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he encamped with the men, and in the other he confined the women, and he threatened that death would be the penalty, if anyone went to 3.8.17 the women's stockade. Afterwards, sending spies to Carthage, he commanded the following: whenever the Vandals, marching on campaign, should commit an outrage in some church which the Christians revere, they themselves were to observe what happened; but if the Vandals should leave the place, they were to do all the opposite things to the sanctuary of what 3.8.18 those men had done and departed. They say that he also added this, that he did not know the god whom the Christians revere, but that it was likely that he, if he is powerful as is said, would punish those who commit outrages and defend those who 3.8.19 worship him. So the spies, having come to Carthage, kept quiet, observing the preparation of the Vandals, and when the army was going toward Tripolis, 3.8.20 they followed, clad in humble attire. And the Vandals, when they encamped on the first day, bringing both their horses and their other animals into the churches of the Christians, they left no outrage undone and themselves indulged in their own licentiousness, and whatever priests they might capture, they would strike them and, flogging them across the back, ordered them to perform for them the many services which they were accustomed to assign to the most dishonoured of their servants. 3.8.21 And as soon as they departed from there, Cabaon's spies did all that had been commanded them; for they immediately cleaned the sanctuaries, removing with great care both the dung and anything else that lay there unholily, and they lit all the lamps and bowed before the priests with great reverence and greeted them with other acts of friendli3.8.22 ness; and giving money to the poor who were sitting around these sanctuaries, they thus followed the army of the Van3.8.23 dals. And from then on along the whole route, the Vandals committed the same sins 3.8.24 and the spies performed their service. And when they were about to be near, the spies, going ahead, reported to Cabaon all that had been done by the Vandals and by themselves to the Christian sanctuaries, and that the enemy was somewhere nearby. 3.8.25 And he, having heard, prepared for battle thus. Marking off a circle in the plain where he was about to make his stockade, he set up the camels as a defense for the camp, placing them crosswise in a circle, making the depth of the front about twelve 3.8.26 camels. So he placed the children and women and whatever non-combatants they had, together with their possessions, in the middle, and he ordered the host of fighting men to be between the feet of those animals, fenced in with