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an outwork of the wall. The emperor himself supervised the building of the small town from morning until evening, although the heat was great as the sun passed through the summer solstice, and he endured the scorching heat and the dust. And he was paying a great expense, so that from this the wall became most strong and impregnable, generously rewarding those dragging each of the stones, whether there happened to be fifty or a hundred men. From this, not just ordinary men, but every soldier and servant, both native and from foreign lands, was moved to the hauling of such stones, seeing the lavish wages and the emperor himself standing over them like some contest judge. For this too was a device, so that with many streaming together, the hauling of those enormous stones might become easier. So profound was he in conceiving and so magnificent in accomplishing. 10.5.4 Thus, the affairs of the emperor up to the ... indiction of the ... year had proceeded in the aforementioned manner; but he had not yet rested himself a little when he heard it rumored that there was an invasion of innumerable Frankish armies. He feared their attack, therefore, recognizing their unstoppable rush, their fickle and easily led opinion, and all the other things which the nature of the Celts always has as its own or as accompanying traits, and how, always gaping for money, for any random reason they are seen easily overturning their own treaties. For he always had this as a common saying, and one that was very much proving true. And he had not become negligent, but was preparing himself in every way, so that when the occasion called, he would be ready for battles. For in fact the situation was more and more terrible than the rumored accounts. For the entire West, and whatever barbarian race inhabited the land beyond the Adriatic as far as the Pillars of Heracles, all migrating at once, was marching toward Asia through the intervening parts of Europe, making the journey with their entire households. The cause for such a movement came from somewhere like this. 10.5.5 A certain Celt, Peter by name, surnamed Cucupetros, having gone to worship at the holy sepulcher and having suffered many terrible things from the Turks and Saracens who were plundering all of Asia, barely returned to his own land. And having failed in his purpose, he could not bear it, but wished to undertake the same journey again. But realizing that he ought not to undertake the journey to the holy sepulcher alone again, lest something worse happen to him, he devised a clever plan. And it was to proclaim in all the lands of the Latins that: «A divine voice commands me to preach to all the counts in Francia, that all should depart from their own lands and go to worship at the holy sepulcher and hasten with all their might and mind to free Jerusalem from the hand of the Hagarenes». 10.5.6 And indeed, he succeeded. For as if putting some divine voice into the souls of all, he caused the Celts from everywhere, one from one place and one from another, to gather with arms and horses and the rest of the equipment of war. And they were so full of enthusiasm and zeal that every highway held them; and along with those Celtic soldiers went a crowd of common people more numerous than the sand and the stars, carrying palm branches and crosses on their shoulders, and women and children, who had come out of their own lands. And one could see them like rivers flowing together from all directions and, for the most part, coming against us through the lands of the Dacians with their entire army. 10.5.7 Now, the arrival of so many peoples was preceded by locusts, which abstained from the wheat, but terribly devoured the vineyards. And this was a symbol, as the omen-interpreters of that time divined, that the attack of so great a Celtic army would refrain from Christian affairs, but would fall terribly upon the barbarian Ishmaelites, who were enslaved to drunkenness and wine and Dionysus. For this

