they have declared and explained of the whole of history in their own treatises? Perhaps it is more worthy to tell of these things that are now set before us, and this we shall put forward as our own narrative. And the reason is that since there are more novel matters set before us, which no one has yet committed to writing, it is consequently more novel as well to be a vessel of profit from those things that have occurred in the knowledge of men, which the common account often reveals not in truth. A For those who have written history according to our own times have made their beginning in one way or another; for some of them began from the creation of the world, others from some notable beginning—the Persians, or the Greeks, or the Romans, or any other of the nations—each one fashioning his own composition according to his own purpose. And to us, too, the completion of this history will not be achieved with any less difficulty. For all the things that have happened from the beginning of the creation of the world have been told by many and often; it was not for me to speak of them. And as most of them have not agreed with one another, writing of the affairs of kings, and of the changes of lands and the seditions of cities and the clashes of wars and enslavements and victories and defeats, and all such things mixed together with the affairs of our own time—for since their deeds were manifold and perhaps not even known by those who were actually bringing them about, time would hardly suffice for those who set out to record the truth—the attainment of the truth will be reached [only] from the [single] source of common report. B But whatever is known by common report, [the historian] must select, unless he is willing to do injustice to the truth, like those who clip coins or want to counterfeit them. For it is not for the sake of favor or partiality, nor even for the sake of hatred or goodwill, that the writer must write, but for the sake of memory alone, so that things may not be delivered to the abyss of oblivion, into which they are wont to be brought by the length of time, but that, like a living and speaking voice, C and as an animate and articulate herald, [history] which time knows how to bring forth, may remain forever through the endless ages. Therefore, I, too, George Phrantzes, who once held the dignity of protovestiarios and later became a monk by the name of Gregory, have written these things concerning the events of my own time, and of certain specific necessary occurrences in the time of my life, both before our captivity and after our captivity. D And first, let us narrate the origins and causes of the empire of the Palaiologoi, from the first who reigned of their lineage until the capture of Constantinople by the Turks; and how many and who were [their] sons and daughters and despots; and I wish to narrate the wars that occurred in the Peloponnese between the two brothers, the despot lord Demetrios, I say, and the despot lord Thomas, and [of] other necessary and memorable things.
PROOIMION
CHRONICON MAJUS. — BOOK I. FIRST BOOK.
1. Alexius Angelus Comnenus emperor, who A having blinded his brother Isaac, seized the kingdom, during whose reign the Roman state was afflicted by so many and such great calamities at the hands of the Italians, left no male offspring, but had two daughters. He ordered the elder, named Irene, to put on the purple buskins, so that she and the man to whom she was betrothed might, upon his death, be his successors and heirs to the empire. And so he gave her in marriage to Alexius Palæologus, and immediately honored him with the title of Despot. And he would have reigned after his father-in-law had he not departed from this life by a premature death. Alexius Palæologus left behind one daughter; and when the girl had reached marriageable age, her mother Irene joined her to Andronicus Palæologus, whom the emperor Theodorus Lascaris—who had taken the other daughter of the emperor Alexius as his wife—later honored as Grand Domestic. From him were born three sons: Michael Comnenus, Constantine Palæologus, and Joannes, who were Palæologi by both father and mother. And from these beginnings, the house of the Palæologi, as will now be told, came to the empire. For when Michael, the eldest son of Andronicus, had grown to adulthood, he excelled among all the nobles, being distinguished by the sweetness of his countenance, the affability of his manners, the elegance of his character, and his generosity; B moreover, he was loved and held dear by many for his virtues and graces, and he easily drew everyone to his own side—generals, commanders, commoners, and many of the senatorial order. Hence, certain accusations were spread against him that he was aspiring to the empire, which Theodorus Lascaris the Younger was ruling at that time. Among those who whispered these things were some of his friends—I mean, friends of Michael Comnenus. Wherefore, by imperial command, he is called to an examination. Those who were conducting the examination were the archbishop Arsenius, who then had great influence with the emperor, and other illustrious men. Michael Comnenus, having been brought forward and questioned at length, and after they had spoken to him, the archbishop then said: «To those who have committed sins, it is not granted to remain silent and to say nothing concerning the crime committed. Wherefore you, most honorable man, since you are noble and sprung from noble lineage, reveal the truth to me as I inquire: who have conspired with you, and who are privy to this design and are participants or accomplices? Speak the truth, and I swear by Christ my Savior that those shall pay the penalty by the laws, and you shall be free and immune from any form of interrogation.»
He answered him thus: «I told you before and I say it now: I have never even thought about this, nor did such a purpose ever enter my mind, nor did anyone, small or great, ever approach me regarding such a matter. May it never happen in all eternity. I call God and the angels who stand invisibly by me as my witness. But if those who have slandered me have filled the ears of my Emperor with lies against me, his servant, and if you do not believe me, I have nothing more to say. Or who will be my witness to the truth? If not, my Lord, I beg of you, grant me a favor. Throw iron into the flames of the furnace, and let it burn excessively, and bring it to me, and I shall take it with my hands, and I shall gather the coals of fire upon my chest—and I trust in God who saved the three youths from the flame of the furnace—and that unerring and unsleeping eye, which searches hearts and minds, knowing that I have neither thought nor considered the things about which you question me, will protect me, if it be His will, unhurt from the burning fire.» The bishop said to him: «Among the Romans and the wise Greeks it is not permitted by law or custom to torture those under interrogation, especially A noblemen; but such a thing is barbaric and absurd, and characteristic of the nations.» The Komnenos replied: «Since, holy master, you say that what I proposed is neither the custom nor law for the Romans, but is [a practice] of the barbarians and the nations, yet I, by the grace of Christ, am a humble Roman—then examine me and test me, if it is pleasing to your council, according to the laws and customs of the Romans. And if I am found legally deserving of condemnation, let there be no mercy for me; but if I am innocent according to the laws, let the trial not fall upon me, and may I not endure the words of those who slander me unjustly and irrationally out of envy and strife.» The bishop, having heard B these things, reported all the words to the Emperor; and again, those who were pressing to convict him from the other side spoke against him. But they did not appear [to speak] where it seemed to be the truth, and the slanders appeared false, even if by the exigencies of the time it was [a difficult] situation. Nevertheless, the Emperor ordered him to confirm under oath that the slanders were false and that he had never intended to do that of which he was accused. And it came to pass. And the Emperor ordered that he be free of condemnation and all suspicion, and that he should recover his former honor, and he entrusted him with the governorship of the Nicæans.
Having spent some time in Bithynia, he then fled and departed, crossing over into Iconium to the sultan. The cause of his flight was that he saw that not a few [men] C were again, day by day, for a second time, constructing many devices against him and slanders toward the Emperor out of envy, and [he heard] many whispers and words of envy.
A Likewise, he himself had previously given to the Emperor the most terrible oaths of security, that he would always remain faithful and submissive, and would never seek to reign, but would keep his goodwill and affection toward the Emperor Theodore, and his son John, and the successors of the kingdom who followed. And for this the Emperor again honored him as Grand Konostaulos, just as he had held that rank before.
He was not able to remain in peace at all, but was filled with thoughts and fear; for he dreaded the unpredictable, abrupt, and harsh nature of the Emperor, and he thought that nothing gentle or sympathetic would ever come to pass. But when his adversaries finally brought their great slanders and stratagems to a head and filled the ears of the Sovereign, he therefore used flight for his safety before he could suffer anything.
Having gone to Iconium, he found the Sultan busily gathering his own forces to go out against the Scythians who were warring against him. The Sultan therefore received him with great joy, and having collected an army from the Christians (for some Romans had been enslaved to him for a long time), he placed them under the commander Palaiologos, and commanded them to wear both Roman and foreign garb, so that they might strike terror into the enemy. And this is what happened; for when the Scythians saw, all of a sudden, an army being brought against them which they had not expected, they turned and fled. And that is how affairs in Iconium transpired.
The Nicaeans wrote to the Emperor, where he was, concerning the flight of Palaiologos. And when the Emperor heard it, he was filled with sorrow and fell into no small disturbance of mind. And after a short time had passed, he wrote to Palaiologos, calling him back and promising him much affection, with the guarantee of security for the things he had discussed in his oath. And in this way the land of the Romans received the Komnenos back again.
B Occupied with these cares, the Emperor fell into a most severe illness and departed from this life, having become a monk before his death, and having left as regents of imperial affairs Arsenios the Patriarch and George Mouzalon, who was Protovestiarios, until his son John should reach the proper age; for the boy was in the sixth year of his life. And in these matters the Patriarch, having gathered the entire Senate and delivered a speech, made everyone take terrible oaths that they would guard the proper goodwill and faith toward the Emperor’s son, and submission to Mouzalon as his guardian.
A few days, therefore, had passed, and certain men of the nobility and high station quickly incited a revolution, envying Mouzalon. It was the ninth day after the death of the Emperor, and all the noble ladies had gathered at the monastery of Sosandron, where the Emperor is buried, to perform the customary mourning and memorial services. While the nobles and commoners were present, and while the holy liturgy was still being celebrated, all the soldiers drew their swords in the church, and C...
A—brutally slaughtered Mousalon, who had fled to the divine and holy table. Thus the women and the rest of the people abandoned their mourning and fled, and there was great lamentation and turmoil. Oh, the wretchedness of the oaths sworn by those yesterday, and the dire, most accursed imprecations—if today they are accounted as nothing! Oh, for your compassion, Christ the King, and for your long-suffering! The patriarch, left alone and not being very experienced in such administration, fell into great anxiety and care, imagining the danger to the child and to the state of affairs as a whole. Distressed and constricted, he was troubled in his mind as to who among the senate might be able to steer such great and many storms and seas, and who would not damage or sink the ships and those sailing in them. It occurred to him that he should help the child through the support of the aforementioned Michael Komnenos. For the man was distinguished and conspicuous to all, and his fame was echoing in the ears of everyone. Beloved by many, as has been said, the patriarch likewise was not unfavorably disposed toward those who loved him; rather, he embraced him in friendship even more than the others. He even entrusted to him alone the keys of the imperial treasuries; and whenever military affairs or the needs of the common weal required funds, they would demand them from him. This, in turn, gave the most opportune occasion for the fulfillment of the schemes once set in motion, and it brought about a very swift end to matters that had long been rumored. For, having obtained free license to handle such sums, he showered with rewards both all the nobles and the soldiers—some few, and those who had tongues ready for demagoguery—and filled not only them but also many among those who were—B—ready to sway the mob [were able]. For the Komnenos himself was capable in knowledge and action, and in speaking most suitable, and experienced in all kinds of matters both imperial and for the governing of the people. What more is there to say? Everyone cast their votes for him. Thus, the patriarch also ratified him and made him a fellow-voter, until the emperor’s son should reach the proper age. And Michael Palaiologos was girded with full authority over public affairs, and this reason becomes the cause for the elevation and appointment of Michael to the imperial dignity.
After a few days, those who were eager to raise him to the height of the empire wove other schemes again. Having devised a new plan among themselves, they kept saying in the squares and streets: "It is neither proper nor just that he who administers the public affairs and receives the embassies of many nations should not have some great rank near the empire, so that, first, there may be fame and splendor for the race of the Romans, and confirmation of events occurring among the nations." For by such a pretext and hidden intent he receives the rank of Despot, with the consent of the people, the patriarch, and the unfortunate heir to the empire.
II. Regarding the elevation of the Despot
2. At those times the imperial court and the patriarch were in Nicaea in Bithynia, because the queen of cities was held by the Italians. A very short time having passed—C—
and those men who were weaving together all kinds of evils—and some who were preeminent in glory and in the splendor of their lineage—having conquered him by force, they captured many of the Romans, among whom was the prince of the Peloponnese and Achaia. And for the sake of his freedom, the prince surrendered to the emperor of the Romans three of the strongest cities of the Peloponnese: Monemvasia, and the Leuctra of Maine—which was called in ancient times by the Greeks the promontory of Taenarum—and Laconian Sparta. And thus, once again, the Romans set their hand upon the Peloponnese, and from those three cities they recovered the entire island, except for a few fortresses and regions which remained in the power of the Venetians. A And some others, men illustrious in authority and the splendor of their lineage, the authors of all these evils, lifted Michael upon a shield and proclaimed him emperor. Having heard of such an unlawful proclamation, the patriarch Arsenius felt it as if a sharp sword had been driven into his heart, and he subjected to a dreadful excommunication both those who had proclaimed him and the one who had been proclaimed, as perjurers, lawbreakers, intruders, and tyrants. Then, after deliberating in his mind with some members of the Senate, both clergy and laity, he deemed it better to safeguard the life of the boy with the most terrible oaths, so that Michael might not lay hands upon him in treachery, nor form any plan to seize or defer the imperial power. And so it happened, and the patriarch himself with his own hands crowned Michael Comnenus with the royal diadem; yet he did not grant him the autocracy permanently, but, because of the circumstances of the time and the compelling nature of events, he made him an administrator with imperial authority, until such time as the true heir and successor to the empire arrived at a proper age; then, he was to surrender the imperial thrones and all other imperial symbols. And amidst these things, still more dreadful oaths than the former ones were performed.
B Having braced himself for the whole empire, and a great war having occurred between the Romans and Michael, the Despot ruling over Aetolia and Epirus, who also had as allies his two sons-in-law, Manfred, the king of Sicily, and the prince of the Peloponnese and Achaia, and— C Another victory, famous, great, and worthy of eternal memory in the world, occurred in those times. For the emperor sent again against the rebel Michael that Caesar, Alexius, surnamed Strategopulus, who had also achieved the aforementioned victory for the Romans against the ruler of Aetolia and Epirus, giving him some of the Bithynian contingent, about eight hundred cavalrymen, and a few other soldiers from Thrace and Macedonia. And the Caesar, wishing to cross by night with his army to a point a little near the city, by chance fell in with an old man; and when the soldiers saw him, they brought him to the Caesar. The Caesar said to him, "Whence do you come and whither are you going?" The old man said, "From the city." The Caesar said to him, "What you say is not true; since it is night, how did you exit the walls?" And the old man, having become afraid, said, "There is a hidden postern—
A in the ground, which no one knows except me, a path which I have known for a long time; and through it I go out and come in whenever I wish, unhindered." When the Caesar heard of such a matter, he became cheerful. He spoke to the old man with promises of many gifts, so that he might show him the place, so that the Caesar too might enter inside the city with his army. He did this. And having ordered fire to be cast into the houses, the army immediately set the city on fire in not a few places; for there was also a strong north wind blowing against the city. And the flame was lit, and the soldiers, shouting, cried out, "Victory to the Romans!" The Latins, hearing the clamor suddenly, were thrown into a great tumult by the fire and the enemies; they went out from their beds naked, and there was much slaughter and destruction among them, and the victory for the Romans was clear. And thus the Queen of Cities, by the help of the Almighty and through the military skill of the Caesar, was restored to the Romans and liberated from the hands of the Italians. It had been held by them for fifty-nine years, three months, and four days.
When this great victory was announced in Nicaea to the emperor, he was amazed and did not believe how, with a very small army, the Caesar had become master of such a great city. And when a second messenger came arriving at a run, bringing news to the emperor and letters written by the Caesar himself, then, when he saw them, he believed and rendered thanks to God; and having been ordered by the emperor and the patriarch, with the consent of the entire senate, for the sake of the wonderful victory and the B magnificent deeds by which the Caesar had increased the Roman empire, his name was to be commemorated and praised in a loud voice by the patriarch, the archbishops, the bishops, and the entire church, after the emperor, along with the princes, in divine and holy liturgies and in every other holy rite and service of the holy churches. Likewise, he decided that the insignia of the Caesar should be worn every day, in every place and hour, for the duration of his whole life, and in every season, and that great triumphs should be held for him, as was the custom to perform for victors in such victories.
Then, the emperor, puffed up by these favors of fortune, and having recognized the favor, loyalty, and affection of some of the senators and many of the citizens toward him, and being lifted up in his mind, fearing not the dread and fearful oaths which he had taken before the judgment seat of Christ, but rather, having sent him away, he miserably deprived of his eyes the heir and successor to the empire, John Lascaris, who was ten years old, and thus secured the empire for himself, free from any fear. When the patriarch heard of the blinding of the wretched heir to the empire, he smote his chest with his hands, and his heart, so to speak, was pierced as by a sword—or rather C as if by a sharp stone. He cried out against the injustice to the earth and the sun, and called upon the elements for help, weeping and groaning and plucking out his beard with his hands. And with sharp stones he beat his chest and his knees in his grief, and threw his head upon his breast, crying out mournfully: "O sun, shudder; O earth, groan; and thou too, being shaken"
A proclaim the injustice and the treachery and the cruelty and the inhumanity."
Now when the patriarch, having nothing else to do, subjected the emperor and his accomplices and abettors to an indissoluble anathema, and having resigned from the Church and the throne, he withdrew into a monastery which he had built himself. And in this manner, as we have said, the empire came to Michael, the first of the Palaiologoi, in a way that should not have been.
The list of the A [Asian affairs/people] did not remain silent and stirred up the mob, so that a great uproar arose from this and matters reached the highest pitch of turbulence. And the emperor used to say that the matter was done for the sake of the economy, not for innovation, and he whipped and harmed and exiled many of those who were not convinced. And while the emperor was managing all these things, he gained nothing nor did he succeed. But when Charles and Baldwin came with a great army against the Roman Empire and a war occurred, the unconquerable power sent back the plans and forces of the Italians fruitless and humiliated with shame, and the divine utterance of David was fulfilled: "Cursed is everyone who trusts in man." B And at sea, the Roman fleet again routed that of Charles; then, setting out, he took and recovered the islands of the Aegean Sea, having captured them with ease—Rhodes and Kos, Chios and Lemnos, and as many others as were serving the Latins.
Arsenius, however, having left the throne, is succeeded by Germanus, the Archbishop of Adrianople. But then again, Germanus, hearing that he was reviled as holding the throne illegally, while Arsenius was still alive, yielded the throne to those who wished it; and Joseph is consecrated in his stead, having been patriarch for two years, and then Beccus, the chartophylax of the Great Church.
3. The Emperor Michael and the Union of the Churches
3. This Emperor Michael, after gaining the city and entering it, having heard that the routed Emperor Baldwin had arrived in Italy and had reached an accord with Charles, the king of Italy, and other potentates, and that they had made agreements among themselves to prepare to come against the Queen of Cities by land and by sea, in order to restore Baldwin to the rule which he had lost, and seeing the weakness of the city and having nothing else to do, sent an embassy to Pope Alexander concerning the union of the churches, if only to obstruct such an undertaking. And the Pope gladly receives the embassy and promises to perform whatever is pleasing to the emperor.
And the union was accomplished on the condition of three points: first, that in the holy hymns the Pope should be commemorated along with the other four patriarchs; second, that it should be permitted for anyone who wished to appeal to him just as if he were a supreme court; third, that he should hold precedence in all things. But regarding the things that they were innovating, nothing was said. C
Upon these matters, the holy [remnant] of the Church did not rest calmly but agitated the crowd, so that grave tumults arose from this and the most violent waves of all affairs were stirred up. The emperor was led to do this by prudent counsel, not by a desire for innovation, and he whipped or mutilated or exiled many of those whom he could not persuade. But the emperor labored in vain at all these things, and he achieved nothing and secured nothing. For when Charles and Baldwin had set out with a great army against the Roman Empire and had stirred up war, the invincible virtue of our forces repelled the plans and troops of the Latins, who were sent back empty-handed and with damage and ignominy, and the divine declaration of David was confirmed: "Cursed is he who trusts in man." D Also, at sea, the Roman fleet dissipated the fleet of Charles; and soon, having set out with ships, the emperor recovered the islands of the Aegean Sea with a light attack: Rhodes, Kos, Chios, Lemnos, and as many others as the Latins had occupied.
Arsenius, having resigned the patriarchate, is received by Germanus, the Archbishop of Adrianople, who himself again, when he was poorly spoken of as having usurped the office, granted the throne to those who desired it, that is, to the man Arsenius, when he had been adorned with that dignity. Joseph is subrogated in his place, who presided over the patriarchate for two years; then Beccus, chartophylax of the Great Church.
During the reign of this emperor, the great calamities which the Turks inflicted upon the Roman Empire in Asia arose from the wars being waged in Europe against the Latins; for while he was occupied in Paphlagonia with the war against the Turks, the affairs of the Romans...
were severely struck, and they were turned to flight, and in the flight the Turks killed and A captured many of them; but they [the Romans] were always fleeing beside the river, unable to turn back. And as much land as their satraps had seized as prisoners, they divided among themselves and ravaged entirely, from the sea around Pontus and Galatia unto the sea around Lycia and Caria, and the river Eurymedon. And this war was the beginning, the cause, and the occasion of the destruction of the Roman empire. And the emperor, having given up hope, fortified the river Sangarius with many small towns, so that they might not cross over and seize Bithynia as well.
24. He sired two sons, Andronikos the emperor and Constantine the Porphyrogenitus, and three daughters, Irene, Eudokia, and Anna. And while marching in the Thettalian war and staying in a certain place called Pachomios and Allages, a severe disease of the heart attacked him, portending a speedy death; and in that place he gave up his life after two days, in the year 6791, indiction 14, being sixty-eight years of age, of which he had reigned thirty-five years. His son, the emperor lord Andronikos, who was present at that time, did not honor his father with the burial customary for emperors, nor even with that which is allowed to commoners or the poor; but having ordered only a few men to take the corpse far from the camp in the night, they heaped up much earth, so that the imperial body should not be torn apart by the mouths of wild beasts. B The cause of this was that Michael, as we have said, had departed from the doctrine of the true Church while he was alive.
4. Since, therefore, the succession of the power and the imperial scepters passed to his son Andronikos, the affairs came into no small turmoil; but in order that there should not be a destruction caused by revolutions, he, being prudent and foreseeing all the coming, or rather future, agitation and scandal, governed wisely, and did all things that were pleasing to his subjects. And first, he concerned himself with and carried out the stabilization and correction of the Church; for while his father was still alive, as we have said, he concealed [this intention], and imperial decrees and edicts were sent out proclaiming the correction of the Church, and at the same time bringing back those who had been exiled because of their zeal for the Church. And immediately they brought down the patriarch Beccos from the throne because he held the opinions of the Latins, and a monk named Athanasius succeeded to the patriarchal throne, having been trained from childhood in ascetic labors, and having lived in the deserts of Ganos, originating from the Peloponnese, from a region called Androusa; and for this reason, by imperial command and synodal decree, he honored his own homeland, Androusa, with the dignity of a bishopric, and [ordered it] to be subject to the metropolis of Monemvasia. After the deposition and exile of the patriarch Beccos, he stripped the other high priests who were fellow partakers in the opinion of the emperor and the patriarch of their high priesthood with shame. And other C sorrowful deeds were committed by the leaders of the Church. And as for the soldiers in defending the public [republic]
A with their customary zeal, he readily rewarded them, and all the subjects were filled with joy.
Upon returning to the city, and coming to the recollection of what his father had done against the young John Lascaris—to whom the succession of the empire more rightly belonged—he felt the goad of conscience pricking him. Being also possessed of a greater discernment of virtues, he came to him whom his father had blinded on his account, who was residing in a small town of Bithynia. Seeing him, and offering him the comfort that was appropriate, he begged his forgiveness with a great show of humility, saying that he had not known what his father had done, and that, if it were possible and acceptable, he wished for them to divide the empire again, so that all power might come into his hands. He provided him with everything necessary for life, abundantly and lavishly, throughout his days. Having done this, and having commanded that this should continue, he departed joyfully for the East.
Some calumnies arose against the emperor’s brother B, born in the purple, charging that he was nourished by a desire for the empire; and having sent off men to seize him and all who were his genuine associates—among whom the most prominent, both in wealth and brilliance of lineage and fame in generalship, was Michael Strategopoulos Melissenus—he was also confined in prisons, and many of the goods he possessed were confiscated.
27. The emperor and autocrator Andronicus begot the following sons: Michael, the emperor, and Constantine the despot by his first spouse of the Hungarians; and by his second wife, Irene from Lombardy—who was daughter of the sister of the king of Spain and niece of the marchioness of Montferrat (the same who, as we have foretold, obtained Thessalonica and became king of the Thessalonians when the Latins held the Roman lands for a short time)—he begot John, Theodore, Demetrius, and a daughter named Simonida, whom the despot of Serbia took as his wife. C And John, having been joined to a wife, died without issue. The empress and lady Irene was driven to this matter most of all. She was jealous, as a stepmother, and nourished such thoughts against the stepson. Whence she ceased not, by night and by day, to trouble the emperor and her husband, so that he might make her own sons partners and co-sharers in the empire. But the emperor said it was impossible to turn the Roman monarchy into a polyarchy. Having done and said many things, and being frustrated in her hopes, she was seized with anger and grief, and having given her own son Theodore a great sum of money, she sent him to Lombardy and established him there as a marquis of her own fatherland. There, having wedded a wife from the Spinola family, he begot sons and daughters.
5. In the reign of the aforementioned emperor, the greatest of evils surged forth like waves from Asia. For the satraps of the Turks, having formed a coalition once more—among whom was one of the satraps, Othmanes—had recently overrun every place as far as the shores of the sea. By that victory D
A they acted as if toward slaves; and they pitied no one, but having crossed into Thrace, they committed every evil and terrible thing in those parts, and traversed a large area plundering, so that for a year and ten months [the people] were able neither to plow, nor to sow, nor to depart from the cities.
It happened also at that time that a certain Latin arrived, a Catalan by race, Roger by name. Having gathered a military force from lower Iberia and filled four triremes, he lived as a pirate, having become most skilled in this, for he did not only set upon cargo ships, but he also plundered the very great islands themselves, and he seemed to be a terror in the lower sea. B It seemed good, therefore, to this commander to send an embassy to the emperor Andronikos to form an alliance with him against the Turks; and the emperor, having accepted the embassy, that man departed from the West and came to Byzantium, having with him two thousand fighting men. And the emperor honored him with the office of Grand Duke. A little later there also arrived another Catalan, by name Princerius Tentzas, a kinsman of Roger. And the emperor gave in abundance the necessary expenditure for their clothing, gifts, and the remaining rations; and a short time having passed, they crossed into Asia with the army to fight the enemies.
And they did not care about the enemies, but they afflicted the subjects greatly. And if one must tell how many evils and terrible things they did while passing through? To the Christian men and women they were no kinder than to slaves, C not pitying the tears of any, but rather inflicting evils upon the subjects more than even the impious and the enemies did. And one could see not only the goods of the wretched Christians being seized, but their daughters and wives being violated. Elders and priests were being bound and scourged. Having learned these things, the emperor was consumed with anger and was in need of some helping scheme. He ordered Roger to cross over to Thrace with the army to the fortress of Kallipolis. And having left the army there, Roger came to the emperor with some others for a greeting. D When he arrived, the emperor ordered the bystanders who were armed with swords to cut them down.
When the other Latins who were in Kallipolis learned what had happened, they turned to rebellion and slaughtered the Romans who were there, and having fortified the walls, they had a very strong retreat, and having entered into an agreement with the Turks, they launched into open robbery and plunder. And the emperor Michael, having taken the Thracian and Macedonian forces, came against them, and having engaged them, he accomplished nothing, but rather returned having suffered loss. Then their leaders, falling into disagreement, were divided, and some came to the emperor, others campaigned with the Turks, and others gathered their living by robbing, until at last they were destroyed. And the emperor Michael, having again assembled an army, comes to the Chersonese against the Turks, and he was so greatly deceived; and suddenly the opponents, having surrounded the army, put to flight the
Romans, who abandoned their royal tents and the royal wealth and all the royal insignia. A He organized another army for a third time, but the emperor does not arrive without first appointing as commander of the military force Philes the Palaiologos, who at that time was girded with the office of protostrator; he, having marched against the Hagarenes and engaged them in battle, conquered them in the end and killed and captured many. And the few who were left behind at that time, being survivors, were shamefully driven out of the Chersonese of Thrace.
Athanasius the patriarch, having governed the throne for four years, then having resigned in writing, came to the hermitage built by him and kept quiet; and in his place was ordained John from Sozopolis, who, having a wife and children, B afterwards, upon losing his wife to death, donned the monastic habit; and time and virtue having advanced him, he became patriarch of Constantinople. Having been distinguished on the throne for some time, he then resigned, and Athanasius again took the throne for a second time. Having held the helm of the Church for eight years, then some scandals arose again, and he was always one who embraced quietude. Again he resigned the throne, and in his place was ordained Nephon, the bishop of Cyzicus. Having been distinguished for a short time, he was then deposed, and in his place is brought up to the patriarchal eminence John Glykys, being the logothete of the drome, who also had children and a wife. The man was most wise, but he happened to be sickly and could not perform the same duty C fully, and for this reason he resigned the throne. And in his place is ordained as monk a certain man from the monastery of the Mangana named Gerasimos, white indeed in hair, but useless in character; and having been patriarch for a little while, willingly and unwillingly and not with those who were pleased with him, he left the throne, and in his place was ordained Isaiah, an old and venerable man, a monk from Mount Athos, who by coincidence happened to be in Constantinople and became patriarch.
At that time there happened to be an earthquake of the greatest magnitude, and many magnificent houses and holy churches either fell or were cracked, and many of the columns standing on the pillars fell from above.
During the reign of this same emperor and autocrat, the triremes increased in number; and some of the senate of the council advised the ruler [to think] D carelessly about preparing and repairing and maintaining them. "Vain therefore is the expense of the ships," they said, "since it exhausts the royal treasury more than almost all other things combined." The emperor, persuaded by their words, left the triremes neglected, and in time they were ruined, and some were split apart and others sank to the bottom of the sea. But later, when there was need and necessity, there were no pilots, and the triremes were as we have said before, and the counsel brought many evils and terrible things upon the Romans.
The emperor Michael then begot two daughters, Anna and Theodora, and two sons, Andronikos the emperor and Manuel the despot. And Andronikos was greatly loved by the grandfather and emperor, and he ordered [him] to be reared in the palaces
A. When he grew up, he would go at night to see a certain woman, an exceedingly beautiful courtesan, and being enamored of her, she became his beloved. Jealousy burned in his soul, and he compelled his guards, sword-bearers and archers, to stand watch and wait around the courtesan’s house. One night, the emperor’s brother, the despot Manuel, while seeking the emperor, his brother, happened to pass by the courtesan’s house. Those guarding [it] for his brother saw him, and owing to the darkness did not recognize who it was, but suspecting him to be one of the woman’s lovers, they cast arrows at him repeatedly, and having struck him, he died. When Michael, the emperor and his father, learned of this in Thessalonica, he was seized by bile and great grief, falling into a most severe illness, and departed this life.
When the days of mourning had passed, the grandfather and emperor summoned the emperor Andronikos, and with weeping admonished and reproached him, as is the custom for fathers to do toward most beloved children; but he, having become downcast, answered nothing. Instead, seized by rage and fearing that because of his brother’s death and the other youthful unsettled behaviors he was committing, the grandfather would strip him of the empire and give it to his uncle Constantine, he fled along with some of his contemporaries and co-conspirators B to Didymoteichos. There, having gathered an army, they went out to wage war against the emperor, his grandfather, and after many civil wars had occurred and much slaughter, they came to terms again. Yet after a short while, for trifling reasons, they again broke the agreements and treaties, and there were many scandals.
6. At that time, the emperor’s son Theodore, the Markion, who years before had been sent to his mother’s homeland, as we have recounted, returned to his father after her death, having left his children and wife there; he was a pure Latin in mind, faith, dress, and the trimming of his beard. His father graced him with every kind of care, favor, and provision of money; yet he, imitating that Judas, chose to become a traitor to the emperor his father, and became the most fervent of all his enemies. Casting aside all paternal shame, he deserted and came to the young emperor and nephew, and caused greater scandal. At that time, because of these civil wars D and the instability, Othmanes, who ruled Bithynia, finding an opportunity, seized no small part of the portion left remaining to the Romans.
The entry of the young emperor into the city happened as follows: two traitors came to the camp, one named Castelanus and the other Camaris, who were guards in a certain part of the city near the gate called the Adrianopolis gate, and they made an agreement with the young emperor. When the army came, at night they placed ladders against the walls in that area, and some of them, having gotten inside the city and thrown wide the gate, the army that had been left behind with the young emperor was [brought] inside. And he immediately summoned all the army under his command and exhorted them most vehemently neither to raise a murderous hand nor a slanderous tongue against his grandfather and emperor, nor against any of the others at all, saying, “For it is not we, but God, who has granted this victory.”
A He gave much thought to the safety of his grandfather. Although he had taken possession of the city and the empire while his grandfather was still alive, he had expelled him from the kingdom in the manner of a brigand. The elder Andronicus had reigned with his son Michael for forty-five years, until he was deposed by his grandson, the younger Andronicus, in the year of Christ’s birth 1328, and from the creation of the world 6836.
7. Having taken over the empire and the city, the younger Andronicus, in the way we have described, and having become lord and master with full authority, provided his grandfather and emperor with sufficient means for living and being kept alive; but he seized his uncle Constantine, cast him into a dark dungeon, and confiscated all the property and money of the great logothete Metochites, who had formerly restored the monastery of the Savior, called that of the Chora. B Later, however, the emperor, being moved by compassion, provided for them all. Now, at the onset of spring, he gathered the Roman forces against Orchan, the emir of Bithynia, and marched out, having decided to relieve the city of Nicaea, the primary city of Bithynia, which was being besieged by a double host and was in extreme danger.
The Roman affairs collapsed in this way. The emperor arrived and engaged the enemy, and after some skirmishing and a pitched battle, the Roman army fought excellently and bravely against the Hagarenes from the sixth hour of the day until evening, so much so that the Turks were already beginning to give way and the emir was seized by fear. But as the fighting ceased because the darkness of night was approaching, the emperor, who had been wounded in the foot by a light arrow and wished to enter the small town of Philocrene, which was very near, in order to treat his foot, I know not how it happened—some whisper was spread through the army, due to sins and not knowing the cause—that they thought he was fleeing out of cowardice. The whole army, in disorder and with force, rushed to flee, pursued by no one. C And in their flight, because of the darkness, they trampled one another, and many were wounded in the process. And having reached the trenches of the small town, they fell in pell-mell, while others, reaching the shore, found boats, and because of the excessive multitude on board, many of them were drowned. The scouts of Orchan, about three hundred cavalrymen, seeing the disorderly flight and tumult, pursued them with shouts alone and, beyond their expectations, became masters of the imperial tent, all the equipment, the imperial horses, and the precious garments, and won a great victory without a battle. The emperor, having remained in that small town for three days, returned to Constantinople weeping with great grief and inconsolable tears over the misfortune of the Romans. And the emir, a few days later, became master of the city of Nicaea.
8. When autumn arrived, having gathered as many triremes as were available to the Romans, he set out against a certain Martin, the governor of Chios, and took the island without any labor. D
And having seized Martin himself, he A sent him in chains to the Byzantines. Then, sailing against the Latin Phocaeans, he made them tributaries of his empire; and they gave their own sons as hostages to the emperor. Under the reign of this same autocrat, Nicomedia, the metropolis of Bithynia, was captured by Orchan, having been overcome by great famine. The emperor campaigned against the Acarnanians, Etolians, Epirots, and Illyrians, and enslaved them, and took certain fortresses from the Bulgarians.
At this time, a child was born in the City of Constantine, joined together from the feet up to the navel, but divided thereafter—shoulders, chest, and spine—possessing two heads and four hands; and after a few days, it breathed its last.
In that season, there came from Italy to Constantinople a certain monk of Calabria named Barlaam, who seemed to be great and powerful in speaking and debating about the things which the Latins were innovating, and who said that the Light on Mount Tabor was created; whence he challenged all to a disputation. The emperor commanded the holy Gregory Palamas, who then held the throne of Thessalonica, to debate with the Calabrian; and having held many discussions between them, Palamas swept away the probabilities and futilities of the Calabrian Barlaam like a spider’s web. And the same happened to John Chrysoloras, who held the same opinions and was also skilled in speaking and debating.
B This emperor, having had no children from Empress Irene of the Germans, took a second wife after her death, named Anna, by whom he begat two daughters; the first of whom he gave in marriage to the son of the prince of the Mysians, and a great peace was established between the Mysians and Romans; the second, later, the Emir Orchan took as his wife. Then a son was born to the emperor, John. At the time of his death, the emperor, seeing that his son John was still young and not fit to administer the empire, left as his guardian the Great Domestic John Cantacuzenus, and made him manager of the empire—he who at that time was very powerful and close to the emperor—commanding that the boy be joined in marriage to his [Cantacuzenus’s] daughter. This emperor was graceful in appearance and merciful in his judgment, cheerful in character, and compassionate to all. He hated to see a crowd of men around him, but he loved hunting exceedingly; and for this reason, he kept more than one thousand four hundred dogs, and more than one thousand birds, that is, hawks, and he had nearly as many people taking care of them as that. He died in the year 6849; the whole duration of his life happened to be forty-five years, of which he reigned for twenty years.
C 9. Now, the emperor having died, Cantacuzenus, having girded himself with the empire and the entire administration and authority, immediately becomes emperor and was proclaimed emperor, and he crowned his wife as empress, and he bestowed the red buskin upon his first son, and made his other son a despot in Sparta.
A He strove to secure all authority and rule for himself and his sons. As for Emperor John, his son-in-law, he no longer concerned himself with him. When John had reached maturity, he demanded to receive the empire as the legitimate successor and heir from the hands of his father-in-law. But the latter was unwilling, wishing instead to secure the inheritance for himself and his own sons. Many struggles and civil wars arose from these differences, and great misery and ruin, and woe and lamentation, fell upon the wretched subjects. B Orchanes, having then seized upon the freedom and opportunity, brought whatever remained tributary to the Romans in Bithynia under his own control, and again crossing into Thrace toward the Chersonese, he captured some small towns and fortresses. Some of the nobles and aristocrats and the common people wanted Palaeologus to be emperor as the legitimate successor and heir to the rule, and they aided and supported him. Others, however, holding the contrary opinion, were saying that all the things which Emperor Michael, his great-grandfather, had done to John Laskaris—blinding him and taking the empire—were now being repaid to his grandson by others; and that by the measure with which those before him had measured and taken the empire, so too would it now be measured back to him. C Palaeologus, perplexed and having fallen into hopelessness, and having nothing else to do, ran to the Turkish amir Orchanes, begging for his help so that he might become master of his ancestral empire, and promising to give his sister in marriage to Orchanes. And he, having gladly accepted the request, especially because of the kinship, handed over again to Emperor John, his brother-in-law, the fortresses which he had taken while passing through Thrace. Having provided him with whatever he needed for his purpose, and having crossed into the City, he ousted Cantacuzenus, his father-in-law, from the empire and became master of the entire ancestral rule. But Cantacuzenus, as a fugitive in Serbia, came to his son-in-law who was ruling there and spent his time staying there, keeping quiet for fear of Orchanes, and he always sought a suitable time, so that, if possible, testing once more, he might bring the empire into his own hands again. D Having heard of the death of Orchanes, and how his son Amurath had succeeded to the rule, he prepared an army from both Serbia and Bulgaria, in order to come back against his son-in-law, Emperor John. When Emperor John learned this, he sent an envoy to his father-in-law with a letter reading as follows:
10. "I have often pondered in my mind and wondered how it is that your conscience, prudence, and old age have not admonished you to reflect at last upon your death and upon the judgment of that impartial Judge, before whom we are all destined to stand naked and exposed, and everyone shall receive his reward according to his deeds and works. For it was fitting for you, as a man—as you yourself are wont to boast—prudent, experienced in affairs, well-versed in the Holy Scriptures, and capable in all things, that...
A you should long ago have understood what that was which you requested of me, and what was consistent with the laws, customs, and practices of the Romans for you; yet even now you do not cease to stir up such great disturbances, battles, and civil slaughters, as well as the enslavement of our fellow tribesmen and Christian brothers, and such destruction for all the subjects. For the sake of the mercies of the all-good God, allow the humble, miserable, and unfortunate Christians to find some small relief and rest from their evils and miseries. In Asia, as you have seen, that greatest evil and beast, the race of the Ottomans, has despoiled, destroyed, and wiped out everyone; let us, I implore you, allow both those who have fled from the storms and calamities over there, and those who have remained here, to find some respite. And if the holy David, praying regarding the nations which do not have the law, says that those who desire wars should be scattered, how much greater will the judgment be for us, whom Christ our God, out of His ineffable compassion, redeemed with His own blood, and gifted with law and commandments, and who further ordained peace and love as the first and supreme sign for His disciples—for you surely have good knowledge of this, and it is manifest to all. And my father of blessed memory, the Emperor, raised you from insignificance to a high office and dignity, and even, at the time of his death, deemed you worthy of the title of Emperor. Remember well that at the final hours of his life regarding us and you, he determined [the succession]; and the entire authority to govern and shepherd both me and the Empire of the Romans he entrusted into your hands. But you did not act as a true shepherd in all things, nor do you cease so to act, but rather as one who is outright a wolf, a plunderer, and a thief; and in every necessity, if it were possible, you want and desire to strip me—the heir to the authority and successor, and the descendant of four emperors—of the Empire, and to reduce me to common life, while you, being a private citizen, would make yourself Emperor. Yet I, for the injustice which you have committed against me and continue to commit, and for you, who are the cause of all these scandals, I leave it to the invincible power of God; and that which is pleasing to God shall come to pass. B [the love and spiritual disposition he had toward you. And me, the wretched and unfortunate one, into [your] hands.]
11. Having received the letter, Cantacuzenus, seeing the things written, had neither his conscience pricked nor his heart softened, but he continued to prepare the equipment and the work of war, trusting that he would also have aid from the Emir. And the Emperor John, when he saw and heard the army of Cantacuzenus and his father-in-law coming and preparing, and not having the means to stand against them, sent an embassy to the Emir Amurates, that he might come and fight as his ally. The Emir, being a fearful man and holding his own thoughts cunningly concealed, received the embassy with joy and, having sent twelve thousand of his army beforehand to the aid of Emperor John, then he himself also, having crossed with a multitude of soldiers from Abydos, came into
in Thrace, ostensibly to assist the emperor A but covertly so that, if he should find an opportune moment that pleased him—which is indeed what happened—he could secure places and regions for himself in Europe and increase his own power. Cantacuzenus, having come with the Serbs and Bulgarians against Palaiologos, and knowing that the amir was double-minded, and having accomplished nothing, left everything and became a monk, and was named Joasaph in place of Joannes, having held the empire until he was driven out by his son-in-law while at war, for six years and seven months. Now Amurates, finding the time opportune, and being in Thrace ready and equipped with such a great army, and seeing the affairs of the Romans utterly humbled due to civil wars and confusion, and they not having the power to resist his forces—it was then that the race of the Othmanids first B established itself as masters in Europe in Thrace, and took Gallipoli and not a few other places and regions and fortresses from the Roman empire and from the other Christian sovereigns, as will be told briefly in the account of his life. For the Turks had indeed crossed over, as we said before, at other times into Europe into the Chersonese of Thrace, but they were not able to stand nor to control so many places and fortresses and cities as they now did, because often they were driven away by the law of war, and often they crossed over as brigands and fled back again. Finally, Amurates, having also become master of Adrianople and a large part of Macedonia, Bulgaria, and Serbia, at last made a pact of friendship with the emperor C for as long as they should live, having placed oaths between them, that they would keep the treaties and the friendship, and each would be an assistant to the other.
This Emperor Joannes had these sons: Andronikos the Despot, Manuel the Emperor, Theodoros the Porphyrogennetos, and Michael the Despot. He ordered the first-born, Andronikos, to be in the City as heir to the empire, and for the Emperor, Lord Michael, to govern and rule Thessalonica, and for Theodoros the Porphyrogennetos, after the death of the son of Cantacuzenus, to be lord and master in Sparta. D When the Emperor, Lord Manuel, arrived in Thessalonica, he held friendship and peace with the magistrates and leading men of the city of Serres, and they devised a plan to kill the Turkish guards who were holding the fortress and to give the city to Lord Manuel. But this plan did not escape the amir, who sent Carali-pasa with a large multitude of troops against Thessalonica and against Manuel, and commanded him not to return until he should capture Thessalonica and bring Manuel in chains. Having heard this, Lord Manuel, seeing that he could not resist such an army, fell into cowardice and fear, and having nothing else to do, employed flight for his salvation, wanting to come to his father and emperor in the City. But the father, due to the fear of the
A amir, did not wish to receive him, showing anger and threatening him even more severely. But those ruling over Lesbos, hoping that he would be received if he came there, truly and openly did not dare to see or speak with him for fear of the amir, so that they themselves might not fall into danger. Having failed in these hopes as well, and observing that no one wished to receive him, he determined to go of his own volition to the amir in Prusa and seek forgiveness. Having arrived before the amir, he confessed all that he had done in ignorance; the latter, being a shrewd impious man, and having seen the submission which Lord Manuel displayed, and that he had come before him of his own accord, embraced and kissed him with great compassion and was filled with joy. And having sat for some days eating and drinking and being in good spirits, and having spoken many things, he promised him favors and gave him rations to maintain himself from his own court. Then, when he was about to return, he said to Lord Manuel: "Tzelepem, know this from now on and in the future. Because of the submission which you showed by coming to me and confessing before me and before God, who knows all the hidden things of men, the things in which you erred, be assured of this truly: I have love for you as for a son. But take heed from now on and in the future, that you do not attempt such deeds, for it is a great scandal. For you know that we are friends and brothers, and it is not right that there should be difference and fighting between us, but rather friendship and love. You are a young man, prudent and good in all things and capable; and you know to B do and to say: 'Rule over your own affairs in peace, and do not seek what belongs to others. And if there is any necessity for you regarding money or some other assistance, I shall always be ready to fulfill your request with joy.' And having said many other things, he dismissed him, having presented him with the greatest gifts, and having written to the emperor and father, urging that he receive him gladly, and that he love him in his stead and forgive him for what he had done in ignorance. And Amurates crossed over and came to Adrianople, desiring to make war against the Hungarians; but having heard that some of his satraps in Asia had revolted, he abandoned that project, and together with Emperor Lord John, as friends, according to the agreements between them, they crossed over and came against them with a multitude of armies, Lord Manuel also being present near his father.
12. And when they were departing, I mean the amir and the emperor, against the revolted satraps in Asia, the amir left behind his son, Moses Tzelepem, so that he might guard all things subject to him in Europe, and the emperor left the despot Lord Andronicus, his firstborn son, to govern the affairs of the Romans, and entrusted them to him. And those young princes, having found the opportunity, and having become extremely close and spoken with each other frequently, agreed with oaths among themselves that they should be brothers from that hour, and that one would be a helper to the other in everything; and thus they revolted against their fathers, going about the regions and cities, and those that did not comply with their will, but instead [owed] their due...
A favor to their fathers, they captured, plundered, and enslaved. When the Amiral and the Emperor in Asia learned of this, they were greatly grieved and enraged. The Amiral, therefore, harboring in his heart the suspicion that they had revolted through the will and counsel of the Emperor, sent a message to him in anger, saying that he must in some way punish Andronicus, and he would be convinced if the Emperor was not the cause of such a plan; but if it should turn out otherwise, he [the Amiral] would see to it that both he and his house and the entire Roman government would suffer. The Emperor answered, saying that he knew nothing of the matter, and he bore witness with great oaths; and that if he ever chanced to have his son in his hands, he would have punished him without any mercy. When they had settled and brought peace to the affairs in Asia, they crossed over and came into Europe, and immediately organizing an army, they sent it against the rebellious sons. When battle had been joined, the Amiral, having deceived the rebellious army with money and words, contrived such a plot: they abandoned them and fled, and they captured the noblemen's sons who had taken refuge in a certain fortress of Didymoteichon, and brought them as a gift to their fathers. And the Amiral immediately beheaded his own son, and the Emperor, willing and unwilling on account of his fear of the Amiral, deprived his son, the Despot Lord Andronicus, of his sight and locked him in the towers called the Ademanides near the Blachernae. There were also others with them, young men of the same age who were caught, B children of illustrious and noble Christians and Turks, and these too were ensnared and delivered to the Amiral; and their fathers, who were present, were ordered with tears that each of them should with his own hand kill his son; and those who did not obey to do what was commanded them, he sank all together, bound, into the river that flowed past, fathers, I say, and sons. This cruelty and inhumanity Amurates committed, though he was otherwise in all things a well-governed man. After some time had passed, some of the illustrious and noble Christians and Hagarenes, having petitioned the Amiral, asked that he write to the Emperor Lord John so that he might free the Despot Lord Andronicus from his confinement; which also came to pass.
C And when matters were in this state, the Emperor, seeing the affairs of the Romans utterly debased and humbled and falling day by day into complete destruction, while those of the Turks were prospering to the highest degree, prepared some triremes, and embarked to go into Italy to ask for help from the rulers there, lest the Roman Empire should completely succumb and perish. And while he was about to return, he again left the Despot Lord Andronicus to administer and govern the city and the empire. When the Emperor had sailed, he arrived in Italy at the beautiful city of the Venetians, and the entire senate of this city received him gladly; but as for helping him, there was no voice and no hearing. From there, having departed and come to the King of France, Charles, he obtained nothing
and, having incurred heavy debt due to the magnitude of his expenses in Italy, he returned to Venice, sent a dispatch, and wrote letters to his son Andronicus, that he should devise a way to send him money, so that he might pay the debts he had incurred and cover his further expenses on the journey. But he, always nourished by the lust for power and having held it in his hands, cared nothing for the things the Emperor and his father wrote, but rather, as one might say, considered the commands and letters of his father as if written upon water. A Hearing these things in Thessalonica, the younger son, Lord Manuel, with haste and zeal having collected a great amount of gold and silver—gathering as much as he could for one or three galleys—set sail to Italy, where his father was; and having worshipped him and kissed his hands and feet, and having given the loan to the creditors, he took his father and Emperor and returned to Constantinople. For this reason and obedience, Manuel was loved most intensely by his father and the entire senate, while Andronicus was hated by his father and by all. And his father, with the entire senate, voted Manuel Emperor, and they pushed Andronicus away. And having commanded him to remain in the city, the father bestowed upon him the red buskins, and he was proclaimed by all to be the successor to the empire. But the Despot, Lord Andronicus the Blind, was raging with anger and jealousy, crying out about the injustice, and from the contempt felt B towards him, he became heavy-hearted. He strongly maintained, claiming that according to the laws of the Romans, the order, and custom, the empire befitted himself and his son as the firstborn, but that the father and Emperor wished to prefer Manuel, who was born later, and to leave him as the successor of the empire. And he was always standing and considering, seeking a fitting opportunity and a way to plan so that the empire might again be his and his son John's.
13. After the Emir Amurates died, his son Bajazet received the rule. So Lord Andronicus the Blind, having found a fitting opportunity, appeared before him so that he might obtain his desire; and having consulted with some of his friends and his wife’s kinsmen, and his father-in-law Mark, who was still holding a part of Bulgaria, and with his son John, he fled to the Emir Bajazet and came imploring him to help them and to make them masters of the empire, since by inheritance and by Roman laws and custom it befitted them as firstborns; but the father and grandfather wished to wrong them and to give it to the one born later, as we said. They furthermore promised to pay the Emir annually not a few centenaries of gold and silver, and to grant certain privileges from the city. So the Emir, seeing their discord and fights, rejoiced according to the local proverb that says, "The wolf, having seen the violence of the wind with dust, rejoiced and leaped." He said, "A good time for me," and having accepted their request with joy, and having given them an army of six thousand cavalry and four thousand infantry, they went against the city. When unexpectedly at night they reached near the city
they found in the palace of the Pegae the emperor with his son Manuel and his brother; and having seized them, he locked them in a certain house and ordered them to be guarded with a great guard; and thus the despot Lord Andronikos with his son John became masters of the city and of the empire for two years and six months. And he thought many times of proclaiming his son John as emperor. But it was impossible because the emperor and father was still alive. And the emir often signaled to him that he should kill them and sweep them out of the way, if he wished to remain in power unmolested; but he, being B cautious, never wished to become a parricide and fratricide. One day, therefore, the emperors decieved those guarding them, the Bulgarians, and fled/escaped, and crossing over, they too came to the emir Bayazid. And the aged emperor, recalling the kinship of the grandfather Orchan and the friendship of his father Amurath, and that it is not just, nor does any law allow fathers to be treated by their children in such a manner. And emperor Manuel promised to pay a higher tribute than his brother; and specifically he promised this too, that every year at the time of spring he would be ready with an army of twelve thousand infantry and cavalry for assistance, wherever the emir might wish to go, and that he would be a friend to his friends and an enemy to his enemies, the one on behalf of the other. And with oaths they secured these things. And the emir, having heard these things, sent a certain envoy from his court to the city, in order to know the minds and the wills A and the counsels of the archons and of the people, whom of the two brothers they loved as emperor. The envoy having arrived and having learned in detail, grasped the minds and the counsels of almost all the citizens, that for many reasons they wished Lord Manuel to reign over them. And having done all these things to report to the emir, having immediately given an army to them, they came into the city. Therefore, the Lord Andronikos and his son, not having anything to do or how to resist, Lord Manuel, together with his father and emperor, became masters of the empire and of the city; and immediately by the order of his father, the emperor Lord Manuel was adorned with the imperial diadem by the patriarch in the sacred Apostolion. The emperor Lord John then reigned after he had expelled his son-in-law from the empire, until he gave the scepter and the entire authority of the empire to his son Lord Manuel and crowned him emperor in the year 6800. To the despot Lord Andronikos, C he gave Thessalonica by agreement to reside in it; and thus all the affairs of the Romans were pacified.
While the emir Bayazid was at one time staying in Macedonia near the city of Serres, the emperor Lord Manuel was present according to the promises and agreements that they had, and his brother the despot Lord Theodore, and Lord Constantine Dragases, and the despot of Serbia, Lord Stephen. Paul Mamonas arrived from the Peloponnese, who, having governed Monemvasia, since his father had governed it for a long time, he himself had also received that province by the order of the emperor, but, through the length of possession, an occasion
A arose to claim the city as his own property. He accused the emperor’s brother to the emir, saying that he was wrongly treated by him, and that he had powerfully snatched Monemvasia from his hands, and with insult, disgrace, and shame had driven him from there. This Mamonas was long known to the emir. The emir, therefore, feeling angry, sent a message to the emperor saying: “Is it not enough for you to live in peace, but you dare to act in this way against my subjects? For I swear to you by God, I intend to punish those who dare such things.” And he uttered other hard words against the emperor and the other Christian lords, of whom we have spoken. B Those who heard were grieved to the heart, and from that time they sought a suitable time and a reasonable excuse so that they might escape the promises, and agreements, and submission which they had with the emir. And having secretly made agreements and fearful oaths among themselves to be one in purpose and heart until death, that this bond of love and this alliance might be more firm, they decided that Emperor Manuel should take as his lawful wife the daughter of Lord Constantine Dragases.
14. When the emir Bayezid had come and captured a large part of the region of Bulgaria, and indeed enslaved it, the King of Germany, Sigismund, learned what had happened. Then Sigismund, the King of Germany, sent an ambassador to him, C saying that it was not right, being friends, for the emir to lay his hand upon Bulgaria, since that place belonged to the right of his kingdom. When the ambassador arrived and said these things to Bayezid, he answered him nothing else, but taking him by the hand, he showed him a large house filled inside with all kinds of weapons of war, swords, and blades, which were well prepared and in order. Then he said to the ambassador: “Tell these things to your master the king, that my right, which I exercise in Bulgaria, is these weapons and equipment which you have seen.” And when the ambassador returned and made his report to King Sigismund concerning these things, the king was greatly grieved to hear from the ambassador such things and the arrogance of the emir; and he straightway gathered a large mercenary army, D and preparing his own even more, and calling upon many other lords to help, without any pay or wages, and with the greatest joy and a noble soul and manly spirit, this splendid army marched, and subjected to its feet all the fortresses of the Turks, capturing, plundering, and destroying them, until they crossed and reached Nicopolis, just as a fire attacking a forest. Then King Sigismund, wishing to challenge Bayezid to battle from another side as well, sent an ambassador secretly to the emperor, Lord Manuel, and the other lords whom we mentioned before, so that they might be ready and prepared to utterly destroy this enemy of the faith, if they could. They, waiting for such an occasion like a thirsty land waits for water from heaven, received the ambassador with joy and were themselves also secretly preparing for war. Meanwhile, Bayezid, having learned of the arrival of King Sigismund, fell into various thoughts and fear, and with his forces
promptly and vigorously assembled and well-prepared, set out against his opponents. When the armies drew near, the Germans and the Gauls first kindled the battle, and once the engagement took place, due to bad counsel, the Christian cause suffered, the entire army was lost, and they fled without turning back. And in their flight, the Turks killed many and took them captive, not only those of obscure and common rank, but also from the very illustrious, glorious, and noble lords themselves; among whom were the Duke of Burgundy, the Count of Nevers, B and the Grand Architriclinos of the King of the Franks, and others not a few who were prominent and illustrious. But with difficulty, King Sigismund himself, along with the master of the brotherhood of Rhodes who bore the cross, chanced to find a small boat, boarded it, crossed the Danube, and secured his safety. The Emir, having seized all their baggage and having unexpectedly obtained such an admirable victory, was filled with glory and joy. And having seen that the Emperor, lord Manuel, and the other lords, about whom we spoke, did not act according to the promises and agreements which they had made among themselves—to follow him—and having heard all that these men were plotting against C him, D he declared a great war against the Emperor, and in the year 6900, having brought a siege upon the city by land and sea, he besieged it for a long period and in every way.
15. In that interval of time, John, the son of the Despot, lord Andronikos, and nephew of the Emperor, lord Manuel—of whom we have spoken many times—who had long been constantly near the Emir (and he received large provisions from him, following and accompanying him, and he was always a member of his household and beloved), having learned that certain men were slandering him to the Emir, saying that "John is not well-disposed toward you, O Emir, but is treacherous; and if it were not so, the city and the Emperor, his uncle, would have submitted and served [you]," and having heard such things being done and rumored about him, fearing the sharp and precipitate [nature] of Bayezid, lest he risk his life, he fled one night and came to his uncle, the Emperor. The Emperor and uncle received him gladly, as if he were a precious gift, and kissed and embraced him, and having marked out the proper provisions, gave them to him. When a few days had passed, the Emperor decided to go to Italy and ask for some help, considering that he would obtain help, since those same lords were the cause of the Emir undertaking the war against the city, which he waged and was waging on account of the envoy sent by them, as we said, through whom they made an agreement that they would always be against the Emir and one would be a helper for the other, and that they would mutually assist one another. And when the Emperor was about to depart from the city, [he entrusted] his nephew
Lord John, so that he might govern and rule the city and fight against the enemies; the Emperor himself took the Empress, his wife, and going into the Peloponnese, he left her in Sparta, near his brother, Lord Theodore; he himself then traveled into Italy. Arriving then at Venice, the Emperor proceeded from there to the Duke of Milan, who received him with great honor and generosity, and furthermore with an envoy, and gave him many horses and soldiers so that he might go to the King of France, the Duke having promised the Emperor that if the others also should think the same, he himself would come privately and of his own accord, and assist the Emperor and the Roman Empire and not leave it in danger. The Emperor then came to the King of the French, but found him suffering from a most grievous illness and out of his mind; his counselors had nothing to answer him alone. The Emperor returned without success to Constantinople in the year 6915, on the 13th of September.
16. In that same year, the Emir Bayezid sent against the Peloponnese Gakup Pasha and Brenazes with an army of fifty thousand; and while they were on the road and even after they arrived in the Peloponnese, they inflicted many evils and terrors and enslavements upon the Christians, as will be told briefly in the Life of Bayezid. Lord Theodore, the Despot, seeing that the affairs of the Romans were in such a bad way, and that the city had been for such a long time in danger, blockaded, B and oppressed by grave famine, and likewise the war in the Peloponnese, and seeing that none of the Christian lords wished to help them, and being utterly at a loss, crossed over to Rhodes with a trireme and had sold the principality of Sparta to the brotherhood of the Prophet and Baptist John. When the brotherhood had sent some of the crusaders to Sparta in order that they might become masters of the authority as lords and masters, the people, when they saw them and heard what had happened, rushed with sticks and stones, running with anger, so that they might kill the sent crusaders. The bishop of the place stood and spoke, so that such disorder should not happen, and he besought the people, and yielding to his words, they gave the crusaders a three-day deadline, so that they might depart in peace from the territory of Sparta; if they did otherwise, they would see for themselves. Seeing then that they were achieving nothing, but rather that commotion and scandals were occurring and their lives were especially in danger, they rose up and returned home. The Spartans elected their bishop as their governor and duke, and they wished to be judged and governed by him both civilly and ecclesiastically. Lord Theodore the Despot, when he saw that his hopes were disappointed, returned the money he had received to the brotherhood and wanted to go to Sparta to his own seat, but the people did not wish to receive him; nay, they even heaped insults upon him. And after many words and scandals had occurred, finally the bishop mediated, and they received him again, and allowed him to be as he
A had been before. However, before he could take possession of it, concerning the death of the emperor lord John in Thessaloniki, and of the arrival there of the emperor lord Manuel and his son, and of the establishment there of his son the despot lord Andronicus, and of the death of the despot lord Theodore the Porphyrogenitus in Lacedaemon, that is, in Sparta, and of the arrival of the emperor and his brother lord Manuel in the Peloponnese. And I will narrate the death of the emir Musulman at the hand of his brother Moses, and about the three-year war of this Moses with the emperor lord Manuel, and about the blinding near the regions of Larissa of Orchanes, the son of Musulman, by his uncle Moses, and of the arrival from the East to the West of his brother Mehemet, also called Cyritzes, and of his return to the East and again his arrival through the city into Thrace, that is, in Europe, and of his victory. And I shall speak of the death of Moses, as well as of the death of the second son of the emperor lord Manuel, the one before Constantine, who died in Monemvasia. But also about two of his daughters, and of the birth of the master lord Michael, and of his death by a pestilential disease. Likewise also of the death of the Tzelepes lord Demetrius, the son of Sultan Bajazet and brother of the emir Mehemet—who, having become a Christian, as we mentioned a little before, was reborn by holy baptism, and the emperor and the emir Mehemet, his brother, gave him great stipends, and, having lived after his baptismB
17. At that time, in the year ..., for the reason we have mentioned, the despot lord Andronicus sold Thessaloniki to the Venetian senate for fifty thousand florins. The freedom of the city from the blockage happened in this way. The emir, having heard that Demires, the king of the Scythians and Massagetae, was coming against him to engage in war with an innumerable army, whether he wished it or not, dissolved the siege and the war and the blockade of the city, and made peace with the emperor with oaths, and having crossed into Asia, he prepared his army to receive the war and the assault of Demires.
18. C When this emperor, lord Manuel, was reigning, during the blockade of the city, at the time I was born, in the year 6909 from the creation of the world, on the 3rd of August. I was reborn through holy baptism by the work of the most holy mother, the saint Thomais, about whom we shall speak the truth in the appropriate and fitting place. From my tenth year up to my eighty-sixth, many necessary and memorable things have occurred, which I wish to narrate. I shall speak first about the arrival in the West of the five sons of the emir Bajazet, that is, Musulman, Moses, Jessai, Mehemet, and Josuph, who became a Christian and was named Demetrius; D and for seven years after he was baptized, he departed to the Lord. And concerning the birth of Prince Thomas: and these, indeed, on account of his mature age, he learned well and accurately; but those things which happened before I was born, I shall narrate.
A Partly I have learned them, written down by trustworthy and wise authors; partly I have heard them from the nobles of the imperial court, and from the wise, prudent, and aged men of the senate. And how should I pass these over in silence?
19. On the twenty-eighth day of the month of July of the year 6910, B Demires, the king of the Massagetae, the Persians, and the northern Scythians, captured the amir Bayezid, along with his wife, his son Moses, and not a few other nobles of his court, and scattered his entire army. But we shall not omit to say and relate what sort of person he was, and who King Demires was. Now this king and this nation of the Massagetae and Scythian Turks have their dwellings beyond the river Araxes toward the east; they are a race very skilled in archery and most inhospitable, a great, numerous, and valiant nation, among whom that Cyrus, the great king of old, once in his time died when Demiris was reigning. C This queen, Demiris, after having beheaded Cyrus, put the head into a skin filled with wine, and treading upon the skin and the head of Cyrus, she said: "O insatiable Cyrus, be sated." These Massagetae are a very savage race, most excellent horsemen, and the most rapacious of brigands. In battles and in war they use weapons such as these: swords, loricae, bows, and bronze cloaks. Their garments and belts are golden, and they wear diadems in battle. D Their horses have golden bridles, and their breast-straps and spurs D are also of gold. Their entire life is simple, yet always rigid, ferocious, and martial. Such, then, is the state and the life of the Massagetae and of Demiris, their king.
Leaving these aside, let us return to the amir Bayezid and his ancestors; let us narrate briefly whence they descend and what their deeds and brave exploits were. This amir Bayezid was the fifth prince from the royal family of the Othmanli. For the first was Ertogrul, the son of Gui. Regarding these, although many others have written, they have disagreed and differed from one another, not agreeing as to what each saw and heard; yet it seemed good to us, and we decided to record those things which we learned from long-standing rumor from wise men, and those things which we saw written down concerning this genealogy.
20. The Emperor John Comnenus, at a certain time C while staying in the regions of the province of the city of Neocaesarea, fighting against the Persians and the Sultan of Iconium, took many fortresses of the Persians under his own control. He had with him John, his nephew, the son of Isaac the Sebastocrator, his brother. When the army had been lingering for many days in those regions, and the necessary supplies, as well as fodder for the horses, were failing because the land was thin and stony, and as winter was approaching, on account of the weather [cold and precipitous, and that climate...]*
*Note: the translation here reaches the bottom of page 692, corresponding to the final words of the Latin text provided in the facsimile: "propter caeli fri-" (the fragment following the bracketed ellipsis is the translation of the start of the next page).*
was extremely harsh. Then, as winter set in, the horses were mostly worn out. The emperor, managing the lameness of the horses, went around the army collecting the noble beasts, and giving them to the Romans, the Italians, and as many spearmen A who were found to be dexterous, knowing that by means of them he could stand against the enemies and fight back. While the emperor was managing these matters, and a conflict was about to take place, seeing a distinguished knight from Italy standing on foot, he ordered John, his own nephew, to dismount from the Arabic horse upon which he was riding, and to give it to the Italian. But he, being of a proud and haughty spirit more than was proper, resisted the command of the emperor and uncle, having made a rather stubborn refusal. But not having the strength to resist the uncle and emperor for long (for he saw him boiling with rage), against his will and unwillingly, he gave the horse to the Italian, having transferred himself to another mount. He himself, full of dejection and boiling with anger, having come face to face with this, fled to the Persians and became a defector. C Him the amir and all the barbarians received gladly and affectionately; and having renounced the faith in Christ, he was named Tzelepes instead of John, and he took as wife a daughter of the amir, named Camero, and as a dowry he gave him places and lands and cities and much wealth. The man was not unversed in Greek wisdom and was very capable in speaking the Arabic dialect. The young man was also most munificent and generous, which is pleasing to all, and especially to the barbarians, and furthermore socially-minded in his disposition toward those under him, already a leader among the commanders, among whom were also trophies; wherefore he also took it upon himself to act as a leader, and made the things under him to be common, and he used to say they were. He was a fellow-laborer to all in their necessities, and he helped and tended them, and he tended to, corrected, and brought peace to the disputes that arose among them. And no one spoke against his words and wishes; and he was so loved by his father-in-law and by all the others that he did whatever he wished, and the barbarians honored him as a second Muhammad. He begat a noble son named Suleiman-Shah by Camero, and having trained him in Greek and Arabic wisdom, he was in all respects like his father, and the barbarians stood in great awe of him. And in the place and in the whole province where he made his residence, he was established as master; and his fame ran throughout all of Asia and spread abroad. D And having translated very many of the recent laws of the Roman emperors into Arabic, he taught the Turks to judge in accordance with them. Finding also a certain opportunity on account of the disturbances which the Italians were making against the Roman authority, whatever was near his dominion subject to the Romans, he made subject to himself. And he never wished to harm any Christian, but rather to those who happened to be subject to him he did many kindnesses and benefits and bestowed gifts. And he was increasing his authority little by little. He begat Ertoghrul, the father of Osman.
A Others indeed, having written about these matters, have a different view, that this aforementioned Tzelepēs was not the nephew of the emperor John Komnenos, B but another person of the same name who also bore the same name. Who this person was, they say:
21. Sultan Azatinēs was the son of Christian parents and had been perfected by holy baptism; but having used a turn of fortune, as happens contrary to expectation, he had become sultan and ameras and leader of the Turks. He secretly kept the most important matters of piety, and having come to the city, he sought an alliance with the emperor because of the war existing between the Scythians and Turks. He himself also venerated the holy icons and did all things that were evidently those of the Christians. B As he was returning to his realm, he also had his son, Melek, present, and having crossed the Ister, he there paid the common debt [i.e., he died]. His son, Melek, then crossed over to the Scythians in Asia, from whom having received encouragement, he came seeking the ancestral authority for the Turks. While all the other satraps bowed to him as master and sovereign and ameras, a certain one named Amourios did not agree, but having gathered a piratical crowd, he waged war against him, and in the end, having routed him, he pursued him as far as the sea, and he escaped by fleeing to Heraclea in the Pontus. But when spring came, he came again to the Turks and took the ancestral authority. But not long after, he also leaves this life, secretly [murdered] by some of the council and the court C having been ruined, and with those affairs having departed from good order and brilliant fortune into the greatest disorder, not only did the satraps and as many as were outstanding in birth and glory divide the whole empire among themselves, but also many of the obscure and nameless, having acquired some mixed crowds, turned to a piratical life and badly afflicted the neighboring regions and cities of the Romans. Among these leaders was one, as they record, who, while originating from a family not so illustrious, as they say, was renowned in virtues and valor; for he was prudent and skillful and in both speaking and acting, very excellent and capable. The crowd who were with him originated from a certain province called . . . and because of his prudence and virtue and justice, the whole race of the Turks, seeing and hearing [of him], both they themselves and that crowd that had gathered there, loved him very much and were obedient and listened to him with reverence. This man begat the . . . son, who also, having succeeded to the ancestral authority, was in all things similar to his father, and his fame ran throughout all Asia, and those subjected under him loved and revered him, and he administered his authority well, and in every way was increasing it every day. He begat Ertoghrul.
However, whether it was one way or the other, let us leave these things, and I relinquish the judgment to those who are fond of learning and the readers, because of the uncertainty of the narrative.
B 22. This Ertoghrul was terrible in all things and more magnanimous than his grandfather and his father, and in a short time he had become proven in wars, and he suddenly seized certain places and regions that were tributary to the Romans. And through the confusion of the time and by the other satraps of his own race, he made many fortresses his own, and he was fearful to all. Some relate that he saw a vision of this kind. Journeying one day on the road, with the heat of the sun being great, it seemed good to him to rest a little (for he was weary from the journey), and lying down under the shade of a tree he fell asleep. There it appeared to him that blood was flowing with great pain from his belly; and where the urine fell, a very beautiful, small tree sprouted up, having branches like gold, and tender and soft, and its root was solid; and in a short time the branches of the tree increased so much that they seemed to cover the whole world. And beneath the shade of the tree were sitting every kind of winged bird, and in the midst of these many and innumerable birds there were also some eagles, small and large. But from afar, opposite the tree, other eagles were sitting, watching the beauty of the tree, and as it were mocking the eagles and the birds underneath it. And a certain wind from the root of the tree blew very strongly, and there were lightnings and thunders and a great storm. And the eagles which were at a distance, not being able to sustain the onset of the wind and the power of the storm, even they, however reluctantly, came under the shelter of the wondrous and shady tree; of whom some had their claws broken by the storm, and of others the wings fell off, and they could no longer fly, and some of them were even totally killed. Being awakened, Ertoghrul was struck with fear and went to a dream-interpreter C who was trained to the highest degree in astrology, and related the vision to him. He, having recognized [the meaning] from the movement of the planets and the signs and the stars, spoke to him thus: "The kings who shall descend from you will become great in a short time, and their kingdom will increase exceedingly in the world, and they will enslave and expel from their rule D and destroy other masters and kings, and they will make many nations tributary, and they will serve them; and they will be feared and terrible unto every nation and race and tongue and tribe." Ertoghrul, having heard this, became overflowing with joy, and he was striving more strongly in all things that he did, and with great hopes and a haughty mind. After a few days, having organized as best he could predatory ships, and having quickly prepared biremes and moneres and having equipped them well with fighting men, he pillaged many of the Cyclades islands in the Aegaean sea of Asia and enslaved the inhabitants. Having crossed over also towards Thrace in the province of Aenus and Peritheorium, he took many Christians captive, and coming as far as Euboea he harmed Greece in certain places. Having reached
the Peloponnese itself, and having made much spoil from there as far as Smyrna and the coastal regions of A Ionia, he turned his course and returned to Asia with a multitude of captives and wealth. And he was received gladly by all the other satraps and the common people, and the barbarians honored him with voices of acclamation. And from that time on he was particularly feared by the satraps, and was to be preferred above all others because he was sufficiently able to sail and conduct maritime operations; for since this race of Turks is not good at sailing the sea, he, on account of his sailing at that time, was the more admired. He begat Othman, from whom the entire race was called the Othmanlides.
23. Upon the death, then, of Ertogroul, his son Othman having been established in authority, as we have said, took the paternal authority into his hands in the year from the creation of the world 6773, and in a short time, having come to an agreement with the other satraps and having waged certain wars against the Roman subjects, Othman was managing and governing everything regarding the war. Then, it did not please him that all things should be in common and that no one should ever be distinguished from his neighbor. With a small pretext he found a cause, and a disagreement having arisen between them, they came to an agreement to divide all that they had gained from the Roman principality, so that each might be acknowledged as the master and lord only of what fell to his lot. B And first, the sons of Amorium, Hassan and Mahumet, took the lands from the Sangarius River as far as Paphlagonia; and those around Magnesia and Pergamum and Ephesus, Sasan took, and Sarchanes took the lands of Ionia; the greater part of Great Phrygia, and even as far as Philadelphia and all the nearest parts from the Maeander River up to Antioch, the Caramanian Alissurius took; the lands from Lydia and Aeolis as far as Mysia which is on the Hellespont, Calames and his son Carases took; and the parts near Olympus and all that which belongs to Bithynia thereafter, Othman took.
