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who had obtained a command, when he learned that he was being prepared for his own assassination by the suggestion of Placidia. He also overcame the Goths in western Galatia who had invaded the territories of the Romans. He also subdued the Armoricans who had revolted from the Romans; and to put it briefly, he established a very great power, so that not only kings, but also neighboring nations came to his commands. 4. After the murder of Aetius, Valentinian also killed Boethius, who was prefect, a man most pleasing to him. And when he had put them forth unburied in the forum, he immediately summoned the senate and made many accusations against the men, being cautious lest he might undergo a revolt on account of Aetius. Maximus, after the assassination of Aetius, kept visiting Valentinian, in order that he might be promoted to the supreme command; but having failed in this, he wished to obtain the patriciate; but Heraclius did not allow this authority either; for starting from the same impulse, he checked the ambitions of Maximus, persuading Valentinian that, having been freed from the burden of Aetius, he ought not to transfer that man's power back to those men. Thereupon Maximus, having failed in both, was angry, and having sent for Optila and Thraustila, Scythian men and excellent in war, who had served with Aetius and become attached to Valentinian, he entered into discussions, and having given and received pledges, he put the emperor at fault for the murder of Aetius, and taught them that it was better to pursue him; for the greatest good would be theirs for avenging the fallen man with justice. 5. When not many days had passed, it seemed good to Valentinian to ride on horseback in the Campus Martius, along with a few guards, and with the men around Optila and Thraustila. And when, having dismounted from his horse, he proceeded to archery practice, there indeed Optila and his men attacked. And Optila struck Valentinian on the temple; and as he turned to see who had struck him, he delivered a second blow to his face, and brought him down. And Thraustila struck down Heraclius, and both, having taken the emperor's diadem and his horse, ran back to Maximus; ** and whether those present were terrified at the men’s reputation in wars, the attempt was without danger for them. And something daemonic happened at the death of Valentinian. For a swarm of bees came upon the blood that flowed from him onto the ground and drew it all up and sucked it. Valentinian therefore died, having lived for thirty-seven years. 