Theophanes the Confessor, Chronography

should administer. Bardas, taking this pedagogue as an evil instrument, did not cease sowing certain tares concerning the man in his own soul and that of the emperor, saying many other things about the public administrations, that they were not well managed, and that although the empire was left to you as an inheritance, this man is putting it far from you, contemplating marriage to your mother or one of her daughters, and to put you, her son, somewhere far out of sight. Thus, having fixed these things like arrows in the emperor's heart, he stirred him up, and said that wise and swift counsel was needed so that these things would not happen. As they often came together concerning this matter, they ratified this one opinion and declared their judgement to remove Theoktistos from their midst by some assassina- tion or by exile. And so these things were decided, and he hastened to bring 170 an end to those who had willed them; and the plan was, when he was about to go out to the Lausiakos after the administration of the reports, for the emperor to follow a little behind, and to cry out only this to the praepositi: "Seize him." At that time Bardas was in session in the Lau- siakos. Therefore, as Theoktistos was coming out and departing, seeing Michael's signal running ahead and at the same time preceding him, he decided to secure his safety by flight. His flight was towards the Hippodrome by way of the asecretis; for at that time the quarters of the a- secretis were there. But the one man, being seized by many, was forced to stay and not flee; and Bardas, draw- ing his sword with his own hand, threatened to defend himself against any who would try to interfere, toward the murder of someone under his power. But no one dared to touch him then, and he was led away to Skyla, to be handed over to a guard for the time being, until they should decide his case. But since they decided he should not live, for fear of the Augusta, and so that he might not be quickly released, they sent one of the hetaireia to him, bran- dishing a naked sword. So when he saw the sword-bear- ing man approaching, he ducked under the bench, want- ing to escape his grasp; but he was struck unnoticed in the stomach and given over to death, his entrails having spilled out. When, indeed, Ma- nuel, having become as if possessed, is said to have declared plainly to Bardas 171 "having drawn your sword for the murder of Theoktistos, arm yourself for slaughter every day." 20 But Theoktistos thus met the end of his life, and after his murder Bardas took upon himself the care and