135

when the emperor had made a procession on the day of Mid-Pentecost to Saint Mokios, as he was entering and coming near the holy doors, someone leaped out from the ambo and struck him on the head with a thick and strong staff. And indeed, he would have killed him instantly, if not by some providence the tip of the staff had not struck the polykandelon and its violent force been checked a little. As blood flowed profusely from the emperor's head, there was confusion and flight among the officials. But his brother Alexander, feigning illness, did not come down for the entrance, so that from this he was suspected of having perpetrated such a plot. But the one who struck the emperor, having been seized and having endured many tortures, since he confessed that no one was his accomplice, finally had his hands and feet cut off and was burned in the sphendone of the Hippodrome. From that time on, such a procession was discontinued. After some time, Markos the most wise monk, being oikonomos of the same church, who also on Great Saturday had completed the tetraodion of the great Kosmas, dining with the emperor at table, implored him that such a procession not be discontinued. 366 But when the emperor refused, Markos said, "Be not angry nor vexed, O emperor, since it was forewritten by the prophet David that you should undergo this; for he foretold this, saying, '3How much evil the enemy has done in your holy place, and they that hate you have boasted in the midst of your feast.'3 Therefore, master, you must hold the empire for ten years from now." And so it happened; for after the fulfillment of the ten years, on the same day on which he was struck, he died. 20 And Zoe, the fourth wife of the emperor, was in the palace with the emperor, uncrowned. When Bulgarian raids were crushing the Romans, the sons of Hagar, learning of this, sent out a fleet for a naval battle, having appointed as general Leo of Tripoli, who had come from the city of Attalos, and had apostatized from the piety of the Christians. And Tripoli in Phoenicia was so named because it was divided into three sections by colonists from Arados, Tyre, and Sidon. When the emperor went out to the emporium of Boutios in order to dedicate the monastery of his protovestiarios Christopher, this news arrived that the Tripolitan with a fleet of Saracens was coming up against Constantinople. Therefore the emperor sent Eustathios, who was then droungarios, with a fleet against the Tripolitan; who, being unable