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he was entrusted with the administration of common affairs, but referring whatever was more necessary to the grand domestic, he himself attended to the more humble matters, from which no harm to the common good was expected, whether they were administered well or badly. Nevertheless he was courted by many. In the meantime, having often offended the emperor through his beloved villainy and being about to pay the penalty, he was saved from the emperor's wr 2.91 ath by the intercession of the grand domestic. Having come to such prominence from great obscurity, he considered if he could repay his benefactor with the very opposite. For when the young emperor Andronikos fell into that severe illness and came near to death, he left the rule to his wife the empress, who had not yet become a mother, but was in labor; and to the grand domestic he left the administration of common affairs and that all should obey him and no one should contradict him in anything. And he, as is the custom for dying emperors wishing to make firm the goodwill and loyalty of the subjects toward those left behind, having set forth oaths, commanded everyone through them to confirm their fidelity. The oaths stipulated that the Romans would keep unblemished faith to the empress Anna and to the emperor's child to be born of her, and obedience to the grand domestic. But of the empress Xene, the emperor's mother, they made no mention at all; for so the emperor had judged it necessary, that two women, and these two, could not administer one government. At that time, therefore, she took it badly, as did those who had any goodwill towards her, although the grand domestic had not left her unattended. For as he himself suspected the matter could cause disturbance for the empress, he sent Glabas the grand dioiketes to her with speed, and with him a cross of precious stones for the sake of the credibility of his words, and made known that the emperor's ill 2.92 ness was severe; and he begged God not to overlook them 2.92 bereft of such an emperor. But if indeed something of the expected should happen, as He who weighs all things justly and profitably ordains, she should suspect nothing unpleasant from the change in affairs, as he was no less favorably disposed toward her than if he himself had been born of her. And so, as she was moved to anger, those who had long been gnawed by envy at the good repute of the grand domestic, and were then more inflamed by her passion, seeing clearly that he had become master of affairs—among whom were many others and the parakoimomenos Apokaukos was prominent, with Syrgiannes