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And when Paul had spoken with the military and had read the royal letter in their hearing, they immediately acclaimed the emperor, and handed over Gregory and his fellow captives to Paul. And he killed Gregory, but after flogging his shield-bearers and cutting off their hair, he condemned them to exile. But Sergius, having received assurance that he would suffer no harm, came to Paul from Calabria. And so matters in Sicily were quieted. But the Arabs who were besieging the city, having suffered more than they inflicted, set out to return to their own lands, and embarking on their remaining ships, they departed. But falling into a violent tempest, they all perished with their own triremes, with only ten ships remaining, of which five were captured by the Romans, and the rest, escaping the disaster, went away as messengers. And a lion-cub more savage than his father was born to Leo; and Leo crowned his mother, named Maria, 256 and baptized his son in the great church, naming him Constantine. at which time it is said that he excreted dung while being dipped in the holy font, and from this he was nicknamed Copronymus, and that the most holy patriarch Germanus said, "This is a sign that this child will prove to be a great evil to the church and to those who have chosen to be pious." But the magister Niketas Xylinites, who was one of those who were exceedingly [favored], suggested to Artemius, who was in Thessalonica, to go to the Bulgars and with their cooperation to take back the empire. And he was persuaded, and with a multitude of Bulgars he came to Byzantium, thinking he would be received by the people. But when the people of the city paid him no heed, the Bulgars betrayed him to Leo for a large sum of money. And they departed; but he was put to death along with Xylinites, and the property of Xylinites, being extensive, was all confiscated. And other conspirators of Artemius were killed, among them also the archbishop of Thessalonica. Then Leo made his son Constantine emperor, 257 the ceremony of crowning having been performed by the most holy Germanus. From this point Leo begins to fight against God and raged against the holy icons. And summoning the patriarch Germanus, he said that the icons ought not to be venerated; for he called their veneration idolatry. But that divine man said, "Speak auspiciously, O Emperor, and do not think so; for the thought is utterly impious; and I know it is prophesied that this heresy is to arise. But may you not be its introducer; for