And thus, having divided that conquered land and set boundaries, Othman, being ambitious and covetous, did not rest, but leaping over the boundaries of others and wronging them, he acquired a large territory from them and troubled them greatly. And wishing in every way to increase his own portion and authority, he then waged war against the Romans and brought a part of Bithynia under himself, and having waged war with the one who was the emir of the famous city of Sebastea, he caught and killed him, and became master and lord of such a city and province, and brought all that authority into submission. From there his kingdom, having taken its beginning, became famous and grew. Then, turning again to what he could [take] from the other fellow-tribesman satraps and his companions of that same lot, he seized certain places and fortresses, both by theft and by agreement. Then he died, having reigned for 28 years, in the year 6801, in the 11th indiction, and his son Orchanes became master of the paternal authority.
A Orchanes, as we have said, becoming lord of the kingdom of his father, in all things imitated his father, and sought ways and means to increase his domain and his kingdom richly, and neither by day nor by night did he rest, always desiring to have wars and to struggle. And having stirred up a war against the emirs of his own kin, he won many new victories and acquired the whole of Mysia by the law of war, and Lycaonia and Phrygia and Caria, and as far as the sea around the Eurymedon river, and the remaining part of Bithynia, Nicomedia and Nicaea and other not a few small towns and cities, and the famous and beautiful city of Prusa, which lies at the feet of Olympus, which was under the rule of the Romans, he conquered. In that war of Prusa he was also wounded in his right foot. Having also crossed into the Chersonese of Thrace, he attacked and took some small towns; but later, having taken the sister of Emperor John as his wife, because of that kinship he voluntarily gave back the fortresses in the Chersonese to the emperor, who was his brother-in-law, as we have said elsewhere, and by helping his brother-in-law, he restored him to his paternal kingdom. Then he died, having reigned for fifty-seven years, nine months, and twelve days, and his son Amurates succeeded to the rule.
A 25. After the death of Orchanes, Amurates, having taken into his hands the authority of the kingdom, in the year 6858, in the 12th indiction, was a man who in all things was fit, being brave and sagacious and versatile, and in wars skillful above all his ancestors, and he achieved many works worthy of remembrance for the increase of his power and kingdom. He was the first, as we have said, to cross into the parts of Europe and capture Callipolis, and then also Adrianople. Likewise, he took another not small part of Thrace and Macedonia. Later, he made peace and swore oaths with the Emperor Lord John. When some of his satraps in the East rebelled, he crossed over with the emperor, and with one mind they routed them; and having made war against the descendants of Amorius, he conquered and chased them and gained control of all Paphlagonia as far as the Sangarius river. And when he was about to cross again into B Europe, having learned that his son Moses had rebelled with the emperor’s son, the Lord Andronicus, he was extremely grieved. And having crossed, they came quickly, and having sent an army against them, they defeated them, and they fled. Later, having captured them, the emir immediately put his own son to death, and the emperor blinded his son. Then, having made war against Bulgaria and Serbia, he brought a large part under himself and won great victories. After some time had passed, he made war again against the Despot Lazarus, who was ruling over Serbia. Having routed and defeated him, he pursued him and scattered his army, and he captured many cities and regions of Serbia again. Having fought thirty-seven great battles, he was always a trophy-bearer and victor. Later, he was killed by the aforementioned
A ruler of Thechoe and Methone, whom he defeated, and he became master of all their authority and took their wives and children captive. Then, having returned again to Europe, he campaigned against the Hungarians, and he defeated them once and twice, and enslaved a portion of Albania. He also campaigned against Miltzas, the ruler of Wallachia, and having caused much damage in the region, later Miltzas came out to an open battle in a certain difficult place. The emir, devising [a plan regarding] the disadvantage of the location, left the battle and withdrew. Later, having come to an agreement, Miltzas finally ordered that he should pay him [tribute], and they made peace, and he took much land from the remaining parts of Bulgaria and Serbia. And having engaged in war with the king of Germany, Sigismund, Sigismund reached as far as Nicopolis, and the armies met, and owing to [their] poor counsel, the cause of the Christians was destroyed, and having turned them, they pursued them with much slaughter and captivity. Then he came to Constantinople, our fatherland, and blockaded it, besieging it. And he was so sharp and quick in all things that he was not satisfied only with besieging the city, but, having sent Giakoub-pasha B and the Brenezes with fifty-six thousand [men] in an army, they went against the Peloponnese; and having entered into the island, they did all the evils they could, and they even reached as far as near Corone and Methone; then, having turned back, they besieged and took the ancient and famous city of Argos, and having taken over thirty thousand captives, they made them settlers in Asia.
26. The one called Aleutores began his reign in the year 6891, the sixth indiction; in the Turkish dialect, *aleutores* means lightning and thunder. Because he was sharp and quick in everything, and eager and powerful, and wanted everything to be done quickly as if by lightning, they gave him this name. Fearing that his brother Musulman might hear of the death of his father and that something contrary might occur, he devised a trap. He immediately sent men to summon him as if in his father's name; and he, not knowing what had happened, came in innocence and was seized by him and strangled; and thus he lived free of care. C But when spring approached, having gathered all his army and crossed into Asia, he came to Armenia; having fought, he conquered everything and subdued the Colchians, and Amastris, and its emir, Dinus. Then he campaigned against the emir Sarcas, and defeated him and the emir Maedes. And autumn having set in, and winter having arrived, [the matter regarding] D the emir of Thechoe and Methone... having defeated them and put them to flight, he obtained their whole land, and took their wives with their children into servitude. Then, having returned into Europe, he moved against the Hungarians and defeated them again and again, and occupied some part of Albania. The same one set out against Miltzas, the prince of Wallachia, and ravaged many of his places; but when Miltzas had led [his army] out to a fair battle in a certain difficult place, [the emir], yielding to the disadvantage of the location, omitted the battle and returned. Afterwards, terms were reached, by which Miltzas promised that he would pay him tribute, and peace was agreed upon. From the remaining parts of Bulgaria and Serbia he received not a few [lands]. Then, having stirred up war against the emperor of Germany, Sigismund, when Sigismund had advanced as far as Nicopolis, and the armies had met, it happened through imprudence that the Christians were utterly defeated and were put to flight with great slaughter, some being killed and others captured. He then attacked our fatherland, Constantinople, and shut it up with a siege, and he was so headlong in all things that it was not enough for him to besiege the city, but he sent Giakoub-pasian and Brenezes with fifty-six thousand [men] into the Peloponnese. They attacked the island and mauled it with every kind of evil, having advanced as far as Corone and Methone. Then, having returned, they stormed the ancient and famous city of Argos.
and, having demolished its walls, left it desolate, and took their weapons and let them go naked, in the year 6903, in the 5th indiction. Now A Dinus the emir and the others who had been driven from their authority by Bajazet, having come to the king Demire, were weeping over the injustice they had suffered. And Demire, wishing to help them, sent an ambassador to Bajazet, saying that it was not right to act in such a way against those of the same race and the same faith, and he advised him to restore the authority of each one again, if he wished that they should be friends. But the emir, being exceedingly greedy and never satisfied with wealth and way of life, and being impetuous and terrible, held the words of the ambassador in no account, and mocked Demire, his lord, calling him a boor. And Demire, having heard from the ambassador everything that the emir had uttered against him, and knowing his vanity, was enraged, and, having gathered all his army, was marching against him. And when Bajazet also heard, he gathered his own forces and was coming with haste to meet Demire, bravely and boldly and with great spirit. The army of the emir was 150,000, B while that of Demire was 820,000. And yet, the magnanimity of Bajazet held Demire in no account. When the armies reached the parts of Phrygia, they met, and the battle and the array and the conflict were great. Finally, those of Bajazet were turned to flight, and in their fleeing many were captured, to whom they did no other harm than only to take their garments and their weapons and let them go naked.
And when they fled, they captured Bajazet and his wife and his son Moses and many other nobles of his court, and led them to Demire. And Demire was filled with joy at the victory and said to Bajazet: “O wicked head, why did you not govern the evil impulses of your mind, so that you would not come to this? Do you not know that no one is able to stand against my army?” Then, wondering at the royal equipment of Bajazet, and the beautiful and marvelous tents, and the many birds and hunting dogs C which he had, he said to him again: “Tell me, O mad and senseless man, what is the benefit of your great vanity with such equipment?” Bajazet, answering, said to Demire: “I know well, because you are a boorish Scythian and of obscure lineage, that royal equipments do not please you, because these things never suited you. But for me, as son of Amurates and grandson of Orchanes and great-grandson of Ottoman and great-great-grandson of Ertogrul, it is fitting to do and to have these things and more.” And Demire, having heard the arrogant words of Bajazet, being enraged, had an iron cage made and put him inside, and after a little while killed him; he had reigned for twenty-six years, and had lived in captivity for eight months.
27. In this way, therefore, as we have said, with the situation having developed as it did, and the emir Bajazet being made captive, the empire of the Othmanidae fell into disorder and great danger D due to certain dissensions and wars arising among his sons.
who, having heard of the death of their father, struggled so that each might become master of the ancestral kingdom. And the four brothers crossed over into Europe, because Moses, as we have said, had remained captive with his father; Joseph, as we have said, having been illuminated by the light of the Holy Spirit, had become a Christian; but the others were at odds with one another, and after a battle had taken place, the cause of Jesse prevailed for a short time. A And having a great friendship with the emperor Lord Manuel, he gathered an army against the King of Hungary, but having arrived there, he accomplished nothing. And having gone against the despot of Serbia, nothing useful came of it for him. And having crossed into Asia in order to march against his brother Musulman, and having met him in the regions of the province of Cappadocia, Jesse was defeated and fled; and in his flight, they captured him and brought him to his brother, who strangled him after he had remained in power for some months. Those who had been Musulman were defeated by Moses, and having been captured by him, were put to death.
29. And Moses, having become master of the entire authority, prepared a fleet by sea and an army by land so as to come against the city. But the emperor of the Romans having learned of this, and having prepared and organized the Roman fleet, appointed as commander B Manuel, his illegitimate brother, and near the island called Plate the fleets met. The fleet of Moses was broken and partly sent to the bottom, and partly submerged, and the very few remaining ships fled in a wretched state, and the victory was with the Romans. And on land, Moses suffered similar things. Hearing this, he withdrew with shame. And again the emperor, devising schemes to utterly defeat Moses, sent to Asia and brought Orchanes, the son of Musulman, and installed him as master in Europe. And a battle having occurred, the cause of Orchanes failed, he having been betrayed by his governor and primary vizier, Sabanes; and having captured him, his uncle Moses blinded him. But Mehemet, the youngest son of Bajazet, because he was the youngest of all and feared by all his brothers, fled and arrived at a certain place with a certain bow-making artisan, C and there became a wage-earner, so that he might not be known to his brothers. But when he had grown a little in age, after such hardship, and as he was observing the state of affairs, he himself, having entrusted himself to the turn of fortune, gathered these things, and he comes to the emir Caraman in Cappadocia asking for help. 28. And Musulman having become master of the authority, Demires then liberated his brother Moses, who, having crossed secretly, came into Europe; and the despot of Serbia, having given a significant force and having helped him—I mean Moses—he became master of Europe. But his brother Musulman, having learned this in Asia, crossed through the city to come against his brother; and having a great friendship with the emperor, and having given the daughter of the despot, Lord Theodore, to him in marriage, he remained D for a few days in the city, and then moved against Moses. Having engaged in battle, Musulman was defeated by Moses, captured and killed.
A And the emir Caramanus, having received him gladly, chased [him]. He [Mehemet] then joined with Galatia, Cappadocia, and Pontus, and having given him a force, he set out against his brother Moses. After a first and second battle had taken place, the army of Moses prevailed, and Mehemet and his army were dispersed. For the third time, however, having calculated to test his fortune, he went to the lord of Serbia and Bulgaria and to the emperor to ask for help from them; and when they had given him a sufficient force and army, he set out again against Moses. When battle was joined, Mehemet, having deceived many of the leading commanders and governors of Moses with money, caused them to abandon him and flee to Mehemet. Moses, seeing this, turned to flight himself, and escaped and hid in a wooded place; found there by a commander of Mehemet, he was strangled at the order of his lord. Thus the empire itself was in danger for three years and two months due to the discord among the four brothers, but Mehemet became master of the entire paternal authority and empire, after so many labors and sufferings, in the year 6907, 3rd indiction.
[30] The first work he did after taking power was this: he burdened the tributes of Moldoblachia and Bogdania as much as possible, and all the country and place in Asia of which the Scythians had become masters after the capture of his father—these, after a short time, he restored under himself. And as for the princes of their own race and faith whom the father had expelled from power and Demires had come and restored to them, these he B once again—by right of war and whatever of the upper Asia he gained—he made the emir of Sinopes, Ismael, a tributary, and he became master from Lydia as far as Aeolis, and up to Mysia, which is by the Hellespont. And having made war with the council of the Venetians—the fleet of the Venetians had as its admiral Peter Lordan—and both fleets, I mean that of the Venetians and the emir, having met between Proconnesus and Callipolis, and a naval battle having taken place, many triremes and ships of the Turks were sunk; but after this, they made peace. This emir loved the emperor, the lord Manuel, and the other Christian princes who were near his borders; and at the time of his impending death, he enjoined his son Amurate that he should be a friend and ally to the emperor, the lord Manuel. This man was the first to establish his seat in Adrianople, which his predecessors had in Prusa. He was exceedingly munificent and excellent to his friends; likewise, he remained until the end of his life hostile to his enemies, always searching for new inventions and engines, so that he might harm and destroy those who were ill-disposed toward him. He died having reigned seventeen years.
[31] When, therefore, the emir Mehemet, also called Cyritzes, had died, his son Amurate came and succeeded to the rule in the year 6924, 8th indiction. And with autumn setting in, he did not rest on account of the winter, but having gathered his army, he came against his uncle Mustapha, and having defeated him, he put him to death. And immediately after the
A victory, and having sent Michael-bey, he arrived and fell into error; and having defeated him, he killed him and blockaded the city. The reason was that the emperors, as will be related more fully hereafter, were helping Mustapha. Then he himself also arrived and, having accomplished nothing, made peace with the emperors, through the mediation of the lady Mara, his stepmother. Then he came against Thessalonica, which was held by the Venetians; B and having besieged and blockaded it, he took it. And he subjugated no small portion of Hungary, and having fought a battle with King Ladislaus, he defeated him. But having come against the Vlachs and Moldovlachs, he accomplished nothing, but returned having suffered losses. Then again he campaigned against them a second time; and the Vlachs, having summoned the Hungarians to their aid, and war having occurred, the victory fell to the Amire; and they themselves were scattered in flight. They say that there died in that battle more than thirty thousand C Hungarians and Vlachs, but very few Turks. He subjugated by war a part of ancient Epirus, and the Aetolians, and Acarnanians, and Thebes, and Athens, and all of Boeotia and Hellas and Ioannina, and he defeated and destroyed the Amire of Caesarea completely, and became master of all that domain, except for some fortresses which were on some very high mountains, where the Caramanian had come and made his dwelling. And King Ladislaus, having reached an agreement with certain other Christian lords, D comes again against Amurates, and having reached as far as the city of Varna and having there encountered the Amire, through ignorance Ladislaus fell into error.
[32.] When the entire sovereignty and power had come to Mehmet in the year 6958, indiction 14, because he was very young, some of the elderly viziers said to Amurates that it was not fitting for such a great authority to be entrusted to his son, so that the vapors of youth might not cause the kingdom to be endangered. Mehmet, therefore, dispersed his army. Then he goes against Upper Moesia, and made a large part of it tributary, and totally subjugated Bosnia and John Castriota. He was the first to grant the janissaries the privileges which they have, and he ordered them to march in the order which they possess even to this day; for of old that body had different customs and different drills and different vestments. And he forbade them to take wives, so that they might not be preoccupied with the cares and needs of wives and children, but always with zeal and unencumbered minds be engaged in war, and he ordered them to be called his own sons. He was very just toward his subjects, foreseeing things to come. He ordered the satraps and judges to wrong no one ever; and if anyone transgressed the order even slightly, he punished them capitally without any compassion. He was fearless in battles, and fortune always aided him. Later it appeared good to him to become a dervish, that is to say a monk, and he retired to Brusa, and while yet alive he gave the entire power and kingdom to his son Mehmet, having reigned for thirty-four years.
A Perceiving this, Mehmet raged against them, and later put many of them to death, displaying in the conduct of domestic and military affairs wisdom truly mature. The young man was energetic and sharp in everything, and loved men who were virtuous and studious of letters; nor was he himself unskilled in letters, and he had made no mediocre progress in the discipline of astrology, and loved to read constantly. He would read of the achievements and lives of Alexander of Macedon, Octavius Caesar, Constantine the Great—who was also named Flavius—and the Emperor Theodosius from Spain, seeking and investigating the methods by which he might surpass all others and extend the borders of his empire to the highest degree; which he also did.
Having heard, therefore, of the death of Amurath, the Caramanian Alisurius descended from the mountains and seized for himself a large territory. B But the new sovereign, Mehmet, prepared an army and came against him; he, fleeing again, wandered into the high mountain peaks until, after some time, he was completely destroyed. After the pursuit of the Caramanian, Mehmet crossed over to Callipolis, and having reached Adrianople, he prepared himself, came against the City and the Roman Empire, and became master of that famous city, and from there he captured, destroyed, and drove us out.
Then he went on a campaign against the empire of Trapezunt [Trebizond], and with ease, after a short war, he took that entire realm, and brought its King, David Comnenus, as a captive to the city of Constantine; and he became the perfect master of that famous city of Sinope, which his predecessors had only made tributary, by defeating its amir in war and bringing it entirely under his power. C Then, breaking the peace which he had with the despots, he went on a campaign against the Peloponnese, and having driven out the despots, he occupied the whole of the Peloponnese. He also subjugated the remaining part of Serbia to his empire, having driven out its despot and his mother by war.
The islands of Chios and Lesbos he made tributary to himself without war; later, he became master of all of Lesbos. Then he came against the island of Cyprus, and having entered into an agreement with the King, he finally ordered him to pay tribute, and thus he departed. Subsequently, having prepared another fleet, he came against the island of Rhodes, but being unsuccessful, he left there, and many of his soldiers were killed because a fleet had come from Italy to their aid. D He himself, seething with rage and wishing to take vengeance upon the Italians, prepared a heavy fleet and sent it, with a large army of horse and foot, against Calabria and Apulia; and on the way, the fleet made Zacynthus and Cephalonia tributary. The fleet, having arrived in Calabria, blocked and besieged the fortress in Apulia called Hydrus [Otranto] and took it; and having taken certain other fortresses, it proceeded further. And had not God removed him from the living by the means He knows, the Italians would have suffered things equal to our own calamities. But when his death was heard of in Italy, the satraps and the governors of the fleet and the army, under certain conditions, surrendered the towns and departed from Italy. Thus did matters come to pass in Calabria. He reigned...
A for two and thirty years; he subdued and enslaved ten kingdoms, and took two hundred cities from the Christians. Beside his own, he fluently spoke five languages: Greek, Latin, Arabic, Chaldean, and Persian. He took great pleasure in conversing and debating with learned and prudent men; for this reason, he also loved Patriarch Gennadios, listened to him, and frequently spoke with him. He used to say that from the movement of the stars, he knew he would subdue kings and enslave many lands, and so it came to pass.
Thus, as we have briefly recounted, the beginnings of the lineage of the Emir Othman and his descendants down to the Emir Mehmed, and the wars, battles, and victories they waged and achieved during their lifetimes, have been related. We, however, shall begin our history’s path again in order.
33. In the month of July of the year 6921, the Emperor the Lord Manuel departed from the City. Having gone to the island of Thasos, he captured it in the month of September of the year 6922; then he went back from there to Thessaloniki, then to the Morea, where he built the Hexamilion in that same place where it had been built in other times, when King Artaxerxes crossed from Asia with that countless army of his to come against them. Afterwards, due to the length of time which consumes all things, and having been left neglected, it fell to ruin. B It had been rebuilt by the Emperor of blessed memory, the great Justinian, not out of necessity (for he had, one might say, subdued almost the entire world), but because it seemed good to him alone; since he was also making other new constructions and buildings, adorning the Roman Empire, the building of the Isthmus also seemed good to him. Upon his command, it was done in the place where at one time the patrician Nicetas, surnamed Oreiphas, also hauled the Roman ships, that is, the triremes, over the dry land of the Isthmus from the Hellenic sea into the western one, and routed the Cretan Agarenes. But I shall not leave out why and how this same great stratagem and glorious deed, worthy of memory, came to be, but will include it in our narrative; furthermore, [I will recount] how the island of Crete fell under the power of the Agarenes, and again how it came under the power of the Romans, and how it fell under the power of the Venetian senate. And let us then again take hold of our work and carry out the voyage of our new history.
34. The descendants of the accursed Mehmed, his heirs and inheritors of his dominion, having first become masters of the realm of the Persians, and Media, and Babylon, and having conquered the Assyrians, and now too Egypt, and Syria, and Assyria, and Palestine, and Libya, and Africa, and no small part C of Europe—after some time they fell into discord among themselves, and that one, great empire was divided into many, and Persia had one ruler, Babylon another, and the regions of upper and lower Asia yet another; Tarsus had one ruler, —
another had A Ikonion, and yet another Euboia. And he said to them nothing more, and so Melitene, which flowed with many good and excellent things; and another had Aleppo, and another Damascus, and another Egypt, and another Libya; and Africa had one, and another in Europe held Iberia, which is called Spain. And the neighbors, on account of the differences arising between them daily, fought among themselves. But those Hagarenes who inhabited Spain, having multiplied, and seeing that the land they inhabited was barren and moderately prosperous, and therefore unable to sustain them, approached their ruler, Apochap the Amermounes, and requested that they be allowed to migrate, claiming they were greatly distressed and lacking in necessities. He received their proposal with joy, and immediately had long ships prepared and embarked a force from among them; with the intention of piracy in mind, they turned toward the islands located in the Aegean and wrought much havoc upon the islands, finding no one to oppose them; for all were asking for help and receiving none, because the emperor of the Romans, Michael the Stammerer, was preoccupied with civil wars. For this reason, they reaped many gains from all the islands. He finally reached even Crete, and having overrun it and enslaved as many as he could, and having learned of the excellence and grace of the island, he said to his subjects, "Behold a land flowing with milk and honey." And this the barbarian said about Crete; but the poet, praising it, says: "Crete, honored nurse of Zeus, B of exceeding greatness, and much and fertile and..." filling his fleet with every good thing, he returned to Spain. But when the winter passed and spring shone forth, he filled forty ships with warriors and, having waited for a favorable wind, made the voyage toward Crete, passing by the other islands. Upon arriving at the island, at the promontory called Charax, he docked, and nothing hostile appeared, either at the disembarkation or during the transit. Having gone further, about one hundred stades, and having cast fire into them, he burned all the ships, sparing none. The army, disturbed by what had been done and thunderstruck, asked the reason, and even engaged in seditious talk. He, however, having heard this in a fit of rage, said: "You are the cause of these things, seeking a colony and a good land. To me, no other is considered better than this; and here I have come so that I might carry out your desires and cravings. And now, not knowing what I am doing, you babble." Those hearing this became silent; but when some remembered their wives and children and loved ones, he said to them: "Here are beautiful women, and you shall produce children." Then they dug a deep ditch C and set up a rampart (from which the place took its name and preserves the appellation, being called Chandax) and spent the night there. The emperor Michael, having learned shortly thereafter of the things being done in Crete by the Saracens, through Photinus the protospatharios and governor of Crete—who was asking for forces to be sent to him so that he might drive away the enemies—and a certain Damianus, a count of the imperial stables, with a great force and...
A equipment sent to Crete to assist him. But in truth, although their forces were joined, they achieved nothing beneficial against the Agarenes. For when the battle was joined, Damianus was struck by a mortal blow and became the cause of flight for the rest, and Photinus was barely saved on a swift horse, and became the messenger of the event to the emperor. This battle and encounter took place at a distance of about twenty stades from the city to which the name Chandax has been given, toward the regions of the place called Almyros, in the year 6340. And again, concerns and worries, fear, disturbance, and anxiety did not cease for the Agarenes. And while things were in this state for them, a certain monk descended from the mountains of the island and said that they were mistaken if they thought that they could live securely after having built their settlements in that place; and at the same time, he pointed out a B place that was favorable and rich in every abundance. And having founded a fortress there and fortified it well, they named it Chandax, and setting out from there, they overran the whole island and enslaved all the other cities of the island, except for Gortyna and Cydonia. And in this manner, Crete, one of the seven famous great islands, was captured by the Spanish Saracens. And again, one year later, the emperor Michael sent another fleet against them, but they accomplished no noteworthy deed; and thereafter the Saracens lived free of care, and they became heirs and masters of the whole island, and many Christians suffered martyrdom at that time for the sake of our sound faith. C This island is mountainous and wooded, and it possesses fertile valleys; its mountains are in height not inferior to Taygetus. It has ancient cities, more than ninety, but three that are the greatest and most illustrious: Cnosus, Gortyna, and Cydonia. Minos, the king of Crete, who once held command of the sea, having divided the island into three parts, built a city in each part; Cnosus, for instance, lies opposite the Peloponnese and is to the north. This king Minos, as is recorded, was the first to civilize Crete and became a diligent legislator; wherefore the poet also says concerning him: “Because of his supreme justice, Minos and Rhadamanthus, being Cretans, were appointed by Zeus as judges in the islands of the blessed.” And these things are about Minos. Gortyna lies on a plain facing the Libyan Sea, and it is D sixty stades distant from the sea; it was anciently surrounded by walls, but later, as the walls had been decayed by the injury of time, the magistrates wished to wall it in again, but having taken up the beginning of the construction, they created a wall of eighty stades, and a sedition having arisen, the work remained unfinished. Cydonia was the greatest by the expansion that took place gradually; this city lies at the western ends of the island, and the high mountains that are near it are called Tityrus; it is founded upon the sea, looking toward the Laconian plain, good and very beautiful and having much around it. The island, as we said before, is divided into three parts; the part toward the east in the regions of Gortyna they called the Dorians, the southern part the Eteocretes, in which there is also the small town of Prasus, and the western part the Cydonians; and between them there were often battles and wars.
They say this also regarding Crete, that because of the ruggedness of the island they could not make attacks with chariots or fight with javelins, and for this reason the Cretans were the first to show how to fight on horseback. A
The Agarenes, having become masters of this great island in the manner we have mentioned, and having built long ships, and holding command of the sea, imitating Minos of old, were engaged in piracy and were plundering the Cyclades islands and inflicting much destruction upon the Christians day by day. After forty-seven years had passed, in the reign of Basil the Macedonian, Sael Apochaps, the leader of Crete, the son of the amermunis Apochaps who had won Crete, again prepared long pirate ships—which they are now accustomed to call galleys, or triremes—to the number of about thirty (each of them having twenty-two oars), and other pirate ships, and setting out from Crete, he plundered the islands in the Aegean Sea, and then also invaded the island of Pelops [the Peloponnese] itself and harassed the islands lying below it, Zacynthus and Cephalenia. B This was reported to the emperor by a courier, and he equipped a sufficient fleet and sent it against them, having appointed as drungary of that naval force the patrician Nicetas, a man shrewd and active and experienced in every kind of war, both maritime and terrestrial, who knew engines of war as no one else did. Having caught a most favorable north wind, in a few days he reached the Peloponnese. And upon reaching the harbor of Cenchreae, as has been said, and learning that the enemy's triremes were plundering the western parts of the island, Methone and Pylos and Glarentza and Patras, and the other places there, he formed in his mind a plan, prudent and wise. And the plan and the word immediately became deed; for, dreading to sail around the Peloponnese by way of the Myrmidons and Epidaurus and Malea and Netarium, lest he undergo a troublesome voyage or, after measuring in vain the length of a thousand miles, arrive too late, he immediately, on that very night, C making use of much labor, transported the ships by land across the Corinthian isthmus to the western sea beyond, near the diggings where the wall of the isthmus had been. Having embarked soldiers and fighting men on them promptly, in numbers greater than enough, he applied himself to the work as much as possible. And since the Cretan enemies expected nothing of the sort (for they had their day-watchers and night-watchers in fast ships at Malea to keep guard in case any Roman fleet should come against them), he attacked them thus suddenly, and having thrown them into confusion and turmoil, they were turned to flight. He then burned some of the enemy's ships with liquid fire, sank others, and captured others; and of the barbarians, some he killed with the sword, others he cast into the deep, and having killed their admiral and leader, he forced the rest to scatter throughout the island; then, having captured and netted all of them, he subjected them to various punishments. D And thus the Cretan Agarenes, seeing this, were struck with fear, marveling at the tactics and engines of the Romans; and having suffered such a sudden destruction and being terrified
A they remained quiet for a certain time, in the year 6368, indiction 8, and agreed to pay tribute to Emperor Basil. B Phocas, having left commanders and ship-captains on the island by imperial order, returned to Constantinople and celebrated the triumphs of his victory. This island remained under the authority of the Romans until the reign of Alexius Angelus, who blinded his brother and seized the empire, as was told at the beginning of our history. Afterward, when the Italians had divided the Roman empire into several parts, and Baldwin, Count of Flanders, had been proclaimed Emperor of Constantinople, an not insignificant portion of the entire realm was assigned to the Doge of Venice, C Henry Dandolo, who was himself present on his own initiative. He obtained one fourth and one half of a fourth of all the lands and places that the Italian race had captured, and he was honored by the emperor with the title of Despot. Dabalus was declared prince of the Peloponnese; and Romanus Delatzioles, a native of Florence, who had lent and spent much money for the confederate princes and was present there of his own accord, obtained the region of Athens and Thebes as a pledge. The Ligurians, or Genoese, likewise obtained the island of Euripus and portions of other places; later, they themselves gave Euboea to the Venetians. Since Boniface, Marquis of Montferrat, had brought significant support to the alliance and was recognized as the commander of the entire land army, he was honored D by Emperor Baldwin as King of Thessalonica, and this island of Crete, along with others, fell into his own share. After some time,
he sold it to the Senate of the Venetians, in whose possession it remains to this day.
We have decided to weave this historical account into our present book; let us return now to the fortification of the Isthmus.
35. In the year 6913, on the 13th of March, the Emperor arrived at the port named Cenchreae. On the 8th of April, he began to clear away and rebuild the Isthmus itself, whose length—or, rather, let me say, its width from one sea to the other—measured three thousand eight hundred fathoms. Its length from the land of Greece, that is, the Attic territory, after one has descended the rugged path known as the "Evil Incline" B until reaching the plain below, where those walls of the Isthmus had been built, is thirty stades. From the walls of the Isthmus to the hills of Corinth and the citadel which towers above the clouds, and to the end of the Isthmus, there are many stades. The Peloponnese is remarkably like a plane-leaf, and the Isthmus is the stem of that leaf. He built one hundred and fifty-three towers upon it. And on a certain piece of marble, they found letters inscribed that read as follows: "Light from Light, true God from true God, preserve Emperor Justinian and his faithful servant Victorinus, and all those dwelling in Greece who live according to the will of God."
In the year 6914, in the month of March, the Emperor and the entire order of nobles who had accompanied him returned to Constantinople. In that same month, A after his arrival, the patriarch, Lord Euthymius, passed from the living; and on the 21st of May of the same year, Joseph, the Metropolitan of Ephesus, was made patriarch. In the year 6915, in the autumn season, the Emperor, Lord John, while setting out for the Peloponnese, passed through Thessalonica and took up Mustapha, that false son of Bayezid, who was being pursued by the Emir Amurates—who was, as it were, his brother—and sent him to Lemnos, and then to Mizithra.
During the winter of that same year, while a plague was raging in the Euxine Sea, that is, the Black Sea, and while my kinsman, Gregory Palaiologos Mamonas—a most excellent man, son of the Grand Duke Mamonas who once governed Monemvasia and the surrounding regions—was head of a certain city in those parts with his whole household, and my sister was there with him as his wife, their daughter (whom they had as their only child) passed away. And seven days after C the death of the child, the father died; and again, seven days after his passing, the mother also died, along with six of their servants, both men and women. Only two of them were left, who came to Constantinople and with one voice reported these things to my wretched parents. Because of such great affliction and inconsolable grief, they fell into a sickness so severe that they came into danger of death. For this reason, since my father was hindered, I set out for the Peloponnese with the Prince Thomas, to fulfill his office in the dining hall and bedchamber, just as
we had been commanded by the Emperor, his father, and we were making preparations. And since my first brother was in the Peloponnese with the Emperor, and the other, my junior, had seen his own brothers meet their death, he left behind father, mother, and brothers and withdrew to the monastery called that of the Charsianites, where also that true teacher, the lord Joseph, was living, and there he became a monk. In that spring and summer, a plague having occurred in Constantinople, the Lady Anna, who was from Russia, also died of the pestilential disease and was buried in the monastery of Libos.
36. At the beginning of the year 6926, the Prince Thomas was sent to the Peloponnese by the Emperor, his father. At which time the Emperor, his father, also returned to Constantinople, and took me into his own bedchamber on the 17th of March, when I was sixteen years and a half old, while that man of eternal and blessed memory was sixty-eight years and a half old.
A And in the year 6926, in the month of November, the Lady Sophia, daughter of the Marquis of Montferrat, came to Constantinople; and on the 19th of January, the Emperor lord John was betrothed to her and crowned in Hagia Sophia, and a great festival took place at this coronation, and they held truly a feast of feasts and a panegyris of panegyreis.
37. And in the year 6928, the Amira, the lord Kyritses and Mehemetes, came so that he might cross through Constantinople to the East; and it was learned beforehand through scouts that he had gone to set the affairs of the East in order, and upon his return he was deliberating in his mind to come against the city, as he had intended. All those of the Emperor’s council, therefore, to whom the secret had been entrusted—princes and those from the clergy—pressed the Emperor, counseling him B to seize him. But he was not persuaded, saying: "I do not break the oaths which I made to him, even if I were assured that he was coming against us, intending to conquer and enslave us. But if, on the other hand, he violates his oaths, I entrust all things to God, who is more powerful than he." For which reason he sent none of his sons to meet the impious one, but only the most excellent men: Demetrios Leontaris, Isaac Asanes, and Manuel the Protostrator Cantacuzenus, with many lords and soldiers and royal gifts. And having met him near Koutoulon, they accompanied him as far as the Double Column; and during the whole journey the Amira conversed with Leontaris. There, near the Double Column, the Emperor was found with his sons in a trireme, having also another one prepared in a royal manner, so that the Amira might cross by means of it. C The Amira then embarked on this trireme, and greeting one another on the sea, they saluted each other, each in his own trireme, and while conversing they came as far as the side of Asia, that is, of the East, where what is now called Scutari is situated, but which was previously Chrysopolis. He, having disembarked from the trireme, entered the tents, that is, the encampments that had been prepared for him; the Emperor with his sons was eating and drinking in the triremes.
A And the Emperor and his sons were inside the triremes, eating and drinking, and they were sending vessels with provisions to one another. Toward evening, the Emir departed on horseback, with those who were with him, along the road leading toward Nicomedia, while the Emperor and his sons retired home.
38. In the spring of the same year, the Emir returned to the West via the road through Gallipoli and departed for Adrianople. The Emperor, having prepared Demetrios Leontaris, sent him there in order to learn of the matters previously plotted and to give him prior warning—and even to test him—regarding the fair love and honor which he had shown toward him, as well as regarding the crossing, and through such an envoy, I mean, also regarding the gifts that he had brought to him. Seeing him, the Emir received him with great honor and affection. Finally, the Emir told him that he had been ill for some days, and that after he recovered, they would occupy the same quarters and converse together. The latter, after three days, yielded up his life. His palace counselors did not reveal what had happened to Leontaris, who was staying in his tent, wondering why he was not being called by the Emir so that he might listen to the services [intended] for him. For at that very hour, having learned of his death, Leontaris sent many messengers to the Emperor, but they were unable to get through because the roads leading secretly to the City were blocked. And so, many days passed from the time the secret design against the City was revealed, and a great clamor arose, and counsel and deliberation, and the Emperor was vehemently B rebuked by those who had once advised him that the Emir ought to be captured. The Emperor was staying at that time, for the sake of avoiding the plague, in the monastery of Peribleptos. With difficulty, therefore, via another road leading toward Mesembria, Leontaris was finally able to send a runner, who, having traveled from there by sea, brought a letter concerning the death of the Emir. And it came to pass on that day that it was proven: «Weeping shall lodge in the evening, and in the morning there shall be rejoicing.» (Ps. XXIX, 6). And behold, they fell into another plan and deliberation: whether to have friendship with his son Amurates and allow him to be the sovereign, just as his sworn oaths demanded, or to bring Mustaphas from Mizithra and establish him as sovereign in the West, and the Emir Amurates would be sovereign in the East. The Emperor the father, who first gave his opinion, judged it just for many reasons that the Emir Amurates should be the sovereign, but his son and Demetrios Kantakouzenos [held] that they should make Mustaphas [sovereign], saying that he was giving them Gallipoli. With difficulty, therefore, as if by concession, the Emperor gave authority to his son, saying: «For I am, my son, old and infirm and near to death; the empire, therefore, and what pertains to it, I have given to you; and do as you wish.» In the month of September of the year 6929, with many triremes, the Emperor Lord John went to Gallipoli, taking with him the Emir Mustaphas from the Peloponnesos, and he installed him as sovereign in the West. And Gallipoli did homage to him; and after some days, being requested by the Emperor, as it were according to the promises, he...
A all the Turks judged, saying that Gallipoli is very close to our faith, and is of great sanctity, since this fortress is the first place we took in Europe, where we first performed the worship of our faith and the other rites into parts of Europe, and it is not permitted for us, according to our law, to give it away. But we shall give you other places and regions in its stead. Furthermore, Amurath also, from the East, through envoys, was urging the Romans much, begging them not to become supporters of Mustapha in his lordship; but our people, thinking the opposite, answered nothing. About the beginning of the winter of the same year, the Beglerbeg Bajazet, a useful and practical man in war, and a vizier of the father of Amurath, who possessed Ankara, crossing through the upper strait into the West, wishing, if it were possible, to seize the West, that is to say, for Amurath’s authority. And Mustapha having again gone out from Gallipoli, he crossed against him into the parts around Adrianople. And having met, a battle took place, and Bajazet was defeated and captured by Mustapha and was killed, and he took control of the entire lordship of the impious in the West. And having again returned to Gallipoli in the same year, and having crossed into the East against his nephew Amurath who was in Bursa, being defeated he returned to the West. And in the summer of the same year, Amurath himself also crossed over with Ligurian, that is to say, Genoese ships, and after pursuing his uncle B and catching him, he killed him. And the Emperors, deceived in the hopes which they expected to have through the death of Mustapha, fell into confusion of mind and fear because of the enmity they had shown against Amurath, seeking a means and a cause so that, if it were possible, peace and love might come to be between the Turks and the Romans; and they sent to the Emir as envoys Demetrius Cantacuzenus, Matthew Lascaris, and the grammarian Angelus Philommates. But the Emir was raging in anger against the Roman power because of the causes we have mentioned; and immediately as he saw them, he ordered them to be put in a wretched prison in chains, and commanded them to be guarded securely.
39. Regarding the Siege of Constantinople
39. And about the beginning of the summer, on the eighth of June, in the year 6931, Amurath sent out through Michal-bey, and he blockaded Constantinople, laying siege to it. And on the 15th of the same month, the Emir himself also arrived with a multitude of army, having with him also the envoys sent to him under guard. And on the 22nd day of the month of August, he attacked the city itself with a general assault. And on the 4th day of the month of September of the year 6931, by the help of God, he departed from the city having accomplished nothing. And on the 30th of the same month, the son of Mustapha, the brother of the same Amurath, came, and having passed through the city, he entered into the imperial palace, and on the following day, the 1st of October, he came to do obeisance to the Emperor and his sons. And on the same day, after breakfast, the disease of hemiplegia came upon the Emperor, which those from Asia, seeing...
remarked with astonishment that it was similar in appearance to that of their prophet of the faith, Muhammad, just as his enemy, Bajazet, had once said regarding this: that whoever did not know the Emperor would, from his appearance alone, recognize that he was an Emperor. Mustaphopulus, having delayed for many days in the city because of the misfortune that had befallen the Emperor, finally departed as far as Selymbria, and not lingering there, returned to the city, and having passed through, went off to Prusa. In the spring of the same year, his brother also came against him into Asia and killed him by the treachery of his own men.
40. A In the month of May of the same year, the Hexamilion, that is, the Isthmus of the Peloponnese, was captured by Turahan, and many of the Albanians were killed. And in the summer of the same year, the prince, the lord Demetrios, fled with Hilarion Doria and George Tzaoul, the son-in-law of the same Doria, and they went to Galata, intending to go to the Turks; but they did not go, but rather to Hungary. And on the fifteenth of November of the year 6932, the Emperor, lord John, crossed over into Hungary, having made his brother, the prince, the lord Constantine, despot, and having left him in the city in his place. On the twenty-second day of the month of February of the same year, we made a sworn agreement of friendship with the amir Amurath, and then he released the envoys. Then, once again, we were sent as envoys: Loukas Notaras, who later became Grand Duke, and Manuel Melachrenos, and I. For Melachrenos had already previously gone to the amir and knew that peace was about to be concluded; B Notaras seemed most useful and suitable for bringing it to completion, and I had been sent by the holy Despoina, who was related to the amir himself on his mother’s side, and to whom this task had also been given: that if anything were necessary, I should write of it through sealed letters both to the aged Emperor and to his son, the Emperor Lord John, who was in Hungary.
And at the end of October of the year 6933, the Emperor Lord John returned to the city through the region called Cellium, which extends to the Danube river, having sent triremes from Constantinople to that place. For John had sent ahead from Hungary a man of a foreign tongue and foreign race to travel by land with a sealed letter, and who, upon arriving, sought to see the Emperor, saying that it was necessary for him to see him and speak with him. C But it was absurd: how could such a man see an Emperor who was ill? For he was bedridden, and desired to speak with him alone. Therefore, after many arguments had been spent, two of the secretaries were sent with me to the man, and they said to him, "Either tell us what you wish to the one present"—indicating me—"or go wherever you wish." When he had taken me aside, he gave me a sealed letter, which indicated to me when and from where he had departed. And when I had broken the seal and gone to read it, I reported that he was seeking a favor, since I was about to bring him joyful news through written letters. While he was there, and while the Despoina and her daughter-in-law, the D ...
A Empress and her daughter, in the absence of the Emperor for the sake of hunting, were sitting there, when I had read out the letter, they received great pleasure from it, inasmuch as they learned that John was in good health and that he was about to proceed into Great Vlachia, and that they desired that triremes be sent to the place called Kellion, so that they might receive him and bring him back to the city. A short time later, the Emperor commanded the prefect of the wardrobe, and he gave me a magnificent silk robe and a centenarium of gold, and furthermore a large and beautiful chest for garments, which he had previously refused to give me. For this chest contained many things worthy of being seen and excellent, and other marvelous items, which were later, after his departure from this life, partially given to his sons, and partially offered for the salvation of his holy soul. Since I had long burned with desire for this excellent and truly marvelous chest, it seemed good to me to ask the Emperor for it. But he answered me: “This chest belonged to the Emperor my father, who, as you know, kept in it many excellent works, precious stones, and many other royal ornaments, more than you know. I, in turn, wish to bestow it upon the Emperor my son, so that he, too, may keep his own things in it, according to his and my own wishes.” And so he dismissed me. But then, on account of the good news I had brought him, he commanded that the aforementioned chest be delivered to me, which I received with his holy blessing, filled with many useful and precious things of this vain life, and the Empress also ordered that a magnificent green silk B robe and fifty coins be given to me; and her daughter indicated that when I had taken a wife, she would give me her most excellent robe and forty gold coins.
On the 21st day of the month of July of the same year, the glorious and pious Emperor, Lord Manuel, fell asleep in the lot of the blessed, having been clothed two days before his death in the divine and angelic habit and named Matthew the monk. He was buried in the venerable imperial and most beautiful monastery of the Pantokrator, with mourning and a concourse such as has never occurred for any other. He had lived in all 77 years and 25 days, of which he had reigned for forty-two years. C
This Emperor, therefore, Lord Manuel, first begot a daughter named . . . then Constantine, the Emperor John, and the Despot Andronikos, and a second daughter named . . . Theodore the Despot and Porphyrogenitus, Michael the prince, Constantine the younger, who became Emperor, Demetrios the Despot, and Thomas the Despot. While the Emperor, their father, was still living, he distributed these places to each of them, a circumstance which brought a great calamity upon the Roman Empire. And first, he allowed John to be Emperor, while to the Despot Lord Andronikos he gave Thessalonica and its territory. It seemed good to him, however, on account of his total infirmity, to sell the city of Thessalonica and its dependencies to the city of the Venetians for money. D
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CHRONICON MAJUS — BOOK II
A Having been afflicted by a very grievous illness, he saw fit to sell Thessalonica and its dependencies to the Senate of the Venetians for fifty thousand gold pieces. Then, having crossed over, he came into the Peloponnese, to a region called Mantinea, and there he passed his time with his son John on account of the mildness of the climate. Later, having become a monk, he took up residence in Constantinople in the monastery called that of the Pantokrator. To the Despot Lord Theodore he assigned Lacedaemon and its dependencies; to the Emperor Lord Constantine, the tracts by the Euxine Sea, that is to say, Anchialus and Mesembria and their lands; and to the Despot Lord Thomas, the remaining parts of the Peloponnese.
In the year 6934, in the month of August, the Empress Lady Sophia fled and departed for her own homeland, for such a reason: that her husband, the Emperor Lord John, did not have such favor and love toward her, and peace did not exist between them because the Emperor was enamored of other women, since nature had not endowed the Empress with beauty.
BOOK II
Beginning after the death of the Emperor Lord Manuel Palaiologos, and from the beginning of the reign of John his son.1. In the time, then, of the year 6934, in the month of August, the imperial scepter and all the authority of the empire passed B to John, the son of the Emperor Manuel of blessed memory, who had even been crowned emperor beforehand. And in the year 6935, on the 29th of August, they brought by sea with triremes the Lady Maria Komnene from Trebizond, daughter of Alexios Komnenos, Emperor of Trebizond; and in that same year, in the month of September, he proclaimed her Augusta.
And in the same year, in the month of November, that very Emperor departed from the city and went into the Peloponnese on the 26th of December with his own brother, the Lord Constantine, for such a reason: that their own brother, the Despot Lord Theodore, wished to become a monk, and that the Lord Constantine might remain as sovereign over the entire Peloponnese; who, having changed his mind later, did not become a monk. Along with these, I too came for the first time into the Peloponnese, being one of the ministers of the Emperor, my Lord, and so that I might have care of the Despot Constantine for a reason of this kind. Ordered by their blessed and glorious father, who was near death, I wrote these things with my own hand.
It was not a testament; for emperors do not make testaments, A but they issue orders. In that order, it was appointed—the very things that I wrote—that each of his sons should have this or that from his own spoils and precious stones and items of value, and that the rest of his property, that is, what was inside the palace, his garments and equipment, should be divided into four parts: one part to be used for the liturgy and the adorning of churches for his soul, beyond the customary offerings, which were given in a costly and noble manner; and the other three parts for the poor, for physicians, and for his own *kelliōtai* (attendants). The overseers were to be his spiritual father, Macarius—who was from the Jews and was in the monastery of the Xanthopouloi—and Joseph, the master of the monastery of Charsianites, and myself. When this order had been read by me before him, and the Empress, and the Emperor (their son), and them alone, finally he ordered his son, saying: "My son, did you hear what I ordered you concerning my own servants who have served me?" (For he was writing.) "My *kelliōtai* who served me well and kindly are disposed towards me as if toward a master; I wish them to have love, protection, and provision from all my sons, in proportion to each of them. But B towards me he served, and in all matters of my soul and body he ministered, and now, in my illness, he ministers more than others, and I hope that he will also provide well for the affairs of my soul after death. For his youth and my old age did not allow him to do anything towards me that was equal in value to the love and service he kept for me. For this reason, I leave him to you; and as you would obtain my prayer and blessing, do this for him, which for such a reason I could not do." And he said these things and gave commands concerning me.
Since I also had much love and trust with the Despot Constantine—which God accepted—for this reason: that my father’s brother was his tutor, and his sons, my cousins, were brought up with him and were his friends and servants, and I along with them. Then, as time brought about an intimacy between me and his blessed and glorious father, he found that whatever was necessary for him could be found through me. For he loved to have me in his service altogether. For it was a custom and rule in the palaces of the emperors, if it should happen, for the *kelliōtai* of the fathers to move into the cells of the sons, but not the *kelliōtai* of the sons into those of the father; this was while the fathers were still living, but not after their death. When, therefore, his blessed and glorious father had died, after his first memorial service, all of us, his *kelliōtai*, returned to the palace; for this, too, is a custom: that the *kelliōtai* of the emperor himself should remain at
the grave until the first memorial. And thus we departed for the house where the aforementioned despot, lord Constantine, was staying, taking our seats outside like the rest. B When the despot learned of this, he sent for my uncle and told him to relay to me this command from the despot: "You have indeed observed the proper decorum, not entering my chamber directly as you were wont to do while my father and emperor was still alive. Nevertheless, we, being indebted to you for the love and service you have shown both toward our father and toward us, grant you the authority to enter our chamber freely, just as you used to do when my father was still alive."
Now, having been ordered by the emperor, his brother, to accompany him on his journey to the Peloponnese for the reason I have already explained, the aforementioned despot, lord Constantine, had specifically commanded me to accompany him and be with him. I myself, in reporting this to him, said that I too desired this above all things, provided that it could happen with the approval and command of the emperor, his brother. He then requested me of his brother, using imploring words and necessary reasons for which he was compelled to have need of me. The other, however, replied that what was requested was impossible, for no other reason than that he might not disregard the command of his father and the instruction given to him through his own mouth. He again sought this through their mother, the empress, and with compelling reasons; with difficulty he ordered it, saying: "Let Phrantzes come with us as far as the Peloponnese, and if my brother remains there, let him also remain with him, since my mother the empress so advises and allows; but if my brother returns with me, it is necessary that he be with me, as we have been commanded by the emperor and as it is proper for us to do." C Thus, while I was subject to both—to the one, as I said before, completely, and to the other looking toward him with love and hope—we went on our way.
Upon our arrival in the Peloponnese, we surveyed all the territory within the Peloponnese that was held by the despot Charles. All the lords and brothers then went and held a consultation; for they did not trust that they could easily subdue the region which Charles held, and likewise he did not trust that he would be able to keep the remainder of the territory that he had left to him. Thus, our lords arrived at an agreement with him, and it pleased the despot, lord Constantine, that he should take the niece of this despot Charles as his lawful wife, and that whatever castles he had in the Peloponnese, he should receive as her dowry. D Thus was the agreement concluded.
2. On the first of May of the same year, I was sent and took possession of Glarentza, and others took the rest. And having returned to Sparta, we found the lords occupied with the task of having the despot, lord Theodore, take the monastic habit, and of finding a way and a method to take Patras, a necessary and useful location, so that the despots and brothers might secure their residence, and so that they would not—
A be caught together behind on the road leading to Sparta once their brother wished to become a monk. On the first of July of that same year, three of the brothers set out and came against Patras, and having pitched their tents near the mills outside that city, they brought there also the Lady Theodora, kinswoman of Charles, where also the Despot Lord Constantine was joined to her and they were blessed. However, nothing was accomplished towards the capture of Patras; rather, the Despot Lord Theodore’s planning to become a monk was something of an idle show. For he wished to renounce [his position], and it was a cause of scandal among the brothers, so that no good outcome was achieved regarding the affairs of Patras, but they only took three small towns, having made peace and agreements with those dwelling inside, under the condition that they would pay five hundred gold coins annually to the Despot Lord Constantine. And so, having set out with the Emperor and the Despot Lord Theodore, we departed by the road that leads to Sparta, while the Despot Lord Constantine went by another route to Chlomoutzi together with his wife, who was Empress. After a short time, when the Emperor wished to return home, his brother having been notified also departed for Sparta from Chlomoutzi; and from there, after both of them and the four brothers had been together for a few days, in the month of October of the year 6937, we all set out and arrived as far as Corinth. The Emperor boarded the triremes and departed for Constantinople, while the Despot Lord Theodore B—
We, however, with our lord the Despot Constantine, went by another road to Vostitza. For even though the Despot Lord Theodore did not become a monk, so that all his territory might remain with his brother, Lord Constantine, according to the pacts and agreements between them, yet he still gave him Vostitza and its surroundings, and on the other side, all the lands lying to the west of the foot of the immense Mount Taygetus (and there was a superior fortress and district of the Peloponnese, Leuctrum of Maina, which was formerly called Cetaria) and that entire ridge as far as Pylos, which is called Itilo; and outside that ridge, the castle of Zarnata and Gastitza, Diaseiston, Mele, Drachion, and Polianon, and the surrounding areas. And he also gave him all the small towns and fortresses in the entire Messenian Gulf, where that river, the Pamisos, flows through the middle. These were administered by a procurator, belonging to the Great Protostrator Nicephorus Melissenus, whom, on account of his versatility C of mind and the sharpness of his intellect and his great dexterity in all things, they also nicknamed Melissurgus. For he was a descendant in the long line of descendants of that admirable man, Nicephorus Caesar Melissenus, and the son of the Sebastocrator Leo Melissenus, and from long ago and from the beginning [he was] lord of the very strong Ithome, which was also called Messene, and of all the
A Melissenus Strategopuli, [they were so called] for this reason: the Caesar Alexius Melissenus, who liberated Constantinople from the hand of the Latins, they named Strategopulus after his grandmother, and from that time this surname prevailed among certain members of this family; but Nicephorus, the great protostrator, they surnamed Melissurgus.
The aforementioned guardianship and administration was for a time conducted by the protostrator Leo Francopulus by order of the despot lord Theodore, since he had bestowed it upon his brother and lord, the despot Constantine, with all the privileges he possessed, that is to say, that if that legitimate heir should die before reaching the legal age, all these properties of the guardianship would belong to the lord Constantine.
B Of the Messenian Gulf, who also became metropolitan of Adrianople after the death of his wife for many necessary and common causes, though an untimely death snatched him away and the work remained incomplete. Since many others have spoken of the causes at length, I shall omit them. But the cause of such a guardianship, with regard to the despot lord Theodore, was as follows: The aforementioned Nicephorus Melissenus had a son named Nicholas, whom the despot lord Theodore had received from the holy font of baptism. And at the time of his passing to the immaterial realms (for his son was a three-year-old child), he made a will and left this despot lord Theodore as lord and master and guardian of the child and of all his property and assets, movable and immovable, [stipulating] that if his son and heir should suddenly die without heirs, all of his own cities, villages, lands, and fortresses were to belong to the despot lord Theodore, those outside and those inside the Peloponnese. C For those inside were: Andrusa, I say, and Kalamata, Mantinea, Jannitza, Pidema, and Mani, and Nisi, and Spitalis, and Grempene, and Aetia, and Neokastron, and Ithome, which is now called Messene, and Archangelos, and Saulaurus, and Ioannina, and Ligudista; and those outside: the great Ainos and all the territory around it, villages and lands up to Peritheorion; which, having been sent, I took over. For the most part, some of this family of the Melissenoi were also surnamed Strategopuli, and in historical chronicles they wrote them as such.
3. And in the same year, on the fourth of March, the despot lord Andronicus died, who was renamed Acacius through the divine and angelic habit, and he was buried in the monastery of the Pantokrator, where he used to reside. A secret counsel having taken place on my part with my master and despot that we should go against Patras, and if we were to take it, we should remain in the Peloponnese, and the place he held on the Black Sea—that is to say, in the Black Sea—should be given to his brother the Emperor; but if we did not take Patras, we should depart to Constantinople, and he himself [should retain] in the Peloponnese the castles of his dowry and those of D
which had been granted by the Despot Lord Theodore, and all those matters of the governorship of Melissenos Nikephoros in the Messenian Gulf should again be given [to him], wherever the Emperor should decide. He followed this course as well, which was on his part a confirmation of the clandestine plan. A While we were traveling on the road from Vostitza to Patras, in order to depart to Glarentza and Chlomoutzi, where the Queen also was, Andronikos Laskaris Pediates was sent to the magistrates in Patras regarding certain affairs; and while he remained there, both priests and laymen approached him privately and exceptionally, [asking] whether his master wished that they themselves should find a way by which he might take Patras. When Laskaris arrived and related these hidden matters of the Patrans along with the others, what he had heard and stated was dismissed as impossible and superfluous. Therefore, the same Laskaris was sent to the head of Ithome and Androusa, and indeed the other noblemen who were the captains of the castles there; but also the chief of the noblemen of his house, Alexios Laskaris, was left for the governorship of Vostitza and remained there. B My Despot and Lord, therefore, as I have declared, traveled with me alone, [I being] his helper in the affair of Patras, and when we were at Glarentza, we wrote many times to those of Patras, having sent Pediates there, with whom they met, speaking to them also about what they had arranged with Pediates. But they wrote back to us many times; however, these were judged by us to be impossible, as time C also showed. Finally, we resolved that, having traveled by night, we should find ourselves in a place near the borders of the Patran vineyards, called "at the three churches," which had been there from of old; and there the men should meet, and they should explain in greater detail what was in writing, and if indeed they were possible, they should be carried out, but if not, let us go openly to besiege the castle, and let things turn out as they may. And behold, we wrote orders to all those in the region of Ithome and Androusa in the Messenian Gulf, and of those outside—and those far beyond the Zygos—that on the first of the month of March of the same year, they should come with arms and the greater part of the men of the authority of each of them, and thus, in an orderly fashion, pass through the territory of the Prince, and they should welcome and meet the new Lord entering into the Messenian Gulf and the Zygos. Similarly, it was made known also to Alexios Laskaris, who was from Vostitza. Having arrived, therefore, we did not set out through the road that leads to Assos, but through the one on the left; and everyone was marveling, saying to one another, and inquiring, where they were going. Around the hour of the cockcrow we arrived near the agreed place, where we found the men; and seeing that they were ineffective and were saying ineffective things, we dismissed them. When morning had come, therefore, having consulted as to what might be done, and having decided that the army should run to capture those living outside the city and all the dwelling of the Jews, as it appeared feasible for many reasons, behold, those from the castle, seeing us and being perplexed as to what...
this matter was (for they had not anticipated anything of the sort), sent one of the magistrates and a certain canon, Mark by name, with another man and other people, to ask who those arriving were and for what reason. As soon as they saw us, and how we were seeking the castle either by agreement or in whatever way we might be able to take it, they returned with haste, sounded the trumpets and every instrument of war, and immediately all those inside and outside gathered to arm themselves. We, however, began the war on the following day.
4. On the following day, as it happened to be the feast of Palms, we cut branches of myrtle, and the whole army bearing these in their hands came and fell upon the gates of the castle. As we were lying there on the 26th of the same month of March after the service of Great Saturday, that is, the divine mystery, and after dining, we were sitting in the camp, that is, in the tent of our lord, discussing many things. Behold, suddenly a few horsemen issued from the gate called the Hebrew or the Zeugalateion (for that is what it was called), and as soon as they appeared, they were pursued and entered through the gate of the shore; there all those of the castle were armed with spears and bows and stakes. The lord and I, having found ourselves proceeding before the pursuit of those mentioned, because our horses happened by coincidence to be prepared near the bridge of the road leading to Saint Andrew, one of the Patrensi, A having shot the lord's horse, he immediately fell to the ground, and as the enemies ran to kill or capture him, I was found there as a defender. And he, by the help of God, having been freed from the horse, fled on foot; but I, fighting against them, captured a certain son of Samatellus. But I was severely wounded along with the horse, which had no more strength, and the excellent horse fell, which had been given by the emir to Isaac Asanes when he met him, and Asanes gave it to his son-in-law George Philanthropenos, and he to his own cousin the Comnenus, the son-in-law of the protostrator Cantacuzenus, whom my brother, as he was fleeing toward Galata, overtook and captured, and thus my brother was favored with the horse by the emperor; I, having received the horse from him, went away to the Peloponnesus. The horse having therefore fallen, I was captured, having been struck by many wounds. And having led me away, they cast me into the *goulas*, that is, the tower, in a dark room where there were ants and weevils and mice, because it had once been a granary; and they placed iron shackles on my feet and a very heavy and solid chain together with a large stake fixed in the ground; where I slept miserably in such a prison, having spent it bitterly from both the wounds and the bonds and the other things, as has been declared, which I had in this prison.
5. Here it is necessary for us to tell also about the most holy Thomaida. She was from a noble family in the east of Asia; and from poverty
A her kinsfolk brought her to Constantinople and gave her to the sister of the three archbishops and brothers and emperors, and mother of the most wise Nicholas Cabasilas, who kept her and educated her. And after some time she went to Thessalonica because her brother, Cabasilas, was archbishop there, and she took up residence in the monastery of Saint Theodora together with the Palæologina, a woman of virtue and learning, about whom I have often heard many praises from the venerable Emperor Lord Manuel, and I myself have read many canons composed by her for Saint Demetrius and Saint Theodora and other saints; they also had the holy Thomaida with them and were instructing her in virtue and in the Word. When their end approached, they left all their possessions to her, but also the wife of Cyprian, who, having become indignant at the harshness of her husband and having gone to the aforementioned monastery, had become a nun. When their end came, she again became subject to their heir, both of their life and possessions, just as she had somehow been subject to their virtues, and she finished the course of obedience well until death. I speak of this wife of Cyprian who came to Constantinople and founded the monastery B in the name of the holy and glorious great-martyrs Theodore, which is called "of Cyprian." When the impious took Thessalonica, the holy Thomaida, together with her dependent, the wife of Cyprian, went away to Lemnos, intending from there to return to Constantinople. Now at that time, my grandfather was in Lemnos with his wife and children. C The eldest of his daughters, having seen the holy woman and observed her virtue and speech and wisdom, left behind her parents, brothers, sisters, and the man to whom she was betrothed, together with her children, and went away to Thessalonica, where she became a nun and remained there in obedience to this very holy woman. From there, the three of them set out and arrived in Constantinople, initially at the monastery called that of Clerena. And when the virtue of the holy woman and her experience in the divine Scriptures became known to the emperor and the patriarch and all those of the city—the emperor seeking to take and give her another of the monasteries, one that was greater and more well-endowed, and the patriarch issuing an edict of patriarchal authority D to those women of the city who wished to approach her—the people of the city were willing to provide them with everything necessary for their sustenance and to minister to their needs; for they possessed neither gold nor silver, nor anything else besides the work of their hands and the providence of God through the magistrates. Having taken even a small dwelling, so many gathered for her obedience that they could not be contained in the monastery of Libs or that of Lady Martha. But she would not accept more than twelve; and they were such in poverty and obedience and modesty and all that is well-pleasing to God, that the people of the city ceased to say "The holy woman" but rather "The holy women," and they went by the very name "The holy women." And the matter of the nuns
having common food and clothing, and possessing no private property, and doing nothing—the least thing—for common or private use without permission; their going barefoot, their sparse diet, their sleeping on the ground, and their living in poverty—these and other virtues it is superfluous to recount from the testimony of those who were present. C Similarly, regarding their holy and spiritual mother, the concourse and visitation of emperors, empresses, lords, and ladies—some for the sake of confession, others for prayer and visitation—who could accurately recount all these things and her virtue? Let us show everything to be true by recounting one single event. On that great Saturday mentioned, as what I narrated happened to me, while she was sitting in the church after the completion of the liturgy, and all her nuns were with her waiting to taste even a little bit because of the reception D of the antidoron—then, for the Acts of the Apostles to be read—the holy mother says: "Nuns, arise." They asked: "What do you need, our holy lady?" She said: "A temptation has come upon the lord George, and let us pray to the Theotokos for him." Hearing this, all of them ran to her with tears, especially the sisters of my mother; for there was another sister, who later also became a nun and was her good subordinate. She, too, ran with tears, asking: "What is this that you say, our holy lady?" B And she said to them: "Do not be troubled; God who has permitted the temptation will also provide the help and the resolution of the temptation itself." And standing, they chanted a supplication to the Theotokos, weeping. What could be a better testimony to her virtue and intimacy with God than this? Having therefore lived so well, and God having shown many things in testimony of her virtue, finally her death also became precious in the sight of the Lord and she passed from among men. For having been slightly ill for some days, and having exhorted all the nuns together to virtue, and having left for the responsibility my mother's sister, who was previously also first in virtue and obedience to her, and (who) managed everything in their cell, then, as if driven by a divine spirit, she sat, having her eyes closed, but her lips always moving in hymns and thanksgivings to God. For the holy woman always imitated the saying of the divine golden-tongued Father which says: "Do not consider the tension and volume of the voice (for shouting is a thing indecorous for saints), but the intellectual focus of the mind and the warmth of the soul and the intensity of the prayer, through which God hears even those who are silent." The holy woman, therefore, taking neither food nor drink, nor speaking of anything except to the priest who came daily for her to partake of the divine mysteries—then raising both her hands and eyes to heaven and asking for forgiveness—would later partake. But also, the emperor Lord John and the empresses and many others often approached her, and indeed also
A many distinguished hieromonks and monks would ask for forgiveness and a blessing. And thus, having survived for seven days, she departed to the Lord, and she was buried with great honor, as almost all the priests, hieromonks, and nobles of both sexes, whether invited or not, gathered together. And these things, indeed, are so and are true.
§. When I had been in prison for forty days, as the feast of the commemoration of the liberator of captives, the holy great martyr George, arrived, I besought him—since I too am George and from my childhood his servant—that he might deliver me from my dire straits and bonds. And having fallen asleep, it seemed to me that I was in his most beautiful holy temple, the one named after him, of the Manganon. Standing there, holding a bowl and with irons on my feet, as the emperor was passing by—presumably to go to the church service—I besought him to release me from my chains. And the emperor, having entered the church, directed a certain nobleman to return to me and say: "Our sovereign the emperor has ordered that they remove your irons; this is something which our lady the empress and all of us have also requested of him." And around the dawn of that night, behold, at the customary hour, the guards of the tower and others came with iron tools and released me from my chains, and they apologized, saying that it was not out of hostile hatred B that they had treated me so sparingly and poorly, but because they had nothing better to give. And after two days they came again and sought me out; and I besought my own sovereign by letter to send noblemen to confer with those who held me captive for an agreement concerning my freedom. Which indeed came to pass. And having reached an agreement, they gave him the fortress of Sarabale on the condition that C he might rise and depart to his own house in Glarentza; and if the metropolitan and their sovereign should arrive by the end of May, he might do as he wishes; but if not, they would surrender the castle to him. And after oaths were sworn by both sides, and Sarabale was received on the fifth of May, he departed as far as the borders of Sklavitza and Terioli. And for my sake, he left behind John the Rhosotan, so that he might take me, even though it was understood that after I was freed, the actions taken would be binding. And when I was freed, nearly half-dead, I arrived safely where my sovereign was, who saw me with both great joy and sorrow—joy that I was free, and sorrow that I was so half-dead—and he said many things for my praise and consolation. When I had therefore D gone away to my tent, they offered me such favors as these: a double-layered cloak, a precious green, expensive samite from Lucca, lined with green fabric and fine material, a Thessalonian cap lined with golden-red silk, a crimson tunic of samite lined with heavy materials, a short coat.
A
9. Following our departure to Glarentza the next day, a certain lord of the emir arrived after a few days, saying that Patras pays tribute to the emir and has passed into his domain; therefore, he said, abstain from it and do not besiege it. If you do not, we shall send an army against you. My master answered him, saying: "We heard that they wish to hand it over to the Catalans. Now, it does not seem proper to me to allow our enemies—who are also the enemies of my brother, the great emir, and of ourselves—to take such a castle, which is situated in the midst of our borders. For this reason we went there, and having examined the matter, we determined that it must not happen; and behold, as you see, we have risen and returned home. Not many days from now, I intend to send to my brother, the great emir, this man here—the lord who is pointing me out—who will explain this to him, and many other things that need to be transacted between us." The Turk, having heard these words and having been handsomely gifted as well, departed rejoicing. B After he had left, he gave me orders, saying: "See that you prepare what is necessary for the journey." And knowing nothing of the matter, I reported to him that if the metropolitan did not come, God willing, they would give us the castle, and I would recover my health a little. "Nevertheless," he told me, "prepare everything for the fulfillment of your orders."
8. When the appointed day arrived and the metropolitan had not come, on the first of June of the same year, we set out and moved toward Patras. During these days, the lord’s son, Lord Thomas, was besieging the small town of Chalatritza, belonging to the Prince of Centurione—who, as it happened later, became his father-in-law C; my master, along with his brother, was traveling along the road leading to Patras. We arrived and stayed together at Kamenitza. Now Joannicius Balotas, being the prince's governor there, when he learned of this, sought permission to come and pay homage to both lords. Having come, he immediately brought out the keys of the small town, handed them to my master the despot, and said: "This is a town belonging specifically to my lord, a relative by marriage of your Majesty (for the prince's son had taken to wife, in lawful marriage, the sister of Her Majesty the Empress Theodora), who commanded me to give it to your Majesty." My master answered him, saying: "So it is, D that such a place is of my kin, but it is not of my brother, my closer relative. Yet if he had done this earlier, my brother would not have seized anything that I held against me, and he and your lord would not have held it discordantly. But now, if I take this town, it is inevitable that discord will arise between my brother and me, which should not happen for a great matter, let alone for such a minor one. But go to the town, and do what you can." When he heard this, he requested to enter the town in peace.
A Being then commanded, I took the little town, which I had also held before. I accompanied him with troops. And on the way, Thomas Raoul was found, and thinking it easy to take him away from me, he brought himself into danger of stirring up something warlike and grievous between the brothers; however, with God favoring, I restored him safely home, and I, having returned, found my master at the church and tomb of Saint Andrew the First-Called, having arrived safely there on the evening of the 4th of June. On the morning of the 5th, the first day of the week, all the notables of the castle, together with all the people, went out and came as far as the aforementioned church of Saint Andrew, where they worshiped my despot and master and handed over the keys of the castle to him. And thus, with both parties—I mean my master and the little town—moving with the greatest joy, some on horseback and some on foot, each according to his own rank, we entered the castle and went as far as the rooms beside the church of Saint Nicholas; the whole way was strewn with all kinds of flowers, and decorated on the right and left with orderliness, with rose-water and roses and carnations appearing from houses on all sides. But from above the fortress, that is to say the tower, they received us badly with missiles and crossbows, though they did no harm; for those who had seized the fortress on behalf of the metropolitan, having also seized the lordly palaces and the buildings near it, and having provisioned and consecrated them, held them, hoping that when the metropolitan returned, he would by this means again take possession of the town, which they had also previously held. B On the following day, when we were gathered at the church of Saint Nicholas, and all the citizenry of the town, they swore with oaths that they would be faithful servants and submissive to our lord the despot; then they asked for me also to judge and govern among them. My master answered, saying: "We owe this to him all the more, and for the sake of your request, he shall be the head for you." On the 8th of the same month of June, as I was passing to Naupactus, so that I might first go to the Emperor to make known to him what had followed at Patras, and then from there with his lord to the Emir, on the 4th of the same month, we arrived and stayed at the church of Saint Andrew. Behold, two Turks also were passing through Naupactus, one of the Emir and the other of Turahan, announcing by order not to take Patras. But they returned with me having received an apology of this kind, that because our present leader was departing to my brother the Great Emir (the despot my master was indicating me when he said this to them), we would do as he commanded. Having thus departed, we stayed in Naupactus. C Early in the morning, while it was still dark, behold, the Metropolitan of Old Patras, Pandulphus Malatesta by name, arrived there with a Catalan trireme; for as he was passing by the islets in the middle of the way, when he learned that the little town had been given to the despot, he made his voyage through the gulf there beside Aetolia, D and was saved in Naupactus, from whence the other [side] or the other [person]...
the city of Aetolia, so that he might learn well about what had happened. He therefore requested that I might also remain there until the next day; I for my part promised this for two reasons: the one, in order to inform my master about what had happened, which he learned from me for the first time; the other, in order to learn what was the purpose of the metropolitan himself. For these two reasons, therefore, I remained with him. In the meantime, Bicardus Marcellus, the governor of Naupactus, arrived, and we saw one another; when I looked at him, I was astonished that he resembled in every way the metropolitan of Sida. As I was reclining and conversing with him, in my discourse I was constantly scheming to discover for what reason I wished to go to the amir, while I in turn inquired of him what was his purpose regarding the events at Patras, and we were unable to discover one another’s secrets. For it was as if some greedy men had engaged in trade. One had in his cargo, instead of silken yarn, sea-grass, and the other, instead of pepper, dry seeds of rushes; and having met together, they asked one another, "What is the cargo?" One said, "It is silk," and the other, "It is pepper." And each of them thought how he might play a trick on the other. And so they came to an agreement to exchange their cargoes, and not knowing what the other’s goods were, each took the cargo and set off with haste, so that each might get far away from the other, lest the trick be revealed. And arriving at the end of the journey and opening [the packages], they found nothing. B Such a thing happened to us, too. Afterward, the metropolitan gave letters to the Turks sent by the amir and by Turakhan who were with me, [addressed] to their own masters who had sent them. And a great calculation occurred to me, lest perhaps he had promised to give them some towns of Patras, if he would assist him in seizing it, or a certain sum of money. And not ceasing from my deliberation until I should learn what the letters contained, and having spent much effort and dining with them, I made them drunk, though they were unwilling, because I also shared in the drinking with them, and I was almost made drunk myself; and they became so drunk that I took the letters from them, and after I had read them and copied them out, I sealed them up again and left them alone. But when I arrived in the city, Marcus Palaiologos Iagrus—who was later protostrator, but at that time held the dignity of protovestiarios—was given to me as a co-envoy. And instead of assisting me, he was opposed to the matter for which I was coming, and I do not know the cause, unless it is that envy does not know how to prefer the common good. C Having gone together to the amir, we received an answer that we should restore Patras to those to whom it previously belonged. I calculated, therefore, even I, with the first of the amir’s council, by name Ibraemi-pasia, that I did not dare to report such an answer to my master; nevertheless, since that man had sent me to the great amir, let him also order one of his
A to the despotate as an envoy, so as to seek out [the pleasure of] the Karbenti [prince]. » But Iagrus, finding fault with me, considered me useless and incapable of accomplishing any good work without causing harm; yet I, by the favor of God, accomplished this, and an envoy from the amir came with me. And this was the first cause for receiving the correction regarding Patras.
8. In the same month of July of the same year, the despot Charles died at Ioannina; and in [the month of] September, his brothers, the despots, brought about the marriage of the lord Thomas to the daughter of Prince Asan Zacharias Centurione. In this month, I too, B at the request of the despot Charles—who was a relative and paternal cousin of my master, and [father] of his own sons, Charles, Hercules, and Menon—returned [to the region] to reconcile them in their disputes; for they had made sworn agreements, saying that if the archon sent by the despot Lord Constantine (namely, myself) should determine anything regarding the differences they had, the parties would together ratify it. When, therefore, I was coming toward the small islands near Santa Maura, I was captured by the Catalans, along with many other men and precious goods, and having seized me, they carried me for a time as far as Cephalonia, as if they were crossing over to the region of Naples. They also sold those who were with me for five thousand gold pieces.