leading the action—thinking the empress's anger would contribute the greatest part to them in overcoming the grand domestic and destroying his power, many came to the empress, since the emperor was getting better and had been delivered from his illness, and they pretended to be indignant on her behalf and condemned the great ingratitude of the grand domestic, because when the emperor was dying, when he ought, if he had moderate thoughts, to have preserved the rule for both empresses, and especially for her, because from both sides, from her son and from her husband the emperor, the rule of the Romans belonged to her, he, caring little for justice and propriety, brought all the power to himself, adding Anna the 2.93 empress to the oaths as a kind of curtain for his villainy, who, having arrived from a foreign land a short time before and having few Romans willing to risk danger on her behalf, was likely to easily concede the rule to him. And they advised her not to overlook such things happening, but with great haste and zeal to destroy his power, teaching the emperor her son how he had schemed treacherously and wickedly concerning the rule when he was dying, and now no less persuaded all the Romans to pay attention to him, with the result that the emperor had only the title, devoid of substance, while he in fact was reigning. which things it behooved him to see to, lest they result in irremediable disaster, but to check the impulse in advance by deposing his great and contemptible arrogance

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ἐπετράπη τὴν διοίκησιν τῶν κοινῶν, ἀλλ' ὅσα τῶν ἀναγκαιοτέρων ἦν πρὸς τὸν μέγαν δομέστικον ἀνάγων, αὐτὸς τῶν ταπεινοτέρων εἴχετο, ἐξ ὧν οὐδεμία τοῖς κοινοῖς προσεδοκᾶτο βλάβη, εὖ ἢ κακῶς διῳκημένοις. ὅμως δὲ ὑπὸ πολλῶν ἐθεραπεύετο. μεταξὺ δὲ καὶ πολλάκις βασιλεῖ προσκεκρουκὼς διὰ τὴν φίλην πανουργίαν καὶ μέλλων διδόναι δίκας, ὑπὸ τοῦ μεγάλου δομεστίκου τὴν βασιλέως ὀρ 2.91 γὴν ἐῤῥύσθη παραιτουμένου. εἰς τοιαύτην δὲ περιφάνειαν ἐξ ἀφανείας πολλῆς ἐλθὼν, ἐσκέψατο, εἰ δύναιτο τὸν εὐεργέτην ἀμείψασθαι τοῖς ἐναντιωτάτοις. ὡς γὰρ βασιλεὺς ὁ νέος Ἀνδρόνικος τὴν νόσον ἐνόσησεν ἐκείνην τὴν σφοδρὰν καὶ τελευτῆς ἐγένετο ἐγγὺς, βασιλίδι μὲν τῇ γαμετῇ κατελίμπανε τὴν ἀρχὴν, οὔπω μὲν παιδὸς μητρὶ γεγενημένῃ, ὠδινούσῃ δέ· τῷ μεγάλῳ δὲ δομεστίκῳ τὴν διοίκησιν τῶν κοινῶν καὶ τὸ πάντας αὐτῷ ὑπείκειν καὶ μηδένα ἀντιλέγειν πρὸς μηδέν. ὁ δ' ὥσπερ ἔθος ἐπὶ τελευτῶσι τοῖς βασιλεῦσι τοῖς ὑπολειπομένοις τὴν εὔνοιαν καὶ τὴν πίστιν βεβαίαν παρὰ τῶν ὑπηκόων βουλόμενος ποιεῖν, ὅρκους ἐκθεὶς, πάντας δι' αὐτῶν ἐκέλευε τὴν πίστιν ἐμπεδοῦν. οἱ ὅρκοι δὲ Ἄννῃ τε τῇ βασιλίδι Ῥωμαίους διελάμβανον τὴν