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they were taking without glory. And some great success was then achieved without a struggle in a narrow space, a youthful gain with little effort. Then, therefore, the generals, having carried off wonderful and great spoils, among which was the prince of Achaia himself, marched to the east together with the army around them, having first fortified as much as possible the western places, so that they might be guarded for a very long time. So when they returned with splendid trophies, Strategopoulos found matters still in a state of disorder, but he himself also helped Palaiologos not a little with his ambition. The prince, however, they then for the present delivered to the prison; but afterwards, when the city was captured—so that these things might be spoken of in sequence and the continuity of the narrative not be interrupted, even if it happened later—so when the city was captured, two years having passed, the prince bows his 123 haughty neck to the emperor and said that he now for the first time saw him as the ruler of Romania, having taken the throne as he should, and that he was persuading himself to bow down and fall at the feet of an emperor who was indeed perfect; and if he wished, he would also give the finest of his possessions as a ransom for himself, things which, if the city were not in their hands, would have been considered worth nothing to the Romans; but now he believed they would gladly receive them and be sufficiently magnified by possessing them. And the prince said these things, deeming it right to be called a servant forever and to have some sign from the emperor as a symbol of his servitude. But the emperor, having heard about the ransom and having judged it sufficient—for he was giving cities and lands, a portion of his own in the Peloponnese, sufficient for a great majesty of lordship—and having also looked to the future servitude of the Latin, so that from this the Romans would be magnified and also gain, decided to make a truce with him. So on stated terms he releases both him from the prison and as many of those around him as had survived, suffering beforehand in prisons, and he honors and receives him with fitting ceremony and thus makes him his own, so as even to appoint him godfather to his own child from holy baptism, as a sign of some very great confidence; and after this they agreed to dreadful oaths, as some say, so that having lit a beacon, together with the words spoken for the oaths and the most avenging curses, they caused it to be extinguished, a thing which is performed among the Italians as a security for their excommunications. And their agreements were that the prince would indeed give to the Romans and to the emperor to possess therefrom into inalienable lordship these places in the Peloponnese: Monemvasia, Maina, Geraki, Mystras—but he placed Nauplion and Argos in doubt—and at the same time the entire theme around Kinsterna, which was great in length and abounding in many good things, and that he himself should be called forever a servant of the Romans and of the emperor and should bear an office from him as a sign of his 125 servitude, and that the emperor, having honored him with the dignity of Grand Domestic, should send him away with honor along with those around him, as many as had survived. And so when the treaty had been made on these terms, he sent him away with fitting honors, and he sent along those who were to receive the ransom. And the prince took possession of his own domains, being acclaimed Prince of Achaia and Grand Domestic of Romania, and as soon as he arrived, without any delay, he handed over the ransom, as he had previously promised. And he would have remained to the end on peaceful terms with the Romans, being famed for the office of Romania, if the pope had not heard, being provoked in these matters by the king, who ran to him and supplicated—for it did not seem to him advantageous to be in truce with the Romans forever—and annulled those agreements and considered the oaths as nothing, on the grounds that he acted while in prison and inescapable bonds and not voluntarily, as was necessary. From which also in the time that followed continuous and great wars broke out between them both. And these things were done in this way.

