History
And what i have accurately ascertained from those who saw it, these things i will also commit to writing. 2. just now in the month of november, of the
He commanded that the triremes and the other transport ships should all be brought to anchor in a good harbor, and that they should control the sea, a
War. therefore, having gone around and seen that it was by nature difficult to enter and hard to approach for on the one side it had the sea as a saf
They would be frustrated. and having gone out of the camp, and having overrun a part of the country, when he learned from those who had been taken ali
It was easy to attack by assault, being raised to the greatest possible height, and girded with two trenches dug to a corresponding depth), and the de
Having divided his phalanx into three parts by night, he went against the scythians, and falling upon them suddenly, in a brief moment of time he wrou
Meet them, when i give the signal with the trumpets. such was the exhortation that the general delivered and the army shouted 22 and applauded, and w
6. but nikephoros phokas, the colleague of the aforementioned leo (for it is necessary, having summarized the account, to proceed with the history in
The general, having seen this, spurred his horse, quickened his pace, rode in and restrained the soldiers' onslaught, persuading them not to kill the
Having drawn up an irresistible battle-line, went through the land of the hagarenes. to them, having heard of the attack of nikephoros, it did not see
Was dignified by his rank), was hostilely disposed towards nicephorus. 11. he decided, therefore, to attempt a revolution at once but not having at h
, to proclaim him supreme commander, and to entrust the forces of asia to him, so that he might defend and check the assault of the foreigners. for th
He said, if you are persuaded to take up the rule of the east, i shall quickly declare you emperor, and restore you to the imperial thrones. speak wel
For he was gently nursing his little body), then, recovering again, he said, “speak, most brave one, what need is there to consider this?” but he said
I have assumed the imperial office, but compelled by the necessity of you, the army, and you yourselves bear witness for me that i was both shunning s
Before the report of his proclamation could fly abroad, to seize in advance the straits and passages of the sea. for thus he thought that matters woul
Numbering over three thousand, attacked the house of joseph and his collaborators along with the people. and having subjected these to plunder and pil
Especially the monks), they did not allow the man to persist in what he had decided, but urged him both to embrace marriage and not to shun meat-eatin
Makes it flood in a single hour) emboldened by these things, the barbarians mocked the emperor and insolently hurled insults at him, and making sorti
Having fallen upon it, accomplishing nothing noble or vigorous. and he considered the matter an outright disgrace and insult, and an indelible reproac
Having come to the region around tarsus, there he encamped and having pitched a palisade round about, he ordered the crops and the meadows, luxuriant
Having recovered the standards, which, crafted from gold and stones, the tarsians had captured in various battles while routing the roman force, and h
Of the spectacle, turned to flight and ran back to their own houses. and from the pushing and disorderly rush, no little slaughter occurred, with very
To blow favorably upon them, but blowing against them strongly and fiercely, it has sunk their affairs. but the account will now clearly reveal these
To those acting against the divine ordinance, if somehow at least in this way people, being afraid, would abstain from evil deeds, and would cling to
He had taken a fortress, and having crossed mount lebanon transversely, he turned his attention to tripoli, which he saw was fortified and exceptional
Being obliged to drive them away, and to guard the flocks from harm, they, in addition to not driving them away, themselves cut them down and tear the
Having come, and having been befriended by the ruler of the tauroi, and having corrupted him with gifts and bewitched him with persuasive words (for t
Reconciliation and friendship might be secured. the mysians gladly received the embassy, and putting daughters of the royal blood 80 on wagons (for it
They might do. but as they were already considering rushing to their defense, and to stoutly resist the enemy in close combat, as dawn was brightly br
Boasting to all about his brave deeds in wars. 6. having approached the emperor with these words and, 85 as was likely, having bewitched him (for he s
Having lowered from above, one by one they first pulled up all the conspirators, and then john himself. having come up, therefore, beyond all human su
The vengeance for these things, and to those who were slipping he seemed relentless and burdensome, and oppressive to those wishing to lead an indiffe
At the end of the month of december, during the thirteenth indiction of the six thousand four hundred and seventy-eighth year, a throng of select men,
