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for the majority were barbarians and some of them were of the Herulian 4.14.13 nation. The priests of the Vandals were especially urging these men to mutiny. For it was not possible for them to perform the customary rites to God, but they had been excluded from both all mysteries and all sacred rites. 4.14.14 For the Emperor Justinian did not permit any Christian who had not embraced the orthodox faith to make use of baptism or any other sacrament. 4.14.15 And the Easter festival especially disturbed them, during which they were not able to baptize their own children with the divine water, or to perform anything else pertaining to this festival. 4.14.16 And as if these things were not sufficient for the demon who was eager to ruin the affairs of the Romans, something else also befell as a resource for those who were planning the mutiny. 4.14.17 For the Vandals, whom Belisarius had brought to Byzantium, the emperor had organized into five cavalry units, so that they might be stationed for all time in the cities of the East; and these he called Justinian's Vandals and ordered them to be transported with their ships to the East. 4.14.18 Of these Vandal soldiers the majority arrived in the East and, filling the units to which they had been assigned, are campaigning against the Persians to this day; but the others, about four hundred in number, when they were at Lesbos, with their sails filled with wind, overpowered the sailors and put in at the Peloponnesus. 4.14.19 And sailing from there they landed in Libya in a desolate place, where they abandoned their ships and, after equipping themselves, went up to Mount Aurasium 4.14.20 and to Mauretania. Elated by these events, the soldiers, who were intent upon mutiny, conspired even 4.14.21 more among themselves. And many discussions about this and oaths were already being made in the camp. And when they were about to celebrate the festival, the Arians, vexed at the prohibition of their sacred rites, pressed on violently. 4.14.22 And it was decided by their leaders to kill Solomon in the church on the first day of the festival, which they call the Great Day. 4.14.23 And they were not detected, since no one revealed this plan. For since there were many plotting these terrible things, the talk circulating among them did not fall to any enemy, and in this way they were able to remain undetected, since also many of Solomon’s bodyguards and shield-bearers and the majority of his servants had joined this very mutiny out of a desire for lands. 