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and the many noble men who had been imprisoned, locked up for six and eight years, the majority of them being soldiers, and having armed them he went out into the Forum with them, shouting: "As many as are Christians, to Hagia Sophia." And sending men through each region, he ordered them to cry out the same phrase. The populace of the city, being stirred up, gathered with haste at the font of the church. And he himself, together with the two monks and his friends, along with some of the more prominent men who had come out of the prison, went up to the patriarchate to the patriarch. And finding him also disturbed because of the orders given to the patrician Stephen Rousios, he persuades him to go down to the font and cry out thus: "This is the day, which the Lord has made." And the entire crowd raised its voice: "Let the bones of Justinian be dug up." And thus all the people ran out into the Hippodrome. And when day came, they lead Justinian out to the Hippodrome through the Sphendone, and after cutting off his nose and also his tongue, they exiled him to Cherson; but the mob, having seized both Theodotos the monk and genikos logothetes and Stephen the sakellarios, the Persian, and having bound them by the feet with ropes, they drag them through the middle of the main street and, taking them to the Bous, burned them; and so they acclaimed Leontios emperor. Leontios, emperor of the Romans, for 3 years. 1. 13. 3. In this year Leontios became emperor and remained at peace on all sides. 3 2. 14. 4. In this year Alidos campaigned against Romania and returned after taking many captives. And Sergios, the patrician of Lazica, the son of Barnoukios, revolted and subjected it to the Arabs. 100. 600. 3. 10. 5. In this year the Arabs campaigned against Africa and took it and established a garrison in it from their own army. But Leontios, learning these things, sends the patrician John, a capable man, with all the Roman fleet. And when he arrived in Carthage and by battle opened the chain of the harbor there and routed and drove out the enemy, he liberated all the fortresses of Africa and leaving behind his own garrison, he reported these things to the emperor and wintered there, awaiting an order from him. But the protosymboulos, learning these things, sends a stronger and large fleet against them and pursues the aforementioned John with his fleet from the harbor by means of war; and taking the city inside a simple circuit, he encamped outside in military