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he especially thought to steal their consent by stealth. For he said that the matter of persuading them to raise John the presbyter to the patriarchal throne did not seem right even to him, especially since he wished to do things according to their will and to compel nothing unpleasant or unwanted; but that they should consider if it was just to appoint him leader of another church. And in any case there would be no impediment to such a thing, as long as no one had a charge to bring against him concerning his priesthood. But they, suspecting nothing of what was to come, nor understanding that they would be caught in their own 1.434 snares, themselves gladly received his words, thinking they had prevailed, and eagerly voted to appoint John hierarch of Thessalonica. And when they all came to one mind, he ordered that what had been voted be confirmed in writing; and they wrote the decree immediately. When the grand domesticus had taken this in his hands, "This," he said, "has been done well and as it should be, and for this I myself would be very grateful to you. But I wish to ask you this: if the emperor asks, ‘If, after much consideration and doing what is just, it seemed good to the archbishops to elect the presbyter John as an archbishop, and no cause appeared that could prevent it, but it seemed to all together by a common vote that he is worthy of this sacred liturgy, why should he not also be raised to the patriarchal throne, since I wish it?’ If he says these things, what shall we say or what plausible defense could we give? You yourselves teach me.” And when they said, “since we made the decree on these terms, that we accept John as head of the church of Thessalonica or of some other church, but not as patriarch”; “Therefore it was necessary,” he said, “that some compelling reason be added to your argument. For if the patriarch receives some other grace or power from above from the treasury of gifts, which it is not permitted for the other hierarchs also to receive, the argument would have some pretext; but if this is not so, and all bishops of both a greater and a lesser city share equally in the 1.435 gift, and the honors and splendors of the thrones lie with the emperor and it is permitted for him even to raise one judged worthy to be bishop of a small city to a greater one, why must we, laboring endlessly, gather such rotten and easily refuted defenses and seem to be rashly offending the emperor? You ought not to argue against these things, but giving in a little from your contentiousness, you should vote according to the emperor's will, which is indeed not far from what is just and reasonable. For I omit my own part, if indeed you hold any favor for me.” When he had said such