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is fitting. For it is not possible to say that your grandfather and emperor was led to do such things out of folly or inexperience. For past time testifies to his great experience and magnitude of wisdom; 1.19 but unless he had first secured the one whom he intends to adorn with the flower of the purple, he would not have openly deprived you of it. For to cast you out of the oaths, and to bring in another whom he himself shall appoint, seems to me to be able to mean nothing else. You must therefore deliberate on the matter wisely; for you will not be deliberating about small and contemptible things, but either to live well, or not to die dishonorably; and I will offer myself to you most willingly for whatever is commanded, ready to give up not only my affairs and possessions, but also life itself for the sake of your honor.” Having heard these words, the emperor said, “I confess great thanks to you for your friendship and zeal toward me; but since the Grand Domestic John Kantakouzenos is both very closely and friendly disposed to you, and is bound to me by unbreakable bonds of friendship, which has grown with us from infancy until now and has advanced to such a depth, that it seems my soul moves his body, and his soul moves in me and says and does these things which I wish, and in a way the souls of both having been fused into one move both bodies; since, therefore, we are so naturally disposed toward one another, I do not think it tolerable to deliberate anything alone concerning myself, even if it should happen that I fall into the utmost dangers. But since you are going to Thrace to be the successor of his office, take a letter to him 1.20 from my hand, so that he may trust to meet with you for discussions—for otherwise he would not dare—give this to him; and when you have come together and deliberated on the matters at hand, whatever seems to you advantageous and beneficial, this will be my opinion as well. For I am precisely convinced that, unless God in ways He knows should trip up your understanding, you would not fail of what is good and advantageous and beneficial, both because of your keen intelligence and your experience in political affairs and because of your supreme friendship and connection to me.” These things having been said, Syrgiannes, taking the letter from the emperor, proceeded to Thrace; there indeed, having met with the Grand Domestic, and having made known to him what had happened, and having handed over the emperor's letter, they deliberated about the present matters for two and three days in succession. And the council having become varied