195
coming to speak with Cantacuzenus, said such things to him: "With what purpose have you turned to building and construction?" And he: "You know that, having professed servitude to the emperor, you agreed under oath to hand over the cities you took. Then, you yourself, having broken your oaths and disregarded the peace treaties, and having taken this very city and handed it over to us, changed your mind and held it again, so that I have come here in vain for the purpose of taking back the cities you took." And Bohemond: "Have you come hoping to take these from us by money or by the sword?" And he: "Those who followed with us received the money in order to fight zealously." And Bohemond, filled with anger, said: "Know that without money you will not be able to hold even a fortress." And at that time he spurred on the phalanxes under him to ride out as far as the very gates of the city. 11.11.7 And Cantacuzenus' men, guarding the walls, letting fly their arrows like a snowstorm against the Franks approaching the walls, pushed them back a little. And immediately Bohemond, gathering everyone, entered into the acropolis. And suspecting the count guarding it with the Celts under him, he appointed another to guard the city, having driven those men from there. At the same time, he also destroyed the vineyards that were near the walls, so that they would not stand in the way of the Latins who were about to ride. Having thus arranged these things, he departed from there and took Antioch; but Cantacuzenus did not neglect to besiege them in every way and, through countless engines and devices and city-takers, to throw into confusion the Latins inside the acropolis. But Monastras, too, coming through the mainland with the cavalry force, takes Longinias, Tarsus, Adana, and Mamista, and indeed all of Cilicia itself.
11.12.1 But Bohemond, terrified at the threats of the emperor and not having any means to use for defense (for he had neither an army on land nor a fleet at sea; for the danger hung over him from both sides), devised something of this sort, exceedingly ignoble, but exceedingly cunning. For first, having left the city of Antioch to his nephew Tancred, son of the Marquis, he himself sent out rumors from all quarters about himself, that Bohemond had died, and while still alive, spread the story throughout the world that he was dead. 11.12.2 And the rumor ran everywhere, swifter than wings, and proclaimed Bohemond dead. And indeed, when he saw that the rumor was sufficient, from then on a coffin .... wooden and a bireme ship, in which the coffin was placed, and this breathing corpse sailed from Soudi, which is the port of Antioch, to Rome. And across the sea he was carried as a corpse, appearing