131

When he had departed for his own house in Cappadocia, the parakoimomenos regretted that he had allowed him the journey home; and it was of great concern to him to get rid of the man. He wrote therefore 496 to John Tzimiskes the magistros, a noble man and renowned for his feats of valor, then serving as strategos of the Anatolikon theme, and to the magistros Romanos Kourkouas, he too being distinguished in military stratagems and at that time stratēlatēs of the East, that if they seized Phokas and either tonsured him a monk or otherwise did away with him, John would receive the command of the Schools of the East and would be Domestic of the eastern forces, while Romanos would be named Domestic of the West. But when the letters were delivered to both of them, they both showed them to Phokas and incited him to rebellion. But when he shrank from the enterprise, whether feigning or being truthful, they drew their swords and threatened to kill him, if he would not be persuaded. And he, perhaps overcome by force, accepted the proclamation and was acclaimed emperor of the Romans by all 497 the eastern regiments. But it is said that he not only was in love with the empire, but not least also with Theophano, and that he had met her while staying in the great city. Now when the rumor of Phokas's deeds had just been proclaimed in Byzantium, the parakoimomenos Joseph was in agony. The father of the usurper, Bardas Phokas, however, had taken refuge in the great church of God. But Leo, the brother of Nikephoros, was strong enough to escape and join his brother. This threw the parakoimomenos into great perplexity; and being difficult for all to approach, he was hated, for which reason all rejoiced, if the imperial power should pass to another and he be removed from the scene; for this reason all ran together to the great precinct of God. When Bringas learned this, though he ought to have approached the crowd with gentle words to calm its impulse, he instead exasperated it with threats, saying that, "I will put a stop to their impulses by arranging that when they buy grain, each must carry a nomisma's worth in his own bosom." This drove the crowd 498 mad. But the former parakoimomenos Basil, who was hostile toward this Bringas and had a large retinue around him, when evening had already fallen, armed his servants and sent them out to different parts of the city, and they, having united with a crowd of opposing citizens, destroyed many houses, including that of Bringas himself, and many people were killed. And while they were doing these things, they were