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to her protospatharios and bajulus, the one called Picridius, she exiled to the lower parts as far as Sicily. And the magistros Peter, having covered him with dishonors, she confined in his own house, and likewise Theodore the patrician, the Camulianus; and the patrician Damian, having flogged and tonsured him, she exiled to the fortress of Apollonias. And having beaten her son and reviled him greatly, she made him unable to go out for a considerable number of days. And she began to put the army under oath, that "as long as you live, we will not accept your son to rule." And they all swore thus, with no one daring to speak against this at all. And a fleet of Arabs went out against Cyprus, and having foreseen this, the empress also gathered all the Roman ships and sent them against them. And having come as far as Myra, both generals rounded the cape of the Chelidoniae and entered the gulf of Attaleia. But the Arabs, having set out from Cyprus, and as fair weather befell them, were carried about on the sea. And when they sighted land, the generals saw them, and drawing up in battle array they prepared to fight. But Theophilos, the strategos of the Cibyrrhaeots, being a robust and most capable man, taking courage and going out before all the others and engaging with these, was captured by them, whom they brought before Aaron, and being seen by him he was urged to become a traitor and receive temporary gifts. But when he did not accept and was further forced but did not yield, having undergone the punishment by the sword, he was revealed as a most excellent martyr. Years of the world 6283. Years of the divine incarnation 783. Constantine, emperor of the Romans, for 7 years. 1st year. Aaron, chief of the Arabs, for 23 years. 2nd year. Adrian, bishop of Rome, for 27 years. 22nd year. Tarasios, bishop of Constantinople, for 21 years. 7th year. In this year, in the month of September, in the 14th indiction, the oath-takers arrived at the theme of the Armeniacs; but they did not accept 466 to swear that "we will not be ruled by your son in your lifetime, nor do we place the name of Irene before Constantine, but of Constantine and Irene, as we received from the beginning." And she sent again to seize them Alexios the spatharios and droungarios of the vigla, surnamed Mousoulem. But having seized him, they put him forth to rule them, and having put under guard Nicephorus, their patrician and strategos, they acclaimed Constantine alone as emperor. Learning this, the people of the