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Joseph the consciences, and by this comparison, the one who had anticipated the better course conducted himself, as having troubled no one in any way, whatever they might say. The emperor also employed him again and called him father and kept him in his council and used him as a helper in many matters and gladly listened to him when he mediated. For the man was both familiar with the world and clever at approaching and persuading rulers, when the time was right, and at soothing and inciting anger. And along with his intelligence, he was also physically strong, so that many times a month or sometimes even a week he would go before the emperor, sometimes on his own initiative, and sometimes when summoned.

29. How the former patriarch Germanos is sent to Paeonia with the Grand Duke Laskaris and from there brought a bride for the son of the emperor, and how they were crowned. And since the emperor's son Andronikos had come of age, whom he was preparing beforehand as successor to the empire before the others, and it was necessary to join him to a suitable wife, sending an embassy to the Italians was not feasible, with Charles positioned in between in Apulia, whom he knew to be an undeclared enemy of himself and of the Romans on account of the City and the marriage alliance with Baldwin concerning their children; for having already overthrown Manfred, the former count was being magnified as king, as he was the full brother of the king of France; for this was the agreed upon reward for him from the Church for his campaign against the apostate Manfred, should he be completely victorious. Since this was the case, he decided to send the embassy to the Paeonians; for their king was the son of a Roman, born to the king by a mother who was the daughter of the old Laskaris. For at that time, when he was reigning, he had three daughters 413; this one was the first, and the admirable Irene the second, whom John took and reigned, succeeding his father-in-law, and the third was Eudokia who was given to the great lord in the City. From that first one, then, the king of Paeonia, born to the king, his father, having taken for himself on account of her beauty a very comely wife from the Cumans and a captive, as they say, begot a daughter. This daughter, as she was noble and descended from the Laskarids, the emperor wished to join to his son. And so for the embassy concerning these matters he chose this former patriarch Germanos and the Grand Duke Laskaris, who was already past his prime, on account of his kinship to that man; for he filled the place of a grandfather to the king, inasmuch as he was the brother of the emperor Laskaris. And they, having departed on foot, fulfilled the duties of the embassy and brought the daughter of the king as a bride for the son of the emperor and co-emperor, to whom the emperor gave the name Anna; and he celebrated a magnificent wedding for her and his son in the divine and great precinct of the Sophia of the Word of God, with Patriarch Joseph giving the blessing. And again in the following year, on the eighth of the month of Mounychion, the emperor and father crowned them in imperial fashion with the patriarch, and he assigned to him, as emperor, the rites of service with greater majesty. And he appointed for him three offices in particular as necessary: and he appointed Libadarios as cup-bearer, and honored Bryennios as master of the table, and thirdly he installed Tzamplakon from Christoupolis as *tatas* of his court. Moreover, a golden imperial staff with a wooden core was prepared for him, so that he might hold it during the divine hymns, as was the custom, along with his father. And this was done, with us seeing him holding it once or 415 twice or even more. Then, since it seemed best to the emperor—for there is one rule, and the staff is a symbol of rule, and this too must be one—for these reasons this was set aside. And it was granted to him to issue commands and to sign in the imperial manner, except not to state the month, as is the custom for emperors, but to write out in full in red with his own hand: Andronikos by the grace of Christ, Emperor of the Romans. And the oaths to his father and emperor, after the written guarantee to God and the Church, that he would not plot against him but would be subordinate, proceeded to be very secure; at which the people's

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τὰς συνειδήσεις ὁ Ἰωσήφ, καὶ τῇ τούτων παραθέσει ὁ προλαβὼν τὸ κρεῖττον ἐφέρετο, ὡς μηδὲν μηδενὶ ἐνοχλήσας, καθ' ὅ τι καὶ λέγοιεν· ᾧ δὴ καὶ ὁ κρατῶν καὶ αὖθις ἐχρᾶτο καὶ πατέρα ὠνόμαζε καὶ εἰς βουλὴν εἶχε καὶ εἰς πολλὰ ἐχρᾶτο συλλήπτορι καὶ ἡδέως ἤκουε μεσιτεύοντος. Ἦν γὰρ ὁ ἄνθρωπος καὶ τῷ κόσμῳ σύντροφος καὶ δεινὸς ὑπελθεῖν ἄρχουσι καὶ πεῖσαι, ὅτε καιρός, καὶ θυμὸν μαλάξαι καὶ ἀγριᾶναι· εἶχε δὲ σὺν τῇ γνώμῃ καὶ τοῦ σώματος ἰσχυρῶς, ὡς πολλάκις τοῦ μηνὸς ἢ καὶ τῆς ἑβδομάδος ἐνίοτε πρόσοδον ποιεῖσθαι πρὸς βασιλέα, τοῦτο μὲν καὶ ἀφ' ἑαυτοῦ, τοῦτο δὲ καὶ καλούμενος.

