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having led them through the forum and made a spectacle of them during the hippodrome games, he trampled on their necks as they were thrown under his feet, and so he ordered their heads to be cut off in the Cynegion, after Apsimar had reigned for seven years. And having first blinded239 the patriarch Kallinikos, he sent him into exile in Rome. He appointed a certain monk, an anchorite named Cyrus, as patriarch, who had prophesied to him his restoration to the empire. This emperor then destroyed a great multitude from both the civil and military population, some openly, but others secretly. And sending to Khazaria, he brought his wife Theodora, who had already borne him a son, whom he named Tiberius, and deeming both her and the child worthy of the imperial title, he crowned them both. And having broken the treaties with the Bulgars, he campaigned against them with cavalry and infantry forces and with a great fleet, and went to Anchialus. At first, then, the Bulgars were afraid and fled to the mountains, but from there, seeing the army of the Romans encamping in disorder and scattering carelessly to gather fodder, they took courage and, attacking them, killed many, took no fewer captive, and seized many horses. The emperor, however, with the survivors was shut up in the fortress there. Then, having hamstrung all the horses, so that the enemy might not take them, they boarded the ships of the fleet 240 and returned to Byzantium in great shame. And being wrathful with those in Cherson, because when they learned he was exiled there and plotting revolution they had wished to kill him, he sent triremes and dromons and other transport ships with a very large army and two generals, having commanded them not to spare anyone there, but to cut all down with their swords. They with no trouble (for the inhabitants of the cities in Cherson did not resist) took them and killed almost all of them, sparing only those of young age up to boyhood. When Justinian learned that they had not killed these too, he was enraged, and ordered them to be sent to him. But when they were sent, it happened that most of them were drowned in the sea, and this seemed pleasing to the emperor. And not even so was his madness against them sated, but he threatened to send again and so to desolate the country as to tear down and plow up the cities. For these reasons those still left in Cherson and their neighbors revolted and proclaimed Philippicus, the son of Bar241danes, whom the account has recorded was exiled by Apsimar to Cephalonia, who had just been recalled from exile and was returning to Constantinople, and having arrived there, they proclaimed him emperor, with their own ruler, Elias, cooperating. When Justinian learned these things, he slaughtered the children of Elias in their mother's lap, and married her to her own Indian slave who was a cook. Then having prepared a fleet, he sent it against Cherson, having commanded the commander of the fleet to kill all without distinction of age. But when the navy had reached Cherson and was besieging it, the Khazars came to aid the Chersonites. Thereupon the siege was broken, and the men of the fleet, not daring to return to the emperor, poured out blasphemies against him, and acclaimed Bardanes as emperor. But when a long time had passed, because nothing was re242ported to him from the fleet, the emperor, suspecting that something was afoot against him, set out from Byzantium and, having come as far as Sinope, saw the fleet sailing straight for the city; therefore he immediately turned back himself. But as Philippicus had a fair voyage and occupied the great city first, he encamped at Damatrys. The aforementioned Elias was sent to him and was able to persuade the military with Justinian to desert him and go over to Philippicus. Therefore Justinian, having been abandoned by the soldiers, is captured and by the hands

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διὰ τῆς ἀγορᾶς περιαγαγὼν καὶ θεατρίσας ἱππικοῦ ἀγομένου, ῥιφέντας ὑπὸ τοὺς πόδας αὐτοῦ κατὰ τῶν τραχήλων πεπάτηκε, καὶ οὕτως ἐκτμηθῆναι τὰς αὐτῶν κεφαλὰς ἐν τῷ Κυνηγίῳ προσέταξεν, ἑπτὰ τοῦ Ἀψιμάρου ἐνιαυτοὺς βασιλεύσαντος. τὸν δὲ πατριάρχην Καλλίνικον πρότερον αὐτοῦ πηρώ239 σας τὰ ὄμματα εἰς Ῥώμην ἔθετο ὑπερόριον. Κῦρον δέ τινα μοναχὸν ἔγκλειστον πατριάρχην προυβάλετο, ὃς αὐτῷ τὴν εἰς τὴν βασιλείαν ἀποκατάστασιν προεφοίβασε. πολὺ δὲ πλῆθος ἔκ τε τοῦ δημοτικοῦ καὶ τοῦ στρατιωτικοῦ τότε διέφθειρεν οὗτος ὁ βασιλεύς, τοὺς μὲν φανερῶς, ἐνίους μέντοι καὶ ἀφανῶς. στείλας δ' εἰς Χαζαρίαν ἤγαγε τὴν γυναῖκα αὐτοῦ Θεοδώραν, ἤδη αὐτῷ τεκοῦσαν υἱόν, ὃν Τιβέριον κατωνόμασε, κἀκείνην δὲ καὶ τὸ παιδίον τοῦ τῆς βασιλείας ἀξιώσας ὀνόματος καὶ ἄμφω ἔστεψε. λύσας δὲ τὰς πρὸς τοὺς Βουλγάρους σπονδὰς κατ' αὐτῶν ἐξεστράτευσε σὺν ἱππικαῖς τε καὶ πεζικαῖς δυνάμεσι καὶ σὺν στόλῳ πολλῷ, καὶ ἀπῆλθε πρὸς τὴν Ἀγχίαλον. τὸ μὲν οὖν πρῶτον δείσαντες οἱ Βούλγαροι εἰς τὰ ὄρη ἀνέδραμον, ἐκεῖθεν δὲ ἀσυντάκτως ὁρῶντες τὴν τῶν Ῥωμαίων στρατιὰν σκηνουμένην καὶ ἀπροσέκτως εἰς χορτασμάτων συλλογὴν σκιδναμένην, ἀνεθάρσησαν καὶ ἐπελθόντες αὐτοῖς