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he was making it clear, that having learned of his arrival, he had eagerly approached both Bodin and Michaelas. For he was afraid because he had not obeyed, but had sent away empty-handed the letter-carrier whom the emperor Alexios had sent to him before he brought the planned rebellion to light, asking for money through him, although the emperor had no hostile intention towards him, except for the removal from his office for the reason already mentioned. But the emperor, having discerned the situation concerning Monomachatos, sends a chrysobull to him, granting him full amnesty; which he took in his hands and returned to the palace. 3.12.2 But Robert, having arrived at Otranto, and entrusting all his authority, and that of Longobardia itself, to his son Roger, went out from there and occupied the harbor of Brindisi, and there having learned of the arrival of Palaiologos at Dyrrachium, he immediately built towers of wood on the larger of the ships, covered them with hides, and having zealously brought aboard the ships all things suitable for siege warfare, and having driven both horses and armed horsemen onto the dromons, and having very quickly prepared for war from all sides, he hastened to cross. For he was planning, when he should reach Dyrrachium, to surround it with siege engines from both sea and land, so that he might at the same time strike terror into those inside, and at the same time, by surrounding them from all sides, he would take the city by assault. Therefore, a great disturbance from this seized both the islanders and those around the coast of Dyrrachium who had learned these things. 3.12.3 And when everything had now been completed to his satisfaction, casting off the stern-cables, having arranged both the dromons and the triremes and monoremes into a battle formation according to the experience of the sailors, he attempted the voyage in good order. And having met with a favorable wind, he reached the coast opposite Aulon and sailing along the coast he went as far as Buthrotum. And there, having united with his son Bohemond, who had already crossed over and seized Aulon by assault, he divided the entire army in two; one part he himself commanded by sea, wishing to make the voyage to Dyrrachium, and he allowed Bohemond to command the other, which was to proceed to Dyrrachium by land. 3.12.4 And so, having passed Corfu and having turned towards Dyrrachium near a certain promontory called Glossa, he suddenly fell into a very great storm. For a