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of all. And while Heraclius, the father of the emperor Heraclius, was general in Africa and Libya, 202 the members of the senate and Priscus the commander himself sent messages to him, asking to be delivered from the tyranny of Phocas. The aforementioned general Heraclius had a certain Gregoras, one of the notables, as his subordinate general. These two then, having conspired together, sent their own sons against the tyrant, Heraclius sending Heraclius sailing with many ships and a multitude of soldiers, and the patrician Gregoras sending Nicetas marching on foot with many horsemen and an infantry army, on the condition that whichever one first captured the chief of cities and deposed the tyrant would be deemed worthy of the empire. Learning these things, Phocas seized the mother of Heraclius and his betrothed Eudocia, whom he had betrothed from Africa, who was the daughter of the leading man of that country, and shut them up in a monastery. Heraclius therefore arrived first and anchored at the harbor of Sophia and, when battle was joined, he prevailed over the forces of Phocas. For he was also assisted by Crispus, who then held the office of prefect. And Photius, one of the distinguished men, whose wife the tyrant had violently committed adultery with, seizing the palace with a multitude of soldiers, dragged the tyrant from the throne (for those around him, despairing of the palace, had withdrawn) and stripping off 203 the purple, clothed him in a grey garment and presented him as a prisoner to Heraclius. And he, seeing him, said, "Is this how, wretch, you have managed the affairs of the city?" And Phocas, being possessed by desperation, answered, "And will you manage them any better?" And Heraclius, becoming angry, leaped upon him with his foot and ordered him to be cut down. Some, therefore, have recorded that he was killed immediately, but others say that first his hands and feet were cut off, and then also his genitals on account of his licentiousness and because he had shamed the wives of many men, and thus his head was cut off, and his wretched body was burned at the Ox; where there was a furnace, as it is said, made of bronze, having the shape of an ox, which had been brought from Pergamum, from which the place was also named. And his brothers and others of his associates were killed. For the most evil Phocas, then, such was the end of his tyranny, after he had trampled over the empire for eight years. And Heraclius, having been crowned by Sergius the patriarch, immediately crowned Eudocia his betrothed, and at the same time they received both the imperial crowns and the nuptial