their 3.8.27 shields. And with the phalanx of the Maurusians arrayed in this way, the Vandals were at a loss how to deal with the situation; for they were neither good javelin-throwers nor archers, nor did they know how to go into battle on foot, but they were all cavalrymen, and used spears for the most part and swords, and for this reason they were able to do no harm to the enemy from a distance, and their horses, being distressed by the sight of the camels, were most unwilling to be led against the enemy. 3.8.28 And since the enemy, hurling many javelins at them from a safe position, killed both their horses and them, being a multitude, without difficulty, they fled, and with the Maurusians pursuing, most were destroyed, and some were even taken by the enemy, and very few from this army returned 3.8.29 home. These things, then, Thrasamund happened to suffer at the hands of the Maurusians. And he died some time later, having ruled the Vandals for twenty-seven years. 3.9.1 Hilderich, the son of Honoric, the son of Gizeric, took over the kingdom, who in matters concerning his subjects was both approachable and altogether gentle, and had become harsh neither to the Christians nor to anyone else, but in matters of war he was exceedingly soft and unwilling for this business 3.9.2 even to come to his ears. Hoamer, at any rate, being his nephew and a man brave in matters of war, commanded the Vandals against whomever they might campaign; whom they indeed called the Achilles of the Van3.9.3 dals. Under this Hilderich, the Vandals were defeated in battle by the Maurusians in Byzacium, whom Antalas ruled, and it happened to them with Theoderic and the Goths in

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ἐστρατοπεδεύσατο τοῖς ἀνδράσιν, ἐν δὲ δὴ τῷ ἑτέρῳ τὰς γυναῖκας καθεῖρξε, θάνατόν τε τὴν ζημίαν ἠπείλησεν ἔσεσθαι, ἤν τις ἐπὶ 3.8.17 τὸ τῶν γυναικῶν χαράκωμα ἴοι. μετὰ δὲ πέμψας ἐς Καρχηδόνα κατασκόπους ἐπέταττε τάδε· ἐπειδὰν οἱ Βανδίλοι ἐπὶ τὴν στρατείαν βαδίζοντες ἔς τινα νεὼν ὑβρίσωσιν, ὃν οἱ Χριστιανοὶ σέβονται, αὐτοὺς μὲν ἐφορᾶν τὰ γινόμενα· ἢν δὲ οἱ Βανδίλοι τὸ χωρίον ἀμείψωσιν, ἅπαντα ποιεῖν τἀναντία ἐς τὸ ἱερὸν ὧν 3.8.18 ἐκεῖνοι δράσαντες οἴχονται. ἐπειπεῖν δὲ αὐτὸν καὶ τοῦτό φασιν, ὡς ἀγνοοίη μὲν τὸν θεὸν, ὃν Χριστιανοὶ σέβονται, εἰκὸς δὲ αὐτὸν, εἴπερ ἰσχυρός ἐστιν, ὡς λέγεται, τίσασθαι μὲν τοὺς ὑβρίζοντας, ἀμῦναι δὲ τοῖς 3.8.19 θεραπεύουσιν. οἱ μὲν οὖν κατάσκοποι ἐς Καρχηδόνα ἐλθόντες ἡσύχαζον, τὴν παρασκευὴν τῶν Βανδίλων θεώμενοι, ἐπεὶ δὲ τὸ στράτευμα τὴν ἐπὶ Τρίπολιν 3.8.20 ᾔεσαν, σχήματα περιβεβλημένοι ταπεινὰ εἵποντο. οἱ δὲ Βανδίλοι ὡς ἡμέρᾳ τῇ πρώτῃ ηὐλίσαντο, ἐς τῶν Χριστιανῶν τοὺς νεὼς τούς τε ἵππους τά τε ἄλλα ζῷα ἐσαγαγόντες, ὕβρεώς τε οὐδεμιᾶς ἀπελείποντο καὶ αὐτοὶ ἀκολασίᾳ τῇ σφετέρᾳ ἐχρήσαντο, τούς τε ἱερέας, οὓς ἂν λάβοιεν, ἐρράπιζόν τε καὶ ξαίνοντες κατὰ τοῦ νώτου πολλὰς ὑπηρετεῖν σφίσιν ἐκέλευον ὅσα δὴ ἐπέχειν τῶν οἰκετῶν τοῖς ἀτιμοτάτοις εἰώθεσαν. 