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three hundred. The general with supreme command over all was Belisarius, having many and proven spearmen and shield-5.5.5 bearers. Photius also followed him, the son of his wife Antonina from a previous marriage, being still young and just getting his first beard, but most intelligent and displaying a strength of character beyond his 5.5.6 years. And the emperor instructed Belisarius to set out ostensibly for Carthage, but when they reached Sicily, they were to disembark there as if for some need and make an attempt on the island. 5.5.7 And if it were possible, they were to make it subject with no trouble, and to hold it and not let it go again; but if any obstacle should present itself, they were to sail with all speed for Libya, allowing no one to perceive their intention. 5.5.8 And sending also to the rulers of the Franks, he wrote as follows: "The Goths, having seized our Italy by force, have by no means seen fit to give it back, but have also done us additional wrongs that are neither tolerable nor 5.5.9 moderate. Therefore we have been compelled to march against them, and it is proper for you to share our interest in this war, which is made common to us both by our orthodox faith, which rejects the opinion of the Arians, and by the hatred of both of us for the Goths." 5.5.10 So much the emperor wrote; and having presented them with money, he promised to give more when they should be engaged in the action. And they promised to be his allies with much enthusiasm. 5.5.11 Mundus, therefore, and the army with him, on arriving in Dalmatia and coming to blows with the Goths who met them there, were victorious in the engagement, and took Salonae. 5.5.12 But Belisarius, having sailed to Sicily, took Catana. And setting out from there, he gained Syracuse by surrender and the other cities with no trouble; except, indeed, that the Goths who held the garrison in Panormus, trusting in the circuit-wall (for the place was strong), were quite unwilling to surrender to Belisarius and ordered him to lead his army away from there with all 5.5.13 speed. But Belisarius, reasoning that it was impossible to take the place from the land, ordered the fleet to sail into the harbor, which extended right up to the wall. 5.5.14 For it was outside the circuit-wall and completely devoid of men. When the ships anchored there, it happened that their masts were higher than the battlements. 