it is said that someone named Conon is to begin it." And he, interrupting, immediately said, "Then it is I; for I was named Conon by my parents from infancy." He therefore drove out from the church the renowned Germanus, who was not persuaded to agree with his opinion, but rather contradicted it most nobly and exposed his evil doctrine, after he had governed it for fifteen years, and he appointed a certain Anastasius as patriarch, who was of like mind with himself. I have come to tell the reason, therefore, why Leo thought thus and came to this point of impiety. Izid had recently become chief of the Arabs; and to him came 258 two Jews, sorcerers by trade, who said they practiced astrology and from it knew the future, and they promised the Arab the rule and a very long life, if he would cast out the images of Christ and of the one who bore him from the Christian churches. And the barbarian did not delay, but from all the temples in the land under his rule he removed the holy icons. And divine justice pursued him not long after. For not a year had passed before the wretch had forfeited his life. But his son, having become successor to the rule, sought those false prophets, desiring to avenge the deceit practiced on his father. But they managed to flee from there and arrived in Isauria. where they met this Leo, who was a youth, a handicraftsman in

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τοῦ δὲ Παύλου προσομιλήσαντος τῷ στρατιωτικῷ καὶ τὸ γράμμα τὸ βασίλειον ἀναγνόντος αὐτῶν εἰς ἐπήκοον, εὐθὺς ἐκεῖνοι τὸν μὲν βασιλέα εὐφήμησαν, τὸν δὲ Γρηγόριον καὶ τοὺς περὶ αὐτὸν δεσμίους τῷ Παύλῳ παρέδοσαν. καὶ ὃς τὸν μὲν Γρηγόριον ἀνεῖλε, τοὺς δ' ἐκείνου ὑπασπιστὰς μαστίξας καὶ τὴν κόμην ἀποθρίξας αὐτοῖς ὑπερορίᾳ κατέκρινεν. ὁ δὲ Σέργιος πληροφορίαν λαβὼν μή τινος πειραθῆναι κακοῦ, πρὸς τὸν Παῦλον ἐκ Καλαβρίας ἀφίκετο. καὶ τὰ μὲν κατὰ τὴν Σικελίαν οὕτω ἠρέμησαν. Οἱ δὲ τὴν πόλιν πολιορκοῦντες Ἄραβες, παθόντες μᾶλλον ἢ δράσαντες, ἐπανελθεῖν εἰς τὰ οἰκεῖα ὡρμήκεσαν καὶ εἰς τὰς περιλειφθείσας ἐμβάντες νῆας ἀπῄεσαν. λαίλαπι δὲ περιπεσόντες σφοδρῷ πάντες ἀπώλοντο σὺν ταῖς οἰκείαις τριήρεσι, δέκα μόνων νηῶν περιλειφθεισῶν, ὧν αἱ μὲν πέντε παρὰ Ῥωμαίων ἑάλωσαν, αἱ δὲ λοιπαὶ διαφυγοῦσαι τῆς συμφορᾶς ἀπήλθοσαν ἄγγελοι. Ἐτέχθη δὲ τῷ Λέοντι σκύμνος ὠμότερος τοῦ πατρὸς καὶ τήν τε μητέρα τούτου κεκλημένην Μαρίαν ἔστεψεν ὁ Λέων 256 καὶ τὸν υἱὸν ἐν τῇ μεγάλῃ ἐκκλησίᾳ ἐβάπτισε, Κωνσταντῖνον ὀνομάσας αὐτόν. ὅτε λέγεται κόπρον αὐτὸν ἐκκρῖναι τῇ θείᾳ κολυμβήθρᾳ καταδυόμενον, κἀντεῦθεν ἐπονομασθῆναι Κοπρώνυμον, καὶ τὸν ἁγιώτατον πατριάρχην