he hastened for the scepters of the kingdom, as much as possible, to win the goodwill of the citizens, especially when he learned about the affairs of Bryennius and the forces gathered around him; for he knew that besides being a most excellent general, he was also most generous and most energetic. For this reason, ostensibly seeking the citizens' goodwill, he won it over, especially by striving to be shown as another most generous man, but not with due reason; indeed, in this way he became the cause of great confusion for the Roman state. For there being two sources from which the Roman empire took its greatest pride, channeling rewards to the best men and to others who contributed their goodwill, he unstopped both of these and provided lavishly for all to draw from them freely; for he lavished the greatest dignities not on the best men and soldiers and those descended from the senatorial council, nor on those who contributed some goodwill, but on anyone who asked; and the same was done with what are called offices among the Romans, so that the expenditures became many times greater than the income, and from such a cause, after a short time when the money had run out, the currency was then debased, and the gifts from the emperor belonging to the dignities and offices were withheld because of the scarcity of money. For since the inflow of money supplied from Asia to the treasuries had ceased because the Turks had become masters of all Asia, and the revenues from Europe had been completely straitened, and the existing funds were being badly spent, it happened that there was the greatest possible scarcity of money in the imperial treasuries. But thus he, wishing to be shown as generous, misused his generosity, wanting to make the city loyal to himself, as has been said before. 4.2 But Bryennius, staying in Odrysae and having learned of the affairs concerning the emperor Michael and the city's revolt against him, collected the whole Macedonian and Thracian army, and bringing allies as well, set out for Byzantium. But Botaneiates, learning of this and fearing that by approaching the city with so great a force he would cause him to be driven from the kingdom before he was almost established in it, for the time being decided to send ambassadors to him who would speak about reconciliation and agreements; then, after appointing Alexios Komnenos, who had been adopted by the empress Maria, as Domestic of the Schools of the west, he prepared to send him to face him in battle. Lacking his own army, he sent to the leaders of the Turks who were staying in Nicaea of Bithynia; these were Masur and Solyman, the sons of Kutlumush, and they immediately sent out no fewer than two thousand allies and were preparing others to follow. But before the allies arrived, it seemed best for the ambassadors to depart, and there were sent both Constantine Choirosphaktes, then holding the rank of proedros, a man of sense and learning and adorned with all the good qualities that befit a statesman, and Straboromanos, who came from Pentapolis in Phrygia, a clever and energetic man, tracing his lineage to †these† and being a kinsman of the emperor Nikephoros. So they departed and met Bryennius near Theodoroupolis, who had drawn up his phalanx and was marching on foot; while still at a distance and observing the ranks and the phalanx drawn up in good order, they admired both the multitude and the order and extolled the leader. When they drew near, those in charge of the companies reported their arrival to the one acting as emperor. He ordered the ranks to halt, and taking with him the chosen men, the commander of the Macedonians and the Thracians, both generals and ilarchs and commanders, he withdrew a little from the phalanx, and when all had dismounted from their horses and stood in rows beside each other, he alone was on horseback, with a white horse serving his needs; and he stood not in arms, but in imperial attire, which he seemed rather to adorn,