3.8.21 καὶ ἐπειδὴ τάχιστα ἐνθένδε ἀπηλλάγησαν, ἐποίουν οἱ τοῦ Καβάωνος κατάσκοποι ὅσα αὐτοῖς ἐπετέτακτο· τά τε γὰρ ἱερὰ ἐκάθηραν αὐτίκα τήν τε κόπρον καὶ εἴ τι ἄλλο οὐχ ὁσίως ἐπέκειτο ξὺν ἐπιμελείᾳ πολλῇ ἀφελόμενοι, τά τε λύχνα ἔκαυσαν ἅπαντα καὶ τοὺς ἱερέας αἰδοῖ τε πολλῇ προσεκύνησαν καὶ τῇ ἄλλῃ φιλοφρο3.8.22 σύνῃ ἠσπάσαντο· ἀργύριά τε τοῖς πτωχοῖς δόντες, οἳ ἀμφὶ τὰ ἱερὰ ταῦτα ἐκάθηντο, οὕτω δὴ τῇ τῶν Βαν3.8.23 δίλων στρατιᾷ εἵποντο. καὶ ἀπὸ τούτου κατὰ τὴν ὁδὸν ξύμπασαν οἵ τε Βανδίλοι κατὰ ταὐτὰ ἡμάρτανον 3.8.24 καὶ οἱ κατάσκοποι ἐθεράπευον. ἐπεὶ δὲ ἀγχοῦ ἔσεσθαι ἔμελλον, προτερήσαντες οἱ κατάσκοποι ἀγγέλλουσι τῷ Καβάωνι ὅσα Βανδίλοις τε καὶ σφίσιν ἐς τὰ Χριστιανῶν ἱερὰ εἴργαστο καὶ ὡς ἐγγύς που οἱ πολέμιοι εἶεν. 3.8.25 ὁ δὲ ἀκούσας ἐς τὴν ξυμβολὴν καθίστατο ὧδε. κύκλον ἀπολαβὼν ἐν τῷ πεδίῳ, ἔνθα δὴ τὸ χαράκωμα ποιεῖσθαι ἔμελλε, τὰς καμήλους ἔρυμα τῷ στρατοπέδῳ ἐγκαρσίας ἐν κύκλῳ καθίστη, κατὰ δώδεκα μάλιστα 3.8.26 καμήλους ποιησάμενος τὸ τοῦ μετώπου βάθος. παῖδας μὲν οὖν καὶ γυναῖκας καὶ εἴ τι αὐτοῖς ἀπόμαχον ἦν, ὁμοῦ τοῖς χρήμασιν ἐς μέσον ἐτίθετο, τὸν δὲ τῶν μαχίμων λεὼν ἐς τῶν ζῴων ἐκείνων τοὺς πόδας ἐν 3.8.27 μέσῳ φραξαμένους ταῖς ἀσπίσιν ἐκέλευεν εἶναι. οὕτω δὲ Μαυρουσίοις ἐχούσης τῆς φάλαγγος οἱ Βανδίλοι ἐν ἀπόρῳ εἶχον θέσθαι τὸ παρόν· οὔτε γὰρ ἀκοντισταὶ οὔτε τοξόται ἀγαθοὶ ἦσαν οὔτε πεζοὶ ἐς μάχην ἰέναι ἠπίσταντο, ἀλλ' ἱππεῖς τε ἦσαν ἅπαντες, δόρασί τε ὡς ἐπὶ πλεῖστον καὶ ξίφεσιν ἐχρῶντο, καὶ ἀπ' αὐτοῦ ἄποθέν τε οὐδὲν ἐργάζεσθαι κακὸν τοὺς πολεμίους οἷοί τε ἦσαν, ἥ τε ἵππος αὐτοῖς, ἀχθομένη τῇ τῶν καμήλων ὄψει, ἐπὶ τοὺς πολεμίους ἥκιστα ἤγετο. 3.8.28 ἐπειδή τε συχνὰ ἐς αὐτοὺς ἀκοντίζοντες ἐκ τοῦ ἀσφαλοῦς οἱ πολέμιοι τούς τε ἵππους καὶ αὐτοὺς, ἅτε πλῆθος ὄντας, οὐ χαλεπῶς ἔκτεινον, ἔφευγόν τε καὶ τῶν Μαυρουσίων ἐπεξιόντων οἱ μὲν πολλοὶ διεφθάρησαν, εἰσὶ δὲ οἳ καὶ ὑπὸ τοῖς πολεμίοις ἐγένοντο, ὀλίγοι τε κομιδῆ ἐκ τοῦ στρατοῦ τούτου ἐπ' οἴκου ἀπεκομίσθη3.8.29 σαν. ταῦτα μὲν Τρασαμούνδῳ παθεῖν πρὸς Μαυρουσίων ξυνέπεσεν. ἐτελεύτα δὲ χρόνῳ ὕστερον ἑπτά τε καὶ εἴκοσιν ἔτη Βανδίλων ἄρξας. 3.9.1 Ἰλδέριχος δὲ Ὁνωρίχου τοῦ Γιζερίχου παῖς τὴν βασιλείαν παρέλαβεν, ὃς τὰ μὲν ἐς τοὺς ὑπηκόους εὐπρόσοδός τε ἦν καὶ ὅλως πρᾷος, καὶ οὔτε Χριστιανοῖς οὔτε τῳ ἄλλῳ χαλεπὸς ἐγεγόνει, τὰ δὲ ἐς τὸν πόλεμον μαλθακός τε λίαν καὶ οὐδὲ ἄχρι ἐς τὰ ὦτα τὸ πρᾶγμά 3.9.2 οἱ τοῦτο ἐθέλων ἰέναι. Ὁάμερ γοῦν ἀνεψιός τε ὢν αὐτῷ καὶ ἀνὴρ ἀγαθὸς τὰ πολέμια ἐστρατήγει ἐφ' οὓς ἂν στρατεύοιντο Βανδίλοι· ὃν δὴ καὶ Ἀχιλλέα Βανδί3.9.3 λων ἐκάλουν. ἐπὶ τούτου Ἰλδερίχου ἡσσήθησάν τε μάχῃ οἱ Βανδίλοι πρὸς Μαυρουσίων τῶν ἐν Βυζακίῳ, ὧν ἦρχεν Ἀντάλας, καὶ σφίσι ξυνηνέχθη Θευδερίχῳ τε καὶ Γότθοις ἐν