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and set up guards. The empress Eirene, especially, applied herself to these matters, possessing a more masculine character and conducting herself more royally with all.

24 When the Italians wished to come to terms, they sent envoys to the emperor and the city of Pegae. And so the emperor made peace with them, as all the Latins to the south submitted to him, while they still held the parts to the north, those near Constantinople and approaching the city of Nicomedia. The inhabitants of Adrianople sent an embassy to the emperor, that he might dispatch an army to them and free them from the hand of the Italians. He dispatched the *protovestiarios* Ises, having given him an army; John Kamytzes was also with him. They crossed the Hellespont, passed through Macedonia, and arrived at Adrianople. Having entered the city, they remained there. And through these things, there was hope for Emperor John to become master of the surrounding regions as well. But Theodore Komnenos, as the preceding account has shown, having become master of all the nearby regions, except, however, for the Rhodope mountain range, which is also named Achridos, and the cities in it and Melenikon—for these were ruled by Sthlabos, a kinsman of the Emperor Asan and honored as a despot by the Emperor of Constantinople, Erres, whose daughter by a concubine he also took as his wife. This Sthlabos, having found Melenikon to be a strong fortress, was an independent ruler, subject to none of the surrounding lords. For sometimes he allied with the Italians, sometimes with the Bulgarians, and sometimes with Theodore Komnenos. To him was married, after the death of his wife, the daughter of Petraliphas, the brother-in-law of Theodore Komnenos. Since, then, Mosynopolis and Xantheia and Gratianous itself were subject to him, crossing the mountain of Stageira, which most people call Makre, he overran the regions beyond the Hebros, finding everything undefended; and having arrived near Didymoteichon in a short time, he was acclaimed emperor of these places. And arriving near Adrianople and finding the army of Emperor John, and having won over the inhabitants with deceitful words, that he would enrich them greatly and exalt them above the other Romans, he persuaded them to send out the emperor's army and to let him in. He was therefore admitted on oaths that none of them would suffer any harm. So when they went out, the *protostrator* did not see Theodore Komnenos at all—for this had been agreed upon by them—but Kamytzes, upon meeting him, did not dismount his horse nor did he prostrate himself as before an emperor. At this the Komnenos, being greatly angered, almost laid blows upon him. For this reason Kamytzes was honored by the emperor as *megas hetaireiarches*. The Komnenos, therefore, having become master of Adrianople, caused much trouble for the Italians. For he overran all the lands held by them and, reaching as far as Bizye itself, he seized the area outside the city, and he came as far as the gates of Constantinople. At that time Asel de Caye, who was married to the daughter of Emperor Theodore Laskaris, was struck in the neck by a spear from one of Theodore Komnenos' men; and he was healed, but from then on his voice was harsher.

25 And Theodore Komnenos entered into a treaty with the emperor of the Bulgarians, John Asan, taking his daughter Maria for his brother Manuel. Then, breaking this treaty, he marched against the Bulgarians. Passing by Adrianople, therefore, he made his way toward the upper Hebros, seeking to engage in war with the Bulgarians. And it seemed as if the Bulgarians, cowering, would not even withstand the charge of his army. But Asan, taking courage from Theodore's perjury and having received a small allied force from the Scythians, hung the written oath of this man from his standard—and somewhere around the place near the river, which they call Klokotinitza

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ἔστησε καὶ φρουρούς. μάλιστα δὲ περὶ ταῦτα συνέτεινεν ἡ βασιλὶς Εἰρήνη, ἀρρενοπώτερον τὸ ἦθος ἔχουσα καὶ τοῖς πᾶσι βα σιλικώτερον ἐντυγχάνουσα.

