, and having cast most of them upon their faces, he forced the rest to turn to flight. At which time one of those Barbarians, not enduring the vigor of the Emperor, and having for that reason thrown himself supine upon the ground, since he perceived him riding further ahead, having released a dart, hit the very tip of his foot from behind, where after the ankles nature, receding towards the heel, creates a projection. And while he was hurrying to send a second, the Emperor, having anticipated him, seized the momentum of his hair alive, and with him riding towards the camp, he met Andronicus. For the imperial horse having already been brought to him, he also himself was pushing against the Persians, and ^B prohibiting many things in the forward march, since he himself was also altogether unarmed, since he could not persuade him (for this man was also driven by boundless daring and breathed of battles, having handled the spear and the shield skillfully, which he did not use as his own but chanced upon, having taken them from one of the magnates), he released him to travel; and he, continuing on his way, joined the rest of the Roman army. And to those inquiring how things had turned out for him in the war, going alone of all against the Barbarians, he reported nothing concerning the slaughter of the enemies—whom, as has been said, he happened to have killed—wishing to avoid the suspicion of ignoble boasting. For a feat ^C that has not come under the eyes of those who do not wish to hear it favorably is easily twisted into a reversal. However, he ordered the wound to be attended to immediately, so that, should inflammation supervene, nothing incurable might happen; whereupon a thing worthy of mention took place. For, since they did not have the means to treat it, a certain soldier, having drawn a dagger, intended to cut away a part of his own flesh so that, applying it still warm to the wound, he might thus drive off the inflammation. But the Emperor, having praised the man for his goodwill, indeed refused this, but ordered that a piece of flesh be cut from one of the horses that were exhausted by the journey and applied ^D immediately to the wound. From there, having extended a long journey until roughly the middle of the night, he arrived at the camp situated at the outlets of the Meander, where much and boundless water flows from the rocks along the foothills as if issued from ten thousand mouths; the surrounding area, overflowing, forms first into a lake, and then, moving forward, it cuts a deep trench and from there creates a river. And Andronicus, as has been said, having gone in front, did nothing else, but drove to the camp many horses of those whom the Emperor had slain. These things, then, occurred in this way. And the Emperor, having set out on his return toward Byzantium,

having arrived in Bithynia, settled there some of those from Philomelium, as has been said before, who had been rescued, exchanging for them a small property of one of the sacred cloisters; where he also rebuilt a fortress and named it Pylae.

10. At this same time, Cosmas, who then managed ecclesiastical affairs, a man illustrious for the integrity of his life and the gravity of his speech, was deposed from the throne for the following reason. There was a man who had adopted the monastic life, Niphon by name, who had not even tasted liberal studies and human sciences with the tips of his lips, although from childhood he had been imbued with the sacred scriptures. This Niphon, while Michael—a man pious and distinguished in virtue—was managing the ecclesiastical throne, having given many grounds for suspicion regarding himself as not holding sound beliefs concerning the Christian faith, and for this reason having been condemned by a synodal judgment, had his beard shaved even down to his ankles and was committed to prison. But when Michael had departed this life and Cosmas had succeeded to the throne in his place, Niphon immediately resumed greater freedom of speech and was very active in assemblies and in the marketplaces, and he did nothing else but constantly keep overturning dogma and rejecting the God of the Hebrews. And he wished to busy himself with such things; and Cosmas loved the man exceedingly, and kept him as a companion, and was accusing the decrees previously passed against him of injustice, although even then, having acted rashly on behalf of the man, he had nevertheless been rebuffed most bitterly; and he would praise him as nearly divine for his virtue, and would add to his words that he had happened to predict to him long before his ascent to the episcopal throne. These things did not please many; whence some of them, who were concerned primarily for the safety of Cosmas, approaching him privately: "Why, oh divine shepherd," they said, "do you entrust yourself to a wolf? Do you not see that for this reason you are despised by the flock? Withdraw from this ruinous association. For cohabiting with a man interdicted by the sacred canons is a sufficient accusation in itself." These and similar things they urged upon him. But those who hated the patriarch cried out publicly and called upon the eyes of God and the Emperor. He, however, disregarded these things entirely, but clung to Niphon with tenacity, nor would he let himself be torn away from him even if some harm were to ensue; and indeed, he failed to notice that he was incurring great calamities through his excessive simplicity. For when at one time the Emperor had ordered the man to be committed to prison again, and those who were to lead him away were present, at first the patriarch almost lost his voice, but then, having composed himself, he walked even to the courtyard of the temple and attempted to snatch the man from those carrying him off. And when they would not yield, he wished to be dragged along with him to the prison. From this arose contentions in the Church, with Cosmas himself being called into judgment, nor was it freed from such tumults until the Emperor, whom military affairs had detained until this day, returned to Byzantium. For then he fell from the throne, in the way which I am about to relate shortly. But first, having addressed the prelates separately, ^D

^A he inquired how Niphon appeared to them in terms of piety. And as each one standing by him was declaring what was on his mind with truth, at length he turned his questioning toward Cosmas. He, as was his habit, immediately improvised an extensive eulogy of Niphon, openly calling him pious and incomparable in virtue. This was placed on the record; and the emperor once again asked the prelates, no longer one by one, but asking all of them collectively what their opinion of Niphon ever was; and they declared the man to be openly impious. Such then was their opinion. The emperor then, turning his speech toward Cosmas, said, "But what, my lord, might you yourself think about the man?" And as he, with simplicity and yet again with boldness, maintained these things, the multitude made an outcry, and deemed it by no means proper for him to remain on the throne. ^B And so, for these reasons, he was removed from the midst, a man who, save for his simplicity, was, I suppose, endowed with all other blessings.

11. A little later, the emperor was again marching against the Persians. Upon reaching the river Rhyndacus, he prepared to lay siege to Iconium and to harry all the surrounding areas with incursions. Yet he had not yet moved his forces from there, when envoys arrived from the sultan to treat for peace. The mission was led by a man of great power among the Persians, named Soliman, a man distinguished for his vast experience in military matters, who had long since tested the emperor's strength—since, as I have written above, he had clashed in battle with the Roman army at the hill called Calograea and been utterly defeated. ^C The intent of the embassy was as follows: they were to return the city of Pracana to the emperor, along with everything else they had taken from the Romans; and thus there would henceforth be peace between the Persians and the Romans. Having accepted these conditions and dissolved the war, the prince returned to Byzantium.

12. From here, affairs in the West had their beginning. For the Celts ^D and the Germans and the race of the Gauls, and—

West, had been set in motion, in pretext ostensibly so that they might cross from Europe into Asia to fight the Persians at close quarters, and to reach those places in Palestine and to visit the holy sites; but in truth, the cause of this expedition was to invade and occupy the Roman lands ^B and to trample underfoot whatever lay in their path. Their army was immense. When the Emperor learned that they were very close to the borders of the Hungarians, he sent envoys, namely Demetrius Macrembolites, and one Alexander, an Italian by race 82, who had formerly been a count of the Italian city of Gravina, and who, having been stripped of his lands and other possessions by the tyrant of Sicily, had on that account deserted to the Emperor. He instructed them to investigate their intentions carefully; ^C and if they claimed they had not come to the detriment of the Romans, to confirm this with oaths. The envoys, therefore, having been led to the leaders of these Barbarians, spoke as follows: "To wage unannounced war against those who have done no wrong ^D is neither holy nor, in any other way, becoming to men who are most heavily endowed with the distinction of birth and the abundance of power. For if you happen to win, you will not win with courage, and if you are defeated, you will not be seen to have risked yourselves for the sake of virtue. Both are unworthy of praise. It will in no way be permitted for you to tread upon the lands of the Romans without first giving, and the Emperor receiving, guarantees that you will do no harm. Therefore, if you do not intend to perjure yourselves, why do you not wage war openly? For even to struggle with the Romans directly will be difficult for you. But if you also wage war against them with perjury, it will be by far more difficult; for you are left to fight against God and the strength of the Romans. But if your friendship is true, and no deceit lies hidden, once you have confirmed the matter with oaths, it will be permitted to pass through the land of the great Emperor as friends, enjoying hospitality as is fitting, and every other kindness." The envoys said these things; and they, having gathered in the tent of Conrad the king of the Germans 83, as one who held the leading place among the Western nations, the envoys of those who had the lot of the Western portion, for the ill of the

Romans, they declared, had they in no way come, and if it were necessary they would confirm this matter with oaths; this, too, they asserted most readily that they would do. For they directed their impetus toward Palestine against the Persians who were plundering Asia. It seemed good, then, to the Romans, that they should turn these words into action, as many as were among them, both kings and others who were of note—I mean dukes and counts. Now these are special hierarchies, and, as it were, certain divisions descending from the height of the imperial power, which is the most universal and surpassing of all other things. For a duke has climbed above a count, and a king above a duke, and an emperor above a king. And the lesser inferior by nature always yields to the one beyond it ^A, and shares in his war [(84)], and obeys him in such matters. For this reason, it is the custom for the Latins to call the one who is beyond, the emperor, hinting at his supreme power, and those who have obtained the second order, kings. But let this be set apart in this way. When the business for which the envoys had come to the Barbarians had been accomplished, they themselves were conveyed back to Byzantium, but the kings remained on their path. The armies, however, did not mix with one another, but the Alemannus proceeded first, and the German [(85)] ^B followed at a great distance behind, I know not for what reason [(86)] they practiced this; whether because each one was ambitious to be considered equal to the task on his own, or because they were taking forethought that the necessary supplies should not fail them. Yet they were countless, and more than the sand by the sea. Xerxes did not pride himself on so many myriads when he bridged the Hellespont with ships. For when they had reached the Ister, the emperor, having made things ready for their crossing there, commanded the majority of his secretaries to stand on the other side of the river and record the load of each ship. ^C When they had counted, therefore, as far as ninety [(87)] myriads, from that point they were unable to continue the count.

13. Such then was their multitude. And when they had approached the city of Naissus, which happens to be the metropolis of the Dacian cities, there, the one who was entrusted by the emperor with the authority over that region, Michael, surnamed Branas, was providing for...

their needs, since he had been so ordered. Now, they were in these conditions as far as Sardica, to which place two men of illustrious rank also came to them, to greet them as was fitting and to ensure that provisions were supplied to them. One of them was Michael, a sebastos of the Palaiologos family, a man sufficiently prudent and experienced in many affairs, who for some crime I know not had previously been sent into exile by the Emperor John, but had been recalled by Manuel, and who thereafter became most devoted to him and to the affairs of the Romans. Such was he. The other was a chartulary ^A who had served both emperors. To such a degree, indeed, had he been most kindly disposed toward the Emperor John that, when it happened that Alexius, the eldest of his sons, departed this life, the emperor bade him summon Manuel after his own death to the scepter and entrust the empire to him. They reached Sardica for these purposes. But the Barbarians, as long as they were in difficult terrain (for many steep and almost inaccessible mountains rise up from the river Ister as far as Sardica), marched quietly, and nothing was done by them that was displeasing to the Romans. But after they reached the plains, where the difficulties of the regions around Dacia begin, then at last they revealed their hostile spirit. For they were laying unjust hands on those who were offering wares for sale, and if anyone resisted these plunderers, they immediately cut him down with the sword. Although these things were being perpetrated, King Conrad was nevertheless unmoved, and if there were any who complained, he would not offer them his ears; or if he did listen, he attributed it to the petulance of the multitude. After these matters reached the emperor, he sent Prosuch, a man distinguished for military valor, with an army quickly gathered against them. He, having overtaken the Barbarians near ^B Adrianople, at first followed them at no great distance, and from time to time restrained the excursions of those wandering about in disorder. Finally, when he saw that they were exceedingly ferocious, he even joined battle with them openly, on such an occasion as this. One of the more distinguished Alamanni, having taken ill in body, had taken refuge in some sanctuary in the city of Adrianople with money and all other equipment. Some of our Roman soldiers from the infantry ranks, scenting this out, set fire to the dwelling and consumed the sick man himself, and thus got possession of the money. When this matter came to the ears of Frederick ^C, the nephew of Conrad by his brother, a man of incredibly fierce temper, vehement in impulse, and of a very haughty spirit, he swiftly returned to Adrianople, getting ahead of Conrad by a journey of two days, and set fire to the monastery in which the Alamann had first lodged, and thus gave occasion for war to the Romans and to his own people alike. Therefore, Prosuch, on that account, Frederick... ^D

having come to blows with him, routed him and wrought great slaughter upon the Barbarians. This Frederick was the one who, after Conrad, ruled the Alamanni, for a reason which shall be told in the subsequent narrative. Thenceforth the Alamanni abated their former arrogance, having been taught by experience the strength of the Romans.

14. While these events were taking place, Andronicus, whom they also called Opus, having been sent by the emperor to settle these matters, reminded them of the oaths and the agreements previously made to the effect that they would in no way wrong the Romans; he reproachfully laid their perfidy before them and, unless they wished to fall into manifest disaster, advised them to go to the strait of Abydos ^B and cross over from there. But since he had persuaded them of nothing, he returned to Byzantium having accomplished nothing. They, having gathered a council to deliberate on the state of current affairs, decreed that they should press on to Byzantium, and they set out on their journey from that place. Nor did those men relax their former arrogance at all, which the losses they had previously sustained had not broken. For they slaughtered the livestock with impunity, and slew many of the Romans who resisted them; nor was the fighting any longer conducted in clandestine fashion. ^C When the emperor heard this, he determined that he too must prepare his forces. He immediately garrisoned the city of Constantine with his army, one part of which stood watch before the walls, while another part had its station within the city gates. He sent Basil, surnamed Tzicandyles, who had achieved great fame for his name in military exploits and battles against the Barbarians dwelling in the East, together with Prosuch, whom I mentioned just now—a man by birth a Persian, yet one who had worn Roman customs from childhood—to a certain place named Longi, along with forces to be placed in ambush, with instructions given to them that if the Alamanni should again begin their plundering, they ^D should attack them as the terrain permitted. When they arrived at the place, they observed the multitude of the Alamanni and carefully reconnoitered how the camps were proceeding, whether in order or in disarray. They noticed that their bodies indeed were of extraordinary size and thoroughly suited with armor, and that their cavalry was by no means swift; but seeing them employing great disorder on the road, they assessed that the army could easily be defeated by the Romans if they would only engage with military skill; meanwhile, they decided the prince must be informed, and his opinion sought. And he, while he viewed the plans of the Barbarians with a calm mind still...

and indeed suspicious of that pretense—I mean their feigned journey toward Palestine—delayed the undertaking for this reason, expecting that they would manifest some clearer sign of rebellion. Thus did the Emperor view the matter.

The Barbarians, meanwhile, continuing on their way, once they had passed into the plains near Choerobachus 92—for the ground there slopes downward and provides very abundant grass for the grazing of horses—encamped there. Here, it is said, a disaster befell them surpassing account, from which one might reasonably conjecture that the Divine was angered at them, because they had violated their oaths and had acted with great inhumanity toward men who were their co-religionists and had done them no harm. ^B For a tremendous downpour 95 having broken forth suddenly, the rivers that flow past that place—the one named Melas by the locals, and the other Athyras—swelling far beyond their accustomed measure, flooded the plain and swept away a large part of the Alamanni army, along with the horses themselves and their arms, and even their tents, carrying them along toward the sea. When the Emperor learned of this, moved with compassion for men, he sent those distinguished by their rank to comfort Conrad in his calamity and to invite him to a parley, that they might confer together on matters of greater moment. But he, in no way relaxing his haughtiness, demanded that the Emperor should come to meet him as he advanced toward Byzantium, judging his own status by such and other similar tokens. Whereupon the Emperor, condemning his immoderate arrogance, thereafter neglected the man. ^C Conrad, meanwhile, continued toward Byzantium with all his forces and arrived at the imperial palace that lies opposite the city walls. They call it the Philopatium 94—either because they signify by this name that it is a place for an agreeable sojourn, for it provides a certain relaxation and relief from cares to those who retire there from the tumults of the city—or because it is planted with trees and shrubs, and is everywhere most pleasant with the abundance of green growth. From there he proceeded to contemplate the circuit of the city, having seen the towers rising to a suitable height, and having examined the moats which girded the walls with immense depth, the highest...

^A admiration took hold of him; especially when he observed a crowd of women and men standing unarmed and idle on the exterior ramparts. For of those who were accustomed to the labor of war, some were keeping watch inside the city walls, while others stood outside the perimeter, waiting to see if the Alemanni (the Germans) would be the first to engage. When, therefore, he comprehended these things, and instantly grasped that the city—which in truth possessed an abundance of strength—remained unfrightened, he withdrew from there. He crossed the bridge, which traverses the river that flows into the sea, if one might call it so, and ^B arriving quickly at the suburb opposite Byzantium, which is called Pteridium. The shape of the adjacent bay is such: the Euxine Sea, as it pours to the right for those sailing in, turns toward the west, creating a long harbor for the Byzantines. A certain river, flowing from some point above, descends through the surrounding fields, and not far from Byzantium, at the head of the port, it falls into the same, and joins the sea where the bridge has been constructed.

15. And these things are thus. Conrad, having arrived at that place, sent letters to the Emperor, which contained something languid and effeminate, and their meaning was as follows: "It is fitting, Emperor, for a prudent man not to look at the actions themselves, but to pay heed to the purpose for which they are committed. For he whose mind is preoccupied often ^C fails to praise what is good, and fails to censure what appears vicious. Sometimes it also happens that one receives an unintended benefit from enemies, and from friends, harm. Therefore, do not cast upon us the blame for those things which were recently perpetrated in your fields by the undisciplined multitude of the army, nor should these things trouble your spirit toward us; for we are by no means the cause, but the impulse of an inordinate multitude, carrying itself everywhere, knows how to commit these things of its own accord."

Du Cange's notes

(95) *In great admiration.* With similar wonder, our Franks and Venetians, as Villiarduinus writes, were struck when they first arrived at the city: *Or poes savcir que mult esgarderent Constantinople cil qui onc mais ne l'avaient veue, que il ne povient mie cuidier que si riche ville peust estre en tot le monde. Cum ils virent ces halz murs, et ces riches tours, dont ele ere close tot entor a la reonde, et ces riches palais, et ces haltes yglises, dont il i avoit tant, que nuls ne poist croire, se il ne le veist a l'oil, et le lone et le lé de la ville, que de toutes les autres ere souveraine. Et sachiez que il n'i ot si hardi, cui le cuer ne fremist.* [P. 441] Regarding the strength and height of the walls adjacent to the city of Constantinople, Gunther testifies the same in *Hist. Cpolit.* c. 15: "For the city is triangular, having on each side a great mile or more; on the side where it touches land, it is closed three times over by a vast trench and a very firm wall. It has towers in its circuit ^D that are high and strong, and placed so close to one another that a seven-year-old boy could throw an apple from one tower to another." Below, where he speaks of the sea walls: "On that side, since a trench could not be made because of the density of the port, which it has most safe and famous, the walls are high and of admirable thickness, and the towers are dense, brought to such a height that anyone who directs his gaze to their summits is struck with fear. Regarding the number of towers, see the description of Cpol. by Bondelmonti."

(96) *Crossed quickly.* Conrad departed and crossed into Asia, although the Byzantine Emperor had sought a colloquy and meeting with the Alemannic Augustus through his own men. But, says Odo of Deuil, "one feared to enter the city, another feared to leave; or did not wish to, and neither set aside his own customs or pride for the sake of the other." Hence, the Tyrian is refuted, who reports a familiar conversation held at Constantinople between Conrad and Manuel.

Cornelii Tollii notae

(u) *To the opposite of Byzantium.* Choniates on this same matter: *dwelling on the opposite shore, which is named Pteridium.*

(v) *A long harbor for the Byzantines.* Strabo calls such estuaries *limnothalattas*, as does Cinnamus in the following passages.

^A And the stranger, wandering in many places and running about, partly for the history of the land and partly for the acquisition of necessities, I think it is not at all unlikely that such faults should occur on both sides.” The Alamanni said such things. But the Emperor, considering the matter to be irony, replied as follows: “Our Majesty is not unaware that the impulse of the multitude has always been something difficult to govern and difficult to restrain. ^B It was certainly our concern how you, being foreigners and newcomers, might pass through our provinces without harm, since you neither promised to do us any injury nor were otherwise able to do so, lest we, by violating the right of hospitality, bring upon ourselves an ill reputation among men. But since to you, as men most prudent and most skilled in examining well the nature of things, such occurrences appear to be without blame, we also return our thanks. For we will no longer concern ourselves with how we might restrain the impetuous nature of our own multitude, but we will attribute these things to the thoughtlessness of the multitude, just as you, in doing well, have taught us. It will therefore be to your advantage no longer to travel the road in a scattered manner, nor to wander thus in a foreign land. Since, then, it has been so decided, and license is given to the multitudes of both sides to follow their own impulses, it is likely that the foreigners will suffer much from the natives.” Having said these things, he dismissed them, but since he knew well that the Roman army was inferior in number of combatants to that of the Barbarians, ^C yet so much the more superior in military science and constancy in battles, he conceived such a plan. He ordered Prosouch, Tzicandyles, and many other Roman generals to lead a sufficient army to stand against the Alamanni, but to draw up the battle line in this way: the more unwarlike and, as it were, the herd-like portion of the army was to stand further away, as if at a distance of four signs; after this, all the heavy-armed and cataphracts; next, those who mounted the swiftest horses; and finally, and facing the front, the Scythians together with the Persians and the Roman archers. When the Alamanni saw the forces arranged in this way, they rushed at them with great spirit and tumult, and with destructive speed; thus a fierce battle was joined, and a great slaughter of the Alamanni took place. For the Romans, receiving them as they approached with military skill, cut them down. ^D Conrad, not yet having learned anything of what had happened, still sat arrogant and swollen with great hope in his camp. But the Emperor, wishing to mock his former arrogance, sent him a letter with the following content: “Just as no one among us is ignorant that a horse which does not bear the bit is of no benefit to its rider, but rather more often carries him to precipices, so an army which refuses or neglects the commands of its leaders often exposes those same leaders to dangers: thus, in no way…

Cornelii Tollii Notae. That right of hospitality was once sacred to mortals and not to be rashly violated. Hence T. Q. Crispinus to Dadius Campanus, formerly his guest at Rome, but now attacking and provoking him: “Neither for himself, nor for the other, did enemies lack, among whom they might display their virtue; he would avoid him, even if he met him in battle, lest he stain his right hand with the slaughter of a guest”; apud Livium, 1. xxv, c. 18.

^A it was appropriate to be indulgent to our soldiers, so that we might permit them to clash with one another at their own discretion. But since you, while perhaps intending something else, first neglected these matters and induced our majesty—which had warned you regarding them as a friend—to use that same indulgence: now, finally, perceive what utility such license of the multitude has brought you. For I have received reports that a small band of Romans, having encountered a not-to-be-despised number of Alemanni, handled them badly. For it almost always happens that the indigenous inhabitants, and those born upon the soil itself, are far stronger than incomers and foreigners. Nor is it permitted to us to punish the insolence of the mob. For how could we, to whom we have once and for all yielded that they should act according to their own counsel? If, therefore, this also seems good to you, one must take hold again of the reins of the leadership and restrain the impulses of the troops. But if this does not seem right to you, these things must remain as they are for the present. Yet, let what has been done be clearly made known to us.

16. The affairs of the Emperor were ending in this manner. Conrad, meanwhile, not having yet heard the news regarding the defeat of the Alemanni, did not seem to have relaxed his former ferocity. ^B Indeed, he was demanding of the Emperor the imperial dromon and the customary triremes, which he might use for transporting his troops; and he threatened that if they were not brought immediately, he would surround the city itself with many thousands in the coming year. The Emperor, bearing this most unworthily, decided to respond to the arrogant man no longer with pleasantries, but with most bitter letters, as follows: ^C “Those who are not ignorant of what even small things can achieve are not accustomed to judge matters by quantity, but rather by their nature, and by those things which either abound in them or are lacking. For the athletes of Mars are not to be distinguished by number, but are to be weighed by virtue, toils, and skill in military matters. Although, therefore, a huge army follows you, and we have few troops, as they are distributed throughout the whole Roman Empire, that crowd of yours is unorganized ^D and for the most part ignorant of warfare. Flocks of cattle, even if they consist of many thousands, can scarcely sustain the assault of a lion attacking them. Do you not know that you have been like a little bird in our hands, doomed to perish immediately had we so willed it? Consider those regions inhabited by them whose ancestors traversed the entire world with wars, and ruled over you yourselves and all other nations under the sun. It is likewise necessary for you to know these things, and that neither will an imperial ship ever come to you, nor shall we grant any of those things you have requested; but you will have to return by the path by which you came, upon the feet of your horses. Nor shall we be blameworthy on that account, if we show ourselves less easy and benevolent to those who wish to inflict injury. For the things are furthest removed: to inflict injury and to repel it; the former depends upon a depraved will, the latter is urged by security. We, in fact, have long been beseeched by our subjects that the Romans might possess in quiet and without molestation those things which we have recently recovered from the neighboring Persians. What, therefore, we have not granted to our own suppliants, that we shall now immediately experience at your urging.” To these and

things, and at the same time having learned of the misfortune that had recently befallen the Germans—that a wretched little boat of his had been drawn up somewhere along the sea-shore, and that he had crossed the Damalis strait and arrived at the opposite coast more quickly, a certain barbarian negligence having driven the man—bestirred himself. For it is the nature of the barbarian, when things go well, to be lifted up and to boast beyond measure, but when things go ill, to be cast down and humbled more than is fitting. ^B The Emperor, wishing to bring down his pride even further, acted as follows: having sent some of the Romans to the German army that was moving along in the rear, he persuaded them, by giving them money, to abandon the good will which they had toward Conrad, as they were said to be superior in number. Conrad, having heard of this, was no longer that formerly haughty man. Having sent to the Emperor, he asked that one of the Romans might be sent to him, who could guide him on his way and convey him to safety. ^C Accordingly, he who held the office of the *acoulouthos* (97) for that day was sent to perform this service. He was also instructed to discuss an alliance with Conrad. Since it happens that the Romans and the Germans carry on war with a great difference in manner, he was to offer the Emperor [a proposal]: if he [Conrad] would be willing to share in the war against the Persians with the Emperor, he would receive much greater things in return; and concerning the two routes proposed to them, he might choose whichever he himself wished to take. Stephen therefore reported these things to Conrad. But he, having gathered his men for consultation, ^D flatly refused the military alliance. However, having decided upon the journey toward Philomelium, nothing untoward happened to him until he reached the town of Melangia and Dorylaeum. For then Hamplanes (98), a Persian, with a small force, attacked their leading detachments in order to test the enemy's strength and to learn what method they used for their battle formation. The Germans, therefore, when the Persians first appeared to them, no longer proceeded in orderly ranks; but, seized by anger and great confusion, they rushed against them. The Persians, as long as the Germans were not far from their own camp, turned their backs and feigned flight; but when the horses of those pursuing were exhausted and they had already reached a great distance from the camp, [the Persians], having turned their course, cut down the horses with their riders; and this being repeated many times struck excessive terror into the Germans. Then, finally, it was possible to see those who were lately ferocious and puffed up, and who had been attacking their enemies like wild beasts, now trembling and degenerate, having neither the spirit to act nor any room for counsel. But Conrad, as he was of marvelous daring in war, having advanced against the Persians, lost the very swift horses which he had received from the Emperor.

laying ambushes, they killed both the horses and the men themselves. And often this happened, casting them into an immeasurable terror. One could then behold those who were yesterday bold and arrogant, and who had attacked like untamable wild beasts, now cowardly and craven, neither able to accomplish anything nor even to take counsel. Indeed, this is what happened also to Conrad (for he was bold in matters of war) when he charged against the Persians; he had lost the horses which the Emperor had given to him—being, above all, swift of foot—and he himself had narrowly escaped being captured by those barbarians.

17 ^B The Alemanni, then, were in such a state. But the King of Germany (as it was reported that he had already crossed the Ister and was advancing further) no longer thought it proper to display such excessive ferocity, as Conrad had done; for he received with courtesy the legates sent to him by the Emperor—namely, Michael Palaiologos, whom they call *sebastos*, and Michael, surnamed Branas—and in their name he offered thanks to the Emperor. It was apparent that he would plot nothing further against the Romans; and whether he did this, having become wiser from the things that had befallen Conrad, or whether such was by nature the character of the man, I have no way to say. Nevertheless, he continued to enjoy, on account of this, a greater degree of the Emperor’s favor. And when he was already near Byzantium, he sent envoys to the Emperor further professing his friendship and agreeing ^C to cooperate with him in great undertakings; and if it were his wish that they meet together and converse in the palace, he was not willing to pass over this either. The Emperor heard these words not unfavorably, and with confidence commanded him to come. Now, as he was entering, men went to meet him, as many as, by birth or fortune, stood close to the Emperor, and those who held the highest offices at that time, escorting him magnificently into the imperial palace and honoring him as was fitting. And when he had already come inside the palace, where the Emperor was seated on a raised throne, a low stool was brought for him, which they call a *sellion*

^A, after he had spoken what was appropriate and heard the replies, he withdrew to the suburb in front of the walls, which is commonly called, as I have already mentioned, the Philopation, there to be lodged. A little later, he came with the Emperor to the palaces 7 situated in the southern part of the city, intending to inspect both the objects of wonder there and to visit the holy things in the temple built in that place; I mean those that are preserved as protective relics for Christians, having once been brought near the saving body of Christ. Having performed these duties in Byzantium and having given his oath that he would be a friend and ally to the Emperor for as long as he lived, he himself crossed over into Asia.

18. Meanwhile, as these things were going on, the Emperor raised to the patriarchal throne a certain Nicholas 9, surnamed Muzalon, who had previously belonged to the ecclesiastical registers, but who, after having obtained the throne of the Church of the Cypriots, had subsequently resigned it of his own accord. But as soon as he began to administer affairs, the voices of all were immediately raised against him, clamoring that he had occupied the throne unjustly, since he had already renounced his priesthood along with the church which he had obtained. At first, he was somewhat stubborn and would not by any means endure being removed from the throne; but when the case was brought to the Emperor for examination and he realized that it would go badly for him—not wishing to undergo trial a second time—he resigned from the throne and went off to live in private again. In his place, Theodotus 10, a man thoroughly trained in monastic practices, was appointed.

The Alamanni, in the meantime, as we have written above, having been repulsed many times by the Persians and having lost many of their own men, since they had already despaired of the crossing through Philomelion, were for the rest carried backward, and reached Nicaea 11. There they joined the Germans who were proceeding south. ^{B C D}

other armies that were being brought up, of which the one of the Czech nation 12—a king having been allegedly designated by Conrad—and the other of the Lechs 13—who are Scythian by race but inhabit the borders of the Huns—had taken command. Now, when the armies had come together in the same place, a certain phrase, which it was customary for the Germans to speak openly to the Alemanni from long before, was then put forward: "Pousse Aleman," 14 and this is how it stood, literally. I shall immediately explain whence such a thing had its origin. For the method of fighting is not the same among these nations. The Germans are most skilled at mounting a horse lightly and charging with a spear 15, and their cavalry surpasses the Alemannic in speed and dash; but the Alemanni are more capable of sustaining battle on foot and much more proficient in the use of the sword. Whenever, therefore, the Alemanni campaigned against the Germans, ^B knowing the nature of their cavalry, they decided to wage war on foot. The Germans, however, encountering their infantry with their own cavalry, would prevail over it; and by riding down the Alemanni more easily, they would rout them while they were on foot, even though they were greatly outnumbered by them; and by the aforementioned phrase, they mocked them, that although it was possible to fight on horseback, they chose to fight the war on foot. This indeed, as it has been said, being constantly leveled at the Alemanni by the Germans, caused them great distress. For this reason, therefore, and because the danger of being relegated to the second rank of the Germans ^C stood before them on the roads, as far as

^A Philadelphia, they continued their journey together; from there, Conrad, no longer able to endure being ignored by the Germans, determined to return. Indeed, he sent word to the Emperor and declared his intention. The Emperor, wishing to disengage the kings from one another and at the same time sympathizing with the man, sent the following: "To men who even to a small degree possess the capacity for wisdom, it is not customary to judge affairs by fortune, but rather by the very things themselves, stripped of any kind of contingency. Therefore, we did not decide—nor do we now—to treat you, when fortune favored you, with anything beyond your station, nor to hesitate to welcome you again when you have fared modestly, as we have done before, since it was our earnest desire to honor you, as a kinsman and a ruler of such great nations, and to offer you counsel on matters as they arose, both for the reasons stated and because we are brethren in the faith. But you, I know not how, have deemed what was to your own advantage of lesser importance and have chosen the inferior path. However, since things once done cannot be undone, let them be passed over for the time being; we must focus as much as possible on what is still within our power—that which has not yet escaped us. For the nature of things is such that they are in constant flux and never stand still; if someone secures them beforehand, he has the whole, but it is equally impossible to call back what has passed. Therefore, while your affairs still admit of some remedy, hasten to seize what is beneficial."

19. Conrad's return and stay in Constantinople

^A Having thus confirmed with a second oath the terms to which they had agreed, both he and Frederick departed from the land of the Romans. And so, matters regarding Conrad reached their end here. ^B Regarding the King of the Germans, who was returning from Palestine by sea—where many ships, sailing at anchor there, offer passage to those who wish it for a fee—certain events occurred. Sicilian ships, having previously set out to raid Roman lands, were at that time being carried elsewhere on the open sea. A Roman fleet, commanded by Churupes, happened upon these, and they engaged in battle. By some chance, the King himself [of the Germans] was sailing along with them as they were fighting. When the battle had already gone in favor of the Romans, he very nearly came to be captured [(18)], and for the following reason. Since, as has been said, he had intermingled with the Sicilian ships, he had disembarked and boarded his own Sicilian trireme; and if, having quickly recognized the danger, he had not signaled to one of the vessels allied with the Romans, he would undoubtedly have fallen into the hands of the Romans. As it was, after losing most of those who were with him, who were taken as spoils of war, he himself barely escaped with his life. But later, at the request of the Emperor, he released the captives and handed over all the plundered goods that had been brought into the territory of the Romans.

20. Conrad, having returned to his homeland, lived but a short time and died [(19)], having not yet fulfilled anything of what he had promised the Emperor. Frederick succeeded him in power. ^C From whence the authority of the Alamanni passed to Frederick after Conrad, my narrative will hereafter set forth. Henry, King of the Alamanni, having imprisoned his father while he was still alive, and having prevailed in war over the Bishop of Rome, was himself ^D everything. And here is the end of the Western nations.

[index: entries preserved]

^A Triggered, the Alemanni, once he had passed away, no longer deemed it right to concede the hegemony to his children (for he had sons, this Conrad and the father of Frederick); instead, they called upon a certain Lothair, an old man, to take the helm, and to him they gave sovereignty over the Alemanni. But they, being unable to endure being deprived of their ancestral rule, resolved to undertake revolutionary measures. When Lothair learned this—being an old man, accurately scrupulous in other matters, far advanced in age, and by nature ever inclined to kindness, knowing how to both speak and act only with simplicity—he agreed to pass the rule on to them when his due time should come. Consequently, when not long afterward he died, the succession falling to the eldest of the brothers, I mean the father of Frederick, he himself chose his brother Conrad in his own stead, though he was deprived of one of his eyes, ^B having previously agreed with oaths to transmit the rule to Frederick the son, whenever he himself should depart from life. Wherefore, as I have narrated, the dying Conrad placed the crown upon Frederick. In this manner, these things were done; and the Sicilian wars took their beginning from these events.

BOOK III

^C 1. At that time there was a man, Roger, ^D who, although he was a count, was in other respects a very energetic and restless man in managing affairs, extremely skilled at weaving plots, and preeminent in his ability to stir up things that had been duly settled. To William, the Duke of Lombardy, to whom he was subject, he had lent money as he was setting out for Palestine, for the Lombardy

^A principality had been pawned to him under that title. Later, however, he forced the Roman pontiff—in a way I shall describe—to proclaim him king. For when the one who then held the throne of Rome heard that Lombardy had come into the power of Roger, he took this deed ill, claiming that it had belonged to his Church since long ago. Lothair, deeply moved by this, and not tolerating the authority of the Pope being diminished, burst into Lombardy with huge forces. He stripped Roger of a great part of his lands and was already near to expelling him from the whole territory, had not Roger, as was his custom, turned once again to guile and driven Lothair away without any struggle—by what means this came about, our narrative will now set forth.

There was a relative ^B of Lothair, a man of the highest authority among them, whom the German race held in the greatest esteem after Lothair himself. Roger approached this man, and by giving him money, won him over. Then he persuaded the man to give the signal for retreat to the German army, without Lothair's knowledge. This signal is not the sound of a trumpet or anything similar, but a certain barbaric and unusual method, which can barely be understood. For a certain musical chant, when sounded in the camp according to custom, no longer permits the military to remain; but as soon as it is heard, each one immediately breaks off and prepares himself for departure. This chant, then, the relative of Lothair having deceptively caused to be sounded suddenly throughout the German race, caused the army to depart from there at once. Lothair, indignant at this, attempted to check the mass movement by impaling about five hundred men, but he could not. For the Germans flowed away no less, ^C heedless of any punishment or retribution. Whereupon, seized by despondency and struck by violent fevers because of this, Lothair disappeared from among men shortly afterward. Conrad, as has been said, succeeded to the principality.

2. These things happened in this way. Roger once again held onto Lombardy with a firm grip. The Roman pontiff, unable to bear this, having organized an alliance of Germans for himself, marched against Roger with the greatest zeal of spirit. But he, ^D suddenly invading the camp as it was being pitched, and the others in

^A flight having been cast into it, took him even alive [(29)]. And when he already had him in his hands, he spread out a tent made of linen, seated the pontiff on it, and himself prostrating on the ground, leaning on his hands and feet, crept toward him, partly begging pardon for his offense, partly praying that he would deign to bestow on him the royal title. The pontiff received him as he approached (for what else could he do?) and addressed him as king. And from that time on, the prince ruling over Lombardy has been accustomed to be called king. Roger, therefore, when everything had succeeded according to his wish, sent envoys to Emperor John, who was still among the living, to request a bride from the imperial blood for his son [(30)]. But the embassy had not yet been fulfilled when John departed this life. After some time, when Manuel was already governing the empire, he sent again to request the same thing. ^B Whence also a certain Basil, surnamed Xerus [(31)], arrived in Sicily to confer with Roger about this matter. But he, having been corrupted by gold from him, agreed to I know not what foolish conventions, the chief point of which was that in the future the Emperor and Roger would be of equal majesty. And from this great wars broke out. For after Xerus had returned to Byzantium and met his end before he could pay the penalty for his daring deeds, the Emperor, having paid attention to his embassies as if they were mere trifles, let Roger be; but he, having been greatly angered and believing the matter to be a certain deception, built a fleet and kept it in readiness, watching for a time ^C when he might avenge in any way possible the injury done to him by the Romans. And the barbarian did indeed hit his mark. For at the very height of the incursion of the Western nations into the Roman provinces, he plundered Corinth, Euboea, and the Boeotian Thebes.

Of the notes of Du Cange

[(29)] *Zogreriae elen.* That he came into the power of Pope Innocent, and that he granted Roger the royal title, many relate, Abbas Uspergensis and Albericus in *Chron.* A. 1139, Otto Frisingensis, Trivettus, and from them Baronius, an. 1139, where he brings forward the diploma granting the investiture of the kingdom of Sicily to Roger, or rather containing the confirmation of the royal title which he had already usurped before. For Roger, having subdued Apulia and Calabria, and having defeated Sergius, Duke of Naples, and Robert, Prince of Capua, by the counsel of his nobles, and even of his uncle Count Henry, had been solemnly crowned and anointed king in the major church of Palermo on the Ides of May, A. Chr. 1129, as we learn from a fragment of an old chronicle which exists in the collection of Franc. de Manfredis, *lib. IV De majest. Panormit.*, and from the diploma of Roger himself in Ferd. Ughellus, *epist. Aquil. n. 5, tom. Italiae Sacrae*. And not long after, by the legate of the count-cardinal of the pseudo-pontiff Anacletus, whose side Roger had undertaken to defend, on the day of the Nativity of the Lord an. 1130, he was acclaimed king in the same church and endowed with the crown, as Joannes de Ceccano, Falco Beneventanus, Alexander Celes *lib. II*, Ordericus Vitalis *lib. XIII, p. 895*, the author of the *Chronicon Casaur.*, and Baronius in this year relate. But that must not be shrouded in silence, that Roger was acclaimed king not only of Sicily but also of Italy, as testified by the characters inscribed on a bell ^D of brass, which the people of Palermo call by the common word *Guza*: In the year from the incarnation ind. 1156, Roger, King of Sicily and Italy, son of the great Count Roger, ordered it to be dedicated to the right hand of Bion and to the Mother of God. There exist diplomas of the same Roger in the year 1137 and 1147 in the same Ughellus, in the archbishoprics of Salerno, Brindisi, and Benevento, the beginning of which is thus conceived: "I, Roger, by the grace of God, King of Sicily and Italy, helper and shield of Christians, son of Roger the first count." So likewise William, in another diploma in the same Ughellus in the year 1154, is inscribed as King of Sicily and Italy. See *tom. VII, p. 565, 581, 982*, *Chronicon monast. S. Sophiae Benevent.* p. 779; Ptolemy of Lucca, an. 1126, and Allatius in *Diatriba de Simeonibus*.

[(30)] *Epi paidi.* He is called the first-born of Roger's sons, as is the author Alexander, Abbot of Celes, in his *Chron.*, Hugo Falcandus, and others.

[(31)] *Xerus.* Anna, *lib. XI*, mentions a prefect of Constantinople, from whom perhaps this Xerus sprang. Cinnamus alone, so far as I know, puts forward the cause of the Sicilian war.

[(32)] *Corinthum.* Otto Frisingensis, *lib. I De gest. Frid. c. 33*: "About the same time, Roger the Sicilian, having fitted out in Apulia, Calabria, and Sicily triremes, which they are accustomed to call generally *galeas* or *sagittas*, and other bellicose merchant ships, sends a fleet into Greece, having placed over them strenuous leaders and men skilled in naval battle." And so, having armed the ships of the Greeks...

and those regions having been plundered, ^A the Barbarians, with no one to offer resistance, sailed off to load their ships with spoils. From there, they crossed over to Corcyra, captured it by storm, and fortified it as if it were now their own, securing it in every possible way. The Emperor, having learned of this, was in great distress. He pondered and considered how he might avenge himself upon Roger and inflict the punishment due for such daring acts. He therefore prepared a fleet of five hundred triremes, together with a thousand horse-transports and cargo ships, and while he himself began the journey by land, the immense and formidable fleet was carried across the sea.

^C 3. But when the Emperor had arrived near the city of Philippopolis, a rumor flew to him that Scythian forces had crossed the Ister and were ravaging everything that stood in their path and plundering all they could find; they had even captured a city of no little importance, one that drank from the waters of the Ister. Such was the extent of the report. The Emperor, turning aside from his course, traveled toward the Ister, having ordered ships from Byzantium to sail up through the city of Anchialus toward the Ister. But before they arrived, he traveled through the plains in that area, hunting as he went. For it happened that because these regions had long been deserted and uncultivated, and stretched out to a great length, a vast number of wild animals had congregated and thrived there. While he was engaged in this, it was announced to him that the Scythians, having led away booty from the Roman lands, had just crossed the Ister [P. 54] and were encamped, having pitched their tents not far away. When he heard this, he hastened toward the river with all possible speed. There, having encountered a small boat, such as are accustomed to stand on those banks, fashioned from a single piece of wood, he ordered it to be brought to him. But the ferryman was stubborn, and...

having heard ^A that the Emperor had been summoned, he said, “If the Emperor cared for our affairs, the Demnizikos would not have been captured (for that is how the fortress taken by the Scythians, as has been said, was named), and our affairs would not be directed and controlled at the whim of the Barbarians.” It is said, therefore, that at this the Emperor was indignant and replied, “May I not be he to whom the affairs of the Romans have been entrusted by God, if the Scythians do not immediately pay the penalty for what they have dared.” Therefore, he left the remainder of his army to encamp somewhere on the banks, and he himself, since the ships had not yet arrived as had been said, lashed the light boats together and, having fitted them, crossed the Ister with five hundred of those who were with him. Intent on proceeding further, he encountered two other navigable rivers. Since no vessel appeared there for him to use for the crossing, he ordered his men to yoke ^B the light boats that were on the Ister to their horses and thus transport them to the rivers mentioned. Once this was done, they crossed without effort. Having traversed a spacious area, they arrived at a mountain that lies near the borders of the Tauroscythians (the Tenou Drmon). There, finding the Scythian camp entirely deserted and empty (for they had departed not long before), they proceeded further. When it was already about midday and no enemy appeared anywhere, the Emperor selected the Scythians who were campaigning with the Romans and, with Giphardus as their leader, a man very experienced in many wars, sent them to go behind the enemies and scout where it might be possible to engage them, while he himself followed slowly behind. Giphardus had not gone far before he encountered the enemy. But, not daring to engage in battle because the number of the Barbarians seemed to him far greater, he sent messengers to the Emperor urgently requesting him to come with all speed. ^C When the Emperor heard this, he immediately put on his armor and equipped the entire army. Having pursued the Scythians from the rear, they soon came to hand-to-hand combat with them. The Scythians at first stood their ground as if intending to receive them; drawing themselves up into a phalanx, they wished to sustain the first assaults, both for their own sake and for the sake of the booty they were carrying. A fierce battle developed on both sides. Many Romans distinguished themselves there by their noble deeds, and above all the Emperor. For as the enemies pressed forward keenly at close quarters, he himself charged with his spear and broke their dense ranks, and not only killing them one by one, but at times even two at once, slaying many of them. Hence, driven by the irresistible force of the Emperor’s ^D onset, the Romans pressed upon them more vigorously, and now made a brilliant assault. Many of the Barbarians fell, and about a hundred were captured, among whom was Lazarus, a man outstanding in the strength of his spirit and conspicuous among the Scythian phylarchs. The rest were saved by the strength of their horses and the dense mountain thickets which are abundant there. The Romans, having seized all the booty, then withdrew; at which time Sotas, that man who, as we have said, was eminent in wealth and lineage, and who had been captured by the Scythians, seized an opportunity and fled to the camp.

^A Having successfully brought this triumph to a conclusion from the outset, the emperor moved on from there toward the war which he was already preparing against Sicily. For his endurance in military toils was so great that, I suspect, it had never belonged to any man before, whether among the common soldiers or the leaders and commanders. Thus he was contemplating Sicily and all of Italy; but, as it seems, Fortune rejects true glory, and she knows how to turn the art of command, conjoined with military science, into its opposite through no labor at all. For although he was being distracted by matters regarding the Scythians, he nonetheless managed to arrive at the most opportune spot for the site where he had to set sail; but it fell out that the fleet, whether held back by contrary winds or by the commander’s ignorance regarding such things, arrived late and past the proper season. For having set sail from the Byzantine harbors in the spring, it arrived at the emperor’s position only as the season was already waning, and from that point, it caused the Roman affairs to falter. For the emperor had boarded his bireme and the whole navy had sat at the oars as if about to sail off at once, but a fierce storm and the sudden force of the winds thwarted his plans. For the seas are there spread out in a terrifyingly vast expanse, and the voyage is reasonably dangerous, especially in winter. Whence he himself moved his camp to a certain place near Beroea and wintered there. He sent his brother-in-law, Stephen—whom, out of disparagement, I suspect, they called ^B Contostephanus (for he was short in stature)—to Corcyra, which was at that time, as we have said, held by the Sicilians, with the entire equipment of ships, that he might restore it once more to the Roman empire. But when he had arrived at the city and had attacked and attempted the walls from every side, he ended his life there while the situation was still unsettled, in the manner I am now about to describe. Having constructed a very long ladder that stood far higher than the outer walls, he decided by means of it to send his soldiers into the city. A stone of massive size, released from some machine, struck the ladder, and through the vehemence of the force with which it was propelled, it was shattered into many fragments, one of which was carried unto the duke and struck him with a lethal wound. Yet he, although seeing that death was imminent, nevertheless exerted himself greatly to ensure that, should the event be known on both sides, fear would not be added to the Romans, as would naturally be expected, but rather to the Sicilians, who were already yielding. Therefore, he ordered that he himself be quietly lowered onto the planks of the ship so that they might again persist in the work, and calling ^C Andronicus—who was the youngest of his sons—and the commander of the axe-bearers, he brought forward exhortations that they should in no way abandon their courage, so that the Romans might not depart from their initial boldness, but rather press on with the work, since the hope of capturing the city soon was at hand. ^D Yet these were the deeds, I believe, of a manly and martial...

Notes of Du Cange

^A Indeed, as soon as the matter began to be disseminated among the common people, everything turned to the opposite. For the Sicilians drove out those Romans who had already scaled the walls, and everything was filled with turmoil and consternation. So things stood for the Romans. ^B 5. Upon hearing of these events, the Emperor was not unreasonably disturbed, and he instructed the fleet commander who had been appointed in the place of the deceased to assault the city without any flagging. But since nothing memorable was achieved by him (for a dispute had unexpectedly broken out between the Romans and the Venetians, who were serving alongside them at the time, which had robbed the Roman army of success), the Emperor himself was eventually forced to go there and take up the siege. Thus, having settled the differences between the Roman and Venetian armies and punished those on both sides who had caused them, he attacked the fortification with great force. ^C While the prince was occupied with these matters, Roger, the tyrant of Sicily, upon learning that the Emperor was lingering near Corcyra, sent a fleet into Roman territory, with the intention of compelling him to lift the siege by shifting the war to those lands. The Emperor, however, divided his fleet and sent one part under the command of Churupus to immediately encounter and resist the Sicilians as they raided Roman lands, while he himself persisted all the more bitterly in besieging Corcyra. For he had placed ladders of immense size from the ships against the walls, and with difficulty and by force he brought his troops up. It happened that one of the ladders, weighed down by those ascending, broke and threw many into the sea, where those wretches breathed their last, leaving behind for the Romans no small reputation for their valor. Yet the Sicilians, even though they saw the Romans now within the walls, did not for that reason wish to hand over the city to the Emperor; but racing with all possible speed to the acropolis, they defended themselves from there, casting down stones and missiles and everything else at hand like a rainstorm falling from the sky upon the attackers. ^D For the acropolis rises to such a height that its structure can hardly be grasped by the eye when raised to look at it. It is said that at that time the Emperor, severely enraged by the recalcitrant fortune, stood erect in the bireme in which he was being carried and ordered the rowers to bring the ship at once to the walls, so that he himself, I suppose, might attempt the ascent. But some of the commanders, especially his kinsmen, prevented this with all their might, and I believe he himself was not overly willing. For in addition to the generosity of spirit in which he excelled, he was also fearless. I have heard some who even branded that act as one of rashness, inasmuch as he possessed a spirit that was almost divine and greater than that of a mortal.

