33

on which the Genoese were to get dromons and other piratical vessels. The emperor John, therefore, having occupied Nymphaion and having prepared a formidable fleet in Smyrna, having also arranged for horse-transporting triremes so that up to three hundred horses could be carried, and having appointed as their general Theodore Kontostephanos, who held the rank of protosebastos, and having given him in writing how and where and when he was to arrange and order the battle, sent him forth, having prayed for the best for him and for those with him. The protosebastos Theodore, therefore, having set sail with the triremes and arrived at the island of Rhodes, and having done everything as the emperor commanded, routed the Latins; for the emperor’s men, having encountered the Latins plundering outside, utterly put them all to the sword, with John Kantakouzenos, the epi tou kerasmatos, having urged that none of them be spared. The Frankish horsemen, therefore, perished thus through the emperor's good counsel, but the Genoese foot soldiers who were left behind in the city of Rhodes held it, fighting against those outside. But since they did not have the strength to hold out for long, they entered into negotiations; and they surrendered the city to the Romans, and they themselves came to the emperor and, in accordance with the treaties made with them, enjoyed the imperial benevolence. And so the island of Rhodes once again came under the Romans; and these things happened thus.

49 The emperor John, therefore, made treaties with the despot Michael and entered into a marriage alliance; for he took Michael's son Nikephoros as son-in-law for Maria, the daughter of his own son, the emperor Theodore. And his wife Theodora, taking Nikephoros with her, crossed over to the east and met the emperor who was staying in the region of Pegai, and the betrothal of the children took place. And Theodora again took her son and returned home to her husband Michael, having been fittingly treated with kindness by the emperor. But the proverb seemed to hold true for Michael as well: a crooked stick is never straight, and an Ethiopian does not know how to become white. For he rushed into rebellion against the emperor, using his uncle Theodore Angelos as an adviser concerning the pretext. The emperor John, therefore, having learned these things and having found out about their conspiracy, and thinking that there were no other enemies to the rule of the Romans after the fall of Constantinople but these men, since he also had a truce on the part of the Muslims, and Bulgarian affairs were quiet, having prepared himself formidably and, so to speak, imperially, and having arranged all his forces as was necessary, crossed the Hellespont, having many other generals, but also Nikephoros Tarchaneiotes, his epi tes trapezes, who was as it were fulfilling the duties of the grand domestic; for he relied on his character and considered him loyal and most skillful in military matters, as experience had testified. Having occupied Thessalonica, therefore, and having moved his forces from there, he encamped at Vodena. But Angelos had managed to flee from them and go to his nephew, the despot Michael. The emperor, therefore, having begun the siege of Vodena, in a short time subdued the city of Vodena, and departing from there, he pitched his tents in a certain place near the lake of Ostrovo. And he sent out generals against the lands of the despot Michael: Alexios Strategopoulos, Michael Palaiologos the son of the grand domestic, John Makrenos, Goudeles Tyrannos, and others, so that they might plunder the surrounding areas and, if they should happen upon his army, they might proceed to battle against it, and if they had the opportunity, might also sack a city. And so they were doing this and were advancing ahead of the emperor’s tent. But he

