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they handed over the kingdom of the Mysians and the rule. And the emperor, having gathered an assembly with those in authority, was deliberating what he should do. And it seemed necessary to abandon matters here, as they would be able to accomplish 1.431 little or nothing for themselves, since the Kral had already been freed from the war against the Mysians and would have been able to easily defend himself against them as they were harming his own territory; but to set out for Mysia as quickly as possible, as great hopes were dawning there. And the pretext for war was not a small one, that the emperor's sister had been driven from power, she having a greater right to rule, since the Kral's sister had been cast out by Michael while he was still alive. And when it had been decided to withdraw, the emperor, having established garrisons in the towns which had recently submitted, and having taken as much care as was needed for the remaining cities around the fortress, and having left behind an army along with the general Syrgiannes who was also [general] of the rest of the west, so that they might defend themselves on their behalf if the Triballi should attack, taking up the rest of the army, returned to Adrianople; and not many days later, having also gathered what was left of the Roman army, he invaded Mysia, and having especially ravaged the country in other respects and having won over by agreement from the subject cities of the Mysians Anchialus and Mesembria and Aetus and Ktenia and Rosocastron and Diampolis, he returned to Byzantium. And while he was staying there, since the church of the Byzantines was also widowed of a high priest, as the patriarch Isaiah had died not long before, it seemed necessary to install someone on the patriarchal thrones. And when much investigation was being made about this and different people were proposing 1.432 different candidates, the great domestic advised the emperor to appoint the presbyter John as patriarch, who, being a citizen of the city of Apri and of humble origins, but seeming especially gifted in the priestly liturgy, the great domestic had enrolled among his own household and used him for this sacred liturgy. But not long after, when the need arose, he enrolled him in the imperial clergy, depriving him of none of the revenues supplied by himself, but adding the imperial ones to those. And he continued to be highly esteemed there in such matters and for this reason enjoyed the emperor’s favor. And the emperor both praised the proposal and said it should be attempted, if indeed it could be accomplished. But when they brought the proposal about this to the other high priests, they all immediately, as if by a signal, rejected