Du Cange’s notes

^A I have heard from some, moreover, that he was the cause of his own boldness; for he was always possessed by a divine frenzy and spirit, and stood far beyond the ordinary measure of bravery. Indeed, he would often, even when he was only sixteen years of age, bring in many barbarians captured by his own hands. Wherefore, at one time his wife, who traced her origin to the Alemanni, spoke out in the middle of the senate house, saying that she herself was of a noble and most warlike race, but that she had never heard of anyone in all the world who had distinguished himself with so many feats of valor in a single year. ^B Now, when he was at the wall of the Corcyraeans, a ship belonging to the Roman fleet—not of the lighter sort, which are low and long, but one of suitable height and breadth, and completely filled with horses and weapons—was driven by the force of the wind against a part of the perimeter where projecting rocks and ridges were piled up in such a way as to make the place very difficult of access; it was being dreadfully battered. For stones as large as carts, along with missiles and whatever else was at hand, were being hurled down upon it all at once, so that those who were on board, losing heart at what had befallen them, were crouching in fear and trembling below the decks. When the emperor learned of this, he seized in one hand a shield—not one of those customary ones, nor such as a body is usually protected by, but a broad one, and one that it was not easy for a man to lift—and in the other, he took hold of the equipment that is usually spread out upon an imperial bireme, and folded it skillfully so that, by repelling the blows of the missiles from the wall, he could ward them off; then he sailed to the ship. ^C He then strove with all his might to pull it away by means of ropes attached to it, and thus succeeded in rescuing it from danger. It is said, indeed, that the man to whom Roger had entrusted the defense of Corcyra, seeing the townspeople hurling frequent stones at the emperor, said: "By your own safety, I beseech you, fellow soldiers, let no missile be hurled by you against such a person. But if it happens that these things are disapproved of, I alone will bear the indignation." These things were being carried out in this way. But the Sicilian fleet, having engaged with those who were under the command of Churupus, was for the most part defeated. Forty of their ships, however, escaped the danger and came to Byzantium. ^D There, having arrived, they achieved nothing worthy of note; they attempted to set fire to buildings lying on the continent near Damalis, but retreated from there in disgrace, having lost many of their men. Yet, those who had escaped the danger did not all return unharmed. For, falling in with ships that were bringing public revenue from Crete, they were for the most part defeated in the battle.

^B The Emperor, having subdued the city through famine and siege, departed from there. And henceforth he pondered how he might restore both Sicily and the land of the Italians to the Roman Empire.

6. Having learned that the Alamanni, Dalmatians, and Paeonians were preparing for war against Sicily, and that they had entered into an agreement with one another to attack the Romans from the West; and furthermore, that Iagoupasan, the phylarch of the Persians, had decided with the Sultan to infest Asia with raids; the Emperor himself set out for Dalmatia, in order to take swift vengeance upon the Archizupan who ruled over them and who had been the first to begin the war. He entrusted his entire fleet to John, the Domestic of the Eastern and Western Themes, and ordered him to make for Ancona (for Ancona is an emporium of Italy) and from there to launch an attack upon Italy as if from a base of operations. But John, having arrived at the river Boose, took no care to advance any further. Whether the Domestic failed in this through inexperience in naval matters, or whether, induced by the suggestions of the Venetians—that if the Romans gained possession of Italy and became neighbors to the surrounding regions, they would naturally despise the Venetians themselves and rarely seek their aid—he acted thus; for one reason or another, the Domestic accomplished none of the things for which he had been commanded by the Emperor, and wasted the time uselessly. ^C But also, as a more violent storm suddenly arose (for the autumnal equinox was already at hand), many of the ships were shattered through the negligence of the commander, who, though he could have pulled them into the river on either side, left them exposed upon the seashore.

But the Emperor, having made an incursion into Dalmatia, razed the fortress of Rasus and plundered everything in his path. Having made an ^D innumerable multitude of those whom he had reduced to slavery, he left them there with Constantine, the Sebastohypertatos, surnamed Angelos, along with his forces, and marched further on. He entered the region of Nicabam, which was also subject to the Archizupan, and captured all the fortresses situated there without any labor. And having arrived at Galitzes, when he found that the barbarians there, relying on their numbers and the difficulty of the terrain, would not surrender the refuge to him, he pitched a camp and ordered his men to shoot arrows and cast stones from slings at those defending the outer fortifications without any intermission, and thus, on the third day, he took the place by storm. There, when he found a multitude of barbarians, both armed and commoners, he led them away. Then, having instituted his return, he came to Rasus, and sent them away to inhabit Sardica and other Roman regions. Being informed by Angelos...

that the Zupan, having waited for the opportunity after his own departure from there, had begun to invade the Romans and was already prevailing in the fighting at close quarters, he rode away from there at the greatest speed, being eager to catch him. But he, having heard of the approaching Romans, fled back into the mountain ridges, and by that means escaped the danger that was right upon him. The emperor, therefore, poured into that region and plundered the whole area, as it was bereft of defenders, and having consumed with fire the buildings that served as palaces for the Archizupan, he moved on.

^B 7. When a severe winter had now taken hold, such that the natural heat of living creatures was being forced back about the heart, and damage had already occurred at the extremities of many people, he thought of returning to Byzantium. ^C But at the approach of the following year, towards the end of summer, when the roads into Serbia are particularly accessible to enemies, as the canopy of leaves has already fallen from the trees, he raised his army against Naissus. Having learned there that forces were being sent from Paeonia to assist the Dalmatians, he hastened to march his army through the region called Longomerus, so that by moving to the right of the Paeonians, he might engage the Roman army.

Having come near the Savus, he turned aside from there to another river named Drinus, which, flowing down from some point above, separates ^D Bossena from the rest of Serbia. Now Bossena is not under the sway of the Serbian Archizupan, but is a nation unto itself, living and ruling under its own authority. Concerning the reason why it later happened that the Hungarians clashed with the Romans there, I shall immediately explain.

There was a certain man among the Dalmatian nation—I do not know his name—who had a brother by the name of Belosis; both were prominent among their own people. This man lived with the sister of the Archizupan, but, having chanced to be blinded in both eyes (the cause of which I have no way to state), he withdrew into Paeonia. Having spent a considerable time there with King Geiza, he became most respected, inasmuch as he had been nurtured and educated with him from childhood. For this reason, he strove to repay his gratitude to Geiza by making Dalmatia subject to him by the right of favor; and through persistent counsel and exhortation, he finally persuaded the man.

Therefore, as soon as Geiza heard that the Romans had made an incursion into Dalmatia, he sent forces to aid the Dalmatians. This was the cause of the Romans' hostility toward the Hungarians. As the Roman army proceeded further, those who had gone out for fodder encountered the Hungarians, who were also journeying on that road, and they engaged in combat. Having learned of this, the emperor sent the protosebastos John with an army to their aid. When the battle was joined, the Hungarians, overcome by the Romans, took to flight toward the Strymon river, and after losing some of their own, they departed, with the Romans constantly pressing upon them from the rear.

Having reached the Taran river, and seeing no one coming out to meet them, they recalled the order to return. ^A The Emperor, having pitched his camp midway on the road leading to Setzenitza and being unable to learn where it happened that the Archizupan was, was for a time in a state of uncertainty. But when he learned from the captured Dalmatians that they were awaiting auxiliary troops from Hungary that would arrive at any moment, he moved the army further on. Until reaching the Taran river, no enemy had yet appeared to the Romans. But when they arrived there, an unnumbered host of Dalmatians, armed and armored, appeared before the sun had passed the western horizon. Seeing this, the Romans were overcome with anxiety and fear and came to report it. But the Emperor, making the fortunate conjecture that these forces appearing were the ones the Dalmatians were expecting from the Hungarians for their assistance—a view confirmed also by Charupus, whom he used as a scout—said, "Now, therefore, the Dalmatians have determined to attack the Romans suddenly." For they were already making their encampment not far away. ^B Therefore, as soon as night fell, he conceived a plan of the following kind. It is the custom for the Romans when going to war, should it be necessary for the army to tarry anywhere, to sound the trumpet late in the day; this serves as a signal to the multitude that they will remain in that place the following day as well. Therefore, so that the enemy, who were not ignorant of this Roman custom, might be deceived, he immediately ordered the trumpets to be sounded; yet, he revealed his intentions as secretly as possible to each of the commanders, namely: that as soon as the sun rose, everyone with a picked force of cataphracts from his own phalanx was to stand motionless and wait for his command; but to ensure they would not be conspicuous, he ordered them to cover their armor with common, inexpensive cloaks. ^C 8. Those under his command acted accordingly; and when the day was already clearly manifest, he went out with them from the camp as if to forage. Whence he ordered some men, who were absolutely unarmed and equipped with spades and hoes—with which it is the custom to search for the underground granaries by which those who provide supplies and necessities for the army are accustomed to work—to go in front. However, he ordered them to flee the moment they saw enemies advancing against them, until they had joined the Romans following behind and were in a safe position. For as soon as what was happening became known to the commander, he ordered first two men, then after a small interval four, then six, then ten, and finally several more to advance; and having arranged another archer-phalanx for these purposes, he ordered it to advance against the enemy from another direction with instructions that if the Dalmatians should join battle, they were to turn their backs as if they were fewer in number; but if no one met them, they were to remain quietly before the rampart. He devised these things with no other intention than that if, when he himself charged with the rest of the troops, the Dalmatians began to flee, they might be caught and cut down by these lighter-armed men. They had not yet proceeded far, when certain scouts returned at a run to the Emperor, with faltering tongue and fear,

some messengers, running at full speed, came to the emperor, their speech stifled and they appearing deathly pale; they reported that an uncountable army was drawn up in battle array on the other side of the river, and that it consisted not only of ^A natives, but also of an immense host gathered from auxiliary forces, especially Hungarian cavalry and the Chalisii, who hold a religion distinct from theirs. For while the Hungarians have embraced Christianity, these people still live according to Mosaic laws, and not even truly genuine ones at that. They reported that these, along with the Pezinaks, were serving with the Dalmatians. When the emperor heard this, fearing that the few Romans who were marching ahead might be surrounded ^B and crushed by the greater numbers, he spurred his horse to a more rapid stride, urging the standard-bearer to follow. When that man, because his horse was exhausted, proceeded more slowly, the prince himself snatched up the standard and hastened his course, and taking up a position on higher ground, he made himself and the standard visible to the enemy. In the meantime, the archers who had arrived at the river stood facing the Dalmatians, but as neither side wished to initiate the battle, they remained quiet. But as soon as the emperor’s standard was caught sight of by them, the Dalmatians retreated from the bridge and gave the Romans the opportunity to shoot their arrows. When the prince saw this (for he was standing on a more elevated spot, as has been mentioned, and was observing what was happening), he flew forward as if to cross the river with the others. For, as I have hinted more than once, he always pursued battles and contests beyond the measure of human strength. The Dalmatians, indeed, although pursued by a force of no great number, nevertheless fled until they reached difficult terrain. Soon they turned back from there ^C and engaged the enemy; but when the clash occurred, few fell on either side. For whenever the Dalmatians perceived the emperor was present, they would break ranks again. But the Romans, always pressing hard upon the fugitives, cut down many of them, as well as many Pannonians. It was at this juncture that Gurdeses and Bultzinus, men most renowned among the Dalmatians, fell into Roman hands. Meanwhile, the emperor was most eager to don his armor. Because he had spent some time on this account (for those who were carrying it were not near at hand), it happened that certain of the Roman commanders, among whom were Giphardus and Michael, surnamed Branas, and many other men capable both of fighting with their own hands and of directing troops, while they were pursuing the enemy too impetuously, were led into steep and trackless places and became entangled in manifest danger. For the Dalmatians, seeing that the Romans were far separated from their own men, had turned back and stood facing them. ^D 9. Now they were in this situation. The emperor, having already put on his armor, was carried toward them with loosened reins; when he found them gathered together in one place, drawn up closely against one another, he reproved them openly and chided them most bitterly, upbraiding them for their cowardice and their ignorance of the art of war. But when they pleaded the nature of the terrain and the immense depth of the snow, he himself took the lead of the march and commanded them to follow; for by now other Roman forces had also arrived. While they were therefore continuing their march, some of the enemy from an ambush suddenly fell upon the Romans who were on the left. But...

the emperor, perceiving that they were few in number, held them in contempt and pursued them persistently, either to capture the Archizupan himself or that most valiant leader who was then in command of the Pannonian forces. Thus, those who had emerged from the ambush accomplished nothing worthy of mention and were dispersed once more. ^A Having pursued the enemy for some distance, the emperor realized that his men were already exhausted; so, leaving them behind and taking only two of his kinsmen—one of whom was John Ducas, and the other, also named John, who had married the daughter of the sebastocrator Andronicus and was surnamed Cantacuzenus—he advanced with them against the enemy.

But the enemy, recognizing him from his armor, which was heavily overlaid with gold, and being further betrayed by the exceptional stature of his body (for he truly resembled a hero, excelling by far in both his unusual style of horsemanship and his dexterity in handling weapons), felt no shame in turning their backs. They say that while he was pressing upon the fugitives, he felled fifteen of the enemy to the ground with a single thrust of his spear; for in the tumult and confusion, they were colliding with one another so that they pushed each other down. Having laid forty of them low in total, he routed the rest; then, pursuing those who had been scattered, he charged at the backs of the retreating men with sword and spear.

At that time, a certain incident occurred: one of those who had previously been struck by the emperor’s spear and had fallen—for the wound was not mortal—rose up and desperately prepared to flee on foot. But when he saw the emperor nearby, he drew his sword and rushed at him as if to strike. The emperor, however, kicked him in the chest, casting him to the ground, and after marking him with a notable wound near the eye, rode on. Although he felt that his horse was cumbered by the weight of his armor, he did not wish to halt his charge on that account. ^B He ordered Cantacuzenus—who alone of his kinsmen was riding alongside him—to advance and engage the barbarians, so that while they were thus occupied with him, he himself might in turn overtake them. Nor did his plan prove fruitless. For as soon as John had dashed into the enemy with all speed, he struck Bacchinus the Archizupan in the back and would have run him through with his spear, had his armor not held. The man turned and saw that he was being set upon by two men, for another John—the one I have just mentioned—had now arrived to join the emperor.

Accompanied by seven of his own men, Bacchinus engaged Cantacuzenus, and a hand-to-hand battle ensued. Meanwhile, as barbarians kept streaming in from every side, Cantacuzenus was brought into extreme peril, and he would have been cut down by them had the emperor not appeared nearby and rescued him from the danger. ^C But the emperor himself was not exempt from risk. For he reasoned that if he were to charge those who were still surrounding John, who numbered seven, it would be possible for the others, now numbering three hundred, to attack them both; he therefore deemed it necessary first to contend with the multitude. For if they were to give way, those who were surrounding John would likewise retreat. ^D

^A And so, having spurred his horse, he rode into their midst. But when he wished to strike one of them with his spear, the blow went wide, for the barbarian swayed this way and that, and the point fell harmlessly to the side. Then, however, the contest began in earnest. When Bacchinus himself and those who were with him saw this, they abandoned John and ran at full speed toward the emperor. And then a horrible sight was to be seen. But the emperor, immediately casting aside his spear, drew the sword with which he was girded and, brandishing it repeatedly, dealt and received many blows in return, until the others were scattered, and the entire force of the battle bore down upon him and Bacchinus, a man pre-eminent in courage and of very tall stature. After a long struggle, Bacchinus struck the emperor’s jaw with his sword, yet he could not cut through the veil that hung from the helmet over his eyes. However, the blow was so violent that the rings of the helmet bit deep into the flesh, leaving their mark. ^B The prince, having snatched the sword from the barbarian’s hands, handed it to his cousin; he then sought again to charge the enemy more vehemently, but both John and the barbarian Bacchinus managed to restrain his onslaught. For the captured barbarian feigned benevolence, showing the hair of his head to signify the vast multitude that would soon meet him. In that battle, Cantacuzenus lost two fingers of one hand. At length, the emperor returned to the camp, bringing with him about forty prisoners. There, the memory of the man whom he had previously left prostrate, marked by a sign around his eyes, came to his mind. He therefore sought him out in the camp by the sign mentioned; when found, he recognized his victor and was recognized by him in turn. Not long after, envoys came to the camp from the Archizupanus, begging for an amnesty for his past offenses. ^C When the emperor gave the command, the man himself arrived shortly after, presenting himself as a pitiable suppliant. The emperor accepted the suppliant and granted him forgiveness for his fault. He, lifting his eyes slightly from the ground where he had lain prostrate before the emperor’s feet, confirmed the terms by oath and gave his word that he would be a servant of the Romans for all time; he pledged that if the prince were to campaign in the West, he would follow him with two thousand men, and if war were to be waged in Asia, he would send a further two hundred in addition to the three hundred he was previously accustomed to send. Having accomplished these things, the emperor returned to the city of Constantine. In the meantime, the fleet that had been engaged in Italy ^D returned to Byzantium without having achieved anything. The Dalmatians, however, in this way kept their duty to the Romans, so that long after, when they had displaced Uresin from his principate and, without the emperor's knowledge, had handed it over to another of his brothers, they came to him, fearing as was right that he might be angry with them, and having brought Dese and Uresin, they kept saying that they would obey whoever he should support. Judgment having been pronounced, Uresin obtained the principate from the emperor in lieu of a reward. But of these matters, more hereafter. These things having been successfully managed, the emperor returned again to Constantinople. At the same time, the fleet returned to Byzantium, no business having been concluded in Italy. Thus, indeed, the Dalmatians acknowledged the Roman empire, such that even a long time afterward, when they had driven Uresin from his principate, and without the emperor's knowledge had handed it over to his other brother; fearing, as was proper, that he might be angry with them, they came to him, having brought Dese and Uresin, declaring that they would obey him whom he would support. The judgment having therefore been pronounced, Uresin obtained the principate from the emperor as a reward. But of these things, later.

10. The emperor marched toward Hungary, having made the alliance which, as has been said, was previously given to the Dalmatians, the pretext for the war against them. He did not, however, come against them without a declaration of war, but by letters first explained to them the offenses committed against him and immediately announced the approach of the Romans. When, therefore, he arrived at the banks of the Ister, since no ships were present which he had prepared to transport from Byzantium, so that he might not lose the advantage of the moment—which, in such matters, is wont to be of the greatest importance for achieving success—he boarded a small skiff, of the kind which are hollowed out of a single trunk, many of which are to be found there on the shore, and crossed over to the Moesian bank, himself holding his horse by the bridle. Next, the Roman army, by the same method, crossed over and trampled upon Hungary, and advancing further, they were always fearlessly destroying everything in their path. There was at that place, situated on the other side of the river, a fortress by the name of Zeugmin, sufficiently strong in the solidity of its walls and in other security. Since he could not capture this by a sudden assault, he left behind there Theodore Batatzes, his brother-in-law, with an army; and he, laying waste the surrounding villages, enslaved them entirely. Meanwhile, the Hungarian army advanced to confront the Romans, but when he saw that he was by no means a match for their strength, he also surrendered to the emperor, who thereupon seized and carried off everything according to his pleasure. One could see there a multitude of every age captured in the war, being driven away, and entire nations being moved and uprooted, and that ^B region which the rivers Ister and Savus, flowing from the Alps 47, surround…

Du Cangii note:

(46) Urosi. Of Uroš, the brother of Dessa, I know of no mention in the Dalmatian History, unless he is the same as Bela, mentioned on p. 221, who held the principate in Servia before Dessa. (47) From the Alps. From this passage it is evident that "Alps" means any high mountains, and not only those which separate Gaul from Germany and Italy. Servius, on that line of Virgil about the "lofty mountains," says that "Alps" are called "lofty mountains" by the Gauls; indeed, it is a Gallic word. Papias: "Alps, properly the lofty mountains of Gaul." For in the language of the Gauls, high mountains are called thus. Graeco-Latin Glossaries: "Alps"; and to this Isidore agrees, Book XIV of the Origins, c. 8. Therefore, writers use the term "Alps" everywhere for any high mountains. Sidonius, on Mount Athos, poem 2: "The sails ran through the wooded Alp." In a poem on the same: "Near the leafy summit of the Alp." Ausonius also gives the name of Alps to the Pyrenees, in an epistle: "Now there lies for you, beyond the Alps and the marble Pyrenees, a house of Caesar Augusta." ^C Lucas Tudensis, in his Chronicle, spoke of the "Alps of Mount Zebraius" and the "Alps of the Roscida Valley" in those same Pyrenees. Whence also Gellius, following Cato, called the Spaniards "Alpini." Adam of Bremen, c. 229: "Normannia, which surrounds Sueonia with its own Alps." It occurs again in the same author, c. 259. But Procopius, Book I of the Gothic War, dissents entirely from Servius and others regarding the original meaning of the word, writing that it signified to the ancient Gauls the narrow passes of mountains or hills: this same thing is taught by Eustathius in his commentary on the *Periegesis* of Dionysius: And it seems that Philostorgius, Book III, c. 24, used this word in that same sense: "The Alps, which are called the Soucheis and the Julian, are narrow passes through the greatest mountains on either side, and under one place, they are close to collapsing into a single narrow passage." It is certain, whatever the original meaning was, that in the lower centuries "Alps" are called the valleys and the pastures therein, where cattle are driven in summer. Thus it is used passim in donations made to the church of Salzburg, c. 2 and 7; in Canisius, vol. VI of the *Antiquae Lectiones*; in a charter of Louis the Pious in the year 838 for the monastery of Aniane; in Alemannic charters of Goldasti n. 27 and 86; [P. 449] in Conrad of Fabaria on the *Casus S. Galli*, c. 20; in Berthold, Abbot of Zwiefalten, on the origin of his monastery; in Augustinus de la Chiesa, in *Hist. Pedem.* c. 26; in Marca in *Hist. Beneharn.*, lib. V, c. 29, etc. Hence "Alpagium," the right of grazing cattle in the Alps, in a charter of the Countess of Savoy in the year 1218, in the archives of the church of Tarantaise.

^A and they wander, splitting on either side and, after a great distance, coming together again into one, into a space thoroughly empty and lacking inhabitants. At that time, the Romans also destroyed the royal house itself—a matter which deserves to be recorded among the greatest successes of Roman fortune. Having accomplished these things, the Emperor returned to Zeugminum, where Vatatzes, having been left there, as has been said, was pushing the siege. But those who held the garrison, for as long as there was hope that the king would soon arrive with aid, defended themselves keenly. But when they understood that he was in no way present, and the Romans were already beginning to batter the walls, ^B they were struck with terror by the impending danger and requested of the Prince that, having surrendered the fortress, it might be permitted for them to depart with their bodies safe. When he refused this, they hung ropes about their necks and, having cast aside their head-coverings, gave themselves up to the Emperor in supreme disgrace. But he forbade that any of them should be killed by the Romans; however, he granted the fortress, filled with heavy booty, to them to plunder.

11. Having finished these things, the Romans proceeded as if intending to cross the Savus, leading a multitude of captives greater in number than their own army. But they had not yet crossed the river when it was reported that the king of the Paeones, bringing an armed force, was coming against the Romans with great wrath, having already successfully waged war in the region of Galitza, ^C of Tauroscythian land. It was for this reason in particular that the Emperor had undertaken that war, because against his will the king had attacked Bladimer—for this was the name of the prince of Galitza—a man who was allied by treaty to the Romans. Having heard these things, the Emperor ordered the rest of his army, as well as the baggage train and the greater part of the captives who were superior in number, to cross over and remain on the opposite bank. But he, taking his chosen detachment of the army, although many of the generals did not vote for his opinion, hastened with the greatest speed to engage with him, saying that it was the work of wolves, not lions, to harass flocks of sheep; but that they should flee without any shame when shepherds or dogs appeared, ^D and be content, albeit with difficulty and barely, if they could save only themselves and the captured booty. It is also said of him that—a thing which, if he did it by design of mind, I could hardly praise; but if because he foresaw something, which I believe, or wished to protect and defend the Romans who were around him, it was an act of truly military providence...

Notes of Du Cange

(48) *Galitza region*. Galitia is said to be a part of Lesser Russia, in the *Notitia* of Andronicus; but Nicetas in *Man.* I. 4, n. 2: It is called Galitza today, and is a duchy subject to the Great Duke of Moscow, which one encounters when going from Muscovy to the east through Castronowgorod. At that age Vladimer or Lodomer held sway over this, as the Hungarian Annals have it; he, daring with the help of the Huns to disturb Minoslaus, the King or Prince of the Russians, from his kingdom and to assert tyranny for himself, was finally routed and destroyed in battle by Geiza, King of Hungary, who had taken the daughter of Minoslaus as his wife, as Thwroczius recounts more fully in *Geiza*, c. 60; and Bonfinius, decad. 2, l. vi. Nor would I consider this Vladimer to be other or different from Vladimirus the son of Wszevold, grandson of Jaroslaus, Prince of Russia, who settled in the ancestral city of Kiev by the Borysthenes, and after various conflicts with his kinsmen, when he had conquered all their provinces, was so called. However that may be, Cinnamus names Jaroslaus as the successor of Vladimer; but Ditmar, l. vii, treats of the parentage of Vladimer.

^A I deem it worthy of mention that, as he intended to depart from the Savus to engage the Hungarians, and since he had already assembled his vessels, he commanded the prefect of the fleet to cross to the opposite bank of the river and to remain there with the ships; and if any, whether it were a Roman who had been thinking of desertion or anyone else, should ask to be ferried across, he was to take no notice of the man, as if he did not see him. "Even if I myself," he said, "the emperor, should be present and provide other instructions than those now seen, you are to disregard what I have commanded; if you do otherwise, you shall immediately be impaled and will not escape punishment." He arranged matters in this way, I believe, as, as I have already said, he was opening the door to courage for the soldiers. For since there was no relief to be had from cowardice, it was necessary to turn to the aid afforded by courage. As he was just about to set out from there, there arrived a deserter—one of the Roman prisoners of war—from the side of the Paiones, who announced that the king’s arrival was at hand. ^B Having heard this, the emperor could no longer restrain himself lest he appear to the Romans to be fleeing, for not having arrived in time to attack the Huns. Having issued his orders, therefore, he turned back. When the king was not present, but it was reported that Belosis—who held the first rank under the king (the Hungarians call this office a "Ban" (49))—was approaching with an army, he charged against him with speed. But when nightfall drew on, he dismounted from his horse, fully armed, and slept upon his own shield and weapons, and commanded the entire army to do the same. On the following day, Belosis, having learned that the emperor was advancing, withdrew with his entire force, framing excuses that I suspect were not of sound mind; for in order to procure a pretext for flight, he claimed that he had been signaled by the king to turn away from the designated path and go toward the city of Branizoba, so that he might the more easily encounter the Romans from there. The emperor, however, not ceasing from the pursuit of the fugitives, crossed the river, arrived at Branizoba, and pitched his camp there. A little later, intending to ravage the adjacent lands, he sent Borises with an army to another part of the Hunnish region, where there is a mountain which by the locals is called Temises. ^C This man, too, was said to have sprung from the same seed as Iatza, but due to some quarrel he had fled to the Emperor John long before. The latter had granted him sufficient honors and had even joined him in marriage to a kinswoman of his own. This Borises (50), in the area... ^D [Du Cange's notes] (49) *Ban*. That it is "ban," that the Greeks and Latins use *ban* for *pr* (a governor), is sufficiently apparent from the examples that Meursius produces in his Glossary. Concerning the dignity of the *bans* among the Hungarians and Serbians, I have spoken at *Anna*. This was then the function in Hungary... [P.67] ...striking them severely from the front and making a great slaughter among them. Of Bela the Ban, under whose leadership Geiza routed Henry, Duke of Bavaria, Otho of Freising also makes mention (*De gestis Friderici*, ch. 22), as does Radevicus (Bk. III, ch. 12), and Gunther (*Ligurin,* Bk. I) regarding Bela: *He had nurtured the boy with a gentle upbringing, as one who was a good, wise man, and uncle to both.* See the notes to p. 221. (50) This Borises was the son of the King of Hungary by the daughter of the King of Russia (whom Calamanus had repudiated after she was caught in adultery).

^B and he wandered about the villages in this region, despoiling them, though they were crowded with inhabitants and rich in all kinds of goods. ^A When he unexpectedly encountered three Hungarian phalanxes and routed them, thinking that the Emperor himself was present, he returned, burdened with the spoils, to the Roman camp. But the Emperor, learning that it was Borises and not the Roman Emperor who had wrought such havoc in Paeonia, was filled with rage and pursued him. He was unable to overtake Borises, however, as he had already crossed over by night by the light of torches which the Emperor had ordered to be lit in the camp in great numbers. It was at this time that two men from the infantry, having been left behind on the opposite bank, were able to track the arriving Hungarians and hide in the thickets found there. Having succeeded in this, the Emperor strengthened the cities along the Ister as best he could ^B and stayed there for a time, considering whether to cross the Ister again and engage the King, who was encamped on the other side of the river. When the King learned of this, dismayed by the turn of fortune and fearing that if he were to fail in this too, the Hungarian race might be utterly destroyed, he sent envoys to the Emperor to discuss terms of peace. Thereafter, the Emperor returned to Byzantium, held a triumph, and offered glorious thanksgivings to God. At this same time, a daughter, Maria (51), was born to him by the Augusta Irene — a child of striking beauty — and she was proclaimed Empress.

12. ^B The Romans were in these straits. But when Roger, the tyrant of the Sicilians, had ended his life, William, his son, having taken up the rule and being conscious that his father had committed many grave offences against the Roman Empire, decided that he must send envoys to the Emperor to resolve these differences. ^C Accordingly, there came men of episcopal rank, and the general drift of their embassy was this: that all goods, prisoners, and whatever Roger had taken from Euboea, the Thebes of Hellas, and the city of Corinth, as I have related before, ^D were to be restored. [alt-version omitted] ^C The Emperor, however, did not immediately dismiss them, but having summoned his council, he deliberated with the bishops and the nobles. They judged that, as a king, he should keep peace with a king, and that he should protect the life of a nobleman, even if he were a captive, because it would be a vice, and inconsistent with the bonds of friendship, to kill a man after he had surrendered. This was indeed a voice worthy of a most pious prince, similar to that which he also gave to the King of England, who had complained that the Archbishop of Canterbury, St. Thomas, was being protected by him to the shame and disgrace of his own liege-man; to which he replied that he had inherited this right from his ancestors, and that it had always been the custom of the [Frankish] kingdom to receive kindly all those who were in exile for the sake of justice, and to grant them the due comforts of humanity. Finally, Borises, having been sent by Manuel with strong forces against the Hungarians, after the enemy’s army had been destroyed, was himself pierced by an arrow from a certain domestic Cuman servant and died. (52)

55

The envoys, having been sent away, promised that they would most willingly provide everything that the emperor might desire. The prince, however, having dismissed the envoys, assembled a fleet of ships 54 and, having embarked an army upon it, appointed his uncle, Constantine, surnamed Angelus, as commander. He gave him orders to sail to the vicinity of Laconia and there to await the rest of the fleet, which would shortly arrive. He, therefore, having left Byzantium and having enjoyed a favorable wind, was carried to the promontory of Laconia, which is commonly called Monemvasia due to the location of the site. When the emperor learned that Geza, King of the Hungarians, irritated by past calamities, intended to make a surprise attack on the towns beyond the Ister, he hastened to forestall the man’s designs. And so, having returned with all possible speed to the bank of the Ister, he confronted the Hungarian forces, which were already encamped on the other side of the river. For some time, both sides refrained from battle, as neither wished to be the first to start—especially the Romans, whose ships had not yet arrived. But when, after a few days, they had launched into the river many small boats constructed from whatever materials were at hand, the King of the Hungarians, having been informed of what was happening and fearing, as I said, that if the fortunes of war should incline again, he might expose his very sovereignty to danger, again turned to terms of peace. Having sent envoys, he requested that, with the loss of no more than ten thousand Hungarians, he might take back the rest of the multitude of captives; he promised that on these conditions he would remain a friend and ally of the Romans for as long as he might live. Thus, with peace established on these terms, the Roman forces returned.

13. The affairs on land ended in this way. But affairs at sea, due to the ineptitude of the commander, ended in the opposite manner. For Angelus, when he learned that the fleet of William, laden with spoils and riches such as Egypt provides, was sailing from the land of Egypt and the Nile river, conceived in his mind at once to perform a great deed. Hence, without waiting for the other part of the fleet from Byzantium, and eager for battle, he hastened to set his sails against the enemy as quickly as possible, although the emperor forbade this and warned him by letter not to join battle with so small a force against much greater numbers. He asserted that nothing would prevent Angelus from being captured by the barbarians, and that not even a messenger, as the proverb says, would return from there. But he, disregarding these things, when he encountered the Sicilian fleet, joined battle. The Sicilians at first drew back their prows and retreated in good order; but when they perceived the Romans advancing in disorder, then at last it became apparent how small their fleet was. And so, turning suddenly, they attacked them, having the wind...

which the Romans had previously held in their stern—by some fortune shifted to their prow. ^A The other Roman ships, following the lead of the brother of the commander of the fleet (who himself also commanded but a few ships), took to a shameful flight. Constantine, being left in the midst of the enemies, fell into their hands, ^B having received the reward of his own rashness. Such novelties did that year bring forth.

14. But the Emperor, having heard that the Hungarian king was again stirring up trouble (for he could not endure having suffered such an insult), again set out for the Ister. But he, having been terrified by the approach of the Emperor, again treated for peace through envoys; and so for a time the war was resolved and the conditions of peace seemed bright. ^C But a little while later, because Andronicus, the Emperor's cousin, offered a pretext against the Romans, war was ignited again. But more of that hereafter. At that time, the Emperor sent this very Andronicus to the land of the Cilicians and Isaurians, having appointed him as commander-in-chief of this war. For Torosus, a man of exceptional success, an Armenian by birth—who had been taken captive by the Emperor John when he was campaigning in the borders of Isauria—had left Byzantium and come to Cilicia, and, pondering rebellion in ^D his mind, was attempting to lead the cities of that province away from their allegiance to the Romans. For this reason the Emperor sent Andronicus there; and he sent a Caesar so that he might take to wife Constantia, the former spouse of Prince Raymond, who had already departed from the living in the manner which I shall presently describe. Hard by Berrhoea lies a fortress, which the Antiochenes used for gathering their tributes. After the barbarians who dwelt thereabouts perceived that it was suffering from a lack of necessary provisions, they surrounded it with a siege. When Raymond learned of this—a man as active in military matters as any other—he came to the fortress with the greatest speed with the forces that were then at hand; the enemies withdrew, and after he had brought provisions into the citadel, he departed therefrom. And when it was now late in the evening, he judged it best to proceed further, as there was no place present where it was safe for them to halt. However, those about him, having been exhausted by the labor of the journey, insisted that they pitch camp right there, and they indicated a place that was for the most part surrounded by marshes, while in other parts it rose up into hills and mounds, which were frequent thereabouts. But he again became obstinate: "I fear," he said, pointing to a hill, "lest if the enemy should attack by night from there, our exit might be cut off, and we should perish like sheep enclosed in a pen, with no way of defense." But one of those who were present, addressing the man rather harshly, said that these were the words of fear, not of prudence. To which Raymond:

^A “I know, my good fellow, that if we were to move from here, you would never cease to reproach us for it. ^B Therefore, since it pleases you so, we shall pitch our camp here. But see to it that you are not unable to display by your deeds the courage that you just now heralded with no provocation, when the enemy army falls upon us from the very place I indicated and inflicts severe damage.” Raymond having spoken thus, went inside the space where the fates had ordained he should be confined forever. But the Persians, when it was already late at night, attacked them from where it had been said, and slaughtered both horses and men, since they were able neither to defend themselves nor to escape by any other means. But to return to what we were saying, John the Caesar, having gone to Antioch as I have recounted, since he was now more advanced in age and Constance had not pleased him, returned to Byzantium with the business for which he had come unaccomplished; and, suffering from poor health, he had his hair shorn after the illness and donned the monastic habit.

15. When Andronicus had come inside the land of the Cilicians, while Thoros was staying at Mopsuestia, he set about besieging the city with all his might. And he might perhaps have accomplished something worthy of a man and captured the defector with no trouble, had he not devoted himself entirely to sloth and theatrical games, and thus undermined the Roman cause. For Thoros, when he perceived the softness of Andronicus, and observed that he was indulging in luxury when he should least have done so, watched for a moonless night, during which it happened that rain fell incessantly, and having opened many of the gates of Mopsuestia ^C and led out the entire multitude with him, he attacked the Romans when they were unprepared and put them to flight with great force. Andronicus, having realized the situation too late (for he happened, as I said, to have been using great negligence), jumped onto his horse and, charging the ranks with spear in hand, performed marvelous deeds with his own hand (for as I have often said, in greatness of spirit he was inferior to none of the great). Yet, being able to do nothing, he escaped with difficulty and arrived at Antioch. In this battle, Theodore Contostephanus, who had been promoted to the rank of *sebastus*, having had his horse pierced by an arrow, was beheaded by one of those who were serving as mercenaries for the Romans, with whom he had a rivalry. For it is said that long before, Theodore had cast that miserable man out of the palace, which subsequently resulted in his own ruin.

16. Such were the events that took place in Cilicia at that time. Andronicus, having gone from the city of Antioch to Byzantium, was held in as much standing and honor as before, and contrary to expectation, he again enjoyed his former liberty of speech. It is said, however, that the emperor took him aside privately ^D and rebuked him most bitterly, reproaching him for his negligence in military matters and his untimely relaxations. publicly

however, he bestowed splendid gifts upon the man and honored him above others. Indeed, at that time he appointed him duke of Naissus and Branizoba, and furthermore granted him Castoria. But as to whether he had harbored the intention of defection in his mind from the start and kept such a plan within himself, I would not dare to affirm; yet from the time his ill will became manifest, I shall begin my account from that point. To Manuel, just as he received the empire, it was a matter of the greatest concern that the Romans should henceforth improve their arming. And since they had been accustomed formerly to be protected by round shields, to carry quivers for the most part, and to fight battles with arrows, he taught them to carry oblong shields and to brandish long spears; but above all, he trained them in dexterity and art in horsemanship. For, wishing to make the intervals of peace between wars into rehearsals for wars, he was accustomed to sit on his horse; and in the guise of war or battle, he would arrange certain battle lines facing each other. Thus, while riding and instructed with wooden spears, they became accustomed to movement in arms. So, in a short time, the Roman soldier far surpassed the battle lines of the Germans and Italians. Nor did the emperor himself abstain from contests of this kind, but he was present among the first, brandishing a spear of a length and size comparable to none. ^B To this was attached a flag—a thing truly worthy of admiration—which, because it was divided into eight parts, is accustomed to be called an "octopus." They say that Raymond himself, a man comparable to Hercules, when he came to Byzantium, was greatly struck with wonder at it, and because he was persuaded that the thing was not without some trickery being spread among the common people, he approached the emperor and asked for the spear and the shield herself; and having received them and recognized that which it truly was, only then did he confess with amazement the purpose for which he had sought to obtain them. ^C

17. Therefore, it happened that during this contest, being held by the prince at Heraclea in Mysia, John, the son of Andronicus the sebastocrator, a very beautiful and handsome youth, lost one of his eyes from the opposing stroke of a certain Italian spear. Wishing to console him for this misfortune, the emperor first promoted him to protovestiarios, and soon raised him to the dignity of protosebastos. This matter, they say, deeply affected the soul of Andronicus. ^D Therefore, from that time, harboring I know not what in his heart and always contriving deceits, when he was subsequently waging war in Cilicia, the king of Palestine and the Persians

sultan into his own schemes; and having been entrusted with the command of Naissus and Branizoba, as has been said, he promised by letter to the King of the Paeonians that if he were willing to place a tyranny upon himself, he would aid him in the undertaking, and that once he had attained the empire, he would immediately surrender Branizoba and the city of Naissus to him. However, fearing that if these things became known he would be held responsible for the future, he decided to turn to another plan. Therefore, he indicated to the Emperor that he wished to treat some of the princes in Paeonia with friendliness, intending to deceive them first and easily bring them under his own hand. The Emperor understood the treachery—for the letters had already come into his hands through which Andronicus had agreed upon the aforementioned things with the ruler of the Paeonians. But wishing to expose him, he allowed him to act without restraint. And he, thinking that all cause for suspicion had been removed from him, fearlessly sent envoys to the Huns and the King of the Alamanni, drawing them in for aid at the opportune moment. Andronicus, having devised these things, came to Byzantium, having already finished the treaties between the Romans and the Huns in appearance. The Emperor, however, I know not whether out of a certain affection for the man (for he loved him exceedingly, as he was of the same age and had been raised and trained with him from boyhood, and indeed had been his companion in running, in wrestling, and in many other contests), or because he was pondering something else, did not at that time restrain him from his wickedness. But when at one time he was in Heraclea in Mysia—which the Romans, by following a certain idiom, now call Pelagonia—he went out to hunt at night, as he was accustomed to do there. For he was of such physical excellence and character of mind that he would pursue bears and ride against wild boars, and on foot...

Blood

Du Cange’s Notes

^A And the emperor at night, as was his custom for the most part, went to sleep. For the robustness of his body drew him forth both to the northern regions and to [the hunt for] wild beasts, being his own companion in the struggle against most boars on foot with a spear. It is said that he was also armored at first, and was almost always in arms, guarding against the plots of the sebastocrator Isaac and the great commander [of the army], even if he did nothing else harmful to him in the end except to remove the imperial seals, by which the emperor was accustomed to authorize his largesses. Not without a reason, however, did he do even this, but for a cause which I am now about to relate. While the emperor was staying at Melangeia, at a place called Metabole, various conversations were held over dinner. When everyone was praising the deeds of the emperor in one voice, John extolled and preferred the brilliant achievements of Manuel's father by a great deal. The emperor did not receive these words with displeasure, nor did he mind that his father was being preferred before him. And although John already seemed to others to be importunate, he did not wish to interrupt him while he was speaking, since he seemed, as most people are accustomed to do, to have brought these things forward as a proof of his loyalty to the departed emperor. For the benevolence with which we pursue the deceased is an earnest, to those who survive, of our gratitude toward them. But when he became more bitter and sufficiently ungrateful toward Manuel, and a contention arose from this, that Andronicus, attacking the sebastocrator with a hostile spirit, would have almost severed his head with a sword, had not the emperor interposed his hand; and John Ducas, who was also the emperor’s cousin, placing the whip which is usually used to urge on horses under the sword, averted the blow, weak and broken, onto Andronicus’s jaw. Thus he indeed escaped the danger: but the emperor, who had stretched his hand out over Andronicus, received a wound—not a lethal one, indeed, but one by which the flesh was slightly severed, the scar of which he bore on his wrist as long as he lived. So this rather sharp contention subsided. The prince, however, removed Isaac from his sight for a time; but he punished John, who was accused of that very thing, with the aforementioned penalty, though it was far milder than what the laws decree. But let us return to earlier matters.

^B 18. After Andronicus realized that the emperor was engaged in a nocturnal hunt, he armed the pick of the Isaurians from among those around him, who had pledged their word that they would fight for him against anyone whomsoever, and having mounted his own swiftest horse, he came with them to that place. But he left them stationed at a distance in a thicket, holding the horse; and he himself, riding a mule, approached the emperor’s tent. There he disengaged silently and proceeded at a slow pace, brandishing a dagger in his right hand; and so that he might not be discovered by anyone, he had put on an Italian cloak instead of his customary garment. But as soon as he saw that he had been recognized (for those who were guarding the sleeping emperor had already drawn their swords, and among them was John, his own nephew...

who, they say, was the first to realize that Andronicus was approaching), Andronicus, upon learning of this, fell to his knees and pretended to relieve himself of a stomach ailment, and thus, step by step, slipping away, he departed. And so that plot of his was thwarted there. ^B A short time later, he went out at night with a larger band of Isaurians, heading toward the emperor; word of this having been brought to the Augusta by Alexius, the prefect of the imperial stables (the Romans call this office protostrator 66), one of the promptest men was immediately sent to warn the emperor of the plot. Then also Isaac, a man of barbarian descent, but most loyal to the emperor, was sent with three hundred armed men to join him. But even before Isaac had arrived at the place, the emperor, having already learned of the matter, while others were anxious and disturbed for themselves (for it chanced that most were riding on mules, as often happens in such cases), declared that they should turn away from the straight path that led to the camp and the imperial tent. He pointed with his hand to that unusual and less-trodden path, instructing them to proceed, not in a broad column, but one by one, with some distance between them. "For thus," he said, "we shall appear to be some of those returning from foraging, heading toward the tents that are visible there." The emperor then proceeded toward his tent in this unflinching manner. As for John, who I mentioned just now, having met him, he tore [his adversary] to pieces with his teeth. The emperor, having very quickly learned of this, returned to him, took care of what was fitting, and then withdrew. Yet he took the matter with such greatness of soul that he did not even show by his countenance any ill-feeling toward Andronicus. But he, as if conscious of none of the things that had happened, busied himself assiduously with the horse we have already spoken of, while meanwhile uttering many things openly against John and pondering them in his mind. When the emperor once asked him what was the meaning of his concern for this horse, he said, "So that, having cut off the head of the man who is the most hostile of all to me, I may immediately flee away," thereby alluding to the protosebastos. When, therefore, he saw that the man was suffering from madness, he removed him from his company and had him confined in the palace 67.

19. And so he was removed from their midst. But the King of Pannonia, not yet having learned anything of what had befallen Andronicus, having gathered an army from the Czechs, Saxons, and many other nations, was undertaking the siege of the city of Branitzova, relying, I suppose, on the agreements he had made with Andronicus. Upon receiving news of this, the emperor was stunned and marveled at the treachery of the Hungarians, that they would, for no reason, disregard things that they had but recently ratified with oaths. ^D Having decided, however, that the matter required speed, he immediately set out toward the Ister. Knowing that his own forces were in no way a match for the Hungarians (for the Roman forces, with no one [else]...

^A to oppose them for the time being, were scattered throughout the provinces), he considered the following plan. There is a certain place possessing sufficient natural defenses, called Smeles. He decided to occupy this as a base for making excursions against the Hungarians. However, in order to keep the city safe for him in the meantime, he wrote a letter informing [the inhabitants] that he would arrive shortly, and handed it to one of the soldiers, ordering him to fasten it to an arrow and shoot it into the city. The man performed what was commanded. But the arrow, having been discharged further than it ought to have been, fell into the hands of the Hungarians. Immediate panic seized them, and having set fire to their siege engines and whatever else they had prepared for the assault on the wall, they set out for the crossing of the Ister. Meeting with a great multitude (for the winter from the heights was pressing down), they headed for the city of Belgrade. ^B Becoming aware of this, and also learning that Borites, the ruler of the Bosnian region of Dalmatia, who had come to the aid of the Hungarian king, was returning to his own principality, the Emperor selected the bravest of the forces he had with him to join battle with Borites, and sent them off. Basilius, whom I have mentioned before—a man of obscure birth, but otherwise the Emperor's chartulary—was in command of this force. The Emperor himself followed behind at a slow pace with the rest of the Roman army. But Basilius, forgetting, I suppose, for whose sake and against whom he was sent to fight

Notes of Du Cange

(68) Borites, ruler of the Bosnian region. By Orbino he is called Barich, ban or prince of Bosnia, about the year 1154. Culinus succeeded Boritius, whose mention occurs more than once in the epistles of Innocent II.

(69) *Chartularius*. Those are called chartularies who serve the records, as in the Code, where it concerns the fisc or the handling of public documents; in the Code, regarding the praepositi *agentium in rebus*, whence they are also called *tractatores*, as Cujacius observed; otherwise *commentarienses*, from the acts, who handle the documents and books of expenditures, who retract the largitional titles, in the Code. ^C ... ^D ... [alt-version omitted]

^A The emperor, having made preparations, followed with the rest of the Roman army, albeit at a more leisurely pace. But Basileios—forgetful, I believe, of why the emperor had sent him or against whom he was to fight—hastened his speed and found himself very close to the army of the Huns. Certain scouts having turned to flee before him, he followed them and then fell upon the center of the Hun position, imagining he would achieve some great victory if he attacked them while they were so terrified and threw them into confusion. And perhaps he was not altogether without reason in doing so. For the Huns, at first supposing that the emperor himself was leading this war against them, fled in total disorder, and many of them, as they collided together at the boats, were pulled down into the river. But as soon as they learned that the emperor was following behind, and that Basileios was leading the army, they took heart and, becoming aggressive, stood their ground against the Romans. Though the Romans were significantly fewer in number than the enemy, they nonetheless resisted them. A great slaughter occurred on both sides, until the Huns around Stephen, the son of Jatzas, who were fighting for the Romans, were the first to take flight. Once the direction of the rout had turned, almost all of the Huns with Stephen fell, as did many of the Romans; others, however, saved themselves by flight, among whom was the general Basileios himself. These events were reported to the emperor, as well as the fact that the inhabitants of the city of Belgrade were planning to defect from the Romans, which caused him great despondency. ^B Therefore, he sent John Cantacuzenus to reinforce the city against the plans for defection—which, as I have already said, was becoming shaky—and also to see to the burial of the Roman dead and to recall those who had fled and were hiding anywhere in that land. He himself, being extremely enraged at these occurrences, fretted and wanted to pursue the Huns, but the Romans did not approve of his plan. "But truly, men," he said, "it seems inglorious to me to depart without having received a wound, while competing for the prosperity of the Romans." However, when he heard that the Hunnic force had advanced far off, he abandoned his ardor. By this time, Cantacuzenus had accomplished the task for which he had been sent and had returned, bringing with him those prisoners who, as stated, had been stirring up the defection of the Belgradians. ^C Then, having broken camp from there, he wintered near the city of the people of Berrhoea. With the coming of spring, he gathered his forces from all sides and marched once more against the Hunnic force, having the firm intention to penetrate into the very heart of the country. He had now stationed his camp on the banks of the Ister with his entire army, and there were many ships present which had arrived from Byzantium so that he might transport his troops. But when the king of Pannonia saw himself pressed by these straits, ^D he finally thought of sending envoys. Having therefore sent illustrious men to the emperor, he promised that he would immediately surrender the Roman prisoners and, moreover, provide whatever the emperor might command: even though the prince at first seemed to refuse his words. [alt-version omitted]

having encamped with his whole army on the banks of the Ister, ^A remained there; and the ships, having sailed from Byzantium, stood together, waiting to take the infantry on board. When the king of the Paeonians [Hungarians] saw that his affairs had been reduced to a narrow strait, he at last looked toward an embassy. Having therefore sent men of distinction from among his own people to the emperor, he promised that he would immediately restore the captives taken by the Romans, and that he would thereafter serve him in all matters, according to his wishes. The emperor, for his part, at first appeared strongly to refuse and to reject the overtures for peace, but later he received the suppliants and concluded the embassy upon the previously mentioned terms. Therefore, those taken captive in the battle that had occurred just before, as has been related, were brought into the Roman camp, along with their arms, horses, and whatever other spoils of war there were. Moreover, in place of the horses and pack animals that had perished, living ones bred in Hungary itself were brought in by the natives. And so, having resolved the war, they returned home. And from that point on, the Italic wars, which I mentioned were already beginning, now began to be waged with greater intensity. But let us go back a little to gather the narrative. ^B

BOOK IV

1. Frederick, the nephew of Conrad who had ruled the Germans—of whom we have sufficiently spoken in the preceding books—obtained the principate upon the death of Conrad. ^C Once, when he was discussing the subject of nobility (for since he was thinking of taking a wife, he had decided to choose the most noble of all), he heard that Maria, the daughter of the sebastocrator Isaac, who was outstanding in both birth and the abundance of her beauty, was being raised in Byzantium. Immediately smitten with love for the maiden, he sent envoys to the emperor and requested that she be betrothed to him in marriage, promising to fulfill all those things which his uncle Conrad and he himself had promised, when they returned from Palestine, concerning the restoration of Italy to the Romans. When the legates sent by Frederick arrived for this purpose, the emperor eagerly accepted the proposals made by him; and he, in turn, sent legates to Frederick to strengthen the things upon which they had mutually agreed. But when they came into his presence, having perceived that nothing sound or sensible was being put forward by the man, they returned with their business unfinished, after having permitted the king to send another embassy to the emperor. ^D

^A When it had been decided by the king to send him away, two men from among the foremost were sent, Michael Palaiologos and John Doukas, both distinguished by the dignity of *sebastos*. Among them was also Alexander, who had once been lord of the Italian city of Gravina, but who, after having been driven out by Roger, had previously fled to the king. They had been given orders that, if they heard that Frederick was staying within the Alps, they were all to meet him together; but if he was further away, Michael was to go to Italy with the money, while the others were to be sent to Frederick, and even if he should neglect the things that had been agreed upon, they were to take possession of Italy themselves. And this is exactly what happened.