Finally, we returned to Glarentza, and I again returned to Larissa to Turakhan, and I completely corrected the matter regarding Patras. In the same year, in the month of November, the empress Lady Theodora, while in Stameri, died, leaving great grief to her husband and to all of us, her domestic servants, because she was most excellent. Her body was buried for a time in one of the churches of Glarentza, and after this they carried her to the monastery of the Life-Giving Savior in Sparta. In the month of January of the same year, the lord Thomas was married to the lady Catherine, daughter of the aforementioned prince, in Sparta.
On the 26th of March of the same year, on the day and hour that the people of Patras seized me, C at that same time, in the month of March, the amir Amurath was besieging Thessalonica, which was held by the Venetians. And the emperor sent as envoy the protosebastis Nicholas Choniates and Francopulus the protostrator to the amir, saying, « It is not right, while our friendship and love remain, for you to besiege our possessions. » But the amir answered, « You speak truly. If that city were the emperor’s, I would not have attacked it, or if I had attacked it, I would have abandoned it. But it is clear and known to all, and to my brother the emperor, and to you, that long ago he sold Thessalonica and the surrounding areas
as his own property A to the Venetians; but now that it is not permitted, I shall leave it in the midst of our place and yours to be ruled by the Venetians.” And thus, in the month of April of the same year, the emir took the wonderful Thessalonica by war.
My lord and master, the despot Lord Constantine, in May of the same year took the small town of Patras, by reason of famine and other hardships of those within it. And on the seventeenth of July of the same year, the Catalans took Glarentza, and having held it for a time, they then sold it for two thousand gold coins to my master; and after a little while, he ordered all its walls to be destroyed.
And in the month of August of the same year, the envoys sent by Emperor John to Pope Martin — namely, Mark Jagrus, the grand stratopedarch, and the great protosyncellus and hegumen of the venerable monastery of the Pantocrator, and the hieromonach and spiritual father Macarius, surnamed Macras, a man most excellent in discourse, virtue, and prudence—returned. B And passing through the Peloponnese, they made the young master, Lord Thomas, a despot by order of the emperor. In that year, in the month of September, I was honored with the governorship of Patras. And in the same year, in the month of October, the Beilerbey of the Turks, named Sinanes, took Ioannina and its surrounding region. And on the twenty-sixth of March of the same year, on the same day and hour in which the preceding events happened to me, I received also the sorrowful C message from my master by means of a letter from Vostitsa, that on the seventh of the past January, the excellent man and my dearest friend Macarius, also called Macras, had died of a pestilential disease—a man who, in the eyes of the patriarch, who was haughty and possessed a most insolent heart, seemed a heretic, but in the eyes of the Almighty, who is ever-watchful and judges with truth, was orthodox. Some time ago, having returned from the Holy Mountain, he received the monastery of the Pantocrator to govern, with my support and assistance, as everyone knew; and with the aid first of Almighty God, and then by the zeal and diligence of myself and that man, every good thing for the order and seemliness of that monastery proceeded. And at the end of the spring of that very year, Turachanes came and again broke down the walls D of the Isthmus. And there was a great pestilential disease in Patras.
10. And on the thirty-first of January of the year 6940, being sent as envoy, I went to the emir and the emperor, from whom I was then honored with the office of protovestiarius. In which year, in the month of March, also the exchange of the seats of both the brothers and despots, Lord Constantine and Lord Thomas, took place: the one took Kalavryta and everything therein, and the other, Glarentza and all the surrounding locations.
And in the year 6941, the daughter of Malatesta, the wife of the despot Lord Theodore the Porphyrogenitus, the lady Cleopa by name, died and was buried in the monastery of the Life-Giving One.
A In the year 6942, on the seventh of January, I was again sent as an envoy to Lord Antonio Comnenus, the lord of Athens, and to the emir, and to the emperor. On the twenty-ninth of that same month, at the third hour of the night, some noble youths, while trying to catch baby pigeons, set fire to the beautiful and miracle-working divine temple built in the name of the Theotokos at Blachernae, which church was situated in Constantinople near the Golden Horn, on the shore. We heard of this in Constantinople as we were departing on the first of February, at the hour after Vespers of the Despotic feast of the Hypapante. And since the person who told us was unknown to us, we thought it to be a lie, and having passed five stages we heard nothing about this, and it was only at our sixth stage, in Rhaedestos, that we learned of this accurately—how and when it happened—which is truly wondrous.
And at the beginning of the summer of the year 6943, the lord of Athens and Thebes, the aforementioned Lord Antonio Lantziola Comnenus, died. And at the request of his wife, Maria Melissene, daughter of Leo Melissenos and first cousin of Nicephorus Melissenos—whom we mentioned above—I was sent with a sworn golden bull and many soldiers to take possession of Athens and Thebes, and to give her in their stead another place in the Peloponnese, in the regions of Laconia, near those which she already possessed by her own paternal inheritance and dowry, which are the regions, cities, and villages listed below: Astrum, Saint Peter, Saint John, Platamonas, Meligum, Proasteion, Leonidas, Cyparissia, Rheontas, and Sitanas. And thus, near them, I was to give her a place, such as seemed to me sufficient and in accordance with her own judgment and will. But since Turachanes had already anticipated me and blockaded Thebes, which he also captured a few days later, I returned empty-handed from the Isthmus, as I had orders to do. And when I arrived at Stylaria, where my despot and lord was staying and awaiting the Venetian merchant triremes in order to embark and depart for the city, I arrived empty-handed.
B 11. And having embarked on the Venetian triremes and reached Euripus, it seemed good to my lord to send me to Turachanes, who was in Thebes, in order to make known to him the affairs regarding Athens. And when I arrived, he received me with joy and assured me with an oath, saying, "If I had known this before I left home to come here, because of my love for the despot and my acquaintance with you, I would have gladly done what you ask, since I did this without the command of the great emir and could have offered many excuses at home; but now I have no excuse at all." Having treated me kindly and honorably, he also brought his sons before me for my greeting, and commended them to me and to my lord; among whom was the one who is today a great and powerful emir. And thus I returned from there empty-handed. And since, having anticipated [the situation]...
[Beginning of this page] A in Euripus destroyed the bridge against the will [of those who dwelt there] on the 29th of August, we spent that night outside the bridge among the rocks; and on that night we suffered many hardships from the cold and from hunger and from the hardness of the rocks and from the fear of the robbers and the soldiers from Turachan, because the horses which we had borrowed from Liethro were strange—which also became a proverb for an evil thing for those who were with me then in the time that followed or was to come. Having therefore boarded the triremes on the following day, on the 23rd of the month of September of the year 6944 we reached Constantinople.
12. And on the 25th of March of the same year came to the city the daughter of the great duke Paraspondylos, by name Zoe, brought in the imperial trireme in which the emperor wished her to be brought, with Manuel Palaiologos, so that he might marry her, whom indeed after some days the despot lord Demetrios married; with which trireme also the despot lord Theodore arrived in the city, because he was in the city as heir to the empire as the second brother, which the emperor also confirmed for him against his will, because he desired to have my lord and his brother Constantine nearer to him in the city, as the discourse will show as it proceeds. Since the matter had turned out in this way, he was eager that he should settle the three brothers in the Peloponnese. My lord, therefore, the despot lord Constantine, again with his brother the lord Thomas the despot (for there was with us in the city the first leader of that house, named Raul Michael), were exerting themselves that the two B brothers should remain in the city, and they themselves should depart into the Peloponnese. And for this reason, in the month of June of the same year, the despot lord Constantine crossed over from the city to the Peloponnese as though a fugitive in a small boat, and I was sent by him to the amir for this very reason, that they might have him on their side. And thus, having departed, I managed the tasks entrusted to me well, and I arrived in the Peloponnese by land. But I found the brothers and lords suffering a great burden of war; for behind my lord Constantine had been sent, in a trireme, the lord Theodore, so that he might fight against his two brothers, and with a very great army gathered on both sides, a war broke out between them. In the year 6946 there were sent by the emperor as ambassadors to his brothers the most excellent Dionysios, a hieromonk, who had also served as metropolitan of Sardis, and Georgios Disypatos, and these calmed the battle a little. Finally, however, other ambassadors having come—I mean Gregorios Melissenos, a hieromonk and spiritual father, who also later served as patriarch of Constantinople, who was also called Strategopoulos by others—and along with him likewise the Disypatos and myself, we brought them to an agreement and reconciliation, so that my lord and despot departed to reside in Constantinople, and the despots lord Theodore and lord Thomas [remained] in the Peloponnese. And on the 5th of September in the year 6948 D [he crossed over from the]...
city A of the Venetians, in which was the same Mark who at one time, when we were attacking Patras, was a canon in that city, but then was being sent to the emperor as a legate of Pope Eugenius, his relative, and by him he was also sent on an embassy to the emperor. But since at that time a memorable discussion took place between the emperor lord John and a certain Hebrew by the name of Xenos, who later, through the regeneration of holy baptism, was renamed Emmanuel, I will not omit to recount it.
First the emperor was asked by the Hebrew thus: "How was it possible for Mary to give birth to Christ while being a virgin?" The emperor replied: "How did Adam produce Eve without a woman? And how did the earth bloom without seed? How did the sharp rock pour forth water? How did the rod of Aaron sprout? How was manna sent down from heaven? How was the jar of flour multiplied? How did the oil of Elisha flow into the vessels? How did the rod of Jesse sprout a flower? How was the fleece upon Gideon bedewed? How upon Samson did the bone release water? How did the furnace keep the youths unburnt? How upon Manoah was the rock ignited without fuel? How did the bush burn in the presence of Moses and was not consumed? How was Elijah not burnt upon the chariot of fire? How did Isaiah see the Lord sitting upon a throne high and lifted up? How did Daniel reveal the hidden dream to Nebuchadnezzar? How does the heaven hold the stars without being supported? How did the night give birth to the day, and [how] does it come to be? How does the light of the sun illuminate the whole world? If you can explain to me these things that I ask you, I know that you understand also the birth of the Virgin. But you are a stranger to those things as well as to these."
Again the Hebrew asked: "If Christ did not die by necessity, but willingly, as you yourself say, he would deservedly be thought of as having killed himself, and thus be worthy of spiritual punishment." The emperor, answering, said: "There is a great difference between these two things, Xenos, and it is no wonder, however, that you are ignorant of this as well as the rest. For one would rightly be called a murderer of himself who has put himself to death, not one who, moved by love for friends, does not spare himself and undergoes death. For such a one is not a suicide, but is deservedly called a true friend, who has surrendered himself for the sake of those he loves, in order that he might, if it should happen so, deliver them from impending deaths. Therefore such a thing is of a well-disposed mind, and Christ deserves grace rather than such accusations."
Xenos the Hebrew asks: "How many evils has falsehood always created! For the prophet does not say 'the virgin,' but 'the young woman' shall give birth, naturally having had intercourse with a man; but you, wishing to establish your own monstrous inventions, substitute the virgin for the young woman. For what could one say, how much from this..."
alone, which is merely spoken, does it produce, and how much incredulity does it bring down upon the hearers? For who, from the beginning of time, has heard of a virgin having given birth? If anyone can show me one instance, I will not gainsay you in anything further." The Emperor replied, "You speak well. Show me another God who has come down from heaven and put on flesh, and I will show you the virgin, as you yourself demand, who gave birth to Him. But since you promise to believe in this if anyone can show another such thing that has happened, you ought to accept this as the first and only instance, since that other could not be referred to anything else, if indeed it were the first. But if so, this must be left alone; however, do you show me how Moses caused your fathers to cross the Red Sea, and how from the rock so much water gushed forth that all the people were sated, and how the ark, being carried by the priests, parted the stream of the Jordan and passed over on dry land, and how the walls of Jericho were shaken down, and how Elisha again divided the Jordan with his mantle and the waters were parted on this side and on that, and he himself passed over on dry land. Is it possible to say that any of these things took place according to nature? By no means. If those were above nature, neither is that of the virgin according to nature. But your disbelief the great-voiced Isaiah has well rebuked, saying: 'All the day long I have stretched out my hands to a disobedient and gainsaying people.' For to all the prophecies regarding Christ, being evident and most clear as they are, you behave like madmen, who, turning away from trodden paths, often cast themselves over precipices C—or rather, than the others, toward the present matter, a clearer summary of what has been said. Yet, let us take it up a little from above, so that we may see more clearly what is the meaning of what was said to the prophet and about whom it is. 'The Lord,' he says, 'added to speak to Achaz, saying, Ask for yourself a sign from the Lord thy God into the depth or into the height. And Achaz said, I will not ask, and I will not tempt the Lord. And Isaiah said: Therefore the Lord himself shall give you a sign. Behold, a virgin shall conceive and shall bear a son, and shall call his name Emmanuel. Butter of oxen and milk of sheep and honey shall he eat before he knows or chooses the evil, to choose the good; for before the child knows good or evil, he refuses evil to choose the good.' Let us, therefore, from the beginning again consider these things, setting them forth a little at a time: 'The Lord added to speak to Achaz, saying, Ask for yourself a sign from the Lord thy God into the depth or into the height. And Achaz said, I will not ask, nor will I tempt the Lord.' It is right, therefore, first to examine what was the cause of Achaz's disobedience, so that he did not wish to do what was commanded by God. We say, then, that being a man bound up in vanity and arrogance, and gaping after false prophets and oracle-mongers and such charlatans, he was not hesitant to despise the divine commands; whence Isaiah, rebuking that contemptuousness and, as it were, that insolence of his: 'Therefore,' he says, 'the Lord himself shall give you a sign,' the One who sent me, evidently, to you, the profane and the impious one, who D
has A danced away from the divine commandments. For he did not think that I was sent to you because you were worthy—for you are far from being such—so that it was not for your sake, but for the sake of the house of Judah and all the sons of Israel that I have been sent. Therefore, the Lord himself shall give you a sign. Behold, the virgin shall conceive in the womb and shall bear a son, and they shall call his name Emmanuel.' If, as you say, the prophet were predicting that a young girl who had had relations with a man would have a child in her womb, it would be utterly vain and exceedingly foolish to call this a sign. Besides this, you will find that 'young girl' (νεάνις) is used in place of 'virgin' if you observe closely in Deuteronomy. For it says: 'If anyone force a young girl in the field,'—meaning, clearly, a virgin. And elsewhere: 'If anyone find a young woman who is betrothed and, having forced her, lies with her, you shall kill only the man, but to the young girl you shall do nothing.' And Ezra also calls a virgin, who was sleeping with the elderly King and prophet David in order to warm him, he being chilled by age, a 'young girl,' and nothing more. For he says that the king did not know her. Since, therefore, as we have said, for a woman who has lain with a man to conceive was nothing new, nor would the prophet have reasonably called this a sign, it remains to believe that he said this sign was given by God—namely, that a virgin should give birth without a man. And if you attempt to overturn this truth with certain shaky and groundless—or, more suitably, foolish—arguments, you have no end to your folly. B It is worth noting, moreover, that if this sign had not found its fulfillment in the Virgin Mary, how could the One born of her, not of the will of the flesh nor of the will of man, but of the Holy Spirit, according to the prophetic oracle, have been named Emmanuel, that is, 'God with us'? This signifies clearly that God shall be with us humans, that is, He shall be a human like us and yet remain the same God. Likewise, by the phrase 'they shall call,' he spoke of the whole multitude of men, which indeed came to pass. With these things, the words in the book of Baruch by Jeremiah also entirely agree. For he says: 'This is our God; no other shall be accounted equivalent to him. He found out all the way of knowledge,' as if to say, He knows all knowledge as He who is Wisdom itself, 'and all the words of them,' as their Creator, 'and gave it to Jacob his boy,' that is, to his servant, 'and to Israel his beloved; but after this he appeared on the earth and conversed with men.'
A foreigner asks: 'Since no man born of human race has ever lived beyond a thousand years, O Emperor, how is it that you think the Messiah himself is still living, now that more than one thousand four hundred years have passed? For it is impossible. But if you say he died, then—'
A again this will be a manifest lie, that he is the Messiah. For Elijah did not come, as they say, to anoint him at his birth.' The emperor replied: 'You are mistaken, Xenos, because you do not know the Scriptures nor the power of God. It is indeed said and believed that Elijah the Tishbite will come, yet not to anoint the Lord; but because it is destined that a certain detestable man shall be born from the race—as some claim, of the Hebrews—who will possess all the power of the devil and by it perform signs and wonders, naming himself God and Christ, so that not only will many of the Christians then living be led astray, but also the small group that will remain of the race of the Jews, that is, the nation, will be drawn into the error of the Antichrist. They say that at that time Elias and Enoch will come, being sent by God, who has been moved by the bowels of His compassion, so that he might teach and convert both others and indeed that miserable nation of the Hebrews to the faith of Christ, or to say the same thing, to the faith of the holy Trinity, so that the whole might not be swallowed up by the devil. For even if, because of the murder committed against Christ, they have made themselves the enemies of God and the Gospel, nevertheless they are beloved because of the love which God bore toward their fathers. Those, therefore, whom divine Providence knew would be turned away from repentance, He abandoned; but those whom He knew would gladly accept the preaching of the Gospel, He did not overlook. Then, indeed, will be fulfilled the prophecy of Isaiah which says: "If the number of the children of Israel be as the sand of the sea, the remnant of Israel shall be saved." And for this reason, therefore, Elijah will be sent by God at that time, B not, as you boast, to anoint the Messiah. For to concoct such fables is the work of those who are unlearned, as I have said before, and entirely ignorant of the sacred Scriptures. But Christ, insofar as He is God, is in heaven and on earth and in the universe and above the universe (for "I fill heaven and earth," says the Lord); but insofar as He is man, He neither lived for a thousand years nor is He here, that is, on earth; but He lived for more than thirty years, and then, having been affixed to the cross by your most wicked ancestors, He died. And His holy body was placed in a tomb, undergoing corruption—though not decay—but the divine hypostasis, inseparably united to the assumed nature, went down to the darkness of Hades with the divine soul, freeing everyone from the temporal bonds, and having raised the body by divine power, He took it up again, having already cast off corruption and death, and having put on incorruption and immortality. Christ, therefore, having thus risen on the third day and having released Adam from his bonds and restored to him his former dwelling, paradise, and having associated with the remaining eleven disciples (for Judas had gone to the place which the prophets had spoken of, namely, to eternal punishment), after forty days from the resurrection He was taken up into the heavens, while all the disciples together with the most holy Mother were present and watching, and now He is in the heavens, sitting together with God and the Father, and being worshiped by all the heavenly hierarchy.
Matthaeus, the hieromonach and great protosyncellus, who was present at this disputation, by the emperor's command, spoke these things in reply. And Xenus, asking, said thus: “You say that the Messiah has already come, yet the Thesbite has not come according to the words of the prophets?” A Matthaeus, answering, said: “Listen, O Xene, and understand. The prophets proclaim two advents of Christ: this one which has already taken place, and the one that will appear hereafter at the end of the world. And they say that Elias will be the precursor of the one, namely the second, while John was the precursor of the former—whom the prophet Malachi called an angel, not only because he heralded His first advent being near, but also because he embraced a manner of life almost rivaling that of the angels. And Christ also called him Elias, not because he was Elias, but because he happened to be fulfilling the same ministry as he; for just as that one will be the precursor of the second advent, so this one was of the first. And not only for this reason, but because he also pursued a life that in every respect coincided with his. But the prophets mention both of these and proclaim the precursors of each. You, however, wickedly pass over the first in silence, even though you undoubtedly attain to the mind of the Scripture, and mention only the second, of whose advent the Thesbite Elias will certainly be the forerunner. But let us hear the oracles themselves. The divine Malachi, wishing to teach about the advent of the Savior and how the time of just retribution will arrive, first B foretells and indicates the former epiphany, which precedes the one after John the Baptist: ‘For behold,’ he says, ‘I will send my angel before thy face, who shall prepare thy way before thee; and he shall look upon thy way before thy face, and suddenly the Lord shall come into his temple.’ For the saving birth took place while all were ignorant; for He called the human nature, which God the Word assumed, a temple. And in addition to the first, He also describes the second coming: ‘The Lord Almighty comes, and who shall endure the day of his entry, or who shall stand in his sight? An inexorable judge shall sit, rendering to each according to his works.’ Then He again teaches what is done by Him regarding the first advent: ‘For He himself shall come as the refining fire and as the soap of laundrymen, and He shall sit refining and purifying the silver and the gold.’ By these words the prophet signifies the purification through the Holy Spirit, which the Word, having lived among us in His theandric way, bestowed upon us. For even in this, the Lord mystically refines and renews those who draw near to Him, using the fire of the Spirit as an artisan; as if with some soap, He wipes away the filth of sin with the water of baptism, and with the fire of the Spirit He frees our souls from this. After which, to those who have not kept the soul unspotted to the end, He will appear as a terrible and inexorable punisher, coming again the second time. And after reflecting for a while on the second coming, he reminds us: ‘Behold, I will send...’ C D
you Elijah the Tishbite.’ And signifying the time, he adds: ‘Before the great and manifest day of the Lord comes,’ A speaking of the second appearance. He also teaches those things which the great Elijah shall do when he arrives: ‘Who shall turn back the heart of the father to the son.’ For since the Jews were the fathers of the apostles, he seems to mean this: that he will turn back to the dogmas of their sons—that is to say, the apostles—the hearts of the fathers, which is to say, the mind of the race of the Jews; and he will turn back those who shall be found at that time grateful toward the faith in Christ, as to a paternal heritage from which they had long ago fallen away through unbelief. ‘And the heart of a man to his neighbor;’ for he will prepare even brothers to think brotherly thoughts. And showing the purpose B for which Elijah arrives first, he adds: ‘Lest I come and strike the earth completely,’ so that he might not, by finding you all in unbelief, send you away to the unending punishment. Here he has more clearly indicated the second and fearful coming of the Lord; for in the former, he did not come to strike the earth, but to save it. Does he not clearly and accurately manifest both of the Savior’s comings? For the one has already occurred, having poured upon us wondrous showers of graces; but the other shall take place at the end of the present age, demanding an accounting for what has been lived by each one. If, therefore, you consider that which occurred for the sake of salvation alone a trifle, yet yearn for that one C at which an accounting must be given, beware lest, before that very time, you unguardedly find a wolf instead of a shepherd, and fall into the jaws of the Antichrist, and, being sent away with him into the eternal fire, weep in vain. Or has not the prophet Daniel also said that this one would arrive after the period of time and the numbering of his days, calling him a beast figuratively because of his intractable mind, full of utter folly and impiety, and affirming that he would be cast into the river of fire that flows in the sight of the Judge before all others? For just as the devil has been left for the whole of this present age as a trial of our mind and an exercise of our soul’s free will, so that it may be known whether we are D seekers of what is good and virtuous (for the struggle reveals the excellent), so too is the Antichrist; who, not bearing the refutation of Enoch and Elijah, shall kill them as a tyrant, thus procuring for them the crown of martyrdom; for they have not yet experienced the trial of death.
Finally, enlightened by the radiance of the most holy Spirit and the wise arguments of the emperor and of the hieromonk Matthew, the Hebrew openly confessed the holy Trinity and all the dogmas of the orthodox faith, and being regenerated by divine baptism, he was renamed Emmanuel in place of Xenon.
13. Let us now return to the matter at hand. On the 21st of November of the same year, the emperor Lord John crossed over with the patriarch Lord Jo...
Joseph and Lord Demetrios, and many of the leaders of the senate and the church, and A almost all the metropolitans and bishops, because of the synod that was planned and did not benefit—or rather, to speak more accurately, did not benefit—which assembled in Florence, where it also did not conclude for all. I do not say this against the dogmas of the Church; for these were given to others to be judged, and for me, the inherited succession of the faith from my fathers is sufficient, because I have not heard from any of those who belong to the opposing side say that our dogmas are evil, but rather good and ancient, and that their own in turn are not evil, but good.
And as one might say by way of example: we were traveling for many years through the middle of the city, on the wide and spacious road, passing with others, through which we arrive at Hagia Sophia. Then, after some time, another road was found by some—as they say, it also leads to the same place—and they urge me, saying: "Come also along this road, which we have found; for even if this one through which you go is good and ancient, and known to us from the beginning and traveled with you, yet this one also, which we have found now, is good." And I, hearing from some that it is good, and from others that it is not good, and there being disagreement in the midst, why should I not say with peace: "Go B happily to Hagia Sophia wherever you wish; I, for my part, will go through the road which I have traveled for a long time with you, which is witnessed as good by you and our ancestors and is being traversed"?
It was not for this cause that I said the synod profited nothing, but because of the discord. Would that a reconciliation of the churches might come to pass! If it were so, I would not refuse to be deprived of my eyes by God. But why? Because the very subject of this synod was the first and great cause for the onset of the impious against Constantinople, and from this, again, the siege and captivity and such and so great a calamity of ours. And listen to true words, for I invoke the Truth Itself as my witness.
The glorious emperor Lord Manuel spoke to his son, the emperor Lord John, while they were alone, with only me standing before them; and as the conversation chanced to turn to the synod, he said: "My son, we know surely and truly, from the very depths of the hearts of those impious ones, that they are greatly disturbed, fearing lest we should agree and be united with the Western Christians. For it seems to them that if this happens, some great evil will befall them from the aforementioned Westerners C on our account. Therefore, do indeed consider and seek after the matter of the synod, and especially use it when you have need to frighten the impious, but do not yet attempt to bring it about, because, as I see our own people, they are not fit to find the method and manner of union, agreement, peace, love, and concord, unless they take care to convert them—I mean the Westerners—as we were from the beginning. But this is truly impossible; for I fear lest an even worse schism might happen, and behold, we have been exposed to the impious."
A The Emperor, seeing that his father did not accept his reasoning, rose and left in silence without saying anything further. Then his father, of blessed and venerable memory, having been lost in thought for a little while, looked at me and said: "My son, the Emperor, thinks that he is a suitable emperor, but not for the present time; for he thinks and aspires to great things, such as the times of our ancestors’ prosperity required. But as matters stand for us today, our realm does not need an emperor, but a steward; for I fear lest, from his actions and enterprises, the ruin of this house should come to pass." For he had foreseen his intentions, and all that he thought to accomplish with Mustafa, and I saw also the ends of the dogmas, and into what danger they had brought us.
Another thing confirming the counsel of his glorious father. B When he determined to depart for the Council, Andronikos Iagaris was sent as an ambassador to the Emir, to declare this to him as a friend and brother, so to speak. But he answered: "It does not seem good to me that he should go and struggle so greatly and consume his life, and what is the profit afterward? Behold, I am ready to support him if he is in need of funds for his departure and return, or for any other thing for his relief." And there was much talk and deliberation whether the Emir’s wish should be followed, or if they should go to the Council. However, that which the Emperor—or rather, a cruel fate—desired, came to pass. C When he had departed, the Emir deliberated to wage war against the City and to send armies against it. And this was confirmed and established by all of his men, with the exception of Halil Pasha alone, who stood against him, saying: "If you wage war against the City, it is rather harmful, lest the Emperor, compelled by necessity, in seeking aid from the Latins, should ratify their dogmas, and they should become unified together, which is what we fear. But let this be for now, until you see what he himself will do; and if they should be in agreement, you shall have friendship and oaths toward them again—as you see, so you shall act; but if they do not agree, then the reasoning comes out all the more, and with greater confidence you will do what you wish." D And this counsel kept the Emir from his goal, while regarding Halil Pasha, who gave this counsel, we learned other things in due time. So, therefore, my master, the despotes, and the lords, raised up Thomas Palaiologos and sent him to the Emperor; and great reasoning and turmoil fell upon the City, until we learned again that the counsel of Halil Pasha had prevailed. And behold, as I said before, may it be that on account of such scandals, there had not been, as should not have been, that Council.
And the journey from Constantinople to Italy, as being superfluous, I shall leave to writing because of its length; but the entry of Emperor John and his [entourage] into Venice...
A I shall narrate, as it is splendid and glorious and indeed worthy of knowledge, in the manner I learned from the mouth of the Despot Lord Demetrios.
14. On the seventh day of the month of February, all the triremes departed together from Parenzo; but the imperial trireme, being faster than the others, arrived ahead of the rest at Venice, reaching St. Nicholas on the eighth day of the month, at the second hour of the day. And so, a great many small vessels came out from Venice to meet the Emperor; such was the multitude that, I might almost say, one could not see the sea because of the number of the craft. A report then came out from the Senate of the Venetians, or rather the Authority, that the Emperor should not leave the trireme until the morning, so that the Duke might come with the whole Senate to pay the proper honor and greeting to the Emperor, and thus it was done. And after a short while the Duke arrived with his magnates and the Senate, and he did obeisance to the Emperor [who was] sitting, as did the nobles, and all were bareheaded. Sitting at his right hand was the Despot, his brother, Lord Demetrios, slightly below the imperial throne, and at the left of the Emperor sat the Duke of the Venetians. And having spoken among themselves words of greeting and other secret matters, the Duke said to the Emperor, "[Tomorrow] morning I shall come with everyone to pay the honor owed to your Imperial Majesty in the name of the holy God, and to meet it with openness, and you shall come into Venice." And so the Duke departed with his nobles.
On the following day, which was Sunday, February 8th, at the fifth hour of the day, the Duke came with great pomp, [attended] by his nobles and many counselors of the Senate and other noblemen, within a certain vessel in which it was the custom for them to go to the Senate, called in their language a *putzidoro*; B it was prepared and covered with purple hangings, and had golden lions on the stern and golden interlacing decorations, and the whole was painted with varied and most beautiful historical scenes; clearly, the aforementioned *putzidoro* was the State barge, or imperial craft. There came with him also other half-triremes, which in the language of the Latins are called quadriremes, about twelve in number, and these too were prepared and painted inside and out, in all things similar to the Duke's; in which were many nobles, and all around they had golden banners and countless trumpets and every kind of instrument. But they also had one vessel very exceptional, for the name indeed of the imperial trireme, which they had made most beautiful and varied; for beneath, the rowers had entire garments covered with gold leaf, and upon their heads they had as a sign the image of the all-praised Mark the Evangelist, and C behind this the imperial sign; then the *tzangratores* wore garments of another aspect and carried flags; and around the same ship, that is, the entire quadrireme, D were imperial flags, and at the stern were golden signs.
A And that I may not speak or discourse much: the Duke approached the imperial trireme with his senate, and having gone aboard, he worshipped the Emperor who was sitting upon the throne, with his brother, as has been said, sitting at his right hand, beneath the imperial throne. The Duke, therefore, having also taken his seat at his left on a bench similar to that of the Despot, and holding his hand, they conversed affectionately. And thus, little by little, they entered with great confidence, with trumpets and every kind of music, into luminous and great Venice, that city truly wonderful and most wonderful, opulent, multiform, and golden, worked as if on a lathe, variegated, and worthy of a thousand praises—the wise and most wise city, which if one should call a second Land of Promise, he would not err. Regarding it, I think, the Prophet also says in the twenty-third Psalm: “God founded it upon the seas.” For what could anyone seek that he would not find therein? For this reason it is worthy of many great praises. It was about the sixth hour of the day when they began to enter Venice, and they sailed until sunset and arrived at the houses of the Marquis of Ferrara. The whole city was shaken; they went out to meet the Emperor, and there was a great noise and shouting. And it was possible to witness a fearful ecstasy on that day: that most wondrous temple of Saint Mark, the exquisite palaces of the Duke, and the other houses of the nobles, which were huge and red-[hued] B nobles were seen, who wore garments of various sorts and of very different appearance, and they venerated him with great reverence. Before the stern stood something erected like a column, supporting a square table a little less than an orgyia in size, upon which stood an armed man, shining like the sun, holding a terrible sword in his left hand; to his right and left sat two boys dressed in the manner of angels, and winged, like angels, who were not shaped by image, but were truly men, and they were moving. In the stern likewise there were two golden lions, and between them a double-headed eagle; and very many other images and other spectacles, which no one could describe. For this quadrireme was most swift, and now it preceded the imperial trireme, now it ran in an oblique direction, and with joyful shouts and the songs of frequent trumpets it moved in a circle. There was an infinite number of the rest of the ships and vessels that were arriving; which one could no more count than the stars of heaven, or the leaves of trees, or the sand of the sea, or the drops of rain. But, that I may not be long, the Duke approached the imperial ship with the senate; having gone on board, he worshipped the Emperor sitting on the throne, at whose right hand, a little lower than the imperial throne, as we have said, his brother was sitting. The Duke then, sitting also on the left, on a lower bench, as a Despot, having taken his hand, spoke humanely and in a friendly manner; and thus little by little, with great pomp, with the singing of trumpets and all musical instruments, they entered the famous and ample Venice, a city truly to be admired and in the highest degree admirable, opulent, multiform, golden and as if turned on a lathe, variegated, and worthy to be affected by a thousand praises, a wise city, nay, most wise, a city, in fine, which if one should call a second land of promise, he would not err. Of this, I opine, the Prophet says in the twenty-third Psalm: “God founded it upon the sea.” For what would anyone seek that he would not find there? For which cause it is worthy of many and great praises. It was about the sixth hour, when they began to enter Venice with their ships, and they navigated until sunset, and turned aside to the houses of the Marquis of Ferrara. The whole city, however, was moved, pouring itself out to meet the Emperor, and there were great plaudits and shouts of those rejoicing; and it was permitted with an astonished mind to see on that day that admirable temple of St. Mark, the egregious palace of the Duke, and the other houses of the princes, by far the greatest, most adorned with purple and gold, elegant and more elegant than the elegant. Those who have not themselves seen with their eyes will not believe; those who have seen cannot in writing attain to that beauty and the appearance of the men and the wisdom of the women, the frequency of the people; who all, joyful, glad, and exulting, stood upon the advent of the Emperor. For the minds of all who saw this new thing were astonished, so that they even cried out, astonished: “Heaven
today, the earth, and the sea have been made.” Clearly, just as one cannot comprehend the creatures and works of God in heaven, but is only struck with wonder, so too were they struck with wonder seeing the sights of that day; though there is a great difference between the two things. When, therefore, they came to that great bridge which they call the Rialto, they raised it up, so that the trireme might pass through; and there too was a multitude of people, and golden standards, and trumpets, and shouts, and outcries, and simply to say, every kind of extraordinary spectacle. And who shall recount the praises and honors which they showed to the Emperor? They went away then, as I said before, to the houses of the Marquis. There, therefore, they moored the trireme. It was about the setting of the sun; and the Doge and the nobles, having saluted the Emperor, went home.
15. On the twenty-eighth of February, the Emperor, the Despot, and the entire clergy and their retinue, having departed from Venice, sailed on the way to Ferrara; but the Patriarch remained in Venice because of the lack of small vessels. They traveled A to the castle of Frangulin, where all the ships that had departed from Venice for Ferrara had put in and were moored. About fifty illustrious men, therefore, who had arrived there by land, came to pay their respects to the Emperor; among them was the legate who had once come on the Pope’s trireme to Crete and to Constantinople; for the Pope had sent him to sound out the mind of the Emperor. The Emperor then ordered that one hundred and fifty horses be readied for him early in the morning, so that he might travel by land to Ferrara, where the Pope was. They stayed, therefore, in that place for the night; B and in the morning, by the order of the Emperor, the ships were sent on by way of the river to Ferrara, but he himself, as has been said, traveled by land. The ships moved along the river, for the Emperor went by land, and at the sixth hour of the day he entered Ferrara on horseback with great honor and distinction. There were with him many metropolitans, that is to say, bishops of the Pope, and the prince of that region, the Marquis, and also the priests of the Emperor, and his spiritual father, the great protosyncellus Sir Gregory, and others, about two hundred in number. And thus they entered with the sound of trumpets and every kind of musical instrument. C The entire city of Ferrara ran together to see the arrival of our holy sovereign and Emperor, with reverence, honor, and piety. And the Emperor was seated upon a most beautiful black horse, arrayed with a red and golden-woven cloth.
And another very beautiful white horse, decorated in the same manner and having golden eagles and other gold lace upon the saddle-cloth, proceeded before the Emperor, without a rider. A The most blessed Pope was sitting in his palace with all the clergy—that is to say, the cardinals, metropolitans, bishops, priests, and others of the priestly order—and with many lords and masters, awaiting the Emperor. When those who were leading the procession arrived, some of the lords dismounted, as did the Despot himself, and they entered through the great gate into the palace where the Pope was; but the Emperor was led B in on horseback through another gate. When the Pope learned that the Emperor was near the gate, he rose and walked about. The Emperor found him standing, and wishing to kneel, the Pope did not permit it, but received him into his embrace and extended his hand, which the Emperor kissed, and he seated him on his left. The cardinals sat at their feet, and having performed the greeting in Christ and conversed about secret words of peace, they parted from one another. The Pope remained in his palace, and the Emperor was led by the horsemen who had come with him, accompanied by the sound of trumpets, C to another palace, which was arranged in a very proper manner, and there he rested with his lords and servants in royal fashion, on the fourth day of the month of March.
16. Our Patriarch then having drawn near to the fortress of Frangulinum, while he was still at a distance, behold, a ship covered in gold, coming to meet him and being towed along the river by its own skiff, approached, and they requested the Patriarch to board it. It had two and three decks, like that old ark of Noah, and it was safely secured. As much of it as was in the water was coated with pitch, while the visible part was beautified with various colors. D A little higher up were carved windows, as one might suppose, with slender pillars and red marble, and above these was a most beautiful projection. Above the whole ship, all around, were defensive weapons, and in the middle a kitchen, because the smoke had to go up to the open air, and a ladder by the stern and another at the prow for the servants to go up and down. Inside was another palace, as one might say, a most beautiful temple, and various bedchambers covered with golden veils. All around were steps and small benches, thrones, and curtains spread over long spaces, and all around a bright, visible, and praiseworthy spectacle. Below the palace was another, like a cellar, and there were many storehouses, some for wine, others for fish, and others for other foodstuffs. The ceiling of its roof and the wonderful placement and rest of the bedchambers within it were most beautiful. In the language of the Italians, therefore, that ship was called a *dromobourkion*. The Patriarch then entered it with the archbishops and all the
clergy; and it was a sight to see the ship sailing along the river like a palace, in such a way that one would not at all suppose it was in the water, but rather upon dry land. Having sailed along the river, therefore, they arrived at Ferrara, and they sent from Venice to the Pope as envoys the Metropolitan of Heraclea, Kyrios Antonios, and the Metropolitan of Monemvasia, Kyrios Theodosios. On the following morning, at the first hour of the day, there arrived four A cardinals and twenty-five bishops, and the Marquess, the lord of Ferrara, and with him a multitude of nobles riding on horses and mules, to meet the Patriarch. The Patriarch was mounted, traveling in the midst of two cardinals with great honor. And immediately upon entering the Pope’s palace, they greeted one another with the holy kiss.
We shall omit, therefore, the things that occurred in the synod, and let us recount the events that followed for us. 17. In the year 6946, on the 21st of the month of January, I was wedded to Helena, the daughter of the *epi tou kanakleiou* Alexios Palaiologos, known as Examplakon; and the *paranymfos* at this marriage was my *authentes*, the Despot Kyrios Konstantinos, who crowned us according to our custom. And on the first of May of the year 6947, a son was born to me, named Ioannes, whom the aforementioned *authentes* of mine, the Despot, caused to be reborn through holy baptism. On the 17th of December of the year 6948 of this present vain life, the Despoina Kyria Maria from Trebizond passed away, and on the first B of the month of June of the same year, the Despoina Kyria Eugenia, daughter of the *authentes* of Lesbos, also passed away; and both were buried in the monastery of the Pantokrator. And a winter more severe than any before occurred at that time. And on the 17th of the same month, the Empress Zoe also paid the common debt, and she was buried in the monastery of Kyria Martha. And in the month of February of the same year, all those who had departed to Italy on account of the synod returned to Constantinople—I mean the Emperor and the Despot and the rest—except for three who had been left behind there in Italy: the Patriarch Kyrios Ioseph, who departed to the Lord in Florence, and the Metropolitan of Sardis, who died in Ferrara; and the President of Nicaea, Bessarion, remained in Rome. Him, after the Patriarch’s departure from this world, the Emperor and the synod C elected as patriarch. Then, because of certain disturbances and scandals, he did not come to Constantinople, but remained in Rome, where the supreme high priest made him a cardinal and bestowed upon him very great stipends. On the 27th of March of the same year, on the Sunday of the Lord's Resurrection, my second son, Alexios, was born to me, who died after thirty days. And in the spring of the same year, Metrophanes, the former Metropolitan of Cyzicus, became Patriarch of Constantinople.
18. And on the 6th of December of the year 6949, I was commanded to go to Lesbos, where I also took steps so that the Despot Kyrios D
A Constantinus might take as his wife the Lady Katerina, daughter of the aforementioned island's ruler, Kyrios Notaras Palaiologos Gateliouzes, and I performed the betrothal of the marriage. On the 16th of April of the same year, on the holy Sunday of Easter, a daughter was born to me, by name Thamar, who was also received from the holy baptism by the aforementioned Despot Kyrios Constantinus, my lord. And on the same day, Paul Asanes, B having taken his daughter Asanina, fled to Mesembria, for the reason that the Despot Kyrios Demetrios, being enamored of her, was seeking her for his bed, and the Emperor and Kyrios Constantinus, the Despot, and his brothers, together with the Despina and mother, could not bear to hear of it. When he had departed to Mesembria, the Despot Kyrios Demetrios arrived there secretly and took her as his legal wife. On the 27th of July of the same C year, my lord the Despot Kyrios Constantinus departed for Lesbos with royal triremes and took as his wife the aforementioned Lady Katerina Gateliouzena; the drungarios in command of these triremes was Loukas Notaras, who later became grand doux. And in the month of September of the same year, my lord, having left his Despina and wife with her father there, went with me to the Peloponnese, using the lordly triremes and one other trireme from Lesbos. On the 20th of October D of the same year, having been ordered, I went as an envoy to the Emir and to the Emperor, carrying a secret mystery, namely that if the Emperor would grant this, I should go to the Despot Kyrios Demetrios and hand over to him all the towns and places that my lord had in the Peloponnese; he himself, having returned to the City, would have Selymbria and the other places there of the Black Sea, that is, of the Euxine Sea, as far as Derca, wishing to be near the City for the hope of the empire, which the Emperor, who received me kindly, approved of. And so I arrived safely in January at Mesembria to the Despot Kyrios Demetrios; he, however, being at that time greatly preparing himself for war against the City and the Emperor and his brother, dismissed me having accomplished nothing. And during the days in which I was staying there, Paul, having fallen into a severe apoplexy, passed away. But when I had returned to the City and was waiting for the Emperor’s order so that I might return to my lord in the Peloponnese, behold, on the 23rd of April of the same year, the Despot Kyrios Demetrios arrived with an army and besieged the City, having destroyed and harmed those whom he found outside, having with him as allies a considerable portion of the Turkish army; in which month there was born to him the daughter whom the Emir Mehmed later took as his wife. And in the month of July of the same year, my lord the Despot Kyrios Constantinus, coming to the aid of the City and passing through Lesbos, took with him the Despina, his wife; and when he arrived in Lemnos, he was attacked by the entire fleet of the Turks, which had been staying there for many days, but by God’s help the fleet departed from him having accomplished nothing. The Despina, his wife, falling ill from that event [and having suffered an abortion, in August... [alt-version omitted]
of the same year, at Palaeokastro, which is the town of that island, passed away and was buried. On the twelfth day of the month of September, another son was born to me, Alexios. And in the month of November of the same year, my despot and master came to the City. On the Kalends of March, he received Selymbria from the emperor, and sent me thither to administer it, and thus ordered me to guard it with diligence, because of the suspicion we held of the emir and of the despot Kyr Demetrios and of the emperor himself. A
19. In the month of June of the same year, Leon Phrankopoulos, the protostrator, a son of the sister of the late great protostrator Nikephoros Melissenos, of whom the history has spoken elsewhere, came to Constantinople. For this reason, also, he had been assigned the oversight of the Messenian Gulf, as he was a nephew of the aforementioned great protostrator, by the command of the despot Kyr Theodoros, until he handed it over to the despot Kyr Konstantinos, as has been written previously. Then I, too, being ordered, returned from Selymbria to Constantinople. And meanwhile, agreements were made among the brothers such that my master the despot Konstantinos would depart for the Peloponnese and take the entire region of the despot Kyr Theodoros, and Kyr Theodoros would come to the City and take Selymbria. And this indeed happened. On the tenth of October of the 6952nd year, my master the despot departed from the City with a ship and sailed to the Peloponnese, and again with this same ship B the despot Kyr Theodoros in the month of December of the same year returned to the City. And in the month of March, I handed over Selymbria to him. And having embarked upon a Cretan ship belonging to Antonios Hyalines, he dropped me off at Karystos of Euripos; and on the third of June, I arrived in Sparta by the land route. The despot Kyr Theodoros sought me out with the greatest insistence and urged me to hold Selymbria also, and to find myself among his chief subordinates. As I was passing through, I found that the Isthmus had also been built by my master the despot Kyr Konstantinos the previous spring. When I arrived in Sparta, after a few days, not many, the cardinal and vice-chancellor and catholic legate of the Pope came to Constantinople with many triremes on account of the expedition of the king of Hungary against the impious. C Wherefore I was sent again as an envoy to the emperor and to the emir and to the king himself, but also to the ambassador or legate and to the captain, Aloysius Lauredanus, for certain necessary services, to see how affairs might proceed. As I was passing through Corinth on the thirtieth of August in order to overtake the triremes of the fleet at Euripos, I found buried the pious and good Mark, bishop of Corinth, who had been born in our own court and raised with us, and who, being much oppressed by the evil of his stepmother, found great solace from my parents, he who, being compelled by the great evil, fled from his father and went to the monastery of the Xanthopouloi and was established there as a most useful man. Having arrived, therefore, I
to Euboea, and not finding any triremes, I crossed to Lemnos by another vessel, and finding there a certain imperial trireme, I arrived safely in Constantinople at the beginning of the month of November in the year 6955. A
In the same month, on the eleventh day, the king of the Hungarians was killed by the amir at Varna, the battle having been joined in this way between the Hungarians and the Turks. The king's army was superior in every respect, and the amir of the Turks and all his council were seeking an opportunity to withdraw, if it were possible; for a great fear and trembling had fallen upon the impious. The Hungarians, on the contrary, stood boldly and confidently with joy and courage, hoping to win the victory and to take the amir and all his men captive. On the following day, the Hungarians wishing to join battle, and a council having been held among them, the king and some others decided that the king should of his own accord join battle and, if he could, reach the tent of the amir, so that B the fame of his victory and valor might be proclaimed throughout the world; for they considered the victory easy and simple for themselves. But Hunyadi, who was his commander, being a wise man and experienced in wars, thinking the opposite, said: "No one knows the inconstancy of fortune; therefore, there is no need for your majesty to undertake such a thing. It is a dangerous venture. But I shall do whatever I am ordered by your majesty, and if fortune assists me, I shall go as far as the tent of the amir. And if C the victory is ours until the end, and I return, glory be to God, the victory is and shall be to your majesty; but if I be killed, there is nothing to hinder you. Observe the wisdom of the serpent, who always by guarding its head preserves the whole body; but if the head is struck, the whole body perishes. In the same way, if your majesty makes an attack and the result is the opposite—which I pray to my Lord may not happen—we shall all obviously perish." But the king, not accepting the counsel of Hunyadi, on the following morning, when a strong and terrible battle had been joined and much bloodshed and slaughter had occurred on the side of the Turks, the king, D having reached near the tent of the amir, wished the amir to flee; but the Janissaries did not allow him, even though he had fallen into cowardice while seeing the king fighting bravely, but seizing his horse with iron fetters, he could not flee; and they struggled strongly for the preservation of the amir. The king, fighting bravely elsewhere in order to win the amir and all his equipment, one of the Janissaries by name Chamuzas, originating from the Peloponnese, wounded the back leg of the king's horse with an axe, wounding it, and having thrown it upon the ground with the rider, thus running to him he beheaded him; and with shouting, as is the custom of the impious, they raised his head upon a spear. And seeing this, the Hungarians were scattered here and there, and in their flight many were captured and killed; and this happened because of that bad counsel. But to the aforementioned Janissary Chamuzas, the amir rewarded
his courage and boldness by honoring him as drungary of his guard, which in their dialect is called *janitzar-agas*, and after a short time he also made him vizier.
A On the seventeenth day of the month of July of the same year, there was a global heatwave worthy of note; during that summer, the spiritual father, Lord Gregory Melissenus, became patriarch. And on the fifteenth day of the month of August, my son Andronicus was born, who lived only eight days. And in the year 6954, at the end of the month of December, having departed for the Peloponnese with the Venetian merchant triremes, and on the first of September of the year 6955 I was honored with the governorship of Sparta and the administration of all the places surrounding it, namely Cula, Hebraïke Tripes, Tzerami, Pagkon, Sklabochori, and all the other villages belonging to it, and all their revenues, such a governorship as no one else ever had. And my lord said this to me: "Because of your honest service and my patronage and love for you, we have honored you with the governorship of Sparta, and I wish for it to be even as that of Corinth and Patras, one of which John Cantacuzene holds, and the other Alexius Lascaris. And know that I shall appoint no other intermediary besides the one I have, John Sophianos Eudæmon. But I shall not always be here, for I traverse my domain for many useful purposes; and when I am in Corinth, I shall command that my affairs be conducted and overseen B along with the laws of that place, and I shall order them to be examined with Cantacuzene and John Eudæmon; and similarly when I am in Patras with Lascaris and John Eudæmon, I shall leave Cantacuzene in his own authority. But when I am here, it shall be with you and John Eudæmon and others. Furthermore, when by the grace of God I take a wife, I shall bring her through you, and I shall spend the greater part of my time here, and you shall be the most knowledgeable of all in matters concerning her care. But now I am departing for the better building of the Isthmus, and you, remaining here, govern your governorship well, and put an end to the injustices and the many authorities here, and cause all to have no other authority except you as I alone am master, and you in my stead. And if you wish to do no injustice nor show favoritism, but rather hold to the laws, you will have your reward from God, and gratitude from us. Have nothing to do with gifts, because concerning those who accept gifts, the golden-tongued one says this: 'Fire shall consume the houses of those who accept gifts and their hearts,' because bribery corrupts justice and blinds to such a degree that it even causes the innocent to be condemned. Furthermore, he who judges the people of the Lord and his fellow Christians must possess these three virtues: faith that is upright toward God and toward him who confers the dignity upon him, truth from the tongue, and temperance from the body; and I know well that you have kept all these things since your youth. And in the Apostolic Constitutions it says this: 'Let the judge be impartial,
A neither showing respect to the rich nor flattering them beyond what is proper, nor sparing the poor. For, it says, you shall not respect the person of the mighty, nor shall you pity the poor in judgment, for the judgment is God’s. The just man shall pursue justice, and injustice shall never please the just man.' Having therefore bowed down to him and given thanks, I went away to the Isthmus on the 28th of the same month of September.
In the month of October of the same year, the Lady Helena, daughter of the Despot Thomas, went out from Glarentza in order to depart for Serbia and take as her husband Lazar, the son of the Despot George, which also came to pass; and for this reason the Emperor Lord John bestowed honors upon both the Despot and Lazar himself, on account of George Philanthropenos. And on the 27th of the month of November of the same year, the emir came against the Isthmus, or Hexamilion; and on the tenth of the month of December he took it and ravaged it. And having gone to Patras, he took only the city of Patras and burned and destroyed it. And in the month of August of the same year I was sent again to Constantinople B regarding many matters, and concerning the matters of Trebizond and Gothia, and regarding a certain marriage for my master, since I had previously conferred about this from there; where I also sent hieromonks and some of my own people into those regions, and especially the hieromonk Isidore, who later became the Metropolitan of Athens, with whom I wrote. And while I was waiting there, in the month of July of the year 6956, the Despot Lord Theodore died of a pestilential disease in Selymbria, and those who bore his body to the city buried him in the monastery of the Pantocrator. And on the 15th of the month of August of the same year, my son Alexius died on me, having lived five years and eleven months; the death of whom struck me severely, as I, poor wretch, did not know B what remained for me to suffer that was more grievous. And on the 31st day of the month of October of the year 6957, the Emperor Lord John also departed this life, being fifty-six years, ten months, and fifteen days old, and he was buried on the first of November in the monastery of the Pantocrator, having ruled for twenty-three years, three months, and ten days.
BOOK III. Concerning the reign of the Lord Constantine Palaiologos, and the capture of Constantinople, and certain other matters.
1. On the thirteenth day of the month of November, in the year 6957, the despot Lord Thomas arrived by ship at Constantinople, being ignorant of the emperor’s death; but on passing through Kallipolis, he learned of it. When he arrived, the plans which the despot Lord Demetrios and his followers were setting into motion—so that he [Demetrios], being a despot and Porphyrogenitus, might obtain the empire—were greatly quelled. For the people of Constantinople did not judge it right, while the eldest brother and such a man, a prince in all virtues, was still living; even if he was unfortunate, A they still did what was proper and just. By the order of the holy despina, and with the desire and counsel of her sons, the despots and the archons, they decided to make known to the amir that the mother, the brothers, and [the claim of] seniority by age, as well as the virtue and the affection of nearly all those in the city, favored the Lord Constantine for the empire, so that he [the amir] might also be aware of this. And on the 6th of December I was sent as an envoy to the amir to announce these things. When he heard them, he ratified them and sent me back with honors and gifts. In those same days, archons were sent from Constantinople to the Peloponnese; B and Alexios Philanthropenos Laskaris was sent to the city by our master, with the despot Lord Thomas, on account of certain affairs of the despot pertaining to the emperor, not knowing of the emperor’s death. Having reached the queen of cities, he found the ruler dead. And since there was great confusion among them as to whom of the brothers they should crown as emperor, in accordance with the decision of all, as has been said before, Alexios Philanthropenos was sent by them with Manuel Palaiologos, who is called Jagrus, to the Peloponnese, in order that they might crown the despot Lord Constantine, my master, as emperor; this they did in Sparta on the sixth day of January. C And on the 12th day of the month of March of the same year, we arrived at the city with our master, the newly crowned emperor, on Catalan triremes, and all received their new lord kindly and joyfully, being filled with exultation and gladness, and celebrating great triumphs, just as is customary to be done for recently crowned emperors. A few days later, he raised Lord Thomas, his own brother, to the rank of despot; in the same year, Augu-
- Ast he departed from the city, and the aforementioned despot Lord Thomas went to the Peloponnese. On the first of September of the year 6955, the despot, the porphyrogenitus Lord Demetrios, also departed and went likewise to the Peloponnese. Before they departed from the city, they entered into agreements with fearful oaths before their lady mother and imperial queen, and before the emperor, their brother, and all the chosen nobles of the senate, that none should overstep or seize the places and borders of the other, but that they should live in peace. Yet, after this, they did not keep these oaths and violated the treaties. For this reason, in later times, as appeared and as I myself saw, they ended up in a bad state and were disposed against one another, as I shall relate further on regarding those things which followed between them. On the fourth of October of the same year, I was sent by my master and emperor to the Lord of Iberia, George Mepen, who is called "Rex" by us, and to the Emperor of Trebizond, Lord John Komnenos, with splendid gifts and much preparation, with nobles and soldiers and hieromonks and monks and singers and musicians and physicians and some who played instruments and other kinds of music. And when we had come into Iberia, B all of them received us with joy, and as the musical kinds and instruments were played, all who were there ran to see and were amazed, saying that we heard of such things, but as for the senses, we had never seen or heard them as we do now. Not only from the city of Iberia, but also from the places around it and from the furthest ends, they ran to see and to hear, because they had heard the names of these things, but they did not know what they were. And many having come, among them was an old man of about one hundred years, and he related these things to me. The name of the elder was Ephraim, hailing from the famous city of Iberia called .... who from his youth was captured by barbarians and the impious nations of those parts, and they sold him into the interior regions of the Persians. Now his master was a merchant, and with many other merchants wishing to come to the parts of the Indians to conduct the trade customary to them, and traveling for not a few days, they approached the interior of the land of the Indians. This same Ephraim, wishing to flee from the yoke of slavery, sought an opportunity; and on one full-moon night, as his master and the other fellow-travelers were weary from the journey, he, trusting in fortune, rose up and went off as a fugitive from place to place, walking for many days in desert and inaccessible places. He arrived at certain islands where the C Long-lived live—for they call them long-lived because each of them lives more than one hundred and fifty years. And this happens, they say, because of the temperate climate and purity of the air, because in those regions fruits are not lacking throughout the whole year, and some are in blossom, others are forming, and others are being harvested. And there also, the great Indian nuts are produced. D
and spices—to us almost denied, but most desirable—and the magnet stone. A These men are a pious nation, and they live a life without possessions, and they glorify God. From that same region, the river Nile also takes its beginning. And the way in which this river swells in the months of July and August, and not at any other time like other rivers, they say is as follows: that these two months are in those regions colder than the other months, because the sun is toward us and toward the north. For this reason, it rises when summer is at its height, and it overflows Egypt, as the sun is traversing the more northern zone and troubling the other rivers. He also crossed another very dangerous river in order to go there to the Long-livers, because of a certain very large amphibious animal that dwells in the water of that river, called in their dialect the *odontotyrannos* [tooth-tyrant], which is even able to swallow an elephant whole. And there are found in those desert places other very many fearful animals and beasts, among which are dragons most numerous and very large, some seventy cubits in length, and in size and thickness most fearful and formidable; scorpions a cubit long, and ants a span long and more, bats like summer crows, and flies like sparrows. For this reason also those places are uninhabited because of the fearful and poisonous beasts. The elephants in that country are as numerous as the herds of oxen and sheep are among us, and they graze while wandering in herds. Having spent some time in that region and having learned the language of that place well, he desired to return to his homeland. And having told one of the natives his intention, the man took him and led him to a place where Indian vessels from abroad used to arrive and load with spices. B And Ephraim, having embarked in one of the vessels and having come to this place, found a very large Iberian ship, and having sailed by it, he came to Iberia, that is to say Spain, by way of Portugal; and from there, having sailed by another ship toward the Britannic islands and near Germany, he crossed into Iberia, where I myself arrived; and thus he explained these things to me.
I therefore went to that place on account of an alliance by marriage, in order that it might appear to me which of the two families to choose. C It was necessary, therefore, that I might be safer from blame, to signify to the Emperor by letter the benefits of both sides, so that he might take them into consideration. And as I was coming around to Amisus, I was shipwrecked. Expecting the Emperor’s answer there, I spent two years and thirty days in those parts. During this time, on the 23rd of the month of March of the same year, left for the abode of the blessed, the glorious Despoina Irene, who by the divine and angelic habit had her name changed to Hypomone [Patience], a nun; and she was buried in the monastery of the Pantokrator, near the blessed and memorable Emperor, her husband. And in the month of February of the 6[579th] year...
A the Amiral Amurates died, [news] which I received while I was still in Iberia. When, therefore, I came to Trebizond, the Emperor addressed me with these words: "Lord Ambassador, I wish to share with you auspicious news, unless it be that you are bound to return some grace as a gift to us in exchange." And I, rising, made obeisance to him, saying: "May God grant long life to your holy majesty, who in many ways confers benefits upon us; thus, may you also favor us again with these current good tidings. But we have nothing of equal value to return to your holy imperial majesty." And he immediately told me of the death of the Amiral, and how his son had become ruler and had rendered most gracious services to the sovereign, and B how peace had again been ratified between them, to be kept as it was formerly kept in the time of his father, by their house. Having heard this, I was struck dumb, and such grief seized me as if I had heard of the death of my most beloved kin. Then, dejected in spirit, I said, "My Despot, this is no pleasant message, but rather one most painful." And he said: "And how so, good sir?" And I replied: "Because the Amiral who has died was an old man, and his attempt against the city had been tried, and he no longer wished to take anything in hand against it, but rather desired only to live in peace; but the one who has now become C ruler is young, and from childhood was an enemy of the Christians, prone to insult and threaten them, saying that whenever he found a suitable opportunity and took the power of the realm into his hands, he intended to extirpate and abolish the rule of the Romans and of all Christians. As for the present, the city is in distress on account of my prince and emperor, who has recently assumed the kingdom and owes a large debt from the revenues of the empire, owing to the expenses and the gifts which he bestowed upon the soldiers and the whole court; wherefore, a time of peace is needed for him to provide the necessities and equipment for battle and war. And if, on account of our sins, God permits it, and this D wicked one, driven by his youth and malice, should hasten to wage war against the city, I know not what will become of us. Truly, it would have been a joyful message if you had announced that he who has now become the new Amiral had died, since his father had no other son, and the illness caused by grief would have been given to the aged man, from which would have followed a shortened life; and because of this, the empire of the impious would have fallen into danger and great sedition, while our affairs in the meantime could have been restored and managed, so that the authority of the Emperor would have emerged from that considerably more honored." Then the Emperor of Trebizond answered me thus: "Since you yourself are one of the wise and experienced men of that court, you know these matters better. Nevertheless, God, in His power, will make him act for the good." And I, answering, said: "I render great thanks to the integrity and purpose of your highness, because I am not of such quality as your majesty has supposed." For I had heard that the wife of the aforementioned Amiral, who is also the daughter of the Despot of Serbia, had, after the death of the Amiral and her husband, honorably and well...
A returned to her parents in her own home. But your Majesty, if you should blame this, will not do so, for I was obliged to remain in Trebizond for certain not insignificant reasons. Finding a ship intending to sail to Constantinople, I sent with it some horses and two boys whom the King of Iberia had gifted to me from among the captives he had taken when he despoiled the captive slaves. And I sent many other various items which had been generously presented to us by certain people, and I wrote to my master the Emperor regarding things I had done in Iberia and what I suspected I would do in Trebizond, and I informed him of all that had happened. Giving the letters to one of the nobles who was with me, I sent him off and instructed him that, when he worshiped the Emperor, he should deliver one of the letters and, in addition, should report everything concerning us by word of mouth; but the second letter he should deliver to the Emperor on the following day. B The writing was as follows: "Upon my safe arrival in Trebizond, I learned here from the Emperor about the death of the Amiral, and how the Amirissa, his niece, had returned to her homeland to her parents honorably and well. When I heard this, I reflected according to my own judgment and what seemed best to me to declare to your Majesty, that of the two marriages for which I have come here, it would be more advantageous to your Majesty and far better and more useful in all, for many reasons, if it pleases your Majesty to devise a way and a delay so that you may take the aforementioned Amirissa as your wife. For I find only four reasons through which your Majesty might think not to do this: first, the inferiority of her lineage; second, lest the Church, on account of the kinship of the marriage, might forbid the nuptial rite; third, that her husband was a Turk; fourth, that she is fifty years old, so that even if it happens that she should conceive, she might be in danger when she is about to give birth, as physical experts say usually happens, since she has been barren and never given birth. I will, therefore, state the solution to these four reasons. First, it is nothing surprising if you take her as your wife, because she is not of lower lineage than my lady and your own illustrious mother. Second, even if the marriage alliance with the daughter of the King of Trebizond should take place, we hope that this will be permitted by the Church C if money is given to the poor and orphans and churches. It will be even more readily permitted as regards the daughter of the Despot of Serbia, I mean the aforementioned Amirissa, on account of such great favors and benefits which the Church, and the hieromonks, and the monks, and the entire clergy of the Church owe her daily. Third, it shall not be strange if she has had a Turk for a husband, since also your Lady Eudoxia, whom your grandfather took as his wife, had previously had a Turk as a husband, a ruler of a small and insignificant place, and she bore children with him; but this lady, being the wife of such a great ruler and Amiral, and as we hear, she did not know him, and for this reason she is childless. Regarding the fourth, even if she is of older years, if she should conceive—"
A if it be the will of God, since the aforesaid three reasons are advantageous to your Majesty, then it shall be. Moreover, her parents will receive this with great joy and readiness. Send therefore immediately someone faithful from the lords of your palace, or from the hieromonks or monks, and they shall set aright matters concerning this, and there shall be no delay." When those bearers of the letters had arrived safely with the ship in the City on the 21st of May, and the Emperor was out for the hunt, as it was reported to him that some had arrived from Iberia, leaving the hunt he came to the palace with joy. At the time when the letter-bearers arrived, on the 28th of May, in that same night while sleeping, I saw in a dream that I had also reached Constantinople, and hurrying to the Emperor to salute him, he would not allow me to kiss his feet, but taking hold of me, he lifted me up and kissed my eyes. Having awakened, I told the vision to those sleeping around me, and that they should remember the day. B My lord and Emperor, seeing that I had not come, but rather one of those with me, and having read the first letter, became very sorrowful and was distressed, blaming my slowness; but when he read the other letter on the next day, and learned from the letter that I was going to come, behold, he was satisfied and remained gracious; and immediately having arranged for Manuel Palaiologos, the nephew of the Protostratorissa Kantakouzene, he sent him off to the Despot of Serbia, that he might inquire and see concerning what I had written in my letter regarding the marriage. And Her parents heard the word and received it gladly and willingly, C and were ready to fulfill the undertaking. For nothing could have hindered such a marriage, except for the fact that the Amerissa, having prayed to God while the Amera, her husband, was still alive, had promised that if God, in whatever way, might liberate her from the hands of the impious, she would marry no other man in her lifetime, but would remain in chastity, living as a virgin, and as far as possible serve God who had granted her freedom; for which reason this marriage did not take place.
In the month of August of the same year, Patriarch Gregory left the City as a fugitive, and I on the 14th of September of the year 6900 returned to Constantinople in the ship of the good man Anthony Ritzi, who later suffered martyrdom for his faith in Christ.
B 2. Having therefore completed the marriage in Iberia, so that my lord might take the daughter of the king who was there, knowing that the one in Iberia was better than that of Trebizond. For the aforementioned king of Iberia said to me as follows: "It is not the custom among us that women give money to the men they are going to marry, but the men to the women." But I, answering and asking for pardon from him, said: "I have never heard of such a custom and law as your Majesty commands." And the king laughed, as if marveling at my words, and said: C "Do you not know, most honorable man, what the great Caesarius says?" Explaining the customs and laws of various nations.
A in summary, he says this: "For in every land and nation, there is law written down in some, and in others unwritten, which is custom; for the ancestral traditions seem to be law. As B first, the Seres, who inhabit the edge of the world, have their ancestral customs as laws, not to commit adultery, nor to steal, nor to slander, nor to murder. The law among the Bactrians is the discipline and piety received from their ancestors: not to eat meat, nor to drink wine, nor to taste flesh, nor to commit any manner of evil, even though the Indians who dwell beside them do C the opposite with impunity. In the inner parts of those regions there are man-eaters, who kill and eat those who come as guests. A law for the Chaldeans and Babylonians is full of licentiousness and shame. Another law is among the D Pelaei, that women farm and build houses and perform the tasks of men, but also commit adultery as they wish, not being hindered at all by the men themselves; among whom there are also many most warlike women who hunt the beasts that are not too strong. In Britain, most of the men sleep with one woman, and many women consort with one man. The Amazons formerly did not have men at one time, but like irrational animals, once a year about the spring equinox, they would go outside their borders, and by mingling with the neighboring men, they would consider that time a kind of festival and great celebration; from which, having conceived in the womb, they would all return home; and at the time of giving birth, they would destroy the males, but raise the females and nurture them A and feed them." Thus also here, as I said to you, our custom exists, just as you yourself are about to learn from trustworthy men. And do not marvel, most honorable man, Sir George. For this reason we make the present marriage alliance with reverence and not without counsel, and I promise to give to my daughter, apart from the precious vessels of silver and gold, and precious stones and pearls B and gold and other stones, besides the garments and textiles of many kinds for her service, and besides these, fifty-six thousand gold coins. Furthermore, let her also have three thousand each year for the purpose of giving alms to the poor, and wherever it may seem best to her. I hear that you have two children. The male child, the Emperor has regenerated through the divine baptism, and he is and will be his; but let the female child be from this day forth C the daughter of my child, and it shall be hers to arrange her marriage, to whatever place you judge to be worthy. And when you come with God to take her, then I will grant you four loads of silk; for that silk is not perishable, and we have heard that the load is traded for five hundred gold coins." D When, therefore, I had narrated to my Emperor and lord with precision all that had been done in Iberia and Trapezus, as above, I asked to learn also concerning the Serbian marriage alliance; and he answered and said to me: "I owe you much because of the affection and faith toward me from childhood and such great service; but this matter of the Ser-
-A-dian marriage alliance is a confirmation, a security, and as it were a seal of your affection and loyalty toward me; and I owe you a reward as long as I find myself among the living, since you have toiled so much always on my behalf, and have even now left your house, for such a long time wandering about in foreign lands far from your own fatherland. Wherefore those who rule there, the despots and kings of Iberia and Trebizond, were promising to give you great benefits and honors, each of them seeking that you should conclude for him a marriage alliance with me. But you, as a wise and faithful servant, discerned what was advantageous and more beneficial for me, and you acted, and what you thought, you wrote to me in counsel. This was a great testimony to your goodwill and affection toward me; and be fully assured that you shall also have from me a worthy recompense, as long as I exist among the living.
Concerning the marriage alliance in Serbia about which you inquire of me, it came about in this way. After the death of the Amira B and the return of his spouse to the despot of Serbia, her father, the protostratorissa, her kinswoman, approached me to speak about this subject, and she promised me very many gifts and dowries, and proposed many other very beneficial things, promising them for the future, which I, for many reasons, thought to be true and advantageous. Yet here it was necessary to have other counsel and deliberation, and I had no one with whom I could consult, because all were disposed with passion. My lady, the empress and mother, had departed from this life. C Cantacuzenus, who, among the others, was not judging with greed, had himself died; while Lucas Notaras openly and secretly dictates that no one else but himself knows what needs to be done, asserting that nothing is true and good except what is said and done by him, and he moves every stone, to use the proverb, as you yourself know well. The Grand Domestic is hostilely disposed toward Serbian affairs, and having agreed with John Cantacuzenus, they were ever urging me that the marriage alliance with Trebizond should happen. For with whom could I then have consulted? With D monks and people of that sort? They are unoccupied with affairs. With the nobles? And no one was careful not to be inclined toward someone, for fear that they might make it public to others.
Therefore I was suffering much at your delay. But your letter having arrived, behold, I have come to know both you and your opinion; and that which we also had previously established, you have wisely and well resolved. And immediately I sent Palaiologos and John Eudaimon, ostensibly for other matters—so that it might be said this was on behalf of his aunt the protostratorissa—and behold, we heard the cause of the impediment, and we ceased. Therefore, God willing, let us complete the marriage alliance with the king of Iberia. And the chrysobull having been made and signed, it contained thus: that his daughter should be the wife of the emperor and empress of Constantinople, and he himself the emperor should be her husband, according to all the agreements which the said king of Iberia had established with me. And being summoned, he came before the emperor, he who had come from Iberia with me, an ambassador. And the emperor himself with his own hand before
A that man inscribed three crosses with cinnabar upon the upper face of the chrysobull for confirmation according to their custom, and he delivered the chrysobull into the hands of the ambassador, and says to him: "See, this man"—indicating me—"with God’s help, in the coming spring, will come with triremes to take away my bride, my future spouse." The ambassador, therefore, having made obeisance, departed.
When, however, from the beginning of the same year, a rumor was spread that the emir wished to come near the gorge by the upper part of the village of Asomatos to build some fortress, and after a council was held, it was deemed advisable that the emperor should send to the Peloponnese to summon one of his brothers—whichever of them might wish to come—and who would agree to everything the imperial documents stipulated, so that if the need arose, they might see if the emir intended to do anything against the city or the empire, and might depart to the western lords and ask for an alliance; in the meantime B some days passed, then having ordered me to come before him, he spoke to me thus: "Protovestiarios, about the plan which we have formed, make yourself ready to go to the Peloponnese; and as soon as you have settled the business there, so that one of my brothers might come here, it is necessary for you to depart from there to Cyprus, to my princess niece. We shall prepare here for you the necessities for the journey. After you have left that place, you will travel again to Iberia, so that you may take my bride, my future C spouse."
I, answering, said to him: "I cannot decline your command, so as not to fulfill what you order; but your majesty’s co-mother and servant, my wife, I fear lest at some time, offended by my frequent absences, she might join the nuns or abandon me and take another; for I have very recently returned from Iberia, having spent two years there, and if I depart again in a short time from my home, she will find a reasonable cause and a just pretext to do one of the things I have said."
The emperor, laughing, said to me: "But you yourself tell her that you may be permitted to perform this one journey, and I promise you with a sworn order that I will never again trouble you to journey outside the fatherland. And you know very well the things I have promised to do for you, and what we have discussed between us, and what we wish to do. And this is certain, even without a sworn order, that your embassies and journeys shall come to an end. Moreover, let it be announced to the Great Duke Notaras that, since he holds the office of Great Duke, he cannot also hold the office of administrator. And I say this in order that I might adorn you with that office. Yet it is not fitting that I should strip him of that dignity. For we might appear to despise him, if we do not wait for a little while and devise a way by which he himself might voluntarily lay it down. Verily, he shall have again the primacy in the council, and some stipend from another source, since it behooves me also to make two of the nobles my counselors, just as the emperor, my brother, had, that they may be with me through the whole day in the palace to oversee and correct D your future master.
A And thus the Grand Duke was informed through me and his own fellow-sponsor, the hieromonk and spiritual father Neophytus, who was in the monastery of Charsianites. When Notaras heard of this office, he accepted it, although I do not know whether willingly or unwillingly; indeed, he showed rather that even before being told of this, he had intended to do so, so that the emperor in return might grant some other honor to his sons. However, these things did not reach their end because of the common calamity that quickly came upon us.
And again the emperor told me that he wished to do me a favor, to wit, that he might join my daughter in marriage to that youth, Nicholas Melissenos, the son of the late Nicephorus Melissenos, whom they also called Melissourgos, who was Grand Protostrator and later became Metropolitan—as B we mentioned in the second book of our history—and that he would give me the administrative management, which we have already spoken of, of his regions and places, to direct and govern until my daughter should reach her fourteenth year and the marriage be fully accomplished. This, indeed, was the proposal regarding which the emperor said that my embassies and travels would cease. He also said to me that in the Peloponnese he wished to send some other one of the aged lords, so that he might settle matters there, as we said, with the help of his brothers, and that he should give me instructions on how I should act; if I could not achieve one of the points, I should act according to the second, and so on in succession, or the third, or the fourth, or if need be, the fifth. C And he said to me again regarding this: "But I have the suspicion that if I send someone else apart from you, he will not maintain for me the proper goodwill and loyalty, lest perhaps the despots and my brothers deceive him by promising this man, by means of a golden bull, some village or region for him and his heirs by succession; and, persuaded, he might reject the aforementioned four chapters and act according to the fifth, which would be most grievous to me. You yourself know also the monk sent to me from the queen of Cyprus, my niece, telling me that since the queen had no man faithful and suitable to convey to me through him the things that were necessary, nor was it possible, as she desired, to speak with me face-to-face, I should send to her a man from our own court, proven and faithful. For this reason, it is not fitting that any other save you should know our mysteries, and no one is more suitable than you, except only you who have acted, arranged, conversed, and fully set forth all things with her also at another time; therefore, the matter cannot reach its end through any other person."
