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then lawfully and canonically the most wise Photius to the vacant throne of the queen of cities. Nor indeed before this did he cease being well-disposed towards him and honoring him for his manifold wisdom and virtue, but even if he removed him from the throne, wishing to bring nothing before justice, nevertheless he left nothing undone in providing comfort. Therefore, even giving him a place in the palace, 277 he appointed him as instructor and teacher of his own children. Thus, as far as he was able, he overlooked no one who was grieving, but treated all with benevolence and kindness and did not neglect to comfort them in any way possible. 45 But although he was so paternally and solicitously disposed towards those under his hand, he nevertheless had those who hated, or rather envied him and plotted against his life. For the so-called Kourkouas, having grown insolent from wealth and luxury, as it seems, desired tyranny, and having taken a multitude of like-minded men as conspirators, he sought an opportunity for the attack. But when before this the details of the plot were revealed to the emperor by one of the conspirators, the wicked men were handed over to the laws. But again the philanthropy of the noble emperor broke the severity of the laws and moderated the punishments; wherefore, after the leader had his eyes put out, the rest were humanely brought to their senses by blows to the body and the removal of their hair. And these men were thus brought back to order paternally rather than despotically. 46 But his care for all things and the trophies still remaining did not let him sleep. But first, the most fortified castle which greatly benefited the Roman empire, the one called Loulon, which through previous excessive negligence and disregard for what was advantageous 278 had been taken with all its men by the Hagarenes and, on account of the security of its location, was fortified and held by them, the emperor, with his own intelligence and diligence and with an abundance of gifts, bringing persuasion and force, removed it from barbarian rule and transferred it to the former authority of the Romans; from which also the castle of Melos voluntarily transferred to him and proclaimed the emperor its master. And he sacked the city of the Manichaeans called Katabatala at that time through his own generals. But the undertaking through others did not please him so much, as it annoyed him that the trophies were not set up by his own labors and dangers. For this reason, taking with him again Constantine, the first of his sons, so that he might give him, like a noble whelp, a taste of enemy slaughter and he himself might become his teacher in tactics and of a courageous bearing towards dangers, with him he set out against Syria, and having occupied Caesarea near Argaeus, the first city of the Cappadocians, and having tactically armed the elite people under him, from these he cut off a portion and sent them forth as scouts and lookouts, and he himself followed after with the heavy force, so that the most vigorous might lead with active sword, and the yet more robust part be driven on. Those who quickly traversed the deserted lands sacked the fortresses, both Psilokastellon and Paramokastellon, and enslaved those captured in them. 279 And being struck with terror at the approaching force, those inhabiting the so-called castle of Phalakros voluntarily surrendered to the emperor. But the son of Amr, Apabdele, emir of Anazarbus, as long as the emperor was far away, was barbarously insolent, but then with the troop of the Melitenes he sought safety in flight, thinking his only sufficient security was to hide where on earth he had gone. And with the destruction of such an assault, the sacking of Kaisos, that is Katasamas, and of Robam, that is Endelechone, also occurred, and at the same time that of Andalos and of the so-called Eremosykaias, when

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ἐννόμως τότε καὶ κανονικῶς τὸν σοφώτατον Φώτιον ἐπὶ τὴν σχολάζουσαν καθέδραν τῆς βασιλίδος τῶν πόλεων. οὐ μὴν οὐδὲ πρὸ τούτου διέλειπε φιλο- φρονούμενος αὐτὸν καὶ τιμῶν διὰ τὴν ἐν αὐτῷ παντοδαπῆ σοφίαν τε καὶ ἀρετήν, ἀλλὰ καν εἰ τῆς καθέδρας μετέστησεν, οὐδὲν τοῦ δικαίου θέλων αγειν ἐπίπροσθεν, ομως τῶν εἰς παραμυθίαν οὐδὲν ἐνέλειπε παρεχόμενος. οθεν κἀν τοῖς βασιλείοις διατριβὴν αὐτῷ 277 δοὺς τῶν οἰκείων παίδων ἀπέδειξε παιδευτὴν καὶ διδάσκαλον. ου- τως οὐδένα, καθ' οσον οιός τε ην, περιεώρα λυπούμενον, ἀλλὰ πᾶσιν εὐμενῶς τε καὶ προσηνῶς προσεφέρετο καὶ τὸν δυνατὸν τρό- πον οὐκ ἠμέλει παραμυθούμενος. 45 ̓Αλλὰ καίπερ ουτω πατρικῶς τε καὶ κηδεμονικῶς πρὸς τοὺς ὑπὸ χεῖρα διατιθέμενος, ειχεν ομως τοὺς μισοῦντας, μᾶλλον δὲ φθονοῦντας καὶ ἐπιβουλεύοντας αὐτοῦ τῇ ζωῇ. ὁ γὰρ ουτω λεγόμενος Κουρκούας ὑπὸ πλούτου καὶ τρυφῆς ἐξυβρίσας, ὡς εοικε, τυραννίδος ἐρᾷ, καὶ ὁμοφρόνων πληθὺν συνωμότας λαβὼν καιρὸν ἐζήτει τῆς ἐπιθέσεως. ὡς δὲ πρὸ τούτου τὰ τῆς συσκευῆς ἐξ ἑνὸς τῶν συνωμοτῶν ἐμηνύθη τῷ βασιλεῖ, παραδίδονται τοῖς νόμοις οἱ πονηροί. ἀλλὰ πάλιν ἡ τοῦ γενναίου βασιλέως φιλαν- θρωπία τὴν τῶν νόμων αὐστηρίαν παρέθραυεν καὶ τὰς ποινὰς ἐμε- τρίαζε· διὸ τοῦ προεξάρχοντος ἐκκοπέντος τοὺς ὀφθαλμούς, οἱ λοιποὶ διὰ τῶν εἰς τὸ σῶμα πληγῶν καὶ τῆς ἀφαιρέσεως τῶν τρι- χῶν φιλανθρώπως ἐσωφρονίζοντο. καὶ ουτοι μὲν ουτως πατρικῶς μᾶλλον η δεσποτικῶς πρὸς τὸ καθεστηκὸς ἐπανήγοντο. 46 Αὐτὸν δὲ οὐκ εια καθεύδειν ἡ ὑπὲρ τῶν ολων φρον- τὶς καὶ τὰ ετι περιλιπῆ τρόπαια. ἀλλὰ πρῶτον μὲν τὸ πλεῖστα τὴν ̔Ρωμαϊκὴν ἐπικράτειαν ὠφελοῦν ὀχυρώτατον κάστρον, τὸ Λοῦ- λον λεγόμενον, τῇ φθασάσῃ περιττῇ ῥᾳθυμίᾳ καὶ τῇ τῶν λυσιτε- 278 λῶν ὀλιγωρίᾳ αυτανδρον παρὰ τῶν ̓Αγαρηνῶν ληφθὲν καὶ διὰ τὴν ἀπὸ τοῦ τόπου ἀσφάλειαν ὀχυρωθὲν καὶ κρατούμενον, τῇ οἰκείᾳ συνέσει καὶ ἐπιμελείᾳ ὁ βασιλεὺς καὶ τῷ ἀφθόνῳ τῶν δωρεῶν, πειθὼ καὶ βίαν προσαγαγών, τῆς βαρβαρικῆς ἐπικρατείας μετέ- στησε καὶ πρὸς τὴν προτέραν ἐξουσίαν τῶν ̔Ρωμαίων μετήγαγεν· ἀφ' ου καὶ τὸ Μελοῦος κάστρον πρὸς αὐτὸν ἑκουσίως μετέθετο καὶ δεσπότην ἑαυτοῦ τὸν αὐτοκράτορα ἀνηγόρευσεν. τὴν δὲ τῶν Μανιχαίων πόλιν τὴν Καταβάταλα καλουμένην κατὰ τὸν καιρὸν ἐκεῖνον διὰ τῶν οἰκείων στρατηγῶν ἐξεπόρθησεν. ἀλλ' οὐ τοσοῦ- τον αὐτὸν ἡ δι' ἑτέρων πρόθεσις ευφραινεν, οσον ἠνία τὸ μὴ τοῖς αὐτοῦ πόνοις καὶ κινδύνοις τὰ τρόπαια ιστασθαι. διὰ τοῦτο αυθις καὶ Κωνσταντῖνον τὸν πρῶτον τῶν υἱῶν προσλαβόμενος, ὡς αν αὐτὸν οια γενναῖον σκύλακα πολεμίων γεύσῃ φόνου καὶ αὐτὸς αὐτῷ διδάσκαλος τῶν τακτικῶν καὶ τοῦ πρὸς τοὺς κινδύνους εὐθαρσοῦς παραστήματος γένηται, σὺν αὐτῷ κατὰ Συρίας ἐξώρμησε, καὶ τὴν πρὸς τῷ ̓Αργέᾳ Καισάρειαν τὴν πρώτην τῶν Καππαδόκων πόλιν καταλαβών, καὶ τακτικῶς τὸν ὑπ' αὐτὸν ἐξοπλίσας λαὸν λογάδων, ἐκ τούτων μοῖραν ἀπέτεμε καὶ ὡς προδιερευνητὰς καὶ προδιόπτας εμπροσθεν ἐξαπέστειλε, καὶ κατόπιν αὐτὸς μετὰ τῆς βαρείας δυνάμεως ειπετο, ινα ἐνεργοῦ μαχαίρας ἡγῆται τὸ ἀκμαιό- τατον, τὸ δὲ ετι στιβαρώτερον ἀπελαύνηται. οι τὰς ἐρήμους ὀξέως διαδραμόντες τὰ φρούρια, τό τε Ψιλοκάστελλον καὶ τὸ Παραμοκάστελλον, ἐξεπόρθησαν, καὶ τοὺς ἐν αὐτοῖς καταληφθέν- 279 τας ἠνδραποδίσαντο. καταπλαγέντες δὲ τῷ δέει τῆς ἐπιούσης δυνάμεως οἱ τὸ τοῦ Φαλακροῦ λεγόμενον κάστρον οἰκοῦντες ἑκου- σίως τῷ βασιλεῖ προσεχώρησαν. ὁ δὲ τοῦ Αμβρου υἱὸς ̓Απάβ-δελε ̓Αναζάρβης ἀμέρας, εως μὲν μακρὰν ἀπεῖχεν ὁ βασιλεύς, βαρβαρικῶς ἐθρασύνετο, τότε δὲ μετὰ τοῦ τῶν Μελιτηνῶν στίφους φυγῇ τὴν σωτηρίαν ἐπορίζετο, μόνην ἀσφάλειαν ἡγούμενος ἱκανὴν τὸ λαθεῖν οποι γῆς καταδέδυκεν. τῇ δὲ τῆς τοιαύτης ἐφόδου φθορᾷ καὶ τῆς Καϊσοῦ ητοι τῆς Κατασάμας καὶ τῆς ̔Ροβὰμ ητοι τῆς ̓Ενδελεχόνης ἡ πόρθησις γέγονεν, αμα δὲ καὶ ἡ τῆς ̓Ανδάλου καὶ ἡ τῆς ουτω λεγομένης ̓Ερημοσυκαίας, οτε