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and sent the envoys away unsuccessful. 8.8.2 And Maurice ordered the demes to guard the walls of Theodosius, which, an ancient account 8.8.3 will say, were built by Theodosius, the son of the emperor Arcadius. Therefore, a few days before these events, Germanus (he was the father-in-law of Theodosius, the emperor's son) took the son of Maurice the Caesar to ride horses and to drive a two-horse chariot to Callicrateia; this is a place before the city, 8.8.4 very beautiful, so to speak. So Maurice gave a royal escort to his son Theodosius. While the young man was hunting without a care and rather enticed, an envoy from the Roman fighting force came to him, providing to 8.8.5 Theodosius, the son of the emperor Maurice, a letter written by the army. And the demand was that either Theodosius himself assume the leadership of the state or that Germanus should be clothed with imperial power; for the Roman forces would no longer tolerate being governed by the emperor 8.8.6 Maurice. Therefore these things became known to the emperor Maurice. So the emperor, when he had learned these things, summoned his son to him immediately by letter. On the next day, being very grieved, the 8.8.7 emperor ordered Comentiolus to oversee those guarding the walls of the city. Therefore on the next day at first dawn, Maurice had Germanus brought in to the palace, and having become very tearful, he said 8.8.8 that Germanus was the cause of these evils. And the proof of this suspicion was that the forces wished to make Germanus emperor by means of a letter, and then that when the rebellious multitude had plundered all the horses pasturing before the city, only the horses of Germanus 8.8.9 were kept intact. Therefore, when Germanus had defended himself sufficiently to the emperor and did not assuage the emperor's grief, they say that in the end Maurice said: "Spare, Germanus, from lengthening your speech; nothing is sweeter than to die by the sword." At these words the emperor, quickening his pace, withdrew from what is called by the Romans the *secretum*. 8.8.10 And since the emperor's son Theodosius was standing by the enraged emperor, he pitied his father-in-law who was in danger and having moved a little from his own position, he whispered in secret to Germanus as he was going out: "Flee this man," 8.8.11 he said, "O man; death will be your penalty." So Germanus went to his own house through the main road, which the crowds name the Mese, and in the afternoon, having gathered his own guards, he approached the sacred precinct of the Mother of God, which a true account 8.8.12 has established was built by Cyrus, who lived in the time of the emperor Theodosius. This man had ascended to the rank of consul at that time. They say this man was exceptionally good, and in his love for learning 8.8.13 he possessed a certain sober madness. And as the sun was setting, Maurice had heard that Germanus had become a suppliant at the horns of the altar. For this reason he ordered Stephen, the tutor of his own children (this man was one of the emperor's notable eunuchs and very famous in the palace) to go to Germanus, so that by persuasion he might lead him out of the sacred 8.8.14 precincts. So the men around Germanus, when they saw the emperor's eunuch wishing to lead him out of the sanctuary of the Mother of God, opposed him and pushed Stephen 8.8.15 out, heaping the most shameful insults upon him. And when night had fallen, Germanus came out of the precinct and moved to the great sanctuary of the city which was established very ambitiously and lavishly by the emperor Justinian; this the Byzantines call the Great Church. So Maurice flogged his own son Theodosius with a rod; for he was saying the secret to

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ἀπράκτους τε τοὺς πρέσβεις 8.8.2 ἐξέπεμπεν. ὁ δὲ Μαυρίκιος περιφρουρεῖν τοῖς δήμοις τὰ Θεοδοσίου τείχη προστάττει, ἃ δείμασθαι λόγος πρεσβύτης 8.8.3 ἐρεῖ τὸν ᾿Αρκαδίου τοῦ αὐτοκράτορος Θεοδόσιον παῖδα. πρὸ τούτων τοίνυν ἡμερῶν ὀλίγων Γερμανὸς (κηδεστὴς δὲ οὗτος Θεοδοσίου τοῦ παιδὸς τοῦ αὐτοκράτορος) ἱππάζεσθαί τε καὶ ξυνωρικεύεσθαι τὸν Μαυρικίου τοῦ Καίσαρος υἱὸν ἀναλαμβάνει ἐς Καλλικράτειαν· χῶρος δὲ πρὸ τοῦ ἄστεος οὗτος, 8.8.4 λίαν ὡς ἔπος εἰπεῖν ὡρικός. ὁ μὲν οὖν Μαυρίκιος παρασκευὴν βασιλικὴν Θεοδοσίῳ δίδωσι τῷ παιδί. τοῦ δὲ νέου κυνηγετοῦντος ἀπεριμερίμνως καὶ λίαν ἐπαγωγότερον, παραγίνεται πρέσβις ὡς αὐτὸν ὑπὸ τῆς ῾Ρωμαίων μαχίμου δυνάμεως, ἐπιστολήν τε ἐγγεγραμμένην ὑπὸ τοῦ ὁπλιτικοῦ παρέχων τῷ 8.8.5 Θεοδοσίῳ, τῷ παιδὶ Μαυρικίου τοῦ αὐτοκράτορος. ἡ δὲ ἀξίωσις ἦν ἢ αὐτὸν Θεοδόσιον τὴν ἡγεμονίαν τοῦ κράτους ἀναλαβεῖν ἢ Γερμανῷ τὴν αὐτοκρατορικὴν ἐμπορπήσασθαι δύναμιν· μηδὲ γὰρ ἔτι ἀνέχεσθαι ὑπὸ Μαυρικίου τοῦ αὐτο8.8.6 κράτορος τὰς ῾Ρωμαίων δυνάμεις ἰθύνεσθαι. γίνεται τοίνυν ταῦτα κατάδηλα Μαυρικίῳ τῷ αὐτοκράτορι. ὁ μὲν οὖν βασιλεὺς ἐπεὶ ταῦτα ἐπέπυστο, μετάγει διὰ γραμμάτων ὡς αὐτὸν παραυτίκα τὸν παῖδα. τῇ δὲ ὑστεραίᾳ περίλυπος ὢν προσ8.8.7 τάττει ὁ αὐτοκράτωρ Κομεντιόλῳ ἐπιστατεῖν τοῖς περιφρουροῦσι τὰ τοῦ ἄστεος τείχη. τῇ τοίνυν ἐπαύριον ὑπὸ πρώτην ἕω εἰσαγώγιμον τὸν Γερμανὸν ὁ Μαυρίκιος ποιεῖται πρὸς τὰ βασίλεια, καὶ περίδακρυς γεγονὼς τούτων τῶν κακῶν 8.8.8 ἔφη τὸν Γερμανὸν πεφυκέναι ὑπόθεσιν. ἦν δὲ τῆς ὑπονοίας ταύτης τεκμήριον τὸ δι' ἐπιστολέως τὰς δυνάμεις τὸν Γερμανὸν ἐθέλειν βασιλέα ποιήσασθαι, εἶτα τοῦ τετυραννηκότος πλήθους ἅπασαν τὴν ἵππον τὴν πρὸ τοῦ ἄστεος νεμομένην καταπρονομεύσαντος τὴν Γερμανοῦ ἵππον μόνην ἀδιάσπαστον 8.8. τηρηθῆναι. ἱκανῶς τοίνυν τοῦ Γερμανοῦ ἀπολελογημένου τῷ αὐτοκράτορι καὶ τὴν τοῦ βασιλέως λύπην μὴ κατευνάζοντος, ὡς ἐν τέλει λέγουσι τὸν Μαυρίκιον φῆσαι· "φείδου, Γερμανέ, τοῦ μηκύνειν τὸν λόγον· οὐδὲν ἡδύτερον τοῦ διὰ ξίφους τεθνάναι." ἐπὶ τούτοις ὁ αὐτοκράτωρ ἐπιτείνας τὸ βάδισμα μεθίσταται τοῦ παρὰ ῾Ρωμαίοις λεγομένου σεκρέτου. 8.8.10 ἐπεὶ δὲ ὁ τοῦ αὐτοκράτορος παῖς Θεοδόσιος παρειστήκει χαλεπαίνοντι τῷ αὐτοκράτορι, ᾤκτειρε τὸν κηδεστὴν κινδυνεύοντα καὶ μικρὸν τῆς οἰκείας στάσεως διεξελθὼν ἐξιόντι τῷ Γερμανῷ ἐν ἀποκρύφοις κατεψιθύρισεν· "ἀπόδρα τοῦτον" 8.8.11 φήσας, "ὦ ἄνθρωπε· θάνατος ἡ ζημία σοι γίνεται." ὁ μὲν οὖν Γερμανὸς διὰ τῆς λεωφόρου, ἣν Μέσην τὰ πλήθη κατονομάζουσιν, ἐς τὴν ἑαυτοῦ οἰκίαν ἐγένετο, τῷ δὲ δειλιναίῳ καιρῷ τοὺς ὑπασπιστὰς τοὺς ἑαυτοῦ συναθροισάμενος τῷ ἱερῷ τεμένει τῆς θεομήτορος προσεπέλασεν, ὃ Κῦρον τὸν ἐπὶ Θεοδοσίου τοῦ αὐτοκράτορος γεγονότα δείμασθαι λόγος 8.8.12 καθέστηκεν ἀψευδής. οὗτος δὲ ἐς ὑπάτων ἀξίαν τὸ τηνικαῦτα ἀναβεβήκει καιροῦ. τοῦτον ἄνδρα ἀγαθὸν ἐς τὰ μάλιστα γεγονέναι φασίν, καὶ περὶ τοὺς ἔρωτας τῶν λόγων 8.8.13 σώφρονι μανίᾳ τινὶ ἐπεφύκει. ἡλίου δὲ κλίναντος ἠκηκόει Μαυρίκιος τῶν κεράτων τοῦ θυσιαστηρίου κάτοχον τὸν Γερμανὸν γεγονέναι. διὰ τοῦτο Στέφανον τὸν παιδαγωγὸν τῶν ἑαυτοῦ παίδων (εὐνοῦχος δὲ οὗτος τῶν ἐπιφανῶν τοῦ βασιλέως καὶ λίαν περίδοξος τοῖς ἀνακτόροις) πρὸς τὸν Γερμανὸν ἀφικέσθαι προσέταξεν, ὅπως πειθοῖ ὑπεξαγάγοι τῶν ἱερῶν 8.8.14 περιβόλων ἐκεῖνον. οἱ μὲν οὖν περὶ τὸν Γερμανὸν ὡς εἶδον τὸν τοῦ βασιλέως εὐνοῦχον ὑπεξαγαγεῖν τοῦτον ἐθέλοντα τοῦ τῆς θεομήτορος ἱεροῦ, ἀντικαταστάντες ἐξωθοῦσι τὸν Στέ8.8.15 φανον αἰσχίστοις αὐτὸν περιβαλόντες ὀνείδεσιν. νυκτὸς δὲ γεγονυίας ὑπεξέρχεται τοῦ τεμένους ὁ Γερμανὸς καὶ πρὸς τὸ μέγα τῆς πόλεως ἱερὸν μετεφοίτησε τὸ ὑπὸ ᾿Ιουστινιανοῦ τοῦ αὐτοκράτορος λίαν φιλοτίμως καὶ πολυτελῶς ἱδρυμένον· τοῦτο καλοῦσιν ἐκκλησίαν μεγάλην οἱ Βυζάντιοι. ὁ μὲν οὖν Μαυρίκιος ῥάβδῳ ἐμαστίγου τὸν ἑαυτοῦ υἱὸν Θεοδόσιον· ἔφασκε γὰρ τὸ ἀπόρρητον εἰς