they wished to remain still of the same mind, but they were considering how to defend themselves against their enemies in every way. And sending Straboromanos to the Frank holding Lombardy, called Robert, he took his daughter as a wife for his son Constantine, she having been renamed Helena. Lombardy was seized by Robert in this way. George Maniakes, having been sent for the settlement of affairs in Italy and honored as magistros by the augusta Zoe, enlisted many Franks, and he also pacified those who had been ill-treated by Dokeianos and prepared them to keep the peace in certain themes of Italy; for they feared him, having experience of his bravery in wars. But when he revolted against Monomachos and was defeated, those who crossed over with him, having been subjugated to the emperor, were both nicknamed Maniakatoi and many remained among the Romans, but the rest were left behind in Italy. And there was a certain man among them, Robert by name, a cousin of Arduin who had been scourged by Dokeianos, a man both terrible and high-spirited, having a tyrannical disposition, who was openly planning to drive the Romans out of Italy, but nevertheless hesitated at the undertaking and kept putting it off, seeing himself to be weak, and dreaded to lead himself against the emperor's power. And when his wife, whom he had brought from Francia, died, he took another wife, called Gaita, being the daughter of the prince who had no small country under his rule. Therefore, having married her, he settled in the cities belonging to his wife, of which the first and greatest is called Salerno. Going out from there like a thief and a robber, he plundered the territories subject to Romanía, on the one hand taking Calabria captive, on the other hand enslaving Italy. 168 And of the captives who were taken, from some he took away their hands, from others he mutilated their feet, and from others he cut off both, and some he even sold for a great deal of money, threatening that if they did not betray their cities and submit to him, they would suffer not only such things but even worse. But with domestic affairs in the palace being in a sick state, no attention was paid to the events happening in Italy. For with Monomachos dying shortly after, and the augusta Theodora holding the empire for one year, and Michael being proclaimed and Komnenos rising up against him, and the armies being occupied with the civil wars, and with there being no one to check the impulse of Robert, he became great and famous from this. For he both assembled a considerable army and became master of horses and money and arms, since those appointed by the emperor to be generals in the cities were not able to go out against him because of the shortage of men and the poor quality of those with them. And when Komnenos gained control of the empire, the affairs of the Turks were distressing the east, and the Patzinaks were pressing the west.