things to them, with difficulty, yet they understood that they had been caught with their own feathers and that it was not possible to undo what had been voted. And they looked at one another as men who had been deceived, yet even unwillingly they voted for John as patriarch, after the grand domesticus had first conversed at length with and persuaded each one individually and all of them in common, some, because they were previously well-disposed toward him, others, because they themselves had need of him as he was in charge of affairs, thus securing for themselves his good will for the future. Thus indeed, through the great effort of the grand domesticus, John was elected patriarch, since no one else would have persuaded them, if he himself had not been present, and was consecrated a short time after. 22. And the emperor, when his stay in Byzantium had been sufficient, went out to the cities in Thrace. While he was staying there, it was reported to him that a Persian cavalry force, having crossed the Hellespont and divided into two, one part of them was ravaging the area around Cissus 1.436 and Polybotus and Aconitus, Thracian cities; while the other had proceeded towards Rhaedestus. And having gathered an army as large as was possible, he swiftly marched to the aid of Rhaedestus. And engaging those who were plundering the places there, he was victorious in battle, and killed some of them, and enslaved others, with a few escaping. But the other division of the Persians near Polybotus, having learned that the emperor, after enslaving the others, was also marching against them, taking their plunder and all their prisoners as quickly as possible, crossed over to the east. And the emperor, having come

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μάλιστα ᾤετο ὑποκλέψειν τὴν πειθὼ αὐτοῖς. ἔφη γὰρ τὸ μὲν περὶ Ἰωάννου τοῦ πρεσβυτέρου πείθειν εἰς τὸν πατριαρχικὸν ἀνάγειν θρόνον, οὐδ' αὐτῷ δοκεῖν εἶναι δεῖν, μάλιστα βουλομένῳ τὰ κατὰ γνώμην αὐτοῖς ποιεῖν καὶ μηδὲν ἀηδὲς μήτ' ἀβούλητον προσαναγκάζειν· ἑτέρας δὲ ἐκκλησίας σκέψασθαι εἴγε δίκαιον προστάτην ἀποδεῖξαι. πάντως δὲ οὐδ' ἂν εἴη τοῦ τοιούτου κώλυμα, ἕως ἂν μηδεὶς αὐτῷ ἔχῃ περὶ τῆς ἱερωσύνης ἔγκλημα ἐπενεγκεῖν. οἱ δὲ μηδὲν τῶν μελλόντων ὑποπτεύσαντες, μηδὲ τοῦτο ἐννοήσαντες, ὡς τοῖς σφετέροις 1.434 αὐτῶν ἁλώσονται βρόχοις, αὐτοὶ ἡδέως τε ἐδέξαντο τοὺς λόγους οἰόμενοι κεκρατηκέναι καὶ ἐπεψηφίζοντο προθύμως, Θεσσαλονίκης ἱεράρχην ἀποδεῖξαι τὸν Ἰωάννην. ἐπεὶ δὲ εἰς ἓν συνῆλθον ἅπαντες ταῖς γνώμαις, ἐκέλευε γράμμασι τὰ ἐψηφισμένα ἐπιβεβαιοῦν· οἱ δ' ἔγραφον τὸ ψήφισμα αὐτίκα. ἐπεὶ δ' ἐν χερσὶ τοῦτο εἶχεν ὁ μέγας δομέστικος λαβὼν, «τοῦτο μὲν» εἶπε «καλῶς καὶ ᾗ προσῆκεν ἐγεγόνει, καὶ χάριν ἂν ὑμῖν εἰδείην καὶ αὐτὸς τούτου ἕνεκα πολλήν. πυθέσθαι δὲ ὑμῶν βούλομαι ἐκεῖνο· ἂν ἔρηται ὁ βασιλεὺς, ὅτι, εἰ τοῖς ἀρχιερεῦσι πολλὰ σκεψαμένοις καὶ τὰ δίκαια ποιοῦσιν ἔδοξε τὸν πρεσβύτερον Ἰωάννην ψηφίσασθαι ἀρχιερέα καὶ οὐδεμία τις ἐφάνη αἰτία κωλῦσαι δυνατὴ, ἀλλὰ πᾶσιν ἔδοξεν ὁμοῦ ψήφῳ κοινῇ τῆς ἱερᾶς ἄξιος λειτουργίας ταυτησὶν, ἀνθ' ὅτου μὴ καὶ πρὸς τὸν πατριαρχικὸν, ἐμοῦ βουλομένου, ἀναχθείη θρόνον; ἂν ταῦτα λέγῃ, τί ἐροῦμεν ἢ τίνα εὐπρόσωπον ἀπολογίαν ἀποδῶμεν ἄν; διδάξατε αὐτοί.» Τῶν δὲ φαμένων, ὅτι «ἐπειδὴ τὸ ψήφισμα ἐπὶ τούτοις ἐποιησάμεθα, ὅτι Θεσσαλονίκης μὲν ἤ τινος ἄλλης ἐκκλησίας ἡγεμόνα δέχεσθαι τὸν Ἰωάννην, πατριάρχην δὲ μή»· «οὐκοῦν ἔδει» εἶπε «καὶ ἀνάγκην τινὰ προσεῖναι τῷ λόγῳ. εἰ μὲν γὰρ ἄλλην τινὰ χάριν ἢ δύναμιν ἄνωθεν ἐκ ταμίου δωρεῶν δέχεται ὁ πατριάρχης, ἣν οὐκ ἔξεστι λαμβάνειν καὶ τοῖς ἄλλοις ἱεράρχαις, ἔχοι ἄν τινα πρόφασιν ὁ λόγος· εἰ δὲ τοῦτο μὲν οὐκ ἔστι, πᾶσι δὲ ἐπίσης καὶ τῆς μείζονος καὶ τῆς ἐλάσσονος πόλεως ἐπισκόποις μέτεστι δω 1.435 ρεᾶς, αἱ τιμαὶ δὲ καὶ αἱ λαμπρότητες τῶν θρόνων κεῖνται παρὰ βασιλεῖ καὶ ἔξεστιν αὐτῷ καὶ τὸν μικρᾶς πόλεως ἐπισκοπεῖν ἄξιον κριθέντα ἐπὶ τὴν μείζονα ἀνάγειν, τί δεῖ ἀπέραντα πονοῦντας, ἀπολογίας οὕτω σαθρὰς καὶ εὐκαταλύτους συναγείρειν καὶ προσκρούειν εἰκῇ δοκεῖν τῷ βασιλεῖ; ἐφ' ἃ μὴ δέον ἀντιλέγοντας, ἀλλὰ μὴ μικρὸν τῆς φιλονεικίας ὑπενδόντας, ψηφίσασθαι τὰ κατὰ γνώμην βασιλεῖ, καίτοι γε τοῦ δικαίου καὶ εὐλόγου οὐ μακρὰν ἀφεστηκότα. τὸ γὰρ ἡμέτερον ἐῶ, εἰ δή τις χάρις καὶ ἐμοῦ κεῖται παρ' ὑμῖν.» Τοιαῦτα εἰρηκότος πρὸς αὐτοὺς, μόλις μὲν, νοῦν δὲ ὅμως ἔσχον, ὡς τοῖς οἰκείοις ἑάλωσαν πτεροῖς καὶ ἀναλῦσαι οὐκ ἔστι τὰ ἐψηφισμένα. καὶ πρὸς ἀλλήλους μὲν ἑώρων ὡς ἠπατημένοι, ὅμως δὲ καὶ ἄκοντες ἐπεψηφίζοντο τὸν Ἰωάννην πατριάρχην, πολλὰ τοῦ μεγάλου δομεστίκου πρότερον καὶ πρὸς ἕκαστον ἰδίᾳ καὶ πᾶσι κοινῇ διειλεγμένου καὶ πείθοντος, τοὺς μὲν, ὅτι ἦσαν εὖνοι πρότερον αὐτῷ, τοὺς δ', ὅτι καὶ αὐτοὶ ἐδέοντο αὐτοῦ τοῖς πράγμασιν ἐφεστηκότος τὴν εἰς τὸ μέλλον οἰκείωσιν προμνωμένους αὑτοῖς. οὕτω μὲν δὴ ὁ Ἰωάννης σπουδῇ πολλῇ τοῦ μεγάλου δομεστίκου πατριάρχης ἐψηφίσθη, οὐδενὸς ἂν ἑτέρου πείσαντος, εἰ μὴ αὐτὸς παρῆν, καὶ ἐχειροτονήθη μετὰ μικρόν. κβʹ. Βασιλεὺς δὲ ἐπεὶ ἡ κατὰ Βυζάντιον αὐτῷ διατριβὴ εἶχεν ἱκανῶς, ἐξῄει πρὸς τὰς κατὰ Θρᾴκην πόλεις. ἔνθα διατρίβοντι ἠγγέλθη ὡς τὸν Ἑλλήσποντον διαβᾶσα στρατιὰ Περσῶν ἱππικὴ καὶ εἰς δύο διαιρεθεῖσα, οἱ μὲν αὐτῶν περὶ Κισ 1.436 σὸν καὶ Πολύβοτον καὶ Ἀκονίτην, πόλεις Θρᾳκικὰς, ἐπερχόμενοι δῃοῦσιν· ἡ δ' ἐχώρησε πρὸς Ῥαιδεστόν. συναθροίσας δὲ στρατιὰν ὅσην μάλιστα ἐνῆν ἐπὶ Ῥαιδεστὸν ὀξέως ἐβοήθει. καὶ συμβαλὼν τοῖς τὰ ταύτῃ χωρία ληϊζομένοις, ἐκράτησε μάχῃ, καὶ τοὺς μὲν ἀπέκτεινεν αὐτῶν, τοὺς δὲ ἠνδραποδίσατο, διαδράντων τινῶν εὐαριθμήτων. ἡ δὲ κατὰ τὸ Πολύβοτον ἑτέρα μοῖρα τῶν Περσῶν πυθόμενοι ὡς βασιλεὺς τοὺς ἑτέρους ἀνδραποδισάμενος χωρεῖ καὶ κατ' αὐτῶν, τὴν λείαν τάχιστα καὶ ὅσοι ἦσαν αἰχμάλωτοι λαβόντες, ἐπεραιώθησαν πρὸς ἕω. βασιλεὺς δὲ ἐλθὼν