4.14.24 And when the Lord's Day had now come, Solomon was sitting in the church, far removed from his own 4.14.25 evils. And those who had decided to kill this man entered, and after urging each other on with nods, they touched their swords, but did nothing, either because they felt shame for the rites then being celebrated in the church, or because they were abashed by the general’s high repute, or some divine power also prevented them. 4.14.26 And when the sacred rites for that day had already been performed and each man was returning home, the mutineers accused each other of having become soft at the wrong moment, and they postponed the plan again until the next day. 4.14.27 And likewise on the following day, having accomplished nothing, they departed from the church, and going to the market-place they reviled each other openly, and each man did not shrink from calling his neighbor soft and a destroyer of their partnership, reproaching him for his reverence for Solomon. 4.14.28 Therefore, they no longer thought that their stay in Carthage would be without danger, since they had revealed the plan completely. 4.14.29 So the majority, having quickly got outside the city, plundered the lands and treated any Libyans they happened to meet as enemies; but the others who remained in the city gave no indication of the mind they themselves had, but pretended to be ignorant of what had been planned. 4.14.30 But Solomon, upon hearing what was being done by the soldiers in the country, fell into a great turmoil and did not cease urging those in the city, exhorting them to be loyal to the emperor. 4.14.31 And they at first seemed to accept his words, but on the fifth day, when they heard that those who had gone out were in open rebellion, they gathered in the hippodrome and openly against both Solomon and the other commanders 4.14.32

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δὴ οἱ πολλοὶ βάρβαροι ἦσαν καὶ αὐτῶν τινες ἐκ τοῦ Ἐρούλων 4.14.13 ἔθνους. τούτους δὴ οἱ τῶν Βανδίλων ἱερεῖς ἐς τὴν στάσιν τὰ μάλιστα ὥρμων. οὐ γὰρ σφίσιν ἦν δυνατὰ τῷ θεῷ ἐξοσιοῦσθαι τὰ εἰωθότα, ἀλλὰ ἀπεκέκλειντο 4.14.14 καὶ μυστηρίων καὶ ἱερῶν ἁπάντων. οὐ γὰρ εἴα βασιλεὺς Ἰουστινιανὸς ἄνδρα Χριστιανὸν οὐ μεταλαχόντα δόξης ὀρθῆς ἢ βαπτίσματι ἢ ἄλλῳ τῳ μυστηρίῳ χρῆ4.14.15 σθαι. μάλιστα δὲ αὐτοὺς ἡ Πασχαλία ἑορτὴ ξυνετάραξε, καθ' ἣν οὐχ οἷοί τε ἐγίνοντο τὰ σφέτερα αὐτῶν παιδία τῷ θείῳ βαπτίζειν λουτρῷ, ἢ ἄλλο τι 4.14.16 ἐργάζεσθαι ἐς ταύτην δὴ τὴν ἑορτὴν ἄγον. ὥσπερ δὲ οὐχ ἱκανὰ ταῦτα τῷ δαιμονίῳ διαφθεῖραι τὰ Ῥωμαίων πράγματα ἐν σπουδῇ ἔχοντι, ξυνέπεσέ τι καὶ ἄλλο 4.14.17 τοῖς τὴν στάσιν μελετῶσιν ἐφόδιον. τοὺς γὰρ Βανδίλους, οὓς Βελισάριος ἐς Βυζάντιον ἤνεγκε, κατεστήσατο βασιλεὺς ἐς καταλόγους ἱππικοὺς πέντε, ὅπως ἐν πόλεσι ταῖς ἑῴαις τὸν ἅπαντα ἱδρύσωνται χρόνον· οὓς καὶ Ἰουστινιανοὺς Βανδίλους καλέσας ἐκέλευσε ξὺν 4.14.18 ναυσὶν ἐς τὴν ἕω κομίζεσθαι. τούτων δὴ τῶν Βανδίλων στρατιωτῶν οἱ μὲν πλεῖστοι ἐς τὴν ἕω ἀφίκοντο