other themes, having driven out their strategoi, they too proclaimed Constantine alone as emperor. O the villainy of the wicked devil; how through many schemes he hastens to destroy the human race; for those who 15 years before had sworn that terrible oath and made written documents and deposited them in the holy bema, were again swearing to Irene not to be ruled by her son in her lifetime. And again forgetting this, they acclaimed Constantine as autocrator, not understanding, the wretches, that they ought not to have sworn a counter-oath. For of all necessity perjury follows a counter-oath, and perjury is a denial of God. And having gathered in the month of October of the 14th indiction, those of the themes in Atroa all with a common mind demanded Constantine as emperor, being in his twentieth year; and Irene, fearing the impetus of the people, released him. And they confirmed him as autocrator, but they repudiated his mother. And the emperor immediately sent Michael Lachanodrakon and John, his bajulus and protospatharios, and they put the Armeniacs under oath not to accept Irene his mother as emperor; and he confirmed Alexios as their strategos. And the emperor, having returned to the city in the month of December, having flogged and tonsured Staurakios, exiled him to the theme of the Armeniacs for their full assurance. He also exiled Aetios the eunuch, her protospatharios and confi467dant, and all her domestic eunuchs. And her, with her apathy

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πρωτοσπαθαρίῳ καὶ βαγύλῳ αὐτοῦ, τῷ λεγομένῳ Πικριδίῳ, ἐξώρισεν ἐπὶ τὰ κατωτικὰ μέρη ἕως Σικελίας. τὸν δὲ μάγιστρον Πέτρον ἀτιμίαις περιβαλοῦσα ἐκάθισεν ἐν τῷ οἴκῳ αὐτοῦ, ὁμοίως καὶ Θεόδωρον πατρίκιον, τὸν Καμουλιανόν· τὸν δὲ πατρίκιον ∆αμιανὸν δείρασα καὶ κουρεύσασα εἰς Ἀπολλωνιάδα τὸ κάστρον ἐξώρισεν. τύψασα δὲ καὶ τὸν υἱὸν καὶ πολλὰ λοιδορήσασα ἀπρόϊτον ἐποίησεν ἐπὶ ἡμέρας ἱκανάς. ἤρξατο δὲ ὁρκίζειν τὸν στρατόν, ὅτι "ἕως οὗ ζῇς, οὐ καταδεξόμεθα τὸν υἱόν σου κρατῆσαι." καὶ ὤμνυον πάντες οὕτως, μηδενὸς τολμῶντος ἀντειπεῖν περὶ τούτου τὸ σύνολον. στόλος δὲ ἐξῆλθεν Ἀράβων ἐπὶ Κύπρον, καὶ τοῦτο προγνοῦσα ἡ βασίλισσα ἐσώρευσε καὶ αὐτὴ πάντα τὰ Ῥωμαϊκὰ πλωΐματα καὶ ἀπέλυσε κατ' αὐτῶν. ἐλθόντες δὲ ἕως τὰ Μύρα ἀμφότεροι οἱ στρατηγοὶ ἔκαμψαν τὸν ἀκρωτῆρα τῶν Χελιδονίων καὶ εἰσῆλθον ἐπὶ τὸν κόλπον Ἀταλείας. οἱ δὲ Ἄραβες κινήσαντες ἀπὸ τῆς Κύπρου, καὶ εὐδίας αὐτοὺς καταλαβούσης, περιεφέροντο ἐν τῷ πελάγει. ἀναφανέντων δὲ αὐτῶν τὴν γῆν, εἶδον αὐτοὺς οἱ στρατηγοί, καὶ παραταξάμενοι ἡτοιμάσθησαν τοῦ πολεμεῖν. Θεόφιλος δέ, ὁ τῶν Κιβυραιωτῶν