6. Thenceforth Rome was in tumult and confusion, and the military multitudes were divided, some wanting to bring Maximus to power, others eager to appoint Maximian; who was the son of Domninus, an Egyptian merchant who had prospered in Italy, and who served Aetius in the capacity of domesticus; and Eudoxia, who had been the wife of Valentinian, was also eager for Maiurinus; but Maximus, prevailing by the supply of money, seized the palace. Thinking that his rule would be secure for him, he forced Eudoxia, threatening death. Thus, then, Maximus came to the leadership of the Romans. And Gizeric, the ruler of the Vandals, having learned of the assassination of Aetius and Valentinian, thinking it the right time to attack the Italies, since the peace had been dissolved by the death of those who made it, and this man who had come to the throne did not possess sufficient power (but others say that also Eudoxia, the wife of Valentinian, out of grief for the assassination of her husband and the compulsion of the marriage, had secretly summoned him), crossed over from Africa to Rome with a great fleet and the nation under him. But when Maximus learned that Gizeric was encamped at Azestus (this is a place near Rome), he became very fearful and fled, having mounted a horse, and even of the imperial guards and of the freedmen around him to whom he most

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λαχόντα ἀρχὴν, ὡς ἔγνω ὑποθήκῃ τῆς Πλακιδίας ἐς τὴν αὐτοῦ ἀναίρεσιν παρασκευαζόμενον. Κατηγωνίσατο δὲ καὶ Γότθους τοὺς ἐν Γαλατίᾳ τῇ πρὸς ἑσπέραν τῶν Ῥωμαίων ἐμβατεύσαντας χωρίοις. Παρεστήσατο καὶ Αἰμοριχιανοὺς ἀφηνιάσαντας Ῥωμαίων· ὡς δὲ συνελόντα εἰπεῖν, μεγίστην κατεστήσατο δύναμιν, ὥστε μὴ μόνον βασιλεῖς, ἀλλὰ καὶ παροικοῦντα ἔθνη τοῖς ἐκείνου ἥκειν ἐπιτάγμασιν. 4. Μετὰ δὲ τὸν Ἀετίου φόνον καὶ Βοήθιον ὁ Βαλεντινιανὸς, ὕπαρχον ὄντα, ἀνεῖλεν, ἐκείνῳ εἰς τὰ μάλιστα κεχαρισμένον. Ὡς δὲ ἀτάφους αὐτοὺς ἐπὶ τὴν ἀγορὰν προὔθηκεν, εὐθέως τὴν γερουσίαν μετακαλεσάμενος, πολλὰς τῶν ἀνδρῶν ἐποιεῖτο κατηγορίας, εὐλαβούμενος, μή πως διὰ τὸν Ἀέτιον ἐπανάστασιν ὑπομείνοι. Ὁ δὲ Μάξιμος μετὰ τὴν Ἀετίου ἀναίρεσιν παρὰ τὸν Βαλεντινιανὸν ἐφοίτα, ὡς ἂν ἐπὶ τὴν ὕπατον ἀρχὴν προαχθείη· ταύτης δὲ διαμαρτὼν τῆς πατρικιότητος τυχεῖν ἐβούλετο· ἀλλ' οὐδὲ ταύτης ὁ Ἡράκλειος τῆς ἐξουσίας συνεχώρει· ἐκ τῆς αὐτῆς γὰρ ὁρμώμενος, τὰς τοῦ Μαξίμου ἀνέκοπτεν ὁρμὰς, παραπείθων τὸν Βαλεντινιανὸν, ἀπηλλαγμένον τῆς Ἀετίου βαρύτητος, μὴ χρῆναι τὴν ἐκείνου πάλιν εἰς ἐκείνους μεταφέρειν δύναμιν. Ἐντεῦθεν ὁ Μάξιμος ἀμφοτέρων διαμαρτὼν ἐχαλέπαινεν, καὶ τὸν Ὀπτήλαν καὶ Θραυστήλαν μεταπεμψάμενος, ἄνδρας Σκύθας καὶ κατὰ πόλεμον ἀρίστους, σὺν Ἀετίῳ δὲ στρατευσαμένους, καὶ Βαλεντινιανῷ προσοικειωθέντας, ἐς λόγους ἦλθε, καὶ πίστεις δοὺς καὶ λαβὼν, τὸν βασιλέα ἐν αἰτίᾳ ἐτίθετο τοῦ φόνου τοῦ Ἀετίου ἕνεκα, καὶ μετιέναι αὐτὸν ἄμεινον ἐδίδασκεν· ἔσεσθαι γὰρ αὐτοῖς τὰ μέγιστα ἀγαθὰ ἐν δίκῃ τῷ πεσόντι τιμωροῦσιν. 5. Ἡμερῶν δὲ διαγενομένων οὐ πολλῶν, ἐδόκει τῷ Βαλεντινιανῷ ἱππασθῆναι κατὰ τὸ Ἄρεος πεδίον, ὀλίγοις ἅμα δορυφόροις, καὶ τοῖς περὶ τὸν Ὀπτήλαν καὶ Θραυστήλαν. Ὡς δὲ ἀποβὰς τοῦ ἵππου, ἐπὶ τὴν τοξείαν ἐχώρει, ἔνθα δὴ ἐπέθεντο Ὀπτήλας καὶ οἱ περὶ αὐτόν. Καὶ ὁ μὲν Ὀπτήλας κατὰ τοῦ κροτάφου παίει τὸν Βαλεντινιανόν· ἐπιστραφέντα δὲ ἰδεῖν τὸν πατάξαντα, δευτέραν κατὰ τῆς ὄψεως ἐπαγαγὼν, καταβάλλει. Ὁ δὲ θραυστήλας τὸν Ἡράκλειον καθεῖλεν, καὶ ἄμφω τε τὸ διάδημα τοῦ βασιλέως καὶ τὸν ἵππον λαβόντες, ἐς τὸν Μάξιμον ἀπέτρεχον· ** εἴτε δὲ καὶ τὴν ἐν τοῖς πολέμοις τῶν ἀνδρῶν δόξαν τῶν παρόντων ἐπτοημένων, ἀκίνδυνος αὐτοῖς ἡ ἐπιχείρησις ἦν. ∆αιμόνιον δέ τι ἐπὶ τῷ Βαλεντινιανοῦ θανάτῳ συνέβη. Μελισσῶν γὰρ ἐσμὸς ἐπιγενόμενος τὸ ἐς τὴν γῆν ἀπ' αὐτοῦ ῥυὲν αἷμα ἀνιμήσατο καὶ ἅπαν ἐμύζησεν. Τελευτᾷ μὲν οὖν ὁ Βαλεντινιανὸς, ἔτη βιώσας ἑπτὰ καὶ τριάκοντα. 6. Τὸ ἐντεῦθεν δὲ ἡ Ῥώμη ἐν θορύβῳ καὶ ταραχαῖς ἦν, τά τε στρατιωτικὰ διῃρεῖτο πλήθη, τῶν μὲν τὸν Μάξιμον βουλομένων παράγειν ἐς τὴν ἀρχὴν, τῶν δὲ Μαξιμιανὸν ἐσπουδακότων χειροτονεῖν· ὃς ἦν μὲν πατρὸς ∆ομνίνου, Αἰγυπτίου πραγματευτοῦ, εὐημερήσαντος δὲ κατὰ τὴν Ἰταλίαν, καὶ τῷ Ἀετίῳ τὴν τοῦ δομεστίκου διακονούμενος χρείαν· τῷ δὲ Μαιουρίνῳ ἐσπουδάκει καὶ Εὐδοξία ἡ τοῦ Βαλεντινιανοῦ γαμετὴ γενομένη· ἀλλὰ τῇ τῶν χρημάτων χορηγίᾳ ὁ Μάξιμος περιὼν, τῶν βασιλείων ἐκράτει. Οἰηθεὶς δὲ βεβαίαν αὐτῷ ἔσεσθαι τὴν ἀρχὴν, βιάζεται τὴν Εὐδοξίαν, θάνατον ἀπειλῶν. Οὕτω μὲν οὖν Μάξιμος ἐπὶ τὴν Ῥωμαίων ἡγεμονίαν ἦλθε. Καὶ Γιζέριχος, ὁ τῶν Βανδήλων ἄρχων, τὴν Ἀετίου καὶ Βαλεντινιανοῦ ἀναίρεσιν ἐγνωκὼς, ἐπιτίθεσθαι ταῖς Ἰταλίαις καιρὸν ἡγησάμενος, ὡς τῆς μὲν εἰρήνης θανάτῳ τῶν σπεισαμένων λυθείσης, τοῦδε εἰς τὴν βασιλείαν παρελθόντος μὴ ἀξιόχρεων κεκτημένου δύναμιν, οἱ δέ φασι καὶ ὡς Εὐδοξίας τῆς Βαλεντινιανοῦ γαμετῆς ὑπὸ ἀνίας διὰ τὴν τοῦ ἀνδρὸς ἀναίρεσιν καὶ τὴν τῶν γάμων ἀνάγκην, λάθρα ἐπικαλεσαμένης αὐτὸν, σὺν πολλῷ στόλῳ καὶ τῷ ὑπ' αὐτὸν ἔθνει ἀπὸ τῆς Ἄφρων ἐς τὴν Ῥώμην διέβαινεν. Ἐπειδὰν δὲ ἐν τῷ Ἀζέστῳ (τόπος δὲ οὗτος τῆς Ῥώμηςἐγγύς) τὸν Γιζέριχον ὁ Μάξιμος ἔγνω στρατοπεδευόμενον, περιδεὴς γενόμενος, ἔφευγεν ἵππῳ ἀναβὰς, καὶ αὐτῶν τῶν βασιλικῶν δορυφόρων καὶ τῶν ἀμφ' αὐτὸν ἐλευθέρων οἷς μάλιστα ἐκεῖνος