and multifaceted, since the struggle was about the greatest things; and many things having been said by both, since they vied with the very first of the Romans in both intelligence and strategic experience; finally the Grand Domestic spoke as follows: 3. “I would have exchanged many things, O best of friends, or rather even no small part of life itself, for our council not to be set on such matters, so that on both sides there is no little danger, however it might turn out. For in deliberating on other matters it is possible to conclude from reasoning that if things turn out this way, it will turn out 1.21 well, but if not, the very opposite would result; but in what we now deliberate, if the worse things prevail, it means to lose one's life; but if what seems better should become stronger, it is necessary to expect a swarm of evils. For since our emperor is deliberating such things about his grandson and emperor, if the things being planned come to pass, it will lack no excess of evils. For a man worth many others, who vies with the first for the primacy in wisdom, who by courage of soul surpasses others by a great margin, who by freedom of judgment and natural aptitude is fitting for so great a magnitude of rule, who knows and keeps the laws of friendship, who is altogether a common glory of nature, it happens that he is thus caught undefended in the greatest matters, and either lives a life heavier than any death—he who yesterday and the day before was as an emperor both bowed down to and honored, today is despised and

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προσήκει. οὐ γάρ ἐστιν εἰπεῖν, ὡς ὁ σὸς πάππος καὶ βασιλεὺς ἐξ ἀνοίας ἢ ἀπειρίας τοιαῦτα προήχθη δρᾷν. ὁ παρελθὼν γὰρ χρόνος καὶ ἐμπειρίαν πολλὴν καὶ φρονήσεως αὐτῷ μέγεθος 1.19 μαρτυρεῖ· ἀλλ' εἰ μὴ πρότερον ὃν μέλλει τῷ τῆς ἁλουργίδος ἄνθει κοσμήσειν, κατέστησεν ἐν βεβαίῳ, οὐκ ἂν ἀπεστέρει σὲ ταύτης ἀναφανδόν. τὸ γὰρ σὲ μὲν ἐκβαλεῖν τῶν ὅρκων, ἀντεισαγαγεῖν δὲ ὃν ἂν αὐτὸς καταστήσῃ, οὐδὲν ἄλλο δύνασθαί μοι δοκεῖ. δεῖ δή σε βουλεύσασθαι περὶ τοῦ πράγματος συνετῶς· οὐ γὰρ περὶ μικρῶν καὶ εὐκαταφρονήτων βουλεύσῃ, ἀλλ' ἢ καλῶς ζῆν, ἢ μὴ ἀτίμως ἀποθανεῖν· ἐγὼ δ' ἐμαυτὸν παρέξω σοι προθυμότατον πρὸς ἅπαν τὸ προσταττόμενον, ἑτοίμως ἔχοντα μὴ πράγματα μόνον καὶ κτήματα, ἀλλὰ καὶ αὐτὴν ζωὴν ὑπὲρ τῆς σῆς προέσθαι τιμῆς.» Τούτων τῶν λόγων ἀκούσας ὁ βασιλεὺς, «τῆς μὲν εἰς ἐμέ σου φιλίας ἕνεκα καὶ προθυμίας ὁμολογῶ σοι χάριν» ἔφη «πολλήν· ἐπεὶ δ' ὁ μέγας δομέστικος ὁ Καντακουζηνὸς Ἰωάννης καὶ σοὶ μὲν οἰκείως διάκειται πάνυ καὶ φιλικῶς, ἐμοὶ δὲ συνδέδεται δεσμοῖς φιλίας ἀῤῥήκτοις, ἐκ βρεφικῆς ἡλικίας ἄχρι καὶ δεῦρο συνηυξημένης ἡμῖν καὶ εἰς βάθος προκοψάσης