^B 2. For the tyrant of the Sicilians, Roger, had a nephew named Bassavilla. While this man’s uncle was still living, he possessed supreme power in Italy. [alt-version omitted]

[Notes of Du Cange]

[...]*[Following the Latin text of the notes:]* ...[P. 454] ...[P. 455] ...

the capacity of an under-general, while others governed Italy. And in truth, unable to endure this insult, he turned his mind toward revolt. Therefore, he sent envoys to Frederick and offered to hand over to him all of Italy and Sicily itself. But because Frederick was ^B hesitant due to the difficulty of the project, it so happened that the envoys of Bassavilla, returning from their mission in vain, chanced upon Alexander, who, having accomplished nothing at all for which he had come to see Frederick, was returning [in company] with the Duke. When therefore Alexander and the envoys of Bassavilla entered into conversation, Alexander, who knew well for what purpose they had come to see Frederick, said to them: “A person is near, friends, who will soon give your embassy its final conclusion.” When they asked who he might be, Alexander replied: “The Emperor of the Romans.” And having soon explained the state of affairs, he added that Palaeologus, a man who was indeed among the magnates of the Roman court but had been distinguished with the dignity of [sebastus], was near at hand with an immense quantity of money, in order to reclaim Italy for the Emperor. Having understood these things, the envoys informed Bassavilla of the present situation by letter. ^C He, however, requested through the same men that he be permitted to confer with the Romans in the city of Peschara. When Palaeologus received this, he delayed nothing and sailed with ten ships to Peschara, having meanwhile fortified the city of Bestia, which had defected to the Emperor. But when Bassavilla sent word that he would confer with him again at Bestia, he went there; and having held a meeting and exchanged mutual pledges regarding the matters at hand, he betook himself to the work. The Duke, having already assembled an army, set out to besiege a certain fortified stronghold, which Bruntzus, an Italian, commanded. When a battle had been joined there, the Romans routed the enemy, who, as they fled, were pursued by the Romans even to their own walls. But they indeed retreated first into the citadel. Truly, as ^D [Notes of Du Cange: ... of the Norman race, and therefore a descendant of Count Geoffrey of Conversano, the nephew of Robert Guiscard through his sister, regarding whom see Malaterra, bk. 1, ch. 10, 39; bk. 2, ch. 39, 40; bk. 4, ch. 1; Ordericus Vitalis, bk. 7, p. ...; bk. 10, p. 780; and William of Jumièges, bk. 8, ch. 14; but we have touched somewhat upon the counts of Conversano in the notes to the Alexiad, p. 388, and we shall treat of them more fully in the *Norman Families*. Furthermore, it seems worth observing that the counts of Loretello styled themselves not only counts palatine, but also counts of counts: from which it is concluded that they were endowed with this illustrious dignity by the Norman princes, so that there might be those who in these provinces and domains which they had acquired by war—as we noted in the dissertation on Joinville was observed at that time in the kingdom of the Franks and the Alemannic empire—could pass judgment with supreme authority in their palaces. And therefore, because they excelled other counts by the prerogative of this dignity, they were called counts of counts, just as among our Frenchmen the counts of Champagne styled themselves counts of the Franks. The first counts of Loretello enjoyed this dignity. For Robert in a charter of the year ... in Ughellus in *Episcopi Teatini*, no. ..., is [called] count of counts; Robert II in another of the year 1115, which is held in the *Chronicle of the Monastery of St. Sophia at Benevento*, [is called] count of counts of Loratello, and count palatine in a charter of the year ... in Ughellus, vol. VIII, p. 357; finally, William, count of counts of Loretello, is inscribed with the same title in Ughellus, in *Episcopi Teatini*, no. 21. (74) Peschara. Pescara today, a most strongly fortified castle in the Samnite territory, between Atria and Ortona, at the mouth of the river of the same name flowing into the Adriatic Sea, built upon the foundations of the ancient town of Aternum, which they say was Aternum. Paul the Deacon mentions this in *History of the Lombards*, bk. 2, ch. 20. (75) Palaeologus. The expedition of the Italian Greeks, whom Nicetas mentions in passing, and Otto of Freising, bk. 2, ch. 29; William of Tyre, bk. 16, ch. 2 and 8; Robert de Monte, year 1155; the Chronicle of Ceccano and the Pisan Chronicle, year 1157; Ralph de Diceto in *Imagines Historiarum*, year 1156. Stero adds that 40,000 Greeks were slaughtered there. (76) Bestia. Vescis, not Voscia, as in the prior edition, a city on the borders of the Campanian and Hirpinian territories, between Abella and Vesuvius; Besti is a city in Leo Ostiensis, bk. 3, ch. 13. See Cluverius, bk. 1, *Italia Antiqua*, and Ughellus, vol. VII, *Italia Sacra*, p. 1178.]

^A seeing their belongings being consumed by fire, ravaged, and carried off by the Romans, they finally descended and proclaimed their master the great emperor; and in this way they gained possession of that fort. As they proceeded from there toward the city which had been given the name Flaviana ^B after a certain saint who is venerated there, all the townspeople poured out to meet them, imploring them on behalf of their fields and beseeching them that the soldiers would not treat them too harshly, promising that they would henceforth be servants of the emperor and would do whatever the Romans wished. The commander, compensating for their goodwill with his own, marched through their lands in a friendly and peaceful manner. As he was departing from there, William, brother of Bassavilla, who had himself already entered into friendship with the Romans, arrived with letters from his brother, in which he encouraged the commander to approach confidently, seeing that the surrounding region was already obedient to the Romans.

3. Palaeologus, after he had secured the surrender of Bestia, as has been said, by terms of agreement, came to Trani. ^C When the people of Trani saw the Roman army, since they were by no means willing to surrender their city, they sent envoys to the commander and requested that he depart from their territory. For, they said, it would be impossible for him to capture Trani before he had first taken Bari. He immediately took no more than ten ships, departed from there, and came to the city of Bari—not so much because he was persuaded by the soldiers' advice (for he was very astute and inferior to no one in military experience), but because he knew that Trani could not really be taken, and he therefore thought it unwise to waste time there to no purpose. But it did not seem so easy to bring his forces right up to Bari, ^D both because it was girded by strong walls and because it was defended by a suitable contingent of barbarians: some of whom stood armed upon the battlements, while an infinite multitude of infantry and cavalry had poured out before the gates, standing ready with their arms. To make matters worse, the sea, stirred up by an unusual storm, threatened every moment to destroy the ships. Although, therefore, all things appeared difficult and thorny on every side, he still did not abandon all hope. On the following day, when the storm had calmed, he decided to set about the task. But when almost nothing was succeeding according to his plan—for some of the enemy were hurling stones, wood, and whatever came to hand from the battlements like a snowstorm, while those who stood below were darkening the air with constant missiles—thinking he should break off the attack for the moment, he withdrew out of range of the missiles and began to negotiate with the enemy, promising them many good things, which he pledged to give them immediately if they would surrender the city to the great emperor without a battle, and holding out the hope of others later. As soon as the townspeople heard this, some of the cavalry rode out, and others boarded small boats, and they invited him to come into the city, showing him that the gates were thrown open. But he, fearing that it might be some trick, decided first to test their intentions. Therefore, he ordered one of the ships with his men to go to the shore as if to drop anchor, but as soon as the enemy saw it approaching...

about five hundred men climbed onto the battlements. Alexander, observing that they had not yet taken up arms, seized some gold that he had loose in his bosom and, stepping off the ship, showed it to those on the walls. ^A "Whoever loves wealth and liberty," he shouted, "let him come here, for he shall immediately enjoy them." He had no sooner said this than a great multitude from the city ran out and immediately joined the Emperor; the general, having secured them with oaths, hastened to lead the army into the city. Thus, nothing is more deceptive to men than golden bait. When the other citizens, who were obviously displeased by what was happening, realized this, they ran to the acropolis and, once within the walls, fought for the whole outcome. It was truly a sight worth marveling at to see those who but a moment ago were united by nature and intent now separated by gold as if by a wall, thinking hostilely of one another and acting in total opposition. Such was the state of affairs here. There was also another fort in the city, in which a temple was founded to Saint Nicholas; the general, intending to take this as well, hit upon the following plan. He ordered some men, clad in black cloaks, to go to the temple early in the morning, and once they were inside, to draw their swords and get to work. ^B So, at dawn, they approached the fort and knocked at the gate. Those inside, assuming they were merely monks, opened the gates and let them in; and thus, this castle too was captured by the Romans. But even after this had been taken, those who held the acropolis remained obstinate. They continued for seven whole days to hold out against one another in this way, but when Bassavilla also arrived there bringing a very large force, they finally surrendered that as well to the Romans. However, out of hatred for Roger—since he had treated them inhumanely and cruelly, as tyrants are wont to do—they razed the acropolis and leveled it to the ground, even though the general opposed this, wishing to purchase it at a high price.

4. Such were the events at Bari. Once Palaiologos had taken the city, he sailed for Trani; ^C having brought that city to submission through agreement, he then also secured Giovinazzo, a city worthy of note, by treaty. There was in those parts a certain Richard ^D

[index: entries preserved]

^A a man of a cruel disposition. For to slaughter a man, even one who had offended him by some minor trifle, as if he were a sacrificial victim, or to tear open his entrails and deprive him of his hands or feet was, in his view, the most trifling punishment. This man was in command of the fortress of Andria, and having heard that the Romans were seeking to take possession of Giovinazzo, he had been threatening them. Even previously he had sought to abstain from this undertaking, but as they had disregarded his threats and had, by agreement, taken hold of Giovinazzo itself and were pondering further advances, he joined with other counts, and specifically with William the Chancellor—whom a Greek speaker might call a Logothete—and together with them he marched against Trani, intending to capture the city at the first assault. An army followed them, consisting of two thousand cavalry, and a truly vast multitude of infantry and men-at-arms. Thus, the Romans, who had been left inside ^B with a very small and depleted force, were fearful for the city itself and for the whole state of affairs; and so they sent quickly for Ducas with written messages, setting forth to him the situation as it stood. When he received the letters, he struck camp that very day and pressed on towards Trani. When he had arrived at a certain place called Buno, the locals came out to meet him, urging the Roman army to take the city for themselves without a fight. But Ducas, thinking that to spend any time there was disadvantageous—lest he give Richard an opportunity to conduct the war at his own discretion—passed over this for the time being, for it was something that could be addressed later in due course, and he directed his whole impulse against Richard. There is a certain seaside ^C town named Barletta, where it happened that the Chancellor was present. When Ducas had come into very close proximity to the city, three hundred cavalry from Richard’s army, along with a phalanx of infantry, made a sally and confronted them unexpectedly. Ducas, not in the least struck with alarm by this unforeseen event, quickly drew his men into a dense battle line and set upon them with great force; they, holding their ground for a short time, broke and fled. In that engagement, I cannot say how the other Romans acquitted themselves or what noble deeds each one performed; but it is established by fame that Ducas, charging with his spear, struck down thirty men, until, having lost many of their own, they retreated inside the gates. The Romans pursued the fugitives but, as night was already drawing on, returned to their camp, having lost no one except for one of their mercenary ^D cavalrymen. They encamped there that night, but when day dawned, they set out on their way. Having learned of this, Richard, fearing that if he were encircled on all sides by the Romans he would suffer a loss that could not easily be repaired, beat a hasty retreat from there and ensconced himself back in Andria. As for Ducas...

Du Cangii notes

^A Ducas, having taken up the army under the command of Palaiologos, advanced against Richard, although the force around him was far inferior to the Romans in number; for it happened that they were not more than six hundred, excluding the infantry, who themselves were also lacking in comparison to Richard's very large infantry force. Richard, however, had one thousand eight hundred cavalry, and an uncountable infantry host followed him. Richard, therefore, having learned that the Romans were approaching, led out his army as well. When they were already nearby, the Romans, having divided into three, drew themselves up in this manner. The Scythians and whoever were at the bows stood on foot in phalanx formation in the front line. Ducas himself, having about half of the cavalry and a contingent of Scythians, took the rear position, while Bassavilla, with some of the other counts and the rest of the cavalry, occupied the middle space. Richard, possessed by great fury, and not deigning to make even the slightest tactical adjustment, rode off with the cavalry around him until, having arrived at the very center of the Roman army, he began the battle on the spot, as the archery in the front line did not hold against him in the slightest. Then, having forced Bassavilla, he routed him by main strength and fell upon those around Ducas. There a fierce battle was joined, and many of those around Richard fell; but since they were falling within a very large multitude, no sense of it was felt by the army. There was a great shoving, and the crash of spears being shattered against shields was heard repeatedly; arrows flew thick, and the danger was consolidated on all sides, until Richard, by charging with momentum, forced even them to show their backs. At that time, Ducas himself ^B nearly came to the point of being captured and pierced by a spear. But Providence leads and turns human affairs to whatever end it wills. Although the Romans had been reduced to such a fortune, nonetheless they ended up as victors. For Ducas had reached and found safety on some walls constructed of stone—a kind of construction, without lime or similar material, often used to enclose fields that face city gates. Meanwhile, the Roman infantry, having found a suitable place, threw stones at Richard's men, so that many who had given themselves to flight gathered together again from there and attacked the enemy. When Richard saw this, he set upon them again with thirty-six cavalrymen. But a certain priest from Trani, a man of great size, dropped a stone from a higher position, and having struck one of his shins, he brought the man to the ground, who was tearing and pulling at himself from the pain. And when the priest had struck his neck with a second blow, he threw him down—defeated at last and begging in vain—and having driven a dagger into his belly, he removed all his entrails and placed them at the mouth of the man as he lay, like some sort of food, as a demonstration against him of that very manner of inhumanity which he had practiced upon others. Then the Army of Andria and those forces that had clung to Richard joined themselves to the Romans; and those who had believed that they would not escape the danger at all, came with the spoils to Bari: where, having found the... ^{C D}

supplies they needed, they refreshed their bodies, worn out by military labors.

5. A few days having passed, it seemed worthwhile to divide the army into two parts: that one part should remain there with one of the commanders, and the other should go out to raid the surrounding fortresses. The lot to lead this fell to Ducas. Therefore—for there was a certain city, which a distinguished man named Castrus governed—he surrounded it and besieged it securely. But when, after having repeatedly attacked the walls, he saw that he was spending his efforts in vain (for, although he had struck the walls many times with siege engines, he had scarcely dislodged a single stone), he moved camp toward evening ^B and set off for Monopolis, intending to attack that city by surprise.

Now, at that time, the Monopolitans had sent a force against the Romans, partly to scout out what was happening, and partly to see if it might be possible to stand against them. By some chance, the Monopolitans came in contact with the vanguard of the Roman army and engaged them. As soon as those who were in the rearguard perceived this, almost all of their cavalry turned their backs and, fleeing at full gallop, announced to the rest of the citizens that the Roman army was already about to arrive. Most of the infantry were captured. Terrified by this news, the city decided that they must resist the enemy as best they could in the present danger. Therefore, two hundred cavalry and more than a thousand infantry—and besides these, an immense multitude of slingers following them—took their stand before the city.

When day had broken, Ducas arrived with half the army, the rest having been sent off to incurse the surrounding fields. He came, therefore, with his forces divided in two; he did not, however, engage the Monopolitans immediately, but, as if to scout the walls, he traveled slowly at first, as if he were going to examine the city from different sides. Then, concealing what was in his mind, and having instructed thirty of his men to follow him, he charged into the middle of the enemy. Stunned by the suddenness of the attack, they turned to flight; and Ducas did not stop pursuing them until he had reached the very gates of the city with the fugitives and had himself struck down one of the enemy, transfixing him with his spear and casting him to the ground. After collecting the captives, ^D he withdrew from there.

Now the other part of the army, having made an excursion into the surrounding fields and having taken no small amount of spoils, returned with Ducas to Bari. In the meantime, envoys sent by the Roman pontiff—whom the Latins are accustomed to call the Pope—arrived at the Roman commanders. The purpose of the embassy was that either both or one of them should come to Rome, so that they might confer with each other about matters of greater importance. For they were saying that, having assembled huge forces, they...

^A had prepared themselves to assist the Romans. The Roman generals, however, declined this by letter, but they sent a certain Basilacius, one of the emperor’s secretaries who was then accompanying them, with money to hire horsemen from those parts. They themselves made preparations for the war against Monopolis. The people of Monopolis, not daring to contend against the Romans, requested a respite for a certain time, promising that if no aid reached them from anywhere within that interval, they would surrender the city without a struggle. This was done, and an armistice of one month was granted to the people of Monopolis.

6. While matters were in this state, Bassavilla, against whom the Sicilian ^B forces were already advancing, solicited the Roman generals by letter to bring him aid as quickly as possible. When they hesitated and disregarded his demands, he sent envoys again to urge the same things upon them. The Romans at first refused outright, saying that they had not been sent by the emperor to assist Bassavilla (for indeed no treaty concluded between him and the Romans contained such conditions), but rather to endeavor with combined forces to restore Italy to the Emperor. Although they had sent these replies to Bassavilla, ^C he nevertheless persisted, informing the commanders that he was reduced to extreme danger. After deliberation, therefore, they came to the city of Bututa, which is one day's journey distant from Bari for an armed man. But since a rumor had already spread—I know not by whom—that while Richard was still alive Bassavilla had plotted treason against the Romans, they deemed it necessary to bind the man under a second oath; once this was done, they banished every suspicion of him from that time forward. In the meantime, the Emperor sent to Italy a fleet composed of Massagetes, ^D German cavalry, and also Romans. The Massagetes were commanded by Joannacius, surnamed Critoples; the Germans by Alexander, who was a Longobard by birth, but otherwise most loyal to the Romans and dedicated to the interests of the Emperor. John, surnamed Angelus, was in command of them all. When the commander of William’s forces learned of this, and that the Roman army was advancing against him—besieging Antrum and plundering the neighboring fields—he set out with his entire force toward Malphetum, a sufficiently strong town. The Romans, however, decided to attack the fortress of Boscum, which had obeyed that Richard, and was a firm and highly fortified castle that was difficult to approach. There, for the sake of displaying his magnificence, he raised every kind of animal in separate preserves, from which, whenever he wished, hunting was ready for him without effort. Ducas, therefore, taking some of his men, approached to inspect the castle; and when he had drawn near to it, trusting in the

^A inner strength of the walls, the enemies who were inside sallied forth, and having fallen upon them, they inflicted casualties upon four of them, but two of their own number also fell. And the skirmish now turned more into hand-to-hand combat. But the Romans, rallying and relying on their own valor, drove back the enemy. During this struggle, many other Romans and two Massagetae proved themselves brave. Thus, the skirmish was resolved there. Ducas, since the rest of the army had arrived, ^B at that time pitched camp and bivouacked, but at dawn he drew up his men and advanced in phalanxes. An assault having therefore taken place, the Romans harassed the besieged with missiles and with projectiles from their siege engines; the latter, meanwhile, defended themselves most stoutly from the battlements. At this point, a wondrous thing occurred. For two of Ducas’s guards, when they saw that the fortress, though battered by the barrage of stones, would not yield, covered their heads with their shields and, carrying torches in their other hands, ^C advanced toward the gates in order to set them on fire. But because the wood did not easily catch the flame, they departed from there without having achieved their purpose, having miraculously evaded the missiles which were being sent down upon them from the walls like hail. Then the Romans, having struggled until the setting sun without achieving anything, returned to their camp. When the captains of William learned of this, they gathered in council and deliberated whether they should engage the Romans in battle. When the opinion of all concurred in this, ^D taking up their forces, they marched upon the Roman camp; upon learning of this, the Romans also prepared themselves for a pitched battle. Nine commanders were in charge of the Italians, but the chancellor held supreme command over them all; their army was entirely equipped with exact precision, mounted on spirited horses, and shaking long spears. At this, a panic and dread took hold of the Roman army, regarding whether they should fight with such a sparse force against an army so well-armed and so countless. Nevertheless, having drawn up their battle line and distributed themselves by companies, they stood firm, while the general urged them on with much speech toward greatness of soul. For a time, both sides held back from hand-to-hand combat. But when the trumpets sounded on both sides and the signal for battle was given, everyone joined in the fray, falling to and engaging in close combat. You would not have said that you could see the sun or the day; for a dark mist covered everything and dust rose to the sky, and a din was heard and a wild clamor arose. Up to midday, the battle was evenly matched. Thereafter, however, the Italians, forcing the issue with their numbers, pressed hard upon those with Ducas. But when he quickly perceived the situation, he rode into the middle of the enemy’s phalanx; cutting down others at every turn, he urged the Roman line to follow him with a shout. Once again the armies fell upon one another, and the battle raged, until the Romans, by their own valor, turned the enemy to flight. And during the flight, about three hundred of their horsemen fell, and an uncounted multitude of their infantry, while the rest went off in flight. Having achieved these successes, the Romans returned to the fortress. Not long thereafter, having taken it, they found within an abundance of provisions and other necessary things, and, satisfied, they came to Bari.

^A Not long after this, they gained possession of the notable city of Montpeloso; they also took Gravina, which Alexander had previously governed, as well as other cities and fortresses. Furthermore, they captured more than fifty sizable towns. In this way, the emperor’s affairs reached a great height each day, while the strength of Gulielmus was gradually drained and reduced to a tight strait.

The rumor, therefore, spreading throughout all of Italy, proclaimed the Roman prowess to be everywhere unconquerable. At that time, the Italians, who for an immeasurable length of time had not experienced the Romans in battle, saw them seizing and carrying off everything of theirs at once. Thus far, then, Roman affairs proceeded according to plan; but from this point on, fortune began to envy their successes. A plague indeed struck Palaiologos, and it scorched the man with raging fevers; nor did it cease consuming his natural humors until it had first compelled him to shave his hair, and a little later had removed him from the world of men.

He had just put on the hair-shirt and, as he thought he was getting better, he urged Ducas to go to the other cities which it happened the Romans had not yet subdued. On the third day after that, he was again in a bad way, and Ducas, having learned of this, returned to Bari. Having encountered him already dead, he entrusted his body to a tomb, having performed all those things which Christian law grants to be done at holy funerals. He then takes upon himself the command of affairs at Bari.

^B 8. Palaiologos thus departed this life—a man of quick intellect and, besides that, most skilled in engaging in military matters. Ducas, however, having taken up the army, proceeded straight to Brindisi, where he was pressed to conciliate Bassavilla to himself, who had revolted for this very reason. ^C This man, whether seeking an opportunity for gain, I suspect, or because he was truly in need of money, demanded that ten thousand gold pieces be lent to him by... ^D [Du Cangii note: refers to Montpeloso and Gravina, the death of Palaiologos, and the monastic practice of the hair-shirt/cilice.] [original-script column: see facsimile]

that ten thousand gold pieces be lent to him by Patrologia. Nevertheless, although Palaiologos promised that he would give it immediately, he would not do so as a loan, but as a gift from the emperor; regarding the rest, he absolutely refused to provide anything. When Bissavilla accepted this refusal with difficulty, he immediately departed from the Roman camp. ^B But after Palaiologos had died and power had been transferred to Doukas, he came to him, and having received the money he had requested, he joined his forces with the Romans again. Then, leading him along, Doukas marched with his entire army to Masafra. 93 There was a city there called Polymelion, where it happened that one of the commanders of William, named Flamingus, was staying. But when he heard that the Roman army was approaching, he departed from there and went to Taranto. The Romans, having captured Polymelion and plundered the surrounding fields, filled their camp with supplies. From there they proceeded to the city of Molissa, which stands upon a height; it is a strong city with towers, situated on level ground. One side of it is surrounded by rugged and inaccessible ravines, while the other side is encompassed by navigable rivers. But nothing seems to stand against those sailing with a following wind. ^C For Molissa, however fortified it was, was captured by the Romans, who did not labor much, in the manner I shall set forth. For they, having been emboldened by their previous successes, when they saw the townspeople, trusting in the nature of the place, standing outside the gates where the city could more easily be attacked, rushed at a run through the steep terrain. Dazed by the boldness of these men, they fled and fell back into the gates. While they were not yet barred, the Roman army rushed in and the city was taken by force. Having accomplished these things, the Romans departed from there. But they had not yet traveled far when Flamingus met them with numerous forces. ^D Some of the Roman detachments, therefore, charged forward and joined battle with the enemy, performing wondrous deeds, but, being far outnumbered by them, they retreated backward. Meanwhile, Doukas attacked Flamingus with his entire army, and having put him to flight, he arrived at Masafra. Having taken it at the first onset, he found an incredible supply of provisions and necessities stored in the citadel, as well as many arms and no fewer than two hundred horses. When the Tarentines saw this, they went about by neighborhoods and districts, openly reviling Flamingus and accusing him of providing the material for Roman boldness through his own cowardice and sloth. Unable to endure this insult any longer, he again took up his forces and awaited the Roman army. But he had scarcely come into their sight when, suddenly seized by panic and unmindful of his former courage, he was overcome by cowardice. Thus, a few of the Romans pursued the fugitives and struck them down. But when they came near to Taranto, thinking that the city could not be captured, they departed from it; but as they intended to move their forces to Monopoli, and having no...

equipment for a siege, they sent letters to Bari requesting the fleet, so that they might obtain such things from there as quickly as possible. In the meantime, the Romans, while marching through a region that was very opulent and overflowing with a boundless abundance of all sorts of good things, were multiplied in wealth. It is said that at that time a soldier could sell ten herd-cows for a single gold stater, and a hundred and thirty sheep. At this time, too, they found some Romans who had long been wasting away in chains and released the wretches from their shackles. ^A

9. After five days they arrived at Monopoli, and no one came out to meet them (for the rumor had already terrified them and driven them within the walls), but armed men stood upon the towers to repel them if any assault should be made against the rampart. The Romans, therefore, having pitched their camp in a suitable place not far from there, remained. But when the fleet which they had requested from Bari brought what was necessary for the siege, they assailed the walls with all their forces. But the Monopolitans, discharging missiles from on high upon the enemy, drove back the approaching Romans and killed some of them. The battle, having begun in the morning, lasted until nightfall. The Romans, therefore, when it was already growing dark, withdrew to their camp. But the Monopolitans kept guards on the towers, changing them by turns, so that if the Romans attempted anything by night, it would not escape their notice. ^B Fires were also lit on both sides, and pipes and trumpets resounded. And when the sun had just passed the eastern horizon and was casting its rays upon the face of the earth, the Romans marched out from their trenches to their tasks again, and the Monopolitans ran to the battlements and were at their arms. Again an extraordinary struggle began, with the Romans struggling to force their way up to the wall, and the Monopolitans repelling those who approached. For some time, they labored on these things; then the Roman army, having set fire to the place where the Monopolitans had drawn up their ships, caused a huge flame to rise. At which time, a certain Roman soldier, Ilicanatus by name, performed a deed worthy of being spoken of and heard. ^C For a double wall encircles Monopoli, but the inner one is built much higher and is in no way troubled by the enemy’s spear; the other, however, being about a third the height of the former, encircles its foundations. On this outer wall climbed two of the Monopolitans, who were harassing the enemy with missiles from there and urging others to do the same. When Ilicanatus saw this, he seized his spear, charged toward that spot, struck one of them, and laid him low. Immediately a huge clamor and such applause arose from the Roman army that nothing else could be heard. ^D Whence the townspeople who were standing in the towers, struck with fear and thinking that the city was already taken, abandoned the towers and fled into the middle of the city; and if they had not quickly realized the situation and retreated again to the battlements, the city would have been captured by the Romans on the spot. Thus ended the second siege of Monopoli. But the townspeople, when they saw themselves pressed on all sides by their straits...

sent letters to Flamingus requesting that he come to their aid as quickly as possible. He sent word back that he would arrive shortly with a large force and drive the Romans away. Fear, however, gripped his inner heart, and he fell into unmeasured cowardice as he considered with whom he would have to fight and against whom the war would be waged. When the seventh day from that time had passed and Flamingus appeared nowhere, the people of Monopoli, having lost hope for succor from any source, sent envoys to the Roman camp ^A with the intention of surrendering their city and themselves to the Emperor, on the condition that they have some guarantee of faith, unless they were also to accept the stationing of a garrison in their midst on the Emperor's behalf. When they consented to this, a fixed day was set for the agreement. But some of the common people of Monopoli—for there were those to whom these proceedings did not please—without the knowledge of the others, signaled these matters to Flamingus. He, being dismayed by this news, immediately selected one hundred mailed horsemen from among his attendants and sent them, promising that he would follow shortly thereafter bringing greater forces. ^B Therefore, those to whom this duty fell, keeping watch during the night, when a great downpour of rain was falling from heaven, allowed those horsemen to enter the city through a smaller gate. When Ducas discovered this, thinking the envoys of the Monopolitans had deceived him, he immediately led his soldiers out from their entrenchments. But when the townspeople saw that those one hundred horsemen were not sufficient for them, especially as the Romans were preparing to fight with spirits sharper than before, they sent again to invite the leader into the city, shifting the blame onto others who had dared to carry out the act without the common counsel. At first ^C Ducas refused to admit this and, spurning the envoys to a certain extent, said he wished to settle the matter by arms. But eventually, as they insisted more keenly and begged him to forgive them this offense, he was finally appeased and brought his army into the city. Scarcely had the Romans gained the city when it was announced that Flamingus was present at a distance of twenty stades. When Ducas heard this, he sent out selected horsemen of proven nobility to meet Flamingus, while he himself remained in the city to organize affairs there. But when Flamingus from afar saw the imperial standards raised upon the towers, ^D before he came to blows with the Roman horsemen who were already very close, he retreated. The Romans, pursuing from the rear, killed many of them and captured about one hundred fully armed horsemen alive. As for Flamingus, who himself was nearly taken, the speed of his horse rescued him from the danger. Having brought these matters to a successful conclusion, the Romans returned to Monopoli.

Ducas, seeing that fortune smiled upon the Romans every day, did not think to trust her entirely, fearing her instability, as is reasonable, lest—as is the way with the wicked—she might...

desert them, leaving them in the middle of the road. ^A He therefore sent letters to the Emperor, the substance of which was as follows: "If no other war remained for us in Italy, most powerful Emperor, there would be need of neither another army nor of aid of any other sort. Know that up to this very day, everything has turned out for us according to our wishes; we have brought almost all the cities in Italy and those up to the Ionian Gulf under our rule, and we have brought great wars to a conclusion worthy of your majesty and the Roman name. But since a far more serious conflict now looms before us (for William, the plunderer of Sicily, is undoubtedly indignant at the loss of his own men, and having gathered forces from every quarter and launched a powerful fleet upon the sea, he is contemplating attacking us by both land and sea), the preparations of this islander are not to be despised by us, nor must this war be waged lackadaisically, lest the glory we have won in the present be turned into ignominy. For he who undertakes great tasks with small forces, if he brings the matter to a prosperous conclusion, wins greater glory than if he had set out with the greatest; but conversely, if affairs turn out badly, he incurs manifold disgrace, seeing that in addition to the defeat itself, ignorance of military science is wont to afflict the conquered, as your majesty has often taught us. Therefore, that none of these things should ever befall us, we have need here of greater land and sea forces."

Such were the contents of the letters. When affairs in Monopoli were already well settled for him, he departed from there with his entire army, and having taken the very strong city of Ostuni ^B by terms, he pressed on toward another city, Brundisium, which was called Temesa ^C in ancient times; but the long age that followed, as it arrived, dried up most of the names, changing them to others that were either completely unlike or only slightly different.

When the Romans reached this city, they remained idle, for the next day was the Christians' Easter. The townspeople, ascribing this idleness to cowardice and timidity, made many sallies and ran out right up to the very ramparts, until some of the Romans, though unwilling, broke through, and having finally repelled them, returned to the camp. The rest of the Romans, as before, devoted themselves to the worship due on festival days. However, a certain Thomas, an Antiochene by birth who had long before defected to the Emperor, took up his arms, left the rampart, and rode across the plain. When he reached the city, he challenged the bravest of them to individual combat. There was, however, a man there of exceeding valor, named Enchelys. ^D When he heard Thomas calling for battle, he assumed his breastplate, descended into the field, and advanced at a measured pace to meet Thomas. Fear then struck the spectators on both sides, as those noble armored warriors [met] in that place as if...

to contend in a stadium. When they came close, they spurred their horses and crashed together with their spears. The spear of Thomas passed through the shield and breastplate of his antagonist ^A and reached even to the skin; meanwhile, the spear of Enchelys was thrust against the shield at the point where it was held up to cover the head, and since the soldier had shrunk back in order to shield his head, it pierced his helmet and grazed his flesh. Having thus parted from one another, the one withdrew to the Roman camp, while the other entered the city.

When the Romans had finished celebrating their festival, they drew up their lines and marched against the city. Observing that they were laboring in vain after battering the walls with frequent blows from their siege engines—for the ancients, who expended great care on their works, had, not without reason, taken even greater pains in the construction of their cities ^B—they desisted from this attempt. Instead, they aimed their stones from a greater distance, in such a way that they would fly over the walls and fall inside the city. Scarcely had the first stone been launched when a woman walking in the city was struck on the crown of her head, such that her skull was split and the bones of all her limbs were shattered. A great wailing arose, and as if the city had been captured, the terror-stricken townspeople did not dare to venture out into the public square, even to look at the sight of that unfortunate woman. But when a second stone was thrown, and soon many others were repeated by the Romans, the common people were immediately thrown into turmoil, and each man imagined that a stone was hanging over his own head, in quite a different manner ^C than the fables tell of Tantalus.

Consequently, as the citizens were already deliberating about receiving the Romans into the city, the garrison troops and those who were guarding the towers perceived the situation and quickly fled into the acropolis, upon which the common people opened the gates and brought in the Roman forces. Having taken the city in this manner, Ducas divided his army into two parts: one he kept in the city to assault the citadel, while the other he sent out to ravage the countryside. While these things were being done there, a certain fertile region, populous and rich in inhabitants, which they call Halitzium ^D (97), considering what had happened at Brundusium, defected to the Emperor. A small force of the enemy (who were Celts) had hidden in the thickets there, and lying in wait for those who were pasturing the Roman horses, they drove off the entire herd while their keepers were lulled by sleep. As soon as the Romans learned of this from those who were returning from foraging, they pursued the enemy with all speed, recovered their horses, and captured the greater part of the enemy alive; among whom was a man most distinguished among the Italians, by name Sycheres. But before it was recognized who he was, he paid a sum of money to the man by whom he was captured and redeemed himself.

Du Cangii notæ. (96) *For the ancients of old...* The ancient author is anonymous. In his *On Military Matters*: The rulers of former lives did not rejoice in idle wealth, but rather in the building of walls, into the beauty of which they gathered all of their gold and silver. (97) *Halitzium.* No place of this name occurs to me.

[P. 94] A report reached the Romans that William was approaching with massive forces by land and sea. ^A For this reason, they prepared everything for war and remained quiet. Not even five days had passed after that when a deserter arrived from the enemy's army and announced that William was close by, intending to catch the Romans as if in a net. Having heard this, the Roman commanders immediately laid out the battle plan. It was decided that Bassavilas and John Angelus, with all the mercenary forces and those who had joined the Emperor from Italy, should sustain the brunt of the war on land, while Ducas should engage those from the sea. For thus they said they would be able to assist one another. ^B Accordingly, at dawn, Ducas set out on foot along the shore with the armored horsemen around him, keeping the ships sailing alongside on the other side, while the others set off in divisions, having prepared for the battle from the land.

The Sicilian ships, when they had already approached the city, were unable to enter the harbor in a single mass (for it is sufficiently wide on the inside but gradually narrows toward the exit), so they entered in tens, divided into successive groups. It is said, then, that Ducas, seeing the multitude of enemy ships and how greatly it terrified the Roman fleet—for he himself had but fourteen ships in all—devised a strategy of this kind. He produced letters, ostensibly sent from the Emperor, and showed them to the soldiers, in which he claimed that forces would arrive by land and sea around midday to support them. With the men encouraged by this hope, he said: "But let us, fellow soldiers, seek the victory for ourselves, so that we, who have shouldered the burden of the labors at the present time, may not be compelled to share the glory and fruit of the victory with those who arrive late to the battle."

Having said this, once the commander saw that the enemy ships had already entered the harbor, he ordered his men to begin the work. And so the naval battle commenced, and the Sicilians, unable to endure the missiles launched by the Romans from both land and sea—for they were being pelted from both sides—turned their sterns in retreat. The Romans pursued them from behind, killing many of them, and also captured four ships, crew and all, which had run aground on the shore. ^C For it happened that, more rashly than they should have, the crews jumped onto the shore, where they were very easy prey for the land army. In this struggle, more than two thousand of the enemy fell. Among the Romans, many performed heroically, but most of all a man from the ranks of Ducas, named Scaramangas, distinguished himself. As the enemy were already attempting to flee, he rode his horse up and seized the stern of one of the ships with his hand, holding it by force as it tried to escape—a noble man repeating the deed of Cynegeirus, celebrated in the writings of many. ^D But because a blow was struck against him by those inside the ship, he was forced by necessity to release it; nevertheless, he cut off their time for flight and ensured that it was captured by the other Romans who ran up. Having achieved this success, the Romans returned to Brindisi. Then they brought up a machine, which they commonly call a "tortoise," to the citadel. When those who were standing on the walls saw this, they gave themselves over to laughter, because the Romans thought the wall could be torn down in this manner, even though it was not at all possible to do so. For the stones were joined to one another in such a way that the wall

appears to be a single, solid stone. ^A But when the Romans had brought the engine up to the walls, they crept under it by night and tunneled beneath the foundations; they carried away the earth and rubble until they had tunneled past the bottom-most foundation stones and reached the soil beneath. From there, having excavated that space, they created a hollow; by inserting timbers they filled the cavity, and in this way they sustained the portions of the wall that jutted out over that spot. Finally, when they saw that the townspeople still persisted with an obstinate spirit, they set fire to the place. This quickly consumed the wood and collapsed the wall to its very foundations, while also casting several of those who were standing on the battlements headlong into the abyss; the others, meanwhile, who had taken refuge in the inner wall, nevertheless continued to put up resistance. Their advance, however, was blocked until, having surveyed the situation of those inside who were stubborn, they let fire into the space. The fire rapidly spread through the fuel, razed the wall to its roots, and brought down many together with those on the ramparts. But the Barbarians, having retreated to the inner wall, resisted no less.

12. ^B While the Romans were in such a state, the emperor gathered a fleet of ships and sent them with a land army to Italy, both of which were placed under the command of Alexius, the grandson of the Emperor Alexius through his daughter, who at that time held the rank of Great Duke. He had been instructed by the emperor to gather an additional force and in this manner to reach Italy. But he achieved none of these things and arrived at Brundusium, fearful partly because the majority of men dreaded such a perilous voyage, and partly because of the suspicion of dangers that hung over them from the enemy. From that point on, fortune began ^C more evidently to look askance at the Romans. For Robert, who until then had joined his arms with theirs, upon hearing that William was arriving with substantial forces—and seeing that the Romans had not yet gained possession of the citadel of Brundusium—withdrew from the alliance, alleging as a reason that he was departing to gather troops who would come to share in the labor. Furthermore, the cavalry from the city of Marca, having demanded that their pay be doubled and not having obtained their request, withdrew. Upon learning of these things, William took his army and marched straight against the Romans. While they were deliberating on how this war ought to be conducted, some thought they should return to Bari ^D and fortify the city with a trench; others were not pleased by this proposal, saying it would be a clear sign of cowardice if they were to abandon what they had in hand and retreat. As this was their decision, not wishing to let the intervening time be wasted on nothing, they again attacked the walls and demolished a large portion of them with their stone-throwing engines. Yet they were not able to drive off the Barbarians; on the contrary, the latter became more emboldened and attacked the Romans, but soon, as the others rushed in again, they retreated within the walls: at which time, had some unknown obstacle not hindered the Romans

^A Brundisium would undoubtedly have fallen into their power and been taken by force; for they had already scaled the rampart and were fighting from the towers with those within the city; but the greater part of these, shattered by the frequent assaults, fell to the ground, bringing many of them down with them, and so they departed without having achieved their purpose. The Sicilians, meanwhile, since William had not yet arrived, were deliberating on how to surrender the fortress to the Romans on certain conditions. But Fortune, having as it were pledged to follow the Romans for a certain interval of time, and feeling that this time had now elapsed, abandoned them in the middle of the city and departed. For while the Sicilians were deliberating these things, it was announced to the townsfolk that William was already near with a great army. Upon hearing this, they abandoned their plan and, proceeding to the walls, spent the day in celebration with frequent applause, as if the Romans had already been repulsed from there.

15

their army in ranks, they marched forward. The Romans, whether because Robert was willing or because he was delayed by some chance, also drew themselves up and, forming whatever battle line they could, stood facing them. ^A It was a terrifying sight to see the small Roman force fighting with all their strength against the Sicilian hosts. For a time neither side began the engagement, but after that, one of the mercenary cavalrymen from the Roman phalanx rode forward and stood in the space between the armies, challenging any who wished to engage in single combat. They clashed and fought in this manner. The battle, having begun in the morning, remained for a long while evenly matched, with the Romans fighting very courageously, but then the Sicilians, by their numbers ^B, overwhelmed them and put them to flight. Many of the fugitives fell and were taken alive, while others, with much pushing and violence, fled into the city, among whom was the general Alexius. Ducas, however, having been left outside the walls, did not cease to strike and be struck until, surrounded by the enemy after many desperate struggles, he was taken prisoner. Once the Sicilians had captured him, they held the others who were in the city as though in a net, without any further labor. Thus did the imprudence of Comnenus and Ducas extinguish the glory they had previously gained. ^C Thus, too, of those who live in these times, some, utterly devoid of strategic skill, bring about the ruin of public affairs; others, who may perchance know a portion of the art of strategy, fail in most respects. For the command of an army is a kind of art, and he who approaches it must be instructed in a varied and multifaceted science and be prepared to adapt to any of its requirements as the occasion demands. For it is necessary at times to flee without shame, if the situation calls for it, and at other times to pursue the enemy persistently, as the state of affairs requires. But where a matter seems to be one that should be handled by counsel rather than by the sword, one must decline to resort to extremes and to gamble the outcome of everything. For since many and diverse paths lead to the one end of victory, ^D it does not matter which one a man uses to reach it. And so, had the Romans—when Alexius lacked the forces that the Emperor had commanded him to bring—realizing that they were no match for the Sicilians, embarked their army on their ships and first fought a naval engagement against their fleet, they would undoubtedly have defeated the enemy and compensated for their retreat from the continent with victories at sea; and thus, subsequently, when the occasion demanded it, they could have returned to the continent and waged war in Italy with greater forces. But because they thought they could not retreat without disgrace, they incurred the ignominy of losing and destroying the entire army.

^A Now, when these things had happened there, the emperor, upon hearing of them, was vexed, as was natural, especially because they occurred after so many previous successes. For a misfortune happening after glory does not merely cast off a bad reputation, but it is accustomed to cause the greatest distress, because one was very close to accomplishing the whole task, and then everything was lost. He was struck by these events, yet he was not overcome by the disaster. He therefore sent Alexius, who at that time was invested with the office of protostrator, to Ancona in Italy again, to use it as an operational base from which he might act. For the men there had already given oaths to the emperor, promising that they would never war against the King of the Alamanni, but that they would treat the money and those Romans whom the emperor himself might send as if they were themselves. ^B I shall now explain what led the emperor to this. When he was campaigning at Corcyra and observed that the Venetian people were ill-disposed and recalcitrant, he considered it of great importance that he should gain control of Ancona, so that he might curb the pride of the Venetians and more easily wage the wars that were to come in Italy. It was for these reasons that Alexius came to Ancona with much money. From there, having sent into Italy Constantine Otto and Andreas ^C Count of an Italian city, a man vigorous of hand and distinguished for bravery, he gathered a troop of auxiliaries and brought as many cities as possible into subjection to the Romans; at which time something happened of this nature. The High Priest of Rome, ^D having already agreed to a pact of friendship with William, as soon as he learned that these two men were passing through the territories of Rome, strictly forbade it. But some of those of noble rank, who had already promised their goodwill to the emperor (for it was always the custom of Emperor Manuel to win over to himself many of those who dwelt there), stirred up the populace against him, and they received the imperial standard with the highest honor and reverence, and granted to Contostephanus the authority to hire whomsoever he wished. On account of this the High Priest was angered, for being left with that alone, he subjected the populace to an ecclesiastical censure.

Du Cange’s Notes

^A and saying that New Rome had no claim over the Old, since they had been severed from each other long ago. “It is better,” he said, “to assist the ruler of the Sicilians, for he is concerned for them, and having suffered unjustly while fighting against one who is much stronger than he, he ought not to be left without aid.” Fearing this ecclesiastical censure, someone who had previously been among the Emperor’s followers withdrew and shifted his allegiance to the High Priest. But those who were acting as envoys for the Romans forcibly dragged him away from that place; and to mark his betrayal with infamy, in a certain barbaric manner not far removed from vulgarity, they took his full military panoply and his horse, hung them from a certain timber ^B by ropes, and allowed them to be swung about. Then, having openly confronted the High Priest, they persuaded him against his will to release the men from their censures. From this, the Romans again used great boldness. They took by war the city that has its name from Saint Germanus, and placed about three hundred others under the Emperor, the names of which, as each was acquired, anyone who wishes may read in the hall constructed by this Emperor ^C to the south of the city, upon the older archives. For although more are recorded there, it is—for the most part—a matter of servile flattery and an ignoble manner on the part of those who chronicled the deeds, as the masses are always wont to be, which I have more than once heard the Emperor himself complain about. Whether they have since been removed, however, I cannot assert.

15. Thus, and again, the whole land of the Italians was on the verge of falling under the Romans. But Alexius Comnenus and Ducas, and all the others who were commanding for the Romans, were taken prisoner by the Sicilian ruler and ruined the cause. [C in Latin column: Alexius Comnenus and Ducas… ruins the cause.]

Du Cange’s Notes

^D “Those who have fallen under ecclesiastical censure,” as we commonly say, “in effigy.” They had that nobleman who had betaken himself to the High Priest punished by making an effigy of him as a cataphract knight, which, together with the horse itself, they hoisted high on a rope and then, releasing the rope, let it fall to the ground. By this unusual kind of injury against the absent man, the Romans raged against him as if he were the culprit—or so it seemed to them—condemning the image of the guilty one to the same punishment that the culprit himself, had he been present, would have actually suffered. An example of such an iniquity is not easily found in the whole of Greek and Latin history (although today it is observed everywhere in the case of those judged *in absentia*), except in Trebellius Pollio in *The Thirty Tyrants*, where he says that the Siccenses, with a new kind of insult, hoisted the image of the tyrant Celsus upon a cross, while the common people leaped about as if Celsus himself were seen to be affixed to the gallows. Indeed, the *strappada* seems to have been almost the same as the punishment of the pulley, with which the pagan emperors used to rage against Christian martyrs, concerning which Gregory of Tours writes in *History*, Book V, c. 19, and the *Passion of SS. Bonosus and Maximian* in Franciscus Bivarius’s *Additions to the Pseudochronicon of Marcus Maximus*. Gallonus also discusses it at greater length in *De tormentis martyrum*.

(8) “…in the older archives,” in the Blachernae palace, where Manuel had caused the wars he had waged to be depicted with the greatest artistry, as Nicetas relates (Book VIII, no. 5) and Benjamin of Tudela in his *Itinerary* (p. 20, ed. Const. L’Empereur).

^A For many of the Romans, having previously pledged their oaths to the Sicilians, deprived themselves of the greatest and most glorious achievements. And what could one not admit, when shackles held them and subterranean dungeons kept them guarded? The Sicilians, however, were doing these things because, as people of those parts expecting the Emperor to make a truce with William, they were busy—as was to be expected—betraying the cities of the Romans before the appointed time. The Emperor, having heard of this, understood what was being done; and having sent letters to Sicily, he wrote as follows to the Romans who were in confinement:

"I am seized with wonder at how it is that you, men, always happen to act with a certain shortsightedness in matters. For, previously, you yourselves so destroyed those most beautiful victories and brought upon yourselves the fortune in which you now find yourselves; and now again, when others ^B are eager with God's help to rectify the things that were badly done by you, you stand in the way. Or did it not come to your mind that the Sicilians have devised these things by checking the momentum of our advance? For who among the Italians, hearing that the territory which we now possess is to be handed over by us to William, will not immediately distrust us and, without any delay, shift his allegiance to William? There will certainly be no one, unless he be some fool and senseless man—of the sort that many happen to be. I ask of you, tell me by God, when at last would your homeland see you more gladly? When, with all of Italy and the island of Sicily having been brought under our power, you, as illustrious defenders of the Roman name, freed from there by your countrymen in a glorious manner, were about to exhibit a most pleasing spectacle to your peers, you came to Byzantium; or when, having given nothing nor received anything—just as they wish your oaths to be—we invoke you back here?"