32. How the Despot Michael defeats the Romans and captures the Caesar. The Despot Michael, however, now with his power diminished by these events—for with a very great

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ἀκλεῶς ᾕρουν. Καὶ μέγα τι ἀκονιτὶ ἐν στενῷ κατόρθωμα τότ' ἐπράττετο, ἐν ὀλίγῳ πόνῳ κέρδος νεανικόν. Τότε τοίνυν τὰ θαυμαστὰ καὶ μεγάλα οἱ στρατηγοὶ ἀπενεγκάμενοι λάφυρα, ἐφ' οἷς καὶ αὐτὸν δὴ τὸν τῆς Ἀχαΐας πρίγκιπα, ἐπ' ἀνατολὴν συνάμα καὶ τῷ περὶ αὐτοὺς στρατεύματι ἤλαυνον, κατοχυρώσαντες ὡς οἷόν τε πρότερον καὶ τοὺς κατὰ δύσιν τόπους, ὡς ἐπὶ πλεῖστον φυλάττοιντο. Ὡς γοῦν ἐπανῆκον μετὰ λαμπρῶν τῶν τροπαίων, κατειλήφει μὲν καὶ ἔτι ὁ Στρατηγόπουλος ἐν ἀκα ταστασίᾳ τὰ πράγματα, οὐκ ὀλίγα δὲ καὶ αὐτὸς τῷ Παλαιολόγῳ συναίρεται τῆς ὀρέξεως. Τὸν μέντοι γε πρίγκιπα κατὰ τὸ παρεστὸς μὲν τότε τῇ φυλακῇ ἐδίδοσαν· μετέπειτα δέ, ἁλούσης τῆς πόλεωςὡς ἂν καθ' εἱρμὸν καὶ ταῦτα ῥηθείη καὶ μὴ τὸ τῆς διηγήσεως συνεχὲς διακόπτοιτο, εἰ καὶ ξυνέπεσεν ὕστερον, τῆς γοῦν πόλεως ἁλούσης, ἐτοῖν παραδραμόντοιν δυοῖν, ὁ μὲν πρίγκιψ τὸν 123 σοβαρὸν αὐχένα κλίνει τῷ βασιλεῖ καὶ ἄρτι πρῶτον βλέπειν ἐκεῖνον ἄνακτα Ῥωμανίας ἔλεγεν, ἐπειλημμένον ὡς ἐχρῆν τοῦ θρόνου, καί γε ἑαυτὸν πείθειν καθυποκλίνεσθαι καὶ εἰς πόδας πίπτειν βασιλεῖ γε ὄντι τελείῳ· εἰ δὲ βούλοιτο, καὶ λύτρα διδόναι ὑπὲρ αὐτοῦ ὧν ἔχει τὰ κάλλιστα, ἅ, εἰ μή γε ἀνὰ χεῖρας ἡ πόλις ἔκειτο, οὐκ ἂν ἠξίωντο τοῖς Ῥωμαίοις τοῦ μηδενός· νῦν δὲ καὶ λαβεῖν ἀσμένως πιστεύειν καὶ ἔχοντας ἱκανῶς μεγαλύνεσθαι. Καὶ ὁ μὲν πρίγκιψ ταῦτα, ἀξιῶν καὶ δοῦλος ἐς ἀεὶ κεκλῆσθαι καί τι σημεῖον ἔχειν ἐκ βασιλείας τῆς δουλείας σύμβολον. Ὁ δέ γε βασιλεύς, ἀκούσας μὲν καὶ τὰ λύτρα καὶ διαγνοὺς ἱκανάπόλεις γὰρ ἐδίδου καὶ χώρας, ἀπόμοιραν ἑαυτοῦ ἐν Πελοπονήσῳ, ἱκανὰς εἰς δεσποτείας σέμνωμα μέγα, ἀποβλέψας δὲ καὶ πρὸς τὴν εἰσέπειτα τοῦ Λατίνου δουλείαν, ὡς ἐντεῦθεν καὶ μεγαλύνεσθαι τοὺς Ῥωμαίους καί γε κερδαίνειν, ἔγνω σπείσασθαι τὰ πρὸς τοῦτον. Ἐπὶ ῥητοῖς γοῦν ἐκβάλλει τοῦτόν τε τῆς φυλακῆς καὶ τῶν ἀμφ' αὐτὸν ὅσοι περιῆσαν ἐν φυλακαῖς