,

the emperor having judged to provide arms to the wrongdoers and to risk what is not noble because of the weight of the promise, and that the Romans, having undertaken a most shameful cause, 4.14.3 be pilloried forever with immortal reproaches. So the matters of the decree were both echoed and prevalent around the imperial city until that day; and on the fifth day the envoys, having rushed in to the Caesar and having been adorned with imperial gifts, carry away the emperor's decree in a letter. 4.14.4 And in addition to these things, the emperor sent out to Chosroes along with the 4.14.5 envoys both Sam and Chosroperozen and the others, whom the Roman power had already captured earlier at the time of the war. So Chosroes, having read through the contents of the Caesar's letter and having admired the virtue of the Romans, left the city of Hierapolis and arrived with Comentiolus at the city of Constantina, and a little later the prelate of Melitene (this was Domitian) also comes to Chosroes with imperial instructions, a man who was related by family to the emperor Maurice, a priest in rank, but more holy in the conduct of his life, charming in speech, swift in 4.14.6 action, most prudent in counsel. And he was accompanied by Gregory, the leader of the priesthood of the Antiochenes; for this too seemed good to the emperor, and the word was being translated into action. So the priests, having arrived at Constantina itself, were consoling Chosroes with words and gifts, arranging for the despondent man the fulfillment 4.14.7 of his hopes. So Chosroes was sending envoys throughout Nisibis, reminding the Persians of their goodwill towards the royal family, exhorting with the mildness of his counsel that they must not endure the power of tyrants and outrage an ancient and ancestral law which had grown old gracefully with the Persian kingdom and had never, by the innovation of its 4.14.8 overthrow, incurred disrepute. But when it became clear to Bahram that Chosroes had been saved, and how the Romans had kindly received him, and the same had been agreed by the emperor through the envoys, he sent out envoys asking the emperor in no way to assist the fortunes of Chosroes, affirming that he would hand over to the Romans both the city of 4.14. Nisibis and the lands as far as the river Tigris. So Bahram was idly mistaken; for he was not able to corrupt the piety of the emperor. And not many days later, having puffed up his arrogance, he was caught openly breaking faith with his allies, and he was a certain burden to the Persian people and unrestrained in his designs, embittering his 4.14.10 tyranny towards greater harshness. And so the most notable satraps of his force secretly contrive a plot, so that Bahram might be assassinated, and affairs might return to a state of calm for the Medes. 