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τείχους προτείχισμα. Αὐτὸς δὲ ὁ αὐτοκράτωρ ἐφίστατο τῇ τοῦ πολιχνίου οἰκοδομῇ ἀπὸ πρωΐας μέχρις ἑσπέρας, καίτοι πολλῆς τῆς ἀλέας οὔσης τὸν θερινὸν τροπικὸν τοῦ ἡλίου διαπορευομένου, καὶ καύσωνος ἠνείχετο καὶ κονίας. Καὶ πολλὴν τὴν δαπάνην κατεβάλλετο ὡς ἐντεῦθεν ἐρυμνότα τον γεγονέναι τὸ τεῖχος καὶ ἀπρόσμαχον, τοὺς σύροντας ἕκαστον τῶν λίθων, εἰ ἔτυχεν εἶναι πεντήκοντα ἢ ἑκατὸν ἄνδρας, δαψιλῶς ἐπιφιλοτιμούμενος. Ἐντεῦθεν δὲ οὐ τῶν τυχόντων, ἀλλὰ καὶ στρατιώτης ἅπας καὶ ὑπηρέτης αὐτόχ θων τε καὶ ἐξ ἀλλοδαπῆς ὁρμώμενος πρὸς τὴν τῶν τοιού των λίθων ὁλκὴν ἐκεκίνητο δαψιλεῖς ὁρῶντες τοὺς μισθοὺς καὶ αὐτὸν τὸν αὐτοκράτορα καθάπερ ἀθλοθέτην τινὰ ἐφιστά μενον. Τέχνη γὰρ ἦν καὶ τοῦτο ἵνα πολλῶν συρρεόντων ῥᾷον ἡ ὁλκὴ τῶν παμμεγέθων ἐκείνων λίθων γίνοιτο. Οὕτως ἦν ἐκεῖνος καὶ ἐπινοῆσαι βαθύτατος καὶ καταπρᾶξαι μεγα λουργότατος. 10.5.4 Τὰ μὲν οὖν κατὰ τὸν αὐτοκράτορα μέχρι τῆς ... ἐπινεμήσεως τοῦ ... ἔτους κατὰ τὸν εἰρημένον τρόπον προβέβηκεν· οὔπω δὲ μικρὸν ἑαυτὸν ἀναπαύσας λογοποιου μένην ἠκηκόει ἀπείρων Φραγγικῶν στρατευμάτων ἐπέλευ σιν. Ἐδεδίει μὲν οὖν τὴν τούτων ἔφοδον γνωρίσας αὐτῶν τὸ ἀκατάσχετον τῆς ὁρμῆς, τὸ τῆς γνώμης ἄστατον καὶ εὐάγωγον καὶ τἆλλα ὁπόσα ἡ τῶν Κελτῶν φύσις ὡς ἴδια ἢ παρακολουθήματά τινα ἔχει διὰ παντὸς καὶ ὅπως ἐπὶ χρή μασι κεχηνότες ἀεὶ διὰ τὴν τυχοῦσαν αἰτίαν τὰς σφῶν συνθήκας εὐκόλως ἀνατρέποντες φαίνονται. Εἶχε γὰρ ἀεὶ τοῦτο ᾀδόμενον καὶ πάνυ ἐπαληθεῦον. Καὶ οὐκ ἀναπεπ τώκει, ἀλλὰ παντοίως παρεσκευάζετο, ὥστε καιροῦ καλοῦντος ἕτοιμον πρὸς τὰς μάχας εἶναι. Καὶ γὰρ καὶ πλέω καὶ φοβερώτερα τῶν φημιζομένων λόγων ἦσαν τὰ πράγματα. Πᾶσα γὰρ ἡ ἑσπέρα καὶ ὁπόσον γένος βαρβάρων τὴν πέραθεν Ἀδρίου μέχρις Ἡρακλείων στηλῶν κατῴκει γῆν, ἅπαν ἀθρόον μεταναστεῦσαν ἐπὶ τὴν Ἀσίαν διὰ τῆς ἑξῆς Εὐρώπης ἐβάδιζε πανοικὶ τὴν πορείαν ποιούμενον. Ἔσχε δὲ τὰ κατὰ τὴν τοιαύτην συγκίνησιν τὴν αἰτίαν ἐνθένδε ποθέν. 10.5.5 Κελτός τις Πέτρος τοὔνομα, τὴν ἐπωνυμίαν Κουκούπετρος, εἰς προσκύνησιν τοῦ ἁγίου τάφου ἀπελθὼν καὶ πολλὰ δεινὰ πεπονθὼς παρὰ τῶν τὴν Ἀσίαν πᾶσαν λῃζομένων Τούρκων τε καὶ Σαρακηνῶν μόγις ἐπανῆλθεν εἰς τὰ ἴδια. Καὶ διαμαρτὼν τοῦ σκοποῦ οὐκ ἔφερεν, ἀλλ' αὖθις ἠβούλετο τῆς αὐτῆς ἅψασθαι ὁδοῦ. Συνιδὼν δὲ ὡς οὐ χρὴ μόνον αὖθις τῆς πρὸς τὸν ἅγιον τάφον ὁδοιπορίας ἅψασθαι, ἵνα μὴ χεῖρόν τι γένηταί οἱ, βουλὴν βουλεύεται συνετήν. Ἡ δὲ ἦν διακηρυκεῦσαι εἰς ἁπάσας τὰς τῶν Λατίνων χώρας ὡς «Ὀμφὴ θεία παρακε λεύεταί με πᾶσι τοῖς ἐν Φραγγίᾳ κόμησι κηρῦξαι, ἅπαντας τῶν ἰδίων ἀπᾶραι καὶ εἰς προσκύνησιν τοῦ ἁγίου τάφου ἀπελθεῖν καὶ σπεῦσαι ὅλῃ χειρὶ καὶ γνώμῃ τῆς τῶν Ἀγαρη νῶν τὰ Ἱεροσόλυμα λυτρώσασθαι χειρός». 10.5.6 Καὶ μέντοι καὶ κατώρθωκεν. Ὥσπερ γάρ τινα θείαν ὀμφὴν ἐνθέμενος εἰς τὰς ἁπάντων ψυχὰς τοὺς ὁπουδήποτε Κελτοὺς ἄλλον ἀλλαχόθεν σὺν ὅπλοις καὶ ἵπποις καὶ τῇ λοιπῇ τοῦ πολέμου παρασκευῇ συναθροίζεσθαι παρεσκεύαζε. Κἀκεῖνοι μὲν οὕτως εἶχον προθυμίας τε καὶ ὁρμῆς καὶ πᾶσα λεωφόρος τούτους εἶχε· συνεπῄει δὲ τοῖς στρατιώταις ἐκείνοις Κελ τοῖς καὶ ψιλὸν ὑπὲρ τὴν ἄμμον καὶ τὰ ἄστρα πλῆθος φοί νικας φέρον καὶ σταυροὺς ἐπ' ὤμων, γύναιά τε καὶ τέκνα τῶν σφῶν ἐξεληλυθότα χωρῶν. Καὶ ἦν ὁρᾶν αὐτοὺς καθά περ τινὰς ποταμοὺς ἁπανταχόθεν συρρέοντας καὶ διὰ τῶν ∆ακῶν ὡς ἐπίπαν [πρὸς τὰς] πρὸς ἡμᾶς ἐπερχομένους πανστρατιᾷ. 10.5.7 Προηγήσατο δὲ τῆς τῶν τοσούτων λαῶν ἐλεύσεως ἀκρὶς τῶν μὲν πυρῶν ἀπεχομένη, τοὺς δὲ ἀμπε λῶνας δεινῶς κατεσθίουσα. Ἦν δ' ἄρα τοῦτο τὸ σύμβο λον, ὡς οἱ τότε συμβολομάντεις ἀπεμαντεύοντο, ὡς ἡ ἔφοδος τοῦ τοσούτου Κελτικοῦ στρατεύματος τῶν μὲν Χριστιανικῶν πραγμάτων ἀπόσχηται, δεινῶς δ' ἐπιβρίσειε κατὰ τῶν βαρβάρων Ἰσμαηλιτῶν μέθῃ καὶ οἴνῳ καὶ τῷ ∆ιονύσῳ δεδουλευκότων. Τοῦτο γὰρ