πολλοὺς μὲν ἀνεῖλον, οὐ μείους δὲ ᾐχμαλώτευσαν καὶ ἵππον συνέσχον πολλήν. ὁ μέντοι βασιλεὺς σὺν τοῖς περιλειφθεῖσιν εἰς τὸ ἐκεῖ συνεκλείσθησαν φρούριον. εἶτα τοὺς ἵππους πάντας νευροκοπήσαντες, ἵνα μὴ τούτους λάβοιεν οἱ πολέμιοι, τοῖς τοῦ στόλου σκάφεσιν 240 ἐμβεβηκότες ἐπανῆλθον εἰς τὸ Βυζάντιον σὺν αἰσχύνῃ πολλῇ. μηνιῶν δὲ τοῖς ἐν Χερσῶνι, ὅτι ἐκεῖ περιωρισμένον αὐτὸν γνόντες νεωτερίζοντα ἠβουλήθησαν ἀνελεῖν, στέλλει τριήρεις καὶ δρόμωνας καὶ νῆας ἑτέρας τῶν φορτηγῶν σὺν στρατεύματι πλείστῳ καὶ δυσὶ στρατηγοῖς, ἐντειλάμενος αὐτοῖς μὴ φείσασθαί τινος τῶν ἐκεῖ, ἀλλὰ πάντας συγκόψαι τοῖς ξίφεσιν. οἳ σὺν οὐδενὶ πόνῳ (οὐ γὰρ ἀντέστησαν οἱ τῶν ἐν Χερσῶνι πόλεων κάτοικοι) παραλαβόντες αὐτοὺς ἅπαντας σχεδὸν ἀνῃρήκασι, μόνης τῆς νεαζούσης ἡλικίας μέχρι μειρακίων φεισάμενοι. ὃ μαθὼν Ἰουστινιανός, ὅτι μὴ καὶ τούτους ἀνεῖλον, ἐξώργιστο, καὶ πρὸς αὐτὸν ἀποσταλῆναι παρεκελεύσατο. ἀποσταλέντας δὲ καταποντισθῆναι ἐν τῇ θαλάσσῃ συνέβη τοὺς πλείονας, καὶ ἔδοξε τοῦτο τῷ βασιλεῖ καταθύμιον. καὶ οὐδ' οὕτω τῆς κατ' ἐκείνων μανίας ἐμπέπληστο, ἀλλ' ἠπείλει καὶ αὖθις στελεῖν καὶ οὕτω τὴν χώραν ἐξερημῶσαι ὡς καὶ τὰς πόλεις καθελεῖν καὶ ἀροτριᾶσαι. διὰ ταῦτα οἱ ἔτι περιλειφθέντες ἐν Χερσῶνι καὶ οἱ τούτων περίοικοι ἀποστατήσαντες Φιλιππικὸν τὸν τοῦ Βαρ241 δάνη, ὃν ὁ λόγος ἱστόρησε παρὰ τοῦ Ἀψιμάρου εἰς Κεφαληνίαν περιορισθῆναι, ἄρτι ἀνακληθέντα ἐκ τῆς ὑπερορίας καὶ ἐπανιόντα πρὸς τὴν Κωνσταντινούπολιν, κἀκεῖ γενόμενον βασιλέα ἀναγορεύουσι, καὶ τοῦ σφῶν ἄρχοντος Ἡλία συμπράττοντος. ἃ μαθὼν Ἰουστινιανὸς τοὺς μὲν τοῦ Ἡλία παῖδας ἐν τῷ κόλπῳ κατέσφαξε τῆς μητρός, ἐκείνην δὲ δούλῳ αὐτῆς Ἰνδῷ μαγείρῳ συνέζευξεν. εἶτα στόλον ἑτοιμασάμενος στέλλει κατὰ Χερσῶνος, ἐντειλάμενος τῷ τοῦ στόλου κατάρχοντι ἡβηδὸν ξύμπαντας ἀνελεῖν. ἤδη δὲ καταλαβόντος τὴν Χερσῶνα τοῦ ναυτικοῦ καὶ πολιορκοῦντος αὐτὴν ἧκον Χάζαροι τοῖς Χερσωνίταις ἐπικουρήσοντες. ἐντεῦθεν ἡ μὲν πολιορκία ἐλέλυτο, οἱ δὲ τοῦ στόλου μὴ τολμῶντες πρὸς τὸν βασιλέα ἐπανελθεῖν τοῦ μὲν βλασφημίας κατέχεον, τὸν δὲ Βαρδάνην ὡς βασιλέα εὐφήμησαν. καιροῦ δὲ παραρρυέντος συχνοῦ, ὅτι μηδὲν αὐτῷ ἐκ τοῦ στόλου με242 μήνυτο, ὁ βασιλεὺς ὑποτοπήσας συμβῆναί τι φερόμενον κατ' αὐτοῦ, ἐξώρμησε τῆς Βυζαντίδος καὶ ἕως Σινώπης ἐλθὼν ὁρᾷ τὸν στόλον εὐθὺ τῆς πόλεως πλοϊζόμενον· αὐτίκα τοίνυν γέγονε καὶ αὐτὸς ὀπισθόρμητος. τοῦ δὲ Φιλιππικοῦ εὐπλοήσαντος καὶ προκαταλαβόντος τὴν μεγαλόπολιν, ἐκεῖνος ἐν τῷ ∆αματρύϊ ἐσκήνωσε. πρὸς ὃν ὁ εἰρημένος Ἡλίας ἀποσταλεὶς ἠδυνήθη πεῖσαι τὸ μετὰ Ἰουστινιανοῦ στρατιωτικὸν ἀποστῆναι αὐτοῦ καὶ προσρυῆναι Φιλιππικῷ. καταλειφθεὶς τοίνυν παρὰ τῶν στρατιωτῶν Ἰουστινιανὸς χειροῦται καὶ χερσὶν