Therefore Thrymbos withdrew from Calabria, who happened to be general there, having freely dared the atrocity against the Skribones; for seeing that what had been done was not pleasing to the inhabitants, he became a fugitive to the emperor. Therefore Amboulchare is sent as doux of Italy. But Robert, seeing the people of the Calabrians greatly distressed by the killing of the Skribones and at the same time, for this reason, contemplating revolt, no longer went out as if to return, but riding with haste, he takes Rhegion, a great and famous city, in which the doux of Italy usually resided; for in it were both distinguished buildings and a great abundance of provisions. And Amboulchare, having reached Dyrrachion and crossed from there to Bari, upon learning that Rhegion had been taken, he himself remained in Bari and from there, as he was able, he held on to the cities still loyal to the Romans, both appointing generals and sending an army for their defense; for still loyal to the Romans were both Bari and Hydrous, Kallipolis, Taras, Brendesion and 169 Horai and a good number of other towns and simply the whole country. In the

ἤθελον μένειν ἔτι ἐπὶ τοῦ αὐτοῦ φρονήματος, ἀλλὰ τοὺς πολεμίους πᾶσι τρόποις ἀμύνασθαι διεσκέπτοντο. Ἀποστείλας δὲ τὸν Στραβορωμανὸν πρὸς τὸν τὴν Λογγιβαρδίαν κατέχοντα Φράγκον, Ῥουμπέρτον καλούμενον, τὴν αὐτοῦ θυγατέρα τῷ υἱῷ Κωνσταντίνῳ γυναῖκα ἠγάγετο, Ἑλένην μετονομασθεῖσαν. Κατεσχέθη δὲ ἡ Λογγιβαρδία πρὸς τοῦ Ῥουμπέρτου τοῦτον τὸν τρόπον. Γεώργιος ὁ Μανιάκης ἐπὶ καταστάσει τῶν ἐν Ἰταλίᾳ πραγμάτων ἀποσταλείς, παρὰ τῆς αὐγούστης Ζωῆς μάγιστρος τιμηθείς, προσηταιρίσατο μὲν Φράγκους πολλούς, καθημέρωσε δὲ καὶ τοὺς παρὰ τοῦ ∆οκειανοῦ κακωθέντας καὶ ἡσυχίαν ἄγειν ἔν τισι θέμασι τῆς Ἰταλίας παρεσκεύασεν· ἐδεδίεσαν γὰρ αὐτὸν πεῖραν τῆς αὐτοῦ ἐν πολέμοις γενναιότητος ἔχοντες. Ἀντάραντος δὲ τῷ Μονομάχῳ καὶ κατηγωνισμένου, οἱ μὲν σὺν αὐτῷ περαιωθέντες τῷ βασιλεῖ δουλωθέντες Μανιακάτοι τε ἐπωνομάσθησαν καὶ τῇ Ῥωμαίων πολλοὶ ἐναπέμειναν, οἱ δὲ λοιποὶ ἐν Ἰταλίᾳ ὑπελείφθησαν. Ἦν δέ τις ἐν αὐτοῖς Ῥουμπέρτος τοὔνομα, ἀνεψιὸς Ἀρδουίνου τοῦὑπὸ τοῦ ∆οκειανοῦ μαστιχθέντος, δεινὸς καὶ θυμοειδής, τυραννικὸν ἔχων τὸ φρόνημα, ὅστις φανερῶς μὲν ἐξελάσαι τῆς Ἰταλίας τοὺς Ῥωμαίους ἐμελέτα, ὤκνει