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Masalmas also ravaged the Thracian castles. And having fortified the land wall, they dug a great trench and on top of it they made a breast-high rampart of dry stone. On the 1st of the month of September of the 1st indiction, the Christ-fighter Suleiman set sail with his fleet and his emirs, having enormous ships and war galleys and dromons to the number of 1800, and anchored from the Magnaura to the Kyklobion. And after two days, a south wind having blown, and having set sail from there, they sailed past396 the city. And some crossed over to the regions of Eutropius and Anthemius, while others anchored in the parts of Thrace from the fort of Galata and as far as Kleidion. And since the great ships were weighed down by their cargo and were moving slowly, rearguards of up to 20 galleys remained, having 100 armored men each, to guard them. But when calm weather overtook them in the current, and a light wind blew from the Strait, it pushed them outwards. The pious emperor immediately sent out the fire-ships against them from the acropolis and with divine assistance set them ablaze; and some, being set on fire, were cast upon the sea walls, while others were sunk to the bottom with all hands, and others were carried away, drifting as far as the island of Oxeia and Plateia. From this, therefore, the people of the city took courage, while the enemy were greatly terrified, having recognized the most potent effect of the liquid fire; for they had intended on that very evening to moor at the sea walls and place gangways on the battlements. But God scattered their plan through the intercessions of the all-holy Theotokos. On the same night, the pious emperor secretly drew up the chain from Galata. But the enemy, thinking that the emperor had let it down, wanting to lure them in, did not dare to enter and anchor inside of Galata; but sailing up into the bay of Sosthenion, they secured their fleet there. On the 8th of the month of October, Suleiman, their commander, dies, and Umar becomes emir. And as a very severe winter occurred in Thrace, so that the ground was not visible for 100 days from the frozen snow, a multitude of the enemy's horses and camels and other animals died. In the spring time, Sufyan arrived with the fleet built in Egypt, having 400 grain-carrying galleys and dromons. And having learned of the effect of the Roman fire and having run past Bithynia and crossed over opposite to 397 the harbor of Kalos Agros, he anchored. Not long after, Yazid also arrived with another fleet built in Africa, he too having 360 galleys with arms and provisions. Likewise, he too, having learned the same things about the liquid fire, anchored at Satyros and Bryas and as far as Kartalimen. But the Egyptians of these two fleets, having deliberated among themselves, took the skiffs of the galleys by night and fled to the city, hailing the emperor, so that the sea seemed to be all of wood from Hiereia to the city. But the emperor, learning from them about the two fleets hiding in the bay, prepared fire-bearing siphons, put them on dromons and biremes, and sent them out against the two fleets. And with God cooperating through the intercessions of the all-pure Theotokos, the enemy were sunk on the spot; and our men, taking the spoils and their provisions, returned with joy and victory. Still again, as Mardasan with the army of the Arabs was overrunning the country from Pylae as far as Nicaea and Nicomedia, the imperial commanders and infantry hiding in Libos and Sophon in the manner of Mardaites, suddenly attacking them and routing them, made them flee from there; and as the coast on the other side then found a little security, chelandia coming out from the city brought many provisions; and likewise also the

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Μασαλμᾶς λυμηνάμενος καὶ τὰ Θρᾳκῷα κάστρα. περιχαρακώσαντες δὲ τὸ χερσαῖον τεῖχος ὤρυξαν φῶσαν μεγάλην καὶ ἐπάνω αὐτῆς περιτείχισμα στηθαῖον διὰ ξηρολίθου ἐποίησαν. τῇ δὲ αʹ τοῦ Σεπτεμβρίου μηνὸς τῆς αʹ ἰνδικτιῶνος ἀνέβαλεν ὁ χριστομάχος Σουλεϊμὰν μετὰ τοῦ στόλου καὶ τῶν ἀμηραίων αὐτοῦ ἔχων παμμεγέθεις ναῦς καὶ πολεμικὰς κατήνας καὶ δρόμωνας τὸν ἀριθμὸν αωʹ, καὶ προσώρμισεν ἀπὸ τῆς Μαγναύρας ἕως τῶν Κυκλοβίου. μετὰ δὲ δύο ἡμέρας νότου πνεύσαντος, καὶ ἀπάραντες ἐκεῖθεν παρ396 έπλευσαν τὴν πόλιν. καὶ οἱ μὲν ἐπέρασαν εἰς τὰ Εὐτροπίου καὶ Ἀνθημίου, οἱ δὲ εἰς τὰ τῆς Θρᾴκης μέρη ἀπὸ τοῦ καστελλίου τῶν Γαλάτου καὶ ἕως τοῦ Κλειδίου προσώρμισαν. τῶν δὲ μεγάλων πλοίων βεβαρημένων ἐκ τοῦ φόρτου καὶ ἀργευομένων, νωτοφύλακες μέχρι τῶν κʹ κατηνῶν ἀπέμειναν ἐχόντων ἀνὰ ρʹ λωρικάτων πρὸς τὸ ταῦτα φυλάττειν. εὐδίας δὲ καταλαβούσης αὐτὰς ἐν τῷ ῥεύματι, καὶ τοῦ Στενοῦ μικρὸν πνεύσαντος, ὤθησεν αὐτὰς ἐπὶ τὰ ἔξω. ὁ δὲ εὐσεβὴς βασιλεὺς παραχρῆμα τὰς ἐμπύρους ναῦς κατ' αὐτῶν ἐκπέμψας ἀπὸ τῆς ἀκροπόλεως τῇ θείᾳ συμμαχίᾳ πυριαλώτους αὐτὰς ἐποίησεν· καὶ αἱ μὲν εἰς τὰ παράλια τείχη ἐμπυριζόμεναι ἀπερρίφησαν, αἱ δὲ εἰς τὸν βυθὸν αὔτανδροι