Having captured him, confines him to amaseia. having therefore from this secured sufficient safety for himself and for his affairs, and having purged
To make amends for what nikephoros had improperly introduced. for nikephoros, whether wishing to correct divine matters that were being disturbed by s
And having found him not very accurately versed in secular education, but most diligently trained in divine and our own, he anoints him patriarch of a
The bosporus, but to pass by moesia, which belongs to the romans, and has from of old been a part of macedonia. for it is said that the moesians, bein
To make replies. for we trust in christ, the immortal god, that if you do not depart from this land, you will be driven from it by us even against you
A disgrace by the raids of the scythians to send out bilingual men dressed in scythian attire into the homesteads and customs of the enemy, so that t
The romans on the one hand shouted for joy, and were strengthened for valor but the scythians, growing cowardly at the new and strange nature of the
2. the emperor, when he learned of such a revolt, was disturbed, as was likely, and having brought up bishop stephen from abydos with wingless speed,
He saw that murders along with the ensuing conspirators were proceeding harshly and inhumanely, he decided to no longer delay or be slothful, so that
Considering into what fortunes the unholy and blood-guilty john has enclosed my family, having mercilessly slain the emperor and my uncle, who was his
Eye, and to learn that these things were red, just as they had been from of old. phocas, considering this prodigy a second evil omen, and seeing also
Immediately, lest it be some ill-omened thing, and destruction befall the pursuing mysians but learning they were fleeing at full speed, he both purs
The russian minds were lifted up in audacity and boldness. therefore, the emperor, not enduring their overweening arrogance and their blatant insolenc
Being given out, and going under the earth by the inscrutable wisdom of the creator and again from the 130 celtic mountains gushing up, and winding t
Should set a phalanx against us, things will not end well for us, but in dreadful perplexity and helplessness. therefore, having strengthened your spi
Is called drista) lingering with his whole force. but in this way kalokyres escaped, and night coming on stopped the romans from battle. and just on t
And they killed up to one hundred and fifty vigorous men. but the emperor, learning of such an event, quickly mounted his horse and urged his follower
But the rest of the multitude he bound in fetters and shut up in prisons. he himself, having gathered the entire host of the tauro-scythians, numberin
1. and just as day was dawning, the emperor fortified the camp with a strong palisade in this manner. a certain low hill of dorystolon rises at a dist
He was courting them with gifts and toasts, encouraging them to proceed vigorously to the wars. 3. while these matters were in suspense, and the battl
He flees to a divine and great sanctuary, seen as a pitiful supplicant instead of a haughty and boastful tyrant. whom the men of the drungarius dragge
Having drowned. for it is said that, being possessed by greek 150 orgies, they perform sacrifices and libations for the dead in the greek manner, havi
On the next day (it was the sixth day of the week, and the twenty-fourth day of the month of july), when the sun was setting, the tauro-scythians, hav
Was being concluded. 10. but the romans, following the divine man who went before, 155 engage with the enemy, and a fierce battle having commenced, th
With purity. at any rate, having conferred a few things about a truce with the emperor, seated beside the rowing-bench of the skiff, he departed. but
Was crossed over. this is the greatest of the rivers cutting through asia, 161 and one of those that flow from eden, as we have learned from the divin
The emperor, as one who abused the power of his leadership for certain powerful men, and did not direct the affairs of the church as was established b
Having assembled forces, and having meticulously armed them, departing from the reigning city, he advanced through palestine, a prosperous land, flowi
The mainland is enclosed by strongholds, stretching upon a certain steep hill on the other side it is surrounded by the sea, putting forth a well-hav
Before until fire-bearing ships were secretly sent out from byzantium by those in power. which bardas parsakoutenos the magistros was leading, and ha
I would have been destroyed, if some divine providence had not led me out of that very danger, which caused me to ride out with speed, before the ravi
Furthermore, the star rising in the west at the setting of the morning star, which, making its risings in the evening, kept no fixed position at one c
Of the city, but already becoming feeble, and suffering from a deep and intractable panting. and having just come to the royal hearth, he was shown to
