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in every way, to get possession of Roman territory and to rule it. When agreements were made with them on these terms, Kutlumush came over to the Roman side and at that time campaigned with Botaneiates. Botaneiates therefore, having a considerable army 719 with him, hastened to seize Nicaea. For this city had already been betrayed to him by those appointed to guard it, and they voluntarily joined him, and from the great city many came to him each day. Thus, then, for Botaneiates matters were proceeding smoothly; but in the city that surpasses all cities, having gathered in a great multitude, both its common people and the preeminent among the magistrates, and not only these but also the elite of those allotted to the church, on the day of the festival of the Annunciation, they proclaim Botaneiates emperor, with the patriarch of Antioch, the one called Aimilianos, and the metropolitan of Iconium leading such an assembly. The prominent men of the state, therefore, having been divided into factions and having formed phalanxes, attack the parts of the palace facing the rising sun, and having seized them, they station their own soldiers to guard them. But the emperor, with the empress Maria and their son, who had fled for refuge to the palace in Blachernae, they depose from the throne and clothe him in the rags 720 of a monk and lead him away to the monastery of Stoudios, having enjoyed the throne for six years and as many months. These things happened on the Saturday on which the church has received the tradition of celebrating the miracle-working of our Lord and Savior in the raising of Lazarus from the dead. For with Michael thus fallen from the throne, Botaneiates found the supreme power uncontested and proceeded toward the queen of cities. However, Nikephoros the logothete, having slipped out of the city, joined Roussel, who was encamped at Heraclea. But those in the city, having deposed Michael, after keeping the palace vacant of an emperor for three days, send word to Botaneiates to hasten and come. And he, sending ahead one of his own servants, Borilas I mean, and through him securing the palace, arrived himself not long after. When Botaneiates was in the palace, on Great Tuesday he is crowned with the imperial diadem by the patriarch, and first he granted a boon to all by cutting off indefinitely all debts owed to the public 721 treasury and magnificently effecting a cancellation of these by decree. Furthermore, to Bryennios, who was holding on to his tyranny in the west, he sends messengers to announce: that he