I then answered the emperor: "As your Majesty commands, so it is. For the sake of these reasonable causes, my spouse, your servant, together with my kinsmen, will not hinder me if it should happen, and I shall do what has been commanded D to me." This I shall bless, reporting to him still concerning the things which, through the goodness of your Majesty, you have ordered for me regarding the marriage of my daughter, and the granting of places and of the honor, in preference to other
archontissai [noble women].” And as the time was now ripe, I made my obeisance and departed home. A After the meal, when the Grand Duke had come to the palace, the Emperor told him everything he had discussed with me regarding my departure as ambassador, but he did not reveal to him for what reason. He added this also, that it was necessary that we too should honor Phrantzes, because the office he holds is not a favor from us, since it was bestowed upon him by the Emperor my brother. Therefore, tell him what other of the offices he desires, and we shall hear. And the Duke went out, and finding me, asked what office I desired the Emperor to bestow upon me. I answered and said, “I had in mind to ask for a greater office, one which no other person holds, and which, while I am alive, would not be bestowed upon any other except me; and this seems proper to me, and is what I desire, since even before I went to Trebizond I heard and endured so many slanders and accusations because there were two other lords in the office I hold, which I did not want. But that my word may be confirmed, as you have said to me, I also desire, if it is pleasing to my lord the Emperor, that he bestow upon me the office of Grand Contostaulos.” And thus Notaras departed and reported everything to the Emperor; and he, answering, said to him, “I do not give that office to anyone, because my former father-in-law is the Grand Contostaulos, having been appointed in the Peloponnese by the Emperor my father when he was building the Isthmus. However, I will give him another greater office, the office of the Grand Logothete.” The Duke asked, B “And what will happen with Palaiologos the Metochites?” Notaras further said to the Emperor that he should bestow upon me that of the Grand Primikerios, which is after that of the Stratopedarch, and not this other one, saying: “Your Majesty will seek to know why you made the son of Cantacuzenos a Stratopedarch for the sake of the connection by marriage of the Despot your brother, and because of the Protostrator, his father. And if you give to Phrantzes such an office, which is the first after the Grand Stratopedarch, what will happen? However, if it is pleasing to your Majesty, bestow upon him the office of Grand Primikerios, which is after that of the Grand Stratopedarch.” The Emperor said, “I told you that Phrantzes will not accept any office held by another, even if it were greater; how then will he accept that of the Grand Primikerios? Nevertheless, speak to him again, and let us see his opinion.” So the Grand Duke came to me again, saying, “The Emperor says that as for the office of the Grand Contostaulos, since his father-in-law holds it, he will bestow it neither on you nor on anyone else, C but he will give you that of the Grand Primikerios, which is the first after this.” And I said to him, “Even if the office of the Grand Duke is the first, I do not wish this to be taken away from another and given to me.” And thus the conversation closed. But having consulted with my relatives, friends, and kin regarding what the Emperor had promised me, it seemed good to all that the marriage contract should be [concluded].
However, as for the office, I would entrust myself to fortune and set out for the Peloponnese and Cyprus, taking with me my excellent son—who is, I may say, superior to almost all his contemporaries—along with the greater part of my movable property, and we would travel by land, so that he might also see those regions and be educated in everything useful for life. And if we were to see that the Emir intended to do us any harm, I would leave my son in the Peloponnese with my true maternal kin who live in the lands of my future son-in-law; but if there proved to be nothing against us, he would return with me to our homeland. Because of all the reasons mentioned, therefore—namely, my daughter’s marriage, the suspicion of war, and the rest, as we said beforehand—my wife allowed me to leave the country again. So, when we had arranged my daughter’s marriage, having drawn up the marriage agreements and performed the betrothal ceremony, and had celebrated the joy of the wedding, we provided all things necessary for the journey; nothing more was needed, except that I expected to receive the imperial commands in writing.
Having gone to the palace, I entered the chamber of the Emperor, as was my custom, but I did not find him. On asking why, it was said to me that he was speaking in the other inner room near his chamber with the priest Antonios the Rhodian. And when I had waited a little while, behold, the Emperor came out, breathing with anger, and said to me: “Did you see the man who acts as the messenger for Notaras, B and what he signifies to me through the priest Antonios?” Leaving aside his insult, he says to me again: “You requested the office of the Great Konostaulos. I told Notaras that I would give it to no one else, for reasons I have already stated; but I told him that I would give you the office of the Great Logothete. He replied to me: ‘If the Great Stratopedarch Palaiologos hears of this, what will happen if I grant you such a position?’ And today, he sent—you saw him as he was leaving—the priest Antonios, a man who in his appearance and demeanor is suitable, but in his manner and mind is boorish and most useless, asking me to honor his most foolish and senseless sons: the first as Great Logothete, and the second as Great Konostaulos, since he also is in charge of the vestments—which is the proper duty of that office. Nevertheless, I say that I will grant them other offices after some time, of not so much value, however, but lesser ones. But you shall from now on be the Great Logothete. This, however, is the one thing I charge you: that because of the events of the time and the varied opinions of the nobles C and other causes, you shall not pay homage to me at the celebration of a feast, as is the custom of your office, unless Notaras writes in the letters to my own brothers and to my niece the Queen, and simply to all those to whom I intend to write regarding the departure there, and you yourself shall write back from there to me and to all the members of your household. Even if those who are unwilling hear of this in the meantime, and even if it seems harsh or bitter to them, willy-nilly they shall swallow it.” I then answered the D
emperor: “May the Lord God prolong your reign. Yet, I humbly beseech your holy Majesty, if any scandal should arise on my account, from which grief might be caused to your reign, may it never happen in all eternity; rather, flay my skin from me, if it be for the peace and joy of your reign.” A He said to me, “You have spoken like a faithful servant. But do not worry about this at all. For I am grieved at how those who do not consider the many acts of care and friendship shown to me by you, wish, in comparison with their own estimations, to overleap the appropriate ranks of offices. Nevertheless, summon here the notary entrusted with this service.” And the notary having come, the emperor commanded him, saying, “We previously told you to whom you should write the letters of trust, to whom you shall write that they are about to learn the whole matter from the Grand Logothete, George Phrantzes; and if we shall live, you shall write that he is even our kinsman. And if it pleases anyone not, let them bear it against their will, and instead of nectar or aromatic drink, let them swallow gall. Unless, notary, you keep this secret for some days.” And having arranged the matters, I received them, and I was expecting to do obeisance to the emperor this day or tomorrow, that is, to receive permission to depart. Behold, the Emir departed from Adrianople, marching against us.
233 3. The Emir Mehemet, seeing and hearing of the victories and illustrious wars of his father and of his other thrice-accursed ancestors, imagined within himself what he too might do worthy of memory. B Reckoning these things in his mind, he used an evil counsel against us, in order to stir up war against the City; for he kept saying to himself, “If I conquer the City, I shall have done more than all before me, because they, having frequently attempted to attack this City, accomplished nothing.” For this hidden intent, therefore, it seemed good to him to build a fortress at the narrow pass of the Asomatoi, as was mentioned before, so that he might have a refuge for those things he was meditating to do, so that no vessel, small or great, would be able to come down from the Euxine Sea toward the City, and so that they might have an easier crossing from Asia into Europe. Desiring and pressing to put into execution the things he was meditating, behold, on the 26th of March, in the year 6960, having come, he fell upon the narrow pass in order to build the fortress. The emperor, therefore, seeing his craftiness, wished to reveal the war himself first, so as to hinder him. But certain men of the senate, both clergy and laity, hindered the opinion and counsel of the emperor, saying that the war of the C realm should not be revealed till...
A we have seen what he himself intends. Even if he builds a fortress, we shall easily take it, since it is nearer to us. » Which they later learned most fully, and truly realized that empty hopes nourish the foolish. I, however, persevered in the counsel for the journey, for which I had already made preparations. « Today, » they would say, « or tomorrow we shall see; nor is it possible to travel by land, because the matter is dangerous, but we shall find an opportunity to sail. »
In the month of June of the same year, behold, the war was declared; and once the hostile army had run against us, it took captive all those living outside the city. At that time he also completed the fortress, and in it he built three strong towers, two toward the land, and the third toward the sea, which was also slightly larger than the two. The width of the walls was twenty-five feet, and the interior space was thirty-two feet. Then, having covered the towers with lead, and having well secured the whole fortress, he stationed guards within it. And on the twenty-eighth of August, having risen from there, he made an attack upon the city's trenches, and on the first day of the month of September he proceeded to Adrianople, as it seems, B so that in those two days he might see the walls of the city and the trenches, and whatever else he himself was contemplating. And in the same autumn, on the first of October, he sent Turachanes and his two sons, Achumates and Amaris, with a vast army into the Peloponnese, so that, by fighting against the despots, the brothers of the emperor, they might block them through war, so that, unable to leave the region, they might not come to help him. C He gave them instructions to harass them throughout the winter, and that they might find no opportunity to come to aid the city together with the emperor, who was also their brother. Turachanes therefore having arrived and having again captured the fortifications of the Isthmus, many from both sides were killed, I mean of the Christians and the infidels, but more of the Christians, who also turned to flight. He himself then, leaving Corinth and passing through the middle of the island, catching, plundering, and enslaving whomever he found, arrived as far as the province of Arcadia and the Messenian gulf, and marching by way of Ithome, and having plundered the whole Messenian gulf as far as Mantinea. D Seeing, however, that the place was narrow and rugged, through which the army could not march all together, he gave a part of his noble army to his son Achumates and ordered him to travel the road that leads through Leontarion, but he went by another way. Having learned of this, the despots and brothers sent Matthew Asanes secretly with an army; and when they arrived at the place where they were to cross, they made a sudden incursion upon them, and killed and captured many, among whom one of the captives was Achumates, the son of Turachanes, whom they sent to Sparta to the despot, Lord Demetrios. And on the seventeenth day of January of the same year, the heir to the Palaiologan line and the empire and of this small spark of the Romans was born, Lord Andreas Palaiologos, the son of the despot, Lord Thomas the Porphyrogennetos.
And these affairs of the Peloponnese were thus. But when spring shone forth, the Emir, A having organized the fleet which he had prepared, together with the helepoles, the heleboliskoi, and other machines which he had ready, sent ahead the Charateh-pasha with an army, and having arrived, he blockaded the city. And before the Emir arrived, he besieged and took the towers outside the city that were in the fields and villages, into which some people had gathered because of the sudden arrival of the army. Of these, he enslaved some, others he destroyed by plague and other suffering, and he took not a few Christians captive. The necessities and equipment for war and machines came in between in great numbers; for they brought many helepoles. Some of these were of such size B that forty pairs of oxen could not pull each of them, or even fifty pairs, along with more than two thousand men. And on the second of April, the Emir himself arrived with a countless multitude of cavalry and infantry troops. Having arrived, he pitched his tent opposite the gate of Saint Romanos, and the army, like the sand of the sea, extended across the land by the Hexamilion from one sea to the other. And the army of Anatolia pitched their tents on the right side of the Emir as far as the shores of the sea at the Golden Gate, while those from Europe pitched theirs on the left as far as the Wooden Gate on the shores of the Ceratine Gulf. And the Emir was encircled by earthen C ramparts and wooden barricades, and outside the ramparts stood the Janissaries together with the other nobles of his palace. The Pasha, a kinsman of the Emir, arrived and encamped with the army entrusted to him above Galata. And on the same day, a part of his fleet also arrived, and it approached the shores of the city's sea. There were about thirty triremes, and dromons, as well as ships, small boats, and moniremes numbering one hundred and thirty. And thus he pressed upon the city, besieging it in every way and with every machine, encircling the eighteen miles of the city by land and sea. And the Emperor commanded D that the very heavy iron chain be cast across the mouth of the harbor, in order to prevent the approach of the fleet—I mean the enemy ships. Inside the chain, they stationed the ships that were present, so that they might more strongly block the entrance and fight against the enemies. Such ships were these: three from Liguria, one from Iberia, that is, Castile, one from the Gaul of Provence, three from Crete—one from the city called Chandax and two from Cydonia—all of them well prepared for naval battle. There were also three large Venetian merchant triremes, which the Italians are accustomed to call "great galleys," or rather "galeazzas," and other swift triremes were appointed for the guarding and service of the merchant vessels. And the Emperor ordered that these also remain for the support of the city. And thus the affairs of the harbor were arranged, while on the land, the enemies established...
those great A helepoleis, having an extent of forty-eight [cubits], and the rest up to the extent of the mouth [was] twelve spans, and many other helepoleis worthy of observation. And constructing a high [tower] for command, and roofing them with timber, they cast [missiles] from above, and in fourteen places they struck the walls of the city violently. And by means of stone-throwing machines, many prominent houses near the walls were destroyed, and especially the palaces; and from the helepoleis they disturbed the city, holding it and shaking it, and [from them] they yielded before the walls and towers; and they did not cease from killings on both sides, from the helepoleis and heleboliskoi, and ballistae, and bows, and other machines. And the war did not pause day or night, the engagements and the clashes and the skirmishes, the Emir hoping, because of our being few and having labored intensely, to hunt down the city easily; and he did not allow us to find rest at all. But that great and strong helepolis, because of the continuous slinging and the metal not being so pure, B was shattered in the firing of the artisan and divided into many fragments, and from these many were killed and wounded. And the Emir, having heard, was grieved greatly, and commanded that they make another, stronger than it, and until that same day no worthy work against us was accomplished. And on the 15th of the same month, his remaining fleet also arrived from the Euxine Sea and Nicomedia and Asia, the number of which was three hundred and twenty, from which there were eighteen triremes, forty-four biremes, with the rest [being] long ships and merchantmen, the cargo of which was of combative men and archers, many in number; for there were in these also twenty-five transport dromones, which had on board timbers, quicklime, stones, and other materials suitable for the siege of the city. However, they did not have an easy entrance into the harbor because of the reason we stated. Having come from the eastern shore, a little below the C double column and as far as the church of St. Constantine, they made their station near [it] with anchors. On the tenth of the same [month], having counted the fleet and the land army, both cavalry and infantry, he found triremes and biremes, uniremes, dromones, ships, and boats, four hundred and twenty [sails]; the army desiring to fight from the land was two hundred and fifty-eight thousand. But the men inside the city for the counter-deployment, [being] of such a size, were four thousand nine hundred and seventy-three, without the foreigners, who were barely two thousand. For I knew this to be so from such a reason. For the Emperor having commanded the demarchs and generals, each of them wrote down his demarchia accurately, [those] able [to serve] in the stronghold, both laymen and monks, and what arms each of them possessed for defense; and thus each of the demarchs gave the catalog of his demarchia to the Emperor. D And he, commanding me, said: "This service pertains to you, [concerning] matters needing custody and [those that are] secret. Receive, therefore, the catalog of the census, and at home diligently calculate how many there are and what [type] of arms, whether shields or bows or machines." Having fulfilled, therefore, the labor commanded to me by the Emperor, [I recorded these on] tablets
the register, and go sit in your house. Reckon accurately how many and what weapons, shields, bows, and artillery pieces there are." Having therefore carried out the command given to me by the Emperor, I presented the register to my master and Emperor with much sorrow and sadness; and the total remained hidden solely between him and me. However, there were also very few A from among the officials and the common people—men most useless and faint-hearted—who, because of the fear of war and external threats, fled the city with all their households before the time. When this was reported to the Emperor’s ears, he groaned from the heart and did nothing else. There was a man from Liguria on those two ships, who was a naval commander and a lord, a man very clever, brave, and capable, by the name of Joannes Justinianus, who possessed a noble spirit. The Emperor, perceiving him to be capable in all things, ordered him to be a tribune and a commander over three hundred men, and gave him authority to oversee and manage other necessary matters of war, having great confidence in him; and he truly B performed deeds worthy of memory in this command.
As for the Emir, after he had quickly made the broken siege engine whole and sound again, he ceased not day and night to strike the walls with violence, bringing upon us great clamor by every kind of warlike art, by skirmishes, clashes, and very powerful engagements; and the evil was manifold. Our men, by studying the war machines daily and observing those which the enemy had, casting off all cowardice and fear, found new machines and arts, and caused no small harm to their opponents. But these individual arts were not effective for long, because we were granted no respite at all, nor were there sufficient supplies necessary for enduring C the battle and the blockade. Therefore, having battered the walls in some places using siege engines and incendiary devices, the enemy, wishing to fill the ditches so that they might have an easy approach and enter through the breaches in the walls, first engaged in skirmishes and clashes; and into the middle of these they kept throwing, into the ditches, other earthworks, branches of trees, and other materials; some, in their vehemence, even threw in their own tents. It was a sight to behold: many of them would fall due to the great crowd and the narrowness of the space, and those coming behind would mercilessly throw wood and earth upon them, wretchedly covering them over and sending them living to Hades. Others, more robust and capable, out of D impetuousness and haste would even cruelly cast down those who were weaker, instead of branches and earth. But even doing these things, they could not escape unharmed from the artillery and the stone-throwers; and from the walls, where heavy stones were hurled like slingshots, the enemy fell shamefully and were greatly struck, and some of our own party did not remain unscathed. They pulled their siege engines as far as the edge of the ditches, and the battle, the war, and the struggle became terrifying. Yet our men were not ignoble in these matters; and it was a marvel that, being inexperienced in war, they held the victory because they encountered [the enemy] magnanimously and bravely, and performed works beyond their strength. And they filled the ditches with
the materials and wood, we dragged them out from inside; and the excavations of the ditches remained as they were before. And those towers that had been battered we repaired again, carrying earth along with baskets and wooden wine vessels and other timbers. The Amiras, observing this, was ashamed that his plan remained unfulfilled, and wishing to create another war machine, he ordered that some men come who were able to see and judge correctly, and to make tunnels B hidden beneath the earth, so that through them the army could easily enter inside the city. And according to his command they began to dig. But a certain John, a German, highly trained in handling war machines and Greek fire, having heard of the machine, dug another tunnel opposite, and having prepared it artfully with Greek fire, when the Turks were coming through the tunnel, he himself, with joy, ignited the fire in the tunnel he had dug opposite them, and burned many of them, and proved their crafts to be of no effect; although one of the tunnels of the adversaries the noble German, hiding, did not find. But the Turks themselves also ignited their Greek fire, and made preparations, yet they achieved nothing; only a small part of an old tower fell from the impact of the fire, which we immediately repaired. Moreover, there were some old men who said that the adversaries had attempted this in other wars as well and achieved nothing because the greater part of the city beneath the walls has a rocky soil. C But the Amiras, having been deceived in these hopes, invented other new things and made machines for the siege. For he constructed a very large Helepolis, having many wheels along with thick timbers, having great width and height; and he covered it inside and outside with a triple layer of buffalo and ox hides, and it had towers on top and curtains, and ladders for ascending and descending, so that we would not be able to harm those inside it. It also had an opening on the outside, so that those who wished could easily enter and exit. And at the part through which they intended to come into the trench, it had three large gates well covered with protective plating, as we said. They had inside and round about every tool and war craft and a great quantity of materials and wood, so that they might cast them into the trench at the appropriate time, so that they could easily enter; and they had ladders having steps of rope, which were lowered by cables and again raised on high. Bringing these to the walls—along with every other machine capable of being conceived by the human mind, such that the Emperor had never hoped to see, nor had he ever made for the capturing of any fortress. And having made in other places, too, wagons with very many wheels, and with towers on top, and themselves covered in the way we described. Having also themselves very many machines prepared with Greek fire, they made preparations within a single hour, so that they might all make the assault at once. And first, indeed, with that terrible Helepolis, having struck forcefully, they threw to the ground the tower near the gate of Saint Romanus, and immediately, if they...
A dragged that Helepolis away and set it up over the ditch. The battle and the engagement became southern and terrible; it happened before the sun rose, and it lasted throughout the whole day. Sometimes they fought the battle and the collision strongly in one part, while at another part they were throwing wood and timber and earth that was inside the Helepolis into the ditch; and from the ruin of the tower, and from the wood they were throwing, they paved a road straight for themselves. Yet our men were bravely obstructing them and often cast them down from the ladders, and cut through some wooden ladders, and the enemies were often repulsed stoutly on that day until the first hour of the night.
The impious, however, vexed by the great labor and the blows, dissolved the battle and the fight, hoping that in the morning they would find entry easy with little labor. But they were disappointed in their hopes, because John Justiniani, like an adamant, throughout the whole night encouraged the soldiers under him and gave them advice, and the emperor himself being present with many others of those who had come to that place for help, working hard throughout the whole night, cleared the ditches, and with myriad contrivances restored the fallen tower, and the Helepolis of the enemies, wherever it lay covered, they set on fire. About the third cockcrow, they came with joy, hoping, as we said, to find the base B. When they had found it, seeing their hopes were vain, they were astonished. And the Emir, feeling more grief and shame, wondered at the skill of our men, and said in wonder, "Even if the thirty-seven thousand prophets had told me that these impious men" — meaning us — "could do in one night what they did, I would not have believed it." Then, perceiving that we had neither fear nor cowardice in the skirmishes and struggles they carried out throughout the whole day, and the countless missiles, arrows, and stones rained down upon us from above like showers from heaven, and that we considered every danger as nothing; he himself and all his council fell into great confusion and disturbance of mind. And these things indeed happened thus.
And while these things were taking place and the city was being besieged, three Ligurian ships, having taken on cargo in Chios and caught a favorable wind, were making their voyage toward us. While they were passing by, they found on the way another imperial ship that had sailed from Sicily with grain. And having arrived in one of the nights near the city, in the morning they were seen by the Emir’s scout triremes, and a large part of the other fleet rushed against them with all joy, with the noise of drums and horn trumpets, hoping to capture these ships with ease. When they drew near and began the battle and skirmished, they came in the first place against the imperial ship with haughty eyebrows. But the ship, from the first assault, received them wickedly with missiles and arrows and stones; and when they approached it with their prows, those men from afar C warned them off with pots well-filled with Greek fire and with stones, having caused great slaughter among them. We, from the wall...
A above, watching these things, begged God to have mercy upon them and upon us. Similarly, the Emir, standing on horseback along the seashore, watched what was happening. And again, for the third time, they skirmished; then, wishing once more to engage them with haughty brow and great outcries, the ship masters, helmsmen, and admirals, standing with manly and stout hearts, encouraged the sailors to prefer dying to living, and especially the admiral of the imperial ship, by the name of Phlantanelas, who crossed from the stern to the prow and fought like a lion, and with his shouts stirred up the others, so that I cannot express his shouts and the din of the others, which were lifted up to the heavens. And a clash happened again, greater than before, and many from the triremes were killed and drowned, and they made two of the triremes prizes, and those watching the ships were terrified. B The Emir, seeing that such a great and mighty fleet was doing no worthy deed, but was rather getting the worst of it, became mad and seized with rage, gnashing his teeth and spitting insults at his own men, calling them cowards, effeminate, and useless. And having spurred his horse, he came into the sea (for the triremes were near the land, about a stone's throw away), and the greater part of his garments were soaked by the waters of the salt sea. The army C which was on the shore, seeing him doing this, was afflicted with indignation and sorrow; and they began to blaspheme those who were in the fleet; and many horsemen also followed the Emir until they drew near to the ships. Those in the fleet, seeing the Emir acting in this way, and ashamed at the insults, whether they wished to or not, with great fury turned their prows again against the ships and fought vigorously. And what need is there to say more? Not only did they do the ships no harm, but such great slaughter and wounding occurred among them that the triremes could not retreat. And there were killed on that day, as I learned from them, more than twelve thousand Hagarenes in the sea alone. When night came, the fleet was forced by necessity to withdraw a little, and the ships, finding an opportunity, entered the harbor without any of their own being killed, save for a few wounded, of whom two or three departed to the Lord after a few days. The Emir, so enraged and grieved against the commander of the fleet, wished to impale him, saying that because of his cowardice and faint-heartedness, the ships had escaped that night, and through his carelessness and worthlessness, he had allowed them to enter the harbor. But some of the lords of the council and of the Emir's court begged D for him, so that the Emir spared the commander's life; yet he stripped him of his rank, and donated all his wealth to the Janissaries. And again, the Emir was dejected, and biting his own hands like a dog, and kicking the earth with his foot, and gazing at the walls, after having breached them twice and thrice and filled in the moats, he immediately again...
found them restored, and considered how those four ships could not capture one hundred and fifty triremes, biremes, and uniremes, but rather had suffered such a slaughter from them. He fetched a groan from the bottom of his heart, and smoke issued from his mouth; and he pondered what he must do to afflict and straiten the city more, and to lay siege by sea and by land. He devised such a machine A to bring a part of his fleet inside the harbor. The plan and the work were immediate; from the rear of Galata, he constructed a straight road through the hill reaching as far as the harbor, and paved it all with planks and timbers, which he greased with the fat of oxen and rams. And having made other various instruments and engines, he easily hauled the triremes and biremes up the hill and brought them down inside the harbor. And the undertaking was miraculous, and a most excellent naval stratagem. I indeed consider that he imitated Caesar Augustus when he was fighting against Antony and Cleopatra, who, because of the surge of the sea and contrary winds, was not able to sail around the island of the Peloponnese; he hauled his ships across the Isthmus, and quickly arriving at the eastern side of the Greek sea, he reached Asia. Or perhaps he imitated the patrician Nicetas, who himself also crossed his triremes from the Greek sea into the east, and routed the Cretans at Methoni and Pylos.
So the amir, having brought the triremes in one night, B they were found in the harbor in the morning. Then he constructed a bridge in the following manner: he ordered many small boats, large vessels, and wooden casks to be collected, and to be bound and fastened firmly and strongly with long pieces of wood, that is to say, beams, and with iron bars and ropes, so that the saltwater might not be able to crush the work; then, above the boats and vessels and the timbers, he fastened planks strongly and with iron spikes or pins, and a bridge was created that was strong and quite good, having a width of fifty cubits and a length of one hundred, so that it appeared to one walking in the middle of the bridge as if on dry land. Then, having placed a helepolis above the bridge, the triremes simultaneously began to strike the walls of the city in those parts. Seeing these things, the emperor and the whole city fell into great agitation of mind; for the emperor feared because of our paucity. A council was held, that the commanders and the demarchs and the other excellent C men, both Italians and Romans—who were found to be very few indeed—should go, wherever they had recently been assigned, each of them to those places to guard the walls and to fight against the enemies. And first, to the bailo of Venice, Hieronymus Minotto, it was entrusted to guard and manage the palaces and everything there; to the consul of the Catalans, Peter Guliano, was given the duty of guarding the parts of the Boukoleon and as far as the Contoscalion, and to Jacobo Contarini to guard the parts of the walls of the outer harbor and as far as the Hypsomathia (and he did not neglect to do all that is proper for soldiers, and especially for noblemen).
A To Manuel the Ligurian was entrusted the guarding of the parts of the gate called the Golden Gate, with two hundred men, both archers and slingers; for they had a helepolis opposite that part, which itself was covered with the hides of buffaloes and oxen, and they were battering the walls with engines. To Paul, Antonius, and Troilus, the brothers, was entrusted the guarding of Myriandron, where the city was also in danger in those parts, and both night and day infantry and cavalry of the multitude of the Turks fought valiantly and bravely; and often, even though they had breached the walls and wished to enter, they were badly repulsed, and they wrought no small slaughter upon them, and part of their ladders they dragged inside, and part they shattered; and the prizes and rewards of these men are deserving of eternal memory. To Theophilus Palaeologus, a man experienced in every grammatical treatise and in Greek education, and having tasted of mathematics to the extreme, was entrusted the guard at the parts of the gate called Selymbria. To Joannes Justinianus, his own commander, a man good and fit for all things, and in whom both the Emperor and the people placed much confidence because of his bravery, manliness, and boldness, it was given that he should guard with four hundred soldiers, both Italians and Romans, at the parts of the gate of Saint Romanus, where the Turks were fighting more than in the other parts; and they set up the great helepolis and the helepolis in those parts because the place was suitable for besieging the walls and the city, and because the Amir was also encamped opposite. B To Theodore the Carystian, a man warlike and active, and an archer trained beyond man, and to Joannes Germanus, a man well acquainted with the engines of war, it was given that they should guard in the parts of the Calyvarius. And Hieronymus and Leonard the Ligurians were to guard in the parts of the gate called the Wooden Gate. To the Cardinal of Russia it was given that he should guard in the parts of Cynegesium and as far as Saint Demetrius. And the Grand Duke Loukas Notaras was to guard in the parts of Petrius and as far as the gate of Saint Theodosia. And in the parts of the gate called the Fair Gate, it was appointed that the sailors and the ship-masters and helmsmen should guard, whom the ship from Crete had.
D 4. To Gabriel Trevisano, the captain of the Venetian triremes, together with fifty other men, it was given to guard the tower in the middle of the current, which guards the entrance of the harbor, and it was opposite the Imperial Gate; and the part entrusted to him he guarded well, as a shepherd and not as a hireling. To Antonius, the captain of the merchant triremes, it was given to guard his triremes and the ships inside the chain, as has been said; and those ships, because they were well prepared for the battle-line of war, those who were inside with trumpets and drums and countless voices were calling the Turkish triremes and ships to battle, and skirmishes did not cease between them every day; however, they did not engage in a full-scale battle. But the other noblemen
A of the city were distributed in necessary places to post guard, and they did not cease from doing everything in their power. Monks, priests, and clerics, and the rest of the members of the church staff, were ordered to be distributed here and there throughout the enclosure of the city, so that they too, while entreating God and acting as day-watchers and night-watchers, might appease the Divine Being for the salvation of the city with their prayers. Demetrios Kantakouzenos and his son-in-law, Nikephoros Palaiologos, along with others, were ordered to station themselves at the holy Church of the Apostles and in other places, patrolling with seven hundred men, so that they might rush to help wherever there was a need. The emperor 256, together with Francisco de Toledo, his relative—who, they say, is descended from the blood of the illustrious Emperor Alexios Komnenos—and with us, was riding throughout the whole day and night, checking around the interior of the city and its walls; and we were preparing what was necessary for the war.
Since the imperial treasury was also running low on funds for the soldiers' wages, the emperor ordered that the holy and consecrated vessels of the churches be taken and coined into money. And let no one accuse us of sacrilege; it was done because of the necessity of the time, just as David, feeling hungry, ate the bread of the Presence, which it was not lawful for anyone to eat except the priests. For the of blessed memory emperor used to say: "If God delivers the city, I will pay back fourfold to my Lord."
B And again, another consultation took place in order to burn the triremes anchored in the harbor and the bridge by some device, because these ships were putting the city into great turmoil and danger; they found a device, and they announced the plan to the emperor. Giacomo Coco the Venetian, a man more inclined to act than to speak, having been entrusted with bringing the matter to a conclusion, began the work very skillfully and well in the following manner. He managed three very swift and fast little boats 257, and he put forty brave, courageous, and manly youths into them—both Greeks and Italians—and having given them careful instructions about everything and the devices constructed with the Greek fire, he commanded them to go by night and cross over toward Galata and approach near that shore to the triremes, and do what had been determined. And it would have succeeded, had not our own bad luck hindered the same. For they arrived very skillfully and crossed the bridge and passed it, leaving two youths there with the equipment, so that when the others approached the triremes and saw a signal, then at once they would light the Greek fire with sulfur. But when they reached close to the triremes, God hindered the work, whether because of our sins C or because of some negligence on the part of those youths, a servant betrayed the secret to the enemies. And because they had sharp-eyed guards and night-watchers, as soon as they saw them, they sank one of the boats with tools and stones and other small vessels, and they captured some of the men; and thus nothing else 258 of ours
did they accomplish, except that they burned one of the triremes. For the fire cast upon the bridge was immediately extinguished by the crowd of Turks who ran up. The next morning, the impious emir ordered all those wonderful and handsome B youths to be piteously executed in our sight; and uncontrollable lamentation arose in the city for them. The emperor, saddened, also ordered that the captive Turks in the surrounding towers be executed; and those destroyed were two hundred and sixty in number. Because of this, therefore, disturbances arose, and a great dissension occurred between the Venetians and the Ligurians. For the Ligurians claimed and asserted that they were more experienced than the Venetians in every matter, and that, through inexperience, Giacomo Coco had not known what he was doing, nor had he or the rest of the Venetians perceived what they were attempting; for which reason those forty youths, because of whom there was such mourning, perished, and the triremes and the bridge in the harbor were not burned. When the emperor heard what had happened, he went to the Venetians and Ligurians, and with a troubled spirit spoke to them as follows: "I beseech you, brothers, keep the peace. The external war is sufficient; do not, for the mercies of God, fight among yourselves." And by saying many other things, he made peace between them. C
259 The emir, seeing that our undertaking against the triremes had resulted in nothing useful, but that we had rather been harmed, was overjoyed and, having spoken with arrogance and a haughty air: "What they themselves could not do to us, I will repay," he said. And on the hill of Saint Theodore, across in Galata, he set up great helepoleis, so that he might sink our ships stationed at the entrance to the harbor, and thus cause them to withdraw. And he was doing this not only because of the harbor entrance, but also so that he might retaliate against the ships of the Ligurians, in order to show us that he is able to do everything and is clever and resourceful. D When those in Galata saw that he intended to destroy the ships, they gathered and said to him: "It is not just to destroy the merchant ships of the Ligurians and of us, who are friends." But he answered them and said: "These ships are not merchant vessels, but pirate ships, and they did not come here for the sake of trade, but to aid the emperor, our enemy. And I, as against manifest enemies, wish, if possible, to punish them; but do you depart in peace as friends." Then, having taken up the work, it was possible to see the sign that at the first helepolis with which the craftsman cast fire, he sank the leading ship. The others, seeing the danger and wishing to flee, having traveled a little further to the 260 side of Galata, took up a position so that they might be sheltered by the very high houses; but he, sparing none of the houses, destroyed many, so that he might attack the ships without hindrance. And it was a matter for wonder that, having thrown more than one hundred and thirty projectiles, he did not damage the ships any further at all, nor did he kill a man, except for a few
A individuals—a stone falling from the walls killed a woman. For some days the emir did not offer us a full-scale engagement, as usual, as before, but only skirmishing from a distance; and with his helepoleis he did not cease day and night from battering the walls fiercely. And some who were not experienced in such fighting, as they saw that there was no close engagement, were leaving their assigned posts and coming to their homes. The Turks, finding an opportunity, with iron claws or hooks in certain places pulled down the baskets filled with earth, which served as shelter for the men during the engagement; but the local commanders immediately cast others in their place. When the Emperor learned from the general what was happening in the manner we have described, he threatened such men severely. They answered, saying that they had done this because they had nothing to eat or drink, neither they nor their wives and children. Hearing this, the Emperor ordered that all those who were unable to fight because of age or other reasons should have bread and all rations distributed in the houses and towers according to one's requirements. And the war grew day by day, because a new army did not cease to arrive for the enemy from the Asian climate; but our own affairs were dwindling and were being humbled, like the waning moon, because of the daily slaughter. Some of our own people, disobedient and inhumane B when they saw our condition brought low, found the time for wicked appetites, daily stirring up riots, factions, and disturbances. They poured out insults and calumnies into the squares and streets of the city against the unfortunate Emperor and other officials from their foul throats, fearing neither God nor respecting the Emperor or men. But the thrice-blessed man, imitating the saying of David: "But I, like a deaf man, did not hear, and was as a mute, and I became as a man who does not hear and has no reproofs in his mouth, for my enemies live and have grown stronger than I, and those who hate me without cause have been multiplied." And some approached him saying that so-and-so said this; and he heard some while walking by. And in us was fulfilled the saying which declares: "All men are friends of the fortunate, but not even one's own father is of the unfortunate."
On the twenty-fourth of May it was whispered that the emir intended to fight us fiercely by land and sea on the twenty-ninth of the same month, with a battle and a breach. The generals and local commanders all, and particularly Giovanni Giustiniani, did not cease to make every engine for opposing the enemies, and throughout the whole night they repaired the walls that had fallen from the battering of the helepoleis in a thousand ways. Then Giustiniani, having sent to the Great Duke Notaras, asked him to send off to him some helepoleis C which were in the sectors he was guarding. But the lord Lucas Notaras did not wish to give D them, because they were also necessary in his own region. Giustiniani replied that it was by no means
no need for such siege engines A in those swampy regions. For these reasons, therefore, they came to harsh words, and insults were poured out from the mouths of both against one another; Giustiniani called Notaras useless, a pestilence, and an enemy of the fatherland, and he in turn washed him with other insults. When the emperor heard this, he took them aside and said: "Brothers, this is not the time to act, to speak, and to fight in this way among ourselves; rather, let us even forgive those who hate us, and let us pray to God that we may be delivered from the jaws of this dragon whom we see before our eyes." By using many other words, he restored them to friendship, and each of them returned to his assigned post to carry out his duty. Giustiniani appeared terrible to the enemies, especially in those days, in his speaking, his correcting, and his acting; he made skirmishes and clashes against the enemies every single day, and many he took alive, while others he made a sacrifice to the sword. And all wondered at the exploits and works of the man, and they called him the defender and savior of the city. Yet he did not remain so to the end, but the reputation which he had gained with courage, he later destroyed with cowardice.
While things were in this state with us, behold, a false rumor was spread into the hostile camp that a fleet from Italy was coming to our aid, as well as Janko, the leader of the Hungarians, with vast armies of horse and foot. B When the sons of Hagar heard this, 264 great fear took hold of them; and they murmured against the emir, saying that he would be the destruction of their race because he was attempting impossible things for them. Likewise, the emir also, being filled with thoughts, and turmoil, and fear, and his whole council was sorrowful—firstly, because it was reported to them about the aid; secondly, because they were observing how such a terrible and numberless army had accomplished nothing in so many days by land and sea, and that often, with so many engines and forces, they had placed ladders against the walls and were repelled with harm and cast down, and great slaughter occurred against them, so that fear approached the Turks who were at the walls; thirdly, because they saw a sign. A light, flashing like lightning, descended from the heavens and stood over the city throughout the whole night, covering it. And when they saw that light, at first they said that God was angry with the Christians and wished to burn them up and deliver them to us as slaves. But afterwards, when they saw that they were always being cast down with shame from the walls and the ladders, and that they were making so many machines and accomplishing nothing, and when they heard the false rumor about the fleet of Italy and Janko, 265 they spoke again about that light, saying that God was fighting for the Christians and protecting them and was their helper.
A And for these reasons, the Emir, as we have said, and his whole army were sad and downcast, and he wished to rise on the morrow and raise the siege. But on that same evening, on which they intended to depart the next day, they saw again, as usual, the light descending from the heavens. And it did not spread out, as usual, to stand over the city for the whole night, but appeared only from afar and immediately dispersed and vanished. When the Emir and all his men saw this, they were filled with great joy and said, "God has now abandoned them." And those wise men and scribes of their vile and impious religion and error judged that the light signified how they would win the city; and so they all conceived good hopes, hopes which—because of our sins—they realized.
B "...and you did not listen to me. But now again, if it is pleasing to you that we depart from here, it is good, lest something worse happen." And the Emir, hearing these words, remained half-dead from sadness and scorn, wondering how he could depart in such shame, as if in flight. But Sogan Pasha, his second vizier, seeing him standing there and pondering, advised the Emir to stir up the battle against us, and this was because he envied Ali Pasha, for they held a hidden enmity between them. And thus, encouraging him, he says: "Why, O Emir, do you stand gloomy and sorrowful, and what is this cowardice that has fallen upon you, and what are these thoughts rising in your heart? God is with you. Do not be sad. Do you not see, by that light, a sign that He will give this city into your hands? Do you not see the multitude of the countless C army which you possess, and that it is well prepared, and all the preparation is great and good? The army of Alexander of Macedon was never as great as yours, nor did he have such preparations; and yet he conquered the world. For my part, I do not believe nor hope that a fleet will come here from Italy, as some say and as my brother Ali Pasha has claimed, for you know well that the plurality of rulers of the Italians and the other Westerners makes them be without a leader, and there is no concord among them."
Ali Pasha, the first of his council, a man more approved and capable than all others, seeing the Emir thus pondering and all the rest full of fear and cowardice, was also saddened at the sight, but inwardly he rejoiced. And the reason was that he had always counseled the Emir in the councils not to raise war against the city, so that the Western rulers might not hear and, gathering together, reach an accord and drive the Turks out of Europe. And then again, showing that he was sad, he said to the Emir, "I from the beginning was listening to these things, as to how it was going to..." And when again some of them reach an accord with much labor D and many conditions, they do not remain, by Hercules, for long, but
their bonds are dissolved in a short time. And being [joined] in a bond, they plot against one another, how one may be able to plunder the other’s goods, and they approach and guard against one another. They take counsel, reason, and speak of many things, but they perform few; and the counsel of the evening is not pleasing to them again in the morning. And when a design is settled, they delay in the works; and they do this in order that they may find a suitable time for their inclinations and desires. And whenever they undertake some work and make a beginning, they accomplish nothing because of their disagreements. And especially now, as you know, some of them have new points of difference between them. And yet, I will say again what I have said to be impossible for such reasons: if this fleet were truly to come from Italy, what necessity is there for us from it? For never will a people come that is in number half of our army, or even the fourth part. Therefore, O Ameras, our master, take heart. There is no need for you to have fear at present, except from God alone. And be a man and rejoice and be strong, and do not cease this day and tomorrow from the art of fire, so that with the engines you may humble the walls as much as possible." Now such words and counsels were very pleasing to the Ameras, and he remained agreeable and received refreshment from his sorrow. And commanding him, he says: "Review the army this night and learn of them in what mind they are." He, having done what was commanded and come [to him], said: "I have seen the army and I have made it known. Know this: fight with a glad heart, and the victory is ours." The Ameras then answered and said: "From now on, O Sogan, if it is pleasing to you, let us also test our fortune now, to see if it is pleasing to it and it will aid us as it aids many others. Send, therefore, to the guard of the Galata, so that they may not cross over by stealth and bring aid to the city." A Having heard these things, Ali Pasha was extremely grieved, being ashamed that the words of Sogan Pasha had prevailed, and out of envy he wished, if possible, to create a device so that they would accomplish nothing against the city. He signified to the emperor what had happened and exhorted him not to fear, since in wars luck is often uncertain and diverse. B And therefore let the guards keep watch vigilantly. This was on the evening of the twenty-seventh of May. But the Ameras, having ordered them to keep lights and torches burning throughout that entire night and the following day, and that they should fast throughout the whole day and wash themselves seven times, and that they should pray to God as they fasted and were clean, so that they might conquer the city; and this came to pass. On the second evening, at the setting of the sun, after they had eaten, the Ameras stood and gave a speech, saying these things: C 5. "O dearest children, I pray and beseech you, by God and by his prophet Muhammad and by me, his servant, that tomorrow you perform a deed worthy of eternal memory, such as our ancestors are known to have done everywhere up to this day, as is manifest,
and with eagerness and nobility of soul scale the walls from above with ladders like birds A and pass over; and the reputation which those before us, as we said, have gained, and God has bestowed—may it never be that we lose it, but rather now the hour has drawn near for us to multiply it many times over.” And having spoken many other martial words to them, he stirred them to greatness of soul, that they might act courageously. Then he said: “And even if some of us should be killed, as is the custom in wars, [being] written on his head, you well know through our Koran what the prophet says, that he who dies at such a time shall dine and drink in paradise in his full body with Muhammad, and with beautiful boys and women and virgins he shall rest in a green and fragrant place B of flowers, and shall bathe in most beautiful baths, and in that place he shall receive these things from God. But here again, from me, my entire army and the nobles of my court: if we win, the pay that they have from me shall be doubled for each person from what they now have, from now until the end of their lives. And in three days the whole city shall be yours. And whatever spoil you may seize and find—gold and silver vessels and clothing, and prisoners, men and women, small and great—no one shall be able to demand them from you or cause you any trouble in any way.” And having finished speaking, he swore to them to keep all that he had commanded them. And they, having heard, rejoiced greatly, and with one voice all cried out in their tongue: “Alla alla! Mehemetes resul alla!”—that is: “God of gods, and Muhammad is his prophet.” C
271. Hearing in the city such a great clamor, like the roar of the sea, we wondered what it might be; but after a little while we learned certainly and in truth that for the morrow the Ameras [the Sultan] had prepared a land and sea war, as fiercely as was possible for him, against the city. And we, beholding such a multitude of the impious—I say, as it seems to me, there were truly five hundred or more of them for each one of us—placed all our hopes in the providence from above. And the emperor commanded that with the holy and venerable icons and divine images, the priests, hierarchs, and monks, women and children, should go with tears around the walls of the city crying out “Kyrie eleison” with tears, and supplicating God that He might not, because of our sins, deliver us D into the hands of lawless and apostate enemies, the most wicked upon all the earth, but that He might be merciful to us, His inheritance. And with weeping they exhorted one another to withstand the enemies bravely at the hour of the clash. Likewise also the emperor, on that same sorrowful evening of the second day, having gathered all the nobles in authority and those under them, the demarchs and centurions and other leading soldiers, spoke these things:
3. “You, most noble lords and most illustrious demarchs and generals and most gen—
generous fellow-soldiers, and all you faithful and honorable citizens! You know well that the hour has arrived, and the enemy of our faith desires to press us more severely with all craft and engine, and to wage a grave war against us with a great clash and collision by land and sea with all his might, so that, if possible, like a serpent he may pour out his venom, and like a savage lion devour us. B Therefore, I say and exhort you to stand manfully and with a noble soul, as you have always done even until now, against the enemies of our faith. I entrust and commend to you this most bright and famous city, our fatherland and queen of cities. You know well, therefore, brothers, that for four things we are all joined in a common duty to prefer to die rather than to live: first, for the sake of our faith and piety; second, for the sake of our fatherland; third, for the sake of the king as the Lord’s anointed; and fourth, for the sake of our kindred and friends. Consequently, brothers, if we are debtors to struggle even unto death for one of these four, much more, as you clearly see, are we to do so for all of them, for we are about to be deprived of everything. If, because of my sins, God permits victory to the impious, we stand in peril regarding our holy faith, which Christ bestowed upon us in His own blood; this is the head of all things. And if a man gains the whole world but suffers the loss of his soul, what is the profit? Secondly, we are deprived of such a famous fatherland and liberty. C Third, we lose the empire, once illustrious, now depressed, disparaged, and despised, about to fall into the power of a tyrant and an impious man; lastly, we are despoiled of our most beloved children, wives, and kindred. It is now the fifty-seventh day since that wicked emir came and besieged us, and he has not ceased day or night to attack us with every machine and power; but by the grace of the all-seeing Christ our Lord, he has until now been driven back from the walls many times with disgrace. But now, brothers, do not be afraid, even if a wall has fallen in some part from the jolts and the blows of the siege engines, because, as you yourselves see, we have repaired it again to the best of our ability. We have placed all our hope in the unconquerable glory of God. They trust in chariots, D and they in horses and in power and in multitude, but we trust in the name of the Lord our God and Savior, and secondly in our own hands and in the strength which Divine power has granted to us. And I know that this innumerable herd of the impious, according to their custom, will come against us with arrogance, and with elevated brow, and much boldness, and violence, so that by our small number they may afflict us and crush us with troubles, and with great clamors and innumerable shouts, so that they may frighten us. You know well such follies of theirs, and there is no need to speak about these things. And in a short hour they will do these things, and they will cast upon us countless stones and other missiles and projectiles
that—I hope—will not harm us, because I look upon you and I truly rejoice, and I nourish my mind with such hopes, for even if we are very few, yet you are all skillful, capable, robust, strong, and magnanimous, and well-prepared. With your shields, protect your heads well in the engagement and the clash. A Let your right hand, which holds the sword, always be extended. Your helmets, and breastplates, and iron garments are quite sufficient, along with your other weapons, and in the engagement they will be very useful, whereas our opponents do not use such things, nor do they even possess them. And you exist sheltered within the walls, while they come unprotected and with toil. Therefore, O fellow soldiers, be ready, and firm, and magnanimous through the mercies of God. Imitate the few elephants of the Carthaginians of old, how they put to flight such a multitude of Roman horses by their sound and sight. And if a brute animal did that, how much more so should we, who are the masters of animals and irrational creatures? As for those who come against us to engage in battle, they are like irrational animals, and even worse. Let your shields and swords and bows and javelins be sent forth by you against them. And consider them as a hunt for a herd of wild boars, so that the impious may know that they are not engaging in battle with irrational animals, as they themselves are, but with their masters and lords, and the descendants of the Greeks and Romans. You know full well that this impious emir himself, and enemy of our holy B faith, has dissolved the love which we had for no justifiable reason, and has cast aside his many oaths, counting them as nothing, and having come suddenly, he built a fortress at the narrow pass of the Asomatos, so that he might daily be able to harm us. Our fields, and gardens, and orchards, and houses he has already made a spoil of fire; our Christian brothers, as many as he found, he has killed or taken captive; he has dissolved our friendship. He has reconciled the Galatae to himself, and they too rejoice, not knowing—the wretches—the fable of the farmer's son, who, about to cook the snails, said: "O foolish animals!" and so forth. Having come, therefore, brothers, he has blockaded us, and is gaping with his cavernous mouth daily, how he might find a suitable time to swallow us and this city, which the thrice-blessed and great Emperor Constantine of old raised up, and dedicated and gifted to our all-holy and most holy Lady Theotokos and ever-virgin Mary, so that she might be the mistress, and helper, and protector of our fatherland and the refuge of the Christians, the hope and joy of all the Greeks, the boast for all who dwell under the rising sun. And this most impious man desires to place under his own authority this city, which was once glorious and shone like the rose of the field. For he has enslaved, I may say, almost the entire world under the sun, and has subjected under his feet Pontus and Armenia, Persia and Paphlagonia, the Amazons and Cappadocia, Galatia and Media, the Colchians and Iberians, the Bosphorians and Albanians, Syria and Cilicia and
A Mesopotamia, Phoenicia and Palestine, Arabia and Judea, the Bactrians and Scythians, Macedonia and Thessaly, Greece, Boeotia, the Locrians and Aetolians, Acarnania, Achaia and the Peloponnese, Epirus and Illyricum, the Lychnitae on the Adriatic, Italy, the Tuscans, the Celts and Celtogalatians, Iberia and as far as Gades, Libya and Mauretania and Maurusia, Ethiopia, the Beledas, Scudam, Numidia and Africa and Egypt; he now wishes to enslave all these, and to subject the queen of cities to the yoke of slavery. And he seeks to turn our holy churches, where the holy Trinity was worshipped and the most holy Numen was glorified, and where the angels were heard singing of the divine and incarnate economy of the Word of God, into a sanctuary of his own blasphemy and of the chatterer, the false prophet Muhammad, and into a dwelling-place for irrational beasts and camels. Therefore, brothers and fellow soldiers, consider it in your minds so that your memorial and memory and fame and liberty may be eternal.»
Turning then to those on the right side, he said: «Noble Venetians, brothers beloved in Christ our God, strong men and valiant soldiers, most tried in war, you who with your gleaming swords and through grace have often slaughtered a multitude of the Hagarenes, so that their blood has flowed like a river from your hands, today I beseech you that you may whole-heartedly and from the depth of your soul defend this city, which finds itself in such a calamity of war.» And as he turned to the left B parts, he says to the Ligurians: «O Ligurians, most honorable brothers, men of war and great-hearted and famous, you well know and understand that this unfortunate city was always, not for me alone but also for you, for many reasons your second fatherland and mother; hence you have always held her as such. Therefore I say again and implore you that at this hour you may act in such a way as those who are faithful and of the same faith and brothers. You have often helped her with eagerness, and by your assistance you have redeemed her from these enemies of hers, the Hagarenes. Now again the time is opportune for you to show for her aid your love for Christ and your bravery and nobility.» And turning in the plural to all he said: «I have no time to say more to you. Only my humbled scepter I entrust to your hands, that you may guard it with goodwill. I exhort and beg your love that you may give the fitting honor and obedience to your generals and mayors and centurions, each according to his rank and division and office. Know this well. And if you keep from the heart what I have enjoined upon you, I hope in God that we might be delivered from his present just threat. Second, the adamant crown C in heaven awaits you, and an eternal and worthy memory in the world shall be yours.» And having said these things and having finished his oration, and with tears and groans having D given thanks to God, all as if with one
[GREEK COLUMN] εὐχαριστήσας, οἱ πάντες ὡς ἐξ ἑνὸς στόματος ἀπεκρίναντο μετὰ κλαυθμοῦ λέγοντες, « Ἀποθάνωμεν ὑπὲρ τῆς Χριστοῦ πίστεως καὶ τῆς πατρίδος ἡμῶν. » A Ἀκούσας δὲ ὁ βασιλεὺς καὶ πλεῖστα εὐχαριστήσας καὶ πλείστας δωρεῶν ἐπαγγελίας αὐτοῖς ἀπηγγείλατο. Εἶτα πάλιν λέγει· « Λοιπὸν, ἀδελφοὶ καὶ συστρατιῶται, ἔτοιμοι ἔστε τῷ πρωί. Χάριτι καὶ ἀρετῇ τῇ παρὰ τοῦ Θεοῦ ὑμῖν δωρηθείσῃ, καὶ συνεργούσης τῆς ἁγίας Τριάδος, ἐν ᾗ τὴν ἐλπίδα πᾶσαν ἀνεθέμεθα, ποιήσωμεν τοὺς ἐναντίους μετὰ αἰσχύνης ἐκ τῶν ἐντεῦθεν κακῶς ἀναχωρήσωσιν. »
ζ. Ἀκούσαντες δὲ οἱ δυστυχεῖς Ῥωμαῖοι καρδίαν ὡς λέοντες ἐποίησαν, καὶ ἀλλήλοις συγχωρηθέντες ᾔτουν εἷς τῷ ἑτέρῳ καταλλαγῆναι, καὶ μετὰ κλαυθμοῦ ἐνηγκαλίζοντο, μήτε φιλτάτων τέκνων μνημονεύοντες οὔτε γυναικῶν ἢ πλούτου φροντίζοντες, εἰ μὴ μόνον τοῦ ἀποθανεῖν ἵνα τὴν πατρίδα φυλάξωσι. Καὶ ἕκαστος ἐν τῷ διατεταγμένῳ τόπῳ ἐπέστρεψε, καὶ ἀσφαλῶς ἐποίουν ἐν τοῖς τείχεσι τὴν φυλακήν. Ὁ δὲ βασιλεὺς ἐν τῷ πανσέπτῳ ναῷ τῆς τοῦ Θεοῦ Λόγου Σοφίας ἐλθὼν καὶ προσευξάμενος μετὰ κλαυθμοῦ τὰ ἄχραντα καὶ θεῖα μυστήρια μετέλαβεν. Ὁμοίως καὶ ἕτεροι πολλοὶ τῇ αὐτῇ νυκτὶ ἐποίησαν. Εἶτα ἐλθὼν εἰς τὰ ἀνάκτορα ὀλίγον σταθεὶς καὶ ἐκ πάντων συγχώρησιν αἰτήσας, ἐν τῇδε τῇ ὥρᾳ τις διηγήσεται τοὺς τότε κλαυθμοὺς καὶ θρήνους τοὺς ἐν τῷ παλατίῳ; Εἰ καὶ ἀπὸ ξύλου ἄνθρωπος ἢ ἐκ πέτρας ἦν, οὐκ ἐδύνατο μὴ θρηνῆσαι. Καὶ ἀναβὰς ἐφ᾽ ἵππου ἐξήλθομεν τῶν ἀνακτόρων περιερχόμενοι τὰ τείχη, ἵνα τοὺς φύλακας B διεγείρωμεν πρὸς τὸ φυλάττειν ἀγρύπνως. Ἦσαν δὲ πάντες ἐπὶ τοῖς τείχεσι καὶ πύργοις τῇ νυκτὶ ἐκείνῃ· καὶ αἱ πύλαι πᾶσαι ἦσαν κεκλεισμέναι ἀσφαλέστατα, δι' ὧν οὐ δυνατὸν ἦν ἐξελθεῖν τινα ἢ εἰσελθεῖν. Ὡς δὲ ἤλθομεν ἐν τοῖς Καλιαρίοις ὥρᾳ πρώτῃ τῆς ἀλεκτροφωνίας, κατιόντες τῶν ἵππων ἀνήλθομεν εἰς τὸν πύργον, καὶ ἠκούσαμεν συχνῶς ὁμιλεῖν καὶ θόρυβον μέγαν ποιεῖν ἔξωθεν ἐπιτήδειον, καὶ εἶπον ἡμῖν οἱ φύλακες ὅτι δι' ὅλης τῆς νυκτὸς οὕτως ποιοῦσιν· ἦσαν γὰρ σύρνοντες τὰ ὅσα τῶν ὀργάνων πρὸς τειχομαχίαν ἡτοίμασται, φέροντες αὐτὰ ἐγγὺς τοῦ ὀρύγματος. Ἐπὶ τούτοις σαλεύονται καὶ τῶν ἠόνων τὰ μέγιστα τῶν ἀντιπάλων σκάφη, καὶ αἱ τριήρεις καὶ αἱ γέφυρας ἐν τῷ λιμένι τοῖς τείχεσι καὶ ταῖς ἀκταῖς προσπελάζουσι.
Περὶ δὲ δευτέραν ἀλεκτροφωνίαν ἄνευ σημείου τινός, καθὼς καὶ ἄλλαις ἡμέραις προεποίουν, τὸν πόλεμον ἀνῆψαν μετὰ μεγάλης σπουδῆς καὶ βίας. Ἐπροώρισεν οὖν ὁ ἀμηρᾶς ἵνα πάντες οἱ μὴ ὄντες τοσοῦτον ἔμπειροι ἐν πολέμοις καί τινες γέροντες καὶ νέοι ἐν πρώτοις τὸν πόλεμον ἀνάψωσι καὶ τὴν συμπλοκὴν ποιήσωσιν, C ἵνα ἡμᾶς ὀλίγον κοπιάσωσι καὶ οἱ πλέον ἰσχυροὶ καὶ ἀνδρεῖοι καὶ ἔμπειροι τοῦ πολέμου μετὰ πλείονος θάρσους καὶ προθυμίας καθ' ἡμῶν ἔλθωσι. Καὶ ταῦτα ἐγένετο, καὶ ὁ πόλεμος καὶ ἡ συμπλοκὴ ὡς κάμινος ἀνῆψε. Καὶ οἱ ἡμέτεροι γενναίως ἀντέλεγον καὶ κακῶς αὐτοὺς ἐδέχοντο καὶ ἐκ τῶν τειχῶν ἀπεκρήμνιζον, καὶ τινα τῶν πολεμικῶν ὀργάνων καὶ σκευῶν τῶν ἐναντίων κατέσπασαν· καὶ ἐξ ἀμφοτέρων τῶν μερῶν θάνατος ἐγεγόνει, καὶ μάλιστα ἐκ τοῦ τῶν
τῶν A Τούρκων μέρους. Ὡς δὲ οἱ ἀστέρες τοῦ οὐρανοῦ ἀρχὴν ἐποίουν μὴ φαίνεσθαι, τοῦ φωτὸς τῆς ἡμέρας αὐγάζοντος, καὶ ἐκ τῶν ἀνατολῶν τὸ ῥοδοειδὲς τῆς πρωΐας ἐνέφαινεν, πᾶν τὸ πλῆθος τῶν πολεμίων ὡς σχοίνισμα ἓν ἐγεγόνει ἐκ τοῦ ἑνὸς μέρους τῆς πόλεως ἕως τοῦ ἑτέρου. Καὶ τὰ ὄργανα τὰ πολεμικά, τύμπανά τε καὶ ἄλλα κεράτινα καὶ πᾶν ἕτερον, κρούσαντες καὶ φωναῖς ἰσχυραῖς ἀλαλάξαντες εἰς τὰς ἐλεβόλεις πάσας τὸ πῦρ ἐνέβαλον, καὶ πάντες ὁμοθυμαδὸν ἐν ἑνὶ καιρῷ καὶ ὥρᾳ διά τε χέρσου καὶ θαλάσσης τὴν ἐμβολὴν καὶ σύῤῥηξιν τοῦ πολέμου καὶ συμπλοκὴν ἐποίησαν. Θαρσαλέοι δέ τινες πολεμήτορες τὰς μηρινθώδεις κλίμακας ἐπανίουσι. Τα δὲ βέλη παντοῖα κατὰ τῶν ἐν τοῖς πύργοις ἀφίετο. Καὶ ὥραις μὲν δύο ἡ μάχη ἐνεστήκει στενοῦσα καὶ φρικαλέα, ἦν δέ πως τὰ τῶν Χριστιανῶν ἐπικρατέστερα· καὶ γὰρ αἱ κλιμακοφόροι τριήρεις σὺν τῇ γεφύρα ἄπρακτοι τῶν τειχῶν τῶν ὑδραίων ἀπεκρούσθησαν, καὶ τὰ τῶν λίθων ἐκ τῆς πόλεως ἀφετήρια πλείστους τῶν ἐναντίων Ἀγαρηνῶν διέφθειραν, καὶ ἐκ τῆς χέρσου μέρους τὰ ὅμοια τοὺς ἐναντίους καὶ χεῖρον ἐδεξιώσαντο. Καὶ ἦν ἰδεῖν θέαμα ξένον, ὥσπερ νεφέλη σκοτεινὴ καλύπτουσα τὸν ἥλιον καὶ τὸν οὐρανόν. Καὶ τὰς κατασκευασθείσας μηχανὰς μετὰ τοῦ ὑγροῦ πυρὸς ῥίπτοντες τοὺς ἐναντίους ἐκαίουν, καὶ τὰς ἀναβάθρας καὶ κλίμακας μετὰ τῶν ἀναβαινόντων λίθοις βαρέοις ἄνωθεν ἀκοντίζοντες κατέκοπτον, καὶ μετὰ ἑλεβολίσκων καὶ τόξων ἀπεδίωχνον· καὶ ἔνθ᾽ ἂν τὸ πλῆθος ἐθεώρουν, ἐκεῖσε ταῖς ἐλεβόλεσι πῦρ ἐνέβαλλον καὶ πολλοὺς ἔπληττον καὶ ἀπέκτεινον. Οἱ δὲ ἐναντίοι ἔκ τε τοῦ κόπου τοῦ πολέμου καὶ τῆς ἀντιστάσεως τοσοῦτον ἀγανακτήσαντες ὥστε ὄπισθεν ὀλίσθαι ἤθελον στρέψαι, ἵνα ἀναψυχὴν λάβωσιν· οἱ δὲ τζαούσιδες καὶ ῥαβδοῦχος τῆς αὐλῆς μετὰ ῥάβδων σιδηρῶν καὶ βουνεύρων ἐνέτυπτον, ἵνα μὴ δίδωσι νῶτα τοῖς ἐχθροῖς. Τίς διηγήσεται τὰς τότε φωνὰς καὶ τὰς κραυγὰς καὶ τῶν πληγέντων διαμφὶ τὸ οὐαί; ὅθεν ἕως τῶν οὐρανῶν ἀνέβαινον αἱ φωναὶ καὶ ὁ κρότος. Καί τινες μὲν ἐκ τῶν ἡμετέρων θεωροῦντες αὐτοὺς οὕτως πάσχοντας μετὰ φωνῶν μεγάλων ἔλεγον· «Ταῦτα πολλάκις ποιήσαντες κακῶς ἀπεκρούσθητε»· αὐτοὶ δὲ μετὰ βίας, τὴν ἀνδρίαν αὐτῶν θέλοντες δεῖξαι, ἐπὶ τὰς κλίμακας πάλιν ἀνέβαινον. Ἕτεροι δέ τινες τολμηροὶ καὶ ἰσχυροὶ καὶ δραστικοὶ ἐπὶ τῶν ὤμων εἰς τοῦ ἑτέρου ἀνέβαινε, καὶ ἄλλος πάλιν ἐπὶ τῶν ὤμων τοῦ δευτέρου ἀνήρχετο ὅπως ἐδύνατο, ἵνα ἄνω ἐν τοῖς τείχεσιν ἔλθωσι. B Καὶ ταῦτα πάντα ποιοῦντες σφοδρῶς καὶ βιαίως συῤῥήγνυται περὶ τὰς εἰσόδους καὶ ἀνόδους μάχη καρτερά, καὶ τὰ ξίφη ἐσπασμένοι συνεπλέκοντο, φόνος δὲ πολὺς ἦν ἑκατέρωθεν. Κλινομένης δὲ ἤδη τῆς ἡμῶν παρατάξεως Θεόφιλος μὲν ὁ Παλαιολόγος καὶ Δημήτριος ὁ Καντακουζηνὸς ἄνδρες ἄριστοι προπηδήσαντες νικῶσι τοὺς Ἀγαρηνοὺς καὶ τρέπουσι καὶ ἐκ τῶν τειχῶν καὶ τῶν κλιμάκων κακῶς ἀπεκρήμνισαν καὶ διεσκέδασαν. Τότε οὖν καὶ ἕτεροι οἱ διατεταγμένοι εἰς βοήθειαν ἔφθασαν. Ἐκεῖ δὲ ὁ βασιλεὺς ἔφιππος εὑρεθεὶς καὶ τοὺς στρατιώτας ἀναθαρρύνων καὶ ἐγείρων, ἵνα προθύμως μάχωνται, ἔλεγεν· «Ὦ συστρατιῶται καὶ ἀδελφοί, στῆτε ἀνδρείως, παρακαλῶ ὑμᾶς διὰ τοὺς οἰκτιρμοὺς τοῦ Θεοῦ, ὅτι τὰ νῦν θεωρῶ τὸ πλῆθος τῶν ἐναντίων ἀρχὴν λαμβάνειν συγκοπὴν ποιῆσαι, καὶ ὀλίγον διασκεδάζονται, καὶ οὐ κατὰ τὴν τάξιν αὐτῶν καὶ συνήθειαν ἔρχονται, καὶ ἡ νίκη ἐλπίζω εἴς Θεὸν τοῦ εἶναι ἡμετέρα. Λοιπόν, ἀδελφοί, χαί- A
χαί- A ρετε, ὅτι ὁ πολύτιμος στέφανος ὑμῖν ἔσεται, οὐχὶ μόνον φθαρτὸς καὶ γήϊνος, ἀλλὰ καὶ ἐπουράνιος. Ὁ Θεὸς ὁ ὑπὲρ ἡμῶν πολεμεῖ, δειλία κατέχει τὸ πλῆθος τῶν ἀσεβῶν. »
Καὶ ταῦτα τοῦ βασιλέως λέγοντος, Ἰωάννης ὁ Ἰουστινιανὸς ὁ καὶ στρατηγὸς ἐπλήγη τόξου βέλει ἐν τοῖς σκέλεσιν ἐπὶ τὸν δεξιὸν πόδα. Αὐτὸς δὲ ὁ τοσοῦτον ἔμπειρος ὢν πολέμου, ὡς εἶδε τὸ αἷμα ῥέειν ἐκ τοῦ σώματος αὐτοῦ, ὅλος ἀλλοιώθη, καὶ ἦν προέδειξεν ἀνδρίαν ἐκ τοῦ φόβου ἔχασε, καὶ ἀνωφελῶς μετὰ ταῦτα ἔπραξε. Ὃς ἀνεχώρησεν ὅθεν ἦν. 284 Μετὰ σιωπῆς διήρχετο ζητῶν ἰατρούς, μὴ μνημονεύων τῆς γενναιότητος καὶ ἐπιδεξιότητος ἣν ἀρχῆθεν ἔδειξε. Καὶ οὐκ εἶπε τοῖς συνοῦσιν αὐτῷ οὐδέν, οὔτε ἀντ᾽ αὐτοῦ εἶασέ τινα ἕτερον, ἵνα μὴ ἡ γεγονυῖα σύγχυσις γένηται καὶ ἀπώλεια. Στραφέντες δὲ οἱ στρατιῶται καὶ μὴ ἰδόντες τὸν στρατηγόν, διὰ τοῦ ῥηθέντος λόγου ὅτι ἔφυγεν εἰς ταραχὴν καὶ δειλίαν μεγάλην ἐνέπεσον. Ὁ οὖν βασιλεὺς κατὰ συγκυρίαν πάλιν ἐκεῖσε εὑρεθεὶς ὁρᾷ τοὺς στρατιώτας συγκεχυμένους καὶ μεστοὺς φόβου ὡς πρόβατα διωκόμενα, καὶ μαθὼν τὸ αἴτιον καὶ τὸν στρατηγὸν αὐτοῦ Ἰουστινιανὸν ἰδὼν φεύγοντα ἐγγίσας αὐτῷ λέγει· « Ἀδελφέ, τί τοῦτο πεποίηκας; Στρέψον ἐν τῷ διατεταγμένῳ σου τόπῳ. Ἡ πληγὴ αὕτη ὀλίγον τί ἐστι. Στρέψον, ὅτι τὰ νῦν ἡ πλείων ἀνάγκη ἐστίν. Ἡ πόλις εἰς χεῖράς σου κρέμεται, ἵνα λυτρώσῃς αὐτήν. » Πολλὰ δὲ εἰπόντος τοῦ βασιλέως αὐτῷ οὐδὲν ἀπεκρίνατο, ἀλλ᾽ ἐν τῷ Γαλατᾷ περάσας αἰσχρῶς ἐκεῖ τελευτᾷ ἐκ τῆς πικρίας καὶ περι- B φρονήσεως. Οἱ δὲ Τοῦρκοι, ἰδόντες τὴν τοιαύτην σύγχυσιν τῶν ἡμετέρων, θάρσος ἔλαβον. Ἐκεῖ καὶ ὁ Σογὰν μπασιᾶς παρὼν τοῖς ἰαννιτζαρίοις καὶ τοῖς ἑτέροις διαλεχθεὶς ἐπήγειρεν αὐτῶν τὰ φρονήματα. Καί τις ἰαννίτζαρις τοὔνομα Χασάνης (ἐκ τοῦ Λουπαδίου ὁ γιγαντώδης ὥρμητο δένδρος) ὑπὲρ κεφαλῆς τῇ ἀριστερᾷ χειρὶ τὸν θυρεὸν βαλών, τῇ δὲ δεξιᾷ τὸ ξίφος ἀσπασάμενος, ἐπὶ τὸ τεῖχος, οὗ ἐθεώρει τὴν σύγχυσιν, ἐχώρησεν. 285 Ἕποντο δὲ αὐτῷ καὶ ἕτεροι ὡσεὶ τριάκοντα, τὴν ἀνδρίαν ζηλώσαντες. Οἱ δὲ ἐναπομείναντες ἡμέτεροι ἐν τῷ τείχει κατηκόντιζον αὐτοὺς καὶ βέλεσιν ἔβαλλον καὶ λίθους ὑπερμεγέθεις ἐκύλιον κατ᾽ αὐτῶν· δέκα καὶ ὀκτὼ ἐξ αὐτῶν ἀπεκρήμνισαν. Ὁ δὲ Χασάνης οὐ πρότερον ἐπέσχε τὴν ὁρμὴν ἢ ἀνελθεῖν ἐν τοῖς τείχεσι καὶ τρέψασθαι τοὺς ἡμετέρους. Ἡνίκα γοῦν ἐκράτησε τῆς ἐπιχειρήσεως, καὶ ἕτεροι πολλοὶ ἀκολουθήσαντες ἀνήρχοντο εἰς τὸ τεῖχος. Καὶ τοὺς ἀναβαίνοντας οὐκ ἔφθασαν κωλύειν οἱ ἡμέτεροι διὰ τὴν ὀλιγότητα· οἱ δὲ πολέμιοι πλῆθος ἦσαν. Ταῖς δὲ ἀναβᾶσι συμπλέκοντες ἐμάχοντο, καὶ ἦν οὐκ ὀλίγος αὐτῶν ὁ φόνος. Καὶ ὁ Χασάνης μαχόμενος προσπαισθεὶς πέτρα τινὶ κατέπεσεν. Ἐπιστραφέντες δὲ οἱ ἡμέτεροι καὶ ἰδόντες αὐτὸν κείμενον πέτρας ἔβαλλον πάντοθεν· ὁ δὲ εἰς γόνυ διαναστὰς ἠμύνετο, ὑπὸ δὲ τοῦ πλήθους τῶν τραυμάτων παρείθη τὴν δεξιὰν καὶ κατεχώσθη τοῖς βέλεσι. Καὶ ἕτεροι πολλοὶ ἀπεκτάνθησαν καὶ ἐπλήγησαν καὶ ἕνεκεν τῶν τραυμάτων πρὸς τὸ στρατόπεδον ἐκομίσθησαν. C Εἶτα τοσοῦτον ἀναβὰν τὸ πλῆθος τῶν πολεμίων τοὺς ἡμετέρους διεσκέδασαν, καὶ ἀφέντες τοὺς
τοὺς A πεζοὺς ἐντὸς τῶν τειχῶν, ἔξωθεν διὰ τῆς πύλης ἔβαινον καταπατοῦντες εἰς τὸν ἕτερον. Ταῦτα δὲ οὕτως ἔχοντα καὶ φωνή τις ἐῤῥέθη ἔσωθεν καὶ ἔξωθεν καὶ ἐκ τοῦ μέρους τοῦ λιμένος· « Ἑάλω τὸ φρούριον, καὶ τὰ στρατήγια καὶ τὰ σημαῖα ἄνωθεν ἐν τοῖς πύργοις ἔστησαν. » Καὶ ἡ φωνὴ τοὺς ἡμετέρους ἐτρέψατο, τοὺς δὲ πολεμίους ἀνεθάρρυνε· καὶ ἀλαλάξαντες φωνὰς πολλὰς καὶ προθύμως ἄνευ φόβου οἱ πάντες ἐπὶ τὰ τείχη ἀνέβαινον.