it and would not even tolerate discussion about it; and the emperor, seeing them so strongly opposed, entrusted the undertaking concerning this to the great domestic. And he, without any delay, convened an assembly of the high priests in the church of the holy apostles of Christ, and beginning to speak, he tried to persuade them that they must vote to accept the presbyter John as patriarch; but they argued against it, saying that it would be neither just nor profitable for the church of God. And when many arguments had been made on both sides, in the end they rose up in disagreement of opinion, with some thinking it in no 1.433 way tolerable to raise to the highest throne of teaching one who was still involved in the affairs of life and living with a wife and children; but he argued back that this would be no impediment, since he would completely separate himself, if in other respects he was capable and suitable for the task. And in the end the great domestic, dissolving the assembly, for the present ordered each to go home and get some rest, having undergone no little toil; and that having come together again they would make their arguments about the same matters. So they each dispersed to their homes, and the great domestic went and reported to the emperor both what he had said in trying to persuade the high priests and what he had heard from them in opposition, and finally, how it was agreed to also convene a second assembly for this purpose. And on the tenth day he again ordered them to assemble in the same church; and when they were all assembled, he no longer attempted to persuade them with the same arguments, for he knew he would not persuade them, but from those which

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βασίλεια παρέδοσαν τῶν Μυσῶν καὶ τὴν ἀρχήν. βασιλεὺς δὲ ἐκκλησίαν συναθροίσας μετὰ τῶν ἐν τέλει, ὅ,τι δέοι ἐβουλεύετο ποιεῖν. καὶ ἐδόκει δεῖν τὰ ἐνταῦθα μὲν καταλιπεῖν, ὡς ὀλίγα ἢ οὐδὲν δυνησο 1.431 μένους ἑαυτοῖς περιποιήσασθαι, τοῦ Κράλη ἤδη τοῦ πρὸς Μυσοὺς πολέμου ἀπηλλαγμένου καὶ δυνηθέντος ἂν ῥᾳδίως ἀμύνεσθαι αὐτοὺς κακοῦντας τὴν αὐτοῦ· πρὸς δὲ τὴν Μυσίαν ἀπαίρειν τὴν ταχίστην, ὡς ἐλπίδων ἐκεῖ μεγάλων ὑποφαινομένων. πρόφασιν δὲ πολέμου εἶναι οὐ μικρὰν, τὸ τὴν βασιλέως ἀδελφὴν ἀπελαθῆναι τῆς ἀρχῆς, δικαιοτέραν οὖσαν ἄρχειν, ἅτε τῆς Κράλη ἀδελφῆς ὑπὸ περιόντος ἔτι ἐκβληθείσης Μιχαήλ. ἐπεὶ δὲ ἐδέδοκτο ἀναχωρεῖν τοῖς τε προσχωρήσασιν ἀρτίως πολιχνίοις φρουρὰς ἐγκαταστησάμενος ὁ βασιλεὺς, τῶν τε λοιπῶν πέρι τὴν ἄκραν πόλεων ὅσης ἐδέοντο πρόνοιαν ποιησάμενος, καὶ στρατιὰν ἅμα στρατηγῷ Συργιάννῃ καὶ τῆς ἄλλης ἑσπέρας ὄντι καταλιπὼν, ὥστε ἀμύνεσθαι ὑπὲρ αὐτῶν ἂν ἐπίωσιν οἱ Τριβαλοὶ, τὴν ἄλλην στρατιὰν ἀναλαβὼν, εἰς Ἀδριανούπολιν ἐπανῆλθεν· οὐ πολλαῖς δὲ ὕστερον ἡμέραις καὶ τὴν ἐπίλοιπον