κατεποντίσθησαν, ἕτεραι δὲ μέχρι τῆς Ὀξείας καὶ Πλατείας νήσου λαυρίζουσαι ἀπηνέχθησαν. ἐντεῦθεν οὖν οἱ μὲν τῆς πόλεως θάρσος ἔλαβον, οἱ δὲ πολέμιοι μεγάλως κατέπτηξαν τὴν τοῦ ὑγροῦ πυρὸς ἐγνωκότες δραστικωτάτην ἐνέργειαν· ἐβούλοντο γὰρ τῇ αὐτῇ ἑσπέρᾳ εἰς τὰ παράλια προσορμίσαι τείχη καὶ τοὺς αὐχένας εἰς τὰς ἐπάλξεις ἐπιθεῖναι. ἀλλὰ τὴν βουλὴν αὐτῶν διεσκέδασεν ὁ θεὸς διὰ τῶν πρεσβειῶν τῆς πανάγνου θεοτόκου. τῇ δὲ αὐτῇ νυκτὶ τὴν ἅλυσιν ἐκ τῶν Γαλάτου ὁ εὐσεβὴς βασιλεὺς μυστικῶς συνέστειλεν. οἱ δὲ ἐχθροὶ νομίσαντες, ὅτι βουλόμενος αὐτοὺς δελεάσαι ὁ βασιλεὺς ταύτην παρέστειλεν, οὐκ ἐτόλμησαν εἰσελθεῖν καὶ ὁρμίσαι ἔνδον τῶν Γαλάτου· ἀλλ' ἀναπλεύσαντες ἐν τῷ κόλπῳ τοῦ Σωσθενίου ἐκεῖ κατησφαλίσαντο τὸ ἑαυτῶν πλώϊμον. τῇ δὲ ηʹ τοῦ Ὀκτωβρίου μηνὸς θνήσκει Σουλεϊμάν, ὁ ἀρχηγὸς αὐτῶν, καὶ ἀμηρεύει Οὔμαρ. χειμῶνος δὲ γενομένου βαρυτάτου ἐν τῇ Θρᾴκῃ, ὥστε τὴν γῆν ἐπὶ ἡμέρας ρʹ μὴ φαίνεσθαι ἐκ τῆς κρυσταλλωθείσης χιόνος, πλῆθος ἵππων τε καὶ καμήλων καὶ λοιπῶν ζώων τῶν ἐχθρῶν τεθνήκασιν. τῷ δὲ ἐαρινῷ καιρῷ κατέλαβε Σουφιὰμ μετὰ τοῦ ἐν Αἰγύπτῳ κτισθέντος στόλου, ἔχων κατήνας σιτοφόρους υʹ καὶ δρόμωνας. καὶ μαθὼν τὴν τοῦ Ῥωμαϊκοῦ πυρὸς ἐνέργειαν καὶ παραδραμὼν τὴν Βιθυνίαν καὶ ἀντικρὺ περάσας εἰς 397 τὸν τοῦ Καλοῦ Ἀγροῦ λιμένα προσώρμισεν. μετ' οὐ πολὺ δὲ κατέλαβε καὶ Ἰζὶδ μετὰ ἑτέρου στόλου κτισθέντος ἐν Ἀφρικῇ ἔχων καὶ αὐτὸς κατήνας τξʹ ἀρμαμέντον τε καὶ δαπάνας. ὁμοίως καὶ αὐτὸς τὰ αὐτὰ μεμαθηκὼς περὶ τοῦ ὑγροῦ πυρὸς προσώρμισεν εἰς τὸν Σάτυρον καὶ Βρύαν καὶ ἕως Καρταλιμένος. οἱ δὲ τῶν δύο στόλων τούτων Αἰγύπτιοι καθ' ἑαυτοὺς βουλευσάμενοι νυκτὸς τοὺς τῶν κατηνῶν σανδάλους ἄραντες ἐν τῇ πόλει προσέφυγον τὸν βασιλέα εὐφημοῦντες, ὥστε ἀπὸ τῆς Ἱερείας ἕως τῆς πόλεως ὁλόξυλον φαίνεσθαι τὴν θάλασσαν. μαθὼν δὲ δι' αὐτῶν ὁ βασιλεὺς περὶ τῶν κρυπτομένων δύο στόλων ἐν τῷ κόλπῳ, σίφωνας πυρσοφόρους κατασκευάσας εἰς δρόμωνάς τε καὶ διήρεις τούτους ἐμβαλὼν κατὰ τῶν δύο στόλων ἐξέπεμψεν. τοῦ δὲ θεοῦ συνεργήσαντος διὰ τῶν πρεσβειῶν τῆς παναχράντου θεοτόκου ἐπιτοπίως ἐβυθίσθησαν οἱ ἐχθροί· καὶ λαβόντες τὰ σκῦλα οἱ ἡμέτεροι καὶ τὰς δαπάνας αὐτῶν μετὰ χαρᾶς καὶ νίκης ὑπέστρεψαν. ἔτι δὲ πάλιν τοῦ Μαρδασὰν ἀπὸ Πυλῶν σὺν τῷ στρατῷ τῶν Ἀράβων ἕως Νικαίας καὶ Νικομηδείας διατρέχοντος, οἱ ἐν τῷ Λίβῳ καὶ Σόφωνι δίκην Μαρδαϊτῶν κρυπτόμενοι βασιλικοὶ ἄρχοντες καὶ τὰ πεζικὰ ἐξάπινα τούτοις ἐπιρρίπτοντες καὶ κλασματίζοντες ἐκεῖθεν ἀποδρᾶσαι ἐποίησαν· καὶ λοιπὸν μικρᾶς ἀδείας τῆς περατικῆς παραλίου εὑρούσης, ἐκ τῆς πόλεως ἐξερχόμενα χελάνδια πλείστας ἐκόμιζον δαπάνας· ὡσαύτως δὲ καὶ τὰ