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
immediately, lest it be some ill-omened thing, and destruction befall the pursuing Mysians; but learning they were fleeing at full speed, he both pursued and mercilessly cut down countless multitudes. And now one can still see heaps of bones near Anchialus, where the fleeing army of the Romans was then ingloriously cut to pieces. But Leo, since he was late in his arrival at Byzantium and had missed his hope (for Romanus had already seized the imperial hearth and been proclaimed Father of the Emperor), having crossed over to Asia through Abydus, inclined towards rebellion, and caused many troubles for Romanus and the state, overrunning the land, and taking away the annual taxes, and subduing those who opposed him. But when in time his band of robbers was dispersed, and his plan had turned back against him, he resorted to flight, and was captured and had his eyes cruelly gouged out. 8. But these things were so. But as Phocas was then hurrying 125 to the fortress, and was in the rearguard of his men, one of his attackers, riding out, bold and arrogant, came at him, raising his sword with threats, and attempting to strike. But he advised him to depart as quickly as possible, respecting the fortunes that had befallen him. For it was necessary, being a mortal, to be wary in every way of the instability and faithlessness of affairs, and not to add pain to the pains of an unfortunate man. For the terrible things that surrounded this man were enough, which had driven him to this point of misfortune, so that he who had commanded the Roman army was now seen as a fugitive. But the other, considering such words to be mere nonsense, came closer, trying to strike. But Bardas, taking up the mace hanging at his side, and suddenly turning around, strikes the man on the helmet; and he, his skull fractured along with his helmet, crashes speechless to the ground; and thus Phocas escaped safely to the fortress. But Bardas, the commander-in-chief and Magister, having surrounded the fortress, advised Bardas Phocas to ask for the benevolence of the ruler, and to come down from the wall as quickly as possible. But he, since he was caught in the utmost helplessness and dire perplexity, after much deliberation and consideration, decided to give in to fortune, and to yield to the rulers, if he might receive immunity for himself and his dearest ones. Therefore, having immediately asked for pledges that he would suffer nothing unpleasant, and having received these from Sclerus, he came down from the fortress with his wife and children. And he, having received them, 126 kept them under guard without harm, and reported what had happened to the emperor, asking what should be done. And the emperor John declared that Bardas Phocas, after being tonsured as a cleric, should be confined on the island of Chios along with his wife and children; and that he himself, having taken up the forces, should cross over to Europe through the Hellespont, to winter in the winter quarters there; so that, as soon as spring arrived, the emperor himself with his guards might campaign against the Scythians; for he could no longer endure their unrestrained insolence. 9. For these men, having learned of the departure of the commander-in-chief Bardas from Europe, who had been sent to Asia by the emperor on account of the rebellion recently stirred up by Bardas Phocas, as has already been said by me, were harming the Romans greatly, making sudden raids, and plundering and ravaging the land of the Macedonians without restraint; since the Magister John, surnamed Courcouas, who had been entrusted with the command of the army there, had, contrary to what was fitting, inclined to ease and drinking, and had handled matters inexperiencedly and ignorantly; for which reason also into