fashion. And the aforementioned man returned towards Romania, wishing to bring a greater force from the emperor, and he came as far as Crete, proceeding towards the emperor. But the army, by its own officers [being dragged and] not wishing to go up to the emperor (for fear and shame possessed them), was turned to a wicked plan, and they subverted him, having proclaimed as emperor Apsimar, a droungarios of the Cibyrrhaeots in Korykos, renaming him Tiberius. And while Leontios in Constantinople was cleaning out the Neorion harbor, the plague of the bubo struck the city and destroyed a multitude of people in four months. And Apsimar arrives with the fleet that was with him and anchored opposite the city at Sykai. And for some time, as the city 371 was unwilling to betray Leontios, a betrayal occurred through the single wall of Blachernae by foreign officers who had been entrusted with the keys of the land wall with a dreadful oath from the holy table; these men by a plot handed over the city. And the sailors of the fleet, entering the houses of the citizens, stripped their inhabitants bare. And Apsimar cut off Leontios's nose and ordered him to be under guard in the monastery of Dalmatos, and his officers and friends, as if they had died with him, he flogged and confiscated their property and exiled them; And Herakleios, his own brother, as he was exceedingly capable,
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τε τοὺς καθειργμένους ἄνδρας πολλοὺς καὶ γενναίους, ἀπὸ ἓξ καὶ ὀκτὼ χρόνων ἐγκεκλεισμένους, στρατιώτας τοὺς πλείονας τυγχάνοντας, καὶ τούτους ὁπλίσας εἰς τὸν Φόρον ἐξῆλθε σὺν αὐτοῖς κράζων· "ὅσοι Χριστιανοὶ εἰς τὴν ἁγίαν Σοφίαν." καὶ πέμψας καθ' ἕκαστον ῥεγεῶνα τὴν αὐτὴν φωνὴν ἀνακράζειν προσέταξεν. τὸ δὲ πλῆθος τῆς πόλεως θορυβηθὲν σπουδῇ εἰς τὸν λουτῆρα τῆς ἐκκλησίας συνηθροίσθη. αὐτὸς δὲ ἅμα τοῖς δυσὶ μοναχοῖς καὶ φίλοις αὐτοῦ σὺν καί τινων τῶν ἐκ τῆς φυλακῆς ἐξελθόντων ἐμφανεστέρων ἀνδρῶν εἰς τὸ πατριαρχεῖον ἀνῆλθε πρὸς τὸν πατριάρχην. εὑρὼν δὲ καὶ αὐτὸν τεταραγμένον διὰ τὰ κελευσθέντα τῷ πατρικίῳ Στεφάνῳ τῷ Ῥουσίῳ πείθει αὐτὸν κατελθεῖν εἰς τὸν λουτῆρα καὶ φωνῆσαι οὕτως· "αὕτη ἡ ἡμέρα, ἣν ἐποίησεν ὁ κύριος." ἅπαν δὲ τὸ πλῆθος ἦραν φωνήν· "ἀνασκαφῇ τὰ ὀστέα Ἰουστινιανοῦ." καὶ οὕτως ἐν τῷ ἱπποδρομίῳ ἐξέδραμε πᾶς ὁ λαός. ἡμέρας δὲ γενομένης, ἐξάγουσι τὸν Ἰουστινιανὸν εἰς τὸ ἱπποδρόμιον διὰ τῆς σφενδόνης καὶ ῥινοκοπήσαντες ἅμα καὶ γλωσσοκοπήσαντες ἐξώρισαν ἐν Χερσῶνι· ὁ δὲ ὄχλος συλλαβόμενος τόν τε Θεόδοτον τὸν μοναχὸν καὶ γενικὸν λογοθέτην καὶ Στέφανον τὸν σακελλάριον τὸν Πέρσην, σχοίνοις τε ἐκ ποδῶν τούτους δήσαντες σύρουσι διὰ τῆς μέσης λεωφόρου καὶ εἰς τὸν Βοῦν ἀπαγαγόντες κατέκαυσαν· καὶ οὕτω Λεόντιον βασιλέα εὐφήμησαν. Ῥωμαίων βασιλεὺς Λεόντιος ἔτη γʹ. αʹ. ιγʹ. γʹ. Τούτῳ τῷ ἔτει Λεόντιος ἐβασίλευσε καὶ πάντοθεν εἰρηνικῶς διέμεινεν. 