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and to the emperor, so that he often went into enmity and wars with the Roman armies, and it happened that he clashed with many of the Bulgarian magnates at the same time 451 and fell into unfitting troubles. Being therefore jealous of him for these things, they turned to Constantine, who was half Serbian by birth. Whatever, therefore, he lacked for the throne from his own lineage, being in no way related to Asan, by taking the latter’s granddaughter as his wife—John having sent her—he had an equal right to the kingdom of Asan with Mytzes. And the former held Ternovon and bore the glories of the kingdom magnificently; but Mytzes, controlling the surrounding areas, was at one time content with these and kept quiet, but at another time he contended against Constantine, whom he once pursued and shut up in Stenimachos, which was ours. And if he had not used Roman forces for assistance, he would likely have been captured and perished. But fortune tips the scales, and Constantine, strengthened again, pursues Mytzes more boldly. But he, having seized Mesembria with his children, from there beseeched the emperor to receive him and take the city as a ransom. The emperor therefore sends from his court Glabas, the kouropalates and later megas papias; and he, along with others and a sufficient army, having taken Mesembria, secures it for the Romans, and brings Mytzes on foot through the Haemus to the emperor. And he receives him readily and consoles him kindly and, having made sufficient provision for him near the Scamander, settles him there somewhere with his children, having made an agreement with him to marry his eldest son John to his own daughter. But thus he arranged the marriage for his eldest daughter, Irene. 453

2. Concerning the emperor's marriage-alliance with the Serbs and the patriarch's visit there on account of this. He chose to send his second daughter, Anna, to the kral of Serbia, Stephen Uroš, to join her in marriage to his second son, Milutin—for the first, who had the same name as his father, had become the son-in-law of the king of Paeonia by marrying his daughter. And indeed, when the agreements between them were concluded, he sent the hierarch on an embassy, and also sent forth his daughter under the grandest imperial attendance. And when they reached Beroea, the council decided to send to Stephen Uroš the chartophylax Bekkos, and with him also Condumnes of Trajanopolis. And the chartophylax had also been instructed by the empress to go on ahead himself and to ascertain more clearly the state of affairs among the Serbs, both what their