στρατηγός, ῥωμαλέος ἀνὴρ καὶ ἱκανώτατος ὤν, θαρσήσας καὶ πάντων προεξελθὼν τούτοις τε συμβαλών, ἐκρατήθη ὑπ' αὐτῶν, ὃν ἐπαγαγόντες πρὸς Ἀαρών, θεαθείς τε παρ' αὐτοῦ προετράπη προδότης γενέσθαι καὶ τυχεῖν προσκαίρων δωρεῶν. τοῦ δὲ μὴ καταδεξαμένου ἐπὶ πλέον τε ἀναγκασθέντος καὶ μὴ ὑπείξαντος, τὴν διὰ ξίφους τιμωρίαν ὑπομείνας μάρτυς ἄριστος ἀνεδείχθη. Κόσμου ἔτη σπγʹ. Τῆς θείας σαρκώσεως ἔτη ψπγʹ. Ῥωμαίων βασιλεὺς Κωνσταντῖνος ἔτη ζʹ. αʹ. Ἀράβων ἀρχηγὸς Ἀαρὼν ἔτη κγʹ. ʹ. Ῥώμης ἐπίσκοπος Ἀδριανὸς ἔτη κζʹ. κβʹ. Κωνσταντ. ἐπίσκοπος Ταράσιος ἔτη καʹ. ζʹ. Τούτῳ τῷ ἔτει μηνὶ Σεπτεμβρίῳ, ἰνδικτιῶνος ιδʹ, κατέλαβον οἱ ὁρκίζοντες εἰς τὸ θέμα τῶν Ἀρμενιάκων· οἱ δὲ οὐ κατεδέξαντο 466 ὀμόσαι, ὅτι "οὐ βασιλευόμεθα ὑπὸ τοῦ υἱοῦ σου ἐν τῇ ζωῇ σου, οὐδὲ προτάσσομεν τὸ ὄνομα Εἰρήνης πρὸ Κωνσταντίνου, ἀλλὰ Κωνσταντίνου καὶ Εἰρήνης, ὡς ἐξ ἀρχῆς παρελάβομεν." ἀπέστειλε δὲ πάλιν πρὸς τὸ πιάσαι αὐτοὺς Ἀλέξιον τὸν σπαθάριον καὶ δρουγγάριον τῆς βίγλας, τὸ ἐπίκλην Μουσουλέμ. οἱ δὲ κρατήσαντες αὐτὸν τοῦ ἄρχειν αὐτῶν προεβάλοντο, Νικηφόρον δέ, τὸν πατρίκιον καὶ στρατηγὸν αὐτῶν, φρουρήσαντες Κωνσταντῖνον μόνον βασιλέα ἀνευφήμησαν. τοῦτο μαθόντες οἱ τῶν λοιπῶν θεμάτων λαοί, τοὺς στρατηγοὺς αὐτῶν διώξαντες Κωνσταντῖνον μόνον βασιλέα καὶ αὐτοὶ ἀνεκήρυττον. ὢ τῆς τοῦ πονηροῦ διαβόλου πανουργίας· πῶς διὰ πολλῶν μεθοδειῶν σπεύδει ἀπολέσαι τὸ τῶν ἀνθρώπων γένος· οἱ γὰρ πρὸ ιεʹ χρόνων ὀμόσαντες τὸν φοβερὸν ἐκεῖνον ὅρκον καὶ ἔγγραφα ποιήσαντες καὶ ἐν τῷ ἁγίῳ βήματι ἀποθέμενοι πάλιν ὤμνυον τῇ Εἰρήνῃ μὴ βασιλευθῆναι ὑπὸ τοῦ υἱοῦ αὐτῆς ἐν τῇ ζωῇ αὐτῆς. καὶ αὖθις τοῦτο ἐπιλαθόμενοι Κωνσταντῖνον αὐτοκράτορα ἀνευφήμουν, μὴ ἐννοήσαντες οἱ τάλανες, ὅτι οὐκ ἔδει ἀντωμοσίαν ποιῆσαι. ἀνάγκη γὰρ πᾶσα τῇ ἀντωμοσίᾳ ἐπιορκίαν παρακολουθῆσαι, ἐπιορκία δὲ θεοῦ ἄρνησις. συναχθέντες δὲ τῷ Ὀκτωβρίῳ μηνὶ τῆς ιδʹ ἰνδικτιῶνος οἱ τῶν θεμάτων ἐν τῇ Ἀτρῴᾳ ἐπεζήτησαν πάντες κοινῇ γνώμῃ Κωνσταντῖνον βασιλέα εἰκοστὸν ἄγοντα ἔτος· φοβηθεῖσα δὲ Εἰρήνη τὸ ὅρμημα τοῦ λαοῦ ἀπέλυσεν αὐτόν. αὐτοὶ δὲ τοῦτον αὐτοκράτορα ἐκύρωσαν μέν, ἀπεκήρυξαν δὲ τὴν τούτου μητέρα. ἀπέστειλε δὲ εὐθέως ὁ βασιλεὺς Μιχαὴλ τὸν Λαχανοδράκοντα καὶ Ἰωάννην, τὸν βάγυλον αὐτοῦ καὶ πρωτοσπαθάριον, καὶ ὥρκισαν τοὺς Ἀρμενιάκους τοῦ μὴ δέξασθαι Εἰρήνην τὴν αὐτοῦ μητέρα εἰς βασιλέα· τὸν δὲ Ἀλέξιον ἐπεκύρωσε στρατηγὸν αὐτῶν. καὶ ἐπανελθὼν ὁ βασιλεὺς ἐν τῇ πόλει τῷ ∆εκεμβρίῳ μηνί, δείρας καὶ κουρεύσας Σταυράκιον ἐξώρισε εἰς τὸ θέμα τῶν Ἀρμενιάκων πρὸς πληροφορίαν αὐτῶν. ἐξώρισε δὲ καὶ Ἀέτιον τὸν εὐνοῦχον, πρωτοσπαθάριον καὶ ἐπιστή467 θιον αὐτῆς, καὶ πάντας τοὺς οἰκειακοὺς αὐτῆς εὐνούχους. ταύτην δὲ μετὰ τῆς ἀπαθείας αὐτῆς