134

With their entire company they immediately formed up. And since their longships were also anchored in the harbor, they proclaimed the revolt. And some proclaimed it very quickly, while others prepared themselves. But the ruler of the country permitted them to depart and paid no heed to what was happening, except for the portion of the cargo that had meanwhile been brought down from inland, and he held on to it tightly, as it had come to be on his land. But they were puffed up with their usual and accustomed pride, and they resisted and opposed what had been ordered. And from there, having Iberians, he took courage for the battle against them, and immediately strife and war were joined by both sides, and they threw missiles at each other, and they fell continuously; but victory inclined to the Iberians, and the Genoese were faring badly. Finally, being unable to withstand the attacks of the Iberians, and fearing what would come next, they set fire to the area outside the city, not for the need of victory, but so as to barely escape the evil as their opponents were thrown into confusion. This was a loss not measurable in quantity for the natives, 450 but the fire harmed them no less, but indeed much more; for that cargo, enough to fill twelve ships (for that many had also put into the harbor), became the expense of the fire. And from there, having been humbled, they embraced the terms of peace.

30. And yet the queen in the west, Anna, who was also the emperor's first cousin, was not free from the evils from the Italians, but since, having been refused the marriage connection with the Emperor Michael on account of kinship, she had married her daughter to Philip, the son of Charles, as we have said before, and there were cities and lands given as dowry, her people wished to take control of the cities and to direct their affairs with Italian administrations, but Anna caused delays and postponed it, putting forward as a pretext the summons for her daughter Ithamar, lest she, being accustomed to Italian customs, be forced to change entirely. For these reasons she inclined toward the emperor, and tried to make her son Thomas the son-in-law of the emperor Michael, offering bridal gifts worthy enough to overcome any rejection of the groom. But he, without any delay and not postponing it until the next year, equips a fleet of twenty-four longships, with which, indeed, lying in ambush very near, they laid waste the place and put Anna in a very tight spot, 451 as she was crying out to the emperor and wanting help from him. But she, contending as best she could with what she had, had gained the advantage, and the marriage alliance was accomplished for the future.

31. But the emperor was necessarily engaged in postponements of that which he was asked to do, because of the things happening to his own domain, which needed much and great care, and especially because all the foreign troops, both the Italians and the Alans, were becoming alienated in their opinions, being difficult to persuade and to submit to the orders sent from the emperor. Therefore, for the megas doux, who was spending his time now in Magnesia, now in Mitylene, the frequent commands to postpone the war against the Magnesians and to cross over to the west together with the people under him to the lord Michael (for the Magnesians were also subjects of the empire, acclaiming the emperors daily, and able to be held to account at the proper time for their drunken violence against him) were as nothing, and words spoken in vain to one who was levying Romans, 452 and especially against the Magnesians, and who did not even want to live if he did not devastate them. And for the Alans, even more so because of what had previously happened at Cyzicus, what was being done was not pleasing, but they revolted en masse, more than five hundred of them. And since it had been forbidden for them to cross over at Kallion to their own lands, as wanderers changing places, they encamped somewhere outside of Pegae. To whom the emperor sent sufficient money and ordered them to turn back. But for those who chose death instead of returning, it fell to them for the time being to act bravely against the Persians who had appeared. For since they amounted to nine hundred, and the battle, so to speak, with courage

