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having divined for themselves and having set a day, they entered into the appointed houses of their deceit and burned themselves. 7. 4. 9. 18. In this year, a certain Jew hailing from Laodicea of coastal Phoenicia, a sorcerer, came to Izid and promised him that he would rule 402 the Arab dominion for 40 years, if he would take down the venerable icons honored in the churches of the Christians throughout his entire dominion. Persuaded by this, the foolish Izid issued a universal decree against the holy icons; but by the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ and the intercessions of his incorruptible mother and of all the saints, in the same year Izid died, his satanic decree not even having had time to be heard by the many. And king Leo, having partaken of this bitter and impious evil doctrine, became the cause of many evils for us. And he found a certain Beser by name, who was of the same mind in this ignorance, who had been taken captive from the Christians in Syria, and had apostatized from the faith in Christ and been assimilated to the Arab doctrines, and not long before had been freed from their slavery and had reached the Roman state; and because of the strength of his body and his agreement in the evil doctrine, he was honored by the same Leo; who also became a champion of this great evil for the king. And the bishop of Nakoleia, full of all impurity and living with ignorance as his companion, was wickedly of the same mind with him. Chief of the Arabs, Isam, for 19 years. 8. 1. 10. 19. I am coming to speak about the blessed Stephen, pope of Rome, and how he fled into the land of the Franks and was saved. This famous Stephen suffered many evils at the hands of Astoulphos, the king of the Lombards. having taken refuge with the Franks under Pipin, the major-domo and leader of the administration of all affairs and of the Frankish nation; For it was their custom for their lord, that is the king, to rule by lineage and to do or administer nothing, except to eat and drink senselessly, and to stay at home, and in the month of May on the first of the month to preside over the whole 403 nation and to pay them homage and be paid homage by them and to receive the customary gifts and to give them in return, and thus to live by himself until the next May. And he has the so-called major-domo, who administers all affairs by his own will and that of the nation. And those descended from that lineage were called *cristatae*, which is interpreted *trichorachatai*; for they had hair growing down their backs, like