τοσοῦτον, ὡς δοκεῖν τὴν μὲν ἐμὴν ψυχὴν τὸ ἐκείνου σῶμα κινεῖν, τὴν δ' ἐκείνου ψυχὴν ἐν ἐμοὶ κινεῖσθαι καὶ ταῦτα καὶ λέγειν καὶ πράττειν ἅπερ ἂν ἐγὼ βούλωμαι, καὶ τρόπον τινὰ τὰς ἀμφοτέρων ψυχὰς συντακείσας εἰς μίαν ἀμφότερα τὰ σώματα κινεῖν· ἐπεὶ τοίνυν συμφυῶς οὕτως ἔχομεν πρὸς ἀλλήλους, οὐκ ἀνεκτὸν ἡγοῦμαι μόνος τι βουλεύσασθαι περὶ ἐμαυτοῦ, κἂν ἐν ἐσχάτοις κινδύνοις συμβαίνῃ περιπεσεῖν. ἀλλ' ἐπεὶ σὺ πρὸς Θρᾴκην ἀπέρχῃ τῆς ἐκείνου διάδοχος ἐσόμενος ἀρχῆς, γράμματα πρὸς αὐ 1.20 τὸν λαβὼν τῆς ἐμῆς χειρὸς, ὡς ἂν πιστεύσῃ πρὸς λόγους σοι συνελθεῖν, ἄλλως γὰρ οὐ θαῤῥήσειεν ἂν, ταῦτ' ἐπίδος αὐτῷ· καὶ συνελθόντων ὑμῶν εἰς ἓν καὶ βουλευσαμένων περὶ τῶν προκειμένων, ἅπερ ἂν ὑμῖν δόξῃ λυσιτελῆ καὶ ὠφέλιμα, ταῦτ' ἔσται συνδοκοῦντα κἀμοί. πέπεισμαι γὰρ ἀκριβῶς, ὡς, εἰ μὴ θεὸς οἷς οἶδε τρόποις τὴν ὑμῶν σφήλειε γνῶσιν, οὐκ ἂν ἁμάρτοι τοῦ καλοῦ καὶ λυσιτελοῦντος καὶ ὠφελίμου, καὶ φρονήσεως ὀξείας ἕνεκα καὶ πείρας πραγμάτων πολιτικῶν καὶ τῆς περὶ ἐμὲ φιλίας ἄκρας καὶ συναφείας.» τούτων οὕτω ῥηθέντων, τὰ γράμματα λαβὼν ἐκ βασιλέως ὁ Συργιάννης ἐχώρει πρὸς Θρᾴκην· ἔνθα δὴ τῷ μεγάλῳ συγγενόμενος δομεστίκῳ, καὶ τά τε συμβάντα γνωρίσας αὐτῷ, καὶ τὰ τοῦ βασιλέως γράμματα ἐγχειρίσας, ἐβουλεύοντο περὶ τῶν παρόντων, καὶ δύο καὶ τρισὶν ἐφεξῆς ἡμέραις. καὶ ποικίλης καὶ πολυειδοῦς τῆς βουλῆς γενομένης, ἐπεὶ περὶ τῶν μεγίστων ἦν ὁ ἀγών· καὶ πολλῶν ῥηθέντων παρ' ἀμφοτέρων, ἐπεὶ καὶ φρονήσεως ἕνεκα καὶ πείρας στρατηγικῆς τοῖς μάλιστα πρώτοις τῶν Ῥωμαίων συνημιλλῶντο· τέλος ὁ μέγας δομέστικος εἶπε τοιάδε· γʹ. «Πολλῶν ἂν ἠλλαξάμην πραγμάτων, ὦ βέλτιστε φίλων, ἢ μᾶλλον καὶ αὐτῆς τῆς ζωῆς οὐκ ὀλίγου μέρους τινὸς, μὴ τὴν βουλὴν ἡμῖν περὶ πραγμάτων προκεῖσθαι τοιούτων, ὥστ' ἀμφοτέρωθεν ἔχειν τὸ ἐπικίνδυνον οὐκ ὀλίγον, ὅπως ἂν ἀποβαίη. ἐπὶ μὲν γὰρ τῶν ἄλλων πραγμάτων βουλευομένοις ἐστὶ συνάγειν ἐκ λογισμῶν, ὡς, ὡδὶ μὲν ἀπαντησάντων, σχήσει κα 1.21 λῶς, μὴ οὕτω δὲ, τοὐναντίον ἅπαν ἂν ἀποβαίη· ἐφ' οὗ δὲ νῦν βουλευόμεθα, εἰ μὲν νικήσει τὰ χείρω, τῆς ζωῆς ἐστιν ἐκπεσεῖν· εἰ δὲ τὰ δοκοῦντα βελτίω γένηται κρείττω, κακῶν ἐσμὸν προσδοκᾷν ἀνάγκη. τοῦ βασιλέως γὰρ ἡμῶν τοιαῦτα βουλευομένου περὶ τοῦ ἐγγόνου καὶ βασιλέως, εἰ μὲν εἰς πέρας ἔλθῃ τὰ μελετώμενα, οὐδεμίαν ὑπερβολὴν ἐλλείψει κακῶν. ἄνθρωπον γὰρ πολλῶν ἀντάξιον ἄλλων, φρονήσει μὲν τοῖς πρώτοις τῶν πρωτείων ἀμφισβητοῦντα, ἀνδρίᾳ δὲ ψυχῆς πολλῷ τῷ μέσῳ τοὺς ἄλλους ὑπερνικῶντα, ἐλευθερίᾳ δὲ γνώμης καὶ φύσεως ἐπιτηδειότητι τῷ τοσούτῳ μεγέθει προσήκοντα τῆς ἀρχῆς, φιλίας δὲ εἰδότα καὶ τηροῦντα θεσμοὺς, ὅλως δὲ κοινὸν ἄγαλμα τῆς φύσεως ὄντα, οὕτως ἐρήμην ἐπὶ τοῖς μεγίστοις ἁλῶναι συμβαίνει, καὶ ἢ ζῆν παντὸς θανάτου βαρυτέραν ζωὴν, ὁ χθὲς καὶ πρώην ὡς βασιλεὺς καὶ προσκυνούμενος καὶ τιμώμενος, σήμερον καταφρονούμενος καὶ