24 Εἰς συνθήκας δ' ἐθελήσαντες οἱ Ἰταλοὶ ἐλθεῖν ἀπέλυσαν πρὸς τὸν βασιλέα καὶ τὸ τῶν Πηγῶν ἄστυ. καὶ οὕτω δὴ μετ' αὐτῶν ὁ βασιλεὺς εἰρήνευσε, πάντων τῶν πρὸς νότον ὑποχωρη σάντων αὐτῷ Λατίνων, ἔτι δὲ κρατούντων τὰ πρὸς βορρᾶν, τὰ πλησίον τῆς Κωνσταντίνου καὶ τῇ Νικομήδους πόλει ἐγγίζοντα. Οἱ δὲ τῆς Ἀδριανουπόλεως οἰκήτορες πρεσβείαν πρὸς τὸν βασιλέα ἐστείλαντο, ὅπως ἀποστείλῃ πρὸς αὐτοὺς στρά τευμα καὶ τῆς Ἰταλῶν ἐλευθερώσῃ χειρός. ὁ δὲ τὸν πρω τοβεστιάριον Ἰσῆν, στράτευμα δοὺς αὐτῷ, ἐξαπέστειλε· συνῆν δὲ αὐτῷ καὶ ὁ Καμύτζης Ἰωάννης. οἳ καὶ διαπε ράσαντες τὸν Ἑλλήσποντον καὶ διὰ τῆς Μακεδονίας διελ θόντες εἰς Ἀδριανοῦ ἀφίκοντο. ἐντὸς δὲ γενόμενοι τῆς πόλεως διῆγον ἐκεῖσε. ἐλπὶς δὲ ἦν τῷ βασιλεῖ Ἰωάννῃ διὰ ταῦτα καὶ τῶν πέριξ ἐγκρατῆ γενέσθαι. ἀλλ' ὁ Κομνηνὸς Θεόδωρος, ὡς φθάσας ὁ λόγος ἐδήλωσε, τῶν ἐγγὺς πάντων γενόμενος ἐγκρατής, ἄνευ μέντοι τοῦ τῆς Ῥοδόπης ὄρους, ὅπερ καὶ Ἀχριδὸς ὠνόμασται, καὶ τῶν ἐν τούτῳ ἄστεων καὶ τοῦ Μελενίκου-τούτων γὰρ ἦρχεν ὁ Σθλάβος, προσ γενὴς ὢν τοῦ βασιλέως Ἀσὰν καὶ δεσπότης τετιμημένος ὑπὸ τοῦ βασιλέως Κωνσταντινουπόλεως Ἐρρῆ, οὗ καὶ τὴν ἐκ παλλακῆς θυγατέρα ἠγάγετο εἰς γυναῖκα. οὗτος ὁ Σθλάβος φρούριον τὸν Μελενίκον εὑρὼν ὀχυρὸν αὐτοκρατὴς ἦν, μη δενὶ τῶν πέριξ ἀρχόντων ὑποπεσών. ἐνίοτε μὲν γὰρ Ἰτα λοῖς συνεμάχει, ἐνίοτε Βουλγάροις, ἐνίοτε δὲ καὶ τῷ Κομνηνῷ Θεοδώρῳ. τούτῳ συνεζύγη μετὰ θάνατον τῆς αὐτοῦ γαμε τῆς ἡ τοῦ Πετραλίφα θυγάτηρ, τοῦ γυναικαδέλφου τοῦ Κομνηνοῦ Θεοδώρου. ἐπεὶ γοῦν Μοσυνόπολις καὶ Ξάνθεια καὶ ἡ Γρατζιανοὺς αὐτὴ ὑπὸ τοῦτον ἐτέλει, τὸ τῆς Σταγεί ρας ὑπερβὰς ὄρος, ὃ δὴ Μάκρην ὀνομάζουσιν οἱ πολλοί, τὰ ἐκεῖθεν τοῦ Ἕβρου κατέδραμεν, ἄνετα εὑρὼν πάντα, περὶ τὸ ∆ιδυμότοιχον γεγονὼς ἐν οὐ πολλῷ χρόνῳ βασιλεὺς ἐπεφημίζετο τούτων. ἀφικόμενος δὲ καὶ περὶ τὴν Ἀδριανοῦ καὶ εὑρὼν τὸ στράτευμα τοῦ βασιλέως Ἰωάννου καὶ ἀπατηλοῖς λόγοις τοὺς οἰκήτορας ὑπελθών, ὡς πλουτίσειε τούτους ἄκρως καὶ τῶν ἄλλων Ῥωμαίων ὑπερυψώσειε, πείθει τὸ μὲν τοῦ βασιλέως ἐξαγαγεῖν στράτευμα, αὐτὸν δὲ εἰσαγαγεῖν. εἰσάγεται οὖν ἐπὶ ὅρκοις τοῦ μή τινα τούτων παθεῖν τι δεινόν. ἐξελθόντες οὖν ὁ μὲν πρωτοστράτωρ οὐδὲ ὅλως τὸν Κομνηνὸν Θεόδωρον τεθέαται- τοῦτο γὰρ δὴ αὐτοῖς συμπεφώνηται-ὁ δὲ Καμύτζης συντυχὼν αὐτῷ οὐκ ἀπέβη τοῦ ἵππου οὐδὲ ὡς βασιλέα προσεκύνησεν· εἰς ὃ βαρυθυμήσας ὁ Κομνηνὸς μικροῦ ἂν καὶ πληγὰς ἐπέθετο τούτῳ. διὸ ἐτιμήθη παρὰ τοῦ βασιλέως μέγας ἑταιρειάρχης ὁ Καμύτζης. ὁ οὖν Κομνηνὸς καὶ τῆς Ἀδρια νοῦ ἐγκρατὴς γεγονὼς πολλὰ παρέσχε τοῖς Ἰταλοῖς πράγματα. κατέδραμε γὰρ πάντα τὰ ὑπ' ἐκείνων κρατούμενα καὶ μέχρι καὶ αὐτῆς τῆς Βιζύης γενόμενος τὸ ἔξω κατέσχε τοῦ ἄστεος, καὶ μέχρι τῶν πυλῶν τῆς Κωνσταντίνου κατήντησε. τότε καὶ ὁ Ἀσὲλ δε Κάε, ὃς τῇ θυγατρὶ τοῦ βασιλέως Θεοδώρου τοῦ Λασκάρεως συνεζύγη, ὑπό τινος τῶν τοῦ Κομνηνοῦ Θεοδώρου δόρατι ἐπλήγη τὸν τράχηλον· καὶ τεθεράπευτο, καὶ ἦν τὸ ἀπὸ τοῦδε τραχυτέρα αὐτοῦ ἡ φωνή.