honor of the kanikleios; but when Theodora perceived these things, running with her hair unbound, she wept much, lamenting, and filled the palace with wailing, subjecting both to curses and saying, "O shameless and all-polluted beasts, why did you, an ungrateful offspring, repay your second father with evil for good? And you, envious and wicked demon," she said dramatically of her brother, "you have defiled my rule, which was kept pure and undefiled? There is a God who oversees these daring acts, who will surely deliver you both not otherwise but to a similar and murderous death." And at the same time she invoked the divine somehow, stretching out her hands, "May I see it fall, Lord, may I see the ven- geance for this man." Therefore, from that time, not bearing her frequent curses and reproaches, and at the same time Bardas pursuing his own course, they decided to push her away from there and to proceed with a bare head to whatever seemed best to them. Which she, having detected (for she was able to see and to surmise), did not think it necessary to oppose, avoiding the murders of men and harm to her kinsmen; but the wealth stored up until now, which today is treasured in the palace, she decided to make known to the senate, both to prevent her son from 172 unsparing expenditure and to proclaim her own virtue. And indeed, standing within hearing, she cried out that in addition to ninety thousand centenaria of gold deposited in the imperial treasury, there were about three of sil- ver, and that her husband was the treasur- er and provider of the former, while of the

δεῖν διοικεῖν. τοῦτον οργανον τὸν παιδαγωγὸν ὁ Βάρδας λαβὼν πονηρὸν οὐκ ἐπαύετο ζιζάνιά τινα περὶ τοῦ ἀνδρὸς τῇ ἑαυτοῦ ἐνσπείρων καὶ τῇ τοῦ βασιλέως ψυχῇ, αλλα τε πολλὰ περὶ τῶν κοινῶν διοικήσεων λέγων, ὡς οὐ καλῶς οἰκονομοῦνται, καὶ οτι σοὶ καταλειφθείσης ὡς κληρονομίας τῆς βασιλείας πόρρω σου ταύτην ουτος ποιεῖ, γάμον μητρί σου η  τῶν ταύτης θυγατέρων μιᾷ ἐμμελετῶν, καὶ σοῦ τοῦ ταύτης υἱοῦ πόρρω που ποιῆσαι τοὺς ὀφθαλμούς. ταῦτα γοῦν ὡς βέλη πήξας ἐν καρδίᾳ τοῦ βασιλέως διήγειρέ τε, καὶ οπως μὴ ταῦτα γένοιτο, συνετῆς εφασκε δεῖν καὶ ταχίστης βουλῆς. ὡς δὲ πολλάκις περὶ τούτου συνήρχοντο τοῦ πράγματος, μίαν ταύτην ἐκύρουν καὶ γνώμην ἀπέφαινον τοῦ ἐκ μέσου τὸν Θεόκτιστον ποιῆσαι δολοφο- νίᾳ τινὶ η  ὑπερορίᾳ. ἐδέδοκτο ουν ταῦτα, καὶ πέρας εσπευδε τοῖς 170 βουληθεῖσιν ἐπάγειν· τὸ δὲ ην ἐν τῷ τοῦτον μέλλειν πρὸς τὸν Λαυσιακὸν ἐξέρχεσθαι μετὰ τὴν τῶν ἀναφορῶν διοίκησιν ἐπακο- λουθῆσαι μικρὸν τὸν βασιλέα, καὶ τοῦτο μόνον ἀνακραγεῖν τὸ "ἐπάρατε αὐτόν" τοῖς πραιποσίτοις. τότε ὁ Βάρδας ἐν τῷ Λαυ- σιακῷ συνεδρίαζεν. ὡς