4.14.11 So the leaders of the plot concerning Bahram were both Zamerdes and Zoanambes the Persian; so these very men, having taken as comrades also other chosen men from the Babylonian populace, as far as was possible, 4.14.12 were carrying out the plot. And suspecting that it would be more advantageous for them for Vindoes to be in partnership (and he was inhabiting a prison by order of Bahram), they fulfill their plan in deed, and having suddenly burst into the guardhouse, freed Vindoes from his bonds and appointed him commander of a company, during the night they attack Bahram in the palace. 4.14.13 So Bahram, having become aware of the plot in the second watch of the night, armed the guards and ordered them to wear armor, and having prepared those who had recently come over to him from the gentiles, he set himself staunchly in opposition to the attackers. 4.14.14 And as the night battle became fierce, Bahram prevailed, and having captured the fathers of the enterprise alive, when day had already dawned, he cut off the more active of their limbs, then having spread the rest of their bodies under the elephants, he allowed them to be trampled and for them to suffer this utterly destructive death. 4.15.1 So Vindoes, along with those with him, escapes from the

τοῦ αὐτοκράτορος κρίναντος ὅπλα τοῖς ἀδικοῦσι παρέχεσθαι καὶ προκινδυνεύειν τοῦ μὴ καλοῦ διὰ τὸν ὄγκον τῆς ὑποσχέσεως, καὶ ῾Ρωμαίους αἰσχίστην ἀναδεξαμένους ὑπόθεσιν 4.14.3 ἀθανάτοις ὀνείδεσι διὰ παντὸς στηλιτεύεσθαι. τὰ μὲν οὖν τοῦ δόγματος ἐς ἐκείνην τὴν ἡμέραν περὶ τὸ βασίλειον ἄστυ ἐξηχεῖτό τε καὶ ἐπεπόλαζεν· πεμπταῖοι δ' οἱ πρέσβεις εἰσφρήσαντες πρὸς τὸν Καίσαρα, δώροις διακοσμηθέντες βασιλικοῖς ἐν γράμμασι τὸ παρὰ τοῦ βασιλέως ἀποφέρονται ψήφισμα. 4.14.4 ἐπὶ τούτοις τε τόν τε Σαμὲν καὶ Χοσροπερόζην τούς τε ἄλλους, οὓς ἤδη πρότερον κατὰ τὸν τοῦ πολέμου καιρὸν ᾑρήκει τὸ ῾Ρωμαϊκόν, ὁ αὐτοκράτωρ ἐς Χοσρόην ἅμα τοῖς 4.14.5 πρέσβεσιν ἐξαπέστειλεν. ὁ μὲν οὖν Χοσρόης τὰ ἐν τῷ βιβλίῳ τοῦ Καίσαρος διαναγνοὺς τήν τε τῶν ῾Ρωμαίων ἀγασθεὶς ἀρετήν, τὴν μὲν ῾Ιερὰν πόλιν καταλιπὼν ἅμα Κομεντιόλῳ ἐς Κωνσταντῖναν τὸ ἄστυ ἀφίκετο, μικροῦ τε ὕστερον καὶ ὁ τῆς Μελιτηνῆς προεστὼς (∆ομετιανὸς δ' ἄρα οὗτος) βασιλικαῖς ὑποθήκαις γίνεται πρὸς Χοσρόην, ὃς πρὸς γένος συνῆπται τῷ βασιλεῖ Μαυρικίῳ, τὴν τιμὴν ἱερεύς, τὴν δὲ περὶ τὸν βίον κατασκευὴν ἱερώτερος, τὸν λόγον ἡδύς, τὴν πρᾶξιν 4.14.6 