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they suspected. But it did not happen so at all.] And from there their separation from the wall instilled no small cowardice in the souls of all and in the very middle of the night many resorted to flight and secretly went away homeward, having left no small part of the walls deserted. This seemed a greater cause, as far as human reasoning goes, of the evil that occurred after daybreak. [For if, with everyone remaining on the wall, becoming one soul and choosing death for the defense of the fatherland, the city would have with difficulty been preserved by itself, how, when such a thing had happened, could it not have been captured with ease?] Thus, then, with the Latins having acted and having manned one of the triremes for a sea-battle on account of the sudden expectation of the ships, those who had brought us news about these things were also proven true. For at the break of dawn the ships hastened to put in at the harbor with all oars to accomplish what had been planned. And when they got near, with those in them not knowing of the plot against them, the trireme also, as fast as it could, immediately moves against them and compelled them to such an extent and turned them to flight, that they ran ashore on the mainland and that plan of the Turks was shown to be in vain. [But from this we have been kept safe; would that it were also so from the evil during the day].

11 Therefore, when the fourth day had arrived and the sun had not yet given its light clearly to men, we see, according to the report, the entire multitude approaching the wall, some carrying ladders, others planks, others shields woven from branches, all simply bringing siege-engines and being fenced in, as is the custom, and as if driven to a Bacchic frenzy by the desire for our destruction and urging one another on to our slaughter. Immediately we too, as was possible, rose up and became wholly engaged in fighting [and in dying. And this the men; but women, even those of our prominent men, took part in the war manfully, bringing stones with all their soul for defense against the attackers. And many, forgetting that they were women, displayed the deeds of men, both standing by them and eagerly striving to fight staunchly beside them. So the army was set in motion and they approached the walls so closely, as to be able to throw stones from below up at us with their hands. Then the generals of such men devised a plan that gave them sufficient respite, but for us continuous toil and unceasing war. For first they thought it necessary to fight against the entire circuit of the city, even if the labor was great for them to traverse so large a city and to rouse their own men to fight bravely, if ever they should slacken; then they divided the whole multitude into portions, so that they could relieve one another from the toil by relieving each other in succession. And then indeed they ordered them to encompass the entire eastern part and the western part from the acropolis above all the way to the sea itself. But they observed the eastern part to be more easily captured, as it happened to be weaker in many sections; wherefore they deployed the greater and more warlike part there to fight. And Murad, with the foot-soldiers around him, they also having been divided similarly to the others, from the so-called Trigonion as far as the monastery of Chortaites happens to be, he himself did not cease from fighting; for he knew that the city could be taken more easily from there, having seen both the weakness of the wall, and that the city boasted its security from that part in a single wall.]

12 So the war began at daybreak, as we had supposed. And they, having been divided and relieving one another, being a multitude, others who were fresh relieved the weary and provided a truce for one another. And some used archery so accurately that not one of us dared even to peer over the wall; while others, because of the lack of men, with boldness of soul, advancing under the very

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ὑπετόπασαν. Ἀλλ' ἥκιστα γέγονεν οὕτω.] Κἀντεῦθεν ἡ ἐκείνων ἀπὸ τοῦ τείχους διάστασις δειλίαν οὐ τὴν τυχοῦσαν ταῖς ἁπάντων ἐνῆκε ψυχαῖς καὶ κατὰ τὸ μέσον αὐτὸ τῆς νυκτὸς φυγῇ πολλοὶ χρησάμενοι λεληθότως ἀπῄεσαν οἴκαδε, μέρος τῶν τειχῶν οὐκ ὀλίγον ἔρημον καταλελοιπότες. Τοῦτο μείζων ἔδοξεν, ὅσον κατ' ἀνθρώπινον λογισμόν, αἰτία τοῦ μεθ' ἡμέραν κακοῦ. [Καὶ γὰρ εἰ μενόντων ἁπάντων ἐπὶ τοῦ τείχους, μία ψυχὴ γενομένων καὶ θάνατον ἑλομένων ὑπὲρ φυλακῆς τῆς πατρίδος, μόλις ἂν ἡ πόλις ἐξ αὑτῆς διατετήρητο, πῶς ἂν τοιοῦδε συμβεβηκότος οὐκ εἶχε μετ' εὐκολίας ἁλῶναι;] Οὕτως οὖν τῶν Λατίνων διαπραξαμένων καὶ τῶν τριηρῶν μίαν πρὸς ναυμαχίαν πεπληρωκότων διὰ τὴν τῶν πλοίων αἰφνίδιον προσδοκίαν, ἀληθεῖς διεδείκνυντο καὶ οἱ περὶ τούτων ἡμῖν ἠγγελκότες. Ὄρθρου γὰρ ἐπιστάντος τὰ πλοῖα πρὸς τὸν λιμένα πάσαις κώπαις καταίρειν ἐπείγονται τὰ βεβουλευμένα διαπερᾶναι. Ὡς δὲ πλησίον γένοιντο, τὴν κατ' αὐτῶν συσκευὴν τῶν ἐν αὐτοῖς οὐκ εἰδότων καὶ ἡ τριήρης, ὡς εἶχε τάχους, αὐτίκα χωρεῖ κατ' αὐτῶν καὶ εἰς τοσοῦτον αὐτὰ κατηνάγκασεν καὶ εἰς φυγὴν ἔτρεψεν, ὡς ἀποκεῖλαι κατὰ τὴν ἤπειρον καὶ τὴν τῶν Τούρκων ἐκείνην ἐπίνοιαν ἀποδεδεῖχθαι ματαίαν. [̓Αλλὰ τούτου μὲν ἀνώτεροι τετηρήμεθα· εἴθε δὲ καὶ τοῦ κατὰ τὴν ἡμέραν κακοῦ].

