Georgius Pachymeres, Chronicle II

The ruler ascends the ambo, and the patriarch also ascends, and he who is to be anointed to the kingship with his father ascends with them. And after splendid and magnificent ceremonies, the emperor crowns his son, with the hierarch also taking hold of the crown, and the hierarch anoints with the holy myrrh the one who has become a sharer in the kingship. And from then on there are paeans and acclamations and every kind of thanksgiving. And as the emperors go about, the customary coin-bundles are also scattered. And then the great palace receives them with a magnificent escort;

(2) On the day after 197 this, the emperor summons the patriarchs, and he summons archbishops and the clergy and monks and as many of the state as were pure and select, and indeed in the Manuelite imperial triclinium he decided to hold a festival. And bringing his son John, whom he had by Irene, being still a youth, he promotes him to despot, with the newly-crowned emperor and autocrator also taking hold of the despotic crown. And so from there, as the emperors proceeded to Blachernae, coin-bundles were again scattered to the people, and much applause and mingled acclamation arose from all, magnifying the emperors. From then on it was also sought by the emperor from the church that there be given for the newly-crowned one as much as indeed had been done for himself at his father's request.

(3) For that a tome be issued by it, and through the customary signatures the kingship be secured for him, and upon anyone who might rise up against him, if any such there were, the penalties of indissoluble excommunications and curses be imposed—this having been done for himself by those of that time he knew precisely and showed, and he demanded that these things also be done for his son by them, since his demand, as he said, contained nothing new or strange. These things the emperor 198 insistently demanded, but he persuaded neither the patriarch nor the archbishops; but while they were ready on the spot to issue the tome and secure the kingship for the one crowned, to also envelop with curses and excommunications separating from the portion of Christ anyone who might ever rise up against the emperor, they did not deem right at all. For the penalties from the laws were sufficient for him, if he were convicted, so that from then on he would not even have a life worth living, having been subjected to the punishments from the laws. But it was not right, in addition to these things, for one known to be a friend to men of sympathy, that that man also be separated from the portion of Christ. And it was a good advantage for an emperor to possess sympathy; for it had been ordained for him, that is, not ever to punish with willing mind one convicted of the ultimate crimes, but rather to deem it right to punish with imprisonments and the hardships from them and indeed confiscations according to the manner of the offense. Therefore, what was ordained for the emperor was good and praiseworthy, but it was not good nor seemly for him, who was in this respect sympathetic toward offenders, to compel the church to become unsympathetic, and especially since it outstandingly champions sympathy. As the ruler was thus unsuccessful, and every argument for his justification from then on 199 came to nothing, with the opposition of the patriarch and the archbishops prevailing, this he put aside even unwillingly, and he pretended to scorn even accepting that very written tome which they were ready to give, as something desired out of necessity; for it was implied that for his child and successor, as was likely, the oath and security under God and His laws was just as for himself. But he himself, as it seemed, exasperated at being refused what he demanded, decided to oppose the disobedient in another way, judging what was done according to custom to be unseemly and otherwise wrong. And this was that the one being ordained to the episcopacy should present gifts to those ordaining him with certain baskets and a payment of fees, and indeed each of the clerics on account of the jurisdiction of the offices belonging to them, as was customary; For he called the practice a Simoniacal vice, and reasoned that from this the ordination was in danger of being purchasable for money. Proposing this for discussion,

ἄνεισι μὲν ἐπ' ἄμβωνος ὁ κρατῶν, ἄνεισι δὲ καὶ ὁ πατριάρ χης, συνάνεισι δὲ σφίσι καὶ ὁ εἰς βασιλείαν μετὰ τοῦ πατρὸς χρισθησόμενος. καὶ μετὰ λαμπρῶν καὶ περιφανῶν τῶν τελετῶν στέφει μὲν βασιλεὺς τὸν υἱόν, συνεπιλαμβανομένου τοῦ στέφους καὶ τοῦ ἱεράρχου, χρίει δ' ὁ ἱεράρχης τῷ θείῳ μύρῳ τὸν τῆς βα σιλείας συμμετασχόντα. καὶ παιᾶνες ἐντεῦθεν καὶ εὐφημίαι καὶ πᾶν χαριστήριον. ῥιπτοῦνται δὲ περιερχομένων τῶν βασιλέων καὶ οἱ συνήθεις ἀπόδεσμοι. καὶ τότε μὲν τὸ μέγα παλάτιον μετὰ περιφανοῦς τῆς δορυφορίας αὐτοὺς ὑποδέχεται·