way of life was like, and how the order of their government was conducted; for she was preparing the grandest retinue for her daughter with all kinds of royal luxury. Therefore, he was ordered to go ahead, to find out and to report, before the patriarch should set foot in Serbia. But when they arrived, not only did they see nothing there in the way of attendance worthy of even a common ruler, but Uroš, seeing their retinue and small household, and especially the half-men, asked what these might be. And when he heard from them that this was an imperial company and that they were to follow the princess as her retinue, he immediately became indignant: “Alas, alas,” he says, “what is this? This way of life is not customary for us.” And he said this and at the same time pointed out his daughter-in-law, wearing poor clothes and occupied with spinning, and said, pointing with his hand: “This is how we treat our brides.” Indeed, their circumstances were altogether simple and mean, such that they lived off hunting and raiding. When, therefore, the envoys returned and reported accurately to the patriarch both what they had seen and what they had heard, they broke the enthusiasm of those around him 455 and feared for themselves, lest they should immediately fall into harsh ambushes; for they could not trust men who were not deterred by shame and blame. For the time being, they went forward, somewhat sluggish in their march and suspicious of the whole affair. But when they reached the

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καὶ βασιλεῖ, ὡς καὶ πολλάκις δι' ἔχθρας ἰέναι καὶ πολέμων τοῖς τῶν Ῥωμαίων στρατεύμασι, συνέβαινε δὲ προσκρούειν καὶ πολλοῖς ἅμα καὶ μεγιστᾶσι τῶν Βουλγάρων 451 καὶ ταραχαῖς οὐ προσηκούσαις ἐμπίπτειν. Ταῦτ' ἄρα καὶ τούτῳ διαφθονού μενοι, πρὸς τὸν Κωνσταντῖνον, ἐκ Σέρβων ἐξ ἡμισείας τὸ γένος ἔχοντα, ἀποκλίνουσιν. Ὅσον οὖν ἐνέλιπέν οἱ πρὸς τὴν ἀρχὴν ἐκ σφετέρου γένους, μηδὲν τῷ Ἀσὰν προσήκων, τὴν ἐκείνου ἐκγόνην λαβὼν εἰς γυναῖκα, τοῦ Ἰωάννου πέμψαντος, ἐπ' ἴσων εἶχε τὸ πρὸς τὴν τοῦ Ἀσὰν βασιλείαν δίκαιον τῷ Μυτζῇ. Κἀκεῖνος μὲν τὴν Τέρνοβον εἶχε καὶ τὰ τῆς βασιλείας κλέη μεγαλοπρεπῶς ἐπεφέρετο· ὁ δὲ Μυτζῆς, τὰ κύκλῳ περικρατῶν, ποτὲ μὲν ἠρκεῖτο τούτοις καὶ καθησύχαζε, ποτὲ δ' αὖθις καὶ ἀντεφιλονείκει πρὸς Κωνσταντῖνον, ὃν καί ποτε διώκων ἀπέκλεισεν εἰς Στενίμαχον, ἡμέτερον ὄν. Καὶ εἰ μὴ ταῖς τῶν Ῥωμαίων δυνάμεσιν ἐχρήσατο πρὸς βοήθειαν, τάχ' ἂν καὶ ἁλοὺς ἀπώλετο. Ἀλλ' ἡ τύχη ῥέπει τὰς πλάστιγγας, καὶ δυναμωθεὶς αὖθις ὁ Κωνσταντῖνος τὸν Μυτζῆν διώκει θαρραλεώτερον. Ὁ δέ, ἅμα τέκνοις καταλαβὼν τὴν Μεσέμβρειαν, ἐκεῖθεν ἱκετεύει τὸν βασιλέα δέχεσθαι τοῦτον καὶ λύτρα λαμβάνειν τὴν