3 βʹ. ιδʹ. δʹ. Τούτῳ τῷ ἔτει ἐπεστράτευσεν Ἄλιδος τὴν Ῥωμανίαν καὶ πολλοὺςαἰχμαλωτίσας ὑπέστρεψεν. καὶ ἐστασίασε Σέργιος, ὁ πατρίκιος τῆς Λαζικῆς, ὁ τοῦ Βαρνουκίου, καὶ ταύτην τοῖς Ἄραψιν ὑπέταξεν. ρʹ. χʹ. γʹ. ιʹ. εʹ. Τούτῳ τῷ ἔτει ἐπεστράτευσαν οἱ Ἄραβες τὴν Ἀφρικὴν καὶταύτην παρέλαβον καὶ ἐκ τοῦ οἰκείου στρατοῦ ταξατιῶνα ἐν αὐτῇ κατέστησαν. ὁ δὲ Λεόντιος ταῦτα μαθὼν ἀποστέλλει τὸν πατρίκιον Ἰωάννην, ἄνδρα ἱκανόν, μετὰ πάντων τῶν Ῥωμαϊκῶν πλωϊμάτων. τούτου δὲ ἐν Καρθαγέννῃ φθάσαντος καὶ πολέμῳ τὴν τοῦ ἐκεῖσε λιμένος ἅλυσιν ἀνοίξαντος καὶ τοὺς ἐχθροὺς τρέψαντος καὶ ἐκδιώξαντος, ἅπαντα τὰ τῆς Ἀφρικῆς κάστρα ἠλευθέρωσε καὶ καταλιπὼν ταξατιῶνα ἴδιον τῷ βασιλεῖ ταῦτα ἀνήγαγε καὶ ἐκεῖσε ἐχείμασε κέλευσιν παρ' αὐτοῦ ἐκδεχόμενος. ὁ δὲ πρωτοσύμβουλος ταῦτα μαθὼν δυνατώτερον καὶ πολὺν στόλον κατ' αὐτῶν ἀποστέλλει καὶ τὸν προλεχθέντα Ἰωάννην σὺν τῷ αὐτοῦ στόλῳ πολέμῳ τοῦ λιμένος διώκει· καὶ εἰς περίδρομον λιτὸν ἔνδον παραλαβὼν ἔξωθεν φωσατικῶς ἠπλήκευσεν. ὁ δὲ προλεχθεὶς ἐπὶ Ῥωμανίαν ἀνέκαμψε πλειοτέραν δύναμιν παρὰ τοῦ βασιλέως βουλόμενος κομίσασθαι καὶ ἦλθεν ἕως Κρήτης ἐπὶ τὸν βασιλέα πορευόμενος. ὁ δὲ στρατὸς ὑπὸ τῶν ἰδίων ἀρχόντων [ἑλκόμενος καὶ] πρὸς τὸν βασιλέα ἀναβαλεῖν μὴ βουλόμενος (εἶχε γὰρ αὐτοὺς φόβος καὶ αἰσχύνη) εἰς βουλὴν πονηρὰν ἐξετράπη, καὶ τοῦτον ἀνέσκαψαν ψηφισάμενοι βασιλέα Ἀψίμαρον, δρουγγάριον τῶν Κιβυραιωτῶν εἰς Κουρικιώτας ὑπάρχοντα, Τιβέριον αὐτὸν μετονομάσαντες. τοῦ δὲ Λεοντίου ἐν Κωνσταντινουπόλει τὸν Νεωρήσιον λιμένα ἐκκαθαίροντος, ἡ τοῦ βουβῶνος λύμη ἐνέσκηψε τῇ πόλει καὶ πλῆθος λαοῦ ἐν τέσσαρσι μησὶ διέφθειρεν. καταλαμβάνει δὲ Ἀψίμαρος ἅμα τῷ συνόντι αὐτῷ στόλῳ καὶ προσώρμισεν ἀντικρὺ τῆς πόλεως ἐν Συκαῖς. ἐπὶ χρόνον δέʹ τινα τῆς πόλεως 371 Λεόντιον προδοῦναι μὴ βουλομένης, προδοσία γέγονε διὰ τοῦ μονοτείχους Βλαχερνῶν ὑπὸ ἐξωτικῶν ἀρχόντων τῶν τὰς κλεῖς τοῦ χερσαίου τείχους μεθ' ὅρκου φρικτοῦ ἐκ τῆς ἁγίας τραπέζης ἐμπιστευθέντων· οὗτοι δι' ἐπιβουλῆς παρέδωκαν τὴν πόλιν. εἰσελθόντες δὲ οἱ τῶν πλωϊμάτων στρατιῶται εἰς τοὺς οἴκους τῶν πολιτῶν ἐγύμνωσαν τοὺς οἰκήτορας αὐτῶν. ὁ δὲ Ἀψίμαρος τὸν μὲν Λεόντον ἐρρινοκόπησε καὶ ἐν τῇ μονῇ τῆς ∆ελμάτου ὑπὸ φυλακὴν εἶναι προσέταξεν, τοὺς δὲ ἄρχοντας καὶ φίλους αὐτοῦ ὡς συναποθανόντας αὐτῷ τύψας καὶ δημεύσας ἐξώρισεν· Ἡράκλειόν τε, τὸν γνήσιον αὐτοῦ ἀδελφόν, ὡς λίαν ἱκανώτατον,