{THE REIGN OF THEOPHILOS.}

In the six thousand three hundred and twenty-sixth year from the creation of the world, and the 820th of the divine incarnation, Theophilos reigned for 12 years, the new Balthasar and transgressor and God-hated one, and an insulter and destroyer and defiler of the holy icons. And his mother 790 Euphrosyne, having sent to all the themes, brought fair-faced maidens to marry her son Theophilos. Having brought all these into the palace to the so-called Triclinium of the Pearl, she gave Theophilos a golden apple, saying, "To whomever you are pleased with, give this to her." And there was among them a certain maiden of noble birth, named Eikasia, very beautiful indeed; whom Theophilos, seeing and greatly admiring her beauty, said that "through a woman flowed evils." But she, with some modesty, replied, "But also through a woman spring forth better things." But he, struck in his heart by the word, left her, and gave the apple to Theodora, who was from Paphlagonia. He crowns Theodora in the oratory of St. Stephen, being crowned himself together with her by Patriarch Antony with both the crown of marriage and the crown of the kingdom, on the holy day of Pentecost. And from there he proceeded to the great church, honoring with many gifts the patriarch along with the clergy and the senate. But Eikasia, having failed to obtain the kingdom, established a monastery, into which she was also tonsured, practicing asceticism and philosophy, living for God alone she continued until the end of her life. Who also left behind very many of her writings, the "Lord, the woman who had fallen into many sins" and for Great Saturday the tetraodion "Foolish old man" and certain others. And the emperor's mother Euphrosyne, voluntarily departing the palace, lived in quiet retirement in her monastery, which was named Gastria. 791 2. Theophilos held a hippodrome race, and he ordered Leon Chamaidrakon, his protovestiarios, to bring the chandelier that was cut by a sword during the slaughter of Leo the Armenian. And when the hippodrome race was finished, he summoned the whole senate into the so-called Kathisma, and bringing out the chandelier and showing it to them, he said, "He who enters the temple of the Lord and murders the Lord's anointed, of what is he worthy?" And the senate, answering, said, "He is worthy of death, O master." And immediately he commanded the prefect to seize those who with his father Michael had slain Leo and to cut off their heads at the Sphendone, though they put forth many arguments and said that the judgment was unjust; "For if