dead on the outside both by the coffin and by the postures of those around him (for wherever they went, the barbarians tore their hair and wailed loudly), but inside he, lying stretched out, was dead only in these respects, but for the rest he breathed the air in and out through some hidden holes. This was so in the coastal areas; but whenever the vessel was on the open sea, they gave him food and took care of him; and after this, again the same laments and the same tricks. 11.12.3 And so that the corpse might also seem to be stale and to smell, they suffocated or slaughtered a rooster and put it in with the corpse. And immediately on the fourth or even the fifth day, it was most foul-smelling to those who had a sense of smell. And the foulness of the smell seemed to those who were deceived on the outside to be from the skin of Bohemond; but that Bohemond enjoyed more of the artificial evil, so that I myself wonder how he, while still alive, endured such a siege of the nose with
195
γε τοῦ Καντακουζηνοῦ εἰς ὁμιλίαν ἐλθὼν τοιαῦτα πρὸς αὐτὸν ἔφη· «Τίνα σκοπὸν ἔχων πρὸς οἰκοδομὰς καὶ κτίσεις ἀπέβλεψας;» Ὁ δέ· «Οἶδας ὅτι δουλείαν ὁμολογήσαντες τῷ αὐτοκράτορι καὶ τὰς παρ' ὑμῶν αἱρουμένας πόλεις ἐνωμότως παραδοῦναι κατέθεσθε. Εἶτα αὐτὸς καταψευσάμενος τῶν ὁρκίων, ἀθετήσας δὲ καὶ τὰς εἰρηνικὰς σπονδὰς καὶ ταυτηνὶ τὴν πόλιν ἑλὼν καὶ παρα δοὺς ἡμῖν, μεταγνοὺς αὖθις κατέσχες, ὥστε μάτην αὐτὸς ἐνταυθοῖ παρεγενόμην ἐπὶ τῷ τὰς παρ' ὑμῶν αἱρουμένας πόλεις ἀναλαμβάνεσθαι.» Ὁ δὲ Βαϊμοῦντος· «∆ιὰ χρη μάτων ἢ διὰ σιδήρου ταύτας ἐλπίζων ἐξ ἡμῶν λαμβάνειν ἥκεις;» Ὁ δὲ· «Τὰ χρήματα οἱ συνεφεπόμενοι ἡμῖν ἔλα βον ἐπὶ τῷ ἐκθύμως ἀγωνίζεσθαι». Ὁ δὲ Βαϊμοῦντος θυμοῦ πλησθεὶς ἔφη· «Ἄτερ χρημάτων ἴσθι ὡς οὐδὲ φρού ριον κατασχεῖν δυνηθῇς». Καὶ τηνικαῦτα τὰς ὑπ' αὐτὸν φάλαγγας παρέθηξε μέχρις αὐτῶν πυλῶν τῆς πόλεως ἐξιπ πάσασθαι. 11.11.7 Οἱ δὲ τοῦ Καντακουζηνοῦ τὰ τείχη τηροῦν τες δίκην νιφάδος τοὺς ὀϊστοὺς κατὰ τῶν τοῖς τείχεσι προσπελαζόντων Φράγγων ἐπαφιέντες μικρόν τι τούτους ἀπώσαντο. Καὶ παραχρῆμα ὁ Βαϊμοῦντος συναγαγὼν ἅπαντας εἰσῆλθεν ἐντὸς τῆς ἀκροπόλεως. Ὑποπτεύσας δὲ τὸν φυλάσσοντα κόμητα μετὰ τῶν ὑπ' αὐτὸν Κελτῶν, ἕτε ρον εἰς φυλακὴν τῆς πόλεως ἐπέστησεν ἐκείνους ἐκεῖθεν ἀπελάσας. Ἅμα δὲ καὶ τοὺς ἀγχοῦ τῶν τειχῶν ὄντας ἀμπελῶνας ἠρίπωσεν, ὥστε μὴ ἐμποδὼν τοῖς ἱππά ζεσθαι μέλλουσι καθεστάναι Λατίνοις. Ταῦτα μὲν οὕτω καταστήσας ἐκεῖθεν ἐξελθὼν τὴν Ἀντιόχου κατέλαβεν· ὁ δέ γε Καντακουζηνὸς οὐκ ἠμέλει παντοίως πολιορκῶν τε καὶ διὰ μυρίων μηχανῶν τε καὶ ἐπιχειρημάτων καὶ ἑλεπό λεων, συνταράσσων τοὺς ἐντὸς τῆς ἀκροπόλεως Λατίνους. Ἀλλὰ καὶ ὁ Μοναστρᾶς, διὰ τῆς ἠπείρου ἐρχόμενος μετὰ τοῦ ἱππικοῦ φοσσάτου, παραλαμβάνει τήν τε Λογγινιάδα, τὴν Ταρσόν, τὴν Ἄδαναν καὶ τὴν Μάμισταν καὶ αὐτὴν δὴ τὴν Κιλικίαν ἅπασαν.