Ὡς οὖν εἶδεν ὁ δυστυχής, ὁ βασιλεὺς καὶ αὐθέντης μου, δακρυχέων ἐπαρεκάλει τὸν Θεόν, καὶ τοὺς στρατιώτας ἵνα μεγαλοψυχήσωσι προέτρεπε· καὶ οὐκ ἦν συνδρομῆς καὶ βοηθείας ἐλπὶς οὐδεμία. Ὁ δὲ τὴν ἵππον κεντήσας δραμὼν ἔφθασεν ἔνθα τὸ πλῆθος τῶν ἀσεβῶν ἤρχετο, καὶ ὥσπερ ὁ Σαμψὼν ἐπὶ τοὺς ἀλλοφύλους ἐποίει, καὶ τοὺς ἀσεβεῖς ἐν τῇ πρώτῃ συμπλοκῇ ἐκ τῶν τειχῶν ἀπεκρήμνισεν, ὡς ἰδεῖν θαῦμα ξένον τοὺς ἐντυχόντας καὶ βλέποντας. Βρυχόμενος ὡς λέων καὶ τὴν ῥομφαίαν ἐσπασμένην ἔχων ἐν τῇ δεξιᾷ πολλοὺς τῶν πολεμίων ἀπέσφαξε· καὶ τὸ αἷμα ποταμηδὲν ἐκ τῶν ποδῶν καὶ τῶν χειρῶν αὐτοῦ ἔῤῥεε. Καὶ ὁ προῤῥηθεὶς Δὸν Φραγκίσκος ὁ Τολέδος ὑπὲρ τὸν Ἀχιλλέα ἐποίησεν· ἐν τοῖς δεξιοῖς τοῦ βασιλέως ἔτυχε, καὶ ὥς τις ἀετὸς μετὰ ὀνύχων καὶ στόματος τοὺς ἐναντίους κατέκοπτεν. Ὁμοίως καὶ Θεόφιλος ὁ Παλαιολόγος, ὡς εἶδε τὸν βασιλέα μαχόμενον καὶ τὴν πόλιν κινδυνεύουσαν, μεγαλοφώνως μετὰ κλαυθμοῦ κράξας εἶπε· « Θέλω θανεῖν μᾶλλον ἢ ζῇν, » καὶ συῤῥήξας ἑαυτὸν ἐν μέσῳ μετὰ κραυγῆς τοὺς ὅσους εὗρε πάντας διεσκέδασε καὶ διεσκόρπισε καὶ ἐθανάτωσεν. Ἀλλὰ καὶ Ἰωάννης ὁ Δαλμάτης ἐκεῖ παρὼν ὑπὲρ πάντα στρατιώτην γενναίως τοῖς πολεμίοις συμπλέκεται, B καὶ οἱ ἐντυχόντες καὶ βλέποντες ἐθαύμαζον περὶ τῆς ἰσχύος καὶ γενναιότητος τῶν ἀρίστων ἀνδρῶν. Καὶ δὶς καὶ τρὶς τῆς ἐμβολῆς καὶ συῤῥήξεώς τε καὶ συμπλοκῆς γενομένης μεγάλως τοὺς ἀσεβεῖς ἐτρέψαντο καὶ πλῆθος ἀπέκτειναν καὶ ἑτέρους ἐκ τῶν τειχῶν ἀπεκρήμνιζον, καὶ ἀγωνιζόμενοι σφοδρῶς καὶ συμπλεκόμενοι ἀπεκτάνθησαν, καὶ πολὺν φόνον εἰς τοὺς πολεμίους πρὸ τοῦ ἀποθανεῖν ἐποίησαν οὕτως. Καὶ ἕτεροί τινες στρατιῶται οὐκ ἀγενεῖς μαχόμενοι ἐν τῷ τόπῳ ἐκείνῳ καὶ αὐτοὶ ἀπεκτάνθησαν πλησίον τῆς πύλης τοῦ ἁγίου Ῥωμανοῦ, ὅπου τὴν ἐλέβολιν ἐκείνην κατεσκεύασαν καὶ τὴν μεγάλην ἐλέβολιν ἔστησαν, καὶ τὰ τείχη τῆς πόλεως χαλάσαντες ἐκεῖθεν ἐν τῇ πόλει πρῶτον εἰσῆλθον. Ἐγὼ δὲ τῇ ὥρᾳ ἐκείνῃ οὐχ εὑρέθην πλησίον τοῦ αὐθέντου μου τοῦ βασιλέως, ἀλλὰ προστάξει ἐκείνου εἰς ἐπίσκεψιν δῆθεν ἐν ἄλλῳ μέρει τῆς πόλεως ἤμην.
η’. Ἐλθόντων δὲ τῶν Τούρκων καὶ τοὺς ἐν τοῖς ἔσωθεν τείχεσι Χριστιανοὺς μετὰ ἐλεβολίσκων καὶ βελῶν καὶ τόξων καὶ πετρῶν ἐναπολειφθέντας ἐδίωξαν, καὶ ἐγκρατεῖς πάντων ἐγένοντο, ἄνευ δὲ τῶν πύργων τῶν λεγομένων Βασιλείου Λέοντος καὶ Ἀλεξίου, ἐν οἷς ἐστήκεισαν οἱ ναῦται ἐκεῖνοι οἱ ἐκ τῆς Κρήτης· αὐτοὶ γὰρ γενναίως ἐμάχοντο μέχρι καὶ τῆς ἕκτης καὶ ἑβδόμης ὥρας καὶ πολλοὺς Τούρκους ἐθανάτωσαν, καὶ τοσοῦτον πλῆθος βλέποντες καὶ τὴν πόλιν δεδουλωμένην πᾶσαν, αὐτοὶ οὐκ ἤθελον δουλωθῆναι, ἀλλὰ μᾶλλον ἔλεγον ἀποθανεῖν κρεῖττον ἢ ζῇν. Τοῦρκος δέ τις τῷ Ἀμηρᾷ ἀναφορὰν ποιήσας περὶ τῆς τούτων ἀνδρίας, προσέταξεν ἵνα κατέλθωσι μετὰ συμβάσεως καὶ ὦσιν ἐλεύθεροι.
ἐλεύθεροι. A Since this came to pass, they were with difficulty persuaded to leave the tower. Two brothers, Italians, Paul and Troilus by name, fought bravely in the area entrusted to them alongside many others; they drove back the enemy fiercely and engaged in no ignoble struggle or clash, and there was slaughter on both sides, both of those fighting and those defending. B Turning around and seeing the enemy inside the city, Paul said to his brother: "O sun, shudder! O earth, groan! The city is taken, and for us the time for fighting has passed. But let us consider our safety, if it is possible."
Thus, the enemy became masters of the entire city on the third day, at the second and a half hour of the day, in the year 6961, on the 29th of the month of May. There was looting and captivity for those who were falling, and slaughter for those who were caught and resisted; in some places, the earth was not visible at all because of the dead. It was a strange spectacle to behold, with many varied lamentations and countless enslavements, as noble ladies, virgins, and women dedicated to God were dragged by the Turks by the hair and tresses of their heads out of the churches, wailing pitilessly. Who can recount the shouting and weeping of the children, the looting of the sacred and holy houses, and the terrifying things that were heard? One could see the divine blood and body of Christ poured out and thrown upon the ground, C and as for the precious vessels of the Lord, they snatched them up and smashed some, while others they tucked into their bosoms; they did the same with the ornaments, and they likewise trod upon the holy icons decorated with gold, silver, and precious stones, and having taken the ornaments, they fashioned them into beds and tables, and with the priestly stoles and vestments—which were of silk and woven with gold—they covered their horses, and others ate upon them; they also snatched the precious pearls from the holy treasures, trampling the holy relics underfoot. And these precursors of the Antichrist committed many other lawless acts worthy of tears. O the wisdom of your judgments, Christ the King, how unsearchable and inscrutable they are! D It was a sight to behold that most immense and most divine temple of the Wisdom of God, that earthly heaven, the throne of the glory of God, the Cherubic vehicle and second firmament, that work of God's hands, that spectacle and work worthy of all fame, the delight of the whole earth, the beautiful and more beautiful than all beautiful things; inside its inner sanctums and above its altars and tables they ate and drank, and there they performed and engaged in their lustful thoughts and desires with women, virgins, and boys. Who would not mourn you, holy temple? And everywhere there was every evil, and every head ached. In the houses there were lamentations and weeping, in the crossroads wailings, in the temples cries of woe, the groans of men, the shrieks of women, pullings, enslavements, divisions, and acts of violence. The noble by birth were held in contempt, and the wealthy were unholy. The streets and corners everywhere...
were filled with all sorts of evils A, nor did any place remain unsearched or inviolate. O Christ our King, deliver every city and land inhabited by Christians from that affliction and distress which we suffered then. The impious left no garden or house unexcavated, so that they might find the hidden wealth; and having found many treasures, both new and old, and other precious things, they were filled.
8. When the city was taken, the Ameras entered within and immediately sought with all diligence for the emperor, for he thought of nothing else in his mind but only to learn whether the emperor was alive or dead. Some who came said he had fled, others said he was hidden in the city, others that he had died fighting. And desiring to be truly assured, he sent to the place where the bodies of the slain, both Christians and impious, lay in heaps. They washed the heads of many of the slain, in case they might recognize the emperor's. And they were unable to recognize him, until they found the dead body of the emperor, which they recognized from the imperial greaves or shoes, where royal eagles were inscribed, as was the custom for emperors. And when the Ameras learned this, he was overjoyed and glad; and by his command, the Christians who were found buried the imperial body with imperial honors. Woe, woe to me, whom divine providence preserved at such a time! For the life of that most venerable, most serene, and martyr-emperor among emperors lasted forty-nine years, three months and twenty days.
The Ameras, B raised up by his great victory and puffed up with empty glory, showed himself cruel and inhuman. The great duke, Lord Loukas Notaras, approached him and did obeisance, and showed him a great treasure which he had kept hidden, and jewels and pearls and other spoils worthy of kings, at the sight of which the Ameras and his whole council marvelled. Then Notaras said to the Ameras: "I kept all these for your empire, and behold, now I bestow them upon you as a gift; and I beseech you, accept the prayer and petition of your servant." He hoped, therefore, that through these he might obtain freedom for himself and his house; but the Ameras answered him and said: C "O half-dog, inhuman man, crafty and double-dealing, you possessed such wealth and did not assist your lord the emperor and the city, your motherland? And now, with such wickedness and cunning as you have known how to do and practice from your youth, do you wish to trip me up as well, and flee from what is fitting for you? Tell me, O impious one, who is it that bestowed your wealth and this city into my hands?" Notaras says to him: "God." And the Ameras said to him: "Since God bestowed these things upon me and gave all men as slaves under my hands, what are you saying, wretch, and babbling? How is it you did not send them to me before I initiated the war against you or before I took the city, so that I would owe you gratitude and a reward? Now D
A you are not the one who granted me these things, but God. Having seized him, he put him to death, and considered the assurance he had given them as nothing, but instead determined that they too should be tributaries. He sent for Al-Basia, shut him up in a certain tower, and after a few days put him to death as well, for the reason we mentioned, namely, because he had advised against stirring up a war against the city, so that the Western Christian lords might not gather together to the same place, expel them from Europe, and so forth, as it is written above. His death, therefore, caused boundless grief to the entire army of the Emir, because he was beloved by all and advised the Emir well in all things. B And he immediately ordered the executioners to cast him into prison and guard him securely. On the following day, having given the order, they brought him again before his tribunal; and he said to him, "Since you were unwilling to assist the Emperor and your fatherland with such a vast, countless treasure as you possessed, why did you not advise the Emperor, when I sent word to him that he should give me the city in peace and friendship, and I would give him another place in return for it, with love and friendship, so that so many slaughters might not occur between us?" He, answering, said to him, "I am not responsible for this matter, but the Venetians and those in Galata, who were promising the Emperor that they would send a fleet and troops to his aid." The Emir said, "You have learned to invent many lies; but now is not the time to look to lies for your own benefit." And having given the order, he commanded that on the next day, in the marketplace of the Dry Hill, they should first, in his sight, put to death his two sons, for whom he had once requested the Emperor that he honor one with the dignity of Grand Constable and the other with that of Grand Logothete; then, that he himself should be put to death, as indeed took place. And thus the affairs of Loukas Notaras came to an end. After these things, having given the order, he put to death many noble men and lords, the stationarius of the Venetians and his son, the Standes of Catalonia, and his two sons. Then he wished to kill also Contarini and other noble Venetians, who, however, having given money and made promises to Zagan Pasha, were granted their lives. And he sent to Galata and many C were seized there and put to death, nor did he remember at all what kind of condition he had promised them, but he wanted them also to be his own stipendiaries. He shut Ali-Basia in a tower and, after a few days, put him to death, for the reason indicated by us, because he had advised that the war against the city should not be undertaken, so that the Western Christian princes might not for that reason be united and drive them out of Europe, and for other reasons which we mentioned above. His death caused immense mourning to the whole army of the Emir, because he was beloved by all and had always given the Emir excellent counsel.
10.
From Adam to the flood, there are 2242 years; from the flood to the building of the tower, 500 years; and from the building of the tower to the arrival of Abraham in the land of Canaan, from which the names of the Greek gods also derive their origin, there are 616 years. And from Abraham to Romulus and Remus, 1342 years; and from Romulus and Remus to Augustus Caesar, 787 years; and from Augustus Caesar to the great Flavius Constantine, thrice-blessed, venerable, and of eternal memory, the emperor who transferred the empire from old Rome to Constantinople, formerly Byzantium, which he himself rebuilt and named New Rome, there are 332 years. And from Flavius Constantine Chlorus to Heraclius the Great, 305 years; during which times there also lived the thrice-accursed and false prophet Muhammad, the descendant of Ishmael, who was from the tribe of Kedar, the first-born son of Ishmael. For Nizarone of the descendants of Kedar, begot two sons: Mobdar and Rabiam. Mobdar A begot Cusar, Cait, Theminen, and Asad; and Cusar begot Abedula, and Abedula begot the false prophet and antichrist Muhammad. Being born and raised in poverty, living as a herdsman, and being especially subject to fits of lunacy—being enlightened in the matters of darkness by his father, Satan—he accomplished those things which many others have written about, concerning which it is not necessary for us to speak. We shall, however, make mention of a few of his filthy and wicked deeds. This thrice-accursed man hailed from the mountains of Ethrib. At first, he was a servant to a certain widow of his own tribe, a woman who was very wealthy, named Chadiche. With his wickedness and cunning, he took his mistress to be his wife. Possessing demons, and falling, trembling, and foaming at the mouth, he would disguise this affliction so that his wife and mistress would not be ashamed or blame him for how she had been joined to such a poor, demon-possessed man. He used to say that he saw the angel Gabriel, who spoke to him and revealed to him what was going to come to pass in the world, in the manner that is customary for all monks and prophets. He would be beside himself with fear and would tremble. Now, there was a certain false monk named Sergius, who had been exiled from Constantinople because of his perverted faith, and he was a friend of Muhammad. Muhammad implored him to tell these things to his mistress and wife, and to confirm them, and to urge her not to be saddened but rather to rejoice. The woman believed the false monk more than her husband. B Therefore, Muhammad decreed that all monks should be exempt and free from taxes because of his friendship with the false monk Sergius, and he gave orders accordingly. She, therefore, used to tell the women that her husband was a prophet. And having been proclaimed by the women to their husbands, in this way the false prophet became known in the world to the foolish; and to this day, the same great lie is sung among the Ishmaelites. When his wife died, having become the heir to her vast wealth and riches, he acted as the chieftain of the Ishmaelites in those parts. Then, at that time, the Emperor Heraclius was returning from Persia after a great victory. Wishing to pass through those regions where the miscreant lived and dwelt, which was a journey of some days, the wicked man, upon hearing of this, went out to pay homage and to meet the Emperor, accompanied by many precious gifts worthy of emperors, as well as some others of the same tribe. The Emperor therefore received him on account of the submission and great servitude he displayed. When he asked the Emperor for land to settle in, the Emperor granted it to him along with an imperial decree. Once he had girded himself with the imperial authority and, growing more confident in their friendship and further elated in his mind, he immediately issued edicts; deceiving some with words, and brandishing his sword against those who would not be persuaded, thus forcing them to bow down, he became the complete leader of the Saracens. And after a short time,
finding an opportunity because the kings were distracted by the wars in Italy, he openly declared the heresy which he had kept hidden for many years, and became their lawgiver and teacher; and he composed the chapters for the Koran—that is, the law set forth by him—and divided these chapters into four books, and delivered them to them. These are as follows.
11. In the first chapter of the first book, he says that at the hour of his epileptic fit, while he was A rolling on the ground foaming at the mouth, he would say that he saw the archangel Gabriel coming to him, as has been said. Second, that he compiled the book, naming it in Arabic "Koran," which is called in Greek "the saving Law of God." Third, that he called himself a prophet and apostle of God. Fourth, that he named all the Mosaic books, the Psalter, and the prophetic writings just, holy, and true; and especially among the others, he declared the Gospel to be holy, just, righteous, true, and perfect, so that even in the chapter of Jonah he called these "the commentaries of God." Fifth, that the law was set forth not only by Mohamet but also by others. Sixth, that the law set forth by Mohamet was spoken face-to-face by the demon to whom it was revealed. Seventh, that one Caliph—that is, a supreme teacher—became a Christian. Eighth, that Mohamet, having encountered certain heretical Nestorians and Arians, but also some Jews, accumulated their wickedness. Ninth, that he spoke boastfully concerning himself, saying: "If all humans were gathered together, and all spirits and all angels, they would not be able to compose such a Koran as I." Tenth, that in the upper part, namely on the right side of the Lord's throne, the name of Mohamet is written. Eleventh, that he did not come by means of miracles, but by the sword to give the law, and for those not persuaded by him, the punishment would be death or the payment of tribute. Twelfth, that Noah and Abraham, and indeed the apostles of his own doctrine, he says, were those whom he himself later set forth.
The chapters of the second book are these. First, that he calls holy, just, and given by God those things written in the Mosaic traditions, to the prophets, and to the Psalter and the Gospel, and he cherishes and preserves them, and they are not his followers at all unless they fulfill these things. Second, that those who have followed his law are to be divided into seventy-three sects, and one alone of these shall be saved, while the others shall be delivered to the fire. Third, that if the Koran were not from God, many contradictions would be found in it. Fourth, that he says he ascended into heaven with Gabriel, and encountered an angel ten thousand times greater than the whole world, lamenting his sins, and that he obtained forgiveness from God through him. Fifth, that he is the end and the seal of the prophets. Sixth, that he forbids robbery, murder, and perjury, and then again permits them. Seventh, that God permitted him to commit perjury. Eighth, that as God was conversing with him, He said that B C D he had created the world for the sake of amusement.
A Ninth, that in the chapter called *Baqara*, which is interpreted as "Heifer," he says that the Jews and Christians are to be saved; but in the chapter *Amram* he says again that no one can be saved without the laws of the Ishmaelites. Tenth, that before him no one can enter paradise; and again he says that God showed him many women and men who had entered paradise before him. Eleventh, that God, after the resurrection, promises to give beautiful houses, baths, gardens, and many women to those who follow the law of Muhammad. Twelfth, that in the chapter *Sad* he says that the angels were created from fire, but human beings from dust. Thirteenth, that in the chapter *Nemele*, which is interpreted as "Fly," he tells a certain ridiculous lie about Solomon and the flies, which he relates. Fourteenth, that in the chapter *Rubepa* he tells a lie about Solomon and the worm, similar to the previous lie. Fifteenth, that in the Book of Narratives he explains the reason why wine is forbidden to them. Sixteenth, that this created heaven was made from smoke, and the sea from a certain mountain called *Caph*. Seventeenth, that he says the sun and moon are equal in light and power. Eighteenth, that after this one was summoned by Gabriel to ascend into heaven, and God placed His hand upon him, he perceived such intense cold that it penetrated even to his spinal marrow. Nineteenth, that in the chapter *Sad* he states that the demons were once angels, B and having been ordered by God to worship Adam, they were unwilling to do so, as all the other angels did, and for this reason they became demons, having refused to do this, as the other angels worshipped him, and for this reason they became demons. Twentieth, that he explains the reason why it is forbidden for them to eat swine's flesh. Twenty-first, that at the end of the world God will kill every nature of angels and men. Twenty-second, that he wrote twelve thousand books containing wonderful discourses, and of these three thousand are true, while the others are false. Twenty-third, that in the book *Keramar* he says that he split the moon into two parts, and one half of these entered into his garment, while the other half fell to the earth, and afterward he restored it whole. Twenty-fourth, that God and the angels pray for Muhammad. Twenty-fifth, that in the chapter *Elmaida*, which is interpreted as "Table," he states that the Jews and Christians are not the sons of God or His friends because they are punished.
The chapters of the Third Discourse are these: First, that it is impossible for God to have a son without a woman. Second, that if God had a son, there would have been divisions between them. Third, that in the chapter C *Elnesa*, which is interpreted as "Women," he calls Christ the Word of God, the Soul of God, and the Breath of God. Fourth, that he confesses Christ was born of a virgin without a man. Fifth, that he denies that Christ is the Son of God, or God, or [that there was] His incarnation; he says that He was merely a man, according to Nestorius, but a holy one, and above all men. Sixth, that Christ was not crucified, but another in His place. Seventh, that God called Christ to Himself into the heavens, and concerning
the ends of the world, that he is about to come and kill the Antichrist, and after these things Christ himself also to die. Eighth, that Christians deify the Theotokos, and that she is the sister of Moses and Aaron.
The chapters of the fourth book are these: First, that having been taken up into the heavens, Mohamet stood before God, and heard all that he heard, and again descended to the earth. Second, that the demons are to be saved. Third, that no man knows the interpretation of the Koran, not even Mohamet himself, but God alone. A Having done these things and having taught them to those wretched and miserable barbarians, though he was an unlearned and rustic man, he became their teacher; and the saying was fulfilled in them: "If the blind lead the blind, both shall fall into the ditch." And he wrote one hundred and thirteen other fables, having given to each of these names worthy of his own ignorance and babbling, whose filth and manifest nonsense it would be as great a labor to recount as it was to clear out the dung from the stables of Augeas, as in the fables of Hercules. And having falsely deceived the whole nation and subjected it to himself, and having become their legislator, he then gathered for himself a sufficient force, and raided and plundered all of Syria, and ravaged and ruined many Roman lands. And when he was about to die and depart to his father, Satan, he appointed Abubakar, his nephew, in his stead. And when he had been emir for two and a half years, he died, and in his place Umarus took power. B He took Damascus and all the regions of Phoenicia, and having settled in them, he then took Egypt, and having pitched his dwelling there, he then came against the Persians and conquered them. Then he took Bostra and many other cities, and reached even to Gabatha. Then he marched against Palestine and took the holy city by agreement; and from that time the race of the Ishmaelites has not ceased to raid and plunder the Roman land unto this day, where it has completely dissolved the scepter and destroyed the empire. There was also another, a younger Umarus, who compelled the Saracens to pollute and defile the Christians and made those who obeyed him exempt from taxes; and he wrote also to the Emperor Leo the Armenian to defile him, when he held the city blockaded and was besieging it, and he alone decreed to lift the siege, that Christians should not become martyrs at C the hand of the Turks. They are named in three ways: Saracens, Ishmaelites, and Agarenes. Saracens, because Sarah sent away Agar and Ishmael devoid of inheritance; Ishmaelites, as being descended from Ishmael; and Agarenes, on account of their ancestor Agar.
But let us return to the matter at hand. From Heraclius the Great and the pseudoprophet Mohamet until the reign of Constantine Palaeologus, the eighth to reign from the lineage of the Palaeologi, who reigned four years and four months, there are 857 years. The lineage of the Palaeologi reigned in this reigning city of the
1,143 years, 10 months, and 4 days. A The empire in Constantinople began under Flavius Constantine and took its end under Constantine Palaeologus.
The Amir, having therefore on the third day after the capture of the city celebrated a triumph and great rejoicing on account of the victory won against the city, commanded that all men, small and great, who were hidden in certain secret places of the city should come out, and that they should be free and unmolested; likewise, that all those who had fled from the city, as we have previously mentioned, for fear of the war, should each return to his own house and live according to his own order and religion, as it was before. He likewise commanded that they should also appoint a patriarch, as was customary according to their order; for the patriarch had died before this. And those archbishops who chanced to be present, and the very few other clergy and laymen, chose the most wise lord George Scholarius, who was still a layman, and consecrated him as patriarch, whom they also named Gennadius. B There existed also a duty and custom for Christian emperors to bestow upon the newly consecrated patriarch a golden staff, adorned with precious stones and pearls, and a choice horse from the imperial [stables], adorned sumptuously with a saddle and imperial housing; and the horse was covered with white silk and gold thread. And from the emperor’s palace, the patriarch departed with the entire senate, and being acclaimed in the patriarchal residence, he returned; and the consecration was performed by the archbishops, as was the order and law.
The one who was to be patriarch received the staff from the emperor’s hands in this manner: The emperor sitting on the imperial throne, and the entire senate standing bareheaded and upright, the great protopapas of the palace would pronounce a blessing, then also a short litany, and the great domestic would chant, "Where the presence of the king is," and the rest. Then the "Glory" by the lampadarius from the other choir, and "Now" and "King of the heavens," and the rest. After the conclusion of the troparion, the emperor would stand up, holding the staff in his right hand, and the candidate approaching, with the metropolitan of Caesarea on one side of him and the metropolitan of Heraclea on the other, he would make three prostrations to all, then approach the emperor and perform before him the obeisance due to him. C And the 306 emperor, holding the staff aloft a little, would say, "The Holy Trinity, which granted the empire to me, promotes you to be patriarch of New Rome." And thus, from the imperial hands, the patriarch would receive the authority and would give thanks to the emperor. Then the choirs would chant, "For many years, master," three times, and there would be a dismissal. The patriarch, descending with torches to the *dibabula* (the vestibule), and finding the horse prepared, would mount upon it.
Thus, this wicked man also, wishing to act as emperor of the city, just as the Christian emperors used to do, summoned D the patriarch,
A that he might sit with him to dine and converse. And when the patriarch arrived, the tyrant received him with great honor, and after they had conversed much together, he made countless promises to the patriarch. When the time came for the patriarch to depart from the palace, the emir brought out and gave to him as a gift that precious staff of office, and he urged him to accept it. And he descended with the patriarch to the bottom of the court, the patriarch wishing it or not, and having the horse prepared, he made him mount and commanded that all the lords of his court should go out in a procession with the patriarch, and so they accompanied him as far as the venerable Church of the Holy Apostles, some walking before him and some following him. For the emir had given that sanctuary of the Apostles as a patriarchal see. But the most beautiful and divine Church of the Holy Wisdom, that famous treasure, that earthly heaven and unheard-of marvel, the wicked one turned into his own place of worship. The miracle-working church in Blachernae had been burned, as was written earlier. After the patriarch had spent some time in the venerable Church of the Holy Apostles, then, observing that in those parts of the city no poor Christian remained, and fearing that some harm might happen to him because of the desolation—since on one of the days an Agarene was found murdered in the courtyard of the church—for these reasons the patriarch asked for the Monastery of the Pammakaristos, B for in those parts a few Christians had remained. And he ordered the nuns who were in the Pammakaristos to depart to the Monastery of the holy prophet and forerunner John that is in Trullo, where, during the reign of Justinian Rhinotmetus, the quinisext holy synod was gathered. For this was a brilliant palace at that time, located near the Pammakaristos towards the north.
C This most polluted man, then, the destroyer of the Christians, being wicked and wily and playing the fox, did these things not out of piety or goodness, but so that the Christians, hearing the promises, might gather together in the city and inhabit it; for it had been deserted because of the daily war, and especially by the conquest. And so it happened, and some Christians were gathered. After a short time, he also brought in some settlers, called in that language *sourgounides*, from Kaffa, Trebizond, Sinope, and Asprocastron, and thus repopulated the city. And he also gave written decrees to the patriarch, signed with royal authority at the bottom, so that no one should molest or oppose him, but that he should be unanswerable, tax-free, and undisturbed by any opponent, and that he himself and the patriarchs after him, and likewise all the bishops subject to him, should be exempt from any tax or levy in perpetuity. D
BOOK IV
*Starting from the capture of the Queen of Cities, containing the disturbances and wars in the Peloponnese between the brothers and despots, and how the Amiras, having subdued them, subdued also this island, and concerning what happened to the author, and other matters, as they will be found according to their chapters.*A 1. I then, having been captured and having endured all the hardships and evils of captivity, the wretched one, was finally ransomed on the first of September of the year 6962 and was safely brought into the Peloponnese, to Sparta. But my wife and my children were captured by some old Turks, good men, and were sold by them in turn to the first master of horse of the Amiras, who is called in their language *merachures*, who also bought many other noblewomen and made a great profit from selling them. But since the beauty and other good qualities of my children could not remain hidden, when the Amiras heard about them, he took them, having given the aforementioned master of his horse much money. Their wretched mother remained alone with one girl whom she had raised herself, but the others were scattered.
B And the Latins, despising and blaming and accusing us, say that it is because of our sins and because we do not think rightly that we lost the empire. We, however, say that we are sinners, and no one is sinless except God alone; but concerning thinking rightly, C know, fathers and brothers, that we have made no innovation in the pronouncements of the Gospel, but whatever the eyewitnesses and ministers of the Word taught us, and whatever the seven holy and ecumenical synods and the local ones, as needed, truly delivered to us, that we believe and glorify, and we hold it truly and firmly, just as the most holy Silvester taught in the first synod, and the most holy pope Damasus in the second synod, and the most holy pope Celestine in the third synod, and the most holy pope Leo in the fourth synod, and the most holy pope Vigilius in the fifth synod, and the most holy pope Agatho D in the sixth synod, and the most holy pope Adrian in the seventh synod. For you all know that they [held] anathemas and excommunicate—
excommunications that are indissoluble, so that no one should dare to add or to subtract or in any way to unsettle that which they, following in an evangelical and apostolic manner and with precision, sealed through the Holy Spirit. The witnesses to these [decrees] are the synodical books and the synodical letters of the highest bishops, that is, the popes, of each time, and of those holy and great synods, as we have enumerated, being [men] from your own race of the Latins, men protected by God, honored in word and in deed. We hold this tradition securely, so that we may not fall under the excommunication of the most holy apostles and the seven holy ecumenical synods and those most holy and truly supreme bishops. And we, in an evangelical and apostolic manner, hold to the tradition of elder Rome in truth; for our dogma was always confessed by both sides, but that which has been innovated by them appears to be beyond reproach to them alone, and it behooves us to be their judges and accusers, and not they ours. But now, lately, certain theologians of theirs, or rather it is better to call them innovators, are not ashamed to ascend the pulpit B teaching things about the *excerpta Graecorum*—that is to say, our errors—and then, having nothing else to say except only, as we have said, that because we do not think rightly we have lost the empire. And they themselves, perhaps as though they were supposedly orthodox, perhaps because they themselves hold the empire for themselves, not knowing that not all who rule are by any means orthodox, nor again are those who are ruled heretics, as is visible in our case. For the Ishmaelites are not orthodox simply because they rule over us, and before them the idolaters who persecuted the Christians, or again the Egyptians or Babylonians who once ruled over the Ishmaelites. But they have nothing to say; for it is clear that those who ruled were impious, while those who were ruled were pious. For this reason, they ought not to boast about the empire. And further than this, we argue against them: how do those who dwell in Mysia and Russia and eastern Iberia and Abasgia, and in other regions, rule and are ruled of themselves, although they follow our dogmas? And, furthermore, the schism of the churches was caused by Pope Stephen C the Syrphro, who was the first among the Italians to allow the holy liturgy to be performed with unleavened bread, and he openly proclaimed the addition to the holy creed, and first shaved off the hairs of his beard, and thus passed it on to all under him, while at that time the empire of the New Rome was ruled by the ever-memorable emperor Constantine Monomachos, and the patriarchate was administered by Michael, who was called by the surname Cerularius. This patriarch, then, following the judgment of the emperor and the other three patriarchs and the archbishop of Bulgaria and of Cyprus and of the entire synod under him, cast the aforementioned Pope Stephen out of the diptychs, demanding the reason for the [use of] unleavened bread and the addition of the interpolation, in the year of the world 6500, the eleventh indiction. The church of Alexandria and Antioch and Jerusalem, and the faithful Thebais, holy...
A Libya, which nourished the citizens of the kingdom of heaven, as the divine Cosmas says, when were they subjugated by the emir Umar, who was the third after the thrice-accursed Muhammad, and taken prisoner? And this is clear, that it happened during the reign of Constantine Pogonatus, in the year of the world 6134, before the holy and ecumenical sixth synod was assembled, at which time there were neither schisms nor dissensions in the churches. After some time, the emperors, with no small labor, liberated the holy city from the hands of the impious B and restored it to the power of the Romans; but again, for the second time, during the reign of Basil the Porphyrogenitus, who is called Bulgaroctonus, the emir of Egypt, Azizius, took the holy city by war, and destroyed the temple of our Savior Jesus Christ, which was beautifully built over his tomb, and defiled the vessels, razed the monasteries, and killed or banished the monks dwelling everywhere in that land, of whom there were more Latins than Romans, and others of various nations. It is very astonishing, as they say, that while the churches were united at that time, God should have delivered them into the hands of the impious. So that from all these things one could see that we were not delivered to our enemies on account of any transgression, but for a measured discipline, just as those holy men before us: "For whom the Lord loves he disciplines, and scourges every son whom he receives," and what follows. C "For God is faithful," he says, "who will not allow you to be tempted beyond what you are able." And David: "The Lord has disciplined me, but he has not delivered me over to death."
Listen also to this. Just as the kingdom of the Assyrians was overthrown by the Babylonians, that of the Babylonians by the Persians, that of the Persians by the Macedonians, and that of the Macedonians by the Romans, so too the empire of the Romans has been overthrown by the Ottomans. But the end of this shall come at the proper and appointed time, and it shall be overthrown, as the divinely inspired Isaiah says in the vision concerning Idumea: "The Lord said to me: Within a year, as is the year D of a hireling, the glory of Kedar shall fail, and the remnants of the arrows of the strong sons of Kedar shall be few, because the Lord, the God of Israel, has spoken." To this saying of the prophet the most wise Stephen of Alexandria, applying himself, in the year 6131, on the 3rd of September, the 6th day of the week, made and set forth a calculation concerning the kingdom of the Ishmaelites: "This shall reign in power and prosperity for three hundred and nine years, and then in distress and turmoil for another fifty-six years, so that their total duration, both prosperous and adverse, shall be 365 years." Some, interpreting the prophecy incorrectly, say that the astronomer reasoned poorly, taking the beginning of the prophecy from the year I mentioned. And if it were thus, it would be false. But I, for my part, according to the opinion of certain very learned philosophers, have learned and understood that for this matter the wise man [set the] beginning
and knowledgeable in the affairs of men. This sage does not derive the origin of the Ishmaelite religion or empire from the times of Mahomet, but speaks as if he were referring to the divine prophecy of Daniel. A He calls the Roman empire the fourth beast; and the interpreters do not set its beginning from Remus and Romulus, nor do they make mention of the Roman principalities, of the nobility, the plebs, the dictators, the consuls, or the early kingdoms, but [begin] solely from Octavius Caesar because of the termination of the monarchy, as will be shown below. In the same way, the most wise Stephen makes the beginning of his canon from the Emir Otman. Furthermore, the most wise Emperor of the Romans, Leo, also created a *thema*, discovering that the empire of the Hagarenes, which is to say the Ishmaelites, has a powerful and strong duration of three hundred years, being the triple-counted circle. He made no mention of the fifty-six year period of turmoil. Afterwards, the fair-haired race, together with the avengers, will put the whole race of Ishmael to flight, according to the oracles of divine men. And indeed, through the four winds, the greatest Zacharias and the divine Daniel signify the four great empires—I mean that of the Chaldeans, the Persians, the Macedonians, and the Romans. B They say that the two bronze mountains are the two regions of the inhabited world, for it is divided into two, into Asia and Europe. And the red horses signify the bloodthirstiness of the Chaldeans; the black ones, the death brought upon the Babylonians by the Persians and Medes; the white ones, the clarity of the glory of the Macedonians—for this empire is not like the others. And the dapple-gray... demonstrate the strength and vigor of the Roman empire. Then, by the mandate that they should traverse the earth, it is signified that every empire stands by God. For Eusebius Pamphili says: In the time of Augustus Octavius Caesar, the fourth empire takes its beginning, which Daniel calls the fourth fearful beast, because at that time he was the first to be sole monarch and, so to speak, subjugated the whole world. On one of the days, having gone away to Delphi, the place now called Daulia, he asked the oracle who would reign after him. When the Pythian [prophetess] answered nothing, he asked again why the oracle was silent. Then the Pythia said... Upon his arrival in Rome, when he was about to die, he instructed those in authority to clap their hands and laugh, as if at the death of a mime. He decreed this should be done, seeing the human life as something worthy of laughter. C
And so, regarding the aforementioned kingdoms, the divine prophet Daniel and the divine Zacharias and others, as we have said, declared through the Holy Spirit their restoration, their fall, and all the events that occurred; likewise did Isaiah, and the wise Stephen, and the Emperor Leo, regarding the fall of the empire, as we have previously stated. And Moses, who saw God, explains the following regarding their increase and success in Genesis: “Our patriarch Abraham fathered eight sons: first, Ishmael the bastard, by Hagar; second, Isaac, [born] by promise from his wife D Sarah, who was also blessed by God.”
A After the death of Sarah, he took Keturah as his wife, by whom he fathered six sons: Zimran, Jokshan, Medan, Midian, Ishbak, and Shuah. But let us return to Ishmael the bastard. After Hagar had been approached by Abraham, she became pregnant. When Sarah noticed this, moved by envy, she reproached, injured, and afflicted Hagar. Since she could not bear the torments and injuries of her mistress, she fled. And as she was fleeing from her mistress Sarah, the angel of the Lord met her, saying: “Return to your mistress, and be humbled under her hands.” And the angel of the Lord said to her: “Behold, you are with child, and you shall bear a son, and you shall call his name Ishmael, because the Lord has heard your humiliation. He will be a wild man, his hands will be against all, and the hands of all will be against him; and he will dwell in the presence of all his brothers.” B And again, in chapter 17, God said to Abraham concerning Sarah, his wife: “I will bless Sarah, your wife, and I will give you a child from her, and I will bless him, and he shall be for nations, and kingdoms of nations shall come from him.” And Abraham fell upon his face and laughed, and said in his mind: “Is it possible for a hundred-year-old man to have a son, and for Sarah, being ninety years old, to bear one?” And Abraham said to God: “May this Ishmael live before you.” And God said to Abraham: “No; behold, Sarah your wife will bear you a son, and I will establish my covenant with him as an everlasting covenant, to be God to him and to his seed after him. C As for Ishmael, behold, I have heard you, and behold, I have blessed him and I will multiply him exceedingly; he will beget twelve nations, and I will make him a great nation. But my covenant I will establish with Isaac, whom Sarah will bear to you at this time.” Here we are able to grasp the great mystery of our pious, sound, and holy faith, and the impiety to which the Hagarenes are subject. And God did not tell him this once, but even twice. In the first instance, He said: “You shall bear a son and shall call his name Isaac, and I will establish my covenant with him as an everlasting covenant, and with his seed after him.” D But Abraham, having asked God to do likewise for Ishmael and to bless him, God replied, saying: “Behold, I have blessed him, and I will multiply him exceedingly, and he will beget twelve nations, and he shall be [only] a great nation. But my covenant I will establish with Isaac.” And God did not wish to give and entrust His covenant to Ishmael and his seed, but only to Isaac and those from him forever. And it is something to be wondered at if anyone cannot grasp the meaning of these words. The Hagarenes, however, being barbarian and wild men, do not correctly understand the meaning of the words, and they lament how God from the beginning excluded their patriarch and themselves from His covenant and His grace; yet, they boast that they too are descendants of Abraham, and that God blessed Ishmael just as He did Isaac. They err, however, in this matter, as they are accustomed to do in all things, because
A God blessed Isaac and entrusted His covenant to him, but did not do so for Ishmael; rather, He blessed him simply, saying: "And I will multiply him exceedingly." God also blessed the irrational animals, the four-footed beasts, the reptiles, the fish, and the birds, saying: "Increase and multiply, and fill the earth." But to Adam He did not bless in that manner only—"Increase and multiply, and fill the earth"—but also: "And have dominion over it," and He gave into his hands everything that is upon the earth to rule and to master, so that one may see that the blessings of God are also various, and not as they say. For the divine and sacred Scriptures well demonstrate to those who think rightly how the blessings, the lineages, and the inheritance of each of the sons of Abraham—I mean Isaac and Ishmael—are different.
In the twentieth and twenty-first chapters, it says this concerning Ishmael: "And Sarah said to Abraham: 'Cast out this slave woman with her son; for the son of this slave woman shall not be heir with my son Isaac.' And the matter seemed very harsh B before Abraham concerning his son Ishmael. But God said to Abraham: 'Let it not seem harsh before you concerning the lad and the slave woman. All that Sarah says to you, listen to her voice, for in Isaac your seed shall be called; and as for the son of this slave woman, I will make him a great nation, because he is your seed.'"
A And Abraham rose early in the morning and took bread and a skin of water and gave it to Hagar, and he put it upon her shoulder, and the boy, and he sent her away. And she went and wandered in the desert by the well of the oath; and the water from the skin failed, and Ishmael fainted from thirst. And she cast the boy away and wept. And God heard the voice of the boy from the place where he was; and an angel of God called to Hagar from heaven and said to her: "What is it, Hagar? Do not fear, for God has heard the voice of your boy from the place where he is. Rise, and take the boy, and hold him with your hand, for I will make him into a great nation." And God opened her eyes, and she saw a well of living water, and she went and filled the skin with water and gave the boy a drink. And God was with the boy, and he grew, and he dwelt in the wilderness of Pharan; and he became a skilled archer.
C Here we may grasp the nature of Ishmael. As God promised to Abraham, He made him into a great nation, and great kings have come forth from him, and we see his hand against all, and the hands of all against him, and he has dwelt in the presence of all of us, and his descendants are archers who are very, very excellent. Nevertheless, God deprived him of His covenant; so that, as the divine Scripture says, and as had been determined long before from on high by the judgments which God knows, it came to pass; for it was necessary that the things which the God-seer Moses said should reach their fulfillment, and not that we...
A should think rightly—we, Romans and Serbs and Bulgarians—as those who accuse and reproach us say. But if, on the other hand, we have been disciplined by sins, you Italians also should not remain carefree; rather, lay your hands upon your breasts, reflect in your minds, and cease accusing us. Indeed, those Israelites, being faithless, harsh, and unmerciful, by God’s command discipline the faithful and hold sway over the greater part of the world. Therefore, the Italians ought not to boast about these things, claiming to be just and holy because they think correctly, and reigning to this day because of their own orthodoxy and justice.
These words we have spoken not to condemn or accuse anyone—God forbid!—but to show those who speak against us that they do not understand the Scriptures correctly and clearly. It is for this reason that they blame us, and all of them are wise at admonishing others, but they do not perceive that they themselves are sinning. B
2. Let us now return to our narrative. If anyone should ask what the Emperor did in the time that passed during the war, I would say to him: In that very time and season when the Ameras [Sultan] was preparing for war, the external Christian princes were equipping themselves to bring aid. Now, as for the Christian princes round about, it is clear to all that they brought no aid; rather, the Ameras sent an envoy to the prince of Serbia, George, so that he might mediate concerning peace between the Hungarians and the Ameras. Now with the departing envoy, there was some educated Christian, added by certain Turkish counselors, to persuade the Despot that he should endeavor to reconcile friendship, so that if a pact of peace and friendship were made with the Hungarians, the Turk would immediately invade Constantinople. The wretched man disregarded this and cared nothing for it, not knowing that if the head is cut off from the body, the members are dead.
C Then, therefore, a great council having been held at Venice concerning this matter, there arose the man who was Doge at that time, by name Francesco Foscari, saying: “The Emperor John, in truth, did not request us out of ignorance. But even others who had seen and conversed with him denied that a more prudent man had been seen in Italy. But wickedness and envy stood in the way; for envy knows not how to honor utility. The cause of this was Aloysius Diedus, who had once taken care that my master of blessed memory, the lord Constantine, being at that time Despot in the Peloponnese, should take to wife the daughter of this Doge with a great dowry. My master, therefore, for no other reason than that he himself and his principality might be joined with the Venetians, admitted that affinity, with myself and many others approving it and almost forcing it to come to pass. But after he became Emperor and came to the city, this was improper; for how could the men of the city and the noblewomen accept a Venetian daughter as their mistress and empress, and her sons-in-law and the other...
brothers of the empress be the A emperor’s brothers-in-law? While the Duke was perhaps honored, it was only for a time. And again, after my master became emperor, the Duke sought such a thing, but was sent away. Because of this, the man became an enemy; and though Aloysius Lauredanus and Antonius Diedus and many others said much, and demonstrated that if the city were captured, a great loss would come to their own authority as well, they still could not persuade the Duke to assist the emperor.
And the Church of Rome was concerned about this. For since the Cardinal of Russia was in the city, and I had mediated regarding this with my master, the venerable and blessed emperor, that this cardinal should be made Patriarch of Constantinople—and if this happened, such and such things would be done by him and the pope of that time for the aid of the city, if only the pope were commemorated a second time—after many discussions and deliberations, it seemed good to the admirable emperor, my master, that neither of the two [outcomes] should happen at all, because the one who became patriarch would necessarily have to be obeyed by all, or else strife and enmity would arise between him and those who did not obey him. And in that interval of time, if a war from external enemies were to occur, and we were also to have [strife] within, how great an evil would that be? But the commemoration of the pope should happen for the sake of the hope of aid in our necessity; and as for those who would do this in the Hagia B Sophia, the others should be blameless and peaceful.
C And on the twelfth of December, six months having passed, and as much talk having been made regarding aid as the Sultan of Cairo, that is to say of Egypt, had made—though from Serbia it was possible for money to be sent secretly in many ways, and men likewise in another manner—yet no one benefited or saw even a farthing. Nay, in truth, they sent much money and men to the Emir who was besieging the city; and the Turks triumphed over them, showing that "Behold, even the Serbs are against you." Who among the Christian princes or the Iberians sent a single farthing or men for the aid of the city, either openly or secretly? The Hungarians, however, sent envoys to the Emir saying that, in order for them to have peace and friendship with the emperor—as they had made peace with them—they had acted in friendship; but since they were not keeping the treaties between us and them, they also were renouncing the whole peace-making. And the envoys arrived when the city was being besieged, in the very week they were about to make the assault. And the D Emir and his entire council stalled them with flattering words, to expect the answer today or tomorrow. And they did this with guile, up until they saw what the outcomes would be, so that if they captured the city, they might say to them, "For behold, we have taken it; now you go away and do as seems best to you, whether to have peace with us or war"—which is exactly what happened and was said to the envoys. But if they were not to capture it, they had intended to say that the war [was] on account of the peace between us and them.
A Rumor, however, was whispered that the Emir was considering and saying: "If I do not take the city now, I shall immediately make peace, and I shall keep it throughout my whole life."
But what did my blessed lord and emperor not do, B secretly or openly, for the defense of the city and of his own empire, or rather, to speak more truly, for the salvation of his own life? For it is clear that, if he had wished, he could easily have fled. But he did not wish to, but instead struggled like the good shepherd who lays down his life for his sheep, as indeed he did. And who besides John Cantacuzenus and me knew these things and others that transpired? That the Hungarian Jancus had requested that the emperor grant him Selymbria or Mesembria, and he would be one of his subjects, and he would have many of his own men there, and in the time of battle against the Turks, he would be their enemy and a helper of the city. And as the battle occurred, Mesembria was given to him according to his request, and the golden bull was written by me, and the son-in-law of Theodosius the Cypriot, the son of Michael, carried the golden bull to Jancus. Who knew of the request of the king of the Catalans? Who requested that Lemnos be gifted to him, and he would always fight against the Turks by sea and, in case of necessity, would provide help for the city; and this was being done. Who knew how much money and what promises the emperor had given and sent to Chios via Galata, so that they might send men, C and did they not send them? Or what of the fasts and prayers, which he either performed himself or arranged to be performed through the priests, distributing money to them or to the poor, whom he loved more? Or the promises which he made in such great numbers to God for the liberation of the Christians from the captivity of the impious? But yet, God overlooked all these things—due to what sins, I do not know the cause—and men were ignorant of them, and each one spoke as it seemed to him. I, for my part, according to my own opinion, say this: it was truly the judgment of God, which had been decreed of old, that the Roman state should descend to extreme miseries. Therefore, by the secret counsels of Providence, there is a great concurrence of painful, adverse, and harmful things, while for good and beneficial things there are very many obstacles.
A little while ago, then, we spoke of the things concerning the thrice-accursed Mahomet, a part of his absurd stories, which are worthy of laughter; now, therefore, let us state their objections and refutations.
3. Bring forth for our condemnation, O impious ones, that Christ, when asked by the Jews, "Are you the Son of God?", denied it and said, "You say this." D And you bring this forward as testimony against us, so that you might show that what is said by you is true. Yet you do this out of your ignorance of the Scriptures; for if you were found examining and searching the Scriptures as you ought, you would not have wandered. Yet I omit for the present the testimonies from the beginning of the world, which were spoken concerning Christ, showing Him to be the Son of God, and God and man, which are many; therefore, from these, having reached—
some particulars, let us speak them. Yet I also say this: since Christ was their teacher, what else was it B for which the Jews crucified Christ, other than that He showed Himself to be God and man and the Son of God? At one time He said, “He who sees Me sees My Father”; C at another, “I and My Father are one”; at another, “If you had known Me, you would have known My Father also”; at another, likewise, “If anyone keeps My word, he shall never see death”; and elsewhere, “Your sins are forgiven you.” Seeing these things, the Jews said to Him, “Who do You make Yourself out to be? Being a man, You make Yourself God?” And what did Christ say? “He who believes in Me, though he may die, he shall live. And as the Father raises the dead and gives life to them, even so the Son gives life to whom He will.” And, “No one knows the Son except the Father, nor has anyone seen the Father except the Son and the one to whom the Son wills to reveal Him.” Would Christ, therefore, the one sayer of these things and teacher of men, upon being asked, have been about to hide the truth? And what foolish and simple-minded man would suppose this? For if He were not God and the Son of God, His disciples, when asked by Him, “Who do men say that I, the Son of Man, am?” would not have said to Him, “Some say that You are Elijah, others Jeremiah, or one of the prophets.” And Christ said to them, “But who do you say that I am?” And Peter, answering, said to Him, “You are the Christ, the Son of the living God.” For was Christ about to say to Peter, “You have been deceived, you have spoken blasphemously, you have spoken ill; I am not the Son of God”? For indeed, was He about to teach them anything other than the truth? What, then, did Christ say to Simon Peter? “Blessed are you, Simon Bar-Jonah, for flesh and blood has not revealed this to you, but My Father who is in heaven.” Christ did not ask Peter who men said He was out of ignorance, but just as He said regarding Lazarus before that death, “Our friend Lazarus has fallen asleep; but I go to awaken him”; and having gone, He asked, “Where have you laid him?” and then spoke with power, “Lazarus, come forth,” and the breathless one obeyed the command of the Lord, Christ demonstrating both His divinity and His humanity; so, for the present, He asked the disciples in order to show Himself as God and man, and that from this He might lead them little by little to the height of true knowledge. But furthermore, after the resurrection, what did Thomas say, who was himself one of the twelve disciples, having touched the side of Christ? Certainly, he also said thus: “My Lord and my God.” What, then, does Christ say to him? He did not say to him, “Cease from blaspheming”; but what? “Because you have seen Me, you have believed. Blessed are those who have not seen and yet have believed.” But also at the beginning of the preaching, what did Nathanael, being a teacher of the law of the Jews, say? He questioned Him as much as he wished and desired; but having heard from Him, from Christ, the things which he had in secret in his heart, he says to Jesus, “You are the Son of God! You are the King of Israel!” He then reproved
A him as one who spoke ill? Not so, but what does Christ say to him? “Because I told you the secrets of your heart, do you believe? You shall see greater things than these.”
And as for the fact that when asked by Pilate, Christ said, “You have said it,” this is of such a nature: it is not a speech of denial, but of agreement and confession; it is just as He spoke to Judas. For while sitting with His disciples, Christ says to them: “One of you shall betray me.” And each one began to ask about himself: “Is it I?” And another asked: “Is it I?” Judas also said: “Is it I?” Christ says: “You have said it.” Then, certainly, it was not a speech of denial, but of agreement. So it is also in the case of Pilate; for it was a common phrase in that region, and Christ used it as the speech of that place. And just as even now, often among the Muslims, one says to another with a suggestion that they do something, and the other, instead of saying “Let it be done,” replies, “You have found it” (or “You know”), and it is not a speech of denial, but of agreement; so it is also in the case of Christ. As a phrase of that place, Christ used such an expression: “You have said it.”
Nevertheless, the same Pilate asked Christ, saying: “Are you the King of the Jews?” Christ answered: “My kingdom is not of this world. If my kingdom were of this world, my servants would have fought, that I should not be delivered to the Jews. But now my kingdom is not from here.” Pilate then said to Him: “Are you then a King?” Christ answered: “You say that I am a King; to this I was born, and for this I have come into the world, that I should bear witness to the truth. Everyone who is of the truth hears my voice.” B Pilate says to Him: “What is truth?” Do you see how it was shown more clearly here? By all means, Christ showed himself to be King and said so. And being asked by Pilate, He answered him this again; instead of saying, “Yes, I am a King,” He said: “You say that I am a King.” What, then, does Pilate say, when Christ had said, “To this I was born, and for this I have come into the world, that I should bear witness to the truth,” when he says to Him: “What is truth?” That is to say: If truth were in the world, you would not be delivered to death; and as if lamenting the lack of truth, he said, “What is truth?” But even when asked by the high priest, Christ, when he said: “I adjure you by the living God that you tell us if you are the Son of God,” answered nothing else but “I am.”
Do you know how it is that Muslims, regarding things of which they are ignorant, accuse men worthy of praise? Behold, therefore, if you seek the truth, know it. If not, you know—for ignorance concerning it is not from the truth, but from those who turn away from it.
C Since it has been sufficiently demonstrated that we Christians are accused by the Muslims D of things wrongly, so that we are above every accusation, come, let us therefore consider also regarding
A other things. For they say that God said to Muhammad: "I made all things for your sake, and you for mine," and this the Christians do not accept. But they also say that the name of Muhammad was found written in the Gospel, with Christ saying this to the Jews: "I bring you good news 334, so that you may know that after me is to come the apostle and prophet Muhammad." The same is [said to be] also in the ancient books of Moses. But the Christians, out of envy, cast it out of the Gospel. And [they claim] that not only in the Gospel and in the ancient [books] is the name of Muhammad found written, but it is also found written on the right side of the throne of God. And [they claim] that the faith of the Muslims is found [derived] from Abraham, and that the Christians, having transgressed the law of Moses, are worthy of accusation and blame, whereas they accuse the Muslims of being worthy of praise and honor.
These are the things for which we Christians are accused by the Muslims. We answer them thus: that a God who is in need and who has need of anything is not God. The Maker of heaven and earth and of all things created in them, He who created the angels and mankind, had no need of anything, but out of mere goodness and will He made all things. Since therefore this is so, and there is no one who contradicts it, Muhammad spoke ill when he claimed that God said to him, "I made all things for your sake, and you for mine"; for God has no need of anything. B That the faith of the Muslims is not from Abraham, as Muhammad says, is proven by Muhammad himself; for he is the founder and lawgiver of such doctrines. But if he is another, let it be shown; for from Abraham unto Muhammad three thousand years passed, and after these Muhammad appeared; therefore the faith of the Muslims is not from Abraham. But if perhaps you say this because of the circumcision, I will tell you the reason for the circumcision.
Abraham, having watched the heaven, the sun, the stars, the earth, the sea, and what is in them, pondered within himself and said: "Are such great and extraordinary works simply and automatically come into being, or do they have someone who made them?" Having therefore beheld the beauty of the creatures, he wondered and was amazed, and pondered in his mind whether they might not have someone who made them, but rather that these were gods, as his parents and all the idolaters supposed. And that God indeed made all things very good and worthy of His operation, so that through the contemplation of these all men might be led to the knowledge of God and might magnify and glorify their maker and creator, this is so and not otherwise. But men, having turned aside from the true and right knowledge, and having ceased to worship and revere the God who is the maker of all things, rather worshipped the creation and revered it instead of the Creator. But Abraham was not so, but, being of quick mind, and having seen
A that the heaven does not stand still, but has continuous motion, and has need of solar light both to illuminate itself for the sake of contemplation and also the air beneath it; and that the sun is sometimes found above the earth and at other times hidden beneath the earth, and that when there are no clouds it shines, but when they are present it is obscured; and that the moon and the stars do not shine when the sun is present, but when it is present they are obscured and their light and visibility vanish; and that the sea is mocked by the winds, and the earth is in need of water for the generation of fruits; he condemned all these things as being of themselves weak and having need of one another, and he did not reckon that there was anything of God among these things, for God has no need of anything. B Again, having considered lest perhaps each one of these things, being weak, might be in such a state as to be singly God, but all of them together, and having seen that to the dry is opposed the moist, and to the cold the hot, and how water is destructive of fire, he judged within himself and said that a God who is at variance with himself and warring is not God. And thence, having beheld the good order and constitution of creation, he was in doubt within himself as to whether there is some power that holds together and governs the all. And since all people confess that there is a God, but each confesses whosoever he chooses and prefers, it seems that all are deceived and lie. It remains, therefore, that there is no other true God than the One who made all things, which are His servants, and He leads and carries and orders them as He wills. This God, therefore, I worship.
A And having fallen upon the ground, Abraham worshipped the only and true God. And the all-good God, who says through the prophet Isaiah: "While you are yet speaking, I am present," He Himself immediately accepted Abraham’s worship and faith. This faith was therefore reckoned to him for righteousness in place of all virtues, and he became a friend of God. For we all need the help of the Scriptures because of our weakness; but the just Noah and Abraham and those who in their time kept the heart pure did not need letters, but they were written and impressed in their hearts. B Then, therefore, God spoke to him also the promises, saying: "In your seed shall all the nations be blessed." Then God showed Abraham the whole land, and said to him: "To you and to your seed I will give it." And thence, having obtained boldness, Abraham besought God concerning the Sodomites, as we have said before. But since God, by the judgments which He saw (for who has known the mind of the Lord?), knew that after a little while the descendants of Abraham were about to be sent into Egypt, so that they might pass time there for four hundred and thirty years; for so God had said to Abraham, that "Your seed shall be a sojourner in a foreign land; and the nation whom they shall serve, I will judge"—which also happened under Pharaoh. C And because of the long-continued stay of the Hebrews with the Pharaoh-ites, lest perhaps by becoming united they should learn their customs and idolatry, circumcision was ordained as a certain sign and symbol separating and
A dividing the Hebrews from the Egyptians, so that they might not come together into the communion and union of marriage, partly for the reason we have already stated, and partly so that, even at the time of their liberation, the Hebrews might be ready and recognizable. For indeed, if they had been united with foreigners, how was the seed and lineage of Abraham to be preserved? For this reason, while they were in the desert, they were not circumcised, spending forty years there, but were circumcised in Egypt and again after their exodus from the desert. And the purpose of circumcision is thus, just as we have said. The other purpose is this: that, being circumcised in the flesh, they might come to moderation and temperance in their conduct, and not be lustful and incontinent, and from this might consider their fornications as nothing, being led upward little by little to a higher understanding and way of life, since circumcision was not given by God for the sake of orthodoxy, but only for the causes we have mentioned.
That after the coming of Christ the Law ceased and circumcision further exists no longer, pay attention to what you are about to hear. Baptism was given by God for the sake of orthodoxy, and for this reason all men and all women are baptized, and he who has not been baptized is not orthodox. But with circumcision it is not so; only men are circumcised, and women are not. It seems then that men, as circumcised, are thought to be orthodox, while women, as uncircumcised, are thought to be impious. You see how different is the argument of circumcision, and how differently the Mussulmans behave; B for they themselves consider every uncircumcised person as impious. And behold, you are fighting against yourselves, and what you honor for the sake of orthodoxy, you partly dishonor.
And not only in this matter do the Mussulmans manifest such contradictions among themselves, but in many other things, which there is no need to speak of at present. Let us speak, however, of one. Christ says in the Gospel that unless one is baptized, he is not of God nor of salvation. Muhammad testifies that the Gospel is holy and perfect and upright. The Mussulmans consider the circumcised to be orthodox, and the baptized to be impious. If, therefore, you cherish Muhammad because he speaks truly, why do you call the baptized impious, and why do you not follow the teaching of the Gospel, and why do you count the circumcised as acting wrongly, and the baptized as acting piously, but rather think the opposite? Is it not manifest that you are fighting against yourselves and are destroying yourselves? But these things are so.
Since Ishmael, whom the Mussulmans say they have as an ancestor, did not come down into Egypt with the Hebrews—because there was no need for him as there was for the Hebrews—nor was he reckoned among the heirs of Abraham, because God had so commanded Abraham, saying: “Cast out the maidservant with her son; for the son of the maidservant shall not be heir with the son of the free woman.” And Ishmael was cast out with his mother...
from Abraham. A If, however, he came to Abraham to see him, he did not come as a son, a seed, and his heir. Since this is the case, I do not know whence the Muslims derive their faith. For this reason, the faith of the Muslims does not appear to originate in any fact prior to Muhammad; rather, he himself is the author of such doctrines, and whatever he taught, he taught from his own invention, not received from God.
As for what the Muslims say, that the name of Muhammad is found written in the Gospel, in that Christ said of him, "I proclaim to you that after me there is to come an apostle and prophet, whose name is Muhammad," and that the Christians, out of envy, cast it out of the Gospel—come now, let us consider this matter as well, and it seems to me that the truth will not be hidden. Hear then, with attention. There are three lawgivers who have taught universal laws: Moses, whom the race of the Hebrews followed; Christ, whom all B the nations have followed, as well as the greater part of the Hebrews who believed in Him, since those among them who have not believed are far fewer than those who have believed, and are almost easily numbered; and Muhammad, whom the Muslims have followed. Apart from these three, there is no one else who has taught and given a law. But Moses is testified to as having been sent by God. From the very beginning, while still in Egypt, he performed great signs and wonders, and he scourged Egypt, and he chastised her with very great plagues, and he smote her, and he healed, and he predicted things that were to come as a prophet, saying: "If you will release the people of God, release them; if not, then such and such things will happen to you and all the people of Egypt." And Pharaoh promising that he would do the command of the Lord was healed by Moses, as having received authority from God. After these things, Moses brought the race of the Hebrews out of the land of Egypt and the C slavery of Pharaoh with a high arm, and Pharaoh, who was pursuing them, was drowned in the Red Sea with his whole army by Moses. After this, he wandered for forty years in the desert, performing countless miracles. And indeed, in the presence of all the Hebrews, Moses ascended Mount Sinai, with the Jews saying to him: "Ascend the mountain and know the will of God; for we cannot bear to hear the voice of God, lest we die." And the people stood far from the mountain with fear and trembling, worshipping the God who was speaking with Moses; and Moses, hearing the words of God, spoke them to the Hebrews, and immediately what was spoken was fulfilled. But they never moved during the forty years from their place without the word of God. For Moses, the Scripture says, spoke, and God answered with a voice. Therefore, with many testimonies and miracles, he delivered the Law to the Jews, and they received it and worshipped, D and they accepted the law given by Moses as the law of God.
A Having come, Christ possessed the testimonies of all the prophets. Moses received his testimony in his eightieth year, for he was that many years old when he was commanded by God to lead the sons of Israel out of Egypt. But Christ had testimonies from the foundation of the world, before he was born; for from Abraham, the testimonies of Christ began to appear, as has been demonstrated above. And having been born, he was again testified to by God the Father on more than one occasion; and he performed miracles, not like those of Moses in Egypt and in the wilderness, but great and supernatural ones—as much greater than theirs as the Lord is superior to the servant. And after those many testimonies and the infinite and supernatural miracles, the law of the Gospel was published, and all nations and the entire inhabited world worshipped and embraced it, and they believed in Christ who gave the Gospel.
But this Muhammad—from where did he take testimonies that he taught the words he taught, that is, his dogmas, and delivered the law to the Muslims? Assuredly from nowhere else than himself, for he is the one testifying about himself; for in all of Holy Scripture, no testimony appears concerning him, but quite the opposite. For Moses spoke thus to the people of the Hebrews regarding Christ: *The Lord God will raise up a prophet from among your brethren like me; every soul that will not hear that prophet shall be destroyed.* Even if we might hesitate to speak about these things again, we will not—for in the prophet Moses saying that B the Lord God C will raise up a prophet from among our brethren, he showed that the prophet who was to come was from the Jews, and they were to hear him; but should another come, they would not accept him, but would even drive him far away from them.
Christ speaks concerning John, the son of Zacharias, testifying that he was a prophet, and the greatest prophet, saying: *All the prophets up to John prophesied; but from John, the kingdom of God is preached.* You see how Moses commands the race of the Hebrews that they should receive only one prophet who had come from the race of the Hebrews, and no other; indeed, all the prophets were from the race of the Jews. And Christ, in turn, has said even more clearly that all the prophets were up to John, and no further. Therefore, he who has no testimony from God and the prophets and from Holy Scripture itself is not a prophet from God; Muhammad, therefore, not having testimony from Holy Scripture, is not sent by God.
And Christ did not only say this, that *all the prophets were up to John and there will not be ones after*, but he even gave a sign of recognition to all, saying thus: *Beware of false prophets, who come to you in sheep’s clothing, but inwardly are ravenous wolves; by their fruits you will know them.* Let us examine, then, what is the fruit of the one whom Muhammad...
A considers his teacher, and those who are his disciples and their successors—it is surely for no other reason than that their vanity might not be refuted. Yet to give a law through sword and blade necessarily teaches murders and robberies. And who among men has ever heard of anyone being forced to believe? Faith belongs to the soul and the mind; and since the soul and the mind are things that cannot be enslaved, how could God, who created them free, have sent a lawgiver to force them, as if He were forgetful of His own work? For faith comes into being through will and choice, and by the freedom of the soul and its knowledge, and in no other way. For the body can be enslaved and bound, and sometimes it even does what it does not wish to do; but with the soul it is not so, but rather it acts through will and judgment and knowledge and choice. B And God is the judge of those who believe in Him in judgment and truth; for He is a knower of hearts; for He does not look upon the face, but upon the heart. And those things which the irrational animals by the law of nature do not do, these things Muhammad decrees. For who has ever known a lion to have devoured a lion, or a bear a bear, or a leopard a leopard? But this man openly teaches that man should kill man. And who is so foolish as to be ready to accept that this man is from God? For God surely does not teach robberies and murders. Besides these things, one evil is exchanged for another. For he says: "Let them either be slain or pay tribute," and thus murder is exchanged for greed. C And not only did the evil stop there, but it progressed even further. For what could be worse than such cruelty and misanthropy, as to kill those who have done no wrong? For indeed, the Muslims are commanded to go forth to war, and in the war, either they go to their gods and with…
them those of them who were killed, and they do not consider themselves worthy of blame as the causes of the war, but they slaughter living people—as many as each one can—upon the dead body of the fallen; and the more men one kills, the more they believe it to be for the benefit of the soul of the deceased. And if, perhaps, the one who wishes to help the soul of the dead does not have men under his authority, he buys Christians, if he can find any, and slaughters them on top of the dead body or over his grave. And how is it that he who ordains these things is from God? A Furthermore, he ordains that he who has given payment to a harlot and slept with her does not sin; and that he who violates a virgin sins, but he who sleeps with her by her own consent does not sin; and that if someone takes captives in war, it is permitted to do with them what he wishes without hindrance. How, then, is he who ordains fornication and the deflowering of virgins from God?
And the worst thing of all is that to those who have walked according to the acceptance of God in the present life, after their departure from here, he promises that bathing houses and very beautiful houses and many virgin women will be given to each one by God. And what the so-called theologians of the idolatrous Greeks did not even say or think to exist, this, Muhammad ordains with an unveiled face. For those people say that those who have lived well here, when they die and their souls depart purely from their bodies, they go into the isles of the blessed B and rejoice with them; but the souls of those who lived wickedly here and departed impure and defiled go into gloomy and dark places and to the river Pyriphlegethon. These things, then, the idolatrous Greeks said; but Muhammad, who calls himself orthodox and finds himself near to God, speaks and ordains such shameful absurdities, and has no thought at all that all these things are works of wrath and apostasy and are the results of sin. For before the transgression and sin of Adam, where were bathing houses, where were dwellings at all, where were many wives? But after the sin and the curse, the body rose up like a beast against the soul, which no longer had the visitation of God at all. The body grew strong and dragged the soul down from its height and its majesty C and brought it down to irrational and vain bodily desires and pleasures; and just as a slave, so was the soul enslaved to the bodily impulses; if, therefore, after the resurrection from the dead, those who have lived according to the acceptance of God are not going to find that blessed life which our forefather Adam had before the transgression and lost, but are going to find again the same life that he had after the curse, woe to those men! And the worst thing of all is that even until that miserable and accursed life, the madness of Muhammad did not rest, in that he promised that God would give it to the just; but he found a life far more notorious D and truly disgraceful. For Adam, after the sin and the curse and his expulsion from paradise...
knew Eve; but this was for the sake of procreation, and he begot children; A before the transgression they lived in the manner of angels. Yet even so, although Adam knew Eve, it was again one single woman who was found, and not many. For God did not create one male and many females, nor many males and one female, but one male, Adam, and one female, Eve. But when the human race had multiplied and had fallen into licentious and lawless acts, God was burdened and grew angry against them, as the blessed Moses is found writing in the book of Genesis, saying that God said: "My Spirit shall not remain in them, because they are flesh," B as if to say they had become entirely carnal and completely earthly, having no memory of the good and having fallen into licentiousness. Then God says to Noah: "Because I have found you righteous in this generation, make an ark with wood such and so." And Noah made the ark according to the command of the Lord. And Noah entered into the ark, and his three sons, Shem, Ham, and Japheth. And the wife of Noah entered into the ark, and the three wives of the sons of Noah. You see how Noah, who had one wife, was testified to by God as righteous. And his sons, each one having one wife C of the wrath of God; but the entire human race perished in the deluge of waters. This teaches even the utterly foolish that man ought to have one and only one wife, and the woman one husband alone. But even this came about after the curse, for the sake of procreation, as has been said. But Mahomet teaches openly that the recompense from God for the just is baths and many wives for each, and very beautiful houses. How, then, can he who legislates these things be from God? Foolish is he who accepts and believes these things, namely, that what is done out of anger D toward him who has sinned is multiplied at the time of the rewarding of good and beautiful things to the holy and just. And consider the events. Moses says: "And Noah entered into the ark, and his sons and his wife and the wives of his sons." And regarding the entry he says: "Noah entered, and his sons and his wife and the wives of his sons"; but regarding the exit, not so, but: "Noah and his wife and his sons and the wives of his sons went out with him." By these words the discourse signifies nothing else than that even if a man has one wife lawfully, there are times when it is proper to abstain even from her; for when he said that Noah and his sons entered into the ark, he showed his sons as a certain partition separating Noah from his wife.
For in saying, "Noah and his wife went out," he indicated that from now on there is nothing to prevent marital intercourse. The same point applies to his sons and their wives. And Moses himself, when ascending Mount Sinai, says to the Jews: "Sanctify yourselves, each one, until the third day; wash your garments, and do not touch a woman." Furthermore, Adam himself, upon seeing Eve, said: "This is bone of my bones and flesh of my flesh; for this cause a man shall leave his father and his mother, and shall be joined to his wife, and the two shall become one flesh." And observe how, after the fall, he acquired the foolish custom of polygamy; for Adam did not say that there would be many wives becoming one flesh with the man, but two—that is, the man and his wife—and one and many are not the same thing. But if perhaps the lawgiver Moses allowed the Jews for each to have [many] wives, he did so by way of concession, just as he did with the sacrifice of animals, in order to spare them from the abominable murder of their children. But Christ, having come, just as He forbade the sacrifice of animals, fulfilling the intent of the law, so also He forbade polygamy. And this Muhammad, in place of temperance, has legislated licentiousness, teaching that this is not only in the present life, but that these things are to be multiplied by God in the life to come. And one may see in him the saying of David, which states that "the sinner is praised in the desires of his soul, and the unrighteous is blessed," that is, he is praised and lauded by those who flatter him and incite his wickedness, A nor do they allow any perception of the malady to arise through silence. For this reason, such a person is found to be incurable; for he who does not even have a perception of the affliction neither seeks nor accepts a remedy. And this is the most terrible thing of all, when wickedness is praised and not even considered to be wickedness; for the aforementioned Muhammad was eager for and taught those things which are pleasing and delightful to men, so that through pleasure he might B drag the multitude of the foolish to his side.
Are only men, then, the care of God as His creations, while women are not at all, because they are not God’s creation? And is it for this reason that men are destined to enjoy such good things from God, but the women not at all? Or since there is one nature for man and woman, and all are one human being, and all are destined to be judged alike and in the same way to receive either the good things—the one party having lived well—or the anger, rejection, and punishment of God—the others having lived badly? Surely, it is manifest to everyone that all human beings are destined to be judged alike, men and women, since there is one and the same nature, and they are destined to enjoy [the reward] alike, according as each of them has acted, both the evil and the good. Therefore, it is just and proper that women should receive the same as men; and just as many wives are given as a reward to each one of the men who have lived well, according to Muhammad’s legislation, so too should many men be given, in return, to each one of the women who have lived well. If, as something absurd, he passed this over in silence, he should have applied the same reasoning and judgment to the men. Furthermore, will the many men who are to be given to one woman be given because they are worthy of acceptance C on account of having lived well, or as a punishment? And if...
A they were to be given as a reward or as good remuneration, as you say, then why were not many men given to each woman for the sake of benefit and repayment, instead of one woman being given to many men? But if it is as for those condemned, then such benefits are surely gifts of acceptance and good remuneration, as Muhammad declares. The same thing applies also to the many women who are to be given to one man; if they are worthy of condemnation, why are benefits given to them? But if they are worthy of acceptance, why are many given to one man? And what could be more absurd and more repulsive than such confusion? You see how one who has turned aside from the straight path falls into so many absurdities, even against his will. But it is not so, it is not; for God’s reward to the saints is not food and drink and baths and women—which are the results of sin and wrath—as was said, but holiness and purity and an angelic way of life, joy and gladness and exultation, which eye has not seen, nor ear heard, and which has never entered into the heart of man. You have seen the fruit of the legislator’s legislation. Is his character known or not by the fruit of his deeds? And who is so blind and foolish and darkened as not to understand what has been argued? And how can one who ordains such things be sent from God? And as for this matter, what need is there of further words? As for the Name of Muhammad written on the right side of God’s throne, what need is there for defensive arguments? Let the wise judge wisely, and let the ignorant and foolish judge as they wish. B I have not written what I have written about Muhammad as if I had forgotten my own argument; for I said that the purpose of my present defense to you is not to launch an attack against the Muslims and to tell of the absurd, destructive, and evil things which they say and do, but only to show that Christians are wrongly and unjustly accused by the Muslims, which is what I have done. And if we have said something about Muhammad, the nature of the matter forced us to do so, since if it had been our intention to write about the absurdities of his teaching, we would have had much to say. That Christ did not speak about Muhammad any such word, nor was his name written in the Gospel, we said earlier as much as we did say; and the argument will make this even clearer. Whatever the apostles and disciples of Christ saw and whatever they heard from the very mouth of Christ, these things they wrote down and taught. From the disciples of Christ themselves, four wrote the Gospel. The first, named Matthew, published it in Hebrew in Palestine, that is, Jerusalem, and the regions of Libya; the second, Mark, in Latin, in Achaia, and it was given to Italy and Rome, and indeed to all the western nations. The third, Luke, in Greek; and it was given to Asia and Ethiopia, Persia and India and Arabia. The fourth, John, also in Greek, and it was given to the parts of Europe and the C islands and where the Greeks are found. And thus the Gospel was spread.