we had not fought alongside your father, O emperor, you would not have ruled." And indeed thus in the sight of all their heads were cut off, on the pretext that they had dared to commit the murder in the temple of the Lord, but in truth because they had killed his fellow heretic and one of like mind in impiety. For the sinner held to that one's God-hated heresy, and he abstained from piety, pulling down some of the icons and digging up others, and exiling and torturing the monks for their piety. 3. In his time the Saracens also came with a great force against the fatherland and city of this sinner and tyrant 792, and finding it strongly fortified and very well secured and guarded by fifty generals with their chosen men and their armies, and this, after fifteen days in the month of August, they sacked and, having taken it by storm, they took captive and killed an innumerable people. But indeed also multitudes of their ships went forth and laid waste the Cyclades islands and took Crete and Sicily. And there was great cold, and a most savage and severe winter, and a strong famine, and droughts and distempers and irregularities of the air, and terrible and successive earthquakes, exposing the immeasurable wickedness and evil-doing of the ruler. For to such godlessness and madness did the godless one run aground, that having succeeded to and renewed the grievous and most abominable heresy of the one named from dung and of those named from beasts, so that he appeared no less than those

{ΒΑΣΙΛΕΙΑ ΘΕΟΦΙΛΟΥ.}

Τῷ ἐνιαυτῷ ἀπὸ τοῦ κόσμου ἑξάκις χιλιοστῷ τριακοσιοστῷ εἰκο στῷ ἕκτῳ, τῆς δὲ θείας σαρκώσεως ωκʹ, ἐβασίλευσεν Θεόφιλος ἔτη ιβʹ, ὁ νέος Βαλτάσαρ καὶ παραβάτης καὶ θεομισὴς καὶ τῶν ἁγίων εἰκόνων ὑβριστὴς καὶ καθαιρέτης καὶ βέβηλος. ἡ δὲ μήτηρ 790 αὐτοῦ Εὐφροσύνη ἀποστείλασα ἐν πᾶσι τοῖς θέμασιν ἤγαγε κόρας εὐπροσώπους πρὸς τὸ νυμφοστολῆσαι Θεόφιλον τὸν υἱὸν αὐτῆς. ἀγαγοῦσα δὲ πάσας ταύτας ἐν τῷ παλατίῳ εἰς τὸ λεγόμενον Μαρ γαρίτου τρικλίνιον δέδωκε τῷ Θεοφίλῳ χρυσοῦν μῆλον, εἰποῦσα "εἰς ἣν ἀρεσθῇς, ἐπίδος τοῦτο αὐτῇ." ἦν δέ τις ἐξ εὐγενῶν ἐν αὐταῖς κόρη, ὀνόματι Εἰκασία, ὡραιοτάτη πάνυ· ἣν ἰδὼν Θεό φιλος καὶ ὑπεραγασθεὶς αὐτὴν τοῦ κάλλους ἔφη ὡς ἄρα διὰ γυ ναικὸς ἐρρύη τὰ φαῦλα. ἡ δὲ μετ' αἰδοῦς πως ἀντέφησεν "ἀλλὰ καὶ διὰ γυναικὸς πηγάζει τὰ κρείττονα." ὁ δὲ τῷ λόγῳ τὴν καρ δίαν πληγεὶς ταύτην μὲν εἴασεν, Θεοδώρᾳ δὲ τὸ μῆλον ἐπέδωκεν, οὔσῃ ἐκ Παφλαγόνων. στέφει Θεοδώραν ἐν τῷ εὐκτηρίῳ τοῦ ἁγίου Στεφάνου, στεφθεὶς καὶ αὐτὸς ἅμα αὐτῇ ὑπὸ Ἀντωνίου πατριάρχου καὶ τῷ τοῦ γάμου καὶ τῷ τῆς βασιλείας στέφει, τῇ ἁγίᾳ πεντηκοστῇ. κἀκεῖθεν προῆλθεν ἐν τῇ μεγάλῃ ἐκκλησίᾳ, φιλοτιμησάμενος πολλοῖς τὸν πατριάρχην ἅμα τῷ κλήρῳ καὶ τῆς συγκλήτου. ἡ δὲ Εἰκασία τῆς βασιλείας ἀποτυχοῦσα μονὴν κατε σκεύασεν, εἰς ἣν καὶ ἀποκειραμένη, ἀσκοῦσα καὶ φιλοσοφοῦσα, τῷ θεῷ μόνῳ ζῶσα διετέλεσε μέχρι τέλους ζωῆς αὐτῆς. ἣ καὶ συγγράμματα αὐτῆς πλεῖστα καταλέλοιπεν, τὸ "κύριε, ἡ ἐν πολλαῖς ἁμαρτίαις" καὶ τοῦ μεγάλου σαββάτου τὸ τετραῴδιον "ἄφρων γηραλέε" καὶ ἄλλα τινά. ἡ δὲ τοῦ βασιλέως μήτηρ Εὐφροσύνη ἑκουσίως κατελθοῦσα τοῦ παλατίου ἐν τῇ μονῇ αὐτῆς, ᾗ ἐπώνυμον τὰ Γάστρια, ἡσύχασεν. 791 2. Ἐποίησε δὲ ἱππικὸν Θεόφιλος, καὶ προσέταξε τῷ Χα μαιδράκοντι Λέοντι τῷ πρωτοβεστιαρίῳ αὐτοῦ ἀγαγεῖν τὸ πολυ κάνδηλον τὸ ἐν τῇ σφαγῇ τοῦ Ἀρμενίου Λέοντος ξίφει διακοπέν. τοῦ ἱππικοῦ δὲ τελεσθέντος προσεκαλέσατο πᾶσαν τὴν σύγκλητον ἐν τῷ λεγομένῳ Καθίσματι, καὶ τὸ πολυκάνδηλον ἐξαγαγὼν καὶ ὑποδείξας αὐτοῖς ἔφη "ὁ εἰς ναὸν κυρίου εἰσερχόμενος καὶ χριστὸν κυρίου φονεύων τίνος ἐστὶν ἄξιος;" ἡ δὲ σύγκλητος ἀποκριθεῖσα ἔφη "ἄξιος θανάτου ἐστίν, ὦ δέσποτα." καὶ εὐθὺς ἐκέλευσε τοὺς σὺν τῷ πατρὶ αὐτοῦ Μιχαὴλ τὸν Λέοντα ἀνελόντας τὸν ὕπαρχον κατασχεῖν καὶ τὰς κεφαλὰς αὐτῶν ἐν τῇ σφενδόνῃ ἀπο τεμεῖν, πολλὰ προβαλλομένους καὶ λέγοντας ἄδικον εἶναι τὴν κρί σιν· καὶ γὰρ εἰ μὴ τῷ πατρί σου συνηγωνισάμεθα, ὦ βασιλεῦ, οὐκ ἂν αὐτὸς ἦρξας. καὶ δὴ οὕτως ἐπ' ὄψεσι πάντων τὰς κεφα λὰς ἀπετμήθησαν, προσχήματι μὲν ὡς εἰς ναὸν κυρίου τετολμη κότων ποιήσασθαι τὴν ἀναίρεσιν, τῇ ἀληθείᾳ δὲ ὡς τὸν συναιρε σιώτην αὐτοῦ καὶ ὁμόφρονα εἰς ἀσέβειαν ἀποκτείναντες. εἴχετο γὰρ ὁ ἀλιτήριος τῆς ἐκείνου θεοστυγοῦς αἱρέσεως, καὶ τῆς εὐσε βείας ἀπείχετο, τῶν δὲ εἰκόνων τὰς μὲν κατασπῶν τὰς δὲ ἀνο ρύττων, καὶ τοὺς ἐπ' εὐλαβείᾳ μοναχοὺς ἐξορίζων καὶ αἰκιζόμενος. 3. Ἐφ' οὗ καὶ πρὸς τὴν πατρίδα καὶ πόλιν αὐτοῦ τοῦ ἀλιτηρίου καὶ τυράννου μετὰ πολλῆς δυνάμεως οἱ Σαρακηνοὶ πα 792 ραγενόμενοι, καρτερῶς ὠχυρωμένην εὑρόντες καὶ κατησφαλισμένην πάνυ καὶ ὑπὸ στρατηγῶν πεντήκοντα φρουρουμένην μετὰ τῶν λο γάδων καὶ τῶν στρατευμάτων αὐτῶν, καὶ ταύτην δι' ἡμερῶν ιεʹ Αὐγούστῳ μηνὶ ἐκπορθήσαντες καὶ δορυάλωτον εἰληφότες ᾐχμα λώτευσαν καὶ ἀπέκτειναν λαὸν ἄπειρον. ἀλλὰ μὴν καὶ πλήθη πλοίων αὐτῶν ἐξελθόντα τὰς Κυκλάδας νήσους ἠρήμωσαν καὶ τὴν Κρήτην καὶ τὴν Σικελίαν παρέλαβον. καὶ ψῦχος πολὺ γέγονε, καὶ χειμὼν ἀγριώτατος καὶ δριμύτατος, καὶ λιμὸς ἰσχυρός, καὶ ἀέρος αὐχμοὶ καὶ δυσκρασίαι καὶ ἀνωμαλίαι, καὶ σεισμοὶ φοβεροὶ καὶ ἐπάλληλοι, τὴν ἄμετρον ἀπελέγχουσαι τοῦ κρατοῦντος μοχθη ρίαν καὶ κακουργίαν. εἰς τοσαύτην γὰρ ἀφιλοθεΐαν καὶ ἀπόνοιαν ἐξώκειλεν ὁ ἄθεος, ὡς καὶ τὴν τοῦ κοπρωνύμου καὶ τῶν θηριω νύμων χαλεπὴν καὶ μυσαρωτάτην αἵρεσιν διαδεξάμενος καὶ ἀνα καινίσας, ὡς μηδὲν ἧττον ὀφθῆναι τῆς ἐκείνων