having drawn up an irresistible battle-line, went through the land of the Hagarenes. To them, having heard of the attack of Nikephoros, it did not seem tolerable to remain in place, and to set ambushes, and to fight in resistance; but to run out to the forts, and to turn back the raids from the strongholds, skirmishing as was possible. For they were terribly afraid to contend in close combat against a steadfast and strong-willed man. But he, like a thunderbolt, was grazing upon the surrounding country, ravaging the fields, and enslaving villages of ten thousand people. And when he had made the things at his feet the work of fire and sword, he attacks the fortresses, of which the most were taken at the first shout. But as many of these as happened to be strong in their walls and in the multitude of those within, against these he brought up his siege-engines, and waged war without quarter, urging those under him to fight zealously. And everyone obeyed his commands yieldingly. For he was not only persuasive and convincing in words toward courage, but also in deeds 30 themselves, always fighting extraordinarily before the battle-line, and receiving the oncoming danger, and powerfully driving it back. Therefore, having taken and thrown down in a short time over sixty fortresses of the Hagarenes, and having carried off the most plunder possible, and having bound on a most glorious victory, such as no other, from there he took up his force, and sent it to its own lands, having collected untold wealth; but he himself ran to the emperor, to receive the rewards of his labors. 10. But as the general was just in the middle of his journey, a certain rumor met him, announcing the departure from here of the lord Romanos. But he, having been greatly disturbed by the unexpectedness of the rumor, both halted his journey, and remained in place. And it is said that the emperor Romanos ended his life in this way. Since, having taken up the rule, he showed himself to be gentle and moderate and beneficent to his subjects, certain men, having insinuated themselves and won over the man, wicked men and slaves of the belly and of things below the belly, corrupt the virtuous character of the young man, suggesting luxury and intemperate pleasure, and stirring up his appetite for strange desires. From there, during the time of the fasts, which God-inspired men devised for the purification of souls and guidance to better things, these plagues, having taken Romanos with them, go on a hunt for deer, riding in impassable mountains. And setting out from there, they bring back the emperor 31 overcome with sickness, and breathing his last. And some say that from the untimely horseriding a spasm occurred to him in his vital parts. but as the suspicion of the majority holds, that he had drunk hemlock from the women's quarters. But whether in that way, or in this, Romanos departed this life being in the prime of his life, having directed the imperial rule for three years and five months. And when he had passed from among men, the rule of the empire from both the patriarch Polyeuktos and the senatorial council is put in the hands of his sons Basil and Constantine, being mere infants and nursed, together with their mother Theophano; who, though sprung from an obscure family, but in beauty and bloom of body surpassing all the women of that time, was joined to the emperor Romanos. But Nikephoros (for I return again to the thread of the narrative), having heard of the change of the highest office, was of every kind of mind, being disturbed at different times by different thoughts. For the untrustworthiness of affairs and the fickle and unstable nature of fortune did not allow the man to be at ease, especially as he suspected the power of Joseph, who, being a eunuch and having great power at the imperial hearth (for with the [office] of parakoimomenos
δυσεκβίαστον παραταξάμενος, ᾔει διὰ τῆς τῶν Ἀγαρηνῶν γῆς. οἷς τὴν ἔφοδον ἐνωτισθεῖσι τοῦ Νικηφόρου, οὐκ ἀνεκτὸν ἐδόκει κατὰ
χώραν τε μένειν, καὶ λόχους καθίζειν, ἐξ ἀντιστάσεώς τε διαμάχεσθαι· ἐκτρέχειν τε πρὸς τὰ φρούρια, καὶ τὰς ἐπιδρομὰς ἐκ τῶν
ἐρυμάτων ἀποτροπιάζεσθαι, ἀκροβολιζομένους κατὰ τὸ ἐγχωροῦν. δεινῶς γὰρ ἐδεδοίκεισαν κατὰ συστάδην διαγωνίζεσθαι πρὸς ἄνδρα
καρτερικὸν καὶ ἰσχυρογνώμονα. ὁ δὲ σκηπτοῦ δίκην τὴν περίχωρον ἐπεβόσκετο, δῃούμενος μὲν τὰς ἀρούρας, μυριανθρώπους δὲ κώμας
ἀνδραποδιζόμενος. ἐπεὶ δὲ τὰ ἐν ποσὶ πυρὸς καὶ μαχαίρας ἔργον πεποίητο, τοῖς φρουρίοις προσβάλλει, ὧν αὐτοβοεὶ τὰ πλεῖστα
ἑάλω. ὅσα δὲ τούτων ἐρυμνὰ τοῖς τείχεσι καὶ τῷ πλήθει τῶν ἔνδον ἐτύγχανον, τούτοις ἀντεπῆγε τὰς μηχανὰς, καὶ ἀκήρυκτον ἐπέφερε
πόλεμον, ἐκθύμως τοῖς ὑπ' αὐτὸν ἀγωνίζεσθαι προτρεπόμενος. εὐείκτως δὲ τοῖς κελεύσμασι ἐκείνου πᾶς τις ἐπείθετο. ἦν γὰρ οὐ
λόγοις μόνον ἐπαγωγός τε καὶ πιθανὸς πρὸς τὸ εὔψυχον, ἀλλὰ καὶ τοῖς ἔργοις 30 αὐτοῖς, ἐκτόπως ἀεὶ ἀγωνιζόμενος πρὸ τῆς φάλαγγος,
καὶ κίνδυνον τὸν ἐπιόντα ὑποδεχόμενος, καὶ κραταιῶς ἐκκρουόμενος. ᾑρηκὼς οὖν καὶ καταβαλὼν ἐν εὐαριθμήτῳ καιρῷ τῶν Ἀγαρηνῶν
ὑπὲρ τὰ ἑξήκοντα φρούρια, καὶ λείαν ὅτι πλείστην συνεκφορήσας, καὶ νίκην ἐπιφανεστάτην καὶ οἵαν οὐκ ἄλλος ἀναδησάμενος, ἐκεῖθεν
τὴν δύναμιν ἀνελάμβανε, καὶ κατὰ τὰ σφῶν ἔστελλεν ἤθη, ἀμύθητον τὸν πλοῦτον ἀθροίσασαν· αὐτὸς δὲ πρὸς τὸν αὐτοκράτορα ἔθει,
τῶν πόνων τὰ γέρα ληψόμενος. ιʹ. Ἄρτι δὲ μεσοῦντι τὴν ὁδοιπορίαν τῷ στρατηγῷ φήμη τις ὑπηντίαζε, τὴν ἐντεῦθεν ἐκδημίαν τοῦ
ἄνακτος Ῥωμανοῦ διαγγέλλουσα. ὁ δὲ, τῷ ἀπροσδοκήτῳ τῆς φήμης ἐκταραχθεὶς, ἐπέσχε τε τὴν διαπορείαν, καὶ κατὰ χώραν ὑπέμενε.
λέγεται δὲ τοῦτον τὸν τρόπον ἐκπλῆσαι τὸν βίον τὸν αὐτοκράτορα Ῥωμανόν. ἐπειδὴ παρειληφὼς τὴν ἀρχὴν ἐπιεικῆ τε καὶ μέτριον
αὑτὸν καὶ εὐεργετικὸν τῷ ὑπηκόῳ παρείχετο, ὑποδύντες τινὲς καὶ μετελθόντες τὸν ἄνθρωπον, μοχθηροί τε καὶ δοῦλοι γαστρὸς καὶ
τῶν ὑπὸ γαστέρα, διαφθείρουσι τὸν καλοκἀγαθὸν τρόπον τοῦ νέου, τρυφὴν ὑποτιθέντες καὶ ἀκόλαστον ἡδονὴν, διεγείροντές τε πρὸς
ἀλλοκότους ἐπιθυμίας τούτου τὴν ὄρεξιν. ἐντεῦθεν παρὰ τὸν καιρὸν τῶν νηστειῶν, ἃς πρὸς κάθαρσιν ψυχῶν καὶ ποδηγίαν τῶν κρειττόνων
ἐξεῦρον ἄνδρες θεοφορούμενοι, παρειληφότες τὸν Ῥωμανὸν οἱ λοιμοὶ, ἐπὶ θηρείαν ἐλάφων ἴενται, ἐν δυσβάτοις ἐλαύνοντες ὄρεσιν.
ἐκεῖθέν τε ἀναζεύξαντες τὸν αὐτοκράτορα 31συγκομίζουσι περιημεκτέοντα καὶ τὰ ἐπιθανάτια πνέοντα. καί τινες μὲν ἐκ τῆς ἀκαίρου
φασὶν ἱππασίας σπασμὸν ἐγγενέσθαι τούτῳ περὶ τὰ καίρια. ὡς δὲ ἡ τῶν πλειόνων ὑπόνοια ἔχει, κώνειον αὐτὸν πεπωκέναι πρὸς τῆς
γυναικωνίτιδος. εἴτε δὲ ἐκείνως, εἴτε καὶ οὕτως, ἀμείβει τὸν βίον ὁ Ῥωμανὸς τὴν τῆς ἡλικίας ἐλαύνων ἀκμὴν, τρεῖς ἐνιαυτοὺς
πρὸς πέντε μησὶ τὴν αὐτοκράτορα διϊθύνας ἀρχήν. τούτου δὲ ἐξ ἀνθρώπων γεγονότος, τὴν τῆς βασιλείας ἀρχὴν παρά τε τοῦ πατριαρχοῦντος
Πολυεύκτου καὶ τῆς συγκλήτου βουλῆς οἱ ἐκείνου παῖδες Βασίλειος καὶ Κωνσταντῖνος, νήπιοι κομιδῇ τελοῦντες καὶ τιθηνούμενοι,
μετὰ Θεοφανοῦς τῆς μητρὸς ἐγχειρίζονται· ἥτις ἐξ ἀσήμου μὲν γένους φυεῖσα, κάλλει δὲ καὶ σώματος ὥρᾳ πασῶν τῶν τότε γυναικῶν
ὑπερφέρουσα, Ῥωμανῷ συνηρμόσθη τῷ αὐτοκράτορι. ὁ δὲ Νικηφόρος (αὖθις γὰρ πρὸς τὸν εἱρμὸν ἐπάνειμι τῆς διηγήσεως) τὴν μεταβολὴν
τῆς μεγίστης ἀρχῆς διενωτισθεὶς, παντοδαπός τις ἦν, ἄλλοτε ὑπ' ἄλλων λογισμῶν διαταραττόμενος. τὸ γὰρ ἄπιστον τῶν πραγμάτων
καὶ τὸ παλίντροπον τῆς τύχης καὶ ἄστατον οὐκ εἴα τὸν ἄνθρωπον ἀτρεμεῖν, ὑπειδόμενον μάλιστα τὴν τοῦ Ἰωσὴφ δυναστείαν, ὅς γε
ἐκτομίας ὢν καὶ μάλιστα παρὰ τὴν βασιλείαν ἑστίαν δυνάμενος (τῷ τοῦ παρακοιμωμένου γὰρ
