History
And what i have accurately ascertained from those who saw it, these things i will also commit to writing. 2. just now in the month of november, of the
He commanded that the triremes and the other transport ships should all be brought to anchor in a good harbor, and that they should control the sea, a
War. therefore, having gone around and seen that it was by nature difficult to enter and hard to approach for on the one side it had the sea as a saf
They would be frustrated. and having gone out of the camp, and having overrun a part of the country, when he learned from those who had been taken ali
It was easy to attack by assault, being raised to the greatest possible height, and girded with two trenches dug to a corresponding depth), and the de
Having divided his phalanx into three parts by night, he went against the scythians, and falling upon them suddenly, in a brief moment of time he wrou
Meet them, when i give the signal with the trumpets. such was the exhortation that the general delivered and the army shouted 22 and applauded, and w
6. but nikephoros phokas, the colleague of the aforementioned leo (for it is necessary, having summarized the account, to proceed with the history in
The general, having seen this, spurred his horse, quickened his pace, rode in and restrained the soldiers' onslaught, persuading them not to kill the
Having drawn up an irresistible battle-line, went through the land of the hagarenes. to them, having heard of the attack of nikephoros, it did not see
Was dignified by his rank), was hostilely disposed towards nicephorus. 11. he decided, therefore, to attempt a revolution at once but not having at h
, to proclaim him supreme commander, and to entrust the forces of asia to him, so that he might defend and check the assault of the foreigners. for th
He said, if you are persuaded to take up the rule of the east, i shall quickly declare you emperor, and restore you to the imperial thrones. speak wel
For he was gently nursing his little body), then, recovering again, he said, “speak, most brave one, what need is there to consider this?” but he said
I have assumed the imperial office, but compelled by the necessity of you, the army, and you yourselves bear witness for me that i was both shunning s
Before the report of his proclamation could fly abroad, to seize in advance the straits and passages of the sea. for thus he thought that matters woul
Numbering over three thousand, attacked the house of joseph and his collaborators along with the people. and having subjected these to plunder and pil
Especially the monks), they did not allow the man to persist in what he had decided, but urged him both to embrace marriage and not to shun meat-eatin
Makes it flood in a single hour) emboldened by these things, the barbarians mocked the emperor and insolently hurled insults at him, and making sorti
Having fallen upon it, accomplishing nothing noble or vigorous. and he considered the matter an outright disgrace and insult, and an indelible reproac
Having come to the region around tarsus, there he encamped and having pitched a palisade round about, he ordered the crops and the meadows, luxuriant
Having recovered the standards, which, crafted from gold and stones, the tarsians had captured in various battles while routing the roman force, and h
Of the spectacle, turned to flight and ran back to their own houses. and from the pushing and disorderly rush, no little slaughter occurred, with very
To blow favorably upon them, but blowing against them strongly and fiercely, it has sunk their affairs. but the account will now clearly reveal these
To those acting against the divine ordinance, if somehow at least in this way people, being afraid, would abstain from evil deeds, and would cling to
He had taken a fortress, and having crossed mount lebanon transversely, he turned his attention to tripoli, which he saw was fortified and exceptional
Being obliged to drive them away, and to guard the flocks from harm, they, in addition to not driving them away, themselves cut them down and tear the
Having come, and having been befriended by the ruler of the tauroi, and having corrupted him with gifts and bewitched him with persuasive words (for t
Reconciliation and friendship might be secured. the mysians gladly received the embassy, and putting daughters of the royal blood 80 on wagons (for it