These things he wrote to the Romans, but to William he dispatched the following: ^C "Do not think, O noble man, that it escapes us for what purpose these things are being contrived by you, just as it does not escape us that necessity is accustomed to grant indulgence to things done by force. Therefore, those things which have been confirmed by oath from those captive men will in no way be of profit to you. For the Romans will not cease from attacking Italy until they have brought both it and the entire island under our power, just as they did formerly."

Having received these letters, those around William replied as follows: ^D "If, most excellent Emperor, you wish to impose penalties upon us for the things we committed against your majesty before this, you have certainly already avenged yourself upon Italy more than was fitting. For in the middle of it you captured no fewer than three hundred cities, a feat which in the previous times of the Roman Empire had never been done until now, and you gained for yourself a glory such as, after that ancient Roman Emperor Justinian, 174 has fallen to no one else except your majesty. Compare, therefore, I beseech you, our offense—namely, when we raided your Corinth and Euboea—with the victories won in Italy by the Romans, who have been staying there for a long time now and are taking away and plundering everything from there, and who have filled that land with blood by more than a third—nay, by much more—and who, finally, have not only despoiled the cities but have also made them subject to themselves. Whether to you it...

^A seems that these are the greater things, even if you do not wish to measure them against us, seeing we are much inferior to your empire, yet do you yourself run back to the emperors of former times and look upon the deeds of valor of the Romans in the past. Or was there never a time when someone engaged the Roman state? Many nations, surely—the Persians, the Huns, and—if your majesty would not be displeased—that Robert ^B who crossed over from Italy to Epidamnus and fought great battles there against your grandfather. Yet it was only with difficulty and reluctantly that he was driven out of the Roman lands by him, whereas you have almost overcome our entire territory. If, therefore, these things have been attempted by way of retaliation, you have had enough of triumphs; you have already wreaked sufficient vengeance upon us. Since you are trampling our soil, it is not ignoble to embrace peace, but rather most glorious. As for the illustrious ^C Romans whom, as fortune would have it, we have taken captive, you shall receive them back without delay, so that you may not be angry with us any further on this account. For one should not blame a man who is being attacked in war if he resists his enemies. Let it then be perfectly clear that you are waging war for that sole reason—the wrong we committed in Euboea—the penalty for which, as we have said, you have already extracted beyond what is fair. If, therefore, you were minded to impose penalties upon us for those things in which we have been found to have caused harm within your land, we have made full satisfaction ^D for them to your empire. But if you must always wage war against our race, it is time for you to consider whether your enterprise might not go beyond the bounds of what is lawful for men. For while it is human enough to measure wars by the pretexts for them, to go further is something that another might call bestial; as for us, we shall not say this, but we ask you to conclude a truce and end this war now.”

The emperor, having frequently perused this letter, assented to what was said. Having received back the Roman captives and whatever spoils of war had been taken, and having also received guarantees ^C from William that he would follow as an ally with an army in the West, he ended the war. Not long after, he also honored William with the title of King, a dignity he had not previously enjoyed. Indeed, he showed such benevolence toward him that, when William died and his brother approached asking for help in seizing the Sicilian principality, the emperor would not admit him at all.

Notes of du Cange

^A 16. The Italian wars of the Romans thus reached their end. While the Emperor was still detained by them, he was kept anxious by the care of the disturbances in Asia; but once these were finally settled, he applied himself entirely to those affairs. For the sultan of the Persians had subjugated Punua and Sibyla, cities of the Romans, and Torosus, whom we mentioned above, had also seized many places in Cilicia. To this was added Iagupasan, who was himself a phylarch of the Persians and a prince of Cappadocia, and who was making incursions into Oenaeum and Paurae, both cities of Pontus. And so, having sent Alexius Giphardus to the sultan, he recovered the aforementioned cities, and compelled Iagupasan to refrain from making incursions into Roman territory and thenceforth to adhere to him. He himself, however, decided to organize an expedition into Cilicia. Meanwhile, these things happened in Byzantium. There was a certain man of the order of Levites, ^B whom we call deacons, named Basil. Being appointed to explain the divine word in ecclesiastical assemblies, he criticized—covertly and in secret during these sermons—others who dissented even in the slightest degree from his opinions, and in particular Michael and Nicephorus, surnamed Basilacius. Of these, the one, Michael, was at that time the instructor ^C of rhetoric, and was expounding the sacred words of the Gospels in the church of Sophia; the other was celebrated among the learned, excelling particularly in the crafting of orations, ^D and was learned and skilled in rhetoric.

[Du Cangii notes (excerpts):] (12) Iagupasan: Sultan of Iconium, Amasia, Ancyra, and lord of Cappadocia. (13) Regarding these theological controversies, see Nicetas in *Man.*, book VII, n. 5, and books V and XXII of the *Thesaurus orthodoxae Fidei*, as well as Leo Allatius in *Excerpta varia* and his book *De Eccl. Occid. et Orient. perp. consensu*, c. 12, v. 5. (14) Michael: A Thessalonican, master of the rhetors, teacher of the Gospels, and *protecdicus* of the Great Church. Nicephorus Basilaces: regarding the dignities held in the church of Constantinople, etc. Soterichus Panteugeous: that is, a suffragan of the Patriarch of Antioch, which—as understood from the Greek—means patriarch in title only. For as long as Antioch was under the power of the Latins, the Greeks had their own patriarchs of Antioch, as I said, in name only, while the Latin patriarchs resided in Antioch itself, who would not allow the Greek patriarchs to set foot there, as is the author Balsamon on canon V of the council of Antioch, p. 211; Nicetas in *Isaac*, book I, n. 4, and Baronius Annal. ex Georgii Corcyr. epistola. (15) *Rhetorices* was the magistracy, or as they called that dignity, with which Eustathius, later bishop of Thessalonica, is recorded as having been endowed in the letter prefixed to the scholia on Dionysius, which were edited by the same man. For indeed the same Michael is also designated in his confession, which Allatius has in the cited place in these words: etc., which dignity Nicetas expressed in these words: "Michael, adorning the chair of rhetoric and ascending the Gospels..." *Magistri rhetorum* (masters of the rhetors) had the duty to interpret the sacred Scriptures, since this was the same dignity. Papias: *cathegeta*, doctor, rhetor. [index: entries preserved]

^A they were instructed in the gifts of wisdom; they grieved that they were being misled by such a man; whence they became the cause of the greatest evils for themselves and many others. For when Basil was one day performing the customary ministry in the temple of the Apostle John the Theologian, which is near the city, they came to hear him, but with insidious and malicious ears. For when he was explaining a certain passage of the Gospel, saying that the Son of God is one and the same as both the victim and the one who, with the Father, receives the sacrifice, they immediately snatched up the word and went about mocking it up and down, saying that Basil, from this, was introducing ^B two hypostases, if the one were sacrificed and the other received the sacrifice. Accordingly, others who were esteemed for their learning concurred in this opinion, and even Soterichus, who had the surname Panteugenus, a man at that time excelling all others in wisdom and gravity of speech, and who had been elected bishop of the Church of Antioch, though he had not yet received the imposition of hands. Therefore, this Soterichus did not merely join their opinion with his tongue and mouth, but also, with a magnificent composed speech and a certain singular similitude representing the Platonic dialogues, he heaped up many absurdities in it. On account of which he himself was driven from his see, and all who favored him were expelled. Basil recovered his dignity: for on these ^C Du Cange’s Notes. (16) *The sayings of the Gospels.* Both ecclesiastical dignity and that of the masters of rhetoric, and the teacher of the Gospels, was distinguished by Michael of Thessalonica, as is gathered from his own confession and from Nicetas. The role of this latter dignity was, as it is in Codinus, c. n. 19, that is, what Cinnamus holds. But he for whom there were many in the Constantinopolitan Church, namely, he was simply called the one who interpreted the Gospels. The catalog of Goar and Medon: whence it is gathered that the doctor of the Gospel also interpreted the Psalter at times and presided over the patriarchal schools. Basilacius, however, held the dignity, as the anonymous Allatian author is the authority, who is called Codinus: and whose office is described by Nicetas in these tangled words: That such a function of doctors in the Church was very ancient is gathered from St. Cyprian, ep. 24, where he makes mention of the doctor of the hearers or catechumens. Passion of SS. Perpetua and Felicitas: "We saw before the doors Optatus the bishop on the right and Aspasius the presbyter, the doctor, on the left." Amalarius Fortunatus also treats of the doctors of the catechumens, lib. I, De offic. Eccl. c. 19. See Balsamon ^D in the *Jure Graeco-Romano*, lib. II, p. 143. (17) *Of the Temple of John the Theologian.* It is understood, as I suppose, that this temple which was built at the Hebdomon, was sacred to St. John the Evangelist, about which Anna, lib. III; Constantine in Basil. c. 63, Scylitzes and Glycas regarding Basil Bulgaroctonus, or perhaps that which William established at the Round Castle, Biblioth. in Hadrian II. (18) *Not yet consecrated.* There is an anonymous writer in Allatius at the cited place about the same Soterichus: The Greeks recently called such elect persons *hypopsēphioi* (candidates). George of Corfu, in the tract *De Communione*, calls the Bethleemitan elect, who attended the election of Baldwin of Flanders as Constantinopolitan Emperor, and Theodosius Villehardouin as patriarch of Antioch-elect, Pachymeres, lib. VI, c. 5, whose words the same writer expressed in the same place, where concerning Theodosius: "that is, who had been called to that dignity by the votes of the electors after the decease of Euthymius": he says lib. IV, c. 13, "that is, made bishop by decree, but not yet consecrated." For by a decree, which Pachymeres calls it, a bishop is said to be made or ordained, who, after he is legitimately elected by the clergy and the people, is publicly declared bishop by the metropolitan and the assembly of bishops, with the decree of election made afterward, which is duly subscribed by all. Lib. I in Ep. of Symmachus, pp. 5 and 6, to Caesarius of Arles in Conc. Arvern. can. 2, Aurelian. IV, can. 5, Aurelian. V, can. 11, among Liberatus Diac. c. 20, etc. The formula of such a decree exists in the *Ordo Romanus*. Furthermore, there are others among the suffragans, even if the name sounds the same as... For at times, those titular bishops are called, whom the Germans, from initiating and consecrating, call *Weihbischof*, who are the assistants of the bishops and coadjutors and vicars in episcopal functions, who extend to the bishops, either infirm or absent, the due and canonical suffrage and safe-keeping of the church committed to them, until they recover or return, as it is in the Capitularies of Charles the Great, tit. 10, p. 94; and from there, vicars in the executing of any duty are commonly called suffragans among Udalric in *Consuetud.* Ulric. p. 75, 159, 171, 174, 205. Especially in truth are they commonly called bishops who [are subject to] the metropolitan

^A and stood by the repute of their mouth alone, but had also composed a fine work of discourse, just as he had by maintaining a singular resemblance to Plato in his dialogues; he had gathered in this work many absurd things, on account of which he himself suffered the deposition of his throne, to the judgment of the emperor regarding those things which were in dispute, and as many as were already taking a stand with him. Basil obtained his position again; for he happened to have already lost it, even if later in time he lost it again, not being upright, as it was said, having been found out in his dogmas.

17. ^B The business of that dogmatic dispute had found such an end. But the emperor was setting out against Teroze. For as he had been occupied with matters in the West, as has been said, the barbarian, having watched for the opportunity, had brought almost all the cities in Cilicia under his own power. For he was terrible, if anyone ever was, at seizing the opportunity of the moment and dealing with affairs. And for this reason the emperor was moving toward Asia, and toward those things which I myself, feeling a desire, approach. ^C When Raymond, the prince of Antioch, had departed from the things of this life, immediately in the moment Constantia, his wife, gave both herself and the affairs of the Antiochians over to the emperor. But when the emperor had afterwards sent Roger the Caesar, as I have already mentioned, for the purpose of living with her, that woman, having changed her mind, with the common counsel of the Antiochians, joined herself in marriage to a certain Renald, because they pondered that if she were married to Roger, they might fall into the payment of tribute to the Romans. ^D This Renald, when the emperor did not receive him as he was begging, but rather, by brandishing many threats, terrified him, supposing that he needed money, did a certain thing like this: having prepared ships, he sailed over to the island of the Cypriotes, and by acting piratically toward those who were there, he procured for himself an abundance of power from their wealth. But at first John, the emperor's nephew who was then administering the region, and Michael Branas, and the others who were stationed for the protection of it, repelled him and treated him poorly; but then, because Branas, more rashly than he ought to have done, had undertaken the pursuit toward Nicosia, John also joined him, whence it happened that both were captured by Renald. For these reasons the emperor was moving toward [the land of] the Cilicians. When he was near Lesser Phrygia, he encountered the Persians there, defeated them in battle, and wrought a great slaughter; then, having devastated the surrounding land of the Persians, he was carried as if toward the Cilicians, feigning that he was truly directing the war against the Persians; but by this method, while they suspected nothing, he thought to capture Teroze. However, so that he might arrive against him even more unexpectedly, he did as follows: he ordered Alexius Casianus, who at that time was governing the prefecture of Seleucia, to assemble an army from the natives and have it ready; he himself meanwhile, having chosen the swiftest of his soldiers, [set out for] Seleucia.

Du Cangii notae. (19) Ex Teroze. William of Tyre, book 21: In the parts of Cilicia about Tarsus there was a certain nobleman and most powerful Armenian by the name of Toros, who more frequently deserved the favor of the lord emperor and incurred an offense by the influence of his inconstancy. For being confident in the fact that he was very remote from the empire and because he had his dwellings in steep mountains, he drove off spoils and booty across the plains of Cilicia, not fearing to damage the land of his lord in whatever ways he could, etc. (20) Thyn Kypriōn. That Renald, the prince of Antioch, attempted to invade the island of Cyprus, counts the same man, Tyrius: namely, the unpaid expenses and wages for the war which he had undertaken against Toros by the order of the Augustus himself, the Caesar Manuel, [not having been paid].

He ordered Alexius Casianus, who was then administering the authority of the Seleucians, to gather the native army and hold it in readiness. But Alexius, having selected the more lightly equipped part of the army, hastened toward Seleucia. As for the rest of the Roman army, he ordered them to remain where they were at Attalus and to take care of their horses. For a certain malady, to which horses are most susceptible and which is wont to attack the soles of their feet, was afflicting them severely. But when the Emperor himself came out into the plains of Seleucia, and the army was not present as he had commanded (for this had been neglected by Alexius), he turned his mind to another plan, desiring to invade Toros with all his forces. He therefore sent Alexius ahead, that he might detain Toros there by attacking him, while he himself followed in his rear, taking with him no more than five hundred armed men. And the tyrant would have been captured and fallen into Roman hands at once, had not a certain piece of fortune saved him unexpectedly. For one of those mendicants—of the sort who, being among many of the Latin race bound for Palestine, roam about as vagabonds through mountains and woods, leaving nothing untrodden—happened upon the Emperor. Having received from him a stater of gold, he hastened to Toros with all the speed he could muster and reported the Emperor’s arrival. Upon hearing this, as was natural, he (Toros) was struck with terror, and having communicated what he had heard to no one except Thomas and Corcas, his intimate confidants, he wandered and roamed hither and thither.

The Emperor invaded Cilicia the following day. Finding him nowhere, he captured the fortress at Lamo, which was extremely steep, without a fight. Then he took Cistramum and the most famous city of Anazarbus, and proceeding further, he subjected Longinias, along with its adjacent fields, to the Empire. Thence he went to Tarsus, the metropolis of the Cilicians, and took the city at the first assault; and having sent some men to the very strong fortress of Tili, he brought it under Roman jurisdiction. But I shall relate by what means he took Tarsus on the very day he arrived, even though it could scarcely be captured by many thousands. For when he perceived that the city could be taken only with difficulty, and thinking it imprudent to waste time there in vain, he turned to other towns; but he sent Theodore, his sister’s husband, surnamed Batatzes, to lay siege to it. But Theodore had not yet arrived at the city when the soldiers who were at the ramparts, thinking that the Emperor was approaching, were struck with huge fear and cast themselves headlong from the towers, and thus the miserable men met a bitter death, and the city was taken in this straight-forward manner.

^D 18. Thus then was Tarsus captured. But Toros and Renaldus the Prince, seeing these things, did not dare to send envoys to the Emperor, as they were conscious of many grievous evils they had committed; but they sent some of his more intimate kinsmen, begging him to appease his anger against them.

^A Since Renaldus was at a loss on every side, he promised the Emperor that he would surrender the citadel of Antioch if oblivion were granted for his past offenses. For he knew that the Bishop of Antioch 25, whom they themselves had set over their own people, bestowing upon him the title of Patriarch, was his enemy and bore him a grudge for the following reason. Renaldus, as we have already said, knowing himself to be in the greatest poverty, intended to make a raid upon Cyprus and desired to take this Bishop with him in private, that he might give him money, for he knew that he abounded in great wealth. When he could not persuade him, he stripped the man of his vestments, first scourged him severely over his body, and then, in the heat of summer, set him out. ^B Indeed, wasps and bees and gnats and other blood-sucking insects, settling upon his entire naked body, were gorging themselves on his blood. Compelled by these torments, the man provided all his wealth for Renaldus to carry off. Then, after that man had been appeased, he dressed him in his accustomed garments and, while the man was sitting upon a horse, he himself led him through the middle of the city on foot, holding in his hand a rein that hung from the saddle 27. But that man, even though Renaldus had done these things, was no less angry against Renaldus and sought an opportunity for how he might take revenge upon him. And so he frequently sent messages to the Emperor, promising that he would betray the man into his hands. But as the Emperor refused this (for he wished to gain the victory by war rather than by guile), he was held back from his impetuosity. Renaldus, considering these aforementioned matters, offered pledges to the Emperor; but when he did not accept his entreaty, he did the following: ^C he threw off his head-covering, and with his hands up to his elbows [stripped—] ^D

and bare-footed, together with many monks, he proceeded through the midst of the city and arrived before the Emperor. A rope was hung about his neck, and in his other hand he carried a sword. Now there was a magnificent tribunal erected there, and Renaud stood some distance from the royal tent, as if not daring to approach. The throng of monks—and not only monks—walked toward the Emperor with bare feet and uncovered heads; all knelt down and shed tears from their eyes, and stretched forth their hands. At first the Emperor refused, but later, having been entreated, he ordered the prince to come forward. When he had entered, in the manner we have described, the Emperor was moved to compassion and pardoned his insolence, after he had bound him with oaths and many other things which the Emperor himself desired, notably that, as was the custom of old, a pontiff should be sent from Byzantium to Antioch. ^A This was truly a thing of wonder to those who happened to be present there as envoys of the Asian nations—of the Chorasmians, Susians, Ecbatanians, and all of Media and Babylon, whose great ruler they call Sultan; furthermore, to the envoys of Nuradin, satrap of Beroea, of Jagupasap, phylarch of the Persians, and of the Abasgi and Iberians, and also of the Palestinians and Armenians who dwell beyond the Isaurians.

19. These things were being done in this way. Baldwin, the King of Palestine, sought through envoys an audience with the Emperor, saying he wished to consult with him concerning certain matters of great importance. But this was merely a pretext. For, desiring for himself the principality of Antioch, which was adjacent to his own lands, and not being able to secure it easily before he was informed of the things that had happened to Renaud, he had advised the Emperor by no means to let that man go; for with him removed from the midst, it would come to pass that either the Antiochenes, who had been saved by him, would henceforth serve him in subjection, or, if both parties rejected the empire, he would nonetheless rule over them himself. Having deliberated in this way, he arrived at Antioch and, having held a discourse with the townsmen, he reminded ^B them on purpose how it was for their own advantage that he had come hither from Palestine, and how great were the thanks they owed to him. When they agreed, he again importuned the Emperor for a mutual meeting. But he, having perceived the man's intent, at first refused, asserting that he would not be received with the appropriate honor and regard, if indeed he were to hold discussions with him while he was in the midst of warlike affairs ^C and ^D among his enemies.

Notes of Du Cange.

...arrived at Mamistra, where after many detours he was reconciled in great ignominy and to the confusion of our people with the imperial excellence. For with his feet bare, as it is said, clad in a tunic with sleeves cut short to the elbow, a rope tied around his neck, holding a naked sword in his hand, which, holding it by the point, he offered by the hilt to the lord Emperor, he was presented before the entire army ^C to the lord Emperor; and there, prostrate on the ground before his feet, having surrendered the sword to the lord Emperor, [he remained silent] for so long that it turned to nausea for all, and turned the glory of the Latins into disgrace, he being most vehement both in sinning and in making satisfaction. Yet it is truly a marvel how a man of such great fortitude, who had distinguished himself by such noble deeds, could have subjected himself to such ignominy and infamy. (29) That Baldwin III, King of Jerusalem, reconciled Prince Reynald to him, the same Tyr[ius] narrates, book 18, chapter 24.

^A seeing him still more importunate and daily begging for the same thing, he finally yielded to his prayers and ordered him to come. They say that when he left the city the Antiochenes surrounded him, and begged him most earnestly to try to reconcile the Emperor to him. Meanwhile, the following events occurred in the Emperor's palace. There was one of his scribes named Theodore, by nickname Stypiota (30). This Theodore was in other respects very close to the Emperor, and he had been entrusted with the office of canicleios; but having been caught and convicted of being perverse and ill-disposed towards him, and being a slanderer of his brothers and a wicked man, he was deprived of his tongue. For he used to prophesy to many, as if from a tripod, that the Emperor’s span of life was already measured out, and he would say that the Roman senate ought no longer to entrust the rule to a youth still in his prime, but to a man advanced in age and already worn by years, so that the public affairs might be administered as if under a popular government. ^B Such things therefore befell Theodore. At the same time, George, the commander of the Emperor’s trumpeters, who is commonly called the *primicerius* of the court, by nickname Pyrrhogeorgius, having also committed no light offense against the Emperor but having experienced a clement prince, suffered no other evil except that he was removed from that position.

x. When the Emperor learned that the King was approaching, he sent out others of the distinguished men to meet him, and he always sent the more honored ones later, even up to the men who were his own nephews by his nieces (32), to welcome him before he came to the Emperor. ^C And so he who was worthy of the throne of David received him with honors, and treated him with respect, until he arrived at the Emperor himself. He, whether puffed up by these things or fostering some innate arrogance because he had entered the imperial palace, was escorted by the imperial lictors and those Romans who were distinguished by their reputation, right to the place where he dismounted from his horse, where the Emperor (33) was sitting. ^D

Du Cange's notes. (30) Stypiota. The author relates the matter a little differently in the Histories, book III, n. 4, and says it was through the logothete of the drome, a wicked man, who out of envy and fabricated calumnies, as if he were carrying on secret plots with William, King of the Sicilians, had circumvented Theodore Stypiota. Radevicus comes closer to Cinnamus, book 2 of the Gestes of Frederick, ch. 47, although he describes this history differently: "Around the same time, Manuel being Emperor, while he was lingering in the parts of Antioch against the Turks with his army, one of the palace servants, specifically the canicleios, whom we may call the chancellor, hatched a plot against his prince. For three youths of the most audacious rashness, corrupted by infinite money, he had persuaded to kill the Emperor, and he himself, on the day appointed for that crime to be perpetrated, was waiting, well-supplied with forces, to seize the city together with the imperial palace. When such a danger to the King had been revealed to the Empress by a secret informer, she, terrified by the magnitude of the crime, when she had most quickly signaled the treason to her husband, the plot was thus overturned, the assassins were captured, and the author of the crime being brought to light and captured, punishments were inflicted on all of them fittingly. For the canicleios, having first had his eyes gouged out and his tongue perforated and thrust through his throat, ended his life in a miserable death." Concerning Theodore Stypiota the canicleios, see Cujacius on the law *Cod. de Petit. honor.*, book 1.

(31) Of this *primicerius* of the court, and of the dignity with which he was invested, the same Cinnamus speaks, book 2. But what the nature of such a palace office was, we are taught by that one writer, namely that he was in charge of the imperial trumpeters, of whom Codinus treats, ch. 5, n. 15, and ch. 6, n. 20. For although that same writer mentions this dignity more than once, he is silent about this function. Furthermore, the *primicerius* of the court occurs in Cantacuzenus, book 3, ch. 32.

(32) [P. 464] To his *nepotes*, his wife's kin. Tyrius. Immediately two of his grandsons—or rather, nephews, uterine brothers—were sent by him to meet him, namely John the *protosebastos* and Alexius the *protostrator*, who held the first rank among the illustrious men of the sacred palace, with a very large retinue of nobles. This same Alexius the *protostrator* was the son of John Axuch, the *domestikos*, and the husband of the daughter of Alexius Comnenus, the first-born son of the Emperor John. See the Comnenian genealogy.

(33) "And the Emperor." For no one indeed was permitted to enter the palace except...

^A the emperor himself. When he perceived his insolence and pride from this act, the prince subsequently omitted many things pertaining to greater honor. Nevertheless, he saw him and spoke to him, and ordered him to sit in a lower seat. He also met with him quite often, and kept him in his company at table frequently. But since the terms which Renaldus had agreed upon with the emperor were not pleasing to the Antiochenes, both because of the troops with which they were bound to assist the emperor—the city being, of course, far diminished in its former strength—and because of the patriarch who was to be sent to Antioch from Byzantium in the future, and since they had come to entreat the emperor about these matters, Baldwin also asked the same of the prince. Seeing that he was not difficult to persuade, he ordered the envoys to fall at his knees. He, however, reflecting in his mind which course would bring greater honor to the Romans, consented immediately that they should contribute a smaller force to the military service; for that which is demanded beyond one’s strength is often for the most part evaded, and otherwise that which is brought serves sufficiently as an indication of servitude. He refused, however, to permit the high priest to be taken from anywhere other than Byzantium. They accepted this willingly and returned to the city.

21. When matters concerning Renaldus had reached this point, the emperor resolved to march toward Toros; but the latter first roamed through desert places and the Taurus mountains; finally, with Baldwin even interceding for him with the emperor, he himself also came into the camp of the Romans, in the guise of a suppliant and a wretched man. ^B Therefore, having been admitted by the emperor and enrolled as one of the clients of the Roman Empire, the war was brought to an end. But the Antiochenes, when they perceived that the emperor was about to arrive at their city, feared, as was proper, lest if the Roman troops were let in, they might be expelled by them; and being anxious as to how they might turn the emperor from his purpose, they brought before him some pretexts that were not at all sound: namely, that there were some reckless men among their own number who, when the emperor entered the city unarmed (for they did not think it would happen otherwise), would attack him with a plot. ^C But he, perceiving the deceit, said that the fraud would in no way find a place; and soon, turning his discourse to those standing around, he replied that such things could not happen, both because of other reasons, and most of all because the king indeed would be walking unarmed far from the emperor's person, while Renaldus and the others would be occupied with the trappings of the horses and the straps of the saddles, proceeding on foot and without any weapons at all; finally, that a great crowd of axe-bearing Barbarians, as is the custom, would be surrounding the emperor. Thus he rejected these arguments. And when he was about to enter the city ^D...

Du Cangius's notes: "Only to the emperor himself." See what we note regarding Villehardouin, n. 111. (34) "A certain lower seat." The Tyrian continues: "Then, with them leading him as far as the entrance of the tent, where the lord emperor was sitting with his nobles, he was introduced with much glory, greeted by him most humanely, and invited to the kiss of peace; he was placed beside him on an honorable seat, yet a lower one." Thus, when Amalric, King of Jerusalem, came to Constantinople to Manuel, the lord king sat beside him on an honorable throne, yet a lower one, says the same Tyrian, book xx, ch. 24. See Cinnamus, p. 206. (35) "Toward Terozh." Reconciled, he is likewise. Toros, regulus of Armenia. The Tyrian narrates the matter in the cited place.

dismissed these arguments, and prepared to enter the city 36, he donned a double coat of mail, impelled to this by his tireless bodily strength; and he also put on a certain tunic over these, ^A a burden no less than the others inside, which I marvel at being done in the manner of the triumph that is customarily celebrated in Byzantium. When he had already finished this, and reached the church of the Apostle Peter, he leaped lightly from his horse, and intending to remount, he sprang back onto it with a leap, just as if he were one of the light-armed and unarmed infantry. When the high priest of the city came out to meet him, wearing his priestly vestments together with the entire order of clerics, they held cross-types and offered the holy scriptures, so that the strangers and foreigners were struck with a certain amazement when they saw, in addition to these things, Renald and the nobles of the Antiochenes running on foot around the imperial horse 37, but Baldwin, a man wearing a crown, riding far off on horseback, and traveling in a manner that was entirely undistinguished. The triumph was thus celebrated upon these things, ^B and the emperor, having remained in the city for eight days of the sun, departed from there. The Antiochenes, however, showed such submissiveness toward him that as long as he stayed in the house of Renald, no one of those who were engaged in disputes brought their cause before the judges of their own people, but the Romans adjudicated these matters 38.

22. Having achieved these things, the emperor prepared to go against Nuradin 39. But as that man [was]...

^A acquainted with the arrival [of the emperor], he released the son of the Count of Saint-Gilles—a man of Italian descent, as has been said—and the overseer of those in Palestine, whom the Latins call the Master of the Temple, both of them being very distinguished men, as well as many of those of noble birth. As for the common, gathered rabble of the army, which he had captured when the Alaman and German ^B forces were campaigning in Asia, [he released] about six thousand. Nuradin did these things, and he further agreed to share in the battles in Asia alongside the emperor, on the condition of which the emperor accepted him and was deterred from his original plan. But a little later, he was moved to dissolve the agreements; yet he did not bring his intent to its end, as will be clear in the following account. For a group of Saracens, without Nuradin’s knowledge, having set an ambush, attacked some of the Romans who had gone out to gather fodder. ^C When the emperor learned this, he himself also set an ambush in a suitable place in that area, and at daybreak he too attacked them, unawares as they were. After he had routed them, desiring to go hunting, he went out into the highest plains of Syria to hunt, a thing which, in current times, is terrifying even to hear about. ^D Accordingly, his men, whose task it was to track the lairs of wild beasts, went on ahead, no more than six of them; but they had not proceeded very far when twenty-four armed enemies appeared to them, making it their business to try to lure some of the Romans by trickery into the army lying in ambush at their rear. As soon as those trackers of wild beasts saw them, they immediately cast themselves into the river that was before their feet and, swimming across, came to the emperor to report what had befallen them. He, not at all disturbed by this news, said: “Let us go where you say the enemy is.” But as they were gripped by great hesitation, he himself surrendered the reins entirely to his horse and rushed toward the enemies. Suddenly, then, a countless army of Saracens appeared, having crested the hills of that region. But he, nothing daunted, fell into the midst of the armed men with great momentum, and having routed such a great number of them, he did not cease pursuing them until the enemies, fleeing, fell into the fortresses which were established there, and that plain was filled with corpses. Because of these things, then, upon returning to the camp, he wished to dissolve the agreements, as I said; but certain rumors brought from the West, reporting that things there were being overturned, deterred him from his undertaking. At this same time, Baldwin’s hand was injured from such a cause. While the emperor was hunting there, he himself was also present, a companion in that exercise. For he who admired the emperor in other matters [wished] to know if he also surpassed [others] in this.

The emperor, therefore, desiring to show himself as active and agile as he was in these matters, in his imprudence fell with his horse and, as I have said, injured his hand severely. The emperor bound it up on the spot, and by applying suitable remedies, he was healed a few days later. For in such things he surpassed the skill of those who had spent their entire lives practicing the art of medicine ^B. I myself have seen him bloodletting, and providing medicines for the sick when doctors were scarce; and he added much to the knowledge of the Asclepiads, which had remained unknown to them for all ages, both in the nature of poultices and in the mixtures of draughts—all of which anyone can easily gather from the common hospitals, which are usually called xenones. But this is enough on that subject.

The emperor now turned his thoughts toward Byzantium. Wishing to travel by the swiftest route, he turned aside from Pamphylia and led his army through the middle of Lycaonia, although the sultan spoke much against this. When, therefore, he reached Arandes near the city, the Persians were struck with terror and took to flight, thinking that the Romans were about to assault Iconium immediately. But when they perceived that no hostile action was being taken by the Romans, they regained their confidence and provided them with an abundance of supplies. Yet the Persians could not entirely restrain the indignation they had long harbored in their hearts; so much so that when the Romans were already at Cotyaeum, they attacked some of those who had strayed too far from the rest of the army, killing some and taking others alive. The emperor then returned to Byzantium, and having celebrated a great triumph and offered thanks to God for the victories achieved, he entered the palace.

2. Not long after, the emperor, having decided to avenge the insults offered to him by the Persians, collected his army in the plains of Cypsella. In the meantime, he sent word to those Romans who held commands in Asia, and commanded each of them to invade Persian territory at a certain appointed time. He did this so that the Persians would be unable to assist one another. ^C

Note of Du Cange

Note of Cornelius Tollius

^A it was that caused great grief to the Persians. But the Emperor, when the sun had already reached the winter solstice, crossed the Hellespontine straits into Asia and came as far as Dorylaeum, near two rivers, of which one is called Bathys by the locals, and the other Tybris. [P. 112] Having ravaged the entire surrounding region, he drove away a myriad multitude of men and other animals from there. The Persians, when they realized that an extreme peril was looming over them, began to appear in squadrons and companies. The Emperor sent the rest of the Roman troops to plunder the things nearby, but he himself, having rushed to the high ground out of sight with a few of his attendants, ordered the imperial trumpets to be sounded, ^B intending thereby to strike fear into the enemy, as they supposed the Emperor himself was leading this war. For he had often performed many exploits against these Barbarians with his own hand, and if ever he suddenly appeared to them, he seemed to them nothing less than a thunderbolt, and they would retreat without any shame, thousands, they say, and tens of thousands, if it should happen so, men fully armed and clad in iron. These things, as they reached my ears, seemed less than true to me, just as the deeds of Phocas and Tzimiskes, those emperors of no very distant past, or if any others gained a name for themselves for extraordinary bravery, did not seem true either. For it was beyond belief that a single man could overcome whole thousands, ^C and with one spear struggle against a multitude of armed men. Therefore, if ever while spending time at the imperial court I heard such feats extolled to the heavens by some people flattering the Emperor, I would withdraw from the conversation with a doubting mind. For by nature, a character resistant to adulation is innate to me, and I would not willingly utter even a small word unless it were with truth and a free mouth. I used to allow such things to be characterized by those who always hold offices in the palace or are conspicuous for their dignities by the people and those in power, until the reality of the matter came before my eyes in the midst of things, and I myself, happening to be surrounded by the enemy, saw this Emperor standing against entire Persian phalanxes. ^D But history will recount these things at the appropriate time; let us now return to the matter at hand. While the Emperor was in those high places, the Roman troops, who had proceeded further inland, unexpectedly encountered Persian forces. Therefore, a close-quarters battle having begun, when the Emperor saw the Roman line beginning to falter, with a rapid charge—wearing neither a cuirass nor other armor, but protected by a shield alone—he hastened toward it. When he threw himself into the midst of the enemy, he performed marvelous deeds with his hand, cutting down all who stood in his path. Sometimes, even against those turning their backs, having received a spear, he kept on, never omitting an opportunity for valiant action. The enemy fled for so long without stopping that it did not even occur to them that such a numerous army was being pressed by a single man. For the panic that had invaded them completely had cast a thick darkness over their eyes.

Du Cange's notes. (44) Imperial trumpets. Regarding the imperial trumpets, see Codinus, *De Officiis*, ch. 5, no. 15.

^A They began to reproach one another for their cowardice and, suddenly turning, stood face to face with him. Yet they did not go into this battle with eager spirits, for fear still blunted their assault. Although they emptied their entire quivers, he nevertheless remained unharmed, warding off the missiles with his shield and keeping his body out of range of their arrows. Now there was a man among the Persians of a spirited and energetic temper. When he saw that no one from among all of them was standing up to the emperor to do battle, he grew hot with rage, snatched a sword from the hands of one of his own countrymen, and rushed at him to strike him down. But the emperor seized the man by his hair and, together with three other brave men, dragged him away. When the rest saw this, and realized they were no match for him, they immediately took to flight. The emperor returned to the camp with these captives, and seeing that the harsh winter season was already pressing on, he went ^B towards Byzantium.

23. But he soon reached that small town in Bithynia where he had already settled the Roman captives from Philomelion (the place is called Pylae). Legates arriving there from the Sultan had an audience with him, but when he saw that they brought nothing of substance, he sent them home with threats, declaring that unless they did what he wished, the Roman cavalry would shortly invade their fields and ravage everything far more hostilely than they were doing now. ^C He stayed for a short time near the Empress (for he had stopped to tarry at that moment at a place across the strait which the locals call Ritzion), then crossed over to the opposite shore. From there, having made a journey through the coastal cities, he arrived at Philadelphia, and fully prepared, he invaded the Persian territory. Meanwhile, as the legates were traveling through the plains of Dorylaeum, being entirely unaware that the emperor had made an incursion into their lands, they asserted that he was still lingering at his estates near ^D Byzantium. Thus, when news of the Roman incursion was reported from all sides, the Persians at first thought the matter was utterly unbelievable. But when they understood that it had been seen by many, they then truly made haste to meet them with their entire army. For a barbarian is moved by nothing so much as by the loss of his own goods and possessions. The emperor, however, thinking that the Persians were not yet aware of what was happening, sent a portion of the Roman army forward to plunder, while he followed behind with a few. When the Romans heard that the Persians were already on the move with an immense multitude, they were naturally troubled, especially since the emperor was not with them; but when he finally joined them—for he had learned of the Persians' advance—they took heart and marched forward with greater determination. When it was late in the day, they dismounted from their horses and, according to custom, gave them fodder and rested for a short while; then, as night itself arrived, they continued their journey with lanterns going before them. These types of lanterns were constructed in the following way: they fashioned a quadrilateral shape from iron, which they enclosed with thin, stretched-out skin at regular intervals.

^A rods, wider at their lower part and gradually tapering to a point. From the center of the cube, they set up another iron rod, not like the others, but thicker and sturdier at the base, and also gradually tapering to a point. Then, binding the rods that surround the cube with hoops, they form a sort of lamp-stand, which they hang from the points of spears. They then drench a kind of woven thread, split lengthwise, in pig’s fat, wrap it carefully, and thread it onto each of the tapering iron rods. When these are lit, they produce a marvelous light, which radiates from them so that, as if by artifice, a day is fashioned for the armies. Let this suffice regarding the lanterns.

As for the Roman army, because a heavy snow had fallen and the roads were completely obscured, they had wandered far from the path they should have taken and had fallen into dangerous and inconvenient places. They would have perished had the emperor, having immediately recognized the error, not seized a lantern and, by circling here and there, discovered the road and led the army successfully into the next region. After arriving at a place called Sarapata Mylonis by the inhabitants, he began from there to make raids. When the report of this became everywhere known and had reached the prince of that land, named Solyman, he could scarcely be brought to believe what was said. ^B Therefore, he sent Pupaces, a kinsman of his who was present at that time and had often come into the presence of the emperor, so that he might draw near to the Romans and, while the emperor was there, inquire as best he could.

Pupaces, therefore, having immediately recognized him, dismounted from his horse and addressed him most humbly. When the emperor learned who he was and for what purpose he had been sent, he said: "These things you shall announce to Solyman: when you ask who it is who is laying waste to Persia, you act just as if, while your own house were burning, you were not concerned with how you might put out the fire, but were instead inquisitively seeking to know who had cast the torch and from whom it had its origin. Do not, therefore, cover up the evil of fear with the veil of pretended ignorance. For the simulation of ignorance, when it is not joined with reason, is in no way accustomed to free the one who uses it from disgrace. ^C It is the primary duty of a prince and emperor to undergo danger for his country and to weigh the critical moments of events; if he does not grasp these, he has already lost everything. But, besides, there is no room in your case for simulation. Behold, you recognize and clearly surmise who it is who is chastising the Persians; and if you still desire to decide this in battle, I shall not hinder you." With these words he dismissed Pupaces; and then, having laid waste and consumed everything in his path, he retreated, having set upon an undertaking that was, before its completion, considered absolutely incredible. Indeed, they say that this battle line consisted of no more than sixty warriors. Then, indeed, the highest interests of the Romans, which had been brought into peril, were preserved beyond all expectation. ^D For from that time on the Persians, having gathered in a huge multitude, occupied suitable locations. Du Cange’s notes. (45) Solyman. Among the sultans of Iconium, he who held the primacy, the greatest among those in power with the sultan, Nicetas, I. 11, n. 6. (46) Pupaces. Who, otherwise, was in the camps of Manuel. Cinnamus p. 48 and 50.

^A regarding the event, as it was considered unbelievable before it happened. It is said that there were no more than sixty combatants in that army when the Roman forces, having fallen into great danger, were paradoxically saved. For the Persians, having gathered in tens of thousands from that point on, took possession of the key locations; where the Romans encountered them, a fierce battle erupted. The Persians, shooting from higher ground, were pressing the Romans hard, and the latter, by necessity always huddled closely together, were quite unable to exercise any courage, as the nature of the terrain did not even permit them enough space to maneuver.

Now the danger had begun to press even upon the Emperor himself. For some of those guarding him had begun to fall away. Yet, although he had been placed in such an evil situation, he did not for all that slacken his customary spirit; rather, as his son-in-law John—whom I have often mentioned—approached to offer him his shield (for he happened to be without armor at that moment), he sent him away, saying it was impossible for one shield to protect two bodies well. In such dire straits, the Romans crossed that terrain, and once they reached more open fields where the quality of the horses and the strength of the men could be put to the test, they raised a war cry at long last, leveled their spears against the enemy, put many to flight, slaughtered them, and returned having recovered all the booty they had carried off. In that battle, even though not a few performed valiantly, the magnanimity of the Emperor shone forth above the others. For no one attacked the enemy before him, and no one performed such exceptional feats with his own hand. Having achieved these things, the Emperor came to Byzantium.

^B The Persians, grieving at what had happened to them and intending to retaliate against the Romans, seized an opportunity; they plundered the city of Philomelium ^C and, falling unexpectedly upon Laodicea in Phrygia Minor, treated it cruelly, putting many of the locals of all ages to the sword, and leading off a large, countless multitude into captivity. When the Emperor learned of this, he was vexed and troubled, and had it been possible, he would have crossed over into Asia immediately, intending to encamp at Iconium. But since he realized that this required time—as the circumstances clearly demanded such great efforts—and greater preparation for war than before, he deferred this; and, intending to gather forces from all sides, he sent John Contostephanus to Palestine, with instructions to meet with King Baldwin and bring back not only the forces which the King had promised to send if necessary to the Emperor’s aid, but also further mercenary troops from that region. Renald, the Prince of Antioch, he ordered to come with all speed with the forces he then had. Finally, he summoned Thoros and Tigranes, ^D and Chrysaphius the Cilician, as well as those they call "Cocbasilii"—men who were also commanders of military forces and who had long ago voluntarily submitted themselves to the Emperor’s rule under the law of clients. From the East, he gathered these forces, and from the West, he summoned Ligurian cavalry and sent for the Archizupan of Dalmatia with the forces under him; he also hired many from the Scythians and the tribes dwelling near the Taurus. Nor did he stop even at this...

^A He paused in his preparations for war, but knowing that the Latin nations bound for Palestine almost always make their way to the island of Rhodes, he brought up mercenary cavalry forces from there. For fodder and other necessities, he ordered an incredible multitude of oxen, along with their wagons, to be driven from the regions of Thrace. These arrangements were made. But in order to defeat the Sultan through his own fellow tribesmen and kinsmen, he sent word to his brother Sanisanes, who at that time governed Gangra and Ancyra in Galatia, and to Iagupasanes, his son-in-law, who ruled over both Caesarea and Amaseia, illustrious cities, as well as the others located around the land of Cappadocia. Having made these men objects of suspicion to the Sultan, he prepared himself to undertake war.

^B When the Sultan heard this, as he could scarcely support a war against one of those whom the Emperor had stirred up against him, he conceded to those living in the region near him many things, as well as towns he had previously acquired with great labor. He sent envoys to the Emperor to beg for pardon. Once this was obtained, he promised to return the Roman captives, wherever they might be hidden, for he would search for them most diligently.

While these matters were being verified, an incident occurred. John, returning from Palestine with a cavalry detachment, happened upon a Persian army numbering twenty-two thousand fighting men. Terrified by the sudden event, he first retreated with his men with all haste to a nearby hill; then, having exhorted his entire battle line, he charged the enemy. As the Romans pressed upon them fiercely, the Persians were driven back, and as they fled, many fell, and many were captured by the Roman soldiers, while the cavalry trampled most of them. ^C When many others proved themselves worthy of note and valor, a display of John’s own virtue as commander took place in that engagement. Having accomplished these things, John arrived before the Emperor, bearing the spoils of victory.

When the Sultan heard of these things, he was stung by the goads of repentance, calling himself wretched because of his untimely audacity; he was not so much dismayed by what had already happened, but because he reckoned from this that the Emperor would take up an expedition against him, and thus he imagined the future as though it were present. For this reason, he added many and greater things to what he had offered before, pledging that he would provide allied forces to the Romans every year whenever it was necessary, and that no Persian would ever enter Roman territory with his consent. Furthermore, he agreed that if anyone from another realm should harass the Roman land, he would immediately go to war against that person, and in every way repel the encroaching violence from wherever it might arise. All things that the Emperor might command he would execute without any delay, ^D and if any of the cities under Roman rule had fallen into the power of the Persians, he would restore it to the Romans. The Emperor, persuaded by these promises, bound him with the most solemn oaths; then, having resolved their hostilities,

^A domum reversus est. Sed ut intellexit Scythas Istrum trajecisse, quo Romanorum fines incursarent, omisso Byzantino itinere, ad fretum, quod Abydo urbi adjacet, contendit, ubi in Thracia situm est oppidum, quod a Callia Atheniensium, ut opinor, praetore nomen accepit, ibique transgressus contra Scythas profectus est. Sed nondum ad Istrum pervenerat, cum illi percepto Romanorum adventu, collatis celeriter rebus, retro cessere.

BOOK V

^B 1. These things were thus brought to pass. When the emperor saw that there was nothing anywhere appearing to resist the Roman power, for the sake of recreation he went out to one of the estates near Byzantium, called Longoi. While he was tarrying there, the final day of life overtook the empress Irene, ^C a woman who—as I have said before—surpassed all the women of her age in modesty, in uprightness of character, and in her great compassion for those in need. She was the mother of two daughters; the elder of whom survived and lived on with her father, but the other shortly thereafter measured out her life, being in her fourth year. But there still remained the little girl, struggling with disease, when the emperor, abandoning his concern for the affairs of the West, and putting aside his domestic circumstances, set out for those regions. For at that time a rumor was spreading that Frederick, king of the Alemanni, was rousing his entire nation and was marching with his whole army against the Roman lands. For these reasons, and because Geza, king of the Huns, had departed this life, he came to Sardica. There he spent considerable time, setting the highest value upon obtaining control of the Hungarian lands. For the stories that had been bruited about concerning the Alemanni no longer held authority. From where the emperor wished to take possession of the Hungarian territory, let us now speak. Geza indeed had two brothers, Vladislaus and Stephen, but for what offenses each was hateful to him, I am entirely ignorant. So ^D

when after a long and disparate flight, they ^A finally approached the Emperor, they became his suppliants. And Stephen indeed married the Emperor’s niece Maria, the daughter of the Sebastocrator Isaac, who was, as we have said, of exceeding beauty; but the other remained celibate. Therefore, when Geza had died and the rule of justice called one of the brothers to the kingdom (for this law ^A exists among the Hungarians, that the crown should always pass to the surviving brothers), the Emperor was in a hurry to bring them back to their ancestral land. For Geza, disregarding the ancestral law, had passed the rule to his son. The Hungarians, therefore, partly out of respect for this law and partly fearing the approach of the Emperor, removed Stephen, the son of Geza, from power and granted it to one of the brothers, Vladislaus. But for Stephen—I mean the elder one—they assigned the Urum fortune. ^B And the Hungarians wish for this name to signify the successor to the realm.

2. So much, then, for the outcome concerning these own brothers. But the Emperor proceeded to the Macedonian city of Philippopolis to settle matters regarding the Serbs. For Primislaus [(51)], who governed that region, had—as I have already narrated—birthed rebellion before and used his own independent judgment, and because of this had come very close to being removed from power by the Emperor, yet later, having obtained mercy, he retained his former status. ^C Then, however, paying no heed to words or deeds, he again embarked on a new undertaking. Because of this, the Emperor, having judged the man, removed him from power and installed Beluses [(52)], his brother, in his place. Primislaus, however, having had pity on his fortune—[P. 119]—he removed him from there so that he could not work mischief again, and he gifted him with most fertile land, which was also excellent for the pasturing of animals. But Beluses, after having shone for a little while in power, laid aside the insignia of rule, and having left his ancestral soil, went to the Hungarian ^D lands, where after having spent much time, he disappeared from among men.

Notes of Du Cange

(50) *For this is the law.* Indeed, there was a law in designating the king among the Hungarians, that not the son should succeed the father, but rather whoever from the royal family should be called to the kingdom by the collective assembly of nobles in the diets. Thus Bonfinius, year 1165.

(51) *Primislaus.* He seems to be the one whom the Dioclean priest, the historian of Dalmatia, calls Rodoslavus. He, after his father Draghihna died, ruled the kingdom of Serbia, content with the mere title of count, and was called "prince" by the Emperor Manuel: *When the king Draghihna had died, his eldest son, Count Rodoslavus, brought great gifts to the Emperor of Constantinople, Manuel, by whom he was humanely received, and he gave him possession of all the lands his father had ever held; and returning from Constantinople, Rodoslavus began to rule in his lands together with his brothers Iramac and Valadimiro.* Moreover, that the Serbs of that time acknowledged Manuel as their superior lord is testified by Arnold of Lübeck, book II, ch. 4.