crowns, so that on the same day 204 they were both proclaimed emperors and bridegrooms. But the Persians were overrunning the East, and some of the lands they were bringing under their control, and others they were plundering; and the Roman army, attacking them, was defeated and destroyed, with a few men being saved by flight. And the Avars and the Scythians laid waste to Europe. Therefore the emperor Heraclius was at a loss as to what he should do. For upon examining the military registers, he found them to be very short, nearly all having been consumed in the wars. For of those who had proclaimed Phocas in the time of Maurice, numbering many thousands, only two surviving soldiers were found. Having therefore enlisted an army, he appointed Crispus general of Cappadocia and sent him there. And by the Augusta Eudocia, whom he also named Fabia, a daughter, Epiphania, was born to him. Then also a son was born, the younger Heraclius, also called the new Constantine, and he crowned both children with the imperial diadem. And after a short time his wife, the Augusta Eudocia, departed this life. And as 205 her body was being carried in imperial state through the forum, a certain barbarian girl, leaning out, happened to spit, and the spittle landed on the bier on which the Augusta was being carried out; and the girl, having been seized, was burned, offered to the deceased as a very wretched funeral tribute. And Heraclius married Martina, his niece, and proclaimed her Augusta. However, as Chosroes and the Persians were running amok and plundering everything, the emperor [sent] ambassadors to

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πάντων. καὶ στρατηγοῦντος ἐν Ἀφρικῇ καὶ Λιβύῃ Ἡρακλείου, τοῦ πατρὸς τοῦ βασιλεύσαντος Ἡρακλείου, 202 οἱ τῆς συγκλήτου καὶ αὐτὸς ὁ Πρίσκος ὁ στρατηλάτης διεπέμποντο πρὸς αὐτόν, δεόμενοι ἀπαλλαγῆναι τῆς τυραννίδος Φωκᾶ. ἦν δὲ τῷ εἰρημένῳ στρατηγῷ Ἡρακλείῳ ὑποστράτηγος Γρηγορᾶς τις τῶν ἐπισήμων. οὗτοι γοῦν ἄμφω συμπνεύσαντες στέλλουσι κατὰ τοῦ τυράννου τοὺς ἰδίους υἱούς, ὁ μὲν Ἡράκλειος τὸν Ἡράκλειον πολλαῖς ναυσὶ καὶ πλῆθος στρατιωτῶν πλοϊζόμενον, ὁ δὲ πατρίκιος Γρηγορᾶς τὸν Νικήταν πεζοποροῦντα σὺν ἱππόταις πολλοῖς καὶ πεζῇ στρατιᾷ, ἐπὶ συνθήκαις τοῦ τὸν προκαταλαβόντα τὴν ὑπερκειμένην τῶν πόλεων καὶ καθελόντα τὸν τύραννον τῆς βασιλείας ἀξιωθήσεσθαι. ταῦτα μαθὼν ὁ Φωκᾶς τὴν τοῦ Ἡρακλείου μητέρα καὶ τὴν μνηστὴν Εὐδοκίαν, ἣν ἐξ Ἀφρικῆς ἐμνηστεύσατο, θυγατέρα οὖσαν τοῦ τῆς χώρας ἐκείνης πρωτεύοντος, κατασχὼν κατέκλεισεν ἐν μονῇ. προκατέλαβε τοίνυν Ἡράκλειος καὶ προσώρμισε τῷ λιμένι τῶν Σοφιῶν καὶ μάχης συγκροτηθείσης ὑπερέσχε τῶν τοῦ Φωκᾶ. συνήργητο γὰρ καὶ ὑπὸ τοῦ Κρίσπου τὴν τοῦ ἐπάρχου τότε μετιόντος