11 Τῆς τετάρτης τοιγαροῦν ἐπιστάσης ἡμέρας καὶ τοῦ ἡλίου καθαρῶς τοῖς ἀνθρώποις μήπω τὸ φῶς παρασχόντος, ὁρῶμεν κατὰ τὴν ἀγγελίαν καὶ τὸ πλῆθος ἅπαν προσχωροῦντας τῷ τείχει, τοὺς μὲν κλίμακας ἐπιφερομένους, τοὺς δὲ σανίδας, ἑτέρους πεπλεγμένας ἀσπίδας ἐκ πτόρθων, πάντας ἁπλῶς κομίζοντας ἑλεπόλεις καὶ πεφραγμένους, ὡς ἔθος καὶ τῇ τῆς ἡμετέρας ἀπωλείας ἐπιθυμίᾳ οἷον βεβακχευμένους καὶ ἀλλήλους ἐπὶ τῇ ἡμετέρᾳ σφαγῇ παροτρύνοντας. Αὐτίκα δὲ καὶ ἡμεῖς, ὡς ἐφικτόν, διανέστημεν καὶ ὅλοι τοῦ πολεμεῖν γεγενήμεθα [καὶ τεθνάναι. Καὶ τοῦτο μὲν ἄνδρες· γυναῖκες δὲ καὶ αὐτῶν τῶν ἐπιφανῶν ἡμῖν ἀνδρικῶς συνεφήπτοντο τοῦ πολέμου, λίθους ὅλῃ ψυχῇ πρὸς ἄμυναν τῶν ἐπιόντων κομίζουσαι. Πολλαὶ δὲ καὶ ὅτι γυναῖκες ἦσαν ἐπιλαθόμεναι, τὰ τῶν ἀνδρῶν ἐπεδείκνυντο, συμπαριστάμεναί τε τούτοις καὶ στερρῶς κατ' αὐτοὺς ἀγωνίζεσθαι προθυμούμεναι. Κεκίνητο οὖν ἡ στρατιὰ καὶ τοσοῦτο τοῖς τείχεσι προσεπέλασαν, ὡς δύνασθαι κἀκείνους λίθους πέμπειν κάτωθεν ἐφ' ἡμᾶς ταῖν χεροῖν. Εἶτ' ἐπίνοιαν οἱ τοιούτων ἐξεῦρον στρατηγοὶ ἐκείνοις μὲν ἀνακωχὴν ἔχουσαν ἱκανήν, ἡμῖν δὲ πόνον διηνεκῆ καὶ πόλεμον ἀδιάπαυστον. Πρῶτον μὲν γὰρ δεῖν ᾠήθησαν πρὸς τὸν τῆς πόλεως ἅπαντα κύκλον διαγωνίζεσθαι, εἰ καὶ πολὺς ἦν αὐτοῖς ὁ πόνος τοσαύτην διέρχεσθαι πόλιν καὶ τοὺς σφῶν πρὸς τὸ πολεμεῖν γενναίως διανιστᾶν, εἴ ποτ' ὀκλάσειαν· ἔπειτα δὲ διέκριναν εἰς μοίρας ἅπαν τὸ πλῆθος, ὥστ' ἔχειν ἀλλήλους διαναπαύειν τοῦ κόπου τῇ δι' ἀλλήλων διαδοχῇ. Καὶ τότε δὴ προσέταξαν τὸ κατ' ἀνατολὰς ἅπαν μέρος καὶ τὸ πρὸς δύσιν περιλαβεῖν ἀπὸ τῆς ἀκροπόλεως ἄνωθεν ἄχρις αὐτῆς τῆς θαλάττης. Εὐαλωτότερον δὲ τὸ κατ' ἀνατολὰς ἐθεάσαντο μέρος, οἷα δὴ σαθρότερον ἐν πολλοῖς τυγχάνον τοῖς μέρεσιν· ὅθεν τὸ πλέον καὶ μαχιμώτερον αὐτόθι διατετάχασι πολεμεῖν. Ὁ Μουράτης δὲ τοῖς ἀμφ' αὐτὸν ἅμα πεζοῖς, διακριθεῖσι καὶ αὐτοῖς παραπλησίως τοῖς ἄλλοις, ἀπὸ τοῦ καλουμένου Τριγωνίου μέχρις οὗ ἡ μονὴ τυγχάνει τοῦ Χορταΐτου, τοῦ πολεμεῖν οὔκουν οὐκ ἔληγεν οὐδ' αὐτός· ἔγνω γὰρ εὐχερέστερον ἐκεῖθεν ληφθῆναι τὴν πόλιν, τήν τε σαθρότητα τοῦ τείχους ἰδών, καὶ ὡς ἑνὶ τείχει τὴν ἀσφάλειαν ἡ πόλις ἐξ ἐκείνου τοῦ μέρους αὐχεῖ.]

12 Ἔλαβεν οὖν ἀρχὴν ὁ πόλεμος ἀρξαμένης ἡμέρας, ὡς διειλήφειμεν. Κἀκεῖνοι διακριθέντες καὶ ἀλλήλους διαδεχόμενοι, πλῆθος ὄντες, τοὺς κεκμηκότας ἀκμῆτες ἕτεροι διεδέχοντο καὶ παρεῖχον ἀλλήλοις ἐκεχειρίαν. Καὶ οἱ μὲν ἐχρῶντο τῇ τοξικῇ τοσοῦτον εὐστόχως, ὡς μηδ' ὁντινοῦν ἡμῶν προκῦψαι γοῦν τοῦ τείχους θαρρεῖν· οἱ δὲ τῇ τῶν ἀνθρώπων ἐρημίᾳ τόλμῃ ψυχῆς ὑπ' αὐτοῖς χωροῦντες τοῖς