ουν ὁ Θεόκτιστος προέκυπτεν ἐξιών, τὸ τοῦ Μιχαὴλ σύνθημα προτρέχον αμα καὶ προφθάνον τοῦτον ὁρῶν εγνω φυγῇ τὴν σωτηρίαν πραγματεύσασθαι. ἡ φυγὴ δὲ πρὸς τὸν ἱππόδρομον κατὰ τὰ ἀσηκρητεῖα· καὶ γὰρ ἐκεῖσε τότε τὸ τῶν ἀση- κρήτων ὑπῆρχε καταγώγιον. ἀλλ' ὑπὸ πολλῶν ὁ εις συλληφθεὶς μένειν ἀλλ' οὐ φεύγειν κατηναγκάζετο· καὶ ξίφος ὁ Βάρδας γυ- μνώσας αὐτοχειρίᾳ τοὺς οιτινες ειεν διακωλύσοντες ἀμυνόμενος ἠπείλει, πρὸς τὸν φόνον τῶν ὑπὸ χεῖρα τινί. ἀλλὰ ψαῦσαι μὲν ἐτόλμησε τούτου τότε οὐδείς, ἀπήγετο δὲ πρὸς τὰ Σκῦλα, φρουρᾷ τέως παραδοθησόμενος, μέχρις αν τὰ κατ' αὐτοῦ ἀποφήναιντο. ὡς δ' οὐ ζῆν δέει τῆς Αὐγούστης αὐτὸν ἐβουλεύσαντο, ινα καὶ μὴ θᾶττον ἀπολυθῇ, τῶν καθ' ἑταιρείαν τινὰ ἐξαπέστειλαν γυ- μνὸν ἐπισείοντα ξίφος αὐτῷ. ὡς δ' ουν ειδε ξιφήρη τὸν ανθρω- πον ἐπιόντα, κατὰ τοῦ σκάμνου ουτος ὑπέδυ, τὰς λαβὰς βουλό- μενος ἐκφυγεῖν· ἀλλ' ελαθε κατὰ γαστέρα πληγεὶς καὶ θανάτῳ παραδοθείς, τῶν ἐγκάτων ἐκχυθέντων αὐτοῦ. οτε δὴ καὶ ὁ Μα- νουὴλ φοιβόληπτος ωσπερ γενόμενος τῷ Βάρδᾳ καθαρῶς λέγεται ἀνειπεῖν 171 "ξίφος γυμνώσας εἰς Θεοκτίστου φόνον, οπλιζε σαυτὸν εἰς σφαγὴν καθ' ἡμέραν." 20 ̓Αλλ' ὁ μὲν Θεόκτιστος ουτω τὸ τοῦ βίου πέρας ἀπείλη- φεν, καὶ μετὰ τὴν αὐτοῦ σφαγὴν ὁ Βάρδας τὴν τοῦ κανικλείου φροντίδα καὶ τιμὴν εἰς ἑαυτὸν ἀνελάμβανεν· ἡ δὲ δὴ Θεοδώρα τούτων ὡς ῃσθετο, λυσίκομος δὴ θέουσα, πολλὰ κατολοφυρομένη ἀνέκλαιεν καὶ ὀδυρμῶν τὰ βασίλεια ἐπλήρου, ἀραῖς ἀμφοτέρους καθυποβάλλουσα καὶ "ω ἀναιδεῖς καὶ παμμίαροι" λέγουσα "θῆρες, τί σὺ μέν, ἀχάριστον γέννημα, τὸν δεύτερόν σου πατέρα πονηρὰ ἀντέδωκας ἀγαθῶν; καὶ σὺ βάσκανε δαῖμον καὶ πονηρέ," τὸν ἀδελφὸν ἐπιτραγῳδοῦσα, "τὴν ἐμὴν ἐμίανας ἀρχήν, καθαρὰν φυλαχθεῖσαν καὶ αχραντον; εστι θεὸς τῶν τολμωμένων εφορος, ος ἀμφοτέρους οὐκ ἀλλοίως ἀλλ' ὁμοίῳ θανάτῳ παραδώσει δήπου καὶ φονικῷ." καὶ αμα ἐπεθείασέ πως, τὰς χεῖρας πετάσασα, "ιδοιμι ἐπιπεσοῦσαν, κύριε, ιδοιμι τὴν τοῦ ἀνθρώπου τούτου ἐκ- δίκησιν." ταύτης ουν εκτοτε τὰς πυκνὰς ἀρὰς μὴ φέροντες καὶ ὀνειδισμούς, καὶ αμα τὴν κατ' αὐτὸν ἐλαύνων ὁ Βάρδας ὁδόν, εγνωσαν καὶ ταύτην ἐκεῖθεν ἀπώσασθαι καὶ γυμνῇ χωρεῖν πρὸς απαν αὐτοῖς τὸ δοκοῦν κεφαλῇ. οπερ ἐκείνη καταφωράσασα (καὶ γὰρ ην ἰδεῖν καὶ στοχάσασθαι δυνατὴ) ἀντιπράττειν οὐκ ῳετο δεῖν, φόνους τῶν ἀνθρώπων καὶ ὁμοφύλων βλάβας ἐκφεύγουσα· τὸν δὲ τέως πλοῦτον, τὸν σήμερον ἐν τοῖς ἀνακτόροις ἀποθησαυ- ριζόμενον, εγνω τῇ συγκλήτῳ ποιεῖν φανερόν, τὸν υἱόν τε τῆς 172 ἀφειδοῦς δαπάνης κωλύουσα καὶ τὴν ἑαυτῆς κηρύττουσα ἀρετήν. καὶ δὴ εἰς ἐπήκοον στᾶσα ἐξεβόησεν ὡς πρὸς τοῖς ἐνενήκοντα χίλια μὲν χρυσοῦ τῷ βασιλικῷ ταμιείῳ κεντηνάρια ἐναπόκεινται, ἀργυ- ρίου δὲ ὡσεὶ τριῶν, καὶ τῶν μὲν ειναι τὸν ταύτης ανδρα θησαυ- ριστήν τε καὶ ποριστήν, τῶν