A It was not spread throughout the whole world by force or necessity, nor by sword and blade, but in love and cheerfulness and humility the apostles were found teaching the word of God. And the state of affairs was turned upside down. For while the apostles were beaten, buffeted, insulted, and persecuted, their preaching did not perish because they were teaching; rather, day by day, the Gospel of Christ was magnified and increased. And those who strove much and labored much to hide the name of Christ, so that no person among men would confess him as God—for anyone daring to do this would die by death—they themselves, having perceived the truth, fell down and worshipped: some before the apostles, others before their successors and disciples, and they believed that he is the true God, Christ, that he is the Son of the living God. And they grieved and wept for the past days, in which they walked in darkness and the error of Satan. B But the all-good and merciful God accepted their repentance, and those very people who were persecuting the name of Christ He established as shepherds and teachers and heralds of the Gospel and of His name. And all, having received the Gospel, transcribed it and everyone had it, and he read and learned and was taught and worshipped the things written in it. And thus the Gospel was spread to the whole world, and all those inhabiting the earth had it. From Christ, therefore, until the time Muhammad began to teach, more than five hundred years passed; after five hundred years, who would have dared to cast out the name of Muhammad from the Gospel, if it were found written in it? C For the first reason: whoever dares to add or cast out even one single word can no longer be called a Christian; and for the second: even if some evil person, let us suppose, cast out a word from the Gospel, would the whole remainder of the world follow the wickedness of one man? Certainly not. From this, therefore, it is manifest that the name of Muhammad was not written in the Gospel. Or was Christ to testify of him as good, or as evil? And if as good, all the kings of the earth, all the rulers, all the Christians were going to receive him who was testified by Christ, so that they might receive the benefit from him; but if as evil, they were going to have his characteristics, and to be on guard against him, so that they might not be harmed. But whether they were receiving him as good or turning away from him as evil, the whole world was not going to cast the name of Muhammad out of the Gospel. And from this it is manifest that his name was not written in the Gospel. Furthermore, there is no one who envies another before his birth; who, therefore, was going to envy Muhammad before his birth? Certainly no one. D If someone perhaps envied him after his birth, how was the whole world going to follow after the envy of one man toward Muhammad? And who is so foolish as not to consider this impossible? And from this it is manifest that it was not written
in the Gospel. But if the Israelites said that the name of Muhammad was written only in the Gospel and the Christians cast it out, then the proofs we have mentioned are sufficient to make the truth appear, namely that they say nothing true; but since they say that it was found written in the book composed by Moses, how did the Hebrews cast it out from the Old Testament? For there is not found therein any trace or sign concerning Muhammad at all. And behold, as the Muslims say, the Christians, moved by envy, cast out his name; but what of the Hebrews? Although in regards to circumcision and certain other things—I refer to dietary laws and other customs—the Muslims agree with the Hebrews. See then, even from this it is revealed that the name of Muhammad was found neither in the old Mosaic book nor in the Gospel. And so much for these things, so that we may lead even the completely ignorant to the knowledge of the truth.
5. A “He who is impious falls into a depth of evils and acts with contempt,” says the admirable Solomon; and who is more impious than Muhammad? And what depth of evils, or rather darkness, into which this wretch did not fall? For along with his other fabrications and false portents, he also invented this present lawless theory, which reads as follows, in the chapter of the children of Israel: B “Praise be to the Lord, who led His servant in one night from the place of worship of Elaram, which is the house of Mecca, to the most distant place of worship, which is the holy house of Jerusalem.”
After he had chanted his hour, he said to the people: “O you men, pay attention. Yesterday, after I had separated from you, Gabriel came to me after the final evening psalmody, and said to me, ‘O Muhammad, God commands you to visit Him.’ I said to him, ‘And where shall I visit Him?’ And Gabriel said, ‘In the place where He is.’ And he brought me a mount, larger than an ass but smaller than a mule; and its name C was Buraq. And he said to me, ‘Mount this, and ride it to the holy house.’ And as I was preparing to mount, the beast fled. And he said to it, ‘Stand firm; for it is Muhammad who wishes to mount you.’ And the beast answered, ‘Was I sent for his sake?’ Gabriel answered, ‘Yes.’ And the beast said, ‘I will not allow him to mount, unless he first prays to God for me.’ I then prayed to God for the beast, and I mounted upon it. And as I sat on it, it walked with a gentle pace, and would press the hoof of its foot at the horizon of its vision. And thus I came to the holy house, with a distance of less than a stone’s throw. D And Gabriel was with me, and he led me to a precipice in the holy house in Jerusalem. And Gabriel said to me, ‘Descend, for from this stone you shall ascend into heaven.’ And I descended, and Gabriel secured the beast, Buraq, with a ring at the precipice, and carried me on his shoulders up to heaven. And when we came to heaven, Gabriel knocked at the gate,
and it was asked of him, "Who is it?" He answered, "It is I, Gabriel." It was asked of him again, "Who is with you?" He answered, "Muhammad." The porter then said, "Is it not for his sake that the mission was undertaken?" And Gabriel said, "Yes." And he opened the gate for us, and I saw a multitude of angels, and having bent my knees twice before them, I poured out prayer. After this, Gabriel took me and led me to the second heaven; and the distance between the two heavens was a journey of five hundred years. And just as he had knocked at the door the first time and a response was made to him, so it happened in every way up to the seventh heaven, in which seventh heaven he describes seeing a multitude of angels, the length of each one many thousands of times the size of the world; some of them had seven hundred thousand heads, and on each head seven hundred myriads of mouths, and in each mouth seven hundred thousand tongues, praising God in seven hundred myriads of idioms. And he looked upon one of the angels weeping, and asked the cause of his weeping, and he answered that it was sin; he then prayed on his behalf. A Thus, he says, Gabriel handed me over to another angel, and that one to another, and so on in succession, until I stood before God and His throne. And God touched me with His hand between the shoulders, until the coldness of His hand penetrated to the marrow of my spine. And God said to me, "I have imposed prayers upon you and your people." But as I was descending to the fourth heaven, Moses advised me to return to lighten the burden for the people, not being able to endure such a great prayer. B And at the first return I obtained relief [from the ten prayers] C until the fourth; and at the fifth return, the number of prayers had diminished so much that only a few remained. But when Moses said that the people would not even be able to perform these, I, feeling ashamed because I had returned so many times, went up no more, but returning to Buraq, I hastened back to the house of Mecca. The time for all these things was less than the tenth part of the night. And when Muhammad recounted this vision to the people, many thousands of men departed from his law, saying to him, "Ascend into heaven by day while we watch, so that we may see the angels you met; for you do not recognize your own lie." And Muhammad said, D "Praise be to my God; am I anything other than a man and a messenger? Those before you did not believe in miracles, nor do you believe them, nor do you believe in any other way, unless compelled by the sword." And what could one say about such a false and most dishonorable vision? For from Muhammad himself one has the refutation; for he is the one who said, when he was seized and rolling on the ground foaming at the mouth from his malady, that when Gabriel came to him sent by God, he supposedly could not bear the sight of the angel, and for falling [as if dead], he heard the words of the angel like the ringing of a bronze bell. If, therefore, he who could not bear the vision of a single angel was able to see the splendor of so many angels, to contemplate them, and to measure so many heads of the angels and the tongues within their mouths, but...
and the various changes and properties A of God's hymns? For he claims to be greater not only than Gabriel, but than all those as well to whom Gabriel had no access, but who was so far inferior to them that Muhammad himself was handed over to one angel, and he in turn to another, and successively to another, and thus he entered unto God and met with them. Furthermore, he shows himself not only greater than all of them, but also as one who prays on their behalf. I omit speaking of that great and God-seeing Moses, whom, as he says, he saw in the fourth heaven. He himself, however, ascended even beyond the seventh, and reached as far as God, and conversed with Him. After these things, he went out and descended into the fourth heaven, as has been said, and met with Moses, and was advised by him to return and implore God on behalf of the people, and for the prayer to be made lighter, as they were unable to bear it; and he having accepted this advice, to return to God and to ask regarding this, and for his request to be accepted and the prayer to be made lighter. And B when Moses again urged him to return up to five times to God, and again for the prayer to be made much less. And since he was not satisfied, Moses told him yet again to return to God and ask for a more lenient prayer. He did not consent, but rather descended to Burāq and rode off, until he arrived where he was before. Consider what sort of being that Muhammad himself confesses as the creator of heaven and earth, whom he shows to be corporeal and not incorporeal; for the Divine is incorporeal, without quantity, and having no magnitude, nor is it circumscribed in any form; but that which is thus, how could it consist of parts in its own nature? For if one were to grant that this exists, how could it be conceived of as incorporeal? For that which is in a shape is entirely in quantity and in place, and by necessity is circumscribed. But these things are corporeal. And how could one who shares in reason consider the properties of the body as applying to that blessed and incorporeal nature of God? The patriarch Abraham C in the ancient theophany considered himself dust and ashes and called it so; but as for Daniel, such a man and so great as he was, when he saw an angel, his glory was turned into corruption—that is, he was on the verge of losing his own life. David says, "He who looks upon the earth and makes it tremble." But Muhammad, having ascended above all the angelic powers, conversed directly with God and offered petitions on behalf of the angels and the whole world, and he did not fail in his prayer. But I marvel how this impudent and arrogant fellow did not dare to say that he grasped the nature of God just as God Himself knows it. But He who dwells in the heavens will laugh at him and those with him, and the Lord will mock them. Furthermore, God could not know the strength of the people, but He placed upon their neck D a law which they could not bear. And how can God—
who knows not His own works nor the power of His work, be God? A If, however, He is a true God and knows all things before their creation, why did He give an imperfect law through Moses on account of the weakness of men, and then a perfect one through the Gospel? How is it that He brought the perfect one down to the imperfect again, as if He were ignorant or had changed His mind? For the perfect is truly perfect in that it is neither lacking nor excessive and superfluous, just as the Gospel is; the truth bears witness to this. But even Mohammed himself calls it perfect, true, holy, a salvation, and a guidance.
The followers of such a Mohammed, justifying the impious man, say that Christ taught great and impossible things; for who can love his neighbor as himself and God with all his heart? Who can pray for those who persecute and slander him? Who can love his enemies? And other such things. B And for this reason, they say, God sent Mohammed and the Koran for the sake of condescension, so that men might easily fulfill the law for their own salvation. If, therefore, Christ did not appear as God and Son of God, but simply as a man like Moses, we would need some proofs for the manifestation of the truth; but since He is manifestly revealed as true God, I consider it superfluous to offer any defense at all regarding this. For as God and Creator, He knows the power of His work.
But let us see the absurdity even from the words of Mohammed. He is the one bearing witness and saying that Christ is the Word of God and the spirit of God. If He is the Word of God and the Spirit of God, how did He who knows all things act irrationally? For the Word of God would never be found lacking in knowledge; neither is He inferior to God and the Father as the Son of God, nor as His Word. And if He is the Soul and Spirit of God, how did He place upon the souls and spirits of men a burden which they were unable to bear? The same one also says to those who follow him that they are nothing unless they fulfill the Mosaic law, the Gospel, and the Koran. And if the Gospel teaches things that are grievous and hard to bear, why does your master command you in such a way that if you do not fulfill the old law and the Gospel, you are nothing—that is, there is no benefit for you? C If the Gospel is perfect, as it indeed is, then you are vainly justifying the Koran on the grounds that it was given for the sake of condescension, and you are truly slandering Christ and the Gospel, as if that which is perfect required correction.
Furthermore, if Gabriel took him up on his shoulder, what need was there of a beast to carry him from Mecca to Jerusalem? Furthermore, who measured the length of the road from the first heaven to the second and, having found it to be a distance of five hundred years, announced it to Mohammed? Furthermore, if this distance was measured by the steps of one's feet, how—as he himself fabulously claims—did a body having density pass above the heavens? But if this is impossible, and it is angels and souls who ascend, how can D they measure the regions above the heavens with a bodily step?
A or with a fleeting span of time, those things which are beneath the heavens, I mean air and ether and things similar to them? Furthermore, why in the ascent did he need angels to lift him up into the heavens, but in the descent he did not need them at all, but only the beast Barac, so that he might bring him back to Mecca? And who is so foolish as not to have condemned such things?
For this reason, his followers absolutely avoid debating with anyone, fearing refutation; for they are not ignorant of the vanity of their master. Nevertheless, they themselves differ among one another. For some follow him against their will through the fear of death, whereas, if they were perhaps without fear and in possession of their own authority, they would immediately have become Christians; others, having been carried away by error, cherish as certain, true, and proven the falsehoods and prodigies of Muhammad; others, out of respect for their parents, do not dare to abandon the error handed down to them from their ancestors, but they lay the cause of their defense before God upon them; others, because of the laxity and freedom and license to satisfy their lust, do not wish to abandon the error, but prefer an impure and vain life, knowing full well that the things being taught are not from God, yet they say openly, as has been said before, that they do not wish to know the way of Your commandments. And for this reason they do not even permit the divine Scripture to be read among them, so that the falsehood of their master may not come to be exposed. For in the chapter of Jonah he says thus: that B whoever is caught speaking against the Koran, let death be his punishment, and let him not believe anyone except himself; and in the chapter of Amram he says: "Do not believe anyone except him who follows our law." And yet he calls the Gospel salvation and a path, and says that the Saracens accomplish nothing unless they fulfill the Gospel and the law. Again, as if forgetting his own words, in the same chapter he says: "To me my law, and to you yours; you are free of what I do, and I of what you do." This, then, is a characteristic of a deranged mind, not only to be found inconsistent with what is good and noble, but never even to agree with itself, just as this present Muhammad does throughout his entire book. But the books of the Christians are not in this state; rather, all divine Scripture, both the Old and the New, each part individually agrees with itself with all precision, and in turn, the two together are found in all things to be the same, thinking and saying the same. And rightly so; for the same God is the maker and lawgiver of both the New and the Old. But I myself might perhaps say with the prophets Isaiah and David: "Why, Lord, does the way of the wicked prosper?" And because my feet had nearly slipped, my steps had well-nigh been poured out; for I envied the lawless, seeing the peace of sinners; for there is no resistance in their death and no firmness in their scourgings; they are not in the toils of men and they will not be scourged with men. For this reason pride has possessed them to the end; covering
A themselves with injustice and impiety. Sins shall flow forth from them as if from fat; they have proceeded to settle their minds, they have meditated and spoken in wickedness, they have uttered iniquity with their words; they have placed their mouth against the heavens, and their tongue has traversed the earth. But with the father of God, David, I too shall cry out: Because of their frauds you have brought evils upon them, O Lord; you have cast them down in their exaltation. How did they come to desolation suddenly? They have failed, they have perished because of their iniquity, as the dream of one who awakens. Lord, in your city you shall annihilate their image.
Furthermore, in the same chapter, Muhammad says that the demons also are destined to be saved, following the heretic Origen. And although in another place he says that many of the demons, having heard the reading of Muhammad’s Coran, praised and admired it and, having believed in him, were saved—yet now he does not say this, but teaches and decides in a general sense that the demons are destined to be saved. For if one alone from their order can be saved, all can be saved. But just as he always contradicts and opposes himself, so also in the present case, he and those with him say in everything that the Gospel is perfect and holy and saving, as the words of Christ, yet now, as they do frequently, they say things contrary to this generally. For Christ spoke as follows to those deserving of hell: "Depart from me, you cursed, into the eternal fire prepared for the devil and his angels." B Having said this, he left none of the demons outside of punishment. And not without cause. For he who is saved through repentance also contributes, according to his power, through his deeds toward the obtaining of salvation. For in the body, a man is not able to do what he wills—for instance, to protect himself from disease, or, once he has fallen ill, to recover his former health at his own discretion; but in the case of the soul it is not so; rather, every man has it in his power not to sin, which is the disease of the soul; and having sinned, he has it in his power to call himself back, and not only to recover his former health of soul, but even to surpass it by a great measure, and, with repentance, as has been said, to perform works worthy of merit, or, as they say, to be found as a second voyage, only by repenting. And the all-good God, who for the salvation of men bowed the heavens and descended and became man, pours out his mercy, which is greater than all the deeds of angels and of men, and is considered equivalent to all virtues, and calls them to himself and makes them his friends. But where in the devil is repentance? Where is a submissive mind? For repentance C comes from humility: for first one passes judgment on oneself as having acted wrongly. Then one repents for the things in which one sinned. But the devil, on the contrary, cherishes the sin which he committed and is found to be the cause and worker, as far as his power allows, of the destruction of men. What communion, then, is there between God and the devil? Therefore, Muhammad spoke in vain, saying that the demons can be saved.
C And furthermore, it is stated that such a Quran was published, even if those who slander God say that it was given by God.
The same Muhammad says regarding the Quran that it is the last and first of all evils, and that no man—not even Muhammad himself—knows the explanation of it, but God alone. And if this is the truth, what benefit is the Quran? For perhaps it could have been of some benefit if men understood what was stated by God; but since Muhammad himself is found testifying that no man knows what is stated in the Quran, what is the benefit of it? Surely none at all. And what greater proof could there be that the law given by Muhammad is not from God? For God does not legislate in vain. Behold, then, it is evident that the Quran is not from God, but is a fabrication of the mind of that wretched man himself. And it is manifest from the Quran itself that it agrees neither with the Old Scripture nor with the New Testament, even though Muhammad himself confesses that the Scriptures are holy and good, and that his followers are nothing unless they fulfill both the Law and the Gospel. Furthermore, throughout almost the entire work, he is contradicting himself. Furthermore, he performed no miracle to verify what was said. Furthermore, it contains acknowledged falsehoods, which is entirely alien to God. Furthermore, it is violent and destroys free will, which God has never overturned. Furthermore, it is completely disordered, and what is disordered is far from God; for God is not a God of disorder. Furthermore, it appears evil; and how can it be from God, who is beyond all righteousness and simplicity? Furthermore, it contains fabricated and monstrous theories; and how can this be from God, the Creator and Giver of truth? D
I, for my part, am astonished and exceedingly amazed that these wretches, having abandoned Christ, have followed Muhammad. For the very law of Muhammad—that is, the Quran—itself says that through an angel it was announced to the mother of Jesus, and through the Holy Spirit he was sanctified and conceived by the power of God, but not by the agency of nature; and that he was born from a most holy virgin, pure beyond all other women. For in the chapter *An-Nisa* it says: "O companions of the Book (that is, the faithful), say nothing about God except the truth, that Christ Jesus is the son of Mary, and the messenger of God, and the Word of God, which He placed in her through the Holy Spirit." C See, then, the wretch, after naming God and the Word of God and the Holy Spirit—the tri-hypostatic Trinity—did not open the eyes of his soul to see the light of the Trinity. And fittingly so; for just as embryos found in the womb of a mother before their birth have indeed life, but life that is useless and unconscious, and a soul unable to distinguish better from worse—or, if born out of time, they are not men but miscarriages and abortions—so too is every impious person who has not been regenerated through water and the spirit, that is, through holy baptism; he cannot see the heavenly light and the knowledge of the truth, and for this reason, having closed the eyes of his soul, the foolish man is left in darkness.
A For the Koran makes constant mention of the Holy Spirit. It says, for example, in the chapter of *Imran*, as if from the mouth of God, that concerning Mary: "We breathed into her of Our Holy Spirit." And He certainly cannot say that God spoke this concerning an angel. These things are said about Christ; but about Mohammed it says nothing of the sort, but rather that he was an orphan and a wanderer, gathered by God. Furthermore, it calls Christ the Word of God, as has been said, and the Soul of God, and the greatest of all the prophets, whereas Mohammed is simply called a prophet. Furthermore, they concede that Christ is of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, to whom the promises were given; but Mohammed is of the descendants of Ishmael, who was cast out of the house of Abraham with his mother, the bondmaid Hagar. Furthermore, Christ never committed sin (for the Word of God and the Spirit of God cannot be led astray), but Mohammed became an idolater, a murderer, a plunderer, and a libertine, and he became guilty of many other sins, for which God, as they say, had pity on him. Furthermore, Christ performed wondrous and extraordinary miracles, as it is testified in the chapter of *Al-Ma'idah* that Christ restored sight to the blind, cleansed lepers, raised the dead, and did many other things; but Mohammed performed no miracle according to the Koran, except only that of the moon, which is a manifest lie, and certain other shameful deeds, which have been passed over in silence and consigned to oblivion because of their excessive infamy. B Furthermore, according to the Gospel and the truth itself, Christ was crucified, died, and was buried, and rose again, and ascended into heaven, and sits at the right hand of the Father; but according to the Koran, as if they were honoring him, they say that he did not die, but yet he did ascend. And behold, from the truth of the Gospel and the mendacity of Mohammed, how Christ appears and is confessed to be living, while this Mohammed, as all his followers admit, died and did not rise. And therefore, for all these reasons, it was necessary to worship Christ and not to follow Mohammed. For how ought one to believe the words of God from a man who in all things is like the devil? And if you wish, let us compare both, and we shall understand the characteristics of each. The devil is haughty and arrogant; Mohammed is haughty and arrogant—for who is greater than Mohammed, who ascended above the heavens, as he himself says of himself, and conversed with God Himself and all the angelic powers, and became a mediator for the angels who had sinned, and indeed a protector of the whole world? The devil is a murderer of men, and Mohammed condemned to death those who would not obey his dogmas. The devil is a deceiver, and Mohammed, offering pleasures and placing them as a kind of bait upon a hook, drew the foolish towards himself. The devil is a liar, but not to such an extent as Mohammed, as is clearly evident throughout the entire Koran. The devil is deceitful; and who else is like Mohammed, who cloaked his pride with a pretense of humility? The devil is a counselor of forbidden things, and above all
perdition, Mohammed, is in every way like him. For he worships and proclaims as God something which he calls a sphere and completely cold, worshipping as God that which neither begat nor was begotten, failing to understand, poor wretch, that he is worshipping a body and not God; for a sphere is a form of body, and coldness is a property of a body. And he does not worship the God who neither begat nor was begotten, but a body; nor does he worship the incorporeal and true God, but a god whom the dreams of the impious have fashioned. For it is utterly ridiculous to imagine a sun without light, or a spring without water, or a mind devoid of reason. May such a god perish!
But the God B of us Christians is one, before all things and over all things and in all things and above all things, believed and worshipped in Father and Son and Holy Spirit, a Monad in Trinity and a Trinity in Monad, unconfusedly united and indivisibly divided, the same Monad and Trinity, almighty, the Father without beginning not only as timeless, but also as in every way without cause, the sole cause and root and spring of the divinity contemplated in the Son and the Holy Spirit; may He be merciful to us and to all Christians on the day of judgment, through the intercessions of our all-blessed Lady, the Theotokos and ever-virgin Mary, and of all the saints. Amen.
But someone—anyone who seeks the truth—must know C that miracles do not occur for the sake of show, but for the sake of salvation of soul and body at once, as in the case of Christ, or for necessity, as in the case of Moses and Joshua, the son of Nun. But how did He work such a miraculous prodigy of the moon? For He is the one who said that He did not come to establish the law by means of miracles, but [also] that we are chastised in order that we might be brought to our senses, and He accuses us. But I say, on the contrary, that a father who cares for his child chastises him out of the love that underlies it. And regarding the Hebrews he spoke truthfully; for the Hebrews occasionally received wrath from God, but not without compassion; for they had prophets throughout the whole duration, and sanctification and the priesthood, the D God chastising them bodily, but they were not abandoned in their souls. After the crucifixion and passion of the Lord, however, there followed a total abandonment to them both in soul and body—to them, I say, who are stubborn.
7. Let us therefore return to the subject of our narrative and history. In the summer of the year 6962, a comet began to appear in the western parts of the horizon each day, immediately after sunset, resembling a sword, and having approached the moon while it was full, an eclipse occurred by chance according to the order and cycle of the heavenly luminaries, as is customary. Certain people, seeing the sword-shaped comet and [the fact that it was moving] in the western parts and making its course towards the east and approaching the moon, and sensing the darkness of the eclipse, imagined that this comet was the sword of God destroying the impious, because it was moving from the western parts, and those who saw the sword-like comet and the material driven by the winds...
A did not descend as long as the wind was silent. And then, as the winds raged, having been scattered in the likeness of laurel leaves, the wind, being ignited by the fire from above, becomes like a laurel leaf together with the material; and thus comets are formed. And if the ignited wind happens to fall at the same time as the cold, it becomes mist again and mixes with its own similar air.
B 9. Lightning does not come to be in any other way than by the winds interchanging and the clouds colliding, just as, being forced by the winds, a crash occurs; and in the crash, fire is poured out from the celestial fire. Now thunder occurs before lightning; but because we have sharper vision, we see the lightning first, and after this we hear the thunder, because we have slower hearing. See—I will prove it to you by an example. If someone is chopping wood some distance away from you, you see his axe being driven down, and only then, a little later, you hear the crash.
10. The fire exists spread out from above toward the ether over the whole face of the heavens; for this is the fourth element, and it is equal to the other three, for if they were not balanced, the world would perish; for the Creator knows how He prepared them.
11. The thunderbolt comes to be in this way. When the clouds collide, a crash occurs, as we said before, and after the crash, fire is formed. But if that fire happens to encounter and mingle with a comet, it does not warm things as comets do, but descends upon the earth and destroys; it causes death and threatens,
A so that even the heavens themselves shake and resound; and it unites with fire, and through fire produces thunderbolts. And the air frightens and disturbs everyone; it moves the sea and stirs it up from its immeasurable depths, and makes everything surge with great power; it encircles the earth, for this element is indeed the most powerful and warlike. For this reason, earthquakes occur because of it, and all creation is moved; for the earth, as has been said, is not supported by anything.
13. Now, the air is the first-created element of all, and from the air water is born; and thus, as air passes out from your mouth and falls upon your beard, dew is formed, just as man and all creation are composed of four elements. Water, however, produces mud. If you wish, you will see this in truth. Take pure rainwater in a glass vessel, and leave this water until it evaporates, and you will find mud, as we have said. And the mud produces stone and iron, and creates fire. Here, having briefly finished the telling of the elements and certain other matters, let us now return to the narrative of our history.
14. In that same autumn, the 6969th year, the Albanians of the Peloponnese rose up completely against their despots and masters, and they made Manuel Cantacuzenus despot, regarding whom I do not know what to say, or whence and why this was undertaken. In the month of December of the same year, Amares, the son of Turachan, having come again at the request of the despots with an army to help them, who
and having afflicted the Albanians a little, he returned by taking his captive brother as a premium. At that same time and month, the most impious and most savage emir killed with his own hand my dearest son, John, as he wished to force him into forbidden sodomy, the boy being fourteen years and eight months old, lacking one day; but in intelligence and age he was as though he were older. Woe to me, the unlucky and wretched parent! In the same December, I too went to Leontarion and did homage to the despot Lord Thomas the Porphyrogenitus; and he accepted me into his service and bestowed upon me the village of Certeza by golden bull. And he prepared me to depart to the despots of Serbia, his in-laws and relatives, at the spring of the same year for many necessary and useful services B of theirs. And having prepared, I arrived at Methoni, in order to sail thence to Epidaurus of Illyria and to Serbia from there; but I was delayed on the journey because of the confusion that arose in the Peloponnese on account of the flight of the brother-in-law of the despot Lord Thomas, the son of Centurione the prince, from the prison of Chlomoutzi. In this interval of time, the emir went against Serbia and captured Homobrydon. And I departed by sea to Patras, and from there having crossed through Bostitza to Aetolia, on the first day of September of the year 6953 I arrived at Ainos, so that I might pass some time there in hiding, until the emir through the region of Sophia should return C to Adrianople, and I too might arrive so that I might ransom my relatives who had been taken captive. And when the emir came to Adrianople, I too arrived there, and I ransomed my wife from the emir’s chief stable master, named Ibrahim Tzelepe, and not only her but also Chrysobergina who was with her, and in the month of February I returned with them to Patras, having suffered many hardships and having spent much on this journey. And when I was staying in Adrianople, in the month of October, Turachanes came with his sons and many armies to the help of the masters and despots, and he completely enslaved the Albanians who had once rebelled D and drove away their false despot. At this time, on the 2nd of January, Manuel Palaiologos was born to the despot Lord Thomas. And in the month of September of the year 6953, my beautiful daughter Thamar died, while she was a captive in the emir’s seraglio, of a pestilential disease, being fourteen years and five months old; whom once, at the command of the most worthy Emperor Lord Constantine, my master, I had given as a wife to the heir and master of Ainos and Ithome and the places around it, as I mentioned in the former books. I, the wretch, did not know of her death. Woe to me, woe to me, the wretched parent! And on the 25th of October, I was sent as an ambassador to the Venetian aristocracy, while Francesco Foscari was still Doge; by whom I was benefited and honored with money and letters. And on the 6th of April, I returned to Patras,
A and by the help of God alone we escaped the castles of the sea which the Emir held in Bosnia. A misfortune which met us on the way. In June of the same year, the Emir captured the city of Athens. And in July, the Emir having gone into Albania, the greater part of it was almost captured. Finally, he was evilly driven off by those who had come to its aid, namely Janco, Capistrano, and other most excellent men; he, having been defeated, went off in flight, and that useful beylerbey Turachanes died.
15. And in the year 6964 [1456 AD], the commander and governor of the Hungarian camp, Janco, died. But indeed also Capistrano, and furthermore the ruler and despot of Serbia, lord Georgios Bulcus, died. And on May 2nd of the same year, his wife, the queen, also died; on which day and hour, almost, his daughter crossed over to the Emir into the lands of the Emir, with her blind brother, her first-born, and her uncle Thomas Cantacuzenos, taking with her all her livelihood, that is to say, her wealth and movable property, fearing for the life of the mother, the brother, and their daughter-in-law. And in the year 6965 [1456 AD], in the month of November, the despot Lazarus himself also died, and the Emir appointed his beylerbey Mehemet, so that, if it were possible, he might take Smederevo and all of Serbia with peace, and give something else in their stead to the wife and children of Lazarus himself; which he did not succeed in doing at that time, except that he only took Peristerion by treachery; but after some time he took Smederevo and the other place as well. And to the queen, he gave, allegedly, some
B On May 15th of the same year, the Emir arrived in the Peloponnese, and leaving his army at Corinth, encircled it, besieging it; he himself, coming into the middle of the land, took some things there as booty, while others he destroyed and burned, especially Akova, Aetos, and Pentachoria. And having gone forth from there, he made an incursion against Mochlios, and the man who was governing there at that time, the noble and good Demetrios Asanes, gave it up to the Emir with peace. And in the month of July of the same year, the Emir turned back from there to Corinth, which the brave nobles gave to him without any dispute—I mean Matthew Asanes, brother-in-law of the despot lord Demetrios, son of Paul Asanes, that old and new evil, and Nicephorus Lucanes. This happened on the 6th day of the month of August, of whom the one was governing in it, as he should not have, and the other, Asanes, had been sent in haste by the despot into it, so that he might guard the city more properly; and the latter surrendered it even more promptly. And they did not know that even if they gave Corinth, it is manifest from the facts that just as the head is in the body, such was this city in the Peloponnese. Perhaps they even made peace oaths with settlement, that the despot lord Thomas should give Patras with its region, and furthermore Kalavryta, and simply everything that the late emperor Constantine, while he was despot in the Peloponnese, held. Which, when the despot lord Thomas, the sovereign and master of them, heard while residing in the family seat of Mantinea,
Mantinea, A moving his whole household, came to the places around [Trýpe] for [the restoration we previously mentioned], and to eat up the fortresses like garden vegetables—the mountains of Trýpe, where also his brother was. And the aforementioned instigators of such praiseworthy deeds arrived; and without counsel or contradiction, making no delay, he sent his great primicerius, Lazarus, and handed over all the aforementioned fortified cities to the Emir as if they were garden vegetables. On almost the same day, since the Emir was being compelled to depart the Peloponnese for a certain reason, he left behind Amares, son of Turachanes, to take them in the Emir's stead, and he himself passed over from there.
In the month of October of the year 6964, the Emir sent an envoy to the despot Lord Demetrios, requesting his daughter in marriage, whom he had by his wife, the daughter of Paul Asanes, the father of Matthew; and if he did not, there would be war between them. The envoy concerning this marriage also came to the despot Lord Thomas, who was staying in Pontikon, and concluded the oaths of friendship; and he received, according to the agreements, the fortified cities which had not yet been given to his sovereign, as we have mentioned, and departed.
In the month of January of the same year, the noble-souled Lucanes Nikephoros—or rather, to put it better, the Peloponnese-ruiner—who was considered one of the foremost and trusted lords of the despot Lord Demetrios, along with certain others of the Albanians and Peloponnesians who were with him, not considering that they were paving the way for their own evil, persuaded the despot Lord Thomas to wage war against his brother and against the Emir, B those whom he had treated with them only a short while before. And the other good man, Matthew Asanes, because he had been sent to the Emir concerning the aforementioned marriage of the Emir with his own cousin, did not know these things.
When, therefore, the despot Lord Thomas came out of Arcadia at the beginning of the month of February of the same year, and joined himself to those working against him—or rather, to put it better, those working upon them, as the story will reveal as it progresses—he took Calabryta from the Turks, which was the only one of the cities they hoped to receive that the Turks possessed, but from the despot Lord Demetrios [he took] those places which the very laborers of these evils were governing—I mean Caritaina and Hagios Georgios, Bordonian, Castritza, and other such places—so that they might possess them again, not as they had governed them previously, but as their own masters.
These prudent, practical, and noble lords achieved, therefore, nothing else other than that they had turned God, the Creator of all and [the One] more powerful than the masters on earth, against themselves, and thus they sowed discord between their brothers and their own masters, the wretches not mindful of that truthful saying that "every kingdom divided against itself is brought to desolation," nor of the proverbial saying that "not even Heracles [can stand] against two"; nay, they were even set against three. And as these things were proceeding, first of all God disregarded them, and they did not know what they were doing, but were like fish inside a dragnet, which, unaware that they are all about to be hauled onto land, meanwhile chase and are caught by and destroy one another—the smaller C by the greater; and thus D [the situation progressed]. The despot Thomas was making incursions and besieging his brother's cities and fortresses, Zarnata and others.
of the territory under the administration of Melissenus, [along with] Kalamata and everything else that the despot Demetrius had in his hands A in the Messenian Gulf; and he found as allies the protostrator, the excellent Nicholas Frankopoulos, John Eudaimon, Leo the mesazon, his brother’s brother-in-law, and the uncle whom he loved dearly, called Cydonides rather than Tzamplakon. The despot Demetrius, for his part, was again besieging Leontari and its surroundings, as well as Akova, and he too found allies in George Palaiologos and a certain cousin of his, and his son-in-law Manuel Buchales, who were acting as mesazontes against the despot Thomas. And the despot Thomas—I say—did indeed take Zarnata, Leuctron, and the greater part of the mountain range of Mani, and furthermore Kalamata as well. But when the despot Demetrius was preparing to set out from Leontari, his brother learned of this, ran and arrived first, and entered that very city; and so the despot Demetrius remained without having accomplished anything.
Having found an opportunity for their B suspicious, rapacious, and unjust mindset, the most wicked and most useless race of Albanians—after Palaiologos and the Buchaleses had fled and returned with him to Sparta—what evil did they not commit, or what wrong did they not perpetrate? For, being untrustworthy C, they would go back and forth from one master to the other within the [space of a] Saturday, and instead of saying "villages" or "cities," they would call them *castra* in their barbaric language, and they would demand these as headships; and thus they would join themselves now to one of the despots, now to the other. By their means, therefore, every kind of misery was found among the wretched Romans, and the Albanians and their relatives and household members would frequently plunder and destroy everything. These things happened in such a way and to such an extent that who would not weep for them? But indeed, even the Turks themselves who were in Corinth, Amyklai, and Patras, having seized a suitable opportunity, were enslaving some, killing others, and mocking the masters and the D rulers, seeing the swords being wielded against their own [people].
While we were in Arcadia observing these deeds, where indeed these outcomes were being brought to pass, with us was a scion of a good root, the young and orphaned Nicholas Melissenus, whom I, in my wretchedness, had once intended to make my son-in-law. He too was treated cruelly and bitterly by both masters and despots; for the despot Demetrius would send him to the despot Thomas, while the latter would do the same, and they did not cease to send him to one another, nor would they even provide him with a living, but instead they were both seizing for themselves all his property—which history has already shown—the [property] in the Peloponnese; and his life was in even greater danger amidst such scandals. As we were observing such
A great instability, and as his [the Despot Thomas’s] final results were being considered before he left, we too, having concocted certain excuses, set out and arrived at Pisedason, which is now called Methone. But indeed, Georgios Raul, a man distinguished in discernment, action, and lineage—a man who was, as history has shown, the maternal uncle of Nikolaos Melissenos, who was to be my son-in-law—he, too, having abandoned his authority and all his possessions and property, arrived with us at Methone towards the end of the month of December of the same year. And sitting in the harbor, we both anxiously watched and observed the end of such a storm, [hoping] that if God should suffer long-sufferingly, perhaps the senseless might at some point perceive, and the foolish might at some point become wise; and that harmony and peace might arise among them, and they might pray to God; and that God, as a merciful God, might have mercy on them, and might command His own executioner, the Emir, to let them live for a longer time—for he, too, holds a place and rank before God, such as his own executioners hold before him, who fulfill his commands, yet are themselves hated and detestable.
Those who had come to the vicinity of Leontarion found the Despot there from Arcadia; they drove him off badly, shut him up in the city, and many of his men they killed and took captive. Afterward, they set up their tents near Leontarion, and after a little while they went out and departed for the parts around Sparta, toward their friend, the Despot Kyr Demetrios, with victory and great spoil of both animals and men. When at last the princes and brothers understood the evil of their own fighting, they gathered at Kastritzi and made, as it were, oaths of peace, while the Metropolitan of Lacedaemon, that is, of Sparta, performed the sacred service with his B *sakkos*. And when in the divine liturgy he was showing the holy things to the people, saying, "With the fear of God and faith, draw near," at that moment the princes and brothers approached, and they swore that they would maintain the peace.
Although, as we heard, the Despot Kyr Demetrios remained in the agreed-upon [terms] for a time, he again considered the oaths as nothing, and caused new battles and scandals. O the forbearance and long-suffering of Thee, Christ King, both toward him and those responsible! And they began again with evils, after having only just violated such a terrible oath on the previous day; and each of them acted against the other with all his might, hoping—the one in the friendship and aid of the Emir, and mindful of the injustice he had suffered at the hands of his own subjects; the other in the perjury of the other, and in his fighting, as it were, against the impious.
And while these aforementioned evils were occurring in the Peloponnese more severely than in any other wretched place—and moreover, when a portion of the Turkish army came from outside—they overran the whole place, in order that they might commit those evils which the inhabitants, masters, princes, and lords had left undone—not out of choice, but out of bravery—being enemies of one of the despots and C supporters, as it were, of the other; and the Despot, who was also their enemy, Kyr Thomas— D as these things were being done so badly, the winter of the year 6968 passed, and behold, of the same year
A in the month of May, the Emir set out against both. And upon his arrival, he went directly to Sparta, since the Despot, Kyr Demetrios, was staying there on account of his brother and enemy who was in Kalamata, and he was besieging Mantineia and whatever other territory was under the administration of Nikolaos Melissenos, who was acting on behalf of the Despot, Kyr Demetrios, in the region of the Messenian Gulf; and it was a great evil. When the Emir had reached Sparta, the Despot, Kyr Demetrios, came down voluntarily and submitted to him; and thus the Emir took both him and Sparta, and having placed the Despot under guard, said to him: "O Despot, since your affairs have come to this, this place cannot be governed by you. However, since we have resolved to hold you as a father, and to take your maiden daughter as a wife, grant this place to us; but you and your maiden daughter come with us, and we shall grant you another place for your sustenance and livelihood." He, having accepted, though unwillingly, carried out the matters of the marriage and the other affairs.
B The Emir, having spoken with the Despot, set all things in order as he wished, and he sent certain Turkish and Christian nobles to Monemvasia, so that they might take his wife—the Sultana—and his daughter, the Amerissa (for they were residing there because the fortress was strong and impregnable), and, moreover, that they should surrender the fortress. The former part was accomplished, that is, regarding the women; for they came out and arrived voluntarily where the Emir and the Despot were. But as for taking the city, that was by no means possible, because the Monemvasiotes—as they had always been, from of old, authors of deeds worthy of telling—so too then did they act again, and they could not endure to surrender it. Likewise, Manuel Palaiologos, who happened to be governing there, agreeing with the noble intentions of the citizens, did not wish to hear that they should surrender their fatherland into the hands of the impious; instead, they harshly repelled the nobles who had been sent by the Despot and the Emir, as well as the soldiers who had come with them to take the fortress. And this answer they gave them: "Say these things to the Emir: that every city and fortress built with human ingenuity and skill, and restored and fortified, is still, in turn, in the power of those men who are inside it. But our fatherland and region is not such; rather, nature has gifted it, and it possesses its strength and security from God and from the ruggedness of the terrain. And when it is the will and counsel of the Lord from above, His will comes to pass, and we cannot speak against it in any way, and He may grant it to whomever He wishes; but we have no power C to determine or grant those things which have been built by God." When such an answer was reported to the Emir, having heard it, he marveled, and he praised the Monemvasiotes most highly as prudent men. Having therefore kept the city, they surrendered it to the Despot, Kyr Thomas, and after this, he himself, soon after, [gave it] to the Pope.
Therefore, we will not leave off from saying, since it has seemed good to me to narrate all the honors and privileges
A with which the emperors, in succession, honored the citizens on account of the beauty of their city and the virtues of the citizens, and how they exalted their holy church, and bestowed great gifts upon them. For the name of the city did indeed have [its] meaning, because it truly offered but one entrance to those wishing to enter, and not by any machination or human art, as we have said, but nature herself adorned the city; and it was impossible to find in all the world under the sun another fortress so unshakable and impregnable and undisturbed by every engine of war, as it was impossible for this one to be found.
And we have spoken briefly of the things belonging to the city; let us now relate the virtues and bravery of the magistrates, the citizens, and the people. On land and at sea they are in all things good and most capable; at sea, indeed, they are skilled sailors and mariners, and possessing very many merchant ships, and being the best captains and masters, not only in their own ships, but also among the imperial fleet, they are no small number of them. On land likewise, in riding and in throwing the javelin, they are most excellent soldiers, and infantrymen most manly and most tested. Their magistrates, moreover, are again prudent, wise, and honorable, receiving and comforting those who happen upon them. And before all things, the faith and loyalty which they have kept from long ago and until now toward God and toward the Roman Empire. On account of such graces and virtues, and loyalty and faith toward the emperors, B the sovereigns who ruled them in different times honored them, and exalted their holy church with great honors.
And first indeed, this celebrated and cloud-topping fortress, being a bishopric subject to the metropolis of Corinth, on account of the virtues of the citizens and the graces of the city which we have mentioned, the emperor of eternal memory and martyr, Maurice, also called Tiberius, raised to the status of a metropolis and appointed it to the thirty-fourth throne, and bestowed other privileges concerning the freedom of the city. And following [him], the emperor lord Alexios Komnenos and others raised these up and confirmed them. Afterward, also the emperor of eternal memory, Andronikos the Elder, the Palaiologos, later, in the year 6800, the seventh indiction, confirmed it, both on account of the virtue and wisdom of the lord Nicholas who then presided over the same church, moved by divine zeal; and the emperor, on account of the one presiding and the faith and loyalty of the citizens which they had toward him, raised it from the thirty-fourth throne to the tenth by his own imperial command and by synodal vote, and he bestowed many other privileges upon the same holy church. And all these things, the emperor and autocrat Andronikos the Younger, following and confirming the footsteps of his grandfather, bestowed upon the same state in the golden bull below, renewing and confirming the old, and of new, he himself also bestowed gifts upon them and upon their holy church. And all these things indeed I saw in the imperial secretary and read many times; but the present golden bull I happened to have in my hands after the captivity. Now, however, as we have pre-
- served these things also in our book and work, it seemed good to me that they should be found in action, that we might know the benefits which the Monembasiotes received from the emperors because of their excellence and virtues, so that they may not fall into oblivion through the passage of time, but that both the listeners and others may become imitators and zealots of good works.
A 17. Since the Monembasiotes, both those who were from the God-saved city of Monemvasia and those found in the Pegae, who are currently residing in the God-glorified, God-guarded, and God-magnified Constantinople, as well as in other cities and lands of my empire, have been set apart by means of the golden bulls and commands of my holy, praised, and blessed ancestors and emperors—my father, grandfather, and great-grandfather—so that for whatever transactions they might conduct in the God-glorified Constantinople, Selymbria, Heraclea, Raedestus, Callipolis, and other cities of Macedonia, they should give, as a grace of B the commerkion, two coins for every hundred coins, and in all other places, lands, and ports of my empire they should remain entirely exempt from any payment of commerkion, and should remain, wherever they are found and resident, unmolested and free from all other levies and exactions; and [since] they have besought that they might receive a new and special benefit from my majesty, because [my majesty] possesses in that very grace a desire and longing to benefit all the faithful and reputable [subjects] who refer themselves to it, C my majesty presently ordains and decrees, and by this present golden bull issues a command to them, that all the Monembasiotes, both those residing in the God-saved city of Monemvasia and those from the Pegae and wherever else they may be found and reside—whether in the God-glorified Constantinople or elsewhere—shall enjoy the authority and protection which they previously had through the aforementioned golden bulls and commands which those from the Pegae and the aforementioned Monembasiotes possessed; and furthermore, beyond such authority, my majesty grants them a benefit in common—all the Monembasiotes, both those from the Pegae and those from Monemvasia—so that for whatever transactions they may conduct, they shall pay to the commerkion of the God-glorified D Constantinople one coin for every hundred coins for the excess of the quantity of money, and for the excess of the market and other transactions, the quantity of one coin for every hundred coins, whether, that is to say, it be for wheat in the marketplace and elsewhere they wish, or for wine, if they bring these from any land whatsoever, or for salted meats, or hides, or skins, or woolen cloths, or hempen or flaxen items, or coarse wool, or four-legged beasts, or any other items they may desire, being not at all hindered by anyone in the disposal of such merchandise of theirs, nor drawn into [compulsory] payments for campanisticum, brokerage, weighing, measuring, packing, loading, provision-taxes, scalis-dues, guard-duties, tithes, fishing-quadrants, wood-gathering, mountain-taxes for the year, as all these [customs] and all others [pertaining] to them regarding the same...
A regarding those at any time found in charge of the kitchens, ship-tolls, trade-duties, commercial dues, tavern-taxes, monthly taxes, workshop-taxes, exchange-taxes, the exaction of the cloth sold at market, and further, also the capital tax on grain which had been ordered to be demanded from ships, or any other capital [tax] of those now in operation, or even those hereafter to be devised, but let them all be kept completely unmolested and unassailable in all these things. Likewise, neither those selling to them nor those buying from them their merchandise, whether they be animals or grain products or anything else, either in the God-glorified Constantinople or in other places of my empire, shall demand [tax] for the sake of the *kommerkiōn*, clearly for the sake of the protection of such Monemvasiots. And it shall be that, whenever they transport their merchandise by ship, whether from the upper sea, or from the gulfs of the God-greatened Constantinople, whether it be grain or wine or any other kind, the aforementioned Monemvasiots shall be assessed at the *kommerkiōn* office of the God-guarded Constantinople, and that they should give as much as my empire ordains above; but those who possess the ships shall remain unmolested regarding these their merchandise, nor shall they be demanded for a quarter-share or any other exaction for the sake of their authority by anyone. If they are passing through with their merchandise either from West to East, or from East to West, or crossing through parts of Zagora with animals or anything else, whether to Sozopolis or to Agathopolis or B to Medea and the remaining regions of my empire, they must be kept completely unmolested and unassailable both from the exaction of the *kommerkiōn*, of the passage-duty, and of the port-duty, by the aforementioned castles and by those discharging public [duties] there, regarding the merchandise which they conduct in other places of my empire, whether grain or other [commodities], whether toward the East or toward the West, whether in islands or on the mainland, both in castles and at trade-fairs or in other places. Furthermore, also in the known trade-fairs of all the regions and castles of the Peloponnese of my empire, they must be kept superior to all capital [taxes], and also kept completely unmolested for the sake of the payment of *kommerkiōn*, and not giving anything even for the sake of a peris-kotikon [circumferential tax]. Whence those who are [placed] at the *kommerkiōn* of the God-greatened Constantinople and those at all other scales and regions and castles of my empire who are held responsible from time to time, as well as all who hold estates or farms or castles by the decree of my empire, whether these are of my beloved Augusta, or of my most cherished son, the Emperor of my empire, or of the waiting lords of my empire and the remaining lords and young lords of it, they themselves also must not demand anything from them for the sake of kitchen-expenses or provisions or any other levy, nor bring upon them any penalty or harm. But even those who from time to time are to have the responsibility of the God-glorified Constantinople shall abstain completely from bringing injury upon them and any exaction of provisions or kitchen-expenses, or counting them with the other settlers of this [city] for the public-benefit gatherings which take place from time to time, or specifically demanding these [taxes] from them for the sake of such a gathering. Moreover, not even in [cases] where they have matters D of those who are found from time to time in charge of the kitchens and those who perform public [duties] there, for which they conduct merchandise in other places of my empire, whether grain or others, whether toward the East or the West, or in islands or on the mainland, in castles, markets, and remaining places. Item, in the markets which are held in the towns and castles of the Peloponnese subject to our empire, I wish the same to be free from every kind of tribute, and not to be vexed by any exaction of duty or port-toll. Wherefore it is necessary for those who are prefects of tax-exaction in Constantinople, and those who are prefects of other ports, places, and castles of our empire, to grant them these immunities; nor, indeed, should anyone who owns lands, estates, or castles situated within the borders of our empire, whether they belong to our majesty, or to our most beloved son, or are ministers to our relatives or other prominent men and nobles, demand any tribute of any kind from them, nor impose upon them any fine or harm whatsoever. Likewise, the prefects of Constantinople, most famous city, should abstain entirely from imposing those tributes, and should not refer them for census along with other newcomers for contributions to be made for the safety of the commonwealth, or separately demand from them, in such a matter, payments. And legal disputes, which they have either with others or among themselves, are not to be judged by them, but in the sanctuary of our majesty. And, indeed, by the authority of this golden bull and
A strength of the present decree of our majesty, the details concerning it are ordained, that their children born of their loins and their descendants may enjoy it in an equal and similar manner, as long as the series of their lineage shall endure. For to the confirmation and security of all these matters, this present golden bull of our majesty was made, granted, and bestowed upon them, issued in the month of November of the current 15th indiction, in the year 6825. In which also our pious and divinely-ordained power B set its mark.
Andronicus, in Christ our God, faithful King and Emperor of the Romans.
Dukas Angelos Komnenos Palaiologos.
The present copy has been collated and found in every way to agree with the original, and has been written for security.
18. Furthermore, since the Despot lord Thomas held Monemvasia, which had been handed over to him by the Monemvasiots, the Amir, taking the Empress and her daughter who had been joined to him in marriage, sent them to Constantinople with some of his own people and some of hers, but he kept the Despot with himself. When the Amir returned to Bordonia, the noble C lords there, seized with fear, fled and abandoned the city. Those in Kastritzi, having resisted and fought for a time, finally surrendered after a pact, that he should not violate their customs and laws. And beyond these, he promised them many other benefits; and having descended to be crowned for their gallant acts according to the custom, some of them he beheaded, some he killed with darts, and he flayed Proinokokkas D and finished him—a fitting end for his works and deeds. Having enjoyed the fruits of these.
Upon the Amir’s arrival in the vicinity of Leontarion, finding it deserted of people, he took it because the inhabitants had fled. In Gardiki, they entered as if it were a stronger fortress to be guarded, where the Amir again arrived and besieged it for a time; finally, they were enslaved after a treaty and oath wherein he promised them that he would harass, kill, or enslave none of them. But he, disregarding his oaths and moved by resentment and wrath, gathered them all in a certain small field and, binding them, caused them to be put to the sword with their wives and children. In the same way, their leaders formerly, the Bouchaleoi, would have fared, had the Beglerbeg Mahomet not interposed; he sought them out because the wife of Manuel Bouchalis was his cousin.
They rendered evil for good in return for these things. For, having given them men so that they might travel with ease and rest on the road leading to the outside region, while passing near Pontikon they found a vessel and, treacherously killing the men who were escorting the Beglerbeg, they boarded the vessel and fled to Corfu, and from there again to Naples. And they indeed freed themselves from slavery in any way they could; but the father-in-law of Manuel Bouchalis, George Palaiologos, a cousin of the mother of the Beglerbeg, as we previously indicated, was cast into iron and led away. For he, as we have said, after fleeing from Leontarion with his son-in-law, went to Sparta into the slavery of the Des-
Despot A lord Demetrios; but when war broke out regarding Bordonian and Trypa, he was badly wounded and captured, and they led him away in chains to his one-time master, the despot lord Thomas. When he was healed of his wound, and being kept under guard in the vicinity of Dyrrhachion, he deceived his guards, fled, and again betook himself to the despot lord Demetrios, and spent a good deal of time in Nauplion, because his wife and children were living in the lands of the Venetians.
19. When the Emir had enslaved, as we have declared, Leontarion and the lands around it, and furthermore the church of Saint George—for seeing these things, Crocontelos, or to speak more appropriately, Crocodilos, bowed before the Emir himself, and handed over to him the castle of Saint George and his two sons; he received as his reward for these things, "Eloi," or rather to express it as "Eli," and the B following, which is, "My God, my God, why hast thou forsaken me?" or rather to say, "Why didst thou not also forsake him, the prime mover of the aforementioned evils?" While these things were happening there, the despot lord Thomas, having left Kalamata and crossed over into the lands around Kosmaina and Petalidi, entered Abarinon, and from there went to Marathis, where the queen had earlier left Arcadia and had arrived with her children and the nobles who were dwelling in Arcadia. The Emir seized these, but also Karitaina, from Sguromallis Palaiologos and the brother-in-law of the Great Loukanes, who had previously died by passing his soul as he sat on a latrine, just as once Arios C suffered, together with those hiding there, and he crossed over and descended into the vicinity of Androusa and Ithome. And having taken it and everything around it, he went to see Korone, and from there crossed over and saw Methone, and then Pylos, which is also called Abarinon. On the day when the despot lord Thomas also left the Peloponnese—for he had prepared some small ships, and having come to the harbor which the Italians call Porto Longo, so that from there, having found a fair wind, he might depart for Kerkyra. This he did, and on the 28th day of July he arrived in Kerkyra. D We too, having found a ship sailing there, set off on the 11th of July because of the plague that had broken out along with the other miseries in Methone, and on the 2nd of August we arrived in Kerkyra, with the intention of departing for Crete or for Verroia near Thessaloniki, because there was also a most beautiful monastery there in honor of Saint Nicholas, which the father of my mother had built from the foundations. Now, Georgios Raoul and his son-in-law and daughter had departed thither before us, and they had urged my own future son-in-law, Nikolaos Melissenos, to depart for the same place, and he in turn had persuaded me. And so, the despot and the others remaining there having departed, I too went, waiting to see what the future held. The Emir, meanwhile, having taken Arcadia, crossed from there into the lower parts of the Peloponnese and captured all the places there, and indeed the strongest, Chlomoutzos and Santamarin, which some, by the surname of Barlerbeides, held, and they themselves in fear left everything.
A He proceeded as far as Patras and remained there. Having taken Kalavryta, where the governor kept faith neither with the despots nor with the emir, nor even with God, I believe, the emir himself gave him a punishment worthy of his deeds; for he flayed him, and all his men were either beheaded or led away as captives. After the emir had well secured the city and left soldiers in every place, he rose from Patras and crossed to the regions around Salmenikon, Listraina, and Vostitsa; he took Vostitsa and Listraina, but a certain Palaiologos, surnamed Graitzas, held Salmenikon for some time.
The despot, as we have said, having come with his whole household to Corfu, letters came to him from the governor of Angelokastron, stating that the emir desired that one of the despot's nobles be sent to him, so that a reconciliation and friendship might occur between them, and that a place might be given by him to the despot with certain conditions in which to live. The despot, having consulted with his own men, deemed it good that one, Georgios Rales, should go to the emir, and that his son-in-law, Georgios Raoul, should go to the Pope, so that the one might announce both this and the despot's stay in Corfu to the Pope, and the other might see and learn what the emir's purpose was. They went, one B on the 9th, the other on the 11th of August. Since a plague had broken out in the city of Corfu, the despot and we ourselves departed to the surrounding districts, expecting the return of the envoys and the messages they were to bring. Now, Ioannes Rales, having passed through Angelokastron, reached the emir in the regions near Berrhoea; and immediately, at his command, both Rales and all who were with him were bound, and their feet were secured in irons. After they had thus travelled as prisoners for some days, he released them in the mountains of the Black Forest, saying that he had been expecting the despot to come while he was near the Peloponnese, or to send his son with nobles, so that grace might be shown to him, and he might sit and live. "Since, therefore, nothing has happened," he said, "again we say, let it happen if he wills; and when you have gone, let the despot come, or let him send one of his children, to whom we may show favor." C When Raoul had returned unsuccessfully in the month of October of the year 6969, the despot Thomas, on November 16, boarded one of the Corfiot ships and, with most of his nobles, crossed to Ancona, intending to go from there to the Pope, the Duke of Milan, and elsewhere, having left in Corfu the Queen and his children, and some of his own household nobles and servants who followed him. Although I was much invited and requested by him to either accompany him or remain in Corfu with the Queen, as head of her household, yet because of the mercy of God who manages all things well, and because of the grief for those I had fathered, and because of the disorder of all things in their house, I was disobedient to both requests. But since he persisted D and we awaited the results of the envoys. Now Ioannes Rales, having crossed through Angelokastron, reached the emir in the regions near Berrhoea; and immediately, at his command, both Rales and all who were with him were bound, and their feet were secured in irons. After they had thus travelled as prisoners, after some days' journey, to the mountains of the Black Forest, he released them, having said that he had been waiting, while I was near the Peloponnese, for the despot to come, or to send his son with nobles, so that there might be grace towards him, and he might sit and live. Since, therefore, nothing has happened, we say again, let it be done if he wishes; and when you have gone, let the despot come, or let him send one of his children, to whom we may show favor. When Raoul had returned with his mission unfulfilled in the month of October of the year 6969, as we have said, the despot Thomas, on the 16th of November, having boarded one of the Corfiot ships with most of his nobles, crossed to Ancona, so that from there he might go to the Pope and the Duke of Milan and elsewhere, leaving in Corfu both the Queen and his children, and some of his household nobles and servants of those who followed him. Of which, although I was much directed and requested to either go with him or remain in Corfu with the Queen, as master of her house; I, however, because of the mercy of God who manages all things well, and because of the grief for those I had begotten, and because of the disorder of all the people of their house, became disobedient to both. But when he persisted
received a similar condition, but remained at Molybatinos, the place where I had been before, since the Despot was at Chlomos due to the fear of the plague, as we have indicated. A And after a time, having found a small cell near the city dedicated to the holy Elijah, I went there and took up residence on the sixth of September of the year 6970. I remained there with my family, and I begged God only that He would have mercy on us and manage our affairs according to His own philanthropy and goodness. After I had spent five months there, I realized in the course of time that we could by no means enjoy a tranquil life with those who held that monastery. Consequently, because of the more frequent association with the good and benevolent spiritual Father Dorotheos, B who was at the monastery of the holy apostles Jason and Sosipater, we also obtained a cell from the order of the thirty-two priests of Saint Nicholas, known as the cell of Tarchaniotes, on the 15th of March of the year 6970, and I remained there with my family.
Despot Thomas, having arrived at Ancona and from there at Rome, accomplished nothing else but that he gave to Pope Pius II, in the second year of his pontificate, the head of the relic of the holy apostle and first-called Andrew, and he in turn barely granted him the sole and necessary provision for the sustenance of his life and that of his followers. When, therefore, the lords who were with him and others who had remained in Corfu saw and heard that there was no hope of assistance, C they dispersed, some in one direction and some in another, weeping over their misfortune.
Then also my son-in-law, who was dearer to me than a son—he who was one day to have been my son—Nicholas Melissenos, the son of the Great Protostrator, finding a Cretan merchant vessel belonging to a certain Sophaleos coming from Venice, embarked upon it and crossed to the city of Cydonia in Crete on the 11th of April of the year 6970, we having previously wept and mourned over his loss, for he was very good to me. There he married a wife and became a presbyter, as I learned later also from letters sent from his own hands. D As for the Despot, Master Thomas, having spent some time in Rome, he decided to return to the Venetian territory, and thence to Ancona, from where his daughter, the Queen of Serbia, was about to depart. And having spent several days there visiting her, he went back to Rome, while the Queen crossed over to Epidaurus in Illyricum. Her mother, the Queen, who was living a miserable life in Corfu, having been shown mercy by God, died in the same seventieth year of her life on the 16th of August, and was buried in the monastery of the holy apostles—I mean Jason and Sosipater.
The prince of the impious in the same year attacked Sphentiares and captured his celebrated city called Sinope, which I myself have seen. He took not only this, but also the entire territory of his, and furthermore Trapezous and Cerasous from the hands of David Komnenos, who was at that time the ruler there.
A and all the surrounding territory of theirs. Now, while the battle was being pre-arranged by the King—I mean of Trapezous, and of almost all the unfortunate and most useless lords and chiefs in those parts, whom he had led out from there and settled in Adrianople, where the lord of the Peloponnese, the Despot Kyr Demetrios, also was—he granted to him, for his and his people's subsistence, the great Ainos, Lemnos, Imbros, and Samothrace. To the King of Trapezous, Kyr David Komnenos, he gave certain villages upon the Black Mountain and settled him there. Yet after a short time, having found a certain false pretext against him, he stripped him of all his possessions and caused him to be strangled. In the spring of the same year, the Emir crossed into Great Wallachia and put the affairs that were being conducted there into order. Having returned, he built a fleet, and at his command the fleet set out against Lesbos, which he also took.
20. In the month of November of the same year 6971, the son of Turachane, Amare, having made an incursion, enslaved the entire region concerning Naupaktos of Aetolia—the area called Galatas—and not only the Venetians, but also those who pay tribute to him from the small Wallachia, which is called Phlabouron. When the admiral of the Venetian triremes learned of this, he ran to the aid of the city opposite to the Emir, named Bostitza, and having crossed over, he burned it and enslaved everyone except for the Koulamos alone; and having led the Bostitzans to Naupaktos, he made an exchange with his own men. Now, the war against the Emir had already been decreed by the Venetian Senate, and this very undertaking revealed it and became its beginning. The general admiral, by name Aloysius Lauredanus, arrived with great preparation, readiness, and force. He seized the Isthmus of the Peloponnese and fortified it, though poorly due to the haste—for in haste there is no security, as the saying goes. Then, having fought for Corinth and not achieving what was hoped, he left the Isthmus and withdrew. In the year 6972, the Venetians took Monemvasia, not so much by the will and grace of him who ruled the city, as by the incompetence of the leader who held it; just as, in like manner, through the incompetence and misfortune of the governor of Lemnos, the small town called Palaiokastron was stolen rather by the foreigners who happened to be inside it and was given over to the Venetian authority; and from this very small town, they took possession of the entire island. Furthermore, when the aforementioned Lauredanus had gone to Lesbos and waged war against it, he achieved nothing and returned unsuccessful.
D In the spring of the 6973rd year, the Despot Kyr Thomas gave orders that his sons and daughter should go to where he himself was. It happened that when they had arrived by ship at Ancona, and he had only heard that they had arrived in Ancona while he was in Rome, and before he could see them, he departed to the Lord on the 12th of May, being 56 years of age, or a little more. And while the children were in Ancona, Cardinal Bessarion wrote a letter to their tutor as follows:
21. An Epistle sent by the aforementioned to the tutor of the aforesaid children in Ancona.
Most noble man and our dearest friend, I received your letters previously, and now again through Hermetianos, to which I did not reply, awaiting that some settlement might come regarding the provision for the royal children. A Since it has now come about, I write now. To console both you and the royal children concerning the unbearable sorrow for that blessed and holy Despot is not for the present time; wherefore I ask your pardon for this for now. Know, however, that the most holy Pope, through the intercession of certain friends and his own benevolence, has ordered that three hundred ducats be given each month to the royal children, just as he used to give to the holy Despot. But the most holy Pope also wills and ordains that two hundred [ducats] per month are to be for the three brothers without fail, to be spent for the sustenance of them and several of their young servants—six or seven for each one—and for the purchase B and food of at least four horses, and for the wages of those same servants, and for the clothing of the royal children—which must be fine clothing—and that in some place something might even be left over for each one, so that they may be assisted in case of their sickness or other necessity. And he wills that this be done absolutely, and that nothing be done otherwise. The remaining one hundred ducats per month, that is, one thousand two hundred per year, are to be spent on certain lords and good persons who are to be with them to guard them. But the most holy Pope, having heard how many there are there, was greatly amazed and blames us; for if, with that blessed Despot, they were amazed at how such a man had so many [people] there and accused him of feeding so many in a foreign land with foreign ducats and foreign hopes, C how much more now, when others have come even more numerous than those who were there before, do they blame and accuse them, and especially since they are young and orphaned royal children, who possess neither title, nor name, nor reputation. And not only do they blame them, but they do not even wish to spend one *tornese* more, and I pray that they have at least promised us this, to keep it completely and that it not be changed, as they have done at other times. For this reason, it is necessary that your nobility, together with the lord Critopulos the physician, take care of this, as you currently have the care of the royal children. Let us determine who is to manage them, or who is necessary to be retained. And after this, they shall be distributed with our own counsel to those who wish to remain. To me, at least, it D seems most necessary that the following cannot be lacking: first, the physician; second, the Greek master; third, the Latin master; fourth, the interpreter. These, then, are most necessary and cannot be lacking. Furthermore, one or two Latin priests are most necessary so that they may constantly celebrate the Latin liturgy. For it is necessary that the children live in the Latin manner, just as the blessed father of theirs wished. And as for the lords—
A who wish to be with them, it is necessary that they pay attention to this, that they do not withdraw from the church on account of the commemoration of the Pope, as they did on the journey here; for if they withdraw from the church, it is necessary that they also withdraw from Francia. For no one wants a person who calls him an unbeliever and a heretic and openly turns away from him. Since, then, these necessary measures that we have spoken of are to be established and their portion fixed, then it shall be. This I wish to arrange here myself, and I wish to install them, and then you shall see how much of the two hundred florins remains. And then your nobility, all together, shall determine who is to remain and what each one is to have, according to our counsel. It seems to me, therefore, that the more there are, being lighter in expense and content to be satisfied with little individually—and otherwise being useful—the better it will be, because the children will have more company, more service, and more honor. Nevertheless, we shall deliberate on this together and shall do what is best. Your nobility is at present like a guardian of the children together with Critopoulos. It is therefore necessary, before all else, that you look to their education and their morals, so that they may become good and educated, if you wish them to have honor here. But if not, they will be despised—both they and you—and they will not even wish to turn to look at them B, since they had been conversing with the blessed lord, their father.
And he also wanted to clothe them and to make them live entirely in the Frankish way, that is to say, that they should follow the church in all things just like Latins and not otherwise; that they should dress in the Latin manner; that they should learn to kneel before their superiors, both the Pope and cardinals and other lords; that their heads should be uncovered; that they should honor those who greet them; and that when they go to see a cardinal or another such lord, they should not sit down at all, but should kneel until he tells them to stand up. And that blessed man of old said that he had often told them not to sit down. Therefore, keep all these things in mind, so that you may admonish them and educate them well. Furthermore, see to it that their gait is dignified and honorable, their conversation most useful, their voice moderate and calm, and their gaze attentive, and that they do not gape here and there. Let them honor all, let them love all, and let them converse with everyone—both their own people and strangers—with honor. Let them not be arrogant; let them be humble and calm. And let them not remember that they are descendants of an emperor, but let them remember that they are exiles from their own land, orphans, strangers, and completely destitute; that they are in need of living off the hands of others; and that if they do not possess virtue, if they are not prudent, if they are not humble, if they do not honor everyone, no one else will honor them either, but rather everyone will turn away from them. Therefore, take care to arrange all these things well, you here, for the burden is upon you. In addition to these, C be diligent regarding them,
A that they study letters so as to make progress, and may they not remember that they are noble. Nobility without virtue is nothing, and this is true for all masters who possess great domains and authority, and even more so for those who have lost everything. Therefore, let them be eager to learn, and let them have compliance, subjection, and obedience toward your nobility, toward the physician who has nurtured them, and toward their teacher; may they obey you and may they do what you tell them in all respects. Let each of them learn by heart a short address to the Pope, so that they may say it to the Pope, kneeling and bareheaded, when they come here, and let it not be otherwise. When they walk in the street and people uncover their heads to them and honor them, let them also uncover their heads, either completely or more or less, according to the people. Likewise, if honorable strangers come to the house and see them, let them show them respect, let them uncover their heads, and let them wait for them according to the people. Let them converse little, but with honorable, grateful, and humble words; may they never laugh, may they never be frivolous, but let them converse with a composed and serious demeanor. In their eating, let them be attentive and temperate. At the table, let them sit with attentiveness and decorum. If you want them to be well-mannered toward outsiders, make sure they are well-mannered toward their own people. Do not let them be shameless in anything; accustom them from now on to good habits and C kneeling properly and gracefully. And let them not be ashamed that great kings and emperors do this. When they go into a Latin church, let them kneel and pray just as the Latins do. Take them constantly to the churches, to the liturgies, and let them stand with reverence and attention, without laughter, without talking. Let them kneel and uncover their heads just as the Latins do, and let them imitate them. If they do this, they will be helped, they will have honor before all, and I myself will be able to work with them. But if they do the opposite, I will not be able to help them at all, for people will turn away from them, and no one will want to honor them even in the slightest.
I do not say these things for your nobility and the others to write down with such wordiness, for they are opportune and not vain; rather, it is so that you say them constantly to the young princes, and that you cause their teacher to read them to them constantly, so that they may understand them well and do them. I would have written them to the princes themselves, but because they are young and do not yet understand them well, I am writing them to your nobility so that you may exhort them, both in my name and in your own, to do as we have written.
Here there is a pestilence at the present time. For this reason, after consultation with the lords who are here, and with the will of the most holy Pope, it has seemed good that the young princes should not come here because of the danger; but neither should they be there at Ancona, since
A that place also is not healthy. But you must arrange to go to another region that they call Zicolon, where the air is good, to stay there until September or October with the young princes and the young princess. Consider among yourselves whether it is fitting that they remain there permanently, as the princes who are here desire. The most blessed Pope and I are writing to the Legate of the March so that he may help you and assist you in whatever need there may be. There is also a certain bishop there, a man of mine, who is from Como and who was also a servant of the holy master. Zicolon is his parish, and he has a good house there, and he wishes to give it to you so that you may live there, and he wishes to assist you in everything that is possible. Given at Rome, August 9, year 6973. Bessarion, Cardinal and Patriarch of Constantinople.
22. Therefore, when the Pope learned of the arrival of the young princes at Ancona, he sent, through the care, zeal, and assistance of the most reverend Cardinal and Patriarch of Constantinople, Bessarion, and they arrived in Rome; and the arrangement which their father had given them for their living, the Pope provided; and he honored the first son, the Despot Kyr Andreas Palaiologos. On the 15th of October in the year 6974, our spiritual father and brother and most excellent friend, Dorotheus, departed from this life in the Lord, and left us mourning his loss. And I, compelled by need, B having set out on the 17th of April, arrived at Ancona on the 17th of May; and on the first of June, having set out again, I went by way of Bitelmum, since, as we heard, Cardinal Bessarion and Patriarch of Constantinople was staying there at the baths. And after nine days we reached Rome, and we lodged in the house of our masters. Then the most blessed Pope, through the most reverend Cardinal Kyr Bessarion, sent to these despots—I mean the Despot Kyr Andreas and the young prince Kyr Manuel—that they should give their sister in marriage to a certain nobleman of the Parakiolos family, who was distinguished by wealth, lineage, and brilliance. And when the agreement was made, the betrothal ceremony was performed by the supreme pontiff. We, therefore, the household of the bride, received most generous honors from the bridegroom, rejoicing in the joy. C There I remained for thirty-six days; and having visited the tombs of the chief apostles and many other saints, and having examined the notable things in great ancient Rome, on the 16th of July I went out and traveled by the direct road to Ancona, and having remained there for a short time, I departed by sea for Venice on the 28th of the same month. And having remained there in the monastery of the Cross for twenty-six days, until the 23rd of August, from there, by the grace of God, we set out in the evening and were safely brought here to Corfu on the 5th of September of the year 6975.
At the time when we were staying in the regions around Rome, the emir of the impious D rulers came against Albania, and having driven out the master of that...
place—Scanterinus—and having taken him prisoner and caused him to vanish, he left behind men in some places to hold the areas through which he intended to pass. Then, turning back against them, he put them to flight and pursued them, and coming up with the aforementioned commander of the fleet, who was sitting on a mule and had fallen and slipped down, he seized and killed him. Many others were captured and slain, among them Michael Raulus himself, whom they caught as he had fallen from his horse and impaled upon a stake. Finally, as victors, they ran to the seashore where the triremes were, and finding many of them drawn up on the land, they killed and captured the soldiers. And suspecting the metropolitan of that same ancient Patras of being the author of the expedition A of the Venetian fleet against them, they seized and impaled him. Having suffered such things, the men of the aforementioned fleet returned, having achieved nothing and having incurred losses. From this evil event, the admiral, being grieved and taken with a severe illness, died while in Euripus. In his place came James Lauredanus, the son of that Peter Lauredanus, a cousin of the admiral Alwysius Lauredanus who preceded him. And these things indeed followed during the winter of the present year, but the event at Patras happened in August, before the autumn.