They might do. but as they were already considering rushing to their defense, and to stoutly resist the enemy in close combat, as dawn was brightly br
Boasting to all about his brave deeds in wars. 6. having approached the emperor with these words and, 85 as was likely, having bewitched him (for he s
Having lowered from above, one by one they first pulled up all the conspirators, and then john himself. having come up, therefore, beyond all human su
The vengeance for these things, and to those who were slipping he seemed relentless and burdensome, and oppressive to those wishing to lead an indiffe
At the end of the month of december, during the thirteenth indiction of the six thousand four hundred and seventy-eighth year, a throng of select men,
Having captured him, confines him to amaseia. having therefore from this secured sufficient safety for himself and for his affairs, and having purged
To make amends for what nikephoros had improperly introduced. for nikephoros, whether wishing to correct divine matters that were being disturbed by s
And having found him not very accurately versed in secular education, but most diligently trained in divine and our own, he anoints him patriarch of a
The bosporus, but to pass by moesia, which belongs to the romans, and has from of old been a part of macedonia. for it is said that the moesians, bein
To make replies. for we trust in christ, the immortal god, that if you do not depart from this land, you will be driven from it by us even against you
A disgrace by the raids of the scythians to send out bilingual men dressed in scythian attire into the homesteads and customs of the enemy, so that t
The romans on the one hand shouted for joy, and were strengthened for valor but the scythians, growing cowardly at the new and strange nature of the
2. the emperor, when he learned of such a revolt, was disturbed, as was likely, and having brought up bishop stephen from abydos with wingless speed,
He saw that murders along with the ensuing conspirators were proceeding harshly and inhumanely, he decided to no longer delay or be slothful, so that
Considering into what fortunes the unholy and blood-guilty john has enclosed my family, having mercilessly slain the emperor and my uncle, who was his
Eye, and to learn that these things were red, just as they had been from of old. phocas, considering this prodigy a second evil omen, and seeing also
Immediately, lest it be some ill-omened thing, and destruction befall the pursuing mysians but learning they were fleeing at full speed, he both purs
The russian minds were lifted up in audacity and boldness. therefore, the emperor, not enduring their overweening arrogance and their blatant insolenc
Being given out, and going under the earth by the inscrutable wisdom of the creator and again from the 130 celtic mountains gushing up, and winding t
Should set a phalanx against us, things will not end well for us, but in dreadful perplexity and helplessness. therefore, having strengthened your spi
Is called drista) lingering with his whole force. but in this way kalokyres escaped, and night coming on stopped the romans from battle. and just on t
And they killed up to one hundred and fifty vigorous men. but the emperor, learning of such an event, quickly mounted his horse and urged his follower
But the rest of the multitude he bound in fetters and shut up in prisons. he himself, having gathered the entire host of the tauro-scythians, numberin
1. and just as day was dawning, the emperor fortified the camp with a strong palisade in this manner. a certain low hill of dorystolon rises at a dist
He was courting them with gifts and toasts, encouraging them to proceed vigorously to the wars. 3. while these matters were in suspense, and the battl
He flees to a divine and great sanctuary, seen as a pitiful supplicant instead of a haughty and boastful tyrant. whom the men of the drungarius dragge
Having drowned. for it is said that, being possessed by greek 150 orgies, they perform sacrifices and libations for the dead in the greek manner, havi
On the next day (it was the sixth day of the week, and the twenty-fourth day of the month of july), when the sun was setting, the tauro-scythians, hav
