,

delay and the later expected3.15.4 difficulties. For the Persians do not have rations from the state like the Romans when going to war, nor are they assembled from villages and fields; but it is their custom of self-sufficiency to have what is distributed from the king as is customary, and to the extent that they manage to subsist on what is provided and are forced to be fed from it along with their animals, until such time 3.15.5 as they invade the foreign land. And so the Persian king, fearing mutinies of the army, thought to enter into discussions about peace with Tiberius Caesar. But Caesar, having learned this, decided to proceed to negotiations. 3.15.6 Therefore, he sent out as ambassadors, having appointed them as competent to establish the terms of a treaty, John and Peter, who held the highest rank in the senatorial council (for they happened to be patricians), and Theodore, who was honored and revered by the Romans with the office of magister; 3.15.7 and indeed Chosroes also sent Sarnachorganes, a man conspicuous in the Persian state on account of his rank, along with other most worthy men, 3.15.8 entrusting the respite from war to them. Therefore, since a fierce battle between the Romans and the Parthians was joined in Armenia at that time, with Tamchosro in command of the Babylonian force and Justinian leading the Roman host, the Roman side fell short of its 3.15. former glory. For this reason, the Medes renounced the peace treaties, and their love of war was rekindled, not being disposed to be moderate after their recent 3.15.10 achievements. So the ambassadors, having accomplished their purpose only as far as words, returned home, having left the embassies for peace orphaned; but Tiberius Caesar, because of what had so befallen him, appointed Maurice as general, who at that very time was commander of the emperor's bodyguards 3.15.11, and sent him to the regions of Armenia. But Sarnachorganes, the commander of the barbarian army, while the time of the truces that had been established in the east between the Romans and the Medes was still in effect, broke the truce against Constantina 3.15.12 and Theodosiopolis, sending his force with speed. So the general of the Chaldeans, taking his force, was ravaging the areas around Constantina and Theodosiopolis, while Tamchosro, who was invested with the command of the Persian troops in Armenia, when he now realized that the assembled forces of the Romans were far more numerous than his