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of the islands of Venice to a place called Albolae. Therefore the Venetians, seeing king Pepin with his force coming against them and intending to cross over with his horses to the island of Malamocco (for this island is near the mainland), cast down stakes and blockaded the entire passage. So the people of king Pepin came into a helpless position (for it was not possible for them to cross elsewhere), and they were stationed opposite them on the mainland for six months, fighting with them every day. And the Venetians would embark on their ships and stand behind the stakes cast down by them, while king Pepin stood with his people on the shore. And the Venetians fought with archery and missiles, not allowing them to cross over to the island. Therefore king Pepin, being at a loss, said to the Venetians: "Come under my hand and providence, since you are from my country and jurisdiction." But the Venetians answered him: "We wish to be servants of the emperor of the Romans, and not of you." But when the Venetians had been hard pressed for a long time by the trouble that had come upon them, they made a peace treaty with king Pepin to pay him a very large tribute. From then on, the tribute was reduced each year, which has been preserved until this day. For the Venetians pay to the one holding the kingdom of Italy, that is, of Pavia, 30 pounds of silver coin each year. And in this way the war between the Franks and the Venetians ceased. And when the people began to take refuge in Venice and to gather together, so that they became many, they proclaimed as their duke one who surpassed the others in nobility. And the first duke among them had come to be before king Pepin came against them. And at that time the duchy was in a place called Civitanova, which is interpreted as "new castle." But because the aforementioned island was near the mainland, by common counsel they moved the duchy to another island, where it is even now today, because it is far from the mainland, as far as one can see a man mounted on a horse. 29 Concerning Dalmatia and the nations adjacent to it. That the emperor Diocletian greatly loved the country of Dalmatia, for which reason he brought people from Rome with their families and settled them in this same country of Dalmatia, and they were called Romans because they had been moved from Rome, and they bear this name to this day. This emperor Diocletian, then, also built the castle of Spalatum, and in it he constructed palaces beyond all telling