Was being concluded. 10. but the romans, following the divine man who went before, 155 engage with the enemy, and a fierce battle having commenced, th
With purity. at any rate, having conferred a few things about a truce with the emperor, seated beside the rowing-bench of the skiff, he departed. but
Was crossed over. this is the greatest of the rivers cutting through asia, 161 and one of those that flow from eden, as we have learned from the divin
The emperor, as one who abused the power of his leadership for certain powerful men, and did not direct the affairs of the church as was established b
Having assembled forces, and having meticulously armed them, departing from the reigning city, he advanced through palestine, a prosperous land, flowi
The mainland is enclosed by strongholds, stretching upon a certain steep hill on the other side it is surrounded by the sea, putting forth a well-hav
Before until fire-bearing ships were secretly sent out from byzantium by those in power. which bardas parsakoutenos the magistros was leading, and ha
I would have been destroyed, if some divine providence had not led me out of that very danger, which caused me to ride out with speed, before the ravi
Furthermore, the star rising in the west at the setting of the morning star, which, making its risings in the evening, kept no fixed position at one c
Of the city, but already becoming feeble, and suffering from a deep and intractable panting. and having just come to the royal hearth, he was shown to
having captured him, confines him to Amaseia. Having therefore from this secured sufficient safety for himself and for his affairs, and having purged every suspicious element from the state, he passed his time in the palace. It was the forty-fifth year of his age when he mounted the imperial throne. 3. In appearance, he was as follows: fair of face, and with a good complexion, having blond and thinning hair on his forehead; his eyes were manly and bright; a nose both thin and well-proportioned; his beard was reddish on top, and let down in a square shape more than was moderate, while the lower part was trimmed as was fitting, and was in no way deficient. In stature he was somewhat short, although he had a broad chest and back; but a gigantic strength was in him, and nimbleness in his hands, and a certain irresistible might; for a heroic nature was blended in him, fearless and undaunted, demonstrating in so 97 short a body an extraordinary daring. For he did not shrink from charging alone against an entire enemy phalanx, and after slaying very many, he would return again to his own ranks with wingless speed, unscathed by evils; and in jumping, and ball games, and throwing the javelin, and in drawing the bow and shooting, he surpassed all those of his own generation. It is said that, having placed four riding-horses in a row, leaping up from one side, he would alight upon the last one like some winged creature. And shooting an arrow, he aimed so well at the target as to guide it to go through the hole of a ring; by so much he surpassed even the islander who boasts loudly in Homer, who guided his arrow through the axe-heads. And placing a ball made of leather in the bottom of a glass cup, and spurring his horse with a goad and quickening its pace, striking the ball with a stick, he would cause it to leap up and fly away; but he left the cup to remain in its place, unmoved and unbroken. He was both magnificent in his gifts and most fond of giving beyond all others; for no one who asked him for anything went away empty of his hopes. And he showed his love for mankind to all with goodness and cheerfulness, prophetically lending the oil of good deeds; and if Basil the parakoimomenos had not restrained him from his insatiable inclination for doing good to his countrymen, he would have more quickly carried out the imperial treasures for distribution to the needy. But this 98 fault belonged to John, that at times he reveled in drinking bouts beyond what was proper, and was madly devoted to the pleasures of the body. 4. But having thus in seven days administered the affairs of state, and having strengthened his rule for himself, and as one would never have thought (for in the greatest changes of affairs, when much sedition and confusion, as is likely, is stirred up, then, I know not how, by chance