unbearable and tearful wailing. But while these things were happening thus, divinely sent wrath had seized the east. For since the peace agreements with Diogenes had remained idle and unfulfilled, the Turks, seized with anger because his own people had behaved madly toward him—the one whom they themselves had taken as an enemy and subject, yet had deemed worthy of all care and honor and had restored again to his own rule—as toward an implacable enemy, and his acquaintances and relatives, who should be guided by the laws of peace, had perpetrated against him what he ought to have suffered from them and had handed him over to a most pitiable and painful death (for even the foreigners grieved greatly for him because of the multitude of his terrible sufferings and the inconsolable nature of the disaster) 157 setting out from Persia in a vast multitude, as if there were no one to hinder them, they march against the Roman themes and ravaged them, not attacking sporadically as before and as mere fugitives, but rather as masters taking possession of whatever they encountered. Hearing these things, the emperor, having gathered a sufficient army, appoints Isaac Komnenos as its general. And he assigned to him also Roussel the Latin with a Frankish contingent amounting to four hundred Franks. And when the whole army had arrived at Iconium, some rivalry having occurred, Roussel then openly revolted and, taking the Franks with him, he turned to another course and entrusts his own affairs to his own will. And going up to Melitene, encountering Turks, he acts heroically, falling upon them in an attack. The rest of the army encamps at Caesarea. And Komnenos, having considered attacking the enemy by assault, advanced by night, so that he might fall upon them unprepared, but he suffers the opposite of his own plan; for he encounters them prepared and ready. And he clashes with them even though not wishing to, and is immediately defeated and is at once taken captive. And everything in the camp is also captured, with many Romans having fallen, and some being taken alive, but more finding their safety in flight. And when the rumor reached the emperor, he seemed to suffer some grief, but yet he did not at all abstain from political injustices and worldly matters, following the suggestions of Nikephoros; for not having a discerning nature and a discriminating and watchful habit, he did everything commanded by Nikephoros like a slave. From then on, therefore, having taken confidence, the Hagarenes overrunning the east did not cease 158 raiding it and ravaging it every day. And when Isaac had exchanged his captivity for much money and a full purse, again the Caesar John is appointed commander-in-chief; who, having crossed over and advancing as far as Dorylaion, setting out from there has marched further and reached as far as the bridge of Tzoumpou. But before he crossed the Sangarios, Roussel arrives from the Armeniakon theme in great haste and pitches his camp there. And the Caesar, having sent to him as to one who had offended and erred, promised sympathy and amnesty for his misdeeds if he would see reason and recognize his own master. But when the barbarian snorted, as one confident in his own hands and in war and relying on the multitude with him, the embassy was shown to be fruitless and empty; wherefore also it was resolved that the whole matter be decided by war. Therefore, the Caesar, having crossed the river, and his fellow-general Nikephoros Botaneiates, with the rest of the host, immediately went to war and attacked Roussel. And when the Romans did not withstand the attack of the Franks, a flight of the whole army occurs, and the Caesar is made captive by Roussel, and many others, with Botaneiates alone having fled with a certain few.