πόλιν. Στέλλει γοῦν ὁ βασιλεὺς ἐξ αὐτῆς τὸν Γλαβᾶν κουροπαλάτην καὶ μέγαν παπίαν ἐσύστερον· καὶ ὃς ἄλλοις συνάμα μετὰ καὶ αὐτάρκους στρατοῦ, καταλαβὼν τὴν Μεσέμβρειαν, ἐκείνην μὲν περιποιεῖ τοῖς Ῥωμαίοις, τὸν δέ γε Μυτζῆν διὰ τοῦ Αἵμου πεζῇ ἄγει πρὸς βασιλέα. Τὸν δὲ καὶ δέχεται πρόφρων καὶ παρηγορεῖ εὐμενῶς καί, πρὸς τῷ Σκαμάνδρῳ ἀποχρώντως προμηθευσάμενος, ἐκεῖσέ που σὺν τοῖς τέκνοις κατασκηνοῖ, συνθήκας πρὸς αὐτὸν ποιησάμενος, ὥστε καὶ τὸν πρώτιστον τῶν ἐκείνου υἱῶν Ἰωάννην συναρμόσαι τῇ θυγατρί. Ἀλλὰ τῇ μὲν τῶν θυγατέρων πρωτίστῃ Εἰρήνῃ οὕτω προὐνόει τῶν γάμων. 453

ʹ. Περὶ τοῦ πρὸς τοὺς Σέρβους κήδους τοῦ βασιλέως καὶ διὰ ταῦτα τῆς τοῦ πατριάρχου ἐπιδημίας ἐκεῖσε. Τὴν δέ γε δευτέραν Ἄνναν ᾑρεῖτο πέμπειν τῷ κραλεῖ Σερβίας Στεφάνῳ τῷ Οὔρεσι, ἐφ' ᾧ τῷ δευτέρῳ υἱῷ Μηλωτίνῳὁ γὰρ ὁμωνυμῶν τῷ πατρὶ καὶ πρῶτος τῷ ῥηγὶ Παιονίας εἰς θυγατέρα γεγάμβρευτοεἰς γάμον συνάπτειν. Καὶ δὴ τῶν πρὸς ἀλλήλους συνθεσιῶν τελεσθεισῶν, στέλλει μὲν εἰς πρεσβείαν τὸν ἱεράρχην, συνεκπέμπει δὲ καὶ τὴν κόρην ὑπὸ θεραπείᾳ μεγίστῃ βασιλικῇ. Καί γε καταλαβοῦσι τὴν Βέρροιαν σφίσι τὰ τῆς βουλῆς ἔστη πεμφθῆναι πρὸς τὸν Οὔρεσιν Στέφανον τὸν χαρτοφύλακα Βέκκον, ἅμα δὲ σὺν ἐκείνῳ καὶ τὸν Τραϊανουπόλεως Κονδουμνῆν. Ἦν δὲ καὶ πρὸς τῆς δεσποίνης ἐντεταλμένον τῷ χαρτοφύλακι αὐτὸν προαπελθεῖν καὶ γνωρίσαι τὰ κατὰ τοὺς Σέρβους τρανότερον, ὅπως μὲν σφίσιν ἐστὶν ἡ δίαιτα, ὅπως δ' ἡ τάξις τῆς ἐκείνων ἀρχῆς διιθύνεται· ἐκείνη γὰρ καὶ μεγίστην τὴν θεραπείαν τῇ θυγατρὶ προητοίμαζεν ἐπὶ χλιδῇ παντοίᾳ βασιλικῇ. Ἐκείνῳ τοίνυν προαπελθόντι γνωρίσειν καὶ σημανεῖν προσετάσ σετο, πρὶν ἂν ἐπιβῇ Σερβίας ὁ πατριάρχης. Οἱ δ' ἐπιστάντες οὐ μόνον οὐδὲν τῶν εἰς θεραπείαν εἶδον ἐκεῖσε καὶ ἀρχῆς τῆς τυχούσης ἄξιον, ἀλλὰ καὶ τὸ θεραπευτικὸν τὸ ἐν ἐκείνοις βλέπων ὁ Οὔρεσις καὶ οἰκίδιον, καὶ μᾶλλον τὸ τῶν ἡμιανδρίων, τί ἂν καὶ εἴησαν οὗτοι διεπυνθάνετο. Ὡς δ' ἤκουε παρ' ἐκείνων ὅτι τάξις ἐστὶν αὕτη βασίλειος καὶ ὡς τῇ βασιλίδι εἰς θεραπείαν ἀκολουθήσαιεν, ἐκεῖνος ἐπαλαστήσας εὐθύς· «Αἲ αἴ, φησί, τί ταῦτα; Καὶ ἡμῖν οὐ συνήθης αὕτη ἡ δίαιτα.» Καὶ τὸν φάναι τε καὶ ἅμα τὴν νύμφην δεικνύειν πενιχρὰ φοροῦσαν καὶ ταλασίᾳ προσέχουσαν, καί· «Οὕτω, λέγειν χειρὶ δεικνύντα, ταῖς νύμφαις ἡμεῖς προσφερόμεθα.» Ἦσαν δὴ καὶ τὰ κατ' αὐτοὺς τὸ παράπαν λιτά τε καὶ εὐτελῆ, ὡς ἀποζῆν θήραις καὶ κλέπτοντας. Ὡς γοῦν ὑπέστρεφον οἱ πεμφθέντες καὶ ἀκριβῶς ἐδήλουν τῷ πατριάρχῃ ἅ τε εἶδον καὶ ἃ ἤκουσαν, ἐπέκλασάν τε τοῖς περὶ ἐκεῖνον τὴν προθυμίαν 455 καὶ περὶ ἑαυτοῖς ὠρρώδουν, μὴ καὶ ἐκ τοῦ παραχρῆμα ἐνέδραις χαλεπαῖς περιπέσοιεν· οὐ γὰρ εἶχον πιστεύειν ἀνδράσι μὴ ἐπιστρεφομένοις αἰσχύνης καὶ μέμψεως. Τέως ᾔεσαν εἰς τὸ πρόσω νωθεῖς τινες τὴν πορείαν καὶ τοῖς ὅλοις ὑπόπτως ἔχοντες. Ὡς δὲ κατέλαβον τὴν