ταχύς, τὴν συμβουλὴν ἐμφρονέστατος. συνείπετο δ' αὐτῷ ὅ τε Γρηγόριος, ὁ τῆς ᾿Αντιοχέων τοῦ ἱερατικοῦ ἐξηγούμενος· ἔδοξε γὰρ καὶ τοῦτο τῷ βασιλεῖ, καὶ μετεφοίτα πρὸς τὴν πρᾶξιν ὁ λόγος. παραγενηθέντες γοῦν οἱ ἱερεῖς ἐς Κωνσταντῖναν αὐτὴν λόγοις καὶ δώροις παρηγόρουν Χοσρόην, ἐπιτεύξεις 4.14.7 ἐλπίδων ἀθυμουμένῳ διατιθέμενοι. ὁ μὲν οὖν Χοσρόης ἀνὰ τὴν Νίσιβιν πρέσβεις ἀπέστελλεν ἀναμιμνήσκων Πέρσας τῆς εὐνοίας τῆς ἐς τὸ βασίλειον γένος, παρακαλῶν τῷ ἠπίῳ τῆς παραινέσεως ὡς οὐ δεῖ τυράννων ἐξουσίας ἀνέχεσθαι καὶ καθυβρίζειν νόμον ἀρχαῖον καὶ πάτριον καλῶς γεγηρακότα τῇ Περσῶν βασιλείᾳ καὶ μηδέ ποτε τῷ νεωτέρῳ τῆς καθαι4.14.8 ρέσεως ἀπενεγκάμενον τὸ ἀδόκιμον. τῷ δὲ Βαρὰμ ἐπεὶ κατάδηλον γέγονεν ὡς διεσώθη μὲν ὁ Χοσρόης, ὅπως τε ῾Ρωμαῖοι φιλοφρόνως αὐτὸν ἀνεδέξαντο, τὸ δ' αὐτὸ καὶ παρὰ τοῦ αὐτοκράτορος διὰ τῶν πρέσβεων ὡμολόγητο, πρέσβεις ἐξέπεμψεν ἀξιῶν τὸν αὐτοκράτορα μηδαμῶς ταῖς Χοσρόου τύχαις ἐπικουρεῖν, διισχυριζόμενος Νίσιβίν τε πόλιν παραδι4.14. δόναι ῾Ρωμαίοις καὶ τὰ ἄχρι Τίγριδος ποταμοῦ. ὁ μὲν οὖν Βαρὰμ τηνάλλως ἐπλανᾶτο· οὐ γὰρ οἷός τε ἦν διαφθείρειν τὴν τοῦ βασιλέως ὁσιότητα. οὐ πολλαῖς δὲ ἡμέραις καὶ τὸ σοβαρὸν ἐξογκωσάμενος τοὺς μὲν συμμάχους ἀθετούμενος κατάφωρος ἦν, τῷ τε Περσικῷ φορτικός τις ὑπῆν καὶ ταῖς ἐπιβολαῖς ἀκατάσχετος πρὸς τὸ χαλεπώτερον ἐξαγριαίνων τὸ 4.14.10 τύραννον. καὶ οὖν οἱ ἀξιολογώτατοι σατράπαι τῆς τούτου δυνάμεως ὑποσυρρέουσι συσκευήν, ὅπως δολοφονηθείη Βαράμ, καὶ πρὸς τὸ γαληναῖον ἐπανήξῃ τοῖς Μήδοις τὰ πράγματα. 4.14.11 οἱ μὲν οὖν ἔξαρχοι τῆς περὶ τὸν Βαρὰμ συσκευῆς ὅ τε Ζαμέρδης καὶ Ζοανάμβης ὁ Πέρσης· προσεταιρισάμενοι γοῦν οὗτοι δὴ οὗτοι καὶ ἑτέρους τῆς Βαβυλωνίας πληθύος λογάδας, ὡς 4.14.12 ἐνῆν, τὰ τῆς ἐπιβουλῆς ἐξελίπαινον. ὑποτοπήσαντες δὲ καὶ Βινδόην πρὸς κοινοπραξίαν αὐτοῖς εἶναι λυσιτελέστερον (οὗτος δ' ὑπὸ τοῦ Βαρὰμ κατῴκει εἱρκτὴν) ἀναπληροῦσιν ἔργῳ τὸ βούλημα, καὶ ἀθρόον ἐς τὴν φρουρὰν εἰσπηδήσαντες, τῶν δεσμῶν τὸν Βινδόην διαλυσάμενοι ταγματάρχην τε λόχου χειροτονήσαντες, οὔσης νυκτὸς εἰς τὰ βασίλεια τῷ Βαρὰμ 4.14.13 ἐπιτίθενται. ὁ μὲν οὖν Βαρὰμ δευτέρᾳ φυλακῇ τῆς νυκτὸς τῆς συσκευῆς ἐν γνώσει γενόμενος, ἐξοπλίσας τοὺς φύλακας σιδηροφορεῖν ἐγκελεύεται, τούς τε ἔναγχος ἐκ τῶν ἐθνῶν προσκεχωρηκότας αὐτῷ παρασκευασάμενος τοῖς ἐμπεσοῦσιν ἐς 4.14.14 τὸ καρτερὸν ἀντετίθετο. καὶ τῆς νυκτομαχίας ἰσχυρᾶς γενομένης, ὑπερέσχε Βαρὰμ καὶ ζωγρήσας τοὺς πατέρας τοῦ ἐγχειρήματος ἡμέρας ἤδη λαμψάσης ἀρθροτομεῖ τῶν μελῶν τούτων τὰ πρακτικώτερα, εἶτα ὑποστορέσας τὰ λοιπὰ σώματα τοῖς ἐλέφασιν εἴα πατεῖσθαι καὶ τὸν πανώλεθρον τοῦτον ἐκείνους ἀποφέρεσθαι θάνατον. 4.15.1 ῾Ο μὲν οὖν Βινδόης ἅμα τοῖς σὺν αὐτῷ διαδιδράσκει τῆς