On the 29th day of the month of March of the year 6975, on which also our Easter fell—I mean that of the Eastern Christians—there died the author of all the evils of the Peloponnese, Matthew Asanes, for the emir, having seen that their pursuit was untimely and disorderly, had left men in certain places in order to oppose them, and had returned to the regions around Constantinople. And in the same year 6975, in the summer, Victor Cappellus, the Catholic admiral of the Venetian fleet, having departed for the island of Imbros, took it; and again departing for Athens, he captured the whole city of the Athenians. Then, coming in the month of August to the ancient Patras, he took the country. B When, therefore, the Ameras rushed to the aid of the country, the provider—or admiral—of the Venetian fleet, and Michael Raulus Ises, with many and good soldiers, put them to flight by main force and killed many of his men. And having pursued them for a long distance, they did not allow them to flee, as is the custom among experienced soldiers to do to their adversaries, nor did they themselves return to their own place and the fleet, just as the Roman magistrates of the city and all the people were advising them. But the aforementioned admiral, who was the provider of the fleet, having not accepted their counsel, but being elated by victory and appearing harsh, and furthermore pouring out threatening words against those who were advising him to such a course, stating that it was out of cowardice and treachery that not even they were following in the pursuit of the enemies. And thus, willing or unwilling, the army pursued the opponents as far as Sabellium C and beyond, to the approaches or, rather, the ascent of Siderocastron. D Lo, the melody of David has now also been fulfilled: "Let his enemies be scattered..."
and let those who hate him flee from before his face." And this having come to pass, as we heard from certain persons, the Despot sent back the income to the Emir, no longer wishing to bear the burden he had in the camp, saying this: "I am an old man and infirm, and he who fulfilled the servitude has died; henceforth let the great income be given wheresoever you command, but let there be given to me only what suffices for living, sitting here with a few." The Emir therefore replied: "It is well; let the Despot separate whom he wishes." And having separated some, he gave to him fifty thousand aspers, that he might have [it] from the tax on flour, but having restricted the greater part of his servants, he took them away so that they might be found in Constantinople. A Others said that it happened differently: that the author of all evils, Matthew Asanes, with those who held the salt-works of Ainos, had stolen certain monies without the knowledge of the Despot. When the Emir learned of this, he wished to seize the aforementioned Asanes and impale him; but Asanes, from fear, where he was, expired. The Emir, however, suspecting that the Despot was also a participant in such counsel and would flee, exiled him to Didymoteichon and took away all his allowance, and thus he was badly treated. One day, therefore, as the Emir was returning from the hunt and was about to pass by where the aforementioned Despot was, the Despot came out on foot and, having met him, did obeisance to the Emir, who was also his son-in-law. Seeing him walking, the Emir B was deeply saddened, and, being all the more moved with compassion for his age, ordered that one of the royal horses be given to him. Having mounted it, the Despot went with the Emir to Adrianople, and there he was given for his sustenance fifty thousand aspers from the flour tax. And this is the truer account.
In the summer of the same year, such a pestilential disease occurred in Constantinople, Adrianople, and Gallipolis, and in the cities and villages, towns and regions surrounding them, such as had not happened in previous times for a long while, so that, as they say, many myriads of people died, not [merely] thousands. Among whom the daughter of the Despot, the Emirissa, also died. C In the month of November of the 6963rd year, I too departed for Santa Maura at the urging of the Queen, lady Helena, and of the father-in-law of the lord of that place, Messer Leonardo, so that I might also inspect the place there, and as being supposedly a cousin of my late master, the Emperor lord Constantine, and on account of his father having suffered for me a very great loss, as I have indicated in the 58th year, so that I might enjoy some annual benevolence as an old, infirm, and impoverished man from captivity. Having returned on the 22nd of the same month, having seen all things finished and having enjoyed [the benefits], save for the fact that [the]... in the Mastraidian people his entire remaining authority was contained; for it is necessary for those who rule to be similar to those who are ruled. And in the month of January of the same year, the lord of Albania, by name Scanderbeg, died of a natural death, and the authority of the place and the lordship was taken over by the authority of Venice, and the...
nephew of his sister, being a Turk, sent by him, occupied it. A
From the middle of spring of the same year, that is to say the year 6976, and having laboured through the whole summer ill with my customary affliction of rheumatism, and since my secular garments were worn out, I clothed myself in sacred vestments on the first day of the month of August, and in place of Georgios I was called Gregorios, and in place of Helena my spouse was called Eupraxia, having first given the confession of our faith in God, as is the custom for the orthodox who are taking up the monastic habit. And thus I began first to expound well the holy creed, and whence the most holy creed was composed by the divine Fathers, so that we might know that not even they composed it out of their own invention, but by gleaning the phrases and the knowledge from the divine oracles, they wrote it down with reverent minds. B Therefore, almost all the phrases of this divine creed are from the holy Scriptures, as will be shown in detail.
I believe. Gospel: "Do you believe in the Son of God?" and "Believe in God, and believe in me." Apostle: "Believe in the Lord Jesus."
In one God. Gospel: "That they may know you, the only true God." Brother of the Lord: "Believe that God is." Paul: "And our God is the Father, from whom are all things, and we in him, and one Lord Jesus Christ, through whom are all things."
Father. Gospel: "I am ascending to my Father and your Father," and, "Holy Father, and the world has not known you," and, "I shall go to my Father," and, "I shall ask my Father," and, "My Father, into your hands I commit my spirit," and, "I cannot now pray to my Father." Peter: "Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ." Paul: "God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ." C
Almighty. Zechariah: "Thus says the Lord Almighty," and, "Upon the house of the Lord Almighty," and, "Says the Lord Almighty." Ezekiel: "Adonai, Lord," which is Almighty. And "Sabaoth" also is interpreted as Almighty, which Isaiah attributes to the whole Trinity, saying, "Holy, holy, holy, Lord Sabaoth." Gospel: "Father of heaven and of earth." David: "For in his hand are the ends of the earth." The Intimate [John]: "Who is and who was and who is to come, the Almighty."
Maker of heaven and earth. Moses: "In the beginning God made the heaven and the earth." Gospel: "Father, Lord of heaven and of earth."
Visible things and invisible. Paul: "Whether visible or invisible, all things were created through him and for him," from the Father, that is, through Christ. David: "He spoke, and they were born; he commanded, and they were created."
And in one Lord Jesus Christ, the only-begotten Son of God. Paul: "And to us there is one God the Father and one Lord Jesus Christ." D
A True God from true God. The Beloved: "This is the true God and eternal life," and: "We are in the true One, in his Son Jesus Christ." Gospel: "I am the truth." Paul: "According to the appearing of the glory of the great God and our Savior Jesus Christ." Gospel: "That they may know you, the true God, and him whom you sent, Jesus Christ." And: "You are the Christ, the Son of the living God." And: "You are my beloved Son." And: "I have seen and believed that this is the Christ, the Son of God." And: "Do you believe in the Son of God?" And: "These things are written that they may believe that this is the Christ, the Son of God." And: "The only-begotten Son, who is in the bosom of the Father, he has made him known." And: "God so loved the world that he gave his only-begotten Son." And the Beloved: "That you may know about the only-begotten Son."
Begotten of the Father before all ages. Gospel: "Everyone who loves the parent loves also the child begotten of him." And: "Now glorify me with the glory which I had with you before the world was." And: "In the beginning was the Word." And: "Who is in the bosom of the Father." And: "Who was from the beginning." Apostle: "In these last days he has spoken to us in the Son, through whom he also made the ages." Proverbs: "Before the age he founded me, and before all the hills he begets me." Gospel: "I came out from the Father and have arrived," and: "I came out from the Father and have come into the world." B
Begotten. Proverbs: "Before all the hills he begets me." Gospel: "For this I have come and for this I have been born." Of the Beloved: "He who loves the parent loves also the child begotten of him." Not made; for he is begotten, not made with created things, because he is the creator of all. Paul: "Through whom also he made the ages." Of Wisdom: "Who made all things by your word."
Consubstantial with the Father. Gospel: "I and the Father are one," and: "Do you not know that I am in the Father and the Father is in me?" And: "He who has seen me has seen the Father." Paul: "Who being the brightness of his glory and the stamp of his subsistence," and: "Who, being in the form of God, did not think it robbery to be equal to God, but emptied himself, taking the form of a servant." C
Through whom all things were made. Paul: "Through whom also he made the ages," and: "All things were created through him and for him," and: "He is before all things, and all things consist in him." Gospel: "All things were made through him, and without him not one thing was made that has been made." Proverbs: "Before the age he founded me." This signifies concerning his living wisdom in the Father before the age and D light from light. Gospel: "That he might bear witness to the light," and: "This was the true light, which illuminates every man coming into the world." David: "In your light we shall see light." Paul: "Who being the brightness of glory."
A and the unchanging formation of the Father, as also that which says: "The Lord created me as the beginning of his ways for his work," pre-signifies the incarnation, through which he later brought about the great works of our salvation. As also that: "God by wisdom founded the earth," signaling the works that followed, and that: "You have made all things in wisdom," and that, "The one who made all things by your Word." But as for, "The Lord created me," he says that even instead of creating and fashioning his works, he willed it through me, his wisdom. And David testifies to this: "By the word of the Lord the heavens were established." And in a purer way, "The Lord created me" teaches his appearance through the flesh, as we have said.
For us men. Paul: "For all things are for us." And, "If God is for us, who is against us? He who did not spare his own Son, but delivered him for all of us," and, "Since the children have participated in flesh and blood, he also similarly partook of the same." B And for our salvation. Isaiah: "Not an angel, not an envoy, but the Lord himself saved us." Peter: "Concerning which salvation the prophets inquired." The Gospel: "I did not come to judge the world, but that I might save the world," and, "That the world may be saved through him," and, "That salvation is from the Jews," and, "This is the Savior of the world, Christ." And incarnate of the Holy Spirit and Mary the Virgin. Isaiah: "Behold, the Virgin shall have in her womb and shall bring forth a son." The Gospel: "And how shall this be for me, since I do not know a man? Do not fear, Mary; behold, you shall conceive in your womb and bring forth a son; the Holy Spirit shall come upon you, and the power of the Most High shall overshadow you." And to Joseph: "For that which is begotten in her is of the Holy Spirit; and he did not know her until she brought forth her son, the firstborn." Paul: "God sent his Son, born of a woman," and, "And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us." And having become man. Paul: "Who, existing in the form of God, did not consider it robbery to be equal with God, but emptied himself, taking the form of a servant, being made in the likeness of men." And, "One God and Father of all, one also mediator of God and men, man Jesus Christ." The Gospel: "That he is the Son of man, do not marvel at this." And, "When the Son of man comes upon the throne of his glory."
Crucified also for us under Pontius Pilate. Paul: "I charge you before God, who gives life to all things, and the Lord Jesus, who testified before Pontius Pilate the good confession." The Gospel: "Are you seeking Jesus the Nazarene who was crucified?" Paul: "And that descending from the heavens. Paul: "He who descended is the same as he who ascended." The Gospel: "Because I have descended from heaven." Paul: "And that
he was crucified and that he was buried and that he has been raised on the third day according to the Scriptures." A And having suffered and having been buried. Moses: "And thy life shall be hanging before thine eyes." Isaiah: "As a sheep he was led to the slaughter," and, "I gave my back to the scourging." David: "That I am ready for scourges." Zechariah: "What are these wounds in the midst of thy hands? And he shall say, which I suffered in my beloved house." The Gospel: "That it was necessary for Christ so to suffer and to enter into his glory." The Gospel: "And Joseph, taking the body, wrapped it in a clean linen cloth, and laid it in a new tomb which was hewn out of rock." And, "They took therefore the body of Jesus and bound it in linen cloths with the spices, as is the custom for the Jews to bury. Now there was in the place where he was crucified a garden, and in the garden a new tomb, in which no one had yet been laid."
And having risen on the third day according to the Scriptures. The Gospel: "Jesus Christ having risen early on the first day of the week." And, "He brings the third day today since these things happened." And, "Jesus having risen from the dead stood in the midst of the disciples and says to them, Peace be unto you." And, "Remember, Lord, as he spoke to us in Galilee, saying that the Son of man must be delivered into the hands of sinful men and be crucified, and on the third day rise again." B Into the heavens and sat at the right hand of God. And, "It came to pass while he was blessing them, he was parted from them and was carried up into heaven."
And again coming with glory to judge the living and the dead. The Acts: "Ye men of Galilee, why stand ye looking into the heaven? This Jesus who has been taken up from you into heaven, shall so come in like manner as ye beheld him going into heaven." The Gospel: "And then shall ye see the Son of man coming with glory upon the clouds; and then shall the Son of man sit upon the throne of his glory, and all the nations shall be gathered before him." The Acts: "Who did eat and drink with him after he rose from the dead, and he charged us again to preach to the people and to testify that he is the one ordained by God to be judge of the living and the dead." Daniel: "I beheld until thrones were set, and the Ancient of days sat," and, "Behold the Son of man coming upon the clouds," and, "Even until the Ancient of days reached, and to him was given the honor and the power."
And having ascended into the heavens and sitting at the right hand of the Father. The Gospel: "Of whose kingdom there shall be no end." Daniel: "And his kingdom is everlasting, and his kingdom shall not be handed over to another people." The Gospel: "And he shall reign over the house of Jacob unto the ages, and of his kingdom there shall be no end." C The part of the sacred Symbol that follows from this point was completed by the second holy and ecumenical council.
And in the Holy Spirit. The Gospel: "Bapti-
Baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit." — "When the Paraclete comes, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name." David: "Take not thy Holy Spirit from me." A
The Lord. Paul: "Now the Lord is the Spirit; and where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is freedom." And: "Why have you lied to the Holy Spirit? You have not lied to men, but to God."
The Giver of Life. The Gospel: "It is the Spirit that gives life, the flesh is of no avail." David: "Thou sendest forth thy Spirit, they are created; and thou renewest the face of the earth." Moses: "And he breathed into his countenance the breath of life." Ezekiel: "Son of man, prophesy to the Spirit, and it came upon them, and they lived."
Who proceeds from the Father. The Gospel: "When the Paraclete comes, whom I shall send to you from the Father, the Spirit of truth, who proceeds from the Father." And straightway, coming up out of the water, he saw the heavens opened and the Spirit descending upon him like a dove. Paul: "Now we have received not the spirit of the world, but the Spirit which is from God." And David: "By the word of the Lord were the heavens established, and all the power of them by the Spirit of his mouth." Peter from the Acts: "Having received the promise of the Holy Spirit from the Father, he has poured out this which you now see and hear." Paul to Titus: "He saved us through the washing of regeneration and renewal of the Holy Spirit, which he poured out upon us richly through Jesus Christ our Savior." B
Who with the Father and the Son is worshiped and glorified. The Gospel: "Baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit." And: "No one knows the things of heaven, except the Spirit dwelling in him." And: "No one knows the things of God, except the Spirit which is in him." And in Isaiah and Ezekiel the angels sing: "Holy, holy, holy, Lord Sabaoth; heaven and earth are full of his glory," that is, of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, the one God in Trinity. C
Who spoke through the prophets. Zechariah: "As he spoke by the mouth of his holy prophets of old, salvation from our enemies." The Theotokos: "As he spoke to our fathers, to Abraham and to his seed forever." Acts: "To this all the prophets bear witness, that every one who believes in him receives forgiveness of sins through his name." And: "Whom heaven must receive until the time of the restitution of all things of which God spoke by the mouth of all his holy prophets from of old." The Gospel: "David said in the Holy Spirit: The Lord said to my Lord, Sit at my right hand." Acts: "And when they had prayed, the place in which they were gathered was shaken; and they were all filled with the Holy Spirit and spoke the word of God with boldness." Exodus: "And they were filled with the Holy Spirit and prophesied in the camp." D
A And “in the life of the world to come.” Gospel: “He who hates his life in this world shall keep it for eternal life.” Acts: “And as he reasoned of righteousness, and temperance, and the judgment to come.” Isaiah: “The Father of the world to come.” Gospel: “I live because of the Father, and he who eats me shall live because of me.” And: “I am the resurrection and the life.” And: “These shall go away into eternal punishment, but the righteous into eternal life.”
“In one holy, catholic, and apostolic Church.” As the seven catholic epistles are written to all the faithful in common, so also the Church of all the orthodox is called catholic. Paul: “He who made both one, and one Lord, one faith, one baptism.” And: “Holy brethren and built upon the foundation of the apostles and prophets, Jesus Christ himself being the chief corner stone.” And: “You are the body of Christ, and members individually.” And: “God has placed in the Church first apostles, secondarily prophets, thirdly teachers.” And: “That the Church may be built up.” And: “You are the temple of the living God.” And: “For the perfecting of the Church.” And: “Jesus Christ himself being the chief corner stone; in whom you also are built together; and he is the head of the body of the Church.”
“I confess one baptism for the remission of sins.” Paul: “Confess the good confession.” And: “With the heart one believes unto righteousness, and with the mouth one confesses unto salvation.” “One Lord, one faith, one baptism.” Gospel: “Baptizing them for the remission of sins.” “Baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit.”
“I look for the resurrection of the dead.” Acts: “Concerning the hope and resurrection of the dead I am judged.” Isaiah: “The dead shall arise and those in the graves shall be raised.” Acts: “For the earnest expectation of the creature B awaits the revelation of the sons of God.” Gospel: “When the dead shall hear the voice of the Son of God, and those who hear shall live.”
And “the life of the world to come.” Gospel: “He who hates his soul in this world shall keep it unto life eternal.” Acts: “And as he reasoned of righteousness and temperance and the judgment to come.” Isaiah: “The Father of the world to come.” Gospel: “I live, and he who eats me, shall live because of me.” And: “I am the resurrection and the life.” And: “These shall go away into eternal punishment, but the righteous into eternal life.”
“Amen.” The word “Amen” is the confirmation and seal of the whole holy Symbol, and as it were a key excluding those from without, and guarding in a most beautiful chest of the Church the treasure of faith, lest anyone take something from it or introduce something spurious C.
This divine, most holy, and in every way perfect sign of our piety, the confession of the fathers, the definition of our true faith, let us keep in mind and freely profess with tongue and lips, protecting intact in our souls and sincere and wholly incorrupt D the holy pledge received from the Fathers inspired by the divine Spirit, moved and glorious, so that by the intercessions of the saints who set it forth and guarded it, and of those before them from whom they received the knowledge of the Symbol, and of all the saints together, and of the holy angels and the Mother of our Savior and God
A Jesus Christ, the ever-virgin, the only all-holy and true Mother of God, as a pure and beautiful gift. By offering this confession to the Trinity, may we be delivered from eternal punishment and enjoy the divine kingdom of our Savior Christ himself, and his glory and delight, perpetually glorifying Christ, the only-begotten Son of the living God, together with his pre-eternal Father and the all-holy Spirit. Amen.
Following, therefore, upon this confession, as it behooves those who take on the monastic habit to do, I have added these things:
I believe that the Son of God is not a creature, nor subject to time, as the foolish Arius taught, but coessential and coeternal with God the Father, true God from true God, the maker of all times and all creatures; but that, later, he was incarnate for our sake by the Holy Spirit and Mary the Virgin.
I believe that the Holy Spirit is not a creature, nor of a different substance from the Father and the Son, as Macedonius, destitute of his grace, blasphemed, but rather true God, coessential and coeternal with the Father and the Son, proceeding from the Father by procession, just as the Son is from him by generation.
I believe that the Son of God who is before the ages is not one, and the Jesus Christ born from the Virgin another, as the foolish Nestorius blasphemed, but that the one born of her B has two natures after the union, though one in person, the divine, of course—and thus the one who bore him is properly and truly the Mother of God, not, as that fool would have it, Christ-bearer.
I believe that the Son of God, after the incarnation and union, did not combine the two natures into one, as the foolish Dioscorus and Eutyches did, who attributed [our] passions to his divinity, but that he is to be acknowledged in two natures after the union without confusion; and further, that there is no end to punishment nor a restoration of demons, as the foolish Origen taught.
I believe that the Son of God, our Lord Jesus Christ, after the incarnation, did not have one natural will and one energy, as Honorius of Rome and the foolish Pyrrhus [taught], but two wills and two energies—that is to say, a divine and a human energy and will—and that neither of the natures is without a will or without an energy.
I believe in the iconic representations, C that is to say, in the character depicted in the image of our Lord and God and Savior Jesus Christ and of his all-pure and God-bearing Mother and of all the saints, that they are to be venerated relatively and not worshiped with latria, nor as if they were made into gods. The Church of God kisses and honors them, not bestowing the honor upon the material [substance], but referring it to the prototype; for the honor shown to the image passes on to the prototype, according to the great Basil, since the image is a likeness of the prototype. D
I believe that the divine nature is neither inoperative nor devoid of essential energies, nor that essence and energy are the same in it, nor that these are created as the foolish Barlaam and Acindynus claim, but rather that the divine energies are essential, distinct from the essence itself, uncreated, and called divinities. I firmly believe that the Holy Spirit does not proceed from the Father and the Son, as the Italians teach, but from the person of the Father alone, just as the Son himself is begotten from the person of the Father alone; and that the Spirit is sent by the Father and the Son, just as the grace and gift itself of him bestows.
23. And thus in the autumn of the year 6977, the queen, Lady Helena Palaiologina, wife of the Despot of Serbia, departed to the Venetian authorities, accusing those who had despoiled her of her goods in Corfu. In the spring of the same year, there were many great earthquakes in Santa Maura, Cephalonia, and Zakynthos; and many buildings of those living in those cities, villages, and regions, including towns and walls, fell. The town of Cephalonia was completely destroyed, and many people died. In the summer of the same year, the Venetian admiral, Nicholas Decanales by name, came with triremes against Ainos and captured it in seven days; and having returned, he arrived in the Peloponnese and rebuilt Bostitza A in the summer of that same year. In the winter of the same year, 6978, on the 25th of January, such snow fell throughout the entire island as the people of Corfu had never seen, so that they caught foxes and hares with their own hands. The same occurred in western parts, but much more so in Asia, that is, in the East. Toward the end of the spring of the same year, the prince of the impious launched a campaign against Euboea, at the end of the month of June. His fleet, before the army set out by land from Gallipoli, went to Lemnos and captured Cotzinus and all the localities around the whole island, except for the old castle, that is, the old town and the port, and then returned. B When the city's army arrived from Nicomedia and wherever else they were, they all set out together and arrived at Euripus; seeing them, the exarch and admiral of the Venetians retreated—perhaps acting rightly, but wrongly in that he did not wish to strengthen the city, that is, the town, of Euboea. While passing through, the ameras' army captured Imbros along the way, then came to Euboea, in which month the ameras also arrived. And having fought fiercely by land and sea, on the 12th of the month of July, he took the town by war. This having been done, all the islets and towns around the island surrendered voluntarily. The ameras, having lingered there a little while, departed for Constantinople around the beginning of the month of August. He left behind the beglerbeg, who came to the Peloponnese. And those who C held Bostitza, partly Fuge-
partly submissively they venerated him and surrendered the city [to him]. As he advanced, the inhabitants of Bumeros, Olena, Chelidonion, and the Ponticians did the same. He completely demolished all the places situated by the sea down to their foundations, but left the others alone. Having marched as far as the principality, he turned back and left the Peloponnese. The Venetians sent another commander for the fleet, Thomas by name, surname Mocenigo, who arrested the former commander, Nicholas Canal, together with his son and his scribe; having placed them in iron shackles and bound them, he sent them to Venice to their government, that is, to their aristocracy. A
In the spring of the same year, Zuchasanes [Uzun Hassan] set out against the territory of the Amira Mehmet, and he ran through some of his places in the East, that is, in Asia. The Amira also departed from Constantinople and went against him with all his power. Having approached him at the beginning [of the campaign], the Amira’s army, which had gone out against Zuchasanes, was defeated. There the Beglerbeg Palaiologos was killed, the son of that Thomas Palaiologos, called Gidos, who was the Beglerbeg of the West, as well as many other princes and commanders of the West. Afterwards, when the Amira himself came face to face [with the enemy], he was defeated, B and having turned back, he went away to his own city, and likewise the Amira [went back] to Constantinople.
At the beginning of the autumn of the year 6979, the Despot Kyr Demetrios died in Adrianople, having become a monk, where he was also named David. A little time before his death, his daughter, the Amerissa, had died; his wife, the Queen, died a short time after his death.
On the 26th of July of the year 6980, I fell into such a severe illness that I became a perfect monk of the Great Habit, without having anticipated it. In the autumn of the year 6981, Cardinal Kyr Bessarion, who was returning from the King of the Franks and the Duke of Burgundy—having been sent by the Roman Church to reconcile them—died on the journey on the 15th of November. His body, or rather his remains, were brought to Rome with the greatest honor, and they buried him in the Church of the Holy Apostles, where he had already resided, and they prepared [his] tomb near the tomb of the holy martyr Eugenia. C
At the end of the month of July of the same year, the Senate of the Venetians, that is, the government, took possession of a certain castle called Strobolon, situated near Corfu.
On the 7th of November of the year 6982, in Saint Maura, the Queen, Lady Helena Palaiologina, died; she had become a nun and was renamed Hypomone through the Great Habit. Also [died] the hieromonk and spiritual father who was with us, Kyr Hierotheos, who was renamed Joseph through the Great Habit; he had been my companion from youth and a student and a friend until the end of his life.
In the summer of the year 6983, the leader of the impious sent a fleet against the upper parts of the Euxine Sea and took the great city of Caffa in the Tauric Chersonese. D
A In the summer of the year 6984, he went against Wallachia with all his forces. In September of the year 6985, he returned from Wallachia more defeated than victorious; and having left the beylerbey in the city of Sofia, he himself came to Adrianople.
On the first day of the month of October of the same year, a rheumatism attacked my head and knees, and such a quantity of rheum flowed from my mouth, nose, and ears that all despaired of my recovery; and I partook three times of the immaculate mysteries. Would that death—the remedy for all my hardships, for old age, infirmity, and poverty—had come to me! For I was deprived not only of many of those good men whose company I had enjoyed since my youth, but even of the necessary means for my daily food. I believe that patience under such things and gratitude toward God will, by the grace of God, be the cause of His forgiving me many of the sins I have committed against Him; for there has not been a sin or deed in my life, nor any other wickedness, that I—unworthy and wretched as I am—did not commit. I have sinned in thought, word, and intent, by choice, disposition, and act, as no one else has ever done. B Yet, delivered from death, I remained deaf from that illness for a long time, so that I could not hear the words of anyone speaking near me. And in order that I might be released to the supreme providence after the passing of the days of this life remaining to me, upon the coming of death, as the divine Job called for the rest of men, I prayed to God thus: “But if, Savior, it is necessary for me to suffer (for who knows the depth of Thy judgments? since Thy benevolence seems to abhor my sufferings, but Thy justice does what belongs to it), C at least grant me to pay the penalty in this time, which has an end, and not in the future time, which has no end and where there is no restoration of things. Having purified me here, therefore, by using all the things that conduce to this, deem me worthy, thus departing from here, not to fall from Thy mercies at Thy second and terrible coming.”
In the summer of the same year, 6985, the emir, having sent a very great army against Naupaktos in order to take it, and then to invade Santa Maura, by the help of God, neither took Naupaktos in that year nor went against Santa Maura, but returned with his task unaccomplished.
The end of the present historical or chronicled book, produced by me, the author, at the request of certain noble Corfiots, who exhorted me not to pass over in silence what I have seen with my own eyes and heard and read. And thus I wrote it with my own hand and delivered it into the hands of D the most pious priest, Sir Antonios. And you who read it, pray for me for the sake of the Lord, if anything has escaped me; for my old age and terrible infirmity did not allow me to emend it well. It was written in the year from the creation of the world 6986, the 29th of March, in the eleventh indiction.
GEORGIUS PHRANTZA. CHRONICON MINUS.
ROMAN EDITOR'S ADMONITION
(Classici Auctores, tom. IX, p. 591).Georgius Phrantza’s prolix Chronicle, translated into Latin by himself, was edited some time ago by Jacobus Pontanus in a rather free manner; later, Charles Alter faithfully published the Greek text several years ago. Yet, beyond that prolix Chronicle, as I have said, Leo Allatius had mentioned another shorter, unpublished one by the same Phrantza in his *Diatriba de Georgiis*, and against Creyghton, which lead Fabricius, Cave, and other bibliographers to note it correctly. I myself, having formerly presided over the Vatican Library, noticed this very writing of Phrantza, known to Allatius, in the Greek Otthobonian codices under no. 260, pp. 113-207; and when I had scarcely begun to transcribe it, I retired from the library for a more serious office. However, because I had not abandoned the desire to publish the little work eventually, having obtained the kind assistance of the distinguished Augustinus Theiner, I received a complete copy made by his hand from the Otthobonian codex; and as I was soon to send it to the press, I thought I could do nothing more appropriate than to invoke the critical aid of another distinguished man, Johannes Franzius, who was staying in Rome, so that he might oversee the edition; not so much because I was recommending Phrantza to a patron of the same name, Franzius, but because I was presenting the rather barbaric language of the Chronicle, such as corrupt Greece was then already using, to a most expert master of its dialect, who has taught and elucidated the same in a twofold grammatical treatise. But why should I say more? Let us now hear the distinguished Franzius himself as he introduces it.
JOHANNES FRANZIUS TO THE READER
The epitome of the Chronicle, namely this *Chronicon Minus*, although composed in a cruder dialect and possessing nothing that could invite one to read it for the sake of its style, nevertheless, since it is transcribed from a codex somewhat better than the one which Charles Alter used in editing the major Chronicle, it certainly seems worthy of being printed on account of its various readings. Indeed, whoever wishes to compare the *Chronicon Minus* with that major Chronicle will understand that, with easy effort, one can in a certain way explain and restore the other in very many places. Let us dispose of these few matters here. That the *Chronicon Minus* appears more recent than the major one, there will be no one who doubts. For there is such perversity in its words and construction that, although we concede that Phrantza used a poor style, it nevertheless appears that the one who compiled the epitome fared much worse. The former certainly strives to avoid more recent words or names, while the latter delights even in the lowest, because, I suspect, he imagined that the speech would thus become easier and clearer. Since things are so, even if anyone might think of different authors, there is, however, no reason why we should deny that Phrantza is the author of this epitome, who, as it were, in the lesser Chronicle used less care, and for some reason I do not know, composed it in a more negligent dialect. For it is certainly not likely that this *Chronicon Minus* was composed first, and that from it he fashioned that greater Chronicle of Phrantza. Be that as it may, just as one Chronicle is explained by the other, so now at last may one who wishes, with full right, approach the task of emending the Chronicle of Phrantza.
THE MINOR CHRONICLE OF GEORGE PHRANTZA
A Miserable George Phrantza, who was also Great Vestiarites, and Gregory, supposedly a monk, have written these things concerning matters in his time and some individual events that occurred during the years of his wretched life.
From the birth of Christ, 6909. B It would have been better for me had I not been born, or had I died as an infant; but since this did not happen, it must be known that I was born on the 30th of August. I was reborn on the 3rd day by the most holy and saintly Theomais, concerning whom we intend to tell the truth in the proper place.
6912. And on the 28th of July of the tenth year, the Amirs Bayezid was defeated by Tamerlane—that Bayezid who was the fifth ruler of his lineage. For Ertuğrul was the first; the second was Osman, from whom come the Osmanlis; the third was Orhan; the fourth, Murad; the fifth, Bayezid; the sixth, Mehmed; the seventh, Murad; and the eighth, Mehmed, who indeed also took us captive and drove us from Constantinople.
6914. At the start of the 12th year, the holy emperor Kyr Manuel Palaiologos returned from the West to Constantinople.
6915. And in the 13th year, in the month of February, his second son, Constantine, was born to him, who also went on to become emperor. From this 12th year until the 21st, many necessary and memorable things took place—I speak of the arrival in the West of the six sons of the Amir Bayezid, that is, of Suleiman, Musa, Isa, Mehmed, and Joannes, who also became a Christian and was named Demetrios; of the death of the emperor Kyr Joannes in Thessaloniki and the arrival there of the holy emperor Kyr Manuel and his uncle, and the settlement of the same despot Kyr Andronikos in Thessaloniki; of the death of the despot Kyr Theodoros the Porphyrogennetos in Mystras and the arrival of the holy emperor and his brother Kyr Manuel in the Morea; of the death of the Amir Suleiman at the hands of his brother Musa; of the three-year war of this same Musa against the holy emperor Kyr Manuel; of the blinding of Orhan, son of Suleiman, in the regions near Larissa; C of the arrival from the East to the West of his brother Mehmed, and of [the arrival of] Kyr Ichi; of his defeat, his return to the East, his subsequent arrival from the city to the West, and his victory and the death of Musa; and furthermore, of the death of the holy emperor Kyr Manuel’s second son, Constantine, in Monemvasia, as well as the death of two of his daughters; of the birth of the young prince Kyr Michael in the City, and his death from a plague-like illness; of the death similarly of the Çelebi Kyr Demetrios; of the birth of the young prince Kyr Demetrios and of the young prince Kyr Thomas, and of several other necessary particulars. All these things, on account of my youth and because I did not know them correctly and precisely—in what year and month they precisely occurred—I pass over in silence.
6917. In the month of July of the 21st year, the holy emperor Kyr Manuel departed from the City and went to the island of Thasos.
6918. And he departed from there in September of the 22nd year. Thence he went to Thessaloniki and to the Morea, and built the Hexamilion.
6919. In the 23rd year, in March, he arrived at the port called Cenchreae. And on the 8th of April he began to clean and reconstruct the very Hexamilion itself, the length of which is 1,200 fathoms; he erected 153 towers upon it. Stones with inscriptions were found saying thus: "Light from Light, true God from true God, may He guard the autokrator Justinian, and his faithful servant Victorinus, and all those living in Greece who live by God."
6920. And in the 24th year, in the month of March, they returned to the City. In this month after the arrival of the holy emperor himself, the patriarch Kyr Euthymios died, and on the 21st of May of the same year, Kyr Joseph of Ephesus became patriarch.
6921. And in the 25th year, the emperor Kyr Joannes departed for the Morea in the autumn season, at which time, while passing through Thessaloniki, he took the impostor son of that Bayezid, Mustafa, who was being pursued by his supposed brother Mehmed and had sent him to Lemnos; later…
to Mistra. In the winter of that same year, a plague having occurred in the Black Sea and finding itself among families in one of the castles there, my brother-in-law, A Gregory Palaiologos Mamonas—an excellent man, son of the Grand Duke Mamonas, and formerly lord of Monemvasia and its surroundings—held the governorship. Furthermore, my sister, his wife, and their female child died. First the child, then seven days later her father, and seven days after the father, her mother. Also, from their household staff, both men and women perished, leaving only two of them alive. These came to the city and with one voice told my wretched parents about it. They, having heard this, died in a strange manner—though they did not physically die, they were rendered utterly infirm from that point on. This was also the reason why the one who begat me did not come to the Morea with the young lord, Lord Thomas, to be in charge of him, nor did I go with him into service at his table and in his room, as we had been instructed by the holy emperor, the father of the said young lord, and were preparing to do. And because my first brother B was in the Morea with the emperor, and the other one after me, as the death of his brothers came about, left father, mother, and brothers behind and went into the monastery called that of the Charsianites, where the true teacher, Lord Joseph, also was, and became a monk. The same death occurring around Spring and Summer, in the month of August in the City, the Despina Lady Anna from Russia also died of a pestilential disease and was buried in the monastery of Didos. 48. [110] And at the beginning of the 26th year, the young lord, Lord Thomas, was also sent to the Morea by the holy emperor and his father. At which time the emperor, Lord John, also returned to the City; and the holy emperor and his father brought me to his room on March 17th—I being 16 years of age, and that holy man being 69. 49. In the 27th year, in the month of November, Despina Lady Sophia, daughter of the Marquis of Montferrat, came to the City. And on the 19th of January of the same year, she was blessed and crowned Empress, Lady in the Hagia Sophia; at which coronation there was truly a festival of festivals and a feast of feasts. 50. In the 28th year, the Emir, who is also Lord Izes, came with Mehmed to cross from the City to the East. And having learned—as if by a mystery—from his people that he was going to set the affairs of the East in order, and that as soon as he returned, he had the intention and plan C to come against the City, all the nobles of the holy emperor who were entrusted with the mystery urged the emperor to seize him. But he would never be persuaded, saying, "I shall not break the oath which I made to him, even if I were assured that if he leaves, he intends to take us captive. If, however, he again breaks his oaths, I remain with God, who is far more powerful than he." For this reason, he did not send any of his sons to meet that impious man, but only the excellent man Demetrios Leontaris, Isaac Asanes, and the Protostrator Manuel Kantakouzenos, with many young aristocrats and soldiers and gifts. [112] They met him around Koutoulou and came with him as far as the Diplokionion, conversing with Leontaris the whole way. There at the Diplokionion, the holy emperor and his sons were found with a single galley so that he might cross; and having boarded it, in the middle of the sea they greeted one another from the galleys and, conversing, went as far as the opposite side of the East, which is now called Scutari, but formerly Chrysopolis. And he, having exited the galley, went up to the tents that had been prepared for him; the emperors, with the galleys, eating and drinking and sending gifts of provisions to one another, until evening, when he mounted his horse and went off by the road leading towards Nicomedia; and the emperors returned home. In the spring of the same year, upon his returning to the West by way of the road to Gallipoli, he went to Adrianople. The holy emperor, having prepared Demetrios Leontaris, sent him to him so that he might learn about the things being studied and also announce it to him, and D test him through the good love and honor they had shown toward him, and through the crossing and such an embassy—I mean the person and the gifts that he was bringing. The Emir received him with the greatest honor and love, and finally said to him, "I have been unwell for days; as soon as I want to get well, we shall eat and drink and converse together." But he died after three days. Leontaris did not perform the task, but remained in his camp, perhaps wondering why the lord was not calling for him, so that he might hear his requests; when he learned of his death at almost that very hour, since he had secretly closed the roads leading to the City and sent many couriers, Leontaris did not let them pass at all; and days passed. Behold, from this the mystery against the City was revealed, and a great clamor arose and counsel and study; and the holy emperor received many rebukes from those counseling him to seize him in the monastery of Peribleptos on account of the plague. Therefore, with difficulty, Leontaris sent a man by another route leading to Mesembria, and from there he came by sea and brought...
the written statement that the Emir had died. And this happened on the 22nd of the month of August, the day of the A, "Evening shall weeping be lodged, and in the morning there shall be rejoicing." And behold, I fell into another worry, advice, and consideration: whether they should have love for his son, Murad, and allow him to be master, as their sworn agreements provided, or to bring Mustafa from Mystras and make him master in the West, and Murad one in the East. The holy emperor and father counseled and judged the first to be just for many reasons, while his son and Demetrios Kantakouzenos [argued] that they should make the second, and that he would also give them Kallipolis. Scarcely, as if by concession, did the holy emperor grant authority to his son, saying, “Do as you wish; for I, my son, am old and infirm and near to death. But the empire and its affairs I have committed to you, and do as you wish.”
[114] And in the month of September of the 29th year, after the Emperor Lord John had gone to Kallipolis, he brought the Emir Mustafa from the Morea, having made him master, and set him in the West, and Kallipolis worshiped him. And after several days, being asked by the emperor, as if according to the promises, he replied, “All the Turks say that our faith is Kallipolis, and we cannot give it up,” with Murad from the East entreating and ordaining [it] through envoys. But at the beginning of the winter of the same year, Bayezid crossed from the upper strait into the West, a man of service, being a Beylerbey and vizier of the father of Murad, and having Ankara as a fief, to see if he could hold the West under the power of Murad, clearly. And Mustafa having gone again from Kallipolis, that same Bayezid caught him and killed him, and seized all the authority of the impious in the West. And having returned [116] again, Mustafa went during this same year into Kallipolis, and crossed into the East against his nephew Murad, who was in Bursa, and having been defeated, he returned to the West. And the summer of the same year passed, and Murad himself, with Genoese ships, pursued his uncle, caught him, and killed him around the beginning of the 30th year.
On the 8th of June of the same year, B he sent and blockaded the city through Mihalbey; and on the 15th of the same month, Murad himself, their master, also came, and they besieged the city, bringing with him both prisoners and the envoys whom they had previously sent to him for the establishment of peace: Demetrios Kantakouzenos and Matthew Laskaris and the grammarian Angelos Philommaten. And he waged total war against the city.
[117] And on the 4th of the month of September of the 31st year, he departed from the city without success by the help of God. And on the 30th of the same month, Mustafopoulos, the brother of the same Murad, came and crossed into the city and fell outside the imperial enclosure. And on the next day, the 1st of October, he came for the adoration of the emperors. And on the same day, after breakfast, the malady of hemiplegia befell the holy emperor, Lord Manuel. Seeing him, the Turks from the East who were with Mustafopoulos, and wondering, and from the mere sight of him alone, they said with amazement that he resembled their leader of the faith, Muhammad. Just as the formerly aforementioned enemy of his, Bayezid, said, when he did not even know the emperor, that from his appearance alone he would say that “He happens to be an emperor.” But Mustafopoulos, having erred and remained several days in the city after the incident that befell the holy emperor, finally departed, having reached as far as Selymbria, and having stayed a little while, he returned to the city, and having crossed, he went to Bursa. And the spring of the same year passed, and his brother [killed] him in the East, and he killed him through the treachery of his own men.
[118] And in May of the same year, Turahan also destroyed the Hexamilion in the Morea and killed many of the Albanians. And in the summer of the same year, the despot Lord Demetrios fled with Ilarion Doria and Giorgis Saul and the son-in-law of Doria, and they went to Galata in order to go to the Turks, but they did not go, but instead to Hungary.
[119] And on the 15th of November of the 32nd year, the emperor Lord John departed for Italy C and Hungary, having made his brother, the despot Lord Constantine, D the ruler, and having left him in the city in his place. And on the 22nd of the month of February of the same year, we made a sworn peace with the Emir Murad, with the envoys Loukas Notaras, who later became Grand Duke, the Melachrenos Manuel, and myself having departed for these reasons: the Melachrenos had gone ahead to the Emir and made it known that he wished to make peace; Notaras, so that he might fulfill it well himself, as far as possible, as a useful and good man; and I, as a relative of the Emir [index: entries preserved] through his mother, and furthermore, in case it should be needed, to write also through letters both to the holy emperor and to his son, the emperor who was in Hungary.
[119] And at the end of the month of October of the 33rd year, the emperor Lord John returned also to the city from the part called Kellion, by the Danube river, having departed...
A from the city for that place. For he sent ahead from Hungary a man of a different tongue and race, to come by land with a short letter, and upon his arrival, he sought to see the emperor, saying that he had some necessary matters. How could this be done, for such a man to see an emperor who was sick? For he was bedridden; and alone, man to man. When many words had been spent, in the end, two of the cell attendants and my companions were sent to the man, and they said to the man: "Either tell what you wish to the present person" (pointing to me), "or go where you wish." Then, having taken me aside, he gave me a certain short letter and revealed to me both whence and when he had set out. And when I had corrected the short letter and had gone to read it, I reported that he was seeking a favor; [120] since he was about to report there that the holy empress was seated B and the bride of the despot was absent at the hunt; and having read the paper, that he was also in good health and was traveling well, and was in the parts around Great Wallachia, and that warships should go to the harbor called Kellion to take her up and bring her, they rejoiced greatly; and after a little while, the holy emperor commanded his chamberlain: "Give to Phrantzes the cloak, the silk garment, the one for the one wearing a big belly, and also the chest which he asked of us." For there was in my hands a very fine and large chest, having many good things, which were distributed, some to his sons, and others for his holy soul. And at the end, I asked for the chest, and he instructed me that it belonged to my lord the emperor, my father, and I had in it, along with the soul of that man, many and good things, and much more than what you saw; "and I wish again to give it also to the emperor my son, so that he too may have in it, along with my blessing, his own things." Then again he directed that I should have it, and I took it with his holy blessing, filled with all the useful and precious things of this vain life. And the holy empress ordered, and they bring me a fine green silk garment. And the new empress signals to me that my garment, when you are about to take a wife, [121] it shall be hers. On the 24th of the month of July of the same year, the emperor Lord Manuel, who had been in blessed repose, the celebrated and pious, died, he who, by the divine and angelic habit, having been renamed Matthew, a monk, a few days before, and was buried on the same day in the venerable imperial and beautiful monastery of the Pantokrator with mourning and a concourse such as has never occurred for any of the others; and all the days of his life were 77 years and 25 days. [122] And in the 34th year, in the month of August, the empress lady Sophia departed, having fled to her own fatherland. [123] And in the 35th year, in August, they brought with warships from Trebizond the lady Maria Komnene, daughter of the Lord Alexios, emperor of Trebizond, the Komnenos. C And in the 36th year, in the month of September, the emperor Lord John was crowned; and in the same year, in the month of November, the emperor himself departed from the city and went to the Morea on the 26th of December, along with his brother, the despot Lord Constantine, because it was desired that their brother, the despot Lord Theodore, should become a monk, and that Lord Constantine should remain as lord of the Morea, even if he regretted it and it did not happen. With whom, in fact, I came to the Morea at the beginning, being in the service of my emperor and looking to the despot Lord Constantine for the following reason: for as their celebrated and blessed father was approaching death, he instructed me, and I wrote privately—not his will, for emperors do not dispose, but they command—that each should have this and that, and the other one from his own noteworthy items. And that the rest of his life should be divided into four portions, for memorial services and liturgies for him beyond the customary ones, which were lavishly and well performed by his own people and the revenues of the empire, for the poor, for the doctors, and for his own cell attendants. And let there be as executors his spiritual father, one of the Xanthopouloi, Makarios, who was from the Jews, the teacher Joseph, who was at the house of the Chartianites, and myself; and having read this very command before him and the holy empress and the emperor, their son, he only finally instructed his son: "My son, did you hear what I command you concerning my own people who serve me? For I wrote: 'My cell attendants, who have served me well and are kindly disposed and serving as is fitting to me, let them have from all of you, my sons, affection, protection, and provision according to the proportion of each one of them.' Privately, again, I say to you concerning this Phrantzes, that he has served me well and has cared for me in matters of my soul and body, and now, in my sickness, cares for me more than the others, and I trust that he will well manage also the matters for my soul after death. So his youth and my old age have not permitted that anything worthy of his love and service be done for him by me. I leave him to you, and may he have my blessing; what it happened that I should do for him, and it did not happen for the reasons I said, let it be done by you." Since with the despot Lord Constantine I had love and confidence, which God accepted—for he was the brother of my emperor and [126] his children were his foster-companions, friends, and servants, and I with them—then time brought about my familiarization with his late and celebrated father, and whatever he needed from him, much and necessary, he found through me. He loved me and held me even personally in his service. And there being a custom and order among the emperors' houses, that the father's cell attendants should also reside in the cells of the sons.
A not, however, of the sons in the father's; and this only so long as the father is found among the living, but not even after death. As the blessed and renowned father of his passed away, after his first memorial service all of us, his cell attendants, returned to the palace; for it is indeed a custom that the cell attendants of the emperor stay around his tomb until the first memorial service. I departed also to the house where the said Despot Lord Constantine was staying, and I sat outside like many others. Having learned of this, he sent for my uncle and ordered me, saying that I had not kept to the order and had not come to his cell directly, as I used to do while my lord the emperor, my father, was alive. "But," he said, "again we, because of the debt of your love and service to him, and the kindness we show you, and thus as if you were in the service of the emperor my brother, you must come [127] directly to my cell, as before." From these reasons, then, as it was decreed by the emperor and his brother that I should follow him as he was setting out for the Morea—for the reason we have mentioned—he gave me private instructions as to what was about to happen; and he said, "I desire that I could have had you with me." And I also reported this to him much more, with the proviso only that it should be with the acceptance and decree of my lord the emperor, your brother. He sought this, therefore, from his brother through himself with a few entreating words and necessary reasons which B compelled him to have need of my service. He refused, however, claiming it was an impossible thing to seek, for no other reason than the command of their father and the tradition he had given me by word of mouth. But he again sought this through the holy Despoina and their mother, and even through his intermediaries; and with difficulty he finally decreed this, saying: "Let Phrantzes come with us; and if my brother remains there, I will allow him to have him, since my lady the Despoina has also decreed this to me and permits it. But if my brother returns here with me, it must be that he belongs to me, just as my lord the emperor, my father, decreed that we should have the right to do with him." Upon arriving in the Morea, for the one he was entirely subject as I said before, but toward the other I looked with love and hope. Having arrived safely, therefore, in the Morea, and seeing that Despot Carlo held sway over the whole territory within the Morea, all the lords and brothers departed, and finally since [128] neither were these confident that they could subjugate to themselves all the territory that Carlo ruled, nor, on the other hand, was he able to hold the remaining territory that was left to him—for our lords had taken some of his—it seemed good that Despot Lord Constantine should take the niece of the Lord Carlo Despot himself as his lawful wife, and the castles he had in the Morea as her dowry. This having been accomplished perfectly on the first of May of that same year, having been sent, I received the Claren- C tza, and others likewise; and returning to the place of the religious duty of the Despot Lord Theodore. [129] But because they might take, if they could, Patras—a necessary and useful place—and because the brothers of their brother who desired to become a monk were not found in Mistra, having set out on the first of July of that same year, three of the brothers came against Patras. And having camped there around its mills, they brought the niece of Despot Carlo, the Lady Theodora; and there both he and the Despot Lord Constantine were blessed. In Patras, however, nothing was accomplished toward its capture; but it was rather also a cause of what his brother, the Despot Lord Theodore, had established in Mistra in order to bring about—to render void—which was the cause of many evils. As, therefore, no good conclusion was achieved in the affairs of Patras, but only three small castles which they took after having made peace with those in the castle, and that they should give five hundred florins annually to the Despot Lord Constantine, having risen up they departed: the emperor by another route to Mistra, [130] and the Despot Lord Constantine by another to Chloumoutzi, together with his wife and empress. After some little time, since the emperor wished to go back to his house, his brother was notified and went to Mistra from Chloumoutzi. And having held discussions there, both the two brothers forced him to have need of my service. He, a few days later, in the month of October of the (30th) year, refused, as if it were an impossible thing I was asking, for no other reason than the command of their father and the tradition which I had received from him by word of mouth. D They rode together and went as far as Corinth; and the emperor, having embarked on the galleys, sailed off to Constantinople; and the Despot Lord Theodore went back the same way that leads to Mistra; and the Lord Thomas, the son of the lord, went with him as far as Kalavryta. We, however, together with our lord the Despot Constantine, came by the other way to Vostitsa. For even if the Despot Lord Theodore did not become a monk, so that all his territory might remain with the Lord Constantine his brother, nevertheless he gave to him Vostitsa and, in the other part, all that the Fragkopoulos the protostrator [133] was ruling—I mean Androusa and Kalomata, and Pidima and Mani and Nisi and Spitali and Grammeni, and Aetos and Lon, and Neokastro and many others; these I was sent to receive from the said protostrator. 134 And in the same year, in the month of March, the 4th, died the Despot Lord Andronikos, who had been renamed Akakios through the holy habit, and he was buried in the monastery of the Pantokrator, in which he had also been staying; and it was a secret council, known only to me, from my lord and Despot, that we should go against Patras, and if we should take it, where we were to be found in the Morea, and his place, namely that of the Black Sea, was to be given to his brother the emperor; but if we did not take the 33
A castles given by the despot, they were to be handed back wherever the emperor might determine. This too followed, which was in part a confirmation of the secret design. As we were passing from Vostitza along the road to Patras in order to go to Glarentza and Chlomoutsi, where the queen also was, Andronikos Laskaris, the Padiates, was sent to the lords in Patras for some business. Having remained there, both priests and laymen met with him privately, saying, "If your master so wishes, we have a way to make it so that he may take Patras." When Laskaris arrived and, among other things, spoke of the secrets of the people of Patras, it was dismissed as impossible and superfluous. And when he had heard this and was speaking, the same Laskaris was sent as head to Androusa, and others of the lords to the castles there, the Kephalades (but indeed the first of the lords of his household, Alexios Laskaris, had taken Vostitza as his head-command and had remained there), passing through, as I have indicated, while the despot and my master was acting together with me alone regarding Patras, B we were in Glarentza. We wrote many times, but again judged what we proposed as impossible, as indeed the event showed. Finally, we decided that we should depart and, while it was night, be found at a place near the end of those vineyards of the Patrans, called "at the three churches," since they had been there from olden times; and there, too, the men might be met and explained in detail by writing; and if it were possible, it should be acted upon, but if not, then we should depart, openly blockade the castle, and see what happens. And behold, we wrote orders to all those in the region of Androusa, that on the 15th of the month of March of the same year they should come with arms and with the majority of the men of the authority of each one of them, so that the new master of that place might pass through the prince's territory with due decorum and go to those parts around Androusa. Similarly, word was sent to Alexios Laskaris from Vostitza. But when he arrived, as we rode off and did not take the road about the Alpheios, but the one to the left, they were surprised C and asked one another, "Where are we going?" Having arrived at the agreed-upon place near the hour of cockcrow, and having found the men, [157] and seeing them and their empty deeds and empty words, we sent them away. Having spent the day there, we deliberated as to what might be done: should the army gallop forth to capture the men outside and the entire settlement of the Jews? As this seemed impractical for many reasons, behold, even those from the castle seeing us and being perplexed as to what might be—for they had not anticipated what might happen—sent forth one of the lords and a canon, one named Mark, to discern who we were and for what reason. And when they saw who we were and heard that we had come either to be given the castle or to take it by whatever means we could, they returned, and with haste they rang the bell, and all of them, those outside and inside, gathered by force. As for us, on the following day, which happened to be the feast of Palms, having cut many bay and myrtle branches—for the place has an abundance of them—and carrying them in our hands, we came and fell upon the gates of the castle. [138] And as we lay there on the 26th of the same month of March, after the liturgy of Great Saturday, as we were eating, we were sitting in the tent of our master, talking of the circumstances. Suddenly, D a few cavalrymen broke out from the Jewish or Zeugalatian gate—for that was its name—and having been driven off soon after they appeared, they went away and entered by the coastal gate, where all the inhabitants of the castle were armed with crossbows, bows, and slings in a well-constructed manner. While the despot's horse (they were proceeding before the pursuit, because it happened that our horses were ready) was near the bridge of the road leading to Saint Andrew, one of the Patrans shot the despot's horse in such a way that it fell immediately. And having rushed forward to either kill or capture him, I found myself a defender. He, by the help of God, having slipped off the horse, fled on foot, while I struck out and even captured the son of Stamatellis; but they also struck at me, and my horse [was struck] so many times that, having been weakened, it fell and crushed me—an excellent horse, which the emir had given to Isaac Asanes when he met him. The Asanes had given it to his son-in-law, George Philanthropenos, [159] and he to his nephew the Komnenos, the son-in-law of the proto-patriarch Kantakouzenos; and as he was fleeing with him to go to Galata, my brother caught up and captured him, and my brother was rewarded by the emperor with his horse; and I, in turn, had taken it from him while coming to the Morea. Having captured me, then, after many wounds and having led me away, they put me into the Koulas in a dark house, having ants, weevils, and mice, because there had been wheat in it before. They put iron shackles on me, and on my left foot a strong chain, riveted to a large log. And I slept in such a prison, bitterly passing the time both from the wounds and the irons and the dry bedding and the other things that the house of evils had, as we have indicated. Here it is fitting to narrate [also] concerning the most holy Thomaida. This woman, being of a noble family in the East, having been orphaned, her relatives brought her to Constantinople and gave her to the sister of the three hierarchs and brothers, who were also emperors, and mother of the wisest Nicholas Kabasilas. And she, having this girl and educating her, after some time departed to the
A Thessalonica, while Nicholas Kabasilas and his brother, the hierarch, were there, 140 and they dwelt in the monastery of Saint Theodora together with a lady named Palaiologina, who was virtuous and learned, and of whom I often heard many praises from the late Emperor Manuel, and I read many canons she had composed for Saint Demetrios and Saint Theodora and other saints, possessing with them also the nun Thomas, and educating her in virtue and logic. As their end drew near, they bequeathed all their possessions to her, including the wife of Cyprian, who, having been angered by the harshness of her husband, went away to the aforementioned nuns and became a nun. And when the time of their end approached, she again submitted herself to the heir of those women and of their life—however it was that she obtained virtue—and she well completed the course of obedience until death. I speak of the wife of that Cyprian who came to Constantinople and founded the monastery in the name of the holy Theodores, commonly called "of Cyprian." When the impious took Thessalonica, the holy Thomas, along with her obedient follower the Cyprian, went to Lemnos, in order to return from there to Constantinople. 141 In which Lemnos my grandfather was staying with his wife and children. His eldest daughter, seeing her and her virtue and her logic—the one who was strictly his first daughter, who had remained in Thessalonica with her husband and children—left behind parents and sisters and brothers, and the one to whom she was betrothed as husband, and went away, becoming a nun in the obedience of this holy woman. From there, the three of them went forth and arrived at last in Constantinople at the monastery called that of Kleraina. Since the virtue of this holy woman and her experience in the divine Scriptures became known to the emperor and the patriarch and all the people of the city, the emperor himself sought that she should take a monastery, such as was the largest and most generous, and the patriarch gave her an authorization of spiritual authority for the women of the city who wished it. And the people of the city went to see her and be healed in their needs; for there was neither silver nor anything else with them, except their handiwork and the provision of God through the noblemen. Having taken a small dwelling, as many gathered in obedience as would not have fit in the monastery of Libos and that of Lady Martha, and she accepted no more than twelve. And they were such in poverty, obedience, and temperance, 142 and in all things acceptable to God, that those of the city left off saying "the holy woman" and instead said "the holy women," and they had that very name: the holy ones. And as for the life of the nuns, the commonality of food and clothing and the having of nothing of one's own, and the not doing the smallest thing B towards common or private need, unless with permission, and the walking barefoot, and the slight intake of food, and the lying on the ground and in a humble state, and all other things which are proofs of virtue, it is superfluous to relate. Likewise, again, concerning their holy and spiritual mother, the participation and contemplation granted to her by the emperor and the ladies and the noblemen and noblewomen, some for confession, others for prayer and contemplation—who could accurately relate both these things and her virtue? But by relating one thing alone, we shall show that all is true. On the aforementioned Great Sabbath, it happened to me, as I have related, that while she was sitting in the church after the completion of the liturgy, and all her nuns were with her, waiting a little to taste the antidoron, then for the reading to be placed in the Acts of the Apostles, the holy woman said, "Nuns, arise." They said, "What is your need, our holy lady?" She said, "A temptation has come upon the lord George, 143 and let us pray to the Theotokos for him." Hearing this, they all—especially my mother's sisters (for there was another sister, and later she too became a nun and a good disciple of hers)—ran with tears, saying, "What is this, our holy lady?" And she said to them, "Be not troubled! God, who has allowed the temptation, will grant both the help and the loosening of this very temptation." And standing, they chanted the supplicatory canon to the Theotokos with tears. Of this, what better proof of that virtue and intimacy with God? having, therefore, lived thus well, and God having shown many proofs of her virtue, her death also turned out precious in the sight of the Lord and of men. For having been a little ill for some days, and having admonished all in common, and having left under the obedience of my mother's sister—who was also the first in virtue and obedience to her, and (who) was administering everything of their cell—then, as if she had become inspired, she sat with her eyes closed, but always moving her mouth in hymns and thanksgivings 144 to God, no longer receiving food or drink, nor speaking anything at all except the daily requirement. When the priest came to commune her of the divine mysteries, then, and only then, lifting her hands and eyes to heaven and asking for forgiveness, she would commune. But even when the Emperor Lord John and the ladies often went to her at other times, and at that time also for a final prayer, and noblemen and noblewomen, and chosen hieromonks and monks, she would nod and grant forgiveness and prayer. And having lasted thus for seven days, she departed to the Lord and was buried honorably, with almost all (the) priests, hieromonks (invited and uninvited), and noblemen and noblewomen having gathered. And these things are thus and true.
A Since I had been lying in prison for forty days, as the day of the memory of the liberator of captives, the great martyr George, arrived, I besought him—as I am also George, and his servant from childhood—to redeem me from my bonds. And having awakened, it seemed to me that I was found in the beautiful church named after him, the Mangana [[145]], standing in the basin and wearing the irons. And as the Emperor was passing by, purportedly to go to the church service, I besought him to liberate me from the irons. The Emperor then passed inside the church, but a certain young nobleman returned to me and said to me, "Our master the Emperor has ordered that they release you from your irons; for our lady the Empress also requested it." And toward that very dawn of the night at an unusual hour, behold, the officials of the prison, and others with blacksmiths, came and removed all the irons from me; and they apologized, saying that it was not that they felt hostilely (toward me)—they were not feeding me well, but it was because they had nothing. And after two days they came again seeking me, and I besought my master by letter that he might concede to let officials come out to meet for a compromise, which indeed happened. And having reached a settlement, they gave him the Sarabali, so that he might arise (and go) to his house in Glarentza; and if the Metropolitan and their master should come by the end of May, he should do those things as he wishes, but if not, they should give him the castle. And oaths having been made, and he having also taken the Sarabali on the 5th of May, he rode forth and departed B as far as the borders of Sklavitzas and Riolos; but for me he left behind John the Rosatan to take me, for while I was being saved/liberated, they would have the certainty of what had been done. And having been liberated, half-dead indeed I barely arrived, where my master, who saw me with both much joy and sorrow—joy that I had been liberated, but sorrow that I was in such a half-dead state—having spoken many words for my praise and consolation, as I went off to my quarters, he sent me as a favor to me a double-dyed green velvet robe from Lucca, of great value, with a green wool tunic—well-dressed—and a Thessalonian cap adorned with gold and red silk, and a Jeremiah-pattern velvet *kabbadion* with a heavy gold border, and a gold-green velvet *kurtzurakin*, and green *phota* and an ornamented sword. On the following day, then, having gone to Glarentza, behold, also the emissary of the Emir, after a few days, saying that "Patras pays me tribute and is my own; rise up, therefore, from it and do not besiege it; if not, we intend to send troops against you." My master again said to him, [[147]] "We heard that they intend to give it to the Catalans; it did not seem appropriate, therefore, for us to allow the enemies of both my brother the great Emir and ourselves to take such a castle in the middle of our territory; for this reason we went there, and having investigated the matter, we decided that it should not happen." And behold, as you see, we arose and came to our house. In a few days, therefore, I intend to send this very nobleman to my brother the great Emir (showing myself), and he will declare also the more of our words. But the Turk, having heard these words, and furthermore having been well-treated, departed rejoicing. And he having departed, he ordered me, "Behold, prepare the things for the need of the journey," not knowing (what I was) beforehand; but I reported to him that I only pray that God grants that the Metropolitan does not come, and that they give us the castle, and I shall recover further. But I will have everything ready for the fulfillment of your reception. When the deadline had arrived and the Metropolitan had not come, on the 10th of the month of June of the same year, we mounted and departed for Patras. [[148]] In these days, then, the young master lord Thomas was besieging the castle of the Prince, Tzentouria, namely Chalantritza, which also later became his father-in-law's; and as my master and his brothers were passing along the road that leads to Patras, this brother of his also came down, and they remained together at Kamenitza. And as the official found in the castle of the Prince of Chalantritza, John Palotas, learned of this, having requested an audience so that he might come and pay homage to both masters, he came, and having gone out, he immediately took out the keys of the castle and gave them to my master the despot, saying, "This is a castle belonging specifically to my master and relative of your Majesty; for the Prince's son took previously as his lawful wife the sister of the Empress Lady Theodora; and he ordered me to deliver it to him." He answered him, "It is so, that the place belongs to my relative, but not to someone more genuine than my brother; therefore, if he had done this earlier—and my brother, as to my own, would not have attempted anything—I would have wished to have it peacefully, and your master differently; but now, if I take it, it is necessary that we be at odds with my brother, and it is not worth much for this, much less for so much; but go in it, and do as you are able." And as he heard these things, he asked C that he might well depart to his castle. I was chosen and I took him with soldiers and I was departing; and having been found at the castle [[149]], Raoul Thomas thought it would be easy to take it from me, and he came to the danger of causing something largely combative and sorrowful between the brothers; however, God having willed it, I restored him successfully to his castle, and I myself having returned successfully found my master in the church of St. Andrew, the First-Called, and his tomb, having arrived late on the 4th of January; and on the 5th in the morning of the same, on the first day of the week, those who were notable in the castle and all the people having come as far as the aforementioned church of the Saint, they paid homage to my despot and master and gave the keys of the castle. D
A And having ridden with very great joy from one side and the other, we entered into the castle and arrived at the houses belonging to the church of Saint Nicholas; the road, in fact, was completely strewn with all sorts of flowers and finery, and the houses on the right and left were all in need of rose-water, roses, and carnations. 150 But above the Koulas [tower], through [the agency of] vessels and guards [who were] ill-disposed toward us (even though they did us no harm)—for those who held the Koulas on behalf of the metropolitan, and moreover held the houses near it, having stocked them with provisions and fortified them, hoping that once the metropolitan came, he would through this regain what they had held before—we, having gathered the next day in the church of Saint Nicholas with all the people of the land, they gave an oath that they would be faithful servants of our master, the despot. And they demanded me as their head. They had heard that we were owed more than double this [sum], and because of your request I will be [for them] their head.
And on the 8th of June, having crossed over to Naupaktos, so that I might go first to the emperor to let him learn what had happened regarding Patras—and then from there, together with his official, to the emir. For indeed, on the 4th of that same month, upon arriving and staying in the church of Saint Andrew, behold, two Turks crossed over from Naupaktos, one from the emir and the other from Turahan, bearing an order that we should not take Patras. They returned back with me, having received an explanation that, since the present official of mine is going to my brother the great emir, 151 we shall do as he directs. So, having crossed over and stayed in Naupaktos, at dawn while it was still dark, behold, the metropolitan of Old Patras, Poutolphos Malatestas, came there with a Catalan guard. Passing through, as he had learned about the nearby islands in the middle of the route, [and] that the castle had been given to the despot, he seized the fort on the side of Naupaktos, so that he might first learn well how this came to pass. It was necessary, therefore, for me to stay there also until the next day, in order that I might first report this to my master, which indeed happened; and he learned this from me first. And second, that I might D learn the capability of that metropolitan himself. And while Bernard Marcellus, that captain of Naupaktos, was in the middle [of these events], we saw each other—upon seeing whom I marveled that he surpassed all men in being hideous. So, as he was questioning me as to what I wanted to do regarding the emir, and I him as to what was [planned] against Patras, I received from him, as the saying goes, a "koukouzela" [a hollow shell], and he from me [only] "vryas" [bramble]. However, the metropolitan, having given the guards letters to both the emir and Turahan, put much worry into me, lest he promise to give some castles of Patras, 152 if he assists him so that he may take it, or many sums of money; and my mind did not cease, having labored much and having become drugged (at times even involuntarily), and to such an extent that I took his papers and read and copied them, and I sealed and left those [originals] back there. When I reached the city, a joint-envoy was given to me, 153 Markos Palaiologos, the Iagros, who was later Protostrator, but at that time Protovestiarios, who was more committed to being against my servitude than in favor of it; I do not know any other reason, except that envy does not know how to prefer one’s own advantage. Having gone together to the emir, we took an apology [a formal response], so that we could give it to those who held them. I therefore defended myself to the then-first vizier and official, Ibrahim Pasha, that I myself dare not say anything to my master, but since he is somehow his own official, B he sent to the great master—behold, let the master order it, both his slave and [let him] come with me, and let him say the orders of the great master. And he agreed to this and said, "You speak wisely and well"—Iagros privately mocking this toward me as impractical and merely harmful. I, God favoring it, did this and took the "Archontosklavos" [Noble-slave/official], and this was the first reason for gaining the settlement regarding Patras.
3012 151 And in the 38th year, in the month of September, the imperial ones performed the wedding of the master's son Thomas, the brothers of whom were the despots, with the daughter of the Prince Asanes Zaccaria, the Centurione. In which month I again returned to Trikkala to Turahan, and the servitude regarding Patras was completely resolved. And in the same year, in the month of November, the queen Lady Theodora, while in Stamiros, died, leaving behind great grief both for her husband and for us, his relatives, because she was most beautiful. She was buried for a time in one of the churches of Glarentza, and after this they moved her to the monastery of the Life-Giver in Mystras. And in the month of January of the same year, the master's son, Lord Thomas, was also wed in Mystras to the Lady Catherine, the daughter of the aforementioned prince. C On the 26th of March of the same year, on the day and hour that the people of Patras seized me while I was going to the despotate as an envoy, seeking [agreement] from them for the sake of peace between the nephew of the despot Karolo [Carlo] and the brother-in-law of my master, and the legitimate sons of that same Karolo, 155 Erkoula and Menou [Hercole and Memmo]; for they made sworn agreements that, if ever a dispute arises regarding what the official sent by the despot Lord Constantine, having come between us, shall seek, we shall comply, as shall both parties according to the nearby islands of Santa Maura. The Catalans took me with many men and much precious equipment, and holding me for a time and carrying me as far as Cephalonia, as if they were going to cross over to the areas around the New City, finally we returned to Glarentza; and they sold and...
A in that month of March, the Emir Murad Bey took Thessalonica from the Venetians by war. My despot and lord, Kyr Constantine, in May of the same year, took the fortress of Patras from the famine and other distresses of those situated within it. On the 17th of July of the same year, the Catalans took Glarentza, which, after occupying for a time, they sold back; and in the month of August of the same year, the envoys from the Emperor Kyr John to Pope Martin—namely, Mark the doctor and Grand Stratopedarch, and the Great Protosyncellus and Abbot of the venerable imperial monastery of the Pantokrator, Hieromonk and spiritual father, Macarius called Makros, a man excellent in speech, virtue, and prudence—by order of the Emperor, appointed the despot, the young lord Kyr Thomas.
[υλα'.] In the year 39, in the month of September, I was favored with the office of 157 head of Patras. In the same year, in the month of October, the Turk Belarbey Sinan took Ioannina and its region; and on the 26th of March of the same year, on the same day and hour in which my previous events had occurred, I also received that message, hateful to me, by order of my lord from Vostitsa: that on the 7th of the past January, my excellent friend, Macarius—who was also known as Makros, he who in the eyes of a proud and greedy patriarch was a heretic, but in the eyes of the All-Seeing and Truth-Judging Pantokrator was orthodox, who had returned to Constantinople from the Holy Mountain and received the monastery of the Pantokrator through my instigation and cooperation, as all well knew, and by the assistance first of the All-Sovereign God, then by my own zeal and care, everything good for the establishment and order of that monastery prospered—had died of a pestilential disease. And at the end of the spring of that same year, Turahan came and devastated B the Hexamilion, and a great mortality occurred in Patras.
[υλβ'.] And in the year 42, on the 7th of January, I again departed as an envoy to both the lord of Athens and the Emir and the Emperor; in which January, on the 29th, at the third hour of the night, he burned the beautiful and divine church of the Mother of God in Blachernae in Constantinople; which we heard about as we were heading there to the river called Mesta on the 1st of February, an hour after vespers of the Despotic feast of the Hypapante. We considered it a lie, since the reporter was not known, and having passed five monasteries further on and hearing nothing about it, we learned of this accurately at our monastery in Rhaedestus 159 as to how and when it happened; which was a wonder.
[υλε'.] And at the beginning of the summer of the year 43, the lord of Athens and Thebes, Lord Antonio Acciaioli, died, and at the request of his wife, I was sent with a sworn golden bull and many soldiers to take over Athens and give her another place in the Morea as seemed proper to me. But since Turahan had anticipated me and blockaded Thebes, which he also took after a few days, I returned from the Hexamilion empty-handed, having an order to do so. And when my despot and lord was in Stilaria, awaiting the Venetian vessels 160 so that he might embark for the city, behold, I also arrived empty-handed. I embarked, and we departed, and having reached Euripus, it seemed best, and I was sent to Turahan, who was in Thebes, and I made known to him the servitude concerning Athens. And he assured me with an oath that, because of his acquaintance and love for the Despot and for me, he would have gladly and willingly conceded that this be done, had I known to ask before I left my house and came there. Since by order of the great lord I did not do this—and while I was at that house I had many coverings, but now I have no covering left—having been treated kindly C by him and his sons, who brought them for me to venerate and delivered them to me and my lord—among whom was the now great and powerful Amaris—I returned from there empty-handed. And since those in Euripus had already lifted the bridge, we remained involuntarily on the rocks outside the bridge, and we spent such a night because of the cold—and it was August—and because of the hunger and the roughness of the rocks, and because of the fear of thieves from the camp of Turahan, and because of the strange horses 161 we had borrowed from those in the castle, that a proverb about the misfortune of those with me at that time to the subsequent time came into being. Having boarded the vessels the next day,
[υλγ'.] And on the 31st of January of the year 40, having been appointed, I went as an envoy to the Emperor (and) from whom I was then favored with the office of Protovestiarius 158 to the Emir; in which year, during the month of March, also occurred the exchange of locations between the two brothers and despots, Kyr Constantine and Kyr Thomas; and one took Kalavryta and all the possessions there of Kyr Thomas, while the other took Glarentza and everything around Androusa.
[υλγ'.] And in the year 41, the daughter of Malatesta, wife of the Despot Lord Theodore, of the D Porphyrogennetos, died, and she was buried in the monastery of the Life-Giver.
on the 23rd of the month of September of the year 44, we arrived at Constantinople. A
336. And on the 25th of March of the same year, Zoe, the daughter of the Great Duke Paraspondylus, came to the city with an imperial galley, having been sent with Manuel Palaiologos so that they might bring her; and after some days, the Despot Lord Demetrios was betrothed to her. With that same galley, the Despot Lord Theodore also came to the city, so that he might be found in the city and be a successor as the second brother of the empire; which the Emperor was content with, albeit reluctantly, because my master, Lord Constantine, had often assured me and sworn that he loved and desired [this] as a mystery, as the story moving forward will disclose. Since it happened thus, he was eager to settle his three other brothers in the Morea. In any case, my master, the Despot Lord Constantine, with his brother, the Despot Lord Thomas (for the first lord of that household, Raoul Michael the Ises, was with us in the city), were eager that two of them should be found with the Emperor in the city, [162] while these two masters should go to the Morea. For this reason, in June of the same year, the Despot Lord Constantine crossed from the city to the Morea as a fugitive with Laliotes, and I was sent by him to the Emir for the sake of this service, so that they might have him on their side. And I went and successfully managed the appointed tasks, and I reached the Morea by land. I found the brothers and masters having the trouble of a great struggle; for Lord Constantine, my master, having been sent with a galley, Lord Theodore was fighting against his two brothers, such that armies were gathered on both sides, and a localized war had occurred between them.
337. And in the 45th year, when legates were sent by the Emperor—and they were the noble and good Dionysios, hieromonk, who had served as Metropolitan of Sardis, and the Dethypatos Georgios—they mitigated the battle on their part. Finally, other legates of the Emperor also arrived: the hieromonk Gregory, who later served as spiritual father and Patriarch of Constantinople, and he, the same Georgios the Dethypatos, reconciled them so that my master the Despot Lord Constantine might go and be in the city, while the Lords Theodore and Thomas, the Despots, [would go] to the Morea.