to oppose 367 him, turned back empty-handed. After him the Tripolitan came, entered Abydos, and reached as far as Parion. When this was announced to the emperor, it cast him into great despondency and helplessness. He therefore entrusted the naval force to Himerios the protasekretis and sent him against the Tripolitan; who, having passed through Abydos on the Hellespont, which Milesian colonists had settled, the Hellespont being so called from Helle, the sister of Phrixus, who was thrown into the sea there, and the Aegean sea, which received its name from the rushing of its waters in the manner of a goat, and next having anchored at Strobilos near Kibyrra (and Strobilos from its local position, but Kibyrra from Kibyrros, the brother of Marsos and Kidramos) and Lampsakos, named from the shining of a light, which at night shone from God for the Phocaeans as they prayed while founding it, and the base of the foundations was well strengthened, after these things having passed through Imbros, which is called after Imbros the son of Anthos, whose father was Staphylos, the dearest grandson of Dionysus, and having crossed to Samothrace and approached Thasos, which men of old called Chryse, and Samothrace in Thrace, a peninsula formerly called Theriousa because it was filled with wild beasts, being sacred to the Nymphs, later, when the stream broke through, it was formed into an island and came to be occupied by Samian settlers

135

δὲ τοῦ βασιλέως πεποιηκότος τῇ ἡμέρᾳ τῆς Μεσοπεντηκοστῆς εἰς τὸν αγιον Μώκιον, ἐν τῷ εἰσοδεύειν καὶ πλησίον τῶν ἁγίων γενέσθαι θυρῶν ἐκπεπηδηκώς τις τοῦ αμβωνος ῥάβδῳ παχείᾳ καὶ ἰσχυρᾷ τούτου επαισε κατὰ κεφαλῆς. καὶ δὴ αν ἐθανάτωσεν παρευθύ, εἰ μὴ προνοίᾳ τινὶ τὸ τῆς ῥάβδου ακρον τῷ πολυκανδήλῳ προσκεκρουκὼς τῆς βιαίας μικρὸν ἀνεσχέθη φο- ρᾶς. τοῦ δὲ αιματος σφοδρῶς ἐκ τῆς τοῦ βασιλέως καταρρέοντος κεφαλῆς ταραχή τε καὶ φυγὴ τῶν ἀρχόντων ἐγένετο. ὁ δὲ ἀδελ- φὸς αὐτοῦ ̓Αλέξανδρος νόσον προφασισάμενος οὐ κατῆλθεν ἐν τῇ εἰσόδῳ, ὡς ἐκ τούτου ὑποπτευθῆναι αὐτὸν τὴν τοιαύτην ἐπιβου- λὴν κατεργάσασθαι. ὁ δὲ τὸν βασιλέα πλήξας κατασχεθεὶς καὶ πολλὰς βασάνους ὑπομεμενηκώς, ἐπεὶ μηδένα συνειδέναι καθωμο- λόγει, τέλος χεῖρας καὶ πόδας ἐκκοπεὶς ἐν τῇ τοῦ ἱππικοῦ σφεν- δόνῃ ἐκάη. εκτοτε δὲ ἡ τοιαύτη ἐξεκόπη προέλευσις. μετὰ δέ τινα καιρὸν Μάρκος ὁ σοφώτατος μοναχός, οἰκονόμος ων τῆς αὐτῆς ἐκκλησίας, ος καὶ ἐν μεγάλῳ σαββάτῳ τετραῴδιον τοῦ με- γάλου Κοσμᾶ ἀνεπλήρωσεν, ἐν τῇ τραπέζῃ τῷ βασιλεῖ συνεστιώ- 366 μενος ἐλιπάρει τούτῳ μὴ τὴν τοιαύτην ἐκκοπῆναι