(52) *Beluses.* That this is the one whom Cinnamus mentions above, p. 117, as "Bela Ban," I have no doubt. But that he and Dese were brothers of Rodoslavus or Primislaus, as the contemporary Dioclean writer seems to suggest, is contradicted by other evidence. For he makes him the son of Dessan, the count of Urosc, who is called Urus by Thwrocz. Although it is probable that Belam was a brother of Dessa, since the parent of both was Urus or Uroscus. Thus, however, the Dioclean proceeds with the aforementioned narration: *With the passage of time, certain malicious men arose, their ancient enemies, who, rebelling against them, led away Dessa, the son of Urosc, and gave him Zenta and Trebine, while to Radislao and his brothers remained the maritime country, with the city of Cattaro, as far as Scutari. Whence Radoslao with his brothers did not cease daily to fight against this Dessa, and others of their enemies, to recover the provinces which had rebelled against them, and to preserve the remainder of the kingdom.*

^A The emperor sent for the last of the brothers, who was called Deses, and who ruled over the region of Dendras, which is near Naissus and is prosperous and populous. Having received pledges from him that he would preserve the form of servitude toward him unadulterated for the whole time of his life, and also that he would entirely surrender to the Romans the Dendras region, from which, as I said, he had been drawing income, he proclaimed him archizupan.

^B 3. At this same time, the Sultan Klitziesthlan ^C came of his own accord to Byzantium to entreat the emperor concerning matters advantageous to himself—a truly noble deed and one full of glory, such as, as far as my memory goes, had never before fallen to the lot of the Romans. For what could surpass even the most renowned of deeds than that a man who was the prince of such a great region and ruler over so many nations should present himself to the Roman emperor in the guise of a servant?

And so that I may describe to those fond of hearing stories what was done at that time: a splendid tribunal had been erected, and a throne, raised high from the ground, was set up—a spectacle surely worthy of much account. ^D It was fashioned entirely of gold, and was studded everywhere with an abundance of carbuncles and hyacinths. One could not easily have counted the pearls; for many, perfectly circular and whiter than snow, surrounded the single stones which were set apart at intervals. Such was the chair, filled with radiance. The topmost part of it, which indeed extended over his head, surpassed the brilliance of the other ornaments just as much as the head is more excellent than the remaining members. On this seat sat the emperor, filling it entirely with a body of proportionate size. A purple garment encompassed him, a truly marvelous thing. From the top even to the very base, it shone with carbuncles and glittered with pearls, not arranged randomly, but varied by an admirable depiction, as if art had portrayed a real meadow upon the robe. Moreover, from his neck down to his breast hung a stone of extraordinary size and color, suspended by golden links; it was red like a rose, and in shape very much resembling an apple. As for the ornaments on his head, I consider it superfluous to speak. On both sides of the throne stood the senate, as is the custom, each person occupying a place according to his birth and dignity.

Such was the state of the emperor. When Klitziesthlan reached the middle ranks, he was struck with entire amazement. Although the emperor urged him to sit down, at first he most stubbornly refused, but when he saw the emperor pressing him even more, he finally sat on a certain humble and very low seat. After some conversation had been held back and forth, he withdrew to the lodging prepared for him in the palace. The emperor, elated by the magnitude of his successes, had prepared a triumph to lead from the acropolis itself to the most renowned temple of Divine Wisdom, in which he intended to process together with the sultan. But he did not complete what he had intended. For Lucas, who at that time was presiding over ecclesiastical affairs, opposed this plan, saying that it was not fitting that amidst the divine...

^A vestments and sacred ornaments an impious man should pass. Another event, moreover, hindered the matter. For at the dead of night, a violent trembling suddenly shook the whole earth. The Byzantines, therefore, considering Lucas's warnings to be true, said that God was not pleased with such a plan. For men are usually wont to pay attention only to present circumstances and to inquire no further. Yet the outcome of the event clearly revealed the meaning of what had happened. For Kılıç Arslan, ^B having arrived several years later, disregarded the pacts that had been sanctioned with the Emperor and prepared to lead his entire army against the Romans in Persia. And by some misfortune, when the military force had fallen into difficult terrain, it had lost many men of high rank and had come near to a great disaster, had the Emperor not appeared there, having surpassed the bounds of human audacity in martial deeds. But these things, as I have already said, will be recounted by me hereafter. When the Emperor had withdrawn to the palaces that are at the southern part of the city, he greeted him with magnificent banquets and treated him with every kindness. Then he also delighted him with horse races, and burned some ^C skiffs and boats with "liquid fire" (55) according to custom, and in general filled the man with the spectacles of the hippodrome, by which the greatness of cities is wont most especially to be displayed. He, having spent sufficient time in Byzantium and having confirmed the previous agreements with a second oath, returned home. The terms of the covenant were as follows: that he would be an enemy for as long as he lived to those who were enemies of the Emperor, and a friend to those who were his friends; that of the cities he might capture, he would hand over the greater and more significant to the Emperor; that he would not enter into a covenant with any enemy ^D without the Emperor's consultation; that he would support the Romans and appear with his entire army whether the war in the East or the West should be; nor, moreover, would he leave unpunished the Turcomans (56)—as they are called, those accustomed to living by plunder—who dwell under his command, in whatever part of the Empire they might have committed an offense. These things he himself swore, and as many of the magnates as followed him, and if he should neglect them, they promised that they would prevent the undertaking with all their might. With these things settled in Byzantium, when the report of these affairs reached from Europe into Asia, the phylarchs who inhabit those regions, thinking that it would not turn out well for them if the Sultan into his own party...

had been brought, sent envoys to request that he reconcile them as well to the Sultan. He heard them not unfavorably, but, feigning to refer the entire matter to the will of the Sultan, he sent them to him where he ^A was staying in the palace, as has been said. As soon as they had initiated discussions with him, they managed to put aside the hostility that existed between them, and they persuaded him to become an intercessor for them with the Emperor. The Emperor, having accepted the one who came as a suppliant, treated them as friends; and henceforth the Roman Empire enjoyed a firm peace.

^B When the Empress Irene had passed from this life, the Emperor, who did not yet have any male children, began to consider a second marriage. There was a girl in Tripoli in Phoenicia, of Latin race (57), and of exceptionally elegant beauty. To bring her from there, he sent John Contostephanus the sebastos and Theophylact, an Italian man, whom they called Exubitus (58). So when the envoys saw the girl and greatly admired her beauty, since nothing from any quarter seemed to stand in the way for the time being, without delay they embarked her onto the trireme. But just as they were about to depart from there, severe illnesses seized the girl, and she was in dire straits. Hence, always postponing the departure to the next day, they killed time in vain. For if she were to be relieved even for a short while from her pains and seemed fit to begin the journey, ^C immediately, by I know not what fate, the disease would attack her again, so that she would lie in bed, shivering over her whole body and suffering severe convulsions. Following this came a fever, and lividity and wasting; and the bloom of her face, which once shone with grace, was gradually changing and darkening. To anyone looking at her, tears would rise up, as such a fair flower of beauty was perishing prematurely. The girl was afflicted by these evils at home. But if she ever went aboard the ship and was taken a short distance from Tripoli, then the wave of the disease would roar with double the intensity, and it was necessary for the ship to return to the city, and she would be seized by the disease, which had retreated for a short time, with a fiercer onset. Since this happened frequently, it cast Contostephanus into ambiguous and uncertain thoughts. Therefore, being uncertain in his mind and doubtful as to which way he should lean, he at length approached a certain temple there and inquired whether the prince should marry this virgin, ^D and whether this had been decreed by fate. The sacred oracle (59) told him this: "The marriage is indeed prepared,

but the invited were not worthy to enter." Having heard these things and understood the oracle, because also some rumor had already spread among them that the girl was born from an unlawful marriage (60)—a matter of the greatest and most lasting shame—he ceased from the enterprise, set off immediately from that place, and came to Byzantium. ^A Now, there were then at that time daughters of Raymond, Prince of Antioch, who excelled in beauty. The emperor sent to see them a certain Basil, by surname Camaterus (61), who was at that time serving in the rank of acolyte. As soon as he arrived in Antioch, he saw that both were indeed beautiful, but Maria appeared more beautiful to him. And that inspector's test indeed arrived at the truth. For so great a beauty, the Byzantines said, our age has not known. But these things were later; at that time, however, since the arbiter had set his eyes upon Maria, the emperor, having learned of it, sent men of distinction to Antioch to betroth the girl to him: namely, Alexius, the grandson of the Emperor Alexius by his daughter Anna, who at that time was also a Great Duke, and Nicephorus of the family of the Bryennii (62), who had become the emperor's nephew by his brother or sister, and had already been made a sebastos. Among them was also Andronicus Camaterus (63), who at that time held the office of Eparch, a man deemed worthy by his ^B sebastos rank, and who was himself a kinsman of the emperor. And they saw her and ad-

Du Cange's notes

^C ...in the book of the life of the virgin St. Consortia, ch. 9: "If you wish, let us go to the church, let the mass be celebrated, let the Gospel be placed upon the altar, and having made common prayer, let us look to seek the will of the Lord from that chapter which first occurs." To such an extent, however, had this method of divination grown strong among Christians that Rainerus, v. 5, rebukes the Waldensians because they ridiculed the laymen who chose by lot in the altar. Truly, it is read that this was forbidden more than once, especially by the Council of Venice, can. 16, which Hincmar of Reims praises concerning the divorce of Lothair: "There are also sorcerers who, under the guise of fake religion, profess the science of divination through certain things which they call 'the lots of the saints,' or promise future things through the inspection of any Scriptures whatsoever." The Council of Agde, can. 42, and the First Council of Orleans, can. 30, and the Council of Auxerre, can. 4, have the same words; but there will be another place to speak of the lots of the saints and apostles. ... (60) "From an unlawful marriage." See also on this Seraius, book XVII, ch. 19. (61) Camaterus. Whether this is the Basil whom Nicetas mentions in *Alexius*, Man. f. n. 17, or indeed the Basil Camaterus who subsequently existed as Patriarch of Constantinople after Theodosius, is uncertain. We treat the marriage of Manuel with Maria of Antioch more fully in the *Stemmata Comnenorum*. Balsamon mentions this sebastos in his epistle to Basil, ch. 41 of the *Amphilochia*. (62) Nicephorus of the Bryennii. Nicephorus is mentioned by Balsamon in his epistle to Basil... (63) Andronicus is the Camaterus. He is the same man, Andronicus Camaterus, the *drungarius vigiliae*, who, while Manuel reigned, defended the doctrine received by the Greeks concerning the procession of the Holy Spirit from the Father alone in an elegant and very scholarly treatise: in which, assuming the person of the emperor and arguing various points on that subject, he endeavors to establish with the greatest intensity of mind all the authorities of divine Scripture and the Fathers altogether concerning the procession of the Holy Spirit, collected into one, with his own annotations added, which he himself calls the Spirit proceeding from the Father alone. To this Andronicus... ^D ...another book was written by John Veccus, Patriarch of Constantinople, under Michael Palaeologus, which he inscribed: *Against the supervisions of Andronicus Camaterus regarding the graphic testimonies concerning the Holy Spirit*, and the way to take in hand the book which during the days of the empire of Manuel, the notable among kings and emperors, Andronicus, who then held the office of the *drungarius* of the watch, surnamed Camaterus, a man not ignoble in wisdom, wrote. Regarding the tour: *To the most venerable Duke, Lord John, who afterwards was over the petitions, the son of the most venerable and great drungarius, Lord Andronicus Camaterus.* But a man in all things good, and truly blessed, noble in the growth of his lineage, great in soul, learned in his pursuits...

^A were astonished, and brought her, placed upon the trireme, with magnificence to Byzantium. On the twenty-fifth day of the month of Apellaios, which those who speak Latin call December, she was led in splendor into the famous temple of the Divine Wisdom; there the emperor joined himself to her in matrimony, with Luke of the Constantinopolitan Church, Sophronius of Alexandria, and Athanasius of Theopolis, patriarchs at that time, laying their hands upon them, as is the custom for Christians. And having proclaimed her Augusta, he returned to the palace, and entertained the chief men with magnificent feasts, and everywhere throughout the narrow streets of the city he provided food for the people. On the following day, he finally brought the patriarchs to dine with him, and dismissed everyone gifted with much gold. Above all, he presented a hundredweight of gold to the Church. Shortly thereafter, he also diverted the populace with horse races, and wished to neglect nothing that might contribute to their entertainment.

^B 5. These things were being done in Byzantium. But Stephen, having already gained control of the principality after Vladislaus had passed away, seemed grievous and very burdensome to his subjects. Whence the Hungarians insulted him greatly, and it was clear that they were on the point of casting him down from his lordship. Becoming troubled at these things, Stephen again petitioned the emperor. The emperor, therefore, now that the equinox was approaching, marched upon the city of Philippopolis, and he himself remained there with the greater part of the Roman army, but having entrusted a certain portion of the military force to his nephew, Alexius, the son of Contostephanus, he sent him against the Hungarian ^C affairs. Meanwhile, Stephen, thinking that he had been reconciled with the Hungarians, no longer had need of this, and for this reason the Roman army turned back homeward. But soon the Hungarians rose up against Stephen again, and among many other accusations, they reproached him, declaring that the affairs of the Hungarians had been utterly ruined by him. Stephen, however, fearing the danger, first fled to one of the cities nearest the Ister, which had long been subject to the emperor, and from there he crossed over to Sardica, where he met with the emperor. And [the emperor], being deeply pained by the misfortunes that had befallen him and having pity on the man for his plight, bestowed money upon him and sufficient forces to recover his ancestral throne. ^D Alexius, whom I have already mentioned, the Contostephanus, was in command of these forces, and the emperor followed a little way behind. When he arrived at the city of Naissus, the thought occurred to him, while he was encamped there, to attend also to Serbian affairs. For this place leads to both regions, Pannonia and Serbia, and from there, when it should be necessary, both could be [alt-version omitted]

reached. For Dese, who by the emperor's favor ruled Serbia at that time, once he had secured possession of the country, ignored the treaties and once again laid claim to the region of Dendras. ^B Flouting the Roman rule, he sent an embassy to the Alemanni, intending to form a marriage alliance with them, and he did everything he could to act in a manner contrary to the will of the Romans. Even then, when he was summoned by the emperor to come and assist him in the war he was waging against the Hungarians, he appeared difficult and stubborn, harboring hopes of great things and postponing his arrival from day to day. Wherefore, when the emperor reached Naissus, where the two roads diverge—one leading to Serbia and the other to the Ister and the borders of Hungary—he pitched his camp in the middle. Dese, however, perceiving the danger now hanging over him, took the forces he then had and came to the Roman camp. The emperor received him benevolently and honored him as was fitting. But it seems that there is no evil more shameful than an unbridled tongue. For Dese, when he saw that no harm had come to him from his previous imprudence and rashness, took heart and resolved to inflict greater damage on the Romans than before; yet he kept this plan secret. Thus, it usually happens that kindness becomes an occasion for the worst of men to commit greater injuries. ^C For shortly thereafter, envoys from the Hungarian nation came to the emperor. Dese, meeting them by chance and being asked by them, in the customary manner, how his own affairs stood, answered them without concealment, "Excellent," and that he fared as well as the kindness of their king toward him merited, openly calling him his lord. When the emperor learned this, he decided there was no room for delay. He summoned him to judgment, and since he prevailed, with the accusers and those cognizant of the crimes brought into the middle and confronting him with his treachery, he kept him in custody, though without disgrace. For, fencing his tent with a rampart, he ordered him to be guarded according to the law that prevails in camps; so that from that time forward, that place was called "Dese's Rampart"—for that is how the common people ^D refer to a ditch. A few days later, he sent him to Byzantium and ordered him to be shut up in the palace. These were the things that happened there. The emperor, having heard the envoys of the Hungarians who had arrived, and perceiving that they brought nothing sound, ordered them to depart from the Roman camp and go straight home. As they were leaving, he himself came to the city of Belegrada and pitched his camp there. This city, as we mentioned above, the Roman army had built after destroying Zeugminon, having enlisted many Hungarians to take part in the labor. This is a place of that Fortune which always plays with human affairs; and perhaps one might laugh to see the creators of cities long ago building new ones. From these, I believe, the word "fortune" has mostly flowed down among men. For when they cannot grasp the reason for things that proceed from divine Providence,

themselves, while they happen unexpectedly, ascribe their outcomes to fortune. But let everyone judge or write about these matters as they please; we, however, shall return to our intended subject. When the emperor had arrived at that point and recognized that it was no longer possible for Stephen to rule over the land of the Hungarians (for the Hungarians had already re-established Stephen, the son of Geza, as we have ^A said), he turned his attention elsewhere. For he wished, as has been said, to make the Hungarian power, situated as it was in the middle of the Western nations, his own with all his might. For this reason, he decided to join Bela, who was the son of Geza after Stephen, in marriage to his daughter, Maria. He sent George, who at that time was commander of the imperial ^B company, a man of the Palaeologus family who had risen to the dignity of *sebastos*, into Hungary, to initiate talks concerning this proposed affinity; he himself, however, returned to Byzantium. The Hungarians, having held discussions with Palaeologus, both surrendered Bela to him and gladly granted him that region which his father, while still alive, had assigned to him as an inheritance. Having thus received what had been stipulated, Palaeologus returned to Byzantium. Thereafter, the emperor took care of the things necessary to complete this marital alliance, and having first changed the boy's name, he gave him the name Alexius, and proclaimed him with the dignity of *despotes* (68).

6. While the arrival of Bela in Byzantium had this beginning, the emperor, considering that matters in the West were now in good order, subsequently turned his gaze toward Asia, having been moved to this partly by events that had previously occurred there, but also having been recalled by Western affairs. For Nuradin, who ruled in Syria over Beroea and Damascus, both of them illustrious cities, and over very many other cities which are situated around the Euphrates, was ruling with fortune shining upon him, and had conquered various not insignificant places, and having attacked many of the satraps there in war, he held some as captives—among whom was Joscelin, prince of Edessa—but others he had slaughtered in battle, among whom was Raymond of Poitou, ^C of whom we have spoken sufficiently in our previous books, a man in spirit and fortitude equal to that ancient Hercules, and Baldwin, lord of Marash. Advancing further, he also engaged in battle with Constantine, the duke of Cilicia, whom he called Calaman ^D the youth.

Du Cangii notes

^A keys, and Baldwin (70), who was then ruler of Marash. Going forward, he also engaged in battle with Constantine (71), the duke of Cilicia, whom they called Calamanus, a young man, good in appearance and active in battles. But at first, he was utterly defeated by the young man and fell into irreparable calamities; then, by some chance, he [Nureddin] captured both him and Renald, who was then governing the Tripolis (73) in Phoenicia. For Constantine, since he was prevailing in the war, was no longer restrainable, but, being led on by some irrational boldness, he fell into the pursuit without skill, and he himself was captured, and he brought ruin to the Romans' affairs. Nuradin, having won the battle at Teruza (74), was carried away by the hope that he would soon seize Antioch as well. For these reasons, therefore, the emperor had earlier been in travail over the events that had occurred and was thinking of crossing over into Asia, and then, seizing the opportunity, he was entirely inclined toward this plan. But again, the affairs from the West stood in his way. For the young king of the Hungarians (75), Bela, was once again invading the hereditary possessions and violating the treaties, and most openly so; and Stephen, whom the Hungarians had already cast out from the rule, was planning to call back his rule by slipping into the Hungarian kingdom through the city of Anchialus. But he had proceeded in the matter with more rashness than foresight. For when he learned that the Huns were going about, Stephen moved against him with his entire army. Because of this, the emperor sent a sufficient army to Cilicia to guard things there, while he himself hurried again against the Istros and, having crossed the Save, set up his army opposite Titel (76), intending that Bela might recover his ancestral heritage and that he might rescue Stephen from the dangers at hand. For the strength of his forces was already slipping away from him, and he was in great straits, as those of the Huns with him were transferring their allegiance to the king at every turn. And indeed, he was bringing even Andronicus, the son of Kontostephanos, ^B towards this goal. ^{C D}

^A And, having sent away Stephen with a military force a little later, he snatched him from danger, and he himself, setting out from Titel with the entire army, proceeded further forward. For Stephen, who was laying claim to the rule, since he was unable to engage the emperor with an opposing force, ^B at first retreated with the forces around him to the remote parts of the land of the Huns; then, bringing in allies from there, he hastened to draw up line of battle against the Romans. The emperor, however, having reached a certain place called Petricum, pitched his camp there. This place is the first boundary for the passage into the interior of Pannonia. Having arrived there, he wrote as follows to Stephen: “We have come, my son, not to wage war against the Huns, but so that we might restore to your brother Bela the possession which we have not at all taken from your domain, but which you yourself and your father long ago conceded; and, furthermore, so that we might rescue your uncle Stephen, who is now also our son-in-law and has attained our power, from danger. If, therefore, it is your wish that Bela also be our son-in-law—a thing which you have already confirmed by the very pacts—why, having restored his possession to him, do you not rather enjoy our fellowship and goodwill? But if you reject the claim of kinship and affinity, and have other intentions regarding these matters, know that we are far from allowing violence to be brought upon us.”

^C 7. The emperor wrote these things. But Stephen, as has been said, brought in a further auxiliary force from the Alemanni and from the Scythians who dwell near the Taurus, and indeed he also gathered for himself the nation of the Czechs, whose king came to him with his entire army. This man was the one who had formerly served as a soldier under Conrad, the king of the Alemanni, when he was setting out for Asia, as I have recounted, and for this reason he was proclaimed king by him. But both were deceived in turn, both he who received the royal title and the other who bestowed it. For it is a long time ^D since the name of the empire in Rome perished, ever since after Augustus (whom they also called Augustulus, hinting at the tender age in which he seized the empire), the rule passed in succession to Odoacer and Theodoric, the leader of the Goths, both of them tyrants. For Theodoric, as long as he lived, was distinguished by the name of king, not emperor, as Procopius writes. Indeed, Rome itself, from the times of Theodoric and a little before, has remained separated from the rest of the empire to this day. And although it was recovered by Belisarius and Narses, the Roman generals, under Justinian, and asserted for the Roman Empire, it nonetheless fell again into the servitude of barbarian tyrants, who are called kings following the example of the first king, Theodoric, and also tyrants. How, therefore, can it be that those who are not participants in the imperial summit can confer such great dignities, which, as we have already said, from the imperial [rank...]

[index: entries preserved]

they usurp for themselves in their mastery. But he even wishes to explain this clearly. "But now they even dare to declare that the kingdom in Byzantium is different from that in Rome ^B. Which, as I have considered it many times, has lately brought me to tears. For what, indeed, and how great is the thing that the governance of Rome has been bartered away to barbarians and to those most servile of men; and from this, it possesses neither High Priest nor, by much, a ruler? For he who ^C encroaches upon the majesty of the kingdom, riding unworthily—and [82] on foot—alongside the High Priest..."

Notes of Du Cange

[79] *Imperium*: Cinnamus meant to express the Latin word. Thus, instead of *imperator*, he said *imperium*, as did Urbicius p. 70.

[80] *Παρὰ τὴν ἐν Ῥώμη*: Radevicus, bk. IV, ch. ult., concerning Frederick: The Emperor of Constantinople [Manuel] willingly turned his friendship and alliance toward him, so that he might acknowledge him not as Emperor of Rome, but of New Rome.

[81] *[p. 470] Διεκαπηλεύθη*: See Fronton Du Duc on the *Lausiac History* of Palladius, where there is much on the word *καπηλεύειν* (to hawk/barter).

[82] *Ἱππευομένῳ*: Cinnamus acts most foolishly here toward his own prince, and dares to prefer the Byzantine Emperor—as if he were the head of the Greek Church, not only to the Patriarch of Constantinople, but to the supreme Pontiff of the Christian world—and from this he draws a famous argument for a prerogative over the German Emperors, because they are present on foot for the Pope as he rides, and hold the bridle of his horse. This is because the innate insolence and pride of the Greek temperament could never be suppressed in its own Augusti, who, since they could scarcely concede anything to God Himself, would never have attributed the first places to His vicar on earth. Certainly, the Emperors of the West have existed as far superior in piety and religion, who always deferred the first place to the Apostolic See and the Supreme Pontiff in honor of Jesus Christ and Blessed Peter, whose roles he fulfills; following the example of Constantine the Great—which the later Greeks, the vainest of all men, disdained—they have more than once performed the office of the groom for the one riding. Let Cinnamus therefore hear Constantine himself writing to Pope Silvester: "Holding the bridle of his horse for the sake of the veneration and fear of Saint Peter, we performed the office of the groom." But if he doubts the authenticity of the aforementioned letter and suspects something spurious in it, let him at least suffer the same honor to be deferred by our Augusti to the Supreme Pontiffs, which Justinus Augustus once rendered to Pope John when he came to Constantinople—who, as Anastasius the Librarian is the witness, humbling himself out of honor for God, prostrated himself and adoringly kissed the most blessed Pope—or to Pope Agapetus by Justinian, who, as the same writer says, filled with joy, humbled himself to the holy Apostolic See and kissed the most blessed Pope Agapetus arriving at Constantinople; or certainly to Pope Constantine by Justinian Rhinotmetus, who received Constantine arriving at Constantinople with honor and sent him away, in such a way that prostrated on the ground for his sins, he asked him to intercede [for him], as it is in the *Reichersperg Chronicle*, or as Anastasius speaks: "With the kingdom, he prostrated himself, kissing the feet of the Pontiff." Or finally, let him hear of Ludovicus Germanicus, the Emperor, and what he objected to the Archbishop of Ravenna in the presence of the same Anastasius, and let him think that it was said to his own prince: "Let him go, and laying aside the pride of elation, let him humble himself to the Pontiff, to whom both we and the generality of the whole Church incline, and whose religion of obedience and subjection... [to the] most holy Roman Church he submits." These, therefore, were the piety and religion of the ancient Eastern and Western Augusti toward the most holy Roman Church: these were the obsequies that the Westerners rendered to the Supreme Pontiffs, so that they might meet those arriving on foot and perform the duties of the groom. The same Anastasius, writing of Pepin, King of the Franks, the ancestor and first stock of the Western Emperors, regarding Pope Stephen II: "He himself in his palace, in the place that is called Ponticone, descending for nearly three miles from his horse, with great humility, prostrated on the ground with his wife, children, and nobles, received the same most holy Pope, to whom he performed the duty of groom, proceeding up to a certain point along his saddle." Nor did Charles the Great, son of Pepin, receive Pope Leo with less reverence when he came to Rome to bring aid to the Pontiff, who, when he perceived the most sacred crosses and signs arriving to meet him, descending from the horse on which he was riding, he saw fit to hasten on foot with his judges to Blessed Peter; and as soon as he reached the basilica of Saint Peter: "Forthwith hastening, Charles reverently adores the Pope, embracing the great [Pontiff]."

Following the example of his parent Charles and his grandfather Pepin in the Roman See, and [towards] the successors of St. Peter, [p. 471] Ludovicus—not undeservedly [called] the Pious—expended the same obsequies of piety and reverence. Theganus, ch. 16, narrates how the same Emperor received Pope Stephen as he was coming into Gaul: "He arrived," he says, "after sending messengers, the lord Ludovicus, to meet the aforementioned Pontiff, encountering him in the great field of Rheims: both descended from their horses, and the prince prostrating himself with his whole body to the ground three times before the feet of so great a Pontiff, and rising the third time, he saluted the Pontiff, saying: 'Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord.'" But especially Ludovicus II, the Emperor, grandson of Lothair, exhibited the same offices to the Supreme Pontiff Nicholas. For when Nicholas was descending to the camp of Ludovicus, which was situated not far from Rome, the most excellent Augustus, when he had seen him, grasping him with his own hands, in the manner of those on foot, pulled him as far as a bowshot. These are the words of Anastasius, who relates that this was again performed by Ludovicus after receiving the Pontiff at a banquet: "When they had arrived at a certain most spacious place on the journey, the Emperor descended from his horse and led the Pontiff’s horse again, as we mentioned above, and speaking to one another with the sweetest kisses, they rejoiced together." It is not to be wondered at, therefore, if the Augusti of the German stock followed the Franks, to whom they succeeded, and prosecuted the Roman Pontiffs with the same honors and performed the duties of the groom for them as they rode. The first of these to meet [the Pope] was Henry V, who coming to Rome in the year 1111, as soon as he saw Paschal II, he fell at his feet, and rising, in the name of the Trinity, on his mouth, forehead, and eyes, he gave the kiss of peace, and fulfilled the office of the groom, as

^A a count becomes for him; and the emperor leads this person—to this very one—and addresses him as king. How, O best of men, does he fulfill the service of a groom in addition to his dignity? But here, this emperor ^B by benevolence, the lord pope has no cause to complain if obedience has wavered, which consists in arbitration rather than in law. But if you say that because of the duty of the first institution this reverence is owed to the prince of the apostles, what matters it between the right stirrup and the left, provided that humility is observed and the prince is bowed to the feet of the supreme pontiff? Therefore, it was disputed [for a long time] and sharply. Finally, they parted from each other without the kiss of peace. Fearing, therefore, those who seemed to be the pillars of the kingdom, that they might have labored in vain with matters unaccomplished, they persuaded the heart of the king with much persuasion, so that he recalled the lord pope into the camp: whom, as he returned, the king received with the office restored. Helmodus gathered from the History of the Archbishops of Bremen what he has on this matter. ^C And immediately afterward Frederick himself performed the same for the antipope Victor, in the year 1160. Radevicus, book II, ch. 70, and from him the Reichesperg Chronicle: The emperor, calling together all the bishops, led them into this consensus, that they should all accept Victor as pope, and on the immediately following day, the 5th of the Kalends of February, he was accepted and enthroned by the emperor himself and the bishops in the monastery of Saint Cyriacus, the emperor holding the bridle of his horse and the stirrup of his saddle, and receiving him from the horse, and together with the Patriarch Pellegrino of Aquileia leading him by the hands to the altar. Finally, reconciled to the Roman Church, Frederick stood by the side of Pope Alexander III in the city of Venice in the year 1177 ^D as he was riding, and held the stirrup: After the solemnities of the mass were performed, the same pontiff says in Radulph de Diceto and Hoveden, he walked as far as the very gate of the church of St. Mark, and when we were mounting our palfrey prepared there, he held the stirrup and rendered unto us all the honor and reverence which his predecessors were accustomed to render to our predecessors. Acts of Alexander: Mass having been sung, the same Frederick grasped the right hand of the pontiff, and led him from the church to the white horse, and strongly held the stirrup. But when he took the bridle and wished to fulfill the office of groom, the pontiff, because the journey to the sea seemed not too long, took it as a fact done, because he wished to fulfill it with affection. With the very same observance, shortly before this, Louis VII, King of France, and Henry, King of England, had received the same pontiff at Torcy on the Loire, using the office of groom, holding the bridle of his horse with their hands on the right and on the left, as the author Robert de Monte attests in the year 1162. From these things, therefore, it is evidently gathered that Cinnamus in this place attacks and censures Frederick, although silencing his name, as one who, in his own time and that of Manuel, had rendered this kind of service to the Roman pontiff. Nor is it a wonder that the schismatic Greeks bore it ill that such reverence be shown to the Roman [P. 473] pontiffs, from whom they had defected; which our own age’s heretics expostulate not once, and especially Simon Schardius in his book *On the Faith and Observance of the Roman Pontiffs toward Emperors*, where regarding the obsequies of Frederick to Adrian he says: "Did Herod and Pilate as well minister in this way to Christ entering Jerusalem on Palm Sunday? Did his Nero receive Peter coming to Rome in this way?" But let the dogs bark at the moon, and let the heretics twist the stings of their envy and malevolence toward the Roman and apostolic see, provided that its honor stands, and the reverence and veneration owed by Christian princes is hereafter rendered as it was of old: — But the wind carries off the vain voice in vain, And deaf Diana pursues her course. Certainly, Otho IV rendered this after Frederick.

^A and how did it occur to you, O good man, to use horse-grooms for the Roman emperors? But from nowhere

[Du Cangii notæ.]

perator, as the author Arnold of Lübeck testifies (bk. VII, ch. 21), where he describes the coronation of the same Emperor: "When the duty is finished," he says, "the Lord Pope invites the Emperor devoutly to a banquet; the Lord Emperor most insistently begs him to come with him. When they had reached the horses, the Emperor, not unmindful of the apostolic reverence which must be shown to the faithful and reverent Vicar of Christ himself, Pope Innocent III, devoutly grasps his stirrup, and so they come to the banquet place." Finally, the author of the Life of the same Urban testifies that Emperor Charles IV performed these duties for Pope Urban IV. For when Charles had preceded the Pontiff toward Rome, he awaited him as he followed at the entrance of the city—namely, at the gate that is near the castle of Saint ^B Angelo—and, descending from his own horse, he performed the role of a groom; and on foot, holding the bridle of the Pope’s horse as far as the basilica of Saint Peter, he led him, and finally led him as far as the altar. Finally, the anonymous writer of the Life of Manfred, King of Sicily, edited by Ughelli, reports that the same Manfred, who was then Prince of Taranto and not yet king, when Pope Innocent IV had entered the Neapolitan kingdom by agreement, in order to show his greater devotion to the most holy church, had gone out to meet the Supreme Pontiff as far as Ceprano; and as the Pope entered the kingdom, he performed the office of groom for him and held the bridle until he crossed the Garigliano bridge. Since, therefore, these obsequies of the Western Augusti and consequently of the other Christian princes toward the vicars of Christ have become an undisputed custom thereafter, they have been recorded as practices wholly accepted and due into the Saxon Law and the Roman Ceremonial. Speculum Saxon. bk. I, art. 4: "Christ approved in his Church the power of two ^C swords, namely, the spiritual and the secular, to defend his people; of which no one doubts that the Apostolic holds the spiritual, and the Roman Emperor the secular." Because of the representation of these, it was established that the Apostolic should ride upon a white horse, and that upon his mounting, the prince should hold the saddle, so that he does not fall. In this it is signified that those who might be disobedient to the Apostolic should be compelled to obedience by the prince, and conversely, when necessity demands this, provided an army is available. Ceremoniale Romanum, bk. I, sect. 5, where it speaks of the procession of the Pontiff and the Caesar through the city: "When he has reached the end of the steps, the Emperor, having handed the scepter and the orb to one of his own men, goes before the horse of the Pontiff, and in honor of the Savior Jesus Christ, whose place the Pontiff holds on earth, holds the stirrup until the Pontiff has mounted the horse, and then, having seized the bridle of the horse, leads the Pontiff’s horse for a few steps."

Nor are these obsequies read to have been rendered by Christian princes to the Supreme Pontiffs alone, but even to bishops and archbishops themselves. Indeed, our Cinnamus reports that Raynald, Prince of Antioch, having dealt very badly and contrary to the dignity of the priesthood toward the Patriarch of the same city, was later reconciled to him, and while the latter was riding a horse through the middle of the city [P. 474], he led him and accompanied him on foot, holding the strap of the saddle in his hand. According to Ralph de Diceto, in the year 1470, when Henry, King of the English, and Saint Thomas, Archbishop of Canterbury, had met at Fréteval to treat of peace, and had twice dismounted and twice mounted, the king twice held the stirrup for the archbishop. But Michael Palaeologus, too, later Emperor, according to Pachymeres (bk. I, ch. 26), when he had received the administration of the empire and perceived the Patriarch approaching with his chosen clergy: "He himself meets them from afar before all others, paying ^D the greatest honor to the patriarch and to all the holy body, walking on foot and holding the bridles of the priest's beast, until he establishes him proceeding within the palaces."

Thus having done this, emperors and other princes professed themselves clients and vassals of the Church and of the Vicars of Christ. For that holding the stirrup was once the peculiar duty of vassals, the Saxon Feudal Law teaches (ch. 32, § 2): "On the day that a vassal has held the stirrup for his lord in the mounting or dismounting of a horse, he is not bound on that day to stand before his lord for a feudal oath." And from this it is to be gathered why, when Emperor John Comnenus had entered Antioch, the lord Prince Raymond of Antioch and the lord Count of Tripoli performed the office of groom, as is found in William of Tyre (bk. XV, ch. 3), since a little before the same prince had manually exhibited his fealty to the Lord Emperor, as the same writer reports (bk. XV, last ch.). Therefore, it was the duty of the grooms to hold the stirrup when the lord was mounting the horse; but before the use of stirrups or footholds had prevailed, [they were to] lift and raise those about to mount the horse by hand, as Spartianus sufficiently indicates in the Life of Caracalla. Hence, grooms are called *anaboleis* by the old writer in Suda, a word which later writers among themselves ascribed to the *stratores*, as has been observed previously by learned men. The Latin-Greek Glossary calls them *scansores*: *scansor, katastrotēs*. For it was also their duty to saddle the horses, whence they were called *stratores*: Greco-Latin Glossary *strōtēs*, *strator*; and those who arrange the royal saddle according to Papias: "The attendants of the royal decorated horses, whom the order calls *stratores*," as says the author of the Life of St. Theophanes the Confessor (n. 9), who, although their rank was royal, yet writes that they were not of the inner [circle]: but the coverings of the saddle themselves are called *stratura* by Fredegarius Scholasticus (ch. 38), and *stratoria* in the Life of St. Benedict, abbot of Aniane (ch. 6, n. 28). Moreover, their duty was to care for the horses of the imperial stable and to inspect and test them when they were offered to the Emperor, as Ammianus testifies (bk. XXIX), and it is gathered from Law 7 of the Code concerning grooms: and for that very reason they were under the disposition of the tribune of the stable, as the same Ammianus writes, he is called the Count of the Stable. Finally, if lords or princes were riding, grooms always accompanied them on foot, lest they be in need of their help. The Roman Order concerning the Supreme Pontiff riding: "The grooms, however, walk on the right and left of the horse, both laymen, lest he stumble anywhere." The domestic of the grooms was over the grooms, concerning which dignity [see] Theophanes (p. 325), who was later called *protostrator*: Scylitzes in [the history of] Theophilus concerning Basil: "He who was the first of the grooms, they call him *protostrator*," Constantine Porphyrogenitus in the same [Life of] Basil (ch. 7): "Theophilus made him his *protostrator*." Thus to Paul the Deacon, the greatest of the imperial grooms. Who in Theophanes (p. 369) is called the royal *protostrator*. The care of the horses of the imperial stable devolved upon this office, as Cinnamus has it (bk. III): "To whom at that time fell the command of the royal horse-stables; the Romans call this duty *protostrator*." Zonaras (p. 152): "He set him over his own grooms; the common dialect knows how to name him *protostrator*." Hence John of Genoa interprets the stable of beasts of burden as *stratorium*, because grooms presided over the stables. Therefore, if at any time the Emperor was about to set out on a journey, [P. 475] taking the bridle of the horse led by the count of the horses, he led it to the fourth or fifth part of the palace, as is in Codinus, *De officiis*, ch. 5, n. 5, and in Nicetas, in *Alexius*, bk. I, n. 2; furthermore, in the absence of the Grand Domestic, the Emperor bore his sword.

^A

Du Cange’s notes: The author in the same place is Codinus, whose office is largely performed among us by the great squire, the *grand escuyer* of France, in whose charge is the care of the stable and the king's horses; for to him the royal sword is entrusted if by chance the Constable is absent, in whose charge it ought by right to be, as he is the one who presides over military affairs, just as the Grand Domestic does among the Greeks. See Ignatius the Deacon in the *Life of S. Nicephorus, Patriarch of CP.*, n. 61. But the office of the Protostrator was also military; for the same author, Codinus, in the same place, n. 17, says he was the *defensor* of those carrying out raids, that is, he was in charge of those who went out on incursions and defended and protected them. But he errs in thinking the name Protostrator is used *because he went in front of the whole army*. For he is called Protostrator because he was in charge of the military *stratores*; whence Nicetas, concerning Baldwin, equates the dignity of the Marshal among us, which he says Geoffrey Villehardouin was given, to the Protostratorial dignity among the Greeks; for they were called *stratores* in the armies who marched in front of the camp, to make the places more suitable for moving the army, and guarded the rear of the quarters in the emperor's or the general's camp, as Hyginus in the *Gromaticus* teaches in more than one place, and the ancient inscriptions in Gruter. The office of the Marshals was also the same, as is in Fleta, bk. II, c. 4, where it treats of the office of the Marshal: *When the army is awake, with the scouts he goes out daily with the banner for protection*: that is, as the defender of those on raids. Certainly, it is certain that the *stratores* carried out that duty in the military, which masters used to employ around the prefects of the praetorium, proconsuls, governors, or other magistrates, whose services they employed in carrying out or performing orders. Their number was so great that they formed *scholae*, which are discussed in *Codex, De officio praefecti praetorio Africae*, bk. I, and in the *Chronicle of Cassino*, bk. IV, and from other *stratores* or "climbers" (*scansores*), whatever James Gothofredus says regarding the only law of the *Codex Theodosianus de stratoribus*, who thinks that the military *stratores* and those who were in the office of the magistrates were so called because they spread out the road (*strata*) for the emperors, for magistrates, for masters, and for the military, or for those going out abroad. For when the *stratores* or "helpers in mounting" (*anaboleis*) lent their labor in tending to the masters' horses, in leading them in, and in lifting the masters onto the horses, and were perpetually present while they were riding, it later happened that those who were present in the same way for magistrates, whether civil or military, in order to perform their orders, were also called *stratores*. Whence there are not lacking those who think that they are the same as the *mandatores* (messengers), who would execute the orders of the offices and swiftly carry out their mandates. So Phocas, who is said by Adrevald (*De miraculis S. Benedicti*, bk. I, c. 10) and Aimoin (bk. IV, c. 3) and others to have been the *strator* of the patrician Priscus, is narrated by Theophanes to have held the office of *entolicharios*, that is, of a messenger. For they are called *mandatores* in the *Glossa Basilicorum* and in the *Lexicon of Cyril*: *Those who quickly carry mandates from the lords to the soldiers*, which are held in the exact same words in Leo in the *Tactics*, c. 4, § 16. *Glossary Graeco-Lat.*: *Entellomenos*, mandator. The mandates themselves, indeed, are called *entolika* in Liutprand in his *Legatio*; for so it must be read instead of *entola*, which Meursius did not notice; *entelma* is a word of the Italo-Latin-Greek style in an old Lombard charter in Ughellus in *Archiepiscopatus Beneventanus*, n. 44, vol. VIII of the *Italia sacra*; and in the *Register of Peter the Deacon of Cassino* in Angelus a Nuce, *entilmata* in Leo of Ostia, bk. I, c. 51. Finally, they held the same office as the *statores*, so called because they stood ready for orders, *standing soldiers* in the *Glossa Basilicorum*. Whence Cujacius confuses the *stratores* with the *statores*, which Salmasius reproves in his notes to Vopiscus’s *Gallienus*. The monk of Saint Gall, bk. II, c. 15, mentions another kind of *statores*; Otto of Freising, however, mentions military *stratores* in his *Gesta Friderici*, bk. II, c. 18: *Nor should one pass over the courage of a certain headstrong strator, who, having been affected by the weariness of a long siege, wishing to give others an example of invading the fortress, with sword and shield and a small axe, as is the custom for men of that kind, with which they are carried fastened to their saddles, attacks the rampart.* From him Gunther drew in book II of the *Ligurinus*: ^{B C D} *The strator was indeed from the common people, nor with a much-known name, he earned a modest wage in the camps.* And indeed so much of the common people that, when Frederick had decreed he should be honored with the military belt because of his glorious deeds, he said that he was a plebeian and wanted to remain in the same order. There is mention of military *stratores* in the *Synopsis Basilicorum*, bk. VI, eccles. 32, and in Leo in his *Tactics*, c. 14, § 84. Therefore, he who was in charge of the military *stratores* was called Protostrator, to us, Marshal. For it belongs to the Marshals to provide for the army a suitable place and quarters. Thus Ordericus Vitalis, bk. XI, p. 823, calls the *strator*, who is a Marshal to others: *But he received Robert of Montfort honorably, and because he had been the strator of the Norman army by hereditary right, he elevated him among the chief men*: by which word he implies the dignity of the hereditary Marshal of Normandy. Furthermore, *stratores* are listed among the offices or officials of our Franks, as they are commonly called in the *Lex Salica*, tit. 11, § 6. The Lombard kings also had their *stratores*, as Erchembertus in his *Historia Langobardorum*, c. 15, and Paul Warnefridus, bk. II, c. 9, 27, and bk. VI, c. 6, are authors. Likewise the English kings, as is in Simeon of Durham and Brompton, year 1052, but Salmasius and James Gothofredus have discussed the *stratores* at great length in the cited places. (83) "But you have had..." There was no complaint merely about the authority seized by the Supreme Pontiffs over the emperors of the West; for the German writers of that age, who favored their own Augusti, everywhere establish this: especially Gervase of Tilbury, Marshal of the Kingdom of Arles, in that work which he inscribed *Otia imperialia* and dedicated to the Emperor Otto IV. Thus he says in his Preface to the same Otto: *If we recall the deeds of Constantine, power is read to have been gathered into the Western parts only by Sylvester, the Oriental realm was made the head of the empire: and although by the vicar of Christ, Peter, the emperor and his successors had established the right of the king in the West, having yielded the diadem, yet the emperor did not wish the name of the empire or the empire itself to pass into Sylvester, which he kept intact for himself and his successors, with only the seat changed, not the dignity.* Whence it is read that Charlemagne first withdrew from the jurisdiction of the Greeks by the warning of Pope Gregory the Younger, as below in the chapter *on the empire*. Who, therefore, is greater in earthly matters, he who gives, or he who receives? Truly he who gives is the author of the honor that he gives, not he who receives. God is the author of the empire and the emperor is the author of the people’s triumph: the pontiff is the head of souls after Christ, the emperor is the lord of bodies after God; nay, indeed, through God, from whom the right of the king is instituted, etc. The same, in the second decision or part of that book: *In the year of our Lord 801, therefore, when among the Greeks the name of emperor was vacant and the dominion of ruling had ceased, Charlemagne, staying in Rome, accepted from Pope Leo and the whole Roman people the decree that Charlemagne should assume the name of emperor and Augustus, from the fact that the emperors had formerly had their seat in the Roman city.*

^A And you, who confess that the throne of Rome is the throne of the empire, from where has the rank of Pope been allotted to you? [P. 128] There is one to whom this seemed good, Constantine, the first Christian among emperors. How then do you gladly accept part of his—I refer to the throne and the preeminence of the see—but disdain the rest? Either love both, or desist from either. But he says to me, “It is permitted for emperors to be appointed.” Yes, insofar as laying on of hands and blessing are concerned, these truly are spiritual things. But it is not permitted for them to grant kingdoms, or to innovate in such matters. For if it were yours to transfer empires, why did you yourselves not move the one in Rome? But it was because another had acted that he who then held the Church of your jurisdiction was content, however unwilling, with what had been decreed. You, however, trip over your own inconsistencies and are unaware of how you do the absolute opposite. For those whom, not long before, you did not welcome when they—gratifying the emperor—began to implore you, because it was not even permitted, you ^B now, I know not how, count among emperors.

Notes of Du Cange

...the whole Roman people, with the intent, it seems, that you, most sacrosanct prince, might satisfy the fullness of the ancient imperial dignity, since, arising from imperial stock, you earned the stole of twofold election and papal confirmation, and by the worthy judgment of God were restored to the kingdom after having long wavered in the struggle for its acquisition, and having seen the enemy, without your counsel, laid low by another’s deceit, and [shall see] the monarchy of Constantinople vindicated for the recovery of its ancient excellence, with life as your companion, the empire which is owed to you by right of your proximity to the Augusti. Therefore I pray, most Christian emperor, that you should have no dispute with your own consecrator, but, like a prudent son of a good father, turn your sword against the nations that have not known you; and just as you obtained the ultimate name of emperor through the twofold grace of the most holy Pope Innocent III, so through your good innocence and his grace may you obtain the empire which is yours, and which was established by God under Constantine, and may your joy be fulfilled, when there shall be nothing that could be lacking to you for imperial glory—from the one side the Augustan name given to you, from the other the imperial symbols, which you lack, about to be offered to you, and with the increase of the donation growing on both sides. To this also point those things which the same Tilleberiensis has elsewhere: “Now Charlemagne, fighting for the republic, assumed the name of empire in the final days of his life, as one who was the defender of the Roman empire, indeed even the patron of the heavenly kingdom, so that for such great merits he might receive the name of Augustus among men and be proclaimed a most valiant soldier of Christ among the heavenly courtiers.” From then on, therefore, the power of the Greeks was terminated among the Latins, and Rome received the name, but not the dominion. Yet content with a small boundary, not of the whole world as is wont, but she can be called the shadow of the ancient head, which is so emptied of all power that that which had held the reins of the whole world now barely suffices to keep its own walls, ^C and is nowhere more hostile than to its own emperor, while it strives to have two masters, placed between the pontificate and the empire, excluding the one and disdaining the other. What more? This was the most effective argument for the Roman ruin, that it is changed from an empire into a pontificate. For as the kingdom of the Jews, established by God under kings, had the prophecy of its own fall as soon as it passed to the pontiffs, so Rome, when it stripped itself of the prince, was commanded to reject its own ashes: for while it does not have justice, the devastation and the urgency of the dying one are marked. Although these things are rather long, because this excellent writer, who is preserved in the library of De Thou, has not yet been edited, it seemed worth the effort to insert it in this place. ^D ...who were also called Augusti. At the very solemnity of the Nativity of Christ, Charlemagne received the name of Augustus and the empire from Pope Leo with his consecration. From this time, therefore, as the empire of the Greeks vanished in the West, the name of emperor returned to certain parts of the West, from which a certain confusion of the Roman empire was made, while the division diminished the power for those holding one name; and just as the empire of the Greeks depends on God alone, so the Roman see asserts that the empire depends on the West. Yet behold, it makes a new and unusual change, so that the Pope alone carries the imperial symbols and the Roman emperor holds the imperial name under the vulgar symbols of other kings. The Pope shows himself as the master of the city and the imperial see, and the emperor, under the name of dominion, is called a minister of the Pope and in temporal matters an executor of the apostles: this man is called the vicar of Christ and the successor of the apostles. Behold what an unhappy mutation of the city, which, under unity (as the Pope says) of dominion, is said to serve two, from one to the crown, to the other to the power. Truly in this it is reminded of the savagery of its ancient nobility, in that Rome names both master for both of its masters, while it itself rules over both according to the caprice of its own will, burdensome to both, and stiff-necked to both. It flees neither and values neither. Among the princes of Germany the election of the emperor is held, among the Pope the confirmation and consecration, and by a new distinction the emperor is named as lord, and is consecrated as not a lord: namely, he does not receive the imperial symbols, which the Pope preserves for himself alone, and at the altar, he is consecrated by the Pope alone on the small right side of the basilica of St. Peter, when on the contrary the Pope holds the emperor’s insignia and at the altar of St. Peter alone he receives the anointing. But the Constantinopolitan emperor, with the seat changed, but not the dignity, by his own right, and not by papal benefit, wears the imperial insignia and even freely acts as the giver of lavish largesse, and does not summon his beneficiary, the supreme pontiff, to his aid, possessing the fullness of his own dignity. Truly about this he can make a grievance against the beneficiary, that since he received an immense donation with special honor from the benefit of Constantine, he ought not to have usurped that which was due to the prince alone, so as to confer upon another the title of Augustus. And if I did not appear to be putting my mouth to the heavens, I would constantly say that either the Roman empire cannot be stripped by the largesse of any emperor, or if he possessed the power to change the empire into a pontificate, the beneficiary could not, to the prejudice of the donor, confer the name of Augustus, which he himself did not have. Furthermore, with the quiet cons...

conscience of one who has received what he has desired ^A, you judge the one from whom, through whom, and under whom you possess the throne, and you equate him, perhaps, not with a barbarian, but with a tyrant and a slave. But you say, "I am oppressed by tyranny; I am compelled by force." This pretext has no place with you; for yesterday and not long before, you pledged these things to the Emperor Manuel. Even if you yourself were to deny it, your letters cry out—those letters which carried the characters traced by your own pen ^B. But truly, the whole thing is mere buffoonery, and a mode of behavior that is ignoble and illiberal, and like a stage-actor’s buskin, you always adapt yourself to circumstances. But we have discussed these matters at greater length than befits the material of a chronicle; let the narrative return to the preceding events.