great snowstorm and winds arising from the mountains violently agitated the sea. And from this the waves were stirred up and roared, the oars of the rowers as they dipped them were being broken, the winds were eating through the sails, and the yard-arms, being shattered, were falling onto the deck, and already the ships were being sunk with all hands, although it was the summer season, with the sun having already passed Cancer and hastening towards Leo, when they say is the rising of the Dog Star. Therefore everyone was thrown into confusion, being at a total loss, and they did not know what to do, being unable to stand against such enemies. And a great clamor arose; they were wailing, they were crying out, they were invoking the gods, calling upon God the Savior, and they prayed to see the mainland. 3.12.5 But meanwhile the storm did not abate, as if God were wroth at the unrestrained and excessive arrogance of Robert and was already showing the end from the very beginning to be unfortunate. So some of the ships were sunk along with their sailors, while others, driven onto the shores, were dashed to pieces. And as the hides covering the towers became looser from the rain, the nails came out of their proper places, and consequently, the hides, having taken on weight, quickly overturned those wooden towers, and they, crashing down, sank the ships. But the ship in which Robert was, having been half-wrecked, was saved with difficulty; and some others were also saved

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ἐδήλου, ὅτιπερ τὴν ἐκείνου ἄφιξιν μεμαθηκὼς σπουδαίως πρός τε τὸν Βοδῖνον καὶ τὸν Μιχαηλᾶν προσεληλύθει. Ἐδεδίει γὰρ διὰ τὸ μὴ ὑπακοῦσαι, ἀλλὰ κενὸν ἀποπέμψαι, ὃν πρὸ τοῦ τὴν μελε τωμένην ἀποστασίαν εἰς φῶς ἀγαγεῖν ὁ βασιλεὺς Ἀλέξιος πρὸς αὐτὸν ἐπεπόμφει γραμματοκομιστὴν χρήματα δι' αὐτοῦ αἰτούμενος, κἂν ὁ βασιλεὺς μηδὲν κατ' αὐτοῦ ἐναν τίον διενοεῖτο, εἰ μὴ τὴν τῆς ἀρχῆς παράλυσιν διὰ τὴν ἤδη ῥηθεῖσαν αἰτίαν. ∆ιαγνοὺς δὲ τὰ κατὰ τὸν Μονομα χάτον ὁ αὐτοκράτωρ χρυσόβουλλον λόγον πρὸς αὐτὸν ἐξα ποστέλλει πᾶσαν ἀφροντισίαν αὐτῷ παρέχων· ὃν ἐν χερσὶν ἐκεῖνος λαβὼν παλινδρομεῖ πρὸς τὰ βασίλεια. 3.12.2 Ὁ δὲ Ῥομπέρτος εἰς Ὑδροῦντα παραγενόμενος καὶ τὴν ἅπασαν αὐτοῦ ἐξουσίαν καὶ αὐτῆς δὴ τῆς Λογγιβαρδίας τῷ υἱῷ αὐτοῦ Ῥογέρῃ ἀναθέμενος ἐκεῖθεν ἐξελθὼν τὸν λιμένα τοῦ Βρεντησίου κατέλαβε, κἀκεῖσε τὴν τοῦ Παλαιολόγου ἐς τὸ ∆υρράχιον ἔλευσιν μεμαθηκώς, παραχρῆμα ἐν τοῖς μείζοσι τῶν πλοίων πύργους δειμάμενος διὰ ξύλων, διὰ βύρσης τούτους περιέστειλε καὶ πάντα τὰ πρὸς τειχομαχίαν ἐπι τήδεια ἐν ταῖς ναυσὶ σπουδαίως εἰσαγαγὼν