πίστιν ἀκραιφνῆ φυλάξειν καὶ παιδὶ βασιλέως τῷ γεννησομένῳ ἐξ αὐτῆς, καὶ τῷ μεγάλῳ δομεστίκῳ τὴν εὐπείθειαν. Ξένης δὲ βασιλίδος τῆς βασιλέως μητρὸς ἐμέμνηντο οὐδ' ὁτιοῦν· οὕτω καὶ βασιλεῖ κεκρικότι δεῖν, μὴ δύνασθαι δύο καὶ ταύτας γυναῖκας μίαν διοικεῖν ἀρχήν. τότε μὲν οὖν ἐκείνη τε ἤνεγκε βαρέως καὶ οἷς πρὸς ἐκείνην εὔνοιά τις ἦν, καίπερ οὐδ' ἐκείνην ἀθεράπευτον καταλιπόντος τοῦ μεγάλου δομεστίκου. ὡς γὰρ καὶ αὐτὸς τὸ πρᾶγμα ὑπενόει θόρυβον δυνάμενον τῇ βασιλίδι ἐμποιεῖν, Γλαβᾶν τὸν μέγαν διοικητὴν πέμψας κατὰ τάχος πρὸς αὐτὴν, ἅμα δὲ καὶ σταυρὸν ἐκ τῶν πολυτιμήτων λίθων ἀξιοπιστίας ἕνεκα τῶν λόγων, τὴν μὲν νόσον ἐδήλου βασι 2.92 λέως ὡς εἴη χαλεπή· ἐδεῖτό τε θεοῦ μὴ περιιδεῖν αὐτοὺς 2.92 τοιούτου βασιλέως ἀποστερηθέντας. εἰ δ' ἄρα τι συμβαίη τῶν προσδοκωμένων, οὕτω τοῦ πάντα δικαίως καὶ συμφερόντως ταλαντεύοντος οἰκονομοῦντος, μηδὲν αὐτὴν ὑποπτεύειν ἀηδὲς ἐκ τῶν πραγμάτων τῆς μεταβολῆς, ὡς οὐδὲν ἧττον εὐνοϊκῶς αὐτοῦ διακειμένου πρὸς αὐτὴν, ἢ εἰ καὶ αὐτὸς γεγέννητο ἐξ αὐτῆς. οὕτω δὲ ἐκείνης πρὸς ὀργὴν κεκινημένης, οἱ πάλαι τε ὑπὸ φθόνου πρὸς τὴν εὔκλειαν δακνόμενοι τοῦ μεγάλου δομεστίκου καὶ τότε μᾶλλον πρὸς τὸ πάθος ἐξαφθέντες, σαφῶς ἰδόντες κύριον γεγενημένον τῶν πραγμάτων· ἐν οἷς ἄλλοι τε πολλοὶ καὶ ὁ παρακοιμώμενος Ἀπόκαυκος ἐξητασμένος ἦν, Συργιάννη πρὸς τὴν πρᾶξιν ἡγουμένου· τὴν βασιλίδος ὀργὴν νομίσαντες ἂν αὐτοῖς τὰ μέγιστα συμβαλέσθαι πρὸς τὸ τοῦ μεγάλου δομεστίκου περιγενέσθαι καὶ καταλῦσαι τὴν ἀρχὴν, πολλοὶ πρὸς βασιλίδα ἀφιγμένοι, ἐπεὶ ῥᾴων ἦν ὁ βασιλεὺς καὶ ἀπήλλακτο τῆς νόσου, ἀγανακτεῖν ὑπὲρ αὐτῆς προσεποιοῦντο καὶ πολλὴν ἀγνωμοσύνην τοῦ μεγάλου δομεστίκου κατεγίνωσκον, ὅτι βασιλέως τελευτῶντος, ὅτ' αὐτὸν, εἰ μέτρια διενοεῖτο, ταῖς βασιλίσιν ἀμφοτέραις ἔδει τὴν ἀρχὴν συνδιασώζειν καὶ μάλιστα ἐκείνῃ, ὅτι ἀμφοτέρωθεν ἔκ τε παιδὸς καὶ τοῦ συνοίκου βασιλέως ἡ Ῥωμαίων προσῆκε βασιλεία, ὅδ' ὀλίγον καὶ τοῦ δικαίου καὶ τοῦ προσήκοντος φροντίσας, πᾶσαν τὴν ἀρχὴν περιήγαγεν εἰς ἑαυτὸν, ὥσπερ τι παραπέτασμα τῆς κακουργίας Ἄνναν τὴν 2.93 βασιλίδα προσθεὶς τοῖς ὅρκοις, ἣ ἐξ ἀλλοδαπῆς ὀλίγῳ πρότερον ἀφιγμένη καὶ ὀλίγους ἔχουσα Ῥωμαίων τοὺς ὑπὲρ αὐτῆς βουλησομένους διακινδυνεύειν, ῥᾳδίως ἔμελλεν αὐτῷ παραχωρήσειν τῆς ἀρχῆς. συνεβούλευόν τε, μὴ τοιαῦτα γινόμενα περιορᾷν, ἀλλὰ σπουδῇ πολλῇ καὶ προθυμίᾳ τὴν ἐκείνου καταλύειν δύναμιν, διδάσκουσαν βασιλέα τὸν υἱὸν, ὡς ἐπιβούλως καὶ κακούργως διανοηθείη περὶ τῆς ἀρχῆς ἐκείνου τελευτῶντος, καὶ νῦν οὐδὲν ἧττον πάντας πείσειε Ῥωμαίους αὐτῷ προσέχειν, ὡς συμβαίνειν, βασιλεῖ μὲν προσηγορίαν μόνην εἶναι πραγμάτων ἔρημον, ἔργῳ δὲ ἐκεῖνον βασιλεύειν. ἃ αὐτὸν σκοπεῖν προσήκει μὴ εἰς ἀνήκεστα ἐκβῇ, ἀλλὰ τὴν ὁρμὴν προαναστέλλειν καθαιροῦντα τὸν ὄγκον τὸν πολὺν καὶ εὐκαταφρόνητον