καὶ τοὺς καταλόγους πληροῦντες, ἐς οὓς διατετάχαται, ἄχρι τοῦδε ἐπὶ Πέρσας στρατεύονται· οἱ δὲ ἄλλοι, ἀμφὶ τετρακοσίους ὄντες, ἐπεὶ ἐν Λέσβῳ ἐγένοντο, κεκολπωμένων σφίσι τῶν ἱστίων τοὺς ναύτας βιασάμενοι 4.14.19 Πελοποννήσῳ προσέσχον. ἐνθένδε τε ἀπάραντες ἐς Λιβύην κατέπλευσαν ἐν χωρίῳ ἐρήμῳ, οὗ δὴ τὰς ναῦς ἀπολιπόντες καὶ συσκευασάμενοι ἐς τὸ ὄρος τὸ Αὐρά4.14.20 σιον καὶ ἐς Μαυριτανίαν ἀνέβησαν. οἷς δὴ ἐπηρμένοι οἱ στρατιῶται, οἷς ἦν ἐν ἐπιμελείᾳ ἡ στάσις, ἔτι 4.14.21 μᾶλλον ξυνίσταντο ἐν σφίσιν αὐτοῖς. καὶ λόγοι τε πολλοὶ περὶ τούτου καὶ ὅρκοι ἤδη ἐν τῷ στρατοπέδῳ ἐγίνοντο. ἐπειδή τε τὴν ἑορτὴν ἄγειν ἔμελλον, ἀχθόμενοι τῇ κωλύμῃ τῶν ἱερῶν οἱ Ἀρειανοὶ σφόδρα ἐνέκειντο. 4.14.22 Ἔδοξέ τε αὐτῶν τοῖς κορυφαίοις ἐν τῷ ἱερῷ τῇ πρώτῃ τῆς ἑορτῆς ἡμέρᾳ, ἣν μεγάλην καλοῦσι, Σο4.14.23 λόμωνα κτεῖναι. καὶ ἔλαθόν γε οὐδενὸς τοῦτο δὴ ἐξενεγκόντος τὸ βούλευμα. ἅτε γὰρ πολλῶν ὄντων τῶν τὰ δεινὰ βουλευομένων ὁ λόγος περιφερόμενος ἐς δυσμενῆ οὐδένα ἐξέπιπτε, ταύτῃ τε λανθάνειν ἐξίσχυσαν, ἐπεὶ καὶ Σολόμωνος οἱ πολλοὶ δορυφόροι τε καὶ ὑπασπισταὶ καὶ τῶν οἰκετῶν οἱ πλεῖστοι ἐς ταύτην δὴ τὴν στάσιν ξυνετετάχατο τῇ τῶν χωρίων 4.14.24 ἐπιθυμίᾳ. ἡμέρας δὲ ἤδη τῆς κυρίας παρούσης Σολόμων μὲν ἐν τῷ ἱερῷ ἐκάθητο, μακρὰν τῶν αὑτοῦ 4.14.25 ἀπολελειμμένος κακῶν. ἐσελθόντες δὲ οἷς τὸν ἄνδρα τοῦτον κτεῖναι ἐδέδοκτο, νεύμασί τε ἀλλήλοις ἐγκελευσάμενοι, τῶν ξιφῶν ἥπτοντο, ἔδρασαν μέντοι οὐδὲν, ἢ τὰ τελούμενα τηνικαῦτα ἐν τῷ ἱερῷ αἰσχυνόμενοι, ἢ διὰ τὴν τοῦ στρατηγοῦ δόξαν ἐρυθριῶντες, ἢ καί 4.14.26 τι θεῖον αὐτοὺς διεκώλυσεν. ἐπειδὴ δὲ τά τε ἱερὰ ἐκείνῃ τῇ ἡμέρᾳ ἤσκητο ἤδη καὶ οἴκαδε ἐκομίζοντο ἕκαστοι, ἀλλήλους ᾐτιῶντο οἱ στασιῶται ἅτε μαλθακοὺς οὐκ ἐν δέοντι γεγενημένους, καὶ αὖθις ἀπετί4.14.27 θεντο ἐς τὴν ἐπιοῦσαν τὸ βούλευμα. ὁμοίως δὲ καὶ τῇ ὑστεραίᾳ διαγεγονότες ἄπρακτοι ἐκ τοῦ ἱεροῦ ἀνεχώρησαν, ἔς τε τὴν ἀγορὰν ἐλθόντες ἀλλήλοις ἐκ τοῦ ἐμφανοῦς ἐλοιδοροῦντο, αὐτός τε ἕκαστος μαλθακόν τε τὸν πέλας καὶ τῆς ἑταιρίας διαλυτὴν ἀποκαλῶν τὴν 4.14.28 ἐς Σολόμωνα αἰδῶ ὀνειδίζειν οὐκ ἀπηξίου. διὸ δὴ οὐκέτι ἀκίνδυνον σφίσιν ᾤοντο ἔσεσθαι τὴν ἐν Καρχηδόνι διατριβὴν ἅτε ἐς τὸ πᾶν ἐξενεγκόντες τὸ βού4.14.29 λευμα. οἱ μὲν οὖν πολλοὶ τῆς πόλεως ἔξω κατὰ τάχος γενόμενοι τά τε χωρία ἐληίζοντο καὶ Λίβυσιν οἷς ἂν ἐντύχοιεν ὡς πολεμίοις ἐχρῶντο· οἱ δὲ ἄλλοι ἐν τῇ πόλει διαμείναντες οὐ παρεῖχον αἴσθησιν ἧς εἶχον αὐτοὶ γνώμης, ἀλλ' ἀγνοεῖν τὰ βεβουλευμένα προσεποιοῦντο. 4.14.30 Σολόμων δὲ ἀκούσας ὅσα πρὸς τῶν στρατιωτῶν ἐν τῇ χώρᾳ ἐπράσσετο, ἐς θόρυβόν τε πολὺν ἐμπεσὼν τοῖς ἐν τῇ πόλει ἐγκελευόμενος οὐκ ἀνίει ἐς εὔνοιαν 4.14.31 τὴν βασιλέως παρακαλῶν. οἱ δὲ κατ' ἀρχὰς μὲν ἐνδέχεσθαι τοὺς λόγους ἐδόκουν, ἡμέρᾳ δὲ τῇ πέμπτῃ, ἐπεὶ τοὺς ἐξεληλυθότας ἐν βεβαίῳ τυραννεῖν ἤκουσαν, ἐς τὸν ἱππόδρομον ξυλλεγέντες ἔς τε Σολόμωνα καὶ 4.14.32 τοὺς ἄλλους ἄρχοντας ἀνέδην