would give him the rank of Caesar, if he would desist from his tyranny, and would confirm for those who had joined him the honors with which he had honored them. But he greatly desired the imperial power and was unyielding; so again a second embassy, and after this a third. But he acted arrogantly and did not even receive the ambassadors according to the custom for ambassadors, but sent them away dishonorably. When the emperor therefore realized he could accomplish nothing peacefully, he unwillingly turned to battle, and having honored Alexios Komnenos as nobelissimos and appointed him Grand Domestic and placed him in command of the Roman forces, he sent him out against Bryennios; who, engaging him at a certain place called Kalavrye, because the place was well-watered with many good springs, easily overcame his army, and with some having fallen and others having fled, he captured the usurper who had been left alone, and 722 deprived the wretched man of his sight and brought him blinded into the reigning city. And so the rebellion of Bryennios came to this end; but the Varangians also rose up against the emperor, plotting to kill him. But when another Roman force was arrayed against them, they turned to supplication and obtained a pardon. And when this emperor's wife died, many maidens were considered for marriage, and before the others the daughter of the emperor Doukas, Zoe. But he wished to marry either the empress Eudokia

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παντοίως, ἐν κατασχέσει γενέσθαι χώρας Ῥωμαϊκῆς καὶ ταύτης ἄρχειν. ἐπὶ τούτοις γενομένων ἐκείνοις συμβάσεων, ὁ Κουτλουμοῦς εἰς τὴν ὑπὸ Ῥωμαίους ἐγένετο καὶ τότε τῷ Βοτανειάτῃ συνεστρατεύετο. ἔχων οὖν στρατιὰν 719 ἀξιόλογον ὁ Βοτανειάτης μεθ' ἑαυτοῦ ἔσπευδε τὴν Νίκαιαν καταλήψεσθαι. ἤδη γὰρ προὐδέδοτό οἱ ἡ πόλις αὕτη παρὰ τῶν τεταγμένων αὐτῆς ἐπὶ φυλακῇ, κἀκεῖνοι αὐτῷ ἐθελονταὶ προσεχώρησαν, κἀκ τῆς μεγαλοπόλεως δὲ πολλοὶ καθ' ἑκάστην προσεφοίτων αὐτῷ. οὕτω μὲν οὖν τῷ Βοτανειάτῃ κατὰ ῥοῦν ἐχώρουν τὰ πράγματα· ἐν δὲ τῇ τῶν πόλεων ὑπερκειμένῃ παμπληθεὶ συνελθόντες τό τε ταύτης δημοτικὸν καὶ τὸ ὑπερέχον ἐν ἄρχουσιν, οὐ μὴν ἀλλὰ καὶ τῶν τῇ ἐκκλησίᾳ κεκληρωμένων τὸ ἔκκριτον, κατὰ τὴν ἡμέραν τῆς τοῦ εὐαγγελισμοῦ πανηγύρεως αὐτοκράτορα τὸν Βοτανειάτην ἀναγορεύουσι, προεξάρχοντος τοῦ τοιούτου συλλόγου τοῦ πατριάρχου Ἀντιοχείας, τοῦ καλουμένου Αἰμιλιανοῦ, καὶ τοῦ μητροπολίτου Ἰκονίου. διαιρεθέντες οὖν κατὰ φατρίας τῆς πολιτείας οἱ ἔξοχοι καὶ κατὰ φάλαγγας συνασπίσαντες ἐπίασι τῶν ἀνακτόρων τοῖς πρὸς ἀνίσχοντα ἥλιον καὶ τούτων κρατήσαντες στρατιώτας οἰκείους ἐφιστῶσιν εἰς αὐτῶν φυλακήν. τὸν δὲ βασιλέα σὺν τῇ βασιλίσσῃ Μαρίᾳ καὶ τῷ υἱῷ εἰς τὰ ἐν Βλαχέρναις καταπεφευγότα ἀνάκτορα καθαιροῦσι τῆς βασιλείας καὶ ῥάκος ἀμφιεννύουσι 720 μοναχοῦ καὶ πρὸς τὴν μονὴν τοῦ Στουδίου ἀπάγουσιν, ἀπολελαυκότα τῆς βασιλείας ἐν ἔτεσιν ἓξ καὶ τοσούτοις μησί. ταῦτα κατὰ τὸ σάββατον γέγονεν, ἐν ᾧ τὴν ἐπὶ τῇ ἐκ νεκρῶν ἐγέρσει τοῦ Λαζάρου θαυματοποιίαν τοῦ κυρίου καὶ σωτῆρος ἡμῶν πανηγυρίζειν ἡ ἐκκλησία παρείληφε. τοῦ γὰρ Μιχαὴλ οὕτω τῆς βασιλείας ἐκπεπτωκότος, ἀπραγμάτευτον εὗρεν ὁ Βοτανειάτης τὴν αὐταρχίαν καὶ ᾔει πρὸς τὴν βασιλίδα τῶν πόλεων. ὁ μέντοι Νικηφόρος ὁ λογοθέτης τῷ Ῥουσελίῳ ἐν Ἡρακλείᾳ σκηνουμένῳ τῆς πόλεως ὑπεξελθὼν προσεχώρησεν. οἱ δ' ἐν τῇ πόλει τὸν Μιχαὴλ κατασπάσαντες, ἐπὶ τρισὶν ἡμέραις βασιλέως χηρεύοντα συντηρήσαντες τὰ βασίλεια τῷ Βοτανειάτῃ ἐπισπεῦσαι καὶ ἐλθεῖν ἐπιστέλλουσιν. ὁ δὲ ἕνα τῶν οἰκείων δούλων προπέμψας, τὸν Βορίλαν φημί, καὶ δι' αὐτοῦ κατασχὼν τὰ ἀνάκτορα ἐπικατέλαβε κἀκεῖνος μετ' οὐ πολύ. Ἐπεὶ δ' ἐν τοῖς βασιλείοις ὁ Βοτανειάτης ἐγένετο, ἀναδεῖται κατὰ τὴν μεγάλην τρίτην παρὰ τοῦ πατριάρχου βασιλικῇ ταινίᾳ καὶ πρῶτον ἅπασι παρέσχετο φιλοτίμημα τὰς εἰς τὸ δη721 μόσιον ἁπάντων κοινῶς ὀφειλὰς ἐκτεμὼν ἀπροσδιορίστως καὶ χρεοκοπίαν τούτων θεσπίσματι μεγαλοπρεπῶς ἐργασάμενος. ἔτι δὲ τῷ Βρυεννίῳ κατὰ τὴν ἑσπέραν ἐχομένῳ τῆς τυραννίδος στέλλει τοὺς ἀπαγγέλλοντας· τὴν τοῦ Καίσαρος ἀξίαν αὐτῷ διδόναι, εἰ τῆς τυραννίδος ἀπόσχοιτο, καὶ τοῖς αὐτῷ συναραμένοις τὰς τιμὰς ἐπιβεβαιῶσαι, αἷς αὐτοὺς ἐκεῖνος ἐτίμησεν. ὁ δὲ σφόδρα τῆς βασιλείας ἐφίετο καὶ ἀνένδοτος ἦν· πάλιν οὖν ἑτέρα πρεσβεία καὶ ἐπὶ ταύτῃ τρίτη. ὁ δ' ὑπερηφανεύετο καὶ οὐδὲ κατὰ τὰ τῶν πρέσβεων νόμιμα τοὺς πρέσβεις ἐδέχετο, ἀλλ' ἀτίμως αὐτοὺς ἀπεπέμπετο. ὡς οὐδὲν οὖν εἰρηνικῶς ἀνύειν ἔγνω ὁ βασιλεύς, καὶ ἄκων πρὸς μάχην ἀπένευσε, καὶ τὸν Κομνηνὸν Ἀλέξιον τετιμηκὼς νωβελίσιμον καὶ προχειρισάμενος μέγαν δομέστικον καὶ τῶν Ῥωμαϊκῶν αὐτὸν δυνάμεων προστησάμενος κατὰ τοῦ Βρυεννίου ἐξέπεμψεν· ὃς τούτῳ συμβαλὼν κατά τι χωρίον Καλαβρύην λεγόμενον διὰ τὸ κατάρρυτον εἶναι τὸν τόπον βρύσεσιν ὑδάτων πολλαῖς τε καὶ ἀγαθαῖς ῥᾳδίως τῆς ἐκείνου περιεγένετο στρατιᾶς, καὶ τῶν μὲν πεσόντων, τῶν δὲ φυγόντων, εἷλε μονωθέντα τὸν τυραννήσαντα καὶ 722 τοῦ φωτὸς τὸν δείλαιον ἀπεστέρησε καὶ εἰσήγαγε τυφλὸν εἰς τὴν βασιλεύουσαν. καὶ ἡ μὲν τοῦ Βρυεννίου εἰς τοῦτο τέλους κατήντησεν ἐπανάστασις· ἐπανέστησαν δὲ καὶ οἱ Βάραγγοι κατὰ τοῦ βασιλέως, ἀνελεῖν αὐτὸν μελετήσαντες. ἀντιταξαμένης δ' αὐτοῖς χειρὸς ἑτέρας Ῥωμαϊκῆς, εἰς ἱκεσίαν ἐτράποντο καὶ συγγνώμης ἐπέτυχον. Τῷ δὲ βασιλεῖ τούτῳ τῆς ὁμοζύγου τελευτησάσης, πολλαὶ μὲν ἐμνηστεύοντο παρθένοι, καὶ πρὸ τῶν ἄλλων ἡ τοῦ βασιλέως τοῦ ∆ούκα θυγάτηρ Ζωή. ὁ δὲ ἢ τὴν βασιλίδα Εὐδοκίαν ἤθελεν ἀγαγέσθαι