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He denied it, and being compelled to give proofs of his word, oaths on sacred objects were demanded of him. But when he, perjuring himself, swore the oaths, he considered the words of the others slander. It is said, however, that on account of the perjury a certain terrible disease afflicted Michael. And this was, at certain 584 intervals, a derangement of his mind, a distortion of the eyes, a spasm of the body, and a falling to the ground; then he would come to himself and would be restored. This he suffered many times even in the emperor's presence; and he, pitying Michael for his affliction, thought what was said to be even more false and concluded that a man in such a condition could neither love nor be loved. But there are those who say that the emperor was not ignorant of the love affair, *** but because the empress was lusty and was mad for amorous pleasures, he tolerated her inclination towards Michael, feigning ignorance, so that she might not associate with more men. While things were in this state, the emperor fell ill, and his face was swollen and his breathing was labored and his appearance resembled a corpse and most of his head had become bare; for its hair had fallen out. It is said, at any rate, that the man had been tampered with by drugs. Being in this state, he went to a bath in the palace to wash himself, and he went neither being led by the hand nor being expected to die immediately. And when he had cleansed his body, he entered the pool there, where indeed the whole of the drama is said to have happened; for they say some men 585 pressed his head down into the water for a considerable time, and thus he was brought up from there almost breathless and was laid on the bed. And when a clamor arose at this, the empress also came, as if groaning at the misfortune, and being fully informed of the emperor's death, she went away immediately. And he, having survived for a short while speechless, then also bringing up something rather black through his mouth, gave up the ghost, having reigned for five and a half years, having been educated in letters and having partaken of Greek learning and not ignorant of the laws of the state, but thinking and priding himself that he in truth knew more than he did. Such, then, was the end of life that had overtaken this man. But the empress was wholly concerned with installing Michael on the imperial throne, though her paternal servants around her advised giving the matter to delay and consideration; but she would not tolerate it, being urged on towards its accomplishment also by the eunuch John, the kinsman of Michael, who secretly whispered to her that "we will perish immediately, if the outcome is delayed for any short