Roussel had therefore become great and renowned from this, for the magnitude of the achievement. And marching straight for Byzantium, he held the Caesar bound in iron and drenched with many vexations and successive waves of griefs

κωκυτὸς ἀφόρητος καὶ πολύδακρυς. Ἀλλὰ τούτων οὕτω γινομένων, θεήλατος ὀργὴ τὴν ἑῴαν κατειλήφει. Τῶν γὰρ πρὸς ∆ιογένην εἰρηνικῶν συμφώνων ἀργῶν μεινάντων καὶ ἀπράκτων θυμῷ συνεχόμενοι οἱ Τοῦρκοι ἐφ' οἷς, ὃν αὐτοὶ ὡς ἐχθρὸν εἰληφότες καὶ ὑποχείριον πάσης κομιδῆς καὶ τιμῆς ἠξιώκασι καὶ τῇ ἰδίᾳ ἐπικρατείᾳ αὖθις ἀποκατέστησαν, τούτῳ οἱ οἰκεῖοι μανιωδῶς ὡς ἐχθρῷ προσενεχθέντες ἀσπόνδῳ, ἃ παρ' αὐτοῖς ἐχρῆν αὐτὸν παθεῖν, οἱ γνωστοὶ καὶ συγγενεῖς καὶ τοῖς τῆς εἰρήνης νόμοις ἀγόμενοι διαπεπράχασι καὶ οἰκτίστῳ καὶ ἐπωδύνῳ θανάτῳ παραδεδώκασιν ὑπερήλγουν γὰρ αὐτῷ καὶ οἱ ἀλλότριοι διὰ τὸ πλῆθος τῶν δεινῶν καὶ τὸ τῆς συμφορᾶς ἀπαρηγόρητον 157 ἄραντες ἐκ Περσίδος παμπληθεῖ, ὡς μηδενὸς ὄντος τοῦ κωλύοντος, τοῖς ῥωμαϊκοῖς ἐπιστρατεύουσι θέμασι καὶ ταῦτα κατελυμήναντο, οὐ σποράδες ἐπιφοιτῶντες ὡς τὸ πρὶν καὶ φυγάδες αὐτόχρημα, μᾶλλον δὲ ὡς δεσπόται τῶν προστυχόντων κατακυριεύοντες. Ταῦτα διενωτιζόμενος ὁ βασιλεύων, συναγείρας στρατόπεδον ἱκανὸν στρατηγὸν αὐτῷ ἐφίστησι τὸν Κομνηνὸν Ἰσαάκιον. Συνίστησι δ' αὐτῷ καὶ Ῥουσέλιον τὸν Λατῖνον μετὰ φραγκικοῦ συντάγματος εἰς τετρακοσίους Φράγκους ἀναβαίνοντος. Ἐν τῷ Ἰκονίῳ δὲ τοῦ στρατοπέδου γενομένου παντός, φιλονεικίας συμβάσης τινός, ἀποστατεῖ τηνικαῦτα ὁ Ῥουσέλιος προφανῶς καὶ τοὺς Φράγκους παραλαβὼν ἑτέραν ἐτράπετο καὶ τὰ καθ' ἑαυτὸν τῷ ἰδίῳ ἐπιτρέπει θελήματι. Ἀνελθὼν δὲ εἰς Μελιτηνήν, Τούρκοις περιτυχὼν ἀριστεύει ἐξ ἐφόδου τούτοις ἐπεισπεσών. Τὸ δὲ λοιπὸν στράτευμα τῇ Καισαρέων παραβάλλει. Σκεψάμενος δὲ ὁ Κομνηνὸς τοῖς ἐναντίοις ἐξ ἐφόδου προσβαλεῖν προῄει μὲν διὰ τῆς νυκτός, ὡς ἂν ἀπαρασκεύοις ἐμπέσῃ αὐτοῖς, τὸ δ' ἐναντίον πάσχει τῆς οἰκείας βουλῆς· ἐμπαρασκεύοις γὰρ καὶ ἡτοιμασμένοις ἐντυγχάνει αὐτοῖς. Συρρήγνυσι δὲ τούτοις καὶ μὴ βουλόμενος