3. Stephen's Expedition against the Romans

Stephen, having made these preparations, moved against the Romans. Now when the Emperor arrived in Hungary, all the inhabitants flowed together to receive him. Among them, those distinguished in the priestly order, clad in woolen vestments and carrying the divine Gospels in their hands, together with the indiscriminate crowd, ^C most sweetly chanted a song composed by our writers, which ran as follows: "You who brought aid, O Lord, to the most meek David," and the rest. He, however, having passed those places, hastened to cross the Ister, and having skirted the island that lies there, he desired to proceed into the interior. Now, as the Roman forces were crossing at that place, it is said that one of the ships, heavily laden with cargo, arms, and as many men as possible, when it was not far from the shore, tilted to the other side so that the water began to flow into it. ^D There, the rest of the Roman army—both those who had embarked on the ships and were being carried on the river, and those who still stood on the bank—were, out of fear of danger or lethargy, unconcerned about the matter; and the ship was already almost ready to be swallowed up into the depths with the men themselves, had not the Emperor leaped into the water and waded forward a great distance on foot. Although the current was being carried down with great force and was creating a marshy area difficult to traverse at that spot, he supported the ship with his shoulder and, having checked the danger for a moment, afforded the others the opportunity to assist. They, seeing his alacrity, rushed to the aid of those in danger and completely freed them from the crisis; for which deed the Emperor gained a great reputation for humanity. Therefore, having crossed the Ister at a higher point, he arrived at a city named Pagatzium. That city is the metropolis of the territory of Sirmium. Here the high priest of that nation resides; from there, an innumerable multitude of the inhabitants went out to join his retinue. Here, then, he pitched his camp and settled; but after he received word that Stephen was already near, he began to prepare himself for war.

^A He summoned a certain Roman who understood the language of the Czechs and ordered him, after changing his garments, to slip into the enemy's camp and, upon coming into the sight of the king of the Czechs, to address him in these words: "Whither, pray, are you marching? What sort of journey are you undertaking with the troops you lead? Or do you not know that you are daring to lift your hands against a great emperor? To enter into battle with him, even when one has just causes, is hazardous; how much more so when one is in danger of being despised by these very Hungarians, who gave Bela a portion of their inheritance and then stole it back, treating their oaths like a game? But neither is a man who makes a covenant with a private individual held innocent by the law if, when it comes to his mind, he chooses to neglect the pacts. Or do the Hungarians, who have offended so great an emperor by violating treaties, expect to remain unpunished? By no means. Is the emperor's war not just? And the fortune of war always inclines toward justice. ^B But you, consider this as well: you come as a slave to war against your master—not a slave upon whom servitude has been imposed by force (for that would indeed have some explanation, since those who serve in an involuntary servitude naturally loathe their masters), but a voluntary slave, or as you are called, a 'liege'—unless, perhaps, those things you once covenanted at Byzantium when you set out for Asia with Conrad have escaped your memory. Since, therefore, the outcome of the matter depends upon your own choice, choose that which is advantageous to you and to all the Czechs alike; for repentance that comes out of season is wont to be of no service to the one who experiences it."

The man spoke these things, and Vladislav (for this was his name) replied thus: "We have not come here, my good sir, to wage war against the great emperor—may we never be so forgetful of the treaties we made with him—but to bring aid to this Stephen, who has suffered unjustly at the hands of his uncle. For he first stripped him of his paternal land and inheritance; then, when he had been restored by right, he assailed him again with war, and he now strives to regain by force the kingdom he had lost through poor governance. ^C It is for these reasons, then, that I come as a suppliant to the emperor, that he might rather protect and defend an orphaned child. If this younger Stephen has in any way sinned against your majesty—for I hear that he has occupied land belonging to Bela that in no way concerns him—he shall immediately, with us as arbiters, restore the regions and make amends for his transgression in every way."

Having said these things, he dismissed the man. He returned to the Roman camp and reported to the emperor the things he had heard; the emperor received them not ungraciously, although he did not place complete trust in them. For it occurred to him that perhaps these things had not been spoken by Vladislav of his own volition, but that some guile lay beneath them. Wherefore, he sent some of his own men to him again, ordering that the agreements be confirmed by oath, ^D and he, without delay, accomplished these things. Nor did he confirm only these things, but he also sanctioned with a second oath those things, as I said, which he had formerly covenanted. A little later, Stephen also sent envoys to the emperor, restored the region, and at the same time begged him not to allow his uncle Stephen ever again to infest Hungary with war. Upon these conditions being accepted,

the emperor, having put an end to the war, was returning towards Roman territory, and he advised Stephen to depart from Hungary, since he had learned by experience of the ill-will his own countrymen bore him. As he could not persuade the man, he said: "I, for my part, am departing now; for with Béla restored to his rightful position, there is no longer any reason for me to engage in anything but an unjust war. But you, know for certain that you will soon be betrayed by your enemies; and if you wish, I will show you even now how this shall come to pass. You have a nephew, Stephen, ^A who is so similar to you in face and features that, unless one looks at you very closely, it is not easy to tell one from the other. Command him, arrayed in your armor, to go forth with your army against the enemy, while you yourself remain in hiding; and you will immediately learn what the disposition of the Hungarians towards you really is." He, therefore, entered a small boat and secretly sailed along the banks of the Ister; meanwhile, his nephew, Stephen, along with the Hungarians about him, hastened to engage King Stephen in battle. But the two armies had not yet joined, when the Hungarians who were accompanying Stephen laid hands on him, and, as if he were the elder Stephen himself, brought him in the presence of the king. Thus, indeed, the error of the Hungarians ceased. ^B After the emperor learned of these things, he again offered advice to Stephen: "Now at last, man, enough is enough. For just as it is dangerous to entangle oneself in unnecessary matters, so it is foolish to attempt them at an unseasonable time. Behold, you have now learned twice over how much trouble each of these attempts has caused you; do not, my good sir, risk a third, for perhaps the opportunity to amend your fault will not be granted." The emperor spoke such words, but he replied, "But now, all the more, will the Hungarians fear me, because they have been caught having acted mistakenly." Thus, the soul, once captured by passions, twists and forces all reason to serve them. ^C The emperor, therefore, abandoning all hope of persuading the man, left Nicephorus Chaluphes there with an army, that he might support Stephen and settle affairs with him as the situation required. He himself meanwhile returned to the confines of Roman territory. Not long after, when the king of the Hungarians learned that Stephen was still lingering in Hungary, having gathered greater forces, he decided to settle the entire matter by war. Meanwhile, as many were defecting from Stephen's army to the king on every side, his strength was being diminished; upon perceiving this, Chaluphes offered him the counsel to leave Hungary and move to the land of Sirmium. For he said that in that region, which was subject to the emperor, he could act as he pleased. But when he ^D stubbornly refused, he devised the following: feigning that letters from the emperor had been brought to him, he set off toward the Ister, so that those who had brought them and were there...

Two notes of Du Cange

^A

The king kept moving along the Danube, intending to meet those bringing these things to him, fearing the presence of the Huns nearby. Once he arrived there, he crossed over and came to Sirmium. A little while later, Stephen, having come near to being captured by the enemy, arrived to him as a fugitive. Having heard these things, the ^B emperor sent a military force worthy of note to Sirmium, both to guard the region for him (for he harbored great suspicion against the Huns lest they might again revolt) and to ensure the safety of his own interests and the salvation of Stephen. Commanding this army was Michael, surnamed Gabras [(89)], who had himself married the emperor's niece and had been honored with the title of *sebastos* along with Chaluphes.

The emperor also happened to take the hand of the martyr Procopius [(90)], which he had accidentally removed from Sirmium, and brought it to the church in Naissus; he restored this to the remainder of the body from which it had been separated long ago for the following reason. The nation of the Huns had often overrun the land of the Romans, and shortly before the reign of Alexius Comnenus, they captured Sirmium, and after enslaving many of the Istrian cities, reached as far as Naissus. There, having encountered the holy reliquary of this martyr, they decided to carry off the whole body—conceived as inhuman, I think—but they departed having separated only the hand. Once they were back in Sirmium, they deposited it in the church of the martyr Demetrius [(91)], which had been built in earlier times by the man who governed the administrative district of Illyricum. ^C When the emperor found it there, he took it and brought it and restored it to the remainder of the body, as has been said.

And these were the things accomplished by the emperor against the Huns in that year. He then dispatched Alexius, son of the Domestic, who, as I have often said, held the office of protonotary, to the Cilician land, equipped with significant preparation, having appointed him commander-in-chief of this war. For Nuradin, the satrap of Beroea, elated by his previous victories, was carried away by hopes of soon gaining the city of Antioch, and Torosus, who at that time ruled over the Armenians, had deceitfully seized many cities subject to the emperor, being hostile to Andronicus Eupherbenus, the emperor's kinsman and commander of Cilicia at that time. For he accused him of very many other crimes and especially laid upon him the blame for the murder of his brother. These were the things done there at that time. ^D However, Frederick...

the king of the Alemanni, saw his power growing and increasing greatly day by day. ^A For he took care of the security of his state in very many other ways, and indeed he also set his mind to the acquisition of wealth, a thing which he was not accustomed to do before. Therefore, he captured Milan, a famous city, and defeated the Ligurian or Lombard nation; then, advancing on his way, he moved into the inner parts of the West. And he who previously had not even been able to overcome his nearest neighbors in war, now held sway even over those furthest away. Already he had arrived to do battle at Rome itself. Whence it also became a matter of concern to the Emperor Manuel, how he might check his rush, so that his unexpectedly rapid success might not cause him to turn his arms against the Romans, upon which he had long since cast his greedy eyes. ^B Therefore, having sent men to the nations situated there and those lying within the Ionian gulf—some of the more obscure sort—secretly, he bade them remind them of the greed of Frederick and stirred them up to resistance. And he sent Nicephorus Chaluphes with money to the Venetian nation, to test the goodwill of that nation toward him and to manage these matters to the advantage of the Romans. But Frederick, having already taken possession of Rome, introduced many other innovations, and indeed he cast Alexander, who was the supreme pontiff at that time, from the throne and put Octavian in his place: hence, as I suppose, he thought he could adapt the dignity of the Roman emperor to himself; for it is said to belong to no one else but the king. Therefore, from the time when, through the negligence of the emperors in Byzantium, such a custom had died out, no one ^C no one established a pontiff at Rome, but he was created by a council of bishops and of the prelates of the Roman clergy. But Frederick, having long since been eager for imperial dignity, desired this for himself.

Of the notes of Du Cange

^D The Emperor of Constantinople, knowing the troubles and burdens which the aforementioned Frederick was threatening to inflict upon the venerable bishop Alexander against God and all justice, sent Jordan, the *sebastos* of his empire and son of Robert, prince of Capua, to the city of Rome for the relief and service of the same pontiff. And the same *sebastos*, coming, humbly bowed himself before the same pontiff, and having offered great and precious gifts at his feet, he diligently explained all things that he had held in his instructions. And among other things, one was contained, etc. For he asserted that the same emperor wished to unite his church, etc. Nevertheless, he asked that, because a just occasion and a suitable and acceptable time had offered itself, the Roman crown of the empire might be restored by the Apostolic See, since it did not belong to Frederick the Alemannian, but to his own right, he asserted. To accomplish which work he firmly promised that he would distribute such wealth of gold and silver and such power of brave men, that it could without doubt suffice not only to bring Rome, but also the whole of Italy, into the service of the church and to restore the crown of the church to him. Which word, although it seemed too difficult and to have need of much deliberation, nevertheless it seemed useful that, after having held counsel for a little while with his brothers, he should send the Bishop of Ostia and the cardinal of the Holy Saints John and Paul from his side with the aforementioned *sebastos* to the presence of the same emperor to treat of that cause. Manuel also attempted this later, in the year 1170, as is gathered from the Acts of the same pontiff in Baronius. See below, p. sq.

^A nor did he establish any high priest in Rome, but these things were managed by episcopal synods and by the pontifical authority in Rome. But Frederick, long desiring the imperial power for himself, showed that he possessed this, having snatched away its greatest mark. And having suborned many of the bishops, he confirmed the innovations under the pretext of a synod. This action appeared blameworthy to the others, yet no one was able to oppose Frederick, who had reached the height of power, unless the emperor, who stood in his way even in this with money and other machinations, installing Alexander on the throne once again. But these things happened later. Now Chaluphes, when he had arrived at Epidamnus, having left behind there the greater part of the money as had been commanded, arrived by ship at the Venetians, having obtained a favorable wind. Coming into conversation with the duke ^B of the region and other illustrious men among that people, he spoke as follows: "Let no one among you, men, suspect that I have been sent here by the emperor out of fear that your goodwill toward the Roman empire might waver, to shore up and strengthen your unsteady spirits. For I do not think that you yourselves would prove so degenerate and unworthy of your race, nor that the emperor would depart from the opinion he long since conceived of you. Since, however, he has the greatest confidence in your goodwill among all the peoples who are under his power, for this reason he determined to indicate and show his concern to you first. For it is shameful to use ^C citizens while they are fortunate, but to neglect their safety when they are unfortunate. Therefore, that no violence might be inflicted on you by Frederick—as also happens to others who do not enjoy the emperor's friendship—a man who is possessed by a desire for power and who exerts himself with no effort to tear down things established by time and the long usage of centuries, he has sent me to you, as you see, to provide everything that you might request from him. For you know how you once, with the prince’s help, emerged victorious in the battle joined against this Frederick at Mediolanum: hence he holds the emperor in hatred, and relying on foolish sloth, he wishes to be called emperor of the Romans, though he has no right to it; not knowing that extraordinary successes of fortune, since they are not supported by any solidity, ^D are wont to dissolve and vanish quickly. And these are the reasons for which I have come to you; but it will be for you to complete the things which you recently agreed upon with the emperor through envoys. For you were saying that the neighboring cities of the Ligurians ought to be joined to us, if only someone from Byzantium should arrive to take up the cause with you: which has indeed come to pass, as you see." Nicephorus said these things. The Venetians, having received his speech, promised that they would carry out everything. Furthermore, Cremona and Padua, and many other most celebrated cities in Liguria, embraced the party of the prince. These things were done by the emperor in Italy, not openly, however; for he still desired to conceal the hatred he had conceived against Frederick.

10. But the chief of the Paeones had again snatched Sirmium from the Romans and was threatening Zeugminum. When the prince heard this, he was quite...

^A moved to anger, and sent a letter to him of the following tenor: "You are not acting justly, most noble sir, by violating the oaths which you recently swore to my Majesty concerning Sirmium and other places. Know therefore (for the evidence of your deeds precludes me from speaking at length) that unless you withdraw as soon as possible from those things which are not under your jurisdiction, you will not achieve as much by seizing Sirmium as you will immediately suffer, when the Romans in turn lay waste to your lands with iron and incursions. Does it escape your memory how many thousands of losses Hungary once suffered at first, when your father offended the Roman Empire? For he repented of those transgressions, and it was salutary for him. But see to it that ^B for you repentance does not come too late, or prove useless and fruitless. For the sword of justice, although it has long been sharpened, is wont at times to become blunt in this one way—by timely repentance. Apart from this, I do not know if anyone has ever escaped its edge." Such was the substance of the prince's letter; but since Stephanus disregarded these things and persisted in his former designs, the Emperor gave his full attention to waging war against him, and decided to restore to the throne Stephanus’s uncle, whom he had previously been unwilling to support. Manuel, who was of the Comnenian line, ^C set out for the tribe of the Tauroscythians to remind their prince of the agreements which he had already sworn to the Emperor, and also to reproach him for his friendship toward Hieroslaus, the ruler of Galitza. For Hieroslaus had not only acted against the Romans in many other ways contrary to the treaties, but had also received with kindness Andronicus, of whom I have already spoken at length, after he had fled from the palace prison where (I believe) he had been confined for nine years. I shall now explain how Andronicus escaped.

11. He had already escaped from the prison once before in a marvelous way, yet, as I believe, because he still had to pay the penalty for his misdeeds, he fell again without effort into the hands of his pursuers. For ^D when, as they say, he had reached the Sangarius river, driven by the necessity of the cold, he entered a certain rustic hut and was immediately recognized by the inhabitants from his physical appearance. For his nature was naturally quite restless, and he had a gaze that was keen and shifting, as his inner movements were clearly visible on the outside. The rustics who stood around him brought him back in chains to Byzantium, though he struggled much and insisted that he was not Andronicus, and once again he was confined to his irons and his cell. But finally, having obtained the keys impressed in wax, he sent them to his wife and son, who...

having made use of other accomplices in this matter, had them fashioned of iron and sent them back to him. When ^A he had received these, just after sunset—the time which had been fixed for carrying out this plan—he watched for the absence of the guards and escaped from the prison. There is a certain courtyard adjoining the wall in which he was being held, where, because the ground is rarely trodden, some plants had grown spontaneously to a great length. Having run out there, he hid his body like a hare, having drawn himself into a small space. When night had already fallen and it was time for those who were to keep night watch over him to take up their posts, the person who had been entrusted by the Emperor with the guardianship of his person came to station his guards and to shake the locks—a thing he was accustomed to do every day before he retired to sleep—to see if any mischief had been plotted. But when he perceived that everything was perfectly secure and free of guile, he departed to go to sleep. For Andronicus, fearing that if Cladon—for this was the name given to the man—happened to find the gate open, he might quickly discover his situation, had locked it again and secured it before he left; and because it was already late in the night, he went to the furthest part of the courtyard, where a wall supports its end. This wall was not very high, yet it was not so far from the sea that the south winds, being agitated, did not often strike it with their waves and spray. From there he attached a small rope and, taking hold of it, lowered himself to the shore. There fortune, ^B which had first received him with a grim face, began for a short time to smile, appearing to be lenient and, as it were, playing with him quite openly. For one of the guards of the palace, who by custom were always stationed in turn on the towers, calling out to one another a certain fixed word and thus keeping their watch, saw him; and approaching, he asked who he was. The prisoner said that he was one of those in the palace who were being held on account of monetary debts by the Papias ^C (96), and, "If you will let me go," he said, "this shall be a favor from me to you." And at the same time, as he spoke, he drew out and showed him the phylactery he was wearing suspended from his chest. And the man (for he was one of the rustic sort, and one who was perpetually struggling with poverty), as soon as the gold caught his eye, accepted it and allowed Andronicus to depart. Meanwhile, a small boat that was not far away approached to take him on board, and having boarded it, he was carried home. ^D There...

Du Cange’s Notes

^A having cast off the fetters which bound his feet, he re-entered the ship and, carried by it outside the walls, crossed over. Having found horses there prepared for this very purpose, he mounted and went off; in this way, Andronicus escaped from prison and reached the Tauroscythians. But now let the narrative return to the matters which we mentioned above.

^B 12. For the sake of these things which we have mentioned, Manuel came to Primislaus so that he might gather auxiliary forces there for the Romans. He was also sent to Rosislaus, who himself ruled over the Tauroscythian land, to discuss an alliance of arms with him. And the matter succeeded for him according to his desire. For [the Tauroscythians], rejoicing exceedingly that the emperor had deigned to treat with them through such an illustrious envoy, promised to do everything the prince wished. Yet the emperor did not for this reason disregard Hieroslaus; rather, he incited him against Stephen by means of other schemes, sending him letters of this sort: "We shall not imitate your ingratitude, which you displayed toward us without any necessity compelling you to do so, while neglecting the promises and the agreements which you had recently sworn. But we hold up for you to see the injury of the one who is preparing to inflict the ultimate insult upon us. Know, therefore, that in giving your daughter as a wife to the King of the Paeonians, you are joining her to a man who is malicious and of a very unstable mind. For he has never had any regard for justice or truth. As for a man who reveres neither nature nor law and, being borne entirely by his own will, is believed to be capable of committing any act, I think it is easy. Therefore, Stephen will neither live with your daughter as a husband, nor will he perform any other act in accordance with the law regarding her. But if he does live with her, he will treat her as he would a common woman brought from the street. For ^C if he has offended our majesty so greatly and has not blushed to consider the oaths he recently swore as a mere game, consider what inhumanity he is not capable of committing against you." Having heard these words with a certain barbarian simplicity, Primislaus was immediately captivated and, having turned against his son-in-law as an enemy, professed that he would assist the Romans in every way as they brought war against him. There is, indeed, in the Tauroscythian region a city named ^D Kiovia (98), which excels all the other cities situated there and happens to be the metropolis of that entire nation. For a bishop sent from Byzantium is usually appointed over it, and it rejoices in all the other things which contribute to a more excellent prerogative. Therefore, of this region the prince...

Du Cange’s Notes

^A and it is his to oversee. The one governing this land, having pledged to make war on Stephen, confirmed his resolutions with oaths. While these things were occurring, Frederick, King of the Alamanni, having learned that the Emperor was vigorously opposing the Occidentals, settled his differences and made a truce with the Romans, and himself agreed with the Emperor to carry out the war against Stephen. ^B Nor was Henry, who as I have often mentioned had married Theodora, the emperor's niece through his brother, to be absent from this battle; but an innumerable army of Scythians and of those Serbians under Roman subjection, and the Sultan, in accordance with the terms of the pacts, was to send auxiliary forces; and other valid forces were being gathered from all sides. At the same time Vladislav, one of the princes of the Tauroscythians, voluntarily came to the Romans with his children and wife and all his forces. A region near the Ister was granted to him, which the Emperor had previously given to the son of Basilica Georgius, who surpassed the other Tauroscythian phylarchs, when he crossed over to him. At that time the Venetians also promised to send to the Romans, as aid for maritime operations, a fleet of one hundred triremes, having renewed their former treaties. But they also gave assurances that they would be enemies to Frederick, King of the Alamanni, and to all other nations of the West, as long as life survived, should they bring war against the Romans.

13. And these things concerning the West were thus proceeding. ^C But Baldwin, king of Palestine, who had married the emperor's niece, departed from human life. Since he had left no children, the governance of the region passed to his brother. When he had taken this up, he sent legates to the Emperor, both to request an alliance with the Romans for himself, and to explore his mind regarding Antioch. For the people of Antioch, being treacherous by nature, upon meeting Baldwin in Palestine, had voluntarily handed over the principality of their city and themselves to his guardianship. But he, not ignorant that this city was subject to the Emperor, thought it necessary first, as has been said, to inquire of his will. The Emperor answered him with words to this effect: "As to what you ask regarding an alliance, since it is your intent to secure our goodwill, this shall shortly be ratified. ^D But as for the city of Antioch, which has long been tributary to the Romans and is now subject to our authority, neither you, as long as we live, nor any other person can take over its principality. The people of Antioch, however, paying the penalty to our majesty for their treachery towards the Romans, shall then first perceive whom they have dared to offend." Such was the tenor of the prince's letter.

^A But when he saw that there was nothing more to be hoped for from Antioch, he persisted in requesting affinity with the Emperor; and having received one of the protosebastos’s daughters in marriage, he made the same pact as his brother Baldwin had before. The Emperor, not yet having made sufficient preparations for the present war, and fearing for the city of Zeugma, ^B which Stephen was pressing with a very tight siege, sent some suitable forces to its aid before he engaged in the war for the survival of the state, under the command of Michael Gabras and Joseph Bryennius. Under them served others among the more illustrious Romans, as well as John surnamed Angelus, a man most skilled in warfare, and John Ises, Persian by birth, but reared and educated among the Romans. Wishing to bring the greatest possible aid to the city, he ordered many ships ^C laden with soldiers and other necessary supplies to go up the Ister and provide provisions to the besieged, until he himself should descend into Hungary with his entire army. The Hungarians, however, having spent a long time around the city walls and having attempted them many times in vain, decided to undertake a venture beyond their strength. For the Roman fleet, having been brought to the other side of the river Ister, was providing great advantages to the Romans who were in the city, both by taking in those who had received wounds during the fighting and substituting others who were whole in body in their place. Therefore, having themselves collected ships before the forces of Gabras and Bryennius had arrived in Hungary, they were carried through the river against the Roman ships, ^D as if to sink them and gain victory in battle without much effort, even if they were proved inferior in this attempt. For their own ships, being very poorly crafted and extending to an immoderate width, were surpassed in speed by those of the Romans. And they had already been launched into the river, when the Romans, having arranged their ships in a battle line, received them and harassed them with frequent missile attacks. Fatigued by these, they held back their ships. A part of them reached the other shore and escaped the danger, but one, full of military leaders, fell into the hands of the Romans and was consumed by fire made by artifice. The Hungarians, therefore, since this attempt of theirs also failed, resorted to other means. For they bribed with money some of their own people who were serving under Stephen, and persuaded them to kill the man by administering poison. Thus, the city was captured, and the whole of Sirmium came under the jurisdiction of the Hungarians. But as for those who stood for Stephen in the city, Romans and Hungarians alike, they remained safe and unharmed, inasmuch as they had surrendered the city under these conditions. The Hungarians, mocking the corpse of Stephen, first did not follow it with any sacred honors, nor with the other offices due to the dead, but left it exposed and cast forth unburied before the city gates, until, moved by the affections of nature themselves, they...

brought it to the shrine of Stephen the Protomartyr, and there committed it to the earth. ^A

14. Having heard these things, the Emperor, although he was at that time greatly afflicted by a severe illness of the Empress, was himself moved by a certain divinely-appointed spirit, as was his wont, and threw himself entirely into the war. Arriving, therefore, at Sardica, the metropolis of the Illyrians, he assembled his forces there. When the month of June had passed, he broke camp and came to the Ister. As he was about to cross, he devised the following plan: he placed as many as were outstanding in the army for their armor and strength opposite the Hungarian town of Chramum, giving the impression that he was about to cross there immediately. Consequently, when the Hungarian forces saw the Huns standing on the opposite shore, he moved on to Belegrada, and at dawn departed from there. Thus it happened that the enemy’s forces were divided and distracted, while each tried to resist both parts. ^B Nevertheless, no small fear seized the spirits of the Romans regarding the crossing. As soon as the Emperor noticed this, he himself, ahead of the others—as he had often dared to do before—boarded a small boat and crossed to the opposite bank; and then the rest of the Roman army, respecting the Emperor’s boldness, embarked on the ships. When the Hungarians saw that the Emperor had crossed, they immediately broke their ranks and retreated. During that time, it happened that as the Emperor was landing on the enemy’s soil and leapt further than was fitting (for the mud hindered the ship from being brought closer to the shore), he severely bruised one of his feet, and it began to trouble him greatly. Yet for this reason he did not retreat from his former ardor; but while he occupied himself with diverting the course of the river, and spent the whole day at this task, the injured part of his foot began to swell. ^C Many of the Barbarians who were guarding Zeugmen, running out past the walls, prepared to oppose the Romans. But as soon as they saw the Emperor, and while they tried to outdo one another, they rushed into the city with huge tumult and trepidation, and did not dare to go out again. After these things, the Romans, having prepared all that was necessary for the assault, undertook the affair on the third day. The Barbarians, defending themselves from the towers and filling the air with certain indistinct shouts and clamors, kept throwing projectiles and were in turn assailed by them. And in this type of struggle the current day and the following one were consumed, with no success for the Romans, just as for the Hungarians. ^D Then, too, it occurs to me to marvel at other things that happened during that siege, but especially at the Emperor’s boldness, which, had I not been present at that time and had not been an eyewitness of what was done there, I would scarcely, if at all, have believed if others had related it. For the Romans, having built a wooden tower, intended to cross into the city, so that by hand they might stand against the Barbarians on the ramparts. And he first of all the others desired to ascend, saying: “This, O men of Rome, you shall grant me as a greater favor than the others...

if you do not prohibit me from ascending.” However, he did not carry out his desire; for the leading generals stood around him and resisted him most strongly. He then rode around the walls of the city and, surveying where it appeared to be most vulnerable, ordered the ditches surrounding the city, which were sufficiently deep and wide, to be filled with bundles ^A of brushwood and faggots, because of a lack of stones, and thus for the siege engines to be brought over. But this maneuver brought nothing of importance to the capture of the city. For the Hungarians, although they had suffered heavily at the hands of the Roman soldiers, raised even greater clamors than before and were sustained by the hope that another army of Hungarians would soon come to their aid.

15. While matters were thus suspended, the Roman scouts arrived and announced the approach of a great army to the enemy; for they said they had seen dust rising very high into the air. But also a certain Hungarian of illustrious fortune, named Basakes, who had defected to the Romans, asserted that the king of the Paeonians was not far away, and that he was bringing an army greater in number, and indeed both Scythian and Tauroscythian forces together, and in addition to these, he said that the chieftain of the Czechs was also coming again with his full force. When the Emperor heard these things, he convened a council with the magnates, seeking for a way by which the present situation should be handled. ^B “Indeed, men of Rome,” he said, “the nature of affairs knows not only that one should be bold, but how one should not undertake works that are inconsistent with that boldness, which in my view one must attend to, especially if one is even slightly prudent. Do not, therefore, because this nation, through some unexpected change of fortune from above, has prospered and come to bear down terribly upon the Roman Empire, think it sufficient for us if we merely wage war upon their soil. But to each season must be accorded what is appropriate, and to the present situation must be returned the necessary action. ^C For I do not think that the same things are suitable for those who are prospering and those who are meeting with misfortune; and thus for the Roman authority, even if it has not yet attained its ancient prosperity, it will, (with God’s help, one might say), by appearing under our leadership as protectors, surely turn out to be for the glory of the king of the Huns being driven away, with a great army, as they say, of his own people coming, and a greater one still of gathered allied forces. How, therefore, both may be preserved in this way, and how the glory, which has already begun to turn for the better, may be held, and the power which would otherwise completely depart from it, we must deliberate as best we can.” The Emperor spoke thus. As for the Romans in the council, to some it seemed best to move the camp from there to the Savus and to pitch ^D a rampart, so that from there they might be able to oppose the enemies with safety; others did not like this at all, but suggested that the siege be abandoned and that they should withstand the impending enemy with all their forces. But the Emperor did not approve of either plan; for he condemned the one as cowardice, and the other as imprudence directly. He was at a loss:

^A for he said that if we were to abandon the siege, the Hungarians who were garrisoning the city would be able to gather greater forces than they then had and would be able to procure supplies more abundantly. He decided, therefore, that the non-combatant part of the army and the cooks and camp-followers should be armed, and that they should remain there around the city under some commanders of no great note, while the rest of the army should march out with him to fight the remaining Hungarians. When this view prevailed, they prepared to move out the next day; but because no certain news had yet been reported to them, they armed themselves early and made a third assault upon the city.

The battle, therefore, was joined again; and the Hungarians who were on the parapets defended themselves against the Roman army with stones, missiles, and whatever else came to hand, while the Romans, more vigorously than before, undermined the foundations and, having brought up stone-throwing machines, smashed the battlements of the walls. Frequent exhortations and calls to action were heard from both sides, and there was shouting and screaming, and a confused clamor arose. As soon, therefore, as the Hungarians saw that the foundations were being shaken by the Romans, they set about the following. There was a stone inside the walls of enormous size; this they placed upon beams, and having tied ropes to it, they hauled it up to the wooden tower which they had constructed rising above the walls, so that they might roll it down from there upon the Romans. But no sooner was the stone in contact with the tower than the structure, unable to bear the weight (for it was of enormous mass), suddenly collapsed and fell to the ground with many of the Hungarians, and not one of them escaped the danger. ^B A clamor then arose again, and the battle raged even more fiercely. It is said that when the Emperor saw a certain Roman about to be struck with a lethal blow by the enemy and about to perish without a doubt, he rushed over, extended his shield, and saved the man from the hurled weapons.

16. The Hungarians, however, when they realized that matters had reached a very critical pass for them, sent envoys to ask the Emperor that, if they surrendered the city, they might be allowed to depart safe and sound. But he replied that he would not do this until Gregory and the other Zupans among them came having bound ropes around their necks, with bare feet and uncovered heads. When they returned with this answer, the Romans attacked the city even more fiercely and took it by force. Once it was captured, Gregory and the other Hungarian commanders, in the miserable state we have described and not without wailing, approached the Emperor with ignominy. ^C For some time he did not even deign to look at them; but eventually, after Bela had interceded much on their behalf, he spared them from slaughter and immediately ordered them to be thrown into prison. The Romans, however, entered the city with great fervor and slaughtered the people there like lambs. Hence tears rise in me when I contemplate human life, and into what evils this wretched race of men voluntarily casts itself. Treasures were carried off, along with garments and silver vessels, and all their goods were plundered. ^D Moreover, there was found a miserable little woman, whose body, upon which she was sitting, had been pierced through by a weapon. I tell how this happened to her. She, even before the city was captured, was sitting...

^A atop the walls, scattering ashes, and lifting her garments with no sense of shame, she was displaying her buttocks to the Roman army with her face turned away, while chanting some endless, babbling incantation, thinking that by some demonic witchcraft she could bind the Romans. But one of the soldiers cast a missile at her and hit the miserable woman exactly where nature has placed the passage for the discharge of excrement.

Also, a certain wretched Roman prisoner was found, who had been locked away in a crooked and lightless room for the following reason: The Huns, having already captured him, were compelling him to shoot at the Romans from the perimeter, as he was well-skilled in archery. But he, while not shooting with intention, was nonetheless discharging his weapons frequently, but he ensured that they would all miss. The Huns, perceiving this, flogged the man across the back many times and kept him locked away securely.

Thus, then, was Zeugme captured once again. At that time, many others performed deeds worthy of report and courage, and not least among them was Andronicus Ducas. For when he saw the Romans ^B climbing the walls by means of a ladder, he approached Andronicus, the emperor’s cousin—under whom he happened to be serving, having arrived from the Tauroscythians and having obtained the emperor’s favor—and requested that he be given the opportunity to make the ascent himself; upon receiving permission, he proceeded to do so with great zeal. When some of the Latins following behind tried to push past him, he resisted them greatly and would not relinquish his share of the glory in any way. While this was happening, the ladder suddenly fell to the ground and shattered. But Andronicus took up his accustomed boldness once again; and as soon as another ladder was raised and he saw some others ascending it, he ran and jumped onto it himself. Matters proceeded in this way.

Now, King Stephen, relying on the security of the city—for ^C regarding [the other matters, and a channel led from the Ister [Danube] into it to water it, which, at first indeed, was set openly and under the sky, but later, as Emperor Stephen was bringing war to bear upon it, it was... ^D

[Note: The remaining text on this page is composed of Du Cangii's notes, which are part of the original Migne edition apparatus and skipped per special instructions.]

it, it was not easy to persuade himself that it could be captured so readily by the Romans. The prince therefore departed and built another fortress, which he allowed a great number of Hungarians, whom he had brought from Sirmium, to inhabit. They are commonly called by them Chalisii, and they are, as was mentioned above, ^B of a different religion, holding the same opinions as the Persians. Then, indeed, having learned precisely what had happened to the city of Zeugma, Stephen sent ambassadors to the emperor, men conspicuous for their rank, among whom was the one who held the office of bishop there, promising that he would return Sirmium and also the whole of Dalmatia to the Romans. When they came into the emperor’s sight, they set forth the instructions which had been given to them and also besought the emperor to calm his anger at last. ^C He replied at first, saying, "Many things would indeed be worthy, envoys, if anyone were to think to give back those things which have already been taken away. We hold Sirmium, we have taken Zeugma, we already control the Dalmatians, and we have become entirely lords of all those things which you now wish to concede as if they were yours. Is there, therefore, another Sirmium among you? Is there somewhere another Zeugma and another Dalmatia, which you have come to give us now? If there is, show it, and we shall receive those things with open hands immediately, knowing that, as far as you are concerned, we shall hold them safely (for you have no care to observe any law), but yet we shall hold them with our own strength, God helping us, just as we have taken these. But if these things are now in our possession, and nothing is left for you of the things you say you will give, on what terms will the agreement be? Or what will be the thing that reconciles us?" ^D With these words he first addressed the ambassadors; then, changing his tone, he said, "But so that you may know how willingly we wish to make a pact with you, since you are Christians, come, let the oaths be made." The emperor said these things; they, having settled all the conditions, departed, and the emperor afterward came to Byzantium.

17. Now also John Doukas [...] Dalmatia [index: entries preserved]

having secured ^A that province for the empire, entrusted the administration of it to Nicephorus Chaluphes, just as had been commanded him by the prince. For he had been sent thither with troops so that he might bring it under his power, whether by force or by conditions, because the Hungarians were assigning this province of Bela as a portion of their inheritance. He, therefore, having crossed the borders of the Serbians, after the entire army had been brought into Dalmatia, in a short time subjected most of it to the dominion of the emperor. For then Tragurium and Sebenicus, and in addition to these Spalathus and the people of the Catzicii ^B, and the very celebrated city of Dioclea, which the emperor Diocletian founded, and Scardona, and Ostrubitza, and Salona, and all the other cities which are situated in Dalmatia—fifty-seven in number altogether—yielded to the jurisdiction of the Romans. These things were happily done in Dalmatia. The emperor, meanwhile, as we have said, returning to Byzantium, conducted a triumph from the acropolis as far as the great temple of St. Sophia; where, after giving thanks to God and endowing the priests with gold which the Romans had gathered from the tributes of Sirmium, he yielded himself to quiet in the palace. But I had almost forgotten that, in that very triumph, a chariot of solid gold had been fashioned, in which the emperor was to ride. He did not mount it, however, both because he feared he might be accused of arrogance and pride, and because the horses attached to the chariot, being then for the first time broken in and pressed by the yoke, had jolted and tossed it so much that it was not far from being completely overturned. Nor did a long time pass before he was informed that the Serbians and the Pannonians ^C were again plotting new schemes, and he decided to forestall their attempts. But as soon as they perceived that he was approaching, they abandoned their design and kept their agreements.

BOOK VI

The emperor, however, having received Andronicus ^D who was returning from the Tauroscythians, as we have mentioned, treated him with singular benevolence and, having gifted him with a vast weight of gold, sent him into Cilicia to settle matters there; and so that more ample expenses might be available to him, he furthermore assigned the taxes of Cyprus to him. But he did not remain long in those parts; at first, indeed, [he...]

betrothed to himself Philippa, the sister of the Empress, though our law ^A by no means allowed it; then, having abandoned her for no reason, he crossed over into Palestine, carrying with him a vast sum of the Emperor’s money, which he had collected from the taxes of Cilicia itself and of the land of the Cypriots. There, having chanced upon the daughter of the Sebastokrator Isaac, who, as has been said, had been married to King Baldwin and, upon her husband’s death and the throne passing to his brother, was living as a widow in the city of Acre, he visited her frequently as a kinswoman and held certain private conversations with the woman. Proceeding further, he fell passionately in love with her with a monstrous and unholy desire, ^B until, having approached her, he took her from there and went with her into the land of the Saracens, from whom he later even sired children. Then, having wandered through many foreign lands, he later entered the eastern region of the Iberians. Not much later, he returned again to the Persians with the woman; from there, making frequent forays into the territories of the Romans and enslaving many people, this wicked man provided the Persians with the spoils of war, for which deeds he has been subjected to anathema by the Church.

2. At this same time, a certain question arose in Byzantium regarding the glory of Christ, from the following cause. There was a certain Demetrius, by ^C birth a Roman but originating from the Asian village of Lampe, who, although he had participated little, I think, in secular education and external learning, was assiduously devoted to divine precepts and was always incessantly pursuing some endless prattling about these things. He, having been sent frequently to the West and the Italian tribes as an envoy and having returned from there full of foolish arrogance, poured forth then both other portentous things and, moreover, did not cease to pry curiously into the nature of God—a matter permitted to no one other than teachers and those who shine prominently in the list of priests, and indeed even emperors themselves, perhaps on account of the excellence of their dignity. When he was returning from the borders of the Alemanni, he openly ^D contended that those nations were wandering from the true opinion, and being admitted at some time into a discussion with the Emperor, he blurted out the same things. When the Emperor asked what these things were, seizing his discourse, he immediately explained the whole matter, the sum of which is as follows: "They dare," he said, "to claim that He is lesser and equal to the God by whom He was begotten." But the Emperor, interjecting, said, "What then, do we not also say that the same One is both God and man?" To which he replied, "Yes." "Therefore," said the King, "we acknowledge the same One to be lesser in the respect that He is man, and equal in the respect that He is God." And this same thing...

we hear the Savior saying. For He says somewhere: ^A *My Father is greater than I* (John xiv, 28). And if this is not to be applied to the other nature (for that would be most absurd), it is necessary then to attach the statement to the other. For to say that it applies to neither is foolish. Thus, these men rightly think and speak, so far as it has been possible for our majesty to conjecture." But he, in return, said, "They are manifestly erring in the faith." And with these words, the conversation was broken off.

But a little later, Demetrius presented to the Emperor his opinion written out in a document. The Emperor said, "If it is possible for this document to be buried under the earth, hide it away immediately, lest it become a cause of destruction to many. For my own opinion regarding this inquiry is firmly fixed, nor could anyone easily move me from it." ^B But he, having become even more insolent, brought it forward privately and publicly in assemblies, and discussed it even with the bishops themselves, and those distinguished in the order of Levites, whom we call deacons. And when he found many who agreed with him, he breathed even more openly against those who held the opinion of the lesser, and he was carried away; the strife was raised to a great height, and there was no one anywhere then who would speak and inquire, of whatever party he happened to be.

When the Emperor learned of these things, he was hesitant to submit the matter to a public inquiry ^C and drew back, approaching the matter with caution. But seeing that almost everyone, it seemed to me, was leaning toward the opinion of Demetrius, he began to examine their arguments, taking them one by one, then two, and then more; and in this way, he brought many of them over to the other opinion, having nothing with which they could contradict him. For even if he was untaught in logical education, yet by the sharpness of his nature and the greatness of his mind, he surpassed absolutely all the men who have lived in our times. And there was no one who denied these things, not only of those who associated with the Emperor, (lest someone might suspect adulation there), but even of others entirely unknown to him. For if he wished ^D to interpret anything, he would recount it with singular accuracy and clarity, and even with a natural simplicity, from whatever part of philosophy the question might be drawn, whether from physical or theological, or absolutely any other. For he busied himself with both divine and secular topics, and he brought to bear a great deal of eloquence concerning both Ares and Hermes, although he had almost no experience in the works of war.

^A And so, by this dexterity of nature of which we spoke, he turned many who encountered him to his own opinion. For at first there was no one who was not of the party opposed to him, except for Luke, who was at that time presiding over the ecclesiastical affairs, who also himself did not dare to express his mind freely, together with no more than six deacons. But all the others, as they saw many of those who were of their own dance-group falling away because of their association with the Emperor, and thinking that he was drawing most of them to himself by the difference of his intellect and the agility of his tongue in their private meetings, they stood by themselves, and no one would any longer hold a meeting with the Emperor in private or in an out-of-the-way corner. "For even if not now," they said, "yet eventually and after death, he will certainly be subjected to anathema," at the same time holding meetings in their own ^B houses and in the houses of certain prominent men. Seeing none of this anymore, the Emperor called Euthymium, the bishop of Neae Patrae, privately, and began to inquire about these things that were said, and wanted to exercise this opinion with him. But he stood in silence with his lips closed. When the Emperor asked the reason for his silence, he took up the whole subject and explained it. Being moved not a little by these things, and stirred to anger, although this was not his usual custom (for whatever he did, he did with steadfastness and without quick-temperedness), he threatened that he would cast him down from a precipice if they were to blame him for these things, perverting the sound doctrine concerning God. "But in order that you may know," he said, changing his tone, "first what sort of people you are, and how you think regarding God, and ^C why you cast jeers at me (for I endure being insulted lest I traduce a correct opinion by an unseemly act—for the likenesses of good deeds to base ones are sufficient to confuse the understandings from which each proceeds), arm yourselves accordingly so that you may be able to engage with me alone, of all people, coming against you in opposition, not with the force of hands, but with the energy of arguments. For it is hateful to me to conquer when being defeated, and this action is a witness to it. For as you see, I am most clearly insulted, yet I abstain from retaliation; and yet you ought not to have circulated these things in corners. For who compelled you to this? Or who took away your freedom of speech? When did you ever come before my tribunal and I denied you the ability to speak? What profit would I gain if I were to defend an inept and tasteless opinion? Therefore, so that you may not be ashamed, ^D because I am not of a sufficiently learned tongue and mind—which has already happened to many of you (although I have never promised such things)—the only thing that remains is that I do not betray the opinion concerning the Divine. If anyone has the ability to re-instruct me in this opinion, speaking in agreement with the holy Scriptures, there is no shame for me at all to change to those views. Only let this one thing be kept: that God remain uninsulted. For regarding this I would thousands of times..." [index: entries preserved]

^A suffer reproach myself. ≫ Things proceeded in this manner, and after a few days, he brought forward several books, as many as seemed to clarify these matters, and proposed that the issue be decided by a common council. Many from the opposing side therefore flocked in from everywhere, so that all of them, along with the other patriarchs, embraced the same opinion and confessed that the emperor surpassed the others in the knowledge of the Holy Scriptures. ^B They were openly indignant at Lucas and assailed him with taunts, and even shouted that the man should be deposed from his throne—men utterly unskilled in affairs of state, seeing as they professed themselves to have been overcome long before by the opinion of Lucas and the emperor, and having been caught by them to be alienated from the true faith, they were nevertheless hurling new accusations against him. Whence it happened, I think, that the prince also condemned them, because they were being carried away against Lucas with an animus preoccupied by passion. «But let this,» he said, «for the time being be set aside; when the current business has reached its end, these things also shall be examined, and we shall impose upon them the fitting end.» ^C Repulsed by these words, they confirmed the decrees, which the emperor himself also signed. And afterwards they had the same inscribed on stone and placed in the church of Holy Sophia on the left side as one enters. And thus that controversy was ended. For my part, I have always felt and believed that in such matters it is forbidden for a human being to inquire too curiously into the nature of God. But what I saw in this prince that is worthy of admiration, I shall now set forth. ^D Once, as he was debating on this very subject (for that inquiry had been agitated for six whole years), someone from his domestic ministers came running and whispered into his ear that the Empress had suffered a miscarriage, and then that the offspring was male. But he, not even showing his emotion in his countenance, sat always with a mind intent upon the things then being debated. When that discussion then ended, falling down before the feet of the priests: «Just now,» he said, «holy fathers, word has come to me from the women's quarters that I have lost a son, my greatest hope, through a miscarriage. But I beseech your holiness, pour out prayers and entreaties to God, that if I have not labored in this sacred contest with a correct and sound faith, may no offspring of either sex ever reach mature age for me, nor may I ever obtain my heart’s desires; but if our opinion was pleasing to God, may He not draw out this my hope for a long time.» Having said these things, he raised himself from the ground. Then they, having bent their knees, called upon God with tears, and when those prayers were finished, they departed. Nor did much time pass when the Emperor begat a son 22, a carving of the Graces, a blossom of nature. But what kind of person he is, the narrative will describe in its proper place; the account of those contests, however, ended with these things. Lucas, since he had nothing that…

was of any serious weight leveled against him by his adversaries, remained in his see. John, the bishop of Corcyra, and a certain monk whom they called Irenicus, because they persisted in their former opinion, were subjected to anathema, and others after them were cast out from the ecclesiastical records. ^A

3. Meanwhile, the king of the Hungarians, having again broken the treaties, sent a certain Dionysius from among his courtiers, a man who had already become famous in many wars, with a great army to occupy Sirmium again. As soon as the Roman commanders perceived this, they deliberated on what should be done in such a state of affairs. But such a plan did not turn out to the advantage of the Romans, since the counselors were intent upon deceiving one another, especially both of the Michaels: Gabras, of course, who was the dux of that region, and Branas, who also himself was in command of the army—both of them most eager for war, but Branas prevailed the more. ^B Therefore, when it seemed good to them, since they had decided to attack Dionysius by night, they moved forward from the camp with all their forces. When they arrived at the place where it happened that Dionysius had pitched his camp, and found the camp entirely deserted of men, fear seized them. For if anything else does, a deserted and unknown place in the land of the enemy is very effective at disturbing the spirits of the soldiers. Nevertheless, they continued their march, constantly observing their tracks: and they might perhaps have accomplished something, if they had attacked the Hungarians sooner. But then, as it was already clearly daylight, the Hungarians, having noticed this, began to drive their horses into the camp—for they happened to have sent them out to pasture—and mounting those that were accustomed to stand before the tents according to their custom, they formed into squadrons. ^C And seeing the Romans advancing with much lack of order (for the greater part had scattered hither and thither, attacking the Hungarians who were driving the horses into the camp), they charged them, and having routed them, they drove the others who were following behind the Roman phalanx in disarray. Struck by this, the Romans at first thought of a retreat, and then, judging that a much larger army was pressing upon them than they could see, they took to flight. For very few mortals know how to recognize or judge the truth in such moments. ^D Consequently, as everyone began to depart immediately, both commanders stood their ground for a while with the standards and a few of their own men, thinking that some of the Romans would still remain with them. But when no one stood with them anywhere, they too finally turned their backs. Branas, however, turned and struck one of the enemies with his spear, while the other escaped by flight. Then indeed the disagreement that had previously existed between them in the council became known; for after Branas had overtaken the fleeing Gabras again, mocking and deriding him: “Well,” he said, “did you see, O Sebaste, how I stood my ground again?"

and how I took the field against the enemy with my spear?” When he confessed that he had, “But I,” he retorted, “by the head of the Emperor, ^A never saw you doing anything but fleeing.” Thus, at the present time, not one of the Romans accomplishes anything in the public interest or for the common good; yet, to the end that each may appear to be a good and noble man, he undertakes every hardship. The Huns, pursuing from the rear, did not slay many of the Romans, though they did capture quite a few. For they were still possessed by great cowardice. One might find proof of this from the following: one of the infantrymen had fled as far as Zeugma, without being overtaken by any of the Romans. So slowly were they making their way.