33

ἐφ' ᾧ τυγχάνειν δρόμωνας καὶ ἕτερα ξύλα τοῖς Γενουΐταις πειρατικά. Ὁ μὲν οὖν βασιλεὺς Ἰωάννης τὸ Νύμφαιον καταλαβὼν καὶ στόλον συσκευασάμενος ἀξιόμαχον ἐν τῇ Σμύρνῃ, ἱππαγω γούς τε τριήρεις οἰκονομήσας ὡς μέχρι καὶ τῶν τριακοσίων ἵππων ἐπιφέρεσθαι, καὶ εἰς στρατηγὸν αὐτοῖς ἀποτάξας τὸν Κοντοστέφανον Θεόδωρον τὴν τοῦ πρωτοσεβαστοῦ ἀξίαν διέ ποντα, καὶ ὅπως μέλλει τὰ τῆς μάχης καταρτίσαι τε καὶ συν τάξαι ποῦ τε καὶ ὅτε, ἐγγράφως αὐτῷ παραδούς, ἐξαπέστειλεν, ἐπευξάμενος τούτῳ τε καὶ τοῖς μετὰ τούτου τὰ λῴονα. ὁ μὲν οὖν πρωτοσεβαστὸς Θεόδωρος, ταῖς τριήρεσιν ἀναχθεὶς καὶ εἰς τὴν νῆσον ἀφιγμένος Ῥόδον, πάντα τε ὡς ὁ βασιλεὺς προσέταξε διαπραξάμενος, τοὺς Λατίνους κατετροπώσατο· ἔξω γὰρ ληϊζομένοις ἐντυχόντες τοῖς Λατίνοις οἱ τοῦ βασι λέως ἄρδην πάντας σπάθης ἔργον πεποίηνται, τοῦ ἐπὶ τοῦ κεράσματος Ἰωάννου τοῦ Καντακουζηνοῦ ἐπισκηψαμένου μηδενὸς αὐτῶν φείσασθαι. οἱ μὲν οὖν Φράγγοι οἱ ἱππεῖς βασιλικῇ εὐβουλίᾳ οὕτως ἀπώλοντο, οἱ πεζοὶ δὲ Γενουῗται ἐναπολειφθέντες τῷ ἄστει τῆς Ῥόδου κατεῖχον αὐτὸ τοῖς ἔξω μαχόμενοι. ἐπεὶ δὲ οὐ δυνάμεως εἶχον εἰς μακρὸν ἀντέχειν, εἰς ξυμβιβάσεις συνῆλθον· καὶ παρέδωκαν μὲν τὸ ἄστυ τοῖς Ῥωμαίοις, αὐτοὶ δὲ πρὸς τὸν βασιλέα ἀφί κοντο καὶ κατὰ τὰς γεγονυίας τούτοις συνθήκας τῆς βασιλικῆς εὐμενείας ἀπήλαυσαν. καὶ οὕτω δὴ καὶ αὖθις ἡ νῆσος Ῥόδος ὑπὸ Ῥωμαίους ἐγένετο· καὶ ταῦτα μὲν ξυμβέβηκεν οὕτως.