5.5.15 Immediately, therefore, he filled all the ships' boats 5.5.16 with archers and hoisted them to the tops of the masts. From there the enemy were shot at from above and fell into an irresistible terror, and they immediately surrendered Panormus to Beli5.5.17 sarius by agreement. And from this time the emperor held the whole of Sicily subject to the payment of tribute. But for Belisarius at that time a piece of good fortune beyond telling came to pass. 5.5.18 For having received the honor of the consulship for having conquered the Vandals, while still holding this office, when he had subdued all of Sicily, on the last day of his consulship he entered Syracuse, being applauded exceedingly by both the army and the Sicilians 5.5.19 and throwing gold coins to all. This was not, however, done by him on purpose, but by some chance it befell the man, having recovered the whole island for the Romans, to have entered Syracuse on that day, and to lay down the consular office, not, as was customary, in the senate-house of Byzantium, but there, and to become an ex-consul. So, then, it happened that Belisarius was thus fortunate. 5.6.1 But when Peter learned these things, he pressed and terrified Theudatus much more and did not let 5.6.2 up. And he, having become cowardly and fallen into a state of speechlessness, no less than if he himself had been captured by the spear along with Gelimer, came to a conference with Peter in secret from all the others, and they came to an agreement between them, on the condition that Theudatus would give up the whole of Sicily to the Emperor Justinian, and would send him a golden crown each year weighing three hundred pounds, and Gothic fighting men up to three thousand, whenever he might wish, and that Theudatus himself would have no authority to put to death any of the priests or senators, or to confiscate for the public treasury his property unless

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τριακόσιοι. στρατηγὸς δὲ αὐτοκράτωρ ἐφ' ἅπασι Βελισάριος ἦν, δορυφόρους τε καὶ ὑπα5.5.5 σπιστὰς πολλούς τε καὶ δοκίμους ἔχων. εἵπετο δὲ αὐτῷ καὶ Φώτιος, ὁ τῆς γυναικὸς Ἀντωνίνης υἱὸς ἐκ γάμων προτέρων, νέος μὲν ὢν ἔτι καὶ πρῶτον ὑπηνήτης, ξυνετώτατος δὲ καὶ φύσεως ἰσχὺν ὑπὲρ τὴν 5.5.6 ἡλικίαν δηλώσας. βασιλεύς τε Βελισαρίῳ ἐπέστελλεν ἐς Καρχηδόνα μὲν τῷ λόγῳ στέλλεσθαι, ἐπειδὰν δὲ ἐς Σικελίαν ἀφίκωνται, ὡς δὴ κατὰ χρείαν τινὰ ἐνταῦθα 5.5.7 ἀποβάντας πειρᾶσθαι τῆς νήσου. καὶ ἢν μὲν δυνατὰ ᾖ, ὑποχειρίαν αὐτὴν οὐδενὶ πόνῳ ποιήσασθαι, κατέχειν τε καὶ αὐτῆς μηκέτι μεθίεσθαι· ἢν δέ τι ἐμπόδιον ὑπαντιάσῃ, πλεῖν κατὰ τάχος ἐπὶ Λιβύης, οὐδενὶ αἴσθησιν τῆς βουλήσεως παρεχομένους. 5.5.8 Πέμψας δὲ καὶ παρὰ Φράγγων τοὺς ἡγεμόνας ἔγραψε τάδε «Γότθοι Ἰταλίαν τὴν ἡμετέραν βίᾳ ἑλόν»τες οὐχ ὅσον αὐτὴν ἀποδιδόναι οὐδαμῆ ἔγνωσαν, «ἀλλὰ καὶ προσηδικήκασιν ἡμᾶς οὔτε φορητὰ οὔτε 5.5.9 «μέτρια. διόπερ ἡμεῖς μὲν στρατεύειν ἐπ' αὐτοὺς «ἠναγκάσμεθα, ὑμᾶς δὲ εἰκὸς ξυνδιαφέρειν ἡμῖν πό»λεμον τόνδε, ὃν ἡμῖν κοινὸν εἶναι ποιεῖ δόξα τε ὀρθὴ, «ἀποσειομένη τὴν Ἀρειανῶν γνώμην, καὶ τὸ ἐς Γότθους 5.5.10 «ἀμφοτέρων ἔχθος». τοσαῦτα μὲν βασιλεὺς ἔγραψε· καὶ χρήμασιν αὐτοὺς δωρησάμενος, πλείονα δώσειν, ἐπειδὰν ἐν τῷ ἔργῳ γένωνται, ὡμολόγησεν. οἱ δὲ αὐτῷ ξὺν προθυμίᾳ πολλῇ ξυμμαχήσειν ὑπέσχοντο. 5.5.11 Μοῦνδος μὲν οὖν καὶ ἡ ξὺν αὐτῷ στρατιὰ ἐς ∆αλματίαν ἀφικόμενοι καὶ Γότθοις τοῖς ἐκείνῃ ὑπαντιάσασιν ἐς χεῖρας ἐλθόντες, νικήσαντές τε τῇ ξυμβολῇ, 5.5.12 Σάλωνας ἔσχον. Βελισάριος δὲ καταπλεύσας ἐς Σικελίαν Κατάνην ἔλαβεν. ἔνθεν τε ὁρμώμενος Συρακούσας τε ὁμολογίᾳ καὶ πόλεις τὰς ἄλλας παρεστήσατο οὐδενὶ πόνῳ· πλήν γε δὴ ὅτι Γότθοι, οἳ ἐν Πανόρμῳ φυλακὴν εἶχον, θαρσοῦντες τῷ περιβόλῳ (ἦν γὰρ ἐχυρὸν τὸ χωρίον) προσχωρεῖν τε Βελισαρίῳ ἥκιστα ἤθελον καὶ αὐτὸν ἐνθένδε ἀπάγειν τὸν στρατὸν κατὰ 5.5.13 τάχος ἐκέλευον. Βελισάριος δὲ λογισάμενος ἀμήχανον εἶναι διὰ τῆς ἠπείρου τὸ χωρίον ἑλεῖν ἐσπλεῖν τὸν στόλον ἐς τὸν λιμένα ἐκέλευεν ἄχρι ἐς τὸ τεῖχος διή5.5.14 κοντα. ἦν γὰρ τοῦ τε περιβόλου ἐκτὸς καὶ παντάπασιν ἀνδρῶν ἔρημος. οὗ δὴ τῶν νηῶν ὁρμισαμένων τοὺς ἱστοὺς ξυνέβαινε τῶν ἐπάλξεων καθυπερτέρους 5.5.15 εἶναι. αὐτίκα οὖν τοὺς λέμβους τῶν νηῶν ἅπαντας 5.5.16 τοξοτῶν ἐμπλησάμενος ἀπεκρέμασεν ἄκρων ἱστῶν. ὅθεν δὴ κατὰ κορυφὴν βαλλόμενοι οἱ πολέμιοι ἐς δέος τι ἄμαχον ἦλθον καὶ Πάνορμον εὐθὺς ὁμολογίᾳ Βελι5.5.17 σαρίῳ παρέδοσαν. βασιλεύς τε ἐκ τοῦδε Σικελίαν ὅλην ἐς φόρου ἀπαγωγὴν κατήκοον εἶχε. τῷ δὲ Βελισαρίῳ τότε κρεῖσσον λόγου εὐτύχημα ξυνηνέχθη γενέ5.5.18 σθαι. τῆς γὰρ ὑπατείας λαβὼν τὸ ἀξίωμα ἐπὶ τῷ Βανδίλους νενικηκέναι, ταύτης ἔτι ἐχόμενος, ἐπειδὴ παρεστήσατο Σικελίαν ὅλην, τῇ τῆς ὑπατείας ὑστάτῃ ἡμέρᾳ ἐς τὰς Συρακούσας εἰσήλασε, πρός τε τοῦ στρατοπέδου καὶ Σικελιωτῶν κροτούμενος ἐς τὰ μάλιστα 5.5.19 καὶ νόμισμα χρυσοῦ ῥίπτων ἅπασιν. οὐκ ἐξεπίτηδες μέντοι αὐτῷ πεποίηται τοῦτο, ἀλλά τις τῷ ἀνθρώπῳ ξυνέβη τύχη πᾶσαν ἀνασωσαμένῳ τὴν νῆσον Ῥωμαίοις ἐκείνῃ τῇ ἡμέρᾳ ἐς τὰς Συρακούσας ἐσεληλακέναι, τήν τε τῶν ὑπάτων ἀρχὴν, οὐχ ᾗπερ εἰώθει ἐν τῷ Βυζαντίου βουλευτηρίῳ, ἀλλ' ἐνταῦθα καταθεμένῳ ἐξ ὑπάτων γενέσθαι. Βελισαρίῳ μὲν οὖν οὕτω δὴ εὐημερῆσαι ξυνέτυχεν. 5.6.1 Ἐπεὶ δὲ ταῦτα Πέτρος ἔμαθεν, ἐγκείμενος πολλῷ ἔτι μᾶλλον καὶ δεδισσόμενος Θευδάτον οὐκέτι 5.6.2 ἀνίει. καὶ ὃς ἀποδειλιάσας τε καὶ ἐς ἀφασίαν ἐμπεπτωκὼς, οὐχ ἧσσον ἢ εἰ δορυάλωτος ξὺν τῷ Γελίμερι αὐτὸς ἐγεγόνει, ἐς λόγους τῷ Πέτρῳ κρύφα τῶν ἄλλων ἁπάντων ἦλθεν, ἔς τε ξύμβασιν ἐν σφίσιν ἦλθεν, ἐφ' ᾧ Θευδάτος Ἰουστινιανῷ βασιλεῖ Σικελίας ἐκστήσεται πάσης, πέμψει δὲ αὐτῷ καὶ στέφανον χρυσοῦν ἀνὰ πᾶν ἔτος κατὰ τριακοσίας ἕλκοντα λίτρας, Γότθους τε ἄνδρας μαχίμους ἐς τρισχιλίους, ἡνίκα ἂν αὐτῷ βουλομένῳ εἴη, Θευδάτῳ δὲ αὐτῷ ἐξουσίαν οὐδαμῆ ἔσεσθαι τῶν τινα ἱερέων ἢ βουλευτῶν ἀποκτιννύναι, ἢ ἀνάγραπτον ἐς τὸ δημόσιον αὐτοῦ τὴν οὐσίαν ὅτι μὴ