προέλευσιν. τοῦ δὲ βασιλέως ἀπαναινομένου ὁ Μάρκος εφη "μὴ ὀργίζου μηδὲ χαλέπαινε, ω βασιλεῦ, ἐπεὶ προγεγραμμένον ην παρὰ τοῦ προφή- του ∆αβὶδ τοῦτό σε καθυποστῆναι· προείρηκε γὰρ τοῦτο, λέγων "3οσα ἐπονηρεύσατο ὁ ἐχθρὸς ἐν τῷ ἁγίῳ σου, καὶ ἐκαυχήσαντο οἱ μισοῦντές σε ἐν μέσῳ ἑορτῆς σου."3 δεῖ ουν σε, δέσποτα, ἀπὸ τοῦ νῦν ετη δέκα τὴν βασιλείαν κατασχεῖν." ο καὶ γέγονεν· μετὰ γὰρ τὴν ἐκπλήρωσιν τῶν δέκα ἐνιαυτῶν, τῇ αὐτῇ ἡμέρᾳ ἐν ῃ καὶ ἐπλήγη, τετελεύτηκεν. 20 Ην δὲ Ζωὴ ἡ τετάρτη γυνὴ τοῦ βασιλέως ἐν τῷ πα- λατίῳ μετὰ τοῦ βασιλέως ἀστεφής. τῶν δὲ Βουλγαρικῶν ἐφόδων ̔Ρωμαίους ἐπιτριβόντων, οἱ ἐξ Αγαρ μαθόντες τοῦτο στόλος ἐξῄ-σαν ναύμαχος, ἐπιστήσαντες στρατηγὸν Τριπολίτην Λέοντα, ̓Αττάλου μὲν ἐξωρμημένον τῆς πόλεως, τῆς δὲ Χριστιανῶν εὐσεβείας ἀποστήσαντα. καὶ Τρίπολις μὲν ὠνόμασται ἡ κατὰ Φοινίκην τρισὶ διαιρεθεῖσα ταῖς γενεαῖς ἐξ ̓Αραδίων καὶ Τυρίων καὶ Σιδο- νίων ἀποίκων. τοῦ δὲ βασιλέως ἐξελθόντος ἐν τῷ τοῦ Βουτίου ἐμπορίῳ πρὸς τὸ τὴν μονὴν ἐγκαινίσαι τοῦ πρωτοβεστιαρίου αὐ- τοῦ Χριστοφόρου, ἡ ἀγγελία αυτη κατέλαβεν ὡς Τριπολίτης μετὰ στόλου τῶν Σαρακηνῶν κατὰ Κωνσταντινουπόλεως ἀνέρχεται. ἀποστέλλει ουν ὁ βασιλεὺς τὸν Εὐστάθιον τὸν τηνικαῦτα δρουγγά- ριον μετὰ στόλου κατὰ τοῦ Τριπολίτου· ος μὴ δυνηθεὶς ἀντιτάξα- 367 σθαι τούτῳ ἀντεστράφη κενός. κατόπιν δὲ αὐτοῦ ὁ Τριπολίτης ἐλθὼν ἐντὸς ̓Αβύδου εἰσελήλυθεν καὶ μέχρι Παρείου κατέλαβεν. τοῦτο τῷ βασιλεῖ ἀγγελθὲν εἰς μεγάλην αὐτὸν ἀθυμίαν καὶ ἀμη- χανίαν περιέστησεν. ̔Ημερίῳ ουν πρωτασηκρῆτις τὴν ναυτικὴν δύναμιν ἐγχειρίσας κατὰ τοῦ Τριπολίτου ἀπέστειλεν· ος Αβυδον διελθὼν τὴν καθ' ̔Ελλήσποντον, ην Μιλησίων κατῴκισαν αποι- κες, ̔Ελλήσποντον τὸν ἀπὸ Ελλης τῆς Φρίξου ἀδελφῆς τῷ ἐκεῖσε πελάγει ῥιφείσης ουτως ἀγορευόμενον, καὶ Αἰγαῖον πέλαγος, ο τὴν κλῆσιν ἀπείληφεν ἀπὸ τῆς τῶν ὑδάτων φορᾶς ἀϊσσούσης κατὰ τρόπον αἰγός, ἑξῆς δὲ προσωρμικὼς Στροβήλῳ τῇ κατὰ Κιβύρραν (καὶ Στρόβηλος μὲν ἀπὸ τῆς τοπικῆς θέσεως, Κιβύρρα δὲ ἀπὸ Κιβύρρου ἀδελφοῦ Μαρσοῦ τε καὶ Κιδράμου) καὶ Λαμψάκῳ, ἀπὸ φωτὸς λάμψεως ὠνομασμένῃ, οπερ νυκτὶ Φωκαέων θεμε- λιούντων ταύτην εὐξαμένων θεόθεν ἐπέλαμψεν, καὶ ἡ τῶν θεμε- λίων βάσις καλῶς κεκραταίωτο, μετὰ ταῦτα τῇ Ιμβρῳ διεληλυ- θώς, ητις ἀπὸ Ιμβρου κέκληται υἱοῦ Ανθου, ου γενέτης Στάφυλος ∆ιονύσου φίλτατος εγγονος, Σαμοθρᾴκην δὲ διαβὰς καὶ τῇ Θάσῳ προσπελάσας, ην Χρυσῆν οἱ πρὶν διεφημίζοντο, Σαμοθρᾴκην δὲ ἐν Θρᾴκῃ χερόνησον τὴν πρότερον Θηριοῦσαν διὰ τὸ θηρίων πεπλη- ρῶσθαι, ἱερὰν Νυμφῶν ουσαν, μετέπειτα τοῦ ῥοῦ συρραγέντος εἰς νῆσον συστῆναι καὶ ὑπὸ Σαμίων μετοίκων ἐν κατασχέσει γενέσθαι