time." Ta586king Michael immediately, therefore, and putting an imperial robe on him and herself binding his head with a diadem and seating him on an imperial throne and sitting down beside him herself, she urged all those then present both to acclaim and to prostrate themselves. And some have related that then, immediately during the night, the wedding ceremony for them took place, when the patriarch Alexios arrived at the palace and found Romanos dead, but Michael still undergoing the rites of accession. And when what had happened was now also spread to those outside, the whole city acclaimed the new emperor, partly to gratify him, and partly because they rejoiced to be rid of the departing one. The empress, then, thought she had planned excellently and had secured all the power for herself and would have Michael as a subordinate; but something quite different happened. For up to a certain point he pretended to maintain his disposition towards the empress and to gratify her and to do the things that pleased her; then, not tolerating extending the pretense for long, he changed his ways and suspected her, and fearing for himself, he removed from the palace the eunuchs who were her paternal servants and separated her from her accustomed 587 maids, and substituted others to serve her. And in addition to this, he barred her from the women's quarters and placed a guard around it, and it was not permitted for anyone to approach her, unless the commander of the guard had examined the person approaching as to whence he had come and for what need he had arrived; for he was afraid, having from his own experience the reasons for his fear. And to be led further into these things the

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ἀπηγόρευσε καὶ ἀνηνάμενος πίστεις τοῦ λόγου καὶ ὅρκους ἀπῃτήθη καθ' ἱερῶν. ἐπεὶ δ' ἐκεῖνος ἐπιορκήσας τοὺς ὅρκους ἐτέλεσε, διαβολὴν τοὺς τῶν ἄλλων ἥγητο λόγους. λέγεται μέντοι διὰ τὴν ἐπιορκίαν νόσημά τι δεινὸν ἐνσκῆψαι τῷ Μιχαήλ. τὸ δ' ἦν κατά τινας 584 περιόδους αὐτῷ παρακοπὴ τοῦ νοὸς τῶν ὀφθαλμῶν τε διαστροφὴ καὶ κλόνος τοῦ σώματος καὶ κατάπτωσις ἐπὶ γῆς, εἶτ' ἐπανῄει εἰς ἑαυτὸν καὶ ἀποκαθίστατο. τοῦτο πολλάκις καὶ τοῦ βασιλέως ἐνώπιον ἔπαθεν· ὁ δὲ τοῦ πάθους οἰκτείρας τὸν Μιχαὴλ ἔτι μᾶλλον ψευδῆ ᾤετο τὰ λεγόμενα καὶ μήτ' ἐρᾶν μήτ' ἐρᾶσθαι τοῦτον οὕτως ἔχοντα ἔθετο. εἰσὶ δ' οἳ λέγουσι μὴ ἀγνοῆσαι τὸν βασιλέα τὸν ἔρωτα, *** δ' ὅτι σφριγᾷ ἡ βασίλισσα καὶ περὶ τὰ ἀφροδίσια μέμηνε, τῆς πρὸς τὸν Μιχαὴλ αὐτῆς ῥοπῆς ἠνείχετο, ὑποκρινόμενος ἄγνοιαν, ἵνα μὴ πλείοσιν ὁμιλοίη. Τούτων δὲ οὕτω ἐχόντων ὁ αὐτοκράτωρ ἐνόσησε, καί οἱ διῳδήκει τὸ πρόσωπον καὶ τὸ ἆσθμα ἦν συνεχὲς καὶ ἡ ὄψις αὐτῷ ἐῴκει νεκροῦ καὶ τῆς κεφαλῆς αὐτοῦ τὸ πλέον ἐψίλωτο· αἱ γὰρ τρίχες αὐτῆς ἀπερρύησαν. λέγεται γοῦν φαρμάκοις περιεργασθῆναι ὁ ἄνθρωπος. οὕτω δ' ἔχων ἀπῄει πρὸς βαλανεῖον τῶν ἐν τοῖς βασιλείοις λουσόμενος, καὶ ἀπῄει οὔτε χειραγωγούμενος οὔτ' αὐτίκα τεθνήξεσθαι προσδοκώμενος. ὡς δὲ τὸ σῶμα ἐκάθηρεν, εἰσέδυ τὴν ἐκεῖ κολυμβήθραν, ἔνθα δὴ τὸ πᾶν ᾄδεται γενέσθαι τοῦ δράματος· συμπιέσαι γάρ τινας 585 αὐτῷ τὴν κεφαλήν φασιν ἐπὶ τὸ ὕδωρ ἐφ' ἱκανόν, καὶ οὕτως ἐκεῖθεν ἄπνουν ἀνιμηθῆναι σχεδὸν καὶ ἀνακλιθῆναι πρὸς τὴν στρωμνήν. θροῦ δ' ἐπὶ τούτῳ συμβάντος παρῆλθε καὶ ἡ βασιλίς, ὡς δή τι τῷ πάθει ἐπιστενάζουσα, καὶ πληροφορηθεῖσα τοῦ βασιλέως τὴν τελευτὴν ἀπῆλθεν εὐθύς. ὁ δὲ βραχύ τι ἐπιβιοὺς ἄναυδος, εἶτα καὶ μελάντερόν τι ἀναγαγὼν διὰ τοῦ στόματος ἀφῆκε τὸ πνεῦμα, ἔτη βασιλεύσας πέντε πρὸς τῷ ἡμίσει, λόγοις μὲν ἐντραφεὶς Ἑλληνικῆς τε παιδείας μετεσχηκὼς καὶ τῶν τῆς πολιτείας νόμων οὐκ ἀδαής, πλείω δ' εἰδέναι ὧν ᾔδει ὡς ἀληθῶς οἰόμενός τε καὶ σεμνυνόμενος. Τοῦτον μὲν οὖν τοιοῦτον κατειλήφει τὸ τέρμα τῆς βιοτῆς. ἡ δὲ βασιλὶς ὅλη τοῦ τὸν Μιχαὴλ ἐγκαθιδρῦσαι τῷ θρόνῳ τῆς βασιλείας ἐγένετο, καὶ τῶν περὶ αὐτὴν τῶν πατρῴων δηλαδὴ θεραπόντων αὐτῆς ἀναβολῇ τὸ πρᾶγμα δοῦναι καὶ σκέψει συμβουλευόντων· ἡ δὲ οὐκ ἠνείχετο, κατεπειγομένη πρὸς τὴν τελεσιουργίαν καὶ παρὰ τοῦ ἐκτομίου Ἰωάννου τοῦ συγγόνου τοῦ Μιχαήλ, λάθρᾳ πρὸς αὐτὴν ὑποψιθυρίσαντος ὡς "ἀπολούμεθα αὐτίκα, εἰ βραχεῖ τινι καιρῷ τὸ ἀποτέλεσμα βραδυνεῖ." λα586 βοῦσα τοίνυν εὐθὺς τὸν Μιχαὴλ καὶ στολὴν αὐτῷ περιθεμένη βασίλειον καὶ διαδήματι τὴν ἐκείνου κεφαλὴν αὐτὴ ἀναδήσασα καὶ ἐπὶ θώκου βασιλικοῦ καθιδρύσασα καὶ αὐτὴ παρακαθισαμένη πᾶσι τοῖς τότε παροῦσι καὶ εὐφημεῖν καὶ προσκυνεῖν προετρέπετο. οἱ δὲ καὶ τότε αὐτίκα νυκτὸς τὴν ἱεροτελεστίαν τὴν γαμικὴν ἐπ' αὐτοῖς γενέσθαι ἱστόρησαν, τοῦ πατριάρχου Ἀλεξίου ἀφικομένου πρὸς τὰ βασίλεια καὶ τὸν μὲν Ῥωμανὸν τεθνεῶτα καταλαβόντος, τὸν δέ γε Μιχαὴλ ἔτι τὰ ἐπὶ τῇ βασιλείᾳ τελούμενον. ἤδη δὲ καὶ τοῖς ἔξω διαδοθέντος τοῦ γεγονότος, καὶ πᾶσα ἡ πόλις τὸν νέον ἀνηγόρευεν αὐτοκράτορα, τὸ μὲν αὐτῷ χαριζόμενοι, τὸ δ' ὅτι τὸν ἀπιόντα ἀπεφορτίσαντο χαίροντες. ἡ μὲν οὖν βασιλὶς ᾤετο βουλεύσασθαι ἄριστα καὶ ἑαυτῇ τὴν πᾶσαν ἐξουσίαν περιποιήσασθαι καὶ τὸν Μιχαὴλ ὑπηρέτην ἕξειν· τὸ δέ τι ἑτεροῖον συμβέβηκε. μέχρι μὲν γάρ τινος ἐσχηματίζετο τηρεῖν πρὸς τὴν βασιλίδα διάθεσιν καὶ ταύτῃ χαρίζεσθαι καὶ τὰ ἐκείνῃ θυμήρη ποιεῖν· εἶτα οὐκ εἰς μακρὸν ἐκτεῖναι τὴν προσποίησιν ἀνασχόμενος μεθαρμόττεται καὶ ὑποπτεύει αὐτὴν καὶ δείσας περὶ ἑαυτῷ μεθίστησι μὲν τῶν βασιλείων τοὺς ἐκτομίας τοὺς αὐτῆς πατρῴους θεράποντας καὶ τὰς αὐτῆς συνήθεις 587 θεραπαίνας αὐτῆς διαιρεῖ, ἑτέρας δ' αὐτῇ πρὸς θεραπείαν ἀντικαθίστησι. καὶ ἐπὶ τούτοις τὴν γυναικωνῖτιν αὐτῇ ἀποφράγνυσι καὶ φρουρὰν περιίστησι, καὶ οὐδενὶ προσιέναι ταύτῃ παρακεχώρητο, εἰ μὴ τὸν προσιόντα ὁ φρούραρχος κατεξήτασεν ὅθεν ἥκοι καὶ τίνος δεόμενος παραγένοιτο· ἐδεδίει γὰρ οἴκοθεν ἔχων τοῦ δέους τὰς ἀφορμάς. εἰς ταῦτα δ' ἐνάγεσθαι πλέον ὁ