or description, of which remains of its ancient prosperity are borne to this day, even though much time has consumed them. But also the castle Dioclea, which is now held by the Diocletians, the same emperor Diocletian built, whence also the people of that country have taken on the name of being called "Diocletians." And the dominion of these same Romans extended as far as the river Danube, and once, wishing to cross the river and to learn who dwelt on the other side of the river, having crossed over they found Sclavene nations who were unarmed, who were also called Avars. And neither did these expect that anyone dwelt on the other side of the river, nor those on this side of the river. Therefore, because the Romans found these Avars to be unarmed and unprepared for war, they conquered them, took booty and captives, and withdrew. And from then on the Romans made two shifts and changed their people from Easter to Easter, so that on the great and holy Sabbath they would meet one another, the ones returning from their post, and the others going to that same service. For near the sea under the same castle there is a castle, called Salona, having the size of half of Constantinople, in which all the Romans would gather and arm themselves and would set out from there, and towards the pass

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τῶν νήσων τῆς Βενετίας εἰς τόπον λεγόμενον Ἀειβόλας. Οἱ οὖν Βενέτικοι ἰδόντες τὸν ῥῆγα Πιπῖνον μετὰ τῆς ἑαυτοῦ δυνάμεως κατ' αὐτῶν ἐπερχόμενον καὶ μέλλοντα μετὰ τῶν ἵππων ἀποπλεῦσαι πρὸς τὴν νῆσον τοῦ Μαδαμαύκου (ἔστιν γὰρ αὕτη ἡ νῆσος πλησίον τῆς ξηρᾶς), βαλόντες κερατάρια, ἅπαν τὸ πέραμα ἐναπέφραξαν. Εἰς ἀμηχανίαν οὖν ἐλθὼν ὁ τοῦ ῥηγὸς Πιπίνου λαὸς (οὐδὲ γὰρ ἦν δυνατὸν αὐτοὺς ἀλλαχοῦ περᾶσαι), παρεκάθισαν αὐτοῖς διὰ τῆς ξηρᾶς μῆνας ἕξ, πολεμοῦντες καθ' ἑκάστην ἡμέραν μετ' αὐτῶν. Καὶ οἱ μὲν Βενέτικοι εἰσήρχοντο εἰς τὰ πλοῖα αὐτῶν, καὶ ἵσταντο ὄπισθεν τῶν παρ' αὐτῶν ῥιφέντων κεραταρίων, ὁ δὲ ῥὴξ Πιπῖνος ἵστατο μετὰ τοῦ λαοῦ αὐτοῦ ἐν τῷ αἰγιαλῷ. Καὶ οἱ μὲν Βενέτικοι μετὰ τοξείας καὶ ῥιπταρίων ἐπολέμουν, μὴ ἐῶντες αὐτοὺς πρὸς τὴν νῆσον διαπερᾶσαι. Ἀπορήσας οὖν ὁ ῥὴξ Πιπῖνος, εἶπεν πρὸς τοὺς Βενετίκους, ὅτι· "Ὑπὸ τὴν ἐμὴν χεῖρα καὶ πρόνοιαν γίνεσθε, ἐπειδὴ ἀπὸ τῆς ἐμῆς χώρας καὶ ἐξουσίας ἐστέ". Οἱ δὲ Βενέτικοι ἀντέλεγον αὐτῷ, ὅτι· "Ἡμεῖς δοῦλοι θέλομεν εἶναι τοῦ βασιλέως Ῥωμαίων καὶ οὐχὶ σοῦ." Ἐπὶ πολὺ δὲ βιασθέντες οἱ Βενέτικοι ἀπὸ τῆς γεγονυίας ὀχλήσεως πρὸς αὐτούς, ἐποιήσαντο εἰρηνικὰς σπονδὰς πρὸς τὸν ῥῆγα Πιπῖνον τοῦ παρέχειν αὐτῷ πλεῖστα πάκτα. Ἔκτοτε δὲ καθ' ἕκαστον