49 Ὁ μὲν οὖν βασιλεὺς Ἰωάννης μετὰ τοῦ δεσπότου Μιχαὴλ συνθήκας πεποίηκε καὶ εἰς κήδους κοινωνίαν συνῆλθε· τὸν γὰρ τοῦ Μιχαὴλ υἱὸν Νικηφόρον ἐπὶ τὴν θυγατέρα τοῦ υἱοῦ αὐτοῦ τοῦ βασιλέως Θεοδώρου τὴν Μα ρίαν γαμβρὸν ἠγάγετο. καὶ ἡ τούτου γαμετὴ Θεοδώρα τὸν Νικηφόρον μεθ' ἑαυτῆς λαβοῦσα εἰς τὴν ἕω διαπε ραιοῦται καὶ περὶ τὰ μέρη τῶν Πηγῶν τῷ βασιλεῖ διάγοντι ἐντυγχάνει, καὶ ἡ τῶν παίδων μνηστεία γεγένηται. καὶ ἡ Θεοδώρα αὖθις τὸν υἱὸν αὐτῆς λαβοῦσα οἴκαδε ὑπεχώρησε παρὰ τὸν αὐτῆς σύζυγον Μιχαήλ, προσηκόντως φιλοφρονη θέντες παρὰ τοῦ βασιλέως. ἀλλὰ τὸ τῆς παροιμίας κἀπὶ τῷ Μιχαὴλ ἐπαληθεύειν ἐφαίνετο· τὸ στρεβλὸν ξύλον οὐδέποτ' ὀρθόν, καὶ ὁ Αἰθίοψ οὐκ οἶδε λευκαίνεσθαι. εἰς ἀποστα σίαν γὰρ τοῦ βασιλέως ἐφώρμησε, συμβούλῳ περὶ τὴν σκῆψιν τῷ θείῳ αὐτοῦ τῷ Ἀγγέλῳ Θεοδώρῳ χρησάμενος. ὁ γοῦν βασιλεὺς Ἰωάννης ταῦτα γνοὺς καὶ τὴν αὐτῶν συνωμοσίαν μεμαθηκώς, οὐκ ἄλλους οἰόμενος εἶναι ἐναντίους τῇ τῶν Ῥωμαίων ἀρχῇ μετὰ τὴν τῆς Κωνσταντίνου ἅλωσιν ἀλλ' ἢ τούτους, ἐπειδὴ καὶ ἐκεχειρίαν ἦγεν ἀπὸ τοῦ μέρους τῶν Μουσουλμάνων, ἠρέμουν δὲ καὶ τὰ τῶν Βουλγάρων, ἀξιο μάχως καὶ ὡς εἰπεῖν βασιλικῶς παρασκευασάμενος καὶ τὰς δυνάμεις ἁπάσας ὡς ἔδει συντάξας, διαπεραιοῦται τὸν Ἑλλήσποντον, πολλοὺς μὲν καὶ ἄλλους ἔχων στρατηγούς, τὸν δὲ Ταρχανειώτην Νικηφόρον τὸν ἐπὶ τῆς τραπέζης αὐτοῦ οἷον τὰ τοῦ μεγάλου δομεστίκου διεκπληροῦντα· ἐπανεπαύετο γὰρ αὐτοῦ τοῖς ἤθεσι καὶ εὔνουν αὐτὸν ἐλο γίζετο κἀν ταῖς στρατηγίαις, ὡς ἡ πεῖρα μεμαρτύρηκε, δεξι ώτατον. Καταλαβὼν γοῦν τὴν Θεσσαλονίκην κἀκεῖθεν τὰς δυνά μεις ἀπάρας ἐν τοῖς Βοδηνοῖς ἐστρατοπεδεύσατο. πέφθακε δὲ ὁ Ἄγγελος ἐξ αὐτῶν ἀποδρᾶσαι καὶ εἰς τὸν ἀνεψιὸν αὐτοῦ τὸν δεσπότην Μιχαὴλ ἀπελθεῖν. ὁ μὲν οὖν βα σιλεὺς εἰς πολιορκίαν τῶν Βοδηνῶν καταστὰς ἐν οὐ πολλῷ χρόνῳ τὸ τῶν Βοδηνῶν παρεστήσατο ἄστυ, κἀκεῖθεν ἀπάρας ἔν τινι τόπῳ τῇ τοῦ Ὀστροβοῦ ἐγγίζοντι λίμνῃ ἐπήξατο τὰς σκηνάς. καὶ ἐξαποστέλλει στρατηγοὺς κατὰ τῶν χώρων τοῦ δεσπότου Μιχαὴλ τόν τε Στρατηγόπουλον Ἀλέξιον, τὸν Παλαιολόγον Μιχαὴλ τὸν τοῦ μεγάλου δομε στίκου υἱόν, τὸν Μακρηνὸν Ἰωάννην, τὸν Τύραννον Γου δέλλην καὶ ἑτέρους, ἵνα τε ληΐζοιντο τὰ πέριξ καί που εἰ τύχοιεν καὶ στρατεύματος αὐτοῦ εἰς μάχην χωρήσαιεν κατ' αὐτοῦ, καὶ εἴπερ εὐχέρειαν σχοῖεν, καὶ ἄστυ πορθήσαιεν. καὶ οὕτω μὲν ἐκεῖνοι ἐποίουν καὶ προῆγον τῆς τοῦ βασι λέως σκηνῆς ἔμπροσθεν. ὁ δὲ