προσταλαιπωρούμενοι, τιμᾷ δὲ καὶ δεξιοῦται τοῖς πρέπουσι καὶ οὕτως ἑαυτῷ οἰκειοῦται ὥστε καὶ ἀνάδοχον αὐτὸν καταστῆσαι παιδὸς ἰδίου ἐκ τοῦ ἁγίου βαπτίσματος κατά τινα πληροφορίαν μεγίστην· συνέθεντό τε μετὰ ταῦτα τοὺς ὅρκους φρικτούς, ὡς λέγουσί τινες, ὥστε καὶ φρύκτωρα ἀνάψαντας ἅμα τοῖς λεχθεῖσιν εἰς ὅρκους καὶ ἀρὰς τὰς παλαμναιοτάτας σβῆναι ποιῆσαι, ὃ δὴ καὶ εἰς ἀσφαλὲς τοῖς Ἰταλοῖς τῶν παρ' ἐκείνοις ἀφορισμῶν τελεῖται. Ἦσαν δὲ σφίσιν αἱ συνθεσίαι ἦ μὴν τὸν μὲν πρίγκιπα Ῥωμαίοις δοῦναι καὶ βασιλεῖ ἐξ αὐτῆς κατασχεῖν εἰς δεσποτείαν ἀναφαίρετον τὰ κατὰ Πελο πόνησον ταῦτα, Μονεμβασίαν, Μαΐνην, Ἱεράκιον, ΜυζηθρᾶνἈνάπλιον δὲ καὶ Ἄργος ἐν ἀμφιβόλοις ἐτίθεικαὶ ἅμα πᾶν τὸ περὶ τὴν Κινστέρναν θέμα, πολύ γε ὂν τὸ μῆκος καὶ πολλοῖς βρύον τοῖς ἀγαθοῖς, καί γε αὐτὸν ἐς ἀεὶ δοῦλον κεκλῆσθαι Ῥωμαίων καὶ βασιλέως καὶ ὀφφίκιον ἐντεῦθεν εἰς δου 125 λείας σημεῖον ἀποφερόμενον, τὸν δέ γε βασιλέα, σεμνύναντα τοῦτον τῷ τοῦ μεγάλου ἀξιώματι δομεστίκου, μετὰ τιμῆς ἀποστεῖλαι συνάμα τοῖς ἀμφ' αὐτόν, ὅσοι καὶ περιόντες ἦσαν. Καὶ δὴ ἐπὶ τούτοις γεγονυιῶν τῶν σπονδῶν, αὐτὸν μὲν ἀπέστελλε σὺν τιμαῖς πρεπούσαις, τοὺς δέ γε ληψομένους τὰ λύτρα προσεπεπόμφει. Καί γε ὁ πρίγκιψ τὰ ἴδια κατελάμβανε, πρίγκιψ Ἀχαΐας καὶ μέγας δομέστικος Ῥωμανίας ἐπιφημιζόμενος, καὶ ἅμα τῷ ἐπιστῆναι, μηδὲν μελλήσας, ἀπεδίδου τὰ λύτρα, ὡς προϋπέσχετο. Κἂν ἐνέμεινε καὶ ἐς τέλος ἐνσπόνδως ἔχων πρὸς Ῥωμαίους, τῷ τῆς Ῥωμαΐδος κλεϊζόμενος ὀφφικίῳ, εἰ μή γε ὁ πάπας ἀκούσας, παροξυνθεὶς καὶ ταῦτα πρὸς τοῦ ῥηγός, καὶ αὐτοῦ γε προσδραμόντος καὶ ἱκετεύσαντοςοὐ γὰρ εἰς συνοῖσον ἐδόκει οἱ τὸ διὰ τέλους σπένδεσθαι πρὸς Ῥωμαίους, τὰς συνθήκας ἐκείνας διέλυε καὶ τοὺς ὅρκους παρ' οὐδὲν ἐτίθει, ὡς ἐν φυλακῇ καὶ ἀφύκτοις δεσμοῖς καὶ μὴ ἑκουσίως, ὡς ἐχρῆν, πράττοντος. Ὅθεν καὶ εἰς τὸ μετέπειτα συνεχεῖς καὶ μεγάλοι σφίσι καὶ ἀμφοτέροις ἀνερρώγασι πόλεμοι. Καὶ ταῦτα μὲν ἐπράττετο τῇδε.

λβʹ. Ὅπως ὁ δεσπότης Μιχαὴλ νικᾷ Ῥωμαίους καὶ αἱρεῖ καίσαρα. Ὁ μέντοι γε δεσπότης Μιχαήλ, νῦν μὲν καὶ ἀπὸ τούτων κολουθεὶς τῆς δυνάμεωςπλείστῃ γὰρ