Γερμανὸν εἰπεῖν ὅτι "σημεῖον τοῦτό ἐστι τοῦ τῇ ἐκκλησίᾳ καὶ τοῖς εὐσεβεῖν ᾑρημένοις μέγα τὸ παιδίον τοῦτο χρηματίσαι κακόν." Ὁ δὲ μάγιστρος Νικήτας ὁ Ξυλινίτης τῶν ὑπερλίαν τυγχάνων ὑπέθετο τῷ Ἀρτεμίῳ ἐν Θεσσαλονίκῃ τυγχάνοντι τοῖς Βουλγάροις προσελθεῖν καὶ συνεργίᾳ τούτων ἀπολήψεσθαι πάλιν τὴν βασιλείαν. καὶ ὃς πείθεται καὶ μετὰ πλήθους Βουλγάρων ἧκεν εἰς τὸ Βυζάντιον, οἰόμενος παρὰ τοῦ λαοῦ προσδεχθήσεσθαι. τῶν δὲ τῆς πόλεως μὴ ἐπιστρεφομένων αὐτοῦ, οἱ Βούλγαροι τοῦτον πολλῶν χρημάτων τῷ Λέοντι προύδωκαν. καὶ οἱ μὲν ἀπῆλθον· ὁ δὲ σὺν τῷ Ξυλινίτῃ ἀνῄρητο, καὶ ἡ τοῦ Ξυλινίτου κτῆσις οὖσα πολλὴ δεδήμευτο ξύμπασα. καὶ ἄλλοι δὲ τῶν συνωμοτῶν τοῦ Ἀρτεμίου ἐκτάνθησαν, πρὸς οἷς καὶ ὁ τῆς Θεσσαλονίκης ἀρχιερεύς. Εἶτα τὸν υἱὸν αὐτοῦ Κωνσταντῖνον ὁ Λέων βασιλέα πε257 ποίηκε, παρὰ τοῦ ὁσιωτάτου Γερμανοῦ τῆς ἐπὶ τῇ ταινιώσει τελετῆς τελεσθείσης. ἐντεῦθεν ὁ Λέων ἄρχεται τοῦ θεομαχεῖν καὶ κατὰ τῶν σεπτῶν εἰκόνων ἐλύττησε. καὶ τὸν πατριάρχην μεταπεμψάμενος Γερμανὸν μὴ δεῖν ἔλεγε τὰς εἰκόνας τιμᾶσθαι· εἰδωλολατρίαν γὰρ τὴν τούτων ἀπεκάλει προσκύνησιν. ὁ δὲ θεῖος ἐκεῖνος ἀνήρ "εὐφήμει, βασιλεῦ," ἔφη "καὶ μὴ οὕτω φρόνει· ἀσεβὲς γὰρ ἄντικρυς τὸ ἐννόημα· καὶ οἶδα μὲν ᾀδόμενον τὸ μέλλειν κινηθῆναι ταύτην τὴν αἵρεσιν. ἀλλὰ μὴ σύγε εἴης ὁ ταύτης εἰσαγωγεύς· Κόνων γάρ τις ὀνομαζόμενος ταύτης μέλλειν κατάρξασθαι λέγεται." καὶ ὃς ὑπολαβὼν αὐτίκα φησίν "οὐκοῦν ἐγώ εἰμι· Κόνων γὰρ παρὰ τῶν γονέων νηπιόθεν ὠνόμασμαι." τὸν μὲν οὖν ἀοίδιμον Γερμανὸν μὴ πεισθέντα συνθέσθαι τῇ γνώμῃ αὐτοῦ, μᾶλλον μὲν οὖν καὶ γενναιότατα ἀντιλέγοντα καὶ τὴν αὐτοῦ κακοδοξίαν ἐλέγχοντα τῆς ἐκκλησίας ἐξώθησεν, ἔτη ταύτην ἰθύναντα πεντεκαίδεκα, Ἀναστάσιον δέ τινα εἰς πατριάρχην ἑαυτῷ ὁμόφρονα προχειρίζεται. τοῦ δ' οὖν οὕτω φρονῆσαι τὸν Λέοντα καὶ εἰς τοῦτο προελθεῖν ἀσεβείας ἥκω τὴν αἰτίαν ἐρῶν. Ἰζὶθ τῶν Ἀράβων ἄρτι γέγονεν ἀρχηγός· καὶ τούτῳ προσ258 ίασιν Ἐβραῖοι δύο τὸ ἐπιτήδευμα γόητες, οἱ δὲ ἀστρολογίαν ἔλεγον μετιέναι κἀντεῦθεν εἰδέναι τὰ μέλλοντα, καὶ τῷ Ἄραβι τὴν ἀρχὴν ἐπηγγέλλοντο καὶ τὴν ζωὴν πολυχρόνιον, εἰ τῶν ἐκκλησιῶν τῶν χριστωνύμων τὰ τοῦ Χριστοῦ καὶ τῆς αὐτὸν τεκούσης ἐκβαλεῖ τὰ ἐκτυπώματα. καὶ ὁ βάρβαρος οὐκ ἠμέλλησεν, ἀλλ' ἐκ πάντων τῶν ἐν τῇ ὑπ' αὐτὸν τελούσῃ χώρᾳ ναῶν τὰς σεπτὰς εἰκόνας ἠφάνισε. καὶ ἡ θεία δίκη τοῦτον μετῆλθεν οὐκ εἰς μακράν. οὔπω γὰρ παρῆλθεν ἐνιαυτὸς καὶ ὁ δείλαιος τὴν ζωὴν ἐζημίωτο. ὁ δὲ τούτου παῖς τῆς ἀρχῆς διάδοχος γεγονὼς τοὺς ψευδομάντεις ἐκείνους ἐζήτει, τῆς εἰς τὸν τεκόντα ἀπάτης τίσασθαι προθυμούμενος. ἀλλ' ἔφθησαν ἐκεῖνοι φυγεῖν ἐκεῖθεν καὶ εἰς Ἰσαυρίαν κατήντησαν. ἔνθα περιτυχόντες τούτῳ τῷ Λέοντι, νεανίᾳ τυγχάνοντι, βαναύσῳ τὸ