own, left Armenia and, passing by Citharizon, the Roman fortress, fell upon districts and villages near Amida. Then invading through Arzanene, he proceeded 3.15.13 homewards. But Maurice, the Roman general, seeing that the barbarians had left Armenia and had undertaken to ravage the lands of the east, set out with his whole army and invaded the Persian country; and when a severe fever came upon his body, he was confined by his illness, being nursed. 3.15.14 The Romans, therefore, invading Arzanene, and there being no one to defend it, captured Aphoumon, a fortress so-called, which was very strong, and demolished some other fortresses and inflicted great slaughter on the Persian state; 3.15.15 and having taken ten thousand and ninety of the Persians prisoner, the army, having presented the third portion of these to Maurice the Roman general, did not make the rewards of war irreparable. So the general reported the capture of the prisoners to Caesar, and Caesar distributed the booty throughout Cyprus. 3.16.1 So, when Arzanene had suffered badly from the Roman spear, the general moved on and invaded the regions of Arabia situated not far from Nisibis 3.16.2 most swiftly. Then having subdued the land as far as the river Tigris, he sent Curs and Romanus to the opposite bank to plunder the enemy territory

τριβὴ καὶ τὰ ἐς ὕστερον ἐλπιζό3.15.4 μενα δυσχερῆ. οὐ γὰρ ἔχουσι Πέρσαι ἐκ πρυτανείου σιτήσεις καθάπερ ῾Ρωμαῖοι ἰόντες εἰς πόλεμον, ἀλλ' οὐδὲ κατὰ κώμας τε καὶ ἀγροὺς συναγείρονται· ἀλλ' ἐστὶ νόμος αὐταρκείας αὐτοῖς τὰ παρὰ τοῦ βασιλέως κατὰ τὸ εἰωθὸς διανεμόμενα, καὶ εἰς ὅσον ἀποζῆν οἰκονομοῦσι τὰ παρεχόμενα καὶ διατρέφεσθαι ἐντεῦθεν καταναγκάζονται ἅμα τοῖς κτήνεσιν, μέχρις ἂν ὅτου 3.15.5 ἐς τὴν ἀλλοτρίαν ἐμβάλωσιν. καὶ οὖν ὁ τοῦ Περσικοῦ βασιλεὺς τὰς στάσεις τοῦ ὁπλιτικοῦ δεδιὼς διενοήθη ἐς λόγους περὶ τῆς εἰρήνης κοινολογήσασθαι Τιβερίῳ τῷ Καίσαρι. ὁ δὲ Καῖσαρ ταῦτα πυθόμενος ἐς διαλλαγὰς προιέναι διέγνω. 3.15.6 ἐκπέμπει γοῦν τοὺς περὶ συμβάσεως λόγους δυνατοὺς καθιδρύσασθαι κεχειροτονηκὼς πρεσβευτὰς ᾿Ιωάννην καὶ Πέτρον, ἐν τῇ κορυφαίᾳ τῆς συγκλήτου βουλῆς τελοῦντας ἀξίᾳ (πατρίκιοι δ' ἄρα ὄντες ἐτύγχανον), Θεόδωρόν τε τῇ μαγιστερίᾳ ἀρχῇ 3.15.7 παρὰ ῾Ρωμαίοις τιμώμενόν τε καὶ γεραιρόμενον· ναὶ μὴν καὶ Χοσρόης Σαρναχοργάνην, ἄνδρα τῇ Περσικῇ πολιτείᾳ διὰ τὴν ἀξίαν ἀπόβλεπτον, πρὸς ἑτέροις ἀξιολογωτάτοις ἀνδράσιν, 3.15.8 τῷ πολέμῳ δι' αὐτῶν παραδοὺς τὴν ἀνάπαυλαν. συστάσης τοίνυν περὶ τὴν ᾿Αρμενίαν κατ' ἐκεῖνο καιροῦ καρτερᾶς μάχης ῾Ρωμαίοις τε καὶ Πάρθοις, Ταμχοσρὼ ἐφεστηκότος τῆς Βαβυλωνίας δυνάμεως, ᾿Ιουστινιανοῦ τε τῆς ῾Ρωμαϊκῆςἐξηγουμένου πληθύος, γίνεται κατόπιν τὸ ῾Ρωμαϊκὸν τῆς 3.15. προτέρας εὐκλείας. διά τοι τοῦτο ἀπειρήκασι Μῆδοι τῶν εἰρηναίων σπονδῶν, καὶ πάλιν αὐτοῖς ἀναζωπυροῦται τὸ φιλοπόλεμον, μετριοπαθεῖν ἐπὶ τοῖς ἔναγχος οὐ χωρήσαντες 3.15.10 ἐπιτεύγμασιν. οἱ μὲν οὖν πρέσβεις μέχρι λόγων τὰ τοῦ σκοποῦ διανύσαντες χωροῦσι πρὸς τὰ οἴκοι ὀρφανὰς τὰς πρεσβείας τῆς εἰρήνης καταλείψαντες· Τιβέριος δ' ὁ Καῖσαρ τῶν οὕτω συντετυχηκότων αὐτῷ Μαυρίκιον στρατηγὸν προστησάμενος, τότε δὴ τότε τῶν σωματοφυλάκων τοῦ βασιλέως 3.15.11 ἡγούμενον, ἐν τοῖς κλίτεσι τῆς ᾿Αρμενίας ἐξέπεμπεν. ὁ δὲ τοῦ βαρβαρικοῦ Σαρναχοργάνης στρατίαρχος, ἔτι τοῦ χρόνου τῶν σπονδῶν ἐνδαψιλευομένων τῶν περὶ τὴν ἕω προελθουσῶν ῾Ρωμαίοις τε καὶ Μήδοις, παρασπονδήσας κατὰ Κωνσταντίνης 3.15.12 καὶ τῆς Θεοδοσιουπόλεως τὸ τάχος ἀπέστελλεν. ὁ μὲν οὖν στρατηγὸς τῶν Χαλδαίων τὴν δύναμιν ἀναλαβόμενος τὰ περὶ τὴν Κωνσταντῖναν καὶ τὴν Θεοδοσιούπολιν ἐλυμαίνετο, Ταμχοσρὼ δ', ὃς τῶν ἐν ᾿Αρμενίᾳ Περσικῶν στρατευμάτων τὴν ἡγεμονίαν ἠμφίεστο, ὅτε που νῦν τὰς συνελθούσας δυνάμεις ῾Ρωμαίων πολλῷ πλείους τῶν οἰκείων οὔσας διέγνωκεν, τὴν ᾿Αρμενίαν ἀπολιπὼν τό τε Κιθαρίζων τὸ ῾Ρωμαίων φρούριον παραμείψας ἐπιπίπτει χωρίοις τε καὶ κώμαις πλησίον ᾿Αμίδης γενόμενος. εἶτα διὰ τῆς ᾿Αρζανηνῆς εἰσβαλὼν ἐχώρει 3.15.13 εἰς τὰ οἴκοι. ὁ δὲ Μαυρίκιος, ὁ τοῦ ῾Ρωμαϊκοῦ στρατηγός, τοὺς βαρβάρους καταλιπόντας τὴν ᾿Αρμενίαν θεώμενος τά τε εἰς τὴν ἑῴαν φθείρειν διαχειρήσαντας, ἄρας πανστρατιᾷ τῇ Περσῶν ἐνεδήμησε χώρᾳ, θέρμης τε τῷ σώματι ἐπιγενομένης αὐτῷ καρτερᾶς, εἴχετο τῶν πόνων νοσηλευόμενος. 3.15.14 ἐμβαλόντες οὖν τῇ ᾿Αρζανηνῇ οἱ ῾Ρωμαῖοι, καὶ οὐκ ὄντος τοῦ ἀπαμύνοντος, τὸ ᾿Αφούμων, οὕτω καλούμενον φρούριον, ἐρυμνότατον ὂν παρεστήσαντο φρούριά τε ἕτερα κατεσκάψαντο ἄττα φόνον τε πολὺν τῇ Περσῶν πολιτείᾳ ἐνεπορεύσαντο· 3.15.15 ζωγρήσαντές τε τοῦ Περσικοῦ ἐνενήκοντα πρὸς ταῖς δέκα χιλιάσιν, τούτων τὴν τρίτην ἀπόμοιραν Μαυρικίῳ τῷ ῾Ρωμαίων στρατηγῷ οἱ τοῦ ὁπλιτικοῦ δωρησάμενοι, οὐκ ἀνήκεστα τοῦ πολέμου τὰ ἐπίχειρα ἐπεποίηντο. ὁ μὲν οὖν στρατηγὸς τῶν ζωγρηθέντων τὴν ἐνδημίαν παρεδήλου τῷ Καίσαρι, ὁ δὲ Καῖσαρ ἀνὰ τὴν Κύπρον τὴν λείαν διέχεεν. 3.16.1 Οὕτω τοιγαροῦν τῆς ᾿Αρζανηνῆς ὑπὸ τοῦ ῾Ρωμαϊκοῦ δόρατος παθούσης κακῶς, μεταβαίνει ὁ στρατηγὸς καὶ τοῖς τῆς ᾿Αραβίας χωρίοις ἐνέβαλεν οὐ πόρρω τῆς Νίσιβι ἱδρυμένοις 3.16.2 ἐπιτομώτατα. εἶτα μέχρι τοῦ Τίγριδος καταστρεψάμενος ποταμοῦ, ἐς τὸ ἀντιπέρας τὸν Κοὺρς καὶ τὸν ῾Ρωμανὸν ἐξεπέμπετο τὴν πολεμίαν ληΐσοντας