εἴς τε τοὺς δρόμωνας ἵππους τε καὶ ἐνόπλους ἱππέας εἰσελάσας καὶ πάντοθεν τὰ πρὸς πόλεμον ὀξέως μάλα ἐξαρτύσας διαπερᾶν ἠπείγετο. Ἐσκόπει γάρ, ὁπηνίκα τὸ ∆υρράχιον καταλάβῃ, περιζῶσαι τοῦτο διὰ τῶν ἑλεπόλεων ἀπό τε θαλάττης καὶ ἠπείρου, ἵν' ἅμα μὲν καταπλήξῃ τοὺς ἐντός, ἅμα δὲ καὶ πανταχόθεν περιστοιχίσας αὐτοὺς ἐξ ἐφόδου τὴν πόλιν αἱρήσεται. Θόρυβος τοίνυν ἐντεῦθεν τούς τε νησιώτας καὶ τοὺς περὶ τὴν ἠϊόνα τοῦ ∆υρραχίου ταῦτα μεμαθηκότας κατέσχε πολύς. 3.12.3 Ἐπεὶ δὲ κατὰ γνώμην αὐτῷ τὰ πάντα ἤδη τετέλεσται, λύσας τὰ πρυμνήσια τούς τε δρόμωνας καὶ τὰς τριήρεις νῆας καὶ μονήρεις κατὰ τὴν τῶν ναυτικῶν ἐμπειρίαν εἰς πολέμου σχῆμα διατυπώσας σὺν εὐταξίᾳ τοῦ πλοὸς ἀπεπειρᾶτο. Οὐρίου δὲ τυχὼν πνεύματος τὴν κατὰ τὸν Αὐλῶνα περαίαν κατέλαβε καὶ τὴν ἠϊόνα παραπλέων ἀπῆλθε μέχρι Βοθρεντοῦ. Κἀκεῖσε ἑνωθεὶς μετὰ τοῦ υἱοῦ αὐτοῦ Βαϊμούντου προφθάσαντος περᾶσαι καὶ τὸν Αὐλῶνα ἐξ ἐφόδου κατασχεῖν, διχῆ τὸ ἅπαν διελὼν στράτευμα τὸ μὲν αὐτὸς κατεῖχε διὰ θαλάττης τὸν ἀπόπλουν ὡς πρὸς τὸ ∆υρράχιον ἐθέλων ποιήσασθαι, τοῦ δὲ τὸν Βαϊμοῦντον ἄρχειν ἐπέτρεψε διὰ ξηρᾶς μέλλοντα πρὸς τὸ ∆υρράχιον ὁδεῦσαι. 3.12.4 Καὶ δὴ τὴν Κορυφὼ διελθὼν καὶ πρὸς τὸ ∆υρράχιον ἀποκλίνας κατά τι ἀκρωτήριον Γλῶσσαν καλού μενον μεγίστῳ κλύδωνι αἴφνης περιπεπτώκει. Νιφετὸς γὰρ πολὺς καὶ ἄνεμοι τῶν ὀρῶν κινηθέντες τὴν θάλασσαν σφοδρῶς συνετάραττον. Κἀντεῦθεν ἠγείρετό τε τὰ κύματα καὶ ἐπωρύετο αἵ τε κῶπαι τῶν προσκώπων καθιέντων ἐθραύοντο τά θ' ἱστία διαβιβρώσκοντες ἦσαν οἱ ἄνεμοι, αἱ δὲ κεραῖαι συνθλώμεναι κατὰ τοῦ καταστρώματος ἔπιπτον καὶ αὔτανδρα ἤδη τὰ σκάφη κατεποντίζετο, κἂν θέρους ὥρα ἦν τοῦ ἡλίου τὸν καρκίνον ἤδη παρελθόντος καὶ πρὸς τὸν λέοντα ἐπειγομένου, ὁπότε καὶ τὴν τοῦ κυνὸς ἐπιτολὴν εἶναί φασιν. Ἐταράττοντο οὖν ἅπαντες ἐξαπορούμενοι καὶ οὐκ εἶχον ὅ τι καὶ δράσαιεν πολεμίοις τοιούτοις ἀντικαθ ίστασθαι μὴ δυνάμενοι. Θροῦς δὲ ἐπῆρτο πολύς, ᾤμωζον, ἐποτνιῶντο, ἐθεοκλύτουν Θεὸν σωτῆρα ἐπικαλούμενοι καὶ τὴν ἤπειρον θεάσασθαι ἐπηύχοντο. 3.12.5 Ὁ δὲ κλύδων τέως οὐκ ἐνεδίδου μηνίοντος ὥσπερ τοῦ Θεοῦ πρὸς τὸ τοῦ Ῥο μπέρτου ἀκάθεκτον καὶ ὑπέρογκον φρύαγμα καὶ τὸ τέλος ἐκ πρώτης ἀφετηρίας οὐκ εὐτυχὲς παραδεικνύοντος ἤδη. Τὰ μὲν οὖν τῶν πλοίων σὺν αὐτοῖς πλωτῆρσι κατεποντίσθη, τὰ δὲ ταῖς ἀκταῖς προσαραχθέντα συνεθλάσθη. Τῶν δὲ περι στελλουσῶν τοὺς πύργους βυρσῶν ὑπὸ τοῦ ὑετοῦ χαλαρω τέρων γεγονυιῶν οἵ τε ἧλοι τῶν οἰκείων τόπων ἐξέστησαν καὶ τὸ ἐντεῦθεν αἱ βύρσαι βάρος εἰληφυῖαι τοὺς ξυλίνους ἐκείνους πύργους ταχὺ περιέτρεψαν καὶ καταρραγέντες τὰς ναῦς κατέδυσαν. Τὸ δέ γε σκάφος, ἐν ᾧ ὁ Ῥομπέρτος ἐνῆν, ἡμίθραυστον γεγονὸς μόγις διεσώθη· ἐσώθησαν δὲ καί τινες