κθʹ. Ὅπως ἀποστέλλεται εἰς Παιονίαν μετὰ τοῦ μεγάλου δουκὸς τοῦ Λάσκαρι ὁ προπατριαρχεύσας Γερμανὸς κἀκεῖθεν ἤγαγε νύμφην τῷ τοῦ βασιλέως υἱῷ καὶ ὅπως ἐστέφθησαν. Ἐπεὶ δὲ καὶ ὁ υἱὸς τῷ βασιλεῖ ἤνδρωτο ὁ Ἀνδρόνικος, ὃν καὶ εἰς τὴν βασιλείαν διάδοχον ὡς καὶ τῶν ἄλλων πρότερον προητοίμαζε, καὶ ἔδει συναρμόττειν αὐτὸν τῇ πρεπούσῃ συζύγῳ, τὸ μὲν πρὸς τοὺς Ἰταλοὺς πρεσβεύεσθαι εὐόδως οὐκ εἶχε, τοῦ Καρούλου μεταξὺ κειμένου κατὰ τὴν Πούλειαν, ὃν καὶ ἐχθρὸν ἀκήρυκτον ἑαυτοῦ καὶ Ῥωμαίων ἐγίνωσκε διὰ τὴν πόλιν καὶ τὸ μετὰ τοῦ Βαλδουίνου ἐπὶ τοῖς παισὶν αὐτῶν κῆδος· ἤδη γὰρ τὸν Μαφρὲ καταλύσας, ἐμεγαλύνετο ῥὴξ ὁ πρότερον κόντος, ὡς τοῦ ῥηγὸς Φραγγίας αὐτάδελφος· τοῦτο γάρ οἱ καὶ συμπεφωνημένος μισθὸς ἦν παρὰ τῆς ἐκκλησίας τῆς ἐπὶ τῷ Μαφρὲ ἀποστατοῦντι ὁρμῆς, ἂν εἰς τέλος νικῴη. Ἐπεὶ ταῦτα, ἔγνω πρὸς Παίονας τὴν πρεσβείαν στεῖλαι· ὁ γὰρ ῥὴξ ἐκείνων υἱὸς ἦν Ῥωμογενής, ἐκ μητρὸς τῷ ῥηγὶ γεννηθείς, τῆς τοῦ παλαιοῦ Λάσκαρι θυγατρός. Τρεῖς γὰρ ἐκείνῳ βασιλεύοντι τηνικάδε θυγατέρες 413 ἦσαν· αὕτη μία καὶ ἡ θαυμαστὴ Εἰρήνη δευτέρα, ἣν ὁ Ἰωάννης σχὼν ἐβασίλευσε, τὸν πενθερὸν διαδεξάμενος, καὶ τρίτη ἡ τῷ μεγάλῳ κυρίῳ κατὰ τὴν πόλιν ἐκδοθεῖσα Εὐδοκία. Ἐξ ἐκείνης γοῦν τῆς προτέρας ὁ τῆς Παιονίας ῥήξ, τῷ ῥηγὶ καὶ πατρὶ γεννηθείς, γυναῖκα πάνυ ὡραίαν ἐκ Κομάνων καὶ αἰχμάλωτον, ὡς λέγουσιν, διὰ τὸ κάλλος ἑαυτῷ ἁρμοσάμενος, θυγατέρα γεννᾷ. Ταύτην ὡς εὐγενῆ καὶ ἐκ τῶν Λασκαρίων καταγομένην συναρμόττειν ὁ βασιλεὺς ἐβούλετο τῷ υἱῷ. Καὶ δὴ εἰς πρεσβείαν ἐκλέγεται περὶ τούτων τὸν ἀπὸ πατριαρχῶν τοῦτον δὴ τὸν Γερμανὸν καὶ τὸν μέγαν δοῦκα τὸν Λάσκαριν, ἔξωρον ἤδη ὄντα, διὰ τὸ πρὸς ἐκεῖνον αὐτοῦ συγγενές· τοῦ γὰρ πάππου τὸν τόπον τῷ ῥηγὶ ἐπλήρου, ὅσα καὶ ἀδελφὸς τοῦ Λάσκαρι βασιλέως. Οἳ δὴ καὶ ἀπελθόντες πεζῇ τὰ τῆς πρεσβείας ἐπλήρουν καὶ τὴν τοῦ ῥηγὸς θυγατέρα τῷ υἱεῖ τοῦ βασιλέως καὶ βασιλεῖ νύμφην φέρουσιν, ᾗ δὴ καὶ Ἄνναν ὄνομα τίθησιν ὁ κρατῶν· καὶ περιφανεῖς τοὺς γάμους τελεῖ αὐτῇ τε καὶ τῷ υἱῷ ἐπὶ τοῦ θείου καὶ μεγάλου τεμένους τῆς τοῦ Θεοῦ Λόγου Σοφίας, τοῦ πατριάρχου Ἰωσὴφ εὐλογήσαντος. Καὶ αὖθις τοῦ ἐπιόντος ἔτους, μηνὸς μουνυχιῶνος ὀγδόῃ, βασιλικῶς αὐτοὺς σὺν τῷ πατριαρχοῦντι ὁ βασιλεὺς καὶ πατὴρ ταινιοῖ καί οἱ ὡς βασιλεῖ τὰ τῆς θεραπείας πρὸς τὸ μεγαλειότερον ἀποτάττει. Τάττει δὲ τούτῳ καὶ τρία τῶν ὀφφικίων ἰδίως ὡς ἀναγκαῖα· καὶ τὸν μὲν Λιβαδάριον πιγκέρνην ἀποκαθίστησι, τὸν δέ γε Βρυέννιον ἐπὶ τῆς τραπέζης τιμᾷ καὶ τρίτον τὸν ἐκ Χριστουπόλεως Τζαμπλάκωνα τατᾶν τῆς αὐλῆς αὐτοῦ ἐγκαθίστησιν. Ηὐτρέπιστο μέντοι τούτῳ καὶ βακτηρία βασιλικὴ χρυσῆ ὑπόξυλος, ἐς ὃ κρατεῖν ταύτην ἐπὶ τῶν θείων ὕμνων, ὡς ἔθος, σὺν τῷ πατρί. Καὶ ἐπράχθη καὶ τόδε, ἅπαξ ἢ 415 καὶ δεύτερον ἢ καὶ πλέον ἡμῶν ἰδόντων κρατοῦντα. Ἔπειτα δόξαν τῷ βασιλεῖμίαν γὰρ εἶναι τὴν ἀρχήν, βακτηρία δὲ τῆς ἀρχῆς σύμβολον, χρῆναι δὲ καὶ ταύτην μίαν εἶναι, διὰ ταῦτα ἠθέτητο τοῦτο. Ἐδόθη δὲ καὶ προστάσσειν καὶ ὑπογράφειν βασιλικῶς, πλὴν οὐ μηνολογεῖν, ὡς ἔθος τοῖς βασιλεῦσιν, ἀλλὰ διεξοδικῶς γράφειν δι' ἐρυθρῶν οἰκείᾳ χειρί· Ἀνδρόνικος Χριστοῦ χάριτι βασιλεὺς Ῥωμαίων. Οἱ δὲ πρὸς τὸν πατέρα οἱ ὅρκοι καὶ βασιλέα, μετὰ τὴν εἰς Θεὸν καὶ τὴν ἐκκλησίαν ἐγγράφως ἀσφάλειαν, ὡς μὴ ἐπιβουλεύοι, ἀλλ' ὑποτάττοιτο, καὶ λίαν ἀσφαλεῖς προέβαινον· ἐφ' οἷς οἱ τοῦ λαοῦ