χρόνον ἠλαττοῦτο τὸ πάκτον, ὅπερ καὶ μέχρι τῆς σήμερον διασώζεται. Τελοῦσι γὰρ οἱ Βενέτικοι τῷ κατέχοντι τὸ ῥηγᾶτον Ἰταλίας, ἤτοι Παπίας, διβάρια ἀσήμιν λίτρας λʹ καθ' ἕκαστον χρόνον. Καὶ τούτῳ τῷ τρόπῳ ἔπαυσεν ὁ μεταξὺ Φράγγων καὶ Βενετίκων πόλεμος. Ὅτε δὲ ἤρξατο ἀποφεύγειν ὁ λαὸς πρὸς Βενετίαν καὶ ἀποσυνάγεσθαι, ὥστε πολλοὺς γίνεσθαι, ἀνηγόρευσαν ἑαυτοὺς δοῦκα τὸν εὐγενείᾳ τῶν ἄλλων διαφέροντα. Ἐγεγόνει δὲ ὁ πρῶτος δοὺξ ἐν αὐτοῖς, πρὶν ἢ ἐλθεῖν κατ' αὐτῶν ὁ ῥὴξ Πιπῖνος. Ἦν δὲ τῷ τότε καιρῷ τὸ δουκᾶτον εἰς τόπον λεγόμενον Τζιβιτάνουβα, ὅπερ ἑρμηνεύεται "νεόκαστρον". ∆ιὰ δὲ τὸ εἶναι τὸ προειρημένον νησίον πλησίον τῆς ξηρᾶς κοινῇ βουλῇ μετέθηκαν τὸ δουκᾶτον εἰς ἕτερον νησίον, ἐν ᾧ καὶ νῦν ἔστιν σήμερον, διὰ τὸ εἶναι μήκοθεν τῆς ξηρᾶς, ὅσον βλέπει τις ἄνδρα ἵππῳ ἐφεζόμενον. 29 Περὶ τῆς ∆ελματίας καὶ τῶν ἐν αὐτῇ παρακειμένων ἐθνῶν. Ὅτι ∆ιοκλητιανὸς ὁ βασιλεὺς πάνυ τῆς χώρας ∆ελματίας ἠράσθη, διὸ καὶ ἀπὸ τῆς Ῥώμης λαὸν ἀγαγὼν μετὰ τὰς φαμιλίας αὐτῶν, ἐν τῇ αὐτῇ τῆς ∆ελματίας χώρᾳ τούτους κατεσκήνωσεν, οἳ καὶ Ῥωμᾶνοι προσηγορεύθησαν διὰ τὸ ἀπὸ Ῥώμης μετοικισθῆναι, καὶ ταύτην μέχρι τῆς σήμερον τὴν ἐπωνυμίαν ἐναποφέρονται. Οὗτος οὖν ὁ βασιλεὺς ∆ιοκλητιανὸς καὶ τὸ τοῦ Ἀσπαλάθου κάστρον ᾠκοδόμησεν, καὶ ἐν αὐτῷ παλάτια ἐδείματο λόγου καὶ γραφῆς ἁπάσης ἐπέκεινα, ὧν καὶ μέχρι τῆς σήμερον τῆς παλαιᾶς εὐδαιμονίας λείψανα φέρονται, κἂν ὁ πολὺς χρόνος αὐτὰ κατηνάλωσεν. Ἀλλὰ καὶ τὸ κάστρον ∆ιόκλεια, τὸ νῦν παρὰ τῶν ∆ιοκλητιανῶν κατεχόμενον, ὁ αὐτὸς βασιλεὺς ∆ιοκλητιανὸς ᾠκοδόμησεν, ὅθεν καὶ τὴν ἐπωνυμίαν "∆ιοκλητιανοί" καλεῖσθαι οἱ τῆς χώρας ἐκείνης ἐναπειλήφασιν. Ἡ δὲ καὶ τῶν αὐτῶν Ῥωμάνων διακράτησις ἦν μέχρι τοῦ ∆ανούβεως ποταμοῦ, οἳ καί ποτε θελήσαντες τὸν ποταμὸν διαπερᾶσαι καὶ καταμαθεῖν, τίνες κατοικοῦσιν ἐκεῖθεν τοῦ ποταμοῦ, διαπεράσαντες εὗρον ἔθνη Σκλαβήνικα ἄοπλα ὄντα, ἅτινα καὶ Ἄβαροι ἐκαλοῦντο. Καὶ οὔτε οὗτοι ἤλπιζον ἐκεῖθεν τοῦ ποταμοῦ κατοικεῖν τινας, οὔτε ἐκεῖνοι ἔνθεν τοῦ ποταμοῦ. ∆ιὰ οὖν τὸ ἀόπλους εὑρεῖν αὐτοὺς τοὺς Ἀβάρους οἱ Ῥωμᾶνοι καὶ πρὸς πόλεμον ἀπαρασκευάστους καταπολεμήσαντες, ἀνελάβοντο πραῖδαν καὶ αἰχμαλωσίαν καὶ ἀνεχώρησαν. Καὶ ἔκτοτε ποιήσαντες ἀλλάγια δύο οἱ Ῥωμᾶνοι ἀπὸ πάσχα ἕως πάσχα τὸν λαὸν αὐτῶν ἐνήλλασσον, ὥστε τῷ μεγάλῳ καὶ ἁγίῳ σαββάτῳ ἀλλήλοις συναντᾶν, τοὺς μὲν ἀποστρεφομένους ἀπὸ τοῦ παραμονίμου, τοὺς δὲ εἰς τὴν τοιαύτην δουλείαν ἀπερχομένους. Καὶ γὰρ πλησίον τῆς θαλάσσης ὑπὸ τὸ αὐτὸ κάστρον κάστρον ἔστιν, τὸ ἐπιλεγόμενον Σαλῶνα, μέγεθος ἔχον τὸ ἥμισυ Κωνσταντινουπόλεως, ἐν ᾧ πάντες οἱ Ῥωμᾶνοι συνήγοντο καὶ καθωπλίζοντο καὶ προσαπεκίνουν ἐκ τῶν ἐκεῖσε, καὶ πρὸς τὴν κλεισοῦραν