δὲ ὅμως τὴν ἐγχείρησιν καὶ ἀνεβάλλετο ἀσθενῆ ἑαυτὸν ὁρῶν, καὶ πρὸς τὴν τοῦ βασιλέως ἰσχὺν ὠρρώδει ἑαυτὸν ἀντεξαγαγεῖν. Τῆς δὲ γυναικὸς αὐτοῦ, ἣν ἀπὸ Φραγκίας ἠγάγετο, τελευτησάσης ἑτέραν ἄγεται γυναῖκα, Γαΐταν μὲν καλουμένην, θυγατέρα δὲ οὖσαν τοῦ πρίγκιπος χώραν οὐκ ὀλίγην τὴν ὑφ' ἑαυτὸν ἔχοντος. Ἀγαγόμενος οὖν ταύτην κατῴκησεν ἐν ταῖς πόλεσι ταῖς διαφερούσαις τῇ αὑτοῦ γυναικί, ὧν ἡ πρώτη καὶ μεγίστη Σαλερνὸς ὀνομάζεται. Ἐκεῖθεν ὡς οἷα κλέπτης καὶ λῃστὴς ἐξιὼν τὰ τῇ Ῥωμανίᾳ ὑποκείμενα ἐληίζετο, τοῦτο μὲν Καλαβρίαν αἰχμαλωτίζων, τοῦτο δὲ τὴν Ἰταλίαν δουλούμενος. 168 Τῶν δ' ἁλισκομένων αἰχμαλώτων ὧν μὲν χεῖρας ἀφῄρει, ὧν δὲ πόδας ἠκρωτηρίαζεν, ἄλλων δὲ ἀπέκοπτε καὶ ἀμφότερα, τινὰς δὲ καὶ ἀπημπόλει χρημάτων πολλῶν, δεδιττόμενος ὡς, εἰ μὴ προδοῖεν τὰς πόλεις καὶ ὑποκλιθεῖεν αὐτῷ, οὐ τοιαῦτα μόνον ἀλλὰ καὶ χείρονα πείσονται. Νοσούντων δὲ ἐν τοῖς βασιλείοις τῶν οἰκείων οὐδεμία τῶν γινομένων ἐν Ἰταλίᾳ ἐγίνετο ἐπιστροφή. Τοῦ γὰρ Μονομάχου μετὰ βραχὺ τελευτήσαντος, Θεοδώρας δὲ τῆς αὐγούστης ἐφ' ἕνα χρόνον τὴν βασιλείαν κατασχούσης, τοῦ τε Μιχαὴλ ἀναρρηθέντος καὶ τοῦ Κομνηνοῦ ἐπαναστάντος αὐτῷ καὶ τῶν στρατευμάτων ἀσχολουμένων τοῖς ἐμφυλίοις πολέμοις, μηδενός τε ὄντος τοῦ τὴν ὁρμὴν τοῦ Ῥουμπέρτου κωλύσαντος μέγας ἐκ τούτου καὶ περιβόητος γέγονε. Στρατόν τε γὰρ ἀξιόλογον συνεστήσατο καὶ ἵππων καὶ χρημάτων καὶ ἀρμάτων ἐγένετο κύριος, τῶν ἐν ταῖς πόλεσι στρατηγεῖν τεταγμένων πρὸς βασιλέως μὴ δυναμένων ἀντεξιέναι ὀλιγανδρίᾳ καὶ κακότητι τῶν σὺν αὐτοῖς. Τοῦ δὲ Κομνηνοῦ τῆς βασιλείας ἐγκρατοῦς γενομένου τὰ μὲν τῶν Τούρκων τὴν ἀνατολὴν ἔθλιβεν, οἱ δὲ Πατζινάκοι τὴν δύσιν ἐπίεζον.

Ὑποχωρεῖ γοῦν τῆς Καλαβρίας ὁ Θρυμβός, ὃς ἐκεῖσε στρατηγῶν ἐτύγχανε, τὸ κατὰ τοὺς Σκρίβωνας ἄγος ἀνέδην τετολμηκώς· μὴ ἀρέσκον γὰρ τοῖς ἐγχωρίοις ὁρῶν τὸ πεπραγμένον φυγὰς εἰς βασιλέα γίνεται. Στέλλεται γοῦν δοὺξ Ἰταλίας ὁ Ἀμβουλχαρέ. Ὁ δὲ Ῥουμπέρτος τῇ τῶν Σκρβώνων ἀναιρέσει δεινοπαθοῦν τὸ γένος ὁρῶν τῶν Καλαβρῶν ἅμα κἀκ τῆς αἰτίας ταύτης ἀποστασίαν μελετῶν, οὐκέτι μὲν ὡς ὑποστρέψων ἔξεισι, σπουδῇ δὲ ἐλάσας αἱρεῖ τὸ Ῥήγιον, πόλιν μεγάλην καὶ ἐπιφανῆ, ἐν ᾧ συνήθως ὁ δοὺξ Ἰταλίας διέτριβεν· ἦσαν γὰρ ἐν τούτῳ οἰκήματά τε διαπρεπῆ καὶ τῶν ἐπιτηδείων ἀφθονία πολλή. Ὁ δ' Ἀμβουλχαρὲ τὸ ∆υρράχιον καταλαβὼν ἐξ ἐκείνου τε εἰς τὴν Βάριν περαιωθείς, πυθόμενος ὅτι τὸ Ῥήγιον ἑάλω, ἔμεινεν αὐτὸς ἐν τῇ Βάρει κἀκεῖθεν, ὡς ἦν δυνατόν, τῶν ἔτι τὰ Ῥωμαίων φρονουσῶν ἀντείχετο πόλεων, στρατηγούς τε ἐφιστῶν καὶ στρατὸν ἐπιπέμπων εἰς φυλακήν· ἔτι γὰρ ἐφρόνουν τὰ Ῥωμαίων ἥ τε Βάρις καὶ ἡ Ὑδροῦς, ἡ Καλλίπολις, ὁ Τάρας, τὸ Βρενδήσιον καὶ αἱ 169 Ὧραι καὶ ἄλλα πολίχνια ἱκανὰ καὶ πᾶσα ἡ χώρα ἁπλῶς. Ἐν τῷ