παραυτίκα, μή τι σκαιωρούμενον εἴη, καὶ ὄλεθρος Μυσοῖς ἐπισπομένοις ἐγγένηται· μαθόντα δὲ ἀνὰ κράτος φεύγειν αὐτοὺς, ἕπεσθαί
τε, καὶ ἄπειρα πλήθη συγκόψαι ἀνηλεῶς. καὶ νῦν ἐστὶν ὁρᾷν εἰσέτι σωρείας ὀστῶν παρὰ τὴν Ἀγχίαλον, καθ' ἣν ἀκλεῶς συνεκόπη
τότε φεῦγον τῶν Ῥωμαίων τὸ στράτευμα. ὁ δὲ Λέων, ἐπείπερ ὑστέρησε τῆς εἰς τὸ Βυζάντιον ἀφίξεως, καὶ τῆς ἐλπίδος ἡμάρτανεν
(ἔφθη γὰρ ὁ Ῥωμανὸς τὴν βασίλειον ἑστίαν κατειληφὼς καὶ Πατὴρ Βασιλέως ἀναῤῥηθείς), ἐς τὴν Ἀσίαν διὰ τῆς Ἀβύδου περαιωθεὶς,
πρὸς ἀποστασίαν ἀπέκλινε, καὶ πολλὰ τῷ Ῥωμανῷ καὶ τῇ πολιτείᾳ παρέσχε πράγματα, κατατρέχων, καὶ τοὺς ἐτησίους φόρους ἀφαιρούμενος,
καὶ τοὺς ἀντικαθισταμένους χειρούμενος. ἤδη δὲ τῷ χρόνῳ τοῦ λῃστρικοῦ διασκεδασθέντος, καὶ εἰς τοὔμπαλιν αὐτῷ ὑπονοστήσαντος
τοῦ βουλεύματος, φυγαδείᾳ χρήσασθαι, συλληφθῆναί τε καὶ ὠμῶς ἐκκεντηθῆναι τοὺς ὀφθαλμούς. ηʹ. Ἀλλὰ ταῦτα μὲν οὕτως. Φωκᾷ δὲ
ἐπειγομένῳ τηνικαῦτα 125 ἐπὶ τὸ φρούριον, καὶ οὐραγοῦντι τῶν ἀμφ' αὑτὸν, τῶν ἐπιτιθεμένων αὐτῷ τις ἐξιππασάμενος, θρασὺς καὶ
ἀγέρωχος, ἐπῄει, ἐπανατείνων τὸ ξίφος μετ' ἀπειλῶν, καὶ πλήττειν ἐπιχειρῶν. ὁ δὲ ἀπαλλάττεσθαι τὴν ταχίστην παρῄνει, τὰς κατασχούσας
αὐτὸν τύχας εὐλαβηθέντα. δεῖν δὲ, θνητὸν ὄντα, τὸ ἄστατον πάντως ὑφορᾶσθαι τῶν πραγμάτων καὶ ἄπιστον, καὶ μὴ προστιθέναι κακοδαιμονοῦντος
ἀνδρὸς τοῖς ἀλγήμασιν ἄλγημα. ἀρκεῖν γὰρ τὰ περιστοιχήσαντα τοῦτον δεινὰ, ἅτινα εἰς τοῦτο δυσπραγίας αὐτὸν περιήλασαν, ὡς
φυγάδα νῦν καθορᾶσθαι τὸν τῆς Ῥωμαϊκῆς κατάρξαντα στρατιᾶς. ὁ δὲ, ὕθλον τηνάλλως τοὺς τοιούτους λόγους τιθέμενος, πλησιέστερον
ᾔει, πλήττειν πειρώμενος. ὁ δὲ Βάρδας, τὴν παρῃωρημένην κορύνην μεταχειρισάμενος, αἰφνίδιόν τε συστραφεὶς, κατὰ τῆς κόρυθος
παίει τὸν ἄνθρωπον· ὁ δὲ, αὐτῇ κυνῇ κατεαγεὶς τὸ κρανίον, ἄναυδος τῇ γῇ προσαράσσεται· καὶ οὕτως ἐς τὸ φρούριον ὁ Φωκᾶς διασώζεται.
Βάρδας δὲ, ὁ στρατηλάτης καὶ Μάγιστρος, τὸ φρούριον κυκλωσάμενος, παρῄνει τῷ Φωκᾷ Βάρδᾳ, τὴν εὐμένειαν τοῦ κρατοῦντος αἰτήσασθαι,
καὶ τοῦ τειχίου κατιέναι ὡς τάχιστα. ὁ δὲ, ἐπεὶ ἐς ἀμηχανίαν ἐσχάτην καὶ δεινὴν ἀπορίαν συνείληπτο, πολλὰ γνωματεύσας καὶ
λογισάμενος, ἔγνω ἐνδοῦναι τῇ τύχῃ, καὶ εἶξαι τοῖς κρατοῦσιν, εἰ ἀπάθειαν αὑτοῦ τε καὶ τῶν φιλτάτων λήψοιτο. παραυτίκα οὖν
πίστεις ἐξαιτησάμενος, ὡς οὐδέν τι τῶν ἀηδῶν πείσεται, καὶ ταύτας πρὸς τοῦ Σκληροῦ εἰληφώς, κάτεισι τοῦ φρουρίου σὺν γυναικὶ
καὶ τέκνοις. ὁ δὲ τούτους δεξάμενος 126 ἀλύπως ἐφρούρει, ἀναφέρει τὰ ξυναχθέντα πρὸς βασιλέα, ἐρόμενος ὅ,τι δεῖ καὶ ποιεῖν.
ὁ δὲ αὐτοκράτωρ Ἰωάννης ἐδήλου, τὸν μὲν τοῦ Φωκᾶ Βάρδαν, κληρικὸν ἀποκαρέντα, ἅμα συζύγῳ καὶ τέκνοις ἐν τῇ νήσῳ Χίῳ περιορίσαι·
αὐτὸν δὲ, τὰς δυνάμεις ἀνειληφότα, ἐς τὴν Εὐρώπην διὰ τοῦ Ἑλλησπόντου διαπερᾷν, χειμεριοῦντα πρὸς τὰ ἐκεῖσε χειμάδια· ὡς,
ἦρος εὐθὺς ἐπιγινομένου, καὶ αὐτὸν βασιλέα μετὰ τῶν ὑπασπιστῶν ἐκστρατεῦσαι κατὰ Σκυθῶν· μηδὲ γὰρ τὴν τούτων ἀκάθεκτον ὕβριν
καρτερῆσαι λοιπόν. θʹ. Οὗτοι γὰρ, τὴν ἀπὸ τῆς Εὐρώπης τοῦ στρατηλάτου Βάρδα διαγνόντες ἄπαρσιν, ἐς τὴν Ἀσίαν παρὰ βασιλέως
σταλέντος διὰ τὸν ἔναγχος ἀναῤῥιπισθέντα πρὸς τοῦ Φωκᾶ Βάρδα νεωτερισμὸν, καθάπερ μοι ἤδη ἐῤῥήθη, τὰ μέγιστα Ῥωμαίους ἐσίνοντο,
αἰφνιδίους ἐπεξελάσεις ποιούμενοι, καὶ τὴν τῶν Μακεδόνων ληϊζόμενοι καὶ δῃοῦντες ἀφειδῶς· τοῦ τὴν ἐπιστασίαν τῆς ἐνταῦθα στρατιᾶς
ἐγχειρισθέντος Ἰωάννου Μαγίστρου, ᾧ Κουρκούας ἐπώνυμον, ἐς ῥᾳστώνην καὶ πότους, παρὰ τὸ εἰκὸς, ἀποκλίναντος, ἀπείρως τε καὶ
ἀμαθῶς κεχρημένου τοῖς πράγμασι· τῷ τοι καὶ ἐς