pigs. The aforementioned Stephen, then, being oppressed by the cruelty and foolishness of Astoulphos, and at the same time being permitted by him to go to the land of the Franks and do what he could, went and ordained Pipin, a man at that time very highly esteemed, who was both in charge of affairs on behalf of the king and who had fought against the Arabs who crossed over from Africa to Spain, who also hold that same Spain until now, and who had attempted to set themselves in battle array against the Franks as well. The same Pipin, having arrayed himself against them with his host, kills even the exarch of the nation himself, Abderachman, and also slays a countless multitude beside the Eridanus river, and he is admired and loved by the nation, not only for this, but also for other excellent qualities, and he leads the nation as the first not by lineage, after the same Stephen absolved him of his oath-breaking towards the king, and had the king before him tonsured and confined in a monastery with honor and rest. This Pipin had two sons, Karoulos and Karoulomagnos, his brother. In the same year Izid died, having ruled the Arabs as emir for 4 years, and Isam, his brother, became emir, and he began to build palaces throughout the country and the city and to make sowings and gardens and to channel waters. And he campaigned against Romanía, and having lost many of those with him, he returned. And Stephen, the pope of Rome, fled to the Franks. 404 Bishop of Rome, Gregory

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διαμαντεύσαντες ἑαυτοῖς καὶ ὁρίσαντες ἡμέραν εἰσῆλθον εἰς τοὺς ὡρισμένους οἴκους τῆς πλάνης αὐτῶν καὶ κατέκαυσαν ἑαυτούς. ζʹ. δʹ. θʹ. ιηʹ. Τούτῳ τῷ ἔτει Ἰουδαῖός τις ὁρμώμενος ἀπὸ Λαοδικείας τῆς παραλίου Φοινίκης, γόης, ἐλθὼν πρὸς Ἰζὶδ ἐπηγγείλατο αὐτῷ ἔτη μʹ 402 κρατήσειν τῆς Ἀράβων ἀρχῆς, εἰ τὰς ἐν ταῖς ἐκκλησίαις τῶν Χριστιανῶν ἐν πάσῃ τῇ ἀρχῇ αὐτοῦ τιμωμένας σεπτὰς εἰκόνας καθέλῃ. τούτῳ πεισθεὶς ὁ ἀνόητος Ἰζὶδ δόγμα καθολικὸν ἐψηφίσατο κατὰ τῶν ἁγίων εἰκόνων· ἀλλὰ χάριτι τοῦ κυρίου ἡμῶν Ἰησοῦ Χριστοῦ καὶ ταῖς πρεσβείαις τῆς ἀφθόρου μητρὸς αὐτοῦ καὶ πάντων τῶν ἁγίων τῷ αὐτῷ ἔτει τέθνηκεν Ἰζίδ, οὐδὲ ἀκουσθῆναι φθάσαντος τοῖς πολλοῖς τοῦ σατανικοῦ αὐτοῦ δόγματος. μεταλαβὼν δὲ ταύτης τῆς πικρᾶς καὶ ἀθεμίτου κακοδοξίας Λέων ὁ βασιλεὺς πολλῶν κακῶν ἡμῖν αἴτιος γέγονεν. εὑρὼν δὲ ὁμόφρονα τῆς ἀπαιδευσίας ταύτης Βησήρ τινα τοὔνομα, γενόμενον μὲν ἀπὸ Χριστιανῶν αἰχμάλωτον ἐν Συρίᾳ, ἀποστάντα δὲ τῆς εἰς Χριστὸν πίστεως καὶ ποιωθέντα τοῖς Ἀράβων δόγμασιν, οὐ πρὸ πολλοῦ δὲ χρόνου ἀπελευθερωθέντα τῆς ἐκείνων δουλείας καὶ καταλαβόντα τὴν Ῥωμαίων πολιτείαν· διὰ ῥώμην δὲ σώματος καὶ ὁμόνοιαν τῆς κακοδοξίας ἐτιμήθη παρὰ τοῦ αὐτοῦ Λέοντος· ὅστις καὶ συνασπιστὴς τοῦ μεγάλου κακοῦ τούτου γέγονε τῷ βασιλεῖ. συνεφρόνει δὲ κακῶς αὐτῷ καὶ ὁ πάσης ἀκαθαρσίας ἀνάπλεως καὶ συντρόφῳ ἀπαιδευσίᾳ συζῶν Νακωλείας ὁ ἐπίσκοπος. Ἀράβων ἀρχηγὸς Ἰσὰμ ἔτη ιθʹ. ηʹ. αʹ. ιʹ. ιθʹ. Τὰ περὶ τοῦ μακαρίου Στεφάνου, τοῦ πάπα Ῥώμης, ὅπως τε ἔφυγεν ἐν Φραγγικῇ καὶ ἐσώθη, λέξων ἔρχομαι. Οὗτος ὁ ἀοίδιμος Στέφανος πολλὰ κακὰ ὑπέστη ὑπὸ Ἀστούλφου, τοῦ ῥηγὸς τῶν Λογγιβάρδων. προσφυγὼν δὲ τοῖς Φράγγοις ἐπὶ Πιπίνου προοίκου καὶ ἐξάρχου τῆς διοικήσεως τῶν ὅλων πραγμάτων καὶ τοῦ τῶν Φράγγων ἔθνους· ἔθος γὰρ ἦν αὐτοῖς τὸν κύριον αὐτῶν, ἤτοι τὸν ῥῆγα, κατὰ γένος ἄρχειν καὶ μηδὲν πράττειν ἢ διοικεῖν, πλὴν ἀλόγως ἐσθίειν καὶ πίνειν, οἴκοι τε διατρίβειν καὶ κατὰ Μάϊον μῆνα πρώτῃ τοῦ μηνὸς προκαθέζεσθαι ἐπὶ παντὸς τοῦ 403 ἔθνους καὶ προσκυνεῖν αὐτοὺς καὶ προσκυνεῖσθαι ὑπ' αὐτῶν καὶ δωροφορεῖσθαι τὰ κατὰ συνήθειαν καὶ ἀντιδιδόναι αὐτοῖς καὶ οὕτως ἕως τοῦ ἄλλου Μαΐου καθ' ἑαυτὸν διάγειν. ἔχει δὲ τὸν λεγόμενον πρόοικον γνώμῃ ἑαυτοῦ καὶ τοῦ ἔθνους διοικοῦντα πάντα τὰ πράγματα. ἐλέγοντο δὲ οἱ ἐκ τοῦ γένους ἐκείνου καταγόμενοι κριστάται, ὃ ἑρμηνεύεται τριχοραχάται· τρίχας γὰρ εἶχον κατὰ τῆς ῥάχης ἐκφυομένας, ὡς χοῖροι. ὁ γοῦν εἰρημένος Στέφανος τῇ ὠμότητι τοῦ Ἀστούλφου βιασθεὶς καὶ ἀβουλίᾳ, ἅμα δὲ καὶ ἐπιτραπεὶς παρ' αὐτοῦ ἀπελθεῖν εἰς Φραγγικὴν καὶ ποιῆσαι ὃ ἂν δύνηται, ἐλθὼν χειροτονεῖ τὸν Πίπινον ἄνδρα τὸ τηνικαῦτα λίαν εὐδόκιμον, προϊστάμενον ἅμα καὶ τῶν πραγμάτων ἀπὸ τοῦ ῥηγὸς καὶ προπολεμήσαντα τοὺς περαιωθέντας Ἄραβας ἀπὸ τῆς Ἀφρικῆς ἐπὶ τὴν Σπανίαν, τοὺς καὶ κρατήσαντας ἕως τοῦ νῦν τῆς αὐτῆς Σπανίας, δοκιμάσαντας δὲ καὶ κατὰ τῶν Φράγγων παρατάξασθαι. οἷς ἀντιταξάμενος σὺν τῷ πλήθει ὁ αὐτὸς Πίπινος κτείνει μὲν καὶ αὐτὸν τὸν ἔξαρχον τοῦ ἔθνους Ἀβδεραχμάν, συναναιρεῖ δὲ καὶ πλῆθος οὐκ εὐαρίθμητον παρὰ τὸν Ἠριδανὸν ποταμόν, καὶ θαυμάζεται καὶ φιλεῖται παρὰ τοῦ ἔθνους, οὐ μόνον διὰ τοῦτο, ἀλλὰ καὶ δι' ἄλλα προτερήματα, καὶ προηγεῖται τοῦ ἔθνους πρῶτος οὐ κατὰ γένος, λύσαντος αὐτὸν τῆς ἐπιορκίας τῆς πρὸς τὸν ῥῆγα τοῦ αὐτοῦ Στεφάνου, καὶ ἀποκείραντος τὸν πρὸ αὐτοῦ ῥῆγα καὶ ἐν μοναστηρίῳ μετὰ τιμῆς καὶ ἀναπαύσεως περιορίσαντος. οὗτος ὁ Πίπινος δύο υἱοὺς ἔσχεν, Κάρουλον καὶ Καρουλόμαγνον, τὸν ἀδελφὸν αὐτοῦ. Τῷ δ' αὐτῷ ἔτει ἀπεβίω Ἰζίδ, ὁ τῶν Ἀράβων ἀμηρεύσας ἔτηδʹ, καὶ ἀμηρεύει Ἰσάμ, ὁ τούτου ἀδελφός, καὶ ἤρξατο κτίζειν κατὰ χώραν καὶ πόλιν παλάτια καὶ κατασπορὰς ποιεῖν καὶ παραδείσους καὶ ὕδατα ἐκβάλλειν. καὶ ἐπεστράτευσε [χθῆ] τὴν Ῥωμανίαν, καὶ πολλοὺς τῶν σὺν αὐτῷ ἀποβαλὼν ὑπέστρεψεν. Στέφανος δέ, ὁ πάπας Ῥώμης, προσέφυγεν εἰς τοὺς Φράγγους. 404 Ῥώμης ἐπίσκοπος Γρηγόριος