134

πανομιλεὶ εὐθέως ἐσχηματίζοντο. κἀπειδήπερ καὶ νῆες μακραὶ σφῶν τῷ λιμένι ἐνώρμουν, τὴν ἀπανάστασιν διεκή ρυττον. καὶ οἱ μὲν ἐκήρυσσον μάλ' ὦκα, οἱ δ' ἡτοιμάζοντο. ὁ δ' ἀρχηγὸς τῆς χώρας ἀναχωρεῖν μὲν ἠφίει καὶ ἠφροντίστει τῶν φαινομένων, πλὴν τῆς τῶν φορτίων τέως μερίδος ἄνωθεν καταχθέντων καὶ λίαν ἀντείχετο ὡς ἐπὶ τῆς χώρας αὐτοῦ γεγονό των. οἱ δὲ τῷ καθ' αὑτοὺς καὶ συνήθει φρονήματι ἐμετεωρί ζοντο, καὶ πρὸς τὰ ἐπεσταλμένα ἀντέτεινον καὶ ἀντέσπων. κἀν τεῦθεν Ἴβηρας ἔχων ἐκεῖνος τὴν πρὸς σφᾶς ἀναθαρρεῖ μάχην, καὶ παραυτίκα ἔρις καὶ πόλεμος ἐξ ἑκατέρων συγκροτεῖται, καὶ ἀλλήλους ἔβαλλον, καὶ συνεχεῖς ἔπιπτον· ῥέπει δ' ἡ νίκη τοῖς Ἴβηρσι, καὶ κακῶς Γεννουῗται εἶχον. τέλος ταῖς τῶν Ἰβήρων προσβολαῖς ἀντέχειν μὴ ἔχοντες, καὶ πρὸς τὰ ἐφεξῆς δεδοικότες, πῦρ ἐνιᾶσι τῇ ἔξω τῆς πόλεως χώρᾳ, οὐ κατὰ χρείαν νίκης, ἀλλ' ὥστε μόλις τὸ κακὸν ἐκφυγεῖν θορυβηθέντων τῶν ἀντιπά λων. τὸ δ' ἦν ζημία μὲν οὐ μέτρῳ ποσουμένη καὶ τοῖς αὐτό 450 χθοσιν, οὐχ ἧττον δὲ ἀλλὰ καὶ πολλῷ μᾶλλον ἐζημίου κἀκείνους τὸ πῦρ· φορτία γὰρ ἐκεῖνα δυοκαίδεκα ναυσὶν ἀρκέσοντα πρὸς τὴν πλήρωσιν (τόσαι γὰρ καὶ προσώκελλον ἐν λιμένι) δαπάνημα γίνονται τοῦ πυρός. καὶ τοὐντεῦθεν ταπεινωθέντες τὰ τῆς εἰρή νης ἠσπάσαντο.

30. Οὐ μὴν δὲ καὶ ἡ κατὰ δύσιν βασίλισσα Ἄννα, ἡ καὶ αὐτανεψία τοῦ βασιλέως, τῶν ἐκ τῶν Ἰταλῶν ἀνεῖτο κακῶν, ἀλλ' ἐπεὶ τοῦ πρὸς τὸν βασιλέα Μιχαὴλ ἀποκρουσθεῖσα κήδους διὰ τὴν συγγένειαν τὸν τοῦ Καρούλου υἱὸν ἐπεγαμβρεύσατο Φί λιππον, καθὼς φθάσαντες εἴπομεν, καὶ πόλεις ἦσαν καὶ χῶραι τὰ εἰς προῖκα δοθέντα, οἱ μὲν ἐξ αὐτῆς χειροῦσθαι τὰς πόλεις ἠβούλοντο καὶ Ἰταλικαῖς διοικήσεσι τὰ κατ' ἐκείνας ἰθύνειν, Ἄννα δ' ἠργολάβει καὶ ἀνεβάλλετο, προβαλλομένη τὴν τῆς θυγατρὸς Ἰθάμαρ πρὸς τὰ Ἰταλικὰ ἤθη συγκείμενον ὂν μὴ μεταπεσεῖν ὅλως βιασθῆναι μετάκλησιν. διὰ ταῦτα καὶ πρὸς βασιλέα αὕτη ἀπέ κλινεν, καὶ τὸν παῖδα Θωμᾶν γαμβρὸν ἐπειρᾶτο ποιεῖν τῷ βασι λεῖ Μιχαήλ, ἄξια διδοῦσα τὰ ἔδνα τῷ τὸν γαμβρὸν ἀποπροσ ποιεῖσθαι. ὁ δὲ μηδὲν μελλήσας μηδ' ἐς νέωτα ὑπερθέμενος στόλον ἀρτύεται ναυσὶ μακραῖς τέσσαρσι πλείοσι τῶν εἴκοσιν, αἷς δὴ καὶ ἐκπανεγγὺς ναυλοχησάμενοι τὸν τόπον ἠρήμουν καὶ ἐν 451 στενῷ κομιδῇ τὴν Ἄνναν καθίστων, ἐπιβοωμένην βασιλέα καὶ τὴν ἐκεῖθεν ἀρωγὴν θέλουσαν. ἀλλ' ἐκείνη μὲν καὶ οὕτως ὡς εἶχε κατὰ τὸ δυνατὸν ἀνταγωνιζομένη ἐπὶ τοῦ προτερήματος ἐγε γόνει, τὸ δέ γε κῆδος καὶ ἐσαῦθις ἤνυστο.