(2) τῇ δ' ὑστε 197 ραίᾳ ταύτης μετακαλεῖται μὲν πατριάρχας ὁ βασιλεύς, μετακα λεῖται δ' ἀρχιερεῖς καὶ τοὺς τοῦ κλήρου καὶ μοναχοὺς καὶ τὸ τῆς πολιτείας ὅσον καθαρόν τε καὶ ἔκκριτον, καὶ δὴ κατὰ τὸν Μα νουηλίτην βασιλικὸν τρίκλινον ἔγνω συνάπτειν πανήγυριν. καὶ τὸν υἱὸν ἀγαγὼν Ἰωάννην, ὃν ἐκ τῆς Εἰρήνης ἔσχε νέον ἔτι τε λοῦντα, εἰς δεσπότην προβάλλεται, συνεπιλαμβανομένου τῆς δεσποτικῆς στεφάνης τοῦ ἀρτιστεφοῦς βασιλέως καὶ αὐτοκράτο ρος. καὶ οὕτως ἐκεῖθεν καὶ ἐς Βλαχέρνας προερχομένων τῶν βασιλέων, ἐρριπτοῦντο μὲν καὶ αὖθις τοῖς δήμοις ἀπόδεσμοι, πολὺς δ' ἐξ ἁπάντων κρότος καὶ συμμιγὴς ᾔρετο εὐφημία, καὶ μεγαλυνόντων τοὺς βασιλεῖς. Ἐντεῦθεν καὶ ἐζητεῖτο πρὸς βασιλέως παρὰ τῆς ἐκκλησίας δοθῆναι καὶ ἐπὶ τῷ νέῳ στεφθέντι ὅσον δὴ καὶ αὐτῷ παρὰ τοῦ πατρὸς ζητήσαντος πέπρακτο.