Ῥωμαίων στρατιὰν ὅση ἦν συναγαγὼν, ἐσέβαλεν εἰς τὴν Μυσίαν, καὶ τά τε ἄλλα μάλιστα τὴν χώραν δῃώσας καὶ ἐκ τῶν ὑπηκόων πόλεων Μυσοῖς τὴν Ἀγχίαλον καὶ Μεσημβρίαν καὶ Ἀετὸν Κτένιά τε καὶ Ῥωσόκαστρον καὶ ∆ιάμπολιν παραστησάμενος ὁμολογίᾳ, εἰς Βυζάντιον ἐπανῆκε. διατρίβοντι δὲ ἐκεῖ, ἐπεὶ καὶ ἡ Βυζαντίων ἐκκλησία χηρεύουσα ἦν ἀρχιερέως, τοῦ πατριάρχου Ἠσαΐου οὐ πολλῷ πρότερον χρόνῳ τετελευτηκότος, ἐδόκει τῶν ἀναγκαίων τοῖς πατριαρχικοῖς θρόνοις τινὰ ἐγκαθιδρύσαι. πολλῆς δὲ ζητήσεως περὶ τούτου γινομένης καὶ ἄλλων ἄλλους 1.432 προβαλλομένων, ὁ μέγας δομέστικος συνεβούλευε βασιλεῖ, τὸν πρεσβύτερον Ἰωάννην ἀποδεῖξαι πατριάρχην, ὃν τῆς Ἀπρίων μὲν ὄντα πόλεως πολίτην καὶ ἐξ ἀσήμων, περὶ δὲ τὴν ἱερατικὴν λειτουργίαν μάλιστα δοκοῦντα ἔχειν εὐφυῶς, ὁ μέγας δομέστικος ἐνέγραψε τοῖς οἰκείοις καὶ περὶ τὴν ἱερὰν ἐχρῆτο ταύτην λειτουργίαν. ὕστερον δὲ οὐ πολλῷ χρείας γενομένης, τῷ βασιλικῷ ἐνέγραψε κλήρῳ, μηδὲν τῶν παρ' αὐτοῦ χορηγουμένων προσόδων ἀποστερήσας, ἀλλ' ἐκείναις τὰς βασιλικὰς προσθείς. καὶ διετέλεσέ γε κἀκεῖ περὶ τὰ τοιαῦτα μάλιστα εὐδοκιμῶν καὶ διὰ τοῦτ' ἀπέλαυε τῆς βασιλέως εὐμενείας. βασιλεὺς δὲ ἐπῄνει τε τὸν λόγον καὶ ἐπιχειρητέα ἔλεγεν εἶναι, εἴγε ἀνυσθῆναι δυνατόν. ὡς δὲ τοῖς λοιποῖς ἀρχιερεῦσι τὸν περὶ τούτου προσῆγον λόγον, οἱ μὲν εὐθὺς ὥσπερ ἀπὸ συνθήματος πάντες ἀπωθοῦντο καὶ οὐδὲ ἠνείχοντο τῶν περὶ τούτου λόγων· βασιλεὺς δὲ αὐτοὺς οὕτως ἄγαν ὁρῶν ἐνισταμένους, τῷ μεγάλῳ δομεστίκῳ τὴν περὶ τούτου ἐπιχείρησιν ἐπέτρεπεν. ὁ δὲ οὐδὲν μελλήσας ἐκκλησίαν συνήθροιζεν ἐκ τῶν ἀρχιερέων ἐν τῷ τῶν θείων ἀποστόλων Χριστοῦ νεῷ, καὶ καταστὰς εἰς λόγους, ἐπεχείρει πείθειν, ὡς δεῖ τὸν πρεσβύτερον Ἰωάννην ἐπὶ τὸ πατριάρχην δέχεσθαι ψηφίζεσθαι· οἱ δ' ἀντεπεχείρουν, ὡς οὔτε δίκαιον, οὔτε λυσιτελὲς ἂν τῇ ἐκκλησίᾳ εἴη τοῦ θεοῦ. πολλῶν δὲ ἐξ ἑκατέρου μέρους λόγων εἰρημένων, τέλος ἀνέστησαν ἀσύμφωνοι ταῖς γνώμαις, τῶν μὲν οὐδα 1.433 μῶς οἰομένων εἶναι ἀνεκτὸν, τὸν ἔτι τοῖς τοῦ βίου πράγμασι συνισχημένον καὶ γυναικὶ καὶ τέκνοις συνοικοῦντα, εἰς τὸν ὑψηλότατον τῆς διδασκαλίας ἀνάγειν θρόνον· τοῦ δ' ἀντεπιχειροῦντος, ὡς οὐδὲν ἂν εἴη τοῦτο κώλυμα, καθάπαξ ἀποστησομένου, ἂν τἄλλα ἱκανός τε καὶ ἁρμόζων πρὸς τὸ ἔργον ᾖ. τέλος δὲ ὁ μέγας δομέστικος τὴν ἐκκλησίαν διαλύων, νῦν μὲν ἕκαστον ἐκέλευεν οἴκαδε ἀπελθόντα, ἀναπαύλης τυχεῖν οὐκ ὀλίγον πόνον ὑπομείναντας· αὖθις δὲ συνελθόντας περὶ τῶν αὐτῶν ποιήσεσθαι τοὺς λόγους. οἱ μὲν οὖν ἕκαστος ἐπ' οἴκου διελύοντο, ὁ μέγας δὲ δομέστικος ἀπήγγελλε τῷ βασιλεῖ ἐλθὼν, ὅσα τε λέξαι τοὺς ἀρχιερέας πείθειν ἐπιχειρῶν καὶ ὧν παρ' αὐτῶν ἀκούσειεν ἀντιλεγόντων, καὶ τέλος, ὡς συντεθείη καὶ δευτέραν ἐκκλησίαν συναθροῖσαι τούτου ἕνεκα. μετὰ δεκάτην δὲ ἡμέραν αὖθις ἐκέλευεν ἀθροίζεσθαι ἐν τῷ αὐτῷ ναῷ· καὶ ἐπειδὴ πάντες ἠθροισμένοι ἦσαν, οὐκέτι μὲν ἐκ τῶν ὁμοίων ἐπεχείρει πείθειν, ᾔδει γὰρ οὐ πείσων, ἀλλ' ἐξ ὧν