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chose the life. But Manuel of Thessalonica, leaving Nicaea unwillingly, stayed somewhere in the vicinity of that place. And Arsenios, who had been patriarch, also left there and lived confined in a very small monastery, having made his resignation in deed, if not in writing. Thence all the bishops gathered around Lampsacus, and by the vote of all and the command of the emperor, the president of Ephesus, Nikephoros, was raised to the patriarchal throne, a man most venerable and proper both in speech and manner, and most beloved by all who saw him. But he, as I have said before, departed to God before a year had passed. Then indeed the sebastokrator Tornikes, I know not how, being devoted to the friendship of Arsenios, compelled the* emperor to raise Arsenios again to the patriarchal throne, recounting certain wonders and miracles performed by Arsenios, although the others in the council did not wish this to happen. But the emperor's nobility and readiness to do good caused him to assent rather to the counsel of the sebastokrator. And Arsenios was raised again to the patriarchal throne, having made a written declaration to think and act rightly on behalf of the emperor.

85

But the emperor, having equipped the caesar Alexios Strategopoulos with some troops, sent him out to the western parts, to join battle with the enemies of the Romans who were there, having ordered that in passing, since the road leading there is near Constantinople, he should make a certain attack upon it and that the troops should make a raid as far as its gates, so that fear might be instilled by them in the Latins within. And at that time it happened that something also occurred by the providence of God. For since a very large Latin merchant ship arrived at Constantinople from Venice, and a new governor came in it, whom they also call a podestà, a man, as it appeared, energetic and rather bold in matters of war, having incited all the Latins in Constantinople to battle and advised that "we must not only, being inside the city, guard the city and ourselves, but also do something against the Romans, so that they may not in every way be disposed contemptuously towards our affairs." He therefore persuaded them, embarking in as many triremes as they had and some other ships, such as lembadioi and dromones, to proceed against the island of Daphnousia, to see if they could subdue it and have a good share of the spoils from it. So the city was emptied of men, and was being managed and guarded by women and children and perhaps by its imperial ruler Baldwin with a few men. Suddenly, therefore, the caesar Alexios Strategopoulos approached Constantinople, arriving by night. And since he had with him some men who had come out of the city and knew its affairs accurately, and learning from them had discovered that there was a certain hole in the city wall, through which an armed man could enter, he set to the task without any delay at all. And a man entered through it, and another followed him, then another after that one, and thus up to fifteen, and perhaps even more men, entered inside the city. And when they found one of those entrusted with the guard near the wall, some of them went up and, seizing him by the feet, threw him outside the city. But the others, taking axes in hand and breaking the bars of the gates, made the entrance into the city free for the army. In this way, therefore, the caesar Strategopoulos and all the Romans and Scythians with him—for the army under him was composed of such men—were inside the city. But those inside, shaken by the suddenness of the event, each sought his own safety as best he could. And some around the monasteries

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βίον προείλετο. ὁ δὲ Θεσσαλονίκης Μανουὴλ ἄκων ἐξιὼν τῆς Νικαίας περί που τὰ ἐγγὺς ἐκείνης διέτριβεν. ὁ δὲ πατριαρχεύσας Ἀρσέ νιος καὶ αὐτὸς ἐξιὼν ἐκεῖθεν ἐν σμικροτάτῳ τινὶ σεμνείῳ ἑαυτὸν ἐγκαθείρξας διῆγεν, ἔμπρακτον κἂν οὐκ ἔγγραφον τὴν παραίτησιν ποιησάμενος. ἐντεῦθεν συνελθόντες πάντες οἱ ἀρχιερεῖς περὶ τὴν Λάμψακον, ψήφῳ πάντων καὶ προσ ταγῆ βασιλέως ὁ τῆς Ἐφέσου πρόεδρος Νικηφόρος εἰς τὸν πατριαρχικὸν ἀνήχθη θρόνον, ἀνὴρ καὶ λόγον καὶ τρόπον σεμνότατός τε ἅμα καὶ κοσμιώτατος καὶ πᾶσι τοῖς ἰδοῦσιν αὐτὸν προσφιλέστατος. ἀλλ' οὗτος, καθὰ προειρήκειν, μήπω ἀπενιαυτήσας πρὸς θεὸν ἀπῆρε. τότε γοῦν ὁ σεβαστοκράτωρ Τορνίκης οὐκ οἶδ' ὅπως τῆ φιλίᾳ τοῦ Ἀρσενίου προσ κείμενος ἠνάγκαζε τὸν* βασιλέα τὸν Ἀρσένιον εἰς τὸν πατρι αρχικὸν καὶ αὖθις θρόνον ἀναγαγεῖν, θαύματά τινα καὶ τεράστια παρὰ τοῦ Ἀρσενίου ἐνεργούμενα διηγούμενος, καί τοι γε τῶν ἄλλων τῶν ἐν ξυμβουλῇ μὴ θελόντων τοῦτο γενέσθαι. ἀλλὰ τὸ τοῦ βασιλέως καλοκαγαθὸν καὶ πρὸς τὸ εὖ ποιήσασθαι ἕτοιμον τῇ συμβουλῇ τοῦ σεβαστοκράτο ρος μᾶλλον ξυντεθῆναι πεποίηκε. καὶ ἀνήχθη καὶ αὖθις πρὸς τὸν πατριαρχικὸν θρόνον Ἀρσένιος, ἔγγραφον ποιησά μενος τὰ ὀρθὰ φρονεῖν καὶ πράττειν ὑπὲρ τοῦ βασιλέως.