also acclaiming Nikephoros emperor everywhere, and from this the fortunes of Bardas Phokas and Bringas were reversed. For the one came out of the church, emboldened, while Bringas entered it as a pitiable suppliant. But the parakoimomenos Basil and his followers prepared triremes, including the imperial one, and going with them to Chrysopolis, they bring Nikephoros from there to the Hebdomon, and from there they arrived at the great church with a public procession, and the patriarch Polyeuktos crowns the man. But the empress Theophano was immediately driven 499 out of the palace and is led away to the Petrion; and the parakoimomenos Joseph is exiled to Paphlagonia and died after two years. But Bardas, the father of Nikephoros, was honored as Caesar. And after a few days the emperor marries Theophano, and although he abstained from meat ever since his son Bardas had died, after being unintentionally struck with a spear by his own nephew Pleuses while they were playing, from that time he fed on these too. And in the Nea Ekklesia in the palace, while the marriage rite was being celebrated by the patriarch Polyeuktos, at the entrance to the sanctuary, as the emperor was already approaching the rails, he was prevented by the patriarch from entering with her, as was his custom, who said that unless he first submitted to the penances for those marrying a second time, he must not dare to enter the sanctuary. The emperor took this badly and was enraged

131

τὸν οἶκον ἑαυτοῦ τὸν ἐν Καππαδοκίᾳ ἀποδημήσαντος ὁ παρακοιμώμενος μετεμέλετο, ὅτι παρεχώρησεν αὐτῷ τῆς ἐπ' οἶκον ἀποδημίας· καὶ ἦν αὐτῷ διὰ φροντίδος ὅτι πολλῆς τὸν ἄνδρα ἀποσκευάσασθαι. γράφει τοί496 νυν πρὸς Ἰωάννην μάγιστρον τὸν Τζιμισκήν, ἄνδρα γενναῖον καὶ ἐν ἀριστεύμασι διαβόητον, στρατηγοῦντα τότε τοῦ θέματος τῶν ἀνατολικῶν, καὶ πρὸς τὸν μάγιστρον Ῥωμανὸν τὸν Κουρκούαν, ἐπίσημον ὄντα κἀκεῖνον ἐν στρατηγήμασι καὶ τῆς ἀνατολῆς τότε στρατηλατοῦντα, ὡς εἰ τὸν Φωκᾶν κατασχόντες ἢ μοναχὸν ἀποκείρουσιν ἢ ἄλλως ἐκ μέσου ποιήσουσι, τὴν μὲν τῶν σχολῶν τῆς ἀνατολῆς ἀρχὴν λήψεται ὁ Ἰωάννης καὶ δομέστικος ἔσεται τῶν ἑῴων δυνάμεων, ὁ Ῥωμανὸς δὲ τῆς δύσεως κληθήσεται δομέστικος. ἐπεὶ δὲ τὰ γράμματα καὶ ἀμφοῖν ἐκομίσθησαν, καὶ ἄμφω ταῦτα δεικνύουσι τῷ Φωκᾷ καὶ πρὸς ἀποστασίαν ἠρέθιζον. τοῦ δὲ ἀναδυομένου πρὸς τὴν ἐγχείρησιν, εἴτε πλαττομένου εἴτε καὶ ἀληθεύοντος, ἐκεῖνοι τὰ ξίφη γυμνώσαντες ἀνελεῖν ἠπείλουν αὐτόν, εἰ μὴ πείθοιτο. καὶ ὃς τῇ βίᾳ τάχα νικώμενος ἐδέξατο τὴν ἀνάρρησιν καὶ ὑπὸ πάντων τῶν 497 ἑῴων ταγμάτων αὐτοκράτωρ εὐφημήθη Ῥωμαίων. λέγεται δὲ ὅτι οὐ μόνον ἤρα τῆς βασιλείας, ἀλλ' οὐχ ἥκιστα καὶ τῆς Θεοφανοῦς, καὶ ὡς ἐνέτυχε ταύτῃ διάγων κατὰ τὴν μεγαλόπολιν. Ἄρτι δὲ τῆς φήμης εἰς τὸ Βυζάντιον κηρυξάσης τὰ κατὰ τὸν Φωκᾶν, ὁ παρακοιμώμενος Ἰωσὴφ ἠγωνία. ὁ μέντοι τοῦ τυραννοῦντος πατὴρ ὁ Φωκᾶς Βάρδας τῇ μεγάλῃ τοῦ θεοῦ ἐκκλησίᾳ προσπέφευγεν. ὁ δὲ τοῦ Νικηφόρου σύγγονος Λέων ἴσχυσεν ἀποδρᾶναι καὶ ἑνωθῆναι τῷ ἀδελφῷ. τοῦτο τὸν παρακοιμώμενον εἰς ἀμηχανίαν πολλὴν περιέστησε· δυσέντευκτος δὲ ὢν πᾶσιν ἦν μισητός, ὅθεν ἅπαντες ἔχαιρον, εἰ τὰ τῆς βασιλείας περισταίη εἰς ἕτερον καὶ περιαιρεθείη οὗτος ἐκ μέσου· διὸ καὶ συνέτρεχον ἅπαντες εἰς τὸ μέγα τέμενος τοῦ θεοῦ. ὅπερ μαθὼν ὁ Βρίγγας, δέον ἐπιεικέσι λόγοις τὸ πλῆθος μετελθόντα τὴν τούτου καταμαλάξαι ὁρμήν, ὁ δὲ ἀπειλαῖς μᾶλλον αὐτὸ ἐξετράχυνεν, εἰπὼν ὡς "ἐγὼ καταπαύσω αὐτοῖς τὰ ὁρμήματα, οἰκονομήσας ὠνουμένους αὐτοὺς σῖτον εἰς τὸν ἑαυτοῦ κόλπον φέρειν τὸν τοῦ νομίσματος ἕκαστον." τοῦτο τὸ πλῆθος 498 ἐξέμηνεν. ἀπεχθῶς δὲ πρὸς τοῦτον τὸν Βρίγγαν ἔχων ὁ πρῴην παρακοιμώμενος ὁ Βασίλειος καὶ θεραπείαν ἔχων περὶ ἑαυτὸν δαψιλῆ, ἑσπέρας ἤδη καταλαβούσης, τοὺς ἑαυτοῦ θεράποντας καθοπλίσας εἰς διάφορα μέρη τῆς πόλεως ἐξαπέστειλε, καὶ πολλὰς οἰκίας ἐκεῖνοι πλήθει ἀστικῶν ἑνωθέντες τῶν ἀντιπραττόντων κατέστρεψαν καὶ αὐτοῦ δῆτα τοῦ Βρίγγα, καὶ ἄνθρωποι δὲ πολλοὶ ἀνῃρέθησαν. ταῦτα δ' ἐποίουν καὶ ἅμα Νικηφόρον εὐφήμουν πανταχοῦ αὐτοκράτορα, ἐντεῦθεν ἀμείβονται τὰ τῆς τύχης τῷ Βάρδᾳ Φωκᾷ καὶ τῷ Βρίγγᾳ. ὁ μὲν γὰρ τεθαρρηκὼς ἐξῄει τῆς ἐκκλησίας, ὁ δὲ Βρίγγας εἰς αὐτὴν εἰσῄει ἱκέτης ἐλεεινός. ὁ δὲ παρακοιμώμενος Βασίλειος καὶ οἱ περὶ αὐτὸν τριήρεις ἑτοιμάσαντες καὶ αὐτὴν τὴν βασίλειον καὶ σὺν αὐταῖς ἐν Χρυσοπόλει γενόμενοι, τὸν Νικηφόρον ἐκεῖθεν εἰς τὸ Ἕβδομον ἄγουσι κἀκεῖθεν σὺν προόδῳ δημοτελεῖ εἰς τὴν μεγάλην ἐκκλησίαν ἀφίκοντο, καὶ ταινιοῖ τὸν ἄνδρα ὁ πατριάρχης Πολύευκτος. ἡ δὲ βασιλὶς Θεοφανὼ αὐτίκα τῶν ἀνακτόρων ἐξ499 ωθηθεῖσα εἰς τὸ Πετρίον ἀπάγεται· ὁ δὲ παρακοιμώμενος Ἰωσὴφ εἰς Παφλαγονίαν περιορίζεται καὶ μετὰ δύο ἐνιαυτοὺς ἀπεβίω. Βάρδας δὲ ὁ τοῦ Νικηφόρου πατὴρ Καῖσαρ τετίμητο. μετ' ὀλίγας δὲ ἡμέρας ἑαυτῷ τὴν Θεοφανὼ συνοικίζει ὁ βασιλεύς, καὶ κρεῶν ἀπεχόμενος, ἐξότου Βάρδας ὁ παῖς αὐτοῦ τῷ οἰκείῳ ἀνεψιῷ τῷ Πλεύσῃ προσπαίζων δόρατι παρ' ἐκείνου βληθεὶς ἄκοντος τέθνηκεν, ἔκτοτε καὶ τούτοις ἐτρέφετο. ἐν δὲ τῇ κατὰ τὰ βασίλεια Νέᾳ ἐκκλησίᾳ τῆς ἱερολογίας τῆς γαμικῆς τελουμένης παρὰ Πολυεύκτου τοῦ πατριάρχου ἐν τῇ εἰσόδῳ τῇ πρὸς τὸ θυσιαστήριον ἤδη ταῖς κιγκλίσιν ἐγγίσας ὁ βασιλεὺς ἐκωλύθη παρὰ τοῦ πατριάρχου συνεισελθεῖν, ὡς ἔθος αὐτῷ, φήσαντος εἰ μὴ πρότερον ἐπιτιμίοις δουλεύσει τῶν δευτερογαμούντων, μὴ δεῖν αὐτὸν τῆς πρὸς τὸ θυσιαστήριον εἰσόδου κατατολμᾶν. τοῦτο δυσφόρως ἤνεγκεν ὁ κρατῶν καὶ ἐμηνία