25 Ὁ δὲ Κομνηνὸς Θεόδωρος εἰς σπονδὰς συνῆλθε τῷ τῶν Βουλγάρων βασιλεῖ Ἰωάννῃ τῷ Ἀσάν, τὴν θυγατέρα αὐτοῦ Μαρίαν προσλαβόμενος ἐπὶ τῷ ἀδελφῷ τούτου Μα νουήλ. εἶτα διαλύσας ταῦτα κατὰ Βουλγάρων χωρεῖ. παρα μείψας οὖν τὴν Ἀδριανοῦ περὶ τὰ ἄνω τοῦ Ἕβρου τὴν πορείαν ἐποιεῖτο, ζητῶν μετὰ Βουλγάρων συρρῆξαι πόλεμον. καὶ ἐδόκει ὡς οἱ Βούλγαροι ὑποπτήξαντες οὐδὲ τὴν ὁρμὴν τῆς στρατιᾶς αὐτοῦ ὑποσταῖεν. ἀλλ' ὁ Ἀσὰν ταῖς ἐπιορ κίαις τούτου τεθαρρηκὼς ὀλίγον συμμαχικὸν ἀπὸ Σκυθῶν εἰληφὼς ἐν τῇ σημαίᾳ τὸν ἔγγραφον ὅρκον τούτου ἀπαιω ρήσας-καὶ περί που τὸν παρέβριον τόπον, ὃν Κλοκοτι νίτζαν