31. Βασιλεὺς δὲ ἀναγκαίως ἐν ὑπερθέσεσιν ἦν, πρὸς ὅπερ καὶ ἠξιοῦτο διὰ τὰ συμβαίνοντα τῷ σφετέρῳ κλήρῳ, πολ λῆς καὶ μεγάλης τῆς ἐπιμελείας χρῄζοντα, καὶ μάλισθ' ὅτι καὶ τὸ ξενικὸν ἅπαν, ὡς μὲν Ἰταλοὶ ὡς δ' Ἀλανοί, ταῖς γνώμαις ἠλλοτριοῦντο, δυσχερεῖς ὄντες πείθειν καὶ πρὸς τὰ παρὰ βασι λέως ἐπεσταλμένα καθυποκλίνεσθαι. τῷ μὲν οὖν μεγάλῳ δουκί, τοῦτο μὲν κατὰ Μαγνησίαν τοῦτο δὲ κατὰ Μιτυλήνην διάγοντι, αἱ συχναὶ προστάξεις τοῦ ὑπερθέσθαι τὸν πρὸς τοὺς Μαγνησιώ τας πόλεμον καὶ περᾶν συνάμα τῷ ὑπ' αὐτὸν λαῷ κατὰ δύσιν πρὸς τὸν ἀνάκτορα Μιχαὴλ (εἶναι γὰρ καὶ Μαγνησιώτας ὑπη κόους τῇ βασιλείᾳ, εὐφημοῦντας ὁσημέραι τοὺς βασιλεῖς, καὶ τῆς πρὸς αὐτὸν παροινίας εὐθύνας εἰς καιρὸν ὑποσχεῖν δυναμέ νους) οὐδὲν ἦσαν, καὶ λόγοι τηνάλλως λεγόμενοι Ῥωμαίους ἀν 452 δρολογοῦντι, καὶ μάλιστα ἐπὶ Μαγνησιώτας, καὶ εἰ μὴ ἀναστα τοίη τούτους, οὐδὲ ζῆν θέλοντι. Ἀλανοῖς δὲ καὶ μᾶλλον διὰ τὰ προσυμβάντα κατὰ Κύζικον οὐκ ἦν ἀρεστὰ τὰ πραττόμενα, ἀλλὰ πανδημεὶ ὑπὲρ πεντακοσίους ἀφίσταντο. κἀπειδὴ ἀπείρητο τού τους μὴ περαιοῦσθαι κατὰ τὴν Καλλίου ἐπὶ τὰ σφέτερα, ἀλῆται τόπους ἐκ τόπων ἀμείβοντες ἔξω που τῶν Πηγῶν σκηνοῦσιν. οἷς βασιλεὺς πέμπων καὶ ἱκανὰ ἀργύρια προσέταττεν ὑποστρέφειν. τοῖς δὲ θάνατον τῆς ὑποστροφῆς ἀνθαιρουμένοις συνέβη τῷ τέως ἀνδραγαθῆσαι φανέντων Περσῶν. ἐπειδὴ γὰρ οἱ μὲν εἰς ἐννεα κοσίους ἐποσοῦντο, καὶ τὴν μάχην ὡς εἰπεῖν μετὰ θάρρους