καὶ ἡττᾶται εὐθὺς καὶ αἰχμάλωτος αὐτίκα γίνεται. Ἁλίσκεται δὲ καὶ τὰ ἐν τῷ χάρακι ἅπαντα, πολλῶν μὲν Ῥωμαίων πεσόντων, ζωγρίᾳ δὲ ληφθέντων τινῶν, πλειόνων δὲ τὴν σωτηρίαν εὑραμένων φυγῇ. Τῆς δὲ φήμης τὸν βασιλέα καταλαβούσης ἔδοξε μέν τι σκυθρωπὸν παθεῖν, οὐ μὴν δὲ παντάπασι τῶν πολιτικῶν ἀδικημάτων καὶ τῶν κοσμικῶν ἀπέσχετο ταῖς τοῦ Νικηφόρου ὑποθημοσύναις· μὴ ἔχων γὰρ φύσιν διαγνωστικὴν καὶ ἕξιν διακριτικὴν καὶ ἐγρηγορυῖαν πᾶν τὸ προσταττόμενον παρὰ τοῦ Νικηφόρου ἐποίει ὥσπερ ἀνδράποδον. Ἔκτοτε οὖν ἀδείας λαβόμενοι οἱ τὴν ἑῴαν κατατρέχοντες Ἀγαρηνοὶ οὐκ ἐπαύοντο καθ' ἑκάστην 158 κεραΐζοντες ταύτην καὶ καταλυμαινόμενοι. Ἀλλαξαμένου δὲ τοῦ Ἰσαακίου τὴν αἰχμαλωσίαν χρημάτων πολλῶν καὶ βαλαντίου ἁδροῦ, αὖθις στρατηγὸς αὐτοκράτωρ ὁ καῖσαρ Ἰωάννης προχειρίζεται· ὃς διαπεραιωθεὶς καὶ μέχρι τοῦ ∆ορυλαίου προϊών, ἄρας ἐκεῖθεν πορρωτέρω πεπόρευται καὶ μέχρι τῆς γεφύρας τοῦ Τζούμπου κατέλαβε. Πρὸ δὲ τοῦ περαιωθῆναι τὸν Σαγγάριον ἀφικνεῖται ὁ Ῥουσέλιος ἐκ τοῦ Ἀρμενιακοῦ σπουδῇ πολλῇ καὶ στρατοπεδείαν ἐκεῖσε πήγνυσι. Πέμψας δ' ὁ καῖσαρ ὡσανεὶ προσκρούσαντι καὶ ἐξαμαρτόντι, εἰ γνωσιμαχήσειε καὶ τὸν οἰκεῖον ἐπιγνοίη δεσπότην, συμπάθειαν καὶ ἀμνηστίαν κακῶν ἐπηγγέλλετο. Φρυαξαμένου δὲ τοῦ βαρβάρου οἷα ἐπὶ ταῖς ἰδίαις χερσὶ καὶ τῷ πολέμῳ θαρροῦντος καὶ τῷ πλήθει τῶν σὺν αὐτῷ ἐρειδομένου ἄπρακτος ἡ πρεσβεία ἐδείχθη καὶ κενή· διὸ καὶ πολέμῳ κριθῆναι τὸ πᾶν ἔδοξε. ∆ιαβὰς οὖν τὸν ποταμὸν ὁ καῖσαρ καὶ ὁ συστράτηγος αὐτοῦ Νικηφόρος ὁ Βοτανειάτης μετὰ τῆς λοιπῆς πληθύος αὐτίκα πρὸς πόλεμον τῷ Ῥουσελίῳ προσέβαλε. Μὴ ἐνεγκόντων δὲ τῶν Ῥωμαίων τὴν τῶν Φράγκων ἐπίθεσιν φυγὴ γίνεται παντὸς τοῦ στρατοῦ, καὶ ἁλώσιμος ὁ καῖσαρ τῷ Ῥουσελίῳ καθίσταται καὶ ἄλλοι πολλοί, τοῦ Βοτανειάτου μόνου φυγόντος σὺν ὀλίγοις τισίν.

Ἐγεγόνει τοίνυν ὁ Ῥουσέλιος ἐκ τούτου μέγας καὶ διαβόητος τῷ μεγέθει τοῦ κατορθώματος. Χωρῶν δὲ κατευθὺ τοῦ Βυζαντίου τὸν καίσαρα εἶχε σιδηρόδετον καὶ πολλοῖς ἀνιαροῖς περιαντλούμενον καὶ λυπηρῶν κύμασιν ἀλλεπαλλήλοις