ἀρχήν. Φώτιος δὲ τῶν ἐπιφανῶν ὑπάρχων, οὗ τὴν γυναῖκα ὁ τύραννος βίᾳ ἐμοίχευσε, σὺν πλήθει στρατιωτῶν καταλαβὼν τὰ βασίλεια κατέσπασε τοῦ θρόνου τὸν τύραννον (οἱ γὰρ περὶ αὐτὸν ἀπογνόντες τῶν βασιλείων ὑπανεχώρησαν) καὶ ἀποδύσας 203 τὴν πορφυρίδα φαιὰν ἐσθῆτα ἐνέδυσε καὶ δέσμιον τῷ Ἡρακλείῳ παρέστησεν. ὁ δὲ ἰδὼν αὐτὸν ἔφη "οὕτως, ἄθλιε, τὰ τῆς πόλεως διῴκησας πράγματα;" καὶ ὁ Φωκᾶς ἀπονοίᾳ κάτοχος ὢν ἀπεκρίνατο "σὺ δὲ κρειττόνως μᾶλλον διοικήσεις αὐτά;" ὀργισθεὶς δὲ ὁ Ἡράκλειος λὰξ ἐκείνῳ ἐνέθορε καὶ ἐκτμηθῆναι προσέταξεν. οἱ μὲν οὖν αὐτίκα αὐτὸν ἀναιρεθῆναι ἱστόρησαν, οἱ δὲ πρότερον αὐτοῦ τὰς χεῖρας καὶ τοὺς πόδας ἐκκοπῆναί φασιν, εἶτα καὶ τὰ αἰδοῖα διὰ τὴν ἐκείνου ἀσέλγειαν καὶ ὅτι πολλῶν ᾔσχυνε γαμετάς, καὶ οὕτως αὐτοῦ τὴν κεφαλὴν ἐκκοπῆναι, τὸ δὲ δύστηνον σῶμα καυθῆναι κατὰ τὸν Βοῦν· ἔνθα κάμινος ἦν, ὡς λέγεται, ἐκ χαλκοῦ κατεσκευασμένη, σχῆμα βοὸς ἔχουσα, ἥπερ ἐκ Περγάμου κεκόμιστο, ἐξ ἧς καὶ ὁ τόπος ὠνόμαστο. καὶ οἱ ἀδελφοὶ αὐτοῦ καὶ ἄλλοι τῶν ᾠκειωμένων αὐτῷ ἀνῃρέθησαν. Τῷ μὲν οὖν κακίστῳ Φωκᾷ τοιοῦτον τέλος τῆς τυραννίδος ἐγένετο, ἔτη κατορχησαμένῳ τῆς βασιλείας ὀκτώ. Ἡράκλειος δὲ ὑπὸ Σεργίου τοῦ πατριάρχου στεφθεὶς αὐτίκα καὶ τὴν Εὐδοκίαν τὴν μνηστὴν ταινιοῖ, καὶ ἅμα τά τε βασίλεια στέφη καὶ τοὺς γαμηλίους στεφάνους ἐδέξαντο, ὥστε κατὰ τὴν αὐτὴν ἡμέ204 ραν καὶ βασιλεῖς ἄμφω χρηματίσαι αὐτοὺς καὶ νυμφίους. οἱ δέ γε Πέρσαι τὴν ἑῴαν κατέτρεχον καὶ τὰς μὲν τῶν χωρῶν ὑφ' ἑαυτοὺς ἐποιοῦντο, τὰς δὲ ἐληίζοντο· καὶ ἡ Ῥωμαϊκὴ στρατιὰ προσβάλλουσα τούτοις ἥττητο καὶ διώλλυτο βραχέων τινῶν περισωθέντων φυγῇ. καὶ τὴν Εὐρώπην οἱ Ἄβαροι καὶ οἱ Σκύθαι ἠρήμωσαν. διὸ καὶ ἠπόρει ὁ βασιλεὺς Ἡράκλειος ὅ, τι καὶ δράσει. ἐπισκεψάμενος γὰρ τοὺς στρατιωτικοὺς καταλόγους πάνυ τούτους εὗρε βραχεῖς, ἁπάντων σχεδὸν ἐν τοῖς πολέμοις ἀναλωθέντων. ἐκ γὰρ τῶν ἐπὶ Μαυρικίου τὸν Φωκᾶν ἀναγορευσάντων εἰς πολλὰς χιλιάδας ἀριθμουμένων δύο μόνοι στρατιῶται περιλειφθέντες εὑρέθησαν. στρατολογήσας οὖν Κρίσπον στρατηγὸν Καππαδοκίας προβάλλεται καὶ στέλλει τοῦτον ἐκεῖ. Γίνεται δὲ αὐτῷ ἐκ τῆς Αὐγούστης Εὐδοκίας, ἣν καὶ Φαβίαν ὠνόμασε, θυγάτηρ Ἐπιφανία. εἶτα καὶ υἱὸς ἐτέχθη ὁ μικρὸς Ἡράκλειος καὶ νέος Κωνσταντῖνος κληθείς, καὶ ἄμφω δὲ τὼ παῖδε βασιλικῷ διαδήματι τεταινίωκε. καὶ μετ' ὀλίγον ἡ γαμετὴ αὐτοῦ ἡ Αὐγούστα Εὐδοκία τὸν βίον ἀπέλιπεν. ἐκ205 φερομένου δὲ τοῦ ταύτης νεκροῦ βασιλικῶς διὰ τῆς ἀγορᾶς κόρη τις προκύπτουσα βάρβαρος τυχαίως ἀπέπτυσε, καὶ τὸ πτύσμα εἰς τὴν κλίνην, δι' ἧς ἐξεφέρετο ἡ Αὐγούστα, κατήνεκτο· καὶ συλληφθεῖσα ἡ κόρη ἐκαύθη, προσενεχθεῖσα τῇ θανούσῃ λίαν οἰκτρὸν ἐπιτάφιον. ὁ δέ γε Ἡράκλειος ἔγημε Μαρτῖναν τὴν ἀδελφόπαιδα καὶ Αὐγούσταν αὐτὴν ἀνηγόρευσε. Τοῦ μέντοι Χοσρόου καὶ τῶν Περσῶν ἀκρατῶς φερομένων καὶ πάντα λεηλατούντων, πρέσβεις ὁ βασιλεὺς πρὸς