11.12.1 Πρὸς δὲ τὰς τοῦ αὐτοκράτορος ἀπειλὰς ὁ Βαϊ μοῦντος ὀρρωδήσας καὶ μὴ ἔχων ὅ τι καὶ χρήσαιτο πρὸς ἄμυναν (οὔτε γὰρ κατ' ἤπειρον εἶχε στράτευμα οὔτε κατὰ θάλατταν στόλον· ἑκατέρωθεν γὰρ αὐτῷ ὁ κίνδυνος ἐπεκρέ ματο) μηχανᾶταί τι τοιοῦτον σφόδρα μὲν ἀγεννές, σφόδρα δὲ πανουργότατον. Πρῶτον γὰρ τὴν Ἀντιόχου πόλιν κατα λείψας τῷ τοῦ Μαρκέση Ταγγρὲ καὶ τούτου ἀδελφιδῷ, αὐτὸς ἁπανταχόθεν φήμας πέμπει περὶ ἑαυτοῦ, ὡς ἄρα ὁ Βαϊμοῦντος ἀποτεθνήκει, καὶ ζῶν ἔτι ὡς περὶ κατοιχομέ νου αὐτοῦ τὴν οἰκουμένην διέθετο. 11.12.2 Καὶ ἡ φήμη διέ τρεχεν ἁπανταχῆ πτερῶν ταχυτέρα καὶ τὸν Βαϊμοῦντον νεκρὸν ἐκήρυττε. Καὶ δῆτα ὡς ἑώρα τὰ τῆς φήμης ἀπο χρώντως ἔχειν, λάρναξ τὸ ἐντεῦθεν .... ξυλίνη καὶ ναῦς διή ρης, ἐν ᾗ κατατιθεμένη ἡ λάρναξ, καὶ ὁ ἔμπνους οὗτος νεκρὸς ἀπὸ τοῦ Σουδεΐ, ὅπερ ἐστὶ τῆς Ἀντιοχείας ἐπί νειον, ἐπὶ τὴν Ῥώμην ἀπέπλει. Καὶ διαπόντιος ὡς νεκρὸς ἐκομίζετο, τὰ μὲν ἔξωθεν νεκρὸς καὶ τῇ σορῷ καὶ τοῖς τῶν ἀμφ' αὐτὸν σχήμασιν (καὶ γὰρ ἑκασταχοῦ γινόμενοι ἀπέτιλ λόν τε τὰς τρίχας οἱ βάρβαροι καὶ σαφῶς ἀνωλόλυζον), τὰ δ' ἔνδον ἐκεῖνος ἐκτάδην κείμενος μέχρι τούτων νεκρὸς ἦν, τὰ δ' ἄλλα εἰσέπνει τε τὸν ἀέρα καὶ ἀπέπνει διά τινων κρυ φίων ὀπῶν. Ταῦτα μὲν ἐν τοῖς παραλίοις· ἐπειδὰν δὲ κατὰ πελάγους τὸ σκάφος γένοιτο, τροφῆς τε αὐτῷ μετεδίδοσαν καὶ ἐπεμελοῦντο· καὶ μετὰ τοῦτο πάλιν οἱ αὐτοὶ θρῆνοι καὶ τὰ αὐτὰ μαγγανεύματα. 11.12.3 Ἵνα δὲ καὶ δοκοίη ὁ νεκρὸς ἕωλος εἶναι καὶ ὀδωδώς, ἀλεκτρυόνα ἀποπνίξαντες ἢ ἀπο σφάξαντες ἐνέθηκαν τῷ νεκρῷ. Καὶ εὐθὺς ἐκεῖνος εἰς τετάρτην ἢ καὶ πέμπτην ἡμέραν βαρυοδμότατος ἦν τοῖς ὄσφρησιν ἔχουσιν. Καὶ ἐδόκει μὲν τοῦ χρωτὸς εἶναι τοῦ Βαϊμούντου τὸ βαρὺ τῆς ἀναπνοῆς τοῖς ἔξωθεν ἠπατη μένοις· πλέον δ' ἐκεῖνος ὁ Βαϊμοῦντος τοῦ ἐπιπλάστου κακοῦ συναπέλαυεν, ὥστε ἔγωγε θαυμάζω πῶς τοσαύτην ὑπήνεγκε τῆς ῥινὸς πολιορκίαν ζῶν ἔτι μετὰ