βασιλείας σκήπτρων ἔσπευδεν, ὡς οἷόν τε, τὴν τῶν πολιτῶν εὔνοιαν ἐπισπάσασθαι, μάλιστα καὶ τὰ κατὰ τὸν Βρυέννιον πυνθανόμενος καὶ τὰς περὶ αὐτὸν ἀθροισθείσας δυνάμεις· ᾔδει γὰρ αὐτὸν πρὸς τῷ στρατηγικώτατον εἶναι καὶ ἐλευθεριώτατον ὄντα ὁμοῦ καὶ δραστηριώτατον. ∆ιὰ τοῦτο τὴν τῶν πολιτῶν δῆθεν θηρώμενος εὔνοιαν ἐπεσπάσατο ταύτην καὶ μάλιστα ἐλευθεριώτατος ἄλλος ἀναδειχθῆναι φιλονεικήσας, πλὴν οὐ ξὺν λόγῳ τῷ δέοντι· ταύτῃ τοι καὶ μεγάλης συγχύσεως τῇ πολιτείᾳ Ῥωμαίων γέγονεν αἴτιος. ∆υοῖν γὰρ ὄντοιν πόροιν ἐξ ὧν ἡ βασιλεία Ῥωμαίων τὰ μέγιστα ἐσεμνύνετο ὀχετηγοῦσα τὰ γέρα τοῖς ἀριστεύουσι καὶ τοῖς ἄλλως εὔνοιαν συνεισφέρουσιν, ἄμφω τούτους ἀναστομώσας τοῖς πᾶσι προῖκα ἐκεῖθεν ἀρδεύεσθαι δαψιλῶς ἐχορήγησε· τῶν τε γὰρ ἀξιωμάτων τὰ μέγιστα οὐκ ἀριστεῦσι καὶ στρατιώταις καὶ τοῖς ἐκ τῆς συγκλήτου βουλῆς καταγομένοις πεφιλοτίμητο οὐδὲ τοῖς εὔνοιάν τινα συνεισφέρουσιν, ἀλλὰ παντὶ τῷ αἰτοῦντι· ταὐτὸ δὲ καὶ τοῖς λεγομένοις παρὰ Ῥωμαίοις ὀφφικίοις ἐπετελεῖτο, ὥστε ξυμβῆναι πολλαπλασίους τὰς ἐξόδους τῆς εἰσόδου γενέσθαι κἀκ τῆς τοιαύτης αἰτίας μετὰ βραχύν τινα χρόνον τῶν χρημάτων ἐκλελοιπότων τό τε νόμισμα κεκιβδήλευτο λοιπὸν καὶ αἱ τοῖς ἀξιώμασι καὶ τοῖς ὀφφικίοις ἐκ βασιλέως ἀνήκουσαι δωρεαὶ διὰ τὴν τῶν χρημάτων σπάνιν ὑπεκρούοντο. Τῆς γὰρ τῶν χρημάτων ἐπεισροῆς τῶν ἀπὸ τῆς Ἀσίας χορηγουμένων τοῖς ταμείοις ἀποφυγούσης ἐκ τοῦ τῆς Ἀσίας ἁπάσης κατακυριεῦσαι τοὺς Τούρκους καὶ τῶν ἀπὸ τῆς Εὐρώπης παντάπασι στενωθέντων, τῶν τε προυπαρχόντων κακῶς καταναλισκομένων ξυνέβαινε σπάνιν ὅτι πλείστην εἶναι χρημάτων τοῖς βασιλικοῖς ταμείοις. Ἀλλ' οὕτω μὲν ἐκεῖνος ἐλευθέριος θέλων ἀποδειχθῆναι παρεχρήσατο τῇ ἐλευθερίᾳ, εὔνουν ἑαυτῷ τὸ πόλισμα καταστῆσαι βουλόμενος, ὡς προείρηται. 4.2 Ὁ δὲ Βρυέννιος ἐν Ὀδρυσοῖς διάγων καὶ τὰ κατὰ τὸν βασιλέα Μιχαὴλ πυθόμενος καὶ τὴν κατ' ἐκείνου στάσιν τῆς πόλεως, τὸ Μακεδονικὸν καὶ Θρᾳκικὸν στράτευμα συλλεξάμενος ὅλον, ἐπαγόμενος καὶ συμμάχους, ἐξώρμα πρὸς τὸ Βυζάντιον. Ἀλλὰ μαθὼν ὁ Βοτανειάτης καὶ δείσας μὴ μετὰ τοσαύτης δυνάμεως πλησιάσας τῇ πόλει ἐκπεσεῖν αὐτὸν παρασκευάσει τῆς βασιλείας πρὸ τοῦ ταύτην σχεδὸν ἐνιδρυνθῆναι, τέως μὲν πρέσβεις ἐδόκει πέμπειν πρὸς ἐκεῖνον τοὺς περὶ διαλλαγῶν καὶ ξυμβάσεων ὁμιλήσοντας· εἶτα τὸν Κομνηνὸν Ἀλέξιον υἱοθετηθέντα τῇ βασιλίδι Μαρίᾳ δομέστικον τῶν Σχολῶν ἀποδείξας τῆς δύσεως ηὐτρέπιζε πέμπειν πρὸς ἀντιπαράταξιν. Στρατεύματος δ' ἀπορῶν οἰκείου διεπέμπετο πρὸς τοὺς τῶν Τούρκων ἐξάρχοντας ἐν Νικαίᾳ τῆς Βιθυνίας διατρίβοντας· ἤστην δὲ τούτω Μασοὺρ καὶ Σολυμάν, οἱ τοῦ Κουτλουμοῦς παῖδες, καὶ αὐτίκα ἐκεῖνοι συμμάχους ἐξέπεμπον οὐκ ἐλάττονας δισχιλίων καὶ κατὰ πόδας ἑτέρους ηὐτρέπιζον. Μήπω δὲ τῶν συμμάχων φθασάντων, ἐδόκει τοὺς πρέσβεις ἀπιέναι καὶ ἐπέμποντο ὅ τε Χοιροσφάκτης Κωνσταντῖνος εἰς προέδρους τότε τέλων, ἀνὴρ νουνεχής τε καὶ λόγιος καὶ πᾶσι κομῶν τοῖς καλοῖς ὁπόσα πολιτικὸν ἄνδρα κοσμοῦσι, καὶ ὁ Στραβορωμανός, ὃς ἐκ Πενταπόλεως ὥρμητο τῆς Φρυγίας, ἀνὴρ δεινὸς καὶ δραστήριος, τὸ γένος ἀνέλκων εἰς †τούτους† καὶ συγγενὴς ὢν τῷ βασιλεῖ Νικηφόρῳ. Ἀπελθόντες οὖν ἐντυγχάνουσι τῷ Βρυεννίῳ περὶ τὴν Θεοδωρούπολιν τὴν φάλαγγα τάξαντι καὶ βάδην πορευομένῳ· ἔτι δὲ πόρρω ὄντες καὶ τὰς τάξεις θεώμενοι καὶ τὴν φάλαγγα κοσμίως συντεταγμένην ἐθαύμαζόν τε τὸ πλῆθος ὁμοῦ καὶ τὴν τάξιν καὶ τὸν ἄγοντα ἐμεγάλυνον. Ἐπεὶ δ' ἐγένοντο πλησίον, οἱ ἐπὶ τῶν ἑταιρειῶν τεταγμένοι καὶ τὰ τούτων πρὸς τὸν βασιλειῶντα ἀνέφερον. Ὁ δὲ κελεύσας τὰς τάξεις στῆναι καὶ τοὺς λογάδας παραλαβών, τόν τε Μακεδόνων ἄρχοντα καὶ Θρᾳκῶν στρατηγούς τε καὶ ἰλάρχας καὶ ἄρχοντας, μικρόν τι τῆς φάλαγγος ὑπεξῄει καὶ πάντων ἀποβάντων τῶν ἵππων καὶ στοιχηδὸν παρ' ἀλλήλων στάντων μόνος ἔφιππος ἦν, ἵππου λευκοῦ τὴν χρείαν αὐτοῦ πληροῦντος· ἵστατο δὲ οὐκ ἐν τοῖς ὅπλοις, ἀλλ' ἐν κόσμῳ βασιλικῷ, ὃν ἐδόκει μᾶλλον ἐκεῖνος κοσμεῖν,