a certain good order and deep silence took hold of the people, when the emperor Nikephoros and one of his shield-bearers were killed, with no one else having received so much as a blow on the temple), he enters the divine and great sanctuary of the Wisdom of God, in order to be crowned by the patriarch with the imperial diadem according to custom. For it is customary for those newly ascending to the Roman leadership both to go up to the ambo of the church, and to be blessed by the hierarch of the time, and to have their head crowned with the imperial crown. But Polyeuktos then held the patriarchal throne. Being a certain divine man and fervent in spirit, although he was past his prime in age, he made it clear to the emperor that it was not permitted for him to enter the sanctuary, until he should expel the Augusta from the palace, and should point out whoever the murderer of the emperor Nikephoros might be; and in addition the tome to the synod
παγανώσας, εἰς Ἀμάσειαν περιορίζει. ἱκανὴν οὖν ἐντεῦθεν ἀσφάλειαν ἑαυτῷ τε καὶ τοῖς πράγμασιν ἐπιβραβεύσας, καὶ ἅπαν τὸ ὕποπτον
τῆς πολιτείας ἀνακαθάρας, ἐν τοῖς βασιλείοις διέτριβε. πέμπτον καὶ τεσσαρακοστὸν ἔτος ἦν αὐτῷ τῆς ἡλικίας, ὅτε τῆς βασιλείου
ἐπέβη ἀρχῆς. γʹ. Τὴν δὲ ἰδέαν τοιόσδε ἦν· λευκὸς μὲν τὴν ὄψιν, καὶ εὔχρους, τὴν κόμην φέρων ξανθὴν καὶ ἀραιὰν ἐπὶ μέτωπον·
ὀφθαλμοὶ τούτῳ ἀνδρώδεις καὶ χαρωποί· ῥὶς λεπτή τε καὶ σύμμετρος· γένυς ἡ ἄνωθεν πυρσὴ, καὶ εἰς πλαίσιον καθειμένη παρὰ τὸ
μέτριον, ἡ δὲ κάτωθεν μεμετρημένη ὡς τὸ εἰκὸς, καὶ μήτι ἐνδεῶς ἔχουσα. τὴν δὲ ἡλικίαν βραχύς τις ἦν, εἰ καὶ στέρνον εὐρὺ καὶ
μετάφρενον εἶχε· γιγαντώδης δὲ τούτῳ ἐνῆν ἰσχὺς, καὶ ταῖς χερσὶν εὐαγωγία, καὶ ἀλκή τις ἀνανταγώνιστος· ἡρωϊκὴ γὰρ αὐτῷ ἀνεκέκρατο,
ἀδεής τε καὶ ἀκατάπληκτος, ἐν οὕτω 97 βραχεῖ σώματι ἀποδεδειγμένη τόλμαν ὑπερφυῆ. ἐς ὅλην γὰρ ἀντίπαλον φάλαγγα οὐκ ἀπεδειλία
μόνος ὁρμᾷν, πλείστους τε κατακτείνων, ἀπτερώτῳ τάχει πρὸς τὸν οἰκεῖον αὖθις συνασπισμὸν διανέκαμπτε, κακῶν ἀπαθής· ἐν ἅλματι
δὲ, καὶ σφαιρισμοῖς, καὶ ἀκοντισμοῖς, καὶ τόξων ἐντάσεσι καὶ βολαῖς, πάντων κατηυμεγέθει τῶν κατὰ τὴν αὐτὴν γενεάν. λέγεται,
ὡς κέλητας ἵππους τέτταρας στοιχηδὸν ἱστὰς, ἐκ τοῦ θατέρου μέρους καθαλλόμενος, ἐπὶ τὸν πύματον ὥς τις πτηνὸς ἐφίζανε. βέλος
τε ἀφιεὶς οὕτω κατεστοχάζετο τοῦ σκοποῦ, ὡς διὰ δακτυλίου ὀπῆς ἰέναι ἀπευθύνειν αὐτό· τοσοῦτον ὑπερέβαλλε καὶ τὸν παρ' Ὁμήρου
μεγαλαυχούμενον νησιώτην, τὸν διὰ τῶν πελέκεων τὸν ὀϊστὸν διευθύναντα. σφαῖράν τε ἐκ σκύτους κατειργασμένην ὑελίνου σκύφους
ἐν τῷ πυθμένι ἐπιτιθεὶς, μύωπί τε τὸν ἵππον κεντρίζων καὶ τὸν δρόμον ἐπιταχύνων, ῥάβδῳ παίων τὴν σφαῖραν, αὐτὴν μὲν ἀναθρώσκειν
καὶ πέτασθαι κατειργάζετο· τὸ δὲ δὴ σκύφος ἀμετακίνητον καὶ ἄθραυστον κατὰ χώραν μένειν ἐλίμπανε. μεγαλόδωρός τε καὶ φιλοδωρότατος
παρὰ πάντας ἦν· οὐδεὶς γὰρ αὐτὸν αἰτησάμενος τῶν ἐλπίδων κενὸς ἀπηλλάττετο. πᾶσι δὲ φιλαγάθως καὶ ἱλαρῶς ἐφιλανθρωπεύετο,
προφητικῶς τὸ ἔλαιον τῆς εὐποιΐας κιχρῶν· καὶ εἰ μὴ Βασίλειος ὁ παρακοιμώμενος αὐτὸν ἐπεῖχε τῆς ἀπλήστου περὶ τὸ εὐεργετεῖν
τοὺς ὁμοφύλους ῥοπῆς, κἂν τοὺς βασιλικοὺς θησαυροὺς εἰς τὴν τῶν δεομένων διανομὴν θᾶττον συνεξεφόρησεν. ἐλάττωμα δὲ Ἰωάννῃ
98 τοῦτο προσῆν, ὅτι τε περὶ πότους ἔστιν ὅτε παρὰ τὸ προσῆκον ἐκώμαζε, καὶ περὶ τὰς τοῦ σώματος ἡδονὰς διεπτόητο. δʹ. Ἀλλ'
οὕτω μὲν ἐν ἡμέραις ἑπτὰ τὰ τῆς πολιτείας διοικησάμενος, καὶ τὴν ἀρχὴν ἑαυτῷ κρατυνάμενος, καὶ ὡς οὐκ ἄν τις ᾠήθη ποτὲ (ἐν
γὰρ ταῖς μεγίσταις τῶν πραγμάτων μεταβολαῖς, πολλῆς, ὡς εἰκὸς, στάσεως ἀναῤῥιπιζομένης καὶ ταραχῆς, τότε, οὐκ οἶδ' ὅπως, παρατυχὸν
εὐκοσμία τις καὶ βαθεῖα σιγὴ τὸν δῆμον κατέσχε, τοῦ αὐτοκράτορος Νικηφόρου ἀναιρεθέντος, καί τινος ἑνὸς τῶν ὑπασπιστῶν ἑτέρου
μηδενὸς κἂν ἐπὶ κόῤῥης εἰληφότος κόνδυλον), ἐς τὸν θεῖον καὶ μέγαν τῆς τοῦ Θεοῦ Σοφίας σηκὸν εἰσφοιτᾷ, ὡς πρὸς τοῦ πατριάρχου
κατὰ τὸ εἰθισμένον τῷ βασιλείῳ διαδήματι ταινιωθησόμενος. εἴθισται γὰρ τοὺς νέον τῆς Ῥωμαϊκῆς ἡγεμονίας προσεπιβαίνοντας ἐπί
τε τὸν ἄμβωνα τοῦ νεὼ ἀνιέναι, καὶ πρὸς τοῦ κατὰ καιροὺς ἱεράρχου εὐλογεῖσθαί τε, καὶ τῷ βασιλείῳ στέφει ταινιοῦσθαι τὴν κεφαλήν.
ὁ δὲ Πολύευκτος τὸν τῆς πατριαρχίας τότε θρόνον κατεῖχε. θεῖός τέ τις ὢν καὶ ζέων τῷ πνεύματι, εἰ καὶ τὴν ἡλικίαν ἔξωρος ἦν,
μὴ ἐξεῖναί οἱ ἐδήλου τῷ βασιλεῖ ἐς τὸ ἱερὸν εἰσελαύνειν, πρὶν ἂν τὴν Αὐγοῦσταν τῶν βασιλείων ἐξαγάγῃ, καὶ τὸν ἀναιρέτην τοῦ
αὐτοκράτορος Νικηφόρου, ὅσπερ ἂν εἴη, καθυποδείξῃ· καὶ προσέτι τὸν τόμον τῇ συνόδῳ