85 Ὁ δὲ βασιλεὺς τὸν Στρατηγόπουλον Ἀλέξιον τὸν καίσαρα μετὰ στρατευμάτων τινῶν οἰκονομήσας ἐπὶ τοῖς δυτικοῖς ἐκπέπομφε μέρεσι, τοῖς ἐκεῖσε οὖσι τῶν Ῥωμαίων ὑπεναντίοις ξυνελθεῖν εἰς μάχην, παραγγείλας ὡς ἐν τῷ διέρχεσθαι, ἐπεὶ τὰ τῆς ὁδοῦ τῆς ἐκεῖσε φερούσης πλησίον ὑπάρχει τῆς Κωνσταντίνου, ἔφοδόν τινα κατ' αὐτῆς ποιή σασθαι καὶ μέχρι τῶν πυλῶν αὐτῆς ἐπιδραμεῖν τὰ στρα τεύματα, ὡς ἂν πτοία παρ' αὐτῶν τοῖς οὖσιν ἐντὸς Λατίνοις ἐγγένηται. ἐγένετο δὲ τῷ τότε καί τι ξυμβῆναι προνοίᾳ θεοῦ. ἐπεὶ γὰρ ναῦς μεγίστη κοίλη Λατινικὴ ἐκ Βενετίας εἰς τὴν Κωνσταντίνου ἀφίκετο, καὶ νέος ἐν ταύτῃ ἐξουσιαστὴς παρεγένετο, ὃν καὶ ποτεστάτον ἐπονομάζουσιν, ἀνήρ, ὡς ἐφάνη, δραστήριος καὶ θρασύτερος εἰς τὰ μάχιμα, τοὺς ἐν τῇ Κωνσταντινουπόλει πάντας Λατίνους παροτρύνας εἰς μάχην καὶ ξυμβουλεύσας ὡς «δεῖ καὶ ἡμᾶς μὴ μόνον ἐντὸς ὄντας τῆς πόλεως τὴν πόλιν καὶ ἑαυτοὺς φυλάττειν, ἀλλὰ καὶ κατὰ Ῥωμαίων τι δρᾶν, ὡς ἂν μὴ πάντῃ κατα φρονητικῶς ἐν τοῖς καθ' ἡμῶν διατίθωνται.» ἔπεισεν οὖν αὐτοὺς εἰσιόντας ἐν ὅσαις εἶχον τριήρεσι καί τισιν ἑτέροις πλοίοις, λεμβαδίοις οἷον καὶ δρόμωσι, κατὰ τῆς νήσου ∆αφνουσίας χωρῆσαι, εἴ πως δυνηθεῖεν αὐτὴν παραστή σασθαι καὶ σκύλων εὐμοιρῆσαι τῶν ἐξ αὐτῆς. κεκένωται οὖν ἡ πόλις ἀνδρῶν, καὶ ἦν γυναιξὶ καὶ νηπίοις καὶ τῷ βασιλικῷ τάχα ταύτης κατάρχοντι Βαλδουίνῳ μετά τινων μετρίων ἀνδρῶν διεξαγομένη καὶ τηρουμένη. Αἴφνης οὖν ὁ Στρατηγόπουλος Ἀλέξιος ὁ καῖσαρ νυκτὸς ἐπιὼν τῇ Κωνσταντίνου προσήγγισεν. ἐπεὶ δὲ μεθ' ἑαυτοῦ εἶχε καὶ ἄνδρας τινὰς ἐξωρμημένους τῆς πόλεως καὶ ἀκριβῶς εἰδότας τὰ κατ' αὐτήν, καὶ πυνθανόμενος αὐτῶν ἐμεμαθήκει ὀπήν τινα εἶναι περὶ τὸ τεῖχος τῆς πόλεως, δι' ἧς ἀνὴρ ὁπλίτης δύναιτ' ἂν ἐντὸς εἰσελθεῖν, μηδ' ὅλως μελλήσας τοῦ ἔργου εἴχετο. καὶ εἰσῆλθε διὰ ταύτης ἀνήρ, καὶ ἐπηκολού θησεν αὐτῷ ἕτερος, εἶτα ἐκείνῳ ἄλλος, καὶ οὕτω μέχρι τῶν πεντεκαίδεκα, τάχα δὲ καὶ πλείους ἄνδρες ἐντὸς εἰσῆλθον τῆς πόλεως. ἐπεὶ δὲ περὶ τὸ τεῖχος ἕνα εὗρον τῶν ἐμπεπιστευ μένων τὴν φυλακήν, τινὲς ἐξ αὐτῶν ἀναβάντες καὶ τῶν ποδῶν λαβόντες ἔρριψαν ἔξω τῆς πόλεως. οἱ δ' ἄλλοι ἀξίνας ἐγχειρισάμενοι καὶ τοὺς μοχλοὺς τῶν πυλῶν διαρρήξαντες ἐλευθέραν πεποίηνται τὴν εἰς τὴν πόλιν εἴσοδον τῷ στρατεύματι. οὕτω μὲν οὖν ὁ Στρατηγόπουλος καῖσαρ καὶ οἱ σὺν αὐτῷ πάντες Ῥωμαῖοι καὶ Σκύθαι-ἐκ τῶν τοιούτων καὶ γὰρ τὸ ὑπ' αὐτὸν συνεκεκρότητο στράτευμα-ἐντὸς τῆς πόλεως ἐγεγόνεισαν. οἱ δ' ἐντὸς τῷ αἰφνιδίῳ κατασεισθέν τες τοῦ πράγματος, ὡς εἶχεν ἕκαστος τὴν ἑαυτοῦ σωτηρίαν ἐπραγματεύετο. καὶ οἱ μὲν περὶ τὰ σεμνεῖα