When Dionysius considered this and reflected upon the scale of what had been done, he gathered up a few of the bodies of the fallen, ^B cast earth upon them, and raised a mound of significant size, intending that the number of the slain might be reckoned from it. Thus these events came to pass. The Emperor, however, was in no small measure vexed by these things, and he resolved to set out once again for Hungary. Wishing to provide the enemy with a demonstration of Roman strength, he decided upon this course: he sent Alexius, to whom he had betrothed his daughter, with many forces—the army was commanded by Alexius, who happened to be Protostrator—toward the Ister, to create the impression among the Huns that he was going to attack them again from the familiar regions. But he ordered a certain Leo Batatzes to bring from elsewhere another large army, and especially a great throng of Vlachs—who are said to have been colonists of the Italians ^C of old—to make an incursion into the Hungarian territory from the regions near the Euxine Sea, as it is called; a quarter from which, in all the ages, no one had ever attacked them. Now, while Alexius and the rest of the Roman army had reached the Ister, ^D they were spread out, and the Huns, terrified by the news that they were present on the Ister, started to suspect that from that point they would immediately reach the rest of the country.

Du Cange's Notes

(25) The author Xiphilinus records that the Roman Senate, after the slaughter of Sejanus, decreed that no oaths should henceforth be taken unless they were formulated in the name of the Emperor. Hence those frequent formulas of oaths: by fortune, by the genius, by the safety of the princes. Frederick Morel translates it thus: *Vir optime, almam per salutem principum.* Gregory, in the *Life of St. Basil the Younger*, no. 4: "Christians also swore by the head of the Emperors." Synod of Chalcedon, can. 30: "To swear by the head of the Emperor, or by one’s own safety." Palladius, in the *Lausiac History*, etc. Vegetius, book III, ch. 5, *De tironibus*: "They swore by God and by the majesty of the Emperor, which is to be loved and honored by the human race after God." But concerning such formulas of swearing, see Selden on the *Arundel Marbles*, p. 147, and Hansen, *De jurejurando veterum*, ch. 23.

(26) The opinion is that the Blachi or Vlachi drew their origin and nomenclature from the Romans, although I know not from whom of that same race they took it. Pius II, in his work on the Vlachs: "Finally they were subdued and destroyed by Roman arms, and a colony of Romans, which was to restrain the leaders, was brought there under a certain leader, Flaccus, from whom it was called Flaccia. In the long lapse of time that followed, the name was corrupted, as usually happens, and it was called Valachia, and the people were called Valachi." But although Leunclavius rejects and condemns this opinion on the origin of the Vlachs as being joined with fables, it must nevertheless be acknowledged that this is not a notion born in the most recent centuries, but one that already prevailed in the time of the Emperor Manuel himself. This is shown sufficiently and more than enough by Innocent III, in his letters to Joannicius, King of the Bulgarians and Vlachs, when he fawns upon him regarding the origin of his lineage: "We, however," he says, "having heard that your ancestors drew their origin from the noble stock of the city of Rome, and that you have inherited from them both the nobility of your blood and the affection of sincere devotion which you bear toward the Apostolic See, as if by hereditary right, have long since resolved to visit you with letters and messengers." These words of the Pontiff, however, we have taught are to be referred not only to the origin of Joannicius alone, but to the entire Vlach nation. Moreover, Georgius a Reycheradoff of Transylvania, in his *Chorographia Moldaviae*, notes that the Latin tongue, which still endures in that nation, supports this opinion, although it is so corrupted in every part that it is scarcely understood by a Roman. But John Lucius has treated the Vlachs or Vlahi copiously and learnedly in book VI of his *De regno Dalmatiae et Croatiae*, ch. 5.

^A and struck terror into the Hungarians, as though they were about to cross over immediately. Batatzes, having broken forth from the places I have mentioned, laid everything waste, struck down all that he encountered, inflicted a great slaughter upon the human population, and took not a few captives. In addition to this, he drove off herds of horses and other animals of every kind from there and returned to the emperor. But he, wishing to inflict a second blow upon them, sent fresh forces against them once more; and he ordered them to approach the upper regions and to attack the Hungarians who inhabit the Tauroscythian land. Andro- nicus Lampardas and Nicephorus Petralipha, along with others of no small consequence, were in charge of these forces. The command, however, rested with John Doukas, whom I have already mentioned many times. They took not long to traverse certain long and difficult regions, and, having passed through a land entirely devoid of people, they burst into the Hungarian territory. ^B Encountering many, very populous villages, they seized a great store of plunder and slew many men, while also taking the most part captive. When they were about to depart from there, they set up a cross made of brass on that spot with an inscription of this sort:

Here the fierce Mars and the Ausonian hand Once mowed down the countless tribes of Pannonian race; When Manuel, the glory of the Comnenian line, Did hold the supreme sceptre of divine Rome.

4. While these things were taking place, Henry ^C (27) the Duke of Austria came to Sardica with his wife Theodora, the emperor's niece, both to reconcile Frederick, the king of the Alemanni, with the emperor, and to seek a truce in the war for the Hungarians. For Frederick, as I have related in the preceding accounts, because Manuel opposed him, came very near to being deprived of the Roman principate, with the Roman pontiff consenting that it should return to the ancient norm. He had also suffered many other highly unpleasant things, as the peoples whom the emperor had stirred up against him were hostile. Wherefore, a little earlier, while his affairs were still in peril, wishing to appease the emperor, he had sought his friendship through envoys and promised that he would be an ally in the war against the Hungarians. But when the terms that had been settled with the Pope concerning the Roman Empire ^D had been thoroughly overturned and had come to nothing—as the prince insisted that the seat of the Roman Empire should again remain at Byzantium, and did not admit...

as not accepting this, but demanding that he rule in Rome: elated by these things, Frederick once more displayed his hostility, and intending to invade the lands of the Romans, he began with a certain barbarian madness and stupidity to partition them among his followers. But since, as the Emperor opposed him with various designs, he accomplished nothing, he turned to the embassy of this Henry and Bladigratz ^A, scheming how he might, under the pretext of friendship, persuade the Emperor to desist from the attempts being made against him, so that he himself might then easily gird himself for the war against the Romans. But the Emperor, having perceived these things, saw Henry with favor and granted his request for a truce of war for the Huns, but gave nothing at all regarding the matters of those around Frederick. But Henry, returning home, when he arrived in Pannonia, persuaded Stephen to dismiss and cast out the Tauroscythian girl and take his own daughter in marriage. These things indeed happened; and the Huns not long after intended to seize ^B Dalmatia again. Accordingly, other troops came to her, and the one holding the office of zupan among them (this name signifies the power next to the king in that nation) — but they were by no means able to overcome those there by war, yet they took Chaluphes with their hands and withdrew. How this happened to Nicephorus, I shall immediately relate. He, hearing that a Hunnic army had arrived in the region, taking a few of the soldiers around him, departed from Spalatha. And while he was making his journey, most of those who were following him gradually kept slipping away and retreating, making the man easily captured ^C by the enemy. Therefore, having surrounded him, while he was performing deeds of bravery, they at length led him away captive.

5. The Emperor, having heard of these things, came to Byzantium, intending to arrive against them in the spring with a greater and different preparation. However, he was not able to be present there in the season fit for war, because a certain chance stood in his way, the nature of which my narrative will reveal. The winter had passed, and the darkness of the sky having cleared, he gave himself to a noble exercise, which from ancient times was proper and customary for emperors and the children of emperors. And it is of this— ^D

^A exactly what follows. A number of young men, divided equally among themselves, throw a ball made of leather, similar in size to an apple, into a certain place previously measured out for this purpose, according to what seems appropriate to them. Then, indeed, striving after it as if it were some prize placed in the middle, they compete with one another at full speed, each holding in his right hand a rod of moderate length, which suddenly ends in a certain rounded breadth, the middle of which is occupied by a number of cords dried and woven together in the manner of a net. Each party strives to be the first to drive the ball past the other side’s previously defined goal. For when the ball is driven by the net-rods into either goal, this counts as victory for that party. Such is the nature of this game, though it is quite prone to slips and is clearly perilous. For it is necessary that he who participates in it constantly throw himself backward and lean to either side, so as to turn the horse in a circle and to institute various rapid movements, as many as the ball happens to require; and this is how that exercise is conducted. Therefore, while the prince was turning himself about in it in a wonderful way, it happened that the horse upon which he rode fell entirely to the ground. And when he, having been thrown underneath ^B and striving with great effort to raise himself from this fall, could not move the horse that was—as we have said—lying with its whole body upon him, he heavily injured his thigh and hand where they were caught under the equestrian saddle; and he bore this injury with such constancy that, however lethal the pains he suffered, he immediately arose, with many already standing about him, and again mounted the horse and performed some courses without effort, until, perceiving the pains increasing, he finally betook himself to his bed. Subsequently, however, the ailment grew to such a degree that, on account of a faintness of spirit, he could recall nothing of what he had said or done on the following day. That, indeed, was of such a nature. Two days later, however, when he had recovered, he set out for Apamea; but from the journey, and it is no wonder, a distension of the nerves having arisen, ^C the swelling returned and frequent pains pricked him. Therefore, having passed the Paschal days in the city of Selybria, as soon as he felt himself in better health, he journeyed to Philippopolis. There, having conferred with the legates of the Pannonians, since he recognized that they brought nothing sound but were merely seeking a truce of war by every means, he dismissed them with nothing accomplished; and he attached to them a certain Roman, who was to demand Chaluphes and to threaten that, unless they soon did what was commanded, the Emperor and the Roman army would again be present. He himself, having proceeded to Sardica, collected his forces: where, while he was tarrying, these things occurred.

^D Alexius, who at that time held the dignity of protostrator, as has often been narrated by me, had long since...

^A been brewing a rebellion; then, having become manifest, he had his hair shorn, and having changed his status to that of the monks, he was led away to one of the more secluded monasteries, which are situated in great numbers on Mount Papicius near the Strymon. There he spent a fair amount of time and then passed away. But let us now relate from where and for what reason the man arrived at such a fortune. When he was first sent to Cilicia with supreme command in that war by the emperor, he went to Iconium deliberately to the sultan, and by winning his favor he entered into talk with him about seizing tyranny; and having received letters from him and given others in return, in which the agreements they had made were written down, he returned at that time to Cilicia. Subsequently, after some time had passed, returning to Byzantium, when at one time he wished to decorate one of his suburban houses with various paintings, he did not have depicted in it ancient Greek histories, nor did he have inscribed the ^B glorious deeds of the emperor, as is most customary for those in positions of authority, or those things which he himself had performed in wars or in the slaughter of wild beasts. For it happened that he had become involved with so many and such wild beasts, to a degree that we have never heard of anyone having done before. And if I am not departing from the laws of history, I shall bring forth one example of these. It was around the time of the winter solstice, and so much snow had piled up over the land that the ravines and the pits in the mountains were all but hidden, and through the excessive cold the bodies of creatures were nearly frozen; indeed, all the wild animals, having nowhere to hide, left their lairs and were drifting in large numbers over the snow. And the flocks of birds, no longer able to use their wings (for the ice held them together and sat upon them like some sort of bond, as one can see in the case of fowlers), walked on their feet instead of flying, lying open as the readiest prey ^C for beasts and men. The emperor went out to hunt in a certain region facing the East, which is called Damatrys. And while he was engaged in this task, a beast of great size confronted him—not a lion, for its spotted panther-like hide did not allow it to be called that; yet its size and likeness to a lion took away that name again. There was, therefore, a double and ambivalent nature: a panther in a lion and a lion in a panther, a monstrous mixture of qualities, the fierce with the noble, the irascible with the cruel, and in sum, all things belonging to both creatures meeting through one another. Such, then, was this beast; and when those following the emperor saw it, most of them fled. For it was not even endurable for the many to look upon it. And when it was already near, there was no one left who stood against it. But the emperor, as they were fleeing, drew the sword ^D with which he was girded and ran to strike the beast, and having delivered a blow to its forehead, he drove the blade through as far as its breast. Such a man was the prince in the slaughter of wild beasts and in his hunts. But Alexius (for I return to where I had digressed), having omitted these matters, [the things] from the sultan [concerning...]

^A regarding the strategies he had displayed—foolish man, he himself publicized in the halls what should have been kept in the dark, according to the writing—the emperor, having become aware of these things, took him aside many times into private conversations and offered him exhortations, hoping to divert him from the things he was planning. But he held fast once again to his goal, and indeed he frequently summoned a man, Latin by race, a sorcerer, and one deeply experienced in demonic arts, and conversed with him most familiarly and shared his secret designs with him. ^B And these were [to the effect] of how the emperor might forever remain childless; the wretch received many drugs from that cursed man for the aforementioned purpose, and he did not cease to apply himself to these things. Because of which the emperor again rebuked him and chided his insanity. But though he seemed to repent at first, he returned again to his earlier mindset. For after a short interval of time, he met with that sorcerer again and consulted him about the same matters. At one time, having met with Constantine Doukas, who himself had married the emperor's niece, he said: “Most excellent man, if you have a mind to be of one opinion with us, know that no one would be able to overcome us.” ^C But this was not yet spoken openly, though another thing was said to him much more clearly than this. Once, when Casianus saw Alexius applying himself to the war against the Huns with excessive and unbecoming sluggishness, at the time when he was on campaign in Hungary with Bela, he approached him and attempted to urge him on with exhortations to incite his spirit. But he, taking the man aside in private, said: “Do you ask why I abstain from battles for the most part? Because I have supreme pity for the human race.” When the other replied something to this statement, he added: ^D “Because the emperor, wishing to destroy the Romans, orders me strongly to lead them into the most atrocious battles [at P 157] heedlessly, whatever may happen as a result. But you, if you keep this saying, will be a friend to us.” So he spoke. But Casianus reported all these things to the emperor. And this was the first turn of events; but the most recent one happened in this way. A multitude of Scythians, who had come to the aid of the Romans, having argued much beforehand about their pay and provisions, finally acquiesced. But the protostrator secretly induced them with money to pretend to return to their ancestral ways, and when it was dead of night, to attack the emperor's tent in a body and to set to work. These things were thus proposed and deliberated. But a young servant from among those who served in his tent, as soon as he understood the plot, hastened in haste to Thomas the eunuch, who happened at that time to be most loyal to the emperor, and disclosed the scheme to him. He reported the whole story to the emperor and soon brought the servant himself to him. However, the emperor did not yet wish to give credence to what was told until in the morning the Scythians began to disperse and depart without any cause. He was able to restrain them by using promises; but against Alexius he sent those who

^A were to arrest him, and the miserable man was quickly in chains. Not long afterwards, by order of the Emperor, illustrious men came to him, John Ducas and Michael, who was logothete at that time, and besides them, Thomas the eunuch and Nicephorus, who was himself one of the judges of the Veli, surnamed Caspax. They presented to him three charges and demanded that he answer which of these he was able to refute. But when he heard these things, he confessed himself guilty of all of them, and requested that, having first tonsured his hair and partaken of the divine mysteries, it might be permitted to him to do whatever was determined by the judgment. Moved to pity by this, the Emperor ordered that he be tonsured a monk.

7. Such was the end of the fortunes of Alexius. But the Emperor ^B sent forces to Sirmium as the Hungarian army was crossing over, over which were placed other Roman commanders, and in particular Andronicus, the son of the Emperor’s sister, surnamed Contostephanus, who had been appointed by the Emperor as commander in chief of this war. The Emperor had instructed him especially on how the battle line should be formed and in what manner this war should be conducted, just as it had been drawn up on a chart. Andronicus, therefore, having crossed the Save and approached the camp of the Hungarians, decided to do things as follows. He judged it by no means advantageous, as is usually the custom, to send scouts and spies into the army of the enemy. However, he ordered some of the Romans to go before the camp and endeavor to seize some enemy soldier ^C and bring him back. They, therefore, having captured an enemy as ordered, returned. He then inquired of him with how great forces the Hungarians had approached Sirmium and what precisely they had decided to do. And he related everything honestly and truly: “There are,” he said, “thirty-seven commanders of our military forces, but Dionysius holds the supreme authority over all. The whole army consists of fifteen thousand fighting men at most, partly mailed cavalry, and partly archers and peltasts. And such boldness possesses them that they persuade themselves that the Romans will not be able to withstand even their first onset.” Having heard these things, Andronicus allowed him to go and announce to Dionysius that the Emperor, no longer able to endure his offenses against the Romans, is at hand and present, so that he may demand from him the due penalty. And the Roman ^D troops, having been ordered to take up arms, he led out of the camp and [prepared] the battle line in this way.

^A He ordered the Scythians and the greatest part of the Persians to lead the way, together with the few horsemen who fight with spears, and next, on either side, followed the Roman phalanxes commanded by Coccobasilius and Philocales, and furthermore Taticius and the man they called Aspietes. Behind them marched the heavy-armed soldiers mixed with archers, as well as the heavy-armed Persian contingent. After these, on both flanks, marched Joseph Bryennius and George Branas, as well as his brother Demetrius, and Constantine Aspietes, a man endowed with the dignity of *sebastos*. Next was Andronicus, who was the prince’s ^B chartulary, byname Lampardas, with picked Romans and Alamanni, and also Persians. In the hindmost line was the supreme commander Andronicus, with many other men of renowned name (such as it is always the custom to attend the emperor when he goes to war) and Italian mercenaries, and likewise Serbs, who followed behind him, armed with spears and equipped with long shields. The Romans set out on their march with their army ordered in such a fashion. But when they arrived at the place where Dionysius had raised a mound to the slain soldiers, they dismounted from their horses and lamented bitterly, 272 and pledged to one another that each would die on behalf of his kinsman and relative. But when Dionysius learned that the Romans were approaching, puffed up with a certain confidence, he ordered the Hungarians, with much mockery, to drink wine for the health and safety of the Romans. They rose up, immediately drained the cups, and, taking up their arms, resumed their accustomed order. ^C For it is always the custom among them for the most distinguished and the best to occupy the front phalanx. The emperor, having learned of this long ago, had given orders to Andronicus to position his battle line in the opposite manner. When, therefore, the armies were near one another, Andronicus ordered those who stood in the front of the divisions to shoot their arrows at the Hungarians. He directed them that when they saw the enemy rushing against them, they should then turn and flee, but not straight in the direction of the Roman army; rather, more obliquely toward the flanks, so that in this way, distracted to both sides, the Hungarians might leave the middle space of the phalanx empty. But they, once the enemy made their assault, immediately turned their backs and fled at full speed until they reached the Savus. ^D Two of the cohorts in the left wing—those which Coccobasilius and Taticius commanded—held their ground for the Romans; all the others had already given way. Demetrius Branas, having been abandoned on the field, threw himself against the enemies with eighty men of his own who were scattered about, and fighting most heroically, he fell after receiving a mortal wound to the head, and having been captured, he was carried into the camp of the Hungarians. His brother, George, however, terrified by the vast number of the enemy, did not dare to join the fray. Thus, the left wing of the Romans indeed inclined toward flight, but the right wing, having invaded the left wing of the Hungarians, routed it completely. Therefore, when Dionysius saw these things, he resolved to attack those who were around the commander Andronicus. But many of his own men, terrified, immediately summoned the cavalry to him. When Dionysius learned of this, he reproached them for their cowardice and at the same time

urged them to stand their ground, so that they might not show their fear to the ^A Romans. But Andronicus Lampardas, seeing what was being prepared and fearing that if the multitude with Dionysius should move elsewhere it would fall upon him, the commander, decided he must engage Dionysius first. When they collided, a din arose, and a great clatter filled the air, and their spears, shattered against their shields, fell to the ground. Yet the Romans, even though those who had been stationed under the other commander, George Branas, had already joined them, were still faltering. Andronicus the commander, therefore, when he perceived this, so that they might not be utterly defeated and the entire struggle depend on those who had been put to flight with Lampardas, charged the enemy, and a fierce engagement ensued, so that in the initial clash eighty Romans fell, but of the Barbarians, many more than that. But the Romans, with unspeakable endurance, maintained the [P. 160] struggle, and in the end repelled them through their own valor. Yet such a slaughter of the Barbarians took place that the plains there were almost covered with corpses; for their spears having been broken and their swords shattered, they beat the heads of the wretched men with clubs. ^C When the standard (56) was captured, which was carried for these Barbarians on a great cart, and the horse of Dionysius with its full panoply, he himself—in what manner I cannot say—scarcely escaped the danger. Moreover, as many of the Barbarians as were able to flee, when they reached the river, were captured by the Roman navy. Thus, five of their generals, whom they call *zupans*, were taken alive, and about eight hundred soldiers. Many among them were of noble birth and otherwise distinguished. Thousands also fell in this struggle. There was not one of the Romans who did not perform deeds of great valor with his own hand; yet, beyond all others, John Contostephanus and Andronicus Lampardas. Having achieved these things successfully, the Roman army, since it was the dead of night, withdrew to the camp, bringing with them the captured Hungarians and two thousand breastplates. One could not easily have numbered the helmets, shields, and swords. They spent that night there after these events. But when dawn broke, they again put on their armor, in—

Du Cange’s Notes

^A They marched on to join the camp, taking with them both their Hunnish prisoners and some two thousand breastplates; as for the helmets, shields, and swords, no one could even count them. They spent that night in such quarters, and when day dawned, they donned their armor and arrived at the Huns' camp. Finding it deserted of men, they returned after having plundered it. The war against the Huns thus reached its end here.

8. The Emperor also paid diligent attention to the walls of Constantinople, which had collapsed in many places due to age, and because the city was suffering from a lack of water, he most carefully cleaned the conduits. Since he realized that it would be entirely difficult and time-consuming to restore the ancient arcades through which water was once conveyed to Byzantium—they having long since fallen—he examined a spot not far from Byzantium, which is called Petra 37, and constructed an underground reservoir. Situated in the middle of a hollow between two hills, it is oblong in shape and receives water coming down through thousands of channels, fissures, and passages yawning wide; from there, it sends this water forward into the city through the customary subterranean conduits.

This Emperor 38 also abolished an extremely absurd custom, which had almost come to be a law, from the Roman polity. Let us now explain what this was. The inescapable necessity of life forces many people to change their ways of living in many respects, and even to sell their freedom for a wage. And so, they hire out their services to those who hold high positions and honors and are of noble birth, if chance so decrees—not to mention the common and base folk. What a great evil, then, is this human avarice! Taking these wretched people, those who had bought their servitude treated them just as they would those purchased with silver, and the three-obol piece, which was perhaps the established wage, became the purchase price and contract for free men of such wretched fortune. Indeed, if they ever, burdened by the labor of their service, wished to reject it, those men would seize them like fugitives 39 and impose penalties for their boldness. It was then as in the fable of Aesop, in which a lion is sick in a cave and animals come to him: there were many tracks of free men entering, but not one of any exiting.

He therefore plucked this depraved custom out from the heart of the city entirely.

[Du Cangii notae]

37 *Petra*. Christophorus Bondelmontius mentions this cistern in his *Description of Constantinople*. 38 *He, the Emperor*. The Greeks undoubtedly imported this depraved custom of introducing servitude from the Western, or rather Northern, peoples, among whom there were slaves by nature, by fact, by purchase, by redemption, or by one’s own or another’s giving, as is found in the Laws of Henry I, King of England, c. 76. Cinnamus speaks of the latter—that is, of free men who, to partake of a wage or through poverty of household, would mancipate themselves to the dominion of another and hire out their services. A formula for this kind of servitude exists in Marculfus, l. 1, c. 28, and in the *Ancient Formulas*, c. 10. *Constitutions of Catalonia* mss. between lords and vassals, c. 34, from the library of De Thou, fol. 62: Although by Roman Law a free man cannot make himself the slave of another by any simple contract, nor even by a confession made in court, he can, however, [P 486] by a contract intervene with a writing, and a free man can constitute himself an *adscriptitius*. Just as by accepting a price, free men became slaves, so by the price being returned and paid, they were asserted into freedom again, as is gathered from Palladius in the *Lausiac History*, c. 83. See Gregory of Tours, l. VII, c. 45, the synod of uncertain place after the Council of Paris, can. 14, and the Council of Vermeries, year ..., can. 6. 39 *...like fugitives*. Such was the condition of the slaves, that if they withdrew themselves from the houses of their masters, they could be immediately sought out by those from whom they were received, like fugitives, and retrapped into servitude. Whence in the formulas of manumission, we read this inserted as the chief argument of liberty, "That everywhere, to whatever part he may wish to go, it is as if he had been born or sired by free parents."

^A And indeed the custom was so grievous; but the emperor, wishing to root out the practice entirely from the middle of the state, confirmed by his writs the liberty which was by nature already decreed for free men. For he wished to rule over free Romans, not slaves. In the same year of his reign ^B he also decreed that no meddling should be brought against the holy [(40)] sanctuaries throughout Byzantium, concerning any possessions they might have anywhere at all. But he also confirmed this gift with a roll, which, because it was marked with gold, it is the custom to call a chrysobull [(41)]. Hence, it is not possible to see any monk today knocking at the doors of a tribunal, seeing that there is nothing present regarding which a lawsuit could be brought against them. And this constitution is indeed of such a kind. But since, by the law that invalidated the ^C majority of days—those, clearly, on which either the Lord’s mysteries were being celebrated by Christians or the memory of some great man was being kept—it happened that the lawsuits in the state were extended to an infinite duration and never reached an end, from this I saw men growing old in lawsuits, and indeed even dying in them. But this evil, too, has been driven out of the Roman state by a new decree. For the emperor’s edict says that the feast days are not to be taken as ordinary days at all, nor, however, should lawsuits be dragged on indefinitely by such postponements. Instead, it decreed that those days on which God had at some time bestowed a singular benefit upon mankind should be entirely exempt from legal and forensic matters: some of these days were to be entirely feast days, and others were to be split, ^D so that on these, legal proceedings were not permitted during the morning hours, but the afternoon was left entirely free for those who wished to enter. This same emperor also magnificently deposited in Byzantium the sacred stone [(45)] that had long since been at Ephesus, together with other holy monuments that are there. But of what sort this stone was, and how it came to the land of the Ephesians, I shall recount presently. Now, having been accomplished on the cross by the Savior...

^A mystery, the Mother took Him down, and according to custom laid Him supine upon this stone; and sinking down upon it, she lamented deeply as was natural. And it is a thing truly worthy of admiration that the tears of the mourner, which fell upon the stone, remain indelible to this very day. Taking this stone, they say, Mary Magdalene sailed straight for Rome, intending to accuse Pilate and the unjust Jews, the murderers of Jesus, before Tiberius Caesar; but by some chance she was carried into the Ephesian harbor and left it lying there, while she herself set sail from there to Rome. From that time on, the stone has remained there to this day. And so, when it had been brought to the shore of Damalis, a magnificent procession from Byzantium received it. The entire Roman senate, and everyone who was among the clergy and monks, filled this procession, with Lucas, who was then ruling the Church, and the Emperor walking at the head of both choirs. The Emperor himself also put his shoulder to the stone ^B, for he exhibited a singular piety and reverence in such matters, even beyond what was necessary, and he discharged such duties with the greatest humility of soul.

9. At this same time, Egypt, having come under Roman power, slipped from us in a manner which I shall now describe. This land had not long before been subject to the Roman empire and used to pay a great amount of tribute annually; but when Asia was already suffering evils and the Ishmaelite tribe was growing stronger day by day, it too was captured and fell under the dominion of the Persians. But Emperor Manuel, although he had already restored many things in the East to the Romans, desired with great zeal to lay claim to this region as well. Accordingly, he sent envoys ^C there and ordered them to remind the country of its former custom and the opulent taxes which they had been accustomed to pay to us; and he instructed them that if they refused, they should then at last announce that they would soon be attacked by war. This was the intention of the embassy. But as the Egyptians persisted in their refusal, the Emperor built a fleet of horse-transports and warships in great number.

^D Du Cange’s notes. (44) *He put his shoulder to the stone.* See our treatise on the Head of St. John the Baptist, c. 2, n. 6. (45) *At this same time, Egypt,* having been in danger of being conquered by the Romans, achieved this in the manner which will be related. William of Tyre, b. xx, c. 4, 14, 15, 16, 17, reports more about the expedition to Egypt with the Jerusalemite king Amalric and the other barons and nobles of the kingdom, which he places in the year 1169, toward the end of September, as does Nicetas, b. v, n. 4, 5, and 7. (46) *Envoys.* They were, if I am not mistaken, Alexander Gravina, count, and Michael of Otranto, as far as can be gathered from Tyre, cap. 4. (47) *A fleet of ships.* There were certainly, says Tyre, in the aforementioned army, long beaked ships, fitted with double rows of oars, more suitable for war, which are commonly called galleys, one hundred and fifty. Also among these were larger ones assigned to transport horses, having openings in the sterns for leading them in and out...

Cornelius Tollius’s notes. (dd) Nicetas says much the same, where he writes of our deceased Manuel and his burial: “A dark and sad-looking stone covers him, which rises to seven points. Not far from there, a purple stone, of a man's size, rests on a base for adoration; it formerly was at Ephesus; and this is said to be the one in which Christ, taken down from the cross and wrapped in linen cloths, was laid. The emperor brought this stone from there on his own shoulders, because it had borne the divine body of Christ itself, from the harbor of the Bucoleon to the church which is in the tower of the palace. But not long after the emperor's death, that stone was transferred from the palace to his tomb, so that it might proclaim in a clear voice the deeds and struggles of the departed.” Thus translates Hieronymus Wollius.

^A And having devised many horse-transports and warships, he embarked a very large army upon them and sent them to Egypt. The leader of this force was Andronicus Contostephanus, of whom I have often made mention, as he already enjoyed the rank of great doux, as has been stated. Having made a swift voyage and put in at Egypt, he sent to Palestine and summoned the king who was there, so that he might assist the Romans in accordance with the pacts they had agreed upon for the campaign. While the king was delaying, Andronicus, so that his time might not be wasted in vain there, decided that he must lead the army across into the land. And so, they took the city of Tennes by storm and kept emerging to ravage the country extensively. When it was reported that the king was already approaching, they transferred the war to Damietta, a city ^B exceeding rich and populous. Many and fearful battles were fought there by the Romans, yet nothing was achieved for the reason I am about to relate. The Emperor and the Palestinians, who had combined for the campaign against Egypt, had agreed that once the province was conquered, the Romans should take one half and they themselves the other. The king, therefore, since the Romans had arrived in Egypt first, deliberately decided to delay the military expedition at first, so that after they had exhausted themselves in the perils, he might possess that region without labor. But when he himself finally arrived, he kept putting off the fighting and was always urging the Romans to do the same, even though they, disregarding such advice, accepted brave contests every day. Whether, as I said, they did this because they wanted to expose the Romans to the dangers so that they themselves might obtain the fruits of victory without labor, or whether they were simply envious of the Emperor's rule over Egypt, I cannot say; ^C but it was rumored that the king had been induced to do this by money provided by the besieged. The Romans, therefore, seeing that they were not equal to this war, turned their sterns and set sail for Byzantium; but when a storm arose, it so happened that many of their ships perished. Such was the end of the expedition to Egypt. The people of Egypt, so that a second incursion of the Romans might not take place against them, sent ambassadors to the Emperor and agreed that they would pay a fixed amount of gold to the Romans every year from that time forward. But he, spurning the embassy, sent them home with their business unfinished, since he intended to devastate that whole region again. ^D (49) Damietta. Commonly Damietta, a known city of Egypt, which is described by Tyrius, l. xx, c. 16. In the Council of Ephesus, part II, art. 4, mention is made of the bishop of Damietta. (50) "It was reported that by money." Tyrius: Here he clearly shows that ours were either lacking in experience, or had defected from sound prudence, or that the commanders of the army were acting maliciously. But the same writer, c. 18, asserts that the Greeks were not without great blame, as does Matthew Paris, a.d. 1219. This city, he says, is read to have been first besieged by the Greeks, who failed in its capture. (51) Orontes. It is the same as the storm observed by Tyrius and Nicetas.

^A and, having shaken off the embassy, he sent them away without success, intending in his mind to invade the country again shortly. And coming to the emperor, he asked for the things he was in need of. Having obtained what he required, he promised the emperor, among many other things, his service (52). At this time (53), he also sent those Venetians who dwelt in Byzantium and in any other Roman lands to public prisons and confiscated their goods for the public treasury, for a reason which I am about to relate. The region of the Venetians lies in the farthest parts of the Ionian Gulf: being surrounded by the sea, it extends as a lagoon (54) far from the shore, into which the sea, flowing in often throughout the day, makes it navigable for a certain time; but when it recedes, it renders it entirely inaccessible to ships and men. This nation is, in its character, corrupt, scurrilous (55), and—if anything is—liberal-less, being entirely full of nautical ineptitude. ^B These men once provided allied aid to the emperor Alexius, when that Robert, having crossed over from Italy, was besieging the territory of Dyrrhachium. As a reward for this and other things, a street in Byzantium was specifically assigned to them, which the common people call the "Embolus," and they alone of all men, from that time, paid no tithes (57) on their commerce to the Romans. Hence, having become immensely rich, they immediately burst into such pride that they treated the citizens like slaves—and not only those of the lowest plebeian class, but even those who shone with the dignity of *sebastoi* or any other higher rank among the Romans. Indignant at this, the emperor John expelled them all from the Roman Empire. And from then on, they en- ^C deavored with the utmost zeal to seek vengeance upon the Romans. Having therefore prepared a fleet and made an incursion into their lands, they captured Chios, and ravaged the most celebrated islands of Rhodes and Lesbos. Then, having been carried off to the Palestinians, they captured Tyre by besieging it along with them; and furthermore, practicing piracy at sea, these wicked men spared no human being. Wherefore, when they were restored to their former condition by the emperor, greater pride and insolence immediately took hold of them. For arrogance, inflated by the opinion of successful deeds, is accustomed to deflect into the ultimate depravity. Whence it came to pass that they inflicted wounds upon many noble men and those joined by kinship to the prince, and others...

^D Notes of Du Cange (52) *And service*. See the inscription which we have cited in the dissertation to Joinville, p. 319. (53) *At this time*. That the Venetian merchants and other subjects of the Venetian Republic who were found within the borders of the Byzantine Empire were imprisoned and their goods confiscated, Nicetas relates, Bk. V, n. 9, as does Sabellicus, Decad. 1, Bk. VII. Thus the same Manuel, as it is fair to believe, for similar reasons, later expelled the Pisans, who were present in Constantinople for trade, from the city and the dominions of the empire, and recalled them again in the year 1172, as is clear in the Pisan Annals of Ughelli. (54) *Lagoon*. Constantine the Emperor says: "Venice in ancient times was a deserted place, impregnable and marshy." (55) *Scurrilous*. Nicetas on the Venetians: "Men nourished by the sea, like the Phoenician vagabonds..." (56) *To Alexius*. That various privileges and immunities were granted to the Venetians by Alexius for the aid provided to him against Guiscard, Anna Comnena testifies, *Alexiad*, Bk. VI, p. 161, 162. (57) *Tithes*. *Decateuterion*, a custom-house. *Decateuein*, to exact customs, or to collect a tenth. *Decateutai*, tax-collectors, those who select the tithe or tenth. Hesychius: *Decateutein*, to collect the tax.

^A And so, they inflicted stripes upon many of those who were noble and blood-related to the emperor, and in other ways they insulted them most bitterly. They behaved in the same way, and no less so, even during the times of the Emperor Manuel, taking Roman women as wives for themselves and living in their houses, just as the other Romans did, ^B wandering outside the place of stay granted to them by the emperor. Since he could no longer bear these things, he himself began to impose penalties for the wrongs committed against them. However, he separated those of them who were dwelling in Byzantium from those who came by way of trade, the Venetians, and called them "Burgenses" in the Latin tongue, ^C as they had given him oaths that they would remain subject to the Romans for as long as they lived. For such is the force of that word among them. Meanwhile, the Venetians themselves were openly carrying on a rivalry with the Lombards, because ^D they were doing them most grievous injuries. Yet the same people, nevertheless taking advantage of the fortunes of the time of the emperor Manuel, and contracting marriages with Roman women 282 and living in their homes, had dwellings outside the limits prescribed to them by the emperor, like the rest of the Romans. Because the prince could no longer bear this, he decided to restrain their transgressions with punishments. Therefore, he separated the Venetians who were living in Byzantium from those of the same nation who were arriving for the purpose of trade, and called them "Burgenses" in the Latin tongue, since they had promised with given faith that they would remain subject to the Romans for as long as they lived. For such is the force of that word among them.

Notes of Du Cange

^A house shall be preserved for him for life." For this is what interpreting the name for them signifies. Not long after, the Venetians, being angry with the Lombards because they had broken away from their judgment, rose up against them and, having leveled their houses to the ground, inflicted upon them the greatest penalties. Whence the Emperor, having summoned them for trial, decreed that the Lombards should rebuild their houses and immediately return whatever had been plundered from them. But the Venetians neither wished to do any of this, nor did they hesitate to threaten the Romans that they would inflict irreparable harm, reminding them of the things they had done while the Emperor John was still alive. Seeing this, the Emperor decided to delay no longer. Therefore, having planned to seize them all in one night, he sent letters throughout the Roman land, by which he made known to those in charge of the regions the time at which they were to lay hands upon the Venetians. And so, at the same time, those who were in Byzantium and those living in the furthest corners of the Roman land were captured and thrown into prisons and holy monasteries. After a short time had passed, since the prisons were hardly sufficient for such a great multitude (for nothing is usually more impregnable to men driven to despair), they attempted the following. Each one of them, having provided security for his comrade before the Emperor, was able to be released from the prisons. There was among them a certain man, illustrious by birth and excelling in wealth, who had sold to the public treasury for a great sum of money a ship of massive size, such as had never before docked at Byzantium. Since the care of his own affairs had therefore been entrusted to him by the Emperor, he advised the Venetians to board the ship by night, depart, and sail to their own country. Having seized upon this counsel and finding a favorable wind, they boarded the ship ^C and immediately fled.

Notes of Du Cange

^A At the sight of this, the Romans pursued them from the rear, and upon reaching the Abydos strait, they intended to set their ship on fire with Median fire. (60) But they, being accustomed to Roman methods, had wrapped the ship around with certain felt coverings (61) ^B and thus sallied forth confidently. The Romans, therefore, since they could achieve nothing (for the fire, either because it was cast from too great a distance or did not reach the ship, or because it fell upon the felt and was deflected, was extinguished by the water as it fell), withdrew empty-handed. But the Venetians, having neared their own territory, constructed a fleet and attacked the Romans. At first, they assaulted the Euripus; but when they were repelled—since the Emperor had stationed sufficient garrisons of soldiers in the cities there—they were carried away to the island of Chios. Having anchored their ships there, they went out to plunder the countryside. But encountering forces which the foresight of the Emperor had sent over to the island, they engaged in battle, and after many of their own were killed, they retreated to their ships. ^C The Emperor, however, had determined to catch them utterly and to send a land and naval army against them, but there was a certain man at that time who held the rank of *acolythus*, Aaron by name, a man of proud and extremely arrogant spirit. He was always hostile to the Emperor’s affairs; he had been detected in having carried out his embassies dishonestly, and was, moreover, accused of magic arts. But more of this later, when justice visited this wicked man with the punishment he deserved. At that time, this man betrayed the Emperor’s plan to the Venetian people and hindered the project. For the Roman fleet had already set sail in order to lay an ambush for the Venetians after it reached Malea (this is a promontory distant by many days' journey from the island of Chios). A certain report had also arrived that they [the Venetians] would be repelled by the Roman infantry, who, as we just mentioned, had prepared ambushes on the island and had fought with them with the upper hand. ^D Then, both because they had suffered the loss of a great part of their men at the hands of the Romans who were on the island, and because they perceived that the fleet was also approaching them, they weighed anchor as the day was already declining and departed from the island. On the following morning, the Roman fleet reached Lesbos, and, having learned what had occurred, continued the pursuit. A pitched battle was to decide the final outcome.

^A Yet this could not be done, for the enemy kept fleeing headlong. Nevertheless, the Romans engaged many of their triremes, capturing them and sinking them with their crews, while the others fled back to their own lands. The Venetians, however, had plied their oars so swiftly that they escaped the danger, and not a single one of the ships that had come from Epidamnus was captured by force. Such was the profit the Venetians reaped from their arrogance. The Emperor, wishing to mock their audacity, sent them a letter of this sort: ^B “Your nation has long made use of great ignorance in the conduct of its affairs. For you were once wanderers and beggars, and after you crept into the Roman Empire, you not only treated those people with extreme pride, but it was also a matter of great honor among you to betray them to their bitterest enemies; further details are superflous for those who know these things. But since you have been convicted of these crimes and justly expelled from their lands, you have decided to engage in battle with them with that same arrogance—a nation once unworthy of being named, though now indeed recognized through the Romans, and one that is by no means to be compared to them in strength. For when you hold such an opinion, you move everyone to great laughter. For how can this be? Against those whom not even the most excellent peoples anywhere in the world have been able to wage war with impunity? ^C In this vein the Emperor wrote. The Venetians, for their part, dared not attack the Romans with a great fleet, but from that time on they kept to their ports and stations, practicing piracy until they received a second blow.

11. These things, then, occurred in this way; but the affairs of Cilicia began to suffer. ^D For when Thoros ended his life, his brother Melias succeeded to the principate and began to be no less hostile to the Romans. Michael Branas was first appointed general for the war against the Cilicians, and after him Andronicus, surnamed Euphorbens, who, as has already been said, was a cousin to the Emperor. But when he also accomplished nothing worthy of record there, the Isaurian situation began to incline toward the worse; and though many thereafter received command of the forces, among whom was Constantine, whom they called Calamanus, nothing was accomplished. For although Calamanus had inflicted great damage upon Armenia, he himself suffered worse in return. At that same time, the Duke of the Saxons (a nation that is most numerous and wealthy) came to Byzantium to negotiate with the Emperor on behalf of the King of the Alamanni.

sui ^A with great preparation to Byzantium, in order to reconcile the king of the Alamani (for there was much suspicion and rivalry between them), and departed having accomplished all for which he had come. Meanwhile, the Serbians, spurred on to this by the Venetians, moved toward rebellion. But since Stephen, who had ruled over the Hunnic [Hungarian] land, had departed this life, he had left affairs there full of turmoil. Moved by these events, the emperor arrived at Sardica. While he was staying there, the Huns sent and requested that Bela be sent to them as king; for since Stephen had died, the rule of justice looked toward him. Now, Bela ^B had earlier been designated as the emperor's son-in-law, as I have related in the preceding accounts. And because the law of kinship had been fulfilled for him, he had married the sister of the Augusta. Therefore, having been proclaimed Caesar, he held rank superior to the other grandees at that time in Byzantium. The emperor, having proclaimed him king over the Hunnic land, sent him off with his wife, having first bound him with oaths that he would observe all that was likely to benefit the emperor and the Romans for all time. Following him from the emperor were those who were to install him in the rule, both John the Protosebastos and others of reputation. When the emperor had established Bela in the rule, he turned [P. 168] ^C toward the Serbian nation, desiring to punish them for their audacity. But—a thing I always marvel at—before the army was yet entirely gathered, the emperor, having broken into their land with but a few thousand men through certain precipitous and craggy places, hastened to join battle with the archizupan. He, although he had mustered a myriad-fold host of allies from everywhere, fled at first; but as fear besieged his soul, he sent envoys to the emperor and begged to obtain amnesty for his evils. Not being able to persuade him, he asked that he might at least be granted safe passage to him for a time. When the emperor finally consented, he entered before the tribunal, bareheaded and with hands ^D up to the elbows and feet naked; he hung thereafter upon

Du Cangii notes

^A carrying his neck bare, his feet unshod, a rope tied around his neck, and holding a sword, yielding himself to the emperor so that he might determine whatever he wished concerning him. The emperor, moved to pity by these things, forgave him the offense. Having settled these matters successfully, the emperor departed from Serbia, having the Archizupan following him. It was at this time also that Aaron, whom I mentioned a little before, was ^B deprived of his eyes for the matters that have been mentioned.

12. The affairs in the West having been settled in this way, Asia was once again in turmoil. For Nuradin, the satrap of Berrhoea, and the sultan who governed Lycaonia, along with Melias, lord of the Armenians, and the prince of the Ancyrans ^C and of the other Galatian towns, having entered into a conspiracy with one another, attacked the Romans. For this reason, therefore, the emperor moved from the West and, having pitched his camp at Philadelphia, applied his mind to these matters. Meanwhile, the Alemanni and the Veneti came to besiege Ancona, the former by sea and the latter with land forces. The commander of the Alemanni was one of those men who held a priestly throne among them. A long time having been spent in the siege of the city, and the Anconitans laboring under a lack of grain and other supplies, the city was all but ready to be captured. But a certain woman, ^D Italian by race, of great spirit—if any ever were, and of masculine daring—who, having long ago been widowed, had maintained a chaste life ever since, when she learned what was being done at Ancona and that it had come into the ultimate danger, inflamed with the highest ardor (for she was devoted to the cause of the Romans), decided to assist the city with her own private wealth. But since these were by no means sufficient for the needs of war, she even mortgaged her own children, and having thus obtained a greater supply of money, she sent messengers into the city, urging them to be of good spirit and not to betray themselves to the enemy. The Anconitans, therefore, when they heard these things, took heart and decided to sally out against the enemy. But the latter, having perceived this, immediately moved their camp backward. In the meantime, this female commander, arriving at the city, mingled the Anconitans with her own army, and an engagement having taken place, the Alemanni could not withstand the onslaught and fled from the female army, and very many of them were lost. The commander priest himself would also have been captured in a moment,

^A but he turned himself around, and having defeated those in battle, returned to the city, followed by the great emperor with joyful acclamations. The prince, however, having pitched his camp at Philadelphia, as has been narrated, was pondering most of all by what art he might skillfully cause the aforementioned Barbarians to be separated from one another. And so, having sent legates to the sultan of Lycaonia, he reproached him for his perfidy toward them and demanded the reason why he had so suddenly turned against the Romans as an enemy. He, for his part, put forward many other pretexts, and said that his *Chaliphas* (70)—or rather, his great high priest—was angry with him for having been so long united with the Romans by a treaty of friendship. With these words, he sent the legates away having accomplished nothing. But the emperor, having heard these things, answered him with a second embassy, having sent him a letter as follows: "If it has been decided by you to rise up with the rest of your kinsmen from some place above to raid against the Romans, depart with confidence; for you shall set as a guard over your own land the Roman army, which shall arrive there in no more than fifteen days." The sultan, having received this letter, was terrified in his soul and, refraining from the things he was planning, spoke of peace for the future. And so the designs—because the greatest part of the sultan’s men were shifting over to the side of the emperor—fell apart again; in that the sultan, who was the greatest part of them and the momentum, was going over to the Romans. And so the emperor, glorying in an ^B unbloodied victory, set out for Constantinople. The king of Palestine (71) and the prince of Antioch, when they learned of these things, being filled with confidence, marched against the Berroaean Barbarians and brought many losses upon them.

13. At this time also the *silentium* (72).

(70) *Chaliphas*. The Saracens called their supreme leaders by this Arabic word, which signifies a successor or heir, says William of Tyre (bk. XIX, ch. 19), and from him, James of Vitry (bk. I, ch. 7). And they held this succession by hereditary right. But Vallerius, in his preface to El-Macinus, believes that they called themselves by this word as vicars or locum tenentes; indeed, they were held in such honor and reverence by their own people for this name that they were worshipped almost as deities; and no one, however powerful or noble, was called sultan unless by the mandate and authority of that one, and all his subjects, kings as well as others, prostrated themselves to the ground and reverently kissed his feet. These are the words of James of Vitry. Thus Conrad of Usperg on the sultans: "Subject to one Persian emperor only, almost after the manner of divine worship." Yet the power of the Sultans grew so much later in political and military affairs that the power of religion, or rather of Mahometan superstition, remained almost entirely with the *Chaliphas*, with the title of dignity remaining empty and specious. Whence those who are called "Popes" and "Apostolic" by the common people of their own nation, according to Baldric of Dol (bk. I), Tudebodus (bk. IV), Vincent of Beauvais (bk. XXXI, ch. 93), and others. But the first to usurp the name and dignity of *Chaliphas* was Abu Bakr, the successor of Mahomet, as George El-Macinus is the author. See the notes on page 328 of the *Alexiad*.

(71) *King of Palestine*. William of Tyre, bk. XX, ch. 20, 21, 22.

(72) *Silentium*. Nicetas in *Manuel*, bk. VII, no. 5, interprets this word in this place. It is agreed among most writers that it is used for a dissertation or collation (the French call it a *conférence*), and they use it in this sense in many places—Theophanes, pp. 342, 358; Leo Grammaticus in *Michael*, p. 448; Scylitzes, p. 399; Zonaras, p. 146; Nicetas Paphlagon in the *Life of Saint Ignatius the Patriarch*, p. 1618 (ed.); Landulphus Sagax, pp. 688, 720, 750, 768; Julianus Antecessor, Const. 56, 199. This constitution orders appeals in consultations not only to the highest magistrates but also to all senators, that the whole senate may hear the causes of the appeals, although "silentium" had been announced only without a convention of senators, for it seemed to be a convention for silence. ^D *Silentia* were conducted in the *silentiarium*, as it is called by Landulphus Sagax (bk. XVI) and Anastasius in the *Ecclesiastical History* (p. 66), or as Theophanes has it (p. 201), a word which the learned man incorrectly translates as the station of the silentiaries. *Silentium* is also called a place by the same Anastasius in the *Life of Stephen III* (pp. 303 in various readings): "He bestowed many gifts there both to the whole monastery, which is necessary for monks, and to the immovable places outside, which he established in the *silentium* of the blessed Peter the Apostle to this day." Where *silentium* seems to be what is otherwise called the secretarium of the church, for it is clear that the popes held ecclesiastical conventions and synods in secretarins. Nor do I think the *silentiarii* were called that from any other source, or that they were anything other than those who kept silence.