(3) τὸ γὰρ ἐξ αὐτῆς τόμον γενέσθαι, καὶ δι' ὑπογραφῶν συνήθων ἀσφαλισθῆναί οἱ τὴν βα σιλείαν, καὶ τῷ κατεξαναστησομένῳ δῆθεν, εἴ πού τις καὶ εἴη, εὐθύνας ἀφορισμῶν ἀλύτων καὶ ἀρῶν ἐπιτίθεσθαι, ἑαυτῷ μὲν γεγονὸς παρὰ τῶν τότε ἐς τὸ ἀκριβὲς ἠπίστατο καὶ ἐδείκνυ, ἠξίου δὲ καὶ τῷ υἱῷ ταῦτα παρ' αὐτῶν γίνεσθαι ὡς οὐ καινόν τι καὶ ξένον, ὡς ἔλεγεν, ἐχούσης τῆς ἀξιώσεως. ταῦτα μὲν βασιλεὺς 198 λιπαρῶς ἠξίου, ἀλλ' οὔτε πατριάρχην οὔτ' ἀρχιερεῖς ἔπειθεν, ἀλλὰ τὸν μὲν τόμον γενέσθαι καὶ ἀσφαλισθῆναι τῷ στεφθέντι τὴν βασιλείαν αὐτόθεν ἕτοιμοι ἦσαν πράττειν, τὸ δὲ καὶ ἀραῖς περιβάλλειν καὶ ἀφορισμοῖς Χριστοῦ τῆς μερίδος χωρίζουσι τὸν εἴ τίς ποτε καὶ κατεξανασταίη τοῦ βασιλέως, οὐκ ἐδικαίουν ὅλως. ἀποχρῶντα γὰρ εἶναί οἱ τὰ ἐκ τῶν νόμων πρόστιμα, εἰ ἁλῴη, ὡς μηδὲν ἐντεῦθεν καὶ τὸ βιοῦν βιωτὸν ἔχειν ταῖς ἐκ νόμων καθυ παχθέντα ποιναῖς. μὴ δίκαιον δ' εἶναι πρὸς ταύταις, καὶ ἀν δράσι συμπαθείας φίλοις διεγνωσμένον, καὶ τῆς μερίδος ἐκεῖνον χωρίζεσθαι τοῦ Χριστοῦ. καὶ καλὸν μὲν βασιλεῖ προσεῖναι τὴν συμπάθειαν πλεονέκτημα· τέτακτο γὰρ αὐτῷ δηλαδὴ μὴ ἑκου σίῳ γνώμῃ ποινηλατεῖν ποτὲ τὸν ἐπὶ τοῖς ἐσχάτοις ἁλόντα, ἀλλ' ἄλλως εἱρκταῖς καὶ ταῖς ἐκεῖθεν κακουχίαις δὴ καὶ δημεύσεσι κατὰ τρόπον τοῦ πλημμελήματος δικαιοῦν καὶ κολάζειν. καλὸν οὖν εἶναι καὶ ἐπαινετὸν τὸ ταχθὲν βασιλεῖ, οὐ καλὸν δὲ οὐδ' εὐπρε πὲς ἄλλως αὐτὸν συμπαθῶς ὅσον ἐπὶ τούτῳ τοῖς πταίουσιν ἔχον τα ἀσυμπαθῆ καταναγκάζειν τὴν ἐκκλησίαν γίνεσθαι, καὶ μᾶλ λον αὐτὴν διαφερόντως τὸ ξυμπαθὲς πρεσβεύουσαν. ὡς γοῦν ἀπετύγχανεν ὁ κρατῶν, καὶ πᾶς ἐς δικαιολογίαν λόγος ἐντεῦθεν 199 ἠπράκτει τῆς τοῦ πατριάρχου καὶ τῶν ἀρχιερέων νικώσης ἐνστά σεως, τοῦτο μὲν καὶ ἄκων ὑπερετίθετο, καὶ τὸ δοκεῖν ὑπερηφά νει μηδ' αὐτὴν ἐκείνην ἣν ἑτοίμως εἶχον διδόναι τομογραφίαν ὥς τι τῶν ἐξ ἀνάγκης θελητῶν προσιέμενος· συνεξακούεσθαι γὰρ καὶ τῷ παιδί τε καὶ διαδόχῳ κατὰ τὸ εἰκὸς τὴν ὡς ἑαυτὸν ὁρκω μοσίαν τε καὶ ὑπὸ θεῷ καὶ τοῖς ἐκείνου νόμοις ἀσφάλειαν. αὐτὸς δ' ὡς ἐῴκει παροξυνθεὶς ἐφ' οἷς ἀξιῶν ἀπετύγχανεν, ἄλλως ἀν τιξύειν ἔγνω τοὺς ἀπειθοῦντας, ἀπρεπὲς καὶ ἄλλως τὸ κατὰ συν ήθειαν πραττόμενον διακρίνων. τὸ δ' ἦν τὸ τὸν ἐπὶ ἀρχιερω σύνῃ χειροτονούμενον κανοῖς τισὶ καὶ δόσει λημμάτων τοὺς χειρο τονοῦντας δωρεῖσθαι καί γε δὴ κληρικῶν ἕκαστον διὰ τὴν προσόν των αὐτοῖς ὀφφικίων δικαιοδοσίαν, ὡς εἴθιστο· Σιμωνιακὸν γὰρ ἀπεκάλει τὸ πραττόμενον πάθος, καὶ ὤνιον χρημάτων κινδυνεύειν τὴν χειροτονίαν ἐντεῦθεν λογίζεσθαι. τοῦτ' εἰς μέσον προτεί νων,