338. [165] And on the 5th of September of the 45th year, we crossed from Patras by land to Evripos, with my master, I say, and we boarded a Venetian galley from the castle of Evripos, Karystos; on which galley there was also the [man] who was once the Canon Mark in Patras, when he was a legate on behalf of Pope Eugenius, his kinsman, and also a legate from him to the Emperor. And on the 24th of the same month of September, we arrived safe at the city. [176] And on the 27th of November of the same year, the Emperor Lord John crossed with the Patriarch and the Despot Lord Demetrios, and many of the senators [177] and the church, and almost all of the metropolitans and bishops, because of the council that had been deliberated—would that it had not! And I do not say this concerning the dogmas of the Church; for these were given to others to judge. For me, the paternal inheritance of the faith suffices, and [the fact] that I never heard from anyone of that side that our [way] was evil, but good and ancient, and that theirs was not evil, but good. And let me say, as an analogy, that for many years with some [people] I walked along the middle way of the city, the broad and wide street, by which we arrived at Hagia Sophia; then, after some time, another road was found by some—as they say, it also [leads] there—and they began to compel me, saying, "Come also by this way, which we found." And indeed, even if it is a road that leads there, it is good and ancient, and known to us from the beginning along with you; but this [new] one, too, which we found now, is good. As for me, when I hear from some that it is good, and from others that it is not good, why should I say nothing? "Go in peace and love, well, to Hagia Sophia, from wherever you wish. I, however, wish to walk again by the way that I walked for a long time with you, [178] and which is witnessed to by you and my ancestors." Not for this reason, then, did he say, "Would that it had not,"—for I would have liked the union of the churches to have come about well and for one of my eyes not to have been taken away—but why? Because this council itself was one cause, the first and great [cause], for the incursion of the impious against the city to occur, and from this, again, the siege and the captivity and such and so great a calamity of ours. And listen to the true words of my testimony, presenting the self-truth. The famous Emperor said to his son, the Emperor Lord John, D alone to alone, as I also stood alone in front of them, conversation having fallen upon the council: "My son, we know securely and truly from the middle of the heart, indeed, of the impious, that it greatly frightens them that we might agree and unite with the Franks; for they supposed that, if this happens, a great evil will come upon them from the Christians of the West. Therefore, regarding the council, study it and turn it over, especially when you have need to frighten the impious; but to actually perform it, do not attempt it, because I do not see our people as being fit to find any way of union and peace and concord, [179] but [only] to turn them back to how we were from the beginning. Of this, however..."
being almost impossible, I fear lest an even worse schism may arise; and behold, we have been exposed to the impious." The Emperor, as it seemed, not having accepted the word of his father, rose up and departed without saying anything; and the late lamented and famous father, having become a little lost in thought, looked at me and decreed: "The Emperor, my son, is indeed fit to be an emperor, but not for the present time. For he sees and thinks great things, and such things as the times required during the prosperity of our ancestors; but today, as circumstances attend us, our government does not want an emperor, B but a steward; and I fear lest from his cogitations and enterprises there may follow the ruin of this house. For I foresaw his musings, and those things he thought to accomplish with Mustafa, and I saw also the ends of those accomplishments, into what danger they brought us, another thing confirming the past counsel of his famous father." As it was decided that he should go to the Council, Andronikos Iagros was sent to the Emir as an envoy, to declare this to him as if he were a friend and brother; and he answered, C saying: "It does not seem good to me that he should go, laboring so much and spending so much; and what is he to gain? Behold, I am here, and if he has need both of money for expenses and income and anything else for his relief, I am ready to relieve him." And there was much talk and deliberation whether the Emir’s wish should be followed, or whether they should go to the Council; and that happened which the Emperor—or rather, [my] bad luck—desired. So, the Emperor having left the city and departing, the Emir deliberated to wage war upon the city and to send an army against it; not so much to take it, as to force the Emperor to return. And this was confirmed D and stood by all his [counselors] except only for Halil Pasha, who opposed it, saying: "It will rather be the cause, if you wage war on the city, that the Emperor will say to the Franks, out of necessity, 'What you say, I agree to.' And behold, that came to pass which we feared. But let be, and see what he will do; and if they should be of the same mind, you still have love and oaths with them for the future, as you see, and you will act accordingly; but if they do not agree at all, then the design will have turned out all the better, and with more courage do what you will." And this counsel kept the Emir from his purpose; but as for Halil Pasha’s counsel, and in order that we might learn one thing from another, my master the Despot and the archons stood up Thomas Palaiologos and sent [him] to the Emperor; and a turmoil and tempest fell upon those in the city, so that we soon again learned of the counsel that had prevailed from Halil Pasha; and behold, the testimony that the Council should never have happened; for I omit the other things that followed from this.
[The year 6945 (1437)] In the same year 6945, on the 1st of May, my son John was born, whom the Emperor, my master lord Constantine, regenerated through holy baptism, and who also crowned us before this.
[The year 6946 (1438)] And on the 17th of December in the year 6946, the Despoina Lady Maria, she from Trebizond, died; and on the 1st of January of the same year, the Despoina Lady Eugenia, daughter of the Gattilusio, died, and they were buried in the monastery of the Pantokrator, at that time a very severe winter having occurred, if ever before; and on the 17th of January of the same year the Empress Lady Zoe died and was buried in the monastery of Lady Martha; and in February of the same year the Emperor and the Despot and the others who had gone returned to the city from the Council, only the Patriarch and the good Sardes (Metropolitan) and many of my friends having died there—the latter in Ferrara, and the Patriarch later in Florence. And on the 27th of March of the same year, on Bright Sunday, my second son Alexios was born, and he lived only 30 days; and in the spring of the same year the former [Metropolitan] of Cyzicus, Lord Metrophanes, had become Patriarch.
[The year 6947 (1439)] And on the 6th of December in the year 6949 [sic, 1440], being ordered, I went to the island of Lesbos, and I established the affinity, and I made the betrothal of the marriage with Lady Aikaterine, the daughter of the lord of Mytilene and the following [lords], Lord Notaras Palaiologos Gattilusio. And on the 16th of April of the same year, again on Bright Sunday, my daughter Thamar was born, and on the same day, having taken his daughter Asanina, Theodora, Paul the Asanes fled from the city and came to Mesembria; and he gave her in lawful marriage to the Despot Lord Demetrios; and on the 27th of July of the same year he departed to Mytilene with imperial galleys, and my master—that is to say, [the one] betrothed to the aforementioned Lady Aikaterine, the Gattilusiana—was blessed, the captain on the galleys being the one who later became Grand Duke, Loukas Notaras.
[The year 6948 (1440)] And in the month of September of the year 6950, having left there to her father the Empress and his wife, my master—that is to say, we came to the Morea with the same galleys and another one from Mytilene; and on the 20th of October of the same year, being ordered, I crossed over to the Emir and the Emperor as an envoy, having a secret mystery, that if the Emperor should yield to this, I should go to the Despot Lord Demetrios up in Mesembria and give to him all the territory which my master had in the Morea; he himself, however, having returned to the city...
and being engaged in the affairs of the city — or rather, the affairs against him — sent me away empty-handed. In that same month, Paul Asanes fell into a severe fit of apoplexy and expired. After I had returned to the city and was waiting for the imperial command to return to my master, on the 23rd of April of that same year, the Despot Lord Demetrios clashed with the Turks and besieged and devastated the city's lands. In that same month and day his daughter was born to him. In the month of July of the same year 195, when my master and despot, the Lord Constantine, was coming to the aid of the city, he passed through Mitylene and took his wife, the Empress, and came to Lemnos. While he was there, he was besieged at Kotzinos for many days by the entire Turkish fleet. But when the fleet departed empty-handed, through the help of God, the Empress, having fallen ill from the distress, miscarried, and in August of that same year, she died and was buried on the same island of Lemnos at Palaiokastron.
43 And on the 14th of September of the year 51, my other son, Alexios, was born. And in November of the same year, the Despot and my master, Lord Constantine, came to the city. On the 1st of March he received Selymbria from the Emperor, and he sent me there as governor, so that I might keep watch over it, having been ordered to take charge of the Sultan, the Despot Lord Demetrios, and even the Emperor who had given it. And in July of the same year, Frankopoulos, the Protostrator, came to the city; and I too, having been ordered to come from Selymbria to the city, arrived. It was agreed that my master and despot should go to the Morea and take all the territory of the Despot Lord Theodore, and that the latter should come to the city and take Selymbria; which indeed came to pass.
44 196 And on the 10th of October of the year 52, my master and despot having departed the city in a ship for the Morea, the Despot Lord Theodore arrived in the city in the month of December of the same year, together with that same ship. In March I surrendered Selymbria to him, and having boarded a ship from Crete belonging to Antonios Yalinas, I was dropped off at Karystos in Euboea. On the 3rd of June, I arrived by land at Mistra, the Despot Lord Theodore having much sought me and urged me to have Selymbria and to be among his inner circle. As I was passing through, I found the Hexamilion A built by my master and despot at the time of the previous spring. When I arrived at Mistra, a few days later, the Cardinal and Vice-Chancellor and Legate of the Pope was departing with many men for the city, heading out against the impious King of Hungary 197. I, too, was sent again as an envoy to the Emperor, to the Sultan, and indeed to the King himself, but also to the Legate and to the Captain Alvise Loredan for necessary duties concerning how matters might proceed. As I was passing through Corinth on the 30th of August, so that I might reach the ships of the fleet at Euboea, I found the good and noble Mark of Corinth being buried; he who had been born in our court and brought up with us, and who, having been much oppressed by the malice of his stepmother, had found great relief from my parents; for, compelled there by great evil, he had fled from his father and gone to the monastery of the Xanthopoulos family; and he had been established as such a useful person.
45 Having arrived accordingly at Euboea, but not having caught the ships, I was saved by another voyage to Lemnos at the beginning of November of the year 13. In the same month on the 11th, the King of Hungary was killed by the Sultan at Varna 200. On the 17th of July of the same year, there occurred a global heatwave worthy of note, in which summer the spiritual father Patriarch Gregory had been born; and on the 15th of August of the same year, my son Andronikos was born, who lived only eight days.
46 And in the year 54, at the end of the month of December, I came to the Morea with the cargo of Venetian ships.
47 In September of the same year 55, I was granted the *kephalatikion* of Mistra, along with all the surrounding areas, namely Koula, Hebraike Trype, Tzeramion, Pagkotai, and Sklabochorion, and all their revenues, such as no one else had ever had the *kephalatikion* of Mistra. He decreed this for me, saying: "I have given you Mistra as a *kephalatikion* because of your good service and my adoption of you and affection, and because I wish for this to be one as well, like Corinth and Patras, the former of which John Kantakouzenos holds, and the latter Alexios Laskaris. And know that I shall appoint no other mediator except this Eudaimonoioannes whom I have. But I do not wish to be here always 201; rather, I wish to traverse my territory for many useful purposes; and when I am in Corinth, I shall conduct my duties and those of that place with Kantakouzenos and Eudaimonoioannes; but when I go to Patras again with Las-
- karis, leaving behind the former A and such a brother, and the one who excels in all good things: even though it was unfortunate, the duty and justice prevailing by the decree of the holy Despoina and of her sons, the Despots, and by the counsel and opinion of the lords, [205] on the 6th of December I, as ambassador, went to the Emir; for even the mother herself, and the brothers, and the precedence of time, and the virtue, and the love of almost all who were in the City, judged Lord Constantine to be Emperor, and that even the Emir himself should understand this; which he also welcomed and accepted, and he sent me away with honor and gifts. In the same days, lords from the City were also sent to the Morea: Alexios Philanthropinos the Laskaris, who was sent to the City from our sovereign together with the Despot Lord Thomas for the sake of his duties to the Despot himself to the Emperor, and he himself to attend to it, and Manuel Palaiologos the Iagros; and they made the Despot Lord Constantine Emperor at Mistra on the 6th of January. And on the 12th of March B of the same year he also came to the City with a Catalan ship and was welcomed by all; and in the same year, in the month of August, [206] the Porphyrogennetos Despot Lord Thomas, having been honored, departed and went to the Morea.
And on the 1st of September of the [358th] year the Porphyrogennetos Despot Lord Demetrios also departed, and he too went to the City, having been reconciled in the presence of their noble and holy mother and of the Emperor and brother, and of us, the distinguished lords, and having made oaths, which they later poorly maintained and poorly kept, as I myself saw afterward. As for how they were disposed toward one another, I am not able to recount the details, nor was I in the City so as to understand them well; for on the 14th of October of the same year I was sent to the [King] of Iberia, C that is, the Lord King George, and to the King of Trebizond, Lord John Komnenos, with notable graces and much good preparation of young nobles and soldiers and hieromonks and chanters and physicians and craftsmen, and of an organ, the name of which they had heard, but what it was they had not seen; and the Iberians desired to see and hear it, and for this reason they gathered from the ends of Iberia itself to hear it. I went for the sake of marriage alliances, wherever it might seem fit to me from the two families; it was necessary, therefore, that because of the charge against me, I show my sovereign the Emperor even more fully the good and the bad of both sides, and again as he might decree. And I sent writings with men, and my sovereign answered by sending others, and while coming near Amisos they were shipwrecked. And until my sovereign the Emperor learned of this and sent others, I spent in those regions 2 years minus 30 days. While I was there, on the 23rd of March of the same year D [202]. In October of the same year, the daughter of Lord Thomas the Despot, Lady Helen, departed from the sovereign our lord with the Despot Lord Glarentzas, in order to go to Serbia and take Lazaros, son of Lord George, which also came to pass; and because of this, the Emperor Lord John honored both the Despot and this same Lazaros through George Philanthropinos. On the 21st of November of the same year, the Emir came against the Hexamilion, and on the 10th of December they took it and destroyed it; [203] and having gone as far as Patras, he took, burned, and laid waste the region and the monastery. And in August of the same year I was sent again to the City, both for other services and for the marriage alliance concerning Trebizond and Gothia, for the service of my sovereign; since I was already there by chance, I sent and wrote to the regions also to the hieromonk who later became Metropolitan of Athens, and to my men.
uμζ'.
Year 6746 (1438)
And while I was waiting there in June of [46] 6746 [1438], the Despot Lord Theodore died of a plague-like disease in Selymbria, and bringing him to the City they buried him in the Monastery of the Pantokrator; and on the 15th of August of the same year my son Alexios died, having lived 5 years and 11 months; his death touched me greatly, not knowing, wretch that I am, the more sorrowful things that were to happen to me.uμθ'.
Year 6747 (1439)
And on the 31st of October of the [47] 6747 [1439] year the Emperor Lord John also died, being 56 years, 10 months, and 15 days old; and he was buried on the 1st of November in the Monastery of the Pantokrator, having been emperor for 23 years, 3 months, and 10 days; [204] and on the 13th of November of the same year the Despot Lord Thomas came to the City with a ship, not knowing of the death of the Emperor, but hearing of it while passing by Kallipolis. When he arrived, those things which the Despot Lord Demetrios—or rather his usurping followers—were doing in order that he, who was not the Despot and Porphyrogennetos judged by the Constantinopolitans to be worthy, might rule [as Emperor], ceased in great measure.A Since she who had departed in a blessed end, the illustrious and holy Despoina, who had been renamed Hypomone through the divine and angelic habit, has died and been buried in the monastery of the Pantokrator next to the late and illustrious Emperor, her husband.
In the month of February of the year 59, the Amiran Murad died. And not having heard of this, when I came into Iberia and then arrived in Trebizond, the Emperor says to me, "Lord Ambassador, 211 I have good news to tell you, provided only that you give us the customary gifts of joy." And rising, I made obeisance, saying, "May God grant your Empire long life, since you bestow benefits upon us in every way, and you wish to bestow benefits even now with the good news." "But what have we of any worth to render to your Empire?" And he tells me of the death of the Amiran, and that his son had also become ruler, and had given much to the Emperor, and was eager to have the same bond of affection that he had held with his father, that household. And having heard this, I became speechless and thus pained, just as if he were telling me of the death of those dearest to me; and having been saddened for a while, I say, "My Master, this is no joyful news, but even very painful." And he says, "How so, my good man?" And I said, "Because the former was an old man, and his attempt against the City had been frustrated for him, and he wished for nothing more, only affection and peace; but this one, who has now become ruler, is young and from his childhood an enemy of the Christians, to insult and threaten that he wishes to do such and such against the Christians. And the City, even if at another time, is distressed by the infirmity of my master the Emperor, the brother-in-law, 212 and there is great debt in its revenues, and distress in all things; and my master the Emperor is a young ruler, and needs a time of peace to set its affairs in order; and if God should permit that he be overcome by his youth and malice and rush against the City, I do not know what might happen. Yes, if God had been pleased that this son of his should die, behold, truly joyous news! Since he had no other, and out of grief he would have become even weaker and shorter-lived, and in the middle of this he would have recovered, and that household, and had he died, it would have gone to 213 great favor." B And he says to me, "You are one of the wise and leading lords of that household, and you will know even in such matters what is better; however, God is able to bring it to a good outcome." And I said, "So it is, as you command," and it remained at that.
As for me, when I heard this, and that the wife of the Amiran, the daughter of the Despot of Serbia, had returned honorably and well to her parents; since I was going to stay in Trebizond for many reasons; and having found a ship departing for the City, I sent both horses and two servants, which the Emperor of Iberia, having set out for Samachis, sent, and sent me favor, and some other things, which were also granted to us and we acquired in a different way. Having sat down, I wrote to my master the Emperor, as much as he had done in Iberia, and as much as I suspect I am about to do in Trebizond, and the reason for the stay there; and I wrote another report, concerning those things I am about to declare; and having given the letters to one of the noble youths with me, I sent him, giving instructions, "Give the one to our master the Emperor, as you make obeisance to him, and by word of mouth report all as we have done; then on the morrow give the other."
I wrote as follows: "I learned of the death of the Amiran upon arriving here in Trebizond from the Emperor; I learned also of the return of his cousin 214 the Amirissa to her homeland and her parents; therefore, having reasoned, it seems to me better and beneficial in many ways to find a way to perform that there, rather than from here; for I find only four obstacles: the lower birth, that of the Church because of the kinship, that she had a husband (a Turk), and fourth, that she is of more advanced age, and there is the thought whether, if the time for giving birth comes, she might be in danger, as the naturalists write that this happens for the most part. Therefore, concerning the first, I say that it is nothing strange, since she is of no lower birth than my lady and your late mother; concerning the second, even if we hope that, if the event of Trebizond happens, 215 the Church will forgive it, given funds for the churches and for the poor, much more will it forgive the matter of the Despot of Serbia, whom the Church and the monks and nuns and the poor respect and to whom they owe such graces. Concerning the third, it is nothing strange, since the Despoina Kyra Eudokia also had a Turk as a husband, and a master of small and little land, and she had children with him; and your grandfather took her as a wife; and she was the wife of such a great ruler, and not even with him, as we heard, did she remain; and concerning the fourth, and let this be to God, and as He may be pleased. But since it will be more beneficial in all other respects, and the parents will receive this with great joy, send one either from your household or the monks, and look into this matter, and let there be no delay, but do these things."
The letter-carriers having arrived in the City on the 28th of May, the Emperor 216 being at a boar hunt, as it was said that those who were in Iberia had come, having been at leisure he came home, rejoicing because of the subjection of Serbia, as the account below will show; it happened that on that same evening of the 28th, I appeared in a dream that I had reached the City, and having fallen to kiss the feet of the Emperor, he did not allow me, but having taken hold, he kissed my eyes; and having become awake, I say to the...
1035 GEORGII PHRANTZAE 1056 concerning me as I slept. And as to what seemed good to me in my sleep, and you reflect upon the day: my master the emperor, seeing that I had not come, but rather one of those with me, as he read the first letter, became upset and distressed, and reproached my slowness. But on the following day when he read the other letter, behold, he remained patient, as if I myself were coming. And immediately, having made arrangements, he sent Manuel Palaiologos, the nephew of the Protostratorissa, to Serbia, and the matter concerning this was tested, and her parents heard the words gladly and were ready for the deed; but it was found that the lady had besought God and vowed that, if by any way He would liberate her from the house of her supposed husband, 217 she would take no other husband for her whole life, but would remain free and, as much as possible, serve him who had granted her freedom. The matter, therefore, remained idle for this reason. In the August of that same year, the patriarch Lord Gregory departed from the city as a fugitive.
142. And I, on the 14th of the month of September of the year 60, arrived in the city with the ship of the good Antonios Ritzos—who later suffered martyrdom for his faith in Christ—having completed, or rather, having further confirmed, the marriage alliance of Iberia, knowing that the things of Trebizond were far inferior to those; for the king of Iberia said to me: "For us, this is not the custom, that women should give money to the men who are to receive them, but that men should give to the women, as you would also wish to learn here; therefore we do this with modesty and not without the counsel of well-wishers, and I give to my daughter, 219 without the clothing and household goods for her service, 36,000 florins, and she shall also have 3,000 annually to give to churches and the poor, and wherever it shall seem good to her. But I hear you have two children, and the king baptized the son, and he is his; but the daughter is, from today, my daughter's, and she is obligated to marry her off to whomever you shall judge worthy and find to be of a more suitable life. When you come, by God's help, to take her, you shall have from me four loads of silk; and it is fine [and], as we heard, 220 a load has 500 florins." So, as I reported all the matters of the envoy on my side, I came also to that of Serbia, and I asked to learn; and he dictated to me thus: "I owe you much for your love for me since childhood, and for your faith and servitude; but this, your present matter concerning Serbia, was a confirmation and sealing of your love and servitude toward me, which I say that I myself am bound to repay; for you to toil so much and to suffer and to leave your house for so long a time, and to find all D these favors and honors, if you only fulfill their requests—but as for you preferring what you perceived to be more for my benefit, and writing to me and consulting me on the things you wrote to me, this was a great testimony of your true love for me, and of your servitude and faith. And be truly convinced that you shall have from me a worthy repayment, if I am found among the living." The matter concerning this, therefore, followed in this way, as the amiras died; and the affairs of the daughter of the despot of Serbia followed thus: The Protostratorissa arrived and met with me concerning this, and proposed many gifts and promises that were beneficial for the future, which I also, for many reasons, considered to be many and good, true and beneficial; however, she desired for this also the counsel and thought of others, how it might happen that it should happen—so whom was I to consult? My lady the Despoina had died; Kantakouzenos, who, like many others, judged dispassionately, also died; as for Notaras and all the others, it is evident both visibly and invisibly that they are of no use except for his own profit, and he moves every stone, as the saying goes, as you also know better than the others; the Grand Domestic is acting in an unfriendly way toward the affairs of Serbia. And behold, after John Kantakouzenos, they are in agreement and are always inciting me toward the affairs of Trebizond. Where was I to take refuge? With monks? Yet those of such are inactive. To nobles? And whom could I find to be dispassionate and not attached to something, 222 or who would not divulge it to others? Thus, I had to suffer for your slowness. But with the arrival of your letter, behold, I have understood both you and your opinion; and the things we had as obstacles, you have solved wisely and well. And immediately I sent Palaiologos for other things, in appearance, but as if to say this from his divine kinswoman the Protostratorissa, and behold, we have heard the cause of the impediment and we have ceased. Therefore, with God, let us fulfill the matter of the king of Iberia; and a chrysobull having been made and signed, that his daughter shall be his wife and mistress of Constantinople, and he shall be her husband according to the agreements that the king of Iberia sent with me; and that same envoy having been called who was sent with us, the noble from the second rank, before him the king and my master, with his own hand, made three crosses with red ink on the upper margin of the chrysobull for confirmation, as is their custom. And having taken the chrysobull from his hands, and having heard: "Behold this [pointing to me], who with God comes in the coming spring with ships in order to take her," having made prostrations, he departed. Since from the beginning of the same year it was rumored that the amiras wishes 223 also in the narrow place around the Asomaton to build a castle, the emperor took counsel to send to the Morea to fetch one of his brothers, that he might—
A settle this and stand by the agreements, so that if need should arise for them to have sight of the amiras, one of the two might go to the lords of the West; and this having been decided, he decreed to me one day: "Protovestiarios, regarding the matter on which we deliberated, you say that you will go to the Morea, and as soon as you have set matters straight there—that person, whichever of my brothers desires this, shall come here—you shall go to Cyprus, to my niece the queen; and we here shall have prepared what is necessary, so that when you come from Cyprus, you may go to Iberia to take your bride." I reported to him: "The love and the duty of my servitude requires that I should speak to your command; but again, I am afraid for your servant and my sister-in-law, lest she become angry, and either leave and become a nun or forsake me B and take another; for only yesterday I arrived, having spent a year and eleven months in Iberia; and to go away again now, she would be right to do either of the two." And laughing, he decreed: "But say to her that she should permit you to undertake these and only these journeys, and I shall make her an oath-bound command that I will no longer bother you for such a thing; and furthermore, you yourself know what we are pondering and what we are both discussing and counseling to do; and this I affirm, even without an oath-bound command, that the embassies through you will cease." Now, what we were discussing and counseling was that he should inform the Grand Duke Notaras that he cannot hold the intermediary office; and that it is not fitting that we should take it from him out of respect for him; but that he should yield it up, and yet also hold the primacy of rank and of counsel, and some revenue through another way; since I have need to appoint two archons, like the emperor my brother, not as intermediaries, so that from the beginning of the day they may be with me until a late hour of the night and perform my duties, which indeed was done; C and the Grand Duke was informed through his sister-in-law's own husband, the hieromonk and spiritual father Neophytos who is at Charsianites; which he indeed accepted—whether willingly or unwillingly, I do not know; and rather he showed that he himself wished to do this, and only to promote his sons in honor; and it stood, even though nothing was fulfilled, as calamities came upon all at once; and he decreed that I indeed would be one, and that he is considering the son of Goudeles, Nicholas, and if the association is pleasing, that there should also be a marriage alliance between us, my son [marrying] his daughter. And that was the servitude [task] which he decreed, that the embassies were to cease for me; but he decreed to me that I was to send to the Morea, and from there supposedly the elders, but I wish to give my own handwritten assignment having five points; so that 226 he may say the first for a settlement, and if not, the second or the third or the fourth or, of necessity, the fifth; and I praise [the idea] that, whoever I send without you, he will go, and for him and his children to have [things] thus and so, he will immediately give the fifth [option], which would be heavy upon me. As for that of Cyprus, and [you] know the monk who met me on such and such a day? He told me about my niece, that she has nothing of the necessities she desired, or if it were among the possible, that she should tell it to me by her own mouth or even inform me through a trustworthy and sensible man of hers, if she had [one]; but since she possesses neither, and the others are impossible, that I should send the one whom I deem suitable to hear it. Who then is more suitable for this? As for the third, this needs no words; for you yourself are the one who acted and established and saw the face and met and were fully satisfied, how can the end of the servitude be brought about by another? 227 I reported to him: "This admittedly is as you decree, and your servant, my partner, also agrees, since this matter also demands it, and because through this she will have what you promised me, both a position and honor and reception exceeding the other noblewomen; but concerning the rest, I do not know what to report to you." The time being the most opportune, I went home. And after the meal of the Grand Duke had arrived, he [the emperor] decreed to him concerning all that he had decreed with me regarding the embassies, as to my going, but not the causes, and he added this too, that there is also need that we honor him. For as for the office which he holds, he owes no thanks to us, but only to the emperor my brother; therefore look to him for this C and be watchful, which of the offices he covets, and to whom we may listen. He met me, therefore, and I said to him that I had in mind to ask him to do me a favor with a greater office, but one which neither does another hold, nor would he grant it while I am alive, because even so it seems to me fitting and I desired it, and especially after I went to Trebizond and heard such insults and accusations, how in the same and one office there are three archons 228 here, and my desire was further confirmed; therefore, let him grant me the office of the Grand Konostaulos. He went and reported these things to the emperor, and he decreed to him: "This, Notaras, I will not give to anyone, because my first father-in-law was Grand Konostaulos, having become so by command of the lord my father, the emperor, at the Hexamilion; but I will give him one greater than this, to make him Grand Logothete, which is the fourth office, and that of the Grand Konostaulos is the seventh." The Grand Duke says to him, "And what is to become of Palaiologos the Metochites, whom your majesty made the son of the Kantakouzenos to seek from the Despot, your brother, for the sake of the relationship of betrothal and for the sake of his father the Protostrator, and he goes to give his soul to the devil, if even now you also make Phrantzes Grand Logothete, which is also the first after that of the Grand Stratopedarch, what will he become? But give him the Grand..."
Primikerios, which is even before this." I said to him, "Even if it were the first of the Grand Duke, I do not want it, since someone else has it." The conversation ended. Having consulted with my relatives, friends, and household, it seemed good that the matter of the offices should be as it was, and that I should go to the Morea and to Cyprus, and that I should take with me my excellent son, who is superior to almost all of his peers, and the greater part of my movable property, and that we should depart from the mainland, and that he might see the places and learn everything useful in life, and concerning that which the amir teaches us; and if it should happen, I might leave my son in the Morea with my property with his relatives on his mother's side, 230 or that he should return again with me; this, which also softened his mother, namely the calculation of the battle, and she allowed my departure again. As I had arranged all the necessities of the journey, and only the documents remained, one day when I had gone to the palace, I entered the emperor's cell as was customary for me; and as I did not find the emperor there, asking, they told me that he was in the *tetrasaron*, a room next to his cell, talking with Papa Antonios of Rhodes; and having waited a little, behold, the emperor also, panting with anger, and he says to me, "Did you see him, omitting the insult, your mediator? Did you ask for the office of Grand Kontostaulos?" And I said to him, "I do not want to give it to any other, for the reasons I said; but I spoke of that of the Grand Logothete." And he said 351 that the Palaiologos, the Grand Stratopedarch, will go and cast himself over a cliff, because I am promoting you even before him; and today he sent the embassy, Papa Antonios, because he asked that we honor his requests, seeking that we should make him the first Grand Logothete, and the second Grand Kontostaulos, since he (has) the logothenes of the same office. "Therefore I say to you, that those, if he wishes, they want to give them other smaller offices, which he will also B wish for beyond their worth; but you, take that of the Grand Logothete. And I ask this and only this alone from you, that because of many reasons of the time and of their lords, you should not worship me at the standing of a feast on his behalf; but let the scribe write it to my brothers and to the queen, and simply to all whom he is about to write, that the Grand Logothete is coming there. And you in turn wish C to write here to me and yours; and you wish to put it into their mouths, and even if it seems harsh or bitter to them, in the end they will want to swallow it." But I defended myself: "May the years of the holy empire be many; but I beg you and implore you, that for my sake there should never be any thing which might cause grief, 232 but rather skin me, if it can be for the peace and rejoicing of your holy empire." And he decrees, "As a good subordinate you speak, but have nothing of it; for I was saddened, looking at their conceits of pretended friendship for you and their ways. But call the scribe for me here, who is he?" And someone answered, gone to fetch him; and as he came, he decrees to him, "We said to you, to whom and to whom you should write a guarantee that he wishes to learn; and write that he wishes to learn from the Grand Logothete of so-and-so; and if we live and are present, I will write him as a kinsman to that procession, that they might only disparage it; and you have this, scribe, as a secret until a certain time." And having arranged the orders, I received them and today I am to pay my respects, and tomorrow likewise, and that the amir has come out of Adrianople and is coming, and let us see, lest perhaps on the way he might encounter you in some evil manner. D Behold, on the 26th of March of the same sixtieth year the amir came, and fell upon the narrow way, that he might build the castle there; and today we shall see and 233 tomorrow, and that he does not even find it through the mainland, since he would be in danger; behold, we want to find a crossing. 234 In June of the same year the battle was uncovered; and the army having rushed, whatever he found outside, he took, and blockaded the city, and having finished the castle on the 31st of August, having risen from there, he came and fell upon the moats of the city. 453. And on the 3rd of September of the 61st year, he crossed to Adrianople, as it appears, that for these two days he might secretly see the castle well and the things of the castle; 235 and in the same year in autumn, Turachanes came with his sons and much of an army to the Morea, at which time his son was also captured by the Moreotes. 236 And on the 17th of January of the same year, the successor and heir of the Palaiologan family was born, the lord Andreas the Palaiologos; 237 and on the 4th of April of the same year, the amir came again and besieged the city, besieging it with all ways and all machines, through both land and sea, having encircled the miles of the city, there being four hundred ships from the sea, small and large, and two hundred thousand men from the mainland, the city having, of such magnitude, men for the counter-deployment, so that without the foreigners they were barely 200 or a little more. 240 I knew, therefore, that I have it so, from such a cause; for the emperor having ordered—
A each of the city prefects to write down precisely the registry of his own prefecture, those who were able to stand in the fortress, both laymen and monks, and what sort of weapon each had for defense, and having brought them, each of the prefects delivered the list of his own prefecture to the emperor. Then he directed me: "This task concerns you, and no other, because I know that you both calculate well and guard well the things requiring preservation and those kept secret. Take the lists, sit in your house, and calculate accurately how many men there are, and how many shields, and how many spears, and how many bucklers, and how many bows." And having fulfilled his order, I brought and gave to my master and emperor the list, with grief and sadness, because the quantity B remained only a secret to him and to me. 288 And on the twenty-ninth day of May, at the first hour of the day, the Emir took the city, at which hour of the capture of the city my blessed master and emperor, Lord Constantine, struck down, died, while I was not found near him at that hour, but by his command was visiting another part of the city—alas for me, of whatever time Providence is keeping me! The entire life of the late emperor and martyr was forty-nine years, three months, and eight days, of which he was emperor for four years, four months, and twenty-four days, being the eighth emperor of his lineage, the Palaiologoi. The first was Michael, the second Andronikos, C the third Michael, the fourth Andronikos, the fifth John, the sixth Manuel, the seventh John, and the eighth Constantine. This lineage of the Palaiologoi ruled this very Constantinople for one hundred ninety-four years, ten months, and four days. Having been captured, then, I, the wretch, underwent all the bitter and evil things of captivity, finally being ransomed.
[309] On the first of September of the year 62, I saved at Mistra my wife and children from the elders and good Turks who had captured them, and from them they were sold back to the Emir's *melachouris*—that is, the count of his horses—who purchased many good and noble women, and made much profit from them. Since the beauty and other good qualities of my children could not be hidden, [310] when the Emir learned about them, he took them away, having given the *melachouris* many thousands of *aspra*. And the wretched mother remained alone with only a single upbringing, while the others were divided.
If someone were to ask what happened on the part of the emperor during the time of the battle, in which time and season the Emir was preparing, and what the Christians from outside did for help: it is evident that the Christians from outside did nothing at all; rather, they even [sent word] to the king of Serbia D who had been sent to Lord George, the ruler of the Emir, that he might act as an intermediary for peace with the Hungarians. The project, together with the ambassador of the departing clerk, was entrusted to certain Turks of the council, so that he might speak to the master and make a way for a delay in the peace, because if peace were made with the Hungarians, the Emir would immediately march against Constantinople. And he did not pay attention to this, for the wretched man did not know that if the head of a body happens to be removed, the limbs are dead.
And when at Venice a great council was held, the Doge Francesco Foscari opposed it, not out of ignorance—for indeed the Emperor Lord John had instructed us—but rather because others who saw and spoke to him said that he was a man more sensible than those in Italy have seen, but he acted out of malice and envy; for envy knows not how to prioritize the common good. The cause of this was that Alvise Diedo, having acted as an intermediary, so that my late master, Lord Constantine, while he was Despot and ruler in the Morea, might take to wife the daughter of that Doge, along with a great dowry. My master, therefore, [sought this] not for that reason, but for the fact that both he himself and his territory might be with Venice, and such a matrimonial alliance was being negotiated—I myself more than others consenting to this and urging it; and behold, it was to have happened. But as he had become emperor and had gone to the city, this was again unsuitable; for who of the nobles or noblewomen of the city would accept the daughter of a Venetian, even if [he were] an illustrious Doge, to be mistress and lady—perhaps only temporarily? Or the other brothers-in-law of his as co-brothers-in-law, or the sons as brothers-in-law of the emperor? Consequently, when he sought this, he was sent away and the man became an enemy. And although many of the nobles, Alvise Chourdas and Antonio Diedo and many others, argued and demonstrated that if Constantinople were captured, it would result in great loss, even to their own authority, they did not prevail. [395] And what did the Church of Rome think about this? For the Cardinal of Russia having been found in the city, I came to be an intermediary on his behalf to the illustrious and late master, my emperor, so that he might become patriarch, and that (everything) might be done by him and the then-pope, or even that the pope be commemorated a second time. And after much talk and council and deliberation, it seemed to the illustrious emperor that this one thing should cease entirely, because once a patriarch is established, there is a total need either for them to be persuaded by him, or for enmity and war to arise between him and those not persuaded by him; and at such a time when a war from outside is attacking us, and we also have war from inside, what an evil! As for the commemoration, let it happen for the sake of the hope of our help in necessity; and whoever does this in Hagia Sophia, the others shall be blameless and peaceful.
And when the twelfth day of the month of December arrived, six months had passed, and the sultan had made as much ado about help as he had [in the case of] Karas. But as for Serbia, A even though it was possible for it to send money secretly from many places and men likewise by other means, did anyone see even a single obol? Yes, in truth, they did send much money and men to the Emir besieging the city; and the Turks celebrated them and showed, "Look, even the Serbs are against you." Who among the Christians, or among those of the Emperor of Trebizond, or the Vlachs, or the Iberians, sent one obol or one man for help, either openly or secretly? Perhaps the Hungarians sent envoys, saying, "As long as you are able to have friendship with the City, we too have made friendship with you; but if not, we wish to break it." The embassy came almost weekly, during which time they were about to fight; and if they should take it, they were to say to them: "Look, we have taken it, and you too come and, as you wish, have us—either friendship or war." And this indeed happened; and this was said to them. But if they did not take it, they were to rise up and say that "we were stirred up because of our friendship toward you and the word of the agreement," or that he should also make peace, as we heard him saying, that "if I do not take it, I shall immediately make peace, so that it may remain for all my life."
My blessed master, the Emperor, what did he not do, secretly and openly, for the aid of his own household and of the Christians or of his own life? Was he considering, if something should happen at some time, to flee, when it was possible and easy? For who knew, among all the others besides John Kantakouzenos, that the Emir was B seeking to give him either Selymbria or Mesembria, and that he should be one of his subordinates, and that he had many of his men there, and that at the time of the battle of the Turks he should be an enemy to them and a helper of the City? And when the battle took place, Mesembria was given to him, and the chrysobull was written by me; and the son-in-law of Theodosius the Cypriot, the son of Michael, brought it to him. Who knew of the request of the King of the Catalans, that Lemnos should be given to him, and that he should be against the Turks on the sea always, and a helper of the City in necessity, and it was being done? Who knew how much money and promises he gave and sent to Chios via Galata, so that they might send men, and they did not send them? Who [knew of] the fasts and prayers he made, both himself and through the priests, giving them money, or [how] he comforted the poor with more, or [what] promises he made to God for the liberation of the Christians from the captivity of the Turks? But yet God overlooked all these things—by what judgments, I do not know; but the things that men ignored—and each one said...
585 In that same autumn of the year [6960], the Albanians of the Morea rose up completely against their despots and masters; and they even made—I know not what to say—Manuel Kantakouzenos despot, supposedly. In the month of December of the same year, the son of Turakhan came again with forces for the aid of the despots, and after injuring the Albanians a little and taking his captive brother Chariton, he returned. At which time and month the most impious and most cruel Emir killed with his own hand my beloved son John, as if the child had supposedly wished to do this against him—alas, alas for the C unfortunate and wretched father!—he was within fourteen years and six months of age, yet possessing a mind and body of many more years. In that same December, I also went to Leontarion, and I did obeisance to the despot lord Thomas, the Porphyrogenitus, and he received me into his service. 384 And he honored the village of Kertasin with a silver bull, and he prepared for me to go to the despots of Serbia, his fellow-father-in-law and son-in-law, for many and necessary services useful to both—I mean him and them. And having set off, I went to Methone, so that I might go by sea to Ragusa, and from there to Serbia, even though he intended to [go] to the Morea, for the nephew of his brother-in-law Centurione, the son of the prince, had fled from the prison of Chloumoutzi and had caused confusion in the place; and the Emir had gone against Serbia, at which time he also encountered the "Omombrydon." But as there was no longer time for the matter of Serbia to be carried out, I went by sea to Patras, and from there having crossed over from Bostitza to the other side.
In September of the year [6963], I went to Adrianople and from there to Ainos, so that I might secretly pass the time until the Emir should return from the direction of Sophia, and so that she who had the mother of my wretched children in a village of his—Melachoures—might come to Adrianople. D And having ransomed her, when I had returned to Adrianople, but indeed also Chrysovergina who was with her, I returned in February to Patras with them, having suffered much and spent much. In October, while I was lingering in the regions around Adrianople 385, Turakhan came with his sons and many forces for the aid of the masters and despots; they subdued the Albanians in some way or other, having injured them, and drove out the pseudo-despot. At which time, on the second of January, Manuel Palaiologos was also born to the despot lord Thomas.
In September of the year [6964], Thamar died.
and the Emir sent Mehemet, his Beylerbey, so that, if possible, he might receive Smederevo and all of Serbia in peace, and give another place in their stead to the wife and children of this same Lazar. This was not accomplished at that time, but only Peristerion was taken by treachery; after some time, however, he took Smederevo and the other place, and gave to the queen 387 certain supposed fortresses, which the Emir had captured in Bosnia. On the 15th of May of the same year, the Emir came to the Morea and, having encamped at Corinth, kept it blockaded. He himself went and fell upon the middle of the region; all that was there he either took into captivity or burned and destroyed, especially Akova, Aetos, and the Five Villages. And going from there, he came and fell upon Mouchli, which the good and noble Asanes Demetrios had actually given to him. In July of the same year, the Emir returned once more from there and fell upon Corinth, which had been given to him by the noble lords, Asanes Matthew and Loukanes Nikephoros, on the 6th of August—of whom the one was, to his misfortune, in command there, while the other, Asanes, ran and went to it, whether C to ensure it was guarded better or was surrendered more quickly, I do not know, even if it is clear from the facts. Having therefore given up the head of the body of the Morea, Corinth, they had perhaps even sworn oaths of affection, such that the despot 388 lord Thomas would give up Patras along with its territory, and furthermore also Kalavryta and Grebenon, and simply everything which the late emperor lord Constantine—being despot—possessed while he was in the Morea. Having heard this, my master and lord (for he was then D staying in Mantineia with his whole household, having run to the regions around the mountains of Trypi, where his brother also was, and if the aforementioned managers of such praiseworthy deeds had arrived, he did not deliberate or offer any refusal, but sent his truly great Primikerios, Lazar, and surrendered everything to the Emir like garden herbs. On that same day the Emir, since he was compelled to leave for certain reasons, having left Amaris the son of Turakhan so that he might take these [things], departed from the Morea.
6966
A In October of the year 6966, the Emir sent an emissary to the despot lord Demetrios, so that he might send his daughter to him as a wife for the Emir; if not, there would be war between them. As the emissary came to the despot lord Thomas, who was staying in the Pontic region, he took his oaths of affection and [obtained] the surrender of the fortresses which had not yet been given to his sovereign, 389 and departed. In the month of January of the same year, the good and noble Loukanes Nikephoros—or rather, the "Morea-waster"—and those accounted among the first and faithful lords of the despot lord Demetrios, and certain others of the Albanians and Moreotes, whom their own readiness for evil had led on much more, persuaded the despot lord Thomas to make an uprising against the Emir and against his own brother, and to eat his oaths like greens—which a little before he had sworn with them—and this while that other good man, Asanes Matthew, had recently departed and was with the Emir as an emissary for the bondage, supposedly, of the marriage of his niece. When, therefore, the despot lord Thomas went out at the beginning of the month of February of the same year from Arkadia and united with those working against him or against them, as the narrative will reveal as it proceeds, they took from the Turks Kalavryta—and only that—out of the fortresses which they had dared to take, from those which the Turks held. But from the domain of the despot lord Demetrios, those very workers of evil held what they controlled as *kephalitikia*—namely, Karytaina, Vardonía, and Kastritza—and other things. And thus, so that they might have these things again for themselves as their own lords, and not as governors, those prudent, practical, and noble lords accomplished nothing else 390 than that they set against themselves God, the Creator of all and the powerful Sovereign of those upon the earth.
A And those miserable men did not reflect either upon the saying of the Truth, that "every house divided against itself shall be desolated," nor upon the proverbial saying that "not even Heracles can contend against two," but rather they rose up against three and such others besides. B With these things thus progressing, God first overlooked them, and they were unaware of what they were doing; but just as fish, while in the midst of the net, are ignorant that they are all being dragged together to the land—and those smaller ones, until this happens, are swimming and being pursued and captured and destroyed by the larger ones—so too did these men. For indeed, the Despot Lord Thomas would attack and besiege the possessions of his brother, Kalommatas and Mantineia, and found as allies the Protostrator, the most excellent Sevastopoulos Nikolaos (John Eudaimon Leon), a mediator [and] brother-in-law of his brother, and the most cherished relative by marriage, he who was rather Kaphonides or Tzamplakon. The Despot Lord Demetrios, again, [at 391] [took] Leontarion and its possessions and Pidima through Georgios Palaiologos, his most beloved cousin, and the mediator of the Despot Lord Thomas and his son-in-law, Manouel Bogalis, even if the one did indeed seize Kalommatas and Leutron and much of the income of Mani. But when the Despot Lord Demetrios was coming to enter into Leontarion, as soon as his brother learned of this, he ran and, having arrived first, occupied it, and the Despot Lord Demetrios remained without success. C And the Palaiologos and the Bochalis [faction] having fled alone and having departed to him, to the one who had returned to Mystras—and furthermore, the most wicked and useless race of the Albanians, seizing an opportunity [suitable] to their reputation and their acquisitive and rapacious mindset—what did they not do, or what evil did they not commit? For distrusting the word of the Sabbath, they would go from one of the lords to the other, and they would demand castles—as is their language—for their own commanders; if not, they would go to the other. And the others would do likewise to the other of the Despots. Through the midst, therefore, if they did find anything [among] the miserable so-called Romans—or rather, indeed, of the Albanians and their own kinsmen and retainers—they would plunder and destroy everything. D And it came to pass that each of them was doing against the other whatever he could, [in such] magnitude and quantity that who could worthily lament it? But indeed, even the Turks themselves, who were in Corinth [392] and Patras, seizing a just opportunity, would take some captive, kill others, and mock the lords and rulers, seeing them pushing the swords against themselves. And I, having understood these actions—being in Arcadia where they were actually taking place—and having observed their conclusions, before the Despot departed from Arcadia, I also departed, having fabricated some reasons, and went to Pidasos, which is now called Methone, toward the end of the month of December of the same year. And indeed, the useful ruler, by [his] judgment and deed, Georgios Rhaoul [393] [left] both the lord and most of his own [possessions], and he too came to Methone; and both of us, sitting in the harbor, were waiting hour by hour for the end of such a storm, even if, God having been patient, it was delayed, in order that the senseless might at some time understand and the foolish might at some time become wise, and that concord and peace might exist in their midst, and that they might beseech God, and furthermore also the Emir, and that God, as a merciful God, might have mercy on them, and that the Emir might also command his own executioner, and allow them to live for a longer time—for even he has a place and an order before God, such as his own executioners [have] toward him, who indeed fulfill his will and command, but are hateful and abominable. B And these evils having been put forth and having occurred in the entire region of the wretched Morea, and an external partial force having come, they ravaged the whole region, so that the evils which the inhabitants and the lords and rulers had left behind—they did, not by choice, but out of inability—they, being enemies of one of the Despots, and perhaps friends of another, [which] Despot and enemy of theirs, Lord Thomas, finding [394] near Leontarion and pursuing and capturing, afterwards they brought the spoil—that is, their goods—and placed them near the houses of Leontarion, and then, having departed, they went to the areas around Mystras and to their friendly Despot, and from there they crossed over, victorious and with great profit of animals and, indeed, of humans. Scarcely, therefore, after the lords and brothers had understood the evil of their own battle, and having gathered at Kastritzi, they made, as it were, oaths of peace, and with the Metropolitan of Lacedaemon having celebrated the liturgy with his omophorion, when the priests call out to the Christians to come forth with the fear of God and faith, the lords and brothers coming forward and having sworn, the Despot Lord Demetrios remained, as we heard, in the agreed [arrangements] for a time; and again he was the same, as if nothing new had happened. Oh, the forbearance and longsuffering of You, Christ our King, both toward him and the guilty ones! And they began again the evils as before, the great and fearful oaths of yesterday having been broken, and each of them did against the other what he could, [placing] his hopes, the one in the friendship and help of the Emir, and the injustice [by which] he was wronged both in his subjects and in his castles, [395] [and] the other in the perjury of the other and in fighting against the impious, so-called. [466 [465]] These things, then, being thus wrongly done, the winter of the 68th year passed, and in May of the same year, behold, the Emir also came against both of them. And he having gone straight to Mystras, since the Despot was there, because his brother and enemy was in the [area of] Kalommatas and besieging Mantineia, he came down—both unwillingly and willingly—and was enslaved to him; and having taken...
the emir along with himself, and having surrounded the Mystras and the guard, he said to the Despot: "Despot, since matters have come to this with you, you are no longer able to rule this place; but since we have established you as a father and have taken your daughter for our bride, give this place to us. And come with us, you and your daughter, and we shall give you another world so that you may have a livelihood." Having accepted this, though unwillingly, he sent both his lords and the Turks 396, so that they might take his wife the Basilissa and his daughter and bring them, but indeed also that they might surrender Monemvasia; for they were found there, and the former took place—for they went out and came willingly where the emir and the Despot were. But the Monemvasiots and Manuel Palaiologos, who was at their head, having seized 397 the fortress, surrendered it to the Despot Lord Thomas, and after this he also [surrendered it] in name to the Pope.
405 The emir, having settled the Basilissa and the daughter, sent them outside with some of his men and hers, but he took the Despot and brought him along with himself. Having arrived, then, at Bordonias and Kastritzin, the noble lords of Bordonias, being afraid, fled, having abandoned it; those at Kastritzin, however, having resisted for a time and fought, finally bowed down, and having come down to receive crowns for their exploits, he beheaded some of them, set others upon stakes, and having flayed the Proinokokas, he finished him—a fitting end for one who had reaped the fruit of his works and deeds. Having arrived, however, the emir himself also at the areas around Leontari and at Leontari itself, and having found it empty of people, he took it; but having gone to Gardiki, where the people had gone to be guarded as it was stronger, he was fought for a time by the Leontarites; in the end, however, they were enslaved 106, and all became fuel for the sword, together with women and children. This [fate] would the leaders of them, the Bochaleoi, have also suffered, had not the Beylerbey Mahmut arrived and sought them out, the wife of Manuel Bochalis being his cousin, even though they returned evil to him for this; for when he gave them men so that they might travel with ease and rest along the road leading to the outside area, while passing near the Pontic [region] they found a boat and deceitfully killed the men of the Beylerbey, and having embarked, they fled to Corfu, and they indeed were liberated from slavery in whatever way. But the father-in-law of Manuel Bochalis, George Palaiologos, the first cousin (as we declared before) of the mother of the Beylerbey, having been cast into irons, was led away. For he himself, as we said before, having fled from Leontari with his son-in-law, had gone to the Mystras and to the slavery of the Despot Lord Demetrios; but when war broke out around Bordonias and Trype, having been severely wounded, he was captured, and they led him off as a prisoner to the [lord] formerly his master, Lord Thomas. And when he had recovered from the wound, but was being kept restricted and guarded somehow around Dyrrachion, he deceived those guarding him and fled; and again he was found [staying] both with the Despot Lord Demetrios and at the Anapli, for the greater part of the time his wife and children were found in the Venetian lands. Therefore, when the emir, as we have shown, enslaved Leontari and the areas around it, he also enslaved it, and furthermore, Saint George as well. For when the Krokontylos—or rather, to say it more fittingly, Krokodeilos—saw these things, he also bowed down to the emir, and surrendered to him the fortress and his two sons; he himself received as a favor for these things the "Loi," or rather to say "Eloi, Eloi," that is to say, "My God, why have you not abandoned him also, [him who is] the primary cause of the aforementioned evils?"
These things having happened, or rather being in the process of happening, the Despot Lord Thomas, having abandoned Kalommatas, and having crossed to the areas around Kosmena and Petalida, came and entered into Navarino, and thence to Marathi, the Basilissa having earlier left Arcadia and having gone there with her children and the archons found there in Arcadia. And as the emir took these, but indeed also Karytaina from Sgouromalis Palaiologos and the brother-in-law of the great Loukanes, who had previously died 408, having passed his soul along with his entrails into a latrine, he came down to the areas around Adrousa, and having taken it and everything around it, he went to see Korone, then went from there and also saw Methone, then [went] to Pylos, which is also Navarino, on the day that the Despot Lord Thomas also left. For he had prepared some small boats, and he came to what is called Porto Longo, so that from there, having taken the opportunity, he might go to Corfu, which also happened. And on the 28th of the month of July he arrived there, that is to say the Corfus, as Corfu is now named. Since I found a ship being led there, having embarked on the 11th of July because a plague had arisen with the other evils in Methone, on the 2nd of August we arrived, my purpose being to go to Crete, or to Veroia near Thessaloniki, because I had there a most beautiful monastery in the name of Saint Nicholas, which my mother's father had built from the foundations. And when George Raoul and his son-in-law and his daughter had gone, and later the Despot also with all the others, and they urged me and were serving to go there, I also went. And when the emir 409 had taken Arcadia, and from there was passing to the lower parts of the Morea, and was taking everything there, but indeed also the very strong Chlemoutsi and Santameri of the Beylerbeys—where they had them, they abandoned these places and they themselves went off to the Corfus—he came as far as Patras and remained there, and having taken Kalavryta from Doxas—a man faithful neither to the despots nor to the emir, nor even to God—
I think that he himself paid a fitting penalty, being flayed, while all his men were either beheaded or led away as captives. The emir, having well secured the fortress and fortified it in every way, rose up from Petra and crossed over into the regions around Salmenikon and Lystraina and Vostitza; of these he took Vostitza and Lystraina, and he held Salmenikon for a time, through a Palaiologos surnamed Gretzas.
B
As for the despot, as we have said, when he went with his whole household to the Corfus, I went to him with letters from the subashi of Angelokastron, stating that the emir has a desire to go to him, and that there might be an agreement between you out of love, and that it should be granted by him and by him to the despot with certain agreements for you. Having consulted with his own men, the despot thought it good that Raoul Georgios should go to the emir, and that his son-in-law, Raoul Ioannes, should go to the Pope, so that the one might make these points and the despot’s fault towards the Corfus known to the Pope, and the other might see what the emir’s intent was. And they set off, the one on the 9th and the other on the 11th of August. Since a plague had occurred in the fortress of the Corfus, both the despot and we went off to the villages, awaiting the results of the mission. Now Raoul Georgios, passing through Angelokastron, reached the emir in the regions around Veroia; and immediately upon his command, Ralis and all who were with him were seized and their feet were secured in irons. Having spent some days thus, when the emir departed, he released them as well, even though they were prisoners, after a journey of some days to the mountains near the Black Mountain, C saying: "I was awaiting that, while I am near the Morea, the despot might come or send his son with the nobles, and that there might be favor toward him, and that he might sit and live. Since, then, nothing happened, we say again: if he wishes, let it be-so, and upon your departure, let the despot come or send from his children, and we wish to do well by them."
Having returned with Raoul unsuccessful in October of the 6960th year, on the 16th of November of the same year, the despot Lord Thomas, having boarded one of the Corfiot ships with most of his nobles, crossed over to Ancona, in order that from there he might go to the Pope and to the Duke of Milan and elsewhere, having left in the Corfus both the queen and his children and some of the nobles, but indeed also the families of those following him. I was also much ordered and asked that I should either go with him or remain here with the queen; and as a lord of her household, I—from the mercy of God who arranges all things well, and from the sorrow which I bore, and from the disorder of all those of his household—became disobedient and remained there; but having remained even for another time in that very village of Molyvotina, where I was staying when the despot (was) in Chlomos because of the plague, as has been declared, as I found after a time in the residence in the name of Saint Ilias, near the fortress, having myself gone off thither.
6968th year, September 6th, we were staying with ours, and asking only of God that He might have mercy on us and provide for us from His own philanthropy and goodness. Having sent me there for five months and a little more, when we felt no rest with those who hold such a residence, and for the sake of the good and kind friend and spiritual father Dorotheos, D who was staying at the monastery of the Holy Apostles, Jason and Sosipater—having also found ourselves from the order of the thirty priests the residence of Saint Nicholas, which is called after Tarchaniotes—we moved in March 15th of the same 6966th year, clearly. And the despot Lord Thomas, having reached Ancona and from there to Rome, achieved nothing else except that he gave to Pope Pius the head of the holy apostle and first-called Andrew, and he in return to him, so that he might barely live with his own, was only that necessary sustenance. Having passed some time, it seemed good to him, and he returned to the domain of the Venetians and again from there to Ancona, since his daughter, the Queen of Serbia, had gone off there; and having spent some days attending to her, he went again to Rome, while the queen went over to Raguza; and the queen and her mother, who was managing affairs badly, having been had mercy upon by God, died in the same year on August 26th and was buried in the monastery of the Holy Apostles, Jason and Sosipater.
The leader of the impious, having gone in the same period against the Isfendiyar, took his famous fortress called Sinope, which I also saw, and indeed all his other territory; and further, even before he had gone off, he had taken Kerasounta and Trebizond, and all the surrounding territory of the kingdoms of Trebizond, and having driven out almost all the unfortunate lords and nobles there, he brought them to live in Adrianople, where indeed also stayed the lord of the Morea; to whom he also gave to possess for his sustenance and that of his people the great Ainos, Lemnos, Imbros, and Samothrace, but the King of Trebizond, the Komnenos Lord David, and the villages around the Black Mountain, whom also after a short time, having found a slight and untrue pretext to act against him, he took all his possessions and ended him by strangulation. In the spring of the same 6966th year the emir crossed into Great Vlachia, and corrected what was being done against him there.
[υξγ'] In the month of November of the 6971st year, the son of Turahan, Amaris, made an incursion, and took all around Naupaktos and its region—the Galatas, who were Venetian, as if they were actually also tax-payers to Flabelos of Great Vlachia; learning of which, the captain of the Venetian galleys ran to help, crossed to the opposite city of the emir, Vostitsa, and burned and took captive all, save only the Kulas. Carrying the Vostitzians to Naupaktos, he made an exchange for his own men. And now, there being a battle planned to take place with the emir by the Signoria of the Venetians, in order to use all means to obtain the rule and authority of the Morea. This deed indeed revealed it and became the beginning; and when the general captain Alvise Loredan came [415] with great preparation and force, he seized the Hexamilion and built it; but he did so badly, due to haste—for as the saying goes, that which is done in haste is not secure—but because he fought for Corinth and did not achieve what was hoped for, he abandoned the Hexamilion and left. [υξδ'] In the 6972nd year, the Venetians took Monemvasia, not so much by the will and grace of their own lords, as by the uselessness [of the rule] of the archon holding it; just as in like manner, through uselessness and failure, the commander of the Lemnos fortress, the so-called Palaiokastron, was stolen, or rather, the Kulas of that place happened to be held by an outsider and was given to the Signoria of the Venetians; and from that fortress, evidently, they took possession of the whole island. But even when the captain himself went to Lesbos and fought it, he achieved nothing, but left empty-handed. [υξε'] On April 18th, I departed and arrived at Ancona on May 17th. On July 1st, having departed again, I went by the Viterbo road, since we had learned that the cardinal was staying there at the thermal baths. In nine days we reached Rome, and I stayed at the guesthouse of our lords, the Despot kyr Andreas and the lord-son of the emperor kyr Manuel Palaiologos, for 36 days [425], during which days I also venerated the tombs of the blessed apostles Peter and Paul, and of many other saints buried there. And having seen the sights in the great, renowned, and ancient city, on July 16th I departed and came by the straight road to Ancona, and having waited a short time, I departed by sea for Venice on the 28th of the same month, and stayed there at the monastery of the Cross for 26 days, until August, that is, when, God willing, we departed and arrived safely here at Corfu. [υξη'] On the 5th of September of the 6975th year—at the same time as we were staying in the vicinity of Rome, the emir of the impious exarchs came against Albania, chased away its lord, Skanderbeg, took prisoner and laid waste to the place, and built a fortress near its own catholic fortress, named Krujë, in order to fight against him, [and then] returned to the areas around Constantinople. And in the summer of the same 6975th year, Victor Capello, having become general captain, went to the island of Imbros and, having fought, took it; and again, having gone to Athens, he took the whole country captive. And when he had come to old Patras around August, he took the region. When Amaris [426] came for his aid, the Provveditore, with those of the fleet and Raoul Michael the Ises with many good soldiers, routed him decisively and killed many of his men; and having pursued them for a long way, they did not return to the primary task, despite the Romans—who were more experienced in the terrain and such matters—advising this. But the Provveditore, puffed up and appearing rather harsh and toward them [asking] why they were not pursuing, they drove them on, not knowing that this was good, as far as the mills and the Saravallion and beyond toward the ascent of Sidirokastron. Amaris, therefore, seeing their pursuit to be ill-timed, vain, and disorderly, having left men in certain places, then turned upon them, routed and chased them, and having reached them, killed the Provveditore, who was sitting on a mule and had fallen from it twice, and killed many others, and caught the very Raoul Michael, his horse having failed him [427], and they impaled him. And finally, as victors, they ran to the shore where the galleys were, and finding many on the land, they killed them.
A They supposed him to be the cause, and the Metropolitan of the same ancient Patras took [his] authority and that of the place, and took the armament to come against them, [and] having taken it, they sat in the galley. Having suffered these things, the men of the armament [returned] ineffectual and penalized; from which evil occurrence, the Captain also, having been grieved and having fallen very ill, died while staying in Euripus. And Iakovos Lordas, the son of that Peter Lordas and first cousin of the Captain Aloysius Lordas who was before him, became captain. But these things followed in the winter of the present year. But concerning the matter of Patras, in the August before the autumn, on the 29th day of the month of March of the 70th year, in which also our great Easter occurred, Matthew the Asanes, the cause of all the evils of the Morea, grew cold [i.e., died]. And behold, the melody of David has also been fulfilled: B "Let God arise, and let his enemies be scattered: let them also that hate him flee before him" (Ps. LXVII, 1). And this having happened, as we heard from some, the Despot also sent to him the revenue of the Amiras and the debt of the slavery to the forces, he saying: "I am an old man and weak; he who fulfilled the servitude has died; therefore let the great revenue be given wherever you decree; but to me let there be given as much as [is needed] while I live, sitting here with a few." The Amiras answered: "He speaks well, and let him separate whom he wishes." And he separated [them]; and he gave to him 1,000 aspras, that he might have them from the custom of the flour; and the majority of his subordinates he restricted and took away, that they might be found in the City; but others said that it happened otherwise, and we are going to learn and narrate. [429] In the same year, the summer saw such a pestilential disease in Constantinople and Adrianople and Gallipoli and the surrounding fortresses and towns and regions as has not occurred for many long years; for they have died, as they say, myriads of people, not thousands; and with them also the daughter of the Despot. Year 77.
In the month of November of the 77th year, I also departed for Saint Maura, by the prompting of the Queen, Lady Helena, and mother-in-law of the lord of that place, Lord Leonardo, so that I might inspect both the place and those who were there; and as if a nephew of my blessed lord the Emperor Constantine and on behalf of his father, who suffered a great loss from me, as I declared beforehand in the 38th year, that I might enjoy some annual benefits, as an old man and weak and poor from the captivity. I returned on the 21st of the same [month], having seen everything lowly and having enjoyed [it] without excelling in the mastardic lineage [of] all his rule; for those who are ruled must be likened to those who rule. And in January [430] of the same year, the lord of Albania, Scander, died a natural death; and C the authority of the Venetians; but his sister’s son, being a Turk, and having been sent to the Amiras by him; and from the middle of the spring of the same 76th year, clearly, and of the whole summer, having passed [it] poorly from the customary illness of rheumatism, but also my worldly clothes having dissolved, we put on the habit on the 1st of the month of August, and instead of George [we were named] Gregory, and instead of Helena we were named Euphraxia, giving first our confession of faith in God, having thus: [444] I believe in the Son of God not to be a creature, nor under time, according to the foolish Arius, but consubstantial and co-eternal with God and the Father, true God from true God, creator of times and of all creatures, but later incarnate for us from the Holy Spirit and Mary the ever-virgin. I believe the Holy Spirit not to be a creature nor of a different substance from the Father and the Son, as Macedonius, who was empty [445] of His grace, blasphemed, but true God, consubstantial and co-eternal with the Father and the Son, proceeding from the Father to the Son, just as the Son [is] begotten from Him. I believe that the Son of God the pre-eternal is not another, and the Jesus Christ born of the Virgin another, as the foolish Nestorius blasphemed, but rather, the one born of her to be two natures indeed after the union, but one in hypostasis—the divine, clearly; therefore also, that she who bore the same is properly and truly Theotokos, and not Christotokos according to that foolish man. I believe the Son of God after the incarnation not to have joined the two into one nature, according to the foolish Dioscorus and Eutyches, who attached the sufferings to the divinity, but as recognized in two natures and after the union without confusion; and further, that neither the souls exist before the bodies, nor is there an end to punishment, nor an restoration of demons, according to the foolish Origen. I believe the Son of God our Lord Jesus Christ, after the incarnation, not to have one natural will and one energy, according to Honorius of Rome (1) and Pyrrhus the foolish, but two wills and two energies, a divine, clearly, and a human energy and will, and that neither of his natures is unwilling or unenergetic. [446] I believe that iconographic representations are to be venerated not latreutically, but relatively by the Church of God and [by] honor, not bestowing the worship [sebas] on the matter, but on the prototype; for the honor of the image passes to the prototype according to the great Basil. I believe that the divine nature is neither unenergetic and devoid of essential energies, nor that substance and energy are the same in It, nor that these are created, according to the foolish Barlaam and Acindynus, but that they are divine essential energies, and that these are other than the substance Itself, and are uncreated and called divinities. I confess firmly the Holy Spirit
A not as proceeding from the Father and from the Son together, according to the Italians, but from the substance of the Father alone, just as, indeed, the Son Himself is born from the substance of the Father alone; but that the Spirit is sent by the Father and the Son, as grace itself and His gift provides. 69
In the autumn of the 167th year, the queen B Lady Eleni Palaiologina, wife of the Despot of Serbia, departed to the lordship of Venice, accusing those who had stolen her property in Corfu. And in the spring of the same year, many and great earthquakes occurred in Santa Maura, Cephalonia, and Zakynthos, and they destroyed many things belonging to them; the fortress of Cephalonia was completely destroyed, and many people died. In the summer of the same year, the captain of the Venetian galleys, Nikolon Dekanalias, departed, and he captured great Aenus, and returning and coming to the Morea, he founded Vostitsa in the summer season of the same year. 70
Which, so to speak, they destroyed on the coast down to the foundations, but they possess other things. Having passed through to the Principality, he returned and exited the Morea, and sending another captain, Thomas Mutzenigos, to the aforementioned captain Nikolon Dekanalias, they seized him and his son and the secretary C and, having bound them in irons, they sent them to their lord at the beginning of the autumn of the 169th year. 71
At which time [of the month] the Despot of Adrianople, Lord Demetrios, also died, having become a monk and being renamed David, his daughter having died a few years before him; furthermore, his wife, the queen, also died some time after his death. 72
On the 26th of the month of July of the 170th year, I fell into such an illness that they even made me a full monk and of the Great Habit, without my having any inkling of it. 73
Regarding the autumn of the 171st year: returning from the king of France and the Duke of Burgundy, the cardinal, Lord Bessarion (for he had been sent by the church to reconcile them), died on the road on the 15th of November. And carrying him to Rome with the greatest honor, they buried him in the church of the holy Apostles, where he had already dwelt, and he had prepared his tomb near the tomb of the holy martyr Eugenia. D Regarding the spring of the same year, Zuchasanes also went out against the territory of the emir Mehmed, and he overran his territories in the East, and the emir accordingly went out from Constantinople and departed against him with all his power. And having approached the frontier, he defeated that army of the emir which had gone out before against him; in which he also killed the Beylerbey of the West, the son of the late Thomas Palaiologos, that Gidos, and many others of the lords and leaders who were in the West; then, having advanced also against the face of the emir, he was defeated, and returning, he departed to his own territory, and likewise the emir returned to the City. Regarding the end of July of the same year, the lordship of Venice also took the small fortress near Corfu called Strophylion.
In the winter of the 171st year, in January, snow fell on the general island in such quantity as the people of Corfu had never seen before, so that they hunted even foxes and hares with their own hands, and indeed in the territory of the West, and even more so in that of the East. Regarding the end of spring of the same year, the leader of the impious, having campaigned against Euripus, came to it around the end of the month of June; and his armament by sea, before departing for everything that was in it, Galipoli, having gone to Lemnos, took Kotsinos and all the villages found on the whole island except for the Old Fortress and the Skala, and returned. Having advanced, that of the city from Nicomedia and from wherever it was, it came together and arrived at Euripus; seeing which, the commander of the Venetian armament retreated—perhaps rightly, but it was bad that he did not come to cast force into Euripus. And the emir’s armament, coming on its way, took Imbros. Then it came to Euripus, in which very month the emir also arrived, and having fought fiercely from both land and sea, on the 12th of the month of July they took the fortress by war. And this having happened, all the small islands and fortresses around it were enslaved, willingly or unwillingly; and the emir, having persevered a little, around the beginning of August went out and departed for Constantinople; he left his Beylerbey behind, and he came to the Morea. He came to the right side by the sea, and passing around Vostitsa, some abandoned it and fled, and others did obeisance and surrendered it to him. Passing by, those in the Voumeron and the Nu did the same.
On the 7th of the month of November of the 171st year, the queen Lady Eleni Palaiologina also died in Santa Maura, having become a nun and been renamed Hypomone. On the 9th of the month of December, he who was with us, the hiero-
monk and spiritual person, Lord Hierotheos, who was also renamed Joseph in the great habit, who was from youth with us, a schoolmate, and friend until his very end. B
In the summer of the [1443] year, the ruler of the impious gathered a great armament and sent it to the upper regions of the Black Sea and took the great fortress called Kaffa.
In the summer of the [1444] year, he departed against Wallachia with all his power.
In September of the [1445] year, he returned, defeated rather than victorious, and left the Beylerbey in Sofia, while he himself came to Adrianople; and after staying for some days, he departed and came to Constantinople. In the same year, on the 1st of October, a rheumatism came upon me in my head and knees, and such a quantity of fluid came out of my mouth, nose, and ears that they despaired of me, and three times they communicated me, the unworthy one, with the immaculate mysteries; and I wished that death had come upon me, the remedy for all the difficulties within me, because of both my old age and my infirmity and penury—not of the many good things and those accustomed since youth, but even of almost the necessities themselves—were it not that the patience of such things and thanksgiving to God, by the grace of God, are to be the cause of A forgiveness for him, as he has committed many [sins] against the one who renamed him to the great habit. For never in life has there been a sin, nor an action, nor a wickedness, which I, the wretch, have not committed, having sinned in mind, word, intent, posture, judgment, and deed, as no other man ever has; yet, being delivered from death, I remained deaf for a long time, so as not to hear even the signals near me, and furthermore, I was bedridden from the pains in my feet (though it remained for the providence above, whether to release me from such past days, or—if death and the rest of men should come, as the divine Job foretold—yet I beseech God thus; but if, O Savior, it is necessary to suffer—for who knows the depth of Thy judgments?—for the sake of Thy philanthropy, seeing that my passions are abhorrent, while Thy justice executes its own part—grant me, therefore, to provide atonement for this time, but not in the infinite future, where it is not possible to change things; cleanse me, therefore, here, having used all who contribute to this, and thus move me from here, worthy not to fall from Thy mercies in Thy second and fearful coming). B
In the summer of the same [1445] year, he sent a great force against Naupaktos, that he might take it and then come to Saint Maura; which, by the help of God, neither took Naupaktos nor came against Saint Maura, but returned empty-handed.
ANALYTICAL INDEX TO THE CHRONICON MAJUS OF GEORGE PHRANTZES
(The reader is referred to the larger numbers expressed in the text)
A Abarinas, city, 407. Also called Pylus, 408. Abasgia, region, 512. Abedulas, father of the prophet Muhammad, 207. Aberses, duke, captured at Nicopolis by the Turks, 60. Abubakares, successor of the prophet Muhammad, 302. Abydus, city, 43. Acarnanians, subject to Andronicus III, 58. To Amurates II, 91. Achumates, having set out with his father Turachane into the Peloponnese, 235. Is defeated by Asanes and captured, ibid.; is liberated by his brother Amares, 385. Acindynus, heresy, 416. Acoba, city of the Peloponnese, is besieged by Mehmed II in war, 337. Is besieged by Despot Demetrius, 390. Ademanides, towers, 51. Adrianople, captured by Amurates I, 46, 80; made the seat of empire by Mehmed II, 90. Ecaterina, daughter of Centurione, princess, marries Despot Thomas, 156. Ecaterina, daughter of the prince of Lesbos, marries Despot Constantine, 192, 193. Her death, 195. Aetus, a great city of the Peloponnese, 133. Is besieged by Mehmed II in war, 387. By the Venetians it is captured, 417. Its province, 76. Aetoli, subject to Andronicus III, 58. To Amurates II, 91. Aetus, city of the Peloponnese, 133. Is besieged by Mehmed II in war, 387. Agar, mother of the Saracens, 303. Agarenes, whence so called, 303. Agathopolis, 403. Albanians, defeated by Bajazeth, 82. Moved by sedition against Despots Thomas and Demetrius, they create Manuel Cantacuzenos despot, 383. Are restrained by Turachane, 385. Rapacious and perfidious, 391. Mehmed II is victorious, 425. Aleutores, what it signifies, 81. Alexander IV, pope, agrees with Michael VIII Palaeologus concerning the union of the Churches, 31. Alexius, tower of Constantinople, 287. Ali Pascha, having tried in vain to deter Mehmed I from war against the Romans, 265. Reveals his plans to Constantine XI, 268. Is killed by Mehmed II, 295. His army mourns because of his death, 294. Allage, city, 24. Almyrum, city of Crete, 100. Amares, sets out with his father Turachane against Despots Thomas and Demetrius, 235. Having helped them against the seditious Albanians, he liberates his brother from captivity, 385. After the death of Mehmed II, he is left alone, 388. Occupies the region adjacent to Naupaktos, it is left behind; Amastris, captured by Bajazeth, 82.