^A The emperor himself composed the speech, not as is commonly done, so that the emperor’s secretary might deliver it in his name. The inner meaning of the speech was profound, proceeding from a truly noble soul, for it was kept continuously supplied with ideas and packed with varied arguments. The diction itself was pure, easy, and of a simple character; to speak in a word, it was unadorned, yet it blossomed with a natural elegance that clearly revealed its author. For, as I have said often, he was not to be compared to any mortal in natural gifts. Indeed, I have often proposed problems from Aristotle to him, and I have found most of the things that had come into dispute solved by him spontaneously—a feat which, I believe, has been achieved by no one else among all men in the entire age. The same man also explained with a certain wonderful simplicity many things in the Scriptures that had remained unexplained until then, or at least had been interpreted not quite accurately; things which, it seemed to me, were not to be written down here by the laws of historical composition.

^B **Notes of Du Cange.** ... impose, as many suppose, or because they sat in those silences or discussions, which we reserve for discussion in another place. Certainly the rank of the *silentiarii* was so illustrious that in the Council of Chalcedon, act. 2, the epithet is assigned to them, and Pope Damasus in his Epistle to Acholius, in the Roman synod under Boniface, wrote these things: "Nothing can be added to the merit of my son Rusticius, since he has the prerogative of his office, because he is a *silentiarius* of our son Gratian Augustus." To dictate, indeed, is the same as *dictare* in Spartianus: "Sura having died, the intimacy of Trajan grew with him, chiefly on account of the orations which he had dictated for the emperor." For he was of the number of those who were in charge of letters. Thus, in the Council of Nicaea, Nicephorus *a secretis*, afterward patriarch of Constantinople, spoke in the name of the emperor, as is found in Ignatius the Deacon in the Life of the same Nicephorus, n. 10. ^C ... synod act. 2, in synod act. 3. Procopius in *Secret History*: The same, book III of the *Persian War*: Nicephorus of Constantinople in the *Breviary*: Ignatius the Deacon in the Life of the same holy Nicephorus, n. 7. The office itself is called by the same name in n. 9. It occurs everywhere in Byzantine writers, Theophylact, Simocatta, book VIII, ch. 1; Constantine *De administrando imperio*, ch. 46; Manasses, p. 159, ed. Maurusii, Menander Protector, etc. [P. 493]. Thus also Latin writers sometimes use the single word *asecretis* and *asecreta*. Elfric’s Glossary: *Asecretis* or counselor of the prince, a *geruna*. To the Saxons *geryne* is "mystery." Charlemagne, book IV, *De cultu imaginum*, ch. 9: "As soon as Leontius caught sight of the *asecreta*, etc." The Anonymous author, *On the Miracles of the holy abbot of Cluny, Hugh*: "That pilgrim therefore returns bearing the hope of pardon, if he could find Hugh, the *asecretis* of St. Peter." Paulus Diaconus, book V of the *Chronicon Casinense*, ch. 68: "After he is made *asecretis*, he appoints that logothete of the empire." Add Anastasius in the *Lives of the Popes*, pp. 53, 214; Hincmar of Rheims, epist. 3, ch. 16; the Life of the holy George of Amastris, ch. 5, n. 18; Baronius, year 811, n. 32. Our kings also had their own *a secretis*, as is evident from the Epistle of John VIII, pp. 87, and the diploma of King Robert in the year 1029, in *Probat. Histor. Montmorenciaceae*, p. 16. But he who was first among the palace secretaries is called by Nicetas Paphlagonian in the Life of the holy patriarch Ignatius of Constantinople, Choriates in *Andronicus*, book II, n. 7; and Pachymeres, book III, ch. 1, book V, ch. 19; Nicephorus in the *Breviary*, p. 172, ed.; Ignatius the Deacon in the Life of the holy patriarch Nicephorus of Constantinople, n. 59; *protosecretarius* in Anastasius in the *Collectanea*, p. 254; finally Corippus, book I, describes the *asecretam* thus: "Hence Demetrius, dealing with the sacred secrets of the palace."

**Notes of Cornelius Tollius.** (hh) He touches upon the same thing in Nicetas, book I: the emperor himself was naturally eloquent and adorned with an abundance of speech, not only composing letters elegantly, but also bringing forth teachings of religion and declaiming them in public. Curopalates and Meursius treat of the word in their Glossaries. Others interpret the discourse as being about fasting, as in this passage of Zonaras on Leo the Philosopher: "He could not hold the customary little discourse in the senate about fasting, which is called a *silentium*."

BOOK VII

^A 1. Now, those things which Emperor Manuel had accomplished upon the continent up to this point were as I have described. Next, it is my intention to record what befell him while he was engaged in the war in Asia. For Kilij Arslan, of whom I have spoken at length in the preceding chapters, having—as I said—received large sums of money from the Emperor, had become very wealthy and powerful. He stripped neighboring dynasts of their principalities and occupied their lands. Furthermore, he forcibly expelled his kinsman Sanisan, who ruled over the Galatian cities of Gangra and Ancyra, and seized them for himself. Since he was unable to put his brother to death, he compelled him to wander through all foreign lands as a stranger and an exile. Consequently, he did not return to the Emperor any of the ^B cities he had captured, nor did he intend to fulfill any of the other things he had previously sworn to do. Moreover, he behaved toward all men with arrogance and a certain ferocity, and he could in no way restrain the impulses of his soul. When these things came to the Emperor’s attention, he was angry both at his earlier deeds and at his insolence; but, being occupied with Western affairs, he was afraid to stir up Asia as well.

But after he saw that no further war remained for him in the West, as affairs there had been brought to a successful conclusion, he assembled a suitable army and determined to cross over into Asia. When Kilij Arslan learned of this, he sent envoys to the Emperor to say that he would do all that the Emperor commanded; he requested that Roman forces be sent into Asia ^C to take possession of whichever cities the Emperor chose, promising that he himself would be a partner and ally in that labor. The Emperor accepted these conditions and sent Alexios Petraliphas with an army numbering six thousand, providing him with money which he considered sufficient to bring this war to an end.

With this preparation, Alexios arrived in Asia. However, when Kilij Arslan perceived that the Roman army was approaching, he sent messengers to the cities he had not yet captured, intending to strike fear into them by means of the Emperor’s army. But since they were not capable of withstanding the force of either side, they reluctantly submitted to his command. Having thus gained possession of these towns, he wished to hand none of them over to the Romans any longer. The Emperor, inflamed with anger at this, decided to prepare for war immediately. But, being distracted by various affairs, he could not carry it out (for the spring had ^D already passed, which is most suitable for conducting wars)

^A during which time he thought he would oversee other matters advantageous to the Romans, and especially since it was his desire to restore cities as he wished. Furthermore, Amaseia, a city of the East, was at that time coming over to him—which it was likely that the Romans would take with great ease before the war had clearly broken out. For these reasons, he acted as follows: he sent Michael, who was surnamed Gabras—a man who, as I have often said, was advanced to the dignity of *sebastos* and was sufficiently experienced in military affairs—to Paphlagonia. He ordered him to take with him at once whatever forces were available and to collect others from the regions there, including those that were to be summoned from the Pontic cities of Trapezus and Oenoe, and thus to advance to Amaseia.

In the meantime, the following events occurred. John Cantacuzenos, of whom I have often made mention in the previous books, had a son, Manuel, conspicuous in appearance and in bodily strength second to none of his contemporaries. ^B The Emperor, although he sought to dissuade him as much as possible from his initial intentions, which were said to be wicked, was unable to do so. Since he persisted stubbornly in his designs, the Prince went further and cast him into prison. But while he was being led into custody—a thing which we see happening not rarely by those who hold office (for they are accustomed to do most things by which they think they will gain the favor of the Prince)—they blinded the youth against the will of the Emperor. When the Emperor heard of this, he was indeed indignant and testified that the deed had been done without his knowledge; yet he bore the grief arising from it, since he had no means by which he might justly punish the perpetrators.

^C 2. But, as we were saying, he sent Michael to Amaseia. He, having crossed the strait of Damalis, proceeded straight to Melangia. There, having gathered a sufficient army from Bithynia and the regions of the Rhyndacus, he set out for the plains of Dorylaeum, in order to provision the Roman garrisons and fortresses established there with necessary supplies while the peace truce still held, and to give even more courage to those who were hostile to the Sultan, and finally to rebuild Dorylaeum. This Dorylaeum was once a city; it was great, if any in Asia were, and worthy of much note. ^D For a soft breeze blows over this tract, and the surrounding plains lie spread out, reaching the greatest degree of smoothness and appearing of an indescribable beauty; they are so rich and fertile that they produce the best grass for pasture and an abundant harvest. To these things, a river carries its stream through the region, both pleasant to look upon and sweet to the taste. Such a multitude of fish swims in it that, however great a quantity is caught by the inhabitants, it still remains in the greatest abundance. Here, once, for that Melissenus who was distinguished by the dignity of Caesar, [(75)] splendid houses were built, and the villages were famous for the crowd of people, and there were natural hot springs, and colonnades and bathing-places, and whatever might bring delight to men; these the place yielded in abundance.

^A But the Persians, at the time when their incursion against the Romans was at its height, had leveled the city to the ground, denuded it entirely of inhabitants, and had laid waste everything round about it in such a way that they left almost no trace of its former splendor. Such was the state of the city then. At that time, about two thousand Persian nomads were, as was their custom, encamped around it. The Emperor drove them from there, and having built a rampart not far from the city, he busied himself with the construction of walls. The city began to be raised with great speed, its plan being much different inside from what it had been before, and it was located a little farther away from the hill which had formerly served as its acropolis, with walls circled round at an equal distance on all sides. The Emperor, going out with a few men each day, killed many of the more prominent Persians, partly through clandestine ambushes and partly in open warfare. ^B For they did not cease from constantly breaking in from the higher ground, in order to hinder the building of the city. At that time also, the Emperor sent Sanisan, whom I have already mentioned, and who had fled to him some years before, to the regions adjacent to upper Iconium, supplying him with money. He was accompanied by an army that was to march into Paphlagonia, with him as its leader. But he had not proceeded very far when Persian forces, emerging from ambush, killed many of the Romans and secured a large amount of spoils. Sanisan, having with difficulty escaped from there, came to the Emperor in fear; to such an extent did fortune always oppose him whenever he undertook an enterprise.

While these things were happening at Dorylaeum, Michael Gabras arrived at Amaseia with an army. Although he was invited by the townspeople to enter the city immediately, he dared not do so at all, because forces sent by Clitziesthlan for that very purpose had pitched camp not far from the city; for he feared greatly that the townspeople were plotting treachery against him. ^C But they, on that account, sent hostages to him and, what is more, delivered the acropolis into the hands of the Romans. Yet he, seized by some I know not what fear, kept resorting to various pretexts time and again, until the townspeople, fearing that, while the Romans were hesitating day after day, the city might be captured by Clitziesthlan, and that they would incur the eternal wrath of their future master, surrendered it without their governor’s knowledge. Michael had already moved his camp from there and had returned to Roman territory, having no regard for the Romans who were in the acropolis, nor for anyone else. ^D And so the affairs of the city of Amaseia reached this conclusion. But the Emperor, still occupied at Dorylaeum, when he learned of this, sent Thomas the eunuch to Clitziesthlan, and insisted that Amaseia be restored to him, and reproached him for his treachery, adding threats that if he did not cease from dealing with the Romans in such an injurious manner, he would soon experience the justice that avenges itself. Who this Thomas was, I shall now relate. He was born on the island of Lesbos, of a wholly obscure family, and since he had been instructed in no laudable way of life, he set out for Byzantium and practiced the art of bloodletting, and from there began to make his fortune. But there is nothing in the nature of things that is hidden

from Fortune, if one is willing to serve her. For Thomas, although he had reached the depths of servile labor, became, thanks to this very trade, as great a man in the palace as any; and having amassed huge sums of money in a short time, he departed for Palestine with them some years later. But when nothing went according to his wishes there, he returned once more to the emperor; having obtained pardon at first, he ran afoul of him again, and for that very reason was cast into the palace prison, which is commonly called the Elephantine 76, and there he ended his days. But these things belong to a later time. ^A At that time, however, as we have said, having arrived at the sultan's court, since he was unable to accomplish any of the things for which he had come, he returned to the emperor with his mission unfulfilled, at which point he was very nearly killed by the Persians who were lying in wait along the road.

^B The emperor, having rebuilt the city and surrounded it with a trench, and having given dwellings there to as many Romans as possible, left behind a sufficient garrison and withdrew, setting up camp in the regions around the Rhyndacus; and after resting his army for a short time, he moved on from there. Observing that only a few were following his standards (for most of the battalions had departed for home, without his knowledge, even though he had—as it was said—often commanded beforehand that no one should leave the camp), he sent a certain Michael, a barbarian by birth (formerly named Isach, and holding the first rank among his household staff), to inflict punishment upon those who had deserted their posts. He himself, traveling with a few men through the plains of Lampes, restored a certain town built near the springs of the Maeander, called Sublaeum, which had collapsed from age. There the emperor began to engage the enemy in a manner quite different from his usual custom. For like fire or a flood, he was ignited and carried along, with nothing able to withstand him. While these things were being done by the prince, Michael, whom I have just mentioned, as one who had long been hostile to the Romans, seized the opportunity of the emperor’s anger and, without any prior inquiry, threw everyone he encountered flat upon the ground, and by thrusting iron into their eyes, left the wretches blinded without their even knowing why they were suffering these things; this was true even of those who had never engaged in military service, but were peasants, merchants, or others of that sort. ^C And he attacked others as well, whom he similarly mutilated in their limbs in a shameful manner. But the emperor, who had by now returned to Byzantium after fortifying the town, upon learning of these deeds, recalled him, and he was very nearly punished with nearly the same penalties he had inflicted upon the others. However, on the condition that he would never again dare such things against the Romans, he forgiven his crime; yet not long after, divine justice stripped him of his life for so many crimes, and subjected his children to various calamities. At that same time, the prince also called Galram to judgment, and the Galra...

Galram ^A in as much as he then held the upper hand (for it had been decreed that he might inflict whatever punishments he chose according to his own judgment) had him shackled in irons and confined for a time among the palace guards; later, however, he summoned him back and honored him with his former rank as before.

Clitziesthlan, meanwhile, when he learned of the emperor’s intent—for the events that had occurred at Dorylaeum weighed heavily upon his spirit—sent one of his most illustrious men, named Gabras, to Byzantium, and beseeched the prince that, by receiving whatever towns he wished, he might put aside the indignation he had conceived against him. But the emperor rejected the embassy and dismissed him, and commissioning the arrival of vast forces from ^B Serbia and Hungary, he prepared for war with greater care. And so that there would be no scarcity of provisions for either horses or men in any way for the requirements of life, he ordered an uncounted multitude of oxen and more than three thousand wagons to be driven from the regions throughout Thrace.

The emperor then, with the arrival of spring, crossed over into Asia and, as was his custom, assembled his forces along the Rhyndacus. [P. 175] But the Hun [Hungarian] allies and the Serbians, who happen to be subjects of the Romans, not arriving at the required time, caused the campaigning to drag on into summer, by which fact the situation was most severely compromised; for if there is any other thing of moment in the works of war, time is certainly that which must be heeded. ^C Thus the emperor set his march through Laodicea and the lands adjacent to the Maeander, with the intention of laying siege to Iconium with his full force. And when Neocaesarea also defected to him, he ordered Andronicus Batatzes, the son of his sister, to set out against it with an army through the regions of Paphlagonia. However, before departing from Byzantium, he had sent a fleet of one hundred and fifty ships against Egypt, as he had determined to attack Clitziesthlan with his entire force. Hence, as there were not such forces available as would suffice for the expedition to Egypt....

SOME GENEALOGICAL INDICES FOR A FULLER KNOWLEDGE OF COMNENIAN HISTORY.

We provide more extensive family trees in the *Familiæ Orientalis*.

APPENDIX TO JOANNES CINNAMUS.

PEDIGREE OF THE DUCAS FAMILY.

N. DUCAS, perhaps Pantherius, of whom Zonaras makes mention.

Andronicus Ducas flourished under Michael, son of Theophilus, in the year of Christ 841.

Andronicus Ducas was sent by Leo the Philosopher, Emperor, against the Arabs.

N. Ducas.

Constantine Ducas, aspiring to tyranny, was cast into the hippodrome, in the reign of Constantine Porphyrogenitus.

Michael Ducas, fallen with the Emperor. Wife: daughter of N. Gregoras Iberitzes, *magister*.

Gregoras Ducas, slain with his father.

Stephanus Ducas, made a eunuch after his father's slaughter.

[Together] with his cousin Constantine.

Nicolaus Ducas perished in the conflict against the Bulgarians, in the reign of Constantine Porphyrogenitus.

Andronicus Ducas, *Patricius*, byname "the Lydian," embraced the rebellion of Bardas in the year 976, and died shortly after. It is not entirely certain who was the father of Andronicus.

Constantinus Ducas, having attained the empire on November 25, 1059, died in the month of May, 1067. Wife: Eudocia, daughter of Constantine Dalassenus.

Michael Ducas, known as Parapinakios, Emperor. Wife: Maria, daughter of the King of the Iberians.

Christophorus Ducas.

Bardas Ducas, known as Mongus, *magnus dux* (Grand Duke) in war under the Emperor Basil.

Andronicus Ducas.

Constantinus Ducas, Porphyrogenitus.

Anna Ducaina.

Theodora Ducaina.

Zoe Ducaina, wife of Adrianus Comnenus.

Constantinus Ducas, Porphyrogennetos, to whom was first betrothed as wife Helena, daughter of Robert Guiscard, and afterward Anna Comnena, daughter of the Emperor Alexius.

Michael Ducas, *protostrator*.

Joannes Ducas, brother of the Emperor Constantine, by whom he was named Caesar. Wife: Maria, a noble Bulgarian.

Andronicus Ducas, *proedrus*, captured the Emperor Romanus Diogenes by treachery and blinded him. Wife: granddaughter of Samuel, King of Bulgaria, through [his son] Trojanus.

Joannes Ducas, *magnus dux* (Grand Duke).

Irene Ducaina, wife of the Emperor Alexius.

Constantinus Ducas, *proedrus* and *protostrator*.

Anna Ducaina, wife of Georgius Palaeologus.

Theodora Ducaina, nun.

APPENDIX TO JOANNES CINNAMUS. FIRST INDEX OF THE COMNENIAN GENEALOGY.

N. COMNENUS, originating from Paphlagonia. Manuel Comnenus, surnamed Eroticus, Grand Domestic of the East under Basilius. Isaacius Comnenus, made Emperor 1 September, A.D. 1057. Wife, Ecatherina, daughter of Samuel, King of Bulgaria. Manuel Comnenus. Nicephorus Comnenus, *protospatharius*, appointed prefect of Aspracania by Basilius. Joannes Comnenus, *curopalata*, then Grand Domestic, having been so named by his brother Isaacius. Wife, Anna, daughter of Alexius Charon, prefect of Italy, of the Dalasseni family. Maria Comnena. Manuel Comnenus, *protostrator* and *curopalata*. Isaacius Comnenus, *sebastocrator*. Wife, Irene, daughter of the Prince of Alania. Alexius Comnenus, Emperor. Wife, Irene Ducaina. Adrianus Comnenus, *protosebastus* and Grand Domestic. Wife, Zoe Ducaina. N. Comnena, married to a relative of Botaniates. Joannes Comnenus, Duke of Dyrrhachium. Alexius Comnenus, likewise Duke of Dyrrhachium. Alexius Comnenus, Emperor, so named by his father while he was still alive. N. Comnena, married to Alexius Axuchus. Constantinus, Duke of Berrhoe. N. Comnena, betrothed to Gregorius Gabras. Andronicus Comnenus, *sebastocrator*. Wife, Irene. Joannes Comnenus, *protosebastus*. Alexius Comnenus. Wife, Irene, daughter of the Grand Domestic. Maria Comnena, married to Amalric, King of Jerusalem; and other daughters. N. N. Stephanus Comnenus, *megas drungarius*. Wife, Eudocia, daughter of the Grand Domestic. Joannes Comnenus, Emperor, died in the year 1143. Wife, Irene, daughter of Ladislaus, King of Hungary. Isaacius Comnenus, *sebastocrator*. Theodora, wife of Baldwin III, King of Jerusalem. Maria, wife of Stephanus of Hungary. N., wife of Constantinus Macroducas. N., mother of Isaacius Comnenus, Emperor of Cyprus. Eudocia, married to William, Lord of Montpellier. Alexius Comnenus, *protosebastus* and *protovestiarius*. Stephanus Comnenus, *megas drungarius*. Wife, Eudocia, daughter of the Grand Domestic. Maria, married 1. to Theodorus Dasiotes; 2. to Joannes Cantacuzenus. Theodora. Eudocia, married twice. Nicephorus Comnenus, *sebastus* and *megas drungarius*. N. Comnena, wife of Gregorius Pacurianus. Andronicus Comnenus, *sebastocrator*. Isaacius Comnenus V, indiction 2. Manuel Comnenus, Emperor. 1st wife, Irene the German. 2nd wife, Maria of Antioch. N. Comnena, wife of Michael Doceanus, *protospatharius*. Theodorus Doceanus. Maria Comnena, wife of Michael Taronites. Eudocia, wife of Nicephorus Melissenus, Caesar. Theodora, married to Leo Diogenes. Anna Comnena, married to Nicephorus Bryennius, Caesar. Maria, married to Nicephorus Catacalon. Eudocia, wife of Constantinus Iasites. Theodora, married to Constantinus Angelus. Maria Comnena, married to Joannes Rogerius, Caesar. N. Comnena, wife of Stephanus Contostephanus. N. Comnena, married to Theodorus Vatatzes. Maria Comnena, wife of Rainer of Montferrat. N., infant daughter, deceased. Alexius Comnenus, Emperor. Wife, Agnes of France. Alexius Comnenus, *sebastocrator*, bastard.

SECOND INDEX OF THE COMNENIAN GENEALOGY

ALEXIUS COMNENUS, Emperor. Joannes Comnenus, Emperor. Isaacius Comnenus, *Caesar* and *sebastocrator*. Andronicus Comnenus, Emperor. 1st wife, N…; 2nd wife, Philippa of Antioch; 3rd wife, Agnes of France. ^A N. Comnenus. Ertrucules, son of Joannes, as some hold. 1. Manuel Comnenus, *sebastocrator*. Isaacius Comnenus, who, while Isaacius Angelus was ruling, affected the tyranny. 1. Joannes Comnenus, born circa A.D. 1156, died A.D. 1186. 1. Maria Comnena. Alexius Comnenus, bastard. Irene Comnena, bastard daughter of Emperor Manuel, married to Alexius Comnenus, bastard. Othman, from whom the rest of the Turkish Sultans. Alexius Comnenus, surnamed the Great, prince of Colchis and Trebizond. David Comnenus, prince of Paphlagonia. Joannes Comnenus took as wife the daughter of Cameron, Sultan of Iconium. N. Comnenus, the Trapezuntine, prince. ^B N. Comnenus, the Trapezuntine, prince.

Joannes Comnenus first usurped the imperial title, while Michael Comnenus was ruling; died circa A.D. 1295. Wife, Eudocia, daughter of the same Michael. Alexius Comnenus, Trapezuntine Emperor, born A.D. 1282, waged war with the Genoese in A.D. 1303. He married a noble Iberian woman. N. Comnenus, after the passing of his father, went to Constantinople with his mother. ^C Basilius Comnenus, Trapezuntine Emperor, 1320 and 1329. Wife, Eudocia, the bastard daughter of Emperor Andronicus Palaeologus the younger. 1. Basilius Comnenus, surnamed the Younger, Trapezuntine Emperor, died A.D. 1339. Wife, Irene, daughter of the same Andronicus by Anna of Savoy. N. Comnenus, Trapezuntine Emperor. N. Comnenus. 1. Georgius Comnenus, *protovestiarius*. Alexius Comnenus, Trapezuntine Emperor, put to death by his son Joannes. Joannes Comnenus, Trapezuntine Emperor. 1. N. N., the bastard sons of Basilius by Irene, his concubine. Eudocia Comnena married 1. Zetin, a Turkish satrap; 2. Joannes Palaeologus, Constantinopolitan Emperor. David Comnenus, Trapezuntine Emperor. Wife, Helena Cantacuzena. Maria Comnena married to Emperor Joannes Palaeologus. N. Comnena married to the Persian-Turk prince Carailucus. Alexius Comnenus. Alexander Comnenus, Trapezuntine Emperor. N. Comnenus. Ecatherina married to Usumchasanus. ^D N., wife of Georgius, Despot of Serbia. Seven sons killed by Mahomet. Georgius Comnenus. Anna married to Zaganus.

GENEALOGICAL INDEX OF THE BRYENNIAN FAMILY.

NICEPHORUS BRYENNIUS, a nobleman of Adrianople, ethnarch, prefect of Cappadocia, proclaimed emperor by the soldiers in the year 1087.

N. Bryennius, curopalates. He defeated the Scythians many times; he took as his wife Anna, commonly called the Curopalatissa.

Nicephorus Bryennius, Duke of Bulgaria and Dyrrhachium, magister and proedrus; while he sought the empire, he was captured and blinded in the year 1078.

Nicephorus Bryennius, Patrician, captured in the same battle as his father, and likewise blinded.

Nicephorus Bryennius, proclaimed Caesar and panhypersebastus by Alexius, took as his wife Anna, the daughter of the same Alexius.

Joannes Bryennius, magister, curopalates, and megas domestikos by appointment of his brother; killed by the Varangians.

N. Bryennius, to whom is given as a wife the sister of N. Tarchaniotes by his father.

N. Bryennia married Marianus Maurocatacalon.

Alexius, called Comnenus on account of his maternal lineage, megas doux, or prefect of the fleet, in the year 1154; his wife was the daughter of the prince of Abasgia.

Andronicus Comnenus, prefect of Thessalonica, while he sought the empire, was blinded by the Emperor Isaacius Angelus in the year 1189.

N. Comnenus, likewise blinded like his father.

Of the other Bryennii we treat sufficiently in the Comnenian pedigree, in the Eulogy of Anna Caesaris, daughter of the Emperor Alexius.

GENEALOGICAL TABLE OF THE DUKES OF APULIA AND THE KINGS OF SICILY OF THE NORMAN FAMILY

TANCRED de Altavilla, a Norman noble, lived under Richard II, Duke of Normandy. 1st wife N., 2nd wife Ermesendis.

1. Drogo, Count of Apulia after his brother, died in the year 1045. 1. Humphrey, Count of Apulia after his brother, died in the year 1050. 1. Geoffrey, Count of Capitanata. 1. Serlo, remained in Normandy. Killed in Sicily A. 1070. 3. Robert Guiscard, Duke of Apulia, died A. 1085. 1st wife Alberada. 2nd wife Sigelgaita. See notes to Anna. 2. William, Count of the Principality A. 1006. See notes to page 588. 2. Mauger, Count of Capitanata. Albereda, N. wife of the Count of Conversano, N. wife of the Count of Capua, N. wife of Richard, Count of Conversano. Hermann, Humbert, Roger, Count of Sicily v. ind. 2. N. mother of Robert Crispin. N. wife of the Count of Boniface, Marquis. Geoffrey, Count of Conversano 1067, 1100. Tancred, Prince of Antioch. William, of the Principality, mother of Roger, Prince of Antioch.

Ricardus, seneschal of Apulia. Wife, Albenensa, [also known as] Al-Irada. Gertrude, wife of Arduinus, an Italian noble. Humphrey, referred to by Scylitzes as of Alexander Griffin. See notes to Joan. Cinnamus. Robert, Count of Loritelli. Geoffrey de Altavilla. William de Altavilla 1098. Humphrey, brother of Abelard by the same mother. Robert, see notes to the Alexiad, p. 399. Robert, Count of Aversa. Robert, Richard, Ranulf. Count of the principality A. 1096. Tancred. William, Count of Conversano. Sibylla, wife of William, Duke of Normandy. Geoffrey de Altavilla 1129. Henricus. Robert. Roger, Prince of the Principality. See notes p. 394. William, Prince of Antioch. Stephanie, Abbess of Saint Mary Major in Jerusalem. Roger, Count of Sicily. Helen, betrothed to Constantine Ducas Porphyrogenitus. Guido, died A. 1107. Sibylla, wife of Ebal, Count of Roucy. N., married Hugh, Count of Cenomans. Mabilia, married William de Grentemesnil. Mathilda, married Raymond-Berengar, Count of Barcelona. Almericus, Viscount of Narbonne. William the Bastard, founder of the Gesualda family, as some believe. William de Grentemesnil. Robert de Grentemesnil.

Bohemund, Prince of Antioch, died A. 1111. Wife: Constantia, daughter of Philip, King of France. Roger, Duke of Apulia, died 27 April, A. 1111. Wife: Adela, daughter of Robert Frisius, Count of Flanders. Bohemund, Prince of Antioch, died A. 1148, an infant. Wife: Aleidis, daughter of Baldwin II, King of Jerusalem. William, Duke of Apulia, died A. 1125. Ludovicius, died A. 1196.

Constantia, Princess of Antioch, married 1st: Raymond, son of William IX, Duke of Aquitaine. 2nd: Raynald of Châtillon.

Bohemund, Prince of Antioch. Baldwin, died A. 1174. Philippa, married 1st: Andronicus Comnenus, Emperor. 2nd: Humphrey of Toron. Maria, wife of Manuel Comnenus, Emperor. Agnes, married Béla, King of Hungary. Alix, married the Marquis d'Este.

STEMMATA SICULI. PART TWO.

1. Tancred of Hauteville. 1st wife N. 2nd wife Fredesendis.

1. William, nicknamed Iron Arm. 1. Geoffrey. 1. Mathilda, married Rainulf, Count of Saint-Gilles. 1. Drogo, etc. 1. Emma, married Robert III, Count of Auvergne. 1. Busilla, wife of the King of Hungary (Calamanus). 2. Robert Guiscard. 3. Roger, the last of the sons of Tancred by his second wife, Count of Sicily, died A.D. 1101. 1st wife Judith, also called Delicia. 2nd Eremburgis. [He married] Adelais of Montferrat. 1. Constantia, called by others Fola, wife of Conrad, King of Italy. 2. Simon, died an infant. 1. N., wife of Hugo of Gersay.

Roger, King of Sicily, died A.D. 1154. 1st wife N., daughter of Peter Leo. 2nd Airolda, daughter of the Count of Marsi. 5. Alberia, daughter of Alfonso, King of Castile. 4. Sibylla, daughter of Hugh, Duke of Burgundy. 5. Beatrix, of Guiterus, Count of Regitestensis.

N., wife of Robert of Burgundy. Robert, Count of Avellino. 3. Mathilda, married Rainulf, Count of Avellino. 2. N., wife of Robert of Basseville. 2. Jordan, who died A.D. 1093; wife N., sister of Countess Adelais. Adelais, wife of Geoffrey of Aquila, Count of Fondi. Robert of Basseville, Count of Loretello. Roger, Count of Avellino, father of the other Count Roger, whom Falcandus mentions. Reynald, Count of Avellino; Robert; Drogo; wife Fredesendis.

3. Roger, Duke of Apulia, died A.D. 1149. Wife, or as others will have it, concubine, Countess of Lecce. 3. Alfonso, Prince of Capua, died while his father was still living, childless. 3. Tancred, Prince of Bari, died without issue. 3. Henry. 3. William, died at age 20. 3. William, King of Sicily, died in the month of May, A.D. 1166; wife, Margaret, daughter of Garcia, King of Navarre. 3. N., wife of Adam, Count of Gravina. 3. Constantia, married Henry the Emperor. Frederick II, Emperor, King of Sicily. William II, King of Sicily, died A.D. 1189; wife, Joanna, daughter of Henry II, King of England. Roger, Duke of Apulia; wife Elisabeth, daughter of Theobald, Count of Champagne.

Tancred, King of Sicily, died A.D. 1195; wife Sibylla, sister of the Count of Acerra. Roger, King of Sicily, crowned by his father, died while his father was still living; wife Irene, daughter of Isaac, Emperor of Constantinople. William, King of Sicily, crowned by his mother, captured by Emperor Henry, and thrown into prison, died without issue. Henry, Prince of Capua, childless. Robert. Clementia, natural daughter, married Hugh of Molise, Count of Molise. 2. Malmo Bonello. H., natural daughter, married Henry, or Roderic, Count of Montescaglioso; Margaret, Queen of Sicily and her sister. Alberia, married 1st to Walter, Count of Brienne, 2nd to James, Count of Tricarico, 3rd to Tigrinus, Count Palatine. Constantia, married Peter Zano of Venice. Madonia.

1. Walter, Count of Brienne and Jaffa. 2. Simon, Count of Tricarico. Adeletta.

GENEALOGICAL TABLE OF THE SULTANS OF THE TURKS

DEGACUS, a noble Turk, a man of eminent spirit. Salgeucus, Aithono Sadoc, Tyrio Seluc, deserts from the King of the Turks. He dies at 107 years of age. Michael, having refused to serve in the army with Sultan Muhammad, was cast by him into prison. ^A Thence the rest of the Turks, having seized the opportunity to rebel, capture many towns in Chorosan. N., brother of Michael. Cutlumus, from whom the Sultans of Iconium originated. See index following. Abutalib Mahomet, surnamed Tegralbec, called Tangrolipes by Greek writers, and Degrissa by Aithono; after the destruction of Sultan Masgud, he is acclamed Sultan of the Turks in the year of Christ 1057. He dies in 1063. David. Siruses, perhaps the same who is called Aspam by Scylitzes, page 475, where he is called the brother of Tangrolipecis. Ibrahim, when he had rebelled against his brother, was defeated by him and put to death in the year 1058. See note on Bryennius. Chediga Caimbemrilla, wife of the Caliph of Baghdad. Guedadoldufus Alba Arselanus, called Beltet and Belsetof by Tyrius, and Aspasalem by Aithono, and Asan and Axan by the Greeks, Sultan of the Turks, destroys and captures the Emperor Romanus Diogenes. He is killed in the year 1071. Marubilus, while he attempts to seize the sultanic dignity after the death of his brother, is destroyed and captured by his nephew Malcosa in the year 1073. Asan, listed as Tangrolipecis's nephew [adelphous] by Scylitzes, pages 770, 771, 774. He perished in battle. Darsianus, by others called Cassianus and Asan, Sultan of Antioch, said by Tyrius to be the nephew of Belsetof. Nisus takes up arms against his brother in the year 1084. Sansedonias. Buldagis. N. daughter. Gelaloldulus Mascosas, or Melecsihai, called Melecta or Molecsa by Aithono, Sultan of the Turks, dies in the year 1097, aged 37. He is called Tapares by Anna. See notes. Muhamed or Mechemd, having been inaugurated Sultan at age 5, with Berchana ruling in his stead. He is driven out by his brother Belciarocus. Belciarocus, having expelled his brother Mechemud, seizes the sultanate. He dies in the year 1104, aged 34. Mahometus Guiatoldinus destroys Belciarocus and is proclaimed Sultan. He dies in the year 1117. Mechamud succeeds his father in the sultanate. Tageoldulus Nisus invades Damascus after expelling Isacus, and while he aspires to the sultanic dignity after the death of his brother, he is killed in the year 1097 by his nephew Belciarocus. He is called Tutuses by Anna. See notes. Sanger or Sangiar, brother of Muhamedi. Redouan, surnamed Phacherolmelic, Sultan of Aleppo, dies in the year 1113. He is called Ginaholdes by Fulcherius (book 2, ch. 1) from his father's name. Tageoldulus, Sultan of Aleppo, surnamed Acharsis or Abarasis, is killed in the year 1114. Sansolmalucus Degacus seizes Damascus from his brother in the year 1095. He captures Emesa in the year 1102. He dies in the year 1103. See note on Anna, page 519. Sultan-Sa, Sultan of Aleppo after his brother, in the year 1114. N. daughter married to a noble Arab. See Anna, page [not]. N. daughter married to Balado, Sultan of Aleppo. See Ordericus Vitalis, pages 825, 826, 827. Gelalodulus, 14 years old, is acclaimed Sultan after his father's death: not long after, he is brought into line by Mahometus. Ismael. Anna, page 324. Mechamud succeeds his father in the sultanate.

GENEALOGY OF THE ICONIAN SULTANS

SALGEUCUS. Michael. . Tegrabecus, Sultan of the Turks: concerning whom see the genealogy of the Turkish Sultans. N., brother of Michael. Cutlumus, El Maciun Ptolemy. See the notes to Bryennius, p. 106. Solyman, Sultan of Nicaea, intercepts Antioch. He is slain by Tageoldulus, Sultan of Damascus. Year 1085. Cliziesthlan, eldest son of Solyman, first Sultan of Nicaea, then of Lycaonia, Cappadocia or Iconium. Solyman the younger, Sultan of Nicaea, in whose reign the Gauls take Nicaea. His wife: N., daughter of Tzacha. Masour. N. N. N., three sons. N., daughter wed to Tzacha, toparch of Smyrna, etc. Anna, p. 251. Tzacha, lord of Smyrna. Anna, p. 521. Dalimannus, brother of Solyman. Ordericus, p. 797. Melas, wife of Roger, Prince of Antioch. Marciban is defeated in a duel by Boemundus. Ordericus. N., another son. Cliziesthlan II, Sultan of Iconium, nicknamed Saison, is slain by his brother Masutus. See Anna. Masutus, having slain his brother, becomes Sultan and makes war upon the emperors John and Manuel. Cliziesthlan III, Sultan of Iconium, gains possession of the toparchies of his brothers, after they are slain. He destroys the Emperor Manuel, A. 1176. He dies at age 70; his wife was a Christian. Caichosroes, named Jathatines by Acropolita, Sultan of Lycaonia and Pamphylia; he destroys the Emperor Frederick I, A. 1199. Driven from Iconium by his brother Rucratinus, he comes to Constantinople; having been restored after this by the Emperor Theodore Lascaris, he is slain in battle. C. A. 1210. Melec. Cutepez. N. N., two sons born from the sister of Constantinople. Sanisan, lord of Gangra and Ancyra. N., daughter wed to Jagupazanus, toparch of Amasia, Ancyra, and Cappadocia. Masut, Sultan of Amasia, Dorylaeum, and the regions of Pontus. N., daughter wed to Dadon, lord of Caesarea and Sebaste. Coppations, Sultan of Melitene; with his death, his brother Rucratinus occupies Melitene. Camero, wed to John Comnenus, son of the Emperor Andronicus. See the Comnenian genealogy. Rucratinus, Sultan of Aminsus, having brought his brother Caichosroes into submission, invades the principality of Iconium. C. A. 1200. He dies C. A. 1201. It is uncertain which of these [two], unless it be one and the same person, which I believe, succeeded his father who died in the year 1219, as James of Vitry and Vincent of Beauvais state. Others testify that he had the daughter of Saladin as his wife. Raconadius succeeds his father; he makes a treaty with the Tartars. Gainzadinus, called Japhatinus by Pachymeres and Jathatines by Acropolita, is gifted the principality of Iconium by his dying father. The Tartars invade Asia during his reign; they destroy the Sultan himself and put him to flight in A. 1242, 1245. He dies at Attalia in A. 1245. Azadinus, who is called Azatines by Gregoras, having fled to the Greeks, was detained by them; he escapes with the aid of the Turks and soon dies. Aladinus, born of the queen of Georgia. Melecus, having escaped from Thrace together with his parent, and with him being dead, having gained Iconium, is slain by rebelling Turks; after his slaughter, many tyrannies arose in Asia, one of which gave start and origin to the Ottoman line.

DESCRIPTION OF THE CITY OF CONSTANTINOPLE

From the manuscript work of Christopher de Bondelmontibus, a Florentine, which he wrote concerning the islands of the Archipelago, and sent to Rome to cardinal Jordan of the city of Rhodes, in the year of Christ 1422, and thus before the city was taken by the Turks. It exists in the library of the most Christian king, codex 1214.

I arrive at the wounded city of Constantinople, and since we have arrived here, although it is not an island, we shall discuss it briefly, so that one may come to an understanding of those who mourn. ^A It is therefore called after Constantine, who, having joined it to Byzantium, greatly expanded it. But afterwards, as the centuries passed, the emperors adorned it with churches, and especially Justinian, who established laws and built Saint Sophia with the palace and the prodromos. ^B It remains, therefore, triangular, and is 18 miles in circumference. First, therefore, from the Corner of St. Demetrius to the corner of Blachernae is 6 miles, in which space ^C as far as the Golden Gate, [is] five miles with a most fortified wall and outwork, and with a moat of rising waters, and 96 towers on the higher wall. Thence again to St. Demetrius [is] 7 miles and 188 towers, in which walls there is an area on the outside and formerly the port of Ulanga, where the Greeks, so it is said, deceitfully, out of envy or fear, killed 50,000 Franks with flour mixed with lime, whose countless bones bear witness to this day. And near this place remains Condoscali, or Arsena. And beyond there was

above the very ample palace of Justinian ^A with the Church called Enea, most noble, and decorated with mosaics, and with a pavement constructed with marvelous ingenuity. And there, on high and above the sea, was the Speculum of immeasurable size, viewed from a great distance, and all its marble buildings are seen prostrate in the sea, near the portal called the Emperor's. Also from the immense palace ^B as far as Saint Sophia, there was a way of a thousand columns (of pairs) through which the master used to go, where there were eight hundred clerics around the house; and they garnered fruit from the whole island of Trinacria, as it is said. But now only the vault of the church remains in it, because everything has been disrupted and has come to nothing, from which down to the pavement are 144 cubits, and from the pavement to the level of the foundation, because the whole is widened by a cistern of excellent water of 17 cubits. Moreover, through the church it is 120 cubits from angle to angle, because it is circular above. ^C Who could enumerate the ornaments of the marble and porphyry, with mosaic lines, for on whichever side I wish to begin, I vanish? Therefore, outside the church to the south, a column of seven hundred cubits high is seen in the square, on the top of which Justinian is held, an equestrian statue of bronze, and holding a golden orb with his left hand, he threatens toward the west with his right. And near this, six marble columns are seen erected in a row. Truly beyond these, to the south, one descends to the hippodromus, which in Latin is called the horse-course. In this space, however, the nobles contended ^D before the people, and duels and tournaments were prepared, 690 also in magnitude of cubits and 134 in width. And above the columns it is built, in which a very ample cistern of excellent water contains the whole aforementioned space. At the head, indeed, of the hippodrome were 24 very high columns, where the emperor sat with the princes. From one part, however, and the other of the hippodrome, the seats were arranged in steps in the [index: entries preserved]

way of its own walls, where the people, while seated, could comprehend the whole spectacle. Through the middle of the aforementioned course, in length, there is a low wall. And first, towards Saint Sophia, is the church 50, with a magnificent wall and an ornament of countless windows, where the ladies and young women with their matrons used to watch their beloveds; there, at the beginning of the said wall, the great bath 31 was erected, in which the wounded were placed. Then the Agulia 32, made of a single stone, is seen erected on high on four bronze cubes to 24 cubits; and at its base, on the side, it sounds thus: Difficult once to obey serene masters, And commanded to bear the palm to extinguished tyrants, All things yield to Theodosius and his perennial offspring, By thirty days thus conquered and subdued, Under judge Proclus I am raised to the upper airs. Beyond this stone we see three bronze serpents 35 in one, with open mouths, from which, it is said, water, wine, and milk used to come forth on the days of the festivities 34. Beyond this, on another of the many stones, the Agulia 35, finished at 58 cubits, is erected. Finally, beyond this, at the end of this low wall 56, four low marble columns are seen erected, in which the empress was preeminent at the festival. Theodosius 57 made all these things, and many other praiseworthy things throughout the city. Even today infinite columns are found, of which five are indeed seen to be marble, and for each one is elevated to 60 cubits in height: first the column called Justinian's 58; second, of the cross 39, in which place four porphyry ones are seen erected. Upon which, indeed, four gilded bronze horses 40 were placed, and the Venetians carried them away from Venice to Saint Mark's, with the columns remaining. And the third and fourth of the columns are placed as if in the middle of the city 42, on which are recognized the deeds of the emperors sculpted all around. But in the church of the Holy Apostles 43, there is a fifth column with a bronze angel 44 and Constantine with bent knee, and the church is now ruined, and all the very vast porphyry tombs of the emperors 45 are seen to be magnificent, along with the immense one of Constantine 48, and there

is a column where Christ (47) was bound and scourged. A vine grows for every three or four in it. The cistern of St. John of Petra (56), the cistern of the Pantepoptes (57), the cistern of the Pantocrator, the cistern (58) of the Apostles, and the cistern of Mahumet (59), in which the columns are arranged with such subtle artifice that it is incredible to tell, and many others, such as Hagia Sophia (60), which is more principal than the others, and built by Justinian—as Cinnamus the writer attests; although mention of the church of the ^A Pantepoptes does not occur. Zonaras and Glycas write that this monastery was built by Anna Dalassena, mother of the Emperor Alexius, and that when she had resigned from the administration of affairs, she withdrew into it and there passed the rest of her life. And it was not only a place for men, but also for women to be relegated: Theodosius, Patriarch of Constantinople, in the reign of the Emperor Alexius son of Manuel, and a certain Lapardas, who had engaged in tyranny under Andronicus, writes Nicetas in *Alexius* no. [8] and in *Andronicus* book I, no. 4, who says it was situated far from the Sophian church. He also relates in *Murtzuphlus* no. [?] that it was built on a hill. Pachymeres mentions the monastery of the Pantepoptes in Constantinople in book I, c. 28; and Bessarion does so in his tract *On the Procession of the Holy Spirit* to Alexius Lascaris Philanthropenus.

*Notes of Du Cange* regarding the site of the Apostles: ...is extinct. It is related that soldiers brought it [the body of Constantine], and later it was brought by Constantius into the church of the Holy Apostles and deposited in a porphyry monument along with the body of his mother Helena. Cedrenus [writes]: "And it was deposited..." So too Nicephorus Callistus, book VIII, c. [33] and the author of the *Historia Miscella*, book XI. Gyllius writes in *Constantinopolis*, book IV, c. [9], that in his age, along the wide road which leads along the ridge of the promontory from the church of Sophia to the Adrianople gate, near the place where the temple of the Apostles was, there stood a throne made of porphyry marble, but empty and lacking a lid, ten feet long and five and a half feet high, which the Greeks and Turks used to say was that of the great Constantine. But Zonaras relates that that tomb did not exist in the temple of the Apostles itself, but "in a certain distinct portico, which he built at the tomb of his father [Constantius]." From there, Patriarch Macedonius had transferred the body of Constantine to the church of Acacius, who by this act incurred the indignation of Constantius and was deprived of his dignity. But not long after, it was returned to its original place, as the same Zonaras relates. But whatever its material, it is certain that this tomb of Constantine was distinguished by various golden ornaments placed around it, which Nicetas relates were stolen by thieves in the reign of the Emperor Alexius Angelus, in *Life of Alexius* 1, no. 8. That the Emperor was accustomed to proceed to it on the day of the feast of Constantine, which is May 21, Codinus writes in *De officiis aulae Cp.* c. 15. Manuel Chrysoloras also mentions the Constantinian monument in his *Epistle to John Emperor*, p. 121.

(47) The column where Christ was. [Gretser]us, in *Notes to Malaxus*, writes that in his age there existed in the patriarchal church, which he says was the Pammakaristos, the column at which Christ is said to have been scourged; however, mention of the church is in Cantacuzenus, book III, c. 80; Pachymeres, book X, c. 9, Ducas c. 22, Malaxus, *Historia Politica*, etc. Gretserus deals at length with this column, in his volume *De Cruce*, book I, c. [...]; and Ferrandus, book I, *Disquisitiones*, etc., c. 2, p. [270] et seq. (48) Of the Pantocrator. See the notes of Cinnamus, book I. (49) The stone where Joseph [laid Him]. That it was translated to Ephesus, Nicetas relates in *Manuel*, book VI, no. 7; and Cinnamus, book VI. (50) St. John of Petra. See notes to Alexiad, p. 54. (51) Vestments of Christ. See Ferrandus, *Disquisitiones*, book I, c. 2. (52) The Reed. See Tyrius, book XX, c. 25; and Ducam, c. 41, p. 172. (53) The Sponge. Brought into the city in the year 4 of Heraclius, Sept. Ind. 3. *Chron. Alexandr.* p. 880. See W. Tyrius, book XX, c. 25; Ducam, c. 41, p. 172, 140, *Histor. Franc.* p. 343. (54) The Lance. Which pierced the Lord's side, brought to the city from Jerusalem and deposited in the Great Church on October 28, in the year [4] of Heraclius. *Chron. Alexandr.* p. 882. See Notes to Alexiad, p. [242] and 328.

(56) Cistern of St. John of Petra. [Gyllius writes:] ...that no traces of the church of the Apostles remain today, nor even of the foundations, except for certain foundations of a cistern which supplied water to the apostolic church, in the floor of which cistern there are about two hundred workshops and shops of saddlers. Perhaps the same as the Arcadian [cistern] which the old description of the city places in the [14th] region, where the church of the Apostles also existed. (59) Cistern of Mahumet. Who this Mahumet was, it is not easy to guess, just as it is not easy to guess in which region of the city this cistern existed: although it is probable that it was endowed with another name. For the Byzantine writers list as many cisterns as possible in the city: Arcadian, Aspar, Basilica, Boni, Frigida, Basilica Illi, Magnaura, Maxima, Mocesium, Modestiac, Philoxenon, Phocae, Pulcheriae or Aetii, Theodosiac, of the Palace, and several others.

(60) Hagia Sophia. It is better to touch upon here what several Greek and Latin writers have to say in various places regarding the elegance of the Sophian church. Procopius, book I, *De aedificiis Justin.* c. [1]: "The spectacle of the church has now become so adorned, that to those who see it, it is supernatural, and to those who hear of it, entirely unbelievable. For it has been raised to a heavenly height, and just as if it were unmoored from the other buildings, it hangs above, leaning over the other city, adorning it because it belongs to it, and being adorned because it belongs to it; and though it does not intrude, it rises so high that the city is viewed from it as from a high vantage point. And whenever someone goes into it to pray, he understands immediately that this work was not fashioned by human power or artifice, but by the impulsion of God. And his mind, being raised toward God, walks on air, not supposing Him to be far away, but that He dwells especially in those places which He Himself chose. And this happens not only to one who sees it for the first time, but it seems so to every person continuously, as if the vision were always beginning right there. No one ever became sated with this spectacle, but men present in the shrine rejoice at the things seen, and those departing are struck dumb by the discourses concerning it." Michael Psellus in [his] Monody: "...the uncomparably beautiful temple, the house without